they. >> don't have to actually. scrub their language to make sure that they're saying the right thing. that was what was wrong. >> with political correctness. that's what people. >> have said. >> about woke culture. but it's much. >> worse now. >> because people. >> are afraid. >> of the government, which has awesome powers. it's not just. >> social media. it's not just. >> your. >> friends going to yell at you. >> people are afraid. >> of the government. >> and in the united. >> states, we have to. >> resist fear of the government. >> by practicing democracy. >> and you are here, the wesleyan president. wesleyan university president michael roth, to remind us that we have to practice democracy. thank you so much for being here. >> it's my pleasure to be with you. >> thanks for. >> having me. >> thank you. and a quick programing note. i'm actually going to be back tomorrow to talk to astronaut and activist amanda nguyen, who will be heading to space this spring. that's tomorrow at noon eastern on the katie phang show right here on msnbc. and remember, you can always find me on social media at katie phang, but that does it for me right now. you

have michael steele coming up next. hi, michael steele. >> hey, katie. thank you very much. appreciate you. we begin this hour. >> with the. >> remarkable scene we saw play out today in the oval office between donald trump and ukrainian president volodymyr zelensky. >> folks, this happened. >> ahead of a high stakes. >> meeting between the two leaders. zelensky came to the white house to. >> finalize a. >> deal on. >> rare earth and other critical minerals. >> right. >> very straightforward program. >> and at the start of the. >> day. >> it was. >> actually kind of looking like trump. >> was softening. >> his stance towards. the ukrainian president. yesterday, he even claimed that he did not. >> remember calling zelensky a dictator. >> just last week. but today. >> in front of. the press and the world. >> the meeting. devolved into a. >> spectacle unlike. anything we've ever. >> seen in. >> the oval office an explosive shouting match with the president and vice president of the united states berating.

>> the leader of. >> an allied country. mr. president. >> mr. president, with respect, i think it's disrespectful for you to come into the oval office and try to litigate this in front of the american media. right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. you should be thanking the president for bringing into this. >> you ever been to ukraine that you say what problems we have? >> i have been to. >> come once. >> i have actually, i've actually watched and seen the stories and i know what happens is you bring people, you bring them on a propaganda tour, mr. president, or do you disagree that you've had problems bringing people into your military? and do you think that it's respectful to come to the oval office of the united states of america and attack the administration that is trying to trying to prevent the destruction of your country? >> a lot of a lot of questions. let's start from the beginning. sure. first of all, during the war, everybody has problems. even you. but you have nice ocean. and don't feel now. but

you will feel it in the future. god bless you. god bless you. god bless. you will not have. >> a war. don't tell us what we're going to feel. we're trying to solve a problem. don't tell us what we're going to feel. >> i'm not telling. >> you because you're in no position to dictate that. >> exactly. >> you're in no position to dictate what we're going to feel. we're going to feel very good. we're going to feel very good and very strong influence. you're right now not in a very good position. you've allowed. yourself to be in a. >> very bad position. >> and he happens to be right about. >> from the very beginning of the war. >> you're not in a good position. you don't have the cards right now with us. you start having cards. cards? right now, you don't know you're playing. >> mr. president, i. >> you're gambling with the lives of millions of people. you're gambling with world war three. you're gambling with world war three. and what you're doing is very disrespectful to the country. this country that's backing you far more than a lot

of people said they should have. >> have you said thank you once? the entire meeting? no. in this. entire meeting, you said. >> thank you. >> today you went to pennsylvania and campaigned for the opposition in october. offer some words of appreciation for the united states of america and the president who's trying to save your country. >> what if. >> russia breaks this fire? what if russia breaks? please tell us what. >> do. >> you do? them understand. >> that it's. >> a heated conversation. >> what are you saying? >> what she's asking. what if russia breaks the cease fire? >> what if they. what? if anything? what if the bomb drops on your head right now? okay, what if they broke it? i don't know, they broke it with biden because biden didn't respect him. they didn't respect obama. they respect me. but let me tell you, putin went through a hell of a lot with me. he went through a phony witch hunt where they used him and russia, russia, russia, russia. you ever hear of that deal? that was a phony. that was a phony. hunter biden, joe biden scam, hillary

clinton, shifty adam schiff it was a democrat scam. and he had to go through that. >> folks, that's. >> cesspool of stupid. >> went on for. >> ten minutes. >> shortly after, trump posted on his social media site saying he has. determined president zelensky is not ready for peace and that. >> he can come back when he's ready. >> pre-planned bilateral press. >> conference was. >> then abruptly canceled. and zelensky was kicked out of the white house. no deal was signed. >> it's hard to overstate just how much. >> of an embarrassment this was. >> for. >> america on the world stage. and just an overall disaster for everybody except russian president. vladimir putin. joining me. >> now is julie ioffe. >> president, washington correspondent for putt. edward luce, us chief. columnist for the financial times. and rick

stengel. >> former undersecretary. of state. >> for diplomatic, public diplomacy and affairs and. msnbc political analyst. i want to play for everybody before i get to a question. because i do want to address straight out. >> of the. >> out of the box, the idea that j.d. vance postured that. >> oh, when are you going to say thank you to us? when are you going to tell us? >> thank you. >> let's listen to the various times that. >> the president of ukraine. >> said. >> thank you. >> to america. >> ukraine is. grateful to the united states for its overwhelming support. i came here to the united states. >> to forward. >> the thank. >> the word of. >> thanks to the. >> people of america. >> thank you so much, mr. president. thank you for all this. 575 days. yes. and thanks to the american people. i like to thank american partners for the support. mr. president,

thank you. your team. i would also like to thank the united states congress for their support. both parties, both chambers. we deeply appreciate that ukraine and america have stood side by side from the very first moments of this terrible russian invasion. >> rick. >> you know, i guess i guess the question is, what are we to make. >> of what we witnessed today. and. >> the clear. >> clear move by. >> this president to solidify his relationship with. >> vladimir putin. >> michael, i'm glad you played that clip of mr. zelensky thanking america over and over. and when you when j.d. vance asked, have you said thank you, i thought, did george marshall ever ask france to say thank you? did he ever ask germany to say thank you? did he ask japan to say thank you? that's not what americans do. we don't ask people to say thank you for the generosity. we benefit from it

also. and it's just this kind of gigantic cleavage with that old word cold. that was once the part of america where we had an american president siding with an autocratic dictator who invaded another country, invaded the largest country in europe, the largest cross-border invasion since world war two, something that trump won't even admit to. so it was it was a very, very sad day for american diplomacy, for american history. and it's just painful to watch. >> julia, i want to, you. >> know, play a little. >> bit of president. >> zelensky on fox news, responding to. what we just. >> saw, what happened in the oval office. take a listen. >> do you think the public spat in the oval office in front of. >> the. >> media served ukrainians well today? >> i think this kind of this kind of spat is i mean, this we have i mean, this is not good

for both sides anyway. and i will very open, but i can't, you know, change our ukrainian attitude to russia. and i don't want the us for us. >> the ukrainians. well, i mean, the aggressor here is russia. and so what is what is it about this narrative that zelensky has to prove that he's not the. >> bad guy. >> here, and that what we witness was something. that really. >> was brought. >> on by him? and so you embarrassed your people. >> mr. president? does this. does this. >> serve them well? how do you assess. this this approach by the administration, given the true nature of what we know is happening in europe? >> well, i. think this. >> like so many things in our politics today and for the. >> last two years, gets to the fact that two. >> sides live in non-intersecting bubbles, right?

you're playing this. >> for. >> msnbc viewers. >> who are most. >> likely horrified by what they saw. >> this is. >> i'm sure, being spun on. >> conservative channels. and the maga faithful love this juanita broderick. i don't know if you remember her. said this was the slap heard around. >> the world. >> this was seen as a kind. >> of display. of american strength, of american power, and basically. slapping away the hand of a panhandler. >> and i. think what we. >> are not understanding. >> is that. >> on the american far. >> right. >> which now controls the country and all three branches of government, ukraine. >> is. >> not necessarily seen as. >> the bad guy or. >> as the aggressor, but. >> the little guy. who who's. >> gotten. >> too big. >> for his. >> britches, is not grateful, is demanding more and more and more overplaying his hand, and is swinging at the much bigger guy because he thinks that the us is going to. >> protect him. i think what.

>> you also saw and to that end, by the way. >> to me the most. >> interesting quote was from president trump who. said twice, this is going to make for great. >> television. >> and we're playing. >> it. >> and we're playing it and we're playing. >> it, and. >> it's the reality tv. >> version of foreign. >> policy that donald trump loves. >> but it's like he basically said. >> you're fired. >> you're fired. humiliated him. >> and he started he started from the from. >> the white house steps. right. he said, oh, you're. dressed up today. >> it's like he's talking down. >> to a little kid. >> yeah, right. >> and what bret baier did was. >> talking to a little kid. like, what. >> have you thought about. >> what. >> you've done? you stood in the corner for a little bit. you stood there with your dunce. >> cap, right? >> you know. >> but the. >> smallest person. >> to leave time. >> out, the. >> smallest person to the smallest person in that room. was the president, in my view. >> he was the petulant little schoolboy who wanted to. >> prove that he was wearing. bigger pants. >> than he actually is. >> and you stop and you look at his. his approach to all of this. >> how do our allies.

>> now reassess? >> because we have a you. >> don't. >> have a clear. >> understanding where this administration is. >> coming from on ukraine and europe and all of the various pieces that make up our alliance. >> you do now. >> i mean. >> i think i. >> would contend. >> that marco rubio was shrinking. >> oh my god. oh, can we just. >> i'm glad you said that. >> can we just put up this little slide. >> we have. >> at this little side by side of. >> marco rubio, along with the, the. yeah. >> there we go. yeah. >> getting his. >> soul vacuumed. >> out of his system. >> and he's. >> just sort of shrinking. >> from which end is a very pertinent question. but look the week. >> this is a week. >> goodness knows how many days from infamy we're going to have. but this has been a week from infamy that began. >> if you remember. >> with that un vote, when. >> all of. america's allies. >> or perhaps we. >> have to. >> put quotation. marks around. >> allies now.

>> voted with ukraine on. >> the. >> resolution that designated russia as the aggressor and asked it to vacate lands that it illegally enforced brutally and forcibly seized. america had its own resolution. the trump administration had its own. resolution that. >> made no mention. >> of russia's blame in this. we then have macron from france. >> and keir starmer. >> from britain, bringing what i call bringing fruits to the volcano. essentially. essentially trying to pacify this sort of irrational force of nature. and they get they get a little bit, you know, when you when you abase yourself to trump for quite rational reasons. >> i'm not. >> criticizing macron or. >> starmer for. >> trying that. >> method first. but when you. >> base yourself to trump, you get a little bit of a reprieve. >> this was. >> an extremely short reprieve because the day after starmer left, we see, i think, the most infamous episode in modern us diplomatic history, the berating of the victim and that his

presentation as the culprit, zelensky as the culprit. an extraordinary spectacle that trump allowed. >> to run. >> on and on and on. he wanted it. >> and he said. and he. >> said, there's a. >> reason i let this. >> drag on. >> yes. >> i wanted the american. people to see this. >> and it wasn't just because it was going to be. >> good tv. now, bear with me here. >> i don't think it's. >> an accident that we have somebody in the. >> oval office. >> in the white house who has been accused repeatedly and serially. >> of sexual assault. >> i don't. >> think it's a. >> it's an accident that he is now aligning himself with vladimir putin. >> who on the. >> eve of the ukrainian invasion made. >> a rape joke about ukraine and said, it is your duty. >> my duty. >> essentially to. >> bear your own rape. >> there is a hatred for. >> perceived weakness, for. >> the. >> perceived underdog in this administration. >> a valorization of toxic masculinity in any of its forms.

>> be they geopolitical or. >> interpersonal. and, you. >> know, i. >> think about. rick stengel. >> talking about. >> the cleavage. >> with the old world. >> and i think. >> that is. >> the point. that is what maga has. >> been trying to achieve to >> us in the uniparty. >> right off. >> right. >> they want. >> that cleavage. >> and they don't want to be. >> allies with. >> the feet and effeminate. >> and weak europeans. >> they want to. >> be allies. >> with kim jong. >> un, with the bros. >> yeah, they want. >> to sit. >> at the table. >> yes. it's. >> you know, the man who has bone spurs wants to be. >> allies with the bros to show just how bro. >> he is. >> don't go anywhere. >> julia, ed and rick are staying with us, and we'll have. >> much more on. this astounding. >> absolutely astounding. >> clash in the oval office >> clash in the oval office today. right after the b nexium 24hr prevents heartburn acid before it begins. get all-day and all-night heartburn acid prevention with just one pill a day. choose acid prevention. choose nexium. ♪♪ out with

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dude, i really need a new phone. about starting ultomiris. check out my new samsung galaxy s25 ultra. it's got galaxy ai. imagine this thing running on our superfast xfinity mobile network. and i also heard that it can do multiple things with a single command. —with google gemini. let me try it. add recipes with overripe bananas to my “dessert ideas” note. that's what you chose to ask it? i had other things planned. ask how to get up to one thousand dollars off the new samsung galaxy s25 ultra with xfinity mobile. first order when you sign up as a new vip only@fabletics.com. >> we're back. >> with. >> julia ioffe, edward luce, and rick stengel. so, rick, i want i want to go in the way back

machine because there was a time. >> when. >> republicans were 180 degrees. >> from where they are today. >> and i remember the late senator john mccain in 2015, along with, you know, senator lindsey graham. >> talking about the. >> dire situation at that time in ukraine. let's listen first to the senator from arizona. >> it's shameful. vladimir putin has not paid any price. even the. ceasefire was violated. >> until he. >> achieved his objective. ukrainians aren't asking for american. >> boots on the ground. that's not the. question here. they're asking for. >> weapons to. >> defend themselves and they're. >> being slaughtered. this is a shameful chapter. >> i'm ashamed of my country. >> i'm ashamed of. >> my president. >> and i'm ashamed. >> of. myself that i haven't done. >> more to. >> help these people. >> it is. >> really, really heartbreaking.

>> and just just real quick on that. you had headlines screaming at that time in washington times, lindsey graham and mccain blasting the obama administration for waffling on arming ukraine. and then today, after this, you have lindsey graham saying this. >> i have never been more. proud of the president. i was very proud of jd vance standing up for our country. we want to be helpful. when i saw in the oval office was disrespectful, and i don't know if we can ever do business with zelensky again. the way he handled the meeting, the way he confronted the president was just over the top. he either needs to resign and send somebody over that we can do business with, or he needs to change. >> help me square that circle, sir. i don't i don't what what is america missing right now?

>> well, michael, i'll go even further back in the wayback machine. than than you went the republican party, as you know, from richard nixon onward, was the tough on russia, the tough on communism party, their campaigns against democrats every cycle was that you're weak on communism. you're not tough enough. and now we have the republican party, the maga party being the party that's kowtowing to vladimir putin. it's just head shaking for anybody who has lived through that. i want to make two other points. one larger, one smaller, one about julia's point about we live in in separate media universes. and that's true. but i would hope that some republican voters, some maga voters who are watching this on fox and getting a different spin would go, is that really a good thing that the president of the united states is yelling at someone in the oval office? is that is that how we want our president to be? one of the things that we did, that every administration until now has done is you did preparation. diplomacy was all

the negotiation that happened behind the scenes. so this didn't happen at the sprayer in the oval office. and the final thing is just, you know, beware of a man who says he's been disrespected. that's an insecure person who says that the most powerful man in the world doesn't get disrespected. he ignores it. and that and the republican party, to even go back in the wayback machine was the party of the strong, silent type. that's not what we've seen. we see a guy who speaks loudly and carries a small stick. >> yes. >> and so that that begs the question. >> and. what does. >> trump do next? what happens after this? how do you see this playing out? >> so i think a lot. of the clues as to what he's. >> going to do. >> next will reveal by. that post he did on truth social straight afterwards. that zelensky is not interested in peace. he's not he's not an interlocutor. we can deal with words to that effect, which aligns very much with putin's demands that they get rid of. >> this nazi.

>> leader, zelensky, and replace him with somebody democratically elected. because of course, zelensky is a dictator, remember? in other words, for the russians to have a quisling, to have a puppet. in there who's essentially a pro-russian figure, trump is now halfway down the road towards that with these comments and lindsey graham's. >> as well. >> i mean, the lindsey graham idea that trump stood up, trump was the real man in that room that trump stood up for. america showed you what leadership was. there was one real man. without getting into gender essentialism in that room, and that was zelensky. and the second thing, in addition to getting a quisling is they've been already hinting we will cut off any further military supplies. in fact, there haven't been any shipments in the last since trump became president. but it looks like they're going to they're going to do a mafia, a mafia sort of move on zelensky here. and there'll be pressure on him to step down and which he has to resist. >> yeah. >> he has to resist that. and i think, you know, julia, just to

wrap it up with you, you've got this headline. russia's state media briefly enters the oval office during the zelensky meeting. >> how did they. >> get there? >> we don't know. >> but you know, that's what happens. >> when the white house controls the press pool. >> what are you hearing from your circles? how is this playing in russia. what do you think giddiness. >> giddiness. >> and also what i'm hearing. >> is. >> that there's. >> not a ton of. >> respect for. >> trump, but hey, we'll. >> take it. >> whatever works, we will absolutely take it. i will say, though, to. >> your point and to. >> rick's point to wrap it. >> up. >> i would. >> say there is continuity. >> and. >> the continuity. is a the republicans were. always anti-communist. >> but that does kind of put. >> them on the right wing, closer to being pro. >> fascist, which is. >> what we're seeing now. >> and that is where the. >> republican party is lining up. >> the other bit of continuity. >> is we're against. >> whatever the president. >> of. >> the opposite party. >> is for. right? >> and so. >> when president biden was in

office, i heard a. >> lot of people, including at the heritage. >> foundation. >> saying, this is not. >> a plan. ukraine needs more weapons. >> ukraine needs to win faster. >> and harder, right? >> right. because biden. was being too cautious. and then the third thing is the point of. >> continuity is lindsey graham himself. >> you know, he. >> loves regime change. >> yes, he loved. >> it in iraq. >> he supported all the color revolutions. and i think to regime change, lindsey, every you know. >> when you're a hammer, everything looks like a nail. >> everything looks like a nail. julia luce and rick. >> stengel, thank you guys for starting us off. i really appreciate it. coming up, the fate of journalism. >> in this unprecedented time. >> don't go anywhere, folks. >> used car shopping. >> two rows, two dogs. i'm sold. >> oh, whoa, whoa. >> let's pause for the facts. oh, like. >> nearly half of all. >> used cars. >> this puppy has been. >> in an accident. >> but carfax shows how an

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cleaner, and enjoy a spotless house for $19. >> donald trump isn't just eroding democracy. he's also taking aim at the free press. this week, the white house said it would handpick news outlets allowed to cover and question trump daily. white house press secretary caroline leavitt said nearly every journalist deserves a seat. well, during trump's meeting with ukraine's president today, that included russian state media, wire services. >> routers, routers and. >> routers. >> reuters and the associated press. >> were not granted access. meanwhile, this week, jeff bezos, billionaire owner of. >> the washington. >> post, said the paper's

opinion section will now be focused on personal liberties and free markets. in today's post, columnist dana dana milbank notes, this much is clear. if we, as a newspaper and as a country are to defend his twin pillars, then we must redouble our fight against the single greatest threat to personal liberties and free markets in the united states. today, president donald trump. dana milbank joins me now. dana, excuse my mispronouncing pronunciation of. >> rotors, rotors, rotors, readers. >> but i'm glad to have you, my friend. i'm glad to have you. look, i want to start with this, this this idea of what's happening right now, which is sort of emblematic, symptomatic, i guess, of what we see happening at the post. you remember the white house correspondents association, you write about how this move against, you know, one of those pillars is playing out. how does it show authoritarianism and

threaten all of our freedoms? could you just explain where you where you were going with your piece today? >> particularly as it. >> relates to the situation with. >> the white house press pool? i mean, this has been happening. >> i think it goes back to 1914. the press determines, you know, look, you can't have. >> the. >> entire press corps going into the oval office. there's just too many of us. >> but the way we've. >> done. >> it for generations is reporters would choose among themselves. >> there'd be a rotating pool as to who would go in to question the president. this is how reporters wanted it. but it's also how the white house wanted it, because. >> they didn't. >> want to be seen as picking favorites or deciding who was going to cover them. but of course, as with. >> everything else, this is all out. >> the window with donald trump, and they want to choose. exactly who's going to be questioning the president. and that's, you know, likely to be fox news and breitbart. and as you just.

>> mentioned. >> russian state media. >> so it's. >> you know, in countries. >> like russia, in. >> countries like. >> iran. >> this is how it works. >> the government. >> chooses who gets to cover the leader. and essentially what they say. this has never. happened in. the modern united states until now. >> so we have come from inauguration day, where we had the tableaux of these billionaires, jeff bezos and company is the head of a very important and powerful newspaper standing there, aligned behind the president of the united states, ahead of the cabinet, very much at the center of president trump's inaugural proceedings. what does that tell you? that this administration has moved the way it has with respect to the press and the fact that the that the owners of these media outlets seemingly are willing to move with him.

>> well, it's. >> it's a complicated situation. >> because the. >> media, as you know, has. >> been in decline for a good quarter century now. we've been getting weaker and weaker. as the. >> business model. >> has failed. whether it's in. broadcast or in print. and what's. >> replaced it? well, there's. >> been some nonprofit models. >> there's substack. >> there's social media. but to maintain these sort of mainstream news organizations, it has been the purview of billionaires because it's basically become a vanity project because they don't really they're not really economically viable. >> so in some ways. >> that was inevitable. and it. >> wasn't. >> you know, necessarily by itself a bad thing. but again, you layer. donald trump on top of this. you know, who talked about returning the forgotten man and woman? it turns out the forgotten man is the american billionaire, most prominently

elon musk. you know, running amok through the federal government. so it's a difficult position for all of us to be in as journalists, because we all do have either corporate masters or i should say, most of us have corporate masters or billionaires. >> and, you know. >> the power of the press belongs. the saying goes to the person who owns one. >> well, so we've got about 30s left. but i think this is an important coda to what you just said. have the american people given up on the press in such a way that it allows this unfolding of the relationship between politics and the press, and the money interests play out the way it is? >> michael, if that has happened, if the. >> american people have given up on. their press, we've got a much bigger problem than declining of the media. we cannot. function as a free society, as a as a liberal democracy. so yes, i think we've taken a beating as an institution as of all other

institutions, but at some point it has to rebound or we don't pull through as a as a democracy and as a free society. >> all right. i appreciate. >> you, my friend. and i have mad respect for my friends at reuters. so thank you, dana, i really appreciate you being on. coming up, the trump administration is getting more and more surreal every day, and you'll never. guess what. new program fbi director kash patel is suggesting. we're going to dive into all of that next. >> i told you, i don't need these anymore. >> i have sling. >> this critical time calls for the critical. >> news. >> coverage that sling provides. okay. >> see. >> see. >> you tomorrow. still searching for the one? olay super cream with spf. the power of five in one super cream. to hydrate, smooth, brighten, firm and protect. skin just drinks it in. to boost cells for more resilient skin. it's super cream. only olay. [coughing]

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conference with top agents, weeks after donald trump ordered top justice department officials to terminate individuals tied to former director chris wray. christopher wray now, according to reports, the weekly call is reserved for the most serious topics. but in a sign of how little experience or care patel has about the seriousness of the job, he began to lay out his priorities, which. are not national security work and foreign threats from abroad, but rather patel explained that he doesn't like meetings, reading, briefing books or wearing suits. patel's apparent lack of knowledge was on display when he used intelligence and counterintelligence interchangeably. he then expressed interest in playing on the fbi's hockey team, which is

always important for an fbi director. and partnering with ultimate fighting championship. yeah, you heard me right on this one, folks. he wants to use the ufc to train our federal agents. rich. joining me now is george conway, conservative attorney and president of the society for the rule of law. and tara setmayer, co-founder and ceo of the sinica project and former republican communications director. so i don't know where to go with this. >> look. >> i mean, the. >> bright side. i'll let. >> you just go have. >> at it. >> just have it. yeah. >> the bright. >> side. >> i think. >> is that. >> for kash patel. >> had a good. >> day. >> because the president. >> of. >> the united states. >> made him. >> look. >> relatively normal and sane. >> maybe. >> or maybe. >> just they're all incompetent. >> we had a president of the united states. >> basically puppet. >> propaganda from putin. >> i think ronald reagan would jump out of. >> his grave. >> and run down pennsylvania avenue.

>> that would be counterintelligence. >> that would be. >> that would be. >> counter. >> intelligence. >> and counterintelligence. >> we're clear. >> counterintelligence. >> what we saw today was an absolute. embarrassment to. >> the legacy. >> of. >> our grandfathers and great grandfathers, who. >> fought in. >> world. war two. >> to make sure. >> that. >> the united states would never bow down to a dictator. >> the way. >> donald trump did, an embarrassing. >> ally that way. >> i'm embarrassed for our country. >> and again, the. >> vice president, the president. >> our. >> fbi director. >> these are. >> all people who are. >> an. >> embarrassment to what makes this country great. and for this guy, kash patel. >> like. >> why are we surprised he's cosplaying. he's cosplaying. >> being a. >> tough guy because he was a loser. >> when he was younger. now he's. >> got a badge and he's the most he's the director of the. >> preeminent agency in the world, law enforcement agency, running around wanting to get. ufc training and play on the freaking hockey team. this is insanity. >> and i don't. >> know what this. country is doing sitting back or. >> what democrats are doing. >> sitting back and going, well, you know, we're going to sit there at the at the state of the

union on tuesday and, you know, work with the president or whatever the. >> hell they're. >> saying they're going to do. but, george, what are you doing? you had this moment, which i thought i found, by the way, folks. >> that. >> the whole kash patel thing, i don't want. >> to wear. >> a suit kind of rich when you have this report. hey, look, i know coming up right where you have, but you have in this oval office confab with zelensky, a reporter, marjorie taylor greene's friend, marjorie taylor greene's boyfriend. >> and i really. >> need. >> to know that. >> i know who then turns to the president zelensky and goes, why don't you wear a suit? >> and there. >> was this. >> guy the other day. >> with his. >> kid. >> in the oval office. >> and he was wearing. >> yeah, no suit, no suit. but that goes to what tara says about the cosplaying, right? and the fact that we're in a space right now where we have in the oval office the scene that we have play out, we have at the fbi. the scene is playing out with the agents there. how does this how does this impact the position of the us foreign

policy wise, but certainly also domestically? when you have an fbi director who doesn't want to read the briefs? so when a matter or case is brought to him of importance that may touch on national security or may touch on domestic terrorism or just run of the mill everyday crime that happens on the streets of this country. and he doesn't want to read the brief. what are we to expect as. >> as citizens. >> expected anything from him? >> right. >> we mean. >> this is what we got. >> i mean. >> we knew he. >> was completely. unqualified to begin. >> with. >> that he was. >> a. >> qanon looney tune. and, you know, he wants to. >> did you read this? >> this was in the, i think, the. >> wall. street journal yesterday. >> that that. >> lawyer last night that he wants to. >> do, do. >> his job from las. >> vegas where. >> the. >> ufc guy is. >> we may be. >> better off. >> with him. >> then in las vegas. >> okay. you know, maybe send. >> the president there. >> to his ufc.

>> training. >> you know, with the degree of absurdity. so embarrassing to the country. >> but why are. >> we surprised, though, that he doesn't care, right. >> we all warned about it. >> but this is also a guy who. >> said that. >> he wants his goal is retribution. he wants to go after journalists. he wants to go after trump's detractors. he's not concerned about the actual national security of the united states or. >> the american people. >> if he. >> were. >> those would not have been his priorities. >> the irony is. >> they're not. >> even good at it, right? >> they have this thing where they're trying to recoup money. i read about it from, from from from. >> a program. that joe biden, joe biden's people were trying. it was appropriated. >> money, and the biden administration was trying. >> to get it out. >> before some lunatics might come in and try to stop it. and now they. >> tried to they tried to stop it and. >> retrieve the money. this is the fbi. >> and the doj by. >> launching a criminal investigation. and these the us attorney, assistant u.s. attorney. said there's no. >> basis here. >> so they go and. >> they try to. >> so. >> beauvais or. >> somebody does it himself. >> they go to a federal.

>> judge, and the federal judge says there's no. probable cause. you know. >> these idiots. >> can't even run a revenge campaign. so the problem is the. >> real problem. >> is, though, is, you know, one of the things that happened after. and now i'm going to get. >> serious here. >> after 911 was the fbi did turn into a major, you know, a real. >> counterintelligence wall of terrorism. >> right. >> right. to stop terrorism. >> and now. >> that's all. >> being decimated. >> so let me drop this little nugget in the middle of this. >> like we need any more. >> so apparently, the fbi has decided to return the docket, the mar-a-lago documents to donald trump after he stole them. here you see the boxes of stolen documents being loaded on the plane to be returned. and the white house had this to say. the fbi is giving the president his property back. that was

taken during the unlawful and illegal raids. we are taking possession of the boxes today and loading them onto air force one. >> i mean, it. >> was. >> just lonely there, in there with. >> the toilet. >> and no documents. >> except those those documents belong to the american people. >> there were. >> not his documents. that's the problem. >> that's so yesterday. >> yeah. >> apparently donald. >> trump is the state. >> look, i. >> just. >> think these. >> documents. >> he owns all of them. >> but the problem here, george, is that they keep gaslighting. >> the american people into normalizing all. >> of this. >> and unfortunately, civics. >> isn't exactly a. >> priority in. >> this country. >> so there are a lot. >> more people who are like, well, they were his documents. of course they should have had them. and we have got to. it's our responsibility to tell the truth here that that those documents. were illegally taken. >> they belong to the. >> american people. >> and that's. >> why he was indicted for what he or charged with what he was charged with. >> and now. >> and donald trump is in the wrong kind of public housing. >> yes. >> that is correct. >> okay. >> i think i think we're going to leave that one right there.

>> all right. fact that's fact. >> we moved to public housing. so we know we want to have that. that means that, you know. >> he he works. >> for us. he don't. >> work for you, donald trump. >> you work for the american people. >> george conway. >> and tara setmayer. okay. i don't know what was in their coffee, but i know what was in mine. well, thank you guys so much. appreciate you. up next, the devastating consequences of doj's latest cuts. stay with us, doj's latest cuts. stay with us, folks. asthma. does it have you missing out on what you love, with who you love? get back to better breathing with fasenra, an add-on treatment for eosinophilic asthma taken once every 8 weeks. fasenra is not for sudden breathing problems. serious allergic reactions may occur. get help for swelling of your face, mouth, tongue, or trouble breathing. don't stop your asthma treatments without talking with your doctor. tell your doctor if your asthma worsens or you have a parasitic infection. headache and sore throat may occur. ask your doctor if fasenra is right for you. it ain't my dad's razor, dad, —hey, watch it! —it's from gillettelabs. this green bar releases trapped hairs from my face...

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>> call 183337354495 or visit homeserve.com. >> there is a lot. >> going on tonight. >> you've been in these rooms. >> how are you. >> digesting it and how do you. >> think. >> the world is digesting. >> what trump is saying? what are people saying to you. >> in new. >> jersey about. >> doge and what. they're seeing. >> musk and his team do here? >> what are the global politics. >> for some of these leaders, and why do. >> you see. >> them stating the opposite of what the united states president has stated?

>> the information. depends upon having the people in place. >> this is not something. >> happening in washington. it's your neighbors. >> retired scientists for the national oceanic and atmospheric administration is sounding the alarm as new layoffs under the trump administration have hit. the agency charged with forecasting whether americans rely on noaa, which includes the national weather service, every day for forecasts and storm warnings. it also monitors dangerous weather like fires and hurricanes, with tornado and hurricane season coming up, the firings may jeopardize the ability for the government to forecast and respond to extreme weather events like hurricanes, wildfires and floods. meanwhile, on the back end of trump's proposed cuts to fema and hud may further harm communities trying to recover from these disasters. joining me now is

meteorologist and climate scientist chris langer. welcome, chris. i'm so glad to have you here. look, the mission between noaa and fema are intricate and intertwined in many respects. what do you think the implications of these fires firings may be, especially with about 100 days before we get into the heart of hurricane season. tornado season. >> michael. >> both operations are. >> 24 seven, 365. >> the mission. of the national weather service is to protect. >> life and property, and. >> we are in the. >> middle of a climate emergency. we are seeing $1. >> billion disaster. >> a disaster costing $1 billion. >> or more. >> every two and a half. >> weeks in. >> this country. and essentially. >> this administration. >> which refuses. >> to. >> acknowledge climate change, has essentially gutted. >> our primary. >> line of defense. and they've. >> really started. >> to take. apart fema, the one

responding. >> agency. >> especially when states become overwhelmed, which we. >> saw to be the case. >> time after. >> time during the 2024 hurricane season. michael. >> you know, it's very disturbing when you consider that just last night, overnight, we learned hundreds of noaa staffers were laid off, including weather forecasters and meteorologists who provide critical local information to local communities who are trying to figure out where is the storm. and at the same time, you have the new york times reporting the senior leaders at fema are leaving what is already a depleted disaster agency. more than a dozen of the senior leaders at the federal emergency management agency, including those with the most experience in leading disaster recovery, have either been fired or have been resigned, thinning its management leadership. so here we have the american people with this administration basically saying to them with respect to fema and noaa, we're not going to tell you when the storms are coming, and we have no help for

you after the storm is over and you're standing in the middle of your neighborhood with a disaster. >> if you look. >> at the roles of both organizations. >> they play. >> a critical. >> role in getting communities back on track from preparing, from climate change to the warnings that you mentioned to picking up the pieces afterwards. >> the fire that we just saw in. >> california, michael. >> the cumulative. >> total of. >> all. >> the fires. >> california has. >> seen. >> this fire alone. >> has resulted in more damages. >> and we'll only see more. >> of this as we continue to. >> emit carbon dioxide. that is the problem. >> it's the. >> vicious cycle and the circus that's. >> back in town again is. >> doing nothing. >> to help the situation. >> at all. >> and if you. >> look, it's not just the local. >> warnings. >> it's the weather balloons that go into our forecast models with critical data. >> it's the. >> hurricane hunters. >> that fly. >> into these. >> hurricanes on reconnaissance missions, taking. critical measurements to help track the intensity and where these storms are going. it's tracks. it's

cuts across the board. michael. >> i spoke. >> to a colleague. >> the national. >> weather service in boston took. >> the job. >> in. >> january. had glowing. remarks during. >> his performance. >> review just to. >> get. >> fired one. >> month later for a poor performance. >> that is disgusting. >> that is outrageous. >> but it is the nature of where we are right now. so we've got less than a minute left. i want to give your prognostication, if you will, on on how you as we get ready for these storms, do you, do you think on the back end when the first storm hits and there's devastation as a result, the administration will regroup around this and recognize, oh, we need noah. oh, we need fema. what do you anticipate? what do you hear from inside the services that you're connected to. >> the national weather service? >> local offices need a minimum of seven. >> employees to operate efficiently. >> 11 offices out of about 120. >> the united states are at that critical level. >> if they. >> don't reverse this decision. michael, and i don't mean to sound dramatic, this is going to

kill americans. >> and maybe it will. >> take that for them to reverse the. >> decision, unfortunately. >> all righty. i appreciate the point. and folks, please pay attention because you're not getting a lot of help out there from this government. when the weather turns and the storms start to rage. chris gallinger, thank you so much. i appreciate you. and that's all for me for this hour, folks. i'm michael steele. i see you again along with symone sanders townsend and alicia menendez on the weekend. tomorrow, we'll talk to former cfpb director rohit chopra. and on sunday, congresswoman melanie stansbury joins the conversation. we're looking forward to all of that and having you be there with us. all of that and more on the weekend, 8 a.m. eastern, right here on msnbc. all in with chris hayes starts right now. >> tonight on. >> all in. >> no. >> you're in no position to dictate what we're going to

feel