erin coleman: "election upset," democrat doug jones turns staunchly republican alabama blue. today, we'll discuss how the dems pulled it off and what the gop plans to do now. "fact check," did president trump ever say he was sorry for bragging about sexually inappropriate behavior in this "access hollywood" tape? one us senator says, "no." our partners at factcheck.org investigate. and "mind games," how does eagles quarterback carson wentz get his head back into the game after suffering such a serious injury? today, a sports psychologist weighs in, advice that can help anyone who plays a sport. male announcer: nbc 10 "@ issue" starts now. erin: good morning to you, i'm erin coleman for nbc 10 "@ issue." the reliably republican state of alabama is now giving democrats hope. senator-elect doug jones, a democrat,

is headed to washington. the party believes his win is a sign of a swing that's happening. and with me now are democratic political consultant eleanor dezzi, founder of the dezzi group, and republican consultant joe watkins. joe is also the author of a new book soon to be released titled "the new 'pc.'" welcome to both of you, thanks. joe watkins: thanks-- eleanor dezzi: thanks for having us. erin: all right, so, we have to start with alabama. eleanor, we'll start with you. what does this mean? eleanor: well, i think, you know, the last few months, what has happened with the women talking about the sexual harassment, and then the issues that came out about pedophilia with the republican candidate, it just mobilized women. you know, when you go to war, you get an army together, and women have now formed an army on this issue, and the first battle was alabama. and women, african american women, 98% voted for the democratic nominee, and also white women, if they felt that they couldn't vote republican, the democratic strategists told them,

"write in." and there were thousands of write ins, which is unheard of in that kind of election. so, what has happened is people are making a statement, and i think this is showing something that's going to happen in 2018. the republicans are really worried about the midterm elections, and they should be. erin: joe, same question. joe: oh, it was a great play. eleanor is right on point. i mean, the election mobilized african american voters especially. and i said a number of times at msnbc that because traditionally, in off-presidential elections, you have low turnout, and so the fear was that the turnout would be really low, and as a result, that roy moore would be able to win. but you needed a strong turnout in order of doug jones to win. and african americans especially had to turn out in big numbers. and i talked about that on tv, and i'm glad that african american voters did turn out in big numbers to make sure that doug jones was elected. many republicans rejected roy moore. i mean, a lot of republicans voted for doug jones because they felt that you just couldn't elect somebody who was

a pedophile to be a us senator, and party aside, what was more important for them i think was country. do the right thing for the country. vote for the best candidate. just do the right thing, and that's what they did. erin: you guys just talked about the break down. i wanna show some of these numbers and really get into it. according to exit polling done by "the washington post," 30% of white voters went for democrat doug jones, 68% for republican roy moore. moore was especially strong among whites without a college degree. ninety-six percent of the african american vote went to jones. so what can we take from this breakdown moving forward? joe: well, certainly in alabama, moving forward, it means that if you have a candidate who is a racist or a candidate who is a pedophile or somebody who has sexually harassed women, that that person can lose, that republicans are not gonna in lock step just elect anybody that has an r behind their name.

that's a good thing. hopefully, it's true for the whole country. eleanor: and the other thing is that there were republican senators, republican congressmen, republican women who said, "do not vote for this man, even though he's a republican because he is morally flawed and he should not be in the united states senate working on legislation that should be protecting our children." erin: why do you think the democrats couldn't win over even moore white women voters? eleanor: well, it is a very, very red state, and there are a lot of people down in alabama that really could not pull the democratic lever. so either they stayed home, or they did the write in. and i think that now, there was a real moral issue in this election. you know, they weren't thinking about the new tax plan. they weren't thinking about health care. the sad thing is, the only issue that was really working in this election was the flawed moral compass of this man,

and that's sad because there's so many issues that affect people. and it shows that both parties have to be really careful about--and really vet people that they wanna put on the ballot and represent the american people. erin: do the democrats plan to make changes with the way they reach out to voters, given what we've seen here? eleanor: i think both parties are learning from this election, and i think you're going to see a whole new strategy in terms of the midterm elections. i think the nominees for both parties are going to be vetted more, and then the people that are in office, their strategists and their consultants are really going to be trying to put their platform out there. they are really seeing, and i think it's because of the media and because of technology, because of the internet, voters are much more educated. and young voters are really looking at the issues. joe: i think, for the most part,

both parties have to better define themselves, who they are, and candidates have to define who they are for the public and say, you know, "i'm not just a republican, i'm not just a democrat, but here's where i stand on the issues. here's why you should elect me." it's not enough for a democrat to come out and say, "well, i'm just against those guys. i'm just against the republicans." you've gotta say what you're for, what you would do if you were elected. and the same is true for republicans. it's not enough just to come out and say, "oh, i'm against the democrats. you need me because i'm gonna be strong on lower taxes," and all that stuff that republicans usually talk about. you gotta share a vision for what you would do for the people that you hope to serve, and that vision has to be one, hopefully, that solves problems that currently exist. erin: this is, no doubt, some momentum for the democratic party. so what changes can we expect to see from republicans? joe: well, republicans will have to work hard in 2018 because it's a midterm election year, and turnout is generally lower in midterm elections than it is in presidential elections. but also, republicans are gonna have to work hard to, again, define who they are. 'cause many people will define republicans based on the president.

and so, if you're a republican and you don't agree with the president, you have to make sure your constituents know that. if you're a republican and you agree with the president, you gotta make sure your constituents know that as well. so they have to define themselves, and they've gotta say where they disagree, where they agree, and so on and so forth. eleanor: there's really going to be an issue in the midterm elections on the trump agenda because so many republican senators are distancing themselves from the president. so there's the, what they're now calling the midstream, midterm republican party, and then there's the trump agenda. and it's going to be really interesting to see if steve bannon is going to be, you know, the person that puts out the trump agenda because i think that trump thought he was really, really going to win alabama with that strategy, and it didn't win alabama. so is he going to still continue to go with him, or is he gonna go over to the mcconnell, mitch mcconnell agenda and go with the midstream republican party? erin: you bring up bannon. is this the end for bannon? joe: probably not, but he took a big loss in alabama.

i mean, he put all of his credibility on the line for roy moore, and it was a big loss for steve bannon. so, i mean, the hope is, for republicans, republicans don't have a strong future in the country if they aren't reaching out to people of color and to women and to young people. i mean, if the republican party goes forward and says, "we don't really need those groups to be part of our party," then you're gonna see some results that republicans won't like in the midterm elections. and you'll likewise see that impact in the 2020 presidential election. so republicans have to reach out to people of color, to women, to young people, to this new generation of young people that are voting now. they've gotta reach out and say, "we care, we're with you, and here's where we stand on the issues you care about." eleanor: but on the other hand, a lot of african american women, 96% of them in alabama are saying, "okay, we voted for the democratic ticket. now we want to see the democratic party service our agenda and work with us on the issues we care about."

so the democrats have some work to do too on figuring out what is their platform, and how can we service these people and keep them all together so that they can take back the house and the senate in the midterm elections? erin: i have to ask you both about the tax reform plan. we could expect a vote likely later this week. many polls show it's wildly unpopular. what does this mean for the gop? joe: well, at the end of the day, republicans will say that it's a middle-class tax cut, but i'm not sure. i'm not convinced that it's gonna really help middle-class people. i'm not convinced. i mean, certainly, it'll help corporate folks. there'll be a good corporate tax cut. but the hope is that if there's a corporate tax cut, that it trickles down to regular folks who work every day for a living. i'm not convinced that's gonna happen. erin: we're not so sure. we agree that it's not going to help middle class, and it's certainly not going to help poor people. and we're very worried about that. and the interesting thing is, mcconnell is now saying he doesn't wanna swear in jones.

well, you know, he's on tape, the last time this happened that the senate would not go forward until scott brown was sworn in, so there's gonna be a real push for him to swear in the senator. and then, the margin is so slim if anybody defects, and there may be some defections because, as joe said, not every republican's in step with this because the constituencies are really calling in. if you call any senator's office today, you can't get through because so many americans are calling, voicing their opinion on this tax plan because they don't feel it's going to help them. erin: so, even though there's an agreement between the senate and the house, may not be--? joe: oh, absolutely not. it's not a done deal yet. eleanor: far from a done deal. erin: we'll see what happens. always a pleasure. eleanor, joe, thanks so much for being here. eleanor: thank you, erin. erin: all right, next on nbc 10 "@ issue," did he, or didn't he? senator bernie sanders accuses the president of failing to say he's sorry for crude comments mr. trump made in the past about women. our partners at factcheck.org get to the bottom of the issue

when we come right back.

erin: senator bernie sanders tells nbc news that president donald trump never said he was sorry for bragging about sexually inappropriate behavior. our partners at factcheck.org disagree. nbc 10's jim rosenfield explains. senator bernie sanders: the point is that we have the absurdity now of a president of the united states who basically says on a tape that everybody in this country has seen, his pride, in a sense, in assaulting women. and he has not apologized for that. jim rosenfield: senator bernie sanders turns the conversation to president donald trump when asked on nbc's "meet the press" about senator al franken's resignation. that came after allegations of sexual misconduct. sanders, referring to the "access hollywood" tape released a month before the 2016 presidential election. president donald trump: i'm automatically attracted to beautiful--i just start kissing them. it's like a magnet. i don't even wait.

and when you're a star, they let you do it. you can do anything. billy bush: whatever you want. president trump: grab the by the-- jim: factcheck.org says sanders was off the mark. robert farley: so, this is one of the very rare instances when president trump did apologize. president trump: anyone who knows me knows these words don't reflect who i am. i said it, i was wrong, and i apologize. jim: the trump campaign also issued a written statement, and a couple of days later, mr. trump apologized again at a presidential debate. while some question mr. trump's sincerity and quickness to point to the misdeeds of bill and hillary clinton, factcheck.org cannot speak to that. it can say that mr. trump expressed regret and embarrassment for his words on the video. robert: a sanders spokesman noted that "the new york times" recently reported that president trump has been privately questioning the authenticity of the "access hollywood" tape and whether that was his voice on the tape, but the president hasn't publicly said that. and the white house press secretary says that

the president stands by his initial response to that tape in which he owned up to it and apologized. jim: i'm jim rosenfield for nbc 10 "@ issue." erin: now, of course, right now, many well-known men are under fire for inappropriate sexual behavior, and whether they apologize or not, the accusations have an impact on women, especially young women. with me now is local career education advocate ellen langas. langas is also the author of "the girls know how" book series. she believes that one way to help girls and young women is to empower and support them, especially when it comes to choosing a career. thanks for being here. ellen langas: hi, erin, good to be here. erin: all right, first of all, we talked about this earlier. you know, many women continue to support men who are accused of inappropriate sexual behavior. we saw that in alabama this week. senate candidate roy moore got a big chunk of the vote from older white women. how do we explain that to younger women? ellen: by giving them the leadership skills,

the skills of teamwork, of mentoring, of just really being able to use their voices confidently. that's what's going to help when we talk to our girls about situations like this. erin: a lot of girls may not feel like they have that powerful voice. they may not feel like they too can speak up. so how do you actually teach that and get a young girl to believe it? ellen: that's exactly right, and i will mention, first, generations previously didn't have role models like we do today, didn't have role models who were leaders in business or careers or politics. today, we're seeing more of that, but not enough really. so, what we have to do is be able to open up that conversation and be able to ask the questions of, "what do you wanna do?" you know, you see people getting music lessons and sports lessons at young age, but they don't think about careers and building those success skills early on. so that's something that we can all do, teachers and parents, to be able to pave the way for success. erin: what are some of the attitudes that actually

hold girls back? ellen: well, you know, it's interesting because there are statistics on that. boys and girls up to the age of about 9 are completely on a level playing field when it comes to having girls having hopes for achievement, no differences. but right around middle school, there's a sudden change, a shift in attitude, and that is to body consciousness and social acceptance, and that happens with girls. and while that doesn't seem like it's dangerous, it can derail a girl's future because she's not taking the right courses in high school. and then when it comes to pick a college major, she doesn't have the prep for that. so that's where we have to, at a young age, introduce these skills. and one place that we don't see enough of that is in the media or is in characters in books, such as, for instance, with "girls know how," we have diverse characters that might be just like any girl that will face these situations.

and when you see role models or real-life role models who face these situations and navigate them well, then you have something to base that on. erin: how does a career choice really make a difference? can it make a difference for young girls? ellen: well, a career choice only makes a difference if you don't have the knowledge to make that choice. we're completely underrepresented in the stem fields. women are more and more getting into the stem fields in school, but there is an abnormal dropout rate once they get there. that's because the environment isn't appropriate, and that's where we get right back to your original question. girls and women have to speak up very confidently, have their perspective, know their values from a young age, and that's what we, as parents and teachers, can really do to help pave the way. erin: absolutely, ellen langas, author of the "girls know how" series, thanks so much. ellen: you're welcome. erin: next on nbc 10 "@ issue," eagles quarterback carson wentz has a new game plan these days, healing from surgery to repair his torn acl both physically

and mentally. i'm gonna talk with a local sports psychologist about what it takes to make that happen, good advice for all of us.

eagles quarterback carson wentz. last week, doctors surgically repaired his torn acl. now wentz's job is to recover. wentz sent out this picture on social media last week after the surgery in pittsburgh. he thanked his girlfriend for being by his side and said his comeback has officially begun. with me now is local sports psychologist dr. joel fish. dr. fish runs the center for sports psychology. he has worked with athletes from youth sports to professional and olympic athletes as well. thanks for being here. dr. joel fish: thank you. erin: all right, many professional athletes have come back from acl surgery, like new england's star tom brady, for example. he does very well. we know they can physically recover and do their jobs well, but what about mentally? how do you get your head back in the game after something like this? dr. fish: very rarely does the emotional and the physical

part of rehab go hand in hand. the emotional part of rehab has to do with, "can i really trust my body? if i dive and run, what are the chances this is gonna happen again?" so, wentz and any other people going through rehab are going through a two-stage process that for them to be fully recovered, they have to advance on both the emotional and the physical end. erin: how does a professional athlete then deal with the fact that somebody else has his job? you know, nick foles in this case. you know, does he want nick foles to do well, and the team to do well? dr. fish: well, as someone who's observing this whole season, i don't know carson wentz, all indications are that he is very secure with who he is. he's very confident with who he is. and when a person's secure and confident, it's easier for them to wish somebody else well. all indications are he's been a terrific team leader. if you listen to what all the teammates say, part of being a great leader is being selfless, working towards the good of the group and not one's self. so, all indications are, carson wentz is secure,

he's a leader, and he's gonna wish foles and the eagles all the best. erin: he has done so much to generate excitement and enthusiasm around this team, especially among the fans, but some fans have been crushed in the past. so, talk about that progression on monday, and then toward the end of last week, what the difference there has been with fans. dr. fish: well, myself included, i think it's taken a while for philadelphia fans with our history to jump on the bandwagon that this team can go someplace. a couple weeks ago, we started to use the word, "super bowl," then, "win the super bowl." and that's not easy when you're cautious to begin with. but i think people have allowed themselves to dream, and then, all of a sudden, in the middle of a game, no preparation at all, boom, carson wentz goes down. and whenever you don't have a chance to mentally prepare for a situation like that, it's shock, it's traumatic. and i think that was the fan reaction on sunday and monday, "oh, my god," shock, trauma. but i really see, and i've been encouraged with this sea change

of fan reaction 'cause i think as tuesday, wednesday, and thursday have gone on, now fans, for good reason, were plugging more into hope. hope because, in a short-term basis, i think a team can rally the troops, "we're in this together." hope because we control our own destiny, home field advantage, going deep in the playoffs. we've now checked into also the power of being an underdog, and there's a tremendous power--sometimes people say, "there's less pressure on the underdog. we can just go out and play." and i think for philadelphia fans, it's really allowed us to tap into the other part of our personality, which is that rocky part of our personality, underdogs, bring it on. so i do think you've seen change over the week in terms of fan behavior, and a positive change. erin: all right, so we're talking about mentally, not just for the athletes, but for the fans as well. i mean, we're all going through it. dr. fish: well, i think that, again, this team has really allowed fans to dream. and whenever you dream, when things don't go your way, the crash can sometimes be a lot harder.

but i think folks are really allowing themselves, even with this situation, to maintain their dreams and stick together, and i just encourage people to keep ridin' their dreams and let's see where this goes. erin: i'm one of 'em. all right, dr. joel fish from the center for sports psychology, thanks for being with us. we'll be right back.

erin: this is one determined cow. stormy, at a whopping 1500 pounds, escaped not once, but twice from an old city church's live nativity last week. the curious cow roamed the streets of philadelphia, even ventured onto i-95 before police stopped her. stormy's flight for freedom got her fired though. ginger, a much smaller cow, is now in the manger. that's it for this edition for nbc 10 "@ issue." thanks for joining us. ♪

mii'm alive and have a second chance. james: i'm thankful for the help and the opportunity that i received. darlene: i'm thankful to be able to help people in crisis. vanessa: i'm thankful that addiction is treatable, and that help is available. christie: new jersey is experiencing a heroin epidemic fueled by opioid painkillers. but if you or someone you love is struggling with addiction, i want you to know: we are here for you. this holiday season, choose help. call 844 reach nj or visit reachnj.gov.

watching television that's s educational and informational. the more you know on nbc. lauren: hi, i'm lauren thompson, and "the champion within" starts right now. today, he's the hardest working man on the wrestling mat. find out what drives jordan burroughs to be the best in his sport. jordan: a lot of guys want what i want. there's only one gold medal. if it's going to be someone, it should be me. lauren: then, it's called gigl... [laughter] lauren: ...the girls independent golf league. see how it's making a difference in girls' lives both on and off the course. sara: girls are just by nature so much more social. by giving them a team to be on, there's potential for them to make it a lifelong sport. lauren: and this 12-year-old has always loved hockey. now he's using that love to give back to his community. zach: i don't want people not playing hockey, which i love, because they can't afford it.