>> i had worked with amma 18, 19 years ago. of my first jobs out of drama was a show she had written called brothers and sisters. i had become friendly with her, i went off and did my thing, she went off and did her thing and seeing how brilliantly she directed belle, very, very powerful film. again, a kind of narrative that we very rarely get to see. that was a real struggle for her to get that film made. what i was so impressed by in that film was the balancing act she managed with the love and the politics. and how the politics never overwhelmed the love and that is what you need for united kingdom. but also i am a big advocate for female directors. i just don't understand why not enough of them are getting to have their voice heard through film. and so you know everything about her as a potential director for this spoke to me, and thankfully when i made the call she said yes. >> speaking of female directors, your friend, ava, from selma, now nominated for a documentary. >> brilliant. >> yes, speaking of which, when we had t

the white house who vivian sal amma pull it'ser price winning camillist for the "washington post" also msnbc analyst eugene robinson. welcome to all. steve you and i share a love of american history. i have to share with the folks we were talking about today's anniversary. in present hours right about now, 73 years ago, the sun would be rising on the coast of france. it would still reveal ocean water continuinged with the blood of young american and canadian and australian and british men who had died the morning before. eisenhower is getting reports it went in many ways better than his wildest dreams and certainly his worst fears. to put it another way, nine months later the war was over. a new era was born. america has been cot coted fied as the splflnator nation on. >> what have you witnessed. >> the first time since the death of fdr the truman through obama presidencies all american presidents have had the moral authority to lead the western alliance. and we look last week at a shocking refusal by the president to talk about article 5, to talk about the center piece of nato at an e

i feel the presence of amma rosa man galt, the director of communications whose voice along with that of jerron schmitz has kept the hbcu community on the mind of this administration and i believe has something to do with the fact that we're here today. it's the nation's only national membership association of the 1306 historically black colleges and now the 80 predominantly black institutions. our position is to provide voice to this richly diverse community of colleges and to connect all of the colleges with opportunities to enhance their infrastructure and to better serve their goals. it's the table at which this diverse and sometime divergent group of presidents and chancellors come together and they suppress their slid goals for the goals of the whole. for the whole of the community. it's been my privilege to serve with not -- with nafeo first, for 20 years as outside counsel litigating in states request historically public black colleges and historically public white colleges. we represent this community in judicial fora before congress and in state legislatures and administrati