learn, michael byrd is the real victim here, he's the real victim.rview with nbc news, michael byrd agreed that he's the is the real victim. >> can you give us the nature of some of those threats? >> they talked about, you know, killing me, cutting off my head, you know, very vicious and cruel things. >> racist things? >> there were some racist attacks as well. it's all disheartening because i know i was doing my job. >> given the nature of the threats that you describe come up do you have any concern about showing her face in identifying yourself? >> of course i do. if that is a very vital point and it's something that is frightening. i believe i showed the utmost courage on january 6th. >> tucker: i showed the utmost courage by executing an unarmed woman without warning her first. that's the utmost courage. if we live in a country where we let that pass, that's courage -- no, that's not courage. we can argue about whether it was justified or not. nobody is arguing, people are just praising him, including were public and members of congress who are

michael byrd instructing congress members to wear gas masks.e says officers barricaded the door would he consider to be the last line of defense. >> i been yelling and screaming as loud as i could, please, stop stop, get back. we had our weapons drawn. >> bird, only his hand and gun visible, targeted a figure trying to climb through a window. he fired a single, fatal shot, hitting ashli babbitt. she was 35 years old. an air force veteran, trump supporter, and qanon follower. we see your arm out there for a considerable amount of time. where you wavering? >> i was taking a technical stance. you are ultimately hoping that your commands will be complied with. and unfortunately they were not. >> when you fired, what could you see? we are where you? aiming >> we i was aiming for center mass. the subject was sideways and i could not see a full motion of her hands or anything. so i guess her movement will, you know -- it caused the discharge to fall where it did. >> and where we -- did you think this individual was doing at the time? >> she was posing

>> my name is michael byrd.he united states capitol police. >> for months he has lived in hiding. he says over this moment. his decision to use deadly force against a rioter as she climbed through a barricaded door that leads to the house chamber. in the months since he has been the target of threats. could you give us the nature of some of those threats? >> they talked about, you know, killing me. cutting off my head. you know, very vicious and cruel things. >> reporter: racist things? >> there were some racist attacks as well. that's all disheartening because i know i was doing my job. >> reporter: given the nature of the threats that you describe, do you have any concern about showing your face and identifying yourself? >> of course i do. that is very vital point, and it's something that is frightening. i believe i show the utmost courage on january 6th and it's time for me to do that now. >> reporter: responsible that day for securing the house chambers, byrd couldn't see what americans were witnessing on th

lieutenant michael byrd tells nbc he shot ashli babbitt only as a last resort after he says the rioters refused to comply with his commands. > i was taking a tactical stance. you're ultimately hoping that your commands will be complied with and, unfortunately, they were not. she was posing a threat to the united states house of representatives. >> babbitt's family disputes the claim that she was a threat, but multiple investigations have cleared byrd of any wrongdoing. >>> all right. time now for a look at your friday weather. >>> good morning. the tropics are active once again. tropical storm ida moving through the caribbean expected to strengthen to a category 3 hurricane as we head toward the latter half of the weekend making landfall on a louisiana coast. the danger zone is the entire louisiana coast with a hurricane watch, a tropical storm watch around mobile bay, and we're looking at up to 20 inches of rain at landfall in louisiana and also an accuweather local storm max of up to 130 miles an hour. i'm accuweather meteorologist kevin coskren. >>> coming up, the coyote attack caugh

>> my name is michael byrd. i'm a lieutenant for the united states capitol police. >> for months he has lived in hiding, he says, over this moment his decision to use deadly force against a rioter as she climbed through a barricaded door that leads to the house chamber. in the months since, he has been the target of threats. >> could you give us the nature of some of those threats? >> they talked about killing me, cutting off my head, you know, very vicious and cruel things. >> racist things >> there were some racist attacks as well that's all disheartening because i know i was doing my job. >> given the nature of the threats you describe, do you have any concern about showing your face and identifying yourself >> of course, i do that is a very vital point, and it is something that is frightening. i believe i showed the utmost courage on january 6th, and it is time for me to do that now. >> responsible that day for securing the house chambers, byrd couldn't see what americans were witnessing on their tvs, but he

little else when he publicly announced byrd's name way back in april. >> i happen know the name of that cop but you have to dig to find it. the guy is lieutenant michaell almost not see that in a single media report. you know why? because he's plaque. what i'm trying to get at here is that if you're black, and on the left, you have a sort of pass in our culture. >> that was in april. it explains a lot about the right wing's dangerous obsession with officer byrd. while we can't pinpoint when trump first learned of byrd's identity, it cast his threats in an even more ominous light. >> if that were on the other side, the person that did the shooting would be strung up and hung. >> strung up. now in the wake of the interview with lester holt, tucker carlson and others are working over time to portray ashley babbitt as a martyr while demonizing byrd. he is calling her a protester and knocking byrd for doing the job. >> i don't think we execute ene unarmed protesters. he's a hero. we call that courage, we devalued the term. >> hashtag back the blue, right. with me is mary donald trump. i immediately got afraid for him. now i'm thinking back to times that yo

. >> that was capitol police lieutenant michael byrd, the man who shot and killed terrorist ashli babbitealing himself in public for the first time during an interview yesterday with nbc's lester holt. byrd, a 28-year veteran of the capitol police force, says he saved countless lives that day as he prevented rioters from reaching the house chamber where he says he was protecting 60 to 80 staff members and staff. byrd has been in hiding since the insurrection after his name leaked on right wing sites resulting in racist remarks and death threats. let's take a listen. >> can you give us the nature of some of those threats? >> they talked about, you know, killing me, cutting off my head, you know, very vicious and cruel things. >> racist things? >> there were some racist attacks as well. it is all disheartening because i know i was doing my job. >> given the nature of the threats that you describe, do you have any concern about showing your face and identifying yourself? >> of course, i do. that is a very vital point, and it is something that is frightening. i believe i showed the utmost co

lieutenant michael byrd, who has and cleared of any wrongdoing following an investigation, defended hist day, detailing the moment that led up to the shooting. >> with the subject was sideways and i could not see her full motion of her hands or anything. so i guess her movement, you know, caused discharge to fall where it did. >> what did you think this individual was doing? >> she was posing a threat to the united states house of representatives. >> shannon: family attorney maintains there was no legal justification for the shooting. tropical storm idaho has formed in the caribbean tonight, the ninth named storm of the season is forecasted to slam into the gulf coast this weekend as potentially a major hurricane. sunday march the 16th anniversary of hurricane katrina's landfall. the chaotic u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan is drawing increasing criticism from veterans of the war on terror and that was before today's deadly bombings in kabul. let's bring in someone with a unique position to address the concerns of former military, former navy lieutenant commander and pilot, republican c

police officer lieutenant michael byrd shot and killed protester ashli babbitt. this is during the insurrection. he's talking to lester holt about the day and aftermath. >> were you afraid that day? >> i was very afraid. >> are you afraid now going forward? >> i am. i am afraid. i know there's people that disagree with my actions on january 6th. but i hope they understand i did my job. >> byrd is revealing his identity for the first time after recently learning he will not face disciplinary action. the entire interview can be seen later on the "today" show after "today in the bay." >>> the u.s. supreme court has ened president biden's eviction moratorium but here in california tenants who are behind on their rent have a bit more time on their side. >> "today in the bay's" sharon katsuda joins us live to show us why thousand of ten nants are worried about this ruling. >> that's right. here in california the eviction moratorium was extended until september 30th but across the country many of those behind in rent may not have those protections anymore. the cdc had e

have never been officially publicly identified, do you want to tell us who you are >> my name is michael byrdlieutenant for the united states capitol police. >> lieutenant byrd shot ashli babbitt, she was a trump supporter and follower of the qanon conspiracy theory. investigators say she was trying to climb through a broken barricaded doorway into the speaker's lobby where we're told terrified lawmakers were hunkered down. lieutenant byrd says he opened fire only as a last resort when ashli babbitt and other insurrectionists refused to comply with his commands he says he believes he saved countless lives. >> i know there's people that disagree with my actions on january the 6th. but i hope they understand, i did my job and there was immine and there was imminent threats and danger to the members of congress >> an attorney for ashli babbitt's family did not respond to nbc news request for comment but in a previous statement insisted ashli babbitt was no an imminent threat of death or serious injury to anyone and was unarmed. investigations by the justice department and the capitol police clea

lieutenant michael byrd is the officer who shot and killed rioter ashli babbitt as she tried to force hiding for months. this week he opened up about his experience in an exclusive nbc news interview. byrd told lester holt that he was following his police training that day. >> you're ultimately hoping your commands will be complied with and unfortunately they were not. >> when you fired, what -- what could you see? where were you aiming? >> you are taught to aim for center mass. the subject was sideways, and i could not see her full motion of her hands or anything. um -- so i guess, her movement, you know, caused the discharge to -- to fall where it did. >> and what did you think this individual was doing at that -- at that moment? >> she was posing a threat. to united states house of representatives. >> tomorrow on the show, we'll talk about the state of the investigation with pennsylvania congresswoman madeleine dean who served as a house manager in the second impeachment trial of donald j. trump. >>> still ahead, the debate over mandating masks in schools is getting personal for so

. >> my name is michael byrd.tes capitol police. >> reporter: for months, he has lived in hiding. he says over this moment -- his decision to use deadly force against a rioter, as she climbed through a barricaded door that leads to the house chamber. in the months since, he has been the target of threats. can you give us the nature of some of those threats? >> i talked about, you know, killing me, cutting off my head, you know, very vicious and cruel things. >> racist things? >> there were some racist attacks, as well. it's all disheartening, because i know i was doing my job. >> given the nature of the threats that you've described, do you have any concern about showing your face and identifying yourself? >> of course, i do. that is a very vital point and it's something that -- it's frightening. i believe i showed the utmost carriage on january 6th and it's time for me to do that now. >> reporter: responsible that day for securing the house chambers, byrd couldn't see what americans were witnessing on their tvs,

lieutenant michael byrd is a 28-year veteran of the u.s. capitol police.ent for the first time in an nbc news exclusive. congresswoman madeleine dean was among the lawmakers lieutenant byrd was defending that day. she reacted to the news with msnbc's joy reid. >> this is a man who has some sense of duty that is absolutely within his core. i -- like you, i didn't know who he was. i didn't know what color he was. and -- and just -- you can see the extraordinary integrity in him. >> lieutenant byrd told nbc's lester holt about the moment he decided to use deadly force. >> we see your arm out there for a considerable amount of time. were you you wavering? >> i was taking a tactical stance. you're ultimately hoping that your commands will be complied with. and unfortunately, they were not. >> reporter: when you fired, what -- what could you see? where were you aiming? >> you are taught to aim for center mass. the subject was sideways, and i could not see her full motion of her hands or anything. um, so i guess her movement, you know, caused the discharge to --

again, lieutenant michael byrd now trying to tell his story because the story has been dictated on thet factual. >> and so often in this discussion about the death of ashli babbitt, what's lost is where this occurred. right? she was climbing through a window into the speaker's lobby, which for people, this isn't just like all other pictures, this is a door that goes right up against the chamber of the floor where all of those members were hunkered down. >> right. >> this is feet, feet, from doors on to the house chamber and she had a lot of people bind her. >> absolutely. one person i spoke with a long-time member of law enforcement described this, she was the first drop of what was eventually could have been a waterfall of this crowd that was behind her. and we've seen three law enforcement agencies now say that was not -- not only was it not criminal it was also well within the policy of u.s. capitol police. >> whitney, thank you so much. >>> evacuations under way in kabul this morning despite on going security threats. we just got the latest numbers on how many people have been evac

that is lieutenant michael byrd of the united states capitol police coming forward, identifying himselfng on his own terms. talking not only about what happened that day but about the attacks and threats against him since. joining us now is ryan riley. he's the senior justice reporter for the "huffington post." he's been following the rioters and their ties to far right movements from the very beginning. ryan, thank you for being here. >> thanks for having me. >> tell us a little bit about the role who lieutenant byrd, who has now identified himself publicly, and the shooting of ashli babbitt have played in far right circles online since the january 6th attack? >> it's something that everyone is rallying for on the far right, and the factor that cannot be removed at all is the race of the officer who fired the shot. that just plays a tremendous factor here. i would say it is amazing how quickly this alliance between the police and the republican party broke down on january 6 and more with trump. the idea that donald trump made himself out to be this law enforcement candidate, and the gu

during a sit-down interview with nbc's lester holt, capitol police lieutenant michael byrd describedscharge his weapon as trump supporter ashli babbit attempted to breach the chamber where members of congress were sheltering in place. >> have you continued to question your actions that day? >> i knew that day, i followed my training and i spent countless years preparing for such a moment. you ultimately hope that moment never occurs, but you prepare as best you can. i know that day i saved countless lives. >> joining me now is clint watts, msnbc national security analyst and distinguished research fellow at the foreign policy research institute. welcome to you. what is your reaction to what you just heard from lieutenant byrd? >> alex, one of the most interesting things having watched january 6th unfold live and then having watched since those officers, if someone hadn't shot earlier, knowing from my own training when you see a model of people rushing you like that and your mission is to defend the members of congress, that someone wasn't shot and killed earlier in that, that they sh

here is lieutenant michael byrd asked by lester holt of nbc to respond to trump actually calling him's -- it's pretty incredible. um, he said that it was disenheartening. he went on to say he would defend the former president and his family, should he be assigned to do so. i mean, that's remarkable. i wouldn't expect nothing less from a -- from a police officer, a good police officer. but it's pretty -- pretty remark bl t remarkable that's what he said. >> we have been in washington covering these institutions for a long time. when i was watching the events of january 6th unfold, the thing thaif that i was just blown away by -- shouldn't use that term but that i was shocked by -- was how easy it was and how much the police backed off in the initial phases. there might be all kinds of reasons. they felt overwhelmed and when you saw that group of people amassed outside the speaker's lobby. i just felt like i can't think of how many times i have been in a situation at the white house or covering congress where you know if you do something stupid, you -- you could be endangering your --

. >> my name is michael byrd.ce. >> reporter: for months he has lived in hiding. he says over this moment. his decision to use deadly force against a rioter as she climbed through a barricaded door that leads to the house chamber. in the months since, he's been the target of threats. >> could you give us the nature of some of those threats? >> they talked about, you know, killing me, cutting off my head, you know, very vicious and cruel things. >> racist things? >> there were some racist attacks as well. it's all disheartening because i know i was doing my job. >> given the nature of the threats that you describe, do you have any concern about showing your face and identifying yourself? >> of course i do. that is a very vital point and it's something that is frightening. i believe i showed the utmost courage on january 6th and it's time for me to do that now. >> reporter: responsible that day for securing the house chambers, byrd couldn't see what americans were witnessing on their tvs, but he could hear it and th

>> my name is michael byrd, i am a lieutenant for the united states capitol police. >> for months heer as she climbed through a barricaded door that leads to the house chamber. in the months since, he has been the target of threats. >> can you give us the nature of some of the threats? >> talked about killing me, cutting off my head, very vicious and cruel things. >> racist things? >> there were some racist attacks as well, that's all disheartening because i know i was doing my job. >> given the nature of the threats you describe, do you have any concern about showing your face and identifying yourself in. >> of course i do. that is a vital point and it's something that is frightening. i believe i showed the utmost courage january 6th and it is time to do that now. >> responsible that day for securing the house chambers, byrd couldn't see what americans were witnessing but could hear it and pleas from other officers. were you afraid that day? >> very afraid. >> what are you hearing on the radio? >> hearing about breaches of different barricaded areas, officers being overrun, officers

in an nbc news exclusive, capitol police officer michael byrd came forward as the officer who fired a fatal shot the day the capitol was attacked, killing air force veteran ashli babbitt. >> and what did you think this individual was doing? >> she was posing a threat to the united states house of representatives. >> but an attorney for ashli babbitt's family disputes that. he did not respond to our request for a comment, but in a previous statement said babbitt is not an imminent threat of death or serious injury to anyone. >>> new york state has a new governor, kathy hochul, the first woman to take the job. >> i have a different approach to governing. i roll up my sleeves and get the job done. >> hochul takes over after months of scandal involving her predecessors. andrew cuomo's decade in power ending in infamiliary. >> scott peterson might get a new trial, years after he was convicted of killing his wife laci. >> we've said all along scott peterson did not get a fair trial. ♪ i know it's only rock 'n' roll ♪ >> rolling stones drumming legend charlie watts passed away. >> for more t

michael. where he lives with his wife noreen and raised their son ryian. in addition to "fenway 1946," he's written "26 miles to boston," another book called "rebound: basketball, busing, larry byrd and the rebirth of boston," and "the president's team," about the great naval academy football team of 1963 which starred roger staubach and who counted among its biggest fans president john f. kennedy. so michael is also one of the four founding members of the nonprofit the boston bullpen project. michael, thank you for joining us this evening. we can't wait to hear your observations. >> it's my pleasure, thank you, gordon. >> you got it. finally, and this man is no stranger to most of you, he is the most prolific writer ever on red sox history, and bill, don't even bother to protest that designation, no one even comes close. bill has forgotten more red sox history than most of us know. he's a board member of the society for american baseball research, a.k.a. sabre. he was a co-founder in his other life of rounder records. he's an author of countless books on the sox, including "when baseball went to war" and also "ted williams at war." bill, who has been a panelist in previous prese