paul butler, please stay with us.are just three days away now from donald trump's first criminal trial. jury selection begins monday in the new york hush money case, and we just got a look at the prosecution's potential witness list. it includes more than a dozen people who could take the stand from stormy daniels and michael cohen to former trump white house aides and trump organization employees. msnbc's yasmin vossoughian has more on the key players. >> reporter: the trump hush money case is the first of four criminal cases to move to trial. former president donald trump was charged with 34 counts of falsifying records in the first degree, but trump is not the only one involved. michael cohen will likely be the star witness in the hush money case. he was donald trump's lawyer and fixer and on august 21st, 2018, he pled guilty to eight counts in manhattan federal court. and cohen alleged in a court of law donald trump directed him to make illegal payments to influence the 2016 election, which trump denies. >> i did

>> and a couple of legal points, paul butler, you're the legal professor, the lawyer, so talk to us about a couple of their filings, the trump filings. first of all, the threat or the disparaging incorrect comments about the judge's daughter and whether or not the d.a. can get a ruling from the judge defining what that gag order really means without having to have oral arguments and briefs that would delay the start of the trial. so they filed, the d.a.'s office filed, and are trying to get some sort of definition. it even prompted a very highly respected judge, reggie walton, a federal judge in the district, pointed, i believe during the bush years, to say this was really bad and got a federal judge to go on camera and speak out against it. >> really an extraordinary moment for a federal judge appointed by a republican president to come out and talk about the danger that donald trump's rhetoric poses to the legal system and specifically to judges. so trump is under this partial gag order and the new york hush money case. he tweeted out something about the judge's daughter, and the court

we interrupted paul butler.ant to bring phil rucker in who covered the campaign in 2020 and wrote two books about that and the trump presidency. i'm suggesting here that first of all, we saw the personal attacks on trump's record last night in scranton. that important pennsylvania state where he visited more than any other state. it's not just close by. also, the fact he is going to pittsburgh now, going to see the steel workers, talk about tax cuts for the rich, talk about going after china on chinese steel exports that hurt american steel workers. a part of pennsylvania that went very heavily for trump in the past. certainly in 2016. also talking about what trump -- what donald trump did in paris, which was criticized at the time when he was president, not visiting the american cemetery. all of that, phil, shows that they are ramping up this campaign. >> absolutely, andrea. i think this is a very deliberate contrast that president biden is trying to draw with former president trump, both talking about the reve

mean that on monday morning they're going to be those same 18 who hear the opening statements. >> paul butler just raising the stakes even more. paul, vaughn hillyard, alan, thank you all very much. >>> in 60 seconds, growing fears after israel retaliates against iran, but will tehran strike back again, or can a wider conflict be avoided? we'll go live to the region next. he region next every day, more dog people, and more vets are deciding it's time for a fresh approach to pet food. they're quitting the kibble. and kicking the cans. and feeding their dogs dog food that's actually well, food. developed with vets. made from real meat and veggies. portioned for your dog. and delivered right to your door. it's smarter, healthier pet food. get 50% off your first box at thefarmersdog.com/realfood to give your teeth a dentist clean feeling. start with a round brush head. add power. and you've got oral-b. round cleans better by surrounding each tooth to remove 100% more plaque. for a superior clean. oral-b. brush like a pro. >>> an uneasy silence in the middle east could be speaking volumes today. o

joining me now, nbc's vaughn hillyard outside the courthouse, former federal prosecutor paul butler is back with me. former assistant new york attorney general tristan snell is in studio, and jeremy soland, criminal defense attorney and former manhattan prosecutor. i'm going to start with you because you're a defense attorney and you're new to this table. it's a challenge, right, no matter how many times the defense keeps going back and back and back to david pecker, trying to show this wasn't about the campaign, which is what you did, this is standard operating procedure, they said that over and over and over again yesterday. let me give you one of the later pieces of back and forth, and this is steinglass trying to, again, disprove that bove had just done, the defense attorney. how many, meaning of these stories, did you coordinate with a presidential candidate for the benefit of a campaign. . it's the only one. in this case, did you suppress stories to help a presidential candidate, pecker, yes. how do you think the defense is doing when that's what they're faced with? >> i think th

paul butler, thank you, i do appreciate you coming on the program once again. >>> and in ohio, we havend new body cam video from akron showing the moment that an officer shot a 15-year-old boy who was holding what he says was a toy gun. the video, which has been edited and blurred by police shows the teen, tavion williams getting shot in the wrist on april 1st, just seconds after the officer ordered him to put his hands up. this was the moment the teen was shot. and i do want to warn you, you may find it disturbing. >> can i see your hands real quick? >> it's fake. it's fake. it's fake. it's fake. it's fake. it's fake. >> drop to the ground. drop to the ground. drop to the ground. >> it's fake. >> you can hear him yelling over and over and over again. it's fake. nbc's shaquille brewster is following this for us. what for can you tell us? >> well, chris, i tell you that we expect to hear more from the family on friday during a press conference. that will be the first time we hear from the family since the shooting occurred. police say this happened last monday on april 1st, about 7:00 p

paul butler is a former federal prosecutor, georgetown law professor and msnbc legal analyst. lisa rubin is an msnbc legal correspondent. okay, lisa, can you explain the trump team's argument here and whether there's anything to it? >> so i can do my best, and i'll play an advocate for them right now as to why they're renewing this. they did move last year for judge merchan's recusal, on the basis that judge merchan's daughter is the leader of a political digital strategy firm that among other clients has the biden/harris campaign and done work for congressman adam schiff. their argument at the time was that historically that firm had made a number of arguments that were sort of antithetical to president trump, that it had advocated for people who were his political enemies and as such, there was a conflict between her and them, such that the judge himself needed to recuse. that's because new york statutes call for recusal where somebody who's a sixth degree relative, not just a first degree or a second degree, up to a six-definitely relative has an interest that would be subs

also with us, paul butler, former federal prosecutor, georgetown school of law professor and an msnbc legal analyst, and tristan snell former assistant to attorney general for new york who led the trump university investigation. he is also the author of "taking down trump: 12 rules for prosecuting donald trump by someone who did it successfully." so vaughn, catch us up on the big moments so far and how trump has been reacting to what's unfolding. >> reporter: right, chris, the cross examination from donald trump's defense team ended after nearly four hours, and over the course of those four hours, this morning here you have the prosecution -- or i should say you have the defense team for donald trump repeatedly trying to muddy the waters. calling into question, past statements, recollection of david pecker over his conversations with donald trump in 2015, 2016. his conversations with federal prosecutors back in 2018, even american media's letter to the fec as recently as 2021, and over the course of this, they called into question michael cohen's credibility through david pecker's own

joyce vance is with us now, as well as paul butler.today from david pecker about both karen mcdougal and stormy daniels in these, you know, nondisclosure agreements that of course the allegation is were all arranged through the "enquirer" or through michael cohen to keep everything out of the public, according to pecker, as a matter of the campaign. >> this is exactly what the prosecution was count ongoing when they put pecker up as their first witness, right. prosecutors and paul will back me up on this, we know two things that juries remember, the first thing that they hear and the last thing that they hear. so this first witness, while they're still fresh is very important. not only is david pecker talking about the seedy side of the deals, he's also bringing donald trump directly into the mix throughout much of his testimony. >> and there was an objection at one point, but that was overruled, so this is all being presented to the jury, paul. >> yeah, that's right. so, again, a riveting witness. this has got to be the most interesti

paul butler, a legal analyst and former prosecutor, and barbara mcquade, also a legal analyst and a former u.s. attorney for the eastern district of michigan and author of the amazing but, attack from within. how this information is sabotaging america. i want to ask you the million- dollar question. we are all former prosecutors and we all bid with the experience of getting to trial and ready to go and something happens where it doesn't go on the date planned. everyone wants to know, is this actually going to go on monday? do you think jury selection will actually start? will we see the beginning of the first trial of the former president of the united states of america? >> on monday, something historical happened. it will be the first day and donald trump's life that he is beginning to be brought to judgment in a criminal case for his own alleged corruption. as you noted, his lawyers have filed nine different emotions to delay the trial. they are trying to get around the law that they can't appeal after the trial that is what article 78 motion was about. the reason for that is that trump'

paul butler, thank you very much. >>> sending new reporting that trump's mediocre social platform waso go public because it was bailed out by a russian american businessman who is now under investigation. we'll cover it with a reporter who broke that next. with a repr who broke that next. i know what it's like to perform through pain. if you're like me, one of the millions suffering from pain caused by migraine, nurtec odt may help. it's the only medication that can treat a migraine when it strikes and prevent migraine attacks. treat and prevent, all in one. don't take if allergic to nurtec. allergic reactions can occur, even days after using. most common side effects were nausea, indigestion, and stomach pain. relief is possible. talk to a doctor about nurtec odt. oooh! i can't wait for this family getaway! shingles doesn't care. shingles is a painful, blistering rash that can last for weeks. ahhh, there's nothing like a day out with friends. that's nice, but shingles doesn't care! 99% of adults 50 years or older already have the virus that causes shingles inside them, and it can rea

joining us now, paul butler, former presidential prosecutor, professor at georgetown school of law anda criminal defense attorney and msnbc legal analyst. so, paul, when talking about the karen mcdougle story specifically, pecker said, quote, i was speaking to him, meaning cohen, prior to this. probably a couple of times a week when this subject came up and this issue came up, i spoke to him much more frequently. almost every day. sometimes a couple of times a day. is that one way to use pecker's testimony to essentially bolster cohen's credibility or at least punctuate the point this is a guy who is running things for trump? >> totally, chris. so michael cohen as we know, has mad credibility issues. not only did he lie and plead guilty to lying in the hearing where he pled guilty to lying, the judge later accused him of lying in that hearing. and so prosecutors are actually used to witnesses like this. the people who know how the crime went down are often down and dirty with the crime. so what do you do? you corroborate. you corroborate with receipts. so here, the prosecutors have tex

joining me now is paul butler, former federal prosecutor, georgetown law professor and msnbc legal analyst, and tony schwartz, ceo of the energy project, and coauthor of donald trump's the art of the deal. thank you for being here. i'm going to start at the table with you. let's start with the gag order, paul. fines for now. jail later. if he keeps violating, donald trump did take down the offending posts. but is $9,000 a real penalty? >> not for donald trump. it's chump change. he has the biggest megaphone of any criminal defendant in u.s. history, and he uses it to disparage witnesses in violation of the gag order. maybe it makes political sense. he's got to give his followers some reason to believe that these folks like michael cohen and stormy daniels who could send him to jail or at least cause him to become a convicted criminal, he's got to give his followers a reason not to believe them. or that's in direct contradiction to what the judge has ordered, joy. any other defendant who willfully disobeyed nine times, nine contempt sanctions, would be sitting under rikers island right now.

lisa reubens and also paul butler are joining us. lisa, you've been amaamazing. you never take a day off. but let me ask you when do we expect, anyway to tell whether today could be the day where we hear what the judge will decide about thegag order alleged violations? he certainly seemed very impatient of the ability to restrain let's say donald trump. >> he is equally frustrated with todd's ability to connect him with the attacks. that was the chief defense, that donald trump was simply defending himself in the court of public opinion. i expect that we'll hear from week's end. but judge merchan said that he wouldn't rule from the bench because he understands that it will likely be appealed so he wants to take his time to be thoughtful about which of the posts are violations and what the relief is. and i will note for our viewers, $1,000 per violation doesn't sound like very much and it is not, but that is the maximum allowed under the statute. the only alternative is incarceration for up for 30 days. you heard the d.a.'s office say yesterday that is not what th

paul blackburn. he is a brentwood kid. six and a third innings against washington. hasn't had a run in three starts this season. last night's game went to extra. tied at 1. lawrence butlerat in his hands. matt schuman came down and dove for the winning run. the a's walked it off 2-1. they have a record of 6-8. they won five of the last six. >>> golf, second round of the masters. dechambeau, was he carrying the leaderboard? you will see tiger woods play. he made the cut for a master's record 24th straight time. he was alongside max homa. look at him figure out the line at the fourth green. one of three cal alums in the top 10. six under tied for the lead with dechambeau and scottie scheffler at agusta national. we will see you after the third round on the par five show. >>> shohei ohtani hit his 175th home run in the major league tying the records for the most homer by a japanese born player. it was his fourth home run of the season. it came in the bottom of the first inning. he is tied with matsui for the record. after the game, he said he is honored to be a part of history but despite that achievement, the dodgers could not get a win. they dropped this one 8-7. >>> com

paul, aye. mr. lankford, aye. the clerk: mr. kennedy, aye. ms. butler, aye. the clerk: mr. reed, aye. the clerk: mr. brown, aye. mr. budd, aye. mr. heinrich, aye. the clerk: mr. mullin, aye. the clerk: mr. grassley, aye. ms. smith, aye. mr. sanders, aye. the clerk: mr. blumenthal, aye. the clerk: mr. ossoff, aye. the clerk: mr. markey, aye. the clerk: mr. moran, aye. mr. thune, aye. mr. bennet, aye. the clerk: mr. young, aye. the clerk: mrs. gillibrand, aye. mr. tester, aye. the clerk: mr. sullivan, no. mr. hickenlooper, aye. the clerk: mr. braun, aye. the clerk: mr. boozman, aye. the clerk: mr. cramer, aye. the clerk: mrs. britt, aye. the clerk: mr. manchin, aye. mr. tillis, aye. the clerk: mr. cruz, aye. the clerk: ms. cantwell, aye. the clerk: mr. mcconnell, aye. the clerk: ms. klobuchar, aye. vote: the clerk: mr. hawley, aye. the presiding officer: the ayes are 96. the nays are 2. the nomination is confirmed. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table and the president will be immediately notified of the senate's action. mr. schumer: mr. president. the pres

paul blackburn. six in the third shutout innings against washington. he has not allowed a run in three shots. game went into extras, tied at one, bottom of the 10th, butler, dangerous with a bat in his hands. matt came on down and dove for the winning run. the a's walked it off. final of 2-1, they got a record of 6-8, they won five of the last six. i change my voice. success round in the master's. for awhile he was carrying the leaderboard. you will see tiger woods play the weekend. nice chip at 6. made the cut for master's 24th straight time. he was playing alongside max homa, look at him see and figure out the line here. this at the fourth green. 103 in the top 10. he is 6 under, tied for the lead and world number one player scottie scheffler. i believe we will explain a certain local master's event >> coming up. >> i can't wait. >> vern and i are not on par with the pros >> no we are not. we had a minimaster's of our own at thrive city. you have the next commercial break . >>> hello, friends, we hope you join us this week for a round of the master's. the music helps. thank you. >> here is the inside story. jules and i, we went to thrive city, each yea

butler bundled up top one brant rooker. that's a two run shot second game with a two run homer. myron his work two nothing. a's more than enough run support for starter pauln't bounce it like the niners guys, but unless he wanted to on purpose. hasn't allowed a run for 13 innings so far this season. first ace pitcher not to allow a run in his first two starts since 2010. got his first win and has started both of oakland's victories. a's win four nothing forever giant joey bart making his debut with the pirates against the orioles. and what a way to go first at bat, a home run, two run shot, and in his next at bat, he hit a double. he went two for five with two rbi, and the pirates walked it off against the orioles, five four, in 11 innings. hey, you just see this texas open ludvig oberg. there goes your driver on the par four 17th tee shot. the ball still went to the green. unfortunately, he missed his eagle putt. he's tied for six going into the final round. the masters is next week. there goes the golf driver abc seven sports sponsored good. when you've got type 2 diabetes like me, you have up to 4 times greater risk of stroke, heart attack or worse dea

paul blackburn. he is a brentwood kid. hasn't had a run in three starts this season. last night's game went to extra. tied at 1. lawrence butler a bat in his hands. matt schuman came down and dove for the winning run. the a's walked it off 2-1. they have a record of 6-8. they won five of the last six. >>> golf, second round of the masters. dechambeau, was he carrying the leaderboard? you will see tiger woods play. he made the cut for a master's record 24th straight time. he was alongside max homa. look at him figure out the line at the fourth green. one of three cal alums in the top 10. six under tied for the lead with dechambeau and scottie scheffler at agusta national. we will see you after the third round on the par five show. have a good day. >>> back to baseball, l.a. dodgers star ohtani made history against the padres. he hit his 175th home run in the major league tying the records for the most homer by a japanese born player. it was his fourth home run of the season. it came in the bottom of the first inning. he is tied with matsui for the record. after the game, he said he is honored to be a part of history but despite

paul, ricketts, rubio. senators voting in the negative -- butler, cantwell, duckworth, durbin, gillibrand, kaine, manchin, markey, menendez, murray, sanders, schatz, smith, warner, wyden. the clerk: ms. cortez masto, no. mr. kennedy, aye. the clerk: mr. coons, no. vote: the clerk: ms. baldwin, no. the clerk: ms. stabenow, no. mr. tester, no. the clerk: ms. warren, no. the clerk: mr. brown, no. the clerk: ms. klobuchar, no. the clerk: mrs. fischer, aye. ms. collins, no. the clerk: mr. grassley, aye. the clerk: mr. daines, aye. mr. thune, aye. mr. barrasso, aye. mr. casey, no. mr. tillis, aye. mrs. britt, aye. ms. ernst, aye. mr. welch, no. the clerk: ms. murkowski, no. the clerk: ms. hyde-smith, aye. the clerk: mr. reed, no. mr. lankford, aye. the clerk: mr. sullivan, aye. the clerk: mr. cornyn, aye. mr. vance, aye. the clerk: mr. scott of florida, aye. mr. budd, aye. mr. wicker, aye. mr. johnson, aye. the clerk: mrs. blackburn, aye. mr. scott of south carolina, aye. mr. marshall, aye. mr. rounds, aye. the clerk: mr. carper, no. mr. hickenlooper, no. mr. merkley, no. vote: the clerk: mr. hagerty, aye. the clerk:

cotton, crapo, ernst, grassley, hagerty, kennedy, marshall, paul, scott of florida, scott of south carolina. the clerk: mr. schmitt no. ms. butler, aye. mr. young, no. mr. merkley, aye. the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye. mr. wicker, no. mr. barrasso, no. the clerk: ms. lummis, no. ms. baldwin, aye. ms. warren, aye. ms. hirono, aye. mr. coons, aye. mr. warner, aye. mr. mr. rounds, aye. mr. ossoff, aye. the clerk: mr. brown, aye. mr. hickenlooper, aye. mr. daines, no. mr. van hollen, aye. mr. thune, no. mr. wyden, aye. mr. lujan, aye. ms. klobuchar, aye. mr. cassidy, no. the clerk: mr. cardin, aye. the clerk: mr. schumer, aye. mr. johnson, no. the clerk: mr. cornyn, no. the clerk: mr. lee, no. the clerk: mr. mcconnell, no. the clerk: mrs. gillibrand, aye. the clerk: mrs. shaheen, aye. mr. carper, aye. the clerk: mr. rubio, no. mrs. hyde-smith, no. the clerk: mr. graham, aye. the clerk: ms. duckworth, aye. mr. budd, no. mr. tester, aye. the clerk: mr. markey, aye. pros mrs. capito, no. mrs. britt, no. mr. braun, no. the clerk: mrs. fischer, no. ms. cantwell, aye. mr. vance, no. the clerk: ms. collins, aye. mr. hoeven, no. the clerk: mr

paul, scott of florida, and tuberville. senators voting in the negative -- baldwin, barrasso, bennet, blumenthal, booker, boozman, brit, brown, budd, butler, cantwell, cardin, carper, casey, collins, coons, cornyn, cotton, duckworth, durbin, ernst, fetterman, fischer, gillibrand, grassley, hassan, hickenlooper, hirono, hyde-smith, kaine, kelly, king, klobuchar, lankford, lujan, markey, mcconnell, menendez, merkley, moran, mullin, murkowski, murray, ossoff, padilla, peters, reed, risch, romney, rosen, rounds, rubio, sanders, schumer, shaheen, stabenow, sullivan, tester, thune, tillis, van hollen, warner, welch, whitehouse, wicker, and young. mr. murphy, no. mr. ricketts, no. mr. cruz, no. mr. wyden, no. mr. cramer, no. mr. graham, no. ms. smith, no. mr. hoeven, no. cl the clerk: mr. scott of south carolina, no. mr. cassidy, no. the clerk: mr. crapo, no. the clerk: ms. warren, no. the clerk: mr. schatz, no.

paul blackburn in the bottom of the first and it is four one. new york before many fans were even in their seats. a's respond. shea langeliers homers in the second, and then lawrence butlerit goes. he connects off marcus stroman in the fourth. that's another home run. but both were solo shots. so the yanks still lead 4 to 3. and that's how it ended. the a's come back comes up just short. yankees win 4 to 3 to even up the series at a game apiece. same two teams tomorrow. the giants are just underway against the new york mets, who have the highest payroll in the game as they go for their fifth win in their last seven games. and last night, a dramatic new entrance from the bullpen for closer camilo duvall. they turned off the lights at oracle park, put a spotlight on duvall as he made his way to the pitcher's mound. apparently, this has been in the works for quite some time, and it finally made its much anticipated debut last night. now the timing needs some work. watch as the lights go out right as the ball leaves duval's hand. he throws about 100 miles an hour in case you're wondering what happened to the catching coach, alex berg. he's fine. he made the catch, so no prob

blast off paul blackburn in the bottom of the first 4 to 1 new york before many fans were even in their seats. but the a's respond. shea langeliers homers in the second, and then lawrence butlerf marcus stroman in the fourth for another home run. but there were both solo shots, so the yanks still led 4 to 3. and that is how it ended. the a's come back. comes up just short. yankees win 4 to 3 to even up that series at a game apiece. same two teams tomorrow coming into tonight. this is interesting. home teams in the nba playoffs were 11 and zero. but that changed los angeles clippers superfan billy crystal. he was hoping the trend would continue tonight in l.a, but luka doncic of the mavs he had other designs. doncic, cold blooded three point dagger. he finished with 32 points, nine assists. mavs win 9693 to even up that series at a game apiece. game three friday in dallas and in milwaukee tonight, bucks star giannis antetokounmpo still out with a calf injury. damian lillard picked up the slack. the tough jumper going out of bounds plus the foul. lillard flexing with 34 points but only eight in the second half. the pacers pull away in the fourth working the ball inside to pasca

paul, aye. the clerk: ms. smith, aye. mr. murphy, aye. the clerk: ms. warren, aye. mr. kelly, aye. mr. kaine, aye. mr. tester, aye. mr. barasso, aye. the clerk: mr. casey, aye. the clerk: ms. butler, aye. mr. lujan, aye. mr. schmitt, no. ms. duckworth, aye. the clerk: mr. fetterman, aye. the clerk: mr. carper, aye. vote: the clerk: mr. durbin, aye. the clerk: mr. cassidy, aye. the clerk: mr. risch, aye. the clerk: mr. schumer, aye. the clerk: mr. vance, aye. the clerk: ms. cantwell, aye. mr. schmitt, aye. the clerk: ms. murkowski, aye. the clerk: mr. scott of florida, aye. mr. merkley, aye. mr. markey, aye. mrs. gillibrand, aye. the clerk: mr. thune, aye. the clerk: mr. reed, aye. the clerk: mr. boozman, aye. the clerk: mr. ricketts, aye. mr. ossoff, aye. mrs. shaheen, aye. the clerk: ms. cortez masto, aye. the clerk: mr. booker, aye. mrs. britt, aye. mr. van hollen, aye. ms. hassan, aye. ms. rosen, aye. the clerk: mr. blumenthal, aye. mr. bennet, aye. vote: the clerk: ms. lummis, aye. mr. sullivan, no. ing. the clerk: mr. padilla, aye. the clerk: mr. hawley, aye. vote:# >> good afternoon everybody and thank you for joining us. we receive the impeachment articles on secretary may

booker, braun, brown, butler, cantwell, cramer, cruz, daines, durbin, hagerty, hawley, hirono, hoeven, johnson, leie, lummis, markey, marshall, mets, merkley, murphy, murray, paul, sanders, scott of florida, scott of south carolina, tester, tuberville, van hollen, warren, welch, wyden. the clerk: mr. thune, aye. vote: vote: vote: the clerk: mrs. black sh burn * burn -- mrs. blackburn, no. authorizes the largest expansion of surveillance on u.s. domestic soil since the passage of the patriot act. agree just the fourth amendment violations against u.s. citizens will increase dramatically if this bill is passed into law as it stands now. fortunately there is one thing standing between that bill becoming a law between where that bill stands and aware that bill could be soon if we enacted without an amendment that the united states senator under article one section seven the same bill has to pass in both houses before it can be presented to the president for signature, veto or acquiescence. as amended by the turner amendment would allow the government to compel a huge range of ordinary u.s. businesses and individuals and other organizations exempting an odd assortme