gwen: news tonight -- harry reid's exit. old and new debates in afghanistan and the first official 2016 candidate steps up. we will cover it all tonight on "washington week." >> we've got to be more concerned about the country, the senate the state of nevada and us. and as a result of that, i'm not going to run for re-election. gwen: harry reid's announcement he's quitting the senate sets off a scramble for both his nevada seat and for the top democratic post in the senate. the fallout, two ways of looking at afghanistan. >> we want to make sure that we're doing everything we can to help afghan security forces succeed so we don't have to go back. gwen: as its president pleads for the tows stay a little longer. and bowe bergdahl, once hailed as an american hero, is instead branded a trader. >> sergeant bergdahl is charged under the uniform coach of military justice with one count of article 85, decertification with intent to shirk important or hazardous duty. gwen: plus -- >> i believe in you. i believe in the power of millio

the thing about harry reid is that he plays by his own rules. he cares about what the democratic caucus thought, but most of the time he does not really care. during the campaign when it came out that mitt romney had not paid his federal taxes he would not have bent to the criticism of going on the senate floor, he did not care. there are a lot of politicians who go and help themselves, but he does what he is great to do. john: he seems like kind of an archaic guy, if you ever get to see him, he seemed like older than his years and away. you could actually pay in the middle of a presidential campaign baseless accusations and pay no price but consume a lot of media cycle to distract romney and be a real foreign in his side. mark: he was all about using power in his state. yucca mountain would never have been billed as long as harry reid was senator. he did not want nuclear waste shipped anyplace in his state when he was there, and now is that might happen now, and that is a huge loss to their state. that is a big part of the job and a big part of

reid was going to go in this election but when reid retired, schumer positioned himself. spent nine terms in the u.s. house before he ran for the senate. this is someone ha has been -- talk about building a resume been in this life for a very long time. i actually think even when i talk to republicans they say golly, we wish we had a schumer on our side. what that means is not idealogically but this is a guy who comes across a ton of dough and guy who understands this is under rated in the senate and in politics, a guy who understands the nexus of policy where they meet -- >> he really does know how to legs late. >> that couldn't be more different operating styles than harry reid. the consume mate inside player when he comes to a press conference you can barely hear him speak. chuck schumer not that he can't do the inside game much more of a public face. >> and chris jansing, our senior white house correspondent tweeted that potus calls into nevada radio calling harry reid tough, unique and crumb muj on charm and i'll miss him. so now what for nevada the senate, mr. fix?

harry reid can do nice. harry reid is capable of nice. to be confrontational, that picture there is not random. the guy on the right is harry reid. the guy showing all of his teeth while he punches the other guy's lights out. that's harry reid in his boxing days. someone offered harry reid money, $12,000 if he would approve new gaming devices in casinos. he called the fbi, they set up a sting operation, and the plan was that harry reid would take a meeting with this guy, fbi agents would set up hidden camera. they would be watching from the next room. harry reid was supposed to say "is this the money?" that was the signal. and the fbi agents would know to rush in and take the guy. that is not how it worked out. harry reid did take the meeting, did often him the money, but then instead of just saying the signal phrase to the fbi could rush in, a videotape of the sting reportedly shows harry reid getting up from his chair and saying "you son of a beep, you tried to bribe me" then he attempts to choke the guy. they had to rush in and make th

let's talk about harry reid. he announced he's retiring but not till the end of next year, but this is after being the face, the leader and face of the democratic party in the senate. what does this mean for democrats? >> well first, just a quick word about harry reid. i mean, harry reid was not born to privilege or advantage. there's no pedigree there. there are eight counties in nevada where prostitution was legal and harry reid lived in one of them. his mother took in the laundry from the local brothel. his dad was a miner who had a problem with alcohol and committed suicide. he went to law school nights, worked as a capitol policeman up on capitol hill. totally self-made man, which some say is the creator of great responsibility, but he was such as nails, determined, you could take his word to the bank. you could talk to anybody on the hill, that was the thing about harry reid. he was incredibly determined tough no holds barred. you wanted him on your side if you were in a foxhole. not smooth and not sunday m

. >>> plus harry reid calls it quits. >> don't be too elated. i'm going to be here for 22 months. >>> and a twin experiment that's ouch out of this world. >> the space environment is pretty severe. >> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. we start with discrimination in the state of indiana. on thursday republican governor mike pence signed a so-called religious freedom bill into law. the bill was signed in a private ceremony in pence's office. no members of the public or press were allowed to attend. here it is. senate bill 101 prohibits state or local governments from sub substantially burdening a person's ability to exercise their right to religion. sounds like a lot of gobbledygook. when you break it down, it is a whole bunch of discrimination. opponents say it provides the opportunity to discriminate against gay and lesbian americans. the law could also provide the opportunity to discriminate against any faith. on thursday pence came out and defended the law. >> this bill is not about discrimkrimcrimination discrimin

joy reid hanging out in the motor city.gine that this political news is something folks there are talking about as well? >> oh, absolutely. and this is going to be a huge topic for democrats. and kelly put her finger on it, when we talk about his political skills if the senate and navigating things like the affordable care act through and a master tact is and running a most formidable state-wide political operations in the country when he came up for re-election last time he was seen as vulnerable but that organization is strong. he had a fairly weak opponent but a great political organization. but by retiring ahead of the 2016 election, he leaves the party in much better shape than tom harkins getting out in 2014, which was a tougher year for democrats. this is the cycle most favorable for democrats. so if there is ever a time for reid to retire, democrats are grateful it is in 2016. >> roy reed, what do you have coming up from detroit? >> we have more coming from the ford steam lab here in detroit. we are going to talk mo

harry reid announcing he will not seek reelection in 2016. harry reid is a fighter.gain he stood up to special interests and made sure every one of his constituents had a voice in the nation's capital. let's take a look at the implications with phil mattingly. the question is how much does this matter. is it possible it will be overtaken by a republican? let me take it off with you. >> harry reid is not popular in his home state. he has to figure out a way to win in 2010 when his favors were over 50%. his ability to get out of this race gives him a real chance for potential democrats to ramp up and get control of his team. this will not be in easy race for democrats the matter who is running for the seat. one wildcard is it will be during a presidential year. if hillary clinton is on the top of the ticket, the ability to turn out the hispanic population will be huge. it should have an impact on who the democrat is that replaces harry reid. lisa: it looks like dick durbin from illinois are the frontrunners of this point. are they start to jockey for this position? phi

dana bash joins us live from reid's home state of nevada.r still recovering from a new year's day exercise accident as we saw in that clip there, but he is still throwing punches. >> reporter: he absolutely is. in fact he's at least temporarily blind in one eye from that accident jake. and he knitehe admitted to me that was part of his decision to not seek reelection. despite all that, the soft-spoken and sometimes ruthless democratic leader is still very much interested in who is and who is not going to be in the white house next time. harry reid says one of his proudest accomplishments was encouraging a young new senator named barack obama to run for president. >> i called him into my office and said he should take a look at this. he was stunned. i was the first one to suggest that too him. when he was reelected, one of the most moving phone calls i've ever received echt said, you're the reason i'm here. >> reporter: reid has led senate democrats through the entire obama presidency. >> i care about barack obama. he has changed the world. >

harry reid's retirement means two new faces. a new senator from nevada and new leader for the democrats. let's bring in the panel, joe, chuck schumer, for harry reid what changes do you expect? >> that's a big tradeup for the democratic party and america. >> trade up? >> trade up. harry reid is majority leader in the senate and the tea party in the house it was a disastrous combination. chuck schumer is an interesting person who not only will be better for his party, because it is going to be be able to tateke the message to americans more. like tip o'neill, one thing he hates more is gridlock and getting nothing done. i think we're all better off now. >> i agree with almost everything there except harry reid was described as this guy -- the behind the scenes guy and harry reid was the guy the republicans secretly cut deals with they couldn't deal can tom daschle. does the job itself polarize you. harry reid used to be what joe described. >> i think it is polarizing a little bit. i think harry reid responded to the tea party. th

. >> democrats are already looking at who will fill reid's shoes. she's he's endorsing new york's chuck schumer. and nevada's senate seat for a political climate where every race counts. libby casey, al jazeera. >>> the congressional probe investigating benghazi, said the former secretary of state deleted all the e-mail on her server. she admitted to deleting about 30,000 e-mails messages she described as personal. indiana's governor mike pence has signed into law a measure as jonathan betz explains, critics say it's meant to chip away at the rights of gay people. >> a long and heated debate ended quietly in indiana. governor pence signed into law the religious freedom restoration act. it louse business owners to refuse service to anyone if the owner feels it violates their religious beliefs. >> this bill is not about discrimination. if i thought it was about discrimination i would have vetoed it. >> that's exactly what many are calling it. worried that it will allow businesses to openly discriminate against gays and lesbians. >> if this is about di

the name senate minority leader harry reid is tapping to take over the leadership. >>> stocks pretty flat after four straight days of losses. u.s. economic growth slowed in the last quarter. commits are looking for weaker growth this quarter due to severe winter weather. but stronger growth is expected for the rest of the year. healthy consumer spending. taking a live look at the big board, the dow is up 7. the nasdaq is up 16 and the s&p up 2. >>> apple's ceo who is close to becoming a billionaire is reportedly giving away the majority of his wealth to charity. tim cook says he will play for his nephew's education and then donate the rest of his fortune to philanthropic causes. he's not the first top executive to give away his money. warren bench and bill gates launchedded a campaign to persuade billionaires to give away at least half of their fortunes. hundreds have signed up leading mark zuckerberg. >>> harry reid announced he will not seek re-election. reid made the announcement on youtube. >> i've had the time to ponder and to think we have to be more concerned about the country

but in january reid told me despite injuries he was ready to run.nd is there any situation related to this that would cause you not to seek re-election? >> no, at this stage i'm fully intending to run. >> reporter: today on nevada radio president obama surprised him with a call. >> he's got that crumb curmudgeonly charm. it's hard to replace. i'm going to miss him. >> reporter: from a childhood in extreme poverty, reid became a scrappy boxer. later a u.s. capital police officer. now 75, grandfather of 19, he will leave this office with a reputation for mastering the tactical side of politics. and that still includes quickly endorsing a successor. democrats are circling around new york's chuck schumer, heading off any knockdown drag-out fight to replace reid in leadership. kelly o'donnell, nbc news, the capitol. >>> a lot more news ahead tonight. why scientists are sounding the alarm about this majestic view in the mountains. an emergency growing by the day here in california. >>> also ahead, the school bus driver being hailed as a hero tonight, spri

i think, though, the big difference between him and harry reid, while reid is a very soft-spoken guyof tough to get a full sentence out of him chuck schumer is to put it lightly, quite eloquent, they say the most dangerous place in washington is between chuck schumer and a camera. people are going to see schumer on their tv messaging for the democrats. he's going to make their case and so that's the big difference i think you're going to see between the senate under harry reid and the senate under chuck schumer. >> and then what do you think, finally, as we wrap up harry reid's legacy will be? >> yeah. harry reid was obviously one of the longest-serving democratic majority leaders in history. he actually came into the job with somewhat of a centrist past. he was a senator from a swing state. he was pro-life for a while. he kind of changed that later on. later on he became very much kind of a partisan brawler. he fought with mitch mcconnell and not a whole lot happened over the last few years. harry reid was the leader when obamacare got done and the early things in the obama administ

mcconnell reacted to the news of reid's retirement, saying: >> the white house praised reid includingthe president's signature healthcare law. >> so much of what this president has accomplished in congress particularly during his first two years in congress would not have been possible without the skilled leadership of harry reid. >> democrats are already looking at who will fill reid's shoes. he's endorsing chuck schumer to lead democrats in the senate, and already a fight is shaping up for ride's nevada senate seat in in a climate where every vote counts. >> a nearby surveillance camera recorded yesterday's explosion two people on the restaurant of the ground floor are still missing. officials think that someone tapped into a gas line, sparked the explosion and a fire that destroyed three buildings and damaged a fourth. >>> a recycling plant in california is shutting its doors over allegations it polluted nearby neighborhoods with illegal toxins. residents say at a it has been violating environmental laws for years and they want to know what took regulators so long. >> for decades t

very close to harry reid.d schumer speak to each other multiple times. the first and last person reid speaks to is schumer. they are so close they talk all the time. can you talk a little bit more about that relationship about where that comes from? in general, with what kind of a majority leader or minority leader whatever it is schumer ends up being? >> first of all, senator reid has a 10:00 rule. he doesn't take phone calls after 10:00 at night. two people are allowed to break that rule the president of the united states and senator schumer. so how do they become so close? they came so close -- working together very closely, coordinated very closely in 2006, and 2008 as they worked methodically to pick up the seats necessarily for senator reid to become majority leader. remember, senator schumer was then the head of the dscc. and together like i said they worked to pick up what was it the 12 to 14 seats over that four year cycle that allowed them to gain a comfortable majority margin. regarding the style an

. >> harry reid will now have more time to search for mitt romney's tax returns. what today's major shake up means for democrats. plus mystery solved. we found the orgin of a fraternities racist chant. >>> one of the best pieces of art in the last couple decades. >> season three and the netplix revolution, and a lift off from kazakhstan. "all in" starts right now. >>> good evening from new york. i'm chris hayes. the greatest period of democratic legislative accomplishments is coming to a close after almost 30 years in the senate ten at the helm of the democratic caucus harry reid announced today he won't run for reelection when his term ends in 2016. reed has been coping with an eye injury sustained in a freak exercising accident earlier this year. he said today that is not why he is stepping down. >> this accident has caused us for the first time to have a little down time. i had time to ponder and to think. we have to be more concerned about the country, the senate the state of nevada than us. and as a result of that i'm not going to run for reelection. the deci

i want to end on this quote from senator reid. i want to be remembered for when i was able to bat third or clean-up a lot of the time. so there you go. doug and tammy -- >> he'll thereby for 22 months. so it's still not over. >> will he have political influence? >> he will for all those 22 months. >> i agree. >> we have to end there. thank you. >>> and speaking of retirement, this is such an easy segueway. two llamas, remember those guys? they stole the national spotlight by making a run for it near phoenix. they are heading into retirement. who could forget these two? they had to be lassoed after leading officials on a major chase last month. get away, get away. go. their escape sparked a social media frenzy. now federal officials told the owners, hey, you need to get a license to showcase the pair. so today, the llamas are making a final appearance at the phoenix racetrack. we'll miss them. they're going into -- do you know where they're retiring? >> i don't. do you have info? >> i know exactly. they're going to the villages. fl

if harry reid had an emoji it would have a black eye. not just because of the bad fall he took it would be because not only did he lose an election and go into the minority but now he's got to deal with this serious corruption case that is swirling around congress. what it relates to is bob menendez, he is a democrat from new jersey. ranking member on the senate foreign committee has harassed the president on his foreign policy. mr. menendez points out he's not been charged with anything, but if you're holding a press conference and defending yourself against the noncharges it's not exact -- >> we do that every day we say nothing. >> also not charged. >> nor have i been charged. there you go. >> no charges today. >> harry reid doesn't want to get the call from the feds saying, hey you too, come on over here, sit down with us. >> come over and talk. because, as politico reports that reid did talk to the fbi, that he is not facing charges himself or there is not an investigation targeted at him. but he took money from the same guy, or i sh

we will see you back gwen: news tonight -- harry reid's exit. old and new debates in afghanistan and the first official 2016 candidate steps up. we will cover it all tonight on "washington week." >> we've got to be more concerned about the country, the senate the state of nevada and us. and as a result of that, i'm not going to run for re-election. gwen: harry reid's announcement he's quitting the senate sets off a scramble for both his nevada seat and for the top democratic post in the senate. the fallout, two ways of looking at afghanistan. >> we want to make sure that we're doing everything we can to help afghan security forces succeed so we don't have to go back.

the long-time leader of the democrats in the senate minority leader harry reid of nevada says he will not run for re-election. and there's already a big name making moves to replace him. nbc's kelly o'donnell with details now from washington. >> reporter: the senate's most powerful democrat is stepping out of the ring. >> i'm not going to run for re-election. >> reporter: harry reid still bruised and partially blinded after a serious home exercise equipment accident in december. >> but this accident has caused us for the first time to have a little down time. >> reporter: aides say around christmas, reid and his wife decided he would not battle for a sixth term. but in january reid told despite injuries he was ready to run. >> and is there any situation related to this that would cause you not to seek re-election? >> i know at this stage i'm fully intending to run. >> reporter: today on nevada radio president obama surprised him with a call. >> he's got that kir mujen charm. it's hard to replace. i'm going to miss him. >> reporter: from a childhood in extreme poverty, reid became a sc

you served with harry reid for years. did president obama's bidding or certainly worked alongside him bottling up house republican legislation so it never went to a vote, let alone forcing the president to veto it. but you do hear criticism not just from matt but from some of the president -- some of reid's colleagues who say he weakened the institution, he prevented amendments, he prevented legislating and that he made it harder for the senator to do its business. do you think there's some truth to that? >> chris, i served under four leaders, two republicans and two democrats. over the 12 years i was in the senate, i saw more and more of that under both pties. i think it's really a reflection of the times in which we live and which the basis of both parties is very estranged from one another. that leads to polarize is and gridlock. so to combat that concentration of power in the hands of leader on both sides. senator mcconnell now, maybe not quite as much as senator reid suffered those same frustrations. how do you get t

harry reid and the democrats basically shut down the senate.e passed in the senate the two pieces of legislation that i passed in the senate are more than allbut a handful of republicans in the last two years. and that was despite senate democrats basically shutting the senate down so that almost nothing could pass. >> i want to ask you also about something that you and i have talked about several times over the years, which is likability with respect. you're not the most popular man in the republican congress. i think you know that. you wear it as a badge of honor. you say it is because you stand up for principle. but again, when you're president of the united states you have to have at least some measure or level of likability in order to reach out and get things done. how will you overcome that? >> i'll point out there's almost an inverse relationship between being liked and appreciated in washington, d.c., and reviled back home, and being reviled in washington and appreciated back home. i mean, you remember because you came to texas after w

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harry reid was a fighter. there is no doubt that his tenacity and skills benefited the country when he served in that position, and as he has served in that position. over the course of the next 22 months when both men say about the remainder of their term, i'm confident that they will work closely together in the interest of middle-class families across the country. i'm confident that senator reid will fight for his values and priorities, and will benefit the country. reporter: the loretta lynch nomination? press sec. earnest: unfortunately, no. we are up to 139 days. i think the promise has been broken. major. reporter: you brought up the senate majority. you now have a lame-duck president and lame duck minority leader. what affect will that have on the ability to regain the majority? press sec. earnest: i will leave the election analysis to you guys. what we have seen over the last several months is a president who has really taken control of the united states capitol. i think he has been in position where

and the president over the head of harry reid, who didn't like it.saw he has been truly marginallized. schumer of new york will take a lesson from this. he has a chance to reset things in the senate. just basically a boxing ring. all they do is fight. i think schumer likes to be a player. >> see, the senate majority leader harry reid i saw as playing political games and doing everything he could. i'm deeply deserved that the nominee for attorney general loretta lynch has not had a vote. i don't care if they're voting for or against her. the republicans promised they weren't going to do the political games that harry reid did. well, they did. >> from a democrats's perspective. >> that's going over the country. >> he is the leader of the democrats. so they are playing two roles. a key role in both parties. >> he's not had votes in the senate. >> i also don't think he is being pushed out. this is something he is legitimately leaving over health issues. >> i think it's not fun to be in the minority. >> they have no interested in getting rid of him. they

but next we're going to talk about a familiar face around washington harry reid.leaving the senate. he's leaving on his terms. no regrets, certainly no apologies. we'll have cnn's exclusive interview next. [ male announcer ] you wouldn't leave your car unprotected. but a lot of us leave our identities unprotected. nearly half a million cars were stolen in 2012. but for every car stolen 34 people had their identities stolen. identity thieves can steal your money damage your credit and wreak havoc on your life. why risk it when you can help protect yourself from identity theft with one call to lifelock, a leader in identity theft protection? lifelock actively patrols your sensitive personal information helping to guard your social security number, your bank accounts and credit, even the equity in your home. your valuable personal assets! look, your credit card company may alert you to suspicious activity on the accounts you have with them, but that still may leave you vulnerable to big losses if a thief opens new accounts in your name or decides to drain your saving

harry reid a little more come rah shy. chuck schumer and camera shy never used in the same sentence. >> also one of the fiercest en fighters behind closed doors? >> yes, but always trying to find a deal. harry reid was known as that guy before he ascended to the top spot. sometimes the spot itself forces you to be partisan and the question is can chuck schumer still be a deal maker and a partisan leader? >> that's tough to do. >> a lot to talk about today. >> a busy show. we e eem go 90 minutes if we have to. >> you heard it here first. >> we'll see if the bosses here at wrc allow it. >> you can see "meet the press" every sunday on nbc4 right after "news 4 today." >> amelia is here with better news. temperatures rising. >> yes, rising to 49 degrees for a high today. that's still a good ten degrees below where we should be this time of year. >> that's cold. that's cold. >> i know. at least it's sunny. at least we're not talking about snow. finding the silver lining there. it is warmer than yesterday. still chill live. some

reid's senate seat out there in nevada.y lee, memories of her old boss, we appreciate you joining us from california. thanks. >> thanks. >> i'll be back. >>> and now the latest overseas and the site where investigators in the french alps still on the scene where 150 people lost their lives onboard that doomed germanwings flight this week. we're learning more about the co-pilot accused of deliberately crashing that jet and the questions surrounding a motive. let's get the very latest now from amy kellogg. amy? >> reporter: hi, uma. well, in the last couple of hours there has been a flurry of new information that's come out on this case. most of it attributed to the german newspaper "bild" on sunday. they are saying that andreas lubitz's body parts have been identified here in france. now that's important obviously because they will need to be tested for drugs possibly for alcohol. so that is a key development if in fact it is true. also, they are reporting that he had problems with his vision and that could have been the rea

harry reid announced today that he will not seek reelection. the decision has major political implications from washington to nevada. peter cook has more on the fallout. was this a surprise? peter: not a total surprise. anyone up on capitol hill who hasn't seen harry reid up close knows the injuries he suffered back in january were very serious. they have taken a toll on him. up until now, he has been insisting that he planned to run for reelection, so this announcement did come as somewhat of a surprise. the 75-year-old is an amateur boxer who grew up in a nevada shack with no running hot water made it official with a video message this morning that said the injuries were not the deciding factors. >> we have to make sure the democrats take control of the senate again. i feel it is inappropriate for me to soak up all those resources when i can be devoting those resources to the caucus. that's what i intend to do. peter: he insists he has plenty of work to do in his remaining months. his decision already has a ripple effect as people are asking,

go ahead. >> is this harry reid? barack. >> well i'll be damned. >> are you allowed to say that on radio? >> i'll be damned. >> well. >> it marks a pretty big turning point for democrats in washington. this is actually if you look back at it the first time a top leadership post has opened up for them in ten years. that would give senators a chance to think about who they want to be the party's national face or make changes. but anybody hoping this would be a time to decide who that face is, think again. harry reid already pushing for his own candidate. he has endorsed new york senator chuck schumer. joining me now to break this all down political editor sam stein and perry bacon. perry, i don't want to start with the smart money in washington, which is where folks will tell you the democrats in the senate have already kind of worked this out. technically durbin was the whip. i want to start big picture and say at this moment in the country with everything going on and the obama era ending is it even a good idea for e