Alex Wagner Tonight : MSNBCW : June 6, 2024 9:00pm-10:01pm PDT : Free Borrow & Streaming : Internet Archive (2024)

>> no, you are. >> i'll pray for you. >> thank you. >> two extraordinary heros connecting our past to our present to take us off the air tonight. and on that very beautiful note, i wish you a very good night. and make sure to tune in tomorrow night. it is friday, that means our night cap is here and we have got a really great lineup for you. but for now, i'm signing off. from all of our colleagues across the networks of nbc news, thanks for staying up late with me. i'll see you at the end of tomorrow.

president biden was in normandy today commemorating the 80th anniversary of d-day. while he was there he was asked about something totally unrelated. whether he would issue a pardon for his son hunter if he is convicted of felony gun vices. here is how he responded. >> as we sit here in normandy, your son hunter is on trial. let me ask you, will you accept the jury's outcome, their verdict, no matter what it is? >> yes. >> and have you ruled out a pardon for your son? >> yes. >> pretty clear answer there. but again, this is a yes or no question. and to be honest, it shouldn't be that hard to answer. joe biden as president with the power to pardon anyone he wants at the federal level will let

his son go to prison if he is found guilty by a jury of his peers because that is how the american justice system is supposed to work. now compare that answer to former president donald trump's answer. on trump's last day in office, january 20th, 2021, he issued more than 70 pardons and there were several scandalous names in there. the guy who had been charged with cyber stalking. there was the ex-husband. to janine peurou. most noticeable of all was campaign manager and chief white house strategist steve bannon. bannon had been charged if year before for allegedly duping

millions of trump supporter out of cash claiming he was getting money to build the wall. to be clear, they did not. but as president, trump made bannon's federal charges just disappear. typically, when a president pardons someone, it is because the president disagrees with the law that person broke or because the president thinks that person is innocent. that did not appear to be the case here. three of bannon's coconspirators were not pardoned. they went to trial. they were found guilty. one is serving three years in prison. one is serving four years in prison and one is serving five years in prison as we speak. so donald trump does not appear to have pardoned steve bannon because he thought steve bannon was innocent. he appears to have pardoned him because he is his guy. to be clear, bannon still faces new york state level charges

but at the federal level, trump got him off the hook. i'm not just bringing up steve bannon because it shows the stark contrast between biden and trump's thoughts of the rule of law. bannon was ordered to go to prison for something else entirely. today, a judge in dc ordered bannon to report to prison by july 1st for a totally different charge. donald trump immediately took to truth social to call this order a total and complete american tragedy. maybe in the eyes of donald trump. but steve bannon committed an actual crime. in september of 2021, the january 6th committee subpoenaed him and they had reason to. here he was on his podcast the day before the insurrection, january 5th, 2021. >> tomorrow morning, look.

what is going to happen, we're going to have at the ellipse. president trump speaks at 11:00. we'll be live at 10:00 o'clock. we have more news of what will happen. i'll tell you this. it's not going to happen like you think it's going to happen. it's going to be quite extraordinarily different. all i can say is strap in. the war room posse, you have made this happen. and tomorrow, it is game day. >> strap in, tomorrow, it's game day. that was steve bannon. when the house january 6th committee subpoenaed him, he refused to cooperate. he was charged and put on trial and convicted by a jury of his peers. now steve bannon may believe himself a martyr here but he is really just a criminal. >> the entire justice department, they are not going to shut up trump. they are not going to shut up navarro or bannon and they are certainly not going to shut up maga. all this is about one thing.

this is about shutting down the maga movement. shutting down grass roots conservatives and president trump. it is not a prison built or jail built that will ever shut me up. >> the reference to trump aide peter navarro there is because mr. navarro is actually already serving a four month sentence right now because he also refused to comply with the congressional subpoena asking what he knew. he is in good company. wow, donald trump is just rounded by convicted and accused criminals. steve bannon, roger stone, mark meadows, rudy giuliani. sydney powell. jenna ellis. how long do we have here? the list goes on and on. the republican party today is a party led by a convicted criminal who is surrounded by a sea of convicted and accused

criminals. wrap your head around that for a second. and then after you do that, recall what the republican party is saying about itself. >> look, we're the rule of law team. we believe in the rule of law. >> joining me now, dan goldman and george conway. a contributor to the atlantic magazine. gentlemen, it's great to see you. i need to first start with you, dan. in terms of what democrats do here. when you read the list of convicted and accused criminals that surround the front runner for the nomination. what is the appropriate way for democrats to talk about this? >> call it out like it is. the fact of the matter is donald trump had a trial. that is like every other defendant in this country. where a jury of 12 impartial jurors swore an oath to consider just the facts of the

evidence and apply it to the law and they unanimously decided beyond a reasonable doubt donald trump had every constitutional right that anyone else gets. this the rule of law. if house republicans start attacking this prosecution because they don't like the outcome, that is the opposite of supporting the rule of law. the reality is americans on november 5th are going to have a very simple choice. do you want in the oval office a convicted felon or not? and that is where we are. >> here is a person who doesn't have respect for the rule of law. here is a person who is populating the upper echelons of his campaign and his inner circle with people who are criminals. or accused criminals. >> right. >> as you said in the intro, he is a criminal. swimming among a sea of criminals who follow along and

the republican party has become the party of criminals because their position is we support the criminals. we support these people. they are persecuted by the people who seek to enforce the law against them. they say they are basically saying that if we do it, if our people do it, they are immune from the law. but the law to apply to everyone else. that is what we are seeing is we are seeing this cultish control of a political party. let's be honest here. the reason he is running for president is he wants to make the world a better place. it is not because he wants peace on earth. he wants to stay out of prison.

this is the only way he can do it. >> it is audacious, again, maybe one step beyond that. because mike johnson is not only just defending donald trump, saying the republican party is the rule of law. that's it. mike johnson suggests there has been a lot of reported debate about how far joe biden should go. and the recollect campaign on this topic and i wonder if you have a thought on this. because there are fairly wise and established democratic strategists who say if he focuses too much on the criminality of this, he will alienate voters right there in the middle. >> the convicted felon is one piece of a larger effort to completely undermine and

overtake our democracy. so it is not just that he is a convicted felon. he is a convicted felon who has already threatened every global alliance who will implement a national abortion ban who will eliminate our secret service. pardon his buddies and roger stone who by the way had information that potentially criminal information against him. the fact a jury of jail found him guilty, he is part and parcel of the entire ethos of

donald trump which is that the law doesn't belong to me. i will take down our democracy in order to save myself. >> there is an eco system that surrounds this criminality. but, that hasn't cut through. in the same way. that i potentially the felony conviction does. and i'm going to quote sarah who has been doing focus groups. small focus groups indicative of where the voter who's will swing this election are on this. the double haters, are not only united, they are trusting the judicial system over trump. they are marginal. but the margins will decide this race. trump is unfit for office. >> i think it is completely,

extremely meaningful. this election should be a no brainer to begin with. the fact of the matter is you have understated it. you can't,. we haven't talked about the fact his company was convicted of crimes. we need to talk about the fact he stole classified documents and should have gone to jail for that already. >> it is like how much time is there? >> how much time is there? and there are the things we probably don't know about. and i think that can be all tied together with. to me, i have been on this kick for several years. the man is a narcissistic socio path. if you look at the definitions of a pathological narcissist or psychopath is, this is who he is. he is the poster child of that.

and that ties into the authoritarianism. the criminality. the misogyny. the desire to do the bidding of vladimir putin. because they are one of a kind. it ties into everything. and explains everything that donald trump is. a morally bereft debraved human being who should not be any position of power. >> part of the problem is and i talk to people all the time, who say i like his policies oen this or that. you know, george and i have very different policy views. but it is irrelevant if our democracy will not exist. so i say this all the time. i disagreed with many of george w. bush's policies but i always knew and believed that he cared first and foremost about this

country. we just had a different view of how we are going to get there. i long for those days where we can have those real policy discussions. we cannot have them with donald trump because the threat to our way of life and everything that we know in this country is too grave. >> on june 6th of all days. okay? you see those moving moments. omaha beach. you know. we all, we are brought to tears as americans. donald trump thinks those people who died on those beaches on those cliffs and buried in the cemeteries, he thinks they are suckers and losers. >> i have to say, i'm reminded of what president biden was asked about. the republicans are saying the system is rigged against them at the precise moment the president of the united states is sitting in an interview saying he will not interfere

with the potential conviction of his own son. these republicans truly underestimate the american public. that they will believe that the system is somehow rigged as it prosecutes the president's own son. it is playing the american public for suckers, congressman. >> absolutely. and the problem is there is such an ecos fear. very few of them are probably watching us right now. >> well, hopefully more and more as the hour progresses. >> that is part of the problem. and how we breakthrough. that is why those double haters are so important. they are paying attention to both sides of things. and, when you hear on d-day the former president talking about going after and prosecuting his enemies and you see the current president making a

stirring beach about the importance of service. the importance of our freedom and democracy and all of those people who have died for our country and our country's way of life, that is what this election is about. >> totally. it is the starkest contrast imaginable. thank you both for your time guys. >> thank you. coming up, republicans try to court black voters by conjuring the specter of jim crow. first, american presidents can't pardon state convictions. especially their own state convictions. but donald trump has a plan for that. more on the legalese behind that coming up after the break. if you're living with hiv, imagine being good to go without daily hiv pills. good to go off the grid. good to go nonstop.

with cabenuva, there's no pausing for daily hiv pills. for adults who are undetectable, cabenuva is the only complete, long-acting hiv treatment you can get every other month. it's two injections from a healthcare provider. just 6 times a year. don't receive cabenuva if you're allergic to its ingredients or if you're taking certain medicines which may interact with cabenuva. serious side effects include allergic reactions, post-injection reactions, liver problems, and depression. if you have a rash and other allergic reaction symptoms, stop cabenuva and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have liver or kidney problems, mental health concerns, and if you are pregnant, breastfeeding or considering pregnancy. some of the most common side effects include injection-site reactions, fever, and tiredness. with cabenuva, you're good to go. ask your doctor about switching.

if you have chronic kidney disease you can reduce the risk of kidney failure with farxiga. because there are places you'd like to be. farxiga can cause serious side effects, including ketoacidosis that may be fatal, dehydration, urinary tract, or genital yeast infections, and low blood sugar. a rare, life-threatening bacterial infection in the skin of the perineum could occur. stop taking farxiga and call your doctor right away if you have symptoms of this infection, an allergic reaction, or ketoacidosis. ♪ far-xi-ga ♪

i still love to surf, snowboard, an allergic reaction, or ketoacidosis. and, of course, skate. so, i take qunol magnesium to support my muscle and bone health. qunol's extra strength, high absorption magnesium helps me get the full benefits of magnesium. qunol, the brand i trust. shell renewable race fuel. reducing emissions by 60%. ♪♪ we're moving forward with indycar. because we're moving forward with everybody. shell. powering progress.

a slow network is no network for business. that's why more choose comcast business. and now, we're introducing ultimate speed for business —our fastest plans yet. we're up to 12 times faster than verizon, at&t, and t-mobile. and existing customers could even get up to triple the speeds... at no additional cost. it's ultimate speed for ultimate business. don't miss out on our fastest speed plans yet! switch to comcast business and get started for $49.99 a month. plus, ask how to get up to an $800 prepaid card. call today!

the new york criminal case against donald trump was one of the four he is facing that will reach the sentencing stage before the november election. two of those cases of course federal prosecutions that will likely be shut down by trump's justice department if, it is a big if, donald trump is elected president. and then there is georgia. a state level case of prosecutorial independence that the doj can't touch and for which trump can't pardon himself. now, trump knows all of this quite well. he is doing everything in his power to shield himself from any charges regardless of whether he wins the election or not. he is doing it with the help of his own party in congress. where the speaker of the house is now considering a bill to give current and former american presidents the option of moving state or local prosecutions into the federal courts instead. joining me now is duncan levan.

duncan, you are my legal sensei. help me understand. donald trump believes he gets at least a better deal in federal courts than state courts right? can you talk about the strategy there? >> so much for states' rights. this is by their thinking, the president or the former president is above the law in all 50 sovereign states in the united states of america. and you could think of all of these crimes that are not federal crimes that don't bear in a federal question or cross state lines or have anything to do with interstate commerce. just a purely state crime. i'm thinking for example, shooting someone in the middle of fifth avenue. a local murder case. the local da's office would not be able to prosecute it anymore. it would have to be removed to federal court for a federal prosecutor as opposed to prosecute where there is no statute available. you could see where this is going. it is complete bedlam. not only is this unlikely to

pass the democratic senate but it is unconstitutional. >> that was my question. >> the current state of the law is that a state prosecution, a criminal prosecution can be removed to federal court if the conduct underlying it relates somehow, comes under federal office. mark meadows tried to move the election interference case to the federal court saying this came from his time as chief of staff in the white house and that got rejected by the federal court and sent back down to the georgia state courts. that is where this arises so i think this really falls more into the category of performative politics than anyone writing this has any knowledge of criminal law. >> when we talk about what

levels there are to pull. certain activities around what he did in office and there after. i do wonder whether that immunity question could affect any of the state level prosecutions as well. >> the real answer is nobody knows. nobody knows what the supreme court is going to do. mr. trump is asking for something very broad. he is asking for immunity from criminal prosecution. not only around the activities carried out as part of the core part of his presidency. it is further removed from it. the answer is that it is unlikely to affect the two state cases. because of the facts here, remember, when mr. trump got

indicted he brought the case to federal court and went in front of judge hellerstein among other claims he made. he made this claim about presidential immunity. and the judge said that mr. trump had not presented any evidence at all that hiring and paying your own personal attorney relates to your core constitutional duties. paying hush money to a p*rn star relating to your core constitutional duty. >> up for debate in a donald trump presidency. >> it was shocking, or covering up a conspiracy to promote your election by unlawful means is part of your core constitutional duties. the biggest insult is to say they didn't come up with a colorable argument. didn't even try. the georgia case has more to do with his duties because it relate to an election, but even that, you are talking about whether it relates to even remotely relates to his constitutional duties calling an elected official asking them

falsify election results or pretend they are electors. so i don't think any of this relates to the outer, outer, outer perimeters of what he is arguing here. so it is unlikely to carry any water but with some of these judges, and the supreme court these days where they are flying flags upside down, you don't know what they will rule and how they will take it up. >> and when they are. i wonder what you imagine the prosecution in the new york case is going to ask for in terms of sentencing for trump's 34 felony convictions. >> jail time. period. they will ask for jail time. with good reason. and it is not politics. it is because is case calls out for jail time. i think it is because and you could argue look, this is somebody who has lived a law- abiding life for a long time. it is low level e felony. his first criminal conviction. it is non-violent. but, you could also argue on the other side and this is the way the prosecution will see it

and likely the judge. that to the extent the legislature envisioned an e felony being punishable by up to four years in jail, this is the case that screams out for it. this is the case where the falsifying of business records relating to subverting the election to the presidency. michael cohen went to prison three years for the same conspiracy. and you can say they are different sovereigns. it was federal versus state. and michael cohen was not a leader of that conspiracy. trump was the leader of the conspiracy. michael cohen was a henchman there. somebody carrying out orders. it calls out for a jail term. but also, this is somebody who has been repeatedly violating the gag order. >> which has not been adjudicated yet. >> he is violating it recently. he was railing on michael cohen. called him a sleaze bag. he was on news max the other day calling the jurors. and the judge is very concerned

with what donald trump is saying about the jurors. how he didn't get a fair trial with them. judge merchan has been really clear. if you violate this gag order, you are going to jail. so he put him on notice about it. when you put all of this together, it's a case that the prosecution will ask for jail time. there is really a good chance of it. >> okay duncan, come back july 11th when we have the sentencing because i'm eager to hear your thoughts on that. still ahead, make america great again by reversing civil rights? this week, one republican congressman used that argument when pitching donald trump to black voters. my friend and colleague joy reid joins me to talk about that story coming up next. that story coming up next. shop etsy until june 16th and get up to 30% off father's day gifts that go beyond the classic go-to. save on personalized gear, and other things dads dig. when you want a one-of-a-kind gift

to show him he's #1. etsy has it.

clogged gutters can cause big problems fast. until now. call 833-leaffilter today for your free gutter inspection. i've had terrible flooding problems on my porch. now i understand why. right now leaffilter is offering a free inspection, on your schedule. leaffilter is a permanent gutter solution, so you never have to worry about costly damage from clogged gutters again. call us today and schedule your free inspection. to schedule your free inspection, this is the easiest, non-toxic swap you'll ever make. call 833.leaf.filter today or visit leaffilter.com.

lumineux toothpaste was made by dentists designed to break up plaque and remove any toxins in the mouth, so it'll deep clean your teeth and whiten your teeth without any sensitivity. find lumineux toothpaste at a walmart and target.

i got indicted and then i got indicted a second time and a third time and a fourth time and a lot of people said that is why the black people like me because they have been hurt so badly and discriminated against. and they actually viewed me as i'm being discriminated against. >> that was donald trump in february claiming that his multiple felony indictments were actually a reason black people should vote for him. quick reminder here that donald trump is a man who took out a full page ad essentially calling for the execution of five wrongfully accused black

and latino teenagers. this was a man sued by richard nixon's justice department for discriminating against black renters. he said laziness is a trait in blacks. he promoted the birther conspiracy about our first black president. he told the white house staff that haitian immigrants to america all have aids. i could go on. now, donald trump believes his criminal convictions somehow put him in league with communities that have faced systemic injustice. something that as president, trump claimed does not exist. >> i think the police are doing an incredible job. >> trump's black people love me because i'm a convict argument

is as absurd as it is insulting to people of color. but the notion that trump is suffering at the hands of the criminal justice system mirrors the suffering of people of color in the criminal justice system, that notion has become a real thing inside the republican party. here is north carolina republican congressman dan bishop talking about trump's conviction earlier this week. >> the people who are engaging in vindictive prosecution, when i say it is rig, they don't just go into a fair fight. they go into a place where they know the fight is unfair. it is as bad as it was in alabama, in 1950. if a person having to be black in order to get justice. >> as it was in alabama in 1950 if a person happened to be black. it is officially part of donald

trump's campaign strategy. south carolina senator and trump veepstakes contender tim scott said his superpac is launch ago $14 million ad campaign to woo black voters. scott told reporters he believed trump's convictions would help win over black men who are quote so fed up with this two tiered justice system. but believe it or not, that may only be the second most insulting pitch to black voters from trump allies this week. byron donalds was in philadelphia for an event aimed at attracting black voters to the trump campaign. when he said this. >> during jim crow, the black family was together. during jim crow, more black people were not just conservative, they have always been conservative minded but more black people voted conservatively. and hew, lyndon johnson.

now we are where we are. >> that is a republican congressman and a trump surrogate telling people that things went downhill after jim crow ended and the civil rights era began. byron donalds has spent the last 24 hours trying to clarify those comments with my colleague joy reid. we will talk about that conversation and how it went with joy coming up next. with joy coming up next. 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. what causes a curve down there? is it peyronie's disease? will it get worse? how common is it? who can i talk to? can this be treated? stop typing. start talking to a specialized urologist. because it could be peyronie's disease, or pd. it's a medical condition where there is a curve in the erection, caused by a formation of scar tissue. and an estimated 1 in 10 men may have it. but pd can be treated even without surgery.

say goodbye to searching online. find a specialized urologist who can diagnose pd and build a treatment plan with you. visit makeapdplan.com today. ♪ ♪ have you always had trouble and losing weightment plan with you. and keeping it off? same. discover the power of wegovy®. ♪ ♪ with wegovy®, i lost 35 pounds. and some lost over 46 pounds. ♪ ♪ and i'm keeping the weight off. wegovy® helps you lose weight and keep it off. i'm reducing my risk. wegovy® is the only fda-approved weight-management medicine that's proven to reduce risk of major cardiovascular events in adults with known heart disease and with either obesity or overweight. wegovy® shouldn't be used with semaglutide

or glp-1 medicines. don't take wegovy® if you or your family had medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop wegovy® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may happen, including pancreatitis and gallbladder problems. wegovy® may cause low blood sugar in people with diabetes, especially if you take medicines to treat diabetes. tell your provider about vision problems or changes, or if you feel your heart racing while at rest. depression or thoughts of suicide may occur. call your provider right away if you have any mental changes. common side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. with wegovy®, i'm losing weight, i'm keeping it off. and i'm lowering my cv risk. that's the power of we. ♪ ♪ check your cost and coverage before talking to your health care professional about wegovy®.

dad and i finally had that talk. no, not that talk. about what the future looks like. for me. i may have trouble getting around, but i want to live in my home where i'm comfortable and my friends are nearby. i can do it with the help of a barber, personal shopper and exercise buddy. someone who can help me live right at home.

life's good. when you have a plan. ♪ ♪ ♪♪ innovation in health care means nothing if no one can afford it. ♪♪ at evernorth, we're helping to unlock barriers. ♪♪ using our 35 plus years of pharmacy benefits management experience to save businesses billions while boosting medication adherence. helping plan sponsors and their members be at their best. that's wonder made possible. evernorth health services.

today marked another day with no major decisions from the supreme court where we await several significant rulings including donald trump's claim he is immune from prosecution to the availability of abortion medication. all of that hangs in the air. as do the controversies surrounding justice samuel alito after two insurrection flags were raised over two of his homes. the justice blamed the wife for one of the flags saying it came after a nasty neighborhood dispute. that it was later discovered they were flying that flag nearly a month before the fight with their neighbor. and now, that neighbor is speaking out. >> at best, he is mistaken. but at worst, he is just out right lying. in that interaction, she approached us, started screaming at us, used all of our full names which to me felt like a threat because you are a stranger. we don't know you.

you don't know us. how do you know our full names? and i started yelling how dare you. because they were both there at the same time. i said how dare you. you are on the highest court in the land, you represent the supreme court of the united states. you are behaving this way. yelling at a neighbor. harassing us. how dare you. shame on you. >> joining me now is mark joseph stern. a senior writer at slate magazine covering the courts. mark, i was very interested in what this neighbor had to say. because her account differs from that of the justice which seems significant. also, there has been a lot of talk about him recusing himself. and justice alito did recuse himself. can you talk about the sort of dissonance there between his desire to recuse him from one case that has nothing to do with a major scandal that

surrounds him right now? he had sold off stuck in bud light during the controversy when bud light had a transgender spokeswoman and recused himself from a decision today because of his ownership of some individual stock. probably a small amount, a few thousand dollars. almost as if to say yeah. i can do this when i want to. and to remind us that he is not doing it when he doesn't want to. which is in some of the major cases to come before the court including as we should keep saying over and over again, donald trump's prosecution for crimes related to january 6th which he seemed hopelessly conflicted on in the legal sense he should not be sitting on this case. the interview with the neighbor confirms some information that the washington post, the new york times had previously reported which was as you said,

that flag was flying before the conflict reached a boiling point. it really seems indisputable that she was supporting stop the steal. he was committing perjury in a letter to congress. >> does anybody hold him to task for that?. >> it seems like congress isn't going to try. i have been pressing senate democrats on this to say what is your plan here? they are throwing up their hands saying look, the election is getting closer. we are trying to confirm judges. maybe we are not holding alito to account but at least we getting these great judges through. they are wonderful. minorities, women. former public defenders but they cannot undo the corruption

and the ill gains that are being secured by a supreme court including sam alito and clarence thomas sitting on cases they have no business sitting on. i do see this extraordinary disinnocence with how democrats are approaching this as they can make up for their hands off attitude to the supreme court by appointing good people to the lower court. they will be reversed every time by alito and thomas unless democrats try the tackle this and impose real penalties on justices. >> as the court is packing like four or five terms wort of block buster cases into one term. i mean we are talking there are 29 pending decisions that we are waiting for from this court. 16 of which are major cases. the fact we have not heard boo about any of those cases, how do you read the court's silence

that they will effectively jam the decisions because the court is out as of july 1, right? >> yeah. the supreme court sets its own deadline. it is typically the end of june at the latest, early july. so they are going to pack in so many block busters into the next three or four weeks of news cycles in the hopes i'm certain of having them get lost to the public as we approach july 4th. this is the grand strategy of this court. the conservative justices are greedy for these cases. they have taken up a bunch of issues they did not need to resolve. they have prematurely waded into major cases because they want to use them as vehicles to shift the law to the right. they are packing all of these barn burners into a single term and poised to dump them on the public in rapid fire succession

so we can barely process one. it is the friday news dump from hell for the next three or fore weeks. we will keep geting the major decisions and have a limited ability to respond to them. to push back in ways they might be able to. before they know it, the next one will drop. guns, abortion, immunity. the environmentment we will struggle to really kind of process it all. and then the justices will flee for the summer and hope the news cycle fizzles out. >> that is such a cynical assessment of the timing here and i'm not trying to question you on that. but have we seen, is there anything comparable in recent supreme court history in terms of maybe waiting to do an end run around the public and the media when you are issuing a controversial ruling with landmark importance? >> this is new. recently five or six years ago,

the supreme court had a handful of block busters each term. 10 years ago, maybe two, maybe three. it has only been since justice barrett joined the court they have escalated here taking on more and more of these huge cases suching them into the last week of june. dropping two or three major ones every day. dropping them a few days in a rosa that you really can't focus on it if you are a regular person. you have a life to live. the supreme court is dismantling say affirmative action. abolishing student loans. killing the administrative state. it is head spinning and difficult to follow and i do think it is a strategy. not a coincidence. the conservatives don't know how long they could have the super majority. it could end at any time. health could get in the way. a scandal could get in the way. >> the scandal has already gotten in the way. >> something could change the way the court is constituted and they want to get it all

done now. they learned the lesson when justice scalia died in the middle of the term in 2016 and they had to put a bunch of cases on hold and set the issues aside for a few years because they lost their votes. that is another part of this tactic is just getting this all done as quickly as possible while they have the votes. they have them now. who knows how long it will last but they will get it done. >> speaking of supreme court justices in scandal, tomorrow is the release of the financial records reports. wow, the reported gifts for justice clarence thomas. i don't know if you at home can see the numbers here. he is by far and away the person who has received the most gifts. an estimated $2.4 million in

reported gifts and they estimate he received up to $4 million in gifts. mark, is there no? and, we just move on? >> rather than repeating how broken our system is, i want to point out the other numbers on the chart. the liberal and moderate justices are not participating in the same racket. some of these justices, like sutur, even kavanaugh. they only have a few hundred dollars worth of gifts they have received. they are trying to some degree to play by the rules. while they watch their colleagues flout the same rules. and the point i want the make is it is possible to serve as an ethical justice. it is possible to say these are the guidelines that the

judiciary felt upset. clarence thomas decide he was above the rules. that does set him apart. i think from someone like sam alito who comes in a distant second having accepted many gifts from billionaires but it is still not on the scale of thomas. what this shows is that thomas is in a league of his own when it comes to this kind of fraud. >> i would say. thomas and alito are in mutual leagues of their own in different ways. mark joseph stern, thank you again for your time. and rage about a broken court. we'll be right back with my colleague joy reid coming up next. colleague joy reid comingp next. but who has the time to clean? that's why i love my swiffer wetjet. it's a quick and easy way to get my floors clean. wetjet absorbs and locks grime deep inside. look at that! swiffer wetjet. missing out on the things you love because of asthma? get back to better breathing with fasenra,

an add-on treatment for eosinophilic asthma that is taken once every 8 weeks. fasenra is not for sudden breathing problems or other eosinophilic conditions. allergic reactions may occur. don't stop your asthma treatments without talking with your doctor. tell your doctor if your asthma worsens. headache and sore throat may occur. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. step back out there with fasenra. ask your doctor if it's right for you. (♪♪) have you ever considered getting a walk-in tub? well, look no further! ask your doctor if it's right for you. safe step's best offer, just got better! now, when you purchase your brand new safe step walk-in tub, you'll receive a free shower package. yes, a free shower package! and if you call today, you'll also receive 15% off your entire order.

now you can enjoy the best of both worlds! the therapeutic benefits of a warm, soothing bath that can help increase mobility, relieve pain, boost energy, and even improve sleep! or, if you prefer, you can take a refreshing shower. all-in-one product! call now to receive a free shower package plus 15% off your brand new safe step walk-in tub.

norman, bad news... i never graduated from med school. what? -but the good news is... xfinity mobile just got even better! now, you can automatically connect to wifi speeds up to a gig on the go. plus, buy one unlimited line and get one free for a year. i gotta get this deal... i know... faster wifi and savings? ...i don't want to miss that.

that's amazing doc. mobile savings are calling. visit xfinitymobile.com to learn more. doc? during jim crow, could your family have existed? your wife is a white conservative activist. could your family have existed at all during jim crow? >> no, it could not, joy. and we all know that.

that is why i am blessed to live in america today as opposed to america during that time. but we cannot ignore the realities of not having fathers in homes. that is important for black people today and all people today. >> and we are out of time. >> joining me now by phone is my friend joy reid. host, of course, of the read- out who intervied byron donalds who suggested that jim crow was somehow a time of nostalgia when black families were better off. joy, thanks for being here. i know you are by phone because we are having technical difficulties. let me get your reaction to congressman donalds speaking pretty explicitly about the great society being bad for black families and speaking nostalgically about a segregationist era. >> yeah. thank you for having me. we invited him on because his comment was so odd to say the

least. he made this comment designed to get black support for donald trump in november. the thing about what byron donalds was saying, in philadelphia, by the way, not somewhere in the south, he said in philadelphia, holding a cigar, casually talking presumably to other black people, was that he said not once, not twice, but three times that during jim crow, the black family was together. and he repeated that. but then, he said that black people during jim crow were conservative and voted

conservative. here is the problem. there jim crow, the black families had no rights. the man in that family did not have the right or the ability to protect his wife or his children from lynching. they did not have the ability to earn a living that could support that family. typically, the mom in that family never saw her kids all week because she was working in a white woman's home while the father was working the fields. he worked the seasonal picking time. these families were broken, poor, and facing violence. the idea that was somehow better because they were living in the same house is insane. >> well, joy, listen, we need to continue the conversation. there is a lot to unpack. joy reid, host of the reid out.

thank you very

tv

Alex Wagner brings years of reporting experience and insight to covering the news of the day, politics and the cultural trends shaping the United States and American lives, giving viewers a better understanding of the rapidly changing world.

TOPIC FREQUENCY

Donald Trump 23, Steve Bannon 8, Bannon 7, Us 7, Alito 5, Jim Crow 4, New York 4, Byron Donalds 4, Michael Cohen 4, Biden 3, Philadelphia 3, America 3, Georgia 3, Comcast Business 2, United States 2, Cabenuva 2, Normandy 2, White House 2, Alabama 2, Hunter 2

Notes

This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17 U.S. Code).

info Stream Only