it is a -- an absolute privilege to have this job, every day. it is a particular privilege and pleasure to have it on a history-making day, like this. the first, black woman, the first south asian woman named to a presidential ticket. this is a big deal. thanks for being with us tonight. this is going to do it for us tonight. now, it's time for the last word with lawrence o'donnell. good evening, lawrence. >> good evening, rachel. and i share those sentiments completely. and you know, i kind of thought it was going to be kamala harris. i thought that, for a very long time. she is the conventional choice. it makes a lot of sense.

and yet -- and yet -- there was, still, so much suspense in it. i think the biden campaign kind of played and built the suspense perfectly. and i thought it was coming, and it was incredibly exciting news, when it came. >> that's absolutely right. there was no shock factor in kamala harris because it seemed like a rational choice and we all knew she was on the short list, such as it is. but it didn't leak. the only thing we heard about the vetting process with people associated with it at all, was that the vetting process seemed to be going well and it was intense. senator harris was chosen, in a way that led everybody else who had, apparently, been under consideration to, immediately, come out and praise the choice. i mean, as -- as a rollout goes, this is both smooth and wel well-executed. but step away from it and i think the handicapper strength

that just -- this immeasurably. >> yeah, it really is. and we're going to have a lot of brilliant minds discussing this big day, in the next hour. >> great. thanks, lawrence. >> thank you, rachel. well, if vladimir putin and donald trump's postmaster general do not successfully interfere with our election process, 84 days from now, the united states of america is going to elect our first woman vice president of the united states. and on january 20th, california governor gavin newsom is going to have to appoint a new senator to take the senate seat of the newly-inaugurated vice president, kamala harris. california has been represented in the united states senate by two women, and women only, since 1993. almost 30 years. and so, it doesn't seem hard to predict that governor newsom

will a woman to the united states senate seat, if it is vacated by a woman. one of the women, who the governor will, no doubt, consider for that appointment, will join us later in this hour. congresswoman katie porter of california. and before she became a woman of congress, law professor katie porter was hired to monitor banking practices in the state. the attorney general, at the time, who appointed katie porter was kamala harris. and here is how kamala harris reacted to what happened to her today. >> it was the lawrence o'donnell factor, there is no question about it. >> well, okay. that was, obviously, like, ten years ago when kamala harris was

joking on this program about how she won her first statewide campaign in california for attorney general. she appeared on an election special that i hosted on the sunday before the tuesday election, in 2010. and that election special on msnbc was rerun three times. and that got her more statewide television coverage on that crucial, final weekend, than she could possibly have gotten from any appearance on local television in california. and so, when the final votes were counted, four full weeks after election day, and kamala harris won by less than 1% of the vote. she came on this program as the attorney general elect and delivered that joke that will have a permanent place in my greatest hits file. the longer you've been watching kamala harris, the less surprised you are about what happened today. i, first, heard about kamala harris from a friend of mine in california. a black woman, who told me i

should go see kamala harris speaking at an event because i would be seeing the person, she called, the female obama. the first black, woman president. that was my introduction to kamala harris when she was still the district attorney of san francisco. and the first time i saw kamala harris speak, i, immediately, understood why people in california saw her as the female obama. and the next time i went to hear her speak, i brought my teenaged daughter with me because i wanted her to see and listen to a woman, who i believed, then, was going to take her place in

history, on a much larger stage. other high-powered republican operatives, at that time, ten years ago, saw kamala harris exactly the same way. which is why carl rove worked very hard to defeat kamala harris in that first statewide campaign that she ran. and if carl rove could have just won one more percent of the vote. we would not be talking about kamala harris tonight. here is the way we ended that interview with kamala harris ten years ago. >> kamala harris, attorney general elect of california. thank you pour joining me tonight. >> thank you. >> and you are invited back on the program to announce your presidential campaign in 2016, as soon as you are ready to make that announcement for 2016. thank you very much. >> i'm ready to get to work as ag. thank you. >> thank you. >> she ran for senate in 2016, after senator barbara boxer announced that she would not run for re-election. kamala harris won 61% of the vote that time. she won 54 out of 58 counties in

california. and she was, then, a proven vote-getter in the biggest state in the union. and she was perfectly positioned to spend eight years in the united states senate, gaining the governing experience and the resume credibility to run for president of the united states. but something happened the night that kamala harris was elected to the united states senate that was not supposed to happen. hillary clinton lost the electoral college. and so, the next opening to run for president was, suddenly, only four years away, not eight years away. and so, kamala harris was going to have to think about running for president, four years sooner than she would have if hillary clinton had won. and the weekend after she won her senate election. when the country was still reeling from the shock that donald trump was actually going to be the next president of the united states. i saw kamala harris has a cas l

casual, breakfast restaurant in california. and she waved me over to her table from across the room. she was sitting at the community table with about ten other people, who she didn't know. she was with her husband. just the two of them. holding down a corner of this crowded, community table, at this crowded restaurant. where, oddly enough, no one seemed to know who she was. and as i got up from my table, i thought i was just going to go over and say hi. but as i crossed the room, i slipped back into senate-staff mode. i spent years on the staff in the united states senate advising on politics. but i found myself saying something to senator-elect harris, that i had never said to a senator before. i didn't tell her about the best committee assignments or how to work with republicans which didn't, yet, seem completely

impossible, at the time. instead, i just said to her, you should run for president because the obama lesson is it's never too early. and the biden lesson is there is a second place. and she nodded. she didn't say anything. in reply to that. as is common with smart politicians. and i didn't expect a reply. senator kamala harris ran for president, on exactly the same schedule as senator barack obama. and took her first term on the presidential campaign debate stage in her third year as a united states senator. and then, today, after dropping out of the presidential race earlier than most of the major candidates, she came in second place. and is the democratic candidate for vice president of the united states. she did exactly what joe biden to become vice president. she set out to be president and, in the presidential campaign,

she so impressed the winner of the presidential nomination, that he chose her as his vice presidential running mate. joe biden is a very careful man and a very careful politician. he tries to follow the best practices for professional politicians. and so, joe biden choose the united states senator as his running mate, as has every single democratic candidate for president since 1944. with the exception of, exactly, one, when walter mondell chose geraldine ferraro in a history-making choice in 1984. and so, every democrat who has actually won the vice-presidency since harry truman won the vice-presidency in 1994, has been a united states senator. and so, occupationally, joe

biden made the safest and most conventional choice he could possibly make. on march 15th, joe biden told us he was going to select a woman as his vice presidential nominee if he won the nomination. but a week before that, joe biden told me something else about his choice of running mate. something else that was a very important factor. experience on the presidential debate stage. exactly, the kind of experience joe biden had before barack obama chose him as a running mate. >> in your experience, and i mean your lifetime of experience and choosing a running mate, do you think it's important to choose someone that actually has been tested on that debate stage? the way i assume that barack obama thought it was very important that his vice presidential candidate had already been telsted at that level, as you were, standing beside him on the debate stage.

>> i think that's a very important factor. >> very important factor. and we're going to leave it at that today? >> okay. >> by the way, there's -- there's a number of women as well tested in other ways. not on the debate stage but in their debates in their states, and being national figures. so, you know, but, yes, i think that's an important factor. >> and so, combining that important factor with the established tradition of choosing senators as vice presidential candidates, joe biden's declaration that his running mate would be a woman. combining all of that, the likely possibilities quickly narrowed to kamala harris, senator elizabeth warren, and amy klobuchar. then, after george floyd was killed by police in senator klobuchar's home state of minnesota, senator klobuchar came on this program and made news revealing that she had call called joe biden and withdrew herself from consideration as a

possible vice presidential running mate. and then, senator klobuchar said this. >> this is a historic moment. and america must seize on this moment. and i, truly, believe, as i actually told the vice president last night when i called him, that i think this is a moment to put a woman of color on that ticket. and there are so many incredibly qualified women. >> senator amy klobuchar will be joining our discussion act thbo this historic moment tonight, when kamala harris has become the first woman of color to become a candidate for vice president of united states of america. and leading off our discussion act this historic moment are joy reid, msnbc national correspondent and host of "the

readout." and zerlina maxwell, msnbc political analyst, she is the author of the new book "the end of white politics how to heal our liberal divide." joy reid, i told you. i told you one hour at 7:00 p.m. was not going to be enough for you. there were going to be these nights. there were gonna be these nights, where you were feeling more and you had more to say. and i'm just giving you the microphone. joy, go ahead. >> you did say that, lawrence. i appreciate it. it's great to be on with you, as always. and, look, i got to tell you. there is a coldplay song that goes, i'll take it back to the start, right? as you laid out, so brilliantly, in going through the record. the obvious choice from the very beginning of these veep stakes, as we call them, was kamala harris. we know senators tend to like other senators. of course, she's ready to be

president on day one. it all made sense. and even as i traveled around during the primary, people would say, just regular people on the street. we think the ticket should be biden-harris. and this is when biden wasn't even anywhere close to being at the top. he was polling on the bottom, overall. and so, it shouldn't be surprising. but the amount of time it took to get back here where it felt like this probably started, i think, was excruciating for people. right? i mean, people, everyone i know, was in such agony. was so tormented over the last couple of weeks. you know, it was like agony just waiting for this decision to be made. and then, of course, biden did the smartest thing any politician can do, which is do the obvious thing. biden was the obvious pick for joe -- for barack obama. he was exactly what barack obama needed. and kamala harris is the --

maxing out the white, working-class vote. the most white, working-class votes you're going to get, he's getting them. he needs maximum enthusiasm. determination. he needs black women to not just give him 90% of their votes, but to come out, in record numbers, the way that they did for obama. and what gets you that? the opportunity to make history with a black woman. to put this black woman into the seat of power, in the center of power, black women will be in formation for this ticket. and that is the best news possible for joe biden. >> joy, i -- i don't know how obvious a choice joe biden was for barack obama because i actually lost a private bet about that with a friend of mine, who bet that it would be joe biden. and i bet against that choice. but i won today's bet, with that same person. it took me a long time. to -- to win that back.

on the vp. zerlina maxwell, barack obama said that joe biden nailed this decision. he said he chose the ideal candidate. >> well, i think that he looked at kamala harris's performance in the primary, and said she stood up to me in the debate. she took it to me in the debate on substantive issues, and she's demonstrated that she can be the commander in chief, through that vetting process. but also, i think what he's saying is that i want to throw something back to those black voters that gave me the nomination in south carolina. and specifically, those black women, who are movement leaders, who are organizers, who are in the streets and doing the work. and this is a signal to them that he is listening. he said he wants to be a transitional figure to that emerging majority of people of color that this country is going towards. and i think that joe biden

seized this moment, accurately. i, also, think that one of the things that we have to think about today is that, in 2016, the shock of that devastating defeat of hillary clinton. we, sometimes, forget that we didn't do the thing. we've never had a woman vice president or a woman president. and so, what joe biden did, today, does not only make history by selecting kamala harris to be his running mate. but he, also, set it up that the first woman president could be a black woman. and that is something that i am just, frankly, in awe of, at this moment. >> yeah. and, joy, what that lost i think in some of the discussion over the last little while, is that joe biden is -- is seen as a kind of -- as i say, he's a conservative-behaving politician. meaning, he will make the careful choice, all the time. >> yes. >> but, in his own, personal experience, let's remember, he

has never run on a national ticket without a black running mate. >> that's right. that's right. that's right. i mean, first of all, if you live in north carolina right now, you already voted for joe biden, right? because he was on the ticket with the one -- the one democrat who could actually win north carolina in 2008. the black guy, right? so this combination of a white politician and black politician has been successful in gubernatorial races in new jersey, in michigan, et cetera. so we know that is a combination that has worked electorally. but if you think about this, for joe biden right now, this is also a sign that he listened. because, let's not forget that, there were activists, people who have been in the activism space for decades. people like melanie campbell. but also, people who are new to the eyes and ears of americans, like tasha brown and so the fact

is that he heard this activism that was saying, it was a cry out from black women saying we have been carrying this party for decades. and getting very little in return. even kamala harris said that in one of the debates. and when activism -- it -- it challenges a white politician, of biden's generation, there's some times when you have seen politicians recoil from it. they have recoiled from those demands because they say i'm the expert here. i'm the expert politician. in this case, biden showed a maturity. there's age and there's a maturity. he showed maturity saying i can -- people making demands of me, like sunny hosten. he gets credit for that. but i also think the idea of having an hbcu grad, a member of a black sorority, these things

have never happened. to let that person make this history, it feels so much richer and i think it's something biden can be very proud of. karine jean-pierre. haitian parents. child of immigrants. this is an extraordinary day. you know, no matter where your politics are, right or left or center, the democratic party has now, twice, made history on the most searing subject in american life, on the subject of race and racial inclusion. biden can be proud of what he's done tonight. >> zerlina, quickly, i got to get to commercial. but does this choice heal the liberal divide? >> well, i certainly think it demonstrates that joe biden understands what we are going towards. we're going towards an emerging majority of people of color, like kamala harris, who are going to use their lived experiences to make policy. that as ayanna pressley said puts people closest to the pain,

next to the people in power. and that is the future. and that's really important and historic, to joy's point, i agree. and i think it's a really exciting day. >> joy reid and zerlina maxwell, i can't thank you enough for returning to television tonight because you have both been on this a lot, already, today. i really wanted to hear from you leading off this discussion for us tonight. really appreciate it. thank you, both. >> thank you, lawrence. >> thanks for having me. thank you. >> and up next, senator amy klobuchar withdrew from consideration as a possible running mate for joe biden and told joe biden that he should select a woman of color. amy klobuchar got her wish today, and she will join us, next. today, and she will join us, next customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need? i should get a quote. do it. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

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unindicted co-conspirator in the michael cohen case, and are currently prevented from prosecuting him by a justice department memo, that says presidents should not face federal criminal prosecution. but now, donald trump is going to be facing a former prosecutor in the presidential campaign. >> we have a criminal living in the white house. and there is no question that, in 2020, the biggest issue before us, until we get to that tender moment, is justices on the ballot. >> after watching senator kamala harris on that debate stage with him, joe biden has decided kamala harris is going to be on that ballot. and joining us now is democratic senator amy klobuchar, from minnesota. senator, thank you, very much, for joining us tonight. and i just want to get your reaction. >> thanks, lawrence. >> you -- you came on this program. you said he should appoint -- choose a woman of color. you told him that on the phone.

you must have seen this coming. you must have. >> well, first of all, i am just so excited for kamala, for her family. my husband and i are friends with her and her husband. and i talked to her today, and she's just going to be an incredible candidate. but most important, an incredible vice president to work, side by side, with joe biden to bring compassion and bring competence that we so badly need in the white house. so, yes, it is an historic moment. and your last guests did such a good job talking about that, in the historical context, where so many african-american women have really been, like the movie said, hidden figures, right? building rockets. doing great things. and finally, we have someone who is so talented on the ticket. but i really think we have to see it more than that. we have to look at her experience. and already saw the president go after her, randomly, on a bunch

of things. and just his usual attacks with his bad words and nasty and the like. and i was on fox earlier and i said, you know what? when i think of aj djectives abt kamala, i think about someone who is strong. as you said earlier in the show, someone who has grit. someone who has empathy for people around her. and someone who is just very experienced, in foreign relations with her work on the intelligence committee. and certainly, as you began this segment, with justice. and that's what we need right now in washington, d.c. >> i want to show another clip of kamala harris as a presidential debater on the debate stage. she was up there with you. you'll remember all of these. and this is when she was talking about donald trump as a predator. and you -- you could hear that former prosecutor talking about this. let's listen to this. >> we have a predator living in the white house.

donald trump has predatory nature and predatory instincts. and the thing about predators is this. by their very nature, they prey on people they perceive to be weak. they prey on people they perceive to be vulnerable. they prey on people who are in need of help, often desperate for help. and predators are cowards. >> when you were on the debate stage with her, were you, as a former prosecutor, yourself, looking over there and recognizing some of those courtroom moves? >> well, sure. i mean, she actually -- she was in charge of the biggest justice department in the country, the only one bigger is the justice department, itself. so, she supervisedng to the whie house. but she, also, understands a bad guy when sheeeonabout there.

and you know, we continue to see this. we see someone who, instead of welcoming her to the race today, which would wibe a normal thing for a leader to do, goes after her. we see someone, i, alone, can fix this. and then, we see him, since the pandemic, doing nothing but blaming other people. and i think the fact that joe biden picked someone as strong as kamala harris is just going to bode well, not just for a ticket but for our country. >> i want to show another clip of senator harris on the presidential campaign debate stage. and this time, on foreign policy, as you mentioned. member of the intelligence committee. she has a much more solid grounding on this than, certainly, mike pence did four years ago when he was running

vice president. >> he has conducted foreign policy, since day one, born out of a very fragile ego. that fails to understand that one of the most important responsibilities of the commander in chief is to concern herself with the security of our nation and homeland. >> senator, you know her range, obviously, on these -- on -- on the issues. what are you expecting that she will be kind of charged with, as vice president candidates often are, by the biden campaign over the next 80 days? >> well, i think she'll be going everywhere. she will go, certainly, virtually, many times, most of the time. but to the midwest. and i am looking forward to introducing her to the people of my state. she will be helping everywhere in the country, and i think that's really important. and i think what your clip got at was, of course, what she will be able to do what she's president. and he's going to need her help.

we have a domestic crisis going on. and those first 100 days will be critical. working with the congress. something she has experience doing. but also, he will need her help in working with the rest of the world. and when i -- you keep showing those debate clips. i want to show -- i wanted you to show the ones which you don't have, of kamala in the back in those three-minute breaks before debates. huddling because it was too cold out there, and telling the technicians to turn the heat up. or figuring out if we were going to be able to make it to the bathroom in time and to get back. i think the other thing the nation is going to see is that she's someone who has a zest for life. she's someone who has a family she loves. and she is someone, who i am proud to call a friend. >> senator klobuchar, i want to thank you for joining us, once again, tonight. and i want to thank you for something else. i want to thank you for joining this democratic process that has produced this democratic ticket. because we all know that, as -- as competitors in athletics and

elsewhere, competitors become better by facing stronger and better competitors. and i know that you helped make -- you helped make both of these candidates, joe biden and kamala harris, better candidates by being in that contest with them. thank you, very much, senator, for joining us again tonight. we really appreciate it. >> thank you. thanks, lawrence. >> thank you, senator. really appreciate it. up next, congresswoman katie porter began working with kamala harris when kamala harris -- when katie porter was a law professor and kamala harris was the attorney general of california. attorneys general are the most important consumer advocates in state government if they do their jobs correctly. we'll ask katie porter what kamala harris would bring to the white house, from her experience as attorney general. and we will see if katie porter would be interested in moving over to the senate, if kamala harris moves into the vice president's office. that's next. nt!

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i spent my entire career standing mostly in a courtroom speak being five words. kamala harris for the people. and it was about all the people, regardless of their race. regardless of their gender. regardless of where they live, geographically. regardless of the party of which they're registered to vote, or the language their grandmother speaks. >> that was kamala harris during a democratic presidential debate in november of last year. her work for the people has included a major case in 2012, when attorney general of california, kamala harris, was negotiating a settlement with the nation's biggest banks over foreclosure misdeeds. kamala harris walked away from negotiations, when the banks offered, only, a $4 billion settlement. and she, ultimately, secured an $18 billion in a settlement for californians hurt by those banks. kamala harris appointed law

professor, katie porter, of the university of california irvine. katie porter has worked closely with senator kamala harris on many legislative issues benefitting the state of california. joining us now is congresswoman katie porter, democrat, representing the 45th district of california. your reaction to a californian and a woman being on the ticket with joe biden? >> i'm incredibly excited to see senator harris receive this historic nomination. she is a fierce fighter for justice, for working families, and i am really excited about what this means for our country, going forward. i could not be happier tonight, to be able to celebrate this historic nomination and well-deserved spotlight on all that senator harris has done and all that she will do in upcoming years, to serve the american people. >> you know, i think a lot of

voters aren't really aware of just how big the job of consumer advocate and protector is for state attorneys general, if they take that job seriously. tell us what you saw in kamala harris's work, in that office, as the state attorney general of the biggest state. that she will bring into the white house, that -- that can benefit consumers, in ways that they might not anticipate. >> attorneys general have an incredibly important role, particularly in a large state like california. the attorney general has very broad jurisdiction. so one of the things that i observed, just as a citizen of california during this time, was the degree to which kamala was grappling with all of the different kinds of problems and challenges that our state was facing. with regard to consumer protection and the mortgage settlement. the fraud, the scams, and foreclosures that were hurting california. s she showed incredible courage in standing up, not only to the big

banks but, being willing to push her fellow attorney generals to push to get a deal from the big banks. justice isn't about what you announce in a press conference. it's about the real change that you deliver in people's lives. and that was the work that i am honored that she tasked me to help do. to deliver change in people's lives, really helping them keep their homes or get help. >> if vladimir putin and the postmaster general and donald trump do not succeed in stealing this election, the polls tell us that kamala harris will be vice president of the united states, on january 20th, which means california is going to need a new appointed senator. appointed by the governor. are you available? are you interested in moving across the capitol grounds to the united states senate? >> well, it's really flattering from you, lawrence, as a

longtime senate staffer, to ask that question. you know what it takes to serve in the u.s. senate. but i will tell you there's so much work to be done in the house. our country is in crisis. economic crisis. people are worried about their health. i have a very competitive race on my hands in orange county. and i am working really hard to listen to the people of orange county and california and of this country. and i'm very, very excited to be helping to elect the historic vice president of kamala harris and joe biden as our next president. >> what would you say that you've seen of kamala harris, that we haven't, yet, seen in the presidential campaign that she participated in, so far? what -- what might we see that we haven't, yet, seen? >> well, i think that you're going to see that she's very fierce. she's willing to do battle. you know, when she ran for the attorney general was fearless for the people. and she really is. she takes that mantel of public service very, very seriously. and i think that you'll see the

depth of knowledge and the depth of commitment that she has to trying to right wrongs, as she goes about campaigning and talking about the state that president trump is leaving our country in. >> congresswoman katie porter, thank you very much for joining us on this historic night. really important to have you join us. thank you. >> thank you. >> and when we come back, white house correspondent and presidential campaign veteran and white house staff veteran, will join us to discuss what kamala harris will bring to the campaign and what republicans will try to throw at her. e campaign and what republicans will try to throw at her defens. it neutralizes bacteria for a healthier mouth than even the leading multi-benefit toothpaste. crest. can leave you holding your breath. ♪

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in our america, people who hold the highest levels of leadership should be in the business of unifying our country, not dividing our country, and as far as i'm concerned, we've got a president who is not trying to make america great. he's trying to make america hate and we need to get rid of him.

>> that was senator kamala harris on the presidential campaign trail in south carolina last year. joining our discussion now, white house correspondent for pbs news hour, and msnbc political analyst. and former white house communications director for president obama and for hillary clinton's presidential campaign. jennifer's new book is "she proclaims, our declaration of independence from a man's world." yamish, what are you expecting the trump campaign to throw at kamala harris? >> well, the trump campaign and the president have started talking about the president saying they see her as radical left. they talk about her stances when it comes to immigration, to fracking, that she's going to abolish the police. the thing that's interesting here is

the trump began their attacks with a misleading statement. they said that kamala harris called joe biden a racist, and she never did that. she also never called for abolishing the police as a former prosecutor. what's interesting here is that there are black lives matter protesters who are looking at her as a prosecutor saying maybe she isn't progressive enough. the other thing we should note is the president just in a few minutes of a briefing called her nasty three times, using that really gendered word to describe her. saying she was disrespectful to justice kavanaugh and joe biden. so we can expect the trump campaign to be dirty in this fight, but that's part of why president trump's supporters like him. they like his brash band of politics. we'll have to see if it works out this time. >> let's take a look at the ad karl rove used to try to stop kamala harris ten years ago. my son was killed in the line of duty with an ak-47 by a gang member.

>> even before his burial, kamala harris refused to seek the death penalty against his killer. tell kamala harris, california's worst criminals deserve the toughest punishment the law allows, no exceptions, no excuses. >> jennifer, we're going to see more of that. >> right. and you saw two things happen today, on the trump side. they did the ad where they called phony kamala and sleepy joe. phony is a very gender term that we use to present women with -- women in power in an unfavorable light, right? there's something fake about them, there's something they're hiding, there's something suspicious about them. it's a very old trope. you saw trump go down the nasty, nasty woman sort of rabbit hole, as he did with hillary. and there are some times where trump or his campaign staff can

be disciplined and effective in the way that they attack their political opponents and there are some times where trump goes into a gas fire roll. he starts off calling her nasty and mean, that is not a disciplined attack. it is not very pleasant for kamala harris, but i don't know that that is going to be effective for him. she is prepared. the biden campaign is prepared. they know that they're coming after her, in particular, and trying to make her the face of the radical left. there will be sexist tropes against her, too. a lot of people have been planning in and outside of the biden campaign to have her back and fight back this time. >> bernie sanders is going to be very surprised to discover that kamala harris is the most liberal member of the united states senate, according to donald trump tonight. yamiche alcindor, jennifer, stay right there. we need to squeeze in one more commercial and when we come back we'll show more of what to expect for kamala harris as she runs for vice president of the united states.

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here is more of what donald trump is going to be facing in the remaining 84 days of the presidential campaign. >> he has committed crimes in plain sight. i mean, it's shocking, but he told us who he was. listen to somebody when they tell you who they are the first time. donald trump told us that he could shoot somebody on fifth avenue and get away with it. he has been selling out the american people, the working people, our values, national security. he has been selling out our democracy. donald trump needs to be held accountable. he is, indeed, the most corrupt and unpatriotic president we have ever had. >> back with us, yamiche alcindor and jennifer palmier. what is it with donald trump and nasty?

i've seen him throw that word directly at you in white house press briefings many times. why does he keep doing it? does he think that's the word that won him the presidency? >> i think, in part, it's that he is dog whistling, as crit beings would say, to his base, who maybe sees women as part of the problem. that's what critics of president trump would say. i also think there's another part of him that is objective, that he is someone to likes to get personal. he called her mean, disrespectful. he went after her character, also called her a liar which, of course, is really somewhat ironic coming from president trump, because he has been someone who has misled and said so many things that are not true. he started off by really trying to go personal with senator harris. i sat down with senator harris a couple of times. one thing she told me is that her mom, when she would get into mix ups at school, she would say what did you do? she wouldn't coddle her of the she wanted her to understand the power she had.

those clips there is senator harris showing i have power. joe biden wants her to prosecute the case against donald trump and that's what we're going to see in the lead-up to november. >> jennifer, as a campaign professional, i want you to give us a score of how the biden campaign handled this rollout and that final reveal of the vice presidential candidate. >> i think it's been great, right? people are amazed that it didn't leak and, you know, the thing is, though, the only person who could leak is joe biden, because it's not until he actually picks up the phone and makes that phone call to kamala harris and says we're done. it's not really done. they managed to get through pretty public process. but we feel like coming out of that process, democrats feel like they got the best candidate.

they got the woman who is ready to be president on day one, most important thing. they got someone who is going to round out the ticket and help in terms of politically. it shows a level of maturity on biden in making his selection. i want to see them as a team now. if i worked for the biden campaign, i would be very aware of the fact that in the next six days between now and the start of the democratic convention, the trump campaign is going to try to paint her as the radical left and have that attack stick to her in a way it hasn't to biden. and here is a new team. there's something when the two parts come together and create a new vision, you see like the two generations together, that's going to be powerful. i want to see it over and over again, the two of them together. >> and the biden/harris campaign has that on the schedule for tomorrow. they will appear together tomorrow afternoon. thank you both for joining us

tonight. we really appreciate it. thank you. and that is tonight's "last word." "the 11th hour with brian williams" starts now. well, good evening. once again, day 1300 of the trump administration. 84 days to go until our presidential election, and 57 days to go until the vice presidential debate between mike pence and kamala harris, which nicely brings us to our lead story tonight, a big enough story to displace the pandemic at the top of this broadcast. barring disaster, the democratic ticket will be biden/harris. the 55-year-old california senator will appear with joe biden tomorrow in delaware, as close to each other as the cdc allows. the announcement came electronically this afternoon. the secret held while biden