capehart starts right now. it's september 12th. i'm jonathan capehart. this is "the sunday show." ♪♪ ♪♪ good morning. we begin today with this week's top political stories. yesterday the nation at large commemorated the 20th anniversary of the september 11th terror attacks and paid tributes to its victims. president biden visited the memorial sites in new york, shanksville, and at the pentagon. at ground zero in lower manhattan, he was joined by presidents obama and clinton. within hours of their visit, the fbi released a newly declassified document exploring the connection between the 9/11 hijackers and the saudi government. something the families of 9/11 victims have long pushed for. it contained no conclusive evidence either way as to

whether saudi officials were complicit in the attacks. in shanksville, pennsylvania, former president george w. bush equated the terrorists behind the 9/11 -- behind 9/11 to the domestic terrorists driving the news today. >> there is little cultural overlap between violent extremists abroad and violent extremists at home. but then there is disdain for pluralism and their disregard for human life, and their determination to defile national symbols. they are children of the same foul spirit. >> meanwhile, donald trump did not attend any officials memorials, but he did stop by n.y.p.d. and f.d.n.y. precincts close to trump tower where he decided to honor the 9/11 victims by bashing his political rivals, namely joe biden, who this week announced his new six-prong plan to defeat

covid-19 once and for all. on friday the president struck a fiery tone when he announced a sweeping vaccine mandate requiring all executive branch federal employees to be vaccinated as well as ordering all u.s. businesses with 100 or more employees to ensure their workers are either vaccinated or that they get tested weekly. this move could potentially cover 100 million americans, and even the executives at trump-backed organizations like fox news and newsmax seem to be willing to comply. but the carnival barkers at the gop not found in executive suites are singing a different tune. >> we begin with one of the most heinous displays we have ever seen from a president. >> biden's tran cal dictate on vaccine mandates. it seems clear that he believes that we are subjects, and that he is a king. >> we live in america, and you would expect words like that from the president maybe of communist china or north korea.

>> we had to elect this rotting bag of oatmeal to get a real tyrant. >> what we just saw from joe biden is more authoritarian than anything donald trump ever tried. >> republican governors across the nation are similarly enraged. but in the face of such staunch opposition, president biden ain't worried. >> covid vaccine over reach -- in court? >> have at it. look, i am so disappointed that, particularly some republican governors have been so cavalier with the health of these kids, so cavalier with the health of their communities. we're playing for real here. this isn't a game.

>> vaccine mandates aren't the only fight the biden administration is taking on. also on thursday, the department of justice sued the state of texas over its new law that prohibits virtually all abortions, including for victims of rape or incest. have a listen to texas governor greg abbott's explanation. >> -- incest victims -- >> let's make something very clear. rape is a crime, and texas will work tirelessly to make sure that we eliminate all rapists -- so, goal number one in the state of texas is to eliminate rape so that no woman, no person will be a victim of rape. >> how are you going to do that, governor? white house press secretary jen psaki had the same thoughts. >> well, if governor abbott has a means of eliminating all rapists or all rape from the united states, then there would be bipartisan support for that. but given there has never in

history of the country in the world been any leader who has ever been able to eliminate rape, eliminate rapists from our streets, it's even more imperative, it's one of the many reasons, i should say, not the only reason why women in texas should have access to health care. >> keep in mind, all of this is happening while democrats are struggling to push through biden's economic agenda. the battle that seems to be shaping up here is within the democratic party. now, there is historical context that helps to explain some reluctance among democrats to sign their name to trillions in spending. after all, democrats lost the house majority in 1994 after they voted for an energy tax early in bill clinton's presidency, only to watch the bill die in the graveyard of the senate. the same thing happened with obamacare when democrats lost the house majority in 2010. but the scuffle here is also between the moderate and progressive wings of the democratic party.

on one hand, senator joe manchin last week pushed for a pause on the $3.5 trillion budget bill. and according to axios, has warned he'd only support as little as one-third of it. more on that in our next block. but on the other hand, during a recent instagram live, progressive fire brand congresswoman alexandria ocasio-cortez dare i say mocked the idea of supporting a smaller bill. >> nothing would give me more pleasure than to tank a billionaire dark money fossil fuel exxon lobbyist drafted energy infrastructure bill if they come after our child care and climate priorities. >> joining me now is democratic congressman john yarmouth of kentucky, chairman of the house budget committee that oversees the budget reconciliation process. congressman, great to see you. welcome to "the sunday show." >> thanks, jonathan. good to be with you. >> let me get your reaction to

your colleague, congresswoman ocasio-cortez, and her reaction to joe manchin. is that helpful in this whole process? >> well, none of this is really helpful. and one of the things that i've asked to kind of rhetorically about senator manchin, what does he think he's accomplishing? he's basically trying to tank this entire effort of the biden administration. but more important than that, he's trying to be an impediment to things that the american people desperately need and totally support. so i don't know which of these things he thinks he's -- are not important to the country. child care, senior care, dealing with climate change. he probably doesn't think that's really all that important, although there's plenty of flooding in west virginia. and the child tax credit, many, many other things that are in this build back better plan. so i think, you know, senator

manchin says that he just wants to make sure west virginia has a seat at the table. that's all well and good, but that doesn't mean he gets to order for the rest of the country. and what he got -- his last election he got 290,000 votes. that means his constituency is less than 1/10th of 1% of the entire country. he needs to consider his greater obligation. the men and women across this country and to future generations who are going to be suffering from 100-year-old schools for an inferior trained work force, a climate that is unin habitable. these are all things that are at stake right now. if he wants to put a pause on these, as many other people have said, mother nature is not putting a pause on climate change. to me, i don't know what the answer is. it's not his fault. he is in this position of power, but i think it is his fault if he doesn't recognize his greater

obligation. >> congressman yarmouth, senator manchin was on "meet the press." he said, quote, we don't have an urgency, which is why he's still calling for a pause. and yet this flies in the face of what i believe is a wednesday deadline for bills to be written, at least in the house, to move this forward. i mean, let's just say there isn't any urgency. what's your pushback to this idea there is no urgency? >> well, again, i think it depends on whether you mean a few days or weeks or whether you're talking about a year or several years. clearly there's probably not an urgency -- next wednesday or next friday, although the schedule that we have is important because we're coming up against the end of the fiscal year, and we want to get many of these things done in time to begin the process of

implementing many of these programs. and you have to remember, if we don't pass these until next year, these programs take several years to implement. we're not going to have universal child care available the month after we pass these bills. the same with all of the elements of the program. so, yes, there is a sense of urgency. we can't wait four years to start dealing with climate change. we can't wait four years to begin providing pre-k education to america's children. this to me is the most critical thing we can do to make sure we have a sustainable future, educate our kids. so, yes, a matter of days, no problem. a matter of months or years, then we get into a further delay of implementation, and there's no time to waste. >> congressman, you just mentioned a moment ago in that answer about the need to fund the government. you are coming up on a whole lot of deadlines as we see here by

september 30th. you have to fund the government. raise the debt ceiling. pass emergency disaster aid. do the bipartisan infrastructure. bill, and do the $3.5 trillion reconciliation. congress is not known for its speed or for doing anything without, sorry for the allusion here, without a gun to its head. are you going to be able to do all of these things by september 30th? >> well, clearly we'd have to do something to fund the government. we're not going to allow government shutdown. we've seen the disastrous effects that has on the economy, within the last ten years on a couple of occasions. we cannot afford to let the debt ceiling be breached because we're not going to let the full faith and credit of the united states government be in question. this is something that is bizarre to me.

senator mitch mcconnell is running around the state taking credit for money that's come back to kentucky, and that he was -- takes credit for passing the c.a.r.e.s. act a couple years ago, and now he doesn't want to pay the bill. this is the trump school of business. encourage it, then don't pay for it. i don't really understand what the issue is here. i've heard mitch on many occasions say we're not going to let the country default. now he's saying democrats have to make sure it doesn't. this is the height of irresponsibility. to answer your question, we'll get the debt ceiling raised and we're going to vote week after next on the bipartisan infrastructure bill. and presumably we'll vote on the better -- build back better act as well because we made an agreement to pass both of them. >> right. the i love that, the trump school of business. chairman, thank you very much for coming back to "the sunday

show." coming up, get out of the way, joe manchin. the long-time senator wants to put limits on things his state could benefit from like pre-k and free community college. but why? we'll talk about it next. playi♪ there's an america we build ♪ ♪ and one we explore one that's been paved and one that's forever wild but freedom means you don't have to choose just one adventure ♪ ♪ you get both. introducing the all-new 3-row jeep grand cherokee l jeep. there's only one. ♪ ♪ welcome to allstate. where everything just seems to go your way. ♪ ♪ you're in good hands with allstate. click or call for a lower auto rate today.

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senator joe manchin is still standing in the way of the $3.5 trillion spending package. he insists it's too expensive, and it seems that democratic leadership has received the message, signalling the price tag can be negotiated if it means passing the bill. >> somewhere between 1.5 and 3.5 there is $2 trillion. those $2 trillion are there. and i think that there is a lot of room for people to sit down and negotiate. it may be when you sit them around the table, you may not need $3.5 trillion to do what

the president wants done and what the country needs done. >> now, just a quick reminder. that manchin's home state of west virginia is the second poorest state in the union and dead last when it comes to the condition of the state's infrastructure. manchin has been in elected office in some capacity for decades. so does his position really reflect what his constituents need or want? joining me now is steven smith, cochair of west virginia can't wait, and bishop william barber, cochair of the poor people's campaign and author of "we are called to be a movement." thank you very much for coming back to "the sunday show." steven, i'm going to start with you and read back to you something senator manchin wrote in his op-ed in the "wall street journal" this week. he wrote, i have always said if i can't explain it, i can't vote for it. and i can't explain why my democratic colleagues are rushing to spend $3.5 trillion.

steven, when he says, if i can't explain it, i can't vote for it, he means, if he can't explain it to you, to west virginians. i mean, you respond to your senator. >> look, here's the secret that every west virginian knows. joe manchin, the rest our congressional delegation, they do not represent the working people of west virginia. they never have, they never will. that's because up until now you don't win high office in west virginia because you serve the people. you win high office in west virginia because you serve exxon. because you serve out of state land owners, bankers and corporate lawyers. that's who he's checking in with. the only language they understand is power, and so the only hope we have on the ground of persuading these establishment politicians is to threaten to replace them.

and so that's what we're doing. the threat must be credible, permanent, fearless, and most important, home grown. and so with every candidate we recruit, every local leader and organizer we train, that threat grows, and we can't do it alone. my number is 304-610-6512. people can find us online. this is what's going on. he is lying when he says he cares what we the voters think. he never has. >> bishop barber, we put it on the screen in the interim. i want to put it up again, the stats from west virginia. first in the nation in opioid use. first in deaths per capita, second in poverty, second in obesity, 45th in education, 47th in vaccination, 50th in infrastructure. you have been talking about basically all of these issues, bishop barber, for -- well, probably forever, but certainly for as long as i've known you.

your message to both senator manchin, but also the people of west virginia given these stats? >> well, first of all, senator manchin, i'm glad my brother said, is just lying. 50% of the children are poor in west virginia. 42% of white people are poor in west virginia. people from west virginia, our poor people's campaign say he doesn't represent them. you talk to the moms in' appalachia, the miners, he's speaking for chamber of commerce, exxon. 50% of west virginia -- he voted against raising the minimum wage. 46.7% of the census track in west virginia can't afford water and now he's trying to stop the build back better plan that would actually address poverty, address many of the people who are the worst hit during covid, would address climate change. but you know, people like clyburn should be ashamed of

himself as well. not only do we need $3.5 trillion. we need more than that. the economic policy institute says we need 10 trillion over ten years. we've spent $21 trillion in war over the last 20 years. this man is hurting west virginia, but he's hurting america, manchin is. $15 minimum wage would have lifted, jonathan, 32 million people out of low-wage jobs and put them into a better place. so he's blocking what would hurt people. the only -- help people. he only wants to answer to his republicans. on top of that lastly, he's pushing voter suppression that in west virginia will hurt miners and poor folk and white people mostly because there's no black people hardly in west virginia. so he's a part of the demolition crew of this democracy, and if he succeeds, he and anybody who joins with him, clyburn or anybody that joins that, will be a part of destroying this democracy. >> it seems like folks on capitol hill are losing patience with senator manchin, his colleagues. i want to play sound from two of

them. katie porter and then debbie dingell. have a listen. >> we're going to generate the revenue to pay for these things. i have the will to do it. does senator manchin or is he more concerned about his corporate donors including large corporations, oil and gas industry, pharmaceutical industry getting away with paying nothing under our current tax system. >> there are people who think there is more than one senator from west virginia that represents the country. there are other voices. and i love joe manchin. he's a good friend, but the 435 members of the house that also have a right to have a voice in west virginia is not the only state in the country. >> and so, steven, more to the point from katie porter, i'm just wondering, is that impatience being reflected in what you are hearing from west virginia and do west virginians articulate that same criticism

of senator manchin that katie porter articulated? >> yes. i think the thing in west virginia, though, is this is nothing new. it's what we've seen for 150 years, a government that doesn't belong to us. it belongs to the people at the top. people will say nothing can change, that this is somehow the fault of west virginia voters that senator manchin is the best we can hope for. that west virginians should be grateful for the boot on our necks because it's blue instead of red. the stakes are too high, jonathan. there is pain and death everywhere in west virginia right now. there's a reason we call our movement west virginia can't wait. in my hometown, we're losing somebody every two days to overdose. we're in the middle of the nation's most concerning hiv outbreak because our government, democrats and republicans have criminalized harm reduction, suicide, poverty, covid. death is everywhere and most of us, we look at that death and we try to stop it.

we try to heal it. senator manchin, senator kepido, congressional leaders in west virginia, they see that death and they try to profit off of it. that's the difference. it's not left versus right in west virginia. it's the people at the bottom who are dying and the people at the top who are profiting off of that death. we can't wait for things to change, and impatience is a kind word for what we're feeling here. >> we have run out of time, bishop barber, but you are a frequent guest on this show so i'm going to have you back to say more of your piece. steven smith, bishop william barber, thank you both very much for coming back to "the sunday show." coming up, one of the architects of the john lewis voting rights advancement act joins us to discuss the future of the bill. congresswoman terri sewol is here and ready to discuss next.

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away, tomorrow senators return to washington, d.c., to finally

resume the people's business. democrats are reportedly nearing a compromise on a sweeping voting rights bill led by west virginia senator joe manchin, and the original cosponsors of s-1, the for the people act. but in yet another week with yet another state like texas signing a bill that curtails ballot access for millions of americans, will congress actually do anything to protect the bedrock of our democracy, the right to vote? joining me is alabama congresswoman terri sewell, member of the ways and means committee and cochair of the voting rights caucus. welcome back to "the sunday show." so, i'm sorry, the john lewis voting rights advancement act which you introduced and pushed through the house, it is sitting over there in the senate. we talked about senator manchin and this compromise bill he and other senators are working on. what can you tell us about that particular compromise bill and,

if you've seen it, are you happy with it? >> first of all, jonathan, thank you so much for inviting me to "the sunday show." it's always a pleasure to be on your show. let me start by saying that nothing is more critical to the promise of our democracy than voting. and so as you said, senate is going back into session next week, and while i haven't seen the compromise bill, i know that hr-1 and hr-4 are critical in making sure that we make good on the promise that every american has equal access to the ballot box. and so i look forward to continuing to work with joe manchin and with the senators. i think the senate has to act now. and my hope is that the people of america will rise up and really make them understand how important it is that we get federal oversight back into the voting rights. as we've seen, states have goe

awry when it comes to protecting the right to vote. we've seen 400 bills introduced just this year, jonathan, in state legislatures across this country analyze make it harder for people to vote. we as elected officials must make it easier for our constituents to get to the polls and elect their own representatives and not the representatives being able to choose their own constituents. >> you know, congresswoman, i want to put on screen for viewers to see what's in the john lewis voting rights advancement act. you can read it there on the screen. creates new pathways to challenge voter laws in the courts and so on. one of the planks of the manchin compromise, at least as we saw it when it was introduced and went down in a ball of flames in the senate in june, one of the planks in there was a voter i.d. provision. if that voter i.d. provision shows up in the compromise that we are expected to see any day now from the senate, is that something you would be able to

support? >> well, i think the devil is in the details. i just want to stop this preconceived notion that somehow democrats don't want folks to be able to prove who they are when they get to the ballot box. we obviously know that some form of i.d. has to be presented in order to get one's ballot. we just don't want to pick winners and losers by choosing to have gun permits versus student i.d.s. we don't want to have us to choose, you know, winners and losers, and so it's the restrictive photo i.d. laws. you know, my dad voted up until his death with a validly issued federal i.d. called a social security card, and that social security card identified who he was, which is critically important in getting your ballot, but it did not have a photo on it. and so i'm just saying that it really depends upon the details of what kind of restrictive voter i.d. or voter i.d. is

presented in this compromise bill. i can't imagine that one that is totally restricted like the one that is in texas and the one that's in state of alabama and other places where they are choosing to let hunters get the ballot, but not letting students get the ballot. >> that's a great example you pointed out, your father using a social security card, a government-issued i.d. for identification. i want to put up this poll from a.p. that shows, you know, the question is, is the government doing a good job protecting voting rights? in 2011, 84%, overwhelming majority, the country said yes. ten years later, 43% say the government is doing a good job protecting voting rights. congresswoman sewell, why do you think there is a 41-point plummet in that trust? >> you know, since 2011 we've

had the shelby decision, which really gutted the preclearance provision. it allowed states that had a history of voter discrimination to now be able to institute very restrictive voter i.d. laws, anti-voter laws in my opinion. and so i think that we saw in this past election, over 40 million americans don't believe that we had a fair and accurate election. and so i think that at the heart of this is that american people do not trust their electoral system. i think that john lewis' bill, the john robert lewis voting rights advancement act, hr-4 and soon to be introduced hr-1 will do just that, restore federal oversight. you know, jonathan, voting rights used to not be a partisan issue. in fact, in 2006, a 25-year re-authorization took place under george w. bush. as you know, i invited the world

back to my hometown in 2015 for the 50th anniversary of the selma to montgomery march and george and laura bush wanted to be there. why? they were proud that under his tenure they reauthorized the voting rights act of 1965, for 25 years. but for shelby decision and the decision which compromises the vra undermining section 2 and the right to sue for discriminatory effect, these are things that are really bad. and i think american folks understand that. there's nothing more fundamental to our democracy, as you pointed out, bedrock of our democracy is the right to vote. >> is the right to vote. and that re-authorization passed unanimously out of congress. >> unanimously in the senate. >> in the senate. that would never happen today, it seems. congresswoman terri sewell, congresswoman sewell from alabama, thank you very much for coming back to "the sunday show." coming up, my exclusive live on-set interview with the former

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the president of the nation's largest lgbtq advocacy organization was fired this week over his role in the sexual harassment scandal that led to governor andrew cuomo's

resignation. alphonso david was the first human rights campaign and the first to cuomo. according to the investigation, he advised the investigation into crafting the response to the first accuser and the employment to cuomo's office. in a statement hrc said alphonso david was terminated for violating the group and damaging its reputation. he said hrc tried to, quote, shut me up. joining me is alphonso david, former head of the human rights campaign. thank you very much for coming to "the sunday show" and for being here on-set with me this morning. >> you're very welcome. thank you for having me. >> before we get to the back and forth between you and the human rights campaign, let's go back to your action as described in the report from the new york

attorney general. on page 104 is the release of confidential files relating to ms. boylan. i want to read this key paragraph about action taken after boylan tweeted cuomo was, quote, one of the biggest abusers of all time. we're going to put it on the screen for viewers. she reached out in a text to say she needed to see ms. boylan's file. mr. david, former counsel to the governor, but at the time president of the human rights campaign responded that ms. mogul should be able to provide the file for the time when ms. boylan worked in the chamber and miss lace confirmed miss mogul had the file. on september 11, he sent the files related to the investigation. mr. azzoparidi, shortly before the confidential files he had

retained and taken with him when he left the executive chamber. mr. david testified that he kept with him a copy of ms. boylan's files because, quote, it may have been the only instance where he was actually involved in a counseling of an employee when he was in the executive chamber. i have been mystified by this from the start, alphonso, that you kept those documents in your possession after leaving state employment. so, why did you keep them? and please explain your explanation as laid out in the cuomo report. why did you keep those documents? >> so, jonathan, i'm really happy you asked that question. and that is one of the reasons why i called for an independent investigation by hrc to make sure that these facts were known. i kept copies, electronic copies of all of my files. but no one in the public knows that. as a lawyer, i have kept work product for every single employer that i've worked with

for 20 years. so when i left the executive chamber, documents that i had worked on, bills that i had worked on, policy memos that i had created, i saved an electronic copy of my work product, and the boylan memo, not personnel files, but the memo was a part of my work product that was saved. and if the public had known that i had actually saved all of my work files, that would actually be beneficial to them in understanding the true facts. but the human rights campaign decided not to do an independent investigation and not release those facts, and that is part of the problem. >> and we will be getting into the hrc piece of this in a moment. archipelago yeah. >> yeah. >> but i want to ask, so you have these electronic documents. why did you give them to the spokesperson for the governor as opposed to handing them over to the counsel's office? >> so, the person that requested

the file initially was melissa garoso as you know -- >> cabinet secretary to the governor. >> to the governor. along with the senior adviser to the governor. they had reached out to me requesting, do you have -- do you know where these files are? and i said, yes, they should be in the office. in fact, i reached out to one of my former assistant attorneys -- counsels, i should say. i asked her, shouldn't the file be in the office? she said, absolutely. i said, can you reach out to them to make sure they are aware where the files are? and she did. nevertheless, they contacted me after that and asked me for any documents that i may have as it relates to ms. boylan because they wanted to make sure they had a comprehensive set. my answer to them was, you already have these documents, which they did. >> one more thing before we go to a break, and that is your

work on this proposed letter or op-ed in reaction to tweets that were done by ms. boylan. the a.g. report says that miss da rosa who was the secretary to the governor -- >> right. >> -- it's all in there in the report. but in the footnotes it says, and this is on page 160. miss da rosa testified that while initially mr. david said he would not sign the letter, he later said, quote, if you need me to, i will. this letter is also contentious because it was seen as retaliation. >> right. >> in fact, the attorney general said it meets the definition of retaliating against someone who is making allegations of sexual harassment. why -- we know why you wouldn't sign the letter, but then why say, if you need me to, i will? >> we're conflating two

different issues. i never signed the letter. what they had asked me was whether anyone had reported harassment, discrimination, or retaliation to me. and the answer was no. and reporters had inquired, did anyone report any allegation of harassment, discrimination or retaliation to mr. david when he was counsel? and the answer was no, and i was willing to say that. but we're not talking about the letter. we're talking about my experience in the chamber and the knowledge that i had when i was in the chamber. >> and the report also notes that this particular document that you worked on was about something else completely related to ms. boylan. alphonso david, we're going to have more with you after we take this quick break. stay with us. music playing. ♪ there's an america we build ♪ ♪ and one we explore one that's been paved and one that's forever wild but freedom

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it's all pretext. the human rights campaign was conducting an independent investigation. austin was hired to do an investigation. that's what they announced in august. >> right. >> what they're saying now is it's a board plan investigation. is it an investigation being conducted by sidely? or is it an investigation being conducted by the board? i never spoke to the board. >> you spoke to them for10 hours. >> for 10 hours and provided them with information. now the board refuses to release the findings. the board told the public that they would be transparent in their findings and now today they're saying there is no report. they're failing to disclose what the findings of the report are because i engaged in no wrong doing. >> did they tell you what was in the report? >> no. >> so they didn't tell you anything about what their findings were or are? >> no. i received the phone call at 9:45 where i participated in the

phone call at 9:45 on a thursday evening. i was told that because of the cuomo investigation, it caused disruption and it would impact the organization so they wanted me to consider resigning. i said what are the findings of your investigation? what is the report? there was no report. they failed to disclose to me what the findings of the investigation were. i had to disclose -- i had to come up with my decision by 8:00 a.m. the next morning. 8:00 a.m. the next morning and i was having a conversation at 10:15 at night. this is a human rights organization. if you are a human rights organization transparency should be at the core of your mission why is it you're a human rights organization and refuse to issue findings or embrace transparency when do you told the public you would? >> you know, you said i think the first tweet of your response to what was happening that you

were told they wanted to use the quiet of the holiday weekend to have a soft landing or some term of art like that. you're specific in what you said in the first statement and then in the second statement that you released. that makes me wonder this, did you take -- tape those phone calls with the members of the human rights campaign board in the phone calls? those conversations? how were they so specific? >> i have well-documented notes of those conversations. i have evidence to support my conclusions. i have evidence to support the statements that i've issued. i took on this organization -- this organization was created in the 1980ss and largely has been viewed as an organization for white men. i came on as a black man to really challenge some of the systems that have been ingrained

in the institution. i'm being treated this way and being treated differently, i believe, because of my race. we should not forget here that there are instances in the past where presidents of the human rights campaign engaged in activities or made statements that caused disruption. that resulted in reputational harm, if you will. that resulted in protests in front of the organization's building. they were not asked to resign. i was asked to resign without a shred of evidence. i was asked to resign without any findings. i was asked to resign without a report. i was told there would be an announcement on saturday, if i have were to resign, to make it quiet over the holiday weekend. they wanted this to go away. at my core, jonathan, are my principles. i'm not fighting for me. i'm fighting for all of us. if human rights means anything, we have to make sure it means something for all of us. principles only mean something

if you stick by them in inconvenient times. that's what i'm doing now. there are people who told me not to resign because i've been fighting to make sure the organization will represent the interests of all of us. they can't do that if i'm resigning in the dark of night without any evidence of wrong doing. >> alfonso, what do you say to the hrc community in the lgbtq community who is watching this and wondering what happened to the movement, the organization who take issue with the findings of the report, the ag report and your role there and think that just on the base of the cuomo report that you shouldn't be the leader of the organization given it is a human rights organization.

>> we can't change the rules in the middle of the game. we can't decide to conduct an independent investigation and then decide not to issue findings and not decide to issue a report and ignore transparency. if we're a human rights organization, if we are a movement that is inclusive, we need to make sure that movement is transparent for all of us. we can't apply transparency only to white people. we have to make sure we apply transparency to all of us. that's what i'm fighting for. when i look at the black boys and brown girls that are looking to see if this movement is actually inclusive of them, my reputation is on the line. the organization's reputation is on the line. all of us what we represent as a human rights movement is on the line. that's why i'm doing this. if i was doing it for me, jonathan, i would have resigned

and gotten the check. i'm doing this because i believe in my principles. and those principles apply to all of us. >> an phone sew david, former president of human rights campaign. thank you very much for coming to "the sunday show." >> thank you so much for having me. coming up in the next hour, the rising danger of home grown terrorism and what it means for us as a country now. stay right here. which to his bladder, feels like a mile. yet he stands strong, dry, keeping the leaks only to his eyes. depend. the only thing stronger than us, is you. we gave new zzzquil pure zzzs restorative herbal sleep keeping the leaks only to his eyes. to people who were tired of being tired. i've never slept like this before.

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these people are coming back to praise the people who were out to kill. out to the kill members of congress. successfully causing the death, successful is not the word, but that's the word of the -- that's what they set out to do -- of our law enforcement. >> welcome back to "the sunday show." i'm jonathan capehart. safety precautions on capitol hill are underway as law enforcement braces for potential violence this coming saturday during a far right rally organized to support the insurrectionists arrested for the january 6th attack. tomorrow speaker nancy pelosi is expected to hold the security briefing along with the capitol police chief and other congressional leadership, but much like the insurrection, this rally is born of the kind of extremism the fbi has long

warned provides a breeding ground for domestic terrorists. meaning 20 years after al qaeda's horrific attack on america, the biggest threat to the homeland is no longer foreign terrorism. as former state department official writes this week in the "washington post," quote, "we must confront the real pocket that our next 9/11 could arrive from within." joining me now are oliva troy, former white house homeland security and counter terrorism advisor and director of the republican accountability project. and clint watt former fbi special agent and msnbc national security analyst. also the author of "messing with the enemy." thank you very much for coming to "the sunday show. i want to start the question by playing sound from president george w. bush's truly incredible speech yesterday in the shanksville. >> we have seen growing evidence that the dangers to our country

can come not only across borders but from violence that gathers within. there's a little cultural overlap between violent extremists abroad and violent extremists at home. again, the disregard for human life and determination to defy national symbols. they're children of the same foul spirit and it is our continuing duty to confront them. >> you know oliva, president george w. bush didn't name names but i think we all know who he's talking about. why -- do you think the american people take the threat of domestic terrorism -- i mean, american people at large, take it as seriously as a three of us on this screen do? >> yeah, i think it's a mix. i think it's very important for

president bush, former president bush, to make that statement and say, really, i think he's pointing to the threat within domestically and the rise of it. we're continuing to see it. look, the great threat it poses right now across our country. i think this threat has been familiar to many of us who work in the national securities space. i think it's becoming more and more prevail lant as americans start to see it in their communities. as mass shootings, you know, connected to the domestic terrorism happen across our country. i think, you know, we look at the u.s. capitol and see what happened on january 6th. the reality is this is happening across the country. this could happen at state capitols. some of these things happened at state capitols, and there are some governors who received domestic threats. we've seen that. so i think, you know, it's a mix out there but i think the reality is that americans as we go along are becoming more and

more familiar what about is happening here. >> clint, i want to play what hillary clinton had to say on cbs on friday about this very same topic. this threat of domestic terrorism. >> we always have to be aware of and protect against external threats, but what really is tearing our country apart and threatening our democracy is what we saw on january 6th, and i, unfortunately, have seen so much of that kind of continuing divisiveness and hatred and ideological attitudes about our democracy, about each other. i think every american, regardless of where you stand on the political spectrum, should be as worried, if not more, right now about what we're doing to ourselves. >> right. and, clint, the question i have is, what can we do? we know that domestic terrorism is a grave threat.

what can we do to stop it? >> so there are several things that we don't have for domestic terrorism that we did have for the international terrorism over the last 20 years. one, we developed an entire architecture that was focussed on a group or relatively defined group, i should say al qaeda and it spawned the islamic state. we don't have the domestic space. that brings up laws and procedures. specifically in the domestic space, we just don't have the ability to watch or look at social media to preemptively do the investigation. it's been the crux of the debate since january 6th, what are americans, you know, willing to let american law enforcement do to protect them? it's not very clear. separately, this is in power by political leaders. just like during the al qaeda isis era. we looked at people like bin

laden. he was an inspirer. an american cleric he was an inspirer. we have that today except it's our elected officials. it's our political leaders that are doing this more than domestic extremists. what you see right there president trump told them to go into the capitol that day. he said it. his organizers promoted it. his fellow congressmen promoted it. that's the thing we look for where are they pointing to? for the most part, the groups aren't. incompetenting the targets. it's the elected leaders. >> a nice sag way i was teeing up. what is the responsibility of the republican party? this is not a question of, you know, both sides. no. this is the republican party and leaders within the republican

party who in the hours after the insurrection saying this was bad and trump was responsible. yeah. i'm talking about you, minority leader kevin mccarthy, to now doing everything possible to not only pretend it didn't happen but to stand in the way of even investigating what happened. as we saw on the screen, nothing breaks my heart more than to see the capitol being overrun by domestic terrorists carrying trump signs. >> yeah. those images are horrifying. they're still horrifying today no matter how many times we see them. but the reality is what the republican party can do today. these leaders people like kevin mccarthy for, you know, front and center is to start selling the truth. start telling these supporters of yours. start telling americans the

people you want voting for you. the people you are so greedy in terms of maintaining your power and your quest for power. it's your responsibility to tell the truth about january 6th. tell the truth about the threats on the rise across our country. because you are come police it in enabling and emboldening these threats by the lies you have told. americans across the country who listened to you. and this is people who are, like, you know, representative gilbert and major trey already greene. i don't see any difference between mccarthy and some of the other people where he may try to distance himself at times. you are all responsible together for what is happening here. you need to start telling people the truth. they are the voices that need to be heard by the people who are looking at them and following their leadership and their actions when it comes to this threat. >> and we're out of time, but i need to ask you the question

quickly. how fearful are you that we could see another january 6th or some sort of far right extremists inspired domestic terrorist attack here at home? >> it would be my top worry. i'm not so much worried about september 18th. i'm more worried about the most extreme actor or small cell of actors in a domestic extremist space. think more like timothy mcvay. there are a murder -- hundreds of mcvays out there think abouting a more dangerous landscape. >> and that last point, clint, is a thing that gives me the most worry. clint watts, oliva troy, thank you both for coming to "the sunday show." coming up my all-star panel is here and will sound off. here and will sound off.

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over 200 million americans have gotten at least one shot. we've been patient but our patience is wearing thin. the refusal has cost all of us. so, please do the right thing! this is not about freedom or personal choice. it's about protecting yourself and those around you.

>> uh-huh. the president's impatience wasn't the only thing on display on thursday. he also unveiled his new six-pronged plan to battle covid-19 as well as a sweeping mandate that could potentially cover 100 million americans. but despite covid still amounting to roughly the same death toll as september 11th, every two days, certain republican governors vow to fight. >> this is not a power that is delegated to the federal government. this is a power for states to decide. in south dakota we're going to be free. >> we have a responsibility to stand up for the constitution and fight back. we're doing that in the state of florida. [ applause ] >> joining me now is elise jordan. joan walsh, the national affairs correspondent for "the nation." and eugene scott. thank you all for coming to "the sunday show." so since we showed all those

governors saying what they were saying about denying their people, umm, you know, public health. i want to play, umm, this little mash up of alabama governor. let's play it. we'll talk about it on the other side. >> folks are supposed to have common sense. but it's time to start blaming the unvaccinated folks and not the regular folks. it's the unvaccinated folks that are letting us down. >> all right. okay. that was good. that was, you know, nice, southern, in your face telling it like it is. now have a listen to governor ivy. oh, it's a full screen? oh. i'm sorry. i thought it was video. i love that voice. if he thinks he's going to move out of the way, he's got -- he's -- he's got another thing coming. i'm standing as strong as a bull

for alabama against this outrageous washington overreach. bring it on. elise, what in the entire you know what is going on here? >> well, i wish the governor would have mercy on the health care workers of alabama and how, you know, this might be a convenient political war for her right now, but it's -- it's so unfair to the men and women who are trying to treat sick people who are getting coronavirus because the unvaccinated spread and we have the breakthrough cases. i have no tolerance. my cousin's wife is a pulmonologist in alabama and is absolutely at her whit's end about this. she's been working 24/7 for so long now and the pace is back breaking and relentless. i wish governor ivy would have mercy on the health care workers. >> elias, not to put you on the spot here, this isn't just some

distant analytical conversation for you. you and your family have personally had to deal with covid. you had covid. >> no, absolutely. we were vaccinated. the baby got covid from someone who was vaccinated and, you know, we traced it down the line and it started from someone who was unvaccinated. then everyone got breakthrough cases. it was horrible. thankfully our little baby girl is doing wonderfully now. her dad and i recovered. it was rough. even with the vaccine. i could not have imagined what it was like without the vaccine. do it for yourself. do it for your families. >> you know joan, i believe it was last week we had maxwell frost on who is going to be running who is running for congress for val demmings seat. she's running for u.s. senate. on the show, when he talked about governor desantis, took my breath away but he called him

governor death sentence. i mean -- >> yeah. that's what people are saying. that's what people are calling him. and they should. i just want to go back to -- first of all, elise, i'm glad you're well. i followed your nightmare on twitter. i know of so many breakthrough cases and some of them are tough. but go back to cay ivy. i cannot leave it alone. she thinks it's better to shame people to say the regular folks who have common sense as opposed to doing the public health basics and requiring the vaccine. so she can shame her voters but when joe biden says it's time to do it, people, she's then going to stand up to joe biden. i mean, it's just so disturbing. but, yeah, i mean, governor death sentence is going to be living with the political ramifications of what he's done for awhile. and i hope it's serious,

honestly. i don't want him to get covid but i hope politically he gets something quite serious. >> and, you know, eugene, i mean, will he face political consequences for this? because at one point, his poll numbers, i mean, florida was doing fine. his poll numbers were doing well. people were talking about oh he's presidential. he could watch out. donald trump will have him in the sights and try to do something to take him down. how are his political fortunes now that covid is exploding in the sunshine state? >> well, we know that governor desantis is someone who is -- many republican voters because of the stances he's taking and his loyalty to donald trump. but we also know that these elections are about turnout. and the question will be will democrats be able to get their constituencies out to support candidates that support joe biden and, you know, a more sensible response to a public health crisis than what you're

currently seeing. i think it's we pay attention to the rest of the semester and the school year to see what happens on that level, which is where we know desantis has gotten a lot of media attention for the tough stance on making masks mandates in schools something that, you know, is not required. i think we should pay a lot of attention to parents and ergts and that can give us how well he could do in the future. >> i love the fact you talked about when it comes to, you know, florida. election, you know, elections are about turnout. if you can't get your base out to vote, you're going have problems. and i bring that up because in california, at least a week ago, when we were talking about the california recall, there was concern in california among democrats that democrats weren't taking the recall seriously. that governor newsom could be recalled and then of the 46 people who were listed as candidates, one in particular,

larry elder, is someone who is, you know, looney toons. he could be the next governor, if gavin newsom is recalled. i bring up larry elder because listen to what he said on fox news. >> the 2020 election, in my opinion, was full of shenanigans. my fear they'll try it here. i'm urging people to go to electelder.com. go to my website. we have a battery of lawyers and we'll follow lawsuits in a timely fashion. >> that's larry elder basically laying the ground work for the fictitious -- well, i will have loss or newsom will survive the recall because of election fraud. do you think that 2020 line of argument is going to work in the california recall of 2021? >> i don't know if it's going to work but i think it is the new

republican political playbook and the idea of conceding gracefully is a bygone relic. it's something that, you know, we're probably not going to see, you know, within the next decade the concept of the losing party when it's a republican conceding gracefully and giving up without claiming wide spread fraud. it's what the party seized on and they're going with it. you'll see donald trump ride this wave if he decides to pursue the republican nomination and likely gets it. >> oh, gosh. i'm going to put up the poll. uc berkeley government poll. vote no to recall 60%. vote yes to recall 39%. so that should give people some comfort, joan, but that's just a poll. those aren't results. >> no. it's tough to call. it does seem like democratic

turnout has been high. we'll see what happens on election day. republicans tend to do better on election day. i expect him to survive. i expect him to survive because people like what he's doing. they like his diligence around the vaccine, around masking, california has come out of a second or third -- i've lost track, wave of covid that was deadly. and i think, you know, he's had to deal with wild fires. i think he has stepped up and i think the republicans have done themselves no favors, which they can't get out of their own way anywhere but especially in california by putting up larry elder who is, you know, a baffoon and a classic trumper. so i feel better -- i lived in san francisco for 30 years, jonathan. i was a couple of weeks ago

extremely nervous about this. my friends there were extremely nervous. people don't see this nervousness right now. >> that's good to know. the governor had approval ratings in the high 50s and low 60s. you know, what i love about this new format we're working out, we have lots of time to talk! so we're going to continue this conversation after the break. stay with us. inue this conversation after the break stay with us eaking ground on your biggest project yet. worth is giving the people who build it a solid foundation. wealth is shutting down the office for mike's retirement party. worth is giving the employee who spent half his life with you, the party of a lifetime. wealth is watching your business grow. worth is watching your employees grow with it. principal. for all it's worth. a lot of snacks are packed with air but not planters nuts. our dry roasted peanuts have an incredible ratio of size to substance

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all right. my panel is back. eugene, i'm coming to you. i want to play a sound from the attorney general of the united states about what they're going to do about texas. >> the united states has the authority and the responsibility to ensure that no state can deprive individuals of their constitutional rights, through a legislative scheme specifically

designed to prevent the vindication of those rights. >> and, eugene, i realize i needed to be specific. texas is doing a lot of stuff. on that particular moment, the attorney general was talking about abortion rights. how likely is it, do you think, that the biden administration, the justice department will actually be able to do anything to thwart what texas has done? >> well, we know they're going it try. i think the question becomes how quickly can they put something in place that will supercede this ruling from the supreme court that allows texas to go forward with what is so far the most restrictive laws about abortion in the country. this is something that biden and the democratic party as a whole will likely be judged on moving forward to next year's midterms and not to make everything about elections but the reality is when people are thinking about

what they want their country to be. what they want their state to be and the rights they believe people should have, the most proper way right now they have to have their say in that is put people in office who they believe will protect their rights. so i do believe what biden and democratic party are going to do is try to figure out a way that communicates to so many texans and people out the state that the law that is moving forward isn't what they are about or what they want americans to be about. >> john, this is a sort of thing what texas did, particularly on -- i mean, what they did on voting rights sort of added more fuel to sort of the democratic fire democratic party fire. then what texas did when it came to -- when it comes to women's reproductive health. it was like texas said hold my beer to texas. >> right. >> how likely is it, you know, we're more than a year away from the 2022 midterm elections.

but is this what texas has done and the biden administration's response to it, is that going to be enough to keep those -- that fire burning to bring democrats out to basically upend history and that means keeping the house at a minimum in the democratic majority? >> i wish i could say i knew, jonathan. i hope so. i think we have to remember that women elected joe biden and women lead the resistance to donald trump running and winning at state house races and congressional races ever since 2017 in virginia. what i'm hearing from activists is a lot of anger and a lot of exhaustion. the exhaustion is real because the threats are so constant. so i think it's important that merrick garland stood out there immediately and said that.

i think they need some wins, frankly, and i think they need some really great strategies about turn out. i don't know that texas turns blue next time around. especially with the voting restrictions. i do know women are angry and i hope people, you know, get some rest and then go back out and organize and talk to voters and mobilize. because that's the only answer. >> uh-huh. elise, i would love your reaction to this, as well. i want to leave some time so we can play this trump sound. if you have any reaction to what in the what in texas. >> they truly want to energize women and, you know, it's -- when the national gop backs up, what they're doing in texas, then that certainly is not a great combination for republicans. so i think that the fallout of this, you know, there are plenty of -- i'm sure wish the law would go away quietly in the night. >> i'll play this sound from the

former guy yesterday there to pay his respects to the heros of 9/11. watch this. >> see what is going on. we have the greatest economy in the world. the radical left, i call them, they couldn't compete with what we were doing. we rebuilt the military. they gave $85 billion of it. brand new. apache helicopters. can you believe they gave them away? we had a rigged election and all of a sudden we flee afghanistan. >> okay. you know, never miechbd. we don't need to talk about this. i mean, it's like seeing elvis and you're like i'm so tired of hearing this same old song. besides we're supposed to be at a memorial service. why are you doing this? anyway up next -- i'm sorry. i'm sorry i made y'all watch this. [ laughter ] up next we're going to sound off to the other sunday shows. don't go anywhere. to the other sunday shows. don't go anywhere.

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chuck schumer says he's moving, quote, "full speed ahead with the package." >> he will not have my vote on $3.5. he knows that. what is the urgency we have? it's not the same urgency we have. we have that. and on top of that, the c.a.r.e.s. package and everything leading up to that.

we have done a lot and there's a lot of people that need help. you have 11 million jobs that aren't filled now. 8 million people are unemployed. something is not matching up. don't you think we ought to hit the pause and find out? >> senator joe manchin dug in his heels this morning on the need to quote, unquote, press pause on the $3.5 trillion infrastructure bill. he said there is no way it will be passed by the democrats september 27 timeline. and a $1.5 trillion price tag. back with us to discuss is my panel. we've been talking about joe manchin all day today. all morning. and we've had katie porter, congresswoman debbie dingell sounding impatient with senator manchin. entering the mix is senator bernie sanders.

>> it's not acceptable to me or the president or the american people with the overwhelming majority. we work with senator manchin in the past the $1.9 trillion american rescue plan, which was enormously consequential and helpful to working class families in getting us out of the economic disaster that was a result of covid. i believe we can work together and come up with a $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill which deals with the enormously unmet needs of working families. >> all right, eugene. you cover these folks. i'm wondering the impatience that we are hearing from manchin -- i'm sorry, from sanders, from porter, from dingell. in any way is this now more public impatience with senator

manchin going to be sort of counter productive to what those folks want? >> it could be. i think that thing that people have to remember about joe manchin is that he's in washington, in part, because of republican voters. people who see policy interests similarly to those on the right and that includes spending and economic conservativism. at least that's what the gop used to be known for the more we saw the spending happen during the trump administration. these are the people he's going to have to answer to. perhaps more than those in congress with him that are in his own party. if he wants to remain in a position of power and influence. we haven't seen him budget that much on past issues that he opposed very early on. there's not a lot of reason to think he will do that now, if this is not what he believes his constituents want. all signs are pointing to a great opposition towards this

bill from more conservative voters. so these are the people manchin listens to a lot. >> you know elise, i think earlier in the show we had either a full screen or -- i don't think it was a video of mitch mcconnell saying this. i'm going to para phrase. but mitch mcconnell said that he -- i think it was he praised -- prays for manchin and cinema and sends him his love. when i read it, i thought, oh, mitch is trolling. totally trolling the democrats. he could nt careless. he doesn't love them. he loves the fact they're throwing sand in the gears of what the democrats are trying to do. >> yeah, it's great for mitch mcconnell. you know, any disruption and, you know, lack of unity among the democratic caucus benefits him. so manchin, i just felt eugene's

analysis was spot on. manchin reflecting his more conservative voting base in west virginia and continuing to appeal to that and he's just not going for the same constituents as bernie sanders in vermont. of course, it's not surprising they don't see exactly eye to eye. manchin seems pretty firm and dug in on the fact he thinks this is way too much spending. he wants a lower number. so i feel like that lower -- that number is going to have to get significantly lower if they're going to get this critical support. >> earlier in the show, we played sound of house majority whip james clyburn of south carolina saying, you know, he says 1.5 or 3.5. there's $2 trillion in there. so maybe we could do everything that the president wants to do for less than $3.5. what do you make of that? >> i think there's some -- probably some so-called wiggle room. if you're bernie sanders, you

want a $6 trillion package. you've already comprised a significantly. i think one thing we haven't said that has to be said is that joe manchin is not necessarily -- he's certainly speaking to conservative republicans in his state. many of whom do vote for him. he's also speaking to his donors. you know, he's expressed concerns about the climate change impacts of this bill. he doesn't like that. you know, he's -- he takes fossil fuel from the pharmaceutical industry. it's not like he's mr. populist on the ground listening to, you know, the regular joes in the diner. he's mr. corporate largeess and i think that drives a lot of it. i think there's a more public beckoning and public frustration and i don't know how it's going to end, but i actually think it's good. i think it's great. i think it's great aoc came out and said what she did. i think it's great that bernie sanders is laying down the law.

>> there will be some comprise but, yeah, i don't see it being $1.5 trillion. i don't. >> yeah. right. i mean, this is a thing that everyone has to understand. these absolutist statements are all part of the negotiation. we all -- we've gone into this sense where, look, negotiations don't happen. keep in mind there's a lot of theater involved here. that being said senator manchin coming out every couple of weeks or so and, you know, basically saying to democrats in the process, you know, just when we think everything is settled, boo i'm still here. you're going to have to deal with me. i want to quickly, in the time we have left, play this sound from congressman adam kin kinzinger on afghanistan. >> i think there's a lot of people that bear blame and i

think the secretary of state is one of these. under the prior president, i would say the same thing, for some people to take responsibility. that's what the american people want. for somebody to stand up and say this is on me. >> eugene, of course, he's talking about the chaotic withdrawal from kabul. i understand that hearings are going to be held on this. but to my mind, i'm wondering are the hearings premature? >> well, i don't think they're premature to those who are desiring more questions. i'm sorry, more answers to the questions that many americans continue to have. i think we don't realize how many people perhaps -- out of the afghanistan. the war as a whole considering in part. it's just not up to date on what is happening and who was involved and who made which decisions and why as you may think when you're talking about. they attention to these issues on a daily basis.

who was responsible at this time and can we get the answers to the questions as quickly as possible? >> yeah. i mean, i didn't want to make it sound like oh, no, we shouldn't have hearings. obviously we should have hearings. and they're going to get started next week, eugene? >> i think so. as of what i've seen. you know, those things could change. >> right. >> that's true. and with that, we're going have to leave it there. elise jordan, joan walsh, eugene scott, thank you very much for coming to "the sunday show." later today epa administrator michael regan joining reverend al sharpton. watch "politics nation" at 5:00 p.m. eastern on msnbc. up next, donald trump and robert e. lee. i'll explain the connection next. robert e. lee. ll explain the connection next

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there's a wonderful life rule erroneously attributed to abraham lincoln. it goes like this. better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt. when it comes to rules of life, or any rules for that matter, donald trump is a life-sized violation. the latest example came in the form of a statement in reaction to the removal of the robert e. lee statue in richmond, virginia on wednesday. it was three long paragraphs filled with nonsense and lies. trump says, in part, robert e. lee is considered by many generals to be the greatest strategist of them all. he must be talking about armchair generals. listen up. robert e. lee was a traitor to the united states of america, period. he waged a war that tore this nation apart because he wanted to maintain a system that made the south and america by extension, rich off the literal blood, sweat and tears of

enslaved black people toiling on labor camps otherwise known as plantations. there is nothing noble about robert e. lee or the evil way of life he fought to maintain. he lost, and if you're among those clinging to the myth of the lost cause, you're lost. trump says, quote, our culture is being destroyed, and our history and heritage are being extinguished by the radical left. let's be clear. the "our culture, our history and heritage," trump is talking about only applies to white people and specifically to straight, white, cisgender men. and trump forgetting he negotiated the deal with the taliban that reduced troop levels, released 5,000 taliban prisoners and set a may 1 withdrawal deadline, decried the situation out of kabul. what an embarrassment we are

suffering because we don't have the genius of a robert e. lee. [ laughter ] come on. what an embarrassment we are suffering because we have a narcissistic president who would rather provide guest commentary for a pay per view boxing match in florida than gather with his successor and two of his predecessors in his hometown, new york city, to mark the solemn 20th anniversary of the lives lost and heroism unleashed in the wake of the terrorist attacks on september 11, 2001. trump did visit a new york city police station, to pay homage to the heroism of the finest that awful day. instead he moaned his greatest hits of grievance. how small how petty, how unpresidential, how pa thet you can -- pathetic. i'm jonathan capehart. this has been the sunday show.

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[swords clashing] - had enough? - no... arthritis. here. new aspercreme arthritis. full prescription-strength? reduces inflammation? thank the gods. don't thank them too soon. kick pain in the aspercreme. good day from msnbc world headquarters in new york. it is noon in the east, 9:00 out west. welcome to "alex witt reports." the senate is back in session tomorrow as the ongoing battle for infrastructure hits another bump in the road. senator joe manchin absolutely defiant against that $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill, saying this morning he

will not support the legislation if it goes up for a vote, a move that could sink the democrats' plan. >> he will not have my vote on $3.5 trillion, and chuck knows that. what's the urgency we have? it's not the same with the american rescue plan. we got that out, and it was about $2 trillion, and on top of that, and all the things, it's leading up to that. we have done an awful lot, and there's an awful lot of people, and we have jobs that aren't filled right now, and some are unemployed. something's not matching up. don't you think we ought to hit pause and find out? >> meanwhile, the capitol on alert amid protests with those arrested in the january 6th riot. fencing will be put around the building as nancy pelosi has a security briefing tomorrow. we have a live briefing coming up. the fbi released the first of several documents related to the september 11th