that's going to do it for us tonight. thanks for being here us with. "way too early" with jonathan lemire is up next. on january 6th, we relied on law enforcement to save our democracy. we saw what happened. the capitol police, the dc metropolitan police, other law enforcement agencies, were attacked and assaulted before our very eyes, speared, sprayed, stomped on, brutalized, and lives were lost. for three hours, the getted former president of the -- the defeated former president of the united states watched it all happen. >> president biden gives rare and direct comments con telling former president trump. we'll -- condemning former

president trump. we'll have more on that speech and why he gave it just ahead. plus the january 6th committee releases more of what the former president wouldn't say the day after the insurrection. meanwhile, on capitol hill, covid is complicating crunch time for congress. democrats are running out of time to get things done before a month-long august break. good morning. and welcome to "way too early." on this tuesday, july 26th. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for being here. there are new developments with the justice department's investigation into the january 6th attack. two top aides to former vice president mike pence have testified before a federal grand jury. mark short who was pence's chief of staff and greg jacob, pence's counsel at the white house was subpoenaed by the department of justice, short was with the

former vice president during the insurrection. nbc news cameras set up for steve bannon's trial recorded short and his attorney leaving the federal courthouse on friday. short and jacob are the highest-ranking trump administration officials known to have cooperated with the d.o.j.'s investigation. both men have given testimony to the january 6th committee. jacob was a live witness during a hearing last month. a striking moment set to happen in washington today. former president donald trump will return to the nation's capital for the first time since marine one carried him away from the white house on the morning of president biden's inauguration. january 20th, 2021. 552 days later, trump is set to speak in a summit hosted by the america first policy institute at a hotel less than two miles away from the u.s. capitol, and less than one mile from the west wing. trump's remarks will reportedly focus on private safety.

the group was founded by dozens of trump allies just months after the 2020 election. and an official with the group says they've got plenty of people on board, including nine former trump gation cabinet officials -- trump administration cabinet officials, 18 former white house senior staff, and more than 40 former senior administration officials all working to help the gop, if it takes back congress and the white house. trump's return to washington comes a day after president biden took a direct swipe at his predecessor for his inaction during the january 6th attack on the capitol. >> for three hours, the defeated former president of the united states watched it all happen, as he sat in the comfort of the private dining room next to the oval office. while he was doing that, brave law enforcement officers subject to the immediate hell for three hours. you can't be pro-insurrection

and pro-cop. >> president biden still recovering from covid made those remarks during a virtual address to the national organization of black law enforcement executives. biden rarely comments publicly on the insurrection and has held off on mentioning the january 6th committee's work saying congress should act separately. but of course, the two men could be on a collision course for a rematch of the last election and f-they both run again in -- if they both run again in 2024. congressman elaine luria, a congresswoman of the house select committee has revealed new testimony showed how former president trump edited his speech meant to condemn the insurrection. she tweeted this. it took more than 24 hours for president trump to address the nation again after his rose garden video on january 6th in which he affectionately told his followers to go home in peace. there were more things he was unwilling to say. now, here's some of that video testimony. >> i'm not sure when those conversations began because they

could have started early the next morning but i believe they started that evening on the evening of the 6th. >> i thought we should give the statement on the 7th, and obviously, move forward on transition. >> i sat with miller, i spoke with miller about trying to put together draft remarks that we would try to present to the president to try to say and further call for de-escalation. >> from what i understood at the time, and from what the reports were coming in, there's a large concern of the 25th amendment potentially being invoked and there were concerns about what would happen in the senate if the 25th was invoked so the primary reason that i had heard, other than, you know, we need to get a stronger message out there, the second reason, was

that was think about what might happen in the final 15 days of your presidency, if we don't do this. there is already talk about invoking the 25th amendment. you need to get this covered. >> do you recognize what this is? >> it looks like a copy of a draft of the remarks for that day. >> and as you can see, throughout the document, there are lines crossed out, there's some words added in. do you recognize that handwriting? >> it looks like my father's handwriting. >> moving overseas, as the war in ukraine nears its sixth month, russia is making a blinted mission of the goal in the country. her guy lav love said on sunday, that the aim in ukraine is to free its people from an unacceptable regime, clearly referring to president zelenskyy's government.

addressing the arab league summit in cairo, lavrov said we will certainly help the ukrainian people to get rid of the regime. which is absolutely anti-people, and anti-historical. okay. his remarks contradict the kremlin's line earlier in the war, when it repeatedly emphasized that russia was not seeking to overthrow zelenskyy meanwhile ukrainian forces are preparing for what could be a final push to retake the southern city of kherson, reports suggest fighting on the western and northern borders of the region is intensifying. "the new york times" reports kyiv's forces are 30 miles from the city. over the week, president zelenskyy says ukrainian forces were advancing step by step, into the occupied territories. first was the first city, kherson was the first city to fall to the russians and sits in a strategic location and the capture would be a huge morale boost for the ukrainians as they

map a couner-offensive. joining us live from odesa is nbc news correspondent morgan chesky, there was another attack in odesa this morning. what more you can tell us? >> the second attack here in this coastal area in four days, raising serious concerns about this safe transport of grain that is supposed to happen, according to officials, within the next week or so. and new video just in this morning shows the powerful devastation left behind by this russian missile strike in a small village here 35 miles south of where we are. and this is a civilian area, jonathan. right now, we know this is primarily used as a vacation area, and we do know that one man was injured here, despite the incredible devastation you see, and it is only raising more red flags, about whether or not this millions of tons of grain that's currently sitting in ships right here, will ever make it safely to countries that so

desperately need it. and that's coming on top of the fact that families in america are still processing the loss of two of their own. >> the eastern ukraine fierce front line fighting leaving two american families in mourning. a ukrainian commander sharing over the weekend that two americans, including luke died in battle after traveling here on their own to join the war effort. >> my heart can't be heavier than just now. >> gabby and george describing their son luke as a loving father, who went abroad wanting to help, and found work as a medic. >> every time i talked to him, i told him, why don't you just come home. >> the parents say luke was knocked unconscious by an artillery blast. then his fellow fighters rushed to help. and a russian tank opened fire. >> we didn't go there, he didn't go there for him, he went there to help people. >> in the port city of odesa,

smoke-filled skies after a russian missile strike after russia agreed to end the blockade and allowing ukrainian ships to deliver grain that is at risk of rotting in ships right now. and the foreign minister says the target was strictly military and the deal is still on. >> do you have any confidence that this grain will make it to the countries who are still in dire need. >> russia said to everybody, russia would fire at any corridor at any time, whenever it wishes. >> in addition to that strike, there was another early this morning, in the mykolaiv region, and jonathan, important to note here that ukrainian officials say that they are still making preparations to make sure this grain goes out, but they will also have to deal with mines in the black sea right now, left behind by russians.

we did have a chance to see a military ship in this very harbor this morning that was putting out some sort of gunfire. when we spoke to the official we were introducing, thee covering up our camera and said they were engaging in counter-saboteur activities, but declined to comment any further. jonathan? >> certainly the attacks raise even more questions about whether moscow can be trusted on anything when it comes to misconduct even getting food out to the rest of the world. morgan, stay safe. joining us live from odesa. still ahead, an update on president biden's health after he tested positive for covid. what he is saying about feeling better. plus, the president appears to paint republicans as anti-police for opposing a ban on assault weapons. we'll show you more of his remarks and take a look at new legislation and where it stands in congress. those stories and a check of the weather and more on my new book, out today, when we come right back. k, out today, when we come right

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president biden's covid symptoms have almost completely resolved. in a letter, biden's physician says the president only notes some residual nasal congestion and minimal hoarseness. today will be the president's fifth day since testing positive. he will continue to isolate at the white house until he tests negative. meanwhile, the president has kept up a pretty full work schedule, and yesterday he tweeted a picture of his co-worker and apparent alarm clock, his dog commander, it looks like he is safely sitting away. and during a call with reporters the president said he was feeling great and hoped to be back to work in person by the end of the week. >> i'm feeling great. i've had two full nights of sleep all the way through. as a matter of fact, my dog had to wake me up this morning. my wife's not here. she usually takes him out in the

morning when i'm upstairs working out. nose to my chest right here about five minutes to 7:00. >> monkey pox spreads rapidly across the united states and dozens of other countries. nbc news correspondent blayne alexander has reporting from inside the cdc. >> reporter: as calls to strengthen the nation's monkey pox response grow louder and u.s. cases skyrocket, from 1400 less than two weeks ago, to nearly 3,000, the world health organization has declared the virus a global health emergency. dr. mcquisten with the cdc's response. >> how big is the cdc's response to this virus. >> right now we have over 300 people working on this response 24/7. >> rarely fatal the virus is marked with painful lesions and sores spread by close physical contact and while monkey pox is

not new, the way it has spread is. >> what is causing it to spread? >> after covid, two years of people not traveling and not attending parties and not having fun and there is amplification as i a result of people going out and living their lives. >> from respiratory droplets. >> inside their mouth or throat, they could potentially shed virus. >> to sharing things like clothing and blankets and towels with someone with an open sore. and spreading around men in the lbgtq community. >> how important is it that people in that community don't close their eyes to this virus. >> it is very important, we know throughout history that infectious diseases don't stay in only one population, so perhaps it has been magnified early on in this population but it could spread into other populations. >> two of the latest cases in children. a cornerstone at the cdc's response, more testing and making more vaccines available. all while still managing covid.

>> there are only so many staff members at the cdc, so when we stood up the monkey pox response, we had to pull people out of covid. >> if you think you've been exposed, isolate and call a doctor and get tested. >> we'd like to see the curve not keep going up but flatten out and then eventually start to go doubt so -- go down and that would be my hope in the next three to six months. >> and that would happen if people take precautions now. >> we will talk with dr. anthony fauci joining us on "morning joe" in just a little while. still ahead here on "way too early," we have an update on brittney griner's case, as the wnba star heads back to court this week in russia. and a little later, we will look at the new effort to ban assault weapons in the aftermath of a series of high profile mass shootings. we'll be right back. f high prof shootings. we'll be right back. ed it most. its non-habit forming and powered by the makers of nyquil.

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moscow trial. griner is first scheduled to appear in court this afternoon where her defense team will continue presenting its case for leniency. she is then expected to testify tomorrow morning. she will face questioning by both the defense and prosecution. griner has been held in russia since her arrest at a moscow airport back in february when officials said they found vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage. griner has pleaded guilty to drug charges, but told the court she packed the contraband by mistake. she faces up to ten years in prison, and the united states government considers griner wrongfully detained. joining me now to, turning to major league baseball and we begin with action in los angeles, for the next move for juan soto on the trading block, the two-run triple last night helped the nats to a 4-1 win. and snapped the national league west-leading dodger season long

eight game winning streak. the dodgers among a slew of teams interested in adding soto to their lineup as we enter the final week before mlb's trade deadline. among the teams who also might be looking to make a move, the struggling red sox. maybe, just maybe, the tide could be turning in boston as the sox ended the five-game losing streak last night with a 3-1 win over the cleveland garns, and this moment the sox seemed more like sellers than buyers at the deadline. the sox did keep pace with baltimore. the orioles helping both teams in the division race by beating the tampa bay rays 5-1. and the new york yankees and the toronto blue jays have the day off. this is the nl east roundup. meanwhile new york city is gearing up for the first subway series of the season of the national league leading mets will host the american league leading yankees will meet tonight in a game. time now for the weather. how will it look there in queens for the yankees/mets tonight? >> much, much better.

relief finally. >> finally. >> finally. looking at temperatures in the 80s. the humidity dropping throughout the day. and not as lucky in the south central states and still looking at oklahoma, and pacific northwest, just getting started on the heat wave. 30 million people impacted by a heat alert and whether a heat advisory or an excessive heat warning and we will see so many temperatures in the 90s, into the 100s, once again, but not here, 80 degrees in the midwest and chicago, and 78 in cincinnati. that's going to feel good. and 82 in dc. big difference from last week. in boston, 80 degrees. here is the stationary downgrade. looking at warm temperatures, that's behind that colder air coming down from canada. and tulsa today feeling like 110. feeling like 104 in dallas and feeling like 110 in memphis. and tomorrow, we will start to bump up the temperatures a bit. philadelphia back near 90 degrees. and cleveland looking good and chicago looking good and minneapolis in the low 80s. and then as we go throughout the

rest of the week, a nice weekend in store for many of us, from chicago in the 70s and 80s. pittsburgh, temperatures in the 70s to 80 degrees. pacific northwest will last for days and days, baking, a major weather story for this week, hot and dry and the wildfire risk that we're watching so 91 today in seattle and numerous records likely to be broken, and we're looking at monument 107. and so many triple digits here, looking at 100 and 102. same story for wednesday, thursday and friday. seattle still the warmest temperatures in the 90s. and remember a lot of people in the pacific northwest don't have air conditioning so this is really tough. and portland, 97. and so far looking at 95 and many triple digits expanding into the weekend as well. here is the stationery boundary, storms along this, and we could see some flooding rains, too, so that will be another big story, getting tons of rain, and we will continue to watch that rainfall as we head throughout tuesday. >> michelle grossman, thank you

so very much. still ahead here on "way too early," a growing number of lawmakers on capitol hill are coming down with the coronavirus. amid this latest covid surge. we will take a look at how that is impacting some of these top priorities democrats are trying to work on. we'll be right back. iorities de to work on to work on we'll be right back. ahead of the blades, for effortless shaving in one efficient stroke. so save money shopping back to school on amazon. while they... 0oh... uh... figure their stuff out.

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welcome back to "way too early." it's just before 5:30 a.m., on the east coast. and 2:30 out west. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for being here. the nation is going through another covid surge and capitol

hill is no exception. two senators have tested positive for covid-19. democrat joe manchin of west virginia and republican lisa murkowski of alaska both announced yesterday that they had become infected. in a tweet, manchin writes that he is experiencing mild symptoms but is grateful to be fully vaccinated and boosted. murkowski says she is experiencing flu-like symptoms but both senators say they will continue their work remotely. these are just the latest in a wave of new infections in the upper chamber. democrat top carper of delaware also tested positive last week and minnesota democrat tina smith just returned from quarantine yesterday this. latest outbreak threatens to derail the democrats jam-packed agenda at a critical time. before leaving for a month-long recess in two weeks, democratic leaders had hoped to pass a series of long sought-after items. those include bills to lower prescription drug costs, to codify same-sex marriage into law, and to boost domestic

production of computer chips but with some democrats now working remotely, in particular, manchin, the chances of reaching agreements on all of those measures appear slim. covid-19 is not the only factor working against democrats. yesterday, the senate was forced to postpone a key vote on the chip bill, after many members had their flights impacted by bad weather that rolled through the washington area and other regions. joining us now, co-founder of punch bowl news, jake sherman, an msnbc political contributor, and we're happy to see you. jake, good morning. let's start there. the democrats, it is an ambitious wish list to get done in these next couple of weeks, do we think that the calendar could change? how much? and whether that's true or not, how much? >> well, happy publication day, jonathan. a big day for you. congratulations. a few things to note. number one, the chips bill, this long sought after priority to boost domestic semiconductor

manufacturing is likely to get through today. the test vote, this vote could get around the filibuster and likely to go through today and we don't expect much there. but the two other items you said, you noted, the effort to codify same-sex marriage into law, and the reconciliation package which is aimed at lowering prescription drug costs for medicare recipients and ex tend obama care subsidies is likely to be delayed at least a little bit. number one, the same-sex marriage bill will require every single vote possible. it needs 60 votes to get through the chamber, to get around a republican filibuster. number two, reconciliation package is tough, you need all 50 democrats there, and they are, they need to be, we haven't even seen a bill yet, john and it will be very difficult to get that through, we anticipate, this is not the last week in session, next week is, this is the house's last week in session, so we expect the senate

will push it through and the house will have to come back at some point in august to clear that bill. >> and explain to viewers who look at the calendar and say okay, i get it, this is an august recess, everybody is entitle to vacation but there is still september and october before election day. but why? why can you explain to those watching why it is so vital that so much gets done before labor day? >> because no one wants to take a difficult vote on september, october ahead of the election. september, congress needs to wrestle with government funding. the government running out of money at the end of september. that will take up much of the month of september to get through the chamber. and listen, it doesn't have to get done. there's no reason it needs to get done in august. but senators like their august off. they like their september to campaign. they like their october to campaign. ahead of what is supposed to be and what is expected to be a brutal election cycle for house and senate democrats. >> there you go. we appreciate it as always. thank you, sir.

coming up here on "way too early," as jake mentioned it is publication day for my new book "the big lie" we will talk about that and business news, a major retailer is dragging the futures board into the red this morning. cnbc joins us live with more on what's happening with the markets. with more on what's happening with the markets.

time now for business. for that let's bring in cnbc's joumanna bercetche who joins us live from london. good morning. it is a crucial week for global markets with the federal reserve's latest policy decision upcoming as well as a slew of corporate earnings reports. what are we expecting today? >> that's right. so a cautious opening, opening up in negative territory, after a mixed close yesterday. the focus is going to be on corporate earnings. today, we get some major results out of alphabet and microsoft,

mcdonald's and coca-cola. and the one to watch is the retail sector, we had walmart yesterday after the close issue their second profit warning in over ten weeks indicating that their profit targets that will have to be adjusted due to rising costs and a pullback in consumer spending. that has a knock-down effect on neighboring sectors. amazon is down 3% in pre-market. they will be reporting on thursday. all eyes on walmart to other names in the retail space as well. >> we saw a bunch of red on the board to start the day. some significant news here. russia is cutting gas supplies through its largest pine line to germany -- pipeline to germany why to just a fifth of capacity. what's the latest? is that going to be a permanent issue? and does it foreshadow further worries for europe as the weather starts to get colder in a couple of months? >> well, that's exactly it, it is a major topic of discussion over here in europe, because so

much of the european economic outlook is contingent on gas coming through russia and of course that nord stream 1 pipeline. the pipeline was closed for maintenance and reopened at 40% capacity and the last couple of hours russia says it will be reducing to 20%, and all of this comes at a time when europeans are looking at alternative sources of gas away from russia and when gas prices have been skyrocketing. to give you an idea, gas prices are up almost 400% year to date. and so it is really putting the europeans in a very difficult position. and anyone's guest what russia decides to do going forward. >> certainly russia's energy sector funds a lot of putin's war machine. let's end on a lighter note. top gun maverick the sequel to tom cruise's 1980s hit, is now the ninth highest grossing movie of all time. at the domestic box office. tell us a little bit about it.

>> yup, that's right. so tom cruise's strategy of waiting for the movie, it has paid off. it is now the ninth highest grossing film of all time. just to give you an idea, this is where maverick has grossed over $650 million. $1.28 billion worldwide. it very close to overtaking jurassic park. and believe it or not titanic in seventh place. it keeps moving up in the rankings and still going strong and the strategy of waiting has paid off for mr. cruise. >> confession, i haven't seen it yet but it sounds like everyone else has. cnbc's joumanna bercetche live from london, thanks for joining us today. still ahead we will break down the latest effort by democrats to get an assault weapons ban. "way too early" is right back. r democrats to get an assault weapons ban. "way too early" is right back. pr and longer when you need it most. its non-habit forming and powered by the makers of nyquil.

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the house rules committee will hold a meeting tomorrow on the assault weapons ban, a necessary ban, if democrats

wants to bring the bill to the floor for a vote. the committee will also discuss the equal access to justice for victims of gun violence act. that bill, sponsored by congressman adam schiff would give victims of gun violence the ability to sue gun makers and dealers. president biden backed the renewed push for an assault weapons ban in virtual remarks yesterday to the national organization of black law enforcement executives conference. >> to me, it's simple. you can't support a war on american streets and not side with police. years ago, banning assault weapons and high capacity magazines this this country and i'm determined to do it again. on the ballot this year will be whether or not this nation bans assault weapons. >> joining us now, professor of princeton university, our friend, eddie, great to see you,

sir. let's start with the weapons ban. it comes in the shadow of a number of high profile mass shooting, the house taking it up to the rules committee, it doesn't seem to have much of a chance for passage in the senate. but why is it still important? >> well, i mean we have weapons of war on our streets. we have buffalo. we have uvalde. we have highland park. and before that we had el paso. and we know these weapons of war present imminent threat and danger to the american public. i don't know if the argument will work. i mean think about the way in which people responded to police being attacked during the january 6th insurrection. i understand the appeal. but the circumstances are what they reflex the context makes this a very difficult move. but we see what california has done. california is unique in the context of the united states. but i understand the gesture. but the context is difficult. >> and sometimes it is about the gesture and it is certainly

frustration among democrats about how little has been done and eddie, i appreciate you being part of this conversation. my new book "the big lie" is out today, and though it traces certainly the -- >> thank you for the product placement, my friend. it traces the origin of donald trump's false claims of election fraud and how he hijacked the republican party conservative media it do his bidding and certainly through january 6th but the story doesn't stop there and nor does the book and that's where i wanted to go with you now, eddie is, this idea that voting rights, that certainly after the insurrection, there is this republican, sort of seized upon the big lie as a cover to restrict access to the ballots, and nearly two dozen states. democrats seem a little slow to respond and eventually an effort to have federal voting rights protections failed. how worried are you about the ability for americans to cast their ballots this fall and beyond? >> oh, i'm extraordinarily worried. so first of all, congratulations on the publishing of the book. it's an extraordinary account of

what i would argue, jonathan is the accumulation of lies, and what you do in the extraordinary detail, is to show how trump functions, right, how he works with lies, and how the kind of compounding effect of lies become in some ways the big lie, as he tells the one about the election, so-called election fraud. when it comes to voting rights, i think it changes the playing field. we can't out-organize structural shifts. so there's the lie itself. but then there is the actions that follow from the lie. we see voting laws passed across the country. and the landscape for example of how to organize voters, how to get voter turnout in places like georgia, places like wisconsin, has changed, and i think it is really important for us to understand that the assault on voting, impacts our democracy, and it is not enough to just simply declare that we must vote more democrats into office, wherever you are in this regard, to understand how this has impacted the landscape of how

people vote, and how votes are counted is really important. so the impact of the lie, in terms of our broader execution of our democracy, and we will see in the midterms, and we will definitely see in the presidential campaign. >> and the book tries to do just that, to show the accumulation of lies, and some small, some bigger, and how trump wore down americans' trust in their institutions and able to convince so many of his followers to go along with it, and that's where we still are now. trump today, returns to washington, for the first time since leaving office on biden's inauguration day. he is still telling lies about 2020. and beyond. we, as americans, now face another election season where we can't even agree on the same set of facts. how worrisome is that? >> it's, you know, any democracy, that does not have the ability to engage in reasoned deliberation, about matters that face citizens, the

citizenry, is in trouble. if we can't agree on the background conditions that allow us to debate, democracy is in trouble. and so that last line in the book, i don't want to give it away, jonathan, but i will. >> please do. >> the big lie was who they were. the big lie was who they were. and you tell this story, as you talk about the accumulation of the lie, and how republicans, the republican party basically concedes to it. if that is true, that the republican party is now being consumed and it is has metastasized, the big lie has metastasized that it has taken over the party, it is very difficult to imagine how this particular political actor, fits within the democracy itself. it is a heralding story that brings out eyebrows and at least should call us to attention, at best to what is before us come

this political season. >> that's what the book tries to show. it's an analysis of how we got here, and also, where we could still be going. it's a story that is not quite over yet. eddie, professor at princeton, i appreciate you taking time to talk to are the book is called the big lie. good your favor bookshop and please do it. we appreciate it very much. if you're in new york city, tomorrow night, come to 92nd street. you can hear me and our friend mike barnicle in conversation about the book, as well as the politics of the day. it will, after morning joe. tomorrow, 7:00 p.m. tickets are also available for purchase. donald trump's return to washington today helped him break out of his summer slump.

coming up on morning joe, new development in the january 6 investigation to former vice president mike pence testify for the federal grand jury. what it means for trump and the criminal charges. his own suit against the former president. as i mentioned earlier, we will check in with president biden's chief medical adviser dr. anthony fauci on covid and monkeypox. morning joe, few minutes away. . time. it's life's most precious commodity, especially when you have metastatic breast cancer. when your time is threatened, it's hard to invest in your future. until now. kisqali is helping women live longer than ever before

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we are remembering hollywood icon paul serino, who passed at the age of 83. he is known for being able to play diverse roles for his top dangerous characters. here is nbc news core sponsor on the passing of the beloved actor. >> reporter: characters on both sides of the law from nbc's law and order to goodfellows.

>> just don't do it. >> will come up to me every day. i swear to you. they tell me it's their favorite movie. it touched everyone. >> reporter: it was a career that spent half a century with paul sorvino gracing the screen and the stage. the 1973, he owned a tony nomination. at 6'3", the actor arranged as broad as his shoulders. even singing opera. his daughter won an oscar in 1996. her proud dad was there in the audience. >> you honor my father who has taught me everything i know about acting. i love you very much, jack. >> reporter: she is honoring him again.

he was the most wonderful father. i love him so much. i'm sending you love in the stars. >> that was msnbc joe reporting. joining us is alexi. alexi, great to see you. >> good morning, jonathan. congrats on the boat book. today is a look at the 2022 midterms. he has made a number of this midterm cycle across the country. as you look ahead, he is supposed to have one of his bleakest outcomes yet. we are looking at places like wyoming. he has challenged house republican on the january 6 committee. that primary looks

pretty good, but as you look across the country and especially arizona, the results are looking mixed. he might not be the king we saw him to be when he was president. >> there seems to be a moment where trump is still the loudest voice in the party. we will watch his return to washington later today. as you mentioned, his track record of endorsements are in his primary season. it is a mixed bag, but many voters say the economies will be the top issue this fall. president biden and the downplaying the risk of a possible recession. how does that compare to recent economic figures? >> i am glad you are talking about this. the white house and president biden has been on a debate of the semantics of what a definition of a recession is. we are expected to see better numbers for job growth at the --. the gdp could slow down. that could be something that

could vary, especially if those numbers are telling two different stories. for the white house to continue, but i don't think we will be in recession. the country and consumers are feeling like the economy is not doing well. if they believe that, that could obviously lend itself to an economic downturn and lead to a recession headache for president biden. >> gas prices have been on decline, but there are worse. had a lengthy conversation about the semantics of whether it's a recession or not, which i don't think most americans care about. access is reporting on how republican's efforts to reach hispanic populations ahead of them in terms. we saw in 2020 that republicans show surprising strength among some latino groups. what's the latest? >> that is right. publicans will tell us that former president donald trump

gave someone to believe in and to vote for. they are trying to delve on that now, as republicans and their campaign are investing in democratic districts with sizable hispanic populations. they are signaling that they don't normally feel competitive in terms of democratic districts, but focusing on communities of color who historically had a traditionally bad time getting these folks on board with their parties. it is not because of former president trump's sometimes racist about that very community. >> that was so surprising in 2020. both parties were trying to court in renewed energy this time around. alexi mckennan, thank you for joining us. we are going to roll into morning joe. joe, mika and willie are out this morning.

thankfully, we have another great group with us. starting with former aide from the george w. bush white house state department police jordan is here. msnbc contributor mike barnicle is here. president of the national action network is here. from a u.s. senator and msnbc political and honest, karen. and associate editor of the washington post. let's get started. we begin with the president biden taking a direct for his inaction during the january 6 attack. >> every day we rely on law enforcement to save lives. on january 6, we relied on law enforcement to save our democracy. we saw it happen.