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Tsunami waves reach Hawaii, California after huge quake off Russia
00:44:46
Tsunami warnings were issued and evacuations were ordered across the Pacific after the 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s remote Far East.
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- [00:00]
Rachel Maddow
Saturday, October 11th from New York City, it's MSNBC Live 25. Join your favorite MSNBC hosts Rachel Maddow, Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski, Nicole Wallace, Ari Melber, Alicia Menendez, Simone Sanders Townsend, Michael Steele, Chris Haynes, jen Psaki, Lawrence O', Donnell, Stephanie Ruhl and more. Visit msnbc.comlive25 to buy your tickets today. Subscribe to MSNBC Premium on Apple Podcasts for early access, ad free listening and bonus content to all of MSNBC's original podcasts, including the chart topping series the Best People with Nicole Wallace, why Is this Happening? Main justice and more. Plus new episodes of all your favorite MSNBC shows ad free and ad free listening to all of Rachel Maddow's original series, Ultra Bagman and Deja News. Subscribe to MSNBC Premium on Apple Podcasts.
- [01:00]
Joe Scarborough
Even the bipartisan noms are being blocked and delayed.
- [01:04]
Mika Brzezinski
So much so that the Democrats have been forcing me when I file cloture just to get a nominee considered on the floor to go in and out of executive and legislative sessions.
- [01:15]
Joe Scarborough
So these are just dilatory tactics designed to block and obstruct the president and his agenda. This has got to stop.
- [01:24]
Willie Geist
And clearly the Democrats are starting something and creating a precedent that is going to come back to haunt them.
- [01:29]
Joe Scarborough
This is really bad.
- [01:31]
Mika Brzezinski
This is a bad practice on their part.
- [01:34]
Willie Geist
Senate Majority Leader John Thune calling out Democrats for stalling President Trump's nominees. Those comments coming hours before Senate Republicans pushed through the confirmation of one of the president's former personal lawyers despite serious allegations from three whistleblowers. We'll go through the details there. Also ahead, we'll take a look at some heated moments between Democrats among themselves on the Senate floor yesterday over a bipartisan package of police funding bills. You what they were fighting about. Plus President Trump answered more questions about his falling out with Jeffrey Epstein, claiming the convicted sex offender stole workers from Mar A Lago's spa. And we'll get expert analysis on the Trump administration's new efforts to repeal landmark climate regulation. Good morning. Welcome to Morning Joe. It is Wednesday, July 30th. Let's dive right in because moments ago the tsunami warning for Hawaii was downgraded to an advisory. Advisories in Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands Islands also were canceled. Tsunami waves did hit Hawaii and parts of the west coast overnight, putting residents on high alert. Warnings also were issued for several other nations. This after Russia was hit with a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake. That quake expected to rank as one of the largest ever on record. In Japan, officials measured more than four foot tsunami wave off the east coast, as well as smaller waves along the country's southern islands. This video shows people standing on the roof of a building in the country's northernmost island as a cautionary measure in case of large waves. Let's bring in meteorologist Angie Lassman for the very latest. So, Angie, it looks like the worst that was feared in Hawaii and other places may have been avoided, but still a major earthquake causing problems here.
- [03:22]
Angie Lassman
Yeah, that's exactly right, Willie. It looks like we've avoided the worst of it. We're not completely out of the woods when we consider those advisories that are still up. But you can see Honolulu after midnight tonight. All is pretty, pretty much quiet. But here's what we what we've been dealing with. We had that magnitude 8.8 earthquake just off the eastern coast of Russia that happened late last night. Just to put into perspective of how strong this is, it is likely when we get that final report that this will rank in the top 10 earthquakes ever recorded in modern history. So no surprise that we immediately had those advisories. Watches and warnings for tsunamis issued across parts of the Pacific. There's the Hawaiian island chain. We have seen that reduced down to a tsunami advisory. Here are some of those observed wave heights so far. You can see as we look to the island of Maui, where we do have reports of 5.7ft. Now, the water level fell to 3.5ft, negative 3.5ft, and then rose quickly within 15 minutes to 9ft. So we're still going to be continuing to watch that area, although as mentioned, not expecting what we initially had feared as we went into the overnight hours. As far as the west coast of the United States is concerned, we still do have that tsunami warning issued for parts of Northern California and then the advisory up and the coast. We're likely going to be watching for this to continue here through the rest of the morning hours. When it comes to Northern California, that geography kind of really just sets up folks in places like Crescent City to see the worst of it when we do see these tsunami issues. So we're going to continue to keep a close eye on that. But for now, Willie, it does look like we're going to see improving conditions as the rest of the morning goes on.
- [04:58]
Willie Geist
All right. There's some good news there. Scary moments when these alerts went out last night. Angie Lassman, thanks so much. We appreciate it. We're learning more about the man who opened fire in a Manhattan office building on Monday night, as well as the four victims killed in the attack. As investigators work to pin down a motive, they're focusing on a three page note found in the suspect's wallet where he asked if CTE from playing high school football was a possible cause of his mental illness and asked for his brain to be studied. The city's medical examiner now says a brain exam will be conducted as part of the autopsy. Yesterday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said investigators believe the gunman was headed for the NFL offices located inside the building he targeted, but he took the wrong elevator to get there. Never reached those offices. Meanwhile, the NYPD is sending detectives to Nevada, where the gunmen live, to retrace his steps leading up to the shooting. Officials there say the suspect had two mental health incidents in recent years and was arrested in 2023 on a trespassing charge. Also this morning, a clearer picture of the four victims coming into focus. Officer Dideroul Islam was the father of two young boys with a third child on the way. NYPD leaders hailed him as a who made the ultimate sacrifice. Wesley Lapatner was a senior executive at Blackstone and a mother of two friend, remembering her as the best of humankind. Alaine Etienne was a security guard in the building and a father of two. And Julia Hyman was a Rudin management employee, a Cornell graduate and just 27 years old. Rudin's headquarters in that building as well. We'll have more on this story as we get it to politics. Now we're learning more detail about what was President Trump's falling out with Jeffrey Epstein. The president now saying the rift started after Epstein, quote, stole Mar? A Lago employees. NBC News chief Justice and national affairs correspondent Kelly o' Donnell has the latest.
- [06:58]
Kelly O'Donnell
As President Trump headed home from Scotland, he identified a prominent sexual abuse accuser of Jeffrey Epstein, Virginia Giuffre, as a former Mar? A Lago employee who had been recruited by Epstein to work for him instead causing a falling out with Mr. Trump.
- [07:15]
Mika Brzezinski
He stole her. And by the way, she had no complaints about us, as you know, none whatsoever.
- [07:21]
Kelly O'Donnell
Giuffre, who died by suicide in April, had worked at the spa at Trump's Mar? A Lago club as a teenager in the late 90s. Reporters asked the president whether any young women were among those hired away by Epstein.
- [07:34]
Mika Brzezinski
Yeah, people that work in the spa, a great spa, one of the best spas in the world in Mar A Lago. And people were taken out of the spa hired by him.
- [07:44]
Kelly O'Donnell
New disclosure surfaced as the president revealed more about why he abruptly cut off his friendship with Epstein 20 years ago.
- [07:51]
Mika Brzezinski
We took people that worked for me. And I told him, don't do it anymore. And he did it. And I said, stay the hell out of here.
- [07:58]
Kelly O'Donnell
In 2019, Epstein was charged with sex trafficking of underage girls. Giuffre had pushed for Epstein's arrest. How did this happen for so long?
- [08:08]
Claire McCaskill
How did he get away with it?
- [08:10]
Willie Geist
NBC's Kelly O' Donnell reporting there. So Joe, we've heard now for two days in a row President Trump's big beef with Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex trafficker, is that he poached employees from the spa at Mar a Lago.
- [08:24]
Mika Brzezinski
Yeah. Different than what we've been hearing in the past, which was that Jeffrey Epstein had made an inappropriate move on one of his members children earlier. But the last couple of days it's now been that he's still the employee since we Ghost of our fourth hour Contributing writer, the Atlantic, Jonathan Lemire, US Special correspondent for BBC News and host of the Rest Is Politics podcast Katie Kay and NBC News and MSNBC political analyst, former U.S. senator Claire McCaskill. Jonathan Lemire, we'll start with you. I've seen reports that the White House believes that the worst of this is over. Obviously, if we're talking about the differences and stories between whether they Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump had a falling out because of a stolen spa employee versus an inappropriate remark or action towards a member's father, we're getting pretty deep in the weeds there. I'm curious, what's the White House thinking? Do they think the worst is over here?
- [09:26]
Joe Scarborough
Yeah, the story has shifted a few times because there was also earlier an accounting that president then not President Trump, but Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein have fallen out over a real estate deal that they both were competing for the same bit of property there in Palm Beach. That shifted a few times and has raised some eyebrows. It remains to be seen whether they have cleared this or not. There hasn't been any immediate new developments or bombshells in recent days. The Wall Street Journal has had a couple of major pieces of reporting matched by other news outlets. That's been quieter. There is still the ongoing lawsuit, of course. I think a lot of eyes right now are looking at Ghislaine Maxwell. So we had the two days with the deputy attorney general Todd Blanche in Florida last week, is expected to talk to congressional investigators later in August. And also that's one front and the other being Republican lawmakers as they do go home for the August recess. What are they gonna hear from constituents? Yes, there has been. You're right, Joe. I've talked to some White House aides who are slowly starting to relax, thinking that perhaps there will the end is in sight with this story. But I don't think they're quite through it yet. And it is gonna be a test of these Republicans who have been for some of them for years, have touted this conspiracy theory egged on by podcasters and the like, as we've been discussing for weeks now, that they're not gonna be able to just put the toothpaste back in the tube, if you will, as one person put it to me the other day. So I don't think the political firestorm is over just yet. And Democrats certainly gonna do their part to keep it going well.
- [10:58]
Mika Brzezinski
And Claire McCaskill, I was going to ask you what Democrats should do. They obviously denied immunity for Ghislaine Maxwell to come testify in the House. But what's the Democrats best move here? Do they move on and over the August recess talk about the bill and how that's going to hurt Americans at the kitchen table, or do they keep talking about or trying to figure out how to make hay over this story on the Epstein files and the conspiracy theory that's whirled around it for years now, mainly on the Republican side.
- [11:29]
Jonathan Lemire
Yeah, I think they can do two things at once. I think they can spend a great deal of time talking about how bad this bill was for most Americans, what it's going to do to their health care, what it's going to do to frankly fatten the pockets of very rich people in this country at the expense of others. I think they can also talk about increased costs and tariffs. But here's the thing, Joe. They need to get Republicans to vote on this stuff around Epstein and the idea that there are Republicans right now trying to clean up Maxwell's image. I mean, let's be clear what Maxwell is. Maxwell is a convicted lying sexual predator of children. That's what she is. And she not only recruits, she's the one who recruited the young lady from the teenager from Mar a Lago. It wasn't Jeffrey Epstein that recruited the woman who committed suicide last year. It was Maxwell. She was the one who recruited him. And in some of these instances I'm going to be not graphic, but kind of graphic. She's the one who removed these girls panties for Jeffrey Epstein to have his way with them. So the idea that they're trying to somehow use her to clean up Trump's image around this, I believe is really going to backfire on them. So the Democrats need to force Republicans to vote on these issues, because I think these issues have really penetrated not just Democratic voters, but independent voters. And frankly, even the MAGA base it politically, it's smart for them to stay on it.
- [13:09]
Mika Brzezinski
Well, you know, I mean, I think just my instinct, if I were going home to the district for August recess, it would be hammering night and day on the bill, talking about how my constituents health care is going to be gutted, their children's ability to get the care they need, their parents ability to get the care they need gutted by this bill. And billionaires were the ones that were going to profit off of that extra money. You're also going to be having, of course, tech giants, tech moguls that run monopolies that were going to be able to benefit from this bill, the tax cuts for the richest. That that all seems to me if Democrats can figure out how to hammer that point home, they've been handed this political gift because Americans are going to be hurt in so many different ways by the passage of this bill. And on the issue that I campaigned on and stayed on in Congress, they've just exploded the debt by another $4 trillion, $20 trillion over the next decade. That's a crisis for every single American. But in the background. Yeah, just tweak on your Republican opponent who is talking about the Epstein files. For years, for years it's the Democrats covering it up. For years it's Biden covering up, it's Merrick Garland covering up, it's Hillary covering all these crazy conspiracy theories. That would be a lot of fun and it would also be very revealing to constituents what a liar that Republican congressman or congresswoman was that they. And what a hypocrite that they were willing to gin up false conspiracy theories about Democrats. But the second a Republican's in the White House and tells them to stop, they suddenly go silent and say, nothing to see here. Move along, move along.
- [15:05]
Jonathan Lemire
Yeah. And frankly, the reason he adjourned, Johnson adjourned when he did, is he didn't want to have votes on this subject.
- [15:14]
Mika Brzezinski
Right.
- [15:14]
Jonathan Lemire
He's not going to be able to avoid it. There are going to be votes on this subject in both houses, both in the Senate and in the House. And the people who vote those votes will be remembered by people who do digital ads and make TV ads. And they will be blasted next year, the first part of November, especially if they play games and try to get Maxwell let her out of prison. If she says good things about Donald Trump and indicts others who were involved in this sordid affair.
- [15:47]
Mika Brzezinski
I Mean in Caddy. I guess that would be my lead. Hey, it's great to be here at the town hall meeting. It's wonderful seeing all of you. Of course, it's great being home to see my family. I wouldn't be here, but the fact that they shut down the People's House because Mike Johnson was afraid we were going to take a vote on letting you see what was inside the Epstein files, that's a pretty good lead, right?
- [16:11]
Katie Kay
Yeah. And I think you're right. You tweak them. Right. You use it as a way to tweak your opponent who has talking about the Epstein files specifically, if you have an opponent who's raised it in the past, that's a good one to lead with. But it's interesting to see, Joe, I mean, to your point earlier, you now have several Democrats coming out publicly, Senator Coons, Senator Kaine, Senator Fetterman, a handful of Congress members of Congress saying, actually, you know what, the Epstein issue is a distraction from what we should be talking about. And of course, we can do two things at once, but the priority needs to be the impact of the big beautiful bill and the tariffs. And, you know, with the reporting coming that Americans will start to feel the impacts of tariffs, there's a report in Reuters saying that's going to hit pretty hard in the next week or two. I think running on the economy when the polling suggests that is still what Americans care most about more than the Epstein issue is probably the safer bet for Democrats.
- [17:06]
Mika Brzezinski
And I was going to ask in Britain, in Europe, what is the pickup on the Epstein file conspiracy theory? Do they think Americans are crazy to talk about it with everything else, else that's, that's happening across Washington and America and the world? Or is it something that Europeans are also focused on?
- [17:26]
Katie Kay
Europeans think Americans are crazy, Joe.
- [17:29]
Jonathan Lemire
No.
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Mika Brzezinski
Yes.
- [17:31]
Katie Kay
No, that never happens. Look, it did break through. I mean, it was interesting. I'm heading back this week, but for the last, when it was at its peak a couple of weeks ago, it definitely broke through as it led the news bulletins a few times here, it was on the front pages of the papers. Now, I have to say it's much more talk about Gaza and the, and the situation in Gaza, which we've spoken about a lot the last few days. And that seems to have knocked the Epstein story off the front pages here. And I guess something similar may happen in America, not necessarily with Gaza, but with another big story when it comes along.
- [18:05]
Mika Brzezinski
Yeah. And Willie, of course, Katie gave a little, little foreshadowing to my bumper sticker if I've run for office again, which will be you may be right, he may be crazy, but it just may be a lunatic you're looking for. Boom.
- [18:23]
Willie Geist
Shout out Billy.
- [18:23]
Mika Brzezinski
That's a Billy Joel. Yeah.
- [18:25]
Willie Geist
Very nice.
- [18:26]
Mika Brzezinski
I like that's overdone these days.
- [18:28]
Willie Geist
Still ahead on Morning Joe, we'll show you the moment when Democrats clashed on the Senate floor amongst themselves after Cory Booker accused his colleagues of being complicit in the Donald Trump agenda. Plus, Senate Republicans vote to confirm Emil Bovey as a federal appeals court judge despite several whistleblower complaints about his conduct at the Justice Department. We'll dig into those allegations. And a reminder, the Morning Joe Podcast is available every weekday, featuring our full conversations and analysis. You can listen wherever you get your podcasts. You're watching Morning Joe. We'll be right back.
- [19:13]
Katie Kay
It.
- [19:51]
Claire McCaskill
Remember when laundry day meant literally your entire day sorting loads, switching machines, forgetting wet clothes until they needed washing again? Those days are over. The new Samsung Bespoke AI laundry combo takes clothes from dirty to dry in as little as 68 minutes. No transfers needed. A new way to do laundry is here from the brand rated number one in customer satisfaction, Samsung. Visit samsung.com bespoke to learn more. Based on most customer satisfaction awards, Home Appliance Surveys, leading Customer Research Organization 2020.
- [20:20]
Rachel Maddow
Through 2024 as President Trump continues implementing his ambitious agenda, follow along with MSNBC's newest newsletter, Project 47. You'll get weekly updates sent straight to your inbox with expert analysis on the administration's latest actions and how they're affecting the American people.
- [20:40]
Jonathan Lemire
The American people are basically telling the president that they are not okay with any of this.
- [20:44]
Rachel Maddow
Sign up for the Project 47 newsletter at msnbc.com project47.
- [20:52]
Willie Geist
Hey everyone, it's Chris Hayes.
- [20:53]
Joe Scarborough
This week on my podcast, why Is this Happening?
- [20:55]
Mika Brzezinski
Former senior policy advisor at the National.
- [20:57]
Willie Geist
Economic Council, Aya Ibrahim.
- [20:59]
Angie Lassman
I don't think that any American is going to bed being worried about who has the most compute, who has the highest number of GPUs, US or China. That's not what people are worried about. They're worried about housing, healthcare, education, job opportunities. So to the extent that AI is either an enabler or an obstacle to those things, that is what I think they will end up worrying about.
- [21:20]
Willie Geist
That's this week on why Is this Happening?
- [21:22]
Mika Brzezinski
Search for why Is this Happening wherever you're listening right now and follow.
- [21:29]
Willie Geist
Live picture of the United States Capitol as the sun comes up over Washington. Democrats there sparred with each other on the Senate floor over a bipartisan package of police funding bills. It happened yesterday afternoon when Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey objected to unanimously passing the legislation, prompting Senators Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota to fight back. Senator Booker claims the bills do not provide grants to police departments in Democrat led states because President Trump has frozen their funding.
- [22:00]
Mika Brzezinski
Rather than supporting law enforcement agencies and officers equally across the nation, they are weaponizing public safety grants to punish state and local jurisdictions that resist the Trump policy agenda, including my home state of New Jersey.
- [22:19]
Jonathan Lemire
I agree. Withholding funding for law enforcement anywhere in the country, across the country, it's just not acceptable and it should not be done.
- [22:28]
Kelly O'Donnell
My bill doesn't even talk about grant funding. There's no funding associated with it.
- [22:32]
Jonathan Lemire
But yet he wants to put it on my piece of legislation. This is why.
- [22:36]
Kelly O'Donnell
This is ridiculous.
- [22:37]
Jonathan Lemire
This is an attempt to kill all of these bills. I don't know why. One of the things I don't understand here is that we have committees for a reason and we have hearings for a reason, and you can't do one thing on Police Week and not show up and not object and let these bills go through and then say another a few weeks later in a big speech on the floor. There were bills we would have liked to include that we did not. And if the objection is based on some of this horror show that's going on out of the White House, I agree with that piece of Senator Booker's points, and I have been equally vociferous in taking on this administration. But all of these bills came out of the committee unanimously, and I think they deserve that support on the floor.
- [23:28]
Mika Brzezinski
What I am tired of is when the President of the United States of America violates the Constitution, trashes our norms and traditions, and what does the Democratic Party do?
- [23:43]
Jonathan Lemire
Comply?
- [23:45]
Mika Brzezinski
Allow him beg for scraps?
- [23:49]
Angie Lassman
No.
- [23:49]
Mika Brzezinski
I demand justice. It's time for Democrats to have a backbone. It's time for us to fight. It's time for us to draw lines. And when it comes to the safety of my state being denied these grants, that's why I'm standing here. Don't question my integrity. Don't question my motives. I'm standing for Jersey. I am standing for my police officers. I'm standing for the Constitution and I'm standing for what's right. Let's bring in MSNBC contributor Mike Barnico. Mike, what say you? Well, it's great theater that we just saw Cory Booker, a good guy, standing up and yelling in the floor of the United States Senate. What I don't understand is he's yelling.
- [24:28]
Willie Geist
At two other Democrats.
- [24:30]
Mika Brzezinski
The Democrats have enough problems. They have enough problems in this country, defining themselves to people, making sure that people know, no, they are alive. They are interested in your life. They are interested in solving your problems. But, Claire McCaskill, what say you?
- [24:48]
Jonathan Lemire
Yeah, well, here's what's going on. The Democratic base is starving for a fighter. They're starving for a fight. They want people to fight Donald Trump because everyone is so frustrated and angry and depressed at everything he's doing and how he's doing it. And the cowardice of the Republicans across the aisle in the Senate who are knowingly doing terrible things, casting votes that I would never dreamt they would have cast when I was serving with them in the Senate. So he's. You got that on one side. On the other side, you have Cory Booker unfairly criticizing two strong Democrats that are doing everything they can in their power to fight Donald Trump. And, you know, Amy's right. There's a way to change a bill, and then there's a way to get in the opening segment of Morning Joe and on the front page of the New York Times. And Cory chose the latter rather than the former. He knew if he did this, it would be a viral moment and he would be associated with Democrats who are willing to fight. Meanwhile, this bill didn't impact funding, and there probably was not the leverage to do what Cory would like to do, which is defy Donald Trump because we don't have the votes in the Senate. I mean, they just approved a judge that's totally unqualified. And you had a couple of guys who aren't even running for reelection who folded on Emil Bove. So Cory knows we don't have the votes in the Senate to do what the base wants us to do. So the way he criticizes colleagues is really unusual, kind of unheard of, and frankly, to me, a little worrisome with what we have in front of us and the fights we have to the Democratic Party needs to wage next year in the midterms.
- [26:39]
Mika Brzezinski
Yeah. And Willie, of course, Democrats, for a good reason, want a fighter. They want somebody that goes out there and really takes it to the Republicans. It may be one reason why AOC and Bernie Sanders on their tours got so many people out there because they were willing to go out and lead the charge and do it very vocally. Not so sure, though. Attacking two members of the Democratic Senate who are doing their best to keep their state safe and doing it by trying to derail a police Something that's labeled a police funding bill is the best way to do it.
- [27:21]
Willie Geist
Yeah, you could see almost the surprise on the two senators faces. Klobuchar and Mastow at the lev. The level of emotion and aggressiveness put forward by Senator Booker. Passionate, perhaps a little theatrical as Mike Barnacle mentioned. We'll see where that lands. Also on Capitol Hill, the Republican Senate.
- [27:38]
Mika Brzezinski
He is actually Spartacus after all. But go ahead.
- [27:42]
Willie Geist
That's right. That's right. I am Spartacus. Claire mentioned. The Republican led Senate last night narrowly confirmed President Trump's former president, former personal attorney Emil Bovey, as a judge on the 3rd U.S. circuit Court of Appeals, granting him a lifetime appointment. Senators voted 50 to 49 to confirm Bovey with Senator Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, as usual the only Republicans to join all 47 Democrats in voting no. Bovey faced allegations from three different whistleblowers in recent days about his alleged conduct at the Department of Justice during the first six months of the Trump administration. That includes allegations about his role in the dismissal of New York City Mayor Eric Adams corruption case. Bovey was also accused of telling subordinates in a meeting in March they may need to ignore court orders that would hamper Trump's mass deportation efforts. Let's bring in former litigator and MSNBC legal correspondent Lisa Rubin, who's been following the story closely, and national investigative reporter at the Washington Post, Carol Lent. She has new reporting in a piece titled Bovee Misled Lawmakers about His Actions in NYC Mayor Case Evidence Suggests. Good morning to you both. Lisa, let me start with you. You've been following this so closely. Can you just remind some of our viewers what the concerns were that were raised by whistleblowers about Bovey as he now ascends to this lifetime appointment?
- [29:06]
Kelly O'Donnell
I will. Or Willia. At least I will try. There were three whistleblowers, as you mentioned, the first of which, Erez Ruvaney, was a Department of justice lawyer who was fired, allegedly for insubordination, for having the temerity to suggest to a federal judge that Kilma Robergo Garcia was accidentally sent to Seekot. But in reality, Eriz Ruvini had experienced a lot more behind the scenes. And in a 26 page whistleblowing complaint, he said that not only did he attend a meeting at which Amel Bovey suggested that the department would have to consider defying court orders that precluded them or hampered them from deporting people under the Alien Enemies act, but. But the evidence that Arizuvani put Forward also showed that Emil Bovey was the person who told the Department of Homeland Security, despite a court order, that it was safe to land those planes that landed in El Salvador on the weekend of March 15th of 2025. The second whistleblower is a person whose concerns I reported on last Friday. That person is also a former Department of Justice attorney who provided to DOJ's Inspector General documents that he or she said corroborated Reuveni's about non compliance with court orders. And the third whistleblower is someone that Carol and her colleagues at the Washington Post helped reveal that person's story. That person came forward initially to Senator Cory Booker. They had a story about Emil Bovey in the Eric Adams case in particular. And we learned last night that that whistleblower not only had a story, that person had a tape of a zoom meeting between Amel Bovey and public corruption prosecutors at the Department of Justice in the wake of the initial dismissal papers about Eric Adams case, in which he essentially presented them with a demand. Somebody here is going to have to support this application and sign this application. Anybody who does it will be promoted. Anybody who doesn't will find their job in jeopardy. The fact that this person had tapes and had shared them with Congress and yet even that wasn't enough to dissuade folks from voting for Amel Bovey is one of those moments where you have to ask yourself what would be enough for Senate Republicans not to support one of Donald Trump's judicial nominees?
- [31:24]
Joe Scarborough
Yeah, we certainly haven't reached that threshold yet. It would appear so, Carol. Lisa, teed us up there. Walk us through your new reporting in the Washington Post about this third whistleblower.
- [31:34]
Claire McCaskill
You know, it's so stunning to me, Jonathan, is we've got a third whistleblower against a federal appellate court judge nominee. This is just not normal. And in this case, this whistleblower presented evidence, transcribed notes from this meeting and other people's accounts that Bove had described this February 14 meeting to the Senate quite differently than it actually happened. And the most important thing, just for you and for all of the viewers, is Bove told senators on the Judiciary Committee that he didn't threaten anybody with firing in this meeting in urging them to join him in dismissing huge public corruption charges against the New York mayor, and that he didn't offer any inducements, he didn't offer any special treatment to those who agreed to actually sign the motion. Keep in mind, when Bove meets with these people on February 14th, all line attorneys and all public corruption attorneys, they have all lost their supervisors. The day before, five supervisors resigned in protest rather than comply with Bovet's request, slash demand that they sign this controversial motion. So again, the difference is this whistleblower is saying and coming forward with notes. And now we now know a recording that indicate he perjured himself before the Senate. And I take Lisa's point very much to heart. How serious is it when there are claims not totally confirmed at this moment, but claims and notes and recordings that indicate perjury, that the Senate Republicans basically blow right past it?
- [33:18]
Mika Brzezinski
Claire McCaskill, let me ask you that question. Instead of just talking generally about Republicans who may be afraid of Donald Trump and Donald Trump supporters, let's talk about Thom Tillis, who's retiring, Thom Tillis who said, oh, he doesn't want to be part of the partisanship and the theater in Washington, D.C. why would Thom Tillis support for some if in fact there were recordings showing him making these threats and then lying, perjuring himself to Congress? If that is the case, why would somebody like Thom Tillis support him? Why does it always come down to Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski to do what every one of these Republicans would do if they had the freedom to do it?
- [34:00]
Jonathan Lemire
Yeah, it's really unbelievable, unbelievable that Tillis wasn't a no on this. And maybe even more unbelievable, Joe, is Chuck Grassley's role in this. Chuck Grassley has been known on Capitol Hill as the whistleblower's best friend. The IG community, the inspector general community and whistleblowers all knew that Grassley's office would always have their back. Hundreds and hundreds of whistleblowers have gone through Grassley's office to call out wrongdoing in the government. And the quote that killed me from Grassley that I read this morning, he said, even if what all these whistleblowers said were true, it's not a scandal. Are you kidding me? The guy came in front of your committee, as you're the chairman of Judiciary committee in the U.S. senate and lies to you and that's not a big deal. And you know, Lisa, I have to think that the goal here, the Trump administration, is to have somebody on the bench ready to step into Clarence Thomas seat before Trump leaves office. Don't you think that's the game plan here?
- [35:04]
Kelly O'Donnell
I think it could be. And there was some reporting yesterday, Claire, that the administration has sort of narrowed its views on two appeals court judges as potential replacements for Justice Thomas or a Justice alito, one being D.C. circuit Judge Noemi Rao, the other being Fifth Circuit Judge Andrew Oldham. That may have been just a red herring to distract from exactly the thesis that you've just advanced that Emil Bovey is really there preparing to take his seat on the Supreme Court. And I'll remind people some federal appeals court judges don't sit on their seats very long before they're nominated to the court. We have a court right now where eight out of the nine justices have been federal appeals court judges previously. But one in particular, Ketanji Brown Jackson, was in her seat despite having been a district court judge for some number of years. She was on the D.C. circuit for about two years before she was nominated to the court. So that is often the objective of both parties. Identify your talent, put them on an appeals court bench, and then have them ready for that moment. If and when that moment arises, it probably is the case that Amel Bovey is one of those people that they are having lying in wait.
- [36:12]
Jonathan Lemire
Yeah. And the midterms become a big deal now because of that.
- [36:16]
Katie Kay
Carol, Carol, it's not totally unheard of for people who are seeking nomination to something to go before the Senate and not necessarily say exactly what it is that they're going to do. We've seen that with cabinet confirmation hearings recently. This is different for those of us who are not lawyers, but explain it. This is different because Bovey is a lawyer and goes to a potentially a very high position, as Lisa was just describing there. What does it do then to public trust in the American judicial system and potentially in the Supreme Court if he were ever to get to that position?
- [36:54]
Claire McCaskill
Such a great question, because, you know, I think if you were to look at some of the polling that's been done, the trust in the Supreme Court is at epic lows. It's something that Justice Roberts has been really concerned about because the public, and this is not unique to Democrats or Republicans, the public has come to a conclusion that the Supreme Court acts with political motive and its supermajority will sometimes act with political motive. And that's not what you want the American people thinking about the final arbiter of the rule of law. You want them, obviously, and not only do you want them to believe it, you want it to be true, that the Supreme Court is making its decisions based on precedent and readings of the law. But with regard to the nominee, I have not seen an appellate court situation where a nominee for this sort of resting spot for the Supremes has been so contentious and also has involved so many allegations of perjury and ignoring the court. I don't want to use the expletives that are reported this morning this early on msnbc. But you know, Bove is accused of basically saying screw the court in relationship to removing immigrants from this country, sending them to foreign lands and prisons without due process. And Judge Boasberg, the chief judge of the U.S. district Court, has been trying to find out who gave this order to basically be contemptuous of my instruction to turn those planes around. And the evidence thus far, which Republicans in the Senate have refused to look at the evidence so far, is that it's this now confirmed very, very prestigious.
- [38:53]
Willie Geist
Senior federal judge and this now judge, soon to be Judge Bovey, in the questionnaire given to him by the Senate Judiciary Committee, declined to rule out a third term for President Trump and refused to condemn the events of January 6th. The Washington Post, Carol Lennig and MSNBC legal correspondent Lisa Rubin, thank you both. We always appreciate it. Coming up, we'll explain the Trump administration's efforts to dispute the science behind climate change and the impact it could have on future environmental policy. Details straight ahead on Morning Joe.
- [39:38]
Rachel Maddow
MSNBC Films presents Season 2 of Leguizamo does America, an NBC News Studios production on the next episode. John Leguizamo travels to Raleigh Sunday at 9pm Eastern on MSNBC and streaming on Peacock. Start your day with the MSNBC Daily newsletter. Sharp insights from voices you trust, stand up moments from your favorite shows and fresh perspectives from experts shaping the news. Sign up now@msnbc.com subscribe to MSNBC Premium on Apple Podcasts for early access, ad free listening and bonus content to all of MSNBC's original podcasts, including the chart topping series the Best People with Nicole Wallace, why Is this Happening? Main justice and more. Plus new episodes of all your favorite favorite MSNBC shows ad free and ad free listening to all of Rachel Maddow's original series Ultra Bagman and Deja News. Subscribe to MSNBC Premium on Apple Podcasts.
- [40:41]
Willie Geist
EPA plans to repeal a landmark finding that greenhouse gases are a threat to public health marks one of the Trump administration's most pointed efforts yet to reverse policy on climate change. The 2009 declaration, known as the Endangerment Finding, has served as the basis for CL regulations like limiting emissions from cars and power plants. Now the White House is rolling it back in what EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is calling the largest deregulatory action in the history of the United States. Joining us now, NBC News medical contributor Dr. Vin Gupta. He's a member of the board of directors of the American Lung association, which advocates for climate action to protect health. Dr. Gupta, great to see you as always. So can you explain a little bit more about what this declaration from 2009 is exactly and what it means for policy and then because of that, what it means to roll it back?
- [41:37]
Dr. Vin Gupta
Absolutely. Willie, good morning. So the endangerment finding was, to your point, in the late 2000s, was established and was codified because the Supreme Court basically told the EPA to do this. And that was towards the tail end, Willie, of the George W. Bush administration to say, can you figure out if greenhouse gases, does the science say that greenhouse gases, are they harmful to human health? The endangerment finding ultimately was the result of that. That, that body of work saying unequivocally that, yes, indeed, greenhouse gases through the production of ozone, methane, carbon dioxide, all the things that we're all very familiar with are not good for us for a variety of reasons. And so that was codified into law. And basically the Supreme Court said, if that is the case, case to the epa, you need to regulate the emission of greenhouse gases. So again, this happened in a, this actually started in a Republican administration. It was codified under President Obama, and here we are. And so every policy ever since regulating greenhouse gas emissions from cars, Lilly, from other sources has been based on this endangerment finding.
- [42:44]
Mika Brzezinski
So, Dr. Gupta, let's talk asthma with regard to this issue. Is this like foreboding a country pretty soon with cars without mufflers? I mean, or is that going too far?
- [42:57]
Willie Geist
What's going to be in the air.
- [42:59]
Mika Brzezinski
For people with asthma, young children with asthma?
- [43:02]
Dr. Vin Gupta
You know, Mike, you and I have talked about this, but there is now more than any ever before. There's more than the 20 years I've been in medicine. Have I seen, have my peers seen that more people are coming into the ER to urgent care because they've been coughing due to wildfire smoke exposure because they've been sitting in traffic for too long. And we know that the air in traffic is not good for you. Same thing with heat exhaustion. We're seeing rates of these things and people showing up with low blood pressures in the emergency room because they've been exposed to unending unrelenting heat. The macro numbers, Mike, are just as worse. Deaths. There's a lot of naysayers out there. It's hard to look at the data and say we're faking it. Deaths from extreme heat never been higher. The toll of air pollution, fourth independent leading cause of death worldwide. I can go on and on on the macro numbers, but yes, the concern here is the EPA under The Trump administration is now saying we do not need to regulate the emission of greenhouse gases. Unprecedented. So what does that mean for your tailpipe? There's no regulations. So vehicles, gas emitting or combustion engine vehicles no longer will be held if this goes through, if there will no longer be actual regulations here, which means nothing but badness for human health, where it lungs for our heart.
- [44:21]
Joe Scarborough
So Dr. Duper, let's dive in a little deeper on that on this legislation. Give us some more of the specific impacts were it to happen. And the big picture, if greenhouse gases, the underpinning of all of this is the greenhouse gases are going to warm the planet planet. We see, you know, on a daily basis the impact of climate change. It feels like this will only accelerate it.
- [44:47]
Dr. Vin Gupta
It's broad based. Jonathan and so to take the the vehicle issue here, number one, this is not, you know, opponents of greenhouse gas regulation will say, well that's an EV mandate. That's nonsense. That's not the case here. Basically, newer generations of combustion engine vehicles are susceptible and liable to the health of these new standards. Greenhouse gases have been viewed by both political parties historically as not good for health. So what does that mean for the newer generation of vehicles? There will be no limits here. It's more expensive for car makers to some degree to adhere to these new emissions. Yes, there's an increased cost but there's a reason why we do that because there's downstream benefit for the planet, for our health. Ultimately. These vehicles actually are pretty good to drive as well. So there's a lot of broad based benefits more broadly for power plant emissions. There will be no now we're removing the under underlying reason why we say let's regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. So Jonathan, this is broad based that's going to impact every element of society and really it's a paradox to the Make America Healthy Again agenda. We have talked about this on the Trump's HHS secretary likes to talk about the impact of the environment on human health. I wonder what he's thinking when he's seeing his own peers at the EPA do something like this. Because this is exactly counter to everything he's putting out there from the Mahaj.
- [46:11]
Willie Geist
I and a rejection of decades of climate science as well. Dr. Gupta, we appreciate you staying on this story, bringing it to our attention this morning. NBC News medical contributor Dr. Vin Gupta. Thank you. Still ahead, a jury now is deliberating the fate of a dentist accused of killing his wife with poison. We'll bring you the latest on that trial ahead on Morning Joe. Jury deliberations are underway in Colorado for the murder trial of a former dentist accused of killing his wife by poisoning her protein shakes. NBC News correspondent Camila Bernal has the latest.
- [46:47]
Angie Lassman
Members of the jury A Colorado jury now deliberating in the murder trial of former dentist James Craig, who is accused of killing his wife Angela by poisoning her protein shakes.
- [46:57]
Claire McCaskill
This is a murder weapon.
- [46:59]
Angie Lassman
In closing arguments, Prosecutors said in 2023 he researched poisons before lacing her shakes and poisoning her with cyanide, arsenic and hydrogen drops.
- [47:10]
Joe Scarborough
He suddenly realizes he needs to go.
- [47:12]
Claire McCaskill
Buy 12 bottles of eye drops. Give me a break.
- [47:15]
Angie Lassman
Adding the father of six had been cheating for most of their 23 year marriage and killed his wife because he wanted out of the marriage, wanted the money and did not want to ruin his image. According to prosecutors, he cheated on his wife constantly.
- [47:31]
Jonathan Lemire
But this idea that somehow this was.
- [47:34]
Angie Lassman
Some sort of sort of motive.
- [47:39]
Claire McCaskill
Was nothing new.
- [47:41]
Angie Lassman
Craig, emotional as his defense attorney, made the case that the cheating was not a motive for murder, but it was a motive for suicide.
- [47:50]
Claire McCaskill
She wanted to kill herself.
- [47:52]
Angie Lassman
Saying this home video shows Craig warn doctors of his wife's possible suicidal thoughts.
- [47:57]
Mika Brzezinski
It's your fault.
- [47:58]
Angie Lassman
It treated me like I was a.
- [48:00]
Willie Geist
Suicide, like I did it to my.
- [48:02]
Angie Lassman
Myself, and like nothing I said could be believed. Doctors could not figure out what was wrong with Angela. In text messages presented in court, she said, I feel drugged. And Craig replying, just for the record, I didn't drug you. Craig's future now in the hands of the jury.
- [48:22]
Rachel Maddow
MSNBC presents the chart topping original podcast, the Best People with Nicole Wilson Wallace. This week she sits down with political commentator Tim Miller.
- [48:32]
Joe Scarborough
Another way of saying I care about.
- [48:33]
Willie Geist
You is by saying, like, I'm gonna.
- [48:35]
Joe Scarborough
Fight the things that are preventing you from living the kind of life that.
- [48:39]
Rachel Maddow
You wish the best. People with Nicole Wallace. Listen now. For early access ad free listening and bonus content, subscribe to MSNBC premium on Apple Podcasts.