← The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell
The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell
Lawrence: Jan. 6 was the one day in Trump's presidency when he needed to call in federal troops
00:41:47
Tonight on The Last Word: California Governor Gavin Newsom says Donald Trump “fanned the flames” on the streets of Los Angeles. And RFK Jr. fires all 17 members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee. Harry Dunn, Rep. Eric Swalwell, and Sen. Angela Alsobrooks join Lawrence O’Donnell.
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- [00:00]
Lawrence O'Donnell
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- [00:34]
Sam Sanders
Hey, I'm journalist Sam Sanders.
- [00:36]
Saeed Jones
I'm poet Saeed Jones.
- [00:38]
Zach Stafford
And I'm producer Zach Stafford. And we are the hosts of a podcast called Vibe Check.
- [00:42]
Sam Sanders
On Vibe Check, we talk about everything, news, culture and entertainment and how it all feels.
- [00:48]
Zach Stafford
That's right. We talk about any and everything on our show, from real life issues like grief to music and movie critiques. And that barely scratches the surface.
- [00:57]
Saeed Jones
Yes, indeed. And it doesn't stop there. We have got a lot to say. So join our group, chat, come to life, follow and listen to Vibe Check. Wherever you get your podcasts.
- [01:13]
Lawrence O'Donnell
The Last word with Lawrence o' Donnell starts right now. Hey, Jen. The breaking news from New Jersey is the really important news. Nick, this is such a big jump. I can't wait to hear what you say. Well, it's such a big jump for Mikey Sheryl, you know, entering Congress, electing and get elected in 2018. She kind of been a star there. Right away, people saw the potential and New Jersey Democratic nomination for governor is, this is awfully close to actually being elected governor in that state. It's inconceivable, I think, this year that a Republican could take that. But we'll see. It'll be a real, it'll be a tough campaign, you know, from here to November. But the Democrats have a very, very strong candidate in New Jersey now, no question. I will also say, Lawrence, you always look for trends. One of the ones I think is interesting. Abigail Spanberger, who is the nominee to be that race, is also in November. She's the nominee to be the governor of Virginia. On the Democratic side, also a national security badass woman, as is Mikey Sherrill, as is Senator Alyssa Slotkin. Lots of rising national security women in the Democratic Party, which I think is an interesting and good trend. Yes, with a lot more military experience than Donald Trump and a lot better understanding of what the American military is actually for and what their job is around the world and what their job is not in the United States. That's a low bar. Also then the defense secretary, but yes, them combined. Thanks, John. Thanks, Lawrence. Thank you. Well, as you just heard, the breaking election news at this hour is that Democratic Congresswoman Mikey Sherrill A former Navy pilot who has joined us on this program many times in her capacity as a member of the House Armed Services Committee. And the House of Representatives has won the New Jersey Democratic primary for governor. That is nominee Mikey Sherrill right there. It was an early call in the state of New Jersey. It was a decisive win in that primary for Mikey Sherrill. And the state of New Jersey now is a very strong Democratic state. That is very, very likely to be a strong nomination to be carrying into November. We'll wait till November to see how that election turns out. But this is very, very good news for the Democrats tonight that they have a really, really strong nominee for governor in the state of New Jersey. Tonight, California's Governor Gavin Newsom addressed California and the nation, explaining his view of what is happening in his state and and in the city of Los Angeles, where he has insisted tonight there is absolutely no need for federal troops in any capacity in his state or in the city of Los Angeles. Tonight, Republicans still do not have the votes in the United States Senate to pass the Trump Republican budget bill that will rip health care coverage away from 14 million people, and it will increase the national debt by $2.4 trillion. And instead of scenes of Republican senators being chased down the hallways in Washington by reporters trying to get the latest news on who is willing to vote for the cruelest Republican budget bill in history, the cameras are in Los Angeles where once again, nothing is really happening tonight. Nothing like what Donald Trump describes is happening tonight. We have had cameras covering the situation live in Los Angeles throughout most of the day. And throughout most of the day, when we have had those screens up there on this network, you have been able to see with your own eyes that nothing threatening is happening there. Nothing threatening to law enforcement, nothing threatening to the city of Los Angeles, nothing threatening to anyone except Donald Trump's attempt to. To use military force to threaten the people of California and the people of Los Angeles. 99% of Los Angeles county is completely unaffected by the very small collections of protesters that have gathered in downtown Los Angeles today, some of whom were very, very peacefully and voluntarily, as you can see right here, arrested by an overwhelming force surrounding them of Los Angeles police officers who needed no backup whatsoever from any other law enforcement agency or anyone else to conduct that small number of peaceful and voluntary arrests. Those people were walking peacefully toward those police officers, putting their hands behind their backs to be arrested voluntarily with no tension whatsoever. That scene occurred live on this network. You were able to watch that as I was watching it earlier today. That is the way it has been going there. And most of the demonstrators have not been getting arrested because they have not been in any situation that would in any way provoke an arrest. Those kinds of arrests you just saw there. That's the way Jane Fonda was being arrested once a week outside the Capitol a few years ago in peaceful protest of Republicans doing absolutely nothing about climate change. Jane Fonda was 82 years old when she was peacefully submitting to those arrests. The voluntary arrest of peaceful protesters is a time honored protest technique in this country. And it is the safest kind of arrest that a police officer can possibly be involved in. And it frequently involves the most unthreatening people in the country, like Jane Fonda and her recent castmate in the series, Grace and Frankie, the legendary Martin Sheen, who made the trip to Washington to be arrested with his dear friend and former castmate, Jane Fonda, thereby pushing Martin Sheen's personal peaceful protest arrest record somewhere above 70. The Honorable Martin Sheen has been arrested over 70 times in his life in protest of injustice in this country. And no one had to send the United States Marines into the streets to grab Martin Sheen. On NBC's Emmy winning series, the West Wing, Martin Sheen played a more honorable president and a more honorable person than Donald Trump has ever been and ever could be. Donald Trump desperately needs the news cameras on the streets of Los Angeles tonight, but he wants them to find violence. That's why he wants them there. And he wants those news cameras aimed at Los Angeles so that you are not concentrating on Donald Trump's tariffs that are raising prices in this country, that you're not concentrating on the horrible legislation that Donald Trump is trying to pass to take healthcare away from Americans. Very, very unpopular legislation, unpopular economic policies. Donald Trump's economic approval rating has collapsed and is now very negative. And he doesn't want news media attention to that. And Donald Trump obviously knew that if he sent troops, cameras would follow those troops. Here is California Democratic Congressman Pete Aguilar, who is a member of the January 6th committee and represents suburbs of Los Angeles that are completely, totally peaceful tonight. Just like 99% of Los Angeles county is completely peaceful tonight and unaffected by the small groups of protesters in downtown Los Angeles, which is actually very far away from where most people in Los Angeles live. He knows that the Republican budget is politically toxic. He knows that the economy is crashing because of his policies, and he is desperate to change the subject. He sees the protests in Los Angeles as an excuse to unleash more chaos and distract the American people from the failing economy. And his plans to cut Medicaid and food assistance. Remember, Donald Trump refused to call up the National Guard on January 6th when thousands of violent rioters stormed the US Capitol in search of his own vice president. This isn't about law and order or protecting public safety. Donald Trump wants conflict and violence. And Donald Trump wants highly visible roundups of hardworking people by ICE agents, because Donald Trump is currently running behind Joe Biden on daily deportations. Donald Trump promised to deport 15 million people, which is never gonna happen. Donald Trump would have to be deporting tens of thousands of people a day, hundreds of thousands of people a month, in order to deport 15 million people. Donald Trump is not on track to deport even 1 million people this year. And so Donald Trump will raided the garment district of Los Angeles on Friday, where he was able to pick up 46. 46 workers at a garment business, a place that imports and makes and ships the kinds of clothes that everyone has in their closets in this country, and no one thinks about how those clothes got there. 46. That's what Donald Trump got on Friday. Donald Trump cannot possibly round up the tens of thousands of people a day who he promised his voters he would be deporting every single day. And so when Donald Trump gets 46, he wants it to be the biggest story in America. And the way to do that is to send in the National Guard and now send in the Marines, who have absolutely no legal function in Los Angeles. Reports indicate that 700 marines Donald Trump moved from a California Marine base still haven't actually done anything in Los Angeles. They're not even outdoors. They're cooped up somewhere in armories doing absolutely nothing. They are invisible. They are now a mythical force that Donald Trump has just put out there in the air. United States Marines to make Trump supporters think that something is happening when nothing is happening, nothing that Donald Trump promised is happening. If those Marines set foot on the pavement of Los Angeles, they will not. It will not be legal for them to do anything to anyone who they encounter. Donald Trump has not invoked any legal authority that empowers those Marines to actually do anything. And so Donald Trump is using the United States Marines as a stunt, a TV stunt, just as he intends to use the Marines in his parade for his birthday in Washington, D.C. and he intends to use the Air Force, the Army, every branch of the American military's attention and time will be wasted in celebration of Donald Trump's birthday at an expense of approximately $150 million. At this point that we know about. That could run higher than that. That is what Donald Trump uses the military for. Stunts. This is a stunt, a Donald Trump military stunt in Washington, the Wall Street Journal reports. Even with the high profile arrests of suspects by masked immigration agents and the plane loads of migrants swiftly ferried out of the United States, President Trump was falling short of the number of daily deportations carried out by the Biden administration in its final year. So in late May, Stephen Miller, a top White House aide and the architect of the president's immigration agenda, addressed a at the headquarters of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ice, the message was clear. The president, who promised to deport millions of immigrants living in the country illegally, wasn't pleased. The agency had better step it up. Agents didn't need to develop target lists of immigrants suspected of being in the United States illegally, a long standing practice, Miller said. Instead, he directed them to target Home Depot, where day laborers typically gather for hire or or 711 convenience stores. Miller bet that he and a handful of agents could go out on the streets of Washington, D.C. and arrest 30 people right away. ICE agents appeared to follow Miller's tip and conducted an immigration sweep Friday at the Home Depot in the predominantly Latino neighborhood of Westlake in Los Angeles, helping set off a weekend of protests around Los Angeles County. Those immigrants outside the Home Depots in Los Angeles are there to help. They are there to work. They are there hoping that someone doing a home project of some kind will need their help and hire them. And people do that every day in the parking lot of Home Depots in Los Angeles every day. People have decided from experience that they can trust those men, those workers, some of whom show up at the same Home Depot every day and are known by sight to all of us going in and out of those Home Depots in Los Angeles. They're there to try to support their families by making life easier for us. And Donald Trump wants to torture them. They're not drug dealers, they're not gang members. They have not been released from any mental institutions. And Donald Trump has never produced a single person who was released from a mental institution and sent into this country by a foreign government, which he claims happens every single day and has invented demented dreamscape of Donald Trump's believable only to Donald Trump's most fact free supporters. Donald Trump lied about Los Angeles again today. I want to say a few words about the situation in Los Angeles, California. Have you heard of the place where I've deployed thousands of National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines to protect federal law enforcement from the attacks of a vicious and violent mob. There is no vicious and violent mob in Los Angeles. The National Guard troops are doing absolutely nothing. The Marines are invisible and obviously doing absolutely nothing. And peaceful protesters have been peacefully submitting to arrests in small numbers to make their point of protest against what Donald Trump is trying to do in their city. Donald Trump repeatedly today referred to, quote, rioters bearing foreign flags. There were no rioters today. None. But there were Mexican flags in a place that was Mexico long before it became part of the United States as a result of a war the United States chose to wage on Mexico in order to obtain that territory. Mexico and Spain before it have forced Donald Trump to speak Spanish very much against his will. But he's, of course, too stupid to even realize that he's doing that when he names the city where he has sent his troops to do nothing. Spain was the first colonizer of the place we now call California. Spain established the missions in California, named after saints in Spanish, that every California public school student learns about in elementary school. And Donald Trump knows nothing about. He doesn't know that Los Angeles means the angels. He doesn't know that Spanish was the only non tribal language spoken in Los Angeles long before New York even existed, long before New York was first settled by the Dutch. And so, yes, when you take land by force in war, as this country did, to add California to our country, don't be surprised if from time to time, you see the flag of the country that was there before you on that very same land that was Mexican land until we took it away. Donald Trump has no objection to seeing Confederate flags in the Confederate States that waged war against the United States of America and killed more Americans than the Mexican army ever could have in our war with Mexico. Donald Trump wants to honor the most treasonous people who have ever lived in this country. Donald Trump spoke at Fort Bragg today, an army base whose name was changed in the Biden administration when someone finally realized that naming American army bases after generals who. Who committed treason and killed American soldiers, it's not the best idea. General Braxton Bragg was a Confederate general who committed treason and killed as many Americans as he possibly could while committing that treason during the Civil War. And Donald Trump restored the name Bragg to that fort to honor the committing of treason and the murdering of American soldiers. For a little breaking news, we are also going to be restoring the names to Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort A.P. hill, and Fort Robert E. Lee. That's how much he cares about law and Order. All of those forts used to be named after all of those Confederate generals, all of whom committed treason against the United States and murdered American soldiers. And Donald Trump wants to restore those names. You just heard Donald Trump honoring that murderous, treasonous general, Robert E. Lee. That is the same Robert E. Lee who became the Confederate leader dedicated to killing American soldiers. It is the same Robert E. Lee who committed treason the first day of the Civil War by joining the Confederacy. Robert E. Lee cannot be forgiven as a man of his time who simply missed the moral dimensions of what was happening because no one in his Virginia circle saw the moral dimensions the way we do. Now, how then do we explain Robert E. Lee's sister, who sided with the north in the Civil War and whose son joined the Union army, or Robert E. Lee's nephew, who joined the Union Army? And what about 40% of Virginia's officers who remained in the service of the Union Army? Robert E. Lee owned slaves, beat slaves, and sold individual members of slave families to different buyers. Robert E. Lee did every vile thing that slave owners did at that time when honorable and decent people around the world knew that slavery was evil. No one in American history has been more guilty of treason than Robert E. Lee. In an 1865 editorial in the New York Times, it said, robert E. Lee has levied war against the United States more strenuously than any other man in the land and thereby has been guilty of the crime of treason as defined in the Constitution of the United States. And three days later, Robert E. Lee was indicted for treason. But generals are especially generous to generals. And General Ulysses S. Grant interceded with President Andrew Johnson to get the treason case against Robert E. Lee dropped. Robert E. Lee killed more American soldiers than Hitler did, and Donald Trump wants to honor him. Donald Trump today told an audience of American soldiers that he wants to honor Robert E. Lee with, quote, fort Robert E. Lee. There was exactly one day in Donald Trump's time as president when he needed to call in federal troops where he was empowered without checking with anyone, to call in federal troops in the place where no governor is involved. Washington, D.C. and Donald Trump didn't do it. Rioters beat. We need to hold the doors of the Capitol. I need report support. Donald Trump pardoned every one of those Trump supporters who were trying to kill those police officers. Every one of those Trump supporters who wanted to go and kill Mike Pence. For 187 minutes that day, Donald Trump did absolutely nothing. And he never, ever for a second considered trying to stop his supporters from trying to beat and kill Police officers. It was the vice President of the United States who technically without authority, took over and ordered the American military into action. On January 6th at the Capitol, General Mark Milley testified to the January 6th Committee. Vice President Pence was very animated and he issued very explicit, very direct, unambiguous orders. There was no question about that. And I can get you the exact quotes, I guess, from some of our records somewhere. But he was very animated, very direct, very firm to Secretary Miller, get the military down here, get the guard down here, put down this situation, et cetera. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn wishes the troops got there sooner.
- [23:44]
Sam Sanders
Until then, I had never seen anyone physically assault Capitol Police or mpd, let alone witness mass assaults being perpetrated on law enforcement officers. I witnessed the rioters using all kinds of weapons against officers, including flag poles, metal bike racks that they had torn apart, and various kind of projectiles. Officers were being bloodied in the fighting. Many were screaming and many were blinded and coughing from chemical irritants being sprayed in their faces. I sat down on a bench in the rotunda with a friend of mine who was also a black Capitol Police officer, and told him about the racial slurs I endured. I became very emotional and began yelling, how the blank could something like this happen? Is this America? I began sobbing.
- [24:40]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Joining us now is former U.S. capitol Police officer Harry Dunn. Thank you very much for joining us tonight. I have been thinking about you since yesterday and before actually as see Donald Trump playing this stunt of suddenly caring about law and order and preserving law and order by sending in the troops where they're absolutely not needed for any purpose. We've been able to see whatsoever compared to the day you needed the troops and he didn't send them. And I just want to give you an opportunity to respond based on your own experience to what you're feeling about what you're seeing now in Los Angeles.
- [25:18]
Sam Sanders
Yeah, sure, Lawrence, thank you for having me on. And listen, it's easy to immediately start talking about my experience on January 6, but there are real people in Los Angeles now that are suffering, that are being assaulted and unfairly targeted. And that's where my thoughts are with those individuals right now. I've seen videos of them being people being trampled by horses or beat by police officers and peacefully protesting. And let's be 100% clear, in no way is it okay to any, anytime assault a law enforcement officer or anybody for that matter. So I am glad for the statements that were made by the FBI director, the attorney General, to saying no assaulting police officers. You're going to go to jail. I just wish that that applied to the officers on January 6th. In D.C. it's a little bit more ambiguous how the National Guard gets deployed. There's not a Governor of Washington, D.C. and D.C. is under federal control. However, in California, it's very clear who's in control of the National Guard. And I believe Gavin Newsom to be very competent and say when they do need help and that he will reach out. If you think back to just the fires that took place, he was not shy to ask for help there. But Donald Trump saw an opportunity to go after people in marginalized communities, people that vehemently oppose his policies and the way that they are targeting minorities and just wanting to do whatever they can to get people out of this country that don't look like them. And it's sad to say that a lot of black and brown people are the targets of these ICE raids. And it's really unfortunate.
- [27:07]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Some of the images we've seen today of some of the arrests that occurred today are among the most peaceful kinds of arrests you could ever imagine. They really did look like the arrests Jane Fonda was submitting to at the Capitol a few years ago. People just standing there, putting their hands behind their backs. Obviously symbolic arrests for them. These were people. And how would you compare that to what you were encountering on January 6th?
- [27:35]
Sam Sanders
Well, not even just Jane Fonda. I was there for the numerous fire drill Fridays when Jane Fonda and several other activists got arrested civilly to include John Lewis. The good trouble. John Lewis was arrested by the United States Capitol police officers in a civil, peaceful way. Now, I'm not comparing the individuals in Los Angeles to John Lewis, but the way that the video that you just showed those individuals peacefully submitting and all of them surrounded by Los Angeles Police Department, I believe the LAPD put out a statement and thanked the community for the efforts in the way that they were going about conducting their business. Now, listen, let's be clear. I'll say this a hundred times. If there are bad actors, which there are a lot of times, and, and you see events like this, there are bad actors. They need to be held accountable. They do not need to be celebrated. They did not need to be praised, but they are in the name of Donald Trump, let's go back to 2016 and those elections. And a lot of people of Donald Trump has always said, if you see these protesters, knock the hell out of them and we'll pay your legal expenses. This isn't something new that Donald Trump is doing. He's always been in favor of, of violence as long as it occurs in his name.
- [28:54]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Governor Newsom tonight, in his statement made it very clear he fully supports the police arresting the people who were involved in a couple of cars being set on fire. They were driverless cars that they have in Los Angeles as driverless taxis that we see them around Los Angeles. And the government completely obviously opposed to that and that the LAPD was fully capable of handling that.
- [29:18]
Sam Sanders
They absolutely were capable of that. And like you pointed out earlier in your program, the amount of people that were being arrested, the amount of people that were protesting could have easily been. Not could have. It was easily handled by the Los Angeles Police Department. And it just goes back to show the hypocrisy of not only Donald Trump, but his supporters and his mouthpieces and in Congress, in the Senate and individuals like Tommy Tuberville and just those individuals that are calling for the arrest of Gavin Newsom, Donald Trump, we begged you for help on January 6th and it didn't happen. The help didn't come when we asked you for it. Now you have a state that's not asking for any help, but you feel the need to step in and intervene. And it's only for one reason, to flex your authority, that unchecked authority. And it's dangerous because, listen, there are police officers out there that are waiting for the opportunity to have the ability to do whatever they want at the expense of the president told me so. So how does the Supreme Court justify that as an official act if a police officer goes out there and violates somebody's civil rights, but they said they did it because the president told them to. So was that an official act by the president right now, telling a police officer to violate somebody's civil rights who was peacefully protesting? There are videos of riots or, excuse me, protesters out there in Los Angeles that are getting beat in club. There's an Australian reporter that was shot by rubber bullets. They're just firing in the crowd indiscriminately. And that's escalating by the law enforcement officials there. Now, law enforcement always has a tough job to do and it's important that they are able to do their job, but they are not need to be out there escalating things.
- [31:09]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn, thank you very much for joining us.
- [31:14]
Sam Sanders
Thanks, Lawrence.
- [31:16]
Lawrence O'Donnell
The heroic Harry Dunn. And coming up, we will have more on the situation in Los Angeles and the situation in the Republican governance of this country in Washington, D.C. where the Republican budget bill as of tonight anyway, is in trouble in the United States Senate. Congressman Eric Swalwell will join us.
- [31:45]
Sam Sanders
Hey, I'm journalist Sam Sanders.
- [31:47]
Saeed Jones
I'm poet Saeed Jones.
- [31:49]
Zach Stafford
And I'm producer Zach Stafford. And we are the hosts of a podcast called Vibe Check.
- [31:53]
Sam Sanders
On Vibecheck, we talk about everything news, culture and entertainment and how it all feels.
- [32:00]
Zach Stafford
That's right, we talk about any and everything on our show, from real life issues like grief to music and movie critiques. And that barely scratches the surface.
- [32:08]
Saeed Jones
Yes, indeed, and it doesn't stop there. We have got a lot to say, so join our group, chat, come to life, follow and listen to Vibe Check wherever you get your podcasts.
- [32:23]
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- [32:54]
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- [33:29]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Here is California Governor Gavin Newsom speaking to the people of Los Angeles, the people of California and the nation just an hour ago.
- [33:40]
Gavin Newsom
And by the way, Trump, he's not opposed to lawlessness and violence as long as it serves him. What more evidence do we need than January 6th? Ask everyone. Take time. Reflect on this perilous moment. A president who wants to be bound by no law or constitution, perpetuating a unified assault on American traditions. This is a president who in just over 140 days has fired government watchdogs that could hold him accountable. Accountable for corruption and fraud. He's declared a war, a war on culture, on history, on science, on knowledge itself. Databases, quite literally are vanishing. He's delegitimizing news organizations and he's assaulting the First Amendment and the threat of defunding them at threat. He's dictating what universities themselves can teach. He's targeting law firms and the judicial branch that are the foundations of an orderly in civil society. He's calling for a sitting governor to be arrested for no other reason than to, in his own words, for getting elected. And we all know this Saturday he's ordering our American heroes, the United States military and forcing them to put on a vulgar display to celebrate his birthday, just as other failed dictators have done in the past.
- [35:07]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Joining us now is California Congressman Eric Swalwell, a member of the House Judiciary Committee and the Homeland Security Committee. Congressman, thank you very much for joining us tonight.
- [35:15]
Eric Swalwell
Of course. My pleasure.
- [35:16]
Lawrence O'Donnell
First, let me get your reaction to what you heard the governor say tonight.
- [35:21]
Eric Swalwell
You have to make Donald Trump react to you. And that's what Gavin Newsom is doing. That's what he's doing with his rhetoric, his presence and the lawsuits that he continues to bring. And that's what I've done with this guy. I was an impeachment manager. I was one of the leaders with Adam Schiff in the Russia investigation. I testified in the Colorado case to keep him off the ballot under the 14th Amendment. And I have the only lawsuit that remains for what he did on January 6th. So you have to be on offense. I recognize as a former prosecutor, a son of a cop, a bully. And bullies only respond to one language, and it's the language of strength. And that's what the governor is bringing to him. And that's what we must continue to do to put him back on his heels.
- [36:06]
Lawrence O'Donnell
I know you know the geography of Los Angeles. It's not your district, but you've been there enough to know that this is happening in an isolated section of downtown Los Angeles, far away from where most people in Los Angeles live. And Don Trump describing it as a city that would be on fire if it weren't for him is so stunningly both stupid and offensive after so much of the city actually was on fire in January, after which Donald Trump has offered to do absolutely nothing for anyone who suffered from that fire.
- [36:43]
Eric Swalwell
There are families who are still displaced and looking for permanent shelter in Los Angeles. So, yes, to say the city is burning is an insult. And by the way, Californians and Americans were promised that Donald Trump was going to go after the most violent criminals. And instead he deported a four year old American citizen battling cancer they detained over the weekend a U.S. marshal like a U.S. citizen. That's how far off they are in their aim to carry out this immigration policy. And that's why people are so fired up, and that's why they don't trust them. And the price tag for this political stunt, we learned today in Congress from Secretary of defense hexap, $134 million. Imagine what that money could do to help homeless Angelenos who suffered from the fires, what that could do to educate our kids, or what that could do to cure cancer. It's all a farce. And that's why the best approach here is to go on offense and not let Donald Trump define the battleground.
- [37:48]
Lawrence O'Donnell
And, Congressman, as you know, all of the Marines who Donald Trump activated toward Los Angeles, we're not sure exactly where they are right now. They were all in California already. There's 57,000 Marines stationed in California bases already within an hour and a half of Los Angeles at any time. They never had to leave their base. If they were ever gonna be for any reason necessary anywhere near Los Angeles, they were no more than an hour and a half away. But Donald Trump apparently wanted the stunt.
- [38:19]
Eric Swalwell
It's an insult to their training, to their experience, to their service. And, Lawrence, we saw today from the San Francisco Chronicle photos that were leaked of the National Guard troops who are in Los Angeles sleeping in. Absolute squalor. It's embarrassing that Donald Trump would treat our troops that way, but it's not surprising when you understand that this is an individual who has called our troops suckers and losers, that he would put them in such harsh conditions. And so the best thing we can do is to return this to the locals and also for the protesters to understand the most important point, the most demonstrative example, is their size. That the more people who link arms and stand up against Donald Trump, that's what matters. The violence only sets us back. The size has to be the point.
- [39:09]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Congressman Eric Swalwell, thank you very much for joining us. My pleasure. And coming up, Donald Trump needs the cameras to stay on Los Angeles and especially away From Robert Kennedy Jr. The most dangerous health official in the history of the United States Public Health Service. Senator Angela. Also Brooks will be our next guest on what Robert Kennedy has done now to fire everyone involved in vaccine safety. That's what his latest move is. That's next.
- [39:51]
Sam Sanders
Hey, I'm journalist Sam Sanders.
- [39:53]
Saeed Jones
I'm poet Saeed Jones.
- [39:55]
Zach Stafford
And I'm producer Zach Stafford. And we are the hosts of a podcast called Vibe Check.
- [39:59]
Sam Sanders
On Vibecheck, we talk about everything, news, culture and entertainment and how it all feels.
- [40:06]
Zach Stafford
That's right. We talk about any and everything on our show, from real life issues like grief to music and movie critiques. And that barely scratches the surface.
- [40:14]
Saeed Jones
Yes, indeed, and it doesn't stop there. We have got a lot to say, so join our group, chat, come to life, follow and listen to Vibe Check wherever you get your podcasts.
- [40:30]
OnDeck
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- [41:35]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Donald Trump's unqualified, incompetent and pathologically lying Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy Jr. Fired every member of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory board yesterday. Dr. Tom Frieden, the former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a statement, quote, we'll look back at this as a grave mistake that sacrificed decades of scientific rigor, undermined public trust and opened the door to fringe theories rather than facts. Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, who is also a physician, explained why he decided to vote for Robert Kennedy's confirmation. He has also committed that he had worked within current vaccine approval and safety monitoring systems and not establish parallel systems. It confirmed he will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommendations without changes. Robert Kennedy obviously lied to Senator Cassidy, which Senator Cassidy should have been able to figure out at the time. At the Kennedy confirmation hearing, Senator Angela also Brooks had some questions that Robert Kennedy could not answer.
- [42:52]
Angela Alsobrooks
You said the following, and I quote we should not be giving black people the same vaccine schedule that's given to whites because their immune system is better than ours. Can you please explain what you meant?
- [43:07]
Lawrence O'Donnell
There's differences in Reaction to different products by different races.
- [43:11]
Angela Alsobrooks
So what different vaccine schedule should I receive?
- [43:15]
Gavin Newsom
I mean, the Pollan article suggests.
- [43:19]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Blacks need fewer antigens than.
- [43:22]
Angela Alsobrooks
This is so dangerous.
- [43:23]
Lawrence O'Donnell
So you get the same measles vaccine.
- [43:25]
Angela Alsobrooks
Mr. Kennedy, with all due respect, that is so dangerous. Your voice would be a voice that parents would listen to. That is so dangerous.
- [43:34]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Senator, also Brooks joins us next. Joining our discussion now is Senator Angela also Brooks of Maryland. She's a member of the Senate Health, Education, labor and Pensions Committee. And, Senator, it was that committee where we just saw your question to Robert Kennedy during his confirmation hearing. And here he is firing the experts on vaccines at the CDC as he apparently promised Senator Kennedy he would not do. Senator Cassidy, I mean.
- [44:08]
Angela Alsobrooks
Oh, absolutely. So now we know that it's not only the case that RFK Jr. Is unqualified for his job, which we always knew. We know as well that he lied to the Senate when he said that he would maintain that panel of vaccine experts. He was questioned very directly about this, and he has fired an entire panel of experts. Now. You know, he is literally making Americans sicker by the day. $12 billion worth of cuts to NIH is really shocking, what he has done. And it is just. It's heartless, you know, not only cuts to nih, but I learned today, I spoke with some experts who told me that he has also terminated a panel of people who provide hearing tests, early hearing detection for babies. We know that he's cut a billion dollars as well in funding to people with mental health and substance abuse that samhsa, we know millions of dollars in cancer research. But these vaccines are literally going to cost people their lives.
- [45:10]
Lawrence O'Donnell
And this is one of the reasons why Donald Trump wants us all paying attention to Los Angeles and Robert Kennedy. This is the kind of thing he might have just decided to do because people are paying attention to Los Angeles.
- [45:24]
Angela Alsobrooks
Oh, yeah, we absolutely know what this is all about. This is all a game of distraction. What the President hopes that we don't notice is that people like Secretary Kennedy, in addition to being completely unqualified, these are people who are just dangerous. Just dangerous. But we also know that we have not only that happening, but we also know that by the day, we're watching Americans become poorer. We see these cuts that are anticipated to Medicaid, and the President hopes that none of us notice that we are watching before our very eyes. Most especially, the health and safety of Americans has been compromised by the day. And we know that the billionaires have run amok and are getting richer while the rest of Americans are poorer and sicker.
- [46:12]
Lawrence O'Donnell
Senator Angela, also Brooks, thank you very much for joining us tonight.
- [46:16]
Angela Alsobrooks
Thank you.
- [46:17]
Lawrence O'Donnell
We'll be right back. Senator Angela also Brooks gets tonight's last word.
- [46:28]
Sam Sanders
Hey, I'm journalist Sam Sanders.
- [46:30]
Saeed Jones
I'm poet Saeed Jones.
- [46:32]
Zach Stafford
And I'm producer Zach Stafford. And we are the hosts of a podcast called Vibe Check.
- [46:37]
Sam Sanders
On Vibe Check, we talk about everything, news, culture, and entertainment and how it all feels.
- [46:43]
Zach Stafford
That's right. We talk about any and everything on our show, from real life issues like grief to music and movie critiques. And that barely scratches the surface.
- [46:51]
Saeed Jones
Yes, indeed. And it doesn't stop there. We have got a lot to say. So join our group, chat, come to life, follow and listen to Vibe Check. Wherever you get your podcasts.