go to aerotrainer.com to get yours now. a very good day to all of you from world headquarters here in new york welcome to weekends with alex witt. here's what's happening for all of you. we're turning to the breaking news out of louisville where that crowd has gathered to commemorate the one year anniversary of breonna taylor's killing. let's go to antonio hilton who's there for us. we heard a lot of cheering and singing there when benjamin crump had taken to the podium, the stage there. what's that right now? it sounds like singing. >> reporter: there's been some singing here today, alex. but right now the mood is a lot of hurt and anger. benjamin crump is still speaking, he's one of the lead lawyers working on breonna taylor's case from the start. but family members, supporters are on the stage here. you're hearing renewed calls for transparency. there's a major divide between residents in the city and those they counted on to serve them. what you're hearing from black residents particularly is even though there have been reforms made over the past year that until someone is charged as responsible for killing of breonna taylor, justice hasn't been served, justice hasn't happened here. we have heard spoken word poetry and music but ultimately many faces in the crowd are crest fallen, their emotions are running high. i'm sorry, i'm actually choking up a tiny bit myself because there's been so much hurt for black folks in louisville over the course of this year between the case of breonna taylor and the effects of covid, you can just tell how exhausted and hurt so many people in this city have been. and a year has gone by, but for the family, they say consistently to reporters they feel like they're still living on that very first day, march 13th of last year, that they are constantly on this roller coaster revisiting that moment. and for residents, even residents who never got to know breonna taylor much the same. i spoke to an activist and poet here who has a daughter named breonna as well and she's just a year younger than breonna taylor would be right now. and she feels this case in her bones and that's so much of what you're seeing happen in the crowd and up close as benjamin crump continue to talk to those who continue to stream in here throughout the day. >> i love the fact that you are a person and someone who's very sensitive along with being an excellent reporter. so it's okay to show emotion. it is emotional. all the people frustrated there after a year, feeling no sense of justice, nobody has been charged in this particular case. let me ask you quickly about what's on tap for today, and have we heard yet from breonna taylor's mother? we heard from her earlier on msnbc and i was watching early this morning and i have to say i cried listening to her, the pain she still feels is horrible. >> reporter: i did, too. tamika is expected to speak any moment now. but it's a fluid situation. people are getting up, talking, going through their memories of breonna, talking about their work on the case, people are expecting to hear from her, but often breonna taylor's mother over these months when she's spoken publicly she's sometimes overcome by emotion and it's hard for her to speak and she asks others to speak in front of her. earlier she came and stepped out and entered back in. people, the second she comes, they give her the space she needs. they understand this is a mother who's actively still grieving missing their 26-year-old daughter and giving her the time and space she needs. when she's ready to speak, i know the crowd will make the space for her to step up and do that. >> i'm glad they do that, her grief is unimaginable. i'm the mother of two kids, if i think about it too much, i'll lose it myself. thank you for that. do stand by we'll try to come back if tamika comes to the podium and speaks to that crowd. thank you very much. let me have paul butler come back to the show. one question for you, paul, and that is, in one year, why has no one been charged with a crime in the death of breonna taylor? why not? >> the kentucky attorney general blamed the grand jury for failing to indict any of the officers who killed breonna taylor. but this prosecutor is a mitch mcconnell accollate who apparently had no intention of charging these officers. he withheld evidence from the grand jury and he did not even give them the option of charging those officers with homicide. >> is there a time that will be put forth here that after a point that they couldn't charge again? can this be revisited? should it be revisited, paul? >> it could be revisited, so homicide has a long statue of limitations. but alex, now the real hope is that the biden administration will bring civil rights charges against the officers who killed breonna taylor. the justice department stepped in after the cops who beat up rodney king in california were found not guilty and then after the officer who shot walter scott in the back was not convicted in south carolina. so the new attorney general, merrick garland should make breonna's case one of his first priorities. >> paul, thank you very much. i appreciate that. to antonia's point earlier, there's a lot of hugs. there's space to those on the stage, but lots of hugs along the way help as well. we'll continue watching this. let me ask our control booth if we know who is -- we're going to move on, folks. as soon as we have someone at the microphone we'll take you back there. other big headlines to share with you today. financial relief for millions of americans. the irs is beginning to send the $1,400 stimulus checks. up to 85% of eligible households can expect them to hit their bank accounts this weekend. and this morning ie owe napress si saying the bill is a lifeline for those hit hardest by the pandemic. >> those having sleepless nights worrying about how they will pay for life saving medication, diapers, groceries, businesses worried they may be permanently shuttered, help is on the way. this is a mass i've step forward, providing critical relief to millions of families and workers crushed by this pandemic. also new today, the department of justice dubbing the investigation into the capitol hill riots one of the largest in history. so far more than 300 people have been charged and prosecutors are expecting at least 100 more as the volume of evidence is growing. later this hour i'll break it down with a former fbi senior official. the biden administration is hitting the road next week for a covid relief tour with stops across six cities. let's go to monica who's in wilmington, delaware for us. talk about the message that the white house wants to send. it's something of a victory lap they're taking. >> reporter: that's right, alex. and also an educational one. senior white house officials are saying they feel quiet bolstered by the public popularity of this piece of legislation. so they want to make sure that americans understand what's in it because that giant $1.9 trillion price tag has a lot of components to it. that's why you see the multiple stops over the next week. and the main principles as they're called, the president, vice president, spouses, but it won't just be them, it's also cabinet officials traveling and then you see some of the bipartisan mayors and governors start to become part of the conversation, because the white house, even though no republican senators voted for the bill, they do want to make the argument and case that out in the country there were praubl lawmakers and leaders who did back it. so you're going to be seeing a little bit of that over the next couple of weeks, alex. but what's also interesting here to point out, this is a white house that hasn't done much domestic travel, at least in the initial stages, in the 50 plus days because of covid and restrictions, they wanted to be careful and respectful and they vow to do the same thing when they hit the road next week but it's the same as if it weren't in the middle of a pandemic. these are smaller, more targeted and focused events. but the one that will make a lot of headlines is in atlanta, georgia the first time that president biden and vice president harris are on the stage together. but listen to why president biden is launching the help is here tour. >> i promised the american people, and i guess it's becoming an overused phrase that help is on the way. we delivered on that promise, i don't mean i delivered, we delivered. it's critical to demonstrate, not democrat, republican, it's critical to demonstrate that government can function. can function and deliver prosperity, security, and opportunity for the people of this country. >> reporter: and there's a geographic political play here as well, alex. they're going to states that are important for democrats in the coming elections and in senate races and you saw on the map earlier, the vice president and her husband are going out west to nevada and colorado. all of this is by design and something else they're going to talk about on the road is the pace of the vaccinations. the white house is expected to exceed its goal of 100 million shots in arms by day 60. that's in hopes that by may 1st all states are allowing every adult who wants to be eligible to get a shot in their own arm, alex. >> thank you so much from wilmington, delaware. joining me now from california row canna, good to have you back here. those $1,400 relief checks they're hitting bank accounts this weekend. so if you were to identify one thing in this bill that is life changing for americans, beyond this $1,400 check, what would that be? >> alex, it's the child allowance. any family that's working class, middle class that has kids is going to get $3,000 for every child that they have. that's money that can go for food, clothing, school supplies, it's a lifeline for many families. and it's transformative not just now but i expect it'll be permanent. they estimate it's going to cut child poverty in half. >> i want to pick up on that, because experts are backing that up. the american rescue plan reduces poverty overall by a third, child poverty to your point by more than half. republicans were unanimous in their opposition to this package. why are republicans voting against lifting people out of poverty? >> alex, it's perplexing, when you have senator romney who has a plan that's almost identical to what we put forward, i don't see how he could not vote for it and how no republicans could vote for it, what has to assume it's political. they didn't want to vote for something that president biden was for. i voted for every covid relief package that president trump put forward, there were things i disagreed but i said we have to get relief to the american people, many democrats did. it's disappointing and sad not a single republican crossed the aisle to vote for relief for the american public. >> have those republicans forgotten they're elected to do this job because they locked arms against biden's relief bill now they plan to make it a top election issue. really, how do they sell that? what's your response to that? who comes out on top in 2020, if this is indeed a key focus? >> they're misreading the moment. they're using the old play book, which is obstruct, obstruct. we have a crisis, a health care crisis, people desperately need these checks. these checks are popular. we won the georgia senate race largely on the promise to deliver people checks. i think this was a miscalculation by the republican party. if they wanted to oppose other parts of president biden's agenda perhaps that would have been strategic but to propose covid relief, a bill that is 70, 80% popularity, it just was a blunder. >> when you think back to thursday, president biden giving his first primetime address there. do progressives like what they're seeing from the president at this point? we're just a bit more than 50 days into his first term. >> you know, i didn't support the president in the primary, i thought that was one of his finest speeches he exuded decency and empathy. he understands the sense of loss the country has experienced. and the end he talked about americans can do anything, this is our country is resilient. it was inspiring to hear an american president summon us to the common good. so obviously there are policy differences we're going to continue to push for a $15 minimum wage, expansion of medicare. but just has an american citizen i felt pride listening to president biden on thursday night. >> i think a lot of people felt the same. let me ask you about the $15 minimum wage increase. you told me if it wasn't in this reconciliation it would need to be in the next one. but seeing eight democratic senators vote against the amendment to include it, do you think the minimum wage hike can pass among democrats through reconciliation? >> yes, alex i do. the reason is, if it's part of a broader package, you will not see the same senators vote against it. we have said, the progressives, that we're open to compromise. we're open to having tax credit for small businesses because we recognize small businesses need assistance. we're open to the schedule of years for small businesses. we're open to building a coalition but we have to do it with 51 votes. here's the point, if you can't get one republican to vote for giving checks to the american people, then it is naive to expect 10 republicans to suddenly vote to increase wages. wages haven't been raised, the minimum wage in this country, since 2009, it's stuck at $7.25. we have to do it the way to do it is with 51 votes. >> it seems the amount is the issue. we heard senator joe manchin saying there's not one senator that doesn't want to raise the minimum wage. but the debate is $15 versus what he suggested, $11, is there room to compromise on this? >> i just don't think $11 is sufficient anywhere in this country. and what we can compromise on in my view is the tax credit, the schedule of when the raise goes into effect. here's the point. we can even have a dialogue. the first thing we need to know is it's part of the reconciliation. if it's 60 votes, it's theoretical and no one has an incentive to get serious about passing it. if we make a note we're going to have a reconciliation, they were wrong, and i don't think you can allow the repeal of aca through reconciliation and not allow the minimum wage, then we can get to a consensus. >> you've been vocal about seeing senate democrats eliminate the filibuster especially as the house is repeatedly passing legislation it appears to have little chance of getting through senate. eliminaing the filibuster would likely get bills passed but the tables would be turn in a gop majority senate. is that what is the biggest challenge to consider? >> alex, the reality is we have policies in this country, such as an increase in the minimum wage, such as eliminating student debt, such as expanding health care, that are popular, 70, 80% have democratic and republican support and they still aren't getting through. something is broken. when you have the act supporting labor, and can't get through the senate something has to change. i think we have to eliminate the filibuster. it's worth the risk if republicans have the majority. but the biggest complaint is washington can't get anything done. it's not because of the house. it's the senate, everything takes 60 votes. that's not the way for a modern democracy to function. >> thank you so much. what it is like to be ahead of schedule for once in the coronavirus. we'll talk about that next. rona. wel 'ltalk about that next fine, no one leaves the table until your finished. fine, we'll sleep here. ♪♪ it's the easiest because it's the cheesiest. kraft. for the win win. up at 2:00am again? tonight, try pure zzzs all night. unlike other sleep aids, our extended release melatonin helps you sleep longer. and longer. zzzquil pure zzzs all night. fall asleep. stay asleep. zbloe let's get to the latest on the coronavirus pandemic, the u.s. is ahead of schedule in reaching president biden's goal of reaching 100 million shots in 100 days, this according to the cdc, 35 million people are fully vaccinated, which is just over 10% of the population. a texas judge sided with austin's mayor who refused to lift the city's mask mandate, the order will remain in effect for two weeks, despite a lawsuit from the texas attorney general for not complying with state orders. a poll finds little vaccine hesitancy between white and black americans, 25% of black and 28% of white said they didn't plan to get a shot. the black community in alabama is struggling to even get vaccinated through parts of the state because they have a vaccine surplus in some parts of the state. let's go to elson barber in selma. from one part of the state to the next you have surplus and then you have deficiency. what's going on here? >> reporter: that's not clear what we've seen in reports there were cvss in alabama with surpluses what we heard here was they could use more, the amount they had was used quickly because there is demand here but the supply doesn't match the demand just yet. we spent the last three days going across the black belt because we wanted to get a sense of how vaccinations are going here. we'd been here in the summer at the height of covid-19 infection rates that have just devastated this area we knew they had a lot of challenges as it related to getting access to ppe and also access to covid-19 testing. so we started on the east part of alabama's black belt region in dallas county and went to the furthest county on the west, and what we heard from people is in some counties they say vaccination efforts in the black belt region are goi bar was rea begin with. here's some of what we it's so war ii, there's not a family in town that doesn't have a family member or friend that either died or was severely ill. >> when the door is open for more people who's outside of the a criteria, right now for getting the vaccine is open. we won't have the capacity to do it by ourselves. >> i think the lens that has to be changed is instead of allocing based off of population is allocate based off of need. i think our nation has embraced a hierarchy of human value. if your skin tone is one color you're more valuable than if your skin tone is another color. >> reporter: the alabama department of health said 20% of the people living in the black belt region have been vaccinated as of wednesday but when you talk to people in groups like the black belt community foundation they say that number is not high enough when you consider how vulnerable they are, these are some of the poorest counties in alabama, they're rural and do not have access to quality health care. when you look at what happened here in the summer, these counties had some of the highest infection rates per capita of covid-19 in terms of infections and also death. at one point in the summer, alex, black alabamams were dying at a rate twice as high as white alabamaians. >> thank you for that report. we appreciate that. joining me now is dr. ria boyd, welcome to the broadcast. let's talk about a study that shows 8.9% of black americans have been vaccinated that's about half the rate of white and asian-american counter parts, why do you think that is? i know you're familiar with that as well, the black community is so disproportionately affected by covid. >> that's what's so devastating. despite black folks across the country having the second highest mortality rate, we are among the populations least likely to have access to the vaccine right now. when we look at why, it's how our nation has built out the distribution strategy. we are prioritizing communities who have access to internet, telephones, a regular health care provider, access to health insurance or live near pharmacies. the communities that's not the case you don't have regular internet or consistent cell phone access, that mean gs you can't get in line to get the vaccine. we know across the country, particularly rural parts of the south, that affects a lot of black folks and folks of color in general. >> "the new york times" op-ed titled black people need better vaccine access, not better vaccine attitudes. you said many are quick to blame vaccine hesitancy as the reason, putting the onus on black americans to develop better attitudes about the vaccine. do you think the reason that they're hesitant about the vaccine is part of the reason they may not be prioritizing getting the vaccine out to black communities? >> i think we in our public health infrastructure have had a focus on hesitancy as an explanation of why black folks don't have equal access to the vaccine. i think that focus has manifest in -- in investments in addressing hesitancies and communities that you showed in the poll, the majority of which want to get vaccines but don't have equal access to it. it's important to stop blaming black folks to the reason they don't have access to the vaccines by calling them hesitant and focus on what it means to open up access to people who, as we noted, are overwhelmingly burdened by the effects of the pandemic. >> let me ask you if you think access is behind the polarity of numbers here. you have california, louisiana, massachusetts, north carolina, mississippi they have some of the highest black american vaccination rates in the country. what's the difference of those states looking at pennsylvania, that has a rate of 2.2%, that's deplorable right there. what is it? is it access only? >> one of the ways we look at inequity is not only what percentage of your population has a vaccine, but what percentage of your population suffered disproportionate mortality from covid. so even in states you see a higher percentage of the population, particularly the south, those are also states blacks suffered with the highest rates of covid mortality. so we want to see the numbers even higher. in states like mississippi where black folks are such a sizable percentage of the population, they need to have black folks represented as a sizable part of who's vaccinated. >> what comes top of mind first thing when you think about what needs to be changed in the health care system as a whole to eliminate the disparities? what is it? >> i think we have to prioritize access based on the communities who are disproportionately impacted. we have to look at the ways that structural racism has shaped how we distribute the vaccine, when we use internet access or cell phone access or proximity to a pharmacy to determine who has access to the vaccine, we effectively exclude black folks from that access. so one way to address that structural racism is get rid of the barriers. we see it in cities like phillies where black doctors have actually eliminated the barrier of having a cell phone or having internet to get an appointment to get a vaccine. if you open up sites right in black folks' backyards or neighborhoods people will stand outside and get it. >> you codeveloped this, it is a new national campaign it's called the conversation between us. it's to help provide black communities with credible information about the vaccines. i want to look at some of this. here it is. >> hello black america, and people who pay attention to what black folks are doing. there's good news out there. there's a covid-19 vaccine. yay. but the bad news is, as black folks it's hard to trust what's going on. so what do we do? well, we turn to people we can trust. black folks. but not just your uncle at the cookout. no, no, no. not him at all. i'm talking about black scientists, black doctors, and black nurses. >> i'm going to say that was exactly what the top letter there, the top word on his sweatshirt, that was powerful that got the message across. you wanted to focus on education. how important is that out there in the black community saying get vaccinated? >> the education is so critical. often what we've been doing is calling folks hesitant instead of providing them the information that responds to their concerns. the number one concerns black communities have are the same that white folks have, latinx has, everyone's concern is is this safe, rather than blaming folks for not being vaccinated we should say we hear your concern and address it. the growing evidence shows us these are safe vaccines. so the purpose of the campaign was to make sure black folks had the information at their finger tips as they make the choice. >> thank you so much for talking with me, i appreciate you. thank you. it is one of the largest investigations in american interesting, jaw dropping new numbers from january 6th insurgents. we'll talk about it next. insurgents we'll talk about it next tide pods child-guard pack helps keep your laundry pacs in a safe place and your child safer. to close, twist until it clicks. tide pods child-guard packaging. we're following a rally in loseville in remembrance of breonna taylor, who was killed one year ago today. this rally is about a renewed call for justice. let's go to my colleague who's there standing by for us. antonia give me a sense of the crowd and what's being said and the reaction there? >> reporter: alex, this crowd is growing by the minute. there are at least hundreds if not getting closer to 1,000 people here now. this is jefferson square park and this has been the central meeting point for activists, family members for this entire year as they led the movement to get justice for breonna taylor. her mother is expected to speak any minute now. that's why you see many people just hanging on every word right in front of the stage here behind me. lately tamika palmer has been speaking out calling on the commonwealth attorney to try to take up the mantle and charge the officers involved in her daughter's killing that night. it's unclear if he's able to do that in the past he said he's concerned about a conflict of interest. but she and other activists have been pushing for that. she has also written a letter to president biden calling on his assistance for this case. i want you to hear what she said this morning. take a listen to this. >> it was taken away from her for no reason. and it still don't make sense. and there's still been no justice for that. >> reporter: you can hear just how exhausted and how much pain she was in. that was bright and early this morning. she's here in the crowd but at times has had to take a break, step out and get space from the cameras and the people who have crowded around her and tried to pay their respects to her and the family. she's expected to get up and not just talk about breonna taylor's memory. but what the organizers hope to see not just here in louisville but across the state of kentucky. as you probably heard now just two days ago, the kentucky state senate has passed a bill that would criminalize insulting police officers at protests like this one. so many people see that as being in direct connection and stark contrast to the movement here that people in louisville have been fighting for and want to see, alex. >> that last fact you just shared leaves me speechless, but thank you for sharing it. let's go to new numbers on the capitol insurrection. prosecutors are calling it one of the largest investigations in american history. 210,000 tips. 15,000 hours of video data from 1,600 devices. 80,000 reports with 93,000 attachments related to witnesses and suspects. 900 search warrants were executed in almost every state, as well as washington d.c. 320 people are now facing charges with charges expected at least 100 more. joining me now, frank figliuzzi, he's the author of "the fbi way" and msnbc national security analyst. frank, these numbers are staggering. put this into context. how do you interpret these numbers? >> well, what we're hearing, alex, is that this has now become the largest investigation in fbi history. and it's not just about the number of subjects arrested or under investigation, but as you pointed out, it's the data behind this. it's the overwhelming tranche of body camera footage from officers, electronic surveillance, cctv from the capitol. all the social media posts before and after. and someone has to go through that and make sense out of it. so all the regional computer forensic laboratories in the fbi throughout the nation are just stretching to the max to get this evidence done and to get it done right. and that's partly why you're seeing prosecutors ask for delays from judges. you've seen reporting that they need more time. that's about the federal speedy trial act that starts a clock running when someone is arrested and between arrest, indictment and between arraignment in court and an actual trial date what we hear prosecutors saying is a clue, hey, this is going to take longer. a lot of that has to do with data, the other component has to do with perhaps building strong conspiracy cases and connecting dots between subjects. >> i'll tell you, you told me weeks ago the fbi was going to be relentless in their pursuit of justice and getting those responsible for this brought to justice so all of this data, everything you're saying, 100% backs up what you said there. even with all this enormous amount of data, are you surprised the fbi is still releasing the video of the suspect who planted the pipe bomb the night before the riots that individual has yet to be caught and isn't there a sizable reward out? >> there's a very sizable reward out. but this kind of crowd sourcing is going on throughout the investigation. it's probably the largest use of crowd sourcing, request for public help in the fbi history. what we know about the ieds planted the night before, there was a disruption of this device by the capitol police using a water cannon, that's wonderful. you have to render that device safe but it means it was destroyed with water. so there isn't the usual fingerprint dna, hair and fiber, some of the tool marks may not be there. the one thing they're telling us about the device is it was homemade black powder. that means some member of the public knows a relative, friend, neighbor researching black powder making black powder and paid special coverage to the ieds. they need that person to call in and give the name of that person who may have been involved. prosecutors are reportedly focused on a conspiracy case that involves members of the oath keepers militia. why is this significant, frank? >> we've been hearing a lot about the proud boys and now in the double digits the number of proud boys. but now the focus seems to be turning toward the oath keepers. that's significant because the oath keepers, at least some of them seem to have a relationship or affiliation with some in the trump circle, even roger stone. the neat thing about proud boys and oath keepers being looked at, we may see the rico statute being added. so prosecutors may be saying there's enough here that this group stands for enough violence that we're going to use a racketeering assets, take their assets, take down the group. that's an opportunity. >> are you hearing about intelligence that creates the reasoning for having the national guard on duty and that fence that's there in a bipartisan way a lot of lawmakers are saying we want that fence down? >> we have heard reporting. it seems that the gop is -- has deaf ears with regard to the reporting, but we continue to hear reports for example, the thing that really got my attention, alex was the findings in the security review. what did they find? there's over 200 existing vacancies for the capitol police department right now and, up to 800 more bodies are needed for a quick reaction force. until we get those folks in place and figure that out, we can't protect our capitol. so expect the national guard to be there, the fence to be there until the findings in the report are addressed. >> frank figliuzzi, come see me again soon my friend. thank you so much. in a moment i'll speak with george floyd's cousin who was in the courtroom and saw the officer accused of killing him. she's going to share her thoughts. she's going to share her thoughts ♪ a pair of jeans that fit just right ♪ ♪ and the radio up ♪ get 5 boneless wings for $1 with any handcrafted burger. only at applebee's. it all starts with an invitation... ...to experience lexus. the invitation to lexus sales event. get 0% apr financing on the 2021 rx 350. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. seeing blood when you brush or floss can be a sign of early gum damage. get 0% apr financing on the 2021 rx 350. new parodontax active gum repair kills plaque bacteria at the gum line to help keep the gum seal tight. new parodontax active gum repair toothpaste. you're clearly someone who takes care of yourself. so why wait to screen for colon cancer? because when caught in early stages, it's more treatable. 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the criminal case against derek chauvin broke for the weekend. shaquille bruster is joining me again from minneapolis. i know jury selection resumes on monday but i bet this settlement is what a lot of folks are talking about today. what do you know? >> it got a lot of attention from people here in minneapolis. it was on the front page of the star tribune the paper of record here in the city. it said $27 million, a record that the city has paid out. it was approved by the city council unanimously in a late addition to its agenda yesterday. the picture that's below the headline is one of the brother of george floyd visiting the exact site where he was killed, that 38th and chicago, it's an intersection that is still closed off to this day. we got to hear from the family attorney, from benjamin crump yesterday talk about his reaction to not only the settlement but what this means in the context of the trial of the officer accused of killing him. listen to what benjamin crump said. >> when you think about the history of america, there is no guarantee at all that a police officer, despite whatever objective evidence you have, there's no guarantee at all that a police officer is going to be convicted for killing a black person unjustly in america. why can't we get full justice like other american citizens. why do we have to say all you get african-american is partial justice. if you get a civil settlement, that means you can't get a criminal conviction. we reject that. and we want full justice for george floyd. >> reporter: court is out of session this weekend, jury selection continues on monday we know that opening statements are set on march 23rd. so far half the jury has been seated. we'll go to tara brown joining me. tara is a cousin who grew up with george floyd, she's also the director of the george floyd foundation. i'm glad to talk with you. i know it's a roller coaster of a week for you, you flew to minneapolis to be at the trial. first of all, tell me how it feels to be in the courtroom. >> it was pretty intense leading up to that moment. sitting in the courtroom, i was pretty focused on watching how the jury selection process worked. and it was -- it was, you know, kind of enlightening for me. and obviously, being in the courtroom with derek chauvin was a little bit distracting because i would find myself looking over at him from time to time. but really very much focused on the process. >> before i get to your sense of the tenor of things going down in the courtroom with jury selection. what is it like to look at derek chauvin? you say you get distracted looking at him. i think anybody would. to think he is the man who had his knee on your cousin's neck for nine plus minutes. >> exactly. so having those thoughts and just feeling that way, it was -- you know, having to be able to look in his direction and actually see the person physically sitting there, yeah, it was pretty emotional moment for me. and, you know, i kind of knew that it would be. but again, you just never know until the moment actually happens. >> of course. tell me what it is that you've gleaned from watching the jury selection, watching that whole process. there have been allegations that there's not enough racial representation on that jury. what are you learning as you watch? >> well, obviously we want to see jury of george's peers, because we're looking for, you know, a fair trial. and that's really my focus. just making sure that we have the right people -- the people who can be fair and impartial and, you know, look at the evidence and make the right decision. >> are you confident, tera, that it's going to be that way when those 12 jurors are seated? >> um, i have some concerns. obviously i want to see -- want to see the criminal justice system work the way that it's supposed to. but i can't help but have some concerns. just because i want to make sure we get a fair trial. >> tara, i know that you run the george floyd foundation. i heard your cousin, george's brother, say that he would give all the money back, if he could just have his brother back with him. so, when you look at the city settlement of $27 million in the civil-rights case, here. can you call it a victory for the family, in any way? >> well, in my opinion, that is just one layer of justice for this family. ultimately, our -- our focus is getting a conviction. we want to see derek chauvin go to jail for murdering my cousin. >> uh-huh. i'm curious about how some of that money's being spent. it's my understanding that, what, 500,000, so half-a-million dollars is going to go, from that settlement, to the community. do you know any of the details of how that's going to be used? >> i do know that there will be some revitalization of the area, where he was murdered. and just to help out in the community, basically. but there hasn't been any, definitive plan that i am aware of, at this point. >> okay. i should think in your role as director of the george floyd foundation, you will be well informed. i want to ask you, tara, what do you miss most about your cousin? >> i miss the hugs. he -- he was a really big man. really big arms, and he was tall. and he was very loving. and so, that's -- that's the one thing i miss, is the huge hugs that he would give, every time you see him. every single time. >> yeah, i imagine you would miss that. i understand, since you grew up with him, is there something about growing up together that made you feel more like brother and sister, than cousins? >> yeah, everything. everything about our -- our upbringing was -- we were raised in the same household, from time to time, throughout our childhood. and we were just very close. just, him and his other siblings and me and my sister were together, all the time. so, we were, pretty much, all we had was -- was each other. so, we were all raised like siblings. >> yeah. well, tara brown, i am so sorry for your loss. that has got to be so hard. and all this time later, money can't buy the kind of happiness that you are missing right now in not having your cousin's hugs. so, i thank you, though, tara, for joining me. and good luck with everything. we'll be watching this trial, very, very closely. thanks. >> thank you so much. >> so we are going to turn to many question. if you do your job badly, should you expect to get fire snd and what happens if your job happens to be governor of one of the biggest states in the u.s.? we have got some answers about this coming your way, next. ing t ♪♪ it's the easiest because it's the cheesiest. kraft. for the win win. our kids are bad at hiding things. but we found out their clothes hide a lot. which concerned us, especially with their sensitive skin. that's why we always look for new tide hygienic clean free. it removes the visible and invisible dirt. it's got to be tide hygienic clean free. it's got to be tide hygienic clean free. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ sure, your health insurance tells you to see a doctor but, um, look 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leaders behind that campaign say they have collected more than 2 million signatures and if enough of them are verified that will definitely trigger an election. nbc's scott cohn is joining us from redwood city, california. so, scott, what would this recall-special election look like? would voters simply be asked if they want to recall the governor? does someone have to run against him? would a lieutenant governor be put into place? how would that work? >> yeah. this is california, alex, as you know, nothing here is simple. here's, basically, what will happen. first of all, there is going to be a process, that's going to take several months as we go through this. and let me go through some of those key dates. we know that wednesday is the deadline for the recall organizers to file their petitions. as you said, they say they have 2 million. those are subject to verification. they need one-and-a-half million. it's fairly likely they will have that but it goes to california's 58 registrars to certify those signatures. that takes us to april 29th. and then, there is a 30-day period in which people can actually withdrawal their signatures if they have changed their mind. then, it faults the lieutenant governor to set the special-election date. that takes us to the fall. and then, voters will be faced with -- with two questions. one, should gavin newsom be recalled? and, two, who should replace him? and that, potentially, sets up a free-for-all. >> okay. so, who should replace him? i mean, you could -- anybody's name in there, right? i mean, is there a limit? how would they put that together? and if you can answer that in about 15, 20 seconds, i would appreciate it. >> no, there is no limits. you just have to get the signatures. 135 people lined up to -- to try and replace gray davis last time around, including one governor, arnold schwarzenegger. >> it was, you are right, indeed. we will see you again, soon. thank you so much. that's going to do it for me, this hour. i'm alex witt. i will see all of you again tomorrow at noon, eastern. coming up next, yasmin vossoughian going back to cover covid one year later. she will talk with the doctor who received the first-covid vax, and ask about the changes that he's seen. nges that he's seen ahoyy! 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