county official with a post erased in which he shared a t-shirt blaming china for the coronavirus saying the suspects in the shooting just had a bad day. >> he does claim it was not racially motivated. i spoke with investigators that, yes, he understood the gravity of it and was pretty much fed up, at the end of his rope and yesterday was a really bad day for him and this is what he did. >> this was a really bad day for the victims too. >> today, celebrities are speaking out. testifying on capitol hill after speaking to nbc. >> this man targeted places where asian-americans were working. you don't have to peal the layers back far. >> i'll speak to activist coming up and with president biden and vice president harris. the president has addressed the shootings on wednesday. >> i know americans are very concerned. as you know, i've been speaking about brutality against asian-americans for months and i thinks it very, very trouble some. >> joining me now from atlanta, nbc news correspondent and in new york, attorney and legal contributor. welcome. you've been following this so closely. let's talk about the suspect facing eight murder trials now. the arraignment was supposed to happen today. it has been postponed. what more do we know about the victims? >> reporter: we don't know why that arraignment was postponed. we got a simple statement saying it is not happening today. the victims, we know eight people were shot and killed. one person did survive. we only know the names of four of those victims so far. i want to read a few of them to give you a sense. xiaojie, daoyou feng and the gentleman injured is mr. ortiz. one more victim i spent time speaking with her family. her name is delana ashley yan. she spoke about the fact that she was really the rock of the family. mother of two, including a new born. a newly we had. on the day of the shooting, she and her husband had gone there for a getaway. her husband was uninjured and she was unfortunately killed. one of the tragic stories we are learning about the profiles and the lives we are hearing about this shooting spree. talking about this big question and what his motive looked like. law enforcement has said it is too early to rule anything out. in the asian community, there is fear and pain. >> regardless of the motive, why is this so troubling for you and so many people in the aapi community today? >> we know at the root of it is deep seeded unconscious bias internalized like systemic racism and white supremacy. >> so that really is a lot of the conversation as we continue as officers and investigators continue their investigation here. when you look at crimes like these and you look at the majority of the victims, so many people who were unfortunately taken from their families. andrea. >> blaine, thank you so much. former fbi official said gender is a part of the hate-crime law. so singling out women is already a hate crime. >> sure, unsurprising to you, it is the image ard, sheppard hate crimes act of 2009. this is a law that expanded that would be classified as a hate crime. the act is the first statute to allow federal persecution of hate crimes motivated by the victims tum or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. in this case, could it be something applied? perhaps, what you need for that is some k50i7d of direct evidence. you'll need to get inside this shooter's mind. robert aaron long, age 21 from woodstock, georgia. try to get to what he's said sto far to see if this was specifically targeted towards women and any other evidence whether communications or discussions of individuals he's spoken to in days leading up to this. any statements he's made in the act of shooting or conducting this crime. those are the things you would need to check that box. to get inside somebody's motive and behind what they were thinking about when they were doing is very difficult but it is something to frank's point that is on the books and is a law that perhaps could be used here for a type of federal prosecution, andrea. >> katie, the police press conference is getting a lot of push back including the captain baker who said the shooter had a bad day. >> so, sorry. i wasn't sure if you were running the audio from that presser. my apologies. we have a lot of problems now. we have a spokesperson for the cherokee county sheriff's office who himself has taken down a facebook post that used to be public in which he was advocating the sale of t-shirts that said coronavirus is from china. you end up editorializing the mind or intent of the shooter by saying he had a bad day. why don't we focus on the fact that the shooter confessed and say we are going to conduct an investigation. that is what is supposed to be done. in the absence of stating the fact and not allowing the investigation do what it needs to do. interview people, family, friends, the survivors of the shooting? did he announce as we have heard in other korean media that he was going to kill all asians? we need to do a preference and state that he was having a bad day. had a sex addiction but it was not racially motivated. it is a problem. there is also a georgia hate crime statute that just ended up on the books last year. became effective july 1 of 2020 after the amad arbery murder includes a race. if there is a finding by a jury that this killer was targeting the victims because of gender or race, then you definitely have a hate crimes enhancement for the punishment for him. >> thank you, so much katie, alexander, tom winter. joining us now is actress and activist. quoting a uc berkley professor saying, quote, killing asian-american women to eliminate a men's temptation speaks to the history of the object indication of asian and asian-american women as variations of the tempt res. i wonder your response to that? >> hearing so many people talk about the shooter as a sex addict and using that as some kind of justification or why this has happened has been so troubling. as an asian-american, asian-american woman, when you shoot up and kill eight people, you are not a sex addict, you are a mass murderer, point blank. right now, just the very idea that people are conflating sex addiction with asian-american women is the problem itself. that is the fet isization of asian-american women in our country. >> just the fact that this cherokee county captain saying he had a bad day, it would seem to me you are already poluting the evidence base in this case. you are expanding on what was said in an interview, supposedly. >> to hear this captain actually try to humanize the shooter in this way, it just dehumanizes all of the victims and then to find out that he had been posting racist facebook posts about blaming the pandemic on china, i don't even know why this guy still has a job. he made those posts in april 2020. today, the sheriff's department removed those. we still have the receipts and know what was done. it's mind boggling and makes so much sense once you see where he stands. he is a racist. he shouldn't have that job. how can he protect and serve all of us when he has view points and hates a large portion of us? >> these are really questions for the georgia police department and the prosecution as well. i'm glad you are raising it. it seems so striking olivia. i wanted to share with you something said, the state senator, the first asian-american to serve as a georgia state senator. she had warned just the day before about hate crimes of asian-americans in this country. tragically, her forecast was immediately born out there in atlanta. this is what she said last night. >> it is not just this insurance debt and not just this last year, this is the latest chapter in a long story in racism and violence in the united states. no, we are not surprised those it is still shocking to see. it happened so close to home. >> it isn't really shocking. it's something asian-americans have been living with for generations, for centuries, really in this country. >> since the pandemic has weaponized asian-americans, we've had a target on our back. it can't be open season on asian-americans. we've been begging for people to help with this. finally, yesterday, people are taking notice. we are finally getting stop asian hate to trend on twitter and other people in my business to speak out against it and say that this is not okay. >> what have you experienced personally in your business? in your career. >> sorry. say that one more time. >> what have you experienced in your career in a business that is supposed to be so open and embracing of diversity? >> for the longest time, it has been that white people can tell everyone's stories. they can tell black stories, asian stories, latin x stories. we can only support them. the fact that their stories have been whitewashed for so long and it is acceptable. whenever i see an article come out with a cool movie with a great director that happen to be a period piece, i have said, hey, can i meet on this movie, it sounds like a really great concept. i'll hear back that it is a period piece. no other explanation. my asian face does not fit into a period piece. i cannot tell those stories. that's a really interferating thing because everyone else is allowed to tell our stories. not just in front of the camera, it's behind the camera. look at the tiger woods documentary on hbo, it is directed by two white men. it starts with his dui. yes, tiger had a lot of tra mattic moments but also a black asian-american man who reached to heights you never could have dreamed. when you watch, it is so negative. i think it is because it was told through the eyes of two men who do not know what it is like to live life in a black man's skin or see the world through the eyes of an asian man's eyes. it is just the systemic white washing that is happening goes so deep and so far back and still happening even to this day. >> you bring such an important perspective. thank you for speaking out and joining me today. >> thanks, andrea. and we have breaking news today from the fbi. new videos released from the january 6 riots. investigators want to know if you can help identify the people in this footage. top biden officials holding first meetings today with china. what it considers its biggest challenge. s its biggest challenge. kevin bacon here. you know me from six degrees of well... me. but it's time to expand. see, visible is wireless with no surprise fees, legit unlimited data, powered by verizon for as little as $25 a month. but when you bring a friend every month, you get every month for $5. so i'm bringing everyone within 12 degrees of me. bam, 12 months of $5 wireless. visible. as little as $25 a month. or $5 a month when you bring a friend. powered by verizon. wireless that gets better with friends. my plaque psoriasis... ...the itching ...the burning. the stinging. my skin was no longer mine. my psoriatic arthritis, made my joints stiff, swollen... painful. emerge tremfyant™ with tremfya®, adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...can uncover clearer skin and improve symptoms at 16 weeks. tremfya® is also approved for adults with active psoriatic arthritis. serious allergic reactions may occur. tremfya® may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms or if you had a vaccine or plan to. tremfya®. emerge tremfyant™ janssen can help you explore cost support options. tired of clean clothes that just don't smell clean? what if your clothes could stay fresh for weeks? now they can! this towel has already been used and it still smells fresh. pour a cap of downy unstopables into your washing machine before each load and enjoy fresher smelling laundry for up to 12-weeks. for nearly a decade, comcast has been helping students get ready. we've connected 4 million low-income students to low- cost, high-speed xfinity internet. we're working with hundreds of school districts across the country to sponsor free internet and laptops. and parents are seeing an impact. and now we're turning 1,000 community centers into lift zones - wifi enabled safe spaces to study. so more students can be ready for anything. i'm trying to do some homework here. these videos have been enhanced to highlight the people that they are seeking. how many people are they still trying to find here? they are showing some of the other videos of violent, grainy footage. the fbi has isolated very compelling facial shots of thes them and asking if anybody knows these people to call the fbi's tip line, 1-800-call-fbi and they would like people to go on the fbi's website and school through those 250 photos to see if they know any of these folks. while we may think we live in the state of technology where the fbi can immediately take a picture and identify someone on social media that's not the world we live in. they need the public's help and they're asking for people to look and call. >> thank you very much. thank you for sharing. that's why we are playing them as violent as they are. secretary of state antony blinken is on his way to alaska where he and jake sullivan will be holding the biden administration's first meetings with top chinese officials as the white house calls china its biggest foreign policy challenge. in japan and south korea this week, blinken and defense secretary lloyd austin blasted china for what they were calling its coercion and aggression towards american allies and its human rights abuses against their own people. china still holds the key to any hopes of moderating north korea's rapid increase in nuclear weapons. the arsenal there, despite former president trump's summits with kim jong-un and all the rest of the letters he calls love letters. joining me victor cha, senior vice president for international studies, professor at georgetown and former director of asian affairs and the national security council during the george w. bush administration, it's god to see you. despite the trump administration's summits and all of the letters he was describing, the beautiful letters with kim jong-un, north korea has really increased its arsenal. it's growing threat for cyber capability. how would you describe the threat? >> i think that's right. all of these beautiful love letters and the three meetings that took place did nothing to stem the tide of north korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile development. they have between 20 and 30 nuclear weapons today, which is more than they had at the start of the trump administration and they have fissile material, the material for making, way more, and they've greatly advanced their missile launch capabilities in terms of both something called solid fuel and mobile launch capabilities which makes it very hard for the united states to preempt these if they were ever to roll one out and launch it at korea, japan, guam, hawaii or the continental united states. the threat is severe and worse than it was four years ago. >> is and victor, the head of the u.s. owner command said the u.s. may start flight testing and improved intercontinental ballistic missile, that the regime possibly has three missiles to threaten the u.s. what is your research show? >> i think that's -- i think that's right. our research shows that north korea does like to do provocations to welcome new u.s. administrations in. they did it after president obama, they did it after president trump, and i don't think we're outside the window of their possibly doing it. we had some threatening statements from the sister of the north korean leader directed mostly at south korea, but also at the united states, and, you know, the u.s. and south korea are in the midst of scaled down military exercises and north korea has always used those exercises as a pretext for doing something. now having said that, the press reports are the administration has -- to north korea and they have not responded and we get threatening statements from the sister of the north korean leader. >> do you consider her statement a response to the biden overtures? >> it's hard to say. i think it's a response to the trip, the two plus two trip, taken by secretaries blinken and austin to japan and korea. i think it's mostly in response to that. but sure, i mean the fact that they have -- their first vice foreign minister came out and said that they thought these -- the so-called outreach was some sort of, quote, dirty trick unquote, i'm not sure what that's in reference to, shows that they're not really interested right now. north korea's kind of in lockdown mode right now because they are very fearful of the covid virus entering their country. they have no public health infrastructure to contain it and no vaccines and they don't really have a very good testing capacity. >> you have been studying the new satellite images of the south shipyard. what are you learning from those photos about how they may be advancing in submarine launch missiles? >> right. thanks. it's a great question. one of the areas, you know, that we're worried about the shoe dropping is one is an icbm, intercontinental ballistic be -- launch, the other a large ballistic missile capable submarine a sea launch, operational sea launch capability, that makes it difficult for the united states to target if you have a sub rooming down at the bottom of the ocean. our antisub capabilities are good but the resources devoted to find those subs would be a new burdenen in terms of trying to deter north korean activity. >> victor, given all of the tensions with china right now, how likely is it that the u.s. can get china to help rein in north korea? >> yeah. it's a hard question. yes, i mean i think the meetings that are taking place in alaska as we speak, i imagine are not sort of friendly get to know you, let's re-set the relationship. i think it's brass tacks, really difficult discussions about everything from human rights to trade. north korea will be one of the topics. even here i feel like the u.s. and chinese interests on north korea do not overlap as much as they did let's say 10 or so years ago when i was working on the issue before. there's a gap there. it's going to be hard to close and the broader context of u.s./china relations doesn't really help to facilitate closing that gap. >> victor cha, thank you so much for all of your expertise. and there was a long scary night down south. dangerous and destructive tornadoes across the area impacting more than 60 million people in the last two days. the latest from the storm zone coming up next. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. rea mitchell reports" on msnbc. i need indeed indeed you do. the moment you sponsor a job on indeed you get a shortlist of quality candidates from a resume data base claim your seventy-five-dollar credit when you post your first job at indeed.com/promo got it? got it. it's slippery. nooooo... noooo... nooooo... yeeeesss... quick, the quicker picker upper! bounty picks up messes quicker and each sheet is 2x more absorbent, so you can use less. hey look, i got it. bounty, the quicker picker upper. here you go, let me help you. hi mr. charles, we made you dinner. ahh, thank you! ready to eat? yes i am! mm. [ clicks tongue ] i don't know. i think they look good, man. mm, smooth. uh, they are a little tight. like, too tight? might just need to break 'em in a little bit. you don't want 'em too loose. for those who were born to ride there's progressive. with 24/7 roadside assistance. -okay. think i'm gonna wear these home. -excellent choice. if you smell gas, you're too close. leave the structure, call 911, keep people away, and call pg&e right after so we can both respond out and keep the public safe. if you see wires down, treat them all as if they're hot and energized. stay away from any downed wire, call 911, and call pg&e right after so we can both respond out and keep the public safe. today millions across the south are picking up the pieces after massive storms tore through the region. large hail, damaging winds, more than twos to dozen tornadoes were reported. the storm system is threatening the southeast. sam brock is on the ground in alabama, one of the state's hardest hit by the storm. sam? >> reporter: [ no audio ] there was a 6 and a half hour period where there was a tornado watch ongoing in the state of alabama. i'm standing on a plot of land that's been in the same family for generations and they lost two homes a barn, so many pieces of their history as you look behind me right now over my shoulder, this is the son of the patriarch i spoke with. he used to live here and this is his house. look at all of these people fanned out picking up pieces of debris or mementos, gathering them in boxes, an 18 wheeler truck on the other side of this frame here where they're taking the garbage away, things they can't salvage and they're trying to compartmentalize and understand what transpired in the last 16 hours. we spoke with tommy cox, the patriarch of the family, and here's what he described as trauma and terror last night. >> sister went outside, pulled up, we was already in the basement. blew the horn. my son happened to hear it, opened the door. i mean things were flying wherever where out there. it was pulling her away from the car. he run and grabbed her, started pulling her and my other son had to grab him because it was pulling them. >> you formed a human chain to get your sister out of the tornado into yours basement? >> right. she would have been gone. just like everything else. >> reporter: it is easily, andrea, the most remarkable thing about what we've seen so far. you could have two dozen tornadoes ripping through areas like this and so far not a single confirmed fatality. andrea? >> that's a blessing but the loss is so tremendous. voting rights, senate democrats going big in the fight for voting rights against republican opposition. now they are armed by a powerful plea and a new senator's first floor speech in the senate. >> we are witnessing right now a massive and unabashed assault on voting rights, unlike anything we've ever seen since the jim crow era. this is jim crow in new clothes. , but they can't be held back. they want to be set free. to make the world more responsible, and even more incredible. ideas start the future, just like that. sales are down from last quarter but we are hoping things will pick up by q3. yeah...uh... doug? sorry about that. umm... what...its...um... you alright? [sigh] [ding] never settle with power e*trade. it has powerful, easy-to-use tools to help you find opportunities, 24/7 support when you need answers plus some of the lowest options and futures contract prices around. don't get mad. get e*trade and start trading today. hi. so you're the scientist here. does my aveeno® daily moisturizer really make my dry skin healthier in one day? it's true jen. this prebiotic oat formula moisturizes to help prevent dry skin. impressive! aveeno® healthy. it's our nature.™ try the body wash, too. it'sguy fieri!e.™ ya know, if you wanna make that sandwich the real deal, ya gotta focus on the bread layers. king's hawaiian sliced bread makes everything better! ♪ (angelic choir) ♪ and here's mine! it is only day 57, but president biden is about to reach his top goal for his first 100 days in office. vaccinating 100 million americans with at least their first shots. more than 40 days ahead of the schedule. the president is expected to pause and celebrate that moment later today with remarks at the white house. on capitol hill a maiden speech from one of georgia's new senators, a powerful cry for action on voting rights. another big initiative of the president's despite resistance from senate republicans. joining me now, are nbc news chief whose correspondent and weekend "today" co-anchor, former democratic congressman steve israel and manny chen former policy adviser from the romney campaign. kristen, first to you, what are we expecting from the president as he achieves this milestone? >> i'm told that based on my conversations with white house officials, president biden is going to update the country on the vaccine rollout effort and as we have reported, it is anticipated that he is going to announce that the administration has or is very close to achieving that goal of 100 million shots in the arms of americans by today, which is, of course, much earlier than the 100-day goal he set. critics argued look, the white house set is its expectations very low, so that they could exceed them. the question becomes now, an dre ya, will president biden be able to double this by the time he reaches 100 days in office and will the administration be able to reach some of those communities that don't have access to or don't have good information about how to get vaccinated and also will they be able to deal with the issue of vaccine hesitancy. based on polls there are some americans who are concerned about taking this vaccine, that includes some conservatives you see that in some communities of color. we know that the administration is going to roll out a vaccine campaign at the grassroots level to try to educate people to try to deal with that issue. will that be successful and when will that campaign rollout? we're told it could happen within the coming days, andrea. >> steve, they still have those problems, vaccine hesitancy, a lack of equity, clearly in the rollout. so they've achieved this benchmark, but also a real drop in testing. >> well, look, it helps first of all that we have a president who is proactive, who is diligent, who is competent in addressing this crisis. it also helps that the congress passed and the president signed the american rescue plan that provides the kind of funding that is necessary in order to increase testing, help localities and help physicians and help pharmacies deploy this vaccination. it's not going to be cured overnight. it's going to take some time but we're clearly headed in the right direction under this president. >> let's talk about voting rights because this is a big showdown over voting rights, the filibuster is becoming one of the issues. senator raphael warnock, maiden speech in the senate and i want to play a little bit of that for you. >> no senate rules should overrule the integrity of our democracy. i urge my colleagues to pass these two bills, strengthen and lengthen the cords of our democracy, secure our credibility as the premier voice for freedom loving people and democratic movements all over the world. and win the future for all of our children. mr. president, i yield the floor. >> lonnie, that ovation went on for a bit and it's so unusual. you know the hill. let's talk about senator warnock's speech and whether that could have an impact on let's say some of the republicans who have been resisting this as 43 states have started enacting laws restricting voting access for minorities, which are reminiscent of jim crow. >> look, i think, you know, the maiden speeches tend to be relatively state affairs. you might have few people listening in. that certainly was unusual. i think the big question going forward will be, how much resistance will there be amongst some democrats, by the way, and certainly many more republicans, to eroding the filibuster and eroding the rules that the senate has operated by and with for some time. i think the question will be, can senate moderates or people perceived to be more moderate like joe manchin of west virginia, krysten sinema of arizona, are they going to be willing to accept, for example, a modified filibuster, in this case, for example, to proceed to debate on and potential passage of hr-1, which is the voting rights legislation you referenced, are those democrats going to be willing to go for that? we know the republicans probably won't be and the republicans have been clear they're not interesting in eroding the filibuster not for hr-1 or anything else. is there a coalition of democrats, enough democrats, that can come together to say they're going to make a revision to the filibuster rules, maybe just for this kind of legislation, which what is some have suggested, and will that, in fact, get traction as the senate seeks to move ahead on this? >> kristen, the president really opened the door a crack on this. he said he was against any change in filibuster and then on abc he said he could support a talking filibuster. is that some signal of flexibility on his part? >> it really is, andrea, and the talking filibuster is the old-fashioned way of filibustering, when a senator is required to talk and talk in order to prevent legislation from moving forward, and the president taking that stance comes after senator joe manchin signaled that he might be open to that type of a change, saying that it should be more difficult to filibuster legislation and so that's part of where you're seeing the focus. i can tell you i've been talking to republican sources on capitol hill who say this is going to be their primary focus, that they are going to be making the case in these coming days and weeks for why the filibuster should not be removed or altered and they're going to make the case if democrats try to take this action, once republicans are back in the majority and they will be at some point, that it ultimately will only backfire on democrats. so that is, i think, where you're going to see the battle lines being drawn, andrea. as president biden and vice president harris prepare to continue going out trying to make the case for their covid relief package that was just passed, i think that back here in washington that's what you can expect to hear from republicans. >> kristen welker and steve israel and lenny chen, we have to leave it there. there was history made at the white house. the first african-american vice president kamala harris swore in the first native american to lead a cabinet department. deb haaland former congress member is the u.s. secretary of the interior. the federal agency she will lead works with the nation's nearly 600 recognized tribes and will be one-fifth the interior controls one-fifth of the land in the u.s. moments ago the senate has confirmed javier becerra as the next secretary of health and human services. so that is move forward we don't have a cia director, still a hold, i believe from ted cruz. one senator can hold up the nomination of william burns, widely recognized bipartisan support, former member of the diplomatic board to be the head of the cia. coming up, say no to hate. in the wake of the atlanta shootings and new light being shined on discrimination faced by asian-american women passionate testimony in front of congress by our next guest. >> unfortunately, this type of prejudice is far from new. it's a similar brand of discrimination to the one that marks on our country's darkest days and toughest fights from segregation to immigration. segregation to immigration buttercup! ♪ 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. i'm cologuard. i'm noninvasive and detect altered dna in your stool to find 92% of colon cancers even in early stages. tell me more. it's for people 45 plus at average risk for colon cancer, not high risk. false positive and negative results may occur. ask your prescriber or an online prescriber if cologuard is right for you. i'm on it. sounds like a plan. when our daughter and her kids moved in with us... our bargain detergent couldn't keep up. turns out it's mostly water. so, we switched back to tide. one wash, stains are gone. daughter: slurping don't pay for water. pay for clean. it's got to be tide. i have an idea for a trade. why don't you call td ameritrade for a strategy gut check? what's that? you run it by an expert, you talk about the risk and potential profit and loss. could've used that before i hired my interior decorator. get a strategy gut check from our trade desk. ♪♪ i'm a verizon engineer, part of the team that built 5g right. the only one from america's most reliable network. we designed our 5g to make the things you do every day, better. with 5g nationwide, millions of people can now work, listen, and stream in verizon 5g quality. and in parts of many cities where people can use massive capacity, we have ultra wideband. the fastest 5g in the world. this is the 5g that's built for you. this is 5g built right. only from verizon. with relapsing forms of ms, there's a lot to deal with. not just unpredictable relapses. all these other things too. who needs that kind of drama? kesimpta is a once-monthly at-home injection that may help you put this rms drama in its place. kesimpta was proven superior at reducing the rate of relapses, active lesions and slowing disability progression versus aubagio. don't take kesimpta if you have hepatitis b, and tell your doctor if you have had it, as it could come back. kesimpta can cause serious side effects, including infections. while no cases of pml were recorded in rms clinical trials, it could happen. tell your doctor if you had or plan to have vaccines, or if you are or plan to become pregnant. kesimpta may cause a decrease in some types of antibodies. the most common side effects are upper respiratory tract infection, headache and injection reactions. dealing with this rms drama? it's time to ask your doctor about kesimpta. dramatic results. less rms drama. hi. so you're the scientist here. does my aveeno® daily moisturizer really make my dry skin healthier in one day? it's true jen. this prebiotic oat formula moisturizes to help prevent dry skin. impressive! aveeno® healthy. it's our nature.™ try the body wash, too. asian-americans are on the rise as we've been reporting with nearly 3800 incidents involving hate and harassment directed at asian-americans and pacific islanders in the past year. for the first time in 30 years congress is holding a hearing to examine discrimination and violence against asian-americans. senator tammy duckworth was a witness before this house heroes, frontline workers e. hospital staff have been blamed for covid-19. blaming the apii community for a public health crisis is racist and wrong. asian americans helped build this country. with their bare hants and bent backs they laid the railroad tracks that connect us from coast to coast. and today even as we face so much bigotry and violence, our community is helping to keep the country running. >> joining me now illinois senator tammy duckworth, the first thai american elected to congress. thank you, senator, for being with us and thank you for your testimony. what do you hope comes out of this hearing today? >> i hope that americans realize that asian americans are suffering racist attacks and that we bring to those who are in authority a visibility on these hate crimes against asian americans. we know hate crimes against asian americans are significantly underreported and often are not listed as hate crimes but are just oh, it's a typical harassment or robbery or something like that, when it is clearly a crime that was targeted based on somebody's race. >> what is your reaction to the murders in atlanta? >> i mean, just shock, unfortunately not surprised. asian american women in particular have always been seen as subservient and weak and they are the type of victim a bully or someone would target. i'm just horrified that this happened. i worry for the aapi community all over this country and i worry for the families of the victims of the shooting. and i'm concerned apparently the authority figure -- sheriff, actually came to the defense of the alleged perpetrator and said he just had a bad day. i'm sorry, you murdered people. you targeted people in three different locations. that wasn't a bad day. that was a massacre. >> you're exactly right. we were talking about that earlier today, earlier in the program, because he was just making excuses for this murder and also potentially damaging the prosecution's case by putting out these kind of explanations, which have nothing to do with the case itself. the director of national intelligence also released its report yesterday for the first time outlying the growing threat of domestic terrorism, what that means here in the u.s., what needs to be done to combat these threats and protect asian americans who have become a target of what they're calling not only domestic violent cream extremists hereby pose a great threat but many lone offenders are small cells and many racially motivated extremists, groups supporting white supremacy are most concerning, in fact, to the authorities. how do you think this affects the asian american pacific island community? >> they're tesh fayed. this is a real threat in our community. remember, many in the aapi community, especially large cities, are gathered in a particular area. everybody has a chinatown or koreatown in los angeles. we're very proud of our vibrant chinatown and little saigon in my home state. people are extremely exposed and vulnerable. i'm so grateful the mayor of chicago, lori lightfoot, stepped up today to make sure they have extra police presence and support but that needs to happen across the country. i know the aapi community all across this country is very scared. they don't see their concerns being taken seriously. it took a massacre in georgia to get even a little bit of national attention on this issue, which has been growing for the past year. even in the last year we've seen aapi -- crimes against aap i increase over 150% in our nation's major city. 150%. that's just not acceptable. >> what has been your experience growing up and even in the military in terms of discrimination? >> yeah, you know, it's funny, aapi is the one group in the united states often treated as the other, and i always get asked, where are you from really? actually i'm a daughter of the revolution. you might recall during the debates for my last election, my own opponent questioned my ancestry, whether or not i was american enough just because i am biracial, i'm half asian. and that's what asian americans see all the time. when i was in the service, people would often -- i'm from chicago, so a lot of the guys in on my national guard unit are polish and irish guys, big, blonde tall guys and we would go places and they would be like wait, the little asian girl is in charge? and on the other hand that is great for the united states because we present ourselves to the world showing how great and diverse our nation is but on the other hand is a systemic persistent perception of asians not being american or being others and especially asian women being meek and subservient and they're often targeted. a lot of these hate crimes you see are targeting asian elderly and asian women in particular. >> and there's also a related problem, i know we're almost out of time, but a lot of people, asian americans have been afraid to either complain or deal with the authorities. >> they have been because they thought they would be taken seriously. so many crimes against asian americans that are really hate crimes have not been listed or cataloged as hate crimes and they don't see their concerns taken seriously. it's one of the reasons i'm working to ask the biden administration to investigate and really look through the justice department at the crimes that have taken place and whether or not some of these were actual hate crimes that were never listed as hate crimes. >> senator tammy duckworth, thank you so much. you're such a big contribution to the conversation today. and that does it for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." remember, follow the show online, facebook and twitter @mitchell reports and chuck todd is here next with "mpt daily" on msnbc. 22 " on msnbc 22 this towel has already been used and it still smells fresh. pour a cap of downy unstopables into your washinmachine before each load and enjoy fresher smelling laundry for up to 12-weeks. ♪ ♪ be right back. with moderate to severe crohn's disease, i was there, just not always where i needed to be. is she alright? i hope so. so i talked to my doctor about humira. i learned humira is for people who still have symptoms of crohn's disease after trying other medications. the majority of people on humira saw significant symptom relief in as little as 4 weeks. and many achieved remission that can last. humira can lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections, including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores . don't start humira if you have an infection. be there for you and them. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, remission is possible. never run dry of... ask your gastroenterologist about humira. killer attitude. or hydration. neutrogena® hydro boost. the #1 hyaluronic acid moisturizer delivers 2x the hydration for supple, bouncy skin. neutrogena®. washed your hands a lot today? probably like 40 times. hands feel dry? like sandpaper. introducing new dove handwash, with 5 x moisturizer blend. removes germs in seconds, moisturizes for hours. soft, smooth. new dove handwash. want to save hundreds on your wireless bill? with xfinity mobile, you can. soft, smooth. how about saving hundreds on the new samsung galaxy s21 ultra 5g? you can do that too. all on the most reliable network? sure thing! and with fast, nationwide 5g included - at no extra cost? we've got you covered. so join the carrier rated #1 in customer satisfaction... ...and learn how much you can save at xfinitymobile.com/mysavings. age is just a number. and mine's unlisted. try boost® high protein with 20 grams of protein for muscle health. versus 16 grams in ensure high protein. boost® high protein also has key nutrients for immune support. boost® high protein. here you go, let me help you. booshi mr. charles, also we made you dinner. ahh, thank you! ready to eat? yes i am! . if it's thursday, officials in atlanta are not ruling out a hate crime in the shootings that killed eight people. more importantly, it's putting a much-needed spotlight on the troubling rise in crimes against asian americans. plus, a major move in america, declaring the astrazeneca safe and effective. as here at home, new warnings from dr. fauci of a u.s. risk, another surge in infections. and a new warning about the threat of domestic violent extremists concluding, and it's not

Related Keywords

Andrea Mitchell , Suspect , Atlanta Area Spa , Victims , Oman , Shootings , Little Asian , Violence , Murder Charges , Six , Decent , Spike , Eight , Few , Georgia S Cherokee County , Woman , Stabbing , Events , California , China Town , Facebook , Shooting , Official , Coronavirus , China , Suspects , T Shirt , Yes , The End , Cup , Investigators , Europe , Gravity , Places , Celebrities , Nbc , Testifying On Capitol Hill , Asian Americans , Players , Biden , Activist , Kamala Harris , Americans , Some , Atlanta , Brutality , Talk , Correspondent , Contributor , Murder Trials , Attorney , New York , Nbc News , Let , Arraignment , Reporter , Statement , People , Person , Four , Names , One , Mr , Sense , Xiaojie , Daoyou Feng , Gentleman Injured , Ortiz , Family , Victim , Name , Delana Ashley Yan , Fact , Husband , Rock , Mother , A New Born , Two , Stories , Profiles , Getaway , Learning , Motive , Anything , Question , Shooting Spree , Law Enforcement , Community , Aapi Community Today , Fear , Root , Spain , Lot , Racism , White Supremacy , Conversation , Bias , Investigation , Majority , Families , Crimes , Officers , Hate Crime , Fbi , Women , Part , Gender , Hate Crime Law , Blaine , Law , Image Ard , Sheppard Hate Crimes Act , 2009 , Hate Crimes , Georgia Hate Crime , Case , Persecution , Gender Identity , Sexual Orientation , Tum , Shooter , Something , Evidence , Mind , K50i7d , Robert Aaron Long , 21 , Communications , Discussions , Georgia , Individuals , Woodstock , Things , Crime , Statements , Somebody , Box , Point , Books , Doing , Type , Andrea , Prosecution , The Police Press Conference , Push , Katie , Captain Baker , Problems , Presser , Audio , Apologies , Spokesperson , Public , Sale , Cherokee County Sheriff S Office , Intent , Absence , Why Don T We Focus , Interview People , Media , Friends , North Korean , Problem , Sex Addiction , Estate , Preference , Amad Arbery Murder , 2020 , July 1 Of 2020 , 1 , Race , Finding , Killer , Jury , Actress , Punishment , Hate Crimes Enhancement , Alexander , Tom Winter , Men , Quote , Killing Asian American Women , Temptation , Uc Berkley Professor Saying , Response , History , Indication , Object , Asian American Women As Variations Of The Tempt Res , Hearing , Kind , Asian American Woman , Sex Addict , Justification , Idea , Point Blank , Fet Isization Of Asian American Women In , Asian American Women , Country , Captain , Cherokee County , Interview , Base , Wall , Way , Posting , Job , Pandemic , Posts , Guy , The Sheriff S Department , April 2020 , Mind Boggling , Receipts , He Shouldn T , Racist , Points , Portion , It , Questions , Georgia Police Department , Bolivia , Senator , State Senator , Forecast , Insurance , Story , Close To Home , Chapter , Debt , Generations , It Isn T , Target , Back , Season , Business , Twitter , Notice , Career , Diversity , Everyone , Latin X , Director , Movie , Article , Whitewashed , Period Piece , Concept , Thing , Face , Explanation , Tiger Woods Documentary On Hbo , Front , Camera , Dui , Black Asian American , Heights , Tiger , Tra Mattic , World , Skin , Eyes , Life , Asian Man , Washing , Happening , Videos , Thanks , News , Perspective , Footage , Riots , Top Biden Officials Holding First Meetings , 6 , January 6 , Challenge , Verizon , See , Well , Data , Surprise Fees , Kevin Bacon , 5 , 25 , Friend , Bam , Visible , , 12 , Plaque Psoriasis , Psoriatic Arthritis , Burning , Itching , Joints , Emerge Tremfyant , Stinging , Painful , Moderate , Symptoms , Adults , Tremfya , 16 , Infections , Risk , Vaccine , Reactions , Infection , Doctor , Ability , Cost Support Options , Tm Janssen , Towel , Clothes , Smelling Laundry , Downy , Load , Cap , Washing Machine , Students , Xfinity , Internet , Hundreds , School Districts , Laptops , Comcast , 4 Million , Impact , Homework , Wifi , Community Centers , Parents , Spaces , Lift Zones , 1000 , Violent , Shots , Tip Line , Thes , Website , Anybody , 800 , 1 800 Call Fbi , Someone , My Home State , Help , Photos , Social Media , Picture , School , Folks , Technology , 250 , Antony Blinken , Secretary Of State , Alaska , Sharing , Jake Sullivan , Administration , Meetings , Japan , Officials , Lloyd Austin , Foreign Policy Challenge , White House , South Korea , Human Rights , Key , Aggression , Coercion , Increase , Hopes , Allies , Weapons , Trump , Arsenal , Letters , Love Letters , Former , Senior Vice President , Summits , Studies , Professor , Rest , At Georgetown , Joining Me Victor Cha , Kim Jong Un , National Security Council , Affairs , George W Bush Administration , God , Threat , Cyber Capability , Place , Missile , Nothing , Tide , Start , Development , 20 , 30 , Three , Launch , Capabilities , Material , Terms , Solid Fuel , More , Missile Launch , Making , Victor Cha , Hawaii , Guam , Command , Research , Head , Flight Testing , Missiles , Regime , Owner , Obama , Administrations , Provocations , Sister , Leader , Window , Midst , Exercises , Press , Pretext , Trip , Overtures , Two Plus , Foreign Minister , Secretaries Blinken , Covid , Mode , Outreach , Reference , Lockdown , Virus , Sort Of , Dirty Trick Unquote , Vaccines , Health , Infrastructure , Testing Capacity , Satellite Images , South Shipyard , Areas , Submarine , Shoe , Sea Launch Capability , Icbm , Be , Sea Launch , Sub Rooming Down , Subs , Bottom , Resources , Antisub , The Ocean , Activity , Burdenen , Tensions , Get , Rein , Friendly , Trade , Interests , Everything , Relationship , Brass Tacks , Topics , Issue , Gap , Context , There , China Relations Doesn T , Closing , 10 , Area , Tornadoes , Expertise , Storm Zone , Latest , Down South , 60 Million , Andrea Mitchell Reports , Msnbc , Data Base , Shortlist , Rea Mitchell Reports , Candidates , Indeed Com Promo , Seventy Five , Nooooo , Noooo , Yeeeesss , Absorbent , Sheet , Bounty , Picker Upper , 2 , Dinner , Ahh , Charles , Hi , Don T Know , Tongue , Mm , Home , Bit , Em , Progressive , Roadside Assistance , Tight , Uh , You Don T Want , 24 7 , Call 911 , Choice , Gas , Pg E , 911 , Safe , Wires , Wire , Pieces , Storms , South , Southeast , Ground , Region , Winds , Storm System , Hail , Twos , Sam Brock , Alabama , The Storm , Hit , Tornado Watch , Son , Land , Plot , Barn , Homes , Shoulder , Patriarch , Truck , House , Side , Garbage , Debris , Frame , Mementos , Boxes , 18 , Last Night , Tommy Cox , Trauma , Door , Basement , Horn , Car , Tornado , Human Chain , Everything Else , Fatality , Senate , Voting Rights , Loss , Democrats , Republican , Opposition , Fight , Blessing , Floor , Speech , Plea , Assault , Jim Crow , Ideas , Sales , Yeah Uh , Doug , Umm , What Its Um , Opportunities , Tools , Futures Contract , Options , Prices , E Trade , Ding , Don T Get Mad , Body Wash , Moisturizer , Prebiotic Oat Formula , Aveeno , Daily , Scientist , Nature Tm , True Jen , It Sguy Fieri , Bread Layers , Bread , The Real Deal , King S Hawaiian , Angelic Choir , E Tm , Ya Gotta , Goal , 57 , Schedule , Remarks , Capitol Hill , 100 , 40 , 100 Million , Maiden Speech , Action , Resistance , Chief , Senators , Cry , Initiative , Manny Chen Former , Steve Israel , Kristen Welker , Campaign , Co Anchor , Milestone , Romney , Conversations , Vaccine Rollout Effort , Critics , Look , Expectations , Arms Of Americans , Course , Office , Dre Ya , Communities , Vaccine Hesitancy , Don T , Information , Polls , Don T Have Access , Color , Vaccine Campaign , Conservatives , Grassroots , Campaign Rollout , Rollout , Equity , Black , Crisis , Thai American Elected To Congress , Testing , Competent , Drop , Benchmark , Order , Rescue Plan , Vaccination , Localities , Funding , Physicians , Pharmacies , Showdown , Direction , Democracy , Rules , Raphael Warnock , Integrity , Filibuster , Issues , Colleagues , Movements , Bills , Credibility , Cords , Freedom , Voice , Ovation , Children , Lonnie , States , The Hill , 43 , State Affairs , Laws , Minorities , Voting Access , Speeches , Big Question , Joe Manchin , West Virginia , Arizona , Krysten Sinema , Legislation , Example , Modified Filibuster , Passage , Hr 1 , Coalition , Filibuster Rules , Won T , Revision , Change , Crack , Traction , Talking Filibuster , Signal , Flexibility , Abc , Filibustering , Stance , Focus , Sources , Battle Lines , Relief Package , Washington , Lenny Chen , Nation , Deb Haaland , Vice President , African American , Secretary Of The Interior , Cabinet Department , Agency , Works , Native American , Interior , Tribes , Secretary Of Health And Human Services , Javier Becerra , 600 , Move , Bipartisan Support , Hold , Cia , William Burns , Ted Cruz , Discrimination , Hate , Member , Light Being , Board , Wake , Coming Up , Asian American Women Passionate Testimony , Guest , Prejudice , Marks , Brand , Segregation , Fights , Immigration , Immigration Buttercup , Colon Cancer , Stages , Care , Colon Cancers , Cologuard , Dna , Stool , 92 , Slurping Don T , Prescriber , Results , Plan , Kids , 45 , Pay , Wash , Couldn T , Stains , Water , Bargain Detergent , Strategy Gut Check , Profit , Expert , Strategy , Gut Check , Interior Decorator , Td Ameritrade , Why Don T You , 5g , Network , Team , America , Millions , Trade Desk , Engineer , Stream , Listen , Parts , Cities , Capacity , Relapsing , 5g Quality , Ms , Ultra Wideband , Injection , Don T Take Kesimpta , Rms Drama , Relapses , Drama , Hepatitis B , Versus Aubagio , Rate , Kesimpta , Superior , Lesions , Side Effects , Cases , Types , Trials , Pml , Decrease , Upper Respiratory Tract Infection , Headache , Antibodies , Rise , Reporting , Incidents , 3800 , Harassment , Tammy Duckworth , Witness , Pacific Islanders , Staff , Covid 19 , Frontline Workers E Hospital , House Heroes , Apii , 19 , Dbacks , Wrong , Hants , Railroad , Bigotry , Coast To , Country Running , Illinois , Testimony , Visibility , Attacks , Robbery , Asian American Women In Particular , Reaction , Murders , Shock , Aapi Community , Bully , Authority Figure , Defense , Perpetrator , Massacre , Wasn T A Bad Day , Locations , Intelligence , Murder , Program , Excuses , Explanations , Outlying , Time , Report , Terrorism , Threats , Many , Extremists , Cream , Offenders , Cells , Authorities , Groups , Asian American Pacific Island Community , Tesh Fayed , Chinatown , Everybody , Koreatown , Los Angeles , Lori Lightfoot , Chicago , Little Saigon , Concerns , Presence , Support , Police , Needs , Attention , Aap , Aapi , City 150 , 150 , Group , Experience , Military , Funny , Opponent , Election , Revolution , Whether , Debates , Ancestry , Guys , Unit , Service , Big , National Guard , Irish , Hand , Girl , Wait , Asians , Others , Perception , Cataloged , Department , Justice , Reasons , Contribution , Show , Eedition , Itchell Reports , Washinmachine , Mpt Daily , Chuck Todd , 22 , Crohn S Disease , Remission , Humira , Humira Saw , Medications , Symptom , Relief , 4 , Nervous System Problems , Cancers , Have , Tuberculosis , Lymphoma , Blood , Liver , Heart Failure , Gastroenterologist , Tb , Sores , Hydration , Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizer , Bouncy Skin , Supple , Hydro Boost , Neutrogena , Never Run Dry Of , Killer Attitude , Dove Handwash , Times , Hands , Sandpaper , Blend , Germs , Moisturizes , Soft , Ultra 5g , Bill , Fast , Xfinity Mobile , S21 , Samsung Galaxy , Cost , Customer Satisfaction , Carrier , Xfinitymobile Com Mysavings , Protein , High Protein , Muscle Health , Immune Support , Age , Number , Nutrients , Boost , Booshi , Spotlight , Astrazeneca , Warning , Warnings , Concluding , Dr , Surge , Fauci ,