in this segment. so before we go to break, we'll be getting into one of those. first i want to give you the latest with the middle east. the israeli cabinet is meeting on the very big question of whether or how to extend a pause in the fighting in the ongoing conflict with hamas, and they're racing against a deadline, because that pause s according to the deal that was struck, basically over, terminated if no new deal is reached tonight. officials from the u.s., israel, qatar, egypt, they've all been in talks today. there's a lot of forces that want to make this step possible, especially considering with any deal you say, will it work? will both sides participate? innocent people have been freed according to many of the people in the region, so when you look at the scenes of some of these people being reunited, you can see why many people want this to continue. the last two hours hamas released 14 hours, including an american. that is if you're counting -- many of them younger individuals. the newest group of 1 hostages adds two israeli russian hostages released earlier today. this video, we should note, is courtesy of hamas. it's a video that hamas created. you can see some of what are identified as their members and terrorists. this is what happens when you get these agreements. this is obviously incredibly important to all the people involved, even amidst what has been a terror campaign that's targeted children, babies. the president here in the united states speaking out. >> we got some very good news to report -- benin is safe in egypt. she's crossed the border. i talked with her mother and father. they're very appreciative and things are moving well. she'll soon be moment with her three children. >> that is one large piece of this. humanitarian aid is continuing to reach gaza where this humanitarian crisis is dire. 1.7 million people have already been displaced according to estimates. you can see the rubble. you can see what folks are subject to there. nbc's rob sanchez reporting. >> reporter: under the cover of a fragile truce, gazans are venturing on to the streets, lining up at gas stations hoping for a few precious drops of fuel, and baking bread in traditional ovens. the world health organization with a stark warning. >> eventually we'll see more people dieing from disease than we're seeing from the bombardment. >> reporter: disease spreading through camps like this. more than a million gazans displaced since the fighting. their tents little match for the winter rain. she doesn't know if he husband is still alive. is there anything worsen that this, she asks? and even when the war ends, many will have no homes to go back to. >> that is a scene from our reporters there. i'm joined by martin fletcher, nbc's former tel aviv bureau chief. he is a connection. two hostages released in october, part of his family. six more of his family released saturday. one more being held. welcome back. i mentioned to viewers -- we're going to turn to american news eventually, but we start with this update. the footage, the videos like so much else in this conflict are going to be hard to make sense of. people go on with their daily lives. not everyone has this story touch them or is following it all day, all night. yet when you see masked terrorists affiliated with a group that has murdered children and babies, when you see others being returned from the other side, including what we're told are younger people not accused of serious offenses, it is striking. some civilians are getting out. what do you make of this point we're at in this conflict? >> ari, it's such a sensitive topic. israelis and palestinians who are waiting for their loved ones to be released from israeli jails. there's that part of it, too. basically it's like chinese water torture. hamas is drip feeding hostages, playing on israeli emotions and nerves as everyone's waiting. will my family be among the people released today? if not, can they come tomorrow? or will the fighting resume before our family gets out and that means they'll be stuck there for more weeks and maybe even longer. so as i say, on tenterhooks. nervousness. israeli is basically manic, joy and sorrow mixed together. it's a confusing time and a difficult time, obviously. >> sure. one of the simplistic and limited thing wes hear is, why can't everyone get along? why can't they stop the fighting? it's complicated and i don't know that any group or side or nation state or territory has the absolute truth or all of righteousness on its side. you covered this for a long time. it's complicated. i'm curious if you can walk us through the difference between, say, the calls for an immediate and total cease-fire on october 8th while they were still trying to figure out who was missing -- and that certainly wasn't the attitude in america on september 12th, for example -- the difference between that and what we have here, which is a time where we've seen both parties come together once, and potentially, according to the meetings today as i mentioned abroad, potentially, again, that with both sides giving something, a cessation, a pause, and return of people, was a more possible, even durable project than sort of the initial calls for everyone to get along without doing the hard work of having some agreements with both sides giving something. >> yeah, look, you know, there's a contradiction here. at the moment it's going down to the wire. hamas want a cease-fire and an end to the fighting because they basically achieved everything they wanted to achieve. now they want to swap the hostages for the 5,000, 6,000 palestinian prisoners in israeli jails. that's their goal. they've reached their goal. israel wants to hostages back. there's still about 150 hostages held by hamas and islamic jihad and god knows who else is holding them in gaza. there's still a long way to go. how many are back now? i think it's about 60, 70 hostages have been returned. a lot more to go. hamas want an end to the cease-fire now. israel wants a pause to get the hostages back, but then wants to go back to war. so it's a great question you ask -- why can't the two sides get along? >> i was quoting. i was quoting. >>. [ laughter ] no, it's a good question. but it's been the question for 75 years, and that question then became even deeper in 1967 when israel occupied the west bank and gaza. so why can't they get along? the interesting thing is, they can get along. look at the 2 million israeli arabs who live inside israel alongside the jews and christians of israel and the bedouins. that will happen. the question is, when the chaos of war -- from chaos, from war, it becomes a catalyst for progress in the future. >> yeah. >> that's what i think. at the end of all this, i do believe that the pressure on both side will be so great that they're going to be forced to come to the table. >> yeah. and any break-through there that concerns civilian populations and people on both sides is what the global community has been asking for. i want to turn to one point raised by chuck schumer, one of the most powerful officials in the united states. he also happens to be from new york, which has a larger jewish population. jews are about 1%. there are places you have a jewish pop hissing, and places you have none. chuck schumer himself is jewish. he's speaking out on this today at a time when there's legitimate viewpoints about the israeli government, criticism there of and what to do in this conflict. there's a larger conversation about inequities around the world. there are people who trace his history to october. or you could trace it back to the second intifada, wars of -- you can go back to the british empire, the ottoman empire, or back to nation states that existed and for thousand of years there was anti-semitism in many renals of the world. it predates and preexists -- totally apart from the israeli conflict. i say all that as a destruction to chuck schumer trying to speak to the nuances of this while also calling out something we have seen over and over in world history, which is an incredibly durable, vie rue lent -- anti-semitism, along before nation states like this one existed. here's chuck schumer. >> no matter what our beliefs, no matter where we stand on the were and gaza, all of us must condemn anti-semitism with full-throated clarity wherever we see it before it metastasizes into something even worse, because right now that's what you wish americans would hear most. >> martin, i'll give you the simple question, and you can solve this issue for us tonight, obviously. is anti-semitism a real problem as chuck schumer says in america and other parts of the world? does it only exist among certain groups? sometimes people think it's only on the far right or affiliated with certain religions. or is it a problem across wider ideologies and borders? >> the thing as you mentioned about history, looking how far do you go back? the problem with history is wherever you stop, there's always something that happened before. and anti-semitism has been around from -- it predates christianity. >> sure. >> so today i think that american jews and jews around the world are very correct in worrying this could be the beginning of something much greater. and the comparison i would make would be the 1933 in germany. what did the jews in germany think about anti-semitism then and what do jews think about it now? many jew, including my family, totally missed all the signs in 1933 and always thought, hitler's a passing phase. can't be that bad. it will get better. the difference between anti-semitism in germany in 1933 and anti-semitism in america and the world today is that that anti-semitism, the laws against the jews then were limited to germany in the beginning, the first few years. today we're seeing anti-semitism all over the world. i think it's a very scary time for jews, and i think that many people don't understand where jews are coming from. with the history the jews have of what minor steps against them can lead to, like, for instance, 6 million jews being murdered in the holocaust, half of all world jewry at the time. we're seeing questions raised, should we be concerned today at the signs we're seeing when we were not concerned then? and look what happened then. what could happen today? i think there's a legitimate fear among jews and people who support the jews and fairness in society in general. it's a very real fear, and i don't know how much other people who are not part of it really understand that. certainly these people demonstrating all across america and the world, from the river to the sea, lapd will be free -- many people say that's a political phrase about freedom and democracy. well, it isn't for hamas. for hamas it means kill the jews. eliminate israel. jews have to look at both those interpretations and say, which one do we believe? on past experience you better believe hamas. >> hmm. martin fletcher, drawing on all your experience, us a mentioned, your ties to this issue as well. we thank you, sir. >> thank you. >> important stuff. that's the late nest world news we tern to the u.s., with the top republican to ever exit current gop leadership in the current era. congressman cheney is making news with this book, where she writes about how her long time colleagues who seemed reasonable were ready to break the constitution for the most dangerous man to get into the oval. on the morning of the 6th, republicans were still whipping votes to reject to biden's election. it was a farce. one more trick they may have to do. she call out mark green saying, oh, the things we do for orange jesus. and mccarthy was betraying his views but saying, trump lost, we're going to get past this, and then he would go on fox and say this -- >> president trump won this election, so everyone who's listening, do not be quiet. do not be silent about this. we cannot allow this to happen before our very eyes. >> there were so many, cheney writes, that were basically saying, we'll get through it one more and one more and move on. they didn't move on. that brings me to a word on diet and trumpian depression that cheney relates. she says in mccarthy's visit to mar-a-lago where he tried to make up for mild criticism, things leaked about trump, came with kevin mccarthy trying to explain that visit as his way of bucking up a newly depressed loser of the election. mccarthy said, trump's not eating so they asked me to come see him. what? you went to mar-a-lago because trump's not eating? cheney asked. >> yeah, he's really depressed, mccarthy said. can't make it up. now, that's just some of the extra kind of details. some of it riveting or lurid from cheney's account. we know the legal stuff called to deal with donald trump through the legal process and criminal process. he awaits trial. she's said her piece. what does it mean she's filling in the details with back room story, and how does it intercept with the coup trial that's coming, that jack smith won a subpoena on the issues? i'm going complete my reporting. my thoughts on that when i'm back in 60 seconds. n seconds unresolved depression symptoms were in my way. i needed more from my antidepressant. vraylar helped give it a lift. adding vraylar to an antidepressant... is clinically proven to help relieve overall depression symptoms... ...better than an antidepressant alone. and in vraylar clinical studies, most saw no substantial impact on weight. elderly dementia patients have increased risk of death or stroke. report unusual changes in behavior or suicidal thoughts. antidepressants can increase these in children and young adults. report fever, stiff muscles, or confusion, as these may be life-threatening, or uncontrolled muscle movements, which may be permanent. high blood sugar, which can lead to coma or death, weight gain, and high cholesterol may occur. movement dysfunction and restlessness are common side effects. stomach and sleep issues, dizziness, increased appetite, and fatigue are also common. side effects may not appear for several weeks. i didn't have to change my treatment. i just gave it a lift. ask about vraylar and learn how abbvie could help you save. vlgs donald trump's failed coup -- on two fronts. liz cheney and the whole not eating business, we can get into with our esteemed guest in a moment, and the other win for lawyers evidence to try to get involved, urn the system on itself and demand they should get all these january 6th committee records. the judge rejected that as a fishing expedition. that goes to the many efforts of trump's lawyer. they have a right to fail moegs but there's a clear pattern of trying to create a circus rerun of the coup trial. to use the upcoming trial to litigate debunked claims that the election was stolen. now, special counsel jack smith made it clear they're going to argue, a, that kind of stuff isn't going to fly. this is not going to be a kind of a random podcast what about-ism session on whether trump was sort of right about the voter fraud stuff. they don't think that should fly. they're also arguing, the special counsel's office, that donald trump's personal belief about who won the election, apart from fraud discussion, those beliefs -- if he thought he really did win, legally they're irrelevant says jack smith. it's no different than a company executive facing fraud issues for using knowingly false statements and saying, oh, i really believed them. they back that up legally. we're going to hear a lot more about that when donald trump goes on trial by the argument that trump was using deceit and fraudulent documents, elector fraud, et cetera, to push people to steal the race, and that's the crime, even if -- and here's the kicker even if donald trump, quote, subjectively, like just in his own mind, believed that the election was, quote, rigged. this is a preview of the closing argument or opening argument, or really the through line of the whole trial. quote, trump stands alone smith prosecutors write. alone in american history for these alleged crimes. no other president engaged in conspiracy to overturn valid election results and illegitimately remain power. you heard the term valid election results. that's what trump lawyers are trying to chip away at if they can get a judge to agree to let their stuff in. they have been finding out over and over that jack smith has been cornering them and that this trial is not going to be twitter or x or whatever you want to call the platform elon musk bought that people don't use as much anymore. this is a courtroom. evidence is what will lead. we turn to two people who know all about evidence on all of this next. ♪ ♪ ♪ we're building a better postal service. for more on-time deliveries. and easier, affordable ways to ship. so you can deliver even more holiday joy. the united states postal service. delivering for america. alice loves the scent of gain so much, she wished there was a way to make it last longer. say hello to your fairy godmother alice and long-lasting gain scent beads. part of the irresistible scent collection from gain! 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(vo) for a limited time, turn any iphone in any condition into a new iphone 15 pro with titanium and ipad and apple watch se - all on us. that's up to $1700 in value. only on verizon. some facts. i'm a mom from virginia. i work with immigrants in israel as well as palestinians, and five members of my family were kidnaped by hamas on october 7th. two were brutally murdered and three are still being held. all i want, all anyone would want, is to hug them and hold them again. we demand medical care. we demand the release of the hostages from hamas terrorists. these are innocent women and children. return them to us, to their families. demand their release. hi, my name is damion clark. if you have both medicare and medicaid, i have some really encouraging news that you'll definitely want to hear. depending on the plans available in your area, you may be eligible to get extra benefits with a humana medicare advantage dual-eligible special needs plan. all of these plans include a healthy options allowance, a monthly allowance to help pay for eligible groceries, utilities, rent, and over-the-counter items. the healthy options allowance is loaded onto a prepaid card each month. and whatever you don't spend, carries over from each month. other benefits on these plans include free rides to and from your medical appointments. and our large networks of doctors, hospitals and pharmacies. so, call the number on your screen now and ask about a humana medicare advantage dual-eligible special needs plan. humana. a more human way to healthcare. 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(announcer) change your life at golo.com. that's golo.com. first time i connected with kim, she told me that her husband had passed. and that he took care of all of the internet connected devices in the home. i told her, “i'm here to take care of you.” connecting with kim... made me reconnect with my mom. it's very important to keep loved ones close. we know that creating memories with loved ones brings so much joy to your life. a family trip to the team usa training facility. i don't know how to thank you. i'm here to thank you. guess who's back? look at this. couldn't ask for a better panel. i mean that literally. maya wylie, former attorney at sdny. named her the 2023 chair of civil and human rights, and she's a legal analyst, as is our long time colleague alex wagner. welcome to both of you. >> it's a thrill and an honor. >> wow, look at that. positive vibes. >> i may never leave. >> maya, i'm going to start with you on the liz cheney of it all. some of those details are not legally super substantive which is why they're probably in the book and she did her other stuff first. and jack smith continues to try to corner donald trump to make this a circus trial. >> yes. >> your thoughts. >> i think what is particularly important about liz cheney's book it is really creates the incredible specific anecdotal story telling of just how much people like mccarthy knew and understood exactly who trump was, what he did, what it represented and yet still went out there and pretended like everything was fine. and while we already knew that -- didn't tell us anything that the january 6th committee hasn't told us -- i think it is important for reminding americans really what's at stake here, what the investigations and indictments are all about. and what they have to pay attention to, which is facts versus performance. because mccarthy has been doing a lot of public performing when she's spilling more tea about what he knew and understood and what he was saying about it. in terms of jack smith, yeah. donald trump is politicking here, trying to make more of a political argument than a legal one, i think. but the short answer is, jack smith's got receipts, and that's what counts at trial. >> the cheney book, though, as you mentioned not that explosive in terms of the law is juicy in terms of the tea. kevin mccarthy said he was going down to mar-a-lago not to pledge fealty to donald trump but was worried about him because he wasn't eating. and the guy who was the self-designated eating coach is mccarthy, speaker of the house. >> some special dieting? >> the idea that kevin mccarthy is the trump whisperer is laughable. i also think -- even before mike johnson was elected -- she finishes writing this book before mike johnson is elected speaker of the house and goes out of her way to name check mike johnson as an architect of republican despair, rounding up republican votes to send on a foolish am kus brief that even the supreme court didn't take seriously. before he was anybody, which was basically yesterday, liz cheney understood mike johnson to be a bad actor. the other thing that stood out to me was the way she mentions an anecdote with george w. bush with he behind the scenes writes her a note and effectively congratulates her for standing strong in the face of so much opposition and criticism. and i remember thinking all of yesterday that that's understandable and i suppose in some ways that's laudable for a former president to reach out and pledge his support, but why behind the scenes? if you george w. bush are not going to make your -- your disdain and dismay known now, when then? right? the former president, as you talk about often on your show, this show, tried to stage a coup, tried to -- the constitution. you're not going to raise your hand and say that's wrong, what's the point of passing a note to liz cheney? >> i think you put that well. some of these stories can be offered as, this happened. isn't this interesting? and there's layers i'm not sure everyone has completely accounted for of how you're going to look. another one that's in that vein -- let's not forget, these are lawmakers. they write laws that send people to prison, get people executed, send people off to die. cheney's history with that, she's saying, i'm defending democracy. then you have other folks who admit they are so afraid of the very people who stormed the capitol, right -- this is how things get worse. this is how you lose a democracy. there's nothing new about political activism in the united states. if you're going to send other people off to die and ask the capitol police to protect you, what does it mean when, as cheney writes, one republican told cheney he knew what trump did was unimpeachable, but he was afraid voting to impeach would put his wife and new baby in danger? maya? >> that's why democracy is in danger, because you create a culture like donald trump created which, one, says there will be retribution if you're not loyal to me. right? that's what a lot of what we've seen from donald trump is created. but also his power in the party is about the fact that so many people will act, including the way they acted on january 6th, if he sends the right signal. but that means not only do you have a party these enabled norm breaking, it's also enabled law breaking, and it's created a choke hold on democracy that says, everyone when we know it's wrong and dangerous, for whatever reason, whether it's our power or our fear, we're going to stay silent and go along with the lie. >> and you get the sense that that sentiment -- i know it's wrong, but i'm just worried about my own personal career or family or safety -- the personal has so trumped the national, and i imagine she talks about mitch mcconnell in there. she doesn't have -- it's not exactly a stinging rebuke, but it a gentle rebuke, i suppose, because mcconnell fully understood what trump did, was ready to hold him accountable and, that sentiment dissipated over time. there are a number of republican who is feel the same way, though they may not articulate it in words. they know what's happening is wrong here. the personal grievances, values, concerns trump has is good for the country, and it's apockry fall. >> go ahead. >> one point we have to make, especially after koch brother endorsement of nikki haley, because now suddenly trumpism is too extreme, is to forget the rot begins with the attack on voting rights that starts after barack obama wins. the notion you can rule rigged to get the outcome you want is really the underpinning of what becomes the big lie on january 6th. i just think it's important to note that, because that has also been very partisan in terms of who's going to rule rigging and who defends it on grounds that are not supportable in term of whether or not our elections are safe and fair. you just got to come back to the place where there was bipartisanship around things, democracy where the people decide and the rules matter and they have to be fair. >> yeah, and so to take that -- that's the substance and the law, and the trial is going -- the coup trial march is going to do what it does. we talk to folks, interviewed people, talk to people on air and off, and there is a concern among the reality based people who want to win republican elections, and they're concerned if trump is convicted, everyone if he is not incarcerated by november, that being convicted is bad, it hurts him with a certain number of groups. if he's locked in as the nominee, it will be bad for the republican party. that's one piece. the other is -- if he get a mistrial, i don't think the doj on precedent -- you can weigh in -- will run it again. jack smith ran the edwards trial, they got a mistrial, didn't run it again. if you're a big picture prominent former government official, it's one and done, and if he were to get a mistrial, meaning not be convicted, it will play not only to the hard right as that great validaing win -- a lot of other people will go in the poll, they didn't convict. there's nothing there. there's a long ways from beyond a reasonable doubt to there's nothing there. >> i don't traffic in hypotheticals, ari. i honestly think the thing i'm most concerned about in terms of the trial is the appeals process and the delays, because, you know -- i won't get into all the weeds here, but there are a number of things that need to be decided by the d.c. circuit court, judge chutkan, before that trial can go to trial in march. there are those who believe judge chutkan wants to keep this thing on the track for march. she may not be able to. what concerns me is not guilty a mistrial, not a conviction, but an ongoing series -- >> if i may. >> you're the lawyer. i just play one on television. >> a proverbial hanging chad, to bring back a painful election memory. >> listen, no, actually, bush/gore is a great example of how the supreme court and how the appeals process can work quickly should they choose to. it's an open question about whether the american voter in nonpartisan fashion gets to know whether the man is -- the likely nominee is a convicted felon or not. should be some expediting here. >> i have to fit in a break. i want to tell everyone -- this is such a great combo. i'd like to see this combo again. >> you won't. just kidding. you might. we're not living. that's all i meant. >> here or anywhere. and what we call in the business a deep tease -- >> we used that phrase once. >> teasing ahead to something we're going to do later. later by tend of the hour. not only does alex wagner come back, but we're going to talk about why loneliness is actually something important to deal with in american life, which is not something that always gets attention. and i have something to say, a bone to pick with pod coffee. okay? that's by the end of the hour. thanks to both of you. let me tell folks what's coming up. new heat on george santos, facing another vote to boot him from congress. but first -- i need alex to help me with this. first, donald trump caught on tape again playing himself and lying about trump tower. and i saved hundreds. with the money i saved, i started a dog walking business. oh. [dog barks] no it's just a bunny! only pay for what you need. ♪liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.♪ hi. i use febreze fade defy plug. and i use this. febreze has a microchip to control scent release so it smells first-day fresh for 50 days. 50 days!? and its refill reminder light means i'll never miss a day of freshness. ♪ ♪ mnemonic ♪ ♪ ♪ what is cirkul? cirkul is the fuel you need to take flight. cirkul is the energy that gets you to the next level. cirkul is what you hope for when life tosses lemons your way. cirkul. it's your water, your way. ian will find the true meaning of the holiday sweater. i will? because he went to michaels and got everything he needed to make a one of a kind crewneck you could never get off the rack. turn ideas into i-did-its. ♪ (holiday music) ♪ i show this apartment to very few people. presidents, kings. let me give you a little tour. >> okay. >> come on up. they walk in, they look around, and they really can't believe what they're seeing. >> very few people get to see. that unless you're watching tv, in which case everyone gets to see it. that was trump on the apprentice, his penthouse. one of the properties at the center of a civil fraud trial that could cost him and his company a ton of money. they were lying about the value of it. inflating. it was not double but triple its actually size. trump org statements claim it was 30,000 square feet, while new audio from the same year has trump saying this to forbes -- >> the entire floor, all around the building all around the outer, and i have three times three. so there's, like, 11,000 feet on a floor, so i have 33,000 and then i have the roof. >> and then without a renovation, donald trump's apartment supposedly shrank. in 2017, the company listed it as 11,000 square feet, which is its actual size by the way, if you're curious about that, according to the evidence we have, and that they estimated was about $116 llio well, what happened? forbes reported donald trump has been lying about the size of his penthouse and the press pressure, if you will, pressed him into that change. then went trump took the stand in the trial under oath, he admitted the earlier valuation was actually too high, but he testified, i have heard, obviously, because of the trial they say, 11,000 to 12,000 to 13,000 feet. even the correction of a place he lives is still like a floating estimate. is it fraud? that's what the trial is supposed to figure out. donald trump will take the stand in his defense december 11th. as i pensioned george santos is facing another expulsion vote, and that one might be the one that boots him out of congress. that's next. f congress that's next. de-licka what? delectables. delickables? delectables. delickable delectables. yes, just hurry! hm. it must be delicious. got it. delectables lickable treat. ♪ deliciously de-lick-able delectables ♪ what did we do before viasat satellite internet? well... we borrowed. we borrowed the internet. but that was before viasat came out with all their new plans. yup. lots of internet now. plenty for everyone. learn more about our plans at viasat.com shingles. the rash can feel like pulsing, electric shocks and last for weeks. a pain so intense, you could miss out on family time. the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. 50 years or older? ask your doctor about shingles. i think i'm ready for this. 50 years or older? heck ya! with e*trade you're ready for anything. marriage. kids. college. kids moving back in after college. ♪ here's to getting financially ready for anything! and here's to being single and ready to mingle. who's ready to cha-cha?! the political class in washington, d.c., they want to send me home. if they think this was a fair process, if they think this is how it should be done and if they're confident this is the constitutional way of doing it, god bless their hearts. indicted republican congressman george santos speaking as he faces another vote about expelling him. this one after an ethics report which has tons of damning information. the question, will the house expel him? if you're wondering, expel is congressional speak for fall back. with that it is time for a special edition of fall back. award winning singer and songwriter who burst on the scene after winning the 2021 npr tiny desk concert. ♪ we can taste our dreams on the tip of our tongues ♪ ♪ and in our eyes we can do no wrong ♪ ♪ dance in the river, dance in the river ♪ >> beautiful. aren't you thinking about maybe turning off the news, pulling up that album, right? >> why is this desk so big? >>. [ laughter ] good one. i will say that she's been credited for a unique and nostalgic blend of folk, r&b and soul. the new e.p. is scheduled for release early next year, and that's not all. we're joined by our nbc colleague and star alex wagner and the author of "future faith requests, which president obama call a beautiful meditation on what makes us who we are. you cannot cameo an obama blurb. you cannot buy that. that's real. she's interviewed everyone from hillary clinton to bernie sanders to trevor noah. she's a veteran of cbs news, the atlantic magazine, and we should mention was -- did you know this? executive editor -- >> editor-in-chief -- >> sounds similar. editor-in-chief of the fader magazine. such a fitting pair. thanks to both of you for being here. >> thank you for having me again. it's great. >> we'll let alex go first because she's hometown and then we'll go to you. when's on your fall back list? >> the world health organization is now calling loneliness a global health concern. i'm glad you guys are both here with me to talk about this. >> i'm not mad at that. >> they think it's bad for your health and has the same sort of effect on your mortality as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. >> wow. >> which is something, right? i mean, there's the practical effect of being lonely, which is maybe boredom or profound existential despair, but the fact that it has a realtime effect on your system i think means it's worth paying more attention to, and i don't mean to be too hallmarky about this, but as we head into the holiday season, a season of merriment, rockefeller tree lighting, but for a lot of people it's a lonely time, a very sad time, and i think it also be a profoundly lonely time. and a very sad time. and i think it helps when i hear this, but if you have a neighbor or a friend who is out there who you know is by themselves in this journey we call life, however temporarily or permanently, check in on them. call them. go get coffee. see them. it really matters to extend your hand to a fellow human. i think we often lose sight of our shared humanity and this report brought it home for me. >> i so appreciate you bringing this. this is why we try to have these conversations of fall back. holiday is coming up. can be a joyous time or alone, newly alone, grieving, we can think about that. i love you saying that. that's earnest. young thug, facing a trial, did say pick up the phone. pick up the phone. >> that's honestly either the world health organization or young thug i get my directives from. >> let's not forget travis scott on the track, okay? >> more young thug for me than travis scott, not saying just saying. >> respect. you're not a sickomode conversation. >> we're not going on record. >> welcome. what's on your fall back list? >> on my fall back list is pay and equity in music. i believe that there's such a lack of equity that is received by musicians across streaming muse you can platforms. i believe that there needs to be a larger payout distributed to musicians, specifically independent musicians to get their fair pay and for the hard work they put into their music. and i am so lucky to be comrades with a really blooming and budding music community of musicians that are my age, of my generation. and i want to see us all win. and i think the core of that begins with the unshackling of -- i truly believe it's the unshackling of our. >> your creative process. >> yeah, our creative process. >> and potential, earning potential. >> yeah. >> and you have rules where somebody sits somewhere and says you get this much or that much. hollywood just went through the first strike in a long time to press that. music is a different fields. it's not unionized in the same way, aren't gatherings the same way. i'm curious, can you share with us a little bit about an artist gets a little streams how little money might finally get into their pocket. >> it's something that is not really talked about. so musicians specifically independent ones who aren't signed to labels get a fraction of a penny that is received at the end of a quarter. and so that isn't enough to support living, earnings or anything of that matter. so, i think there needs to be a revolution. >> i don't want to go before your time, but there is an artist, his name is snoop doggie dog. he is older. he's closer to my age. facts. but he said this type of thing happens all the time. everybody has their cup but they ain't chipped in. in that case he was talking about sharing a gin and juice cocktail, alex. but it seems like some of these giant companies which many are international, multinational corporations haven't chipped in. they didn't create the thing that makes everyone go to their app, right? many other people, yourself included, are the ones creating. >> well, i also think we take music for granted. it's kind of omnipresent in our lives whether it's sound tracks, jingles, department store jams, whatever it is, not that anybody is in department stores anymore. in a way we don't necessarily take a film for granted or television show. but there's an amount of production and creative energy that goes into music, which should be, you know, compensated for. and i think the big companies themselves are terrified of new technology. but really it's about reprioritizing what matters and understanding that music is creative output that demands revisions and productions and fellow artists and is a building process inherently that requires time and energy and needs resources dedicated to it, not just creative ones but financial ones. >> yeah. >> the more you can bring this up, again, especially in the holiday season, when we're all singing along. you're listening to your favorite mariah carey holiday album. >> speak on it. no career tips here, but you can get your body of work associated annually with the largest holiday in the world. >> put in the reboot of "love actually," is it in there? i don't even know. but it's -- you're so talented and your voice is so extraordinary. >> thank you very much. >> you deserve all the accolades. we want to make a world where, you know, you don't have to worry about holding down the second or third job to continue what is a gift to all of us. >> thank you so much. >> yeah. i appreciate you coming on and using your time to advocate for fellow artists. thank you for being here. >> thank you for having me. >> absolutely. alex wagner, twice in one show. tune in tonight 9:00 p.m. eastern to check out alex wagner and we will be right back. ack. make the switch. it's your business. it's your verizon. kevin, where are you?! kevin?!?!?.... hey, what's going on? i'm right here! i was busy cashbacking for the holidays with chase freedom unlimited. you know i can't believe you lost another kevin. it's a holiday tradition! earn big time with chase freedom unlimited. how do you cashback? chase. make more of what's yours. with cirkul, your water is deliciously flavored at the turn of a dial, with zero sugar and zero calories. and cirkul has over 40 flavors, so your water can be as unique as you are. try cirkul. your water, your way. now with even more flavors. available at walmart or drinkcirkul.com. 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"the reidout" with joy reid starts now. ♪♪