Transcripts For KNTV Meet The Press 20140519

Va secretary Eric Shinseki says hes mad as hell about whats been uncovered, but that isnt stopping calls for him to resign. What reforms are needed to ensure this never happens again . From nbc news in washington, the worlds longest running television program, this is meet the press with david gregory. And good sunday morning. Well begin with the story thats been dominating much of the political conversation all week long and thats karl roves attack on Hillary Clinton. Is this just the start of a republican strategy to persuade her not to run . Our own Andrea Mitchell is here with more on this. Good morning. Good morning to you, david. This week there is no longer any doubt that some powerful republicans are playing hardball against Hillary Clinton raising questions about her age and her health, even before she decides whether shes a candidate. Reporter it all started when karl rove once called bushs brain said Hillary Clinton suffered traumatic brain injury after a 2012 fall and concussion. In baseball terms, it looked like a brush back pitch, perhaps to scare clinton from even running. We dont know what the doctor said about, you know, what does she have to be concerned about, we dont know about shes hidden a lot. Reporter team clinton took it seriously enough to bring out their heavy hitter. First they said she faked her concussion, and now they say shes auditioning for a part on the walking dead. Reporter the republican playbook, first a not so innocent item in Rupert Murdochs new york post. The page 6 gossip column. As expected it went viral, the Washington Post, New York Times, and beyond. Hillary clinton versus karl rove. Last week karl came out swinging. Its sometimes a little bit difficult for the Mainstream Media to on its own say, gee, is her age a legitimate topic of public debate. Reporter republicans were already attacking clinton or her handling of ben ghazi and even bow cohar ram. One republican operative said karl is either an evil genius or just evil. He doesnt make mistakes. He takes whispers and rumors and things with no substance and turning them into news stories. This is a legitimate issue. The Health Issues of a president ial candidate nearing 70 have always been part of the debate, and its not going to be disallowed no matter how hard the Clinton Campaign tries. Caller clinton will turn 69 two weeks before the 2016 election. Ronald reagan was eight months older when he ran in 1980. I would expect to see a lot of attacks like this, age or health, without any foundation whatsoever, and also ones that go more subtly to the issue of gender and whether a woman can really do this job. Reporter but this woman who describes herself as cracking the Glass Ceiling i think we should crack it also. I am 100 in favor of that. Reporter is already getting more than her share of curveballs, and its only the preseason for 2016. And we should note that some republicans, including Newt Gingrich think that roves attacks are out of line and could even backfire, especially as the gop is trying to compete for women voters. David . Andrea, thank you so much. Im now joined by Reince Priebus, the chair of the Republican National committee. Welcome back to meet the press. Good morning, david. What about those republicans saying this is over the line. Should karl rove apologize . Its up to karl rove. Hes a political operative. But do you think it was over the line . Look, i think health and age is fair game. It was fair game for ronald reagan. Its fair game with john mccain. When people came at john mccain and said maybe hes li psychologically not fit because he was a prisoner of war. There was innuendo, there was a suggestion about hes just not his brain doesnt work right or in this case its her brain may not work right and shes hiding something about it. Was that over the line . I dont think theres a graceful way to bring up age, health, and fitness for a candidate that wants to be president of the United States. I think the more important issue for me as leader of this party is whats the record of Hillary Clinton . What was her record as a secretary of state, benghazi, bow cohar ram, syria. Those are the issues sgroo but we can get to that. But karl rove doesnt do things by accident. What he injected was an attack into the firmament of the republican grassroots. Youre head of the party. Would you like to side step away from this or would you like to double down . No, its not a matter of side step for double down. Its going to be an issue. Its going to come up. Were going to be at this point at some time if Hillary Clinton runs for president. The issue of her health and her age is going to come up do you think shes suffering some sort of brain injury that raises legitimate questions about whether shes healthy to serve as commander in chief . Im not a doctor. What i do know is the issue will come up as it does for any person running for president. What i think is going to make her rethink whether she should actually run for president by the way, i dont actually think she will bif she had another month like she just had but the issues i just talked about thats what i want to follow up on. The month she just said. Gail collins writing in the New York Times, im going to put a portion up and get your response. For the right, clinton is responsible for nearly everything bad that occurs in the world including the terrible kidnapping of the Nigerian School girls which happened because benghazi made us look weak or because the state department never formally des sig knitted bow cohar ram as a foreign terrorist organization. Somewhere right now someone is working on a story that will reveal that Hillary Clinton started the elevator fight between jay z and his sisterinlaw. Is the mission to persuade her not to run . Its not the mission. But shes coming out with a book called hard choices or Something Like that. Shaetion ma shes made a series of bad choices. Benghazi shouldnt be swept under the rug. Boko haram. These people have over 200 girls in nigeria. The syria issue. Just to be clear because there will be a lot of followup, are you suggesting that somehow Hillary Clinton as act secretary of state who started an independent review of what happened at benghazi was trying to sweep it under the rug . She is trying to sweep benghazi under the rug. She absolutely is. If you want any evidence ask the families of people who lost their sons in benghazi. Theyve talked plenty about what happened in benghazi. The fact it doesnt mean she swept it under the rug. They may be dissatisfied when senator johnson tried to ask her questions about benghazi and her response was what difference does it make, i assure you it will be an issue if she decides to run. My issue though given the month she just had, i doubt whether or not she will run for president in 2016. I know a lot of people around her want her to run, and i think that theyre purposely creating this environment around here which is causing us to talk about her today. Is she the candidate that you as the head of the Republican Party most fear . No. Actually i dont fear i think hillary is a known product. Actually i think its sometimes worse running against a blank slate. Hillary has decades of history for us to explore. You know, her role in hillary care when she was first lady. Her senate experience where theres nothing significant to point to. And her secretary of state experience which is not just not significant, but theres all kinds of problems for her. All right, chairman priebus, always good to have you. Thank you for being here. Thank you, sir. Well continue this turning to senator claire mckas skicacc democrat from missouri. Do you think karl rove should apologize . I think karl rove is struggling to be relevant. This is a guy who took hundreds of millions of other peoples money in the last cycle and had abject failure. So i think hes trying to be part of the conversation. I think we all know what this is. Its a cheap political shot. Its the kind of politics that kind of make people not want to participate, and its too bad. We see a lot of this around, and i have to ask you what happens on the democratic side of the ledger as well. Harry reid, the majority leader in your body, in the senate, has said this about the Koch Brothers and their efforts to raise money and influence the political debate. Let me show that. Are the Koch Brothers right to degrade our democratic process . Its too bad that theyre trying to buy america, and its time that the American People spoke out against this terrible dishonesty of these two brothers who are about as unamerican as anyone that i can imagine. Calling political opponents unamerican. Is that along the same lines as what karl rove did . Well, you know, i dont think that is something i am totally comfortable with. I get why harry reid is very frustrated with the Koch Brothers. I think the problem here, david, is not that the Koch Brothers want to spend their fortune on trying to buy elections. The problem is that so much of it is secret and dirty, dark, secret money. The American People have a right to know who is funding campaigns, and thats the problem that we have tried to fix, and the republicans continually block. That is, making all of this money come out into the light of day. As you look at secretary of state clinton, how she handled some of the questions that have emerged about benghazi or even about her health. As you know, a question for any candidate. Do you think she could have done better . Should she do more to be completely transparent . Listen, this is a strong, smart leader who is going to be a terrific president , and i dont care what Reince Priebus says. They do not want Hillary Clinton because they know she is going to ignite a spark of enthusiasm across this country, and she has got the strongest resume for president of anyone who has run in a very long time. So i really think shes answered all of the questions about benghazi. Shes the one who called for an independent investigation, and, of course, her frustration when she said it doesnt matter was because she wants to make sure this doesnt happen again, and it was the republicans that were blocking funding for embassy security. Thats why she was frustrated. Senator, youre an interesting figure politically with regard to the clintons. Back in 2006 you told my colleague Jeffrey Goldberg then in the new yorker this, Hillary Clinton is a sensitive subject for mccaskill. She has told people in missouri and washington that a ticket led by clinton would be fetal for democrats on the ballot because you didnt think she could win missouri. I came out with two other prominent women to endorse barack obama at the same time Hillary Clinton could have made history in 2008 and yet now youre one of the first people to endorse her. What has changed over this arc of time that makes her so formidable in your mind now when she wasnt before . Well, i think she was formidable then. It was just a very tough choice. We had two amazing candidates, and it was a difficult primary for our party because they were both so extraordinary. Now she has the experience of secretary of state. I think she has enhanced her resume. Shes learned so much about how you win these campaigns. She knows how to ignore all the cheap shots and stay focused on the American People and the opportunity that everybody deserves. So i just think its her time, and im excited to try to be a part of it. Reince priebus said after this past month she may think twice. Do you think Hillary Clinton will think twice and not run given whats headed her way . Listen, we do not know for certain that Hillary Clinton is going to run, but theres one thing i know for certain, karl rove engaging in cheap shots is not going to back off Hillary Clinton. All right. Senator mccaskill, well leave it there. Thanks so much for your time. Thank you. Now, well turn to another big story of the week. In a surprise move, the New York Times fired one of the most senior women in american journalism, executive editor jail abramson. Its raising questions about equal pay for men and women and the treatment of female leaders in positions of leadership. Abramson is due to give the commencement address at Wake Forest University tomorrow. Theres where rehema ellis is for us this morning. Reporter the stage is set at Wake Forest University for commencement speech to remember. Everyone is talking about it. It should be really exciting. Its going to be bigger than all of us. It will be a pivotal moment. Reporter Jill Abramson may be in a fighting mood. Her daughter posted this picture of her 60yearold mother on instagram pushy. As executive editor of the New York Times abramson was one of the most powerful women in journalism until last week when she was abruptly fired after less than three years on the job. While there are reports that abramson was terminated after she questioned whether she was paid as much as her male predecessors, in a strongly worded Statement Issued saturday, the newspapers publisher denied that allegation saying, i decided that jill could no longer remain as executive editor for reasons having nothing to do with pay or gender. I concluded that her management of the newsroom was simply not working out. That ignited a furious debate on social media about whether a sexist double standard was in play. While others were asking, maybe the grievances against her are justified . Why treat women as victims . A recent study on gender differences and leadership styles found that women are perceived as being less competent, more apologetic, which raises the question when women break from perceptions, are they penalized . Theres a double standard. Reporter Kathy Phillips is the incoming senior vice dean of the columbia business school. Theres a lot of backlash when a woman speaks up, when shes assertive and confident. That doesnt happen if a man does the same thing. Reporter abramsons commencement address will be her first public appearance since she was abruptly dismissed. The University President says he cant think of a better and more timely message for the graduates of 2014. That class here is made up of 4,800 students, 50 of them men, 50 of them women. Who will probably be listening closely to her every word. David. Thanks so much. Im joined by nbc news maria shriver, carolyn ryan, Washington Bureau chief of the New York Times, and carly feor reno, former ceo of hewlettpackard. Shes now global chair of opportunity international. Welcome to all of you. Maria, we have been talking about this. The facts of Jill Abramson may be murkier now, right, not completely resolved . The larger question about equal pay, about equal treatment for women in leadership is a conversation that will go on independent of Jill Abramsons circumstances. What do you think . Absolutely. I think this is a teachable moment. We dont know the facts of Jill Abramsons situation, but pay discrimination, pay inequity does exist. Its like global warming. Only a frung finge few deny its existence. It particularly affects women in low income jobs, women of color, 57 cents on the dollar. Its one of the reasons 1 in 3 women in this country, working women, are on the brink of poverty. Things can change that, passage of the fair paycheck fairness act can change that. I think this is also a teachable moment for women in leadership. How do women lead . What is their style . Are they judged differently . I think they are, and women have to decide for themselves what kind of leaders do they want to be . Can they withstand what being called certain names . How can they survive in the workplace . And thats one of the issues here. Carolyn ryan, youre Washington Bureau chief for the New York Times. Im put you on the spot by even asking the question, you look at her management style, tough editor obviously. So many women are telling each other time to lean in, time to get over selfconfidence. Is the culture ready for that . In terms of the culture, the one thing i worry a little bit about is it feels like theres all this legitimate pent up frustration among women about broader sexism issues, and i worry a little bit with this story that its essentially become a chair couture. So you have Jill Abramson, who is an extraordinary journalistic thinker and one of the best brains of her generation, formidable intellect, and now shes being caricatured as a victim, and the New York Times, which is essentially its major News Department is being run by women day to day is being caricatured as a bastion of sexism which isnt true and hasnt been my experience there. So i just worry that theres a way that much of the frustration gets transferred onto the story that isnt accurate. Is this a case i mean, now youre seeing publicly in the New York Times essentially being very clear about why they fired her, about management problems, how she was treating people, her manner with colleagues, publicly embarrassing them. Its gotten pretty acrimonious. Does anything strike you about this as being a double standard . Would a man be treated the same way upon an exhibit . Absolutely not. The most obvious example is the announcement about her departure. Here is a woman who having been told she has an abrasive style, how many times have women heard that . Shes been a distinguished reporter for the New York Times and editor for three years. There is not a single word in her departure announcement about her contribution, about her record, about her time at the New York Times. She is excised from history. No more lectures, please, from the New York Times about the treatment of women. Arthur salzburger, the more he talks, the more clear it becomes to me that, of course, she was treated differently. Whatever the issues in the newsroom were, the dynamics about her departure would not have been the same for a man. I mean, not here to speak for the newspaper. I think jill is known as a truth teller, and i think she wa wanted people talk about her departure. I think she wanted it to be clear she was being fired. She didnt want the ceremonial there wasnt a single positive comment about her in her statement of departure, not thank you for your time, not thank you for a wonderful record of service to the New York Times, not a word. That is disrespect can i in the most public forum. I want to ask maria because when you and i were talking about this this weekend, i raised this as well. I have an 8yearold daughter. Fast forward to the point shes in her early 20s, the advice i might give her about getting into this business i know something about that can be pretty rough and tumble. What qualities would i want her to have . I want her to be true to herself but i also would want her to have the toughness to deal with what shed have to face in an industry still dominated by men, which would create a certain toughness i think any advice you give your daughter today about the workplace shes going to walk into will be outdated. The fact is the United States of America Needs to modernize its laws to help women stay in the workforce. We dont have paid leave. Thats one of the reasons that women drop out and then come back to lower paying jobs. In the shriver report, we reported that if we close the pay gap, we would cut poverty in half in this country at half a trillion dollars to the economy. So i think we need to have these discussions about leadership, about how women are treated, about the pay gap. We need to talk about modernizing our law so that young women can grow up and work and still take care of their families, still be treated with respect, be judged for who they are as leaders and human beings as opposed to women or men. But very quickly, carly, in terms of what women case in leadership in situations, do you think its going to change . Do you think its going to be outdated . It is changing. We see more women in positions of leadership. When i became the ceo of hewlettpackard, i was one out of the fortune 50. We now have 12. Clearly things are Getting Better and yet women remain the most subjugated people on the face of the earth. Women remain an underutilized resource and may i say politics is part of the problem here. When liberals use women as a political cudgel, when they basically say if you dont support our liberal orthodoxy on all these issues, youre waging a war on women, thats disrespectful to women, we are half of this great nation. Every issue is a womans issue. The dynamics around women are different than the dynamics around men. New york times, exhibit a. Were going to leave it there. Thank you. Coming up, well look ahead at some crucial primaries coming up. Big political week across the country as well as a discussion of a political debate we saw this week like i dont think youre ever going to see for some time. Im about as politically correct as your proverbial tur d in a punch bowl. I think half of the predicting the future is a pretty difficult thing to do. But, manufacturing in the United States means advanced technology. We learned that Technology Allows us to be craft oriented. No ones losing their job. Theres no beer robot that has suddenly chased them out. The technology is actually creating new jobs. Siemens designed and built the right tools and resources to get the job done. I got lots of advice, but i needed information i could trust. Unitedhealthcares innovative, Simple Program helps moms stay on track with their doctors to get the right care and guidance. anncr vo thats health in numbers. Unitedhealthcare. When folks think about wthey think salmon and energy. But the energy bp produces up here creates Something Else as well jobs all over america. Engineering and innovation jobs. Advanced Safety Systems technology. Shipping and manufacturing. Across the United States, bp supports more than a quarter million jobs. When we set up operation in one part of the country, people in other parts go to work. Thats not a coincidence. Its one more part of our commitment to america. An important week coming up. We are two days away from the closest thing to a super tuesday well see before novembers elections. In a moment were going to go to our round table to discuss that. First, our nbc political director chuck todd is here with his first read on the week ahead of politics. Chuck t. As you know, it is super tuesday, or the closest thing we have. Six states coast to coast will vote in primaries and it showcases all the Big National Story lines of this election season. Reporter stir line number one, the battle for the soul of the gop. Three states tuesday will feature the latest round in the Tea Party Versus establishment primaries. A battle the establishment has been winning. In kentucky, republican matt bevan has struggled in his quest to oust Mitch Mcconnell. But keep an eye on the size of the antimcconnell gop vote. It wont be easy for him to get these folks back. In georgias senate, two Tea Party Congressmen have faded. Its three establishment backed candidates that are fighting for the top two slots in the july runoff. And in idahos second house district, mike simpson appears poised to survive his tea party challenge. The tea party could go 0 for 3 tuesday. Story line number two, democrats and women. Both as candidates and voters. The party is counting on them to save their senate majority. Michelle nun in georgia and Allison Grimes in kentucky are among a strong group of female candidates for the democrats this year. But republicans have a good story to tell here, too. There are some potentially Strong Female Senate Candidates in places like west virginia, iowa, michigan, and after tuesday oregon may be added to that list. Both nun, daughter of sam, and grimes, daughter of a powerful longtime Kentucky Power broker, are part of another key 2014 theme. Democrats banking on famous or powerful political families to win in red states. Other key dynasty candidates or tuesdays ballot, mark pryor in arkansas, son of david. And say jojason carter in georg grandson of jimmy. Finally, the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to the health care law. Kentuckys state exchange has been a success story, but out west in oregon, not so much. The gop hopes that states troubled Health Insurance exchange helps elect republicans to statewide office. Something they havent done since 2002. In fact, the republican candidate that oregon could end up nominating is a medical doctor. So, david, they see a real opportunity there to suddenly Bring Health Care back onto the National Stage in oregon. Chuck, thanks very much. To get a sense of how some of these themes are playing around the country, our Kevin Tibbles went to lexington, kentucky, where one of the big primaries chuck just talked about will take place tuesday. It is todays installment of meeting america. Reporter they still call lexington with its bluegrass and ponies the Horse Capital of the world. The Historic Downtown now bustles with rejuvenation and people. And with the hotly con vested republican prescribe marry between long serving Senate Leader Mitch Mcconnell and matt bevin just a few days away we came to listen to the thoughts and concerns over issues facing the country. Oh, the american stories this old building could tell. Theyve been distilling spirits on this site since 1780 when the nation was in its infancy. But modern day government red tape rankles jeff weissman, owner of barrel house distill g distilling. Theres no better place than america. Unfortunately, we have so many government regulations on us that its cumbersome. Reporter so this is aged in used bourbon barrels. Reporter thats very nice. Weissman wants his small distillery to thrive and grow and hire more people. A message he says cant be heard over all the bipartisan bickering in washington. I think the heated rhetoric is okay if at the end of the day you can sit down and have a bourbon together and work something out. Reporter putting people to work seems a common theme. I think the American Dream got put on hold. Reporter outside lexington, crystal conway manages one of the commonwealths many prosperous horse farms. This time of year doting moms keep a close eye on their foals. Crystals not a fan of the Affordable Care act. She says with obamacare, government has become too invasive. In a lot of ways i think we are losing our freedom. Theyre getting involved in too many of my decisions. They shouldnt be able to tell me how im going to a lot my paycheck each week. Reporter a recent nbc news maris poll found most in kentucky, like crystal, do not like obamacare even though many who voiced an opinion do support their staterun health exchange. Just as many didnt know it existed. North Carolinians Robert and Mary Ruth Smith are retired. Theyve stopped by the barrel house distillery for a tour and a taste and now a talk. The system is cracked, maybe broken. I think we have two houses that dont work as much together in trying to do what is right for the country. Thats my opinion. Reporter like grandparents everywhere, they look to the future and have concerns. My kids and grand kids. It will be hard to get out there and find a good job i think even with good education. Reporter in kentucky, as in the rest of america, elections approach. They have weathered recession and have not been broken. Americans can overcome. Reporter but they want their representatives to acknowledge how hard theyve worked. For meet the press, Kevin Tibbles. Kevin, thanks so much. The round table is here. Chuck todd who you just saw, carolyn ryan is back as well from the New York Times. Also with us dr. Ben carson, a neurosurgeon now retired from medicine who is making waves in republican politics to say the least. His new book is one nation what we can all do to save americas future. Also here former democratic senator blanche lincoln. Weve been talking about the midterm. What is going to define what this race comes down to . Are we going to battle about health care, immigration, or is it really just about president obama . Well, interestingly enough, its about more than all of those things. As i have been traveling around the country, what i have discovered is that people recognize that this is a pivotal election. This one and the one in 2016 in terms of what kind of nation do we ever cover nations that arent pivotal moments for our country . I think this is more pivotal. What is at stake . What is at stake is what kind of place is america going to be . Are we truly an exceptional nation with a different core of values than the rest of the world . Is that what led us to the pinnacle position in the world . Are we a nation thats for and by the people or for and by the government. Thats what this election is about. It gets to this larger thing about has obama weakened america . Here at home or abroad . The stakes are high, okay . The Obama Presidency arguably is on the line. He gets a Democratic Senate and domestically has a chance of doing something potentially. If the republicans get control of the senate, domestically you could argue his presidency is over and at this point its like the last two years of bush presidency where he is going to be forced to just focus on foreign policy. But the difference i think i see out there from 06 and 10, the last two midterms we saw big change is i think the public has given up on washington, and i think you are seeing were seeing enthusiasm down particularly with the middle of the electorate and were seeing a lack of passion out there. And i think that this election is going to be defined by an electorate that has given up, that washington and politicians what do you think, senator, having left politics . Well, i think that whats going to be critical for people is results and thats what theyre really looking for, and yet i think chuck is really right, that theyre kind of seeing just the bottom of the barrel, its the scum, washington cant produce that. Youve got a lot of primaries out there right now that are going to be tough. I went through one. Youre going to see the republicans in a couple of those primaries beating each other up, and its going to make it tough in the general election. So i think people are looking for results, and i think theyre really, really concerned about whether or not washington can bring them. Yet theres so much focus even about Hillary Clinton. Were fast forwarding to what her leadership would be about or even what her campaign would be about. This is a fascinating dynamic because shes going to go on this book tour, which is really kind of a Trial Campaign starting next month, and one thing thats fascinating to me if you listen to her speeches just in the past few weeks, how does she handle barack obama because she doesnt seem to be running as the third term barack obama. She seems to be running as the third term for bill clinton, and what does that mean for a white house that is already weakened, that is at risk of losing the senate. If you sort of have this democratic figure, this democratic icon out there who starts to pull all the energy of the party toward her in 2016 she had an odd statement on friday where she was asked about the midterms and she just said something very distant. It was something about, you know, well, people are going to be making some choices on this. It was not a passionate defense of the democratic party. I assume that changes and somebody will say, whoa, you cant say it like that. It didnt sound like somebody who was ready to go save Barack Obamas senate. Ben carson, how do you define yourself in politics . A lot of people talking about you as a rising star in the Republican Party. Youre not a party guy regardless, but you have certainly put government on trial in a way. Here is one of the things you said about the Affordable Care act that raised a lot of eyebrows. I will play it. You know, obamacare is really, i think, the worst things that has happened in this nation since slavery, and it is in it is slavery in a way because it is making all of us subservient to the government, and it was never about health care. It was about control. People who have health care who didnt have it before i suspect would disagree strongly with you, but i wonder in addition is that really how you wanted to be defined . How you want to put government on trial in a political way . Well, first of all, recognize what i said, worse thing since slavery, didnt say that it was slavery. People who are wellread and particularly you said it is slavery in a way because it is making us all subservient to the government. Right. Thats what you said. And i said in a way. In a way anything is slavery that robs you of your ability to control your own life. And when you take the most important thing that you have, which is your health care, and you put that in the hands of government bureaucrats, i think you have done the wrong thing, and as i was about to say, you go back and you look at the neomarxist literature and look at what they say. You dont have to listen to what i say, about taking control of health care of the populace and making the people dependent. This is not what america is about. Do i believe in health care for everybody . Absolutely. But i think there are much better ways to get there which leave the care in the hands of patients and of doctors. Senator lincoln, winning the fight over health care is important in the midterms. Its also important if democrats want to get anything else, right . Because part of the view is that health care has taken all the oxygen out of the room for president obama to get some of the other things hed like to get done. Uhhuh. Well, the Affordable Care act is by far not perfect, and no piece of legislation that comes through is, but i certainly dont regret my vote on that. We had to move forward. We had to make sure that more people in this country got insured, and thats what were doing. Were seeing it happen through the Affordable Care act. Its going to take time. This kind of unbelievable legislation doesnt happen overnight. Its a surgical situation where we really have to spend the time developing how it fits, but look in arkansas. Weve got over 200,000 people, working poor, who did not have health care who now have health care delivered through an exchange by private insurers. You know, thats not government. Thats private industry providing them Health Insurance thats going to give them some coverage that they have never had. Let me button up some of the hillary conversation weve had this morning. Dr. Carson, do you think shes the most formidable candidate republicans will face . Do you think shes beatable . Yes, i do think shes beatable. Everybody is beatable. Anybody who is human is beatable. Right, but im not asking about world patterns here. Im asking about a specific person. What do you think about her . You know, i have met her, talked to her on a number of occasions. She seems like an intelligent individual. I suspect the democrats can come up with a lot of people. Were 2 1 2 years away. There are lots of pocketssibili. Would you consider running . It wasnt on my bucket list at the time i retired. I didnt and i still dont want to. Theres a lot of pressure. Ill see how things go. Im never going to say absolutely or absolutely not until it is an absolute. We can come back here and talk about it some more. Thank you all very much. Were going to take a break here. Coming up, this growing anger that you have heard of all week over the va scandal as the head of the department of veteran affairs says hes mad as hell. Will all of the anger trigger the needed reforms . Ill speak with two key military voices on that coming up here next. [ male announcer ] Tora Bora Fallujah argonne khe sanh midway dak to normandy medina ridge the chosin reservoir these are places history will never forget but more important are the faces we will always remember. Beer. Dog. Music. Yikes. Skip track, please. Im hungry. Impossible . Maybe, but honeywells latest innovation gives me hope. Hello, thermostat . Hello. Please say a command. Im feeling hot. Changing set point to 68 degrees the wifi thermostat that listens, learns, saves. From honeywell. My husband died at 45 years old. Every time, every time my husband reached out to the va, they just kept telling him, be patient, sir. Im here to tell you that my dead veteran husband cannot be much more patient than he is today, but me, im pissed. An emotional outpouring as frustration grows over the scandal of the veterans administrati administration. A top va official stepped down and calls for the resignation of Eric Shinseki were heard lou and clear. Our pentagon correspondent jim miklaszews miklaszewski. Reporter only a week before he went to battle on capitol hill over the growingv a scandal, secretary Eric Shinseki in an nbc interview sounded oblivious to the growing storm. Reporter do you completely understand why theres that level of outrage . I think i do. Im a veteran myself. Reporter whistleblowers claim over 40 veterans died while awaiting treatment in phoenix. And that administrators there and at seven other va hospitals tried to cover up the long wait times. This past week the scandal reached a boiling point. Wednesday under growing calls for shinseki to resign president obama says he stands by shinseki but then orders job nabors to oversee the va response to the controversy. Thursday shin she can sh shinseki and his deputy faced withering questions. Are they cooking the books . Im not aware. Reporter who do you say to people who say you of all people have abandoned them. I came not to fail veterans. I came to make things better for them. Reporter they say talk is cheap. Well, talk isnt cheap where im concerned. Reporter friday under secretary resigns. The va critics call petzel a scapegoat since he was due to retire soon. Overall, not a good week for a decorated fourstar general amid serious questions about whether he will survive. Thanks for that. Jim is here with us this morning. Also here im joined by wes moore, former army captain who served in afghanistan. Wrote the best selling book and the pbs series about veterans coming back which is airing now, and Adam Kinsinger republican congressman from illinois is an iraq veteran. Still serves in the air national guard. Welcome to all of you. Questions about whether shinseki should resign is kind of the political context. Congressman, let me ask you, how did we get to this moment . So many veterans in the system not being served well enough. Well, i think thats the big question. I mean, when i got elected, i got elected in 2010, the issue of va backlog was on the front burner, people were talking about it. There was talk a year ago of should we ask for shinsekis resignation. I dont jump on the resignation bandwagon but this was gone from incompetence to something criminal. People who have been told to wait, well get to you, well get to you and theyre hiding that. Yeah, and this is absolutely the wrong thing. I think its time for shinseki to resign. Hes a Great American but somebody there who knows how to fix the problem. Jim, you have been could covering government for a long time, from the white house to the pentagon, all over town. I spoke to somebody very high up in the administration that said, this is a tech problem. This is a technology problem. Shinseki is a good guy. Just like kathleen sebelius, very competent, but their departments are too technologically challenged to keep up with the demand. First of all, i agree with the congressman. Secretary shinseki was a great general. He served the military well, but, quite frankly, instead of shinseki what the va and the veterans need right now is a general george patton. Somebody who is going to be aggressive and fight politically and shinseki what came through from your reporting, this is not somebody who necessarily commands the stage to say were going to change things. And thats been his m. O. Throughout his entire career. But very quickly, back to the problem itself, first of all, you have the most entrenched bureaucracy in washington. You have a va that is overwhelmed and underresourced, and i dont care what people say, shinseki or not, theres just not enough money right now in the federal government to fix it. Other changes have to be made. Youre doing something remarkable on pbs which is this series about talking to veterans coming home from iraq and afghanistan and asking them what that is like to come home. Tremendous demand from our returning soldiers, for men and women who have Mental Health challenges, who have physical challenges. Theyre going to need the va for a long time. Its not just the aging baby boomers from the vietnam war. Do you despair over how thats possibly going to be addressed . Its a despair and a heart break. This is something that was promised to our men and women. As Tammy Duckworth said before, when we asked our men and women to go overseas and serve, they didnt tell us to wait. We didnt tell our country, hold off six months, hold off on a year on these operations and then well go serve. Why now when our men and women are coming back home are we asking them to wait . One thing i see as this whole thing continues to evolve, these are not new phenomenons in our community. These things have been going on for a decade plus thinking about iraq and afghanistan veterans, and even as we what were not looking for, were not looking for battlefield promotions, moving seats on a deck. We want genuine accountability, but also genuine action. Not something thats going to take months but weeks to get to the bottom of this. One provocative thought from colonel jack jacobs. He wraet on oped, he said it makes no sense to have a parallel universe to take care of our veterans. Theres no reason veterans cant be seen by private doctors, the same doctors who treat everybody else. Should we get rid of this arm of the va and put them into the regular haek system . Im not going so far as to say get rid of the arm of the va but i have a bill that says if live x amount of miles away, you can go to your local doctor. If somebody is waiting, let them go to the doctor and bill the va. This is a situation where theres i think things that can be done and i think what surprised me is the president has made every decision he can to avoid make it looking like hes making some kind of leadership decision. I think make a leadership decision. P somebody in there. When secretary gates heard about the problem at walter reed, he fired a whole bunch of people and the walter reed problem was fixed in a big way. Were going to leave it there. Thank you. Well take a break and coming up, our Pete Williams gets answers to the questions that you wanted to ask Glen Greenwald has been out a lot. The man who brought Edward Snowdens story to the world. Meet the press is brought to you by [ girl ] my mom, she makes underwater fans that are powered by the moon. [ birds squawking ] my mom makes airplane engines that can talk. [ birds squawking ] my mom makes hospitals you can hold in your hand. My mom can print Amazing Things right from her computer. [ whirring ] [ train whistle blows ] my mom makes trains that are friends with trees. [ train whistle blows ] my mom works at ge. For 175 dollars a month . So our business can be on at ts network my mom works at ge. Yup. All five of you for 175. Our clients need a lot of attention. Theres unlimited talk and text. Were working deals all day. You get 10 gigabytes of data to share. What about expansion potential . Add a line anytime for 15 bucks a month. Low dues. Great terms. Lets close. New at t mobile share value plans. Our best value plans ever for business. Who would have thought masterthree cheese lasagna would go with chocolate cake and ceviche . The same guy who thought that small caps and bond funds would go with a merging markets. Its a masterpiece. Thanks. Clearly you are type e. You made it phil. Welcome home. Now whats our strategy with the fondue . Diversifying your portfolio . E trade gives you the tools and resources to get it right. Are you type e . We turn now to the global debate over privacy and security ignited by whistleblower Edward Snowdens revelations about the u. S. Secret mass surveillance programs. Nbcs justice correspondent Pete Williams interviewed journalist Glenn Greenwald who won the Pulitzer Prize for reporting on snowdens revelations. Reporter hes the man who first revealed Edward Snowdens leaks about u. S. Surveillance to the world. Glenn greenwald tells the story of how it happened in a new book no place to hide. Now its time for your questions submitted through social media. Helen asks, how much are activists, humanitarians or those outspoken about Government Policies targeted and how . We publish a document in the book about six different individuals that the government considers to be, quote, radicalizers who are not members of terrorist organizations or plotting terrorist attacks works just express radical ideas. The government has collected their intimate online sexual sites, visits to pornographic sites and plots in this document how to release this information to undermine their credibility. There are people who visit the wikileaks site. Mary barber asks, in a recent interview you referred to Daniel Ellsberg. Else berg stayed to face whatever the consequences would be. How are we supposed to see snowden in the same light . He ran like a coward and ellsberg shows courage and stayed in the country where he lives as a free man today. How do you reconcile the difference . The best answer is from Daniel Ellsberg himself who in july of 2013 in the Washington Post wrote an oped entitled Edward Snowden was right to flee in which he said that the world inside the american judicial system and American Political Culture is radically different now as compared to when he stepped forward to go on trial. If Edward Snowden were to go on trial, he would be rendered incommunicado, he would not be released on bail, he couldnt argue his case to the public. Elise asks what is his response to critic who call him a traitor and mare ji jane jones says how does he feel about making the u. S. A sitting duck to our enemies . Its always the case that people who bring unwanted disclosure are called traitors. I look at that as a badge of honor. I think its a testament to the fact were doing our jobs. Reporter as you know, the heads of several u. S. Intelligence agencies and also in the uk have said that these disclosures have caused potential terrorists to change their method of communication which makes it harder to detect. What about that . Does that concern you . This claim that these disclosures have helped the terrorists is the same script from which they always read whenever people shine a light on what theyre doing and i hope nobody is willing to accept it on faith but instead demands evidence that that has happened because there actually is none. Reporter and Ricardo Fernandez says first thank mr. Greenwald, then ask him what is the chance we can get legislation to stop decades of the abusive application of the states secret privilege and related doctrine policy act and abuses. One of the most encouraging aspects of the story has been that there has been a complete breakdown in the traditional standard divisions between left and right or conservative and liberal, republican and democrat. There has been this extremely i think inspiring Bipartisan Coalition that has emerged that has demanded that there be constraints imposed on the nsa. Reporter greenwald says he has plans to reveal some of the most spectacular documents snowden leaked on the intercept, a digital magazine. Its Parent Company has a Collaboration Agreement with nbc. Pete williams, nbc news, new york. You can see a longer version of that interview on our website. Of that interview on our all stations come over to mission a for a final go. This is for real this time. Step seven point two one two. Verify and lock. Command is locked. Five seconds. Three, two, one. Standing by for capture. The most Innovative Software on the planet. Dragon is captured. Is connecting todays leading companies to places beyond it. Siemens. Answers. I got lots of advice, but i needed information i could trust. 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Your uncanny ability to find parking spots. Your fear of people who are different . Not so much, the more you know. Most people dont know how to choose a new dentist. Thats where we come in. Weve helped over 8 Million People find the right dentist, and we can do the same for you. Call 1800dentist today. Call 1800dentist today. Final moment with our round table. Weve been talking about Hillary Clinton a lot this morning. Provoked some lively reaction on twitter. Ha ha ha, pause, sip of coffee. The idea that after this past month she might say, no, probably not. This really is there are republicans who believe their best shot at beating her is to do whatever it takes to make her not want to run because the demographic problem of particularly among older white women flocking to her candidacy the first time, i have looked at evidence of this with women candidates first time run for the u. S. Senate and governor. Its real and it makes her almost unbeatable and thats what makes a lot of republicans nervous. All right. Thank you all very much for being here. Appreciate the discussion very much. Thats all for today. We are not going to be here next week because of nbc Sports Coverage of auto racing, formula one. But we will be back on june 1st. If its sunday, its meet the press. Good monday morning. Coming up on early today, on alert. First report of mers right here in the u. S. After exposure to an infected patient. The cdc is scrambling. Big biz monday. Pfizer rejected, while at t pushes forward. A lot to tell you about. Michael jackson, the king of pop, ruled at the Billboard Music awards. Plus, godzillas monster debut weekend. Fancy way to get around. Will this be reality . And California Chrome done before he can go for the triple crown . It is monday, may 19th. Early today starts right now. Good morning. Im frances rivera