What the outcome will be. And as i said earlier, and i probably shouldnt repeat it, but i find this more embarrassing for the country than debilitating for my ability to get started. President trump is out of sight again today, the second straight workday without any Public Events on his schedule, as the president elect is getting a National Security briefing, not from intelligence officials but from outside Foreign Policy experts. Joining me now, nbc White House Correspondents Kristen Welker and peter alexander, cohosts of weekend today, of course. Kristen in wilmington, peter at the white house. Kristen, first of all, the president elect, his team, are looking forward to this transition planning, not waiting for the white house, going ahead with a National Security briefing, not based on intelligence or official intelligence. Reporter andrea, thats right, and part of what youre going to see today, we expect to see biden in a spray, is really aimed at underscoring that point that you are making, andrea, the fact that president elect biden is having this briefing with diplomatic, with National Security experts, but not with government officials. And its really in a sense aimed at turning up the pressure yet again and making the case to President Trump and his administration that the transition will move forward but that theyre lacking Key Resources and key briefings. So i think youre going to see that on display today, andrea. And it does come as biden is making some new announcements about who is going to be on his team. We expected there would be some staff announcements today. Some of the top ones, mike donilon who served as a chief strategist for the campaign. Jen Omalley Dillon will be the deputy chief of staff. She served as the first woman to run a successful campaign. Of course that winning campaign. Dana remus will be counsel to the president. Cedric richmond, a congressman from louisiana, announced today he is going to be leaving his position. And then steve richetti, a long time aide. I think what youre seeing here, andrea, is biden trying to fulfill the promise he laid out which is that he is going to have a diverse staff and diverse cabinet. Another big batch of announcements today. And we anticipate well start getting cabinet announcements within the next several weeks or so, andrea. And of course jen Omalley Dillon, the first woman to run a democratic president ial campaign successfully, of course we had Kellyanne Conway running President Trumps campaign when she took over in august of 2016. Peter alexander, the president has been making his presence felt on twitter even though we havent seen any formal remarks from him, not since that operation warp speed update last friday. Reporter yeah, andrea, youre exactly right. Notably at this time yesterday the president had already posted 36 tweets or retweets. Today, silence from the president , not just publicly but also on social media here, which is striking for obvious reasons. The president , we have now just learned or we should say in wisconsin, one of the states the president has been campaigning about, the vote count in, there had been conversations about them potentially calling for a recount there, im told in the last few minutes that all of the counties in that state have now submit their certified results to the state of wisconsin. The reason that matters, it means their first count is completed, it means if the Trump Campaign wants a recount in that state where joe biden leads by 20,000 votes, they would have to submit that request by 5 00 p. M. Central time, 6 00 p. M. Eastern, tomorrow. And its not cheap, its not free, it would cost them 8 million to do so. Thats four times more than it cost four years ago, as a function of the pandemic. Speaking of the pandemic, we know that the Vice President , mike pence, is scheduled at 3 00 today to host a White House Coronavirus task force meeting. As weve reported, President Trump has not participated in one of those meetings dating back to last spring for a series of months. And just within the last couple of hours weve obtained a letter from some of the top hospital and nurses and doctors associations calling on the Trump Administration to work with the biden transition team, to help provide the information they need as it relates to the pandemic, to help with this transition process. Its notable, theres been a lot of criticism on all sides, even the president s former chief of staff, andrea, Mick Mulvaney saying among other things as it relates to National Security and intelligence briefings, that theres no reason that joe biden shouldnt now have access to those. And kathleen sebelius, former hhs secretary to president obama, said that effectively the Biden Administration would be operating in the dark and that its very dangerous, andrea. And kristen, what is the level of frustration among the biden team . Reporter i think youre seeing it increase by the day. And i think you saw that on display yesterday when president elect biden spoke and he said that the lack of communication could cost lives, in response to a question from our own Geoff Bennett. And so the president elect is really trying to turn up the pressure on President Trump to, if not concede this race, at least allow his gsa to ascertain the Election Results so that he can start to get National Security briefings and briefings on covid as well. And andrea, one more thing overnight, its worth noting, the team is reporting, carol lee, mike memoli and myself, that biden, despite pressure from democrats to do so, is not inclined to have his presidency overshadowed by investigations into President Trump, his predecessor, so a little window into the president elect as he prepares to take office, andrea. Thats a really important window indeed. You this so much, Kristen Welker and peter alexander, thanks to both of you. Theres new reporting from the New York Times on one critical meeting inside the white house last week. Four current and former u. S. Officials telling the times that the president on thursday asked advisers whether he had options to take action against irans military action against irans main nuclear site in the coming weeks. The white house has declined to comment. Nbc news has yet to verify the reporting. The meeting followed the International AtomicEnergy Agency report that irans uranium stockpile is now 12 times larger than permitted under the nuclear accord. Iran had complied with that accord even after the u. S. Withdrew but then recently started rebuilding its stockpiles in response to tightening u. S. Sanctions. Joining me now, New York Times chief White House Correspondent peter baker and Harvard KennedySchool Professor nick burns, former u. S. Ambassador to nato. Peter, let me ask you about the times reporting. According to the times, mike pompeo joined the military in pushing back, saying this was not the time to take on irans very substantial military in the closing weeks of this administration barring some precipitating action from iran. Thats right, exactly, secretary pompeo, Vice President pence, general milley, all said this had a risk of escalating into a wider reflect in the final days of the Trump Administration, one that would ultimately be turned over to a new administration. Thats not an ideal way to leave office, of course. The president seemed for the moment to be convinced to stand down. But well see, nobody is convinced thats the end of the discussion. We could still see 60 days of conversation about this before the president leaves office. The shakeup at the pentagon in recent days, putting in a new defense secretary literally days before trump leaves office, is leaving people wondering why hes doing that, and precipitating action against iran is one thing he could have had in mind for all this. And nick burns, explain to people the downside of taking military action against irans main Nuclear Reactor at this time, as the president has been defeated and is leaving office. Andrea, the downside is the risk of a wider war. If we launched a military attack on any target in iran, what we know about the iranians is they do hit back. Where could they hit back . At American Military forces in iraq and American Naval and air assets in the gulf. They could try to kidnap or kill american citizens anywhere in the world. Theyve done that in the past. So if youre going to argue for the use of military force, youve got to look at the downside. Youve got to do the risk reward ratio. Right now there is an alternative, its called diplomacy. Why would you risk a war when the iranians seem to be willing, perhaps, to come back to the negotiating table . And i think this is a problem of President Trumps own making. He left the iran nuclear deal. It was working. Now of course the iranians are closer to a nuclear weapon. They have 5,385 pounds of low enriched uranium, enough for two nuclear weapons. They would have to convert that over a couple of months into highly enriched uranium. But were far worse off than we were the day barack obama and joe biden left the white house four years ago. And this is just one of the problems thats going to confront a new administration. Another precipitous action could be the withdrawal from afghanistan. This is something the military also opposes, but the president seems determined. Peter, what is the latest youre hearing about withdrawing all troops or most troops from afghanistan . This has been a source of tension now for months between the President Trump and his National Security adviser on one side and general milley, chairman of the joint chiefs, on the other side. The military believes even a small footprint of troops is necessary there to maintain a foothold in the country and provide stability for the government, even following that peace deal that the president negotiated with the taliban. If all american troops were pulled out, their reasoning is, it would open the door to the taliban basically taking over altogether which would create the kind of rogue state that provided a haven for al qaeda back in 2001. Thats the argument, anyway. President trump has made very clear from the beginning that he is not interested in keeping troops overseas, that he came to office in part rejecting the bush era wars in afghanistan and iraq and that he would like to leave office having, you know, on his legacy the end of the afghan war. So this is a big, big push and pull in these final months. Were talking about a small number of troops but a big, big impact and big consequence. And the nato allies are against the withdrawal as well as Mitch Mcconnell and others on the hill. But some democrats are very much in favor of it. So it crosses party lines. Nick, i want to also ask you about mike pompeo. He is going to seven countries. In france he was rebuffed. He did meet with officials but not publicly. They wouldnt see him publicly because he has not conceded publicly that joe biden has won the election. And its awkward, to say the least, with french and German Foreign ministers having an oped the day he was there, talking about how they look forward to working with biden and reestablishing the relationship going forward. Then he went to turkey and erdogan wouldnt meet with him, so they had a meeting with the patriarch of the Greek Orthodox church, they went sightseeing at a historic mosque, the pompeo, mrs. Pompeo with mike pompeo. Then he went to georgia and then on to the middle east. This trip is not only by a lame duck administration but he has not acknowledged that joe biden has won. Andrea, i cant remember a situation like this over many decades. In in a normal transition, the existing secretary of state would be working closely with the Incoming Administration, the transition team. And sometimes that secretary of state would travel, but wouldnt undertake any major initiatives without checking with the Incoming Administration because you want a peaceful transfer of power and you want the new team to succeed. We dont have any of that right now. Theres hostility from the Trump Administration. And as you say, this extraordinary remark from mike pompeo last week, were transitioning to a trump second term. His aides said he was kidding. You cant kid about Something Like this. This is the root of american democracy, can we transition peacefully. So its not surprising to me that some of these World Leaders will not see him because they clearly understand, around the world, that joe biden won the election and donald trump lost the election. Theyve got to get ready to work with the biden team. Thats why the Trump Administration and the president personally admitting his defeat, conceding and working with the biden transition team, is so important. Nick burns, thank you so much. Ambassador nick burns. Peter baker from the New York Times, thanks to both. Ahead, moving on. Signs that some Senate Republicans are finally ready to turn the page on the Trump Administration. But first, deep impact. President elect joe biden saying that Donald Trumps refusal to concede the election could cost thousands more lives in the battle against covid19. The Trump Administration vaccine expert turned whistleblower dr. Rick bright now advising the Biden Incoming team, joining me next. Youre watching Andrea Mitchell reports on msnbc. Im kalvin, and theres more to me than hiv. Im a peer educator,. A fitness buff,. And a champion for my own health. I talked with my doctor. And switched to. Fewer medicines with. Dovato. Prescription dovato is for some adults who are starting hiv1 treatment or replacing their current hiv1 regimen. With. Just 2 medicines. In 1 pill, dovato is as effective as a 3drug regimen to help you reach and stay undetectable. 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In answer to a question from nbcs Geoff Bennett reporter what do you see as the biggest threat to the transition right now given President Trumps unprecedented attempt to obstruct and delay a smooth transfer of power . More people may die if we dont coordinate. If we have to wait until january 20 to start that planning, it pulse us behind, over a month, month and a half. And so its important that it be done, that there be coordination, now. Joining me now is dr. Rick bright, a member of president elects coronavirus Advisory Board. Hes the former he had of the agency in charge of Vaccine Development at hhs, turned whistleblower who resigned in protest over what was going on in the administration. Dr. Bright, very good to see you. As a member of the president elects Advisory Board, how much problem do you see this lack of cooperation between the Trump Administration and the incoming biden team on vaccine rollout and other measures on covid . Andrea, thanks for having me today. Its a huge problem. If you look around, you can see how much this virus has gotten out of control right now across the United States. We have more people getting infected today than weve had any time this entire outbreak. We have good news in some ways, that the vaccines are moving forward. Were getting good data. However, we have a lot of work ahead of us, to make sure those vaccines and other Public Health measures are rolled out seamlessly in transition from the Current Administration to the new administration under president elect biden. There are many details, lots of coordination. Every day counts and every step counts. We owe it to americans to have a smooth transition to make sure we dont miss a step. The gsa is actually blocking us now from starting that planning and ensuring that we are doing everything we can effectively and safely to make sure we have a good vaccine rollout. One of the concerns that i would assume youre dressing is, the states dont have money. The military is going to do a lot of the distribution, supposedly, but the final distribution, especially in rural areas, in the west and other areas, is left to the states. And theyre broke. Well, actually we havent really been able to see the full plan, whatever theyve planned, the Current Administration. We have not been able to sit downside by side to see what they have planned, to see what happens after the military delivers the vaccine to a depot in a state. There are critical steps that happen after that vaccine arrives. That vaccine must move from that depot or warehouse into the hands of doctors and nurses who will deliver and administer that vaccine. Vaccines themselves dont save lives, the vaccination process does. You want to be vaccinated from people you know and trust. So theres a lot of details in that process, that last mile of that vaccination process, that we need to make sure were aligned with now so we can deliver it effectively when it comes time. Both the latest two vaccination thvaccines that people have been focusing on, pfizer and moderna, require two doses. And the pfizer, as you know, requires subzero refrigeration, 100 degrees minus fahrenheit. Officials say a little more than 20 Million People in this country could get their first shot before the end of the year. But the National Academy of medicine is making this recommendation on who gets the vaccine first. I wanted to run through it with you and see if it tracks with what your Advisory Board believes is the way to go. Phase ia would include high risk americans, Health Care Workers and first responders. There are currently not enough doses for all of them, that would be in december, though, that first rollout, supposedly. Phase ib covers those with underlying medical conditions and seniors living in congregate settings. Phase ii would be 30 to 35 of the population covering critical workers like those in the food supply system, teachers, those over 65. Phase iii would be 40 to 45 of the population including most young adults and children. And phase iv would protect everyone else although there has been no testing, i believe, by moderna on pregnant women and children, those two categories. That seems to cover the landscape from december through april, may, june. But is that realistic, assuming that they get the emergency authorization and the fda then approves . You can already begin to see how complicated and complex it is, just to try to identify the right groups at the right time and make sure they get the right vaccine and get two doses of the same vaccine. Thats why were pushing really hard to make sure we can sit down with the Current Administration as soon as possible and coordinate our efforts. You know, what were looking at now is what president elect biden has assured us is a plan for equitable distribution of the vaccine and the fact that he will listen to the scientists and the best science to make sure were administering that vaccine, and rolling it out in an equitable way. Some of that planning is happening now on our side but we would love to sit down with the current team to make sure were not wasting time and, you know, doubling our work and doubling our effort when we could be focusing on many other things that we need to do in addition to Vaccine Administration to end this pandemic quickly. I want to ask you about dr. Scott atlas. Were experiencing the surge of covid cases across the country, its a big concern, especially for families as thanksgiving approaches. Lets listen to what this trump adviser who is a radiologist, not an Infectious Disease expert, hes been disavowed by stanford, hes on leave, they tweeted today he does not represent their views. This is what he had to say on fox news last night. This kind of isolation is one of the unspoken tragedies of the elderly who are now being told dont see your family at thanksgiving. For many people, this is their final thanksgiving, believe it or not. What are we doing here . I think we have to have a policy which i have been advocating which is a whole person, whole health policy. Its not about just stopping cases of covid. We have to talk about the damage of the policy itself. And he also tweeted yesterday that people should rise up against governor whitmers restrictions in michigan. He later said that he wasnt advocating violence, but that is such a volatile thing in michigan. What do you think about his advice . Because the president seems to be listening to him. Andrea, i think you started out with the right description. He doesnt have any experience in Infectious Diseases or Pandemic Response or control. He is not representing stanford, apparently, and also is not representing the view of the majority of scientists who have experience in this area. We do not agree with many of the interesting or kind of crazy ideas that have come out of dr. Atlas and his opinions. We are putting together a team, as you have seen already on the biden harris covid19 Advisory Board, a team of experts, scientists, and we are putting together the best scientific plan that we can translate into a blueprint for action on day one of the biden harris administration. Were working really hard to get everything in place today. Again, it would be a lot easier if we could sit down with the Current Administration and making sure were aligned and coordinated so we can have a smooth transition. We have to leave it there, dr. Rick bright, pleasure seeing you, thanks for joining us today, we appreciate it. And under pressure. Georgias secretary of state says senator Lindsey Graham asked him to toss out legally cast votes to help President Trump. What is senator graham saying today . Thats next on Andrea Mitchell reports. Youre watching msnbc. C. At dell technologies, we started by making the cloud easier to manage. But we didnt stop there. We made a cloud flexible enough to adapt to any size business. No matter what it does, or how it changes. And we kept going. So you only pay for what you use. Because at dell technologies, we stop. At nothing. Georgias republican secretary of state, brad referen raffensperger, is hitting back at claims from republicans and President Trump. He says he and his wife are getting Death Threats amid georgias ongoing recount and he says in a conversation on friday, senator graham asked whether he had the power to toss all mailin ballots in counties where higher rates of nonmatching signatures. Senator graham implied for us to audit the in some and threnvw out ballots in counties with higher percentages of mismatching signatures. Reporter did you or did you not ask him to throw out no, thats ridiculous. I talked to him about how you very far signatures. Reporter why is a senator from South Carolina talking to a secretary of state in georgia anyway . Because the feature of the country depends on on those ballots. Nbcs garrett haake, george republicans have two runoffs ahead, why are they still fighting this recount in georgia of the president ial race . Reporter the sense i get is all of this is about the runoffs. This is the ball game for Senate Republicans. The president ial race is over and more and more Senate Republicans are coming around to that realization that joe biden is the president elect. The two Georgia Senate seats that will be subject to the runoff race are allimportant now to Senate Republicans. Senator graham is most concerned about the Runoff Election that will happen there and the degree, as he sees it, of oversight. Raffensperger would probably prefer not to have a senator from North Carolina looking over his shoulder. We see marco rubio, Vice President pence heading down to georgia. I think it continues to be the lens that we have to look at nearly everything these republican senators are saying between now and the runoff. And the question would be whether donald trump goes and joe biden, i bet both of them will be heading down. This is the ball game. Garrett haake, thank you so much. And joining me now, jim messina, former White House Deputy chief of staff for operations under president obama, and michael steele, former rnc chair and Senior Adviser for the lincoln project. Michael, whats going on with the Republican Party down there . Its a desperate play, because georgia, you know, has shown a little bit of blue in this president ial election. The fact that you now have two senate seats, hotly contested senate seats hanging in the balance for the gop and for the democrats, it will be all hands on deck. But the reality of it is, the republicans could run the risk of overplaying their hand here. These outside influences, influencers, like a Lindsey Graham and others, mechanisms o georgia. Its one thing to go try turn out your base for your candidates. Its another to call the secretary of state and make the types of inquiries that lindsey has made. And im sure the secretary of state is not going to go on National Television and lie on a United States senator. So the conversation was probably accurately reflected by the secretary of state, at least as he heard it. That could work against the republicans in terms of further stimulating a Democratic Base which has already been amped up from the president ial, after the success of winning the state of georgia, but then also the work that Stacey Abrams has done to really grind that home in such a way, with that Democratic Base turning out, upon the interference, perceived or others, of an outside United States senator. And jim messina, were beginning to see some cracks, more republicans admitting joe biden is the president elect. Listen to senators cornyn and rubio on monday. Reporter do you personally expect that biden will be the next president . Is that your expectation . I havent seen, umm, anything that would change the outcome. Reporter you just called him the president elect. Are you saying that biden is the president elect now . Well, ultimately thats what the results, the preliminary results seem to indicate. You certainly have to anticipate thats the highest likelihood at this point. Jim, yet Mitch Mcconnell is standing firm, refusing to call biden the president elect, ten days after the election was called. And which way do you see donald trump, helping or hurting, if he goes down there and campaigns . Is it better for him not to be on the ticket in terms of republicans having a builtin advantage on this runoff . Yeah, if i was the republicans, i wouldnt want donald trump anywhere near this. He immediately polarizes it in a way thats not helpful. He turns out the Democratic Base as much as he does his own base. Purdue and loeffler can turn out their own base, they dont need his help. He absolutely adds to the chaos down there. Can we go back for a second, though, to Lindsey Graham. How long are we going to continue to call this guy a patriot . Hes sitting here trying to collude, trying to find ways to get rid of legally cast ballots. It doesnt matter whether its for the president ial or senate race. Thats what people do in dictatorships, thats what people do in authoritarian states, not in the United States of america. Its just absolutely ridiculous, for whatever reason he was doing it, that hes out there trying to do it. The fact that a fellow republican called him out on it is heartening and hopefully republicans will follow michaels good leadership here and stop playing politics and help the country unite after a brutal campaign. We also, michael steele, heard from Michelle Obama yesterday on instagram, calling for a peaceful transition. Talking about how tough it was to welcome the trumps to the white house after Donald Trumps bitter e birther lies, she writes, the presidency doesnt belong to any one individual or any one party. To pretend that it does, to play along with these groundless conspiracy theories whether for personal or political gain, is to put our countrys health and security in danger. This isnt a game. When we think back to that inauguration that she had, they did all the right things, the obamas, of course barack obama welcomed donald trump the day after, the very next day, but on Inauguration Day they went through the coffee and going up, just looking at her face, you knew how pained she was by watching him being sworn in. Yeah, Michelle Obama was not one to suffer fools at all, and she certainly had no regard for those who trashed her family and specifically trashed her husband the way donald trump trashed, you know, the president of the United States. But that was very hard, it was very personal. But she did her duty. She did what an outstanding first lady would do and should do. She welcomed the incoming family. She welcomed them openly and did the customary things. Yet here we are, now four years later. And this president cannot, it is not in him to do that. So she makes i think a good point and a good note. This is not a game. Its about the country. Its about the transfer of power. And what that says to the nation, how it helps the nation heal. And i think theres a lot of value in her words. But unfortunately, andrea, its a value thats lost on this president and this first family, because of how they approach everything in a transactional, political space, instead of recognizing, this is a time when none of that matters, what matters is how the country moves forward. And the pandemic and covid, of course, is having an impact here in washington in the senate, jim. Iowa and utah put in mask mandates. Some u. S. Scenarios still refusing to wear face coverings. Iowas senator chuck grassley, at 87 years old, the longest serving senator, is now quarantining, selfisolating because he had contact with somebody with covid. Yesterday alaska senator dan sullivan was presiding in the senate and he was admonished by ohios democratic senator Sherrod Brown for not wearing a mask on the senate floor. And it got a little bit senator of ohio. I would start by asking the presiding officer to wear a mask as he speaks. The people below him, i cant tell you what to do, but i know i dont wear a mask when im speaking, like most senators. Most senators i dont need your instruction. I know you dont need my instruction but there clearly isnt much interest in this body in Public Health. That was not, you know, the gentleman from alaska, kindly put on your mask, jim. I cant believe were still having a debate about masks. I cant believe after all the Scientific Evidence that a senator sitting in the chair, and andrea, as you know, i worked in the senate for almost 20 years, hes sitting literally five feet from all those staff right below him and hes not wearing a mask. Even if he said, okay, im six feet away, why dont you show the American Public what leaders do, which is wear masks and set a good example. And instead he has, you know, a jerky little retort to Sherrod Brown. I cant believe were still debating masks when every single scientist says its the right thing to do. And leaders, United States senators are leaders, people look up to them. The fact that were having a fight about this is part of why washington is so broken and why joe biden is exactly right that weve got to kind of get past this political stuff and get back to the science and move forward as a country together. Wellsaid, jim messina, thank you. And michael steele, as always, thank you both. Breaking news on the wisconsin vote count. North kor nbcs Shaq Brewster joins us now. Reporter andrea, we just learned all 72 of wisconsins counties have canvassed and certified those results. Those results are essentially at the next official stage. The reason thats important is because it begins the timeline for when the Trump Campaign can now officially request a recount. The Trump Campaign has until 5 00 p. M. Tomorrow to request and pay for a recount if they want one in this state. The last numbers that ive seen is that the margin is at about 20,000 votes. Thats a number that most people say is a high bar to be able to change any results. But the timeline for a recount request begins now. Monica alba who covers the Trump Campaign says that as of yesterday, she reached out to Trump Campaign officials and they say they are keeping all options open. They have until 5 00 p. M. To request and pay for the recount, estimated cost 7. 9 million, about four times higher than the price tag in 2016 when there was a statewide recount, because of the coronavirus, because of the social distancing requirements, and the holiday pay that will happen if a recount happens. So andrea, we know all 72 counties have now certified results until the state of wisconsin. Thank you so much, Shaq Brewster. Well wait to see what the Trump Campaign decides to do by 5 00 p. M. Tomorrow. And the rapid surge. What new jersey is doing to try to contain another coronavirus wave after seeing a sharp uptick in just four days. Stay with us. Youre watching Andrea Mitchell reports on msnbc. [ engines revving ] its amazing to see them in the wild like th shhh. [ engine revs ] for those who were born to ride, theres progressive. [ engine revs ] children laughing music swells dog barking music fades exhales experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list sales event. Sign and drive off in a new lincoln with zero down, zero due at signing, and a complimentary first months payment. New jersey, one of the hardest hit states by the coronavirus in the spring, is seeing record new case counts again. The state reporting more than 14,000 new cases over the last four days. And today it is reporting another day of more than 4,000 new cases. Thats more than 6 of the states total cases throughout the pandemic, over just five days. Joining me now, nbc news correspondent ron allen in newark, new jersey. Ron, youre at a test site there. Has the states Testing Capacity been able to keep up with this alarming rise . Reporter well, at 4 00 a. M. This morning there was a long line outside this Testing Center and it didnt open until 8 00 this morning. And there have been a steady stream of people coming all day. So i think the answer to that question is no, not here in newark, they dont have enough testing capability, if you have to wait so long to get a test. Theyve been sending people away from here, taking their phone numbers so that they dont congregate out here on the street which of course is something you dont want in an area where 20 , if you can believe it, infection rate. Its 9 in the rest of the state but its particularly bad in newark. Its a very dense city. There are many multigenerational households, a lot of essential workers here. Those are some of the reasons why the numbers are high here. But overall, its a problem with covid fatigue, as they say, or covid attrition, where the virus is just continuing to rampage and people have gotten tired of it, gotten tired of wearing masks, gotten tired of social distancing, or let their guards down, and thats whats happening. And its happening particularly in small family gatherings. Bars and restaurants are closed at 10 00 p. M. There are other measures in place. Theres a lot of concern here as across the country about whats going to happen during the thanksgiving holiday. Andrea . Ron allen, 20 , that is a terrible rate. Thanks very much for that update. This while millions of americans are still struggling to put food on the table because of Economic Hardship caused by the pandemic. As the holidays approach, food banks now face enormous stress. More families than ever are turning to them for help. Nbc news correspondent rehema ellis talked to some of those families. Reporter at this food bank in milwaukee, people are lining up like never before. Were making ends meet with our bills but not with the groceries. Reporter for the most vulnerable, the Hunger Task Force program is a lifeline. How many people live in your daughter, cindy glick says the pandemic forced her husband out of work. How hard is it to keep food on the table . Its a challenge that i hope i would never have to face. Reporter sherry runs the food bank and is sounding the alarm about the growing need. Im really afraid that in january, theres not going to be any food. Nationwide, almost 24 million americans reported food insecurity, an increase of 6 million because of the pandemic. Texas has seen long lines stretching up to three miles. In california, one food Bank Reported a 125 increase in demand. In new york, workers are scrambling to provide turkeys for thanksgiving. The calls are coming in, and its people who are desperate. Reporter desperate but grateful. Im glad that there are places that i can turn to. And hoping the help will still be there, even after the season of giving. Rehema ellis, nbc news. Our thanks to rehema ellis for that. Joining me now, gene sperling, former National Economic adviser in the clinton and Obama Administration and author of economic dignity. I want to ask your reaction to this. Were seeing food banks now trying to cope with the people under stress and congress is still not acted since may. Theyve had a package from the hour, and theres no end in sight. You know, andrea, i could give you statistic after statistic to make clear how much suffering is going in our economy, but i dont know if it can do much better than seeing the dramatically long lines, people like youre showing now, people waiting just for food. I mean, if theres one thing nobody should believe for one second, its that because the headline unemployment number came down to under 7 that smau were in good shape. Were not. There are the real Unemployment Rate is probably closer to 11 . Theres 25. 7 Million People who have either had to drop out, lost their jobs, lost wages and youre going to see this type of suffering. Do you know on december 31st, the Eviction Moratorium ends. You want to talk about suffering. Can you imagine in the cold and christmas that on december 31st, if nothing is done, literally millions of people could be turned out into the street homeless because they owe thousands of dollars in rent. They still cant get a job and Congress Wont act to extend not only extend the moratorium but give relief for them and even for their small landlords who need that relief as well. And pandemic Unemployment Insurance runs out in six weeks. I believe were getting close to the government running out in their needing a continuing resolution or some omnibus bill. State and local governments dont have money. This is a heck of a problem that president elect biden is facing with the transition not yet in place, even though hes doing what he can on his own. But they cant even interact with the agencies. Well, you are so right. The government does run out of funding december 11th. Youd think that that would be a place to also do a major stimulus, major relief bill. You talk about state and local governments. One thing the Republican Senate has tried to say is that somehow this is about irresponsible blue states. Well, nobody in the whole world was could be prepared for 102year pandemic. No one. So why would state and local governments be the only ones who should have saved up . We now have a million less education workers state and local in our country and its going to get worse. They are going to see more layoffs, more pressure as theyre trying to deal with covid not being able to fund teachers, first responders. So its very, very difficult. And, you know, we have got to do the kind of bigger and bolder plan. Nancy pelosi has passed twice now, not because its political, but because you can see from those food lines, you can see from the rent, from the people who could be evicted from their homes that this is not just about economic growth, though this is important for demand. This is about our soul. This is about our basic humanity. Gene, one of your former colleag colleagues, jason furman, just yesterday was saying, theyve got to do something, even if its not everything the democrats want. Is this the time to pass something, anything, to help with this covid relief . Well, you know, i think its a little unfair sometimes people seem to be asking nancy pelosi sometimes to negotiate against herself. She was engaged in a very serious negotiation with mnuchin, the secretary of treasury. They were, i think, at 2. 2 trillion, getting closer together. So we dont even know at this point whether the republicans are continuing that negotiation where it left off or whether theyre going back to something that is just grossly inadequate like 500 billion. So right now, the question should be on, will the Republican Senate and the white house step up to the plate and do something and not ask nancy pelosi whether shes going to negotiate against herself when she has passed both an initial h. E. R. O. E. S. And a h. E. R. O. E. S. 2. 0 and put something on the table. So i think they should get together. I think we should get something, but i think we should be asking about what is needed and what is the right thing to do and not looking simply for, you know, nancy pelosi out of political compromise. For example, not do enough in s. N. A. P. So that people get the kind of Food Assistance that they need. So that theyre not reliant on fivehour waits in food banks all over this country. Well, gene sperling, great to have you expertise. Thanks so much for joining us today. Well talk to you soon. Maybe you even have a role in this new administration. And this thursday, president barack obama will join jonathan capehart, our friend and colleague, for a candid conversation with members of my brothers keeper. You can watch this exclusive interview at 10 00 p. M. Eastern right here on msnbc. And that does it for this edition of Andrea Mitchell reports. Chuck todd is up next with mtp daily only on msnbc. Still fresh unstopables inwash scent booster downy unstopables for next years coverage . S about Medicare Options of course you do. We all do. Im Meredith Vieira and im in the same camp. The medicare annual election deadline is just ahead and now is our chance to check out whats changed. I want to talk to you about myhealthpolicy, a great resource if youre new to medicare or if youre already covered. Are there any new Medicare Advantage plans . Im feeling overwhelmed. Yes, go to myhealthpolicy. 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