Transcripts For MSNBCW First Look 20170116

Packers packing for atlanta to play the falcons in the nfc championship. Hey there, good morning, everyone. It is monday, january 16, Martin Luther king jr. Day. Im alex witt alongside louis burgdorf. At least 37 people are dead after a turkish cargo dead crashed in kyrgyzstan. The plane, a bogey 747, was on route to istanbul and was attempting to land in heavy fog for a scheduled stop when it crashed right into a village destroying at least 20 homes. Officials say most of those killed were on the ground. Joining us now with the latest from london, elliott rouzi, what a tragedy here. What more can you tell us . Reporter indeed. At least 27 People Killed were residents in the village struck by the boeing 747 when it was trying to land in thick fog. The plane was planning to make a stop at manas airport on its way to istanbul. Devastating pictures show it plowing several hundred feet through a village crushing 15 homes. The remains are on top of broken and smashed houses. The crash happened at 7 30 a. M. Local time, so most people were still in their home at the time of the crash. The initial estimates put the death toll at 37, but the Emergency Services there still searching the crash site for bodies and survivors. More reports to come out from there. Alex . Ali rouzi, terrible story. And turning to washington as they debate the discussion as to whether president elect Donald Trumps first trip will be to meet with his russian counterpart. He said hell meet with Vladimir Putin within weeks of becoming president. The report says talks would involve a deal to limit Nuclear Weapons as reagan and gorbachev struggle to find agreement over. The incoming press Secretary Sean Spicer said the story is not true and 100 false. Those speaking to the wall street journal on friday, trump expressed openness to the russians saying, i understand they would like to meet. And that is absolutely fine with me. According to the times of london, senior figures in the British Government fear that a warming of u. S. Russian relations under trump risks leaving britain, which has led the calls for sanctions against moscow over putins aggression in ukraine and syria out in the cold. Theres a lot of europeans and those who fear russia. Sure. I know nato is obsolete because it was designed many, many years ago. Number two, the countries werent paying what they are supposed to pay. Reporter president elect trump shared more about his view of putin and europe putting the russian president on equal footing with german chancellor Angela Merkel praising her strategy for taking on refugees who trump says are illegals. What do you trust . I start off trusting both. But lets see how long that lasts. It may not last long at all. Who is the most important leader . It is Angela Merkel. It is germany, i have Great Respect for her. I think she was one great leader. But i think she made a catastrophic mistake taking all the illegals, taking all the people from wherever they come from. And nobody really knows where they come from. Youll find out. President elect donald trump expressed the possibility of lifting sanctions against russia. If you get along and if russia is really helping us, why would anybody have sanctions if somebodys doing really great things . A senior official told the Associated Press that Incoming National security Michael Flynn contacted russias ambassador to the United States on the day after president obama imposed new sanctions in late december. Trumps Spokesman Sean Spicer initially denied contact but later said they spoke on the day sanctions were imposed but about other matters, including a phone call between trump and putin to come after the inauguration. Meanwhile, Vice President elect mike pence had to be asked three times whether he denied Trump Associates had contact with the russian officials before the election. I joined this campaign in the summer, and i can tell you all the contact by the Trump Campaign and the associates was with the american people. We were fully engaged with taking his message to make America Great again all across this country. Thats why he won in the landslide election. Im just trying to get an answer. Of course not. Why would there be contacts between the campaign . This is part of a chance to legitimize the election and question the legitimacy of the presidency. It is not just president obama out of a job this friday, dozens of u. S. Ambassadors are being told to leave their post by the end of t by the end of the week, no compensations. This will allow open communications with the ambassadors overseas during the transition. Some would stay while their successors clear the nomination process in congress. President elect trump, however, is pulling the bandaid off quickly leaving some nations unsure of who to contact over the coming weeks in case of any diplomatic friction. Democrat congressional leaders join thousands of americans across the country yesterday to send a loud message to republican lawmakers. Dont repeal obamacare. Rallies were held in two dozen states including many battleground states that President Trump ultimately took for hillary clinton. Here in new york city, people came together in midtown manhattan to let their voices be heard in one of the demonstrations. It was a similar scene in san francisco. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi shared this photo on twitter of the massive crowd gathered in the citys civic center, the site of a number of historic protests. And in michigan, thousands braved the freezing temperatures for a massive rally there featuring senator minority leader Chuck Schumer and bernie sanders. Bernie sanders issued a warning to republican colleagues over their push to scrap the health law. What we are saying to the republicans, if you want to improve the Affordable Care act, lets Work Together. But if you think youre simply going to throw millions off of Health Insurance, youve got another guess coming. No, youre not going to throw 20 Million People off of medicaid. You are not going to privatize medicare. You are not going to defund planned parenthood. You are not going to raise the cost of prescription drugs for seniors. And by the way, as part of the repeal of the Affordable Care act, they want to give over 300 million in tax breaks to the top 2 . This weekends rallies come after lawmakers in the house on friday approved the measure to help republicans try to overturn obamacare. But in an interview published yesterday, president elect trump says hell soon unveil a plan that will provide insurance for everybody while he didnt provide specifics. Trump told the paper that the plan would provide a much simplified and much less expensive coverage to those currently covered under obamacare. And president obama is entering the final week of his presidency as he prepares to hand over the office to president elect trump on friday. Mr. Obama spoke with nbc news lester holt in an exclusive interview before giving his farewell address in chicago on tuesday. The two discussed the president s accomplishments during his time in office and the threats he now faces as he leaves the white house. If you had told me at the beginning of my presidency the day after me winning the presidency that eight years later the economy would be stabilized, we would cut unemployment in half from its peak, that the stock market would have recovered, that incomes last year went up for everybody of every age group, every racial group, every demographic, if you told me that we would provide 20 Million People Health Insurance that didnt have it before, that we had seen this explosion in clean energy, cut down our carbon emissions, that High School Graduation rates were up at an alltime high, i would have said, all right, we did okay. You can see more on president obamas legacy with the obama years with Brian Williams tonight at 11 00 p. M. Dozens of crashes were reported in oklahoma, fortunately nobody was hurt in that wreck. And one trooper captured dramatic moments of a tractortrailer traveling a bit too fast and skidding across the Center Divider barely missing the officer. Thats not what youre seeing there, but trust me, it was dramatic. States of emergency have been declared in oklahoma, missouri and kansas as what youre seeing here with all the ice building up to a half inch in some areas. It has just blanketed the region. Its pretty but not real safe. Tens of thousands remain without power across several states. And the nfl had to delay the start of the playoff game in kansas city for several hours. And down in dallas, there are warning signs posted on the boards in at t stadium. And meantime, we have the highlights set for the afc and nfc championships. And Ringling Bros says they are going to be closing the bar nu Barnum Bailey circus for good. Hey. I got your note. Dont ever mention it under any circumstances. In the press room . See what you did . You mentioned it. You did it again. You were about to. Just the llb across the street. We can get much office space and put a little distance between the press and the president. And put them across the street in the stateoftheart electricity. By stateoftheart you mean . Electricity. People working from the president didnt have physical distance from the press. We cant exile the press. Its 100 yards from where were standing. It sends a signal were trying to hide things from them. Its just a date. I can stay. Im good. I wont be late hey mom. Yeah. No kissing on the first date, alright . Life doesnt always stick to a plan, but with our investment expertise well help you handle whats next. Financial guidance while youre mastering life. From chase. So you can. The uncertainties of hep c. I dont want to live with or wonder whether i should seek treatment. I am ready. Because today theres harvoni. A revolutionary treatment for the most common type of chronic hepatitis c. Harvoni is proven to cure up to 99 of patients. Whove had no prior treatment. It transformed treatment as the first cure thats. One pill, once a day for 12 weeks. Certain patients. 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Comcast business. Built for business. Welcome back. After 146 years in service, the Ringling Bros circus are taking down their tents. The final performances will be given this may. Nbcs Gadi Schwartz takes us back to the greatest show on earth. Reporter before there were tvs and 50 states, the Ringling Bros and Barnum Bailey circus was entertaining millions. The greatest show on earth reporter this man was involved for years. But the circus has been struggling retiring the elephants to a Conservation Center in florida after a long public battle with Animal Rights groups. Since then the circus producers say they have seen a dramatic drop in ticket sales, and high operating costs have made it unsustainable. In florida families in line for the circus reacted to the news. It is very disappointing, this is something i grew up on. Reporter meanwhile, Animal Rights groups claim victory. This is long sought after. Ringling taking their elephants off the road. I think people will no longer tolerate animals being abused for their entertainment. Reporter for the daredevil son of a tightrope walking family, the news is painful. Last night i was in tears when i heard about it because they are the only reason why im alive, to be honest. John ringling saw my family perform over in cuba in 1927. Reporter he says circuses are more than the animal acts and theres a failure to adapt. To see an iconic circus go away is heartbreaking. Reporter now the greatest show on earth set to become an american memory. A thing of the past, hard to believe. Well get a check on the weather now with bonnie snyder. The center part of the country, what a mess. And its not over yet. The ice storm can be ongoing. We have ice into kansas and now nebraska. Its going to be a dangerous day, a lot of people are traveling, a threeday weekend. Look what is ahead, alerts. Weather advisories for ice storm warnings persist into the afternoon. Some go straight through tonight. You can see the heavy rain working its way in. Rain and temperatures are above freezing like in kansas city, but its all ice as you head out further to the west with the temperature teetering near the freezing mark. When you have those colder temperatures right at the surface and the warmer air in the midlevels of the atmosphere, it falls as ice. Looking at additional accumulation, not as much as well see yesterday, but Going Forward we can certainly see it into parts of iowa, nebraska. Eventually the storm is pushing to the east to bring rain and wintry weather to the upper midwest. Behind it, well watch for snow coming in. And a lot of the snow and ice will actually work its way to the northeast. Well see that picking up in terms of snowfall totals. Accumulating nicely into parts of central connecticut and even lower nebraska and into vermont. Off to the west, yet another storm system coming through. This one will bring rain to portland. Youve had an active winter so far in portland. More rain and watch out for the strong wind gusts along the coast. So not much of a breather for the west. The rain is also working its way through california into the northern part of the state. It may bring about some flooding as something well keep a close watch on. Alex . At least the drought seems to be dissipating. Thats the Silver Lining here. Thank you, bonnie. Still ahead, dallas rookies were spectacular, but in the end Aaron Rodgers proved why hes a clutch quarterback. Were back in a moment as the afc and nfc championships come right into focus. The difference between life and death. For partners in health, time is life. We have 18,000 people around the world. The microsoft cloud helps our entire staff stay connected and Work Together in real time to help those that need it. The ability to collaborate changes how we work. What we do together changes how we live. For patients like lynn, advanced Genomic Testing may lead to other Treatment Options that can work. Learn how Genomic Testing is changing the way we fight cancer at cancercenter. Com genomics be the you who doesnt cover your moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. Be the you who shows up in that dress. Who hugs a friend. Who is done with treatments that dont give you clearer skin. Be the you who controls your psoriasis with stelara® just 4 doses a year after 2 starter doses. Stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections and cancer. Some serious infections require hospitalization. Before treatment, get tested for tuberculosis. Before starting stelara® tell your doctor if you think you have an infection or have symptoms such as fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. 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One thing ive learned is that when all eyes are on me, i cant have any doubts. Especially when it comes to what im wearing. It needs to fit my body just right. Looking good on stage is one thing. But real confidence comes from feeling good out there. Try the improved fit of new depend silhouette briefs. Get a free sample at depend. Com. Welcome back. Time for sports, and this playoff lived up to its hype. The packers had the lead for the better part of this matchup. Building a 15point run by tend of three quarters. Two touchdown passes were thrown by Aaron Rodgers, but dallas wouldnt go down east in the fourth quarter. Qb Zach Prescott throws a touchdown pass to dez bryant before running in a twopoint conversion. The game tied at 28. Then both teams score on a pair of mega field goals. Green bay going with a 56yarder from mason crosby answered by dan baileys 52yard kick. 30 seconds left on the clock is more than enough time for green bay to seal the deal. This time Aaron Rodgers completes this pass to jared cook walking a tight rope to stay inbounds and put green bay in field goal range. Bring on mason crosby with ice in his vains. He makes the 50yarder not once but twice before nailing the one that counts sending green bay to the nfc championship with a 3431 win. What a game. Lets go to kansas city for the chiefs hosting the steelers in the night game. Kansas city gets the advantage in the First Quarter scoring on a 5 yard pass to aaron wilson. But it will be a while before either team crosses the goal line again. In fact, pittsburgh wouldnt score a touchdown all game, but who needs a td while they chew out the clock with a team record of 170 yard rushing records. And the nfl playoff record, six field goals in the game, unbelievable. The chiefs make a late trip to the end zone scoring on a 1 yard run by spencer ware at the end of the fourth quarter. Kansas city is unsuccessful on their second try at a twopoint conversion after a holding call pushes them back to the 12 yard line line. The steelers take over for the 1816 win. The chiefs tight end Travis Kelsey frustrated after the loss, wasnt shy about blaming the officials over that holding penalty. For it to end like that with the ref literally taking it out of our hands, that hurts. Its ignorance. Number 51 shouldnt be able to wear a zebra jersey ever again. He shouldnt be able to have a [ bleep ] locker. The steelers head to the afc championship against the patriots. Aaron rodgers heads to his third nfc title game with the packers this time against the falcons after atlanta eliminated the seahawks 3620 on saturday. To the sony open where in Honolulu Justin Thomas carried the opening 59 through the tournament. Ending in the record book by breaking the pga alltime score for 72 holes coming in at 253. Nobody came closer to thomas than five strokes all day. He closed yesterday on the twoputt birdie from a sevenshot victory. Congratulations to him. And Russell Westbrook not just his 20th tripledouble of the season in the 120118 win in sacramento against the kings. Westbrook reported 36 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists as he remains on pace to match the hall of Famer Oscar Robinson as the only player to average a tripledouble for a full nba season. Hes on fire. Totally. I know people who didnt even breathe during the end of the green bay dallas game. I could barely look. It was good football, though. Still ahead, the International Markets are a mess with warrants hedrawn up for th head of samsung. Plus, john lewis brands Donald Trumps presidency illegitimate provoking a new fight just days ahead of the inauguration. Were back after this. Forward not back. Its looking up not down. Its feeling up thinking up living up. Its being in motion. In body in spirit in the now. Boost. Its not just nutrition. Its intelligent nutrition. 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And 37 people have died after a turkish jet traveling from istanbul to hong kong crashed. The 747 was trying to land for a stop over dense fog. Well get much in a live report just ahead. And the eve of the Martin Luther king jr. Holiday, representative john lewis is questioning the legitimacy of trumps election on a clip with meet the press that aired on friday. Do you plan to forge a relationship with President Donald Trump . I believe in forgiveness and trying to work with people. It will be hard, its going to be very difficult. I dont see this president elect as a legitimate president. You do not consider him a legitimate president , why is that . I think the russians participated in helping this man get elected. And they have destroyed the candidacy of hillary clinton. I dont plan to attend the inauguration. It will be the first one that i miss since ive been in congress. You cannot be at home with something that you feel that is wrong. Lewis also said he would not invite trump to salma, alabama, the place he was bloodied by police 50 years ago. And a place he has marched annually with republicans and democrats alike, including george w. Bush and jeff sessions. Last week lewis also testified against sessions nomination as attorney general. The president elect responded on twitter to lewis comments singling out his district including the heart of downtown atlanta. Quote, congressman lewis should spend more time in fixing and helping his district which is in horrible shape and falling ap t apart. Not to mention crime infested rather than falsely complaining about the election results. All talk, talk, talk, no action or results, sad. Congressman john lewis should finally focus on the burning and crime infested inner cities of the u. S. Many other tweets are coming in. Justin amash wrote, congressman john lewis should finally focus on this. Ben sasse also said to john lewis, please come to the inauguration. We honor the sacrifice that he made on bloody sunday, but part of the result of bloody sunday was the Voting Rights act. So for someone of his stature, not just in the civil rights movement, but in Voting Rights, to make a comment that he did not consider donald trump to be a legitimate president is deeply disappointing. Its shocking that congressman lewis who is a civil rights icon and is a person who has championed Voting Rights would actually question the legitimacy of an election in this country and starting the firestorm. He won about 128 out of the 159 counties in georgia. He flipped 200 counties that obama won. I mean, i get you want to go back and forth on tweets, but the truth is, its irresponsible for john lewis, as historic as he is, to have done this. Barack obama should step up as well and call it what it is. Its wrong what is happening. Its wrong how some of these democrats are treating president elect trump. Its worth noting democrats are fundraising on lewis comments. And one other side bar in the wake of the fight, three of lewis are now the top three books on the amazon top seller lists. Some have sold out. One of the volumes of his march won a book award. And three senior officials on the trump team tell esquire theres a plan to relocate the press corps from the Briefing Room in the white house where they have been for decades to a space in the Old Executive Office building next door to the white house. Sean spicer, the incoming press secretary told esquire theres been no decision yet but theres been some discussion because of the size of the press corps and logistics. But another up named official told esquire of the press, quote, they are the opposition party. I want them out of the building. We are taking back the press room. The head of the white house corresponds with this saying, quote, we object strenuously to any move that would shield the president and his advisers from the scrutiny of an onsite press corps, end quote. Later he agreed to discuss any further moves. As we have already discussed, it was a busy and controversial weekend for donald trump on twitter. Heres what he told the times of london over the weekend about the future of his social media use. So ive got 46 Million People right now, thats a lot, thats really a lot, including facebook, twiter and instagram. So when you think that the 46 Million People there, i would just rather let that build up and just keep it. And the tweeting, i thought you would do less of it, but im covered so dishonestly by the press, so dishonestly. Maybe less tweeting through. Preparations are underway for the inauguration of the 45th president on friday. Rehearsals took place on the west front of the capitol yesterday after a conversation over the abrupt dismissal of the washington, d. C. National guard that was set to occur during the festivities as he was overseeing operations. On friday Major General arrow schwartz, a political appointee, said he would be removed from his post immediately after trump is sworn in by president. By saturday they asked him to remain in his post for a few days. The Supreme Court Justice Clarence thomas will be taking part in fridays ceremony administering the oath to Vice President elect mike pence. Pence will use his family bible and the one used by president Ronald Reagan during both of his inaugurations, alex. All right. President obama extended seven economic sanctions programs, actions that were set to expire within the first 60 days of the incoming administration. Under the National Emergencies act, obama extended the sanction against iran, cuba, libya, zimbabwe, venezuela and russia. And he renewed the executive order to target the assets of several terrorist groups. And he took the controversial step of easing economic sanctions against sudan. He noted the reduction in military activity as well as steps taken to improve humanitarian access. Sudan will still be designated a state sponsor of terrorism, a label its held since 1993. The countrys longtime leading president omar bashar is wanted by the International Criminal court for war crimes. And just this morning, oman has announced it has taken ten Prisoners Released by the u. S. From guantanamo bay. Part of the president s effort to shrink the facility that he once promised to close. And president obama is entering the final week of his presidency as he prepares to hand over the office to president elect trump on friday. Mr. Obama spoke with nbc news lester holt in an exclusive interview before giving the farewell address in chicago on tuesday. The two discussed trumps win in the november election and the role that the president ultimately played in handing him that victory. Generally speaking, not just me, but my team, had been pretty good at seeing something coming. And partly because the polling was off and the data was off, there was a surprise. I think the president elect will be the first to acknowledge he didnt run a conventional campaign. And its not clear that he or his team thought they were going to win. So i think it was a surprise. And there was a sense of disappointment thats inevitable when you have invested a lot of time and energy into someone i thought would be a terrific president , hillary clinton. It did speak to a problem that we saw during the course of my presidency, which was i had trouble transferring my personal popularity or support to the broader cause of the democratic party. And i think that is a legitimate criticism. I have thought about the things we could have done. You can see more on president obamas legacy with the obama years with Brian Williams tonight at 11 00 p. M. On msnbc. Now more on the breaking news from overseas where 30 people are dead after a Turkish Airlines cargo jet crashed in kyrgyzstan. The plane was attempting to land in very heavy fog. It went down in a village just outside the manas airport. Most of the People Killed were on the ground. And Tehran Bureau chief ali rouzi is joining us now, it looks like it couldnt have been worse, right into homes in a neighborhood. Reporter exactly. The proximity couldnt have been worse, 37 people were killed, most of them residents struck by the 747 as it tried to land in dense fog. Alex, the runway and the carnage are in close proximity to each other, separated by a metal fence, and that is why the damage was so devastating. And the pictures are devastating. The plane plowed through a few hundred yards through the village crushing and smashing into pieces at least 15 homes. And the remains of the broken aircraft sat on top of the smashed houses. The crash happened at about 7 30 local time in the morning. So most people would have been in their homes at the time. Rescue workers are putting the death toll at at least 30 with several of them in the hospital, 9 of them children. We are waiting for more reports to come out. Quickly, do we know if the pilot survived . We are hearing that all four crew members died on impact. Theres one person that hasnt been accounted for yet. And were waiting to hear what has happened, but it looks like all the crew died on impact. Ali arouzi in london, thank you for that. And now well turn to business where south korean prosecutors issued a warrant for the arrest of the chairman of samsung electronics. Louisa bojesen is joining us, we are hearing this is involved with the itmpeachment of the countrys president. What can you tell us . A lot of people are looking toward the company to see whether or not their reputation is still intact given what has taken place with this case. The group leader is being sought in bribery connections, and its a wideranging scheme that has been unfolding as well. So again, its one were watching very closely and especially our asian investors are extremely interested in this one. I want to mention what is going on with the pound. We are watching this very closely, given that teresa may is going to be giving a brexit speech tomorrow to hopefully lay out more plans in what is to come with regards to the brexit future. So we have seen the pound now at threemonth lows, below 120. We are just above 120 at the moment. We went below 120 for the First Time Since the october flash crash. There was a report in the sunday times that may will be signaling a hard brexit line in the speech tomorrow, in other words, fully break away from the market in order to gain control of borders here in the u. K. I also want to mention a huge deal being done between italy and the french group esalor. This is the rayban and oakley maker. And then the lens maker, this will be one of the biggest mergers done in europe. And a lot of analysts say the synergies make sense, lenses plus eyewear. And apparently today is blue monday, the most depressing day of the year here in the u. K. Lets hope not. I feel optimistic, too. Louisa bojesen, thank you so much. Im just going to smile, i guess, for a while. Anyway, were going to get an update on the icy conditions. They are hampering much of the nations midsection. Well have much more in just a few minutes. When my doctor told me i have agerelated macular degeneration, amd, he told me to look at this grid every day. And we came up with a plan to help reduce my risk of progression, including Preservision Areds 2. My doctor said Preservision Areds 2 has the exact nutrient formula the National Eye Institute recommends to help reduce the risk of progression of moderate to advanced amd after 15 years of clinical studies. Preservision areds 2. Because my eyes are everything. 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Yeah, i do government now. Does this bode well for our country . Survey says . A Little Family feud action there. Now well check on the weather with bonnie snyder. A lot of ice in the plains area of the country. Thats so true, louis. You can see on the radar picture its showing it all. We have ice, snow and freezing rain as well as regular downpours in kansas city. In iowa from ames to des moines, reports of icy roads overnight, so please be careful out there. Depending on where you are, youre facing dangerous conditions. Notice the temperature in waterloo right at 30 degrees. So as we teeter along the freezing mark, we are seeing freezing rain and heavy rain as well, just a tough go on the Holiday Weekend to deal with. Eventually, this storm is pushing to the east, so we are going to see substantial rain for chicago into milwaukee. Theres snow behind this, the cold air wraps around it. This will all work its way to interior new england by the middle of the week when were likely to see snow into connecticut and New Hampshire going towards wednesday. Now, speaking of all this wintry weather doesnt mean were not looking at milder temperatures. A huge warm up is happening. Yesterday the temperature climbed all the way into the 70s in atlanta. That tied the record, maybe again today, mild high temperatures through the middle of the week. The winter warm up is not going to last, but well take what we can with temperatures all the way into the 70s in charleston. Staying cold in the northeast, eventually warming up a bit to about 50 degrees. 56 on tuesday in d. C. , not bad. Louisville, up to 61. But by the time we get to the end of the week, well start to get closer to normal with temperatures in the 40s. And then looking beyond that, louis, as we look ahead to what is coming up into february, a couple more weeks, its going to get a lot colder across the country. A big pattern change ahead. Looks like Inauguration Day will be chillier than 40 degrees in washington. Maybe a little wet, too. Its actually going to be warmer in washington and it may be one of the record high warm temperatures for inaugurations ever. All right, well lookout for that. Still ahead, a summit to try to bring peace to the middle east. Ayman is here to tell us about the latest. Whose cellphone is that . Sorry. Sorry. Sorry about that vent blowing your hair. Start the hair, skin nails challenge today and notice a difference or your money back. Natures bounty. [phone buzzing] some things are simply impossible to ignore. The strikingly designed lexus nx turbo and hybrid. The suv that dares to go beyond utility. This is the pursuit of perfection. Did you know slow internet can actually hold your business back . Say goodbye to slow downloads, slow backups, slow everything. Comcast business offers blazing fast and reliable internet thats over 6 times faster than slow internet from the phone company. Say hello to internet speeds up to 250 mbps. And add phone and tv for only 34. 90 more a month. Call today. Comcast business. Built for business. Welcome back. Many leaders descendedn the middle east this weekend including john key pushing for renewed peace talks between israel and the palestinians. Notably absent, the israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who called the press conference rigged. The Palestinian Leader Mahmoud Abbas also didnt attend. Joining us is ayman mohyeldin. It was a ministerial level where expectations were low going into it. You had the french leadership and the french president who were attending, they were hosting and trying to bring parties to it, but as you mentioned, 70 arab countries were all there. But in terms of the significance of it, in terms of anything coming out of it as you correctly said, alex, nothing too significant. No new developments, no new announcements. At the end of this conference, there was a communique issued. And the communique reaffirmed all the standing principles that have been in place for decades to try to solve this conflict. It reaffirmed a twostate solution and said only in the two parties that were involved could try to solve this. Nobody could impose a solution from the outside. Some of that was being seen as an interpretation to the Incoming Trump administration to not do things unilaterally like move the u. S. Embassy to jerusalem. The french president warned that could be a provocation. In terms of moving the needle forwards on terms of real peace on the ground, a lot of people tell you this peace conference didnt do that, it just tried to reaffirm confidence in the twostate solution, alex. In this mystery thing going toward, president elect trump told them that Jared Kushner will help try to broker a middle eastern peace deal. The chances of success are, how do you put those . Well, if i have to base it on history and where things are going, i would probably say that the chances of success are very low at this point given the fact that the parties are not talking to each other, but the point is to remain optimistic about the chances of peace. There are some things you could say that could be beneficial. For example, the fact that Jared Kushner, if hes the person appointed to deal with middle east peace, is somebody who knows the region and the players. Hes a person who approaches things with an analytical perspective. There could be some positive aspects to his appointment to this position, but obviously theres going to be a lot of skeptics who say the lack of inexperience, the lack of dealing with the middle east and the lack of the region, knowledge of the region, not just israel, but the broader region, those may prove to be road blocks that are insurmountable. You have to remain hopeful. You just cant stop trying. Ayman mohyeldin, thank you so much. When we come back, a look at the stories happening in the day ahead. Rm of your glasses. It is no longer eyewear, it is your wand of business wizardry. Abracadabra. Youve just gone from invisible to invincible. Step two before your meeting, choose la quinta. The only hotel where you can redeem loyalty points for a free nightinstantly so you can prepare to win at business. Book now at lq. Com i use whats already inside me to reach my goals. So i liked when my doctor told me i may reach my blood sugar and a1c goals by activating whats within me with onceweekly trulicity. Trulicity is not insulin. It helps activate my body to do what its supposed to do release its own insulin. Trulicity responds when my blood sugar rises. I take it once a week, and it works 24 7. It comes in an easytouse pen and i may even lose a little weight. Trulicity is a onceweekly injectable prescription medicine to improve blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes when used with diet and exercise. Trulicity is not insulin. It should not be the first medicine to treat diabetes or for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. Do not take trulicity if you or a Family Member has had medullary thyroid cancer, if youve had multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to trulicity. Stop trulicity and call your doctor right away if you have symptoms such as itching, rash, or trouble breathing; a lump or swelling in your neck; or severe pain in your stomach area. Serious side effects may include pancreatitis, which can be fatal. Taking trulicity with a sulfonylurea or insulin increases your risk for low blood sugar. Common side effects include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite and indigestion. Some side effects can lead to dehydration, which may make existing kidney problems worse. With trulicity, i click to activate whats within me. If you want help improving your a1c and blood sugar numbers with a noninsulin option click to activate your within. Ask your doctor about onceweekly trulicity. So before we toss it over to morning joe, well talk about the stories in the day ahead. A number of people are going to be remembering Martin Luther king jr. President obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will take part at a local Service Shelter in washington, d. C. And president obama will welcome the world series chicago cubs to the white house despite being a devoted Chicago White sox fan. Hell have to endure it. The president will celebrate the cubs first world series title in more than 100 years. Thats going to be very cool. Its a home team. Hell root for the cubs. Im alex witt alongside louis burgdorf. Morning joe starts right now. God, i love the press, i respect the press. Lets take another question from the press. Im from buzzfeed no, not you, buzzfeed. Youre a failing pile of garbage. You want to know why . I took your quiz yesterday and ill tell you right now, im not a joey, im a dr. Ben carsons maegs hearing this week is characterized at shanky. Are you sure he is qualified for this cabinet position . If it helps i appointed somebody yesterday to help him out. Steve harvey. Its me, steve harvey. Yeah, i do government now. Does this bode well for our country . Survey say good morning. Its monday, january 16th. Martin luther king jr. Day. Welcome to morning joe. With us on set Pulitzer Prize winning historian john meacham and the New York Times reporter Jeremy Peters and professor at the university of Michigan School of public policy, former republican