There is never an excuse for violence against police. Theres also no excuse for police to use Excessive Force against peaceful protests or to throw protesters in jail for lawfully exercising their First Amendment rights. The president added that police should not be bullying or arresting journalists for doing their job. Calling for an open and transparent investigation the president met with eric holder today and ordered a Justice Department probe into the killing of Michael Brown. Holder also issued a statement saying that Going Forward the Justice Department will be assisting local authorities with crowd control. Back in ferguson, just hours ago police chief Thomas Jackson said a meeting with the brown family set for this morning had been postponed to be rescheduled later today. At that same press conference, jackson defended his departments actions, but said Police Tactics are under review. There is gun fire. There are firebombs being thrown at the police, and i understand that what it looks like is not good. The whole situation is not good at this point and thats where there are several meetings going on right now to evaluate tactics. Its going to be a long process so we need we need to have everybody tone it down. Joining me now is the host of msnbcs politics nation and president of the National Action network the reverend al sharpton. Thank you for joining me. Thank you. We are awaiting Governor Nixon to make his comments, but the idea that the doj is coming in to help with crowd control and the call for calm and peace on all sides, how confident are you in specific that the st. Louis p. D. Will be able to abide by that . I think thats the issue. As you know what went down at the request of the family and the family and i have called for calm and peace. That night at the rally we had over 2,000 people at a church in ferguson. I called for men to come forward and form a paeace patrol. There was no problem tuesday night. All of these stories, was there looting and there were problems the first night. Dead wrong, people immediately came and began organizing against that, then last night it was the police that attacked protesters who were how nonviolent, alex can you be other than you be with your arms raised . Theres nothing more nonviolent and peaceful than that and to show that the protesters are not just misleading many of us that were involved because im calling Long Distance to say whats going on . Theyre arresting reporters. If youre telling me the kids are lying, reverend or the guy from the Washington Post is lying and the Huffington Post is lying and videos it. This is the kind of mentality that these young people say Michael Brown was killed or eric garner was choked. If you have the mentality and its not all of the police, not most police, but if some of these police have the mentality that they wont even stop to listen to a reporter and say im moving, but im working, then imagine what they would say to a kid that they feel they can do whatever they want to do. The aclu has just filed suit against the st. Louis p. D. For trying to Record Police actions. Those are the journalists that you were talking about. Does it surprise you that the meeting with Michael Browns family was postponed . I think there is a question that the family had agreed to the meeting in the first place. I talked to the attorney for the family crump was not even there and at these meetings you need the right representation and i know attorney darrell cox is there and attorney gray is there and they want to make sure you cant have a family with Law Enforcement and they not be protected in the meeting. Yeah. So this morning when i talked to members of the family and the attorneys that had not been scheduled, i think ben crump and others have worked out whatever they need to work out. We know Governor Nixon was going to be going to a state fair up until this morning when he decided to cancel that appearance and get more publicly involved at least on this issue. Have you been satisfied with the response of lawmakers in the state of missouri to what is happening in ferguson some. Unless you think im satisfied with no response. I mean, there has been none in terms of you would expect the governor would have done this a couple of days ago. Yeah. Hes a democratic governor. The president almost beat the governor to the statement. This is the second statement. He did beat the governor. This is the second statement the president of the United States has made and the thing that i respect about what the president has made, he addressed the issues that we raised in terms of the doj involvement and the attorney general on both statements and hes supposed to be on vacation. The governors in the state. Where are a lot of the legislators that should be raising about legislation i mean, other than the legislator who got arrested for being there. So youve real willy got to ask yourself what do you think thats about . Do you think people think of this as a minority problem . I mean, im not i think they want to make it thats them over there. I dont know if theres going to be a backlash vote. It is a lot of political trepidation, but if you are a coward you ought not be in office. We are talking about an unarmed young man did who was going to go to college monday. We are planning his funeral, and no one deserves to hold an office that that does not cause them to pause. Reverend, let me ask you one question before we have to go. In tms of the broader relationship between the st. Louis Police Department and the community it serves, we know that Governor Nixon is saying that operational shifts are going to happen, but given the history of this Police Department on issues of race, is it are operational shifts all that needs to happen here . Would you like to see, i mean, john lewis told Andrea Mitchell he thinks they will declare martial law. Clearly, this is not about opportunity onics. Th optics. This is not about getting past the shooting and this is about fundamental change and how the police goes, period. Anything short of that well be back here again. Ive been involved in dealing with investigations and shootings in st. Louis before. Martin king iii who is joining me, attorney crump and the family at a service there on sunday, we went to jail fighting to get blacks construction jobs on i70, so i know st. Louis which is why the family called me and we have a presence there in the National Action network. Im not proposing that were going to presuppose the investigation. People say you object to it. I believe the police has the right to prove his innocence, but i also believe that hes going to have to prove it like anybody else. Were saying to have a fair, impartial investigation and dont act as though that as short a protest will get that. You have been a tenacious and fearless leader. Thank you as always for your time. Dont forget to catch rev every night on politics nation, thanks rev. Joining me now is the executive director of the aclu jeffrey mittman. Lets talk about the aclus newly announced lawsuit against the st. Louis bless departmepol. Can you tell us what thats about. Thanks so much for letting us keep the viewers informed of what were doing. The police in dealing with the protesters and in dealing with the media and in dealing with the public has repeatedly stated you may not record what is going on. As you know that that is a flagrant violation of the First Amendment and this is a tense situation. We need to be informed and we need documentation of what is occurring and the aclu has done which is to go to court and say, the First Amendment, the constitution protects us and if the police do not do the right things we will go to the courts and ask them and ensure that the right to record what is happening and theres evidence that the public can look at and we can all make our own decision and we hope that given that lawsuit and given that request to the police they will do the right thing. On that note in terms of trance parenty and information what do you make of the Police Departments decision not to release the name of the officer who shot Michael Brown . You know, its a great question. We are very concerned. This is a time of public crisis, a crisis in confidence of a community in Law Enforcement agencies and in our government and in our policies and procedures. We know that africanamerican men are targeted. We need to restore the communitys faith. So what the aclu immediately called for is an open and transparent and thorough independent investigation. The first step in that investigation is to comply with our missouri sunshine law which states an incident report that covers the who, the what, the why, the when of a Police Interaction is a public document. There is foe question with that regard. We requested that document and it was refused to be turned over to us so again, we have gone to court to say, do the right thing. Start this government process out on the right step with a transparent process. Jeff, i will just say we are still awaiting Governor Nixons press conference. We may have to cut away at any moment. Absolutely. Let me ask you another question. The images we saw last night of Police Officers in heavy military gear. The militarization of Americas Police force is something the aclu has done a very important job of researching although it must be said, it has been hard to research this aspect of american Law Enforcement because, as you guys have reported, the Police Departments are not forthcoming in terms of the weaponry they now have available. Can you tell us about how difficult that research has been . Absolutely. And again, at the federal level we have the freedom of information act and the aclu nationally and our many affiliates have made requests for information do you meand documentation. We know grant dollars are being used to buy military equipment. We are citizens and our Police Forces are there or should be there to protect and to serve. We do not want to turn ourselves into the enemy to treat protesters as if we were in a war zone. That is unacceptable. The aclu will be working tirelessly to make sure that these practices stop and as you said, the first step is information. I have to cut you off. Jay nixon is about to speak. Lets take a listen. Good afternoon. First of all, i want to thank all of the local elected and appointed officials that are with us today as well as the Community Leaders of the region. We deeply appreciate the stress and activities youve been under and we want to thank our great friends at the university of st. Louis, chancellor george, always deeply involved in the community and willing to assist us in whatever way, shape or form and i thank him for the excellent leadership he provides in this region. I want to thank everybody for joining us on a very busy day for the community and first let me go through what weve done today and then well go through questions. I was briefed on evening and morning and i spoke this morning with president obama who conveyed his concerns about the situation and our efforts to resolve it. Ive met with Civic Leaders and took a moment to visit the scene this moment where earlier this week a man, a man not much younger than my own sons lost his life. I appreciate the opportunity to hear from members of the neighborhood that were directly affected by the events in the last six days. They told me they want a community thats happy, healthy and safe. They want their streets to be free from intimidation and fear. They told me they want peace. They want truth and they want to be treated with respect ask today my message to the people of ferguson is the voices have been heard. We have been deeply troubled by the crisis as theyve been compounded by days of grief and fear. Whats gone on in the last few days is not what missouri is about. Its not what ferguson is about. This is a place where people work, go to school, raise your families and go to church. A diverse community. A Missouri Community and lately its looked like a war zone and its unacceptable. To change that course well all need to join hands to mend whats been broken and to help the community regain its confidence and its stability and literally the ice of the nation and the world are on us. To allow for healing and reconciliation to begin we need to address immediate challenges and thats why im announcing that the missouri Highway Patrol under the supervision of ron johnson who grew up in this area will be directing the team that provides security in ferguson. What im announcing today does not affect the responsibilities of those involved in the investigation and i would once again like to thank general holder for agreeing to my request that the Justice Department conduct a parallel investigation in this matter. I would like to thank local Law Enforcement officials who have been working hard at the local level. While that investigation continues, the immediate security responsibility will be directed by Missouri StateHighway Patrol who have proven themselves time and again when missourians have needed them the most. I want to thank the hardworking members of the local and regional Police Departments who have and will continue to work with the Highway Patrol as the troopers take the lead in this mission. I want to thank those officers who have been working double shifts and who have been out there on the cutting edge working, putting themselves out there. I appreciate the work that theyve done. Today is the day that our words and deeds will set a better cornerstone on which to build a better future. I know that ferguson will not be defined as a community torn apart by violence, but will be known as the community that pulled together to overcome it. Today we renew our commitment to bring peace to the families of ferguson. Today we commit to ensuring the safety and security of our communities and making sure they are served with justice and respect by their leaders. The day that we embrace our shared obligations as citizens to express our grief in a peaceful manner and voice our expectations for fairness and justice. Friends, we must pledge again to build up this community and direct it and ourselves toward the better angels of our nature. Well hear from other folks and then well take questions. The first of those i want to introduce to you to make a few comments is captain ron johnson of the highway state patrol. Captain johnson . I appreciate the significance of this responsibility and the fact that this community and state and the nation are looking for Law Enforcement leadership that protects and serves our citizens. I grew up here and this is currently my community and my home and therefore it means a lot to me personally that we break the cycle of violence and diffuse the tension and build trust showing the utmost respect for every interaction with every citizen. Moving forward, i am confident that the patrol and Police Resources present here in ferguson will do just that. They understand, as i do, how important it is that ferguson has confidence in Law Enforcement and works with us and understands that we are here to serve them. I understand that the anger and fear that the citizens of ferguson are feeling and our Police Officers will respect both of those. Thank you. Now with us the two chief executives of this region, and i appreciate their cooperation and support and their professionalism they and their teams bring to a myriad of opportunities each and every day. Let me first ask the county executive of st. Louis county, charlie duly, if you would. Let me say good afternoon to all of you. I come to you this afternoon with a very heavy heart. What we have seen these past few days in st. Louis county has been a tragedy. For the Michael Brown family it it has been a tragedy to have lost a son. In st. Louis county the world is looking at us and how we treat our own. Is there freedom of assembly . Of course, well is. We support freedom of assembly, but what we do not support is disobedience for the lawabiding people in st. Louis county. I have been saddened by what ive seen these past few days. Individuals come to this community not for the right purpose. Im for justice. I am not for revenge. Im for doing whats right and making it right. We have a large job ahead of us. Bringing this community together, it is not going to be a simple thing. There are too many questions that have not been answered that need explanations. People need to know, have closure to what is going on around them. Are they going to be protected in their homes . Are they going to feel safe in their communities, but even more importantly, as we move forward, can the community and our Law Enforcement come together to work as a unit . Neither one can get there by themselves. We need each of them to participate in this process. I want to thank Governor Nixon and his Team Stepping forward, recognizing we need all of the resources that we can possibly garner to make this happen, to improve the process. I want to thank my good friend mara slate for being with us and captain johnson. Its going to take all of our agencies to make this situation better. Its going to take all of us and even more importantly, it will take the people in the communities to calm down, stand down and lets be reasonable. Lets have a conversation about what is happening in our community. How do we perceive ourselves . How will the world look at us as a community . This ought not to be a black and white thing. This ought not to be a disrespectful thing to the citizens of our community. We can do better than this. I am confident that as we go forward were going to make a difference and one of the things that i pledge to you, im going to appoint a Blue Ribbon Committee to report to me, to look at what are we doing . How are we doing it and even more importantly, get people in the Community Involved in this process. They need to feel that theyre a part of it. They need to feel that theyre a part of the solution and the only way to do that is involve those individuals. So i pledge in the next coming weeks were going get a Blue Ribbon Community from both sides and lets get together and talk about what our expectations, what do we expect and how are we doing and give an update on whats going on in our community. We have nothing to hide. Its transparent and oh, by the way, we want the media to be involved in this process as well. I want to make sure theyre kept affront of whats going on, why are we doing certain things and whats the outcome we expect . I look forward to this communication. I look forward to these resources coming together, but even more importantly, i believe that we can make a difference in peoples lives. People expect us in st. Louis county that make their life safe, their businesses safe, their families safe and they have a right to that and thats our jobs and were going to do it. So in closing, i am committed to this process. I know our team is committed to this process. All of our agencies are committed to this process. I need the people of st. Louis county and the region to be committed to this process. Its not an us thing. Its ours. This is our community. The world is looking at us as cross this world, and how we represent ourselves it speaks volumes to our young people. Theyre our next leaders. We are the mentors. Were setting the bar. What type of bar are we setting for our young people . Theyre looking at us. It is our responsibility to make it better. Thank you. Let me also thank these members of the legislature that are with us that stock so well and have their finger on the pulse of this community and represent so well in Jefferson City and i appreciate these leaders being with us and well be in contact and well continue to do that in the coming weeks and i want to thank them for their involvement. I would like to hear from the mayor of st. Louis, our good friend. Thank you, governor. Michael brown was fatally shot in ferguson this past saturday. His parents, his family, friends and this community are all in mourning. These are facts that are not in dispute nor is the need for a full, fair and transparent investigation, nor is the need for justice to be served or people to be heard. The governor asked me to stand with him and county executive dooley today to demonstrate our common agreement on this situation. Justice must happen. The grieving must be comforted, the ang rae must be heard and the innocent must be protected. I agree on the direction that the governor has set. I offered him the experience of two Senior Police commanders from the metropolitan Police Department and chief sam dodson and Ronny Robinson are here this afternoon and theyre available to provide advice and support. Sam and ronny will bring a wealth of useful and Practical Knowledge to the effort and certainly whatever support they can provide. They can help protect people and their right to assemble peaceably, to protect the right to talk about it and report it and to help keep people safe. I want to conclude by recognizing the officers of the st. Louis county Police Department and ferguson Police Department and other Law Enforcement officials that have been involved on the streets of ferguson over the past several days. I want to thank you for your service. Thank you for respecting your badge, for honoring your oath and for, again, the service to our community generally. I hope that the decision made by the governor will make your mission clearer, safer and shorter. Thank you. Well take some other questions. [ inaudible question ] ushg m, i think we all have been concerned about, um, the the the the vision that the world has seen about about this region, and i think were all about making sure that we allow peaceful and appropriate protests, that we use force only when necessary, that we step back a little bit and let some of the energy be felt in this region appropriately, but thats only possible to succeed tonight and tomorrow and the next day after that if you have as was indicated by executive dooley as well as others, the support of the community and thats whyloc important. I dont want to speak operation alley other than to say that what well maintain the peace and allowing more movement, trying a different a different tone of the of the amplitude of protective force. My sense is that well have an effect and i know the operational teams on the ground will be working on changes anyway, and i appreciate that. [ inaudible question ] wait, well get plenty of questions here. Go ahead, kevin. Why was it necessary . Could you specify . All of us have seen some level of escalation and weve certainly seen some level of escalation of both the arms that have been used to deter as well as some of the conduct. I think theres been at that level, we feel that we need to dim that acceleration, provide an avenue for folks to speak appropriately, but that, i think, will allow us to have a better chance at and a better focus on guaranteeing more Public Safety. So clearly, i think youll see as the afternoon and evening starts, a little different picture and our hope is that that will begin. We should also note that there will be resources out there if things get difficult to be sure people are kept safe, but i think the strong force on the frontline and our hopes would be that we have the ability to get a little more peaceful interaction on the front with force for the back. Governor, how would you explain the nature of the presence that we saw on the streets yesterday . There were armored personnel carriers and 100 police in militarystyle uniforms and highpower highpowered to the crowd and i think that was yesterday. Tonight is tonight, tomorrow is tomorrow so we all have seen both an acceleration as to the intense itity, kieb kind of on both sides of the equation and this operational shift will begin the process of lowering the intensity of those direct interactions and potential risks while at the same time expanding the the opportunity for folks to speak out appropriately about both long and shortterm issues that have clearly struck a nerve. It was deaf ffinitely onesi yesterday. What was that . It was onesided yesterday and it was a peaceful protest and there was no violence at all from the crowd and the nature of that response. I dont understand how that could happen. What was in charge in making those decisions . Im not looking backward and im looking forward when we saw the acceleration in this situation and, um, um, thats our sense that a a shall we say a softer front might yield an avenue for appropriate energy absent during a confrontation. Governor, the aclu has filed for an open records request for an incident report that would contain the name of the officer that shot mike brown. Thats an open record and should that be released . First of all, i dont know the name of what the officer is. Im not conducting investigations and its pis oMissouri State law. I dont want to get into a debate of what the law is and is not, other than to say that i would hope that the appropriate release of that name with the security around it if necessary to make sure that theres not additional acts of violence be done as expeditiously as possible. Theres certainly, in my view, methods and abilities to do that and im not sure litigation is the best of them. Ill let others choose that, but i think it would be an important milestone here to get that out as expeditiously as possible. Yes . [ inaudible question ] what the process is now to actually take control . Well, i mean, weve been involved and captain johnson of patrol has been a part of the Interdisciplinary Team and weve been monitoring it carefully. Its not my first trip to st. Louis and its not the first time on the phone with these officials and its not my first time to be at the churches here and had a chance to speak to the local leaders. You clearly want solutions to be done as quickly as possible. You want folks to feel engaged still so that you get not merely a shortterm operational gain, but much more importantly than that, a longterm, you know, trust build. So you want to be in a situation in which you want to at the state level support folks that are out there facing the tough calls and making the tough calls and doing this. We watched it very carefully. I just felt that at this particular point that the the attitudes werent improving and that the and the blocks toward expression appeared to be a flashpoint and that if we put, you know, some some some folks some people first that wed be in a better situation. So ive been monitoring closely, and you know, felt that this was the appropriate time to make this operational shift. Real quick, david. Im here. Dont worry. Youll get me. David . Governor, will the ferguson Police Department and the st. Louis county Police Department still be providing the feet on the ground as far as Police Officers go or will the Highway Patrol be stepping in with more of the own officers . The Highway Patrol and captain johnson will be the lead in the security portion of this. Well have significant resources and patrol, but they will continue to be part of the Multidisciplinary Team with shifts from the local region to assist that. So we expect that well continue to rely on a joint force in this area to make sure with the various shifts involved and that sort of stuff, but operation alley, the patrol will be the league agency when it it comes to security. Im sorry. Well have the well have whatever is out there, but i think the challenge we face today is not whether you have enough officers or not. The challenge is not whether you have resources or not, the challenge is not whether or not youve shown enough strength on the police side or not. I think weve shown that. Thats why i think a little shift here and a little operational shift with a little flexibility at this point could provide breathing space to i should also warn that were certainly going to protect business owners, families and others from indiscriminate acts or illegal acts and there will be adequate force there. I just dont think the size of the force has been the key stress. Ill head back here. Yeah . There were several people who said that they were arrested from proest ittitesting peacefu yesterday and they spent the night in jail and spent 16 hours and then released and walked out of jail. Your thoughts on that . Will you look into that . Secondly, as you talked about the presence from last night what you hear repeatedly from folks in ferguson is that they are dumbfounded by the overwhelming and over the top response that they thought they saw last night and you tried to touch on it, but i dont think you quite answered that question. Theres been gun fire. Lets not kid ourselves, folks. This has been a difficult zone. There has been there have been theres been a great deal of activity in that region. So i think that tonight youll see and without going through any of the operational stuff which is up to the team as they work this morning and tonight to move forward, but i think what you will see is an attempt and a successful a temp, in my view to move forward people and to move back a little bit of equipment, but that doesnt mean were giving up on keeping the rule of law of any abhorrent or criminal behavior. What are you saying to the underlying concern in the community here that there has been a long habit of Police Harassment in north st. Louis county, traffic stops, multiple housing violations, particularly the game ref now for municipalities that have limited resources as the economy in the area has gone down . As i said the other night at the church, this feels a little like an old wound that has been hit again and so the pain you feel is not just from the individual action. It feels like a little bit of a long time simmering and that i think is natural for all of us to see and to watch. So i think the challenge that we face here goes much more deep and that doesnt show a lack of respect for any of the victims that have suffered so far or on the deaths weve had in any way, shape or form, but i think the key to this is to get control, let voices be heard and make sure you protect property of opening up and be more free, showing less force on the front side and ultimately getting to some of these deeper problems. I mean, this is these are, you know, deep and existing problems not only in missouri, but in america and this has clear lei clearly touched a nerve and this is not just from the horrific incident that happened a few short days ago or the interim things and it touches a deeper nerve and that, while were focused on the shorter operational things i think ultimately we will be graded or gauged as to whether or not this was an opportunity used to begin to make some longer term understanding and healing. I do believe that this touched a an old wound, a deeper merv and incumbent upon all of us to respect all that have been lost, to make sure justice is served and to make sure we keep order to allow voices to be heard and long range when we say voices to be heard that means people listened to, also. It doesnt mean people talking. Voices be heard is not just people saying their side. Its opening their mouths and your ears. I mean, this is in that sense a clear opportunity. Governor, may i ask a question . Sure. We had rioting on sunday night as the Police Stayed back and then they moved in more aggressively and theyve been criticized for that and people said we havent had any looting or burning since then. Are you prepared . Is there a plan b if this gentler approach yields more looting and rioting . We will have adequate resources to deal with Public Safety issues that arise in this region. Those of you that know me as well as the fine professionals in this region. The question over here, i dont think theres any doubt whether we have enough resources to deal with this. We will use those resources a little differently and calibrated in different orders, but rest assured well do our best to to reestablish t the the rule of law and subsequently expand the trust . Governor [ inaudible question ] i no. I think theres a lot of ness wo again, im not involved in the investigative side and all of that will operate on separate tracks and they have potential flash points in the community and thats why its important now to, i think, make a little shift in this operation alley because there is a lot to be done, but there are check points as we move forward that are going to be very emotional, that are going to be moments when, you know, folks may disagree or agree on on what the outcomes are. You have two investigations going on at the same time. Our goal here is to make sure operation alley and systematically that were getting peace and that were getting that on that front to garner opportunities in the future. You talk about healing that wound thats been here a long time. Do you have specifics that you can offer us on things you would like to see done . Like i said, were focused now on operational things. Wed like to see folks feel comfortable in their voices and making sure other people property and lives are protected. Wed like to see the danger level go down on a lot of fronts and wed like to see the investigations out there and get completed and wed like to hear those done in a fashion thats transparent and timely so that these important facts get out in the public. I think that, its just real important for people to know what happened and how it happened and then well begin to process that. The sooner we can get to those, thats extremely important here and long range, institutions like this in the schools. I do appreciate representative pearson and some of the others this morning had listening sessions in schools here and thats an important step to engage with the young folks and some of these other representatives are doing the same thing and thats an important part of this process, too, and i hope to be involved appropriately and we have to get it accomplished in the next day or two. Yes, sir . [ inaudible question ] absolutely not. Johnson has been in the operation center. What were doing is putting a were were making an organizational shift here that i think will reflect, i think, some other things that all those folks were doing. I respect the folks that wear those uniforms and wear those badges. Most of you know i have a life time of being involved in Law Enforcement and people that choose a career to run toward trouble and not away from it and its been a difficult couple of weeks here and getting this operational shift is something that will give everyone a breath of fresh air. Were not this isnt about looking in the rearview mirror. Were trying to keep our eyes focused on whats in front of us. All of the way in the back. [ inaudible question ] what are your thoughts about that . We have two already. We have the Justice Department and weve got the fineseasoned team in st. Louis contkon count. Lets them do their work. You have the Justice Department and youve got the fine folks at the st. Louis who have a lot of experience. I think well let them do their jobs. I mean, theyre doing a lot of work out there. Theyre theyre and i know theyre hustling their tails off. They understand the pressure and nobody is enjoying the timeliness. They want to get it right and they will, but i dont think adding a third at this particular juncture until we get the transparency here and see the outcome of that is appropriate. Theres already two folks looking over their shoulders and thats unique anyway. I think thats going to work because general holder and his team from justice as well as prosecutor mccallum and his team are in a third lane and that particular thing is going to be helpful at this juncture. Yes . Governor on, can you characterize your relationship with the black community and how its evolved over the past week and how its shaped your response to all of this . The i appreciate the relationship i have with so many of my friends from so many years in this community and the the stress and pressures theyve helped me over the years and not just these four, leaders here five, im sorry, charlie and others, i tremendously appreciate that. I dont think this is a time to, and im going to continue to use this as a time to not divide and to see how loud i can talk and other people have First Amendment rights and i have executive challenges here. So i think that my relationship is good and professional and in many ways very personal with a number of folks, and i look forward to, you know, the natural process of the First Amendment of democracy and thats part of the life of living and if youre not up for dealing with the critiques of actions and inactions in this job you shouldnt seek it. Governor, over here if you could, speaking of First Amendment rights could you respond to your criticism of the handling of the situation that came in the form of a tweet that came from Maria Chappelle nadal that included a fourletter word . Good . Warm . Its near the gs. Are you familiar with it . You know, i get the access. You guys sent a lot of stuff and i get to see some of it. I dont i dont its not how i communicate and i dont i i try to put gasoline into the engine of fire engines when i see them, not on the fires that are existing. I find doing that is more productive. [ inaudible question ] we tried to. Well get that opportunity soon and weve certainly been in contact with them and i have been impressed by their comments in calling for peace and justice and i thank them for that. I think theyve been resolute in their recommendation to the communities that violence is not the answer, and i know theyre going through difficult times. Very difficult times, and i think that wheel we had a chance to get together that the schedules got bumped out, im sure well get a chance to sit with them, but with the things in front of me rof me right now ive been more focused today on some of the operational aspects. Anybody else . Okay, dave. Captain johnson about what he says hell do different tonight. Ill let captain johnson make a few comments, but i should say i ask members of Law Enforcement before what theyre doing and what theyre doing to do is, um, um, they try to kevin johnson. Yes . I was wondering, what are you going to do differently tonight . Are you still going to roll in there with Armored Vehicles and police and full body gear or will you have a different appearance . Can you have an overview of that . Well go back and assess today and well start from today. Were not going to look back in the past and when we talk about boots on the ground, my boots are going to be on the ground and actually i plan on tonight myself walking to the quick trip that has been called ground zero and meeting with the folks there myself tonight and so we are going have a different approach and have the approach that were in this together and so thats going to be the approach that well have tonight and look at our resources and make sure were not taking resources out there that we dont need, but when we do need those resources they will still be here, but well just reassess and we plan on trying to keep it it open today and let people speak and hear what theyre talking about, not just letting them speak, but listening and well have a different approach today and i believe youll see that. I believe that was in the plan before this meeting. We talked last night with the police chief of st. Louis county and those were the plans we had for today. We all went home last night and before we left we talked about going home and thinking about what we were going to do for today, and i can tell you that when i got home last night my wife was out of town and my son wasnt home. Before i got into bed like i do each and every night i pray, and i prayed for a different morning today, and i believe today is going to be a different day for our community. This afternoon i had a chance to go to River Gardens high school and sit down and speak with 25 students and one young lady sat in the back with tears in her eyes and said i hate to creigh. I can tell you i almost had tears in my eyes and i told her were going to make a change well make a difference and i told those students if they have issues they should call us and i gave them my address to my office and i told them to write me a letter and how this has impacted them. When this is over i am going to read that to the troopers who are assigned here at troop c, and i got a text on my phone from the head of security at the school and said those students went back to their class and told their friends that they believe were going to make a change today and we are. Thank you. Once again, thank everybody for being here. Well be a strong team prepared to move forward and make a difference. Thank you all for being with us today. Thank you. That was missouri governor jay nixon addressing the escalating situation in ferguson and joining me now is Washington Bureau chief at the Huffington Post qwe post, one of your reporters was assaulted by police and later arrested. You had firm words for the st. Louis Police Department. I wonder, lets just talk about the immediate news which is Governor Nixons press conference in which he informed the public that the Missouri StateHighway Patrol will be directing security from now on. You noticed pretty clear optics as my colleague chris hayes has pointed out in that press conference, africanamerican leaders directing this situation. What did you make of the press conference and whats your immediate takeaway . Jay nixon has been taking a lot of heat on twitter from this, but i think this is a huge step forward. I think this is the first time that the country saw whats happening with the militarization of Police Forces and nobody like it theed. Theyre asking why do you need camouflage to hide inside a mcdonalds . Youd be better off with orange and yellow striped shirts. It just doesnt make any sense. So people pushed back and they were embarrassed and the local police force has been kicked out of this and its a humiliation for them. And theres nothing unusual about the st. Louis county Police Department which is the ones that have been running this so far. You know, theyre a common phenomenon. All across the country you have these local Police Forces that have all of these heavy weapons. They have mineresistant vehicles and they were asked yesterday, why do you need a mineresistant vehicle, has there ever been a mine placed anywhere in ferguson . They beingnt answer that question and today theyve been pushed back and it actually is a big deal and if local communities keep the pressure on their local forces this could end up being a turning point. I want to bring in now by phone from ferguson is the host of msnbcs all in my friend and colleague, chris hayes, you were at that press conference and i heard your question to Governor Nixon about the identity of the Police Officer who shot Michael Brown. It seemed initially like the governor was sort of dodging yes or no whether he would release the name of this person, but at the end he seemed to suggest that the officers name would come out. Is that how you read his response . To me the key phrase was to urge the Police Department to put it out as expeditiously as possible and he made reference to the fact this if security is a concern, security can be provided for the officer in question even if the name is released to the public. The way to address security concerns is not to withhold from the public what is under very clearly the black and white letter of the open record. Hell be included in an incident report, he made news here and it should be released as expeditiously as possible and thats not the way the Ferguson Police have gone about anything so far. Chris, what did you make of the governors response when he was asked whether there would be a militarized presence as there was last night and whether anybody would be taken to task for ordering the maltarrized presence. He said yesterday is yesterday, tonight is tonight, i am not looking backward. I am looking forward. Well, im looking forward not backward phrase, of course, made famous by the president of the United States in regard to a whole bunch of things strong do with the bush administration, and yeah, i mean look, the thing you have to understand is that this guy has been 16 years attorney general of the state. He is a Law Enforcement guy. Hes a law and order democrat. He created his National Profile and won statewide as governor beating barack obama by ten points in the state by being this kind of what i think now these days is sort of outdated, centrist clinton democrat and he is being the guy that stands up to the looters and rioters. You can tell in what kind of awkward spot this guy was in because hes trying to play politi politics, that are outside his strengths. He has to go out and explain why are Police Officers pointing weapons at peaceful, unarmed protesters for the whole world to see and he had no real answer. I was struck by the way that the own us wnus was placed more protesters than the the police. Gun fire was exchanged on both sides. Charlie dooley, the county executive kept directing his comments toward the community rather than the Police Department. It is a very difficult thing to it take on Police Forces if you are a public official in this day and age. Its hard to overestimate the power that these police forres have, not just their physical and their military power which is on display all week, but their political power and thats why they have wound up with all of these bangbang toys they have here and there are two ways that they get the money for this. One is Asset Forfeiture where they will seize somebodys property and they dont actually have to convict them of a drug crime. They can allege a drug crime and then the person has to prove that it was not from illegal activity that they got this asset. We filed a freedom of information act request a while ago and there are a lot of st. Louis police monies that went more than 1 million has went to the st. Louis police last year from Asset Forfeiture and probably much more and we havent finished it up and the federal government sends money out to local Police Forces for them to buy toys on display. All you have to do to roll this back is to reform the Asset Forfeiture law, but the Police Forces are so incredibly powerful and thats going to be very difficult and you saw that reflected in the way the governor had such a difficult time doing what he knew he had to do which was kick the locals out of the scene and put in more responsible adults and you can see how uncomfortable he was doing it. Go ahead. Go ahead. I was just going to add that we should be clear from the local press corps and there were some saying arent you just giving in to looters and arent you throwing the cops under the bus . We should be clear that the politics of the situation locally are not necessarily the politics of what they are nationally. As people are nationally or on social media. I think there is probably and that this conte has a long history and the state of missouri in term its of how racial relations have worked that there is a significant portion of the electorate who are looking at these images and theyre seeing an unruly mob that needs to be brought to heal. And the way democrats have gotten elected are the ones bringing it. We shouldnt overestimate the degree to how there is yauchl outrage toward the police in terms of the politics of the situation. Chris, to follow on that, we had reverend al sharpton on earlier today and he brought up the point that the president who many folks have criticized for being late to the statement beat the governor of missouri in terms of addressing this on the national stage. The white house gave us a readout that the president felt like now was the time for him to make a Statement Given the fact that the situation was escalating. Im paraphrasing the Actual Administration and this is something that has to your point played differently for people outside of missouri as opposed to people inside missouri. Youre in ferguson. What is the sense on the ground . If youre walking through the community, do you have a sense of whats happening and whats been happening in the last couple of days . The sense ive gotten from talking to people here is basically, oh, oh, were on the front page now and theres daunting awareness that seeped through last night where everybody kind of recognized just how out of control this situation had gotten and i think theres a lot of, you know, there rs certainly a lot of anger at the local leadership here which feels, i think is insufficient and arc wohl in many ways and also the sense of oh, my god, i think what you are seeing a little bit happen here is the kind of institutional establishment figures here in the county, the county of st. Louis and the city of st. Louis in ferguson and in the state of missouri saying bhoe, whoa, whoa, whoa, this is not what we want the image of st. Louis to be the guns pointed at people and the camo and it was very interesting how much the focus and the comments was about the image as opposed to the underlying problem. Right. We have to leave it there. This is obviously a fluid, developing story. The Huffington Post, ryan, thank you as always for your time. Thank you to chris hayes. Youll have much more on this later tonight live from ferguson, all in. Thank for taking the time. We want to update you. It is a huge breaking news day today. Breaking news out of iraq. A major announcement, just moments ago Nuri Al Maliki announced on Iraqi State Television that he is stepping down from office. He said he would not give up power until iraqs High Court Ruled on his claims to leadership and that paves the way for Haider Al Abadi to form a new cabinet. The ed show is up next. Good evening, americans. Welcome to the ed show live from new york. Im Michael Eric Dyson in for ed schultz. Lets get to work. Dont shoot what do we want . Justice when do we want it . Now i know americans are depply disturbed by the images weve seen in the heartland of our country. Dont shoot hands up dont shoot police fired tear gas on protesters in ferguson. This is the Police Department you must leave the area a day that began with promise of peace ends with another showdown on the streets. The crowd is peacefully standing with their hands in the air. I expressed my concern over the