Good evening once again from our nbc news headquarters here in new york. Day 876 of the trump administration. This happened to be the president s 73rd birthday. While the cleanup effort continued stemming from the damage done when the president said of course hed accept dirt on political opponents from a foreign power, todays news was more dominated by an attack by the president on a very high value target. Don mcgahn, who has returned to private practice after serving as trumps what House Counsel. He knows a thing or two because he saw a thing or two in that job. His testimony to mueller was so valuable he was quoted in the Mueller Report more than any other witness and emerged really as one of the reports defacto narrators after testifying for over 30 hours about what he witnessed inside the trump white house. Mcgahn described how trump urged him to pressure doj to get rid of mueller by insisting that he raise the what trump insisted were muellers socalled conflicts of interest. He essentially accused the former what House Counsel of lying white House Counsel of lying today while under oath to the special counsel. He lays out a lot of evidence including the episode where you ask your white House Counsel don mcgahn, you tell him mueller has to go. You call him twice and say mueller has to go. Call me when its done. I was never going to fire mueller. I never suggested firing mueller. Thats what he says. I dont care what he says. It doesnt matter. That was to show everyone what a good counsel he was. We had a business why would he lie under oath . Because he wanted to make himself look like a good lawyer or, or he believed it because i would constantly tell anybody that would listen including you, including the media, that Robert Mueller was conflicted, Robert Mueller had a total conflict of interest. Has to go. I never i didnt say that. The Mueller Report notes nearly half a dozen other witnesses testify to the president s intent to remove Robert Mueller, the special counsel. Close trump allies like chris christie, reince priebus, steve bannon as well as meticulous notetakers like the former chief of staff, our nbc news commentator Peter Alexander received this from a source close to mcgahn. Trump doesnt actually contradict don in any meaningful way. All he says is he didnt tell don to fire mule ir. Don never said that. He said that trump told him to call Rod Rosenstein and say the conflicts are too much and mueller needs to go. The source goes on to say, its just fantasyland. The president was asked why he made no effort to sit down with muellers team. Trumps answer sounded a lot like what weve heard often from his lawyers, that trump was trying to catch him in what the trump people prefer to call a perjury trap. If you answer these questions to me now why not answer them to Robert Mueller under oath . Because they were looking to get us for lies, for slight misstatements. I looked at what happened to people and it was very unfair. You didnt answer questions on obstruction . Wait a minute. I did answer questions. I answered them in writing. I answered a lot of questions. They gave me questions. I answered them in writing. Not on obstruction. Look, george, youre being a little wise guy. Okay . Which is typical for you. Just so you understand. Very simple. It is very simple. There was no crime. There was no collusion. House democrats want to hear from mcgahn and mueller for that matter in person before the judiciary committee, which will hold its second hearing on the Mueller Report next thursday. Democrats were handed something of a setback today in their oversight efforts. Well explain this. The Justice Department today said the Treasury Department doesnt have to give the house ways and Means Committee president trumps tax returns, saying the request lacked a legitimate legislative purpose. The battle over those records, those tax returns, now appears headed for federal court where a lot of experts predict the administration could lose this one because the language in the law is very plain. As we mentioned, trump today tried to clarify statements he made to abc news about accepting campaign help from russia or other Foreign Governments without automatically notifying the fbi. During an attempted cleanup in the form of a long phone interview with fox friends this morning, here now is what the president is saying about being offered incriminating information on political opponents. Of course you have to look at it because if you dont look at it youre not going to know if its bad. But of course you give it to the fbi or report it to the attorney general or somebody like that. But of course you do that. You couldnt have that happen with our country. Nobody is going to say bad things to me. They know i am a very straight player. They know one thing about me, i love this country more than anything. I love this country. This is all happening as there is a certain amount of upheaval in the White House Communications office. Press secretary Sarah Sanders is leaving at the end of the month perhaps to run for governor back home in arkansas. Nbc news reports some of the top contenders to replace her include stephanie grisham, Communications Director for the first lady, hogan gibbly the Current White HouseDeputy Press Secretary and steve cortez a former Trump Campaign official who these days appears on cnn to defend the president pretty much regardless of the topic. Reporter annie carney of the New York Times who will join us in a moment notes the white house is now thinking about bringing back the Daily Briefing. Its been 95 days since the last one. She writes, quote, some white house officials have argued the Daily Briefing is a powerful tool that would help elevate mr. Trump above his democratic opponent in the 2020 race. Others have argued that mr. Trump has never liked the Daily Briefing as a forum to disseminate the message of the day, preferring to do it himself on twitter. Keep in mind trump is days away from officially launching his Reelection Campaign. That happens next tuesday when he holds a rally in orlando, florida. Without delay here for our leadoff discussion on a friday night, the Washington Bureau chief for usa today, author of the best selling new barbara bush biography the matriarch. And Jonathan Allen our Nbc News National Political reporter. Good evening and welcome to you all. Susan, id like to begin with you. Mitch mcconnell last night repeated his phrase, case closed, on all of this. On the entire mueller matter. Why do you think the president thought of speaking out on it now that he could perhaps make things better . You know, i dont think the president probably set out to talk about it but georwas asked about it. What was extraordinary is the previous investigations, its as if they never happened. The president outlined a willingness to do exactly what got him in the previous hot water in the long investigation into russian collusion and after that obstruction of justice. This is really an extraordinary selfinflicted wound on the part of the president. If the case is closed as the white house would like to say, which Mitch Mcconnell likes to say, the president should decline to address these issues or at least play out a position that doesnt take him right back to where he was in the 2016 campaign. John, what is the upside as trump sees it of going after don mcgahn . A great question, brian. One of the things weve talked about through all of this is the president s efforts to intimidate witnesses and perhaps he is trying to leverage don mcgahn in some way. Perhaps he believes that he can put some sort of fear in don mcgahn by calling him a liar or at the very least get his own supporters to believe that anything don mcgahn says before congress is untruthful. Maybe even to get the Justice Department to believe that anything don mcgahn says is untruthful. It is unfathomable that the credibility of don mcgahn, his testimony before Robert Mueller, and the witnesses that Robert Mueller had supporting that would be called into question as compared to what the president says in an interview. I have something to play you that those watching in real time thought was a great bit of analysis on the fly. Here is how Nicole Wallace opened her broadcast this afternoon at 4 00 eastern. If you swapped in Robert Mueller for george, the Mueller Investigation may have ended very differently. When seated with anyone other than sean hannity or laura ingram donald trump seems to fall apart and lack the mental acuity and truth telling capacity to field real questions from real journalists. What is the chance she has it about right there . Well, there is. You can draw a line between this interview and the now famous interview donald trump did with lester holt where he explained the real reason why he fired comey. So when he does these straight interviews, he steps in hot water in a way he doesnt do on the fox friends. These settings that his aides have pushed him and convinced him would be good end up back firing. Even white house officials were admitting today this did not go. He didnt say things that were particularly helpful in this interview. Speaking of which, susan, the backtrack on election interference on accepting intel from a foreign power, you could tell that moved the needle because by my viewing it forced republican senators to say words. Some of them critical of this president. And i guess that backtracking is going to have to continue. Well, the idea that the president of the United States would basically invite the russians to once again come forward with negative information about his democratic opponent in this race i think was just a bridge too far for people like mitt romney and even Lindsey Graham who is one of his closest allies in the senate. It did provoke controversy. It was very hard to find a defender of a president on this issue. And that is pretty rare. You know, you also had the head of the fec putting out a statement saying it is illegal to do that. This is not allowed by any foreign entity and especially a Foreign Government and one that is an adversary of the United States. Susan, you and i have been around a bit. I do not remember anything on fec letterhead, going back decades, anything like the tone and tenor of that letter. And directed at the president of the United States, saying, to be clear, this is not acceptable. This is not legal. It hasnt been for a long time. So that is im sure why the president decided to walk it back on fox friends though he didnt walk it back all the way. He didnt say hed refuse to listen to dirt from a foreign entity. He said he would turn around and alert the fbi or other Law Enforcement agency but he would listen to it first. That is at odds with for instance what tom downey the congressman from long island did when he was working for al gores president ial campaign and a briefing book, george w. Bushs briefing book showed up at the Campaign Headquarters over the transom. They didnt look at it. They immediately called the fbi. That is expected. That is political norm in our country for things like this. Annie, in the meantime youve reported on this. Sarah sanders is departing. A ton of people having a ton of fun with this especially on social media. Somebody said today well know its true when she denies it. For her part she said she wants to be remembered as transparent and honest. I tend to think, however, shell be remembered as Sarah Sanders. Going forward, talk to us about the candidates for this job and the potential of reviving after 95 days the white house Daily Briefing not because it would be good for the republic but because it might be good for this president. Yeah. The briefing is something donald trump never liked from the beginning. He always wanted to get rid of it and doesnt see the point. There is an internal right now in the white house that as he enters the thick of election season, as you said officially kicking off his campaign he has been running for two years in orlando next week, they see it as a tool that someone described as it would be malpractice to pass up this powerful tool that gets broadcast every day, that no democratic opponent would have. Mick mulvany the acting chief of staff has been pressing for at least an off camera Daily Briefing where the white house could set the agenda a little bit. Then other people think it is counterproductive and also hard to get someone willing to do it just to tie back to baja what we just talking about. When the president contradicts himself it puts aides in a very tough position. The Campaign Spokesperson yesterday, i asked him if the campaign agreed with the president that they would at least look at foreign, quoteunquote, dirt. And he said, we are afraid of the president s statement. What do you do when the president switches his statement the next day . It is an awkward position for him speaking for him. That is a problem for whoever takes the job. One of the lead candidates im hearing about is stephanie grisham, been with trump since 2015. He trusts her. She serves as Communications Director for the first lady who apparently has given her blessing to do whatever she wants in the white house. She is seen as loyal. She has good relationships with some members of the press because shes been around for so long. Hogan gidley is expected to do the job in the interim. He is Deputy Press Secretary right now. Ive heard trump is most interested in terms of a permanent position filling it with a woman. Okay. So, john, about this launch of the Reelection Campaign what kind of preview can you offer us . I expect the president to be excited about his rally in orlando coming up next tuesday. This is an opportunity for him to get out there and talk about the numbers he wants to. Theres been leaked bad following for him from march, many swing states where he is down pretty badly to joe biden but he is going to get out there and talk about the economic numbers, the low unemployment. He is going to talk about all of the sort of familiar themes over the last couple of years. And this is what really gets his juices going. He wants to get out there and start throwing punches. When you talk to people involved in the last campaign, people involved in this campaign, he loves having a foil. Right now thats joe biden to some extent. Expect him to get out there and start whacking the democratic opponents hard. You know, hes revved up. To annie carney, susan page, and john allen on a friday night after another epic week, our thanks for starting off our conversation so nicely. Greatly appreciate it. Thank you. Coming up for us, this week the president called out the man he put in charge as the director of the fbi. Nothing new there. But tonight an fbi veteran will assess the longterm damage to the bureau. And later, the lineups are now set for night one and nate two of the democratic debates. Now just a dozen nights away. The 11th hour just Getting Started here on a friday night. Every curve, every innovation, every feeling. A product of mastery. Lease the 2019 es 350 for 379 month for 36 months. Experience amazing at your lexus dealer. I felt i couldnt be at my best wifor my family. C, in only 8 weeks with mavyret, i was cured and left those doubts behind. I faced reminders of my hep c every day. But in only 8 weeks with mavyret, i was cured. Even hanging with friends i worried about my hep c. But in only 8 weeks with mavyret, i was cured. Mavyret is the only 8week cure for all common types of hep c. 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The fbi director is wrong. Your campaign this time, if foreigners, china, russia, someone else offers you information on an opponent should they accept it or call the fbi . If somebody called from a country, norway, we have information on your opponent. Oh, i think id want to hear it. You want that kind of interference in our elections . It is not interference. They have information. I think id take it. There is a piece in politico currently about how remarks like that are impacting efforts to fight election interference. Quote, the comments according to interviews with nearly a dozen Law Enforcement veterans have undone months of work, essentially inviting foreign spies to meddle with 2020 president ial campaigns and demoralizing the agents trying to stop them. It has backed director wray into a corner, they added, putting him in a position where he might have to either publicly chastise the president and risk getting fired or resign in protest. We are joined by a former senior fbi official who for a time served as counselor to Robert Mueller and also happens to be host of the new msnbc podcast the oath with chuck rosenberg. Gad to see you, my friend. Thank you for coming on. Talk about the impact as you see it on your former institution at the fbi. Sure. Look, i think that article that you talked about, brian, is a little bit right and a little bit hyperbolic. Let me explain. It is a little bit right because when the president continues to attack the men and women of Law Enforcement or in the Intelligence Community, the fbi of course is both, sure its demoralizing. Nobody likes to hear that kind of stuff about their work or their colleagues or their mission. On the other hand, the notion that its undone months and months of work strikes me as hyperbolic. Heres why. This threat from russia, this election interference that started in 2014 according to the Mueller Report and will certainly extend past 2020 is something that the fbi has been focused on for a long time. I dont think the men and women there are riding the trump rollercoaster. I dont think they wake up every day breathlessly awaiting his latest tweet, the latest insipid tweet from the president. They have work to do. They have serious and important work to do and they will continue to do it. So i wouldnt over react to it. The statements he made are wrong. Theyre discouraging, as i noted theyre insipid, but they are not going to undo the work of the fbi. Just for emphasis lets listen to chris wray about a month ago talking about the law and reality. I think my view is that if any public official or member of any campaign is contacted by any nation state or anybody acting on behalf of a nation state about influencing or interfering with our election that is something the fbi would want to know about. So, chuck, the concern for director wray, and i know he is an adult and can stick up for himself and has the ability to put his head down and do his work, is that, you know, the president just straight up said he was wrong yesterday. For how long after the president throws a high hard one at him, for how long can this director continue to foul them off . Or duck them, brian. Maybe this is a situation where you just duck. Look, what director wray said was spot on. He was a hundred percent right. I dont think he needs to repeat it. By the way, i dont think this is a red line for him. You know, the times that you make public statements are the times when you have i think no other choice. Here chris wray said it well, cogently, forcefully, and he was accurate legally. What more does he really need to say . The thing that would happen next were he to take on the president is they would get into a back and forth which doesnt help chris wray and certainly doesnt help the fbi. That has to be the directors primary consideration. Brian, were both baseball fans. You foul some off, you duck others. You live for another inning. You also dont buy the argument that for other countries especially bad actors, the president s own words let them know that we have even a more willing mark than was first assumed in the oval office . Well, look. Clearly, the words invite other countries to do what russia has been doing. These are poor par doesnt begin to do it justice. These are awful words the president used, right . The russians were brazen in their attacks and had every reason to be brazen again. But remember, the russian attacks started in 2014. Thats what the mueller team lays out in volume one of its report. And its not the first time the president has invited russia into our tent. Remember, campaigning in florida in 2016 he said, russia, if youre listening, where are the missing Hillary Clinton emails . So this is more of a pattern by the president as opposed to something new. No president of the United States should invite a foreign adversary to do what this president invited russia to do. No president should ever do that. Again, i dont think it undermines the work of the fbi. They have a serious mission. They will fulfill it. Chuck, im fond of saying that more than the fact that there isnt any one president ial election, there are 50 state elections. Much more than that elections are local matters. Knowing that, and knowing just how much flawed machinery, dated machinery there is out there, can you ashaur our audience that the fbi, the Intel Community that you know will at least on their own be doing their dead level best to make sure we have an accurate vote with integrity next time out . I can. Dhs of course has an Important Role in the protection of our election infrastructure. The fbi and the Intelligence Community of course and counterintelligence matters. But lets not lose sight, brian, of the bigger picture, too. Whether it is election interference or counterterrorism or cyber crimes or medicare fraud, i mean, the work of the fbi goes on. As i said earlier, theyre not riding the trump rollercoaster. They dont wake up every day to see what the president has tweeted. Is it demoralizing . Sure. Of course it is. Nobody likes to hear about their mission or their boss director wray spoken of in these terms. But they have a job to do and the fbi know, that i know, they do their job. Thank goodness for that. A man who tells it straight always, reassures us when he can. Chuck rosenberg, thank you as always for coming on the broadcast. Thank you, brian. Coming up for us a dozen days to go till the first democratic debates. Well look at who made the cutdown and the two groupings on the main stage when we come back. Featuring three new dishes that are plankedtoperfection. Feast on new cedarplank lobster shrimp. Or new colossal shrimp salmon with a citrusy drizzle. Tender, smoky, and together on one plank. But not for long so hurry in if you have moderate to Little Things can be a big deal. Thats why theres otezla. Otezla is not a cream. Its a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. With otezla, 75 clearer skin is achievable. Dont use if youre allergic to otezla. It may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. Otezla is associated with an increased risk of depression. Tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts or if these feelings develop. Some people taking otezla reported weight loss. Your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. Upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. Tell your doctor about your medicines and if youre pregnant or planning to be. Ready to treat differently with a pill . Otezla. Show more of you. Dont let an amazing adventure pass you by. Tripadvisor makes it easy to book your tours, attractions, and experiences ahead of time. So you never miss out on cant miss adventures book things to do on tripadvisor. We now have the official lineups for each night of the first democratic president ial debates here on msnbc. Night one, on wednesday, june 26th, taking the miami stage will be cory booker, juliana castro, bill de blasio, john delaney, tulsi gabbard, jay inslee, amy klobuchar, beto orourke, tim ryan, Elizabeth Warren. Second night, thursday the 27th Michael Bennett, joe biden, pete buttigieg, Kamala Harris, bernie sanders, eric swalwell, marianne williamson. And drew yang. Our own Jonathan Allen sums up the matchups this way. The opening 2020 democratic debate double feature is set. Elizabeth warren versus the field on the first night. And establishment joe biden versus Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders plus two more of the top five polling hopefuls and six undercard candidates in the lord of the flies closer. The 20 eligible candidates were first divided into two groups on cut down day yesterday. Those polling an average at or above 2 , those who polled below 2 . A random drawing then took place to create two separate groupings of ten. This morning the president gave his preview on fox friends of how he views his potential democratic opponents. Everybody knows that joe biden does not have what it takes. Okay . He doesnt have what it takes. What does that mean . It means mental capacity. It means a lot of different things. He doesnt have never did have what it takes. Until obama took he ran two or three times. I used to call him 1 joe because he never got more than 1 . Then obama came along and surprisingly took him off of i say the trash heap. And ran. But Everybody Knows joe is doesnt have it. Now i see that pocahantas is doing better. I would like to run against her frankly. Bernie sanders. I dont see the other ones. I think it is probably those three. The almanac of american politics thanks to fox friends. Weve talked Jonathan Allen into sticking around a few more minutes. I was joking about Dave Chappelle because Jason Johnson said on this Network Earlier today what we were all thinking. Its like going to a comedy club. Youre there for chappelle. You kind of know he is going to bat cleanup at the end of the evening. Sometimes that means sitting through a lot of aggressively bad standup. So with that in mind, john, what do you make of these two groupings and why did i hear you talking about how youre going to be watching beto orourke of all people . Let me start with the beto orourke question. His polling has suffered and fallen to the point basically in a lot of these polls, 2 , 3 , 4 . Where he really has to have a breakout moment in one of these debates or youll see the fundraising dry up. This is somebody who has gotten a ton of media attention, a ton of resources to run his campaign and really hasnt lived up to it in terms of polling. He is somebody weve seen get much more aggressive in the last couple days. We saw him in a morning joe this last week go after the former Vice President joe biden aggressively. I think he knows he has to have this kind of breakout time. Hell be on the stage with Elizabeth Warren in the first night debate and several of the other, eight other candidates. And i think this is his opportunity to really make something of himself. Reintroduce himself on the national stage. The truth is all of these candidates, this is the first big opportunity for anybody who isnt one of those top five candidates and thats bernie sanders, joe biden, pete buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris and whichever order you want to put them. Anybody not in the top five youre basically a margin of error candidate meaning that youre polling within the margin of erro of zero. As one democratic strategist put it today if you are in the margin of error you have no margin for error. Laura, lets continue to speak english here. Bill de blasio cant get quoted in new york. Youre under so much pressure to have a moment and Say Something that makes you stand out. If youre jay inslee or Michael Bennett or anyone at that level, how on earth do you prepare for this evening and how do you keep it from going over the edge and being remembered for all the wrong reasons on your way out the door . Well look. Youre someone like jay inslee, i think he is going to try to create as much contrast as he can between himself and who he shares the stage with. Specifically around climate change. That is an issue he has been trying to own and no ones plan goes as far as his to date. And so he will be able to own that issue. I think it is similar with other candidates that if they can carve out a lane for themselves either on a specific policy issue that may be where they can shine. I want to talk about warren a little bit, because, yes. She the next person on the stage is beto that maybe has a chance to go toe to toe with her a bit. Initially, this looks as though she drew the short straw. But i think that she definitely, this gives her an opportunity to just shine unopposed and own the stage and she will have plenty of opportunity after this to go head to head with bernie and to go head to head with biden. And, john, to the elephant in the room, to the elephant in the field, if youre biden, if you know its going to be an evening of incoming when you take the stage, how do you prep, how do you gird for that . How do you future proof your campaign and your presentation . The big thing for joe biden is to not falter. Right now hes still riding a wave of wide approval, great name recognition. And to get out there and show people he could still perform at the level that he did as Vice President , you heard the president of the United States attack him and say that essentially he is not still all there. All he has to do is go out on stage and perform reasonably well. It would be likely his advisers are telling him shorter answers are better like your producer would probably like me to do. Oh, stop that right now. Weve never had that complaint. You are one of our best behaved guests. So, laura, in the jet fighter business when they do flyovers if its a memorial they talk about the missing Man Formation. The missing Man Formation on these two nights is going to be donald trump. In a way that looms all over the conversation he will obviously be the control group that dominates this conversation. Talk about that aspect of these two nights. Right. So i think in the second night, the one that has the majority of the frontrunners, biden, bernie, buttigieg, harris, it is going to be difficult for bind i think to keep that narrative going that he has tried to since he launched his campaign, which is this is between him and trump. And he hasnt really paid that much attention to the rest of the field. Hes tried to avoid creating contrast between himself and them as much as possible. And so now that he is going against bernie and buttigieg who are going to take as many shots i think as they possibly can at him it is going to be difficult for him to continue saying this is about him and trump. On the other hand, in the other debate i think warren and beto could have more space to do that, to take more direct shots at the president. I want to thank you both on a friday night for stopping by and putting us on your dance card. Appreciate it. Thanks so very much. Well be talking im sure along the way as next week comes around. Coming up for us, the road to miami takes us through a state known for its crabs and competition. Can we talk . We used to play so beautifully together. Now we can barely play anything. Even cards with the girls. If you have bent fingers, and cant lay your hand flat, talk to your doctor. It may be dupuytrens contracture. Your hand is talking. Isnt it time you listened . There are nonsurgical options. Take the first step. And learn more about dupuytrens. At factsonhand. Com is that for me . Mhm aaaah nooooo. Quick, the quicker picker upper bounty picks up messes quicker and is 2x more absorbent than the leading ordinary brand. [son loudly clears throat] [mom and dad laugh] bounty, the quicker picker upper. Now with new prints featuring characters from Disney Pixars toy story 4 in theaters june 21. As we just mentioned lineups for the first democratic president ial debate are now set. Only 12 days away on this very network. And were continuing our series, the road to miami where we break down everything we need to know about all the states along the bustling i95 corridor. If you were watching last night then you know steve was in delaware. That didnt take long. Tonight he has crossed the border into the old line state, the state of maryland. Back at the big board tonight our National CorrespondentSteve Kornacki. Hey, steve. We couldnt help ourselves. We were driving i95 and then said weve got to stop at baltimores inner harbor. What an amazing place. That is our pit stop for the evening. When you are in this area your mind tends to turn to seafood. You wonder, where can i get the best crab cakes around here . Thats actually a matter of some dispute. It is one of the rivalries that define maryland. Where do you get the best crab cakes around here . There was actually a food Network Special a few years ago that pitted these two institutions. These two restaurants against each other. Faidleys ended up winning, probably not a surprise if you know the place. It is the icon in baltimore. Another rivalry in these parts, how about sports . How about baseball . Are you an os fan or a nationals fan . Remember the nationals . They used to be the montreal expos and moved to the area back in 2005. It is the d. C. Area against the baltimore area. Theyve played 70 games since then. 39 for the orioles. 31 for the nationals. Another rivalry . Hey, the iconic Baltimore Television series the wire. Everyone has an opinion what is the best season. Is it season one . Is it season four . Nobody seems to think its season two. A lot of people dont think it was season five either. These are the two that get the most votes. These are some of the rivalries that define maryland. What about maryland politics . Maryland politics has contributed to one of the most enduring and consequential rivalries in washington of the last two decades. It involves the most powerful maryland democrat in congress. The most powerful maryland politician in congress. You know this man. Steny hoyer the democratic majority leader number two in the House Democratic leadership number two behind of course the House Speaker nancy pelosi. This is how it has been in the democratic ranks in the house for basically two decades. Pelosi number one, hoyer number two. This goes all the way back. This was the headline, fall of 2001, democratic leadership election, the number two post, the whip. You see pelosi holding the whip there. Pelosi hoyer. Everybody knew the top job, the leaders spot was coming open soon and whoever won this race would be the next democratic leader. It had been years in the making and came to a head that fall. Pelosi won 18, hoyer 95. Pelosi becomes the top democrat a year later. Hoyer moves in a slot behind her at number two. They never really trusted each other after. When pelosi became speaker in 2006 one of her first moves was to try to oust hoyer from the leadership. He stood his ground and stayed at number two. When the democrats lost the congress in 2010 he thought it was his opening. Pelosi would have to step down. But she didnt. She stood her ground. Pelosi hoyer one, two, a lot of history and friction. We say it is a rivalry. We think of it as an east coast west coast rivalry, maryland versus california. Here is where it gets wild. Because before she was nancy pelosi from california she was Nancy Delesandro from baltimore, maryland and her father, tom, was the mayor of baltimore. Politics is in Nancy Pelosis blood. In the 1960s, more than half a century ago she got her start as an intern in the u. S. Senate office of maryland senator daniel brewster. You know who else was an intern in the same office at the same time . Stenyhoury. Nancy pelosi and steny hoyer more half a century ago interned for the same u. S. Senator, then moved 3,000 miles apart, made their own political careers, hoyer in maryland, pelosi out in san francisco. Then they collided again decades later in congress. Their ambitions clashed. They both wanted the top job. Pelosi won out in 2001. Hoyer got second place. And for two decades, it has remained that way, an enduring rivalry, truly made in maryland. Wow. Take a bow. We didnt even mention ted agnew. Take a bow. That was fantastic stuff. Our ride continues on monday. Steve kornacki, our thanks for this great week of reports. Thanks. Coming up, we will turn back to the escalating tension weve been monitoring in the middle east. A conflict the president says, quote, has iran written all over it. The very latest when we come right back. You should be mad at tech that makes things worse. But youre not, because you have e trade whose tech makes life easier by automatically adding technical patterns on charts and helping you understand what they mean. Dont get mad, get e trade. Will transform not the mjust the automobile,rrow but mobility itself. An autonomousthinking vehice protecting those inside and out. And its the mercedesbenz of today that will help us get there. The 2019 eclass, with innovations that will change the way we drive from this day forward. Mercedesbenz. The best or nothing. We wanted to bring you a report tonight from a dangerous place where things have gotten very dicey this week. The gulf of oman, where two ships have been attacked and rocked by explosions and fires. Earlier today, the president blamed iran for the attacks, but iran is still denying any involvement. Richard engel has the latest tonight from istanbul. Reporter many in the region say theyve seen this movie before, with disputes over intelligence and now the risk of conflict. Who attacked two tankers in the persian gulf . Aerial reconnaissance video, which u. S. Officials say shows iranian sailors attempting to hide irans involvement. And this photo showing where the alleged mine was placed. President trump called in to fox news to say the iranians were caught redhanded. Iran did it, and you know they did it because you saw the boat. One of the mines didnt explode, and it essentially has iran written all over it. All stations, motor tanker front altair on fire. Iran is ruling out any talks with the u. S. , blaming america for seriously threatening stability in the region. With so much animosity and an absence of dialogue, the odds of conflict is increasing every day. Tonight, tensions remain high. A u. S. Military official said iran was preventing tugboats from recovering one of the tankers. And theres another source of tension drones. There are a lot of drones flying around this part of the world, and officials tell us there were two incidents in recent days, one in which an iranianbacked militia shot one, and another in which iranians shot at but missed an american drone. Richard, reporting from istanbul. Another break for us. Coming up, wanting to leave that trump touch behind for future president s whether they want it or not. That story, when we come back. Can we talk . We used to play so beautifully together. Now we can barely play anything. Even cards with the girls. If you have bent fingers, and cant lay your hand flat, talk to your doctor. It may be dupuytrens contracture. Your hand is talking. Isnt it time you listened . There are nonsurgical options. Take the first step. And learn more about dupuytrens. At factsonhand. Com keep being you. And ask your doctor about biktarvy. Biktarvy is a complete onepill, onceaday treatment used for hiv in certain adults. Its not a cure, but with one small pill, biktarvy fights hiv with three different medicines to help you get to undetectable. That means the amount of virus is so low it cant be measured in lab tests. Serious side effects can occur, including kidney problems and kidney failure. Rare, lifethreatening side effects include a buildup of lactic acid and liver problems. Do not take biktarvy if you take dofetilide or rifampin. Tell your doctor about all the medicines and supplements you take, if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis. If you have hepatitis b, do not stop taking biktarvy without talking to your doctor. Common side effects were diarrhea, nausea, and headache. If youre hivpositive, keep loving who you are, inside and out. Ask your doctor if biktarvy is right for you. Last thing before we go tonight, theres a great old story about lyndon johnson, a military officer is escorting him, and he says, mr. President , your helicopter is here. And lbj famously replied, son, theyre all my helicopters. And some of that thinking may be seeping into the Current White House, when the president showed the mockup artwork for the new air force one. The livery, fancy word for the paint job, is quite a bit different. White up top, stripes down below. Immediate comparisons to trumps own paint scheme on his private jet. These are the new air force one models, on order for a 2024 delivery date. That means the president s choice will affect future president s and not him. But just the notion of doing away with the current and iconic powder blue paint scheme rankles a ton of people. Jfks First Air Force one was a military looking silver, white, and orange boeing 707. With the help of the first lady, mrs. Kennedy, he commissioned a french designer who came up with the design we have today. The president said, i like the concept of red, white, and blue. The baby blue doesnt fit with us. People get used to something, and it was jackie o, but we have our own jackie o today, its called melania. Well call it melania t. As we come to an end this week, theres already an effort under way in congress to block the president from being able to change the paint scheme on air force one. Thats where well leave it. Thats our broadcast for friday night and for this week. Thank you so much for being here with us. Good night from our nbc news headquarters in new york. Rachel has the night off. Fear not. She will be back monday. In the meantime, im going to try not to break anything. It is friday night, which these days means that keeping tabs on the news is like juggling and spinning eight plates all at once on stilts. Today we got the lineups for the first democratic debate later this month. 20 candidates over two nights. The great Steve Kornacki will be here this hour to break down with us who will be debating whom on each night and what we can expect from those matchups which are not as you might think they are. Its also been another day of worrying and bewildering developments in the white houses narrative around iran