Transcripts For MSNBCW The Rachel Maddow Show 20181229

Down from trumps bravado and settle for half of the 5 billion donald trump had been demanding for his precious border wall. That was last saturday. And there have been no new offers from either side since. In a few minutes, well be talking with congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and what democrats will do about trumps actions at the border at large, an issue on which jayapal has become a leading progressive voice. They have an ambitious agenda planned, including getting the government operating again, introducing new anticorruption and Voting Rights legislation, and jumpstarting investigations into the Trump Administration the republicans have not been all that interested in when they were in charge. But one thing democrats did not expect to have to deal with on day one is a house seat that is still contested because of an election marred by alleged fraud. Its a situation for which there is no clear playbook, and today we got confirmation that the house will not have its full complement of 435 members when the new congress is sworn in. It will only have 434. Now, youve likely heard something by now about the craziness in North Carolinas 9th Congressional District. Its a race that had been called for the republican, a race in which the democrat in fact conceded the day after the election. Republican mark harris had defeated the gop incumbent in the primary and then went on to win the general election by 905 votes over the democrat, dan mccready. A week later harris tweeted out this photo from the capitol, the incoming congressional class. There he is towards the back, looking all happy. It seemed like a done deal. But when it came time for the North Carolina state board of elections to certify the results of that race, it voted unanimously not to certify North Carolinas district 9. The ninemember state board made up of four democrats, four republicans, and one unaffiliated member, they all voted not to certify this race, which was a surprise to pretty much everybody. And the reason they refused to certify it was the apparent tomfoolery that went on with the absentee mailin ballots in the race in one county in particular, with an unusually high number of absentee ballots being requested and an unusually High Percentage of those ballots never being returned. And of those that were returned, an unusually high number of those going for mark harris, the republican. The North Carolina Democratic Party submitted to the state elections board several affidavits from black voters in that county, many of them elderly, saying that people came to their homes and collected their absentee ballots, in some cases offering to fill out the ballots for them. For instance, one woman swore in her affidavit that a woman came to her house saying she was collecting peoples absentee ballots in the area. Quote, i filled out two names on the ballot for sheriff and for board of education. She stated the others were not important. I gave her the ballot, and she said she would finish it herself. I signed the ballot and she left. It was not sealed up at the time. The guy allegedly at the center of these shenanigans is named mcrae dallas. He was personally hired by republican candidate mark harris. Whats amazing is that dowless was at the center of an alleged mailin ballot scam in 2016. He even got on this American Life about it. State Elections Officials even referred mcrae dowless and his ballot scam to federal prosecutors after the 2016 election, but it doesnt appear anything ever came of it. And as all of this began to come out after last months election, what had looked like a razorthin victory for an upstart republican in North Carolinas 9th district has become a giant mess, going all the way back to the primary. People also started raising questions about mark harris narrow victory there. So the North Carolina elections board opened an investigation. That board has the power to order a new election if they decide thats whats needed. And the board ultimately scheduled a public hearing on the allegations for january 11th. But heres the thing about the North Carolina board of elections. When North Carolina voters ousted the states republican governor in 2016 and elected a democrat, roy cooper, the Republican Legislature pulled a surprise move to try and strip the Incoming Democratic governor of his powers. Its a play being tried by republicans in other states where democrats won statewide this year. But North Carolina republicans were kind of the pioneers of this strategy back in 2016. Democrat gets elected governor, take away power from the governors office. One place republicans took away his power by creating a new board of elections that would have less control over than his predecessor. Ever since they did that at the end of 2016, cooper and the legislature have been battling in court over whether that new gopcreated elections board is constitutional. And the upshot of this court battle over republicans democracydefying power grab two years ago is just now, today, a Court Ordered the state elections board dissolved. So, right in the middle of this investigation into this still up in the air congressional race, less than a week before the new congress convenes in washington, as of noon today, there is no more North Carolina state board of elections. And as that board goes up in smoke, the position of mark harris and the North Carolina Republican Party appears to have solidified into outright opposition to any further investigation. Even though earlier this month they were expressing concern about fraud and saying they were open to a new election, today North Carolina republicans are demanding that mark harris be seated in the new Congress Next week, saying that he was duly elected, and that there will never be a new election. Well, Governor Cooper announced today he will appoint an interim board of elections to continue the 9th district investigations, republicans said that they would refuse to participate. Which prompted cooper to send this letter to the chair of the state Republican Party today saying, basically, you cant tell me what to do. Quote, the governors lawyer writes the governor will not be impeded from exercising his duties under the constitution to take care that the laws are faithfully executed. The governor will also not permit your obstructionist tactics to stall an ongoing investigation. One is compelled to conclude that you are withholding your nominations and encouraging people not to serve, solely for the purpose of impeding and obstructing the 9th Congressional District investigation. Maybe they were hoping if they created enough chaos and got the elections stopped and doubled down on their candidate, then seating mark harris would seem like a foregone, inevitable conclusion. Well, that is not whats happening. If mr. Harris is not certified as the duly, fairly, legally elected member, we would certainly oppose his seating. As i understand it, that verification has not come. In fact, Republican Leaders in North Carolina have said that there is substantial question as to the validity of the outcome of the general election. Thats in court now, as you know. Right. Well see what the court does, but it is clear, apparently from all sides, that there was fraud committed by certain participants in the administration of the election. Under those circumstances, we ought to have a new election for the general election, not the primary. The primary was not contested, but for the general election. That was steny hoyer of maryland, who will be the majority leader in the house in just a few days, confirming that congress will not seat mark harris when the new congress convenes, which means the Incoming Freshman class in congress will be one member short. He was so close. Joining us now is michael bitser, a politics professor at catawba college, a preeminent expert on how things work in North Carolina. Professor bitser, thanks for joining us tonight. Its my pleasure. Thank you. So, lets go back and lets start with, what is the prevailing Legal Framework here . Is there is a provision in North Carolina state law that would set the parameters for and the conditions where you would have to have a new election . Well, we do have a general statute that did lay out the process by which a state board of elections could decide to call a new election. There were four criteria, and everybody was looking at the fourth criteria, regarding the number of irregularities that potentially could taint the election outcome. Didnt say anything necessarily about whether the irregularities would overturn the previous decision and the votes in the majority, but now were kind of operating in legal nomans land. Some would argue that the governors power to fill vacancies does exist and that he would be able to create this interim state board of elections that would carry on until january 31st when the new board, which was voted yesterday by an override of his veto would go into effect. Republicans in the legislature contend there is no state board of elections because the previous law, the statute, was struck down as unconstitutional. So were kind of in uncharted legal territory. Both sides are going to be making their arguments, and i think were just going to have to watch and see what the dominoes are in terms of, does the governor go ahead and appoint five new members, and how do the republicans react . If Governor Cooper just went ahead and made the appointment, what could republicans do about it . If theyre refusing to participate in the board, and the governor says, well, im going to use my executive authority to see that the laws are faithfully executed, what could republicans in the Legislature Even do about it . Well, thats a good question. I dont think we quite know. There have been threats of lawsuits filed. This whole fiasco has been legally bound. The courts have been interjected into this process. So i would not be surprised if we didnt end up before another threejudge panel in regards to a potential interim board. The legislature can always come back into session and try and, you know, establish an interim board or some kind of contingency before the official board takes control at the end of january. Again, were just kind of waiting to see who plays the next part in this game and how does everybody respond. Another actor in all this, as youve mentioned, is the u. S. House of representatives. They may ultimately have the final say in all of this. Right. And so lets talk about that for a moment. Its already been made clear by steny hoyer, the incoming majority member, theyre not going to seat harris. Thats not going to happen. So, what would happen . Could the congress order its own investigation and then lets say they find there was election fraud, then what . Well, then you have basically a twotier process going on. Weve got an investigation going on, and we think were going to have a hearing on january 11th. Thats open for discussion and debate because we dont technically have from some points of view a state board of elections to oversee that hearing. The u. S. House, through the House Administration committee, could conceivably start their own investigation, seek the records, seek the documents that the state board has already gathered through its professional staff and hold their own hearings and inquiry into it. Now, representative steny hoyer did indicate that he would only go for a general election, but the state statute here in North Carolina says filling a vacancy for a u. S. House election would require a new primary as well. And thats a battle line that you see both democrats and republicans arguing over as well. So, there are so many moving parts and layers to this that i dont think we quite legally know where things are going to play out until more movement is done by somebody at some point. Wow. I think this technically qualifies as a hot mess. Michael bitzer, professor and leading analyst for this fascinating North Carolina store hot mess. Thank you very much. Appreciate your time. My pleasure. Thank you. And still ahead, a new year does not always mean a fresh start. More on that ahead. Stay with us. What a year. Your Home Improvement todo list still isnt todone. But hey, at least you still have time to get the ford vehicle youve always wanted. Just get to the final days of our holiday sales event. See you sometime between now and january 2nd. So you can end your year on a high note. Ford. Built for the holidays. Its time to get our best offers of the season. Discover. O. I like your card, but im absolutely not paying an annual fee. Discover has no annual fees. Really . Yeah. We just dont believe in them. Oh nice. You would not believe how long ive been rehearsing that. No annual fee on any card. Only from discover. Its just a cough. Yeah right, and i was born yesterday. indistinct announcement over pa system im a baby what . Treat your cough seriously with robitussin dm max. It soothes in seconds and delivers fast, powerful cough relief for hours. Robitussin. Because its never just a cough. I heard you say one death is too many. Im not asking how many youre responsible for. Im asking you to promise that there wont be another death under your watch. You have my commitment to ensure that all of our Detention Centers take good care of those in our care. After the death of 7yearold jakelin caal while in custody this month, Kirstjen Nielsen promised that migrant Detention Centers would take good care of the people being held in them. Initial reports say jakelin caal died of exhaustion and dehydration while in custody. Border protection saying she had not had water or food for days before crossing into the u. S. Jakelins father had firmly disputed that claim. We still do not know what happened to her. Her body arrived for burial in her home country of guatemala on christmas eve. That same day, another child died in the care of u. S. Customs and border protection. He was 8 years old. His name was felipe gomezalonso. In the timeline of the days and hours leading up to felipes death, Border Patrol said he was treated for a cold hours before he died in a new mexico hospital. According to a Statement Last night from the medical Investigators Office in new mexico, the boy didnt just have a cold, he had the flu when he died. This has been a morally wrenching year for american border policy, with family separations and attempts to limit asylum applications. The specter of something called denaturalization. This month, the deaths of two children while in the custody of the u. S. Meanwhile, in official washington, today marked day seven of a shutdown that now appears certain to continue into the new year. Republicans insist the shutdown, which, to be clear, they could end any time they wanted to since they still control the entire federal government until january, is over Donald Trumps demand that american taxpayers pony up to fund the border wall that he promised his supporters on the campaign trail, telling them mexico would pay for it. But the question for the country may be larger than the corner that donald trump has backed himself and his party into on the idea of a southern border wall. In a very personal essay published this month, Pramila Jayapal writes, quote, imagine a country with immigration laws that actually work. We would know who was in the country, and they would not be hiding in the shadows. Theyd be getting to know their neighbors, investing in houses and cars and becoming quintessential americans. In our countrys history, immigration has never been just about policy. It has always about been who we are and what we are willing to stand up for. Joining us now is congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, a democrat on the immigration and Border Security for the house subcomittee. Congresswoman jayapal, thanks for being here. Thanks, joy. You wrote a new moral imagination on immigration. It was very compelling. You start with a story about your own family sending you to this country from india at 16 years of age. You sort of tell that personal story to walk people through what most people should know already about what immigration means to the country. When you talk to people in your district about this issue, is that still the place from which people discuss immigration, where you were, about the personal family connections . Well, i think the thing is that everybody does want to be reminded of and often does remember what that personal story is for them, whether it was this generation or the last generation or two generations ago, or whether its the neighbors that they know or the kids that theyre friends with, you know. Those kinds of personal stories. But the problem is, donald trump keeps making it a political football. And we know that the immigration system is broken. It has been broken. It needs to be fixed. And, you know, politicians on both sides of the aisle frankly for quite some time have not been willing to do what it takes politically to fix this system. So we have this outdated system which has not been fixed since the 1990s, was the last time some small tweak was made to it. And meanwhile, were benefits from the labor and the contributions of immigrants, and being hypocritical and saying we dont want immigrants and theyre somehow a threat to our country. So, all of that makes for a complicated situation. This president has done something that no other president has done, and that is vilified, you know, racialized, discriminated in a way that is unprecedented. And yet in spite of that, joy, the thing that gives me some comfort is that the majority of Americans Still believe immigration is good for this country. If we could get people to really understanding the complexity, fix the system, we really would have something that i think most americans want, but it needs leadership from the white house, and were not going to get that from this president. Thats clear. He just wants to keep this out there as a political issue and use it to fire up his base. Yeah. You make a very good point, that before 1921, the only immigration laws that existed were ones that restricted chinese immigration, and that most people who say, well, my parents came in legally, there was no Legal Framework. You just came in as long as you didnt meet some sort of moral turpitude problem, you could get in. No, thats exactly right. Lets talk about what democrats would like to see done in terms of Immigration Reform, now that democrats will at least have the house. What in your view should democrats try to pass . And could anything the democrats pass make it through the senate in your view . Well, i think the first thing is, we have to lay out a vision, because were not going to be able to get the broadest comprehensive reform that we want with this president and with the republicancontrolled senate. But that doesnt mean we cant lay out the vision for what real Immigration Reform looks like. Then we take a couple of key steps, pass a real d. R. E. A. M. Act, not some minimized d. R. E. A. M. Act, but a real clean d. R. E. A. M. Act, pass protections for temporary protected status folks, make sure that we address these enforcement issues that have gone out of control, cruel, inhumane system that we have, really reel back on the enforcement, and tie dollars to accountability. We cant have kids dying in our care. Thats just outrageous. So, those are some of the things that well have to do. But at the same time, i wrote that piece because i want every 2020 president ial candidate and the Democratic Party to really embrace immigration the way we need to, push for a vision that is big, broad, and really addresses these root causes and stops allowing immigrants to be political footballs. Yeah, indeed. There is a Washington Post article dated november 12th that donald trump considered firing Homeland Security secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. You have been very tough in questioning her. Do you think she should be fired over these deaths of children . I do. You do . I think she should resign. I think i was just stunned at her hearing. I was really outraged. She told untruth after untruth. She got very touchy when we called it a lie. So im now calling it an untruth. But she kept repeating that there was no family separation policy. And, joy, you covered this. You know exactly what happened with the separation of families. She got four pinocchios from the Fact Checkers for saying that. She just insisted over and over again on saying things that werent true. And she had really no answer when we asked her how many deaths have there been in dhs custody. She couldnt answer that question. And then she tried to tell me that they were going to make sure there were no other deaths. And right after that, felipe alonsogonzalez died, the 8yearold that just died, the second child to die, and finally she is now saying, well, were going to make sure there is complete medical screening. But lets be clear that this is about profit and its about politics. Politics, because they want to make it seem like there is some sort of a crisis at the southern border when its only a manufactured crisis by this administration, and profit, because these private detention companies are taking billions of dollars in order to lock people up and provide substandard care. And, so, its really a couple of things going on here. She does not deserve to be secretary of Homeland Security. Different reasons probably than donald trump thinks that, but she doesnt. We need a different Homeland Security secretary. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, democrat of washington state, i hope everyone will read your piece. Thank you very much for being here tonight. Thank you, joy. Still ahead tonight, a theme song for your nightmares. Nope, not that one. Stay with us. [ playing jaws theme ] im not picking it up. You pick it up im not picking it up. Ill pick it up theyre clean cuz my hineys clean. Oh yeah im charmin clean. Charmin ultra strong just cleans better. Enjoy the go with charmin. Well, you know its time to Pay Attention to whats going on in washington when the news gets its own theme song. Watergate senate hearings. Watergate senate hearings, so dramatic. They began on may 17th, 1973. They were broadcast live on national television. That first day, there was a ton of Public Interest to watch the biggest political scandal of the history, in the history of the country unfolding from the comfort of your very own living room. When the first witness took the stand, it didnt exactly start off with a bang. Not even a little pop. It started with this guy. His name is robert odell. He was only 29 years old. He told the committee that he was the director of administration for nixons Reelection Committee, but really, he was just the office manager. The Washington Post wrote that day that he looked, quote, babyfaced with an accountants manner and a dull graystriped suit he will still look right in when he is 60. The guy in charge of ordering the Office Supplies became the very first person to testify in the Senate Watergate hearings. He was a total unknown, but he had quite a story to tell. I saw mr. Liddy, as i testified at the trial, and he asked me where the Paper Shredder was. What, what . The Paper Shredder. All right. The Paper Shredder, which is the very famous big Paper Shredder. Was there a big Paper Shredder and a little baby Paper Shredder, too . Pardon . Was there more than one . Yes, sir. And he asked where the big Paper Shredder was . Yes. Did you ask why he wanted to know . No. I didnt. I said, its in there. Did he have anything with him . Not at that time. He later came out and said, how do you work it . And i said, you press the button. And then later on, i saw him with a pile of papers perhaps a foot high. You press the button. Robert odle may not have been the most important guy in the room over at nixons reElection Campaign, because of where he was and what he saw, he was able to lay the groundwork for the senates watergate investigation. He walked the senate through this complicated chart of how the president s Reelection Committee worked, the ins and outs of the operation, all the details, down to the Paper Shredder. When the senates Watergate Committee started their work, it was 29yearold robert odle who ended up becoming the first Building Block in the case against president richard nixon, one that ultimately contributed to the takedown of a sitting president. Sometimes this is how these things start, not with a crooked cabinet member or a trove of hidden documents, but with a lowlevel staffer in an illfitting suit with a view of the Paper Shredder. We as a nation, of course, are living through a new kind of president ial scandal, one with fewer shredders and more russian back channels. The trump russia investigation has already swallowed up a campaign chairman, a Deputy Campaign chairman, a National Security adviser, and the president s personal lawyer, but remember how this whole thing started . It didnt start with the president. It didnt start with any of his marquee advisers. It started with this guy. A totally unknown Campaign Adviser whose secret meetings with a russian professor caught the attention of the fbi. It was because of George Papadopoulos that the fbi started a counterintelligence investigation into the trump campaign. The trump russia investigation started more than two years ago, and if you look back to where it started, lordy, are we in for a long way we are a long way from home. Hold that thought. Its time for our lowest prices of the season on the new sleep number 360 smart bed. It senses your movement and automatically adjusts to keep you both comfortable. And now, the queen sleep number 360 c4 smart bed is only 1299. 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If special Counsel Robert Mueller can be summed up by one hollywood film, it would probably be a quiet place. Did you see that movie . Its the one where if you speak the aliens come out and get you. Robert mueller, no words and definitely no leaks, which means were left to piece together whats really going on inside the russia investigation like a giant game of clue. But every once in a while, we get a little hint, and sometimes those clues contain, shall we say, more information than we wanted, like yesterday when we learned that in gathering evidence against a russian company, mueller collected somebodys, gulp, nude selfie. Okay, im so sorry. Would you like some brain bleach or perhaps one of those flashy things from men in black. We dont know whose naked selfie that is, and thats probably for the best, but it is possible well get an answer to that question in the new year, whether we want it or not, along with answers to a bunch of other much more important legal mysteries that mueller knows the answer to and that we do not, at least not yet. Joining us now are joyce vance, former u. S. Attorney from alabama, and frank figluzzi, former adviser for counterintelligence at the fbi. There are tons of questions i want to get to with each of you. I wont ask you about the nude selfie because i like you both and i dont want you to have to think about that. Yesterday we had this big bombshell story in mcclatchy indicating that Robert Mueller may have actual evidence that cohen, at least his cell phone, was in prague, even though he insists up to yesterday that he wasnt. What do you make of that . Well, weve been saying all along, joy, that mueller knows so much more, and he knows so much more than we know, in large part because he has access to classified information, to include whats called in the intelligence community, signals intelligence. Now, this report claims that some Eastern European country may have shared with us their cell phone records that theyve captured. But here is something more on the theme that mueller knows so much more. Understand that if this alleged meeting occurred, and it involved russian officials, its quite likely that mueller has more than just a cell phone ping. He may even have the content of the conversation because those russian officials might be covered in terms of electronic wiretaps. So this is just the tip of the iceberg on this topic. With regard to whether cohen was there or not, there are so many variations of this theme to include cohen not being there but his phone being there, which could even lead to a clandestine covert communication phone that he handed to someone to deal with the russians with, and all kinds of variables between that, and he was planted right there. Yeah. It is incredibly intriguing. Joyce vance, lets go to the second bucket of information. Thats mike flynn. Michael flynn is also mentioned in the dossier, the steele dossier, which reads sort of like a spy novel when you now go through it and you think about all of the sort of things that it brings together. But one theme of it is that various highlevel members of the trump team, at least per the Christopher Steele memo, were having these interactions both to further the cause of getting dirt on Hillary Clinton and helping donald trump be elected, but then also to try to cover that up, to make sure that no one found out about it. We know that Michael Flynn has had at least 19 interviews with the special counsel, that he is being completely cooperative to the point where theyre recommending no jail time. Is it possible thats what the special counsel wants him for, to provide an overall narrative that ties together all of these weird contacts with the russians, the wikileaks, and puts it all together sort of in one narrative . You know, flynn is bound to be a rich source of information, joy, because he had so much access to the president during the campaign. I think he was billed as being the trump whisperer, the guy who was around in the dark moments, and he would have seen and heard a lot and had firsthand conversations with the president. So its entirely likely that flynn would be the person who could explain the answer to one of those Big Questions that weve all puzzled about, why is it that virtually everybody who is involved with trump at a high level had contacts with russians and then went on to lie about them, whether it was in Senate Confirmation hearings, jeff sessions, or on background clearance papers like jared kushner. This is really a mystery that mueller would have been i think very focused on getting an answer to, to find out if there was some sort of insignificant answer or whether the answer went to the core of the question that rosenstein charged him with looking into, whether or not the campaign was involved in a conspiracy with russia to have an impact on the outcome of the election. So flynn is certainly a high value witness who can help answer some of these unknown questions, at least unknown to us and the public at this point. Indeed, frank, you were former assistant director for counterintelligence from the fbi. Wouldnt you assume that the former head of the Defense Intelligence agency would know that its a crime to lie to the fbi . What does it say to you that somebody as highlevel as general Michael Flynn would take a chance on lying to fbi agents . So, he made a calculation in his head that getting caught lying to the fbi was somehow less risky to him than actually telling the truth that he was meeting with russians. That intrigues me greatly, because that means he said, you know what . Ill take the hit with a possible federal offense because i cant possibly expose what i know about my dealings with russia. And joyce was right on with this, and lets add even another layer beyond russia. Dont forget that flynn has contacts and was doing questionable things with other nations, including turkey and that he was running buddies with jared kushner, who also has intriguing relations with other countries beyond russia. So im beginning to wonder whether flynns value also includes what he knows and could tell mueller about jared kushner. To say nothing of don jr. , who there is a lots of talk and worry about what happens next if he gets drawn in. Last question, this mystery case that weve been talking about on this show a lot, look for some sort of answer from the chief justice on whether theyll take it, this mysterious Foreign Company thats saying it cant be questioned, what do you make of this . You know, this case is such a frustrating issue at the moment. We dont even know for certain that its part of the mueller investigation, although it seems very likely that it is. The posture that its at right now is that presumably the applicant, the individual or corporation that mueller is trying to get information from is trying to stay some action that the lower courts took against them, holding them in contempt of court for not complying with the order that they turn over information to muellers team. And so now thats in front of the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court had initially stayed that penalty from being in place until the issue could be heard substantively. There was a brief that was filed a little bit early tonight, but thats not on the substantive merits of the case. Its just on this issue of staying the contempt. All that to say, this is really interesting to lawyers. Not very interesting or illuminating for anybody else yet, but we do expect to get an order from the court pretty quickly on the merits of this stay issue, and then well have to wait a lot longer for an ultimate decision. Yeah. Something tells me that before this year is out, that theme song from jaws is going to seem more and more appropriate if youre team trump. Joyce vance, and frank figliuzzi, former assistant director for counterintelligence at the fbi, thank you both very much. I appreciate it. All right. Well be right back. Bring the tree. Ford f150 bestinclass payload. Bestinclass towing. Built for the holidays. Hurry its the final days to get 0 financing for 72 months on ford f150. See your ford dealer today. With tripadvisor finding the right hotel at the lowest price is as easy as dates, deals, done. Going on a work trip . Dates, deals, done. Destination wedding . Dates, deals, done. Because with tripadvisor all you have to do is enter the dates of your stay and well take care of the rest searching over 200 booking sites to find you the best deal its as easy dates, deals, you know the rest. owl hoots read reviews, check hotel prices, book things to do, tripadvisor. Allow you to take advantage of Growth Opportunities with a level of protection in down markets. So you can be less concerned about your retirement savings. Talk with your advisor about shield℠ annuities from brighthouse financial, established by metlife. In september, 1984, Orange County, california, welcomed a special visitor. The president of the United States made a swing through his home state of california to officially kick off his general Election Campaign a mere two months before election day. Notice that i said two months, not the endless campaigns we have now. But it was during that trip, during Ronald Reagans big, triumphant california rally, that he uttered the phrase that became emblematic of the conservative oc ever since. Like ive always said, Orange County, thats where they thats where the good republicans go before they die. California conservatives did not have much, but at least they had Orange County. Indeed, dating back to the goldwater era, Orange County remained a republican stronghold inside an increasingly deep blue state. That is, until last month, when all seven Congressional Districts in Orange County went blue for the First Time Since the 1930s. This year, not only did ruby red Orange County turn blue, but democrats took control of the governorship, every state office, and both houses of the state legislature, by a mile. In january, San Francisco congresswoman and former first woman speaker of the house nancy pelosi will once again be handed the gavel. Democrats are not just winning nearly all the elections in california, California Democrats have become the tip of the spear for the resistance against donald trump and his administration. Right now, california has 44 active lawsuits pending against the Trump Administration on everything from the Affordable Care act to protections for d. R. E. A. M. Ers to environmental regulations. Californias governorelect gavin newsom has been outspoken in his criticism of the president , calling the threat to shut down the border, quote, irresponsible, irrational, and absurd. And now california have taken it one step further. California has moved up its president ial primary. Lately, voters in california have held their primary elections in june. Theyre one of the last states to vote in a president ial primary leaving cali voters often to feel like an afterthought. But not anymore. Theyve moved it up officially to march 3rd, which means california begins early voting at the same time that other traditionally early states will also be voting. Now, this is huge deal for california. It means that president ial candidates will have to decide whether they want to try to compete in california earlier than usual to get the support of californias huge delegation, but it also means candidates are going to have some make some hard choices. Campaigning in california is expensive. It can cost at least 5 million for a candidate to compete there, a number that might exclude a number of candidates who cant afford it and might stretch the resources of candidates who are also trying to get an early win in one of the crucial early states. It also means having name recognition in california can go a very long way in terms of president ial ambitions. And for the first time, one of the most racially diverse states in the country and one of the largest will have an outsized impact on who gets the democratic nomination. California is about to make its mark, so what does that mean for 2020 and the Democratic Party . For that we turn to jason johnson, Political Editor at the root and professor of politics and journalism. Hey, jason. Glad to be here. Lets start going through california. So, california, first of all i think for a lot of people who have been annoyed that iowa and New Hampshire have so much power, 37 white, asianamericans are 15. 2 . Africanamericans are 6. 5 . So its a very diverse state. Right. So, in that sense, how does that change the dynamic for that primary . Well, what it does is it makes you as a candidate if youre running in 2020 with the 50 Million People who are going to be running, they have an opportunity to demonstrate i can connect with these different people early on. They dont have to necessarily say, i can show it in nevada, they can say, look, i can speak to latinos, central americans, immigrants. But the problem is its really expensive if you have any money to do so, and the other issue is the money will dry up faster. Now that california is part of super tuesday, if you dont win one of those three states it could literally be over by march 3rd. This is march 3rd. This is super tuesday. You have to compete in alabama, california, massachusetts, North Carolina, oklahoma, tennessee, texas, vermont, and virginia. If you cant play in the two big states youre done. Not only are you done but this is horrible move by the Democratic Party. I think the dnc president perez should have said something about this. I know states all want to be important, but what its going to do is curtail what should be a long fought process. You dont want to have the democratic nominee by march. You want this to be a long, competitive competition. So i think californians, they want to have influence on who ends up getting the job but that influence may come too soon and its not beneficial. Its all good until you get a john edwards and hes a nominee and then he implodes. I sense this clemency for a death row inmate whose case is very contested, and she needs help on that criminal justice sort of situation. But now this is a state where she has name i. D. As long as the Current Governor doesnt run, or incoming governor, this helps her, right . It does help her but its not an automatic, right . You arent guaranteed to win your state, and really whats going to happen is the winner of california is going to be one of the people whos won one of the first four states. You cant raise money. She wont be able to raise money. So i think this puts more pressure on her because she cant sit there and say i can back load this. Ive got to say one name that raised a lot of money in two states, california and texas, beto. Jason johnson. Thats not a prediction, thats just a fact. Thank you so much for being here. Still ahead tonight, a trip to the trns theater. So grab your junior mints. Well wait right here for you. volunteer hey. old man come on in. volunteer you taught me the rules. vo you do more than feed seniors when you share the love. You feed souls. Get a new subaru, like the all new forester, and charities like meals on wheels can receive two hundred and fifty dollars from subaru. avo get zero percent during the subaru share the love event. pirate girl ahoy excited squeal, giggling panting gotcha man ah girl nooooooooooooo man nooooo girl nooooo. vo quick, the quicker picker upper bounty picks up messes quicker, and is two times more absorbent than the leading ordinary brand. man and pirate girl ahoy laughing vo bounty, the quicker picker upper. They Work Together doing important stuff. The hitch . Like you, your cells get hungry. Feed them. With centrum® micronutrients. Restoring your awesome. Daily. Feed your cells with centrum® micronutrients today. Kayla our dad was in the hospital. Josh because of smoking. But we still had to have a cigarette. Had to. Kayla do you know how hard it is to smoke in a hospital . By the time we could, we were like. What are we doing . Kayla it was time for nicodermcq. The nicodermcq patch with unique extended release Technology Helps prevent your urge to smoke all day. And doubles your chances of quitting. Nicodermcq. You know why, we know how. 2018 has been a year full of Court Hearings and sentencings of senior members of Donald Trumps campaign, his transition team, and his administration. Cameras are not allowed in federal court, neither are Electronic Devices including smartphones, which makes it extremely difficult to report what is going on inside. But who was allowed inside the courtroom, and whose talents brought us reports, transcripts, and, yes, pictures from those important hearings are Unsung Heroes of 2018. The Court Reporters and courtroom artists who supply all those transcripts and sketches. Now, rachel absolutely loves and i do mean loves to read these courtroom hearing transcripts, and shes become quite the expert at reading multiple roles. Transcript theater. You ready, im just going to start right in. Tonight, we obtained portions of of the transcript from manaforts arraignment today. I should warn you in advance theres also a little argument about sex and her personal diary. I swear its relevant. This is not middle school. I cant take his cell phone. Did you really make me leave my important judge meeting this morning to make we watch a video of your client lipsyncing beauty and the beast . Yes, your honor. Are you sure . The judge is like, have i ever done that . The one prosecutor goes gulp, the one in the back of the room goes, yeah, your honor, you really did. And she goes, when . She likes reading those transcripts onair so much that every time theres been a hearing to one of the cases tied to the russia investigation the first order of business on the show has been to get the transcript ordered and the sketches, stat. The this gets them on tight deadlines, hours of hearings delivered. I mean, look at the talent. Rachel and the entire trms staff would be lost without these guys. So, thank you, sketch artists and Court Reporters for making this possible this past year. The Rachel Maddow show salutes you. Rachel will be back next week, but next friday i have something exciting coming up. A very special town hall with nancy pelosi, friday, january 4th at 10 00 p. M. Dont miss it. Two things, joy. One positive about you and one positive about rachel. Lets do it. Ill start with rachel. As someone who used to read a lot of Court Transcripts i have never seen them have more urgency even though they are just the facts than what you just described in the process and obviously a lot of people working hard on it. She gives them life. She gives them life which gives us life. Point number two, i am so excited to see what youre going to do with what will be all accounts be Speaker Pelosi in the town hall and a lot of stuff happens. But this is if not the first time and it will be the first week that donald trump has ever had to deal with divided