msnbc headquarters in new york city. we got a lot to get to this hour. first a community in mourning as michigan state university remembers three killed during a mass shooting monday. students still trying to process the violence. all of us are numb to the whole situation. we have lived this our entire lives. i m still processing it. i honestly don t know if i can ever take a step foot into na union anymore. you see it on the news, but you never think it s going to be your school. and in fact, it is their school. we re learning more about the victims now as well, 20-year-old brian fraser was the president of his fraternity, 19-year-old ariel anderson, an aspiring surgeon, and 20-year-old alexandria verner, an all state athlete studying biology. police are still investigating the motive. we are learning more about the suspected gunman, ahead, the details about his criminal background and the chilling details that his father is now sharing. also this morning, fear a
health and safety after that fiery train derailment triggered a major chemical spill. officials now telling some people there not to drink the water. we begin this hour with the latest on the deadly shooting at michigan state university. we re learning new details about the three students murdered in this tragedy. three bright futures cut short. arielle anderson was a sophomore at msu, her family described her to local media as kind hearted, driven, straight-a student. they say she was always helpful to others and aspired to become a pediatrician. alexandria verner was a junior at msu. her hometown superintendent says she was a tremendous leader and athlete and that if you knew her, you loved her. alexandria s father described her as a beautiful soul. brian fraser was an msu sophomore, his family described him as a good kid, loved by everyone. he served as his fraternity s president, which called him a great friend. his high school swim team said brian had an infectious smi
at this place shutdown so-called scorpion unit whose members included arbiters charged in the death of tyre nichols. is this a move in the right direction? plus donald trump hits the campaign trail for the first time since announcing his 2024 presidential bid. he says he is more committed than ever. will republican voters be just as committed to him? later, backlash continues to grow against ron desantis for his decision to block courts on african american studies. some students are ready to take it to the courts. all of that and more is coming up. a good sunday morning to you. i m katie thing. thanks for starting your day with us. there s new fallout in some major changes at the memphis police department after friday nights like the videos showed five former officers beating, kicking, tasing and pepper spraying tyre nichols, who died just a few days ago. the department has permanently deactivated what it called its scorpion unit. that included all of those officers we saw
. good to be with you, i m katy tur, former vice president mike pence is putting up a fight. a moment ago in minnesota, he told reporters he is pushing back on special counsel jack smith s subpoena requiring him to testify about january 6th. pence is citing the speech and debate clause, something normally reserved for sitting lawmakers. my fight is on the separation of powers. my fight against the doj s subpoenas very simply is on defending the prerogatives that i had as president of the senate to preside over the joint session of congress on january 6th. for me, this is a moment where you have to decide where you stand and i stand on the constitution of the united states. yesterday if you were with us, you would have heard former federal prosecutor paul butler tell us that argument, that speech and debate clause would be a good academic paper for a law student but not as good of an argument in court. after all, pence was not a legislator, technically. he was vice presi
right now, the breath of brutal video footage of the police encounter that ended in the death of tyre nichols has created a situation too big for the nation and its lawmakers to ignore. in washington, a congressional conversation around policing reform may be getting a shot. the congressional black caucus today calling for a meeting with president biden to discuss policing reform. as activists like myself are wondering whether nichols would still be alive if the last congress had passed legislation that emerged after george floyd s murder. and in memphis for the five officers now facing second degree murder charges in the killing enough tyre nichols. it is now set for february 17th. and in the so-called scorpion unit, those officers belonged to and memphis has now been disbanded. and in new york, after hosting the parents enough tyre nichols here on politicsnation, i m thinking about the eulogy of their son, i would deliver as head of the next tunnel action network in memph