covid it seems has taken another turn for the worse, and for me it's starting to feel like the new normal, as in it's here to stay and will remain so for our lifetimes. while we need to take every possible step to protect ourselves and contain the virus, we also need to prepare ourselves psychologically so that we can live as normal an existence as possible amidst a pandemic that's becoming endemic. here's the situation. first, from 30,000 feet, cases and hospitalizations in this country both up 40% in the last month or so while scientists think that omicron is more contagious, most cases so far appear to be mild. but late today president biden warned that won't be the case for the unvaccinated in the path of omicron as it likely explodes at the beginning of the new year. >> it's here now, and it's spreading, and it's going to increase. for unvaccinated, we are looking at a winter of severe illness and death for unvaccinated, for themselves, their families, and the hospitals they'll soon overwhelm. but there's good news, if you're vaccinated and you have your booster shot, you're protected from severe illness and death. >> sometimes the macro statistics are a blur, especially where we repeat them night after night. so let's go to the more anecdotal, which brings home the reality of what's going on. princeton and cornell university, middle bury college, all shifting to remote exams. cornell closed its entire campus this week. some of the hottest shows on broadway cancels various performances often because of breakthrough infections, and that comes despite a vaccine mandate for performers, crew, and staff and audience mask and vaccine mandates. pro sports getting crushed, the star players of the milwaukee bucks, the cleveland browns placed in covid protocols. the calgary flames season on hold until at least tuesday with 18 players in protocol. tonight's game with montreal hosting the philadelphia flyers being played in front of zero fans. apple stores are closed in miami, annapolis, maryland, and ottawa. if yours is open, you'll need a mask to go in. booster mandates are coming to georgetown university, nyu, the metropolitan opera in new york and for all nfl coaches and staff. i don't know about you, but while i'm vaccinated and i'm boosted, i'm increasingly resigned to the fact that i'll probably get covid. i'm also confident that my vaccination status will enable me to deal with it much better than if i were unvaccinated. as for those who won't get vaccinated, i'm convinced that no amount of browbeating is going to cause them to change their ways. i don't wish them ill, but there's also a limit to my sympathy and compassion should they not take steps to protect themselves and society. and finally, i'm resolved not to let covid stop me from leading a productive and as happy a life as possible, notwithstanding a headline like this. covid positivity rate doubles in three days on omicron spread, and before you think that's media hype, check out this tweet today from a senior health adviser to the new york mayor, quote, we've never seen this before. and you see the numbers below that, the rate dramatically spiking in less than a week. so with all of that, we welcome mayor bill de blasio to the program. mayor, what the heck just happened here? >> omicron happened. this is a whole new animal, and we got to be honest about the fact that it's moving very fast, and we have to move faster, and honestly, michael, i really appreciate the humanity and the sort of openness of what you said about what you're thinking. i'm only going to differ with you on one thing. >> tell me. >> the folks who aren't getting vaccinated, if we apply mandates forcefully, it actually moves a lot of people. the number of people who are just 100% ideologically dyed in the wool anti-vaxx is very, very small. in this city right now, 90% of adults have had at least one dose of the vaccine, and there are plenty of people with strong opinions here. there are plenty of people like donald trump here, there are plenty of people who don't want the government to tell them what to do. the mandates are different because people are not going to lose a paycheck over it. they're not going to not be able to go to a restaurant. if you say here are some clear rules, you want to fully participate in society, all you got to do is get vaccinated, the vast majority of people say i'm in. >> you're 11 days away from the most stringent employer mandate in the country, to play devil's advocate, i could say city employees, teachers, restaurants, gyms, theaters were already subject to a mandate of yours. were they unsuccessful? >> no, they were, and now we're taking it to the next level because there are hundreds of thousands of businesses that were not part of those previous mandates. a lot of retail was not covered by that. barber shops were not covered by that. we're going to reach across the spectrum in the business community, office workers and we found with restaurants in this city, theaters, it worked. it actually was good for business. the customers knew they were safe. the employees knew they were safe. business has been booming. we found with our public employees, we're now at 94% with our public employees, a lot of drama. there were a lot of people who said no way, except when we said, hey, here's your choice. get vaccinated or you can go on leave without pay. most people don't like to be on leave without pay, and they said, okay, i'll do it, and their families wanted them to do it, and that has made all the difference. >> you know that some business groups, i guess i'd cite "the wall street journal," their editorial said you're kicking small business when they can least afford it. >> covid is bad for business. mandates are good for business. covid's bad for business. i've heard from so many business people, first of all, bluntly have said please do it for us. if the government does it, we don't have to be -- >> the bad guys. >> we don't have to say let me explain this to you. we can just point to the sign on the wall and say, hey, everybody's got to do it. please make it as universal as possible so folks won't go from one industry to another, they're trying to shop for a place with no mandate. i think this is what's going to save business and what's the worst thing in the world for business, what's going on in germany, shutdowns, restrictions, that's what kills businesses. that's what kills jobs. mandates are actually going to save us from having a shutdown. >> tom friedman says the world is flat. that applies to covid. we're like a chain that is only as strong as our weakest link, no matter what bill de blasio does in new york city, if middle america isn't doing something different, then what does it matter? it comes here eventually. >> it does, but what you said before was profoundly true. if someone's vaccinated, particularly they've gotten that booster, they're a hell of a lot safer. they still might get covid. i might get covid, but we're going to live through it. we probably don't end up in the hospital, which is not only good for you and me. it's good for the whole society. it's good so that our hospital system can treat people in greater need. i believe the more mandates, the more impact, and we've got to be bold about this. mayors, governors, ceos, bite the bullet. just do it. yeah, you're going to have protests. guess what, it's a global pandemic. suck it up. go and do it, get it done. >> should there be an exception in your mandate for people who have had it? i know if they've had monoclonal treatment or if they've had the plasma, they've given a 90-day exception. but should you be more allowing for somebody who says i have the antibodies, i've already fought and won against covid. >> not if you listen to all our doctors. it's an honest question. i've had this dialogue with a lot of people from the heart. and i know they see some real safety in having had it. there's some truth, but it's not the same as being vaccinated. our doctors will tell you clearly, if you want the maximum protection, the maximum likelihood you won't get it and you won't transmit it, you've got to be vaccinated. and by the way, covid, for god sakes, covid has taught a lesson. it changes all the time. so the reason you want to be extra careful is because you don't know what the next curve ball is going to be. we've got to be honest. mandates work. we've proven it here. united airlines have proven it. let's just go do it and i think it's going to take bluntly political courage amongst elected officials and even among ceos. >> there's no testing exception either. i mean, you're hardcore, right? you don't recognize if someone's had it nor is there a testing exception to your mandate. how come? >> because testing only allows you to find out if someone's got it. it doesn't help you stop it. we looked at the models in europe. they were much looser. i said if there's only one thing that we know works is vaccination, let's go all the way. right now 90%, as i said, 90% of new yorkers have had at least one dose, and even though we've seen a business increase lately, our hospitals are doing very, very well. that's not true in the rest of a lot of this country and the rest of the state it's not true. our hospital system is strong, we thank god had very few deaths because the more people are vaccinated, the more people are going to make it through. it's as simple as that. now, i can tell you something, if we didn't put these mandates in place, i'll give you sheer simple math, 60% of our adults were vaccinated when we started the mandates. it's 90% now. the united states of america is about 60% fully vaccinated. new york city is over 70% fully vaccinated. all residents. >> you're doing all of this on your way out the door. how many days left? >> 16. >> eric adams, he can undo all of this, if he chooses to. >> he's going to follow the leadership and the advice of the health care leaders, and they are clear as a bell. you know, every tool distancing is good, masks are good, but there's something that rises above all the other tools is vaccination. >> and you're off to run for governor? >> i am going to be continuing in public service for sure and i am going to be going around the state of new york. >> should you be doing better in the first of the surveys given that everybody knows who you are. you've got the name i.d. >> i do have name i.d., and i've governed through an incredibly tough period, and i hope whatever the political future, i hope people say a lot of these decisions like the mandates were the right thing to do. i once we're all going through a lot right now. i'm not going to judge anything about public opinion and politics in the middle of what is a live pandemic. my job is to keep new yorkers safe. the politics will take care of itself later. >> i like to respond to social media in realtime. >> okay. >> all right, will you join me? let's see what's come in. i think this is to you. smerconish, if what you were saying in the new york city mayor, why is there going to be a new year's celebration in as many days, even as you have said you expected to get covid? even though you're fully vaccinated? why is there going to be a big celebration if this is the state of affairs? >> we made the decision back when things were better. we said vaccinated people only and outdoors. >> how do you enforce that? >> literally every i.d. >> a million people? >> sure, we're working with our partners, the times square alliance, and everyone's been told for weeks and weeks, don't even show up unless you're vaccinated. we're going to reassess constantly with the new information. we're going to follow the data and the science. right now it's on. we'll make a decision as we get closer to what should finally happen. >> one more. let's see what it is. the virus won, it's over, the virus won. no longer makes sense to think we'll beat the virus with more transmissible but less lethal strains, it's endemic. we should start to treat it like the flu, or we can continue to freak out with every news release. buy into any of that? >> i agree don't freak out. i agree one day it can and should be like the flu. the flu takes some lives too, the flu's not nothing. the flu can be controlled. we all get our flu shot and life goes on. i do believe that's what's going to happen with covid. that's what our doctors say, our leadership here. i would disagree on one level. focus on the way to get to that point. endemic does not need to mean it dominates our lives. right now covid's dominating our lives. i want to covid in the background. you didn't wake up two years ago and say oh, my god, i'm so worried about the flu. you went down to the pharmacy and got a flu shot. >> people want to lead their lives. i feel it here in new york city, i'm from philadelphia, so it's not like i live in a rural area but i feel it in every block that i walk in new york city. if i were in the middle part of the country with you, i don't think we'd see masks. i don't think we'd be showing our vaxx cards anywhere. i come back to that point where unless everybody's on the same page in the country, we're kind of screwed. >> you know how you get on the same page? people have to lead. i believe with enough leadership, enough mandates we're going to get a hell of a lot more people vaccinated. the more people vaccinated, the more we actually make the transition to a time when covid is in the background, not the foreground, and we know these mandates work, and we know people respond. look, human beings, are pretty predictable. if you say your paycheck depends on it or your ability to enjoy life or go do the things you want to do, people will make the practical decision overwhelmingly and they'll fete vaccinated. >> mayor, thanks for being here. thanks for responding to the social media as well. >> what are your thoughts? tweet me at smerconish or go to my facebook page. i'll continue to read your responses throughout the course of the program. we've already dealt with what we've got. be sure you go to the website as well. in tonight's survey question quickly for you, should the definition of fully vaccinated include a booster? >> we are looking at that right now. >> because yours doesn't, right? >> not yet. i think that will be the way of the future. we're discussing that with our health care team. i can tell you this much, we have 1.5 million people boosted already in new york city. we need everyone to get there. if this is part of how we get there, that might be a good part of the strategy. >> i'm taking that as a yes. >> we're getting there. up next, one of president biden's former covid advisers, what will year three of covid look like, and is it time to treat the unvaccinated and vaccinated differently? dr. zeke emanuel in the on deck circle. ♪ superpowers from a spider bite? i could use some help showing the world how liberty mutual customizes their car insurance so they only pay for what they need. 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>> no, i don't think that's correct. first of all, in march 2020, we didn't understand a lot about coronavirus. second of all, we have vaccines now, we have the ability to change those vaccines. we're getting oral therapeutics. we have much better tests and test availability. none of that's perfect, but it's much better than it was in march 2020. we also have a much better understanding of how to handle really sick patients in terms of medications and how to titrate their oxygen better. i think you're not correct in saying that we're right back in march 2020. >> well, i'm happy to hear that. i laid out some anecdotal information at the outset of the program in terms of what's going on around the country, schools closing, apple store closing, whatever the case may be. is any of that an overreaction? do you see the signs of us being too visceral in how we're responding to the latest turn with regard to omicron? >> well, my university is one of those universities that today sent everyone home. my final, which starts on monday is online. we were expecting to do it in person. i think there is a sense that the positivity rate's going way up. we had more than a doubling last week of positive students, and so i think that's motivating people. this is highly, highly transmissible. i mean, if you just look at the curves, the line goes straight up. it really is very transmissible and people have to take that seriously, and i unfortunately think some people are. we're seeing a big uptick in people getting vaccinated, for example, an uptick in cancellations of parties and things, and those are probably good reactions to slow the spread and to maybe stop the spread here. >> am i incorrect in saying to mayor de blasio a moment ago, obviously as someone who lacks any medical expertise or degree, that what he's doing in new york is only as strong as what's going on in the rest of the country? because ultimately, this virus knows no boundaries. >> yes and no. the virus does move. people do travel, but he is right in that what -- first of all, what he's doing is showing a model for the country. second, it will affect the community spread and the prevalence in the community, and it is good to bring it down. and i do think it will, you know, visitors will, i think, slow down because of omicron. there's going to be less travel, so i think what he's doing is actually quite positive. remember, he was one of the very best examples of how mandates do work. they work at the municipal level, they work at the business level. i would agree with him when you talk to a lot of businessmen, not on camera, they say, yeah, please impose those mandates on us. we can't do it ourselves, but if you do it, we can get our workers to be vaccinated. people want cover and he's the mayor who's providing cover in this case. >> what other strategies would you pursue to reach the unvaccinated? >> well, i actually do think it's mandates. i would like to -- and i've called for months now a mandate for air travel and train travel, and bus travel. i think that's absolutely critical to have happen. i would like to see when we get more data on the effect of the vaccine in children, mandates for going to school. i think these are going to be very, very important to get our arms around this. >> dr. zeke emanuel, thanks so much for being here. >> thank you, mike, take care. >> make sure everyone is going to smerconish.com and voting on tonight's survey question. should the definition of fully vaccinated now include a booster? go to my website, cast a ballot at the end of the program, we'll give you the total. and keep the social media coming as well. what else has come in so far, vaughn? you stay home if you're scared. i'm out living my life uninhibited, unafraid and unvaccinated. you're scaring the crap out of me right now, perry. we ain't all sheep who get hysterical when the media tells us to. i'm not hysterical at all, i'm vaccinated. i'm boosted and i said i'm out there leading my life. i'm trying to do it in a way that's responsible not only for my own health but for yours as well. i would suggest that you're out there leading your life and not showing me the same level of courtesy and respect. what else came in? how do you reach those people? i don't care about surges in covid contagion. i only care about hospitalizations and deaths, and those are mostly unvaccinated. not my fault, not my problem. well, you know, sir winston, i said earlier that i'm running out -- i have empathy and compassion only to a certain extent. you can lead a horse to water, as they say. i think that everyone now is educated as to the necessity of being vaccinated, and the fact that if they're unvaccinated and now get the virus, they're going to be in a hell of a lot worse position than those who are vaccinated. so i'm kind of at the end of my patience and sympathy for those who are unvaccinated and end up getting it. a covid surge is just the latest roadblock for the biden administration. the president now admitting democrats won't make that christmas deadline to pass build back better. so with a faltering agenda and faltering polls just how much trouble are democrats in going into the midterm? 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(cheers) xfinity brought us together, after all! power your whole home this holiday with wifi speeds faster than a gig. click, call, or visit a store today. sing 2 president biden shifting course this week on his legislative agenda during a trip to kentucky to inspect damage from the deadly tornados. >> there's nothing domestically more important than voting rights. it's the single biggest issue. >> many americans also struggling to pay for their home, medicine, and child care, all of which are addressed in the build back better bill, so the problem now, biden's nowhere close to a deal with senator joe manchin on that or on voting rights. let's discuss the shift in strategy with james carville. james, so great to have you here. build back better seems like it's on life support. is that good or bad political news for democrats? >> it depends how you play the news. if you talk about 2021 is the greatest story never told. it's the greatest first year of job creation any president's ever had. we started with an insurrection, now we're bringing them to justice. for the first time since i can remember we've had an infrastructure plan. we're out of america's longest war, and the democrats have an outstanding record, and look we did this with 50 senators and a four vote majority in the house. imagine what we could do with 53 senators and a 15 vote majority in the house. there's a heck of a story to tell here in 2021 thus far. we still may get good portions of build back better after the first of the year. i mean, it's not a legislative deadline. there's nothing magical about doing it prior to december 31st, it's the same congress in session. i think this is a good news, and we need to tell people about it, and we need to remind people we don't want to go back to 2020. >> so why is he under water? are you going to tell me the president hasn't sold it, or the people around him or a combination of both? >> well, look, he's under water for any number of reasons, and the story is not getting told. i blame myself and commentators like me for that. i blame the white house some for that and i blame cnn and the media outlets. you would never know that we're creating these jobs at almost a record pace right now. i mean, you can't imagine how much power that employees have right now compared to a year ago. i mean, if you're an hourly employee, you're doing pretty good out there. you have some say so over your life, and that's a pretty stunning achievement. and we got to make a resolution here that we're going to do better and also we're going to put -- we don't want to go back to 2020. if you look at how this president conducted himself in kentucky with the grace and the compassion, and go back to donald trump in puerto rico throwing paper towels at people. i mean, we got to remind people of what's been done. hopefully we won't get the voting rights act, hopefully we'll get something of build back better. >> joe manchin a blessing or a curse for joe biden? i think there's an argument to be made that he'd have to create joe manchin if he didn't exist because he reins in those most progressive elements of the party. >> well, let's see when it's all said and done. i mean, senator manchin, i think he's a patriotic american, and you know, just because we don't get it by the 31st, doesn't mean we can't get something after that. i know he's big on voting rights. he helped author the bill. hopefully we can figure something out there. the best way, if you don't like the power senator manchin has, let's elect three more democratic senators. let's pick up a seat in florida. let's pick up a seat in north carolina or pennsylvania or wisconsin, or ohio. there's all kinds of opportunities. you get 52, 53 democrats and you're ready to roll. the circumstance of not doing very well in the congressional elections in 2020. >> i know you read brett steven's piece in the "new york times" saying joe biden needs to say i'm not running for re-election, and he needs to say it sooner than later. based on your first answer, i'm sure you're not buying it, but go ahead and react. >> i don't think he needs to think about it. he's not even a year into his term. and brett stevens is a nice guy. he's got to think of something twice a week to put in the newspaper and this was just maybe the best he could do this week. but there's a whole lot of football between now and the primaries in -- >> but james, i have to say because i had begala here last night, and he acknowledged -- he acknowledged, you know, in the cloak rooms of washington, this is the sort of thing people are buzzing about, not just brett stevens. >> but paul is in the cloak rooms in washington, i'm here in mississippi, and i'm seeing help wanted signs. i'm seeing people paying $800 bonuses to sign up. you know, he's right, everybody in washington, we start talking about -- in new orleans we talk about the next dinner before we eat lunch. in washington in the cloak rooms all they're talking about is the next election. i'm saying the president doesn't need to concern himself with that right now. he's got a long way to go, and he's got a lot left to do in this term, and let's see where he is. based on what i've seen the first year, it's pretty dog gone good. >> thank you as always. >> okay, michael. great to talk to you. >> see you. a classic case of doing one thing, and saying another, fox news hosts outed for sounding an alarm on january 6th, but thereafter acting like it was no big deal. how come one former fox news insider says it was all about absolving themselves of blame and keeping viewers coming back for the hatorade. chris stirewalt is with me next. r will help you create a comprehensive wealth plan for your full financial picture. with the right balance of risk and reward. so you can enjoy more of...this. this is the planning effect. not only do centrum multigummies taste great. they help support your immune defenses, too. because a healthy life. starts with a healthy immune system. with vitamins c and d, and zinc. getting out there has never tasted so good. try centrum multigummies. ♪ the only thing a disaster can't destroy is hope. ♪ donate now at redcross.org ♪ ♪ cases of anxiety in young adults are rising as experts warn of the effects on well-being caused by the pandemic. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ look for the bare necessities ♪ ♪ the simple bare necessities ♪ ♪ forget about your worries and your strife ♪ ♪ i mean the bare necessities ♪ ♪ are mother nature's recipes ♪ ♪ that bring the bare necessities of life ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ the bare necessities of life will come to you ♪ they'll come to me! ♪ they'll come to you ♪ all the delivery, no delivery fees. dashpass. fox news hosts now playing defense after being exposed for their duplicitous texts to mark meadows on january 6th expressing their alarm for him but spinning for trump on tv. their defense they were taken out of context, of course. while it's true fox hosts including laura ingraham and sean hannity denounced the violence, they were sure to throw in red herrings, suggesting january 6th might be the work of antifa or that the 2020 election was a train wreck. it may have cost my next guest his job at fox news. he was fired from his role as political editor after the network called arizona for biden on election night. he says fox hosts primed the pump for the assault on democracy. chris stirewalt is now the contributing editor for "the dispatch" and joins me now. i of course, chris, like many of us will never forget those events and when that call went down. i wonder if arizona hadn't been called when you folks called it, how might that have bolstered trump and led to something else taking place on january 6th? >> well, you saw how miserable he looked when he came to the cameras that night because they -- and mark meadows admits as much in book excerpts that he's put out that this was a real shot. he was flabbergasted that my boss, bill salmon that we were not going to knuckle under to the criticisms about this because they wanted that narrative intact that night. and it's amazing to hear people say it out loud, right? it is now amazing to me to hear that this stuff is taken as normal by a pretty substantial wing of the republican party that they were trying to steal an election and they were frustrated by the fact that we wouldn't let them, and that's just -- it kind of gives you the chills a little bit. >> how would roger ailes have reacted to all this? >> you know, he was a very changed man by the end of the time that i knew him, but roger ailes in his prime i don't think would have been consumed by donald trump. i don't think that he would have been victimized in this way, and he would have probably given himself more operational space. the thing that ailes was good at was being unpredictable. he would zig when they expected him to zag. one other thing that roger knew that was really important was fox had to have enough journalistic credibility. there had to be enough of a backbone in there of actual journalists so that you could afford to have the exaggerations or the partisanship or the over the top performances of the prime time host so that you could point back and say, hey, look, we got it. that's the editorial page. that's the entertainment. this is the news division and they do good work. >> i said here for the last couple of nights that the tweets, the texts that were sent to meadows were appropriate because i'd like to think that somebody wanted the events to get shut down and the president to hurry up and intercede. of course the aftermath was horrible because then they acted like there was nothing to see here on the 6th. i read your piece in the dispatch. now i have a different take. you point out that in the laura ingraham text, mark, the president needs to tell the people in the capitol to go home. this is hurting all of us. and you drew attention to the word "us." what am i talking about? >> well, so january 6th is bad for all americans, right? this was a dark day. it wasn't the worst thing that this country's been through in this century, but it's high on the list. this is a big moment that we'll remember for all time, and it should touch all of us. but it's an open question what she meant there. did she mean all of us americans? i kind of doubt it. i think all of us means the people who threw in with trump, the people who were backing trump, public figures who had gone along with trump, in fact, in his efforts to prefigure a circumstance that will allow him to try to steal the election at the end. and when sort of his supporters lived down to the expectations, the worst expectations that people had of them as they assaulted the capitol, that sort of ruined the game, right? it ruined the pitch, which was, well, we're just asking serious questions about an election that may be rigged. those people who stormed the capitol took seriously what hosts like hannity and ingram and others said over the course of the election. this is very suspicious, mail ballots are very bad. this whole thing could be rigged. as they echoed trump, they primed the pump, they created that space. >> when i speak to private groups or public groups i'm often asked these cable folks and the talk radio hosts, do they mean what they say? now i'm looking at those texts versus the way this has been handled thereafter. what would your answer to that question be? >> so here's the deal. what they were doing that night and thereafter was spinning for republicans, right? they were saying, oh, well, maybe it was antifa. actually, the election was a mess. and then eventually we would end one patriot purge stuff that tucker carlson did and all of these things. on the one hand you could say they were functioning as an arm of the republican party. but what you could really say is that what they're advising for the republican party isn't even good for republicans. the right thing for republicans to have done on january 6th was to take a step back. uh-oh, what did we do? this got way out of hand, but that's not good for tv. that's not good for revenue. if you say to people things have gotten out of hand here, we need to reassess what we're doing. we need to look at our part of this, that doesn't keep people tuned in. what you're telling them is the last thing that these viewers want to hear, which is you have a part in this too, and you need to think about that. >> hey, i'm limited on time. i woke up this morning watching a fox segment of chest thumping defending the rights of people to be unvaccinated and i was watching individuals that i know are vaccinated, which i think speaks to the point that you just made. >> yeah, you know, look, one of the things that i've always respected about your work and admired you for is that you paint things as complicated. you don't just cut right to the end and say, oh, it's all this or it's all that. there is nuance. it is hard, and as journalists when we talk about serious things we need to take them seriously. doesn't mean we have to take ourselves seriously, but we have to take these issues seriously and bring our best to them. >> yeah. a lot of this stuff transcends entertainment is what we're both saying. chris stirewalt, thank you so much for being here. >> you bet. slogans usually sell an idea, just do it, don't leave home without it. to name a few. one slogan back fired so badly it's got politicians around the country scrambling to sound more like their rivals. that is tonight's reality check with john avlon next. ♪ ♪ ♪ "how bizarre" by omc ♪ no annual fee on any discover card. ♪ ♪ you've been taking mental health meds, and your mind is finally in a better place. except now you have uncontrollable body movements called tardive dyskinesia td. and it can seem like that's all people see. ♪ some meds for mental health can cause abnormal dopamine signaling in the brain. while how it works is not fully understood, ingrezza is thought to reduce that signaling. ingrezza is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with td movements in the face and body. people taking ingrezza can stay on their current dose of most mental health meds. don't take ingrezza if you're allergic to any of its ingredients. ingrezza may cause serious side effects, including sleepiness. don't drive, operate heavy machinery, or do other dangerous activities until you know how ingrezza affects you. other serious side effects include potential heart rhythm problems and abnormal movements. shift the focus more on you. ask your doctor about ingrezza. it's simple. one pill, once-daily. #1 prescribed for td. learn how you could pay as little as $0 at ingrezza.com >> man: what's my safelite story? 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(gasps) ♪ did it work? only pay for what you need ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ spider-man no way home in theaters december 17th defund the police, the controversial slogan has become even more politically problematic for dems with violent crimes on the rise, and now some democrats who once backed the idea are embracing a new catch phrase, refund the police. john avlon with tonight's reality check. >> that's right, michael. >> sf mayor london breed broke that mold with a speech this week where she railed against rising crime in terms that even a republican could love. >> it's time that the reign of criminals who are destroying our city, it is time for it to come to an end. and it comes to an end when we take the steps to be more aggressive with law enforcement, more aggressive with the changes in our policies and less tolerant of all the bull shit that has destroyed our city. >> she's not alone. in the city across the bay, oakland mayor libby shaft distanced herself from defund the police rhetoric when faced with the reality of a major spike in gun crime saying there's nothing progressive about unbridled gun violence. you're damn right. she also told cnn this. >> let me be clear, oakland needs more police. we have been impacted by staffing reductions. covid interrupted our recruitment and training processes, and the defund rhetoric is challenging our ability to attract and retain recruits. >> and this echoed a recent call for sanity from former philadelphia mayor who slammed what he saw as a laissez-faire attitude with a rise in crime and murders and blaming it on a form of white wokeness in an interview right here with smerconish on cnn. now, if your head is spinning then you haven't really been paying attention. because while big cities generally lean left and thrive on diversity, they're also deeply pragmatic, and after decades of historic clime decline, violent crime started to creep up in 2015 and murders really spiked in 2020 with a nearly 30% rise in homicides. now, to be sure cities are still far safer than they were in the early 1990s, but the days of taking low crime and high quality of life for granted are over. which brings us to one of the worst political slogans in recent memory, defund the police. that came out of righteous protests sparked by the murder of george floyd in an overdue reckoning about police abuse of power and systemic racism. but the slogan which defenders argued really didn't mean what it said nonetheless became shorthand for a retreat of policing. it might have have been popular with activists but not so much a vast majority of the american people. when the dust settled on the 2020 election with down ballot democrats underperforming the top of the ticket, both biden and obama pointed to the slogan as one of the reasons why. since taking office biden has pushed for more funding for cops as well as police reform legislation, which stalled in the senate after initially hopeful signs. the doj has unveiled several initiatives to combat gun violence. but these trends don't just turn on a dime. and this year more than two-thirds of america's biggest cities saw increases in homicides. so no wonder sentiment is snapping back. get this a pew survey found just 15% of americans want funding decreased for the police, while more than three times that number, 47%, want to see it increased for the police. that's a shift that's particularly pronounced in the african-american community. so it's really no surprise that mayors across the country are changing tactics. minneapolis voters rejecting a proposal that would have overhauled their police department. and new york city electing a former police captain eric adams to be its new mayor after he promised to be tough on crime and police abuse of power. what a concept. big cities are not the liberal stereotypes presented on right wing talk tv, but they know high crime and lawlessness can function as a political recruitment tool for the gop used to distract from other issues like i don't know defense of democracy. the reality is that public safety is the foundation for strong, livable cities. once that starts to erode, everything else falls apart from quality of life to basic trust between fellow citizens. no wonder more and more democrats are rejecting those calls to defund the police and instead declaring that it's time to reform and refund the police. and that's your reality check. >> i agree with you. that pendulum has swung, and this will be a big issue in the mid-term elections unless things change in the way you've just described. >> big time. we'll see. >> we'll be right back with your reaction to tonight's program. what can i du with less asthma? 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results, 85% say yes. interesting. 15% say no. that word's got to come from the cdc, and i think mayor de blasio was pretty clear here earlier tonight that he's looking to change it in exactly that way. here's some some of the social media that came in during the course of the program. i only think about the surge when i accidently let the media remind me of it. get busy living or get busy dying. i'm getting busy living, and i'm concerned about the surge only insofar as unless we get ahead of it, we're not going to be able to continue to get on living, but it's not got me overwhelmed. i i gave you that impression at the outset of the program, that was the wrong impression. i just want everybody to get onboard. here's more of what came in tonight. smerconish, three people from fox, trump's son and others, had to beg meadows to get the potus to do something about the mob. they warned him that someone might be killed and that there would be violence. what bothers me is that he didn't give a damn. there are a lot of things about that that i find intriguing not the least of which why did don, jr. have to go through mark meadows to reach the old man? i mean i want to know and i think this january 6th committee or commission is getting to the bottom of it. what exactly was the president doing at that time? was he walled off? what did meadows do? here's a question if i were taking his deposition. mr. meadows, you received that communication from sean hannity, right? yes. well, did you share it with president trump and if so what exactly was his reaction and ask the same about laura ingram's texts and those from the members of congress. they were sending the right message. i have no beef with them sending that message. they just should have followed it up in kind when they addressed it on their own television programs. thank you for watching. i'll be back tomorrow. don lemon tonight starts right now. this is don lemon tonight. thank you so much for joining us. look, i don't blame you if you