11-year-old you just saw gleefully playing in the snow. his body found 24 hours later, after a brutally cold night without power inside his family's mobile home. senator ted cruz in damage control this morning. what he's now saying about his trip to cancun in the midst of a crisis. the gop split widening. donald trump refusing to meet with nikki haley and the senate's number two republican, accusing trump allies of engaging in cancel culture. new developments in the capitol hill riot investigation. 35 officers now under investigation for their actions during the insurrection and new indictments targeting six more people linked to the oath keepers militia. and today marks one month since joe biden took office. how is the president ramping up his efforts to undo trump's policies, both domestically and abroad? >> this administration's going to be guided by science, to save lives and to make lives better. >> we will dive into that, but first, good morning. it is saturday, february 20th. i'm lindsey reiser. >> i'm kendis gibson. happy to have you with us here at msnbc world headquarters in new york. we also have a team of correspondents and analysts standing by, following the very latest for you in texas as well as all across the country. let's begin with msnbc reporter antonia hylton, who is in houston, where lights and heat are back for most residents, but water is still not safe to drink. antonia, good morning to you. how long is this expected to last? and i know you spoke with many people there. how are they coping? >> reporter: good morning, kendis. the mayor of houston says that the boil water advisory is going to be in effect here until at least monday. it could be longer than that. but people here, kendis, they are exhausted, they are traumatized after a hellish week in texas in which people shiferd in their homes, struggled to find clean water, and in some cases, lost their lives, like 11-year-old christian pavone, who is suspected of having died of hypothermia in his family's mobile home. yesterday, i spent the day at del mar stadium in houston, where thousands and thousands of residents came and received free cases of water from volunteers who were out in the cold for hours working to help them. and we heard from people there that in some cases, this was the first time they had been able to get their hands on fresh water in days. and all of this has disproportionately impacted communities of color in this area and low-income families. i want you to hear from some of the people that we met. take a listen to this. >> the water pressures are not good. we have to fill up the bathtub, to flush the toilets and i had 1 1/2 cases of water left. >> our water busted lines. we're out of water. five days all right without water. it's very sad. very sad. >> i mean, we've been out since sunday. that's bad. and for ted cruz to be on a cruise, i mean, that's really bad. i mean, they've got to do something for us. we're struggling, pandemic. he's taking a vacation? >> reporter: you can hear how weary so many of them are. and you have to keep in mind, kendis, that many of these folks, you know, they are coming from neighborhoods and communities in texas that haven't just been hit hard this past week by the storm, but have been hit hard for the past year by coronavirus as well, and these people, they feel in many cases like they just can't catch a break, kendis. >> antonia, what do we know about this crisis playing out in other parts of the country? >> reporter: yeah, lindsey, as we've seen all of this unfold here in texas, there are parallel crises unfolding across the south, in mississippi, in louisiana, around the memphis area. there are also major water challenges as subfreezing temperatures have put the water supply in jeopardy there, so there are thousands of residents in those areas as well who have been going to water distribution sites, seeking free aid and shivering at home. and you know, the good news right now is that the temperatures across the south are supposed to go up over the next couple days, so people are holding out hope right now, lindsey, that they'll see some normalcy again and that they're going to get some relief soon. >> yeah. important point there. antonia hylton, thank you so much. i'm sure those volunteers are so exhausted after helping people, but thankfully, they are there. and we heard one of the people who antonia spoke with talk about the controversy surrounding texas senator ted cruz. well, there's new fallout this morning from that trip to mexico during the deadly storm and what text messages from his wife reveal about the last-minute trip. >> let's check in with nbc's gabe gutierrez. >> reporter: senator ted cruz now admits his whirlwind trip to cancun during an intensifying weather crisis was a mistake. >> i had initially planned to stay through the weekend and to work remotely there, but as i was heading down there, you know, i started to have second thoughts almost immediately, because the crisis here in texas. >> reporter: but he got a frosty reception. "the houston chronicle" says texans' anger with cruz right now could power an entire electric grid. >> he needs to show up and act like he cares. how could he go on vacation like this? this is ridiculous. >> reporter: cruz says his young daughters asked to go on a trip and that he was still in communication with state and local officials but adding to the outcry, "the new york times" reports a series of text messages from cruz's wife, heidi, to friends and neighbors shows the trip was hastily planned. mrs. cruz telling friends her house was freezing, proposing a vacation until sunday and inviting others to join the cruzs at the ritz carlton in cancun. the paper says the messages were confirmed by a second person on the text chain who declined to be identified. >> when things are happening on the ship, we simply, we stay on the ship. and that's the commitment that we make when we sign up for these positions. >> reporter: cruz's office today did not respond to requests for comment about those reported texts. >> our thanks to gabe gutierrez. and as bad as that was, they left the dog behind. >> snowflake. >> snowflake, a poodle, a small dog that they could have traveled with, so they had no power, had no heat, but decided it's okay for that dog to be left behind in the house. there was a security guard outside, but still. a lot of people are upset about that. these power outages are happening in the energy powerhouse of america. texas produces more electricity than any other state in the country. >> it's the number one state in both crude oil and natural gas production, and it leads the nation in wind power generation, producing about 28% of the country's wind-powered electricity in 2019. >> a lot of people are wondering, actually, how did such a behemoth get knocked so thoroughly offline? here to help try to sort it out is ed kearse, the energy fellow at the university of houston. welcome, and thank you for being here. i know it's been a very busy and rough week for you. but in fact, personally, it's been rough. you were without power like the rest of texas. what's your situation like now? >> well, power's back, and i'm pleased to report that i got a shower today, but we're still under a boil water notice. everything antonia said was absolutely dead on target. >> i'm sure your family members are pleased with that report as well. >> we're so happy that the power is back on for you. an op ed you wrote in the "washington post" -- by the way, you wrote it on a typewriter by candlelight because you didn't have power, which kendis just alluded to. the op ed called "why texans are cold and in the dark." you say the companies bid to provide electricity and undercut one another essentially foint where they don't turn a profit, so they defer maintenance, close power plants to reduce supply and increase the demand. do you see this disaster right now forcing any change? >> i certainly hope so. i mean, we had a similar situation in 2011. in 2011, we had a cold vortex that came through, we had freezing, we had a number of plants not come online, did not answer the call, prices spiked, but they still had blackouts. even blacked out the dallas medical center. >> yeah, i remember that very well. i was there in 2011 for the super bowl. it was a disaster and they were all told that texas would learned lessons from that. they have not. other states, though, ed, are looking at texas for inspiration on how to dereg late their own markets. do you think these images that we're seeing right there on the left of the screen now will change their minds? >> yeah, kendis, it's an issue of corporate governance or accountability. and you know, when somebody plans based on statistics and looking ahead, you know, this is nonsense. it's the cost of lost electricity. the value of electricity is not in the 3 1/2 cents a kilowatt hour it costs wholesale, it's the value of what it allows us to do. and you're seeing what happens when infrastructure breaks down and it's very cavalier, a very arrogant approach. for more than ten years, generators have not been able to cover the cost, and so they've left the market. and these guys are clever. they leave the market, they know they're going to drive the prices up anyway. this is a failure of imagination, a failure of responsibility by the state leadership. >> what would you like to see done? because kendis was there, you were there ten years ago. i was in el paso, texas, ten years ago during that storm. el paso is on a different grid, but there they said this is a once in a lifetime storm. this time, they said it's a once in our lifetime storm. likely in our lifetimes, we're going to see another storm like this. >> lindsey, we had one in '89. i've been in texas a little bit longer, so we're having these once in a lifetime storms. we've had harvey. we've had ike. we've had rita. we've had katrikatrina. typically, we're looking south because of the hurricanes and the exposures, but they call them blue northers in texas for a reason. and when somebody opens the door, the jet stream dips this way, you know, it just makes sense. the recommendations to winterize the plants, to use antifreeze, these were not followed because they're voluntary. and ercot, you know, these guys are just kind of the air traffic controllers. they don't have any ability to enforce rules. the public utility commission has been totally feckless. the legislature and the governor have been asleep at the wheel for two decades. i mean, it's just not the governor here. rick perry before and george w. before him. >> and ed, really quickly, because i'm watching "the dallas morning news" front page this morning, and they're talking about something that's basically insult to injury, that many customers who used to have $100 light bills are now getting bills for thousands and thousands of dollars, even though the power had been output for a while? >> yeah, you know, it's kind of ironic that the governor would go on and say we're going to prosecute people who are price gouging, and yet, we've seen folks get several hundred dollar bills for one day of power because of the way the ercot market is structured. >> yeah, it's billed by megawatts, which is just horrible for these people. >> it's -- you know, it's provided all sorts of perverse incentives to gain the situation, and texas have been gamed on the electric power grid for years. >> ed hirs, thank you for joining us to discuss the most expensive event since hurricane harvey. there are new developments on the january 6th capitol riot this morning. 35 capitol hill officers are now under investigation for their actions during the riot and six more members of a far right militia group called the oath keepers have been indicted. msnbc's marianna sotomayor is on capitol hill with more details for us. marianna, good morning. take us through the latest on these police officers who are under investigation. >> reporter: hey, lindsey, good morning. well, now that the impeachment trial is in the rearview mirror, members of congress taking these investigations into their own hands. and let's remember, these were the targets of what happened on january 6th. something to note, in terms of scheduling this week -- on tuesday is the first time we'll actually see two senate committees coming together to understand what happened, all of the security failures that happened on that day. it's likely the first time we'll also hear from the former chief of police, as well as the former house and sergeant-at-arms of the senate and the house, all people responsible for the day-to-day dealings within the capitol as well as security, while on thursday, we will actually see the house appropriations committee holding their second hearing on the very subject with the current acting capitol police officers as well as the house sergeant of arms. they, of course, continue to have their own internal investigations. that is what has resulted, as you mentioned, those six capitol police officers who are now suspended with pay. another 29 continue to be under investigation. and it's worth noting congressman tim ryan -- he serves on a subcommittee that overseas the capitol police -- he notes that one of those capitol police officers suspended was taking selfies. we saw videos of that just days after that january 6th insurrection. another one was actually seen wearing a maga hat and directing some of these insurrectionists through the capitol. these investigations are continuing. and of course, we could see more suspensions in the week to come. but all of this also happening as house speaker nancy pelosi is going to formally introduce legislation as early as next week to set up this independent 9/11-style commission. congressmen will be able to give that commission much more money to investigate, also subpoena power to bring forth a number of witnesses. those investigations, as the 9/11 commission actually showed, takes a long time, so it's likely going to take potentially a year until we really get to the bottom of what happened and what drove people to not just storm the capitol but really those security breaches that showed just how vulnerable capitol hill continues to be. lindsey, kendis? >> all right. marianna sotomayor, quite a bit of action on capitol hill this weekend. thank you. okay, so, breaking up is hard to do. we're not talking kim and kanye, but the republican party divide, which widens as mitch mcconnell reportedly plans to give donald trump the silent treatment. plus -- he goes and plays golf hundreds of times with his buddies. he is not focused on the people who are hurting, who are paying the cost. >> as ted cruz returns from his quick round-trip to cancun, his past comments come back to haunt him. will his blunder cause lasting damage? we'll put that to our panel. and later on "the cross connection," texas representative colin allred speaks out about the winter storm that's leveled his state and why thousands are still without electricity and water. join tiffany cross at 10:00 a.m. . join tiffany crosst a10:00 a.m. (woman) what should we do with it first? (man) road trip. (woman) yes. (woman) off-road trip. (man) how hot is the diablo chili? (waitress) well, you've got to sign a waiver. [loud laughter] (woman) is this even a road? (man) yeah. (woman) so what should we do second? (vo) the subaru forester. the most adventurous forester ever. (vo) get 0% for 63 months on select new 2021 models. now through march 1st. when you switch to xfinity mobile, you're choosing to get connected to the most reliable network nationwide, now with 5g included. discover how to save up to $300 a year with shared data starting at $15 a month, or get the lowest price for one line of unlimited. come into your local xfinity store to make the most of your mobile experience. you can shop the latest phones, bring your own device, or trade in for extra savings. stop in or book an appointment to shop safely with peace of mind at your local xfinity store. a lot can happen with a simple [click!] tell your story [click!] get people excited [click!] to get connected, to share, and sell anywhere [click!] just [click!] and start making a different future. start different at godaddy.com [click!] we're back now with the civil war raging within the republican party as it tries to sort out its identity crisis in a post-trump world. senator lindsey graham is in mar-a-lago this weekend to try to heal the rift between donald trump and mitch mcconnell. the senate minority leader has reportedly suggested he plans to ignore trump from now on. and senate republican whip john thune -- you see him there -- has accused trump and his allies of engaging in cancel culture for censuring those who voted to impeach the former president. we have former congressman from florida and msnbc political correspondent david jolly with us this morning. and we're joined by michael starr hopkins, who has served on the presidential campaigns of barack obama and hillary clinton. welcome to both of you. michael, i want to start with you. lindsey graham is the latest republican to meet with trump. house minority leader kevin mccarthy and minority whip steve scalise all went to mar-a-lago there to kiss the ring. what's the point of these trips? >> it's capitulation. it's humiliation. look, these guys are strung out on trump because it's where the donor dollars are. this is a party that's deeply divided, deeply split, and they know it. and rather than show some backbone, some courage, you know, even a little bit of humility, these guys have gone down to florida and continued to, as you said, kiss the ring, and really abandoned voters for their own personal interests. >> david, it's your former party. where is it now and going forward? if you were -- if we're talking a year from now and you are looking into one of your little glasses there, where do you see the party? >> i think the party's on the cusp of taking back the house of representatives. and i say that as somebody who broke with the party because i think it's going in the wrong direction. but kendis, i think in our evaluation, we too often conflate this identity crisis they're having with an electoral crisis. and republicans don't see it that way. republicans picked up seats in the house, narrowly lost the senate, got more votes than any republican candidate had for the white house. now, clearly, they fell short and that was the theme of november, rightfully so. democrats outplayed their hand. but republicans don't -- there is no self-reflection. they don't see an electoral crisis. this identity crisis they're having, though, is very real. this has gone from a party that used to espouse certain ideological principles to now this conversation around antidemocratic values. they've taken populism and turned it into this entire revolt against government, where now it's permissible to try to tackle the government like we saw on january 6th. so, the identity crisis is real, but i don't think the electoral crisis is what a lot of people make it out to be. >> that's an interesting take on that. on the other hand, michael, you had the senator john thune, who has accused trump's senate republican allies of cancel culture. what do you make of that? >> you know, it's just ridiculous. this whole argument of cancel culture, it's, you know, an attempt to divert away from actually talking about the substantive issues which we're dealing with, which are coronavirus, which are the economy, and you know, an attempt to overthrow the government. cancel culture is what the right wing always falls back on whenever they get caught doing something they're not supposed to, but it never is something brought up when a senator from minnesota decides to resign or things like that. it's just laughable. but at this point, the republican party has become laughable, because like david said, they're not really cemented in anything. it's just all about fake populism and kind of cable news ideology. >> david, to the biggest controversy of the week, or one of the biggest controversies of the week, where you had senator ted cruz taking that trip to cancun in the midst of the state crisis, even though he ripped other lawmakers for similar actions. a lot of people are calling him a hypocrite. here's a listen. >> it's crazy that we'd be taking a recess. let's not take any recesses. let's work. let's work every day. let's work weekends. let's work till we get the job done. apparently, the majority leader made the decision that it was more important for senators to be home on vacation, home playing golf, home doing anything but being here on the floor of the senate doing the people's business. president obama, and for that matter, hillary clinton and the democratic party, they're so out of touch with where the american people are right now. he goes and plays golf hundreds of times with his buddies. he is not focused on the people who are hurting, who are paying the cost. we got a job to do and we've got a short window of time. and so, we ought to stop taking recesses, stop taking time off and just keep going till we get it done. apparently, playing a game of pool is a higher priority for this president than it would be to go and see the humanitarian crisis he's created. >> um -- [ laughter ] >> some people said irony's dead, david. >> yeah, kendis, the reality is, ted cruz left the people of texas behind as disaster struck his home state and their home state, causing the loss of lives of his fellow texans. he also lied to the people of texas, which might even be a more grievous injury regarding his public service, and then he blamed his children for it. i think we got to see the entire kaleidoscope of ted cruz on display this week. you know, i think 2024's a long ways away for ted cruz. he has time to rebuild. but it builds into a theme. he left the people of texas behind on pandemic relief when he voted against the last package, stimulus package. he likely will vote against this stimulus package before. ted cruz puts ted cruz and republicans before he puts the people of texas and i think that's the theme we saw this week from the senator. >> it's just sad overall. it's not that ted cruz could have saved many of the lives, including that 11-year-old who died of hypothermia. the optics, though, awful, and definitely could have helped the overall situation. i'm going to have to leave it there. michael starr hopkins, david jolly, thank you guys. coming up, it's been a packed 30 days. we'll check on president biden's first month in office. plus, cuomo in crisis. the new york governor launched into an hour and a half-long defense as his critics hone in on the nursing home scandal. on the nursing home scandal. ♪ the calming scent of lavender by downy infusions calm. laundry isn't done until it's done with downy. hi, i'm debra. i'm from colorado. i've been married to my high school sweetheart for 35 years. i'm a mother of four-- always busy. i was starting to feel a little foggy. just didn't feel like things were as sharp as i knew they once were. i heard about prevagen and then i started taking it about two years now. started noticing things a little sharper, a little clearer. i feel like it's kept me on my game. i'm able to remember things. i'd say give it a try. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. at t-mobile, we have a plan built just for customers 55 and up. saving 50% vs. other carriers with 2 unlimited lines for less than $30 each. call 1-800-t-mobile or go to t-mobile.com/55. well, can you believe it? today marks one month since president biden took office. in the last 30 days, he has reversed many of trump's moves on the environment, immigration, and foreign policy, as some of his big campaign promises have yet to be filled. white house correspondent monica alba is joining us right now on the biden beat this morning. and monica, what does biden still have planned for his first 100 days? >> reporter: well, the white house would say there's a lot that's in progress that they hope to accomplish by the end of these 100 days, and the two main things, really at the top of the list, kendis, would be, as everything that relates to the covid pandemic, in particular, this $1.9 trillion covid relief package that is still facing some obstacles in congress. that is their number one mission, to get that passed in the first 100 days would really be probably their greatest accomplishment, they would argue at the end of it. but in addition to that, the other mile marker and really important thing here that they've set out to do is to try to get 100 million shots in arms in the first 100 days. they are currently on track to do that, and that's what you saw president biden talk about at great length yesterday when he visited that pfizer plant in michigan, but there have also been a lot of hiccups with the rollout, itself. so, some challenges still present, as you saw just this week with the winter weather in texas and throughout the region. that delayed a lot of the vaccine distribution, particularly there. and something like that could happen again before these goals are met. but when we look to sort of other areas, things that the biden administration laid out they wanted to do almost immediately, they have been able to do in terms of rejoining the world health organization, rejoining the paris climate agreement. we saw the president speak to a lot of these foreign policy challenges, as well, and his ultimate goal of getting america back on the world stage, which is something he wanted to do, that box has been checked in terms of initial progress, but there will really have to be more that's done once the pandemic, again, that priority is moved to the side. they said they can focus on other areas. a couple other things in terms of immigration. that bill was introduced for a potential path to citizenship, but that really has an uphill climb on capitol hill as well. so, they are saying they're happy they were able to introduce this, but they haven't been able to, obviously, accomplish everything on immigration. and then other subject areas like criminal justice reform, potentially infrastructure, these are other things that the white house has said they would like to turn their attention to. but really, more than anything, the coronavirus pandemic has been a top priority. but the other thing that biden has not been able to fully accomplish at this point is to confirm his full cabinet. he's still waiting on a lot of those different nominees to go through the process. so he's still not working with a full bench or a full team, they would argue, so they would like to see that get done in the next couple of weeks here as well, guys. >> i would say key among them, the attorney general hasn't been confirmed as yet. monica alba joining us from the white house this morning. thank you. in new york, criticism against governor andrew cuomo is growing this morning after he tried defending himself in a fiery news conference yesterday afternoon. he faces increasing scrutiny over his handling of covid-19 deaths in the state's nursing homes. the fbi and the brooklyn u.s. attorney's office are investigating allegations into the underreporting of those deaths. and now the state senate is looking to limit his covid executive powers. msnbc's cori coffin has all the latest for us this morning. cori, good morning. >> reporter: hey, good morning, guys. yeah, the governor having to continue to address this controversy, when really, all he wants is for it to go away here in his state. in his latest press conference, he did admit that his staff created a void. he says they didn't provide enough public information fast enough, but he says that conspiracy theories, politics, and rumors filled that void. he also talked about how the information that should have come out came out through the new york attorney general's office, of course, referring to that report that said that the state is underreporting nursing home deaths. he says they were always reported, they were just categorized under hospitalization deaths instead. he blamed that on oversight and confusion over the changing categories and as people were transferred back and forth. he also stopped short of issuing an apology but did admit more wrongdoing yesterday. listen in to what he said. >> i was not aggressive enough in knocking down the falsities. i heard them, i saw them, i dismissed it as politics, i dismissed it as personal agendas, i dismissed it as partisan politics, which is at a fever pitch nowadays. but i should have been more aggressive in calling it out. >> reporter: all right, there are now growing calls from even democrats in cuomo's own state for him to release more information about how those tallies got bungled in the first place, more transparency here. these democrats even signing on to a letter, formally and officially accusing cuomo of obstruction of justice. and kendis and lindsey, this also comes as the "associated press" is reporting that a top aide says that those tallies were actually withheld on purpose because they were worried that the high number of nursing home deaths here would be used against them by the trump administration at the time. so, as we're starting to see a little bit more testimony trickle out, we will likely see even more through that fbi investigation, as much as governor cuomo wants this controversy to end here in his state of new york. >> all right, cori coffin, thank you for digging into that for us this morning. compassion in a time of crisis. a houston chef living without water, electricity, but that's not stopping him from opening up his restaurant to strangers in need. and in our next hour, asian american communities on high alert this morning as racist attacks spike across the country. and for actress olivia munn, it's personal. she'll join us at 7:00 a.m. mun, it's personal. she'll join us at 7:00 a.m let me help you. hi mr. charles, we made you dinner. ahh, thank you! ready to eat? yes i am! (man) i'm a verizon engineer, part of the team that built 5g right, the only one from america's most reliable network. we designed our 5g to make the things you do every day better. with 5g nationwide, millions of people can now work, listen, and stream in verizon 5g quality. and in parts of many cities where people can use massive capacity, we have ultra wideband, the fastest 5g in the world. this is the 5g that's built for you. this is 5g built right. only from verizon. when it comes to laundry, everyone thinks their way is the right way. i wash on delicate. i just stuff everything in. you have to wash on cold, because it saves energy. the secret is, tide pods work no matter how you wash. so, everyone is right. it's got to be tide. when you want to power up, go pro at subway® for double the protein on footlong subs and the new protein bowls. and if you want to go pro like marshawn, you don't let anything get in your way. here we go! yeah, appreciate you, man! whatsup, alice! hey, marshawn! good call! go pro and get double the protein for just $2 more on your favorite sub or new protein bowl. subway. eat fresh. voiceover: riders. wanderers on the road of life. the journey is why they ride. when the road is all you need, there is no destination. uh, i-i'm actually just going to get an iced coffee. well, she may have a destination this one time, but usually -- no, i-i usually have a destination. yeah, but most of the time, her destination is freedom. nope, just the coffee shop. announcer: no matter why you ride, progressive has you covered with protection starting at $79 a year. voiceover: 'cause she's a biker... please don't follow me in. some breaking news this morning. naomi osaka just crowned the 2021 australian open champion. she beat out jennifer brady in the women's final in melbourne. it's her second australian open win after taking the title home in 2019. >> congratulations to her. it was rough watching her play serena this week. i didn't know which one of my kids i wanted to win. >> hard to choose. >> yeah. all right, here are some other top headlines we're following this saturday morning. two pilots are dead after a military jet crashed near an alabama airport. the jet was flying a training mission from mississippi to florida but went down near the montgomery regional airport. right now it's not actually not clear whether the pilots were trying to land at that airport. the air force has started an investigation. the department of defense is investigating the trump administration's last-minute decision to relocate the u.s. space command from colorado to alabama. trump hinted the base would stay in colorado springs last year, but after gop senator cory gardner lost his re-election bid there and a lot of people in colorado voted against trump, there were questions of potential political retaliation. state officials are urging president biden's administration to reconsider the decision. buckingham palace confirms prince harry and meghan markle will not be returning to royal duties days after the couple announced they're expecting their second child. prince harry will also give up his military titles and public service life. harry and meghan stepped away from royal life last year, saying that they would review their decision in the next month. spoiler alert -- the queen has made the decision for them. let's turn back now to the dire situation in texas, where more than 13 million people are under a boil water notice and 165,000 people are still without power. texans are worn out. some say this is the most hopeless situation they've ever been in. >> this is worse than anything i ever been through in my life! it should have been better than this. we shouldn't have had to be without lights. i know it's freezing, but somebody is responsible for this. >> a lot of people are dying from these conditions, and we have been calling around neighbors, family members, co-workers, and they are in the same situation. >> what do they say, though? look for the helpers. our next guest opened up his houston restaurant to help people get warm, let them eat a hot meal, even if they couldn't pay. despite his own restaurant flooding. joining us now, daniel wolf, owner and executive chef of city cellars. daniel, good morning. so happy to have you with us. >> good morning. >> first, what does your situation currently look like? what is state of your restaurant? and what are you dealing with in your own home, too? >> right now, the restaurant -- so, about half our kitchen is currently unusable. i walked in on tuesday morning to a rainstorm in the back of the house. >> gosh. >> my entire dishwasher and dry storage was flooding. a pipe above us burst. in my house, my entire first floor is flooded and i haven't yet found the pipe. it looks like it's a foundation pipe, but we're moving through it and doing our best to help others right now. >> yeah, i mean, you're really coming through. you're allowing people to come to your restaurant to get warm, pay whatever they can for food. how many people have taken you up on this, and what are they telling you? >> so, right now, just in the restaurant, we've done about 300 people that have come in, just plugged their phone in, get some hot coffee, some hot chocolate, get whatever we can find in the walk-in for them. it's been difficult. we haven't had food deliveries in over a week now, so we're kind of, you know, hodgepodging putting things together. people are waiting almost two hours for food and they cannot be more grateful. some of those pictures you just showed, we're in the process of making 5,000 meals for some stranded health care workers across the state and across the southwest region, sending them home with lasagnas, as many of the hospitals don't have functioning water or cafeterias right now due to the storm. >> in a pandemic, no less. you also fed a police station that lost power. so, how are you able to support so many people in your community, despite dealing with some of your own issues in the restaurant and at home? >> you know, i think it really comes down to the amazing team that i have behind me. we've got a strong staff of about 20, plus the entire community that supports us. it makes it a lot easier to be able to just serve others. we take care of the local police department, made sure they had hot coffee so they can continue protecting us. my team's worked pretty much two 24-hour days back to back. >> wow. >> sleeping in their cars so that, you know, sleeping two hours so we can go ahead and keep serving others. >> the hallmark of humility there, thanking your team and not taking any of the credit. quickly before we go, we've been showing the images of ted cruz going to mexico during this time. as someone who's pulling yourself up by the bootstraps, helping those in need while in need yourself, does this hit home for you? do you accept his apology? >> um, you know, to be honest, not really. i think his actions were pretty cowardly. i look at it in my head as, when you have a cruise ship that's about to sink, the captain's the last one off. he may not be the captain, but he's definitely an elected leader. he should have stayed behind and made sure that his constituents were taken care of. >> well, daniel wolfe, many people feel that their leaders have failed them and people like you are filling that void. thank you for everything that you're doing and thanks for sharing your story with us. march madness now weeks away, and we may see something we really aren't used to when it comes to pandemic pro sports. what is it? well, the ncaa decision is leaving many experts scratching their heads. leaving many experts scratching their heads. and in an emergency, they need a network that puts them first. that connects them to technology, to each other, and to other agencies. that's why at&t built firstnet with and for first responders the emergency response network authorized by congress. firstnet. because putting them first is our job. age is just a number. and mine's unlisted. try boost® high protein with 20 grams of protein for muscle health. versus 16 grams in ensure high protein. boost® high protein also has key nutrients for immune support. boost® high protein. man: i have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. now, there's skyrizi. 3 out of 4 people achieved 90% clearer skin at 4 months after just 2 doses. skyrizi may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, such as fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches or coughs, or if you plan to or recently received a vaccine. man: i feel free to bare my skin. ask your dermatologist about skyrizi. research shows that people remember commercials with exciting stunts. i feel free to bare my skin. so to help you remember that liberty mutual customizes your home insurance, here's something you shouldn't try at home. insurance is cool. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ tonight, i'll be eating the al pastor burrito from boca burritos right here in aurora. (doorbell rings) excellent as a local access show, we want everyone to support local restaurants. right cardi b? yeah! eat local! (trill sound) why walgreens? with copays as low as $0.... walgreens makes affording your medicare prescriptions... ...no sweat. so you can get back to the thing you'd rather be doing. ♪ here are the latest headlines about coronavirus that we are tracking this morning. the u.s. is nearing 500,000 deaths from covid-19, something experts previously warned could be possible by this time. this comes as the u.s. passed 28 million cases earlier this week, according to an nbc news count. pfizer says it wants emergency authorization from the fda to store its vaccines at temperatures commonly used for regular freezers. now, currently, doses need to be stored at ultra-freezing temperatures. if approved, pfizer says it could improve its distribution across this country. in college basketball, fans might have a shot at attending a march madness game. the ncaa will allow up to 25% capacity at every round of the upcoming men's basketball tournament, including the final four. masks and social distancing will be enforced, but some experts have denounced the decision, saying it will encourage people from across the country to travel, further risking the spread of the virus. there's outrage this morning over the steps that some are taking to get themselves vaccinated and concern that not everyone may have the chance to do so. kerry sanders with more. >> reporter: in florida, some so desperate to get vaccinated, they're dressing up like grannies, according to health officials. >> you've stolen a vaccine from someone that needs it more than you. >> reporter: police body cam shows two women in their 30s and 40s who tried to get a second vaccine after using the ruse successfully for the first dose, while controversy has a pop-up ordered for the governor from just two zip codes. >> something's wrong with this system here. >> reporter: when the governor was questioned this week why the eligible are overwhelmingly white and republican, he fired back -- >> if manatee county doesn't like us doing this, then we are totally fine with putting this in counties that want it. >> reporter: those unable to even schedule a vaccine appointment not happy. >> i guess it's who you know that counts. >> reporter: an nbc news examination of how florida has distributed the vaccine shows red counties in the state getting more shots per capita than blue counties. florida's emergency operations director aggressively disputes political favoritism, saying doses are given based on a mathematical formula. >> i do not think that our governor should be dictating who lives and who dies, that if you happen to have money, you get the golden ticket. >> reporter: the fear tonight, a growing distrust that vaccine playing fields are not level. >> kerry sanders, thank you. up next, remote learning is stressing out a lot of students, but what about kids in foster care? we're going to speak to a caregiver who has had to make some big adjustments, as msnbc's special "kids under pressure week" continues. and tomorrow, ali velshi is live from birmingham, alabama, with a special series velshi is live from birmingham, alabama. he sat down with ordinary citizens, black americans, in a city steeped in a struggle for racial justice and equality. >> it astounds me that, still, today, people do not see us as humans. we are humans. we want healthcare. we want money to take care of our kids. we want to live long. we want the education. what i can't understand is someone to look at me, in my face, and tell me that, just because the top layer of my skin is a different color, that i can't get it? that -- that, absolutely, blow -- i mean, it almost brings me to tears. >> we'll catch more of the conversation with velshi across america begins tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. eastern time. you're watching msnbc live. n tie you're watching msnbc live tand . (money manager) because our way works great for us! (naj) but not for your clients. that's why we're a fiduciary, obligated to put clients first. (money manager) so, what do you provide? cookie cutter portfolios? (naj) nope, we tailor portfolios to our client's needs. (money manager) but you do sell investments that earn you high commissions, right? (naj) we don't have those. (money manager) so what's in it for you? (naj) our fees are structured so we do better when you do better. at fisher investments we're clearly different. ♪ you're not using too much are you hon? nope... charmin ultra soft is so soft you'll have to remind your family they can use less. charmin ultra soft is twice as absorbent so you can use less. don't worry, there's plenty left for you, dad. we all go, why not enjoy the go with charmin. if you have risk factors like heart disease, diabetes and raised triglycerides,... ...vascepa can give you something to celebrate. ♪ vascepa, when added to your statin,... ...is clinically proven to provide 25% lower risk from heart attack and stroke. vascepa is clearly different. first and only fda approved. celebrate less risk. even for those with family history. ♪ don't take vascepa if you are... ...or become allergic to icosapent ethyl or any inactive ingredient in vascepa. serious side effects may occur like heart rhythm problems and bleeding. heart rhythm problems may occur in more people... ...with persistent cardiovascular risk or who have had them in the past. tell your doctor if you experience an irregular heartbeat or other heart rhythm problems. possible side effects include muscle and joint pain. celebrate less risk. added cardio protection. talk to your doctor about adding protection with vascepa. welcome back. all week long, we are shining a spotlight on kids under pressure and the hardships they face in this remote-learning environment. today, we explore challenges facing children in fostercare, or who are homeless. >> studies show those kids are far-less likely to consistently log on, compared to other students. for example, according to the los angeles unified school district, middle school foster students are half as likely to attend classes compared to their peers. only about 24% signing on three or more times a week. and 32% of high school foster students regularly attend remote classes, compared to 50% of students, overall. >> our next guest has firsthand experience of these obstacles these kids face, especially during the pandemic. jonathan dugan is with us. he is an elementary-school teacher, and foster parent to two boys, 11 and 12 years old. good morning, jonathan. let's talk about some of the challenges that your foster kids have faced with remote learning. >> good morning. some of the biggest challenges that i have noticed my children have had is just the getting started in a new school. getting started in a new class where they didn't get the chance to actually come into class, get to know their classmates, get to know their teacher, kind of, build a relationship. they just log into a computer with people they don't know. and then, have to sit there and kind of fen for themselves as they are learning to get started with virtual learning, you know, that they might not have done as they transferred from school to school to school. it caused a lot of learning gaps which just makes it difficult, overall. >> your family, at least, you say one of your kids has actually benefitted from distance learning. how so? >> i have one -- one of my children, he is a very independent, very goal-oriented, kind of, motivated student. and his struggles were the social part of school. and so, being virtual at home, he was able to be focused. his teachers are very supportive. he is just -- he is able to just thrive because he is a just focused on the task he has to do. how he has to do it. he is able to get help, when needed. but not worry about classmates and, you know, any struggle he is having at school. it's just work, his teachers supporting him, and it's done really well for him. >> at least someone's benefitting from this. you can see how different kids do well, and other kids face a lot more challenges with this. so, you're a teacher. you, maybe, have a better idea of how to help your foster kids with remote learning. what advice do you have for other foster parents who, maybe, don't feel as comfortable? >> the biggest thing for me has been creating a structure, where this -- the kids know exactly what, you know, every day, the same routine. we have the same, you know, setup where they know that this is my, you know, class-work spot, this is where i sit down. and a secret that i have always told parents is to, anything your child's struggling with. google anchor charts on that subject. so if they are doing long division and they are teaching them new strategies that we didn't grow up losing, google anchor chart long division and you will see, step by step, that explain what they need to do to solve these problems. and then, you quickly become an expert. and your child is amazed like, wow, how did my parent figure this out? you can quickly find a tool that you can help them be successful with. >> it's a good, little tip. >> wish we had that when i was around. so having adequate resources resources, though, is a big concern for foster parents. what do you and foster families need? >> for me, the biggest thing is, one, again, structure. but two, having a support system that helps. you know, having -- i have wonderful co-workers who are amazing, and friends and family who are able to step in when i can't. who are you know, texting the kids during the day, are you in class? what's going on? when you do get frustrated having someone that can step out and say, hey, it's okay. like, this is new for kids. we didn't go through this. this is a different situation. we had teachers. we were sitting in school, all day long. and, you know, these kids are doing it on their own. like, i try to help -- i am a teacher and i try to help my kids as much as i can. but there's still -- it's lot when you are juggling your job, juggling everything you need to do at home. and just having a support system, family, and friends, and, you know, people that can be there to step in. take advantage of that and really just use your community, use your tribe of people that you have to support you. >> that's great. if anybody as listening, and they know a foster parent, offer to baby sit. just step in. it really takes a village. >> we are nearing the top of the hour right now and it is a new hour, and we are going to begin with breaking news. more than 13 million texans, about half the state's population, still, without drinkable water. and the death toll is rising. at least 47 people have died in storm-affected areas, across the country. including, an 11-year-old boy, seen here, playing in the snow. his body was later found, after a cold night without power, inside his family's mobile home. state senator, ted cruz, still facing heavy criticism for abandoning texans for the ritz carlton, in cancun. and lindsey graham, reportedly, heading to mar-a-lago, this weekend, to broker peace as the feud between donald trump and mitch mcconnell on. >> plus, new developments in the capitol hill riot probe. 35 officers under investigation for their alleged role in the insurrection. and new indictments target six more people, linked to a far-right anti-government militia. >> what we need to do is for people to be sensitive, at the time, to take down the words. to take down the words, because that -- the difference between just bullying, and harassment, and that would be horrible enough, and a hate crime, is that we want to document the hate crimes. nancy pelosi, there, and other congressional leaders denouncing crimes against asian-americans, as incidents continue to surge. this disturbing video, you saw there. a man shoving a 53-year-old woman in new york. that woman, getting plenty of stitches, as a result of this. we're going to get the reaction, by her son, as well as