The concern is whether the u. S. Can vaccinate fast enough to slow the spread. New Reporting On Sex Trafficking on republican congressman matt gates. The question is how his travel to the bahamas may factor into things. It is definitely way too early for this. Good morning. Welcome to way too early. I am kasie hunt. Close to 25 of u. S. Adults are now fully vaccinated against covid19. That number is expected to grow higher soon with 47 adults and 5 of seniors receiving one dose. New mexico, south dakota are leading the way. Fully vaccinating at least onethird of adult population. This comes as the u. S. Marks 31 million mark since the start of the pandemic. Meanwhile, the more easily spread uk variant is now the dominant strain in the United States. The variant known as b117 first seen in the fall. The cdc director dr. Ralensky had this to say. The variant is now the most common in the United States. We are Hearing Clusters of cases associated with day care and youth sports. Hospitals are seeing more and more younger adults. Those In 30s And 40s admitted with severe disease. Data suggests this is all happening as we are seeing increasing variant of sars covid variants with 52 cases of variants of concern. Meanwhile, confidence in the astrazeneca vaccine continues to come into question as authorities in uk recommend the vaccine not be given to adults under 30 as it may be linked to rare blood clots. Ongoing investigation have shown some reports of clots in recipients. Most report in women under 60. The ema describes them as quote very rare. Continuing to emphasize the benefit of receiving far outweighs the risk. Limiting the age limit suggesting that people in their 30s receive alternatives to astrazeneca and has left it up to eu countries to set their own regulations. Lets go to washington now. President Biden Pushing back. Urging his critics to think beyond just roads and bridges. The bait is welcome, compromise is inevitable, changes are concern. Well be open to good ideas and good faith negotiations but here is what we wont be open to. We wont be open to doing nothing. Inaction is simply not an option. Ive heard from my republican friends say that it is many of them say it is too big. They say why not focus on traditional infrastructure. Fix what weve already got, the roads and highways that exist and bridges. We are america. We dont just fix for today. We build for tomorrow. The idea of infrastructure has always evolved to meet the aspirations of the American People and their needs. It is evolving again today. With he need to start seeing infrastructure through its affect on the lives of working people in america. And by the way, i didnt hear any of our friends who are criticizing this plan say that Corporate Tax cut that added 2 trillion to the debt, the trump tax cut, 2. Trillion in debt wasnt paid for. The vast majority went to the top 1 of the wage earners. I didnt hear Anybody Hallering in this socalled, kshape recovery where billionaires maid more during this period. Where is the outrage there . Im not trying to punish anybody but dam it, maybe because im from a middle class neighborhood im sick and tires of people getting fleeced. Grace, good morning. It is always good to see you. We heard President Biden talking about what hes willing to do and not willing to do. And we have joe manchin baddicly threatening the entire thing. It seems like President Biden is ready to go it with only the democrats but im not sure about all 50 democrats in the senate. Yes. You are right. It will be very hard to find 10 republican votes. Republicans are saying the plan is too big. They argue a lot of the stuff isnt traditional infrastructure. On the democratic side, as you mentioned, senator did exert some last minute concessions in a deal he wanted over Unemployment Benefits which through the whole proceedings into doubt. Infrastructure will be a big priority for West Virginia but biden will have to compromise with the other important joe, the senator, and not get everything he wants. Thats true. Raising the questions even about the Reconciliation Process moving the goal post past the Filibuster Stuff we sort of already knew. Grace, youve also been reporting on the story that is wild. The Fundraising Tactics by the Trump Campaign that left donors feeling swindled, a bunch of fraud claims and we are learning it may be more than just the Trump Campaign. What have you learned . Exactly. It was a big New York Times investigation in what some experts say are unethical tactics. Sending out Donation Letters with prechecked boxes and some fine print. And the elderly saying they unwittingly signed up for donations. It became a major cash cow. These recurring donations and the times called it a shortterm loan with no interest. As the months drew on, the amounts became larger and larger and you had these giant surge of credit card claims. It was not necessarily sophisticated or hidden away but just sort of in the shady and unethical and sets the standards for what other campaigns may feel emboldened to do going forward. Pretty incredible. Thank you for getting up early with us. Still ahead here, with Congress Unlikely to pass any legislation on gun violence, President Biden taking his own action. We have the details and the very latest of the chauvin murder trial as experts testify about his use of force before George Floyds death and a check on weather when we come back. The strength of a community. The bonds we build. Should never be broken. Because its that strength that finds the courage to make something good, truly great. Dad, its a video call. Hold the phone in front of you. Hows that . Get. Get mom. [ding] power e trade gives you an awardwinning app with 24 7 support when you need it the most. Dont get mad. Get e trade and start trading today. When the road feels endless dont know where your strength is its been so long you get a call from a friend to remind you that youre not alone then you know deep down inside its gonna be all right all right any time tiger woods tees it up in a tournament, it is better. Better for the tournament and the players and better for everyone. Unfortunately, hes not here this year. Hopefully if his recovery goes well, who knows, he could be back in 12 months time. I went over and saw him and spent a couple of hours with him, which was nice. It was good to see him and good to see him in decent spirits. My self, jt, brooks, all those guys down there, we have a responsibility to keep his spirits up and keep him going and get him back out there. That was rory mcilroy discussing tiger woods ahead of the masters. Hes still the talk of the tournament, woods wont be at the nationals as he remains in early stages of recovery following the february rollover crash. We also learned that woods was driving nearly twice the speed limit in his suv going between 84 and 87 miles an hour in the 45mileanhour zone. Officials say they found no signs of impairment and no charges will be filed. The case was driving at a speed unsafe and inability to negative orate the turns. Woods put out a statement expressing gratitude for the First Responders and gave thanks for the support hes received. He added, quote, ill continue to focus on my recovery and family. We are learning more about what tipped the scale on Major League Baseballs boycott of georgia politics. Kemp named Stacey Abrams a factor. It appears abrams strongly urged the league not to move from her home state. From the constitution, abrams did not speak to the commissioner but did speak with a Senior League official prior to the venue change. In that conversation, she reiterated her position against boycotts. Mlb officials have been having conversations from both parties and the commissioners decision was not based on any conversation with any given political leader. Now this, the orioles and the yankees went to extra innings in the bronx after baltimore took a onerun lead scoring off a hit to left field. New york looked to answer with one out and a runner on third base. That was is looped to right field. Santander makes the catch. They finally get a yankee runner to end the game. The os end the game. Catching the fly ball and throwing out the runner at home plate. Baltimore avoids the sweep with a 43 win. Ill take it. Time for the weather. Lets go to bill karins with a check of the weather. You dont even want to rub it in a little bit that your os are still in first place . Im shocked. I think im just digesting. This is like a full week now. Lets get into the weather a little bit. We did have some really nasty storms rolling through indiana and arkansas. We had two or three homes that were destroyed and some people trapped in those homes. We are waiting to hear about how their conditions but it doesnt look like we have any fatalities, maybe some injuries. 35 wind damage reports and hail mostly through the missouri valley. This storm system will weaken today. We are not going to see many severe storms. We are going to deal with cloudy and cool weather in the midwest. Not many severe storms today, just isolated weather. Tomorrow is different, we have a new storm system. 24 Million People at risk. Could have additional tornadoes. We need to watch out from dallas To Shreveport and portions of alabama too. If you want a great stretch of weather, youve enjoyed it in the northeast. This has been one of the nicest stretches youve seen all year long. Another gorgeous day in the 60s. New york to baltimore. Not bad in the southeast. Heading towards this weekend. It looks like friday. Saturday, we hold on to a decent day. Look at all that rain that will slide in by sunday. Right now, i think theyll get the game in, just some morning rain. Fingers crossed. Thank you, my friend. I appreciate the applause for the os. Coming up, the United States and iran take small steps towards the new deal. Well be back in just a moment. [triumphantly yells] [ding] dont get mad. Get e trade. Ice t, stone cold calling on everyone to turn to cold washing with tide. This is a cold call hello, my name is ice t. Can you spare a few seconds to learn about cold water washing with tide . Hi my name is steve. Did you know washing in cold can save you 100 a year on your energy bill. Why wouldnt you turn to cold . It helps the environment. What . Because stone cold said so. Plus, tide cleans great in cold. This was a cold call trelegy for copd. Birds flyin high, you know how i feel. Breeze drifting on by you know how i feel. Its a new dawn. 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Floyd after he was handcuffed, placed in a prone position. Yes. My opinion was that no force should have been used once he was in that position because at the time of the restraint period, mr. Floyd was not resisting. He was in the prone position. He wand handcuffed. He was not attempting to evade. He was not attempting to resist. And the pressure that that was being caused by the body weight could cause Positional Exfixia which could cause death. The investigator testified to both Collecting Evidence and photographing chauvin the day after floyds death. He said chauvins body weight plus equipment was about 170 pounds of pressure and produced Body Cam Video producing this exchange. Did you hear that . Yes, i did. Did it appear mr. Floyd said i ate too many drugs . Yes, it did. Hearing it in context. It sounds like he said, i aint do no drugs. Thats a little different . Yes, sir. Scientists confirmed partal pills of fentanyl and methamphetamine were found in the patrol car. The trial will resume and well have the latest here. To the latest of the republican congressman matt gaetz. Investigators are looking into his travel to the bahamas with women and specifically if those women were paid to travel for sex. Gaetz has deneed wrongdoing. There has been no response sent to his representatives. In a statement to cbs news, first said, Congressman Gaetz has never paid poor sex and turned into a Fishing Exercise of consensual relationships with adults. Okay. Still ahead, senator joe manchin closes the door on the idea of a filibuster. Well look at his oped. He want to know why are you awake. Email us or drop me a tweet at casey use the way too early and well read our favorite answers later in the show. Versus 16 grams in ensure high protein. Boost® high protein also has key nutrients for immune support. Boost® high protein. Stay restless with the icon that does the same. The rx crafted by lexus. 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It is prepared to remove sanctions on iran it says are inconsistent with the agreement. When it comes to sanctions, we are prepared to take the steps necessary to return to compliances including lifting sanctions inconsistent with the jcpoa. The u. S. And iran started negotiations in a joint conference in vienna. Meanwhile, President Biden is expected to announce executive actions on gun control. Hell stop ghost guns and better regulate stable liesing braces that effectively turn a pistol into a rifle. Expected to address Firearms Trafficking and a possible red flag legislation. And address an evidenced based Community Violence investigation other than incarceration. He announced David Chipman as advisor of gun control. A Special Agent at a. T. F. For 25 years. Joining us now, news correspondent. Thank you for being up early with us. The president cannot go as far with these Executive Orders as legislation could go. This is an acknowledgment that it doesnt seem like any real bills in congress are going anywhere. What do they plan to accomplish . Exactly. This is a president and a white house that say a time for inaction is not now. It was really both of these Mass Shootings that took place both in georgia and colorado over the last couple of weeks that prompted President Biden to say i can call for congress to do more but im going to use my own levers to take six unilateral actions. Well see him unveil a combination of Executive Orders. These president ial moves to direct agencies to explore things that will address all forms of gun violence. It is not just Mass Shootings. This is an issue that has not long vexed American People but also this particular president when he was Vice President under then president obama, he was really task with doing something on gun control following the shooting at sandy hook elementary school. That headline on ghost guns is really notable because hes going to ask the Department Of Justice to open up and do a proposed rule change but that wont necessarily ban these untraceable weapons that so often dont have to go on a Background Check. While he does urge congress to try to do more. They are currently, as you know all too well, stalled in the senate. Monica, what is your sense of how much capital the white house is willing to spend on the gun issue at the congressional level . They have a lot of other things on their plate. They are dealing with joe manchins case on the infrastructure . It was the president himself when asked who said, there is a time for everything. He admitted in that Press Conference that essentially, this is not the time to go full out on gun control. He had to concede that everything has to be done in a particular order and the answer is that whats next is infrastructure. That doesnt mean well have to figure out how to tackle other issues. Thats how you are going to see him do it today. The white house has been asked why now and what is the signal of what p is to come. Jen psaki was on cnbc saying this is a reminder of another push but realistic of what is going to happen and they dont expect to see anything move there. This is implied pressure but they are also really clear eyed that they dont expect anything to happen on capitol hill, even though there are calls from so many and even some bipartisan groups to see action on guns. As you know, this is simply not something that has gotten over the finish line over any recent administration. Despite the incredible tragedies especially at schools, you are right to underscore, we have not seen many changes. Still ahead here, totally different place americans may need to go to by catsup. Why the condiment is in high demand. Frank is a fan of fast. Hes a fast talker. A fast walker. Thanks, gary. And for unexpected heartburn. Frank is a fan of pepcid. It works in minutes. 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Time for something totally different. The latest pandemic shortage, catsup packets. The Condiment Packets Prices up 13 since january 2020 with the huge demand. Fans have turned to ebay where one batch of 50 packets is selling for 10. The top maker heinz was not prepared for the spike. Making over 12 billion packets this year. Thats a lot of catsup. Now this. Things arent always as they seem. In space, the mars rover with an image that had people convinced there were rainbows on mars. Nasa cleared up the confusion on the twitter account writing, quote, many have asked, is that a rainbow on mars . No, rainbows arent possible here. Theres not enough water here to condense and it is too cold. This arc is a lens flair. After nearly three decades of growing out her nails. The worlds Longest Fingernail holder cut them down. She broke her previously set record with a new combined record of 24 feet. A manicure can take up to a week and four bottles of nail polish. A tool used after measuring them one more time. She said she faced daytoday difficulties like not being able to wash dishes or make a bed. Her nails will be preserved and put on display. The next time you are in the market for a ring, keep an eye out for shaquille oneal. He was in a mall in atlanta where he saw a young man shopping for an engagement ring. He offered to pay for it. He said he tries to do one good deed every time he leaves the house. Seeing the guy, he was so shy. He said how much do i owe to payoff the ring. I said, let me do it. At first, he didnt want to take it. I said dont worry about it. I do it all the time. Very sweet. Congratulations and the guy who didnt have to pay to get it. Here, Mitch Mcconnell strikes a different tone on the role of corporations on politics and learning what generated the january 6 attack. And 10 years ago, Somali Pirate Ships hijack the ships. Today, they might have met their match. 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Welcome back. Senate Minority Leader is softening his position. Walking back some of his comments. Thats a pretty rare thing. Watch. I didnt say that very art fully yesterday. They are certainly involved to be involved in politics. They are. My Principal Complaint is, they didnt read the darn bill. They got intimidated adopting a version of that to help get their way. It looked like it cost them the allstar game. Mcconnell was criticized after he told companies to stop speaking out on issues but of course welcomed their financial contributions. Joining us, reporter eugene scott. Lets talk about mcconnell. He rarely walks back anything. So it was interesting to basically say that explicitly. What is going on here . One of the reasons it appears that mcconnell walked back the statement is the amount of criticism of how much money he receives including the 2020 election from ceos. Hes the most popular in the senate that sought reelection in 2020 for ceos. He very much does support Business Leaders getting involved in politics when it is benefitting him and causes that he aligns with. Even in his walk back, there has been criticism because it has been insulting to some of these ceos that he claims did not read the bill. More than 70 black executives, formally American Express of expressed frustration with the bill and says it does disadvantage Many Americans including africanamericans and some of the groups that address democrats in 2020. Sending the message saying, if you do this, it will make it harder for me to do stuff that may help you. He has a career of doing stuff like this. You make the point about his finances. Youve been tweeting out this story. A new analysis is digging into what motivated people who stormed the capitol back in january. Conventional wisdom say the Driving Force is the economic fallout from the 2008 recession. But Analysis Shows most people that charged the capitol come from places where there are growing issues on race and immigrants. As you recall following 2016, there was a big study following the Public Religion Research institute that said most of trumps supporters had cultural anxiety, most white, Working Class supporters and upset about how america is changing demo graphically. What thing that didnt get much attention but may now, is that trumps base isnt just White Working Class supporters. The majority of those arrested were white and were men but more likely to be from middle and upper class communities and professionals and not from Rural America but urban america. Most were from texas, specifically from dallas and houston. These individuals were upset about cultural anxiety and changing demographics of america. But in part because they were coming in contact with many people of different races, faiths and sexual orientations and world views and changing america to make it what in their concern is not great and made them so upset, they stormed the capitol and tried to overturn the democratic process. More explicit way of focusing on what we have covered for many years now. The Washington Posts eugene scott. Thank you. Early on, we asked, why are you awake. New york yankee fan tweets about my os, we are just letting them think they are good early in the season and then well take them. Maggie tweeted, im up way too early because i couldnt sleep and decided to surprise schoolers and workers. Our latest obsession is jigsaw puzzles. Im waking up early so we can finally finish and reclaim our coffee table. Impressive. Also got a note from a loyal viewer, Big Sports Fan who points out that this is the 47th Anniversary of the where he bro set by babe ruth. A little bit of Baseball Trivia to start you off today. And coming up next here, the stance from one democratic senator that could be a threat to the president s agenda. And coming up on morning joe, were going to hear from u. S. Labor secretary marty walsh about the nations recovery after more than 900,000 jobs were created last month. Dont go anywhere. Morning joe just moments away. Morning joe just moments away. Hey, son no dad, its a video call. You got to move the phone in front of you like. Like its a mirror, dad. You know . Alright, okay. Hows that . Is that how you hold a mirror . [ding] power e trade gives you an awardwinning mobile app with powerful, easytouse tools and interactive charts to give you an edge, 24 7 support when you need it the most and 0 commissions for online u. S. Listed stocks. Dont get mad. Get e trade and start trading today. This is a cold call. Yeah, what yall want . Will you turn to cold washing with tide . Tide cleans better in cold than the Bargain Brand in hot. So, mr. T can wash his hanes tees in cold. Thats true mr. T. I pity the fool who dont turn to cold. Ahh. Facing leaks takes strength. So heres to the strong, who trust in our performance and comfortable longlasting protection. Because your strength is supported by ours. Depend. The only thing stronger than us, is you. Psoriatic arthritis, made my joints stiff, swollen, painful. Tremfya® is approved to help reduce joint symptoms in adults with active psoriatic arthritis. Some patients even felt less fatigued. Serious allergic reactions may occur. Tremfya® may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. Tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms or if you had a vaccine or plan to. Tremfya®. Emerge tremfyant™. Janssen can help you explore cost support options. Welcome back. Democratic senator joe manchin is out with a new piece for the Washington Post titled, quote, i will not vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster. He writes in part this. The time has come to end these political games and to usher a new era of bipartisanship, where we find Common Ground on the major Policy Debates facing our nation. Every time the senate voted to weaken the filibuster in the past decade, the political dysfunction and gridlock have grown more severe. The political games playing out in the halls of congress only fuel the hateful rhetoric and violence we see across our country right now. The truth is, my democratic friends do not have all the answers and my friends do not either. Senator manchin also voiced his opposition to reconciliation, a process that would make it easier for democrats to pass bill without republican support. Joining us now, white house editor for politico, sam stein. Sam, good morning, always great to see you. Joe manchin again right to stake out his position as a senate of one here with this warning to his democratic colleagues. I mean, lets just start with the basics. What did you take away from that . Do you think he made news there . It seems like he might be willing to oppose the Infrastructure Package if they true to use the budget rules and pass it just with democratic votes. It was tough to figure out if what he was saying was all that new from his past positions, but the fact that he said it or felt compelled to say it at this point was newsy. If you read between the lines, i dont think he got there. I think he was warning against using reconciliation over and over again, as Senator Schumer has suggested, you could amend the initial reconciliation bill. That seems to be the main warning. But obviously, the Bigger Picture is, he doesnt want to do major rules reforms. Now, advocates of Filibuster Reform say, look, give it some time, let him try to pass a few priorities through regular order and fail and maybe his mind will change on these matters, but this seems to be really, you know, putting himself in a position where he cant ever become away from it. He would look a little bit absurd if he would turn around and then say, my oped that i decided to write On My Own Making A Very Public Point was offbase and now i support rules reform. And the other thing is, i dont Think Manchin is alone here. Hes the most outspoken democrat saying this stuff, but theres probably a handful of other Senate Democrats that would generally agree with his position. So people who have been pining for Filibuster Reform may have all of their angry directed at joe manchin, but there are others who are probably due for some anger, too, if they were ever to step out publicly. And he can take those arrows in a way that maybe some of those other senators cant, probably because i think he likes to take those orr arrows. Why . Well, its because hes from West Virginia, first of all. He takes particular glee in maybe some political advantage from getting liberals to mouth off on him. I also think that joe manchin likes being in the center of the sort of centrist voice of conscience in the senate. I think he likes playing that role. And his political reputation is someone who can bring people together, who can talk to literally anyone and try to convince them of a problem to be solved or the solution to a problem. So this is on brand for him. The real question comes, you know, down the road. If he does have priority, a legislative priority that he wants to pass with a 60vote minimum, can he muster up the ten republicans and maybe some democrats to pass that bill. Thats where were going to see whether he can actually walk the walk, so to speak. And you know, maybe his position will change on Filibuster Reform after that. But thats the real test. Its not whether he can write an oped, its whether he can get the ten votes. Right. And lets be honest, i dont i have trouble finding any democrat who thinks that theres any way to marshal those ten republicans. I mean, i have a lot of questions about Susan Collins is trying to do that with her own colleagues and is struggling. Sam, lets talk about mcconnell for a second, too. One of the points democrats make when they say, hey, we should do this we should change the rules, we should do the opposite of what joe manchin is suggesting, they say, well, Mitch Mcconnell wouldnt hesitate for a second. Now, thats not entirely the case. Mcconnell insisted that the filibuster should remain in place for legislation when donald trump was president and was urging him to break the filibuster. But keeping the filibuster in place gave mcconnell the ability to say no to a republican president who many republicans in private thought was completely off the rails. Do you think if mcconnell were in Chuck Schumers shoes right now he would hesitate to change the rules around the filibuster . Its a complex question. I dont Think Mcconnell necessarily wants to change the rules around the filibuster, but its not because hes an institutionalist, necessarily. Its because he looks at the long game and says his priorities, which are stacking the courts, passing tax cuts, can be done either through a 50vote minimum or reconciliation. There are few legislative initiatives that republicans do want that maybe caught up in the 60vote threshold. But by and large, the democratic partys priorities are the ones that have to go through regular order. Were talking about, you know, gun control, immigration reform, things that arent budget related, which can be passed through reconciliation. So mcconnell looks at that landscape and says, lets keep that filibuster in place, we can stop the Background Check bill or regulatory reform. If the shoe were on the other foot, i dont know. If he wanted to do more through regular order and was getting stymied because of the filibuster, would he be more proactive in rules reform . Possibly. But the Incentive Structures arent necessarily there for republicans like they are for democrats. Hmm. All right, politicos sam stein, thank you so much for being here. Really appreciate the conversation. Thanks, kasie. Appreciate it. Of course. Its going to be an interesting oneman senate in joe manchin trying to set down a marker there with that oped. But ive got to tell you, my final thought today is that the orioles are in first place. I dont know how many times ill be able to get to say that in the next few months. Thank you for getting up way too early with us on this thursday morning. Dont go anywhere, morning joe starts right now. Health officials have seen a rise in what they call Vaccine Hesitancy because some people feel sick after their second shot and they tell people and they go, im not going to go get the second shot. You know what else makes you feel sick . Covid makes you feel very sick. Covid19. Thats the bottom line there. Thats the choice. Good morning and welcome to morning joe. Its thursday, april 8th. Willie, you got the shot, right . I got the moderna shot on monday. Christina and i went together. A little bit of a dead arm for the night, but feel fine now. Same. Ive heard mixed reviews on what happens after the second shot. But the worst i hear is, you feel a little fluy for a day or