worst crimes that you can think of. and child predator is just about the worst thing that you could call anyone. and yet, republicans have managed to weaponize child sexual abuse in recent weeks and turn it into a cheap political attack line. i want to begin tonight with how exactly we got here, why we find ourselves at this absurd juncture, and what could possibly come of it. think of how judge ketanji brown jackson was treated by top republicans on the judiciary committee at her supreme court hearings, with the republicans even now still claiming that the democrats are putting a child abuse enabler on the nation's highest court. and anyone who says otherwise, well, they hate children. >> have been told things like, child pornography is actually all a conspiracy. it's not real, it's just a conspiracy. it's made up. let me just say for the record, sex crimes against children are not fiction. >> do you believe child predators are misunderstood? >> senator, i don't have a context for that. i believe they're -- >> well, i'm going back to the comment on the sentencing commission. as you said that not all child predators were pedophiles. >> senator, i believe that all child predators are dangerous. >> i think you're doing it wrong and every judge who does what you're doing is making it easier for the children to be exploited. >> it isn't just the republicans' shameful electorate just at justice-elect jackson's confirmation hearing. now i'm going to disney world where they're calling for a boycott of possibly the family friendliest corporation in america. for speaking out about florida's don't say gay law. the press secretary for ron desantis having declared in early march on twitter, if you're against the anti-grooming bill, you're probably a good morning or at least you don't denounce the grooming of 4 to 8-year-old children. silence is complicity. that's how it works. democrats, and i didn't make the rules. you're either for us or against -- now, wait, you're either for us or you're for lowering child inhibitions with the objective of allowing them to be sexually abused. hey, i don't make the rules! it's as insulting and as disgusting as it is absurd. though it wasn't much longer until her statement had become something of a far-right rallying cry in a national republican party that now dances to the tune of qanon. >> the democrats are the party of pedophiles. the democrats are the party of princess predators from disney. the democrats are the party of teachers, elementary school teachers trying to transition their elementary school-aged children and convince them that they're a different gender. this is the party of their identity. and their identity is the most disgusting, evil, horrible things happening in our country. and that's why we have to say it. we have to be willing to say it and no matter how many little blue check marks get their feelings hurt. >> unhinged, but also dangerous extremist rhetoric. but here's what you also need to pay attention to. the hypocrisy. the hypocrisy that's baked into all of this. oh, the hypocrisy! are we supposed to forget that matt gaetz is under federal investigation for sex trafficking. that investigators are looking into whether gaetz slept with a 17-year-old for money. something he denies. are we supposed to forget that gop congressman jim jordan was accused by eight former student wrestlers of denying allegations of sexual abuse by a team doctor at ohio state university while he was an assistant coach there in the 1990s. something he denies. are we supposed to forget that roy moore, the republican candidate for the senate in alabama in 2017 was credibly accused of sexually assaulting girls as young as 14 and 16, something he denies. moore was endorsed by the republican national committee under rana mcdaniel, the same rana mcdaniel that now has the nerve to attack ketanji brown jackson for being soft on child porn offenders. you might say all of those republicans deny those accusations and they weren't convicted of any crimes. okay, fine. how about denny hastert, former republican house speaker for eight years. he went to prison in 2016 after admitting to sexually abusing young boys. the judge called him a serial child molester. the former speaker. how about ruben verastagi. the 24-year-old former republican staffer who was sentenced to 12.5 years for trading in child pornography on thursday. just this past thursday! in fact, ironically, the same day that judge jackson was confirmed to the supreme court. to be clear, i'm not suggesting that the republican party is a party of pedophiles. that's the kind of collective blaming and smearing that republicans use to demonize democrats and liberals more broadly. we shouldn't help them turn child sex crimes into a party political weapon. yet, as jordan wiseman of slate points out, in an article documenting much of what i just pointed out, quote, if conservatives are going to smear progressives as groomers, it's certainly fair to bring up this history in retort. basically, the gop should stop throwing stones when their own house is made of whisper-thin glass. and sure, i've heard the explanation that this is just the latest phase of the culture war. i mean, yeah, it involves a ridiculous right-wing conspiracy that mini mouse has male genitalia on her dress, for pete's sake. but when we talk about a culture war in this country, that's a pretty useless, both sides euphemism for what's going on. a right-wing war on gay people who are now groomers, again, pedophiles. in fact, a right-wing war on all of their opponents that are all flow-pedophile flow-pedophile. as someone pointed out, this is almost pre-genocidal rhetoric. so you can't just vote them out, you have to destroy them. let's turn to former republican strategist and former republican, stewart stevens. he's worked for five gop presidential campaigns, including mitt romney's 2012 run for the white house. now he's a senior adviser at the lincoln project. plus, molly john faust, a contributing writer at the atlantic, and she's also co-host of the podcast, the new abnormal. thank you both for joining me tonight. stewart, marjorie taylor greene calls any republican senators who support judge jackson's confirmation as pro-pedophile. that includes your former boss, mitt romney. what do you make of that kind of rhetoric and the silence from the gop leadership? >> look, i think that there are two big things sort of happening. there's this craziness inside the republican party. and this is what putin is doing. he's calling a jewish president of ukraine a nazi. these are not un-related. because it is a tactic of pro-autocracy movements, which is what the republican party has largely become, to make these wild accusations. because then it makes any accommodation with the other side to impossible. it then makes it morally -- not only permissible, but you have a moral obligation to destroy the other side, if they're nazis, you must destroy them. if they're pedophiles, you must put them in jail. and this is just another evidence of how the republican party is falling in line with this autocratic playbook. >> and stewart, i want to put out footage of senator romney being the lone republican clapping after his fellow republicans leave the room after the confirmation of the first black woman being nominated to the supreme court. >> you know, it's trying to draw some equivalency between this and other confirmation hearings. there's something you need about the first african-american female being appointed to the senate. mitt romney is the only senator in american history who voted to impeach a member of his own party. i think he's just fine standing alone. >> yeah, i mean, he was -- the first time around, i mean, not the second time around. the second time around, there were a few more. i listed a number of people like denny hastert. why don't we hear more of these names from democrats or from the media as a whole. it seems obvious that democrats at jackson's confirmation hearing could have turned to republicans and say, why don't you deal with, i don't know matt gaetz instead of ranting here about a non-issue? >> i thought democrats really didn't defend her. and there was a lot of writing about this, that she -- they had an opportunity to really say the truth. which was, this was a nominee who was so qualified, who had been confirmed -- sna confirmed before, four times -- you know, this was her fourth hearing, who was really -- didn't have any scandals. and they were trying to use these sentencing -- and her sentencing was very much the norm, as a way to smear her and to bring up pedophilia. and i felt like the only person who really did that was cory booker. but it did feel like democrats, they are scared to fight back. and i think it's insane, and i also think that if they don't do it, no one else will. and for democrats to think that, you know, if the media doesn't do it, then they can't, is kind of nuts. and worry a lot, because really seeing democrats, and they're just sort of, you know, bring a stuffed animal to a knife fight. >> yes, indeed. >> and can you imagine if there was an equivalent democratic list of the list that i just read out earlier, of politicians either convicted or accused of child sex crimes. pretty sure republicans will be bring it out at senate judiciary committee hearings. stewart, in some ways, this strategy would be out of the old karl rove playbook. offense instead of defense. is that too old republican party for what we're witnessing right now? >> look, we could have a separate conversation about carl. i probably have a different opinion of carl than you. >> maybe. >> i think carl -- carl is often maligned unfairly. but there is something that is remarkably ironic or hypocritic as you say about this. the first political action committee from a conservative side was ni cpac, national conservative political action committee. it was started by a gay man, who moved to massachusetts later to take advantage of the gay marriage laws and the adoption laws. and the first executive director was a guy named terry dolan who tragically died of aids. there's been this hypocritical aspect. there are a lot of gay republicans. when i worked in republican campaigns, as far as i knew, i worked with more gay men than i did when i worked in television shows in hollywood. and it's just some strange inability to accept this, that is, you know, deeply engrained inside it. there was a brief moment when it looked like the republican party was going to do -- embrace this culture, this shift on gay marriage, but they only did it for political expediency, and now they think it's more political expedient to bash gays and are back to doing that. >> and it's the bark that is the problem. it feels like we have gone back in time. molly, the republicans have successfully turned right lane's don't say gay law into campaign on the right to demonize gay teachers. are we back to the days of thinking any gay adult is in danger of grooming our children, and how dangerous is a road for the gop to go down? >> this is an amazing attack. it's very old school. in the 60s and 70s, we saw this attack where you attack lbgtq people as being somehow a danger to people. it's historical, and so it's is terrifical, but it's not real. republicans have had a lot of success with this supreme court, right? with sb-8 in texas, they were able to really outlaw abortion. and so they see that they can kind of do whatever they want, as long as it's conservative. and i think that this don't say gay law was really, you know, kind of copy cat of that, you know, where they decided that they can just do whatever they want, as long as they know it's conservative. because there are three trumpy justices who will back them up. so, yes, it's very scary, and yes, it's definitely ---ion, democrats need to fight for lbgtq people. like, they need to get out there and protect these people, because these are their constituents, and this is the right thing, and democrats need to do the right thing here. >> you said democrats need to fight, which neatly segues into my next question. "the new york times" reports that the 1/6 committee is split on whether to refer donald trump to the doj over criminal charges to overturn the 2020 election, despite allegedly having evidence of crimes committed, they're concerned, apparently, that they would politically taint any justice department investigation. i should point out, committee vice chair liz cheney disputes "the times'" reporting. stewart, do you buy this argument against referral? who are they trying to please here? bad faith republicans, lindsey graham? >> wln i don't know what's happening inside that committee. i have a lot of confidence in liz cheney. i think she's proven to meet this moment, unlike most republicans. i could understand some argument that if you're going to have trump prosecuted in another jurisdiction, that you don't want to make it look political. but i think you have to just refer these things. and i think the justice department has to go after them. because if you allow what happened on 1/6 to go unpunished criminally. if overthrowing the government of the united states is not a crime, it only becomes a practice. and that's -- this is not going to be an isolated event. this is a long-term campaign they have to change the kind of country that we live in, and we should just accept that and meet it for what it is and fight it. >> molly, it drives me up the wall when i hear democrats always trying, i don't know, road test their arguments by wondering how republicans will react to it. it's never the other way around. you hear democrats say, if we add justices to the court, what if they do it, as if the republicans won't do it anyway. if we get rid of the filibuster, what would they do. if we refer former president trump to the 1/6 committee, what if they do it to president biden? they'll do it anyways. >> also, trump did something that was a coup, okay? a coup in search of a legal theory. and this cannot stand. if democrats do not -- i mean, we will slide into autocracy, we will become hungary, and it will be these democrats' faults. thinker the last bulwark against, you know, us becoming a russia or becoming a hungary. and so they have to do what's right. and even if it doesn't -- i mean, god forbid it doesn't work, but they still have to do it. and the fact that merrick garland has the two criminal indictments from december that they haven't followed through on. this is not theoretical. this is democracy. if we can keep it, we'll keep it. but if democrats don't fight, we won't. >> and republicans are heading for maybe for control of the house and senate. there's not much time. you've got nothing to lose. molly james faust, stewart stevens, thank you both for your time tonight. appreciate it. next, ambassador at large for global criminal justice beth van shack joins us to discuss the allegations of war crimes against the russian government. don't go away. t go waway so you only pay for whatchya... line? 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ambassador van-schak joins me now. thank you so much for coming on the show this evening. ambassador, how is the united states assisting the ukrainian government in documenting these suspected war crimes? what role is the administration, the state department, playing here? >> yes, thanks so much for the question. we are supporting a team of prosecutors and investigators draw from some of the world's moisture war crimes tribunals that are working side by side with the office of the prosecutor general in ukraine, helping to build capacity within her war crimes directorate, how to authenticate evidence that is found, and how to ultimately press charges. there will be cases before ukrainian national courts, but there also may be cases before other national courts and other international tribunals in the future. >> on that note. last week, following those devastating images out of bucha, president biden said this. have a listen. >> you've got to remember, i got criticized for calling putin a war criminal. well, the truth of the matter, look what happened in bucha. he is a war criminal. but we have to gather the information, we have to continue to provide ukraine with the weapons they need to continue the fight. and we have to get all the detail so this can be an actual, have a war crime trial. >> ambassador, where would this trial that the president is calling for take place? the u.s., i would argue, shamefully, is still not part of the international criminal court. is that going to change anytime soon? and if not, who's going to take responsibility for the kind of war crimes tribunal that president zelenskyy is calling for. >> well, we now have a system of international justice that is composed of multiple components, including national courts, in some cases regional courts, and international courts. many of these courts will have jurisdiction. unfortunately, the u.s. law will not be particularly impactful here, because our war crimes statute requires that either the victim or the perpetrator be a u.s. citizen. but other national courts can prosecute even when there's no nexus to the prosecuting state, when it comes to the nationality of the parties involved. the international criminal court has also seized jurisdiction. the new prosecutor has announced that he is opening an investigation into potential war crimes and crimes against humanity in ukraine. so there are multiple venues where war crimes trials can happen. >> so where do we think that might happen with someone like vladimir putin? >> that's the challenge, right? if he remains in the kremlin, he will be out of reach of many of these war crimes courts. but if he begins to travel or if his associates travel, who are complicit or otherwise involved in these abuses, if lower-level soldiers eventually want to go on vacation or otherwise travel, they will be amenable to war crimes jurisdiction. there is no statute of limitations for war crimes. >> ambassador, it is good to see the u.s. government calling out war crimes in ukraine and assisting in the documenting of those war crimes, but i do wonder -- and i'm sure many others wonder, too -- where is that same kind of commitment went it comes to other conflicts, for example, the war in yemen, where multiple atrocities have been documented by both sides, but many of those have been documented by saudi arabia. wouldn't we have more credibility if we condemned actions by our friends, not just our enemies. >> the united states has worked tirelessly to document cases of abuse all across the world. there's a number of situations in the international criminal court that we have been very supportive of, including by conveying fugitives, for example, to the hague so they can stand trial. so the standards apply to all parties. and we are looking at all conflicts around the world with an eye towards bringing the parties better into compliance with international law. >> but with respect about -- you didn't address the yemen war example. back in 2016, reuters reported that despite internal discussion among u.s. government lawyers, that the united states could be implicated in war crimes. the obama administration went ahead with a $1 billion arms sale. wouldn't we have more credibility if we called out war crimes by our own allies, instead of selling them weapons? the most obvious example in the world today being, the crowned prince of saudi arabia. how come joe biden can call vladimir putin a war criminal, but not others, for example, the crowned prince? >> well, the biden administration has diminished the amount of support that it's providing to the saudis within the war in yemen, and working hard with all parties to ensure that they bring their conduct into compliance with international humanitarian laws. as i mentioned, the standards apply to all parties. >> ambassador at large for global criminal justice, beth van-schaack, thank you so much for your time tonight. appreciate it. >> thank you for covering this issue. coming up, why is a democratic senator giving republicans a pass for their bad behavior towards judge ketanji brown jackson? but first, richard lui is here with the headlines. hello, richard. >> hello, mehdi. some of the stories we're watching for you. we'll start with some breaking news. president biden is expected to roll out new executive steps that tighten gun control on monday, sources tell nbc news. he's also poised to name a new nominee to run the bureau of alcohol, tobacco, and firearms after his previous nominee withdrew in september. it's not yet known who the president intends to nominate. the prime minister of pakistan, imran khan, was ousted in a parliamentary no-confidence vote on sunday. his opposition cited a worsening inflation crisis and a disgruntled army as pretext for the vote. khan's successor will be elected and sworn in by parliament on monday. and katherine hayes, an actress who starred in the cbs soap opera "as the world turns" has died. hayes played the role of kim hughes for nearly 40 years, describing it as the longest job she ever had. she was 88 years old. more of "the mehdi hasan show" right after this mehdi han show" right after this we gotta tell people that liberty mutual customizes car insurance so you only pay for what you need, and we gotta do it fast. [limu emu squawks] woo! new personal record, limu! only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. ♪ ( ♪♪ ) ( ♪♪ ) ( ♪♪ ) large out-of-state corporations have set their sights on california. ( ♪♪ ) they've written a ballot proposal to allow online sports betting. they tell us it will fund programs for the homeless, but read the fine print. 90% of the profits go to out-of-state corporations, leaving almost nothing for the homeless. no real jobs are created here. but the promise between our state and our sovereign tribes would be broken forever. these out-of-state corporations don't care about california. but we do. stand with us. allergies don't have to be scary. spraying flonase daily stops your body from overreacting to allergens all season long. psst! psst! flonase all good. can you be free of hair breakage worries? we invited mahault to see for herself that dove breakage remedy gives damaged hair the strength it needs. even with repeated combing hair treated with dove shows 97% less breakage. strong hair with new dove breakage remedy. number one beauty brand not tested on animals. welcome back. it's time now for what i like to call the 60-second round. start the clock. you want to know why republicans win so much and democrats lose so much, listen to chris coons who says that republicans may not be to blame if their bad-face behavior. that lindsey graham in his vote against ketanji brown jackson who voted to a grand court this last summer because he maybe should have voted to confirm neil gorsuch to the supreme court in 2017. >> i will own they am a part of this problem. >> no, no, neil gorsuch is a right-wing radical that stole a seat that should have been merrick garland. and lindsey graham is a cynical bad faith actor who was ridiculously rude to judge jackson during the confirmation hearings. you don't give him a pass for their misogynistic hearings. you don't give them a pass for stealing a supreme court seat from obama and giving it to trump to steal. you don't hand them a stick with which you to beat you in a midterm year. that is how you lose, democrats. that is how you lose. next, is russia tacitly admitting that the war isn't going according to plan? 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>> i think he was aware of how his forces were doing in ukraine, but i'm wondering if the same assessment is that, yes, we are de-nazifying and preventing genocide, it's going slowly, they have been explaining that it's going slowly, because they try not to bomb every city in its way, so they're being concerned about civilians, as they say. so i wouldn't say that he doesn't know, but i'm certainly -- i'm also convinced that the way that it is being spined for him, it's not a victory, it's just a slower victory than they expected at the beginning. >> and nina, in recent days, we've seen the russian military retreat from outside of kyiv, the outcry over the atrocities committed in places like bucha. that's only grown louder. sanctions against the kremlin have rapidly decreased. where does that leave putin and his future? the start of the conflict, some in the west were hoping that this would backfire on them. they were even talking about how this might lead to his downfall. how likely is that in your view? >> in my view, that was never likely. although on your show, i was wrong more than once. but there i actually did say that when the west is going in this economic social, cultural, essentially, war on russia, not just on putin, russians would have no other place to go rather than rally around the flag. and that's exactly what we've seen happening. about 80% support, as you know, it is called the special operation, they support the special operation. they only show footage that is supposed to be shown, that is, there's no refugees or bombing, no nothing. if this happens, that's the ukrainian's fault. at this point, actually, they're more supportive for the war than it was at the beginning when it happened on february 24th. and i also think that that's just the wishful thinking, because there is really no group in russia that would take putin out. in the streets, nobody can go on. there was a man arrested today on red square next to the kyiv monument, because kyiv was one of the hero cities during world war ii. so he went into kyiv. he was carrying the novel "war and peace." he was just arrested. so clearly there's no way that there is any street protest that can happen in real. the only that everybody was still hoping, they don't have any political -- any political say in this situation. and basically, the thing is ran by fsb, the government is run -- the government is fsb. the federal security service. the successor of kgb. they are not going to take their own former routine colonel, kgb colonel putin out. >> ukraine's ambassador to the u.s. said today that, she believes russian president vladimir putin will be committed for war crimes during russia's invasion of ukraine. i was discussing the issue with u.s. ambassador at large for u.s. criminal justice. do you believe that vladimir putin, do you think that he'll ever see the inside of a courtroom for what he's done in ukraine? >> he should, but i don't know how it's going to be played out. how it's going to be arranged. and that's why i think that whatever russians need to show victory, it's going to be as bad as afghanistan was in 1979. but as much as they can show victory, they are going to do it. and that's why this new general is there, because he's known for scorched earth policy. and that's what i think he's there for is to fight insurgency, and present some sort of a victory there. how the world is going to deal with putin after some sort of an agreement with ukraine achieved, i do not know. the question you asked the ambassador is a very good one, because it does seem that one of the things that america is always facing, that it's not always consistent in, and not always hypocritical about its approach to enemies. he's always son of a bitch. he's a criminal, but always a son of a bitch. putin is not an american son of a bitch, but i think he should be held responsible. however, there are better people with better law degrees than mine, that can come up with some solution to that. >> so when it comes to war crimes, my own view is, yes, all of these people should be held to account fb their war crimes. the problem, of course, becomes when you're negotiating an end to a war. what do you think an agreement could look like that vladimir putin call sell -- he doesn't have to sell it to his people, but to himself and the people around him that some kind of victory that he can leave ukraine while saving face. is there offering him way of getting out of ukraine while, i don't know, declaring voirgt to his own people, which isn't really a victory? >> well, my problem with offering putin a saving face is he actually takes it as a victory. the more he's being offered saving face, the more he pushes forward. we've seen that now with essentially the invasion of the whole ukraine. i think it's going to be what could have been on the 22nd of february, there's some sort of an agreement between donetsk and luhansk and some sort of a postponement of a recognition or debate about crimea. that didn't happen. i think putin is going to retreat back to those -- to those lines. however, in the meantime, the whole ukraine is being destroyed. so how president zelenskyy is going to negotiate that in good conscience, i do not know. because i don't think that ukrainians would ever agree for any kind of negotiation with putin and the results that zelenskyy can come to. perhaps if ukraine can become part of the european union, i think that was already in discussion this summer. that may be -- that -- in quooun is part of european union, then the whole european union can be involved in negotiating something with putin. but at this point, putin really is a rogue president. he's not a president you can handle relationship with. and i think it is a big, big question for europe. i think the united states already said that there was no conversation. canada, probably, but the european union really needs to have a proper policy of how they deal with war criminal putin. >> a rogue president, well put. we'll have to leave it there. nina khrushcheva, thank you for your analysis. always appreciate it. next, trump's terrible judicial appointments go way beyond the supreme court. i'll explain who this guy is and why he matters. s guy is and why he matters ( ♪♪ ) ( ♪♪ ) ( ♪♪ ) what happens when performance... meets power? 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(vo) right, you enjoy that internet. verizon is going ultra, with home internet at our best price. if you have type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure you're a target for chronic kidney disease. you can already have it and not know it. if you have chronic kidney disease your kidney health could depend on what you do today. ♪far-xi-ga♪ farxiga is a pill that works in the kidneys to help slow the progression of chronic kidney disease. farxiga can cause serious side effects including dehydration, urinary tract or genital yeast infections in women and men, and low blood sugar. ketoacidosis is a serious side effect that may lead to death. a rare, life-threatening bacterial infection in the skin of the perineum could occur. stop taking farxiga and call your doctor right away if you have symptoms of this bacterial infection, an allergic reaction, or ketoacidosis. and don't take it if you are on dialysis. take aim at chronic kidney disease by talking to your doctor and asking about farxiga. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. ♪far-xi-ga♪ doesn't your family deserve the best? eggland's best eggs. classic, cage free, and organic. more delicious, farm-fresh taste. plus, superior nutrition. which is now more important than ever. because the way we care... is anything but ordinary. only eggland's best. ♪♪ tonight, i have the dubious honor of districting you to u.s. district judge trevor mcfadden. he's the charming character that made headlines for issuing the first outright acquittal of a defendant in the january 6th riot. mcfadden was apparently unmoved by prosecutors' arguments that when matthew martin should have taken note of the shattered windows, blaring alarms, and shrieking lunatics around him and come to realize that he was not, in fact, allowed to trespass into the capitol building. judge mcfadden argued the sheer size of the crowd, the sheer number of pillsbury dough fascists granted plausibility that martin had no idea that what no idea what he was doing was not illegal. the judge was appointed to his position by former president donald j. trump and worked as a deputy assistant attorney general in the trump justice department. now, the details trump nominated him is strange because i was told republicans tend to be hostile towards judicial activism and he has a long record of just that. take his move to rebuke federal prosecutors and restore a rioters right to possess firearms. he said there was no evidence she was dangerous or sought to incite violence. the fact she wore a bulletproof shirt to the riot, the judge thought that was neither here nor there. a curious degree of favoritism. last year after he was indicted on five federal counts related to the insurrection. mcfadden approved her request to gal vant on a mexican vacation. his softness has left him drastically out of step with the 18 other judges that sentenced 1/6 defendants in washington, d.c. every chance he gets he slams his peers and wines that they judge pro-trump rioters more harshly than blm rioters. now, it is easy to mock his maga approach. hs far harder to reckon with the system-wide danger that he represents of independent judges appointed bipartisan politicians. and i don't tend to have kind words for the republican party has now become but i will grant them this. their laser-focussed dedication to packing the federal judiciary with right wing reactionaries, well, it was impressive. they even got trump to realize the value of doing that. >> i have always heard how important judges are. now we know how important they are. think of that over 300 -- around 300 by the end of the term. >> it was over 200, not 300 but still a lot. so how come democrats never take judicial appointments as seriously as the republicans do? democrats get riled up over scotus vacancies here, but his mostly white, mostly young tribe they're just as dangerous as a brett kavanaugh or a barrett. given we tend not to know their names may be more dangerous. we'll be living with the consequences of their rulings for decades to come. coming up at the top of the hour with ayman mohyeldin, congressman david cicilline will discuss the full week of january 6th develop yoomts and the historic confirmation of ketanji brown jackson. and we'll be right back. son. and we'll be right back. and doug. we gotta tell people that liberty mutual customizes car insurance so you only pay for what you need, and we gotta do it fast. 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[limu emu squawks] he'll be back. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. ♪ ♪ ♪ only pay for what you need. aleve x. its revolutionary rollerball design delivers fast, powerful, long-lasting pain relief. aleve it, and see what's possible. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ voltaren. the joy of movement. thanks for watching. we'll be right back here next sunday at 8:00 p.m. eastern. and starting monday you will be able to find this show on the new msnbc show on peacock. you can stream some of your favorite msnbc shows on demand. you can find the msnbc hub through braus and stream my show any time. we'll post every evening monday through thursday. now it is time to hand it over to my friend ayman mohyeldin. before i go, the exit poll in the french presidential election is out, and it suggests today's race is headed to a run-out to macron and his far right opponent. is there a lesson democrats in america can learn from the french election, too? because in my view president macron sent right wing messages and then he wonders why the far right is embolden. he wants younger voters and minorities to help him stop a threat from the far right, but why would they turn out for him. i wonder if we will see the same thing here. young people, progressive, don't turn up because they had a chance to secure voting rights or they didn't make much while controlling the presidency and the congress. >> yeah. i was going to say not only lessons on the domestic front for america but also a lot of important questions. i had a chance to speak to the french ambassador to the u.s. on my program last night and what they mean for the future of france but more importantly what kind of impact they could have on europe and more precedently the war in ukraine. there is increasing pressure on macron because he has been investing so much time in diplomacy with vladimir putin and his allies feel he has been plajed by putin. the far right sought closer security security cooperation with russia, specifically vladimir putin, the same guy that is being called a war criminal. at one point she believed russia's annexation of crimea was justified, even though she has now changed her tune. so to your point, these elections will be important for the u.s. to watch not only because of what our politicians can learn but what they mean for the transatlantic security alliance. >> i don't know how you can keep a security alliance if you have her sucking up to vladimir putin but also repressing and prosecuting minorities at home. she may have rebranded her far right supremacist party, but that's what it is. here in the u.s. we're not being tough enough and we expect people to come out and turn out in every election. democrats need to get -- you know, get onboard with energizing their vote not just saying every few years vote to save democracy. >> yeah, i know. absolutely. stop making promises and not delivering on them. good to see you, my friend, as always. enjoy the rest of your evening off, my friend. >> good evening to you at home. coming up, small signs of hope amongst the carnage in ukraine. i will speak with aleksi sorkin to get the latest on that country. the january 6th committee has enough to send donald trump to the justice department. will they? new details on how ginni thomas could pose more conflicts of interest for clarence thomas than we realized. i'm ayman mohyeldin. let's get started. all right. so tonight we begin with breaking developments out of ukraine. the death toll from that horrific russian missile attack