filling. up the trial data set in check smith select showcase as the former president continues his delay tactics. and mark meadows takes the stand in order to make his case federal. what went down in court today? then another community in america left grieving after a racist shooting leaves three black people dead. the fbi now investigating it as a hate crime. the 11th hour gets underway on this monday night. ♪ ♪ ♪ good evening once again, i'm stephanie ruhle. back with you tonight from msnbc headquarters here in new york city. today was a very big day in court for the former president and his former chief of staff. the judge and donald trump's federal election case set the stage for trial next spring, right smack in the middle of presidential primaries. he came as mark meadows testified at a hearing to get his charges in the georgia election case moved to federal court. we will have more on meadows situation just ahead. but first, let's stick with trump because today judge tanya chutkan said march 4th, 2024 as the official start date for trump's trial on charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election. put this in context, that's the day before super tuesday. when 16 states in this nation are scheduled to hold republican primaries for caucuses, the government had proposed january 2nd as the star date, and trump wanted april of 2026. the judge made it abundantly clear that she was not buying trump's proposal, telling his lawyers the following. you are not going to get two more years. the case is not going to trial in 2026. trump's lawyer protested the march date saying it was, quote, inconsistent with his right to due process and effective council. one former federal prosecutor weighed in on judge chutkan's decision to start the trial next march. watch this. >> dutch tucked in was a criminal defense attorney. she has defended cases and prepare for trial herself defending complicated criminal cases. so she was able to assess how long it would take in a case like this to get ready and i think she's bringing all her experience, both as a criminal defense attorney and as a judge to premier and give him -- not try, she will give him a fair trial. try to respect his rights to due process, but not let him run the show. >> also today, we learn what is next for the next 19 defendants including trump in the georgia election case. the judge has decided they will all be arraigned on -- starting at 9:30 a. m.. meanwhile, one trump defendant has entered the first not guilty plea that has been filed in the case. trump defended race smith and -- george cases officially pleaded not guilty monday in a court filing in fulton county. he waved his september 6th arraignment. with that, let's get smarter with help of our lead off panel tonight and your look we've got a great one. peter baker, chief white house chrisman for the new york times, catherine christian, former district assistant attorney for the manhattan attorney's office, she's now a msnbc legal analyst. and former federal prosecutor glenn kirschner who, luckiest, was at the d. c. court for trump's hearing today. meanwhile, glenn, we discuss this for a while, you said the first of all of this, she doesn't come to play. this woman means business. so tell us what the hearing was like. >> yes, you know, stuff, i was a little surprised when she came out and sort of opened with her believe that neither jack smith's proposed trial date of january 2nd, 2024, nor the defenses trial date of april 2026 were appropriate trial dates. and i have to tell you, i kind of felt like she might do the salomone thing and maybe split the difference. but i don't think donald trump 's lawyer, john laura, it did himself any favors because judge chutkan pressed him several times saying we are not going to go to trial in 2026, so give me an alternate trial date that is more realistic, that will give you enough time to prepare but that won't set this trial so far off in the future. and he steadfastly refused to do it. judges don't like to be told no. what he ended up saying was, and i can pretty much quote him for begum, he said, we can't do this trial and anything less than the time we have proposed. and she said, well, you're out of luck. that's my characterization. and she said the trial for much fourth, 2024 which frankly gives team trump about six or seven months to prepare. we said one defendant trial that one multi-could -- for criminal charges. and she said, you know, i prepare trials as a defense attorney and we have very different views how much time a defense attorney needs to prepare. she lay down the law and now team trump will have to abide by that law. >> cap, and do you think six months is enough time to get ready for a case that is of this magnitude? >> as we, said one defendant, for charges. the defendant is a former president, but it's one defendant and four charges. and the reality is, march 4th date, i think the court gave herself a question because stuff happens. >> like what? >> people get sick, they're a lot of motions, they don't get decided. so when i say cushion, she made sure that if it did get adjourned, it still won't go past election day of november 2024. but assuming no one gets sick and all the motions get decided on, time this will go on march 4th. >> i've a feeling a lot of people are gonna get the sniffles between now and march 4th. peter, you've covered donald trump for years. what do you think this state means for him, his team, his campaign? >> a couple, things first, of all it's the first of four of the criminal trials to go, this jumps ahead of alvin bragg, it jumps ahead of the classified documents case. we don't have a date obviously in the fulton county case, but it makes sense in some sense that this is probably the most serious of the cases. it involves basically the federal government including -- corruptly through pattern of lies and pressure and intimidation tactics. and you get that out of the way for us before you get to some of the other cases, a couple of these cases are not of the same level. on a medal level, and make some sense. as you put out up there on the calendar, what it does is of course it inserts is right into this primary calendar and that's not a judge is concerned. she doesn't care much for what the political calendar is. that's what she said, anyway. but it does put this trial starting the day before the super tuesday primary. what that means is basically the nomination will be decided before any of these trials is concluded. because basically by super tuesday, the republicans will almost certainly be wrapped up then nomination contest. somebody might try to do something at the convention to try to change the will of the voters. if that were in fact decided to be a tactic they might pursue, basically by super tuesday, we will know where the republican nominee is likely to be. that means the day after this trial starts, republican voters will have made their decision. not enough information you can argue because we won't have the benefit of this trial, and that really is a very unusual -- not unusual, obviously, but unprecedented situation. >> glenn, i've been away for a weekend this question has been eating away at me this entire time. donald trump is supposedly a billionaire. and even if he's not, he's the former leader of the free world. let's take his lawyers at their word. they cannot prepare by march 4th. why would someone of his -- two little off firms and ragtag group of ricky dyck lawyers, where are the big guns for the former president of the united states? and i'm not being sassy, and being serious. >> it's a great question, steph. because this very topic was conjured up in today's hearing when john laurel pointed to -- he and the three other defense council said we are just too small firms and we just can't we devote enough time and attention to this massive discovery to adequately prepare for trial which actually got me thinking, so, a billionaire could perhaps hire one lawyer, the sole practitioner, and then delay his trial for ten years because he doesn't have enough legal firepower to review the discovery and prepare for trial. you're absolutely right, steph. donald trump is a self proclaimed billionaire, i don't if i believe, that he should be hiring of battalion of lawyers to represent him. but he's not perhaps because nobody wants to take him on as a client. >> there's just a he's not a billionaire, he is one of the most significant people -- this is going to be a historic trial. why wouldn't there be -- why when he have major firepower in his corner? >> major firepower, maybe won't work for someone who does in the sun to them, it doesn't take their advice. who probably he told his team, i'm, assuming you as for april 26 and that's it. that was a ridiculous respect. the way they just stood on it today, they lost credibility of a judge. so but this judge, with any judge, mcgahn shulus said, when people show you wrong the first, time to leave. thumb they are now stuck with in her head is not being credible. so it's delay, delay, delay. even when lawrence was speaking to start about all the motions he's going to file. so i don't think donald trump could get the best of the best because you just don't want to work for someone who's just not gonna take your advice. >> glenn, tell us about those missions he's gonna file because they can't appeal the march 4th day at, but what can they do to slow it down? >> the day were big talkers about all the motions they're going to file, vindictive prosecution, selective prosecution, first amendment claims. you, know john moreau exposed himself as a bomb thrower using terms like, and i quote, this is a show trial. this is a political prosecution. this is a grave injustice. frankly, he was throwing red meat to donald trump's base. he was not playing to the audience. he should've been playing to judge chutkan. but none of these motions that he was referencing are really winning motions. they will be easily resolved, many of them will be resolved without even the need for an evidentiary hearing and i don't think any one of them will give a basis to appeal. so the one nice thing about oak criminal trial as opposed to a civil trial, a civil trial, you can piecemeal your issues up on appeal and really run up the clock. not so in a criminal trial. i actually think donald trump has met his match. i think the march trial date will be met, or slip a little bit. but now, people are well positioned to see the case resolved well in advance of the presidential election. >> peter, charm -- no matter what the, news no matter what the indictment, he's raising money, his support is unwavering. but it's not been enough support to win elections since 2016. from a campaign perspective, truly, how are they going to deal with the trial immediately before super tuesday? how is that even going to work logistically? >> well it's a good question and we don't obviously have any thing to point to, but what it means is that he's gonna be campaigning from -- from the courthouse steps. you can picture him day after day coming out of the courthouse to make statements and roads and to use the phrase that we just used, from the courthouse steps and that's what is -- his campaigns about these trials and everything he's talking to his based bout how he's being persecuted. he's talking about issues that are concerned to the country beyond his own legal issues and that's what's dominating the conversation. that's what's dominating his campaign at this point. he's running his primary campaign in effect from the courthouse steps. and we saw -- it may work for him in the primaries. that's unclear, but certainly it has so far. the question is whether it works in a general election, that's a different kind of fish. what will the democrats who voted against him for three years ago are gonna want to vote from in 2024 if he's been convicted by that point and any of the trials? that's a real problem for them strategically. they have to hope that biden does something to make it more possible for trump to win. but that's for trump to build his support. he's gonna be to gain the support. he had in 2020 gambling that he could not oppress biden support by november 2024. certainly not building from it. >> from the courthouse steps does not sound like the ideal venue to top immigration, inflation, education. it seems like the only thing he'll be covering is his own situation. kathryn, judge chutkan said she was in touch with the judge in a hush money case in new york. how with that conversation? go >> it's not unusual and icicle for judges to -- to discuss scheduling. so i'm sure judge chutkan was very respectful to judge marchand and said your case is serious, my case is serious, but my case is really serious. so would you mind? i'm planning on scheduling a -- i'm sure judge michelin said, be my cast. >> be my guest. these are serious -- we cover this every day and then when you stop, i was away for a week and then when you stop and hear all this again, you go, i cannot believe this is what we are facing. my goodness. catherine, great to meet you. catherine christian, peter baker, glenn chris, thank you for being at the courthouse today. live reporting from us. when you come, back brigadier on mark meadows as donald trump 's former chief of staff took the stand to many people's surprise. -- on how he fits into the larger picture. later, the racist shooting of three innocent black people dead in jacksonville, florida. president biden speaking at today saying, as a country, we can't let hate prevail. so what are we gonna do about it? the 11th hour just getting underway on an important monday night. i'm glad you're here. ah, these bills are crazy. she has no idea she's sitting on a goldmine. well she doesn't know that if she owns a life insurance policy of $100,000 or more she can sell all or part of it to coventry for cash. even a term policy. even a term policy? even a term policy! find out if you're sitting on a goldmine. call coventry direct today at the number on your screen, or visit coventrydirect.com. >> today, donald trump's codefendant mark meadows testified for five hours at a hearing in hopes of getting his charges in the georgia election case moved from state to federal court. meadows of course was trump's final chief of staff, he's charged with racketeering stemming from alleged efforts to reverse the 2020 results in georgia. today, meadows told the court that any actions he took report of his official duties of chief of staff. also on the stand, brad raffensperger. the georgia secretary of state who trump begged to having votes that overturned joe biden 's win. there with more -- reporter for the washington post. and philip rucker, the next national editor also, at the post. and a dear colleague and coauthor with carol. tonight -- i alone can fix it. carol, all sorts of legal experts say that there is no way that mark meadows is taking the stand and voila, he showed up not for, one offered to, five straight hours. i would as legal team make a move like that? >> it was door die, steph. i don't fault anybody who came up with this prediction. i understand that there are huge stakes, huge stakes for someone to take the stand and essentially give a preview, a pretrial of what's gonna happen in this case. the meaning defense of mark meadows. but it was george i whether or not he was going to be able to remove himself from the state court, go to federal court which is where he thinks that he has the best chance of dismissing these charges entirely. he couldn't do that and get a judge to agree unless he had some testimony or for himself or another witness to make the guard commit, hey, i was just acting in my federal duties, i'm the chief of staff of the president, after ten his calls, after ranged, i have to participate in them. and that's essentially what he argued and there are of course as you will probably ask, steph, some big caveats and what mark meadows had to say for four plus hours. >> yes, big. how big of a deal is, it filled, that we got this sneak peek, this preview from meadows to testify this early in the case. don't you kind of show his parts? >> he did, steph. and he answered a lot of questions and we also learned from brad raffensperger, a lot of detail played out in the courtroom about january 2nd, 2021 foot call that the former secretary of state of georgia -- was on the call, he spoke the call, and mark meadows was pressed in his testimony today in court about what he was doing intervening in this way. in this election dispute. he was the chief of staff in the white house and here he was advancing the agenda of the trump campaign, and challenging the election results, despite the fact that there wasn't evidence to support those challenges. but he had to begin to answer some of that, and that of course is going to end up being the argument we will see play out as this case moves along towards trial. whether it's in the state court or gets to the federal court as meadows would like to see happen. >> i want to play a little bit of that because we have heard for well over a year trump on that call, asking raffensperger to find those 11,000 votes. but to your point, meadows was on the call as well. and here's what he had to say. >> what i'm hopeful for is that there is still some way we can find some kind of agreement to look at this a little bit more fully. mister secretary, i can tell, you said there's only two that people who would vote. i can promise you there are more than that. >> i can promise you there are more than that. how do you explain that one? >> hey, stuff, mark meadows was trying to make an argument that -- there was more fraud than was appearance [interpreter] -- i think to pieces boss was mr. president who tried to convince himself in the public that he won when he had in fact lost the election. and what you heard mark meadows explain in court today was that he was acting in that call as almost a negotiator because there was active litigation between the trump campaign and the state regarding the election results. but raffensperger, with their he considered that when -- he said no, that's not what that was. that was in his terms and extraordinary kind of pressure campaign underway. >> you cover the white house back then, meadows was arguing that he was just doing his job as chief of staff. what was that guy's job every day? what did he do? >> just imagine having that job, steph, if only because there had been very few chiefs of staff who had to serve a master that constantly wanted the reassurance that everything that he was proposing, illegal, improper, against the federal regulations, against federal policy, against the interests of even national security or previous diplomatic treaties, that he was seeking donald trump was seeking for mark meadows to endorse all of those acts. no matter how wild, no matter how improper. and in this instance, what i think was the most interesting, steph, about mark meadows testimony was that he said essentially, i didn't really believe all the fraud allegations that were coming in, but i believe that some could have some validity and some signature verification needed to happen in georgia. that's his excuse for being on the call. but i think phil is exactly right, and he and i live this. which is that, mark meadows had to play the role of policing the king. he was a courtier, essentially. a court player who had to make sure the boss was happy. that the emperor thought his clothes were gorgeous. that was a role he played over, and over again. marc short today, i believe today, that he had answers, calls this was mike pence's chief of staff, yet -- he was just acting as a federal employee. serving the interests of the executive office of the presidency. marc short makes a good point, if that's really the case, then why were you not involved in the department of justice? why were you not involved in the white house counsel? pat cipollone. why is that? all of them rejected as crazy town the allegation that there was any fraud that would change the outcome in georgia, or anywhere else. >> my goodness, this thing is only getting harry or by the day. caroline, phil rucker, i will because you're getting ready for another book because it will be a juicy. one when we come back, let's take a deep breath on this one, hate fueled violence yet again. is at the center of another shooting in america. all of it on the heels of some of the most important days and black history. we will get to it all when the 11th hour continues. >> the jacksonville community is grieving tonight. after three people were shot and killed in an act of racist violence. gabe gutierrez has more. >> before the gunmen, seen here on surveillance video, walked into a dollar general store in jacksonville saturday. and killed three people. tonight police releasing new images of the moment at the university. that's when a group of students flagged down a campus security officer. lieutenant antonio bailey quickly confronted the gunman. later identified as 21-year-old christopher paul matter. >> he had a tactical vest, a pardon shirt, and mask. >> did you ever in your man ever consider, not confronting the suspect? >> no i did not. this is what we signed up for. >> the government sped away, and later opened fire at the dollar general nearby, before taking his own life. the local sheriff says it's not clear that the gunman planted to target the university. they have no doubt why he went there first. >> do you believe that if he had not confronted the suspect, do you believe that this attack might have unfolded here on this campus? >> i absolutely do. >> the fbi tonight is investigating it as a hate crime. they said the gunman had gone and racist rant. the victim, identified as -- , and angela lowe car. >> this is so unreal. >> the daughter, ashley, says her mom, an uber driver, leaves behind six kids, and 16 grandchildren. >> she has touched the lives of hundreds, if not thousands. >> today, president biden meeting with civil rights leaders, commemorating the 60th anniversary of the march in washington. >> we knew have a heinous case of violence. >> joining us now, democratic strategist, and founder of the national voter protection action fund, he was with his family, his children marking the 60th anniversary of the march on washington, when the shooting took place, don? what was going through your life when you heard the news? >> the first thing i am thinking about, is my brother and i try to teach our children of the importance of the march on washington for jobs, and justice, and civil rights and what that they in august 28 means, not only for black history, but for american history. it was the day when 14 year old emmett till was killed in mississippi in 24. two days later, the -- went on the filibuster, the passage of the civil rights act. ultimately unsuccessful. it's not on the date of the water marching ten, but the date when the forefathers, w e deployed, double about the, boys passed away because he was done with the second class citizenship of being in the united states. so it's in stride narrowly important that not only actors, but every day americans, come out to commemorate the institutional memory of this, and to get that nose just as my brother and i, and our four sons were leaving. going to meet our nephew who was a student at howard, the mecca of negroni education. to get that news is devastating. and where second with the families of jacksonville, but we are also embedding it upon them why it's necessary. he was 21 years old. a member of their generation. and it shows that this will not die out, just because americans are saying that we are better than this. we're not better than this. this is who we are. it has to be untrained for my institutional memory, just the same way that it was institutionalized us in the founding of the republican. >> the fact that hey crimes are being actively denounced by some of our political leaders. because of that, we expect more awful crimes like this? >> sadly, america original sin is human child slavery, directed out. and americans, we have yet to address that institutionally as a full country. legislatively, or by executive order. so unfortunately, while we can expect more of this, particularly when you combine it with our zeal for guns. racism, patriotism, and white nationalism are not ills, or cancels, unique to america. what is unique is the mythologies that we tell about how those things are not true. as well as our bloodlust for guns. so if you want to talk about protecting black people, if you are ron desantis. 1 million dollars, that means nothing. because what you could've done is restricted access to weapons of war, and other guns. which disproportionately kill members of the black community, but ultimately take out everybody. i have been dealing with this network, i've been privileged to be on msnbc for almost several years now. and i can tell you how many times alex and i on sundays have been interrupted by mass shootings, how many times i personally have been victimized by a mass shooting. but if you think about it. who are the people being killed? it is the marginalized and defenseless communities of this country. it is black people at the grocery store in buffalo. it's black people at waters, and the grocery store in jacksonville. it's the jewish community and synagogue in pittsburgh, it's the lgbtq i a+ community at the pulse nightclub in orlando, florida. so we see that this rhetoric, americans from the founding of the republic have always followed and act upon the rhetoric of our political leaders. but we see that this rhetoric and singling out minority and other 80 marginalized communities. and without bloodless for guns, along the continued rhetoric, and not only the amplified rhetoric in the desantis, trump era. sadly we can expect more of this. >> don calloway, thank you for joining us tonight. i really appreciate your thoughts, your expertise, your passion. >> thank you for having me. >> it is also important that it's not just jacksonville. so far, in the month of august. there have been 54 mass shootings in just 28 days in the united states of america. that is according to the gun violence archive. that brings 2023 is total to 476 mass shootings. this time last year? the number was for 42. coming up! twin crisis in florida, had desantis pulled off the campaign trail. how would he do on the first test of leadership, since announcing the first run for president? if you're not popular in your home state, can you win on the big stage? we will begin, when the 11th hour continues! i'm jonathan lawson here to tell you about life insurance through the colonial penn program. if you're age 50 to 85, and looking to buy life insurance on a fixed budget, remember the three ps. what are the three ps? the three ps of life insurance on a fixed budget are price, price, and price. a price you can afford, a price that can't increase, and a price that fits your budget. i'm 54, what's my price? you can get coverage for $9.95 a month. i'm 65 and take medications. what's my price? also $9.95 a month. i just turned 80, what's my price? $9.95 a month for you too. if you're age 50 to 85, call now about the #1 most popular whole life insurance plan available through the colonial penn program. it has an affordable rate starting at $9.95 a month. no medical exam, no health questions. your acceptance is guaranteed. and this plan has a guaranteed lifetime rate lock so your rate can never go up for any reason. so call now for free information and you'll also get this free beneficiary planner. and it's yours free just for calling. so call now for free information. attention... are you suffering from hearing loss? 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because the actual, whole country is watching what he is doing in his home state. >> exactly, winston churchill and ron emanuel said don't let crisis go to waste. ron desantis is taking advantage of that. this is why governors had a leg up in electoral politics, and campaigns. and they have big things to deal with. and you can see them deal with really big problems. we have two very significant crisis in florida with a shooting, and that shull weather disaster. this is an opportunity for desantis to put the campaign on hold. which is great because what he really wants to do is show leadership, and executive ability. which is what people want to see any president. so this is much better than being on the campaign trail. this is a so big it handled it well. and the jury is out on that. >> i think that's the important part. assuming he handles it well. it's an opportunity to step up. but also a chance to with. and it's also important to compare candidates on this issue. we all saw how donald trump dealt with national disasters. how does he compare to round desantis. and president biden for that matter. because if it's a crisis in florida, it's also a national crisis the president has to address it. >> that's exactly right. one of the things of what desantis has to prove right now is whether or not one, he will admit that there is a climate change crisis we are in the middle of. and let's look at what happened today when he had to talk to individuals about the tragedy that happened in jacksonville. the people there, coming in, someone in his leadership position as governor. did not by what he was saying. and part of it is because they were recognizing everything that he has done that basically tries to negate the racial tension that is happening right now in this country. the fact that he wants to take history, african american history, after out of textbooks. the fact that he wants to deny critical race theory. this is very difficult for him to take the podium, and try to pacify, edmund bridges. that was very clear today when he was at the podium. when people were booing what he was saying. and at the same time, you look at what you can expect. can he rise to the occasion of what's happening in the face of tragedy under a hurricane? maybe. the same question that happens, he doesn't want to address the real issues. root causes of climate change. so when he goes up to that podium, if there is devastation, most people will check out. say, well you are not addressing the fundamental issues that you need to address. if anything you are perpetuating them. that's what's gonna be tough. then you have someone like biden coming in saying, not only am i going to work bipartisanship. not only am i going to invest in the state like florida. but i'm gonna stand next to the governor, have a conversation on how we can address the root causes. and we're going to make sure that we can do reconstruction in the state. in a viable way. that is something that trump was not able to do. if you recall, stephanie, what donald trump would do is that if you were in a blue state he would negate the tragedy. he would withhold funding. he would make it a political issue. and this allows biden to demonstrate that every single american, regardless if they voted for him, is part of this company. and he will invest in those states regardless of if they had voted him the first time around. >> walk us through this one. we now officially know that trump's election interference trial is going to start the day before super tuesday. now we have already seen republican base voters are wildly loyal to donald trump through these legal fights. how do we think this is now going to impact the race? look at that calendar. >> the political politics of his campaign are all about his legal case anyway. 100 percent of his campaign is all about the legal case. so, obviously, he wanted a trial date that was well beyond the election. and his mark i get that. he is lucky that it's going to head to actual trials. after super tuesday. the day after super tuesday. so there won't be any resolution to it. so i think absent the fact that it's not gonna be in 2026. as it's absurd and everybody knew it. unfortunately his lawyers were arguing that point. which made the judge angry. and respond the way that she did. but the fact that it's gonna happen is this outcome is actually one that donald trump really likes. because it was them saying yes i'll be on trial. that's exactly what the campaign is about. no better time to bring this to a point that right before super tuesday. to show that i'm the ultimate martyr under attack by the democrats and the partisans. >> are there enough republican voters that say don't worry, don't focus on health care, immigration, on the economy. let's just focus on your legal troubles? are there really enough voters that just want that? that only want trump to focus on that? mark? >> that's all they're going to hear about. that's all he's gonna talk about. that's all the conservatives are gonna talk about. that's all his allies are going to talk about. and i think a lot of the polling shows that that's what they do care about. more than any other issue, they feel like they are under partisan attack, that trump is under partisan attack, and it's their fault to defend the tribal leader when he is being attacked. in their view donald trump is saying they're coming through may, to get to you. so that is the whole narrative of the campaign. so the fact that he's gonna be on trial the day before super tuesday. in a way, it's narrowed it perfectly. >> and the biden team are supposedly not going to focus on trump's legal issues at all. do you think that is a smart tragedy? >> if i was advising, i would say if they wanted to talk about focusing on the legal issues. one thing we learned during the election was the red wave did not materialize because there were plenty of independent republicans who got upset that someone would try to steal an election. a fairly democratic leader was trying to have a coup against another democratically elected leader. i do think very much the fact that going into super tuesday, you have candidate trump, the primary candidate leading the race for the republicans. he whence. and then you have to take a look at, what does this mean for the republican party? he's gonna be able to galvanize a base that is radically so different from the rest of democratically elected nominees in the past. really is going to hurt the ability for other, more centrist candidates to be able to say look at me. look at the fact that we do believe in these democratically elected leaders and democratically elected norms. that makes it difficult to see any other weight. other than the runoff between biden and trump again. >> we will be watching. and we will be covering it. thank you both for being here. when we come back i cannot wait to share this. after a two-year hiatus, simone bilemaking gymnastics history. david: as we start a new school year, >> can you explain what the there's something new happening in california's public schools. they're called community schools. leslie: it really is shared leadership with families, students, educators, and communities. jessie: i feel like we're really valued as partners. david: it's a more innovative, holistic approach. grant: in addition to academic services, we look at serving the whole family. narrator: wellness centers, food pantries, and parental education. jessie: they're already making a difference. david: california's community schools: reimagining public education. pressure feels like on you? >> it feels heavy. it's like the weight of the world on your shoulders. and i'm very small, so at times i think it's very overwhelming. whenever you get some overwhelmed, and have trackers that just like, i have to focus on my mental well-being. that's what i did. >> you sure dead. that was brave. >> thank, you it was hard. working five years for a dream. and just having to give it. up it was not easy, at all. >> i am glad to come back from vacation, to cover this last leg. before we go tonight, the absolute g. o. a. t.. all eyes were on simone biles over the weekend. as she made her extraordinary return to the national gymnastics championships. it is been too long garrison she famously withdrew from the olympics. to focus on her own mental health. how did she do? our own emilie ikeda has more on the champs grand return. >> in her first u.s. championships in two years, simone biles twisted, flipped, and sort her way to another entry in the record books. >> best in the world, and back in a big way. >> reminding america why she is called, the greatest of all time. >> nailed it! >> with the encouragement from training mate, jordan dials, 10,000 fans erupted into a standing ovation. as she clinched her eight natural all around title. >> it's amazing, me and my teammates, my coaches, family, everyone. everyone. i have to start believing in myself more. >> she's the first president to win eight national titles. first came in 2013. so long ago, she says she can barely remember it. >> it feels pretty good, but it hasn't really sunk in the at. >> now she is the oldest national champion ever. appeared to have shaken of the twisties, from the tokyo olympics. >> i can't be i can't believe i'm out here competing again. i can't believe it. >> making clear, biles is back. and continuing to pull off the impossible. like this vault, no other woman can do. as for what is next? >> it's one of those personal goals? >> not yet. >> the four foot eight dynamo is leaving fans on the edge of their seats. emily ikeda, nbc news. >> amazing. whether we do see her in paris or not, simone has already proven to be the greatest of all time. and an incredible world model for us all. and on that beautiful note, i wish you a very good night. good to be back with the. or for all of our colleagues across the networks of nbc news, thanks for staying up late. i will see you at the end of tomorrow! >> good evening from washington, i'm jen psaki in for chris hayes. tonight we have some major developments in two of donald trump criminal trials. first, in washington d. c. today, a federal judge set the ex presidents trial date for march 4th of next year which also happens to be the day before super tuesday. that means on the eve of the most important day in the primary, donald trump will not be crisscrossing the country and when voters when i go rallies.