campaign account. >> that's georgia governor brian kemp criticizing members of his own party who were calling for a special session to remove the district attorney who was prosecuting donald trump, and that comes as the former president officially pleads not guilty in fulton county. we'll have much, much more on all of that straight ahead. plus, we'll go through the ambitious plan by the biden administration to eliminate the so-called gun show loophole. good morning and welcome to "way too early" on this friday, september 1st. we've made it to friday, and we're already in september. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for starting your day with us. former president trump is officially pleading not guilty in the fulton county election case. trump's team entered his plea yesterday for the 13 felony charges he faces including racketeering and conspiracy. the plea was entered in writing as they file a waiver to tell the court he would not physically appear for next week's scheduled arraignment. this as the former president's legal team pushes to separate his case from the other codefendants. the filing argues that october 23rd is simply not enough time to prepare a defense. that date was set for the speedy trial of codefendant kenneth chesebro. d.a. fani willis asked a judge last week to set that date for the rest of the codefendants as well. when that trial date is officially set there will be cameras in the courtroom. that decision confirmed by the judge yesterday hearings and proceedings related to the case will be televised and live streamed on the court's youtube channel. meanwhile, a separate fulton county judge has ruled a special that related several people be indicted for alleged crimes will be released september 8th. portions of were unsealed back in february but d.a. willis had requested most stay under wraps until the formal indictments were handed down. as that's going on, georgia governor brian kemp -- during a press conference yesterday the governor argued that calling for a special session to remove willis from her position is not feasible and, quote, may ultimately prove to be unconstitutional. >> up to this point i have not seen any evidence that d.a. willis' actions or lack thereof warrant action from the prosecuting attorney oversight commission. the bottom line is that in the state of georgia as long as i'm governor we're going to follow the law and the constitution regardless of who it helps or harms politically. in georgia we'll not be engaging in political theater that only inflames the motions of the moment. we will do what is right. we'll uphold our oaths as public servants, and it's my belief our state will be better for it. >> one of trump's codefendants in the georgia case might have confessed to the crimes he's accused of and did so during an interview on fox news. former trump lawyer john eastman appears to admit to attempting to stop the certification of the 2020 election during an exchange with fox host laura ingram wednesday night. take a listen. >> on january 6th what did you want to happen? and how was that historically grounded? in the history of our country how would that have taken place? just so viewers can understand what would have unfolded and how that would have ultimately been constitutional. >> so, you know, several things. some people would surge vice president pence simply had power to reject electors whose certification was still pending. >> i don't believe that, but go ahead. i don't believe that. >> and i explicitly told vice president pence in the oval office on january 4th that even though it was an open issue under the circumstances we had i thought it was a weaker argument, and it would be foolish to exercise such power even if he had it. what i recommended, and i've said this repeatedly is that he exceeds a request for more than 100 state legislatures in the swing states to give them a week to try to sort out the impact of what everyone acknowledged was illegality in the conduct of the election. i specifically said -- >> not everyone acknowledged it, but that was the argument that was being made, obviously. and there were obviously irregularities everybody had seen, but whether it rose to the level of changing the outcome of the election, again without a legal proceeding in the states that mattered, the argument ultimately was a difficult one to make. i mean hence here we are. >> joining us now msnbc legal analyst danny cevallos. fox news host being careful there since there's already been one major settlement, lawsuit, another one coming. but there's been several experts who suggested eastman may have mostly confessed to his crimes yesterday during that interview, so let's get your take. did he actually do that? did he just do something right there that could be held against him in the court of law? did he just confess? >> jonathan, keep in mind, this is a lawyer and a law professor who may have admitted to conducts making out the elements of his crime. even with that cautionary tale there will still be defendants probably trump who will make public statements about their case that permit this kind of self-harm to their criminal case, an unforced error to use a sports analogy. it's really amazing. it always happens. even a law professor and lawyer will do it. yes, of course, this is damaging. there are two huge points that come out of this. the one everyone seems to be talking about is the fact he said, essentially, well, i didn't tell pence to not certify, i just told him to delay, which sounds a lot like impeding, which sounds a lot like the crime that he's charged with, so he's basically saying i didn't commit the crime you guys said, i just committed it a little less. this is not good for eastman. the other thing to keep in mind he's saying, whoa, whoa, i never told pence to not certify the electors, but one of his codefendants appears to have been doing exactly that. donald trump saying things like this is the time for strength, do it mike. and i'm paraphrasing, but we all remember those tweets or social media postings at the time. so now it appears that eastman is splitting from his own codefendant. that is also a bad sign for all defendants if all of their stories start differing vastly. >> so trump as we noted has officially pleaded not guilty. he does not have to make an in-person appearance next week. give us your analysis about his lawyer's effort to separate his case from the other codefendants. do you think that will be successful, and is that a smart strategy? >> it's a very smart strategy. that's why we're seeing a lot of efforts to sever. and the relative success really depends on each defendant's situation. donald trump i think has a harder case to sever because he's charged with a lot of the counts. when you look at some of the defendants that are charged with less counts and their conduct is severable from the other defendants, then they do have an argument. and i've been in multidefendant cases where you have a client only charged with a couple crimes compared to everyone else who's charged with most of them, that kind of inference of guilt in the courtroom being next to the codefendants is a real thing. so severance is something that i think is not only a good strategic move but fani willis and her team absolutely knew that this was coming. i want to point out, jonathan, we're just a few weeks into this georgia case, and because fani willis elected to charge multiple codefendants as opposed to jack smith who honed in on donald trump, this case now has multiple or will have multiple trial dates in all likelihood, and it's proceeding in two different courts, state or federal. and that's just a couple weeks in. everyone who thinks the case is going to trial this year is way out of it. >> i think despite the d.a.'s efforts i think we all acknowledge likely this case happens later than the federal election interference trial. let's get your take on the decision from the judge to allow for cameras in this courtroom which won't happen in the federal cases but will here in georgia. >> look, people are of different mind about cameras in the courtroom, and in federal court the rule has long banned them. and in federal district court will the judge allow it? the judge technically can in federal court. there's a specific rule that disallows it, so the judge can't deviate from that rule. although the rule makers could change that. but in state court where you have an existing access of two courts that includes cameras in the courtroom, then the judge needs to balance the right to a fair trial of the defendant's and the public's right of access. both very important interests, they have to be balanced. the judge has a lot of authority here to say one camera that is a camera for all, decide where it's going to point, all kinds of things the judge can do. where there's already been an a rite of access that includes cameras, that rite should continue. >> msnbc legal analyst danny cevallos, thank you for joining us this morning. still ahead here on "way too early," we'll bring you the latest on mitch mcconnell's health after he suffered another scare this week. and in reaction to that news what 2024 white house hopeful nikki haley is saying about the senate minority leader and other older politicians. those stories and a check on the aftermath of hurricane idalia when we come right back. e come . 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(vo) learn more. it's your vision, it's your verizon. ♪ chevy silverado has what it takes to do it all. with up to 13 camera views. and the z71 off-road package. ♪ you ok? yeah. any truck can help you make a living. this one helps you build a life. chevy silverado. so i didn't think i needed swiffer, until, i saw how easily it picked up my hair every time i dried it! only takes a minute. look at that! the heavy duty cloths are extra thick, for amazing trap & lock. even for his hair. wow. and for dust, i love my heavy duty duster. the fluffy fibers trap dust on contact, up high and all around without having to lift a thing. i'm so hooked. you'll love swiffer. or your money back! welcome back. as we turn to some of the morning's other headlines now a doctor says senate minority leader mitch mcconnell is fit to work after having another apparent medical episode earlier this week. in a statement yesterday the capitol's attending physician wrote that he consulted with the kentucky republican and determined that mcconnell was, quote, medically clear to continue with his schedule as planned. he added that occasional light-headedness is not uncommon in concussion recovery and can be expected as a result of dehydration. that incident came a month after a very similar one that happened on capitol hill, and that was several months after mcconnell suffered a concussion and a broken rib after falling outside a washington, d.c. hotel. despite yesterday's clearance from the doctor, a small minority of republicans are still expressing skepticism about the senator's fitness. one anominous house lawmaker tells nbc news that mcconnell needs to be more transparent because he's briefed on national security issues most other members of congress aren't. someone who is expressing public confidence in the minority leader, however, is president joe biden. speaking yesterday the president who has also faced questions surrounding his own age said he had no concerns about the fitness of friend and wormer senate colleague. >> i spoke to mitch. he's a friend. and i spoke to him today, and he was his old self on the telephone. it's not all unusual to have a response that sometimes happens with mitch when you have a severe concussion. it's part of the recovery, and so i'm confident he's going to be back to his old self. >> do you have any concerns about his ability? >> i don't. >> meanwhile republican presidential candidate nikki haley who has called for mental competency tests for lawmakers over the age of 75, so that would include both biden and trump, well, she was asked about mcconnell's latest health scare. here's what she said to say on fox news yesterday. >> it's sad. no one should feel good about seeing that anymore we should feel good about diane feinstein, anymore we're seeing a lot of what's happening or joe biden's decline. i can say the senate is one of the most privileged nursing homes in the country. mitch mcconnell has done great things and deserves credit, but you have to know when to leave. that is why i'm in strong support of term limits in this country. but these are people making decisions on our national security. they're making decisions on the economy, on the border. we need to know they're at the top of their game. you can't say that right now looking at congress. >> haley is one of the few republicans publicly questioning mcconnell's health, but privately there's a lot of worries on both sides of the aisle whether mcconnell is fit to do his job. my reporting is telling us the white house is really hoping mcconnell is able to continue in that position. mcconnell once considered a real villain for democrats but now bulled as a bulwark to trumpism and an important ally. this will be an important story in the weeks ahead. next on "way too early" we're going to turn to sports and atlanta braves superstar has a huge day on and off the field. plus espn goes dark for millions of college football fans right before the kick off of a marquee matchup. we'll explain what happened next. marquee matchup we'll explain what happened next mlb partners with t-mobile to not only enhance the fan experience, but to advance how the game is played. aaa relies on t-mobile's network to stay connected nationwide, so they can help get their members back on the road. and we're helping pano ai innovate, to stop the spread of wildfires. now's the time to see what america's largest 5g network can do for your business. trying vapes to quit smoking now's the time to see what america's largest 5g network might feel like progress, but with 3x more nicotine than a pack of cigarettes - vapes increase cravings - trapping you in an endless craving loop. nicorette reduces cravings until they're gone for good. ♪ on your period, sudden gushes happen. say goodbye gush fears! thanks to always ultra thins... with rapiddry technology... that absorbs two times faster. hellooo clean and comfortable. always. fear no gush. hammers to left center. that ball is history, and he just made history. >> ronald acuna jr. second inning grand slam propelled the atlanta braves to a win. acuna now the first player ever with at least 30 home runs and 60 stolen bases in a single season. atlanta's 8-7 win in the opener of what could be a preview of the nlcs capped a big day for acuna who also married his long time girlfriend in a small private ceremony before the game, and in a match up with another candidate mooky hit two runs, but acuna gets the last laugh in this one. sports fans tooking in one for one of the big games of the college football season were left in the dark last night because espn and abc were among channels taken off the air over a distribution dispute between charter communications which runs spectrum. the nation's largest provider has pulled nearly two dozen disney wet recollects away for nearly 15 million subscribers. that includes last night's college football game between florida and utah in salt laky city. the gators defensive end added this poking fun at the size of the utah stadium which is smaller than what they're used to. the 70-yard touch down pass on the first part of the game. utah went onto beat florida 24-11. turning now to the u.s. open tennis tournament in queens, the top ranked is one step closer to a repeat title. meanwhile the 17-year procareer ended after a five set thriller against fellow american michael mo. he announced last week he'll be retiring after the tournament. winning in straight sets to setup a third round clash with number 26 seed. it's time now for the weather and let's bring in meteorologist angie lassman for the forecast. angie, you've had a busy week. >> i've had a busy week and a holiday weekend coming up. they don't want to hear about idalia anymore, and i don't blame you, it's out to sea. we've got additional rain we could see across parts of the gulf coast in some of those areas that already had ample amounts of rain from idalia. we'll continue to watch this storm hanging out in that region, bringing potential for ample amounts of rain bringing anywhere from an inch to 2 inches. most of it is stretched across parts of the panhandle, but stretch down to sarasota we're going to see good rain. and we're dealing with the flooding over the past couple of days. and 90s in minneapolis today. the northern plains continue to see temperatures 10, 15 degrees above in some spots. indianapolis even warmer, 95 degrees. this heat will spread into parts of the midwest here as we get into early parts of next week. of course the holiday weekend looks hot across this region. mid-90s in chicago monday, tuesday we'll end up in the high 80s. cleveland yesterday of course was the last day of summer considered for meteorologists, but we're going to keep the temperatures rolling as far as these 90s go across washington, d.c. rawly will continue high conditions. the record heat will be something we keep an eye on out west. we'll see unsettled conditions for that region as we get into the holiday weekend. >> angie lassman, thank you. enjoy your long weekend. >> i will. still ahead here on "way too early," former president donald trump lashes out at ron desantis as he leads recovery efforts after that hurricane. we'll have the latest on the campaign trail next on "way too early." the campaign trail next on "way too early. welcome back to "way too early." it is just before 5:30 a.m. on the east coast, 2:30 out west. i'm jonathan lemire, thanks for being with us. florida governor ron desantis is off the campaign trail at the moment helping his state recover from hurricane idalia while donald trump is using this time to lash out at his opponent in the presidential primary race. in a series of truth social posts the former president attacked desantis on the way he manages florida, suggesting the governor approve an leck trissy rate hike after taking campaign donations from power companies. trump also implied that desantis is to blame for the state of florida's insurance industry. speaking of desantis, the super pac never back down which is supporting his candidacy, has stopped door knocking operations in nevada and california. according to nbc news the group says it's preserving its resources for the first three states to vote in the primary, which is iowa, new hampshire, and south carolina. the super pac adds the decision was also driv by what it called pro-trump efforts to tilt the primary rules in the former president's favor. the court battle has been playing out in nevada over whether to replace with a traditional state run primary. caucuses are considered to be advantageous to trump. the super pac's changes come as desantis has been struggling to close the gap between himself and the former president. his campaign also underwent a series of staff shakeups in an effort to generate momentum that has not worked to this point. joining us now national politics reporter for the hill, julia manchester. julia, good to see you this morning. so first let's talk about the governor's response to the hurricane. we have seen it. natural disasters are political moments inherently. presidents and governors are judged by their response. this storm not as bad as many forecasters had feared, but still a test for desantis. what's the sense how he handled them? >> absolutely a test. and i think oftentimes in these moments governor desantis shows his best side when he's showing his leadership in the capacity to respond to these crises. and i think it's also interesting because also in these moments you see him working very well together with the man he's challenging, president biden. i remember the 2021 building collapse in surf side, florida, and hurricane ian of course last year. during those two instances we saw governor desantis and president biden really come together to put the federal and state government's best foot forward. so you're seeing that i think again and it's interesting to see them, you know, very much complimenting each other when talking to reporters about the coordination between federal and state response. going back to the governor in particular this is always an opportunity particularly because he's running for an executive position. and, you know, i guess you could look at it and say, okay, he's off the campaign trail, he's out of these early primary caucus states like iowa and new hampshire, but he has like trump has in many cases is in a way sucking up the oxygen this week in terms of media attention, getting to be on national news showing off his executive leadership skills. so this week has been an opportunity i just want to make very clear. governor desantis is doing the job he was elected to do. he says he's not looking at this in terms of political calculations. >> that's the same what we're hearing from those close to president biden, too simply being president, being the swreskative in this case state executive and in some ways that's the best campaign play. we'll be watching that dynamic with the governor. let's talk about his super pac, though, and his decision to pull out california is one thing but nevada is another. nevada is still really early state, one that a lot of gop hopefuls need to do well in. what's your sense as to their focus of iowa, new hampshire, south carolina which truthfully are states that haven't had much success in yet, but iowa in particular looms large. >> it does. and we know desantis has made iowa number one priority so far. iowa obviously has a very strong republican grass roots base. you know, compared to other states i would say desantis plays well with that base, maybe not as trump in the polls but his team says he has reason to be optimistic. so i think this another example of them putting all their resources in these early primary states particularly iowa. now, in terms of nevada, look, i can see how that can be interpreted as a negative because we obviously know nevada goes after these other states but it's still an early state and it has to do with some of that momentum. i think it shows desantis' allies and his team have made a concerted effort to put iowa first. >> we shall see if he's able to use this response to the storm as any kind of campaign reset. national politics reporter for the hill, julia manchester, good stuff as always. thank you for joining us this morning. still ahead here on "way too early," it was supposed to be the next barbenhimer. cnbc will join us to explain plus give us an early look at the markets which are coming off their first losing month since february. we'll be right back with that. te february we'll be right back with that. my most important kitchen tool? my brain. so i choose new neuriva ultra. unlike some others, it supports 7 brain health indicators, including mental alertness from one serving. to help keep me sharp. try new neuriva ultra. think bigger. since the citi custom cash® card automatically adjusts to earn me more cash back in my top eligible 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increases low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. need to get your a1c down? you may pay as little as $10 per prescription. inez, let me ask you, you're using head and shoulders, right? only when i see flakes. then i switch back to my regular shampoo you should use it every wash, otherwise the flakes will come back. he's right, you know. is that tiny troy? the ingredients in head and shoulders keep the microbes that cause flakes at bay. microbes, really? they're always on your scalp...little rascals... but good news, there's no itchiness, dryness or flakes down here! i love tiny troy. he's the best. make every wash count! little help, please. time frau for business, and for that let's bring in cnbc's juliana tatelbaum who joins us live from london. good morning, juliana. all eyes in the west will be on the jobs report when it's released in a few hours. it's a jobs friday. what are economists predicting? >> well, it certainly is the big event investors have been waiting for. economists are looking for 170,000 jobs to be added over the course of the month. if this is true it would mark a continued slow down in the pace of creation. markets are trading modestly higher in futures in the lead up. yesterday was a mixed day on wall street. he had the s&p and the dow close lower, the nasdaq close marginally higher. and we got flew inflation data yesterday showing a cooling of price measures. so together with that inflation data this non-pharm payroll is going to be key. >> julianna, dollar stores a staple here in many cities and towns across the country but are seemingly getting slammed by what can only be described as a retail theft crisis. give us the latest. >> we got an update from dollar general yesterday reporting that the -- they're seeing a slowing in sales, inventory of unsold goods piling up. and as you said theft is on the rise. the ceo said that our core customers continue to tell us they are feeling financially constrained. now, both dollar general and dollar tree to your point have said their customers are struggling. they're pulling back on discretionary purchases, spending more on food and essentials. and dollar general erred said they're trying to avoid passing on higher prices to their customers because their customers struggling as it is. but for their company's bottom line, obviously this is difficult picture and this is part of the reason we saw shares in the discount retailer plunge yesterday, drop about 12% the stock to its lowest level in years. >> so lastly it could be easily argued that 2023 is the year of taylor swift who already has the highest grossing tour of all-time, reportedly changing peoples lives on a nightly basis. but she's announced she's not ready to stop just yet. tell us what's happening? >> no, she's not. and if you haven't been one of those lucky ones who's got their hands on concert tickets, you will have a chance to see the concert, but in movie theaters. taylor swift's heiress tour is coming to movie theaters in fall. if that date sounds familiar to you is that was the date the new exorcist movie was due to launch as well. the movie producer of the exorcist production studios decided to move the launch date of the exorcist to october 6th within hours of taylor swift announcing these new showings, just demonstrating the expectation for just how popular they're going to be. in terms of how much movie tickets $19.89 for adults, $13.30 for children and youngerults. >> man, she is a phenomenon. cnbc's julianna tatelbaum, she's lining up to see it. still ahead here the biden administration has plans for one of the largest teams at reforming gun sales in years and comes as the white house is trying to put pressure on congress to pass a stop gap spending bill. we'll get into all the important headlines next. with 3 cleaning boosters... not found in traditional dish soaps that help break down, 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(vo) learn more. it's your vision, it's your verizon. my most important kitchen tool? my brain. so i choose new neuriva ultra. unlike some others, it supports 7 brain health indicators, including mental alertness from one serving. to help keep me sharp. try new neuriva ultra. think bigger. ♪ on your period, sudden gushes happen. say goodbye gush fears! thanks to always ultra thins... with rapiddry technology... that absorbs two times faster. hellooo clean and comfortable. always. fear no gush. welcome back. president joe biden is proposing a new rule that would close the so-called gun show loophole. the plan would require anyone who is selling a gun for a profit to get a federal license and conduct a criminal background check whether they sell the weapon in a store or at a gun show. the bureau of alcohol, tobacco, firearm and explosives currently licenses roughly 80,000 brick and mortar gun dealers. however, gun sales are increasingly happening outside of that system and being done without background checks. the new rule will go through the federal rule making process and will surely be challenged in court by second amendment activists. the white house is also urging congress to pass a short-term government funding measure to avoid a shutdown at the end of the month. the biden administration is asking lawmakers to approve money for cash star programs such as nutritional aid. the office of budget and management warns a stop gap won't be enough saying programs like wick need an extra $1.4 billion. without that money officials say the government may be forced to put families on waiting lists causing women and children to go hungry and into poverty. but some house republicans want to roll back programs for nutritional aid. those far-right lawmakers are breaking from the deal that speaker kevin mccarthy negotiated with president biden back in spring to raise the nation's debt limit. that agreement was supposed to prevent another stalemate over spending. joining us now someone following this closely, white house reporter at politico. adam, great to see you this morning. so let's start there with this what seems to be impending showdown on government funding. give us just a briefing as to where everyone stands, the likelihood of a short-term resolution to keep things spending. when's the government going to run out of money? >> yeah, so the big deadline here is september 30th. congress needs to essentially solve this and get a deal that would take us through at least december through a government shutdown. if you remember we went through this back during the spring when there was concern about going over and going through the debt ceiling. that would be an economic catastrophe. congress, the president were able to work out a deal that diverted that. as part of that things would be settled once we went through the fall. we wouldn't have to egothrough another big spending fight. as you mentioned house republicans and freedom caucus have tried to go back on that deal saying actually we want to revisit it, we want more spending cuts. that's created now this stalemate. there are some big decisions going to be made when the house comes back september 12th. kevin mccarthy the speaker there needs to determine what he can get support for in his own caucus while also trying to keep his word with the deal he made with the white house. >> and certainly a part of this, too, is going to be ukraine funding and part of this negotiation. let's say a short-term resolution is reached now that kicks the can down the road to december, but will that be potentially more likely we could be staring at a government shutdown then? >> if we can somehow avoid this now, yes, there's a likelihood we're going to be back here in december. the hope, though, with the supplemental funding there's about $40 billion the white house is seeking for ukraine aid, for disaster relief like we've seen needed in hawaii and also florida and the southern states. right now that's kind of the top priority because that is money that's needed urgently just to fill the gap over the next three months. so the way the white house is looking at this, the way democrats and republicans in congress who are trying to get a short-term deal are looking at is let's just get through september 30th. we'll worry about december later on, but there's money needed now that needs to be secured now through this short-term deal. >> and adam, lastly and briefly, the gun show proposal we just read through, how likely is this proposal to become law? >> well, this is something you're seeing the administration try and do on its own. there's obviously not the bipartisan will in congress to make big changes in term of gun safety, and so this is something the administration can essentially do on its own through administrative regulations. the pathway is clear. the question is, again, what kind of lawsuits will we see? what kind of court challenges and how long that will tie up the ability for the administration to finalize that rule and get it actually into action. >> yeah, the white house had been looking for a way to find some sort of executive action they could still take. they found this. we'll see what happens in the courts. really good reporting this morning. white house reporter for politico who's traveling with the president this weekend when he goes down to see the hurricane damage down in florida. safe travels, adam. thank you for being with us this morning. up next here on "way too early," former attorney general bill barr slams donald interfe. we'll show you what barr is now saying about trump's legal strategy. then coming up on "morning joe," the former president pleads not guilty to all charges in georgia, waiving his arraignment. now, he's trying to distance himself from his 18 co-defendants. plus, two former proud boys leaders are sentenced to hard time for the capitol attack. that as we are set to learn the punishment for two more members of the extremist group when they appear in court just hours from now. also ahead, new details surrounding the travel arrangements of a billion donor provided to supreme court justice clarence thomas. what is revealed as ethics questions swirl around the supreme court. 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>> it's a dangerous place, to get into the mindset of republicans these days. i mean, they appear to be determined to lock themselves in, to going with donald trump despite the 91 felony charges. you know, jonathan, we've been talking about this for feels like, what, eight, nine, ten years now, but it's amazing to watch a party that once prided itself as the party of law and order just brushing off these criminal charges, and going into a campaign that is going to be pop marked with trials, with testimony about the criminal behavior of the former president. i don't see anything that's breaking it. i mean, "the new york times" headline says, you know, that trump may lock up the nomination before republicans know whether or not he's convicted. i'm not sure that even if he is convicted, it is going to stop republicans from nominating him in my hometown in milwaukee next summer. but it's so interesting watching bill barr, the ultimate legal loyalist, fact checking the president on all of this. of course, he's absolutely right, it's ridiculous to think that this would be delayed past the election, but this is the world we're going to be living in. we're going to have a campaign, and we're going to have televised, livestreamed trials, feels like every week of 2024. >> yeah, and there is some thought that republican primary opponents might be reluctant to criticize trump directly but could make the electability argument, saying, "hey, these charges are nonsense. trump is the victim of a witch hunt, but, hey, they exist and he can't win." polls suggest voters don't agree. they think he can win. let's switch to the other side. you had a conversation with mike murphy, political strategist, on your pod cast this week about president biden's re-election bid. gives your breakdown as to biden's top strengths but also biggest weaknesses. >> well, i mean, biden's biggest strength right now, of course, he is the incumbent and running against donald trump. but he's got two huge problems, and democrats shouldn't be in denial about them. number one is his age, which is just a reality. it comes up in absolutely every conversation you have with voters. it is just not going away. number two, the perception that the economy is not going well. now, i know all the statistics. as mike murphy pointed out, the way that voters are living the economy can't be ignored. inflation is up. they are worried about the price of everything. they're worried about high interest rates, whether their kids can afford college or be able to afford a house. car payments are going up. between these things, these are real dangerous, and this complicates the argument about electability. because if joe biden was in a stronger position, the case against donald trump would be stronger. but the reality is, he's got some very severe poll numbers, and he is vulnerable. i think that -- what mike murphy is saying, we need to have this conversation right now before the democrats lock in on joe biden, which they apparently have done, and the republicans lock in on donald trump. he's also pointing out that the biden folks have to be prepared for a plan b. what if? what if? what if donald trump is not the nominee? what if they find themselves across from a nikki haley, for example, next november? that ought to make democrats nervous. >> yeah, if it's not trump, the dynamics of the race change dramatically. i know there's a lot of democrats who look at the -- see all the negatives in trump's column, yet see the polls between trump and biden more or less a dead heat. the white house believes next year, when it matters, there will be more economic growth, which will help biden, and also the legal problems, as trump is literally sitting in a courtroom, that will drag down his numbers further. that is the case they are making. we shall see. founder of the conservative website, the bulwark, charlie sykes, we'll talk to you again later on on "morning joe." thanks for joining us this morning. thanks for getting up "way too early" on this friday morning and all week long. have a great weekend, everybody. "morning joe" starts right now. let me just say this. you know, these are the distractions that get you to lose elections. the last time we were talking about special sessions here in the state of georgia, just a few weeks later, the republican majority lost two u.s. senate races. i can tell you, as long as i am governor, we are going to stay focused on the issues that help all georgians. that is the way you win races. that is the way you move forward. not focusing on the past or some grift or scam that somebody is doing to help them raise a few dollars into their campaign account. >> georgia's republican governor, brian kemp, with some strong words, obviously talking there about donald trump, and calling out far-right members of his party who want a special session to remove the district attorney prosecuting donald trumpment. he says it's not going to happen on his watch. the former president officially pleads not guilty in the fulton county election interference case. we'll have much more on all of that in a moment. plus, a republican presidential candidate again calling for term limits in the senate following mitch mcconnell's latest health scare.