casting their ballots for uncommitted. >> if he doesn't get it together and change, what he is doing, we will not vote for him in november. >> hunter biden is testifying behind closed doors to the house oversight committee. >> i am telling you that this is a waste of time and we need to get back to this peoples work. i am tired, the republicans are going to lose the house. y'all run this back for them when they do. >> mitch mcconnell is stepping down as leader of the republican party in the senate. >> it's time for the next generation of leadership. >> more than 100 people were killed during a violent scene at a food distribution effort. >> a palestinian eyewitness tells msnbc news, israeli forces opened fire at the crowd before the trucks arrived. israel telling a different story, saying many were killed in a stampede near the trucks. >> the health ministry puts the gaza death toll from the war at over 30,000. >> president biden and former president trump, visiting the southern border. >> this is a biden invasion over the past three years. >> -- politics with the issue, when we just get together and get it done? >> you heard it from her. congresswoman jasmine crockett saying, quote, i am telling you that this is a waste of time and we need to get back to the people's work. the republicans are going to lose the house and y'all run this back for them when they do. we will have congresswoman crockett later on. she never vince's words on this week, she has a lot to say about the gop chaos caucus. she will bring more of that trademark fire in the show as she shares what went down behind closed doors in the farce that is the hunter biden investigation. we it was a dark and rainy day in atlanta yesterday, as closing arguments were made in an evidentiary hearing to determine if fulton county district attorney fani willis should be disqualified from continuing to prosecute donald trump's r.i.c.o. case. the state, calling the defense's efforts to disqualify willis a desperate attempt to remove a prosecutor from a case for absolutely no reason. other than harassment and embarrassment. and trump lawyer steve saydel arguing that once you have the appearance of a propriety, that is enough to disqualify. but the question of whether the defense met their burden of proof still remains. judge mcafee saying, he would rule in the next two weeks and if the motion is granted, the racketeering case against donald trump could be entirely upended. joining me now, anthony michael christ, assistant professor of law at georgia state university. anthony, you and i have been following this case intently for several months. you were also present yesterday, as was i, when we were listening to these closing arguments. straight out of the gate. i want to know your prediction on how judge mcafee is going to rule. >> i think it is very unlikely he will disqualify the fulton county district attorney's office from the case. namely, because the burden of production in terms of evidence rests with the defense here and so, there is one really important piece of unrelated evidence, which is that fani willis -- relationship and it before the indictments were handed down by the fulton county grand jury and before charging decisions, and charging recommendations were made to that fulton county grand jury. i think that's really the key point here. in terms of the timing and i think that the standard is wrong in terms of what the defendants are arguing. i think georgia law is very clear, actual concrete conflict of interest must -- in order to disqualify district attorney's office from a case. >> so, anthony, let's say on this because there was a lot of questions as you heard peppered to the defense by the judge in this case, as to the burden of proof. i heard judge mcafee saying, hey, preponderance of the evidence is the standard. but to steve say though he said, suggestions of wrongdoing certainly do not meet that burden. do you agree with how judge mcafee was asking the defense whether or not they understood whether burn was? >> it did seem as if there is a little confusion there. i think we really the bottom of that issue here is, you know, you can't have a scenario where the defense attorney brings in, you know, these allegations, salacious or otherwise, that we're all had and no cattle, and then muddy up the process just efficiently enough to say well, now there is an appearance of propriety in the eye of a reasonable observer, in the public. so, i think that's really a problematic dynamic that you would interject into the criminal justice system. of course, we want prosecutors to, you know, discharge their duties faithfully and to not make -- with rather that defendants are not taken advantage of or at the process is not abused in any sort of way. but part i think prosecutors are partisans, right? necessarily, so, and so we have to really figure out what that balance is. we also have to make sure that when allegations are brought, they are substantiated and really, in my view at least, the defense has not produced the evidence to suggest anything untoward happen to the extent that fani willis profited from this prosecution, that there is just really nothing there in that sense. >> you know, anthony, we've been stuck on this idea of actual conflict of interest versus appearance of impropriety. the defense, i thought, trying to play cute a little bit yesterday. too clever by half, trying to tell judge mcafee that it should be appearance of impropriety. however, you are the law professor. educate our viewers, is it actual conflict of interest or is it appearance of impropriety? >> i think it is actual conflict. the appearance of impropriety standard is one of these four judges. judges are different than prosecutors. judges are adjudicators, they are to be impartial and fair. that is essential to the criminal justice system working well. but prosecutors are adversarial, they are not team defendant. and so, different standards have to apply. the history of the -- disqualification in georgia goes back to 1860 and in 1860, the statute that we still pretty much have today in some way, shape, or form, is talking about a common law standard for disqualification, from an interest rate and direct pecuniary interest, money lining the pockets to prosecutor or relationship. for example, the prosecutor is close with a witness, used to represent a defendant, knows the victim, something of that nature that would call into question their ability to bring the case fairly. and that is a high standard to prove. is it an old standard? so, i think what the defense are trying to do here is import a new standard that is not consistent with georgia case law, nor the common law origins and statutory history behind the disqualification statute that is still on the books today >> always so smart and so informative. i'm out of time, anthony. but i invite the viewers to go and look at the atlanta journal of constitution. you wrote an exceptional piece tracking the history of a statute and really taking a deep dive in terms of what is going on with this disqualification. i appreciate you being here, anthony michael christ, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> meanwhile, we are going to go back to florida, where trump appointed federal judge, aileen cannon, heard arguments yesterday in trump's classified documents case. now, while there's technically still a may trial date for now, trump attorney todd blanche winds that it would be unfair to the former president to put him on trial before the november election, saying, quote, we very much continue to believe that a trial that takes place before the election is a mistake and should not happen. special counsel jack smith's team urging judge cannon to agree to at least a july trial start, but cannon already expressing doubts. while she's yet to make an official ruling, her infamously sympathetic aired to donald trump is leading some to believe that he just might get his way. joining me now for more is paul butler, msnbc legal analyst and professor of law at georgetown law school. you know, paul, let's talk about what happened yesterday. there was zero ruling from the judge from the bench. there is still a may trial date -- paul conventional wisdom suggests we're not going to trial in may. i want you to talk about, paul, the fact that the supreme court just took up that once it's -- federal election -- presidential immunity and whether or not you thought that weight on judge cannon at all in terms of her considerations of a new trial date. >> so, it didn't come up yesterday. donald trump thinks he should be immune from prosecution over classified documents, just like he should be immune for trying to -- the election,. the issue of the supreme court is deciding in the d.c. case is whether a former president has immunity for acts he committed when he was president. the classified documents case, trump is making a different argument. he's charged for conduct after he left the white house. so, he is saying that he should not be prosecuted. he's could actually asked supreme court to take up this issue as a separate case, which would cause even more delay. >> yeah, you know, paul, something that stood out to me also was the fact that judge cannon brought up the 60-day rule herself, right? judge cannon, asking whether or not the 60-day rule applied. now, this is a judge. this is an impartial jurors who supposed to be just calling balls and strikes down the middle. why would judge cannon be asking about the doj, specifically, about the 60-day rule? >> that's a really good question, katie. the 60-day rule isn't even part of the federal criminal code. it's a doj policy about what prosecutors are investigating a politician. they're not supposed to take over acts like executing a search warrant shortly before an election. but this policy does not apply to ongoing prosecutions, so for example, if trump is already on trial in florida or d.c., the judge -- trial just because it's 60 days before the election. >> paul, let's also talk about the fact that donald trump keeps pushing the limits and the boundaries of getting information that should be protected, sealed, and otherwise not available. i'm not even talking about the classified top secret documents themselves in the discovery process. i'm talking about the motions filed to compel the turning over, by the government, of the names of witnesses and other people that participated in the investigatory process. >> right, he wants to make the names of the witnesses public, katie. there is no good reason for him to do that. and jack smith has legitimate concerns that those witnesses would be subject to threats and intimidation. but that is what has happened to witnesses, judges, and prosecutors in trump's other cases. but you know, i think the real takeaway from yesterday's just how trump's defense team thinks that judge aileen cannon is going to cooperate with their delay tactics. they claim that the trial needs to happen after the election, otherwise it's political persecution and election interference. but kd, then they were cool with having the trial before the election, as long as it's in august. they didn't mean that. the defense is playing this chess game to try to delay everything. if judge cannon sets her trial for august, that boxes out judge chutkan, who says -- her trial in september. and then as we get closer to the august trial date, judge cannon is likely to be sympathetic to more and more delay, pushing both federal trials after the election, which, as you know, katie, could mean that they will never happen. which >> then means, paul, we've got a focus on the manhattan d.a.'s case that goes to trial on march 25th. we've got to see what happens in fulton county, with fani willis. paul butler, as always, my friend, it's good to see you and thanks for getting us started. i appreciate it. it and still to come on the katie phang show, decision 2024. you've got multiple caucuses set to kick off today. in the states of idaho and missouri. and there's a look ahead to this week's make-or-break super tuesday that could determine the future of nikki haley's languishing bid for the oval office. that is up next. hing m are an easy way to get prebiotic, plant-based fiber. with the same amount of fiber as 2 cups of broccoli. metamucil gummies the easy way to get your daily fiber. an alternative to pills, voltaren is a clinically proven arthritis pain relief gel, which penetrates deep to target the source of pain with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicine directly at the source. voltaren, the joy of movement. it's hard to explain what this feels like. ♪♪ moving piles of earth. towing up to 4,000 lbs. cutting millions of blades of grass. nothing compares to experiencing it for yourself. you just have to get in the seat. it's time to feed the dogs real food, not highly processed pellets. the farmer's dog is fresh food made with whole meat and veggies. it's not dry food. it's not wet food. it's just real food. it's an idea whose time has come. what is cirkul? cirkul is the fuel you need to take flight. cirkul is the energy that gets you to the next level. cirkul is what you hope for when life tosses lemons your way. cirkul, available at walmart and drinkcirkul.com. when my doctor gave me breztri for my copd, things changed for me. breztri gave me better breathing, symptom improvement, and reduced flare—ups. breztri won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. it is not for asthma. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. don't take breztri more than prescribed. breztri may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. ask your doctor about breztri. with nurtec odt, i can treat a migraine when it strikes and prevent migraine attacks, all in one. don't take if allergic to nurtec. allergic reactions can occur, even days after using. most common side effects were nausea, indigestion, and stomach pain. ask about nurtec odt. this weekend republicans are gathering in force dates to other helps amanda trump lead or help nikki haley finally win at least one time in the race for the republican presidential nomination. today caucuses are being held in idaho and missouri with a party convention in michigan. on sunday, washington d.c. will hold its caucus. the biggest competition comes in just three days, on super tuesday, when 16 states and want territory are holding a caucus or primary. 865 delegates are up for grabs. it is do or die time if nikki haley hopes to stay in the race past next week. nbc news is kristen welker asked her this week if super tuesday could be her last stand. >> we are looking at a, we are hoping for a good competitive showing. that has always been the case at every step. can we continue to stay competitive? 70% of americans say they don't want all of trump or joe biden. you keep going to make sure people have a choice. >> doesn't sound like a note to me. joining me now is david jolly, nbc political analyst, former political congressman from florida, and amelia julian a political strategist and one of my favorite young people. dave it and olivia, thank you for joining us this morning. david, i want to start with you. nikki haley seems to be lowering expectations ahead of super tuesday, though she has been strong about trying to keep in until the bitter end. what it is going to be, dave? it is she going to say, peace, out after tuesday night? >> she should. she should've said it after new hampshire, certainly after south carolina. it leaves you asking, why has she stayed in? vanity's powerful in politics. certainly some of this is vanity. let's take her out her word. she thinks voters who are asking for choice deserve to have one on the ballot. if so, good for her. statistically that is exactly right. there is a movement among republicans who don't want donald trump. the question is, if she is mobilizing that constituency. it's so important that they have another choice, what does she do for them when the republican primaries over? what she had indicated as she will fold in behind donald trump and presumably asked those voters to folded behind donald trump. so what is the tech side all about? unless she actually says, i'm not sure donald trump is the right person against joe biden. she has equivocated so much on that and actually suggested in her own words that biden, somehow, is more dangerous than donald trump. i think partisan politics are in play here. she has mobilize this constituency. the question is, where do they go and you can hear the drops out? >> wouldn't it be such a shocker she actually said, vote for joe biden. no, it won't happen but we can imagine. olivia, this week president biden overwhelmingly won the michigan presidential primary over 100,000 voters cast their ballot for, quote, uncommitted because of his handling in the war of gaza. this group notably includes arab americans and young people who are now looking to expand this movement other states, as well. is biden fumbling the way he is approaching this particular issue? >> i think the president has taken a stance that i think a lot of people are very surprised about in terms of, this is the first time in a long time we've had a president so openly, strongly, and vocally say he believes there should be a two-state peaceful solution. i think the biggest issue we are seeing amongst young people is a lot of people don't really know what the president's stance on the issue is. i've been knocking on doors and houston, i've been on college campuses in houston talking to folks. a lot of times people ask me that. do you support a peaceful two- state solution? do you supported bilateral cease-fire? if the answer is yes, you have the stance that the president has. what we saw michigan's there are a lot of people making their voice heard. they were participating in our democracy in a way we have designed the system to participate. when i look at the michigan results as the two things. number one, if you look at the numbers compared to 2012, we see a stark increase in the number of michigan democratic primary voters, number one. we also seeing a large number of those voters voted overwhelmingly for joe biden. i think that this is an issue that will matter to a lot of voters in states, particularly michigan. i think the numbers show overwhelmingly the american people are standing with the president on this issue. those who did vote, uncommitted, are either going to not vote for joe biden in november, or maybe vote for a third party candidate. i don't see anyone in that group voting for donald trump. >> david, i just spoke to paul butler in the segment before this one about the fact that we probably won't see the documents case, the classified documents case go to trial before november. you and i have spoken before about the idea that voters should have the most anchored idea of the lay of the land before they go into those ballot booze, before they go into vote. do you really think that maga voters care whether or not donald trump is convicted or not? >> now. maga voters. don't i don't know if persuadable voters do you. this race will come down to 68% of voters who are truly persuadable. the rest are not. they will vote in relatively partisan behavior. whether they feel the partisanship, or not. it is just their performance pattern. the six foot 8% move because of donald trump criminality or his autocratic leaning? it does not really appear to. there is certainly a threat among those persuadable's that there could be too much trump, too much chaos. the arguments nikki haley is making. at least see poll after poll, including a major pull out today, it does not appear that donald trump's criminality really impacts this race. it is amazing to see that. the one wildcard i would suggest is what if there is a jack smith january 6th conviction in october? let's say it all works out. we get a conviction. it's such a pregnant question. we have not seen the dynamic of a conviction on those persuadable voters. thus far joe biden needs to focus on the economy, liberty, reproductive rights. issues that matter those that are showing up in polls. it is not, remarkably, sadly, donald trump criminality. >> olivia, to david's point, this week alabama say lawmakers passed legislation to protect ivf after backlash from the states supreme court ruling. meanwhile, vice president kamala harris going on reproductive rights tour across the country. how important of an issue do you see ivf access being for voters in november? >> i think it is an incredibly important issue. not necessarily because of the specifics of ivf access itself but rather the message it is. sending this was never about just roe v. wade. this was never a states rights issue. it was always about controlling women's bodies, passing stricter bans on abortions. as an abortion rights activist myself, one who has been on the ground in many of these states, i can tell you that we have known for years that this was never about roe. the ivf was just next on their list of attacks. after this it will be birth control. access it'll be abortion medication access. the supreme court is slated to hear two more abortion access cases this summer regarding -- which has to do with emergency medical care. emergency abortion care. medication abortion access. these will be incredibly important to voters when they go to the polls in november. it'll be important not just a highly engage voters but to young voters, as well. abortion is one of the main issues that young people vote. on when i talk to people on campuses who are casually engaged in politics, they tell me that is the most important issue to. them that is why they voting for democrats. there are a lot of pundits who will say things, like, it's an abortion that's gonna be the main issue. it'll be the economy. it'll be foreign policy. it'll be any other number of issues. to them i say, a lot of you are the same ponds who said it would not be a motivating issue going into the 2022 cycle. what should've been a red wave ended up being a are plus two year where republicans barely took the house. the chaos they've had since has really shown the people where we need to stand on this issue. >> david jolly, olivia julian a, thank you both for your insight and analysis. i really appreciate it. coming up next, averting disaster. lawmakers on capitol hill have staved off yet another government shutdown, for now. they are still wasting americans time and money tilting at windmills congresswoman jasmine crockett joins me next on the gop dysfunction and the chaos keeping our government from being securely funded. but first, airdropping aid inside the biden administration's plan to end up food aid into gaza as the threat of famine grows by the day. don't go anywhere. go anywhere. . just buy any footlong in the app and get one free. just scan the qr code and enter promo code flbogo. it only works from the other side of the screen, buddy. you still got a land line in your house. order now in the subway app. rsv can severely affect the lungs and lower airways. but i'm protected with arexvy. arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. rsv can be serious for those over 60, including those with asthma, diabetes, copd, and certain other conditions. but i'm protected. arexvy is proven to be over 82% effective in preventing lower respiratory disease from rsv and over 94% effective in those with these health conditions. arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects are injection site pain, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and joint pain. i chose arexvy. rsv? 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( ♪ ♪ ) i launched our campaign at this union hall. with no heavy perfumes let's go win this thing! then we hit the road and never stopped. you shared with me your frustration at working harder to barely get by and afford a place to live. your fears for our democracy and freedoms and your dreams for yourself, your family, and the future. it is not too late to realize those dreams. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message because together we can still get big things done. we are trying to work out india between israel and hamas, hostages being returned and anna medias in gaza for at least the next six weeks to allow a surge of a that the entire gaza strip needs, not just the south. >> we are following breaking news out of gaza this afternoon. the united states air force making its first airdrop of humanitarian aid and a combined effort with the wild running air force. the 38,000 meals into the war torn area. this comes just days after 100 people were killed and more than 760 were injured when israeli forces allegedly opened fire on a crowd of palestinians waiting to get food from a tracks in gaza city. the united nations saying one in four people in gaza is facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity and famine is, quote, almost inevitable. according to an egyptian government source, to high- level delegations from israel and hamas are expected to arrive in cairo tomorrow to discuss a possible truce between israel and hamas. the prospect of israel allowing 500 trucks carrying humanitarian aid in fuel to enter gaza daily. turning now to the narrowly averted crisis for the american government. president biden signing, yet again, a short term funding bill yesterday, averting a partial government shutdown this weekend. this is the fourth stopgap measure signed this year as the chaos in the gop led house is keeping lawmakers from getting one of their most important jobs done. funding our government. joining me now is texas congresswoman, jasmine congregate. member of the house oversight and accountability committee. congresswoman, okay. fourth time we have to negotiate a funding deal? why is this going on? we are just kicking the can down the road. i really want viewers and americans to understand that this is all because of the republicans. . you said why and you answered your own question. you are right, it is because of the republicans. first of all, it is great to see you my friend. especially at this later hour. no, it is really unfortunate that we are dealing with so many serious issues. when you opened up your monologue you talked about the aid to gaza. we have serious things that the world is relying on us to try to intercede into or to actually solve on behalf of them. the republican run house can't even do the very basics of our job. to make sure we can keep our own lights on. it is problematic, especially because it is not a member of whether or not we have members. whether or not members are showing up to work. it is a matter of, are we getting any work done? the answer is, unequivocally, no. we are not getting any work done. the only thing they have on their agenda is the play more and more games and to do whatever russian propaganda peddling they can do. or whatever trump agenda items is what they're pretty much handling right now. nothing as relates to the agenda of the american people. >> at the top of that trump agenda is, number one, baseless impeachment inquiries. you were there for the hunter biden deposition occurring behind closed doors. although hunter biden always offered to do publicly. tell us about what happened. >> it was a nothing burger. i knew it would be. what did you think was going to happen? did you think hunter biden was going to walk in and say, hey, yeah, my dad is corrupt. i'm corrupt. lock us all up. that was never going to happen in 1 million years. i will tell you that i was in extremely impressed with the amount of composure that hunter had. we are talking about someone who was continually under attack from the right for no other reason than the fact that he's the sitting president son. they feel as if he is a good target because he has a history of drug abuse. one of the things he mentioned while we were in this closed- door deposition was the fact, you know what? everyone sitting in this room probably has had someone who has been impacted by drug abuse. i thought that was a really salient point he was making. not only that it was true, but it brought the humanity of the situation into focus, right? the idea is, they are attacking someone. chances are someone that they know and/or love has struggled in a similar way. i am sure they would take exception if, for some reason, one of their friends or family members was attacked in this way. >> i do have to ask you about your home state of texas. wildfires there. more than 1 million acres impacted. at least two people have died, how are things going to happen in terms of primary voting coming up on tuesday with everything going on in terms of those raging wildfires in your home stay? >> i have no idea of what they are going to do with their elections, specifically in that part of the state. i do want to say, number, one my heart goes out to every single person who is directly or indirectly impacted by this. as someone who serves on the agriculture committee, we've been talking about the level of water and a level dryness that exist in this particular reason for a while. i really want republicans to get serious about representing those who typically elect them in rural america. we have to do something on climate change. i know they hate the phraseology, i know we have not gotten through the farm bill. we are talking about farmers and ranchers being impacted. not to mention the environmental impact this is going to have on our community. we as americans, not democrats or republicans, but americans need to get serious about climate change and start to leave this world in a way that we can. the biden harris administration has done and immense of out of work in this area. the reality is as you opened up, this has been a do-nothing congress. if we are going to do something, not only for those in texas, but those across the country and those in this world, we have to be serious about climate change. this is a great opportunity to start to get serious about it. >> congresswoman jasmine crockett, my friend, good to see you. thank you for being here, as always. coming up, the state of our union. looking ahead to president biden's address for a joint session of congress on thursday. presidential historian michael beschloss joins me next if a speech can change the hearts and minds of voters ahead of november. arts and minds of voters ahead of november. a migraine when it strikes and prevent migraine attacks, all in one. don't take if allergic to nurtec. allergic reactions can occur, even days after using. most common side effects were nausea, indigestion, and stomach pain. ask about nurtec odt. you always got your mind on the green. not you. you! your business bank account with quickbooks money now earns 5% apy. 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(vo) make the switch. it's your business. it's your verizon. >> i've come to fulfill my constitutional obligation to report the stated in. here is my report. because the soul of this nation is strong, the backbone of this nation is strong, the people of this nation are strong, the state of the union is strong. >> president biden will deliver his annual state of the union address on thursday with continued warriors in ukraine and gaza, disarray in congress, a tight race for the white house between the twice impeached, quadruple indicted, -- donald trump an incumbent president joe biden, is the state of the union still strong? joining me now is presidential historian and author of the presidents of war, the epic story from 1807 to modern times, michael beschloss. michael, my friend, i don't usually get to spend time with you on the weekend. i am honored you are joining us today. >> congratulations on the newly time show. >> thank you, i very much appreciate that. can you start us off with a little bit of history? why do we have a state of the union address? specifically now, we have a 24 hour news cycle. is it still a reason to do this? do the reason still exist? >> the basic reason is, to this day, it is a requirement of the constitution. saying the president of united states shelf, from time to time report to congress. that was done in a somewhat lucky way for much of american history it was done in writing but the big change was 1966. lyndon johnson was president. i won't do my bad lyndon johnson invitation. he said, why do we have a president do this at noon time while people are work? why don't we do it impromptu v. that is when this began. the result is that since 1966, it fluctuates, but this has been one of the biggest platforms the president of the united states can have especially in an election year, like now. >> your thoughts about the fact that the gop has selected alabama senator, katie britt, to be able to give the republican response, or retort, to biden's thursday night state of the union. obviously alabama has been in the spotlight within the last few days, considering the decision from the alabama supreme court on ivf. alabama is always making the headlines for the worst reasons. your thoughts on what you anticipate or role is going to be on thursday? >> it is like abraham lincoln used to say. his speech will be little noted or long remembered. i'm afraid that's true for most responses to state of the union addresses. how many can you and i quote from? this year, bad luck for the republicans. they have set up joe biden to talk about ivf, to talk about alabama. basically forced her into a position where she is going to have to reply to that majority view that ivf should be preserved. >> michael, i also wanted to have you won. timing is what it is. but to talk about the fact that we are now looking at a united states preen court that has its lowest ratings in terms of trust worthiness from americans. they have now decided to give donald trump the grace of the space of taking up the time to address this idea that donald trump is king. that he has absolute immunity. considering the breath of your knowledge about american presidencies, american presidents, what they have stood for and what they have fallen for, your thoughts about the fact the supreme court would actually take up this decision and whether you can predict what you think this particular scotus would do? >> there is every sign that this is a way of buying time for donald trump by a supreme court majority, close to a majority, that would perhaps like to see him elected. i wouldn't say that about any other supreme court in american history. it has now become extremely political. we americans are absolutely right and being very dubious and skeptical of the motives of the people who made this decision. are we to believe the supreme court is taking this on because they think it is an absolutely defensible notion that a president can, as was said in public not longer go, higher s.e.a.l. team six to assassinate his political opponents? if this was something very much in the balance he would want the supreme court to weigh in. from the majority of americans, they feel that this is a cheap political way of delaying perhaps two federal trials that could damage donald trump in an election year. the supreme courts -- already extremely low, it is going to sink in a way that is really dangerous. >> have we reach some measure of a historical inflection point when it comes to the blurring of the lines of the branches that are supposed to be separate? your executive branch being separate from your judiciary. one not controlling the other or being unduly influenced or swayed by the other. the other idea of church and state being separate. again, i reference that ivf decision. repeated references to the bible in that particular decision. are we at a point where those lines of demarcation no longer exist? >> these discussions are on the table in a way that, certainly, you and i have not seen in our lifetimes. for most of american history all of those ideas were off the table. the idea that church and state should be separated. that congress will be separated from the executive branch. donald trump has made it quite clear that if he gets to be president, if there is a republican majority in congress, he expects it to do what he tells them. that is totally un-american, as you well know. against james madison, against the constitution. that's for the supreme court justices that seem to be very eagle to help donald trump becomes president, they should remember that in dictatorships, if there is something like a supreme court, the supreme court quickly becomes relevant. that will happen this year if donald trump does get a like, it does dominant congress. does go through with his plans to become a dictator. that is how serious the. >> then we should listen when he speaks. he's telling us what he is planning to do. >> he certainly is. >> thank you, again, for telling us. >> thank you, katie. great to see you as always. >> after the break. ex pat excellence. chinese american filmmaker joins me next underwriting her new critically claimed amazon studios series, expats. how she is keeping up the momentum behind telling unheard api stories on the screen. s on. when you're a small business owner, your to-do list can be...a lot. ♪♪ [ cellphone whooshes ] [ sighs ] that's why progressive makes it easy to save with a commercial auto quote online so you can take on all your others to-dos. already did. see if you could save at progressivecommercial.com. right now you can get a free footlong at subway. just buy any footlong in the app and get one free. just scan the qr code and enter promo code flbogo. it only works from the other side of the screen, buddy. you still got a land line in your house. order now in the subway app. here's to getting better with age. here's to beating these two every thursday. help fuel today with boost high protein, complete nutrition you need... ...without the stuff you don't. so, here's to now. boost. >> not a moment goes by when i'm not thinking about what i've done. people like me, will they ever move on? >> you are not betraying anyone by trying to live a better life. >> we all need to keep on living. even you. >> every parent's worst nightmare. the sudden disappearance of a child. the new critically claimed amazon series, ex pats, explores how that trauma reverberates in the relationship between three american women living abroad in hong kong. we show also examines the class dynamics of the wealthy expatriate community where relationships are intense, deep, and fleeting. joining me now is lulu wong, ryder, director, and creator of ex pats now streaming on prime video. lulu, thank you so much for joining us today. the theme of adjusting to a foreign country is actually personal for you. your family moved from mainland china to the united states when you are just six years old. how much did you draw on that personal experience when you were adapting this novel? >> thank you. yeah, i definitely drew on the fact that i was a foreigner coming to america. i also drew on the fact that now, when i travel back to asia, i am also a foreigner there. i think for me my identity as a foreigner no matter where i go an immigrant in one place and an ex pat in another place. that is what inspired this. >> i read somewhere that you referred to herself, sometimes, as being a chameleon. this idea that you try to fit in indifferent communities based upon where you find yourself. >> -- i also refer to myself as a chameleon. i have some regrets now that i'm older than i did more fully embrace being korean when i was growing up. i was so intent on being integrated into american culture, american society. do you still feel like you are an outsider when you are working in another country, or living in another country, or when you are here in the united states? >> i think i have an awareness of the space that i occupy. no matter where i am, i do notice i shift my personality. my partner, for example, came back to china with me for the first time in 2019. he said, you are totally different person. you are still you but you here and you speak this other language. you navigate in this language, in this culture, you are very different. something that we don't see in ourselves maybe but as i get older it is definitely something i want to embrace. >> something about ex pats that i really love is this idea that we see that wealth and the privilege of ex pats in hong kong. you dedicated an entire episode, no spoilers because i want everyone to go and watch this entire series. but there is one specific episode, the penultimate episode. focusing on the helpers in hong kong. made, babylon, cooks. these are actual expat themselves, right? coming from countries like the philippines, indonesia, malaysia. you showed what their life was like. the fact that they are so personally involved in these lives, intimately, of others and yet in a lot of ways they are fungible-y replaceable with others. >> exactly. it is a show about women in society and i knew i couldn't tell that story -- you walk out on the streets in hong kong on sunday, there are hundreds and thousands of women on the streets. it is their day off. that sense of community, their sacrifices. it is really important to see the juxtaposition of their lives next to the ex pats. >> what about actually taking the characters from the book, that were why, and making them minorities? aapi, in the series the ex fats that you did. why that conscious decision to be able to do that from the book, as translated to the screen? >> for me it was just more interesting. i felt like there was more story. i don't like to attach a moral value to this idea of representation. i think that that feels inauthentic. it can feel like, your vegetables. i think this opens up a whole world of another culture, another identity, other storylines that we can explore that is interesting. >> lulu wang, this work has been spectacular. i am incredibly proud as a fellow aa p.i. that you are doing this. i'm also glad you are getting the visibility you deserve. i invite everyone who's tuned in right now to please go and watch expats. it is an amazing series. i've been telling everybody about. i am completely. expense can play waits you you next. lulu wang, we appreciate. >> thank you so much for having me. >> thanks to all of you for joining us today. catch me back here next saturday at noon eastern. remember to follow us on social media using the handle, at katie phang show. catch clips of the show on youtube and listen to every episode of the katie phang show as a podcast for free. scan that q r code on your screen and follow now. don't go anywhere, yasmin vossoughian is in for alex witt next on msnbc reports. ex witt next on msnbc reports. i brought in ensure max protein with 30 grams of protein! those who tried me felt more energy in just two weeks. -ugh. -here, i'll take that. woo hoo! ensure max protein, 30 grams protein, 1 gram sugar, 25 vitamins and minerals. and a new fiber blend with a prebiotic. 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