What will the country say if the president says i need 5 billion for that. It will make a real difference. The people of california take responsibility for it as well and comes down to taxes also. Stephanie ruhle and ali velshi. See you in an hour. It is 175 days of the trumps presidency. The president has been dominated by one central question. What ties if any does donald trump have to russia. Saturday on fox news a friendly interviewer asked him directly. I am going to ask you, are you now or have you ever worked for russia mr. President . I think thats the most insulting thing i have ever been asked. I think it is the most insulting article. The president tried again. Mr. President yes or n no have you or have you ever worked for russia . You know that answer better than anybody. I never worked for russia. Not only did i never work for russia. It is a disgrace that you even asked that question. It is a whole big fat hoax. It is just a hoax. At one point in time that question might have seen over the top. Not today, not after two bewildering reports over the weekend. One in the New York Times revealed after donald trump fired james comey, the fbi was quote so concerned by the president s behavior that they began investigating whether he had been working on behalf of russia against american interests. According to Law Enforcement officials and others familiar to the investigation. Thats to say the fbi actively wonder if the president of the United States could be a russian spy. The other report from the Washington Post raise similar questions specifically about his relationship with Vladimir Putin. Quote, President Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversation with Vladimir Putin including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing him not to discuss what transpires with other officials. On day 725, this might feel more of the same. It is hard to over state how weird this behavior is which is why democrats now say they want to know more. Thats why they have been saying it all along. Now at least in the house, they are actually in a position to try and find out. What we are not going to do is sit back and do nothing. Well try to get to the bottom of this. There are so many questions raised. Why is he chatting with Vladimir Putin . This man whos former kgb agent and never been a friend of the United States and invaded our allies and threatens ed us arou the world. Why is this President Trumps best buddy. Our investigation is not quite two years in. We literally spoken to hundreds of witnesses we may have spoken to more witnesses than mueller. We have a very important story to tell to the american public. The big question we are asking today is one that well ask before and one that i am sure well ask again. What is donald trump hiding . Joining me Geoff Bennett is in new orleans. Our National Security reporter, Julia Ainsley and our ari mel r melber. Jeff, that first question to you, white houses aides reportedly concerned that the president did not flat out saying no. Whats happening after those two reports . Reporter it is a great question. The other thing white house officials tell us that President Trump has said all along that he wants to forge a better relationship with russia so their point is we should not be surprised by his approach and they are right to appoint, president s do have the prerogative to forge better relationships with countries that were at one point and adversary. Nixon did that with china and obama did that with cuba. When it comes to trump and russia, not only the president fully articulated, why he wants to have the better relationship, california has a bigger economy than russia does. When it comes to trump and russia, you now have or had fbi officials so unnerved and unsettled by the president s actions and behavior that they took the precedent steps to launch the investigation and they took the added steps just this past weekend of taking their stories to the New York Times. Those two for sure are reasons for people to be alarmed. Republicans have responded to this including king who was on fox earlier this morning. Lets listen to him. For the fbi to use that legitimate firing as an excuse to launch an investigation of the president of the United States as whether or not he was a spy, thats almost like a code within the government. Thats absolutely disgraceful to have no evidence at all and investigating the president of the United States. What this does, this is not indictment of President Trump, this is indictment of the fbi leadership and proves what President Trump had been saying all along of the bias at the top of the fbi. Here is a little bit more, here is a little bit more from the New York Times. A big debate taken shape among some former Law Enforcement officials outside the case over whether the fbi investigators over rated in the opening. Sitting on it would have been a duty. Julia, it is hard to understand how extraordinary to understand for the fbi if donald trump is a spy. Everything we talked about with the muellers investigation, is prewhite house. Whether or not the campaign kpl colluded the russians, this gets us inside the white house. This puts a lot of actions that have been some what public in a different lens, especially the ones thats coming to my mind and written about at the Washington Post is the helsinki conference. We also know they had a closed door meeting that we dont know a lot about. This puts all this into a different lens when you talk about a president who may not have had a campaign with the coordinated russian. He would have owed him something and acting on behalf of the russians. That puts it in a totally different category. You say we have been sasking ths question all along, what is trump hiding. Asking that all along, we are asking it in a different way today because it is how that relationship would impact our National Security and current day. Legally speaking, whats your opinion on this and whats your take on this . The best spin the white house can put on is to say being investigated is not getting indicted. Being indicted does not mean you are getting convicted. The fact that an investigation is opened, does not tell you the ultimate evidence was they found. Thats our best case to spin. The problem and the other side of it is, this is hugely disturbing that very serious non partisan career officials. This is not political. This is not house over sight. This is inside the longterm National Security investigative bureaucracy, the federal bur ea of investigations saying we have reasons to do something we have never done before and if we are wrong, we are going to pay for it to investigate the head of the federal government for being a russian agent. I dont know how you can get it bigger than that. It came out over the weekend that this investigation was opened in the days after the comeys firing in 2017. Suddenly tthe new york sometits reporting it. It makes you wonder of the timing. The firing that the president bolstered to the media. Legally this all goes back to whether bob mueller thinks there was an act of conspiracy to collude with russia and the time frame of that. As julia mentions, it could stretch out into action and taken the government. There was also reporting from the Washington Post about donald trump trying to hide details of conversations with Vladimir Putin, that helsinki meeting between donald trump and Vladimir Putin is the one where hes accused or reported that he took the notes from his interpreter away. What are the details surrounding that. Well, we are told that the notes were taken away at a meeting in hamburg. In each of these meetings where the president have met with the russian counter part, it is a disturbing lack of information of what was said in those meetings. When the two leaders of those countries meet, what we have been told is that the folks who work on russia issues dont have good insights of what those two individuals spoken about. That alarms a lot of people. It ties back to what you are talking about because so much of what the fbi is concerned about then and some degree since, what explains that behavior. Thats the ultimate question they were trying to answer. And, are we going get any closer to that answer . Democrats right now, Robert Mueller is investigating, his report could be hidden from public view if the doj decides that. Democrats are investigating as much as they can and house over sight or the house have some over sight. The president ial aides and documents and etcetera, whats the likelihood that the public is going to get to the bottom of this at some point . I think well get an answer from mueller on that. I dont think thats going to be something thats hidden away. It may be that frankly the public which is so divided on this issue frankly, it may be that some folks dont like the answer. Some folks see different things. I think that comes up a few times now with various reports and other things that have happened at the Justice Department in the last two years. I do think well get an answer. I dont have much doubt in that. I would call our attention, katy, here on your broadcast to the quote from the president of the United States. Well, it was on the screen a moment ago. I am not keeping anything under wraps. Thats what hes saying and we report on what he says. We also report thats a lie. Obviously the Washington Post is showing Great Lengths he went to keep the meeting under wraps. We are dealing with an individual that would get people to sign under agreements and pay them for it and he would refuse to sign them. He had campaigned interns and volunteers and bankers signing nondisclosure agreements. This is the legal question, duh, common sense questions all combi combined. If everyone knows that you are meeting with Vladimir Putin and you said there is nothing to hide, why are you hiding so much of the content. In the law they call that consciousness of guilt. We are not there yet but it raises that question. Ari, we are not seeing the forest with the trees. Everyday there are new details of donald trump and the way he behaves towards russia and taking notes away from the interpreter and the fbi is worried hes an asset. It feels overwhelming of the amount of information we have. Sure. If you were an investigator would you point to any of these that there are already evidence out there. Why are you still asking more questions . Yes, you viewers at home home god, it looks a lot. Who has evidence that sticks them thats culpable. As a country we tend to uphold the rule of law which means even if he finds things people dont like, it does not go as far as someone. If you find other things it will be tested in court. Prosecution is not about crime. Most crimes are unsolved and never prosecute. Prosecution is about evidence. With the president here who tries to keep so much under wrap, how much of that evidence will bob mueller get his handson if there is in criminating evidence. Ahead of the d. O. J. Or the confirmation hearing for the new attorney general, are you going to be there tomorrow . I am heading down to washington, d. C. Two days as msnbcs special coverage. It could be the most important thing of the Mueller Probe yet. I look forward for our awkward talks at 6 00. Why it got to be awkward . Theyre running it over with four wheelers or whatever you call it. Those Little Things that who makes it awkward . I do, ari. Thanks for having me on the show. Thanks for coming. And as well as all the other panelis panelists. It should be a four box there. Let it hang. Okay, Geoff Bennett and ari melber and Julia Ainsley. Thank you. The beat, it is focused on collusion. We have the former trump aid who sat for 4. 5 hours for questioning. How American Farmers are getting pinched from the shutdown. Speaking of the shutdown, who are americans blaming . Thats all coming up. Tech at Safelite Autoglass we know that when youre spending time with the grandkids every minute counts. 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Tsa workers are getting paid one day of work to help quote some of the financial hardship. That day is saturday december 22nd. That does not catch them up by no means at all. There is no signs of compensation for the entire pay period will show up in their bank accounts. According to vox, 388 and 737 National Parks, thats about half of the National Parks and Historic Sites are now closed and in assessable to the public. Thats costing 400 grand a day. The states most effective federal workers is alaska. It is the state thats still dealing with a big and damaging earthquake. Remember that one in november. It also has a republican senator Lisa Murkowski whos not standing with her party on this. The shutdown could not happen at a worse time. With the recent earthquake that we had, we had several coworkers who spent thousands of dollars repairing their homes. We had fireplace that we have been getting it going. I am worried of the next paycheck and time with my kids and what i can do with them. Kids, theyre in school sports. Different activities. I got a son with College Tuition coming due. This is a gigantic system that has a lot of moving parts and we are missing a lot of parts. A new poll found that 53 of americans blame republicans and President Trump for the shutdown rather than democrats. Joining me is garret and phil rucker. Garret, it does not stop there. There is a new poll that landed a moment ago. It says 56 of americans believed that the president and republicans in congress are responsible for the Government Shutdown. How much pressure the republicans are facing has it started to change . Those polls are consistent, showing the president an or his party. We are seeing an increasing number of republicans and start to say maybe it is time to separate this issue of Border Security wall from the shutdown. Lindsey graham has been trying to push the president reopening the government in the short term and arguing about wall afterwards. Lisa murkowski who you mentioned in the intro, it is interesting to watch her getting angry over the last week or so. More and more of her constituents have been affected. I dont think we cross the red line here. There are a number of republicans in safe republican seats out in western states like montana or wyoming, folks that have similar ratios. High federal work force, folks that needs those money need those jobs. Incredibly, we may need to see more pressure and unfortunately, that means more suffering for folks before the political cal discuss changes much further. Is the pressure being felt by the white house anymore than it had been filled . Lindsey graham says the president should come to a short term deal. Is that being heard . There is certainly pressure inside the white house where officials have been struggling over the last few weeks to come up with a solution. Some sort of an exit ramp out of this shutdown that would secure border funding for the president and that wall. The president himself does not necessarily feel the pressure to reopen the government just yet. He has been saying repeatedly that hes willing to keep the government closed for months or if not longer. He really dug in with that 5. 7 billion demand for wall funding funding. Hes trying to apply political pleasure for democrats. Hes down in new orleans today giving a speech talking about illegal threats and immigration. I dont think there is any sort sort of plan emerging from the white house. Chaos at the white house over this . Yes, so he was upset that i said there was chaos in the administration. There is indeed chaos in the white house. There is no plan for how to end this shutdown that we know according to our reporting. The president pushed back on twitter on saturday with look, there is no chaos, i am here all along in the white house so you can read that as you wish. He said that he has not left the white house in a long time even though he just went down to the