there are many who believe that bill belichick has something of a credibility problem. and it goes back to 2007 when the patriots were caught spying on the coaches from the new york jets team and they were forced to pay a fine. $500,000 and the team $250,000 as well as first round draft pick. that has colored everyone's opinion and certainly in this case. and they are dealing with that -- basically boils down to a p.r. problem for them in some ways. >> stephanie, we're going to be looking forward to more news on this. stephanie gosk inflated with quality reporting, always. the next big beat will come this afternoon. quarterback tom braiddy will face his own round of tough questions at 3:45 eastern. we'll bring you any news out of that. american and cuban delegations at this moment are having the first day of talks about reestablishing diplomatic relations. this is the first time this has happened since ties were severed by washington in 1961. they are hoping to open embassies and reappoint ambassadors within months. u.s. assistant secretary of state, and a cuban diplomat are meeting. gabe, any sense on how the talks are going right now? >> reporter: we heard from cuban officials a short time ago, a spokesperson said that talks are going well so far. there are two types of talks today, first part will be focused on reestablishing diplomatic ties and second part will be on bilateral relations. now both sides are very cautious going into these talks. yesterday they centered on immigration and there were disagreements. the cubans are asking the americans one to remove them from the u.s. list of state sponsors of terror. but when it comes to immigration, they are also asking the united states to stop granting safe havens to cubans because it encourages people trafficking and that encourages people to make the dangerous trip across the florida states. that was yesterday. now today they are focusing to reestablishing ties an reopening embassies in havana and washington and both countries to appoint ambassadors. we're waiting to hear from the u.s. state department how those talks are going. they are expected to last throughout the afternoon and into the evening. from the cuban side what we've heard they are going well. both sides after decades of mistrust they are very cautious at this point. >> gabe, this has been a contentious issue politically in the united states. what kind of messaging are they taking to the press? how much are they up against when they come home with this? >> reporter: well as you mentioned, this is a very difficult political issue back in the united states. the delegation here is -- they say they are under no illusions about the castro government's record on human rights. but they are very careful to at least seem open to establishing greater diplomatic relations as president obama announced last month, the congressional delegation here a few days ago is also cautious in his language but they did seem to say they were optimistic that agreements could be made. they are pressing the cuban government to sort of give a sense that they could have a better record or give assurances when it comes to human rights on this island. >> gabe gutierrez, appreciate that update. gabe. we're following events in yemen. as we speak there the u.s. backed government is being taken over by rebel fighters. yemen's prime minister has now resigned. they were demanding a bigger stake in the government. under a new agreement brokered. the current leaders wril be forced to accept changes to a new constitution. sanaa has been seen fighting for months as rebels try to take control. kristen welker what are you hearing out of the white house about this? this is a important ally in the middle east? >> reporter: you're right, ronan. the associated press just reported moments ago that president hadi of yemen resigned. they are not able to confirm that yesterday, they are trying to do so. if this is accurate it would be an unfortunate development for the reason you just mentioned, ronan. he has been a key ally in facing aqap, al qaeda in the arabian peninsula and say this instability has raised serious questions about the united states ability to work with yemen moving forward to do that. just as of yesterday, white house press secretary josh earnest when asked about this and if the united states expresses full support for president hadi and as you mentioned, they were trying to broker a power sharing deal to bring all of the instability to a resolution peacefully. now it appears as though all of that has been added -- all of that is being compounded by the fact that president hadi may have resigned. those are the rereports coming out of yemen at this hour. all essential personnel are at the u.s. embassy, all nonessential personnel have been evacuated. u.s. officials saying the key focus, key concern is making sure that americans in the region are safe. president obama getting briefed on this situation regularly and he is on the road today speaking in lawrence kansas at this hour. >> i want to ask about one more thorny issue the white house is confronting today. we're hearing the president will not meet with benjamin netanyahu if he comes to address a joint session of congress in march. what do you know about that? >> reporter: i can tell you a spokesperson just confirmed that. i will give you the official line, as a matter of longstanding practice and principle, we do not see heads of state or candidates in close proximity to their elections so as to avoid the appearance of influencing a democratic election in a foreign country. accordingly the president will not be meeting with president netanyahu because of the proximity to the israeli elections. that is the official word. but of course the back drop to all of this is the fact that house speaker john boehner invited prime minister netanyahu to address congress and just yesterday josh earnest said it was a breach of protocol typically a head of state would extend an invitation. the white house saying they will reserve judgment until they learn more about the details of the prime minister's trip. but certainly there is some frustration behind the scenes here at the white house. and the confirmation that president obama will not meet with prime minister yetnetanyahu. >> thanks for the update. the new york times just the latest outlet to report the department of justice is not expected to bring civil charges against former ferguson police officer darren wilson the officer fatally shot unarmed brown in august of last year. the state of the state address yesterday, missouri's governor said brown's death put a lot of eyes on ferguson. >> make no mistake, the legacy of ferguson will be determined by what we do next to foster healing and hope. >> nbc news justice correspondent pete williams is following this today. this news about no civil rights charges comes as something as a surprise as you pointed out, not a surprise that the news is there, given that it has been written about repeatedly in the last few months but surprise relative to the initial characterization of the investigation. a lot of hopes riding on this. eric holder himself talking bg this. how does this fit? >> prosecutors have made it pretty clear for the last several weeks there isn't enough evidence to meet the standard in federal civil rights law. remember, it's a completely different question than bringing criminal charges in the state under the federal law you would have to prove that an officer acted intentionally to violate someone's civil rights knowing that was the wrong thing to do. it's a very high standard and it's been quite clear for some time they were not going to bring civil rights charges. there won't be an announcement of this until they are ready to also announce at the same time the results of their broader investigation into the ferguson police department as a whole. they have a civil rights investigation there. they'll announce the two things together. >> and pete, another big story you're following the lawyers for dzhokhar tsarnaev have asked for a venue change for the boston bombing trial. what's the latest on that? >> they say now we have new evidence, they look at the 1400 or so questionnaires that have been filled out by pro spesive jurors and a vast majority believe he's guilty and should get the death penalty or have strong connections to someone who was affected by the bombings or feels they were somehow drawn into it because of the widespread sentiment throughout boston, the fact that all of watertown was shut down while they were searching for tsarnaev. when you look at this the defense lawyers say, it's impossible to get a fair jury. if you exclude all of these people you're left with so few jurors, not representative of the community and risk people who want to be on the jury to impose a sentence. for all of these reasons, they say there has to be a change of venue. the judge has rejected pretty handedly both of the previous requests, whether this will persuade him to change his mind we'll have to wait and see. >> it's interesting what we last covered this story, with did an informal poll with the audience whether they agreed with the claim that there's no chance of a fair trial in boston. majority of viewers said informally, again, yes, there's a serious risk of a lack of fairness in that jury pool. interesting -- >> one very quick thing we thought the opening statements would be this coming monday. court official said the jury selection is taking so long that's not going to happen. it will be delayed. >> pete thank you for following that. pete williams. a local political story that's drawing national attention right now, right here out of new york, sheldon silver was arrested today on federal corruption charges. he turned himself in this morning. he's been in office over two decades and accused of taking millions in bribes and kickbacks. u.s. attorney investigating is holding a news conference on the arrest. you can see him right here. we'll keep watching. that is live right this moment and we'll bring you any news that comes out of it. proof that corruption is not just national. the measles outbreak that began in the magic kingdom has spread to six states. we'll tell you why it is impacting even those who have been vak vakz natured. don't go away. this story had 30 minutes left... until kim realized that stouffer's mac and cheese is made with real cheddar aged to perfection for 6 long months. when you start with the best cheddar, you get the best mac and cheese. so, what about jessica? 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i love yoplait! the other one is chobani. really. i like this one better. yoplait wins again! take the taste-off for yourself. all eyes should be on british royalty at the world economic forl up in davos because prince andrew is making the first public appearance after allegations that a woman was forced by another man to have sex with the prince when she was just 17. this is being called an unprecedented public comment. we don't know whether it will be about the allegations but reports are that it may be. he he has just spoken, coming over the wires right now, publicly denied the allegations what we're hearing. this is unfolding as we speak. we have pictures of the woman and of the prince. we have one in fact of her with the prince back in 2001. there they are. she alleged she was loaned out by jeffrey epstein to offer sexual services to the rich and famous. her lawyers formally requested he respond to oath about the accusations, he has just come out and denied this publicly. vickie ward thank you so much. first of all, we obtained the court papers at issue and in it the woman allegations quote, epstein made me have sex with prince andrew several times. i had several with him three times, including one orgy and said i knew he was a member of the british royal family but i called him andy. my question is having seen the documentation around this and followed the story, how much heft is there to the allegations? >> it's a classic sexual allegations, always he said she said. the point about what prince andrew is doing now in davos is that this story lives as long as his name is involved in it. we've known about jeffrey epstein since 2001 and 2008. he's gone to jail. he is a convicted pedophile. prince andrew's name is what's created the dynamite around this. i think that's why he's had to say something at davos, very unusual for a british royal to do anything of this sort. he's done it in a business -- background. the whole theme of this epstein story has been about using the establishment, about using high profile businessmen and academics as gloss for what is really a very nasty underbelly. jeffrey epstein was friends with prince andrew at a time when big names, jimny cane they all hung out. all the way there were these girls. >> it's a horrifying story. >> all happened in broad daylight. i'm talking here about jeffrey epstein who we know is convicted -- >> dynamite in the story is brins andrew being involved. >> day after day, prince andrew. >> particularly today breaking news right now prince andrew speaking at davos just this moment denying allegations that he had underage sex with a teenager reporting bucking ham palace statements. firstly, i think i must and want for the record to refer to the events that have taken place in the last few weeks and just wish to reiterate and reaffirm the statements which have already been made on my behalf by buckingham palace. my focus is on my work. how do you read that statement? >> i think that you're probably not going to hear anything else from him. i think he's really trying to put the story to bed. the question for all of the lawyers involved is will he be able to? you know prince andrew is a bit of a peculiar figure, british taxpayer pays for him, second son, unlikely to ascend the throne. what does he do with his time? his chief job is supposed to be promoting british business. if he doesn't get taken seriously now, when is he going to be taken seriously? the british are asking themselves clearly bad judgment with his friends. why are we funding this man? >> one other difficult to explain aspect of the story is that photo of prince andrew with his arm around this particular young woman. >> really difficult. >> when she was 17. has buckingham palace offered any explanation for the photo? >> none. normally they wouldn't even go somewhere like this. all they've come out and said again and again, he had no inappropriate sexual relations with anyone under the age of 18. >> all right, thank you so much. it's a horrible story. >> it is a really nasty story. >> we appreciate your doing the dirty work of covering it for us. another important story up ahead, thousands taking part in the annual march for life in d.c. house republicans unexpectedly dropping plans for a controversial anti-abortion bill at the same time. why did that happen? 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[ female announcer ] everyone has a moment when tomorrow becomes real. transamerica. hundreds of thousands gathered today in washington, d.c. for the annual march for life. protesting abortion. just this morning the house passed a bill banning taxpayer money for abortions and also supposed to vote on another bill a bill that would have criminalized abortions after 20 weeks. the pain capable unborn child protection act. that was dropped last night in part because of republican women who oppose the bill. taking issue with the narrow exceptions for cases of rape and incest. some like renee elmerz actually supported this bill two years ago. this time around she said the issue becomes we're questioning the woman's worth, we have to be compassionate to women in a crisis situation. diana deget, thank you so much for being here. we're just a few hours from this very significant change the house banning taxpayer money for abortions. in your view what kind of impact will it have on health care? >> we need to remember currently because of the amendment there is no taxpayer funding for abortions. this is a rehash of a bill that came up last year. the republican leadership had to hurriedly put it on the floor because they pulled the other bill. it is equally dangerous to the other bill. it would tell women who are buying comprehensive health insurance in the exchanges under the affordable care act that they can't get insurance plans that cover abortion even with their own private money. so right now there is no taxpayer funding of abortion. the republicans are trying to muddle it in order to prevent until millions of americans from getting insurance policies that cover everything. >> we want to talk about this other bill criminalizing abortions after 20 weeks. is that a good thing? >> i think these bills -- everybody knows they are not going anywhere. they will probably not go through the senate and if they did the president would veto them. it's kind of kabuki theater, terrible bill. it would -- it would make rape victims subject to scrutiny and hurt doctors and families but more importantly, i think if you want to do something to help american women and families you should do something like give them pay equity and try to create jobs for them. i love the president's idea for tax credits for child care. and you should give women the ability to get comprehensive health care insurance. if women have health insurance, then the number of unwanted pregnancies goes down. that's a good thing for everybody, most especially the women of america. >> congresswoman, we do now have literature that shows a fetus can feel pain after 20 weeks but there's enough basis for some to make that claim clearly now. is there a place in the debate for supporting a woman's right to an abortion while also saying that there should be limitations that late in the pregnancy? >> roe versus wade which was decided by the supreme court in the 1970s allowed states to make different restrictions and provisions on abortions. nobody likes to see an unwanted pregnancy, which is why we think that birth control would work comprehensive health insurance. and really that's what this debate should be how do we reduce unwanted pregnancies. sometimes there are terrible tragedies that happen. but those decisions really should be made between a doctor -- i mean a woman, her doctor and family. i don't want members of congress deciding if i have for example, if i have a pregnancy that's gone terribly wrong and i need to make a really tough decision, i don't want members of congress deciding that decision. i want to make that with my doctor and my priest or my minister and my family. that's who that should be with. >> congressman degette i was struck by the republicans who supported this same legislation two years ago and now reject it. what do attribute it to? >> you would have to ask them but i did talk to a few republican women, they agree with me. they think the focus should be lesson the devicive wedge issues and more on issues of job creation, what do we do about education and child care issues like that. in fact i was talking to one of my colleagues about how perhaps we can put together a bipartisan group of women, democrats and republicans to actually talk about some of these issues. >> do you see the republican party in general shifting on abortion? >> well i've got to tell you, i've been in congress for 18 years now. i've been the co-chair of the pro-choice caucus for a number of years and never seen the republican leadership have to pull a bill like this. and let's remember the republicans have their biggest majority since the 1920s. so for them to have to pull a bill like this at the last minute, i think that at least these republican women realize that this is a divisive issue and not really going to go to help families and women in this country. >> so tell me about some of the other bills that are on the table that republicans may push through this session that affect women. what's up next in this fight? >> i don't knee what the agenda is the bills they've had in the last few weeks have been divisive bills that have died before in the senate and that the president has issued veto threats on. what i go on is what can we do for working families in this country. a lot are headed by women and we know for our constituents for women, comprehensive health insurance policies that they can get through the exchanges with subsidies from the federal government, what do we do about equal pay for ee wall work? how do we help women get good paying jobs and stop discrimination? what do we do about childcare? i love the president's idea for the child care tax credit because that's an issue that affects working women in this country. there are a lot of issues that the republican leadership could bring up. i'm not seeing that on their agenda. i haven't seen anything that would be benefitting women in this country. instead, i just saw this -- and today is the anniversary of roe versus wade which has helped get women out of the back alleys and give them safe procedures in that terrible time if they need an abortion. so they've got all of their pro testers here and that's why they were doing this bill. in my opinion, that's no what we should be doing in congress. in congress right now, we should be trying to figure out how to help the middle class families of america. >> an important side of this very contentious fight that affects so many. thank you. >> thank you. >> six rights news we're also following today, mcdonald's just got slapped with a civil rights lawsuit, ten workers from three franchises saying they were fired after supervisors told them they were quote, too many black people working there. and they needed to again, quote, get the ghetto out of the store. the 17 minority staff members were fired last may. that much backs up their account. the owner of those three branches mike simon, i continually strive to maintain an environment in which everyone feels valued and accepted. mike simon, presumably not loving it today. conversations ongoing about the pentagon about a potential big step will the military finally lift the ban on transgender service members. in my world, wall isn't a street... return on investment isn't the only return i'm looking forward to. for some every dollar is earned with sweat, sacrifice, courage. which is why usaa is honored to help our members with everything from investing for retirement to saving for college. our commitment to current and former military members and their families is without equal. start investing with as little as fifty dollars. ♪ nice! gr-reat! a shot like that... calls for a post-game celebration. share what you love with who you love. kellogg's frosted flakes. they're gr-r-reat! stamps.com is the best. this week a barrier smashed in the united kingdom, the highest ranking transgender officer in the british army went public with her gender identity. back here in the united states secretary of defense chuck hagel announced last year that the military's transgender policy should be reviewed. but for now, the united states is not among the 18 countries where transgender people are allowed to serve openly. the transgender men and women serving their country here are in a precarious position elevated rates of suicide even relative to the already high risk of suicide for service members. alice robinson a former army captain and graduate and as well as a transgender woman. >> it's a pleasure. >> 15,000 transgender personnel serve in the military right now but the current policy as told to us by the pentagon we reached out to them is that regulations don't allow trangsgender individuals to serve based on medical standards. why does that need to change? >> well it needs to change because those medical standards that the pentagon is referring to date from a time when secretary of defense chuck hagel was sergeant hagel. they are 60s and 70s vintage and our understanding of trans gender people and identities has advanced significantly since then. the pentagon is way out of step with the american psychiatric association, the american medical association and with 18 of our allies who figured this out a long time ago. >> there's a report back from 2014 from the palm center that concluded this our central conclusion forming and policies is administratively feasible and not burdensome. that was even co-led by a number of insiders of former acting surgeon general. what's the holdup? >> that's a really, really good question. what is the holdup? it's a question that 15,000 actively serving transgender people and over 125,000 transgender veterans would love to ask secretary of defense hagel. as you mentioned, he's the one who said himself almost a year ago that it was time for these policies to be reviewed and he's right. what we lack at this point, it seems, is leadership. we lack will of our leaders in the pentagon to take the appropriate steps to protect these service members and allow them just to serve their countries. that's what they want to do. >> allison, as someone who knows the military community well take us inside the pressures being felt by trans men and women who cannot be open and are serving to defend this country right now. >> sure. you know i am -- work with a group of over 300 actively serving transgender people. these are people who are wearing the uniform every day and who, for the privilege of wearing that uniform and the privilege of putting their lives on the line for our country, are asked to deny themselves medically necessary care. they're asked to deny their own integrity on a daily basis and claim that they are something that they're not. when i was at west point, one of the very first things that was imparted to us and drilled into us was the honor code a cadet will not lie, cheat, or steal nor tolerate those who do. and yet, these outdated regulations asked me to lie every day just so that i could go on serving the country that i love. >> and that is not something we want to ask of anyone serving this country. it seems as if most common sense statements on this reflect what you're saying. chuck hagel saying this needs to be reviewed. but his successor, his probable successor, ash carter hasn't take an public position on this. how confident are you that this policy will actually get reviewed in the coming year? >> i'm very very confident that it will get reviewed. look, the pentagon recognizes that they have a problem. the idea in the pentagon is not that we are bringing a problem to them but rather that we are helping them to solve a problem that they have. secretary hagel came into office talking about taking care of the troops and that anyone who was qualified to do so should be allowed to serve their country. i know that mr. carter dr. carter shares those same values. what i hope we'll see happen though, is if for no other reason than simple collegiality that secretary hagel will announce and initiate a review of these policies prior to leaving office and get it off the table for his successor. mr. carter's got far more important things isis for example, to be concerned about. let's just get this done. >> this should not be an obstacle when we have real life or death obstacles out there. allison robbinsonrobinson very much appreciate your stance. all this month we've been looking at obstacles to transgender rights in different parts of life. one big area in academia. a few week ago we brought you the story of a transgender woman whose application to smith college was not reviewed and in fact twice returned to her back in 2013. smith says it's because her application and supporting materials didn't consistently identify her as a woman. for our call to action, we're asking you to tweet tweet @smithcollege and urge that school to join many other top women's colleges that have already changed eligibility requirementing to be inclusive for transgender applicants. you can also tweet us us @ronandaily. a quick political update. republican sources confirming to msnbc that mitt romney and jeb bush will meet in utah this week. quite the meet. the meeting described as social in nature. their people it turns out. kerry, a pleasure to have you on. we rely on your reporting all the time. what do you make of this particular meeting? >> i think one thing that's important to note is this meeting was reportedly scheduled before mitt romney started making his very explicit plea he's thinking about running for president again. jeb bush requested this meeting. and it has stayed on both men's calendars since mitt romney said -- made it clear to donors he's thinking about another run. but one thing that's really important, jeb bush and mitt romney are pulling from the same -- a similar pool of donors. reportedly there are donors who are getting a call from one team or one man just hours after or before they're getting a call from the other. and there's concern among establishment republicans that these two figures would really split an accomplishment bid for either one and weak than more moderate republican against maybe a conservative insurgent who could really take a bite out of both of them as we get into this 2016 race. >> all right. we'll all be watching the meeting. appreciate that update. all right. my personal favorite story of the day that frankly we're just including because i begged my producers. you're looking at a picture of a newly released creature. it's now actually being held by researchers. it was found off the coast disclosure look at this. what researchers are calling a live fossil sighted for the first time in living memory. six feet long, 300 teeth in that mouth. a shark that looks like a prehistoric creature. it looks like an eel. it has a shark-like tail. its evolutionary roots go back very, very early. it was found in australia off the coast while a fisherman was presumably not trying to find prehistoric creatures. but there you go. that was his haul. and we love it. and it's making headlines today. we just thought we'd show you what i think is quite a cute shark, craig. the producers were terrified. >> it is a cute shark. >> that wraps up the show today. you're on next. >> i am in for joy reid today. i'll tell you what we're going to continue to follow. we're going to continue to follow what is being dubbed deflate gate. we'll hear from patriots quarterback tom brady a few hours from now. bill belichick fatesed reporters this morning saying he's shocked by the deflate gate allegations. a bit of breaking news. we'll bring that to you the top of the hour. also the private meeting between potential white house hopefuls jeb bush and mitt romney. ronan was just talking about that. we'll have more on that as well. and 42 years since the historic roe versus wade supreme court decision, we'll talk to the attorney who represented jane roe. "the reid report" next. >> a big hour. [ high-pitched ] nailed it! [ normal voice ] you're right, that was really easy. i know, i told you so. on progressive.com you can compare our progressive direct rates with our competitors' rates, so shopping is easy. you don't sound like flo. [high-pitched] yeah, i do. [ clears throat ] who you talking to? [ normal voice ] what? what's on your hand? noth-- my wedding ring. [chuckles] symbol of our love and understanding. comparing rates for you. now that's progressive. [ high-pitched ] nailed it! ♪ ♪ the bold nissan rogue, with intuitive all-wheel drive. because winter needs a hero. now save up to $1,000 when you finance the 2015 nissan rogue. ♪ you only know in a fire to get out, to escape and now ok you are outside and you are safe but what do you do now and that's where the red cross came in... . we ran out of the house just wearing our pajamas. at that point just to even have a toothbrush that i could call my own was so important... . ...you know it just makes you feel like a person again. every 8 minutes the american red cross responds to a home fire or other emergency. you can help. please donate now. music: melodic, calm music. hi, this is jennifer... ... i will be out of the office until monday... ... and won't be checking voicemail during this time. i'll reply just as soon as i get back to work. sail with the number one cruise line in alaska. save up to $500 during our 50th anniversary sale. call your travel consultant or 1-800-princess. princess cruises. come back new. and a good thursday to you, earn. i'm craig melvin. this is "the reid report." i'm in for joy reid. we start with breaking news on deflate gate, the controversy over allegations of cheating by the super bowl bound new england patriots. in about two hours, we'll bring you quarterback tom brady, facing reporters about what happened in that game sunday against the colts. and already in advance of that news conference, nbc news has learned brady addressed the matter with teammates in a closed-door meeting just hours ago. the controversy regards anonymous allegations reported by espn that the nfl has found 11 of 12 game balls used by the pats in that game were inflated below

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