europe to be a partner. >> plus, want a hot latte to go with that majestic view? is starbucks about to sponsor this old faithful? fernando: he. i'm fernando espuelas. welcome to "matter of fact." donald trump's connection to russian president vladimir putin has played in the headlines for weeks now, intriguing the nation and raising importt the u.s. and russia have always had a complicated relationship, made even more complex by donald trump's apparent encouragement of russian spies to hack hillary clinton. i spoke with stephen flanagan, senior political scientist at rand, about the delicate dance of u.s. russia relations. welcome to the program. mr. flanagan: thank you, great to be here. so we are almost at the end of obama's second term. he's focused on his legacy and what do you think is his legacy relative to nato and european security? mr. flanagan: well, the president came in determined to strengthen the alliance relationships in europe and east asia, which has been strained over the iraq war and other problems in afghanistan and elsewhere. i think that has certainly been achieved. there has been a lot of misinterpretation with the rebalance to asia that somehow, that was turning it's back on europe. that was never the intention of the administration. e refocus our attention on east asia because of its growing importance. but it doesn't mean because europe at that time, particularly at the beginning of the administration, was seen as a key partner and at peace, solving many of the problems that we were talking about and countering the aspects of war and terrorism in afghanistan and problems in the mediterranean, libya. so europe was a key partner in to be a partner in helping manage global instability and to promote global growth. and that will continue, and i think that's one of them messages the president will have, because in addition to meeting with leaders of nato, he will meet with the president of the european council commission. they will also talk about the importance of continuing that relationship, the relationship with the eu, even without britain being in the eu. fernando: but the fact that putin has taken such aggressive actions and continues to do so, that the policy has failed, that somehow we've communicated to the russians that you can act as you have done for hundreds of years and it will be ok? mr. flanagan: well i think , initially putin may have read that certainly we all recall the efforts of resetting the relationship with russia, talking about that aspect of the relationship and the administration worked very hard, administration to get back on a , better track particularly after the georgia war, but of course that all came crashing down after the invasion of ukraine. i think what the president has done is show a leadership role in galvanizing european response and developing a set of sanctions, which we hope will be renewed, and i think expectations will be renewed next month or early this month which had an important limiting , factor at least on russian's willingness to continue its aggression in ukraine but also help galvanize the military support and the fact that you will have a number of allies contributing. the initial response to the ukraine invasion of the so-called reassurance missions being undertaken in poland and the baltic states were heavily dominated by u.s. forces. now we see more contribution from european allies and from canada, as the president retained the agreement with justin trudeau just the other day. mentioned the russian invasion of georgia, which the u.s. made a lot of noise about but did nothing substantive, militarily at least. was that a mistake? was that a moment where russia was looking for was a signal from the u.s. and all they got was a green flag? mr. flanagan: no, i don't think -- i think the u.s. did take some actions to try to reinforce georgia. we had been training the georgian forces in both iraq and afghanistan, and there was some efforts but -- fernando: but they got crushed -- was not consensus in the alliance to go and defend georgia so i think we have a , taken a prudent number of steps to try to reinforce georgia's defense capabilities. both the u.s. and now nato at the nato summit will also take some additional measures to help them rebuild their military capabilities and defend against russian intimidation. the important thing is to show united alliance in terms of behavior like that, if it is repeated again and the nation they can repeat that, will be met with stronger response. i think standing up for the principle and continuing to show our support, both politically, militarily, economically for those countries is important. fernando popper thank you. >> coming up, are immigrants taking american jobs? >> no, they are not. >> then what's behind the immigrant backlash? plus, the candidates need women to win. but what do women want to hear from the candidates? >> security. they're almost like the security moms. well, it was nice to see everyone. i just wish it had been for a better reason. me, too, but the eulogy that frank's daughter gave was beautiful. i just feel bad knowing they struggled to pay for the funeral, especially without life insurance. i wish they would've let us help. but, it did make me think, though. about what? well, that i could leave you in the same situation. something were to happen to me tomorrow, how are you pay for my funeral? or my other bills? nothing's gonna happen to you tomorrow. you don't know that. i made a promise to always take care of you kids. without life insurance, i'm not keeping it. besides, i already looked into it and between my budget and health, well ... you should call massmutual. they have a new policy called guaranteed acceptance life insurance. i got covered with one call, and it was an affordable option for reliable coverage. what do you think, mom? i think it's time to make sure i keep that promise. if you're age 50-75, it's easier than ever to get reliable coverage at an affordable price. call massmutual today for guaranteed acceptance life insurance. with no medical questions or exams, you cannot be turned down. with one phone call, you can get coverage ranging from $2,000-$25,000, and premiums can start at less than $10 per month. remaining medical expenses and credit card bills. we have several payment options, and benefits are paid quickly and directly to your beneficiaries. they can use it for any expense they choose. for more than 160 years, our policyowners have mattered most to us. massmutual's ratings are among the highest of any company in any industry. you can feel confident we can help you protect the people who matter most to you with guaranteed acceptance life insurance. call massmutual today at this number. call now! >> racial tensions are as old as the republic. and every generation has struggled to find common ground. recently we've had a run of , tragic killings of both civilians and police officers. some people, perhaps forgetting worst period in racial relations in our nation's history. but what's behind today's racial divide? i spoke with professor eddie glaude of princeton university, a leading scholar on race issues, to get an answer. professor glaude, welcome to the program. professor glaude: thank you for having me. fernando: the most ironic part of having the first african-american president is that people feel more united -- divided than in. there is a demographic the country, for some people positive, for some people negative. what do you think can be an effective political message from the president but also from responsible political leaders at the local and state levels? mr. glaude: we need to talk about the root causes, there anxieties about the demographic shift. it happens good we know there who feel insecure by the prospects. they have been a victim of economic policies that have in some ways decimated american workers over the past generation. a find themselves working harder for less. their homes are not worth as much. they cannot afford college and universities are their kids. many of them are scapegoating, looking to mexican immigrants so-called taking their jobs, and no, they are not. african-americans as people taking their positions. no, they are not. what we have to do is begin to understand the relationship between the economic philosophy and economic policy that has robbed the coffers, benefited the rich, decimated the working poor and working-class folks. talk about that in relation to the specific problem of race in this country. once we do that, and that will it will require hard work at the level of policy. we cannot play games. we have to do the work. this is where i agree with president obama, we have to grind it out. we have to grind it out. fernando: what level do you think we have a problem that is visible, this racial divide, segregation, people going to jail and disproportionate numbers based on the color of their skin? ultimately, aren't we talking about sc parties that share economic interests and power interests who have essentially abandoned the american people? mr. glaude: you know, i have written just recently that at the heart of this is the fact that the way we live our lives as americans is no longer sustainable. that involves a deep-seated critique of an elite political class that is thoroughly disconnected and so anyways from we were just celebrating that wall street was hitting record numbers. at the same time, folks are looking at their checks wondering what has happened, having to have arguments over $15 as a livable wage. so you have everyday, ordinary people struggling to my well these people live in gated communities, lavishing in their riches. there is a divide, and it is no longer sustainable. fernando: and dr. glaude, as we en what do you think is possible? what can we do? professor glaude: the question isn't about optimism or pessimism. the question is rooting in exactly your choice of pronouns. my faith, my democratic faith is in us. when you ask, what can we do, it on as. they want us to believe that our only choices are right in front of us. they want as to believe we are helpless and powerless in the face of these forces. and what we're seeing across the country with protests is a democratic awakening. there may be a fugitive moment, but we all have to be together. we have to start beginning to push policy, dismantled the economic philosophy and we have to push policy to address inequality. accountable. if they do not want to listen, we need to get rid of them. fernando: professor, thank you for joining me today. i appreciate your insights. >> up next, they're women, and they're ready. what do republicans need to do to win their votes? >> all issues are women's issues. >> and celebrating our national treasures. first, and from our sponsor. should we be putting the grand fios is not cable. we're wired differently. so we wired the wagner's house with 100 meg internet. which means that in the time it takes mr. wagner to pour a 20 oz. cup of coffee, tommy can download 30 songs, and jan can upload 120 photos. with equal upload and dowloads speeds, tv and phone for just $69.99 per month online. cable can't offer internet speeds this fast at a price this good. >> even as donald trump fails to attract a majority of women to support him, some republicans are doubling down on their efforts to win over women. sarah chamberlain has spent two decades working in gop politics, and she's creating a new relationship between the republican party and female voters. sarah, welcome to the program. ms. chamberlain: thank you, thrilled to here. fernando: thank you. u' now in developing messages and attracting more women to the republican party. what are you doing exactly and how is it working? ms. chamberlain: so we're traveling the country trying to engage women and hear from them what their issues are. i really want to emphasize what gets lost sometimes all issues , are women's issues. we tend to be the care providers monthly bills. we tend to be the ones who decide the health care, the education and take care of our , elderly parents. so women have issues that we care about. we have traveled the country. we have talked to them. and we've come ba introduced an agenda with all of their concerns, focusing on mental health, drug addiction, 21st century cures which is hopefully helping their parents and medical issues. it has been the most fascinating thing that i've ever done in politics. fernando: let me ask of their major concerns? you mentioned some of them right now, but is the economy the major driver as it usually is in , most elections? ms. chamberlain: no, actually it has changed now. and isis is the major driver. yes. fernando: so security is -- ms. chamberlain: security. they're almost like the security moms. they have a lot of issues, but they want to know -- how are we going to keep our kids safe? actually, we have not done a tour stop with all the issues on , it will come up even more. fernando: now you're doing a great job of trying to bring people together and listen to a different message of the republican party, from the center, essentially. but you've seen the stats, i've seen the stats, women, especially younger women, are disproportionately orienting themselves toward the democratic party. there is no silver bullet, i am sure, but what are the things that you think have to happen for the gop so that women break 50-50? what we're doing. and they need to understand that there's a group of gop members who care about their issues and are willing to introduce legislation, support the legislation and pass bills that , they really do care about, and for some reason, that's getting lost in the media. but you know, the republican party, we do care about women. we do care about the issues. there's not a war on women, and we're here to talk about that and represent them. fernando: let me ask you a broader question around that if there were more women in both parties in charge, that perhaps congress would work better, because of different, perhaps, styles or different ways of negotiating. do you buy into that theory? ms. chamberlain: absolutely. fernando: yeah? ms. chamberlain: absolutely. i think it is proven from when the government was shut down two years ago. there's a group of female senators, didn't get a lot of press on it, but they are the ones that got the government reopened. they negotiated with the men. actually, it is because of what they did we decided the start the woman to woman to her because the country needs to , understand what the women in washington are doing behind the scenes. fernando: thank you for joining mean today. >> coming up next have trump and , clinton topped out with voters? plus, greetings from your favorite vacation spot. is your national park about to >> monday morning on newscenter 5 eyeopener, cutting costs. states, donald trump and hillary clinton are virtually tied in the polls. each candidate got the bump they were expecting. so what's next? steve shepard, the campaigns editor for politico, explains. welcome back to the program. mr. shepard: it is great to be back. fernando: let me ask you, and i'm asking you to speculate a bit, considering trump has had a set is he would want it to be, why are they tied? shouldn't there be a bigger gap at this point? mr. shepard: well, the key there is hillary clinton's favorable ratings are also very poor, and they were roughly as poor as donald trump's. remember, roughly two-thirds of voters say they don't see clinton as honest or trustworthy. i think democrats and the clinton campaign are going to spend the next three months hammering home that argument and hillary clinton's favorability ratings. one of the reasons that her favorable ratings have been dropping while trump's has been kicking up a bit, is also you mentioned the republican convention in cleveland, maybe it wasn't that successful in terms of bringing the party, in terms of having the party leadership actually appear there and testify for donald trump but , it was successful in attacking clinton. that was a cmo speaker after speaker, and i think having that four-night infomercial last week in cleveland, voters seeing that, i think that took a toll of clinton. obviously, the goal in philadelphia was to make up for that. fernando: and lastly, and we have just a few seconds left -- what are you expecting to see in the next couple of weeks in terms of polling? there is usually a bounce, sometimes there isn't. do you think hillary clinton is set up for a bounce in her polling? mr. shepard: i think it's probably likely she will get a small bounce. these two candidates came into their conventions largely they're not getting to know them. i think there is a ceiling. you saw with the donald trump some of them had him bouncing up , five or six points, but some had no bounce whatsoever. so the reality lies somewhere in the middle for donald trump. that is what you can expect the hillary clinton something to , watch. we are moving into the next part of the campaign. the conventions are earlier this year than they have been in past cycles. we are going to move into august, then post-labor day things kick up, we'll have the first debate on september 26. a week from now, after the conventions, after voters digest this, and that will give us an idea of what kind of election we are facing headed into the rest of the summer. fernando: steve, thank you so much for joining me today. i really appreciate your insights. and good luck out there on the campaign trail. >> send your thoughts and tweets, to matter-of-fact-tv. check in on facebook or connect with our video site to view and share videos from all our programs. when we return, are we giving fernando: presidential politics can sometimes overshadow presidential accomplishments. this august, we will celebrate one of teddy roosevelt's greatest achievements as we mark the 100th anniversary of the national parks service. national parks, 18 national monuments. the idea was simple, the public-sector should protect millions of acres of public land for public enjoyment. today, we have over 400 national parks, but they are not protected by taxpayer investment at a level that can sustain them. today, the national park service is strapped for cash because congress has failed to use the power of the purse for the common good. budget cuts have forced the park service to become entrepreneurial in finding millions of dollarr and hundreds of millions to tackle a structural deficit. sure, corporate sponsorships could go a long way toward upkeep of trails, facilities, and programs. but aren't these natural spaces our spaces to protect? shouldn't we worry about aligning america's most beloved and iconic institutions with corporate brands? will we ask nathan's famous hot dogs to sponsor the statue of liberty? on this anniversary, let's act to preserve our lands and our history. i'm fernando espuelas. have a great week. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. s we can fix things differently. thanks for calling fios. this is ryan. you can't tell me this cord isn't in. i know it's in. it's in, but it's not working. i'm sending you a link to the my fios app that going to let me see what you're seeing. really? yes, mr. mcenroe... see that cord? just plug it into the connector on the right. so you can clearly see what's in and what's out? oh absolutely. i like that. tech support that lets your technician see the problem over your smartphone. - you are being watched. the government every ho secret system-- a mu ur of every day. i know because...i built it.ace i designed the m to detect acts of terror vi ordinary people.ving people like you. someone with the skills to intervene. hunted bh orities, we work in secret.ll nev you'er find us. but victim or perpetrator, r number's up,