our nbc news exclusive. the former fox news producer at the center of a defamation battle, breaking her silence. she says fox bullied her into giving misleading testimony her allegations of a toxic workplace and the shocking thing she says she was told about fact-checking election falsehoods. and words of kindness the best-selling author and the outpouring from fans, inspiring america. announcer: this is nbc nightly news with lester holt good evening, everyone, and welcome. we start tonight with the historic breaking news here in new york city a grand jury has voted to indict former president trump. investigating his role in a hush money payment to an adult film star during his 2016 campaign, a claim mr. trump denies a lawyer for mr. trump says the former president has been notified of the indictment the action is unprecedented. it is the first time a former or sitting american president has been indicted. nbc s garrett haake leads our coverage garrett, what more do
i am a victim of one of the great political smear campaigns in the history of our country. the entire thing has been a witch hunt, and there s no collusion. if there were lawyers they d be disbarred for what they re doing. it s a one-sided witch hunt, and i am a victim, i will tell you i m a victim oh, they re after me for so many things oh, those prosecutors. for years donald trump has complained about potential legal problems now it s a reality for the former president we have a lot to get to this morning on the historic indictment by the manhattan grand jury plus, we ll have reactions from top republicans including former vice president mike pence. and also ahead, a look at the security measures being put in place across new york city as authorities prepare for possible protests ahead of trump s arraignment. good morning, and welcome to way too early on this friday, march 31st, i m jonathan lemire. thanks for starting your day with us, and we will begin this friday w
morning joe starts right now trump indicted the first ever criminal indictment of a former president of the united states came down yesterday when a new york city grand jury convened by the manhattan district attorney s office took the unprecedented step of voting to charge donald trump. because the indictment is under seal, the exact charges are unknown, but we do know they center around that $130,000 payment trump allegedly made to porn star stormy daniels just days before the 2016 election, to keep her silent about an affair she claims the two had a decade earlier according to the star witness in the case, trump s own former lawyer, michael cohen, the trump organization tried to cover up the payment, falsely claiming it was a legal expense. good morning and welcome to morning joe. it is friday, march 31st along with joe, willie and me, we have the host of way too ea early, white house bureau chief at politico, jonathan lemire the host of politics nation, presid
cnn white house correspondent arlette saenz joins us now, so, arlette, the president has not announced that he s running for election. but there s some expectation that this speech is going to have the tone of a campaign speech. reporter: well, victor, take a look at where president biden decided to unveil this election, that s in the battle ground state of pennsylvania which would be critical to the upcoming election look, the presidential advisers are aware that the budget as proposed is unlikely to go anywhere up on capitol hill. but it does offer the president an opportunity to really lay out what s at stake for both the policy and political battles ahead, especially when you think of the fight, the looming fight, over the debt ceiling expected to play out over the coming month. the omb director shalanda young calls it a healthy start to the conversation. and ultimately, it lays out what president biden values. taking a look at what this budget entails. the president is
election. the bombshell coming as he once again runs for the white house. what is the unprecedented charge or charges? and would he surrender for arrest? also tonight, the video appearing to show an american journalist arrested in russia on a spying charge. if convicted, he could face 20 years in prison. how will the u.s. respond? also tonight, the chilling 911 calls from the nashville school shooter. a teacher hiding in a closet, pleading for help as shots ring out. the military tragedy. nine soldiers killed when two black hawk helicopters crash in kentucky. the investigation. our nbc news exclusive. the former fox news producer at the center of a defamation battle, breaking her silence. she says fox bullied her into giving misleading testimony. her allegations of a toxic workplace and the shocking thing she says she was told about fact-checking election falsehoods. and words of kindness. the best-selling author and the outpouring from fans, inspiring america.