Morning Joe - Morning Joe 11/10/23

Episode Date: November 10, 2023

Biden offers glimpse of 2024 messaging at fundraiser

American workers are ready to work harder than anybody else, but they just need to be given a shot, a fair shot and a fair wage. That's not too much to ask. You okay? I want the press to know that wasn't me. President Biden with a little self-deprecation about his age. Tuesday, I'll do that for you. That was during his speech to United Auto Workers yesterday.

Presidents seeming to preview his 2020 campaign, including attacks on Donald Trump. Speaking of the former president, he seems to be confirming reports he plans to get revenge on his critics if he wins a second term, as if anyone had any doubt he would. We'll play those comments for you. Meanwhile, Democrats are now sure to lose a key seat in the Senate next year, with Joe Manchin of West Virginia announcing he will not run for reelection. Also ahead this morning, we'll go through the major development out of the Middle East, Israel agreeing to daily humanitarian pauses in Gaza to get some of that food and that aid in. Good morning. Welcome to Morning Joe. It is Friday, November 10th. With us today, we've got the host of Way Too Early, White House Bureau Chief of

Politico, Jonathan Lemire, congressional investigations reporter for The Washington Post, Jackie Alimany, White House editor for Politico, Sam Stein, White House correspondent for Politico and co-author of the playbook, Eugene Daniels. He's a Morning Joe senior contributor and former White House director of communications for President Obama, Jennifer Palmieri. She's co-host of the MSNBC podcast, How to Win 2024, and the co-host of Showtime's The Circus, which has its final episode this Sunday. Joe, a full house for us this morning. Great crew assembled on a Friday. And yes, Joe Biden was out in full campaign mode yesterday with a little bit of swagger to him. And Willie, if you notice, like if you notice my shot, TJ's so excited about it being such a big show. He parked a Ford Bronco about 10 feet ahead right here, and you'll notice it's reflecting off of my glasses right now.

TJ, you can turn the Bronco lights up. You see, he's got the high beams on. Look at this. Boy, I tell you what. Thank you, TJ. I don't really know where to go to there from there. Okay, I'm going to have to take my glasses off. It is a bit. We'll figure it out. What? I'm on the road to Damascus here. I already seen Jesus. Thank you. That's a better shot.

So, Willie, you'll you'll notice that there's like a sort of a new spark in Joe Biden's step in that, first of all, he's going after Donald Trump finally. I mean, going after him by name. He's also he's running ads talking about how well just telling the truth, talking about manufacturing in states where it really matters. And and he does seem very confident about what happened on Tuesday night. And why shouldn't he feel confident again? He's always second guessed. People are always doubting him. And time and time again, he he exceeds their expectations. So if there seems to be a spring in his step, there's a good reason. Yeah. And coming out of Tuesday night, remember, that was just two, three days before

those New York Times Siena poll came out in the swing states that shook the Democratic Party and put people into panic mode, talking about alternatives to Joe Biden. Give it 48 hours. Democrats sweep to victory on Tuesday night. So that is why you saw some confidence, I think, in part from President Biden as he was in campaign mode at a fundraiser in Chicago last night. He touted his administration's success, claiming credit for those Democratic big wins in several races this week. Biden said Democratic Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky won reelection after, quote, running on programs that were all Biden initiatives. The president also calling out Donald Trump by name, something he's been a little reluctant to do previously.

At the fundraiser, Biden told donors Trump is, quote, the only reason abortion is banned in America and is now running to end democracy as we know it. Those comments came after the president spent the day in Illinois meeting with members of the United Auto Workers celebrating that union's tentative deal with Detroit's big three automakers. Biden congratulated the union while wearing a local chapter T-shirt and slammed the former president and Republicans for not doing enough for autoworkers. The entire UAW proved what I've always believed. Wall Street didn't build America. The middle class built America.

And unions built the middle class. Let's think about this. When my predecessor, the distinguished, anyway. Here's the difference. When you're in the middle of a fight, I stood and others stood with you shoulder to shoulder on that picket line. My predecessor went to a non-union shop and attacked me. Yes, he did! Yes, he did! I hope you guys have a memory. Where I come from, it matters. The truth is, if you hadn't listened to him, thank God you didn't.

So, Joe, something that you've been talking about for several weeks now, which is Joe Biden, the White House, the campaign going right at Donald Trump. And really, this is a two front fight that he's looking at. It appears anyway, which is number one, this issue of abortion, which obviously was so critical to those wins on Tuesday and have been critical to Democratic wins for the last 16 months or so. And also the question of democracy, the two D's. You've democracy being this is a guy that if elected, we know what he's going to do. We know what comes next. We know that he's going to tear down the institutions because he already tried to do it the first time around. Yeah, no doubt. And we have data that actually democracy matters to people as a campaign issue. It matters to people. I know there are a lot of really smug, smug people on the left and the right going into the 2022 election going, oh, this idiot, he's talking, this old man, he's talking about democracy. He's talking about abortion. Abortion's only polling at 5%.

We heard it. Everybody was mocking and ridiculing him. Democracy matters. We have the data, not from polls, from actually elections, the 2022 election, the 2023 election, time and again, the people who actually admitted that the elections weren't rigged in 2020, that the elections were legit. They do better than the liars do, certainly in swing states. But there are two other issues yesterday that I think Joe Biden touched on that's going to really give us insight on what we're going to see the next year. It's really going to be Donald Trump's worst nightmare. One is abortion. Donald Trump. I killed abortion.

I killed Roe v. Wade. I'm the one that made sure Roe v. Wade ended. He's been saying it nonstop. And this lie that somehow now he's trying to tack to the middle, only in front of certain audiences. He's still saying it out there. And it's on tape so much. I think it's going to be like a fighter in the middle of the ring,

and I think they're going to keep going to the body with it and keep pounding people, talking about the fact that Donald Trump's proud of the fact that he's the guy responsible for 10-year-old girls having to flee the state of Ohio after they were raped by an illegal immigrant and had to flee the state. That's happened across America. And women have been facing horrific health care choices, bleeding out with doctors going, we can't do anything. We can't do it. Why can't they do anything? Why can't they take care of women

who are bleeding out who need help? Because of Donald Trump. And Donald Trump's do it. Why can't they do anything? Why can't they take care of women who are bleeding out who need help because of Donald Trump? And Donald Trump's admitted it. So that's part one. Part two, this election is won in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania. He just keeps hammering on on manufacturing. He just keeps hammering on jobs. He just keeps him. And, you know, he's doing things that actually Obama and Clinton and other Democrats didn't do. He's not a new Democrat. He's not new Democrats, by the way, have bled all that support away. He's an FDR Democrat and he's reconnecting with that incredibly important strand of Democratic politics. And I think it's paying off. So on both of these things, so on abortion, you know, plus also he he said that women who had abortions should be punished. So there's also that. Right. I was in Hialeah on Tuesday night, Wednesday night, I guess. The Trump went in the night of the debate when Trump did his counterprogramming rally and talked to some of his team after the

rally. And they have no idea what to do about abortion. You know, I said, wow, you know, Kentucky, Virginia, Ohio seemed pretty tough for you all. What are you going to do about abortion? They're like, well, we think, you know, we need to have a more moderate position as like the more moderate position, the 15-week ban that got trounced in that notion was trounced in the Virginia legislative election. So I'm not sure what you're going to do. Plus, you know, he's up on stage saying how proud he was to have been the guy that stopped that stopped Roe. And, you know, the Tuesday elections were so what my big takeaway is people are willing to people are on alert and they're turning out, whether it's

abortion or democracy or the economy, you know, they are, they are alert and they're turning out. It's just like the fall of 22. And then on the point about manufacturing and the sort of economic achievements that are going to resonate in those Midwestern states, I was in Lansing on Tuesday with Gretchen Whitmer. You know, she's gotten a lot done. Joe Biden's gotten a lot done. She has a high approval rating. Biden's is not. She's constantly communicating on achievements and accomplishments and like, you know, whether it's TikTok or news conferences. And that's what you see Biden amping up now. And we got a year to do that. And you know, they've got an incredible story to tell. And, you know, that matters. That certainly matters for you. That certainly matters for

young voters. I mean, you look at, unfortunately, on college campuses, some of the twisted views about Hamas that ain't coming from from law professors or from from history professors. It's coming straight off of social media. So it's a battle that needs to be waged, a battle for ideas. But, you know, when it comes to young voters, abortion is going to matter. The fact that young women don't have the rights that their mothers and grandmothers had for half a century, that's going to matter. Donald Trump, though, here's the good news, though, for Republicans. Donald Trump, he's gone to the center. He's now saying, oh, we could make everybody happy.

And it's so great. I'm so happy for him. Because if I were running against him, I'd show this. President Trump is going to make a determination what he thinks is great for the country and what's fair for the country. But the fact that I was able to terminate Roe v. Wade after 50 years of trying, they worked for 50 years. I've never seen anything like it. They worked. And I was even I was so honored to have done it. Well, I did something that nobody thought was possible. I got rid of Roe v. Wade. And by doing that, by doing that, it put pro-lifers in a very strong negotiating position.

Nobody did a job like I did, including Roe v. Wade, bringing it back to the states. What I did by killing Roe v. Wade, which everyone said was impossible. OK, Jackie, Donald Trump said, I'm just wondering how this is going to play from voters 18 to 29, the ones that Joe Biden's supposed to be losing. I'm so honored to terminate Roe v. Wade, Donald Trump says. He brags time and time again about saying I was the one who killed Roe v. Wade. I mean, this may be one time when Donald Trump shouldn't have taken all the credit because no matter what he says, well, first of all, people know he was the one that killed Roe v. Wade and makes 10 year old rape victims flee the state to go to go so they don't get say state sanctioned abortions. But but goes around bragging about killing Roe v. Wade.

I have a feeling that's something we're going to hear from the Biden White House every day because this issue of abortion. I think it's I think it's probably the worst political issue since Watergate for Republicans. Yeah. And I think what you're seeing Republicans try to feel out is having it both ways, being able to tout overturning Roe v. Wade, but now being able to encourage others in the party to take a soft or rhetorical tone. And, you know, even in the RNC autopsy last year, or I guess when after the 2022 midterm, I'm losing track of the midterm. Encouraging Republicans to be able to speak about the topic more eloquently,

be able to communicate with women that they were sort of missing the boat in that conversation and that by avoiding it completely, they were allowing Democrats to own the issue. But how do you how do you do it more eloquently? We pass laws that allow 1849 total bans of abortion in Wisconsin to stand. Right. Well, so that at the end of the day, dance around, you know, the Republican nominee can't control all the state legislatures that are ultimately passing these trigger laws and total bans. This was a big point of contention in the speaker's race. People who were meeting with Mike Johnson privately, who has been one of the most, has supported some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country

and was in favor of a national ban previously. They had conversations with him, the New York Republicans, asking him to ensure and promise them that he wouldn't bring a national ban to the House floor because that would put them in an impossible position and is a losing issue. So you're going to see Republicans, I think, coalesce around this message of this is a state issue. But if, you know, as we're seeing the way state all these states are acting, that's not really working out. It doesn't it doesn't work. I mean, state issues because the states have been so extreme. It's not like Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney are governors like they were, you know, a decade ago. They've got people that are saying, how low can we go? How extreme can we get? And, you know, all they do is they keep electing Democrats. I mean, what voters are telling us is it's not a messaging issue on abortion. There's a policy issue right there. It's not that they want Republicans to talk nicely about

abortion or to pick later time periods. That's not what voters are telling us over and over and over again. They're telling us that the policy is the problem, that they don't want the government telling them that they can't have abortions, that the right was taken away from them. This is what Democrats have been saying. And it's just true. That is exactly what happened, right? A right was taken away from Americans. And they do not like that. And it is unbelievable.

It's not believable to voters or to really anyone paying attention that the 15 weeks would work because all of these states, like you're saying, are doing six weeks. You know, they're talking about they want to ban abortion completely. And the folks on the debate stage on Wednesday are controlling the struggle of having this conversation. Nikki Haley, probably the best general election message on it for Republicans, saying it's not possible to have a national ban on abortion. But the other guys on that stage, most of them have talked about a six week. Ron DeSantis signed a six week. So at the national level, the conversation is completely different. I mean, they can't help themselves. They really can't. I mean, you've got Donald Trump running

around saying, I'm so honored to have terminated Roe v. Wade. Actually uses the word terminate. Terminate. I'm so honored to have terminated Roe v. Wade. And then you have Ron DeSantis, who right now, you know, probably second place. Certainly the guy whose names out there the most. He signed a six week ban. I mean, when I you know, we've heard the term worse than Watergate. Oh, there's worse than Watergate. Oh, Joe Biden tripped on a sandbag. Worse than Watergate. Everything's worse than Watergate for Republicans. Actually, abortion as an issue. Let's just say worse than watergate the because abortion rights

it's undefeated it's like the rocky marciano of political issues can't get beaten you know the traffic on the way over here was worse than watergate it was well i know i know that the new drawbridge they put in right on I and thanks to the infrastructure bill. Is that why you were like, yeah, I'm sorry. No, you're right. I mean, yes. I mean, abortion is not, you know what you're saying right now? Well, I haven't said anything. I exactly, it is five minutes. The beginning of that sentence was worse than water. I will say this. What will you say more?

This wind-up. Here is... Oof! The pitch is coming, Willie. I mean, I'm sorry. You've got the longest wind-up in baseball. Go. The anticipation.

Abortion is... It's a messaging issue yes it's also a freedom issue it's a rights issue and that's how democrats democrats have actually been pretty deft in kind of expanding this into an issue of not only just reproductive freedom but look republicans are actively coming in and taking away things that you could count on that were your that were your rights, that were something for 50 years, 50. You know, Americans, Americans, we do a lot of things really good. What we don't do well is that the government take away the constitutional right that we've had for 50 years. Yeah. And we're not really good at that. No. And to Jackie's point, I mean, yes, they're trying. I mean, politics in some ways is the nature or the nature of politics

is to trying to have it both ways. And when you are trying to pivot from a primary audience where most people and most of the politicians out there who actually are, you know, thinking about these things are in siloed districts where they're trying to not be primaried. You talk a certain way and it sort of becomes a race to the bottom where you can do the most radical thing. And then general election voters make that impossible to make you. Well, and let me just say, Sam, the problem with them is is that even in states that are swing states, they're doing stupid things. I mean, a six week abortion ban in Florida. I mean, I know Florida really well. Floridians, they don't like the six week abortion ban. Now, some some right wing freaks up in Tallahassee may and maybe like right to life and the lobbyist

groups whose jobs it is to push them as far as maybe they like them. But all those people that came down from New York and Connecticut, New Jersey came down because they like low taxes and they like government like out of their, you know, out of their pocketbooks. They also want government out of their bedrooms. And that's something that, again, I'm still not sure how Florida is going to respond to a six week ban. We've already seen how Wisconsin has responded to an 1849 total ban of abortion. They're just not self-correcting. Yeah, I mean, I think Mark eventually got there. He's pretty good. Which is, there's something... Can I just say this? He walked, actually, he walked the base's fault, right?

But then struck out the side. I'm an adventurer. There is something, I think, to a lot of voters that is not conservative about what happened here, right? Government coming in saying, no, you can't do X, Y, and Z. And I think that's why for a lot of conservative voters, this has had resonance. They don't want the government saying, no, you can't do this or to your point, getting the member. I think the other thing which we haven't, we kind of discussed is the optics of a number of men, more or less going around old, old, I'm sorry, let's just say old white legislatures, right. Legislators who look like they're, they're out of like, you know,

right. Some, some, I don't think it's an accident that Nikki Haley's found the most compelling message among the Republican primary crowd. I think for a lot of voters, it's especially women voters. It is offensive to them to see old white men craft these laws. And the other thing that I just add is the way they've gone about it in certain cases has worsened the problem for them. So like in Ohio, right, to try to sneak in this initiative to say that, oh, no, we're going to raise the threshold for ballot initiatives from 50 to 60, transparently trying to make sure that they would stop the ability for voters to be able to cast ballots on whether to legalize and codify abortion rights. That is a process point, but I think it does go to the larger issue, which is voters think they're trying to have some conservative worldview imposed upon them. And I think they're revolting. And I think they're revolting against that.

And you're right. I mean, you've got a new speaker now who's about as extreme on abortion as anybody. He's also a guy that said that men doing what men do and the privacy of their bedrooms will help Western civilization collapse. I just I mean, I mean, this is so intrusive. He is so beyond where 80 percent of Americans, 90 percent of Americans are. I tell you what, I just don't know a lot of Americans who still are like saying, I want to manage what goes on in the bedrooms of consenting. And I think just quickly on Johnson, what's interesting to me is that you talk to Republicans, are like saying, I want to manage what goes on in the bedrooms of consenting adults. Right.

And I think just quickly on Johnson, what's interesting to me is that you talk to Republicans, not Johnson, and you say, well, you know, they'll say, no, we're not trying to do a national ban. That's crazy. But they elected someone who wants a national ban. I think people find that, you know, they find the messaging obviously misleading. And that's part of the problem. There's mission creep here, too. I have to note.

I mean, at the end of the day, you have Republicans, national Republicans saying, you know, please don't put a national ban on the floor. We probably would vote against it. But the incentives are such that so far when there have been these smaller provisions and amendments that have been brought to the floor, for example, just a few months ago, this amendment in the National Defense Authorization Act that would ban the funding of travel for service members who needed to travel out of state to get abortions, Republicans, some of them decried it and then voted against it. What Tommy Tuberville is doing right now. Tommy, this is an abortion stance he's taken, but affecting obviously all the military. This is seeping into things that are

not just abortion. I mean, it's going to affect everything. So Willie, 23 minutes into our A block, the first half of our A block, you've talked about one of the issues Biden's going to handle. I think the other one, again, that's important. You can go. I ask everybody, go to 270 to win and do your map. And just assuming that Biden's going to end up winning that one Nebraska district in Omaha, give him Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan and then find a way for Donald Trump to get to 270. You can't because, you know, Trump can win North Carolina. He can win Georgia. He could win Arizona. He could win Nevada. But if Biden wins those three states, he's got 270. And that's why this manufacture, first of all, his record on manufacturing, it's why it's so important. But

secondly, it's why it's so important that he's getting that message out. He is. And before I get to that, Joe, I want to credit you as the manager for leaving Leibovich out there, even through all those walks. You know, a lot of people, they get a short leash. But you turned to Leo Mazzoni and you said, nope, he's my guy. And he struck out the side. So good on you, Joe. I'm telling you, Willie, I started doing this. I almost went to my southpaw. I was like, hey, hey.

In the day of analytics, he would have pulled them. No, I know. I know. I'm old school. You know what? Get those Yale boys out of here. I don't want your laptops. Let's keep old tried and true in there.

He got us out of it. You were up on that top step, and you wisely wisely came down and he got out of the jam. But let's get back to the Alex. Marky Lyle put it out of the side. Damn it. Go ahead. Let the kids. All right.

Let's leave. Leave. Leave all alone and get back to manufacturing about that. So the Biden campaign, as you said, they're out with a new ad actually going after Donald Trump's record on manufacturing. To your point about those critical states, the 32nd spot aired last night during Thursday night football. He says he stands with auto workers, but as President Donald Trump passed tax breaks for his rich friends while automakers shuttered their plants. And the U.S. lost manufacturing jobs. Joe Biden said he'd stand up for workers and he's delivering, passing laws that are increasing wages and creating good paying jobs. Manufacturing is coming back to America

because Joe Biden doesn't just talk, he delivers. So, Jonathan Lemireire a new ad just out uh that premieres this morning so actually it aired last night during thursday night football it was the panthers and bears so maybe not a lot of people saw it so maybe this is this is the real this is the real rollout but let's talk about the strategy here going after those key states that joe just talked about that clearly are again going to decide a presidential election yeah i mean that was the theory of the case behind Joe Biden in 2020, is that that's the blue wall. Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, states with manufacturing, states with a lot of white working class voters,

states that Democrats would win cycle after cycle until Donald Trump stole them in 2016. So therefore, Joe Biden was perceived as the best candidate to get them back, to build back that blue wall. And he did. Margins were close, but he won. And they've spent, this White House and the Biden campaign shop has spent an extraordinary amount of time in the last three years focused on those states. The president's been to Pennsylvania more than any other.

He's been to Wisconsin and Michigan a bunch as well. And we saw yesterday, though he was in Illinois next door, talking about union workers, talking about manufacturing and taking direct swipes at Donald Trump. And we've been reporting all week about how this has been an internal debate in the in the Biden camp. They thought the GOP primary field would take more shots at Trump. They didn't. Now they're ramping up their own attacks and they're focusing on drawing that contrast with Trump, particularly on manufacturing. And as we're seeing here, let's recall, of course, that Biden stood with those workers on the picket line a few weeks ago while Trump did so at a non-union shop. So this is about economics. This is about trying to say,

like, our manufacturing plans are working. It's about the electric vehicles. Yes. But it's also about targeting those voters that the union leadership breaks with Biden. Some of the union members we know has gone with Trump. This is a direct appeal with them to kind of keep Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania in his column this time around. Yeah. You know, Willie, speaking of that game last night, rough start for Bryce Young. Jack and I keep cheering for Bryce. He had a good game a couple of weeks ago, but Panthers now 1-8. But, man, what a story out of Chicago. The kid at QB.

Yeah, Bajan, he came in. Justin Fields, their star quarterback who they drafted number one a couple of years ago, he got injured. This new guy's in. And yet Bryce Young, the great rookie quarterback out of Alabama, it was going to be a long season. That's a very, very bad team. They got one win.

They're one and eight. But remember, Trevor Lawrence, the Jags quarterback, was on a very, very bad team a couple of years ago and pretty soon had him in the playoffs. So we will hold out hope. Still ahead this morning on Morning Joe, Congressman Jim Clyburn's endorsement, of course, helped to propel Joe Biden to the presidency in 2020. The South Carolina Democrat joins us to talk about Biden's reelection plan next year. Plus, Israel agrees to daily pauses in its offensive in Gaza. We'll have details on the White House role in negotiations for aid to civilians there and to free more

hostages from Hamas. Also ahead, Jason Sudeikis joins us to talk about his annual Thundergong charity event. We'll look forward to that. And we're told now up here in the broadcast booth, Mark Leibovich coming back out for the second inning after finding his stuff late in the first. Morning Joe's coming right back. It's a beautiful live picture of Washington at 633 in the morning as the sun begins to come up on a Friday. Next Friday, one week from today, is the deadline for government funding to run out. And this morning, there is a new setback for House Speaker Mike Johnson. In a further sign of dysfunction in the chamber, the Republican-led House finished the week by canceling votes on two party-line funding bills.

A step back for Speaker Johnson, who had hoped to show progress on appropriations bills championed by conservatives as a means of securing their votes for a continuing resolution to prevent that government shutdown. The ongoing chaos prompted one House Republican to call the party ungovernable. That's from a Republican. A different Republican member, Troy Nails of Texas, told NBC News, quote, I don't think the Lord Jesus himself could manage this group, end quote. He added he would pray for the new speaker over the long weekend as members departed Washington yesterday and will return on Monday. Though, Joe, it appears they may need more than prayer to avoid another government shutdown. Well, I mean, if the Republicans are saying

they wouldn't even listen to the Lord Jesus, I mean, that's kind of bad. And it's also interesting. They've got a speaker who says my my life. He's kind of Ned Flanders at me. Kind of. Well, Homer, some have made the comparison. Yes, my my everything you need to know about my governing philosophy is in the Bible. No, not really. No, because I didn't see anything about lying in the Bible. And since you kind of got to power on the strength of the big lie. Yeah, I'm going through the Gospels. I just can't find it. I can't find it. But, Jackie, Republicans have said, this needs to be the headline, they won't even listen to Jesus. So if they won't even listen to Jesus, then how in the world are we going to see anything different than Kevin McCarthy? Well, I couldn't reach Jesus for comment.

Exactly. By the way, they brought up Jesus. They were the ones who brought up Jesus. We're just following through on that. But, yeah, so if they say even Jesus can't save them, then how are they going to get this work done? So, you know, I feel like I don't have a great prediction right now of whether or not we're definitively headed for a shutdown. But and I don't think Speaker Johnson and his team have an idea of realistic idea of that either. It seemed all signs are pointed towards that

because we are having a repeat of what we saw last month. Right. Where a clean, a continuing resolution seems like the only path forward at the moment to avoid that. And that is something that, as you just noted, got Speaker McCarthy kicked out of his job. But there is one big difference here, which is the goodwill and popularity that Mike Johnson has and the fatigue. We're going into now and next week will be 10 weeks of House lawmakers having come back to D.C. every single week. They want to be home with their families. They're sick and tired of arguing, of these sort of muggy, stinky, closed-door meetings and, you know, gross-plated late-night dinners. They've been here until 11 p.m.

You're a big fan of Washington, I can tell. Every night. And, you know, Speaker Johnson's also just figuring things out right now. He doesn't even actually know what he wants, according to our reporting. He's still trying to survey the conference to get a better idea. He's thrown around this idea of a laddered continuing resolution, which is really just like a more palatable way of saying a continuing resolution with some provisions that will appease hard right Republicans who want, you know, to balance the budget and cut, make major cuts to government agencies. That is not realistic. That's not going to get through the Senate. It's not going to pass that. Yeah. And, you know,

at the end of the day, even if they do get something to the Senate in the next few days, it remains to be seen what the Senate then sends back. So you're saying that Jesus might not do it, but the poor quality of a D.C. pizza may be powerful. Maybe do it. Send us for Abbas or the poor pizza. So it's incredible that they've got the majority. They can't pass the basic bills. They can't do the basic tasks of governing. And now, you know, with the extremists, with the radical, not conservative, with the radicals,

you know, anything that passes through the house will not, will be too extreme for the Senate. So where do we go from here? I mean, the foundations haven't changed, right, within the conference and the House Republicans. It's not—we haven't had an election and a bunch of people who, you know, the Boeberts and the Gates have been kicked out. They are still—they're mucking things up. And more importantly, they don't see—it's not that they believe in small government. Often they talk about basically no government, like not wanting government to do anything. And so, you have these incentive structures such that they go up and all they have to say is, we don't want to do it, and that's it. And so, I don't know how Johnson navigates that.

That was the entire conversation as we were in this speaker's race. I will say in the White House, they also agree that the goodwill that Johnson has is probably good for everybody, that, you know, if he does a CR, he's not going to get kicked out immediately. But the question is, how does that actually happen? We only have seven days. And what we wrote, the headline of Playbook, if I can plug really quickly, is the possibility of a sleepwalking into a shutdown, right, that things move too slowly and that just doesn't happen, right, That President Biden is going to be at APEC next week and he has to come back and make sure that he doesn't go to Delaware so they can sign something if it comes at the very last minute, the Senate staying and doing something. So there's not really a structure that makes a lot of sense. Is it a short shutdown? Is there one at all? I mean, how much, I just don't know how much more the Republicans can can handle of this.

I mean, politically, Jen, it's just a nightmare for him. You know, 1948, Harry Truman was supposed to get get crushed. But instead, he ran against the do nothing Republicans in Congress and it actually revived him. They went from saying we're just mild about Harry to give him hell. Harry, I mean, he just kept pounding and pounding and pounding away at the do nothing Republicans. And there's a winner here. I mean, the campaign speech rights itself, doesn't it? Well, and either they're going to be do nothing. I mean, not that we want government to function. So we want we want the government to stay open. We don't want the Republicans to be so tied up in knots. But either they do nothing and that's bad for them politically or they do something or they are or they're passing bills that are going to be very unpopular,

you know, led by a very by a speaker who wants America gets to know him, which I'm sure the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee will be. We'll make sure that everybody understands who Mike Johnson is. By the time we get to the next year's election, they're going to be that's also going to be really unpopular. So like there's just, you know, whether they're whether they're just locked, whether they're just locked up because they can't get anything done and shutting the government down or they're passing things that are going to also hurt, you know, particularly their moderate Republicans. They're just, you know, and they put themselves in this position. So, Mark, take this last, let's call it week or so, starting with that New York Times-Siena poll that caused the freakout among Democrats, people looking for alternatives to Joe Biden. Then 48 hours later on Tuesday, sweeping wins for Democrats.

You saw the president with a little life in his step yesterday, hammering Donald Trump on manufacturing, talking about abortion and talking about democracy. What is your sense of the way Democrats are feeling about Joe Biden right now, but really that Joe Biden is feeling a year out from the election? But by the way, Willie, by the way, so Lebo, he walks back out of the mound next inning. And Willie, he's just kind of staring. Like he's not even, I'm like, dude, stare at the camera, right? I turn around and look.

And I mean, I guess it's just so upscale here. They've hidden the camera. So Levo is like, it's hard. It's like hidden somewhere back there. And he can't find the batter's box, right? So he's looking over at the manager who's like going, pitch, pitch. Because I don't know where the batter's box is. What was the question?

Just stare into the void, Mark. Stare into the void. No, stare into the void. It comes naturally to me i would say that um the question that was no how do democrats okay okay to sort of pivot here how do democrats feel by the way willie uh at the end of the show we're going to have a vote on the worst guest performance in the 16 year history of morning jo We love you. Yeah, I know. I'm going to say this. Listen to this one. OK, this is going to be Democrats are I would say that that Tuesday's elections was was definitely a boost for Democrats.

So the question is, is Joe Biden going to going to benefit from that? And I mean, look, Democrats are nervous. There's no question about it. I mean, I hate to sort of give a shout out here to the bedwetters. But, you know, these polls from the last few weeks are I mean, they're accumulating. There were a lot of them. You can't talk to Democrats these days without, you know, sensing a lot of nervousness. And yeah, I mean, maybe abortion, you know, was a huge issue in Ohio and Kentucky. Democrats had a good day.

But, you know, like you said before, I mean, Joe Biden is not a not a new Democrat. He is an FDR Democrat. And voters are not buying this, at least if you believe these polls. So what about the elections? I mean, Democrats, Democrats have an extraordinary night. They win in Kentucky, right? They win in Kentucky. They exceed all expectations in Virginia. All expectations. True. And Ohio, the reddest of red states, 54 percent of men in Ohio voted against the Republican position. The question is, does that go to Joe Biden's benefit at some point when he's on the ballot? And if Donald Trump is on the ballot, we've seen that there are a whole there is a whole different set of turnout expectations of just models by which,

you know, states like Pennsylvania and Michigan and Wisconsin, you know, could go because, I mean, it's a whole different ballgame as it was in 2020, where where Trump got a lot of votes. 2016, obviously, it's the presidential year. So it's a different Trump under Trump underperformed Republicans in one swing state after another, after another. Trump wasn't on the ballot, though. No, no.

I'm talking about in 2020 in Wisconsin. He underperformed Republican candidates. All of those, as Ron Johnson said, accidentally by fifty six thousand, sixty thousand votes. Same thing in Georgia. Same thing in other states. Donald Trump underperformed. That was before January the 6th. That was before he said he wanted to terminate the Constitution. That was before 91 counts. I know people are going, oh, it doesn't matter yet. Does an indictment is an indictment is an indictment. And maybe a year out, it does. But but seriously, I'm just I'm not directing this at you. I'm just directing it at people that are now writing articles going, well, it was a historic night for Democrats, but it won't accrue to Joe Biden. Whose party is it?

It's Joe Biden's party. And the very fact that he's not a new Democrat, that he's an old FDR Democrat that wins Wisconsin, that wins Michigan, that wins Pennsylvania, that wins the White House. He OK. First of all, the polling is not showing this. I mean, Joe Biden is extremely unpopular. I hate to say it. I mean, like Barack Obama in 2011. OK, you can do that. But I can do that. I can also say Jimmy Carter was losing to Ted Kennedy by like 30 points. 20 percent, 20, maybe 20, maybe 15 percent of Democrats and independents didn't want

Barack Obama to run. 65 percent don't want Joe Biden to run. I mean, they're explicitly saying we don't want Joe Biden to run. I mean, they're explicitly saying we don't want Joe Biden to run. We think he's too old. I mean, that is unprecedented. And it's a Bob Seger fan. I love Bob Seger. I know it's late. I know. I know you're weary. I know your plans include you don't include me. Still, here we are. Both of us, both of us scared as hell of Donald Trump. And you know what? when they go in and they see donald trump's name there i'm sorry i don't think people that voted against him in 2020 are

going to vote for him in 2024 that isn't the issue so then there's two issues here though right because i agree with both of you if you have viable what are you harold ford jimmy if you have viable third party candidates right and i don't know if they're viable, but if you, I mean, RFK in these polls is taking what, 20%? That's like... But he's taking more from Trump. Now you get, let's say you get... Jill Stein's talking about coming in.

Jill Stein, and not really my aunt, in there. Then let's say you get a new, no labels candidate. Can I ask you, is Jill Stein going to be speaking in Russian or in English in this campaign? If it gets her the point five percent, does it really matter? And then if you get Joe Manchin potentially teasing this run, I mean, then you start having other factors.

I think the fundamental question to Mark's point for Biden and I would be curious what if you were in the White House, let's say you were advising Biden right now. And you see these polls and you say the greatest vulnerability he has is age and stamina. The perception that he doesn't have stamina and the fact that he is old. And he's not getting younger. What is the advice you give to him to say, go combat that? Cross-training. I'm serious. Swim.

A cover of Men's Health. Shirtless. Shirtless Men's Health. You know, exactly. And Willie, I think that's the key you joke about it i mean i'll tell you what i would do i'd show a picture of donald trump golfing and i'd say you guys are talking about health you're talking about age you're talking about i mean you take it head on you joke about it like he did last night the last night was fantastic somebody falls down he's like it's not me you know he walks around starts joking about it you you

always go straight into it and then you you look at the other guy and you're like you guys are talking about he thinks he's running against barack obama he doesn't he's like a drugged out rock star he's like thank you detroit and he's actually like in scranton like He doesn't. He's like a drugged out rock star. He's like, thank you, Detroit. And he's actually like in Scranton, like he doesn't know where he is. I mean, this is this is the he's got to go to it. He's got to run to it, joke about it and have events like he did yesterday. Yeah, he did it last night. I think the video you saw, even in that manufacturing ad, is no accident. It's video that let's say, Donald Trump doesn't find flattering of himself. So I think you're seeing some of that.

I mean, you have a guy in Donald Trump as Republicans talk about the decline of Joe Biden, who's on the stage discovering in real time that us also spells U.S. or U.S. is also us. He just realized that it's like, wait, he's working it out in real time. Willie, what did you just say he's you the word us is also vice versa or something ask us so what are you saying about us you just you take out the periods and then they're the same word yeah wow yeah that's amazing yeah so donald trump just figured that out. Changes everything. That does change everything. The point being, watch Donald Trump's rally in Hialeah the other night from start to finish.

If you can tolerate it and just ask yourself which of the two men is in more decline. We'll leave it there. Mark Leibovich, always great to see you, sir. Your performance review will be ready at the end of the day. It's only 10% of your grade. Don't worry. Let's keep it on Leibovitz just for a second

too long. Make him uncomfortable. Dead silence. I'm comfortable. DeSantis. Okay. All right. Thank you, Mark. The viewers are uncomfortable now. Congressman Jim Clyburn today will file official paperwork for the Biden-Harris 2024 campaign in South Carolina. He joins us next. Plus, the decision to relocate the FBI headquarters to Maryland instead of Virginia causing some controversy with the FBI director questioning the process and one Virginia senator calling for investigation.

We will speak with Maryland Governor Wes Moore for his take on that and much more. You're watching Morning Joe on a Friday morning. We've got tonight. Who needs tomorrow? Let's make it last. Let's find a way Turn out the light Come take my hand now We've got tonight, baby

Why don't you... Vice President Kamala Harris will join Assistant Democratic Leader Congressman Jim Clyburn this morning to officially submit the Biden-Harris ticket for the South Carolina presidential primary, which you'll remember now is first on the Democratic calendar. And Congressman Jim Clyburn of South Carolina joins us now. He is a national co-chair for President Biden's reelection campaign. Congressman, it's always great to have you on the show. So tell us a little bit about what we can expect today and what you're looking at in a state that, of course, was so pivotal and you so pivotal for Joe Biden's nomination and eventual election to become president of the United States. How does it look right now, a year out for the president there? Well, first of all, thank you very much for having me.

Well, South Carolina is a bit different. We are very critical to the nominating process. It will be different come the general election. But I will remind people that if it was the winner of the South Carolina primary

that has gone on, on the Democratic side, and most especially, that has gone on on the Democratic side, and most especially that has gone on to be successful in the general election in the last several campaigns. And so we are going to run on the record of Joe Biden. I think that if people were to look at the success of these campaigns have had. I've noticed you've mentioned Kentucky this morning. Although people were advocating for a candidate who was anti-Joe Biden, the fact of the matter is the successful candidate ran on Joe Biden's program. We had the same thing in the House race, a special election up in Rhode Island. A young man ran on Joe Biden's record. In fact, he was a part of the administration,

resigned from the White House to run in a special election about a dozen people. He ran on Joe Biden's record and finished on top of the heap. He's going to be sworn into Congress on Monday evening. So we are going to run on the record. The substance is there. People are hung up on the style, but the substance is what really matters in campaigns. Congressman, I understand that, you know, in terms of the president's reelection to run on the record and that's going to help other Democrats as well. What about running on in opposition to the House Republicans? I mean, do you see what do you expect is going to happen in the next week on the on the possible shutdown. Do you see like we're not for dysfunction, but do you see that this is

that a Speaker Johnson is going to be a big focus of Democratic campaigns in 2024 as well? Oh, absolutely. We're going to draw the contrast. We're going to have a contrast between Joe Biden and whoever the Republicans put up. We Democrats are going to run on the record that we've established of putting people above politics. I don't think it was just a slip of the tongue or the finger that caused Speaker Johnson to say what he did about not putting people over politics. We believe that is who and what he is. We are all about running on the record of what we have done for the people of this country, what we've done for their families, and what we've done for the communities that they live in. And so that is going to be the record.

Drawing that contrast between Joe Biden and whoever the Republicans put up and between Democrats and whoever we are running against for the Congress. Jim, Jeff Scarborough here. It's always great seeing you. I need to get to South Carolina. We need to go to Lizard's Thicket again sometime soon. It's been too long. I see these polls that suggest that Donald Trump's going to get 22, 23 percent of the black vote. And I just I just I laugh. I don't think it's going to happen. I'm not sure what's going on right now and why why right now that's showing up in the polls. But you look at unemployment for black Americans, it's lower than it's been in quite some time. There is a good record for

Joe Biden to run on. But right now, he doesn't seem to be connecting as well with people of color. We're a year away, but that 22 percent. I mean, do you believe that Joe Biden's doing that poorly among black voters? Absolutely not. Let me tell you what you're saying there. People are focusing on some of the unfinished business. Sure, I'm disappointed, as any other black person, that we have not been able to renew the Voting Rights Act. But we are going to show why. Why haven't we done it? Because this conservative,

MAGA-meaning Supreme Court has desecrated the Voting Rights Act, and we have not been able to get the Republicans in the Congress to renew it. And so a lot of black people are disappointed that that has not gotten done. A lot of black people are disappointed that we were not able to renew that part of the rescue plan that had the child tax credit. That is very important in the African-American community. So when you ask the polling information, that's what they give you. No, I'm dissatisfied that we have not done these things.

But when it comes to the general election and when we lay out what we've done and what we propose to do and compare that to what the Republicans have done and what they are proposing to do, you'll see Joe Biden getting 92, at least 92 percent of the African-American vote in the general election. That I am confident of. All right. Assistant Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn in South Carolina. Thank you so much, Jim. Always an honor to have you with us.

Thank you very much for having me. All right. See you soon. Would you agree with Jim that at the end of the day, we're not going to see Donald Trump pulling 22 percent of the black vote? No, I don't think so. I was just in South Carolina with my family. They've been there forever. And that's not the feeling that I get when you're there. But it doesn't mean that Joe Biden doesn't have a problem. Right. The congressman just laid out how disappointed they are. And when you juxtapose that with President Biden going to these manufacturing states and talking to mainly white supporters, mainly white audiences, you have black voters looking at that and saying, OK, but what about the things that manufacturing states and talking to mainly white supporters, mainly white audiences, you have black voters looking at that and saying, OK, but what about the things that disproportionately affect us? What about voting rights?

Why couldn't you get criminal justice reform? Why were you able to focus so much on infrastructure, but we couldn't get the things that you promised us? That is something that he's going to have to deal with. And more importantly, the young black voters, right, my young black cousins in South Carolina, they are disaffected in a certain way. So the campaign has to figure out a way to bring those folks back. But it is difficult to see if it's Donald Trump.

The Republican Party is 20 percent on the back. Well, that seems not that hard to figure out.