This Sunday up for debate will make my day president Biden and Donald Trump agree to face off on a debate stage next month the earliest general election debate in history I just wanted to paint this guy who will benefit more from the event and could a third-party candidate qualify plus courtroom campaign Republican allies and some vice presidential contenders of Donald Trump flock to the Manhattan courthouse in a show of support as the Hushman trial is nearing In end it's like psychological torture for Donald Trump What will the jury decide in the first ever criminal trial of a former president my guests this morning? Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and Democratic Governor Wes Moore of Maryland and Undercurrent Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps opens up about his struggles with depression in our meet-the-moment conversation There are times even though I have a roledex with people I can reach out to there are times where I feel like I'm all of them still Yeah, joining me for insight and analysis are NBC News senior White House correspondent Kelly O'Donnell Simone Sanders Townsend former Chief of Spokeswoman for Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican strategist Brendan Buck Welcome to Sunday. It's meet the press From NBC News in Washington the longest-running show in television history. This is meet the press the Kristen welcome Good Sunday morning the political world is gearing up for an historic face-off President Biden and former President Trump have agreed to the earliest general election debate in modern history Trump who has been beset by a swirl of legal challenges is hoping he can prove his case the President Biden is not up for another four years Biden wants to show why as he argues Trump is unfit for office It's also a likely attempt by President Biden to shake up the race Donald Trump lost two debates in 2020 since then he hadn't shown up for debate now He's acting like he wanted to bait me again will make my day pal if this horrible individual finishes the debate Which I think he will if he's standing if he's standing they'll say it was a brilliant performance It was a brilliant performance.
They've never seen anything like it now general election debates are the biggest stage for a presidential candidate More than 73 million people tuned into the first Biden Trump debate in 2020 now as for those legal battles former Trump fixer Michael Cohen We'll be back on the stand tomorrow as the first criminal trial of a former president draws to a close But despite at all the state of the race remains stagnant Biden continues to trail former president Trump in several key battleground states down by double digits in Nevada and Georgia State's he won in 2020 in Atlanta on Saturday The president argued mr. Trump presents an unhinged threat to the country and took a swipe at the polls You hear about how you know we're behind in the polls. Well, so far the polls have been right once Now that would look we're all either tired or slightly ahead or slightly behind But what I look at is actual election results and election results are in the primaries Trump has he doesn't have an opponent, but he lost 120,000 votes and Pennsylvania didn't vote for him I voted for a woman who's no longer in the race Meanwhile on Friday night at a Republican dinner in Minnesota former president Trump falsely claimed he won the state in 2016 and in 2020 He lost both times. I thought we wanted in 2016.
I thought we wanted in I know we wanted in 2020 We gotta be we gotta be careful. We gotta watch those votes at the NRA convention in Dallas on Saturday Trump again Falsely claimed to have won the 2020 election FDR 16 years almost 16 years. He was four term now The former president is in the early stages of the search for a money mate among the prominent Trump supporters who showed up for court this week in New York Potential running mates dressed like Trump including North Dakota Governor Doug Bergam Florida Congressman Byron Donald's and Ohio Senator JD Vance Bergam Also joined the Trump in Minnesota on Friday night and they just agreed or something to a vice president debate I said how can I have a vice president debate? I haven't even picked I haven't even picked the gentleman or woman yet I haven't picked a lot of people.
I think it's that guy right there. I don't know who the hell it is He'd be very good. We have a lot of them would be good, right? We have a lot of good people and joining me now is one of those potential vice presidential picks Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio senator Rubio welcome back to meet the press.
Thank you Thank you so much for being here Well, let's dive into the state of the race the last time you were asked about whether you had spoken with former president Trump about being his running Mate, you said you hadn't so can you update us have you spoken to the former president about potentially being his running mate? I haven't spoken to the president. I haven't spoken to anybody in the campaign The only people who spoken to me about vice president for the most part are members of the media and which is fine Look, this is part of the deal The primaries are over and so you know political reporters have to cover politics And I understand the VP stuff is an interesting horse race question But there's only one person on this planet that knows who that's who the vice presidential pick is gonna be in his name Is Donald Trump and he's got time to make that decision and a lot of really good people to pick from but I've never spoken to anybody on The campaign about it. Let me ask it this way We have noticed that you have not been on the campaign trail with the former president in recent days We haven't seen you show up in court.
Do you want the job of vice president senator? Well, first of all, I'll do whatever the campaign asked me to do so I've been at events to help raise money and so forth We're also in session in Washington. So we've got some work there We had open hearings this week in the intelligence committee and so we wanted so you know That's going on But I'll be there to be help because I want him to win if Joe Biden and it's the part of the second answers I want to serve the country as I'm not presumptuous to tell you I'm gonna be offered anything as I said He's got a lot of good people to pick from here's what I do know if Joe Biden is real like the president the damage to this Country I believe in some cases will be generational and some of it will be irreversible That's how high the stakes are I cannot imagine another four years under Joe Biden as president And I will do virtually anything to ensure that Donald Trump wins and that Joe Biden does not because we can't afford as a nation To have another four years like the last three and a half So just to put a fine point on it, you would say yes if you were asked to serve as vice presidential nominee Again, that would be presumptuous for me I think anyone who's offered that job to serve this country in the second highest office assuming everything else in your life Makes sense at that moment. I'm why if you're if you're interested in serving the country It's an incredible place to serve, but I just think this kind of speculation We're getting way ahead of ourselves here as I said We'll find out soon enough, but I've never spoken anybody about it So why would I even a pine on something I've never spoken to the campaign about okay fair enough Well, let's talk about one of the major policy issues of this campaign the issue of abortion senator Would you support a federal abortion ban?
Well, I will I'm pro-life and to me this is not even a political issue I understand it is for a lot of people and I understand this is a divisive issue in our country and everybody shares my views on it But I believe that human life is worthy of dignity and protection and I support laws that protect our human unborn human life I always have as I've done in the past You know that when people talk about a federal abortion ban what they're talking about is the 15-week ban Which Lindsey Graham sponsored and I have co-sponsored in the past that law is less restrictive or identical to virtually every country in Europe except for two Now the extremists here are the Democrats not once but twice they have voted in Congress to support a law that basically has no Has no meaningful restrictions they claim it does But it has no meaningful restrictions and I think if to find if we are indeed in this republic Which is what we live in and to this issue like this where everybody's views have to be taken into account It's very difficult to find if there is such a thing and an arrangement at the federal level with people who basically will not vote for any Meaningful restrictions on abortion. Well, of course the restrictions would be After 21 weeks, so let me ask it to you this way Donald's not accurate. I'm sorry. That's not what that bill did No, I'm sorry, but that's not what that bill did that bill and it didn't say anything about doctors that said practitioners So they didn't have to be a doctor that makes this decision It doesn't say anything about a reasonable harm It's a it's a good faith and so basically even if it's remote and unlikely you could still say and it's not even about by the way in that Law that they had it's not even about the life of the mother It's about the health so it's it can be a nurse practitioner or a nurse or I mean health care practitioners Someone needs to define that and it can be for virtually any reason so I understand what they claim to build it But in practice that bill had no meaningful restrictions It was in essence a vote not once But twice from democrats to have abortion at any time for any reason let me just note though that less than 1% of abortions take place after 21 weeks Let me just ask you though.
This then everybody should be in favor of just bad. They're so rare. Let's just ban them all At the 20 weeks hard on that well because usually if they happen it's because there is a crisis with the health of the mother Let me ask you though Donald Trump says no There's a crisis with a life of the mother a real crisis that every every bill has that restriction place everybody has that exception Let me ask it this way Donald Trump says quote. He's not signing a national abortion ban.
Do you disagree with him on that point? Well, you won't get the sign one because there's no way we can pass it I've never claimed we have 60 votes in the Senate and votes in the house and everything else that goes in between I don't believe any time but I don't see I don't support those bills because I think they're actually about to pass And I think what Trump has actually said is that what he wants to do is negotiate with a Democrat I think he said it on this program that he wants to negotiate with the Democrats on this Which I think you know in a country where you're trying to save on born human life And I support laws that do so even if they don't have everything I want him to have in there That's his goal and so but he's that's a statement of fact It will never get a chance to sign that law because right now we don't have the votes to pass it That doesn't mean that's not what I believe it just kind of the reality of the politics well But he's not talking about whether the votes are there he has said point blank He's not signing a national abortion ban. Let me ask you though Because he wants to negotiate with the Democrats on the issues he also he also said on this program that a six-week abortion Band that was signed into law in Florida in your state is a quote terrible thing a terrible mistake Is he wrong on that point senator? Well again I'm pro-life so I support laws that save on born human life other people have different opinions on what our law should be That law that you're referring to was passed by elected legislators in the state of Florida House members that have to go back to their voters every two years I wasn't senators have to go back every four years and that's the way our republic works It's a representative democracy and people have to go back to their voters and justify I am of the belief that unborn human I don't want to impose anything on anyone I get that this is two competing rights here that are crashing into each other But I are on the side of supporting unborn human life because of the dignity of all human like that's my view I want our laws to represent it other people have different views But in our represented democracy people who have to answer to voters in the state of Florida voted for that and voters Want to get that into account in this election in any future election just to put a fine point on it You are disagreeing with Donald Trump on his opposition to that six-week ban you support the six-week ban But I think even within the pro-life movement There's all kinds of disagreement about what the laws should be but you support the six-week You support the six-week ban you support any life that I support any bill that that protects unborn human life I don't consider other people in the pro-life movement who have a different view to be apostate They just have a different view about the best ways to approach this issue We are not like the Democrats where unless you are in favor of their bills that basically say let's just put in all this fancy language But it's not meaningful in terms of any restrictions.
You won't get Planned Parenthood for example who supports all Democrats They get their support and they're all support you have to be for abortion at any time I don't care what they say that's the practical impact of their laws They are radicals on this center Let's move on to immigration if re-elected Donald Trump has said he's willing to build migrant detention camps and deploy the US military To deport them more than 11 million undocumented immigrants in this country It would be the largest deportation operation in American history. Do you support that plan? 11 million that's an update that was the number 10 years ago. We're talking upwards of 25 maybe 30 million There's been almost 10 million people in the last three years The number varies big time I mean, it's another nine to 10 million people just in the last three years the answer your question is yes We cannot absorb 25 30 million people who entered this country illegally.
They're here illegally What country on earth would tolerate that? We don't even know who some of these people are they talk about vetting them with what they're coming from nations I don't even have document systems in many cases. Yes, we are gonna have to do something unfortunately We're gonna have to do something dramatic to remove people from this country that are here legally Especially people we know nothing about but 10 million 11 million that was the number 15 years ago today It's upwards of probably 25 to 30 million maybe more So here's what you said about Donald Trump's mass deportations proposals in 2016 take a look I don't think it's reasonable to say you're gonna round up and deport 11 million people. I don't think it's a plan that works I don't think that's a realistic policy So why have you changed your mind now?
Because the issue has completely changed when I said that back in 2013 when I was involved in immigration reform We had 11 12 million people that have been here for longer than a decade Now we've had almost that number in the last three years alone from all over the world including believe people that I believe are terrorists People that I believe are gonna conduct terrorist attacks in this country given the opportunity certainly people that were criminals in their home country This is a completely different. This is not immigration. You asked me about immigration This is mass migration mass migration. This is an invasion of the country and it needs to be dealt with dramatically And by the way, I don't my big poll follower But post show most Americans agree with us on this and of course that was an issue under former president Trump as well There was just a bipartisan proposal that was put on the table that would put more funding into border enforcement as well as limiting asylum Republicans walked away from that, but let me move on to my next question No, no, we can't move on because that's not what that bill did that bill also created asylum officers who right on the border Will be able to give people asylum and you get someone asylum right on the border without any appeal no drudge Nothing just an asylum officer.
They are on a path to citizenship Your fellow I pose that bill your fellow republicans said it was the best deal that they had seen in a long long time But Senator Okay, I disagree with what he said I'm not in favor of a silent officer that the border that can issue asylum rulings right at the border Let's let and Senator James Langford of course negotiate, but let me look forward Will you accept the election results of 2024 no matter what happened senator? No matter what happens. No, it's an unfair election. I think it's I think you're asking the wrong person the democrats are the ones that have opposed every republican victory since 2000 every single one It's no democrats refused to concede Hillary Clinton conceded senator Will you accept the election Hillary Clinton said the election was stolen from her and that Trump was in the gym and Kamala Harris agreed Senator she can see the election she said that she said that she said that no she said that Trump was illegitimate She said that the election had been stolen Kamala Harris agreed by the way They're a democrat serving in Congress today who in 2004 voted not to certify the Ohio Electors because they said those machines that are tampered with and you have democrats now saying they won't certify 2024 because Trump is an insurrectionist and eligible to hold office so you need to ask them I think you've ever asked the show you've never asked the democrats that question Senator you voted to certify the 2020 election and here is what you said on that day that you voted to certify the 2020 election Democracy is held together by people's confidence in the election and the willingness to abide by its results So by your own definition are Donald Trump's claims undermining Americans confidence in democracy given that he has not considered the last election He just said in recent days twice that he won Minnesota senator I think what undermines people's confidence in the election is when you have places like Wisconsin with over 500 illegal drop-box locations When you have places like Georgia where liberal groups are people ten dollars a per vote No, but listen what undermines elections is when meet the when NBC News and every major news outlet in America in 2020 censored the Biden laptop story Which turned out to be true not Russian misinformation unprecedented only you couldn't even talk about it on social media They would deplatform you people look at all this they look at what happened in Arizona 200,000 ballots that had the signatures didn't match Senator Senator you voted to certify the election and Center you voted to certify the election nothing has been censored on this program Hillary Clinton Even Platform you couldn't even talk about it cuz they were called they said it was Russian disinformation In many cases they never hear about it was blacked out by the media we did cover the election and just a note that Chris Called it the safest most secure election in recent history It's unfair we are gonna do the same thing Democrats do we're gonna use lawyers to go to court and point out the fact that states are not following their own Senator senator senator all those cases were brought to court cases and lost and there was no proof that there was any widespread fraud as you know But I appreciate the word widespread fraud.
I very I'm sorry Sit all right senator Rubio. Thank you very much. I appreciate your time this morning when we come back Democratic governor Westmore of Maryland joins me next Well the back president Biden delivers the commencement address this morning at historically black Morehouse College in Atlanta tonight He'll address the NAACP's Freedom Fund in our in Detroit It will be the seventh event he has held in four days focused on African-American communities and showing up support among black voters Biden won 87 percent of black voters in 2020 But according to an NBC News poll last month only 71 percent supportive now no Republican presidential candidate since Richard Nixon in 1960 Has won more than 13 percent of the black vote the Biden campaign is also concerned about lagging enthusiasm NBC News correspondent Tremaine Lee sat down with voters in Detroit Who among you is definitely going to vote raise your hand or definitely vote in this election? So just once you haven't decided whether you're gonna vote on that.
I'm undecided as well right now I'm here my family with Democrats. I'm not I don't know who I'm gonna vote for joining me now is Maryland governor Westmore a member of the Biden campaigns National Advisory Board governor more welcome back to me the press. Thank you for being here to be if you thank you Well, let's start off by talking about African-American voters the polls show there has been this erosion of support amongst black voters as we just mapped out And you heard them there say they don't some of them don't know if they're gonna go out to vote Why do you think there is erosion this erosion amongst black supporters? Well, I think there's a there's a frustration and a cynicism and I think it's longstanding, you know, we have to remember You know my my grandfather was born in this country And he was just a toddler the Ku Klux Klan ran him out of in my whole family out of this country And I'm now standing here as his grandson as the 63rd governor of the state of Maryland and only the third African American ever elected governor In the history of this country the reason I bring that up is because history does matter And so when we look at the fact that in in Maryland, there's an eight to one racial wealth gap That's not because one group was working eight times harder When we're looking at drastic differences between unemployment rates or how cannabis was used as a cudgel against black communities So it's been so long our nation's history That's a reality And so I think that the thing that the president is showing that when you look at the president doing things like rescheduling cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 having the largest part in for cannabis convictions having a you know Having the largest growth in black owned businesses or black men in 30 years We now have a president who's actually doing something about it about these systemic challenges we've been facing Well, and yet some black voters feel as though he has not done enough has not done enough on police reform and voting rights For example, and you're seeing this show up in the polls where there is this real enthusiasm gap governor When I talk to Democrats, they say this is really a five alarm fire This erosion of support this erosion of enthusiasm amongst black supporters What does president Biden need to do?
Does he have enough time to change the dynamic? Well, we know that these challenges have been long standing and the solutions are not gonna come overnight The thing that I know though is I have the right partner that I need in the president when we think about the work that we are doing You know just taking in the state of Maryland by being able to now have the lowest unemployment rate that we've seen for African Americans in our state's history The fact that we've been able to increase wages that have had a disproportionate impact on the African American community You know, these are things that have that really matter focusing on work wages and wealth And president Biden has been the partner that all of us have needed and all of us have been asking for to be in to have inside this work And of course the big news this week is that president Biden agreed to debate former president Trump right now There are two debates scheduled there putting tradition to the side going around the presidential Commission on debates to do it Do you think president Biden agreed to this debate format to shake up the race? No, I think he agreed because he's got a record to tell I think I think president Biden has a story to tell about how we creating economic momentum having having historically low unemployment rates By being able to break inflation from what we have from historically high rates Really at least in recent histories rates and the leadership is able to show to actually create an economy that benefits everybody and frankly I'm looking forward to hearing Donald Trump talk about something other than himself for the first time in a long time Well, let me ask you about something that unfolded this week president Biden's decision to assert Executive privilege over the audio recordings of his interview with special counsel Robert her in the investigation into his handling classified documents Of course, he wasn't charged with a crime Here is what president Biden said about transparency at his very first press conference after taking office take a look So I'm running for three reasons to restore the soul dignity honor honesty transparency Do the American political system? How is asserting executive privilege over these audio tapes consistent with his promise of transparency?
Well, I think that the DOJ has already released the full transcripts the hours of transcripts of interviews that were done The GOP now has everything that they need to conduct any investigation So that should they choose to the reason that they want the audio is a purely political reason from the audio You have the transcripts and that by the way was a historic step for them to be able to offer the transcripts as well I hear you saying that but since they released the transcripts, why isn't the president allowing them to release the audio to us? He concerned about people hearing his voice hearing his answers And is that not inconsistent with his promise of transparency? No, I think the American people here the president's voice every single day But the idea that this is being done or this decision is because of a lack of transparency It just doesn't hold water because the full transcripts are there They have everything that they need in order to conduct any investigation that they should choose to do This is a political this is a political game. That's playing people right now Alright, let's talk about the big news in your state one of the big pieces of news the Senate race the former governor Republican governor your predecessor Larry Hogan made big news this week by coming out and saying he would support codifying abortion rights into law and of course Angela also Brooks the Democrat who used support just one her Senate primary How concerned are you that Larry Hogan throwing his support around codifying Roe v.
Wade could cost Angela also Brooks the election? Well, I'm excited about Angela also Brooks being my partner in the work on our next senator I endorsed her early and I was proud to and I don't think what the old governor said this week was news because I think people in our state are Going to be able to distinguish between you know What he is saying that he's trying to get back into politics versus what he did when he was actually in office This is a person who when Roe v. Wade fell under his watch when he was governor He vetoed legislation to increase privacy for women He vetoed legislation that increased abortion protections for women when I on my first day of office I released three and a half million dollars of previously unreleased funds because the old governor wouldn't do it for political reasons And I think people in our state will be able to notice that what he's saying now is not just disingenuous But it's but frankly it's it's the same type of problem with politics that he rails on He's actually the prime example of what people so frustrated about I have to ask you about the key bridge I know that there's going to be a big development tomorrow Talk to us about that and also the criticism from republicans who are saying they do not want to support federal funding to rebuild the bridge Particularly if it is not matched with offsets Yeah, I you know, I remember that first morning when the bridge fell people were saying that you know this thing could take six Nine months to be able to be clear the channel. I mean we have a ship.
That's the size of three football fields That's sitting in the middle of the Patasco River And and I remember we made four commitments and four and I four directives to support the families of those six Marylanders who lost to make sure we're supporting all the workers and first responders that were impacted by it To be able to get that key bridge rebuilt and also to reopen that federal channel And despite the fact that people said this could take six and nine months I'm proud that we're on track by the end may we'll have that federal channel And within within days we're going to have that massive vessel the dolly out of that federal channel And I think for people who are concerned about the cause my thing is this the american people will be made whole on this Uh, and we just have to make sure that we had to get it done fast and on time and on budget and that's our focus All right, governor westmore. Thank you so much for being here in studio We really appreciate it And when we come back donald trunks allies flock to the Manhattan courthouse to show their support as the hush money trial nears the end Our panel is next Welcome back the panel is here mbc new senior white house correspondent kelly oh donald Simone sanders towns and co-host of the weekend and forward chief spokesperson for vice president Harris and brandon bock former advisor to house speaker ryan and bainer. Thank you all for being here kelly Let me start with you set the stage as we are all waiting for the event on the big stage The first debate that's going to take place in june less than six weeks away Obviously a lot of big emotions heading into that what you saw in those two interviews there What's it's safe for each candidate? Well talking with both campaigns they have one bit of commonality They're happy to have debates and they're happy to have them early They believe the public will enjoy that and take something from it and that they believe that voters need to be engaged from the democratic side Biden world believes they have a campaign tactical win here that they sort of set the terms of two debates getting A no audience scenario where donald trump can't do what he is so good at is working the room They also say he'll have to answer for his record he'll have to talk about reproductive rights on the trump side They're they're saying well, but but donald trump is very good in these moments And they believe that joe biden will have to answer for inflation will have to show his endurance those kinds of things democrats say on big nights Joe Biden comes through so both campaigns are looking forward to it There are real questions about will the two debates hold biden world says that's a done decision The trump side is continuing to say they're open to additional debates and expanding the playing field All right, well simona dive in here because of course we've been talking about the fact that there's been a lotion of support among black voters and president Biden this debate the first one will be held in atlanta He's obviously delivering the commencement address at morehouse.
How important it is the debate both of them to him winning back support among key constituencies I think the debate is critical because it allows folks to see joe biden in his element for themselves They hear a lot about him on television They see they can do clips of him right on social media But a debate is a one-on-one match up where uh there you have president biden who will be able to make his affirmative case But also go toe to toe with donald trump and do a little tenetet and I think that's what voters want to see They want to see uncle joe as people often tell me you know whenever I end up in the nail shop That's what i'm hearing christin um and i think that's going to be critical for them But i'd also argue that campaigning and being out there in the communities touching the people again that one-on-one campaigning retail politics is also crucial For what voters decide to do when they go to the ballot box in less than four months Well president one of the other Pieces to this puzzle is the fact that it seems like they're trying to if you believe rfk box him out Box out a third party candidate by holding this debate early by holding it before frankly a lot of the states have met their Requirements in terms of being able to be on the ballot. Do you think that's fair? Yeah, I think this is one situation you should believe rfk They're trying to box him out and the reality is it's not entirely clear who rfk is hurting or helping the most There's a very good argument that he's hurting to abide with it with his name ID And there's very good argument that he's hurting donald trump. Some of his you know positions are very trump-like Um, so they're not they're not going to be a debate where rfk is on the stage We've broken free of the commission none neither of these men are going to allow themselves to get on stage with that person and elevate him Because it's just too risky there's no reason to yeah Kelly of course all of this coming against the backdrop of former president trumps criminal trial in Manhattan could wrap up this week or next week It hasn't really changed the dynamics of this race so far and just to follow on the note of debates They they tell me on the biden side They picked the date that they were looking for to try to be passed interesting trial With a real question mark about how will it come out now the trump side says that they feel pretty good about the week They've had in court because they believe that the former president's attorneys were able to chip away at michael koan a key witness for the prosecution At the same time they will acknowledge that this has been frustrating and annoying for the former president to be sort of tied to the court room And not being able to campaign you've heard him talk very publicly about feeling trapped by that And the biden side is saying this is a way for them to be able to set a big contrast because the president will come back from the g7 For example go into this debate when trump has been in court Can I just say this should have been a moment where donald trump was hurt spent several weeks in the court house I mean you have seen very little evidence that anything is really significantly changed I mean this is a person who's potentially going to be uh Found guilty of a crime and the president hasn't figured out any way to take advantage of that And this is the same mistake that I think a lot of the GOP nominees are contenders in the primary did too They just sort of assumed if you let it hang out there that it would be to their benefit and it just doesn't happen I think this was a big missed opportunity for the Biden campaign Well, look, I think that the Joe Biden and look the president of vice president They are not going to touch Donald Trump's criminal any anything because some of them are tied to Department of Justice and Joe Biden has been very clear how he feels about that very distinct separation given what Donald Trump did When he was president that being said other democrats can and I think should be more vocal about what Donald Trump is facing But the contrast has been very clear while Donald Trump is in court Joe Biden is out there campaigning on a day where Donald Trump could have been campaigning on a Wednesday It was he wasn't and he was playing golf and then had a dinner Joe Biden was in Wisconsin at the very place where Donald Trump promised jobs by Foxconn But never never manifested and with Microsoft again new jobs with a promise there Oh, and I think Brendan makes a very important point though about the the it should hurt again I look at the Maryland primary the back of Donald Trump lost by so lost 20 plus Of Republicans in a primary in the end of primary 20 plus percent spell struggle to me I'm so extraordinary to see this display of potential VP picks at court with the former president as I said to Senator Rubio He wasn't there but boy he seems like he wants to be in the game based on everything we heard from him today Republican Party everything revolves around Donald Trump, so it's not surprising There's a lot of people who are lining up who want to be is for whatever reason want to be his VP and we know that the uniform All wear a mask outfit The normal things that a person should be thinking about when they're picking a beat Is could this person do the job if they are you know first of all of us could they do the job?
Something happens to me and secondly, you know, do they expand the map? Do they do anything politically helpful for me? I don't think Donald Trump thinks about those things at all All he is thinking about is this a person who's going to back me up and do whatever I say Be loyal me to be to the end and those people were showing their very loyal The loyalty test? The loyalty is top of the list.
All right guys great conversation Thank you so much when we come back some important lessons from the first ever televised presidential debates Our Meet the President in it is next Welcome back this week President Biden and former President Trump agreed to debates that will not include a live audience That hasn't happened since the first televised presidential debates were held Between John F Kennedy and Richard Nixon in 1960 Kennedy famously commanded the television space with Nixon appearing sweaty and uncomfortable The first sign the TV debates would alter campaigns forever Nixon's campaign chair joined this broadcast after the last of the candidates for debates Do you think Nixon would be better off if he hadn't engaged in those debates with Kennedy? Well may I say this we heard many things about the first debate particularly I don't know what happened there myself but certainly if I can take a moment I was in Chicago with him at that time and when I saw the picture of him on television I went back to the hotel and I was amazed at this healthy looking fellow in the chair talking to me with a man who had appeared on television I would say however looking at the course of the four debates we make surveys we check with people and I don't think one vote was changed either way by the four debates we can't find that they made much difference Well when we come back Olympics or Michael Phelps opens up about his struggles with depression in our meet the moment conversation welcome back Michael Phelps is the most decorated olympian of all time with 23 gold medals the swimming sensation is undoubtedly one of the greatest competitors alive but that doesn't mean Phelps doesn't have his struggles in retirement Phelps has been using his voice to speak out about facing depression and anxiety and advocating for more mental health resources for athletes with may being mental health awareness month I sat down with Phelps near his home in Arizona for a meet the moment conversation about how he's doing in his own mental health journey and what more needs to be done in the olympic community Well let's talk about your life posterior Olympic career you have dedicated so much time to advocating for to speaking out about mental health your mental health the importance of getting help if you are struggling before we dive into your advocacy how are you doing right now Michael I mean obviously I have my days like everyone does right we go through ups and downs and that's just life I feel like I have more tools now to prepare me through the bumps or the roller coasters like I call them that I go through in my life and yeah I'm enjoying it right like you know being retired again and being able to talk about mental health which is something that you know personally I struggle with almost every single day and you know depression and anxiety aren't just going to disappear right these are things that I have to adapt and I have adapted throughout my life and they are a part of my life they're always going to be a part of my life so it's finding the best way every single day to be the best version of me you just said something really powerful which is that you still struggle with depression and anxiety every day yeah I mean there are times I mean there are you know 10 day spells where every day is a struggle but for me it's what can I control in that moment throughout my career I looked at myself as a swimmer and an athlete now I can look at a mirror and see a person somebody that has feelings and emotions I do think it's striking to hear you say you saw yourself as a swimmer as an Olympian not necessarily as as a person when did you first realize you were really struggling with depression I would say probably 2004 2004 was my first taste of post Olympic depression you know coming off such a high and it's basically you get to like edge of the cliff and you're like cool now what I guess I gotta wait four more years to have the chance to do it again right so and for those who don't have a successful Olympics those four years can feel like an absolute eternity so for me 2004 was my first 2008 was my second taste of post Olympic depression because coming off of that high after doing something you set up like you set up to do your whole entire life like my my goal was to do something no one else had ever done before did you know it was depression or did you just think I'm feeling a little off I think at that point you know like I'll say as a male athlete you know like I could tell something was off but I think I saw it as a sign of weakness and if I shared anything about it then it would give my competitors an edge and I'm not trying to do that right like I don't want to give my competitors an edge I'm trying to be better than anybody period has ever been so for me I looked at it as weakness so for me I had to learn that vulnerability is a good thing and it was scary at first but I learned that vulnerability just means change and for me it was a great change but I do want to go back to that moment in 2014 when you got a DUI you've spoken about this quite extensively you say you were effectively locked in a room for four days you had suicidal thoughts your family did rally around you how did you find the strength to get help in that moment yeah I mean I think in that moment for me you know there's a lot of shame and I just didn't want to really like I had the thought of like it was me that was putting my family through all of this stress and all of this and I was like okay maybe it's better if I just leave and at the time I was prescribed ambient from our doctors on our team trips and I was happy I only had three three pills left I took them all that night and I woke up the next morning and I didn't eat anything or drink anything for like two or three days and after those two or three days I didn't really want to talk to anybody didn't want to see anybody it was kind of just to the point where I knew I needed help right like the thoughts that I was having were too much and they were overwhelming and they were scary so for me at that point I just checked myself in the treatment center for 45 days what happened in those 45 days that that made you stronger yeah I basically got ripped apart and I say that and like imagine like a motherboard of a computer you just take everything apart you just kind of rebuild and talk about whether it's you know my childhood things that I'm having difficulty times with good things and kind of just piecing it all back together but you emerged stronger not just emotionally but as a competitor yeah I mean I look like I'm lucky to be here I'm lucky to have everything I have so I'm gonna go down swinging no matter what like I just had a conversation with I'm gonna get checked up here I just had a conversation with the body of my other day take your time it's okay so for me this is all fresh so a friend of mine he's my mental health buddy and he knows he knows what I'm talking about I'll just say okay so Jake laser and I are our mental health buddies we both struggle and when we're both having our bad days we go through similar ups and downs and we do similar things when we're down that makes sense and we both had this conversation the other day because when it happens for me I reach out to him when it happens for him he reached out to me and I have a couple friendships like that where we've kind of really been able to form a bond and to what we were saying before is I literally sent a text to him and I was like I'm never quitting ever in my life like that's not who I am when you say I'm not a quitter I mean you're not quitting anything I won't quit anything I will never give up at anything that you know there's so many goals of mine that I have and want to accomplish and no matter how hard it gets I'm never giving up there's a reason why I was able to win 23 olympical medals right so I'm determined I'm stubborn I'm yeah you could a laundry list of things I just don't give up the US Olympic Committee has said that it has made advances particularly in the wake of your speaking out other athletes speaking out how do you assess the changes that the US Olympic Committee has made has the committee gone far enough what do you want to see happen that has there needs to be more flat out the ABC organizations have done some steps in the right direction to get helping care that us as athletes need but they're not doing everything they can and that upsets me what do you want to see them do specifically I want to see I want I want to see them put the athletes first that's it nothing else and that means providing better mental health care it's everything the athletes need to be first and you didn't feel that way when you were an Olympian I walked into training rooms at the USOC and couldn't get care this is six months before the 2008 Olympic Games you were denied care is that anything I couldn't get access no no physical trainer would help me so if that's happening with me it's happening with others too so if we're supposed to be these athletes that are representing our country then put the athletes first if one of the representatives of the Olympic Committee were sitting here instead of me what would you say to them nothing that can be recorded there's a lot of there's just a lot of emotions there there's so much passion for me and I want I want what's right period that's that's all and I won't stop until everything is done that I think needs to be done and just finally as we all get ready to watch the Olympics there's so much pain right now all over the world do you see the Olympics as a moment that can help bring people together you know that was something as a competitor I always saw right like every four years we have the presidential race right like and it's always kind of a crazy time but you know I always think that no matter what's going on whether it's in the US or all over the globe the Olympics is something that brings everybody together you know the spirit of the Olympic Games is so magical and for me it's it's just something that you know I can't imagine life without our thanks to Michael Phelps if you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis help is available call or text 988 or chat at 988 lifeline dot org and also a reminder to tune into the Paris Olympics this summer on NBC and also Peacock that is all for today thank you so much for watching we'll be back next week because if it's Sunday it's me the press I'm Craig Malef cheers cheers cheers I've always been a glass half full kind of guy and now I'm talking to some people who look at the world that way too some really fascinating folks who shared their defining moments their triumphs their challenges their stories are funny and my candid so I hope you'll join me each week who knows you might just come away with your own glass half full search glass half full with Craig Melvin from today on youtube and wherever you get the podcast