If it's Friday, breaking news out of Georgia, where the special prosecutor in the criminal election interference case against former President Trump has just resigned after a judge ruled today that District Attorney Fani Willis could stay on the case, but only if the special prosecutor goes. Plus, a ship carrying nearly 200 tons of food and critical humanitarian aid arrives on the shore of war-torn Gaza as Prime Minister Netanyahu greenlights a new ground operation in the southern city of Rafa, despite U.S. opposition. And the view from inside Russia, where presidential elections are underway, with virtually no suspense as the T.D.
outcome, President Vladimir Putin effectively running unopposed in the first national elections in the invasion of Ukraine. Welcome to Meet the Press. Now I'm Kristen Welker. We begin today with breaking news out of Georgia, where just moments ago, Nathan Wade resigned as special prosecutor in former President Trump's election interference case.
His resignation came hours after Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis can remain on the case as long as Wade stepped down. The judge ruled this morning that the appearance of impropriety caused by Willis's romantic relationship with Wade does not constitute a conflict that would require Willis to be disqualified. It's a legal victory for Willis who has yet to put out a statement about the ruling, but it comes at a cost to her professionally.
In his ruling, Judge McAfee writes, quote, this finding is by no means an indication that the court condones this tremendous lapse in judgment where the unprofessional manner of the district attorney's testimony during the evidentiary hearing. Judge McAfee told an Atlanta TV station late yesterday that politics would not play into his decision. The message I always want to convey is that no ruling in mind is that we're going to be based on politics. I'm going to follow the laws.
I'm sorry to say. Now, former President Trump tried to get D.A. Willis kicked off the case alleging she benefited financially from hiring her boyfriend, taking lavish vacations together when the state was paying his salary. Willis says she paid Wade back and deny she ever benefited financially from the relationship.
Mr. Trump's attorney today said they will, quote, use all options available to fight to end this case. For more, I'm joined by NBC News correspondent, Blaine Alexander and Atlanta, also with me as Darryl Cohen, former assistant district attorney in Fulton County, Atlanta Journal Constitution political reporter and NBC News contributor, Greg Glustin, and NBC News legal analyst, Danny Savalos, who is also a criminal defense attorney. Thanks to all of you for being here on a very big day.
Blaine, you broke this news and you have been all over this case, Nathan Wade just resigned. What is the district attorney's office saying right now? Well, she immediately accepted that resignation. We just obtained not only his resignation letter, but also her acceptance letter, and then she was very complimentary of him, Kristen.
She thanked him for the days of service, the more than 800 days of service that he had given to the case. A couple of things stood out, though. I want to read them to you. One, she says she talks about an underscores the fact that he received a number of threats during his course as a prosecutor on this case.
He and his family unjustified attacks in the media and in the court to your reputation as a lawyer. But here's what she said. She said, you led a team that secured a true bill of indictment against 19 individuals who were accused of violating Georgia law to undermine the 2020 election, who successfully litigated it in the U.S. District Court and the U.S.
11th Circuit to ensure that Fulton County citizens will be the jurors who decide justice in this case. Another thing, though, that stands out is that she talks about the fact that other people were reluctant to take this war. Remember, it came out in court that at least one person, the former governor, Roy Barnes, of the state, said, no. When Bonnie Willis asked him to take on this case, he said, I don't want to live with a bodyguard.
I just don't want to kind of deal with a hassle that I know is coming with this case. She gave a nod to that as well in her letter, writing, I will always remember that you were brave enough to step forward and take on the investigation. You were the one who had the courage to accept the role, even though you did not seek it. And so now the question, of course, Kristin, is, is he going to be replaced on the team?
Remember, he had a great deal of institutional knowledge. He was on it from the very beginning. So it's going to be interesting to see how and if she chooses to replace him in this prosecution going forward. It's a really great point.
And it's another potential setback. Lane, let me ask you about former President Trump, how he and his team have responded. We're hearing from his lawyers today? Absolutely.
Steve said out he is one of the people who, for first off, he's the lead attorney for the former president here in Georgia. He was also leading a lot of the questioning during the evidentiary hearings. He gave a statement and basically said that he's going to continue to fight before his client. Remember, he had initially said, and he doubled down this week, that this case in his words amounts to election interference.
He'd been pushing back very strongly against the DA's proposed start date of August 12th. That was before all of these allegations came forward. Now, given the fact that this case has essentially been ground to a halt over the past two and a half months, it is highly unlikely that we're going to see this go to trial before August 12th and even before the election. But certainly notable that statement from Steve State out today, Kristin.
It really isn't. Lane, just quickly, do you have any sense of when this might go to trial? And as you lay this out, I mean, we can't overstate this. This is a real delay.
This trial could potentially have already been underway. Yeah, I think something that's so notable is that when all of this started, if you lined up all of Donald Trump's legal cases, a lot of experts really said that it was the Georgia case that would possibly prove to be the most legally perilous for the former president, right? He's a charge that he can't pardon himself on. It doesn't look good because it's all going to be televised.
All of these different factors that set Georgia apart. But what we've seen over the past two and a half months, Kristin, is that really the case has largely been eclipsed by this motion to remove funny bullets, by these salacious allegations and details. So when you talk about timeline, we just don't know when this is going to go to trial. August 12th does not seem likely at all before the election does not seem likely at all.
And so certainly with this further delay, it is increasingly likely that we won't see it go on trial. And so sometime after the 2024 election, just an extraordinary series of events, Lane Alexander, thank you so much. You have done an extraordinary job reporting on this from the very beginning. Derick, let me turn to you now, the judge gave two options, basically, and the decision has been made.
Wade is going to go, Willis will stay. But look, she's not going to be removed from the case she has this cloud hanging over her. How does that impact this case, if and when it does move forward and we should reiterate what Blaine said that the Trump team is trying to get this ultimately dismissed? Well, the Trump team is going to continue to try and have it dismissed.
That's a no brainer. That's a given. Now, what's funny going to do? A, she can have one or more of the lawyers who are actually on the team of prosecution.
She can elevate one or more to be the lead lawyer or lawyers. Two, she could reach out and try to find someone else who is qualified. And I put that in quotation marks, qualified to be a Grico defender or prosecutor if he or she has the ability and has the background. That's completely up to her.
Should she decide to elevate someone? I don't see this delaying the case very much. But I agree. I don't see there's any weight under this earth.
If I were in Vegas, I would take the odds that it's not going to go to trial before the election. It's just not going to happen. It's not over till it's over. Yogi Berra once said that.
And there's going to be more. So I'd say stay tuned because there's going to be a lot more, probably nothing to do with this. But you've got a team of defense lawyers that wants to do everything they possibly can to make this case go away or whittle it down. And it's been somewhat whittled, but they want to whittle it to nothing.
It is just stunning to hear you say that with such certainty that you don't think it will go to trial before the election. That is a big, big statement. I want to read you something that Judge McAfee wrote. Look, legally, of course, Fani Willis can continue, but he had some pretty stern words for her.
He said, the record made at the evidentiary hearing established that the District Attorney's prosecution is encumbered by an appearance of impropriety. This appearance is not created by mere status alone, but comes because of specific conduct and impacts more than a mere nebulous public interest because it concerns a public prosecutor. What do you make of the way McAfee wrote his ruling? I think what he was trying to say was what he said yesterday, I'm staying out of the politics and I'm going to rule based upon the evidence based upon what's before me.
He saw what he considered to be unprofessional conduct and he said it's not enough to recuse Fani and Nathan, but it is enough for me to say something and he did. Now, what would I do if I were Fani, what I think the smart thing to do would be to say I'm staying on the case as the elected District Attorney, but I am no longer going to be involved in the day-by-day process of the case, whoever it is that's either fired or who is elevated should be the person or the persons who handle it because otherwise, no matter what Fani does, good, bad, turn left, turn right, go straight, she's wrong and she is under a microscope. She needs to get out of that microscope if she truly wants to prosecute this case. I want to follow up with you on something that Blaine was talking about, which is that Nathan Wade accepted this assignment after at least one person had turned it down in part for fears that there would be some type of retribution that they would need a security, for example, to take on this case.
Will it be difficult to actually find someone to take over this role, particularly now, given all of the public scrutiny? How much money did Nathan make on this case? That answers your question. There is not going to be a problem with a lawyer or lawyers who are qualified taking the case.
In my view, Roy Barnes turned it down because he had just had it, he had been the governor, he had had enough on his plate, he's trying to run a law practice and he didn't need the money and he didn't want the attention. There are other lawyers who are equally capable, who are completely capable of handling this and they will if they are reached out to. There's too much money involved and let's face it, this is the case of the century for most lawyers. If you can say in your practice in five minutes, five years or 50 years, I was part of the Trump prosecution.
That is a big check mark. Yeah, really appreciate Darryl Cohen, former assistant district attorney in Fulton County. Your unique perspective on all of this. Thank you so much for joining me today.
Greg Bluestein, let me turn to you. What are your takeaways from everything that unfolded today? You and I have been talking about this case now for weeks. Yeah, Chris and I agree with you.
There's a legal victory but it came as deep price, not just in the courtroom but outside of it as well. Look, the judge himself said that she has credibility issues. They will damage her with a segment of the potential jury pool if this goes to trial, when it goes to trial. It also will help fuel challenges to her reelection bid.
We've seen two challenges, one from the left, one from the right. You can be sure that both of them will try to exploit this ruling and what led up to the ruling as well in their own campaigns. It doesn't mean Bonnie Willis' reelection bid is uncertain because she is heavily favored to win but still gives her some political headaches. And aside from that, outside the courtroom, into this halls of the Georgia Capitol where Republicans control the legislature, there's other headaches.
Governor Brian Kemp just signed legislation that allows complaints to go forward that could end in her reprimand, potentially her ouster. We don't think it's going to get there but certainly she could get slapped on the wrist by this new state prosecutor or oversight committee. And there is a state senate review of her right now with subpoena power that will surely call her to testify. Can I just follow up with you on that?
Where does that state senate investigation stand and what do you think the potential fallout could be? They had their first meeting last week. Actually, the merchant gave about three hours of testimony. A lot of people went into that room thinking it would just be purely political gamesmanship.
And even some of Bonnie Willis' supporters came away surprised that the level of depth from the public and senators interrogating and questioning actually merchant, they seem ready to pass legislation. Not this year, it's too late in the ballgame. But next year, they could have more controls on how local D.A. spend money.
They could have, you know, could roll back off on county, get state resources. They could end up hobbling Bonnie Willis in her office in the long term. I want to ask you about the judge, Judge McAfee. He is facing now a challenge for his reelection campaign.
He's taking heat from both sides. As you know, what kind of challenges does he face now for reelection and talk a little bit about who he is? Yeah, he's a governor kind of appointee who's done on the bench, a very short period, but has impressed many legal observers from both sides of the aisle in his even handedness and his ability to keep things moving forward. But he is facing two challengers.
Again, he's heavily favored. It is very rare that incumbent judge in a down ticket ballot like this one will get ousted. But at the same time, he has to kind of watch over his shoulder. And I got that tip that he's facing at least one of the challengers about a week ago.
And I actually reached out to the judge and he reminded me to remind our readers that he was dealing not just with the funny Willis case, but as I was bugging him about this challenger, he was handling a full and kind of murder trial. So he has a lot of other things on his plate as well right now. All right, Greg Bluestein, thank you so much for your perspective. I hope you'll stay close because there's still a lot to talk about in Georgia politics that we're going to be following in the weeks and months ahead.
Thank you, Danny Svalos. Let me turn to you now. Let's just talk a big picture for a moment, Danny, because you and I have consistently said that the Trump team's legal team strategy is delay, delay, delay. And boy, so far they are having some effectiveness at that strategy, aren't they?
Yes, they are. But delay helps different cases in different ways. As to the state court cases, there's a huge difference in delay as there is with the federal cases. If Trump effectively delays the federal cases, and if he gets elected and any of them are still pending when he's inaugurated, then he'll simply appoint an attorney general who will dismiss them, or he'll try to pardon himself.
Those cases will likely go away, but the same is not true for the state court cases. Still, delay helps Trump because in all likelihood, the prosecution must cease once he is inaugurated as president. That creates a constitutional supremacy clause issue that a state or a local prosecutor can't literally arrest the entire executive branch by charging or imprisoning a sitting president while he is the president. But I caution, no one really knows the answer to those constitutional questions.
My guess is as good as anyone else as to what exactly happens if the Fulton County DA's office tries to try or imprison a sitting president. But yes, generally speaking, delay helps Trump on all levels. And by the way, in 2023, just lastly, I said this case when we go to trial until 2025, everyone thought I was out of my mind, including me. And here we are.
It's pretty likely to happen at this rate. Well, it absolutely does look that way, particularly when you hear Darryl Cohen say he doesn't think there's a chance it goes to trial before the election. Let me ask you about what's happening in Manhattan. The DA now says he doesn't oppose a 30-day delay in the start of Trump's hush money trial.
This has to do with basically paperwork, right? The SDNY has been asked to turn over some documents. They haven't done so yet. They want more time to do it.
Talk about where this stands and what's at the root of this? Yes. So the Manhattan DA's office is essentially a state prosecution of Donald Trump. The SDNY that you just mentioned are the federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York here in Manhattan.
And you might normally think, hey, don't all prosecutors talk to each other. And the answer is no, not at all. These are separate sovereigns, literally separate kingdoms in the eye of the Constitution. And so they do not always automatically talk to each other.
So in a way, it isn't that surprising that the SDNY may have had hundreds of thousands of documents that may have been relevant to this prosecution, that maybe they never turned over to the Manhattan DA and certainly the defense didn't get them until very recently. It's not necessarily the case that the Manhattan DA's office in the Southern District were in constant communication or constantly circulating documents back and forth to each other. At the same time, a lot of these documents may have related to things like the Michael Cohen investigation, which happened years ago. So both sides, at least we're on notice maybe that some of them existed.
So there's probably a little blame to go around to all three sides here. And in terms of the Florida case over classified documents, Judge Cannon heard arguments as to whether that case should be dismissed. The Trump team citing the Presidential Records Act, prosecutors say this case has nothing to do with the Presidential Records Act. When do you anticipate there will be a decision there, Danny?
It's hard to say federal court judges usually move faster. And even that is a very general proposition. They can move faster because they have lighter case loads, more resources. But, I mean, it could be weeks, it could be a few days.
Here's the thing though, Kristen. Even if Judge Cannon denies these motions, they may, that might ultimately help Trump more. Consider this. She denied, if she granted the motions, now they go up on an appeal and then they would likely be overturned.
But, and this is so strange because Judge Cannon almost literally said these words, you can save this until trial. And if it is successful at trial, whether an acquittal through jury or a directed or a motion for a judgment of acquittal, there may be no appeals at all. Generally, when it's an acquittal, there's no comebacks, there's no appeal. All right.
We will continue to watch it along with you, Danny Svalos. Thank you so much. Coming up next, we've got some breaking news about a major Republican figure who now says he won't be endorsing former President Trump. Plus, the political fallout after a major week of legal developments for the former president and to look ahead to the upcoming primary race that could have a major impact on Republicans' efforts to flip the Senate.
Stay with us. We want to meet the president now. Welcome back. As much of the Republican party rallies around their presumptive nominee, former President Donald Trump, one notable figure will not be endorsing Mr.
Trump, his former vice president, Mike Pence. Take a listen to Pence on Fox News just moments ago. Will you be endorsing your former president? You want to take it with him last time around?
Well, Martha, I appreciate the question. And it should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year. Look, I'm incredibly proud of the record of our administration. It was a conservative record that made America more prosperous, more secure, and saw conservatives appointed to our course in a more peaceful world.
But that being said, during my presidential campaign, I made it clear that there were profound differences between me and President Trump on a range of issues. We have got a great panel today, Tia Mitchell, Washington correspondent for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Amy Walter, editor-in-chief and publisher of the Cook Political Report, former New York Democratic Congressman Joe Crowley and Republican strategist Brad Todd. Brad, you're lucky day. I'm going to start with you.
What is your reaction? This is Trump's vice president who says he's not going to endorse him. It's not necessarily a surprise, but again, it comes after all of these other Republicans who were critical of Trump on January 6th have endorsed him, not Mike Pence. You know, I think we're not going to wait Dan Quales, Dick Cheney's endorsements and other vice presidents.
You know, I don't think anybody with baited his weight with baited breath on Mike Pence's opinion. Mike Pence ran in the Republican primary. He made his case. It didn't resonate.
And, you know, Mike Pence is a good man. And I think most Republicans respect him, but I don't think they're looking to him to pick their nominee at this juncture. I think he's made his case. Amy, do you think that that is the case or could this have an impact for moderates, for independence, for those all-important suburban voters who Trump's going to need if he wants to win the White House?
I think they have made their decision. And in fact, just in looking at polling over these last few weeks, you're not really seeing those voters suddenly moving over to Donald Trump. I think they've decided that they're decidedly anti-Trump. The most interesting thing about that interview, though, was he did not then choose to say something, which I think would be a powerful thing, which is to say I'm not endorsing him.
And I don't think that Republican should support him, which he would not do. So he's also making the sort of similar excuse that you hear from other Republicans, which is kind of good for Trump, which is the whole, well, I agree on a lot of these things, but on issues we differ. He didn't make the case that what we differ on is just the worry that I have for what he would do as president. Yeah, it's a great point, Amy.
Tia, what do you make of this? And again, we are still waiting to see what happens with no labels. They say they are going to run a third-party candidate. Here you have Mike Pence saying, I'm not endorsing Trump.
It raises questions about who they might be considering courting. I'm told they're reaching out to a lot of people. Yeah, we hear that. And I think they wouldn't mind of Mike Pence on their no labels taken.
I think it's interesting because what we've seen other prominent Republicans do is kind of fall in line, not necessarily endorsing Trump, but saying if he's our party nominee, let the will of the voters be done, we'll get behind him. If he's the nominee, again, they're falling in line. And he's choosing, again, not necessarily to go as far as to say, don't vote for Trump. But he's saying, I won't be endorsing Trump.
I won't be falling in line the way other Republicans have. And so I do think it is surprising. And it does make me wonder, is he open to that possible third-party ticket? Yeah, it makes me wonder that as well.
Joe Crowley, what is your reaction to what you just heard from former Vice President Mike Pence? And how concerned are Democrats right now about the fact that no labels has come out and said, yes, they are going to run a third-party candidate? Well, no labels is a label. Let's be clear about that.
The thing that despise, they become. So let's keep that in mind. I read it to Mike a few weeks ago in a local restaurant here in DC and went up to him, had a nice conversation. And I've always had a long with Mike.
And I think most Democrats will say to you that he's a decent guy. Why would you support that guy that encouraged a mob to hang you? I'm not totally shocked. But at the same time, I think Amy's right.
I think he could have gone a step further, especially if he's going to run against him and say, Republicans shouldn't vote for this name. No, he's not qualified. You didn't do that. Let's talk about the backdrop against which we are having this conversation, which is this very dramatic day in Fulton County, Tia.
And you have Nathan Wade, a special prosecutor, stepping aside after this judgment by the judge there, saying that Faniwell is going to stay on the case if Nathan Wade steps aside. Politically speaking for Trump, you can argue it's a legal win for Faniwell is, but politically speaking for Donald Trump, is this a win as well? The case gets delayed. And he gets to continue to make his big argument, which is that there's something untoward about all of these cases.
I think the delays are a win. This case and others the longer he can stretch them out because we know these cases are kind of part of his campaign strategy quite frankly. So the more they linger, the more that there isn't any evidence actually being discussed in these side shows like the Nathan Wade and Faniwell is a relationship. I think they do play well for President Trump.
I think that's one of the reasons why you'll see the District Attorney's Office working really hard to move forward and pass this, which is why Nathan Wade has quickly resigned from the case. Yeah, I think you're right. Brad, what do you make of what we saw today? And again, this comes against the backdrop of if you look at some of the polling in key battleground states, Trump is actually ahead within the margin of error over President Biden.
But of course, he's got what a lot of people see as a vulnerability in some of these states, which is moderates, independents, not really turning out for him in his early primary state. Well, he's currently in every target state, every swing state in the presidential battleground. This week, there is a poll out there shows Donald Trump ahead. Again, it's mostly close, but those states are going to be close.
And I think Democrats are going to have to resign themselves to the fact that there's no legal magic bullet that's going to beat Donald Trump. They're not going to beat him in the election. They have to beat him on the campaign trail. And I think Democrats have sort of held their hopes up.
They sort of thought, well impeachment will get him. Oh, Mueller will get him. And in the end, he won in 2016. They beat him in 2020 at the ballot box after beating him again.
Yeah. I wasn't convinced, you know, those numbers up there, well, if he's convicted, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Happy voters about something hypothetical is really dangerous, right?
Nobody knows how they're going to feel until that moment actually happens. I think the other thing beyond it, whether he would be convicted or not was just the split screen, I think is what Democrats were hoping for, which is instead of talking and keeping the focus on what's going on with President Biden, what's going on on on the border, what's happening with inflation, the media focus is, oh, here's Trump and Court again. Yeah. Here's Trump and Court again.
That was a nice split screen for the administration that they're not likely to get. Maybe it will be later this summer, but I don't know. Trump is like either the most luckiest person in the world, you know, or it's proof that if you have wealth, you know, you can just do about anything and get away with it. It's also a combination of things.
Put aside the politics for a moment. These are like the prosecutors who couldn't prosecute straight. And it's happening in New York to some of me. These are unforced errors.
And that's what I think is disturbing to many people that this who are hoping that there'd be some adjudication within these criminal courts before the election so they can make a proper determination as to whether to support this manner or not. And that seems to be falling away. Well, and it's not just presidential rates. We're obviously watching some of these Senate races down ballot races across the country, including in Ohio, where Bernie Moreno, the Trump backed candidate, told my NBC news colleague this yesterday.
Let's take a look. So this is the final stand of the Kasich, the wine, Dolan, Liz Cheney, Mitt Romney, Bush Party in Ohio. We're going to drive a spear right through the heart of it. We're going to make certain that the America First Party, the Republican Party, the new Republican Party that cares for working-class Americans, that isn't caught going to the elites, that cares about voters in the base, is a party that represents Ohio, Washington, DC.
Brad, it's a little bit like what we're seeing with Mike Pence. He's basically trying to argue that the establishment, the Republicans' establishment is no longer relevant, that this is Trump's party now. Well, I think one thing is interesting about Bernie Moreno is Donald Trump has endorsed him and Chuck Schumer spending money to also win. That's right.
Well, that was my next point. So I think that tells you that Democrats think he's the weakest candidate. But also, Donald Trump's going to win Ohio by 10 points. He won about eight last time.
He's going to do better this time. Sherrod Brown's probably not going to run 10 points ahead of Joe Biden. No one has done that in the Senate race in the last six or eight years. So I think this Ohio primary is interesting, but only mildly so.
Can you pick up on that point, Joe? Is there anything unethical do you find about Democrats propping him about? We get the politics of it, they seem as a weak candidate, but they also say he's a threat to democracy. I mean, everyone uses the tools that are to dispose.
I mean, you saw it happening in California, the primary in terms of the Senate race action. Yeah, the shift race. You know, at the end of the day, ethically morally, maybe not so cool, but at the end of the day, it's all about winning. And it's it's win or nothing.
That's what it comes down to. So any final point there. Well, I agree with the point about Ohio. I sort of regardless who comes in, it's still a tough race for Democrats to hold on to.
But it does it will tell us what kind of Senate majority Republicans are in the majority. That that class that started in 2016 and 2020, that Senate looks already very, very different from the one that Donald Trump entered in 2017. It sure does. All right, great conversation for Friday.
Thank you all. Appreciate it. Tia Amy and Joe. Hope you have a great weekend.
Coming up next, Israel appears to be readying a ground offensive in the Southern Gaza city of Rafa, despite calls from the US for caution over fears of mass civilian casualties. Plus my conversation with chef and humanitarian Jose Andres as his organization begins delivering aid by sea to the millions of people in need in Gaza. You're watching the press now. Welcome back.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu says he has approved a plan for a ground invasion into Rafa in Southern Gaza, where millions of Palestinian civilians are sheltering. It comes less than a week after President Biden said in an exclusive interview on MSNBC that an Israeli military operation in Rafa would be a red line. For weeks, Biden administration officials have been urging Israel to come up with a quote, credible and executable executable plan to protect civilians in Rafa who have nowhere else to go. Officials from the White House and the State Department say they have yet to see such a plan.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation on the ground in Gaza remains dire. Today, the first ship carrying 200 tons worth of food and other aid arrived off the coast of Gaza. But aid agencies say it's only a small fraction of what's needed. Joining me now is NBC News chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel in Jerusalem.
Richard, thank you so much for joining me. What more do we know about this plan that Netanyahu has approved? Do you have any sense of the timing of this? No sense of the exact timing, but officials have been talking about this for some time.
And the expectation is that it could be over the next several weeks. Don't know if that's three weeks, four weeks, two weeks. Doesn't seem to be imminent in the next few days. The time frame we understand is potentially three weeks, but that is certainly not a hard and firm date.
And it could also be subject to change depending on military operations that Israel is still carrying out in Rafa. So it is not that Israel is not already carrying out strikes in Rafa. It is. But what is anticipated is a major push into the city.
And we're already starting to see some some shaping operations. It hasn't gotten a lot of attention, but Israel has already effectively cut a line across the Gaza Strip by sexting the Gaza between the East and West. And that is the kind of thing that the military does before launching an operation. You want to seal the perimeter off.
So when Israeli troops do go into Rafa and the expectation is that they will and now that the operation has been approved, it seems that it is just a matter of time. They want to ensure that Hamas doesn't just slip away and move to another part of Gaza or take the hostages who are believed, at least some of them believe to be held in the Rafa area and flee out of the area. So we're starting to see already these these shaping missions with a perimeter set up around Gaza, cutting the cutting the strip off East to West and now the and several military operations that were ongoing even in the last 24 hours. And just of course, terrifying with so many civilians there with no place to go.
Richard, I have to ask you with a reaction has been to those extraordinary comments by Leader Schumer saying that Prime Minister Netanyahu should be replaced, that there needs to be a new leader at the top. How are Israeli officials responding, President Biden, called it a good speech today? Israeli officials, Israeli representatives of the government here are defending Prime Minister Netanyahu because this is their government. And they said specifically that Senator Schumer should mind his own business.
That Senator Schumer as a representative of the world's most important democracy should respect Israel's democracy. How it is being reflected, however, in Israeli society is a different story. And I think Senator Schumer and President Biden today are trying to appeal directly to the Israeli public. In fact, Senator Schumer called on Israeli voters to go to the ballot box and elect a new Prime Minister.
So we will see over time if this message from the United States resonates with the Israeli people. And traditionally, it has. People in Israel recognize that the United States is their biggest ally, biggest benefactor, biggest supporter, biggest protector. And that traditionally in Israel society has had a lot of weight.
But these are not traditional times. This country is at war. This country is still trying to deal with the hostage crisis, chasing down Hamas fighters. So it's unclear if it will have the same impact that it normally would with other governments in other times.
Richard Angle, as always, thank you so much for your reporting. Please stay safe, my friend. Good to see you. And as we mentioned, the first ship carrier humanitarian aid has arrived off the coast of Gaza.
Earlier today, Jose Andres founder of the World Central Kitchen tweeted this video showing that aid beginning to reach the shores. I spoke with chef Andres the day that aid should left port in Cyprus. We spoke about his efforts to get food and other much-needed aid into Gaza via this new maritime corridor. Take a listen to what he told me.
Your organization, World Central Kitchen, has been on the ground in Gaza for many months now. And your new effort is to get food and to get other aid via Cyprus by sea. As we sit here today, the boats have left Cyprus. What is the very latest on your effort to get food and aid into Gaza?
Well, we've been trying to bring the hype down from the beginning, because this is a highly complex situation. But right now, yes, we have a boat with a barge with almost 200 tons of food that we're doing this pilot, because it's the first time that anybody is going to be trying to arrive to the shores of Gaza. And yes, because it's been a navy blockade of Gaza. So that alone, it's used an amazing achievement that we are already with permission by everybody, both sailing towards Gaza.
What we are trying to build a 60 to 70 meter jetty into the sea that will give us the option to safely download the first cargo. And from that jetty, it used to build a bigger one that will allow us to hopefully bring more and more boats, bigger and bigger quantities. But again, still failure is a possibility. But what we cannot do is use felt the people of Gaza.
That will be the true failure is not trying. So we're trying, and I hope that in a few days, we can say we've had little success, and from that success, everybody being comfortable that this is possible. We can build a bigger system to bring huge quantities of food daily into the shores of Gaza. And you can watch much more of my interview with chef Jose Andres this Sunday on Meet the Press.
After the break, I'll talk to a senior advisor to the president and former chairman of the DNC about the White House's plans to win over voters in key states. You're watching Meet the Press now. Welcome back. It is the end of a busy week for President Biden who hit the road to sell his state of the union message in battleground states.
The president made stops at New Hampshire, Wisconsin and Michigan. All three are states he won in 2020. And all are essential to his 2024 campaign. In Michigan, activists with the group abandoned Biden protested the president's visit over his handling of the Israel Hamas war.
And some key leaders told NBC News they felt snubbed by the president that he didn't meet with Arab and Muslim voters in Michigan. The White House did send some top officials to meet with Arab and Muslim leaders yesterday in Chicago. But many of those invited didn't attend demanding what they say is real action on a permanent ceasefire. Joining me now is Tom Perez.
He is the White House Director of Intergovernmental Affairs and a senior advisor to President Biden. He also served as chairman of the DNC during the Trump administration and Secretary of Labor in the Obama administration. It's a long list. Great to be with you.
Well, I really appreciate your being here in person after a very busy week. President Biden delivered his State of the Union address. He hit the road. If you look at the polls, he didn't get that typical bounce that presidents like to see after the State of the Union.
But he's been talking about his Infrastructure Bill, the Inflation Reduction Act. Are you competent that he is doing enough to keep that energy going after the State of the Union? I thought the president knocked it out of the park in the State of the Union. And he has continued that momentum, Chris, and he's going around the country.
Yesterday, the other day he was in Milwaukee talking about reconnecting communities, infrastructure projects historically have had the ability to connect communities and to divide communities. And in Milwaukee, when they built the Interstate Highway 43 and 94 back in the early 60s, they literally took down 17,000 homes of black people in the community. They took down a thousand businesses and really divided the community. And the investment there of $36 million and the investment nationally of $3 billion is all about making sure we are leaving no community behind, implementing the president's agenda of equity and opportunity.
And that's what he's talking about in Wisconsin. He's talking about New Hampshire. He's talking about all around the country, how we inherited a mess. We had a recession.
And now we have record unemployment, low unemployment, over two years under four percent, haven't seen that in 50 years. 35 bucks a month for insulin is resonating with a lot of people because it's changing their lives. Let me ask you about some of the pushback that he's been getting just talked about the fact that he was traveling these key battleground states and there have been protesters who are expressing their disappointment with his handling of the war in the Middle East. You were at that meeting that I mentioned in Chicago yesterday.
I want to put up a quote from a Palestinian-American Illinois state representative who skipped the meeting but had this to say, quote, I met with Tom Perez in the White House in October and there have been many other meetings that have been had. There's nothing new to be said. We need an immediate and permanent ceasefire and we need the United States to stop supplying arms to Israel. What is your reaction to that type of criticism?
Well, I've met with folks in Michigan and we've met with folks yesterday in Chicago and we're going to continue to meet with folks. People are suffering, they're hurt. The president in the state of the union called for a ceasefire. He's called for a two-state solution.
He has been relentless in his efforts to address the humanitarian crisis. Too many innocent women and children are dying and he has been very explicit about that. And we're going to continue to talk to people so that we can listen and learn from them. And that's what the president's about.
It's about making sure that we're moving forward in constructive ways. What do you say, though, to these leaders and to these communities who say not enough is being done, that they want to see a permanent ceasefire. And I know that their negotiations ongoing as we speak about trying to broker a potential temporary ceasefire, but they also say that the United States shouldn't be supplying more arms or more aid to Israel unless it's conditioned on a guarantee that Israel will do more to protect civilian lives. Well, again, the president and the entire team has been working 24-7, Secretary Blinken and Jake Sullivan and others day in and day out.
We absolutely hear the concerns of our friends in Michigan and Illinois and across the country. And that's why the president has called for a six-week ceasefire. That's why he has spoken with President Netanyahu. And that's why we'll continue to do this because we recognize the fierce urgency of now.
I want to play a little bit of what Leader Chuck Schumer had to say on the Senate floor yesterday and get to a reaction on the other side. At this critical juncture, I believe a new election is the only way to allow for a healthy and open decision-making process about the future of Israel. Of course, the United States cannot dictate the outcome of an election, nor should we try. That is for the Israeli public to decide, a public that I believe understands better than anybody that Israel cannot hope to succeed as a pariah opposed by the rest of the world.
President Biden called this a good speech. Does the White House agree with Chuck Schumer that there needs to be a change at the top of Israel's leadership? The president respects Senator Schumer's right to give that speech. And we're going to continue to work with the Israeli government, the Israeli people, and everybody in the region to forge an enduring ceasefire, which will lead to a two-state solution and an end to the humanitarian crisis.
That's exactly what the president is trying to do, and that's what we're going to continue to do. Does the president of the administration feel as though Prime Minister Netanyahu is listening to the president when he is delivering what has been described as these very blunt assessments of whether the United States expects to see a moving forward? Well, we're going to continue to engage in the national security team, and the president himself will continue to engage on a day-to-day basis because we know the importance of this issue. All right, Tom Press, thank you so much.
Really appreciate your joining me. It's great to see you in person. So to come, Vladimir Putin's growing power, we will have a live report from Moscow after a full day of voting in a three-day presidential election. Don't go anywhere.
You're watching Meet the Press now. Welcome back. Turning now to Russia, where voting is underway in the country's three-day presidential election with Vladimir Putin all but certain to win a fifth term as president. Putin is already the longest-serving leader in Russia since Joseph Stalin.
And winning another term would cement his power until 2030. Election observers say they have little to no expectations that Russia will hold a free and fair election, given the lack of transparency at the ballot box, as well as Putin's crackdown on dissidents. The election comes just one month after the death of Putin critic Alexei Navalny, and Putin is effectively running unopposed. Joining me now is NBC News chief international correspondent Kirsten Mins in Moscow.
So here people have begun voting. What are they telling you you are on the ground there? What are your key takeaways so far? Well, because we spent 12 hours today at a polling station from 8 a.m to 8 p.m to watch a steady stream of people coming in.
Most of them saying they were prepared to vote for president Putin, that they thought that he was the right person to vote for. He is popular here in Russia, that is the reality. Of course there is an avalanche of state media supporting him and the three candidates that are standing against him haven't even criticized him. So that's the kind of landscape, that's the kind of world that you live in if you are voting in this election in Russia right now.
Without question, he will win at this weekend. They will announce that at the end of the weekend, possibly Sunday night, possibly Monday. And I think what that means for the west is, well, quite simply it means more president Putin, another six years. And then by the way, he can stand again for another six years.
So perhaps 12 more years after 24 years, it's quite extraordinary. And that implication of that too, of course, is that there really is no end in sight with the war in Ukraine. This is more than an election, it's a referendum really, on president Putin and on his decision to illegally invade Ukraine. And he will use the result to say that Russia was united actually, he was on television today criticizing attacks in areas on the Ukrainian border today, to saying that Russia will be united in the face of those attacks.
He will want to say that Russia is united and send that message to the west. So it's really part of that campaign by president Putin. It's very much, very clear. Even the election signage, emblems are war motifs.
So it is really all about that. And I think that's how the west should view it. And of course, here, this does come in the wake of the tragic death of Putin critic Alexei Navalny. What are those few people who you encounter who are critics of Putin?
What are they saying? And is Alexei Navalny's death looming large in some places? Well, I think it is. I mean, of course, it happened during the election campaign.
So even though it didn't make much on state media here, people know about it, his wife, Julia, saying this week that the west should not recognize this election. We have seen moments of opposition here, despite the fact that opposition is crushed in Russia. So we've seen arson attacks on polling stations. We've seen Di put in ballot boxes here in Moscow and in St Petersburg.
And when you consider the implication of that, that's quite striking. It certainly is Kirsten Simmons. Thank you so much. Please be safe there.
We will be back Monday with more Meet the Press now. And if it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press on your local NBC News station. I'll have exclusive interviews with senators Bill Cassidy and Ben Cardin. Plus, much more of my one-on-one interview with chef Jose Andres.
The news continues with Tom Costello and for Hallie Jackson right now.