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tv   Jose Diaz- Balart Reports  MSNBC  March 28, 2024 8:00am-9:00am PDT

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people who have lengthy tenure and duration which must exist. frankly their job is to me for one day. >> i see your framework, but if the framework is actually whereas the metro atlanta human trafficking question doesn't even exist. if someone is pretending to be an agent. we might agree to disagree here. i think when someone says i am an agent of enforcement of the law for and then names a particular entity that doesn't even exist, they are pretending to be a peace officer. they are pretending to be an agent for the government, which by the very nature of the job would have tenure, what have responsibilities and fall into the definition that the supreme
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court has given in brown -v- scott and mcduffie -v- mc pearson asked for what a public officer should be. in that context, we have the same thing actually. it popped up again on the issue in morris -v- peters, another supreme court case dealing with whether or not somebody is a public officer. that had to do with a warrant against the chairman of the georgia democratic party and whether or not he would fall in as a public officer. bottom line, like in that case, and we found he was not, like grand jurors and public officials, presidential electors are not public officials under georgia law,
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especially for purposes of 16.10.23. their jobs services are temporary, like the grand jury. they have a position that only really arises once every four years. it is limited to a single meeting on a single day. it lacks the element of tenure and duration which must exist. it is kind of like back to the political case which dealt with the state party political chairman. nominated in accordance with the rules of their party. just because of the fact they were nominated by the rules of their party does not make them a public official. like grand jurors, presidential electors are not receiving their salaries for their services. all of that, your honor, tells
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us that this particular count is flawed for the very purpose of these elect wars cannot be under georgia law public officers. although we agree with the course of the -- with the court regarding the limitation of the definition in our pleading. good old tom beaver and the still pleading has come forward to rescue us on that point. if you look at what they did, and hopefully tom will do a better job of articulating. in their pleadings they talked about some other pleadings they get into, either in texas or utah as well, they deal a little more specifically with this. for the purposes of argument
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today, i think we get the drift on what i think is happening on the impersonating of a public officer. they are not public officers. clearly under the direction of our supreme court they cannot be so judged. again, i am not going to spend a whole lot of time up here with the court, but i do want to touch on a few of the other components. the forgery counts, now, you know, we indicated in counts 10 and 16 they are sufficient to dismissal. writing a check in a fictitious name or manner where the writing is made or altered is the definition of 16.10. what we have here in this indictment is we have an
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assertion that a writing of a check in a manner that the writing is made or purports to be made by authority of the duly elected and qualified presidential electors. the map welcome back, we've been listening to a courtroom in georgia where the judge overseeing the election interference case if hearing motions and is continuing to hear motions filed by former president donald trump and a co- defendant, david shaper. with us now to talk a little more about this, we're going to go back in and listen in just a minute. i want to get the context of what is happening. happening. melissa, barbara r msnbc legal analyst. lisa, take us what to -- up to
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speed on what is happening in this alanna courtroom. >> to zoom out a little bit jon scott mcafee is hearing and number of motions to dismiss portions or all of the indictment against former president trump and one of his co-defendants, the chair of the georgia republican party and participated in the convening of what we commonly call the fake electors who try to submit their votes to congress and the national archives in service of getting president trump re- elected in early 2021. we've already heard argument this morning on former president trump's motion that all of the allegations against him in the indictment basically reduced to charges against core political speech. even where the crimes are defined more broadly in terms of for example, conspiracies to commit forgeries or to make false statements.
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that the allegations against him specifically are about speech acts and therefore unmissable. having listened to that argument, his argument was that the district attorney's representative pointed out, somewhat circular. speech is protected because speech is protected. taken to its logical conclusion, some of what he had to say what prohibit what bob and melissa know our common everyday prosecutions in this country under statutes that prohibit false statements to government officials like congress and the fbi indeed. some folks in former president trump's world have been successfully prosecuted under those charges. what we are hearing now is argument on a motion made by david shafer. among other things, he is saying he cannot be charged with impersonating a public officer under georgia law because residential electors do
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not constitute public officers as defined. that is where we are right now. i tell you i think craig guillen has an interesting argument. it is not clear whether a presidential elector would constitute a public officer. a presidential elector comes into our lives once every four years. they also lack some of the hallmarks we associate with those commonly seen as public officers. that is what judge scott mcafee is entertaining right now, jose. >> what are your biggest takeaways? >> as mentioned, one of the key things is what is a public officer as mentioned in the indictment? if the elect wars are not included in the various definitions that we seek in the code of what a public officer is, does that mean he cannot be charged with impersonating one as listed in the indictment? i suspect the state will come with a response that lists how
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the elector is impacted public officer. maybe there is a portion of the statue that is not mentioned or mentioned a case law that would give them the authority to charge someone with this crime. it's is a very nuanced argument and i will be interested to see how the state response. >> barbara, give us if you would a broader context of the importance of this hearing and the possible outcomes from this hearing. >> this is a fairly routine stage in most cases. defendants try to dismiss either some or all of the counts against them on legal grounds. if successful, that would end the case and prevent these charges from going before a jury. in some cases it is fairly rare defendants are successful in knocking out some of the counts. we actually saw that earlier this month where some of the
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counts about soliciting public officials to violate their oath of office were dismissed for failure to state a claim with specific specificity. that is the goal, to knock out the claims before they go to trial. with regards to the first amendment argument, i will be surprised if it is successful. i think it is more likely to be appealing to the court of public opinion than a genuine expectation that the counts will be dismissed on that basis. as lisa said, there are plenty of criminal statutes that do impinge upon the right of free speech, but that does not mean it violates the first amendment. i think there is a, misconception among the public that we can say anything we want to say. of course that is not right. there is a compelling governmental interest and a limit narrowly tailored to achieve that interest that passes constitutional muster. that is why we have crimes that prohibit making threats or communicating fraud or lying to government officials or
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participating in a conspiracy which requires speech. all of those things require speech, but are still illegal because of the overwhelming harm they do to society. >> lisa, melissa, barbara, thank you so very much for that clear explanation. let's go back into that hearing. >> even more fatal to their argument is the second argument that i made a moment ago, which i won't repeat other than referencing it, the failure to act by safe harbor day renders any activity on behalf of the state of georgia, via the governor or secretary of state, renders that on. now it is all gone back up to washington, to congress to deal with that. the government and the state cannot now say or at any time
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say, well, we are saying the democratic nominees or the democratic representatives for the electors ultimately became the duly elected. you do not do that. you do not parachute back into what happened on december 14th. the world as we know it on december 14th were neither democrats or republicans duly elected under federal law. given that, we believe that the false statement counts should go. thank you, your honor. >> all right. any thoughts from the state? st? we will pick it up on that last point. we have dived into some of this, not so much of the safe harbor aspect and that
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argument, but the idea that the governor's office and the secretary of state's office just didn't have jurisdiction. i know you have said that is an issue of fact that needs to be proven, but isn't it also something that could be shown by a ladder -- matter of law? >> i don't agree it is a matter of law. it is an issue of fact. we have argued this before. we believe even if the court were to consider it as a matter of law, we have given ample reasons why under statute all of these entities have jurisdiction over many of the crimes that are alleged. all of the topics were we have alleged some of these defendants have made false statements. i do maintain and i believe it is an issue of fact, but we have to put up that evidence and ask the gbi officers what is your duty? what can you investigate? we have to ask the secretary of
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state individuals while understand what are your duties? why are these things relevant? why are they material to areas that you have jurisdiction? what is your ability to act on these things? i think all of that has to come out in trial. as it relates to that argument, i think it is premature. i always go back to the argument what is a demure . >> there was a statue that explicitly said they didn't have jurisdiction. remind me, what is it that you're saying as a matter of law that provides the governor authority over this after the safe harbor day? >> judge, i don't have the indictment in front of me. i need to know the specific statement. i think this is in regard to the certificate for the paperwork where, you know, if an elector does not show up on
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election day or on december 14th, the governor has to ratify a replacement. i think some documents were delivered by mr. schafer and his co-conspirator to the governor's office, trying to get the government to do that. that is provided by statute. the governor has to ratify replacement and statutorily he has the authority to act on that matter. >> all right. from the top i think there was a lot of time spent on definition of public officer and some of the allegations raised in mr. still's briefing. i think the emotions that lie should be coming up soon. if you want to make any initial reactions. >> well prepared, judge. first, i've made this statement in the past and i will make it again. we have to address the elephant in the room. that mr. shafer is demanding to
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be recognized as a federal officer. what are we? are we saying this position of a -- elector is or isn't? i think they need to make up their mind. i actually have quite a bit of ground to cover. i will take it as it was raised by mr. gillen. as we started out, we do not believe the definitions section -- >> i think he conceded that. >> if it did apply, i think it actually supports us. if you look at paragraph b. 21.53.55 b it says public officer meets every other elected state official not listed in subparagraph a. it is a comprehensive definition. we believe that what absolutely cover it to the extent it is persuasive and shows presidential electors are public officers. that definitions of any elected
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state official. they are elected state officials. i want to hit briefly on the cases that were raised by mr. gillen as it relates to what mr. still put in his pleadings and i am prepared to address those. first, there was an indication that 16.10.23 only applies to police officers or peace officers. we know that is untrue because of a case kennedy -v- carlson , 2014 georgia supreme court case where a conviction was upheld for someone impersonating an dcfs employee. clearly not a police or peace officer of any kind. we can dispense with that argument. as it relates to the case that mr. gillen referenced, the definition of public officer in other contexts, all of those cases deal with the definition of public officer in the context of a petition for -- i
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believe there are three cases referenced in mr. still pleadings and we are filing a motion for those tomorrow. mr. gillen referenced a list of qualifications in the mcduffie case. that is not the holding of mcduffie. the way the mcduffie case is structured is the georgia supreme court says no one has ever definitively said what a public officer is in the context. >> up you are about to file a response and mr. beaver may be requesting oral arguments, why don't we just save it? we can read these cases and be more productive. >> i did want to hit a few points as it relates to the statues that state presidential electors are public officers. the actual office itself is created by law, the united
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states constitution article two section 1 and also o.c.g.a. 22-10. they have duties that are established by law both in the u.s. constitution and the 12th amendment as well as ocg a 21- to-11. by law they are elected by the public. also, there was a reference that they don't get a salary. that is not true. there is a compensation that is set forth by law in o.c.g.a. 21-to-13. additionally the election code itself refers to the office of presidential elector and refers to it as an office. in two places in taking a 21-to- 21-a and 132 e. again, we rely
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on the cases that mr. gillen discussed, garrison -v- the state , a 2005 case where someone was convicted of impersonating a federal agent. an unspecified federal agent. that commission -- conviction was upheld the georgia state of appeals. and then a case where they impersonate the metro atlanta human trafficking task force. we argue to the court that the definition for 16-10-23 purposes that our appellate courts have applied a very liberal definition as a public officer. it does not have to be a real public officer, anything that purports to being someone acting by authority of the government is a public officer. that is certainly what presidential electors do. there duties are established by
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law. jumping down to the forgery counts. again, elephant in the room, 16- 9-1, there are at least five ways to violate the statute. the cases or the case that mr. shafer relies on, jackson versus the state , if someone charged with forgery based on purporting a document purporting to have been made by another person. we do not charge under that provision. we charge under the final provision by authority of one who did not give such authority. mr. gillen says we didn't object to looking at these things in the record in other cases. let me be clear, we do. that is the definition of going outside of the indictment. we agree with the court, considering those things outside of the indictment absolutely transforms that into
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a speaking demure they can be granted. if you look at accounts they track the forgery statue case law tells us that is what is sufficient for a general demure. i do not know if there is anything else to say about those counts. those counts. as it relates to the false statements, we address that in the very beginning. i will point out in hailey, were both the conviction was upheld and the indictment itself was approved, the indictment said the defendant did knowingly and willfully making false and fictitious statement in representation in an matter within the jurisdiction of the gbi, a governmental agency, by calling himself the catch me killer, asserting he killed 16 people. it does not allege any of the things that mr. shafer said in
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his pleadings have to be alleged. like they have done in other motions, the defendant is trying to add elements to this offense that do not exist. trying to add requirements that do not exist. hailey tells us the case itself directly quotes the indictment. the indictment alleges far less than what we allege in our indictment and make the georgia supreme court say the case is just fine. i do not think that mr. gillen address the filing false documents motion. i believe in the pleadings they state those counts are flawed because they failed to allege the filing of the false documents did not succeed. that is not a requirements. they also say the counts do not say who actually attempted to place documents in a mailbox. the way that we charge, we have charged all defendants individually as persons concerned in a commission of a crime. it will be for the jury to
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determine if all of the defendants are liable for what one of the co-conspirators did. with that i will take any questions the court may have. >> okay, mr. gillen, your last motion for the day. >> if i could have 60 seconds. >> sure. >> the fate the -- the state did not and cannot answer a direct question about the violation of the safe harbor rule, why that would allow that situation to give the governor or secretary of state any authority to do anything that comes in under several of the arguments that we have made. i will not repeat it. their argument is let's put an agent up and ask the agent rather or not he had authority. by law, by federal law they did
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not have the authority. it is not rather some gbi agent thinks he can come in here and tell the jury, pay no attention to federal law. pay no attention to the defending up engine in bush -v- core. i am a gbi agent, i say we can do it. they lose because the law is very clear. we can go back, both the state, and i know that the shafer team will go back and look at the argument made to the court. in my recollection it could be wrong. i don't think so. we will see. my recollection was because the pleading was a part of the courses them that we had a citation which permitted the court to take that into consideration as part of the record and that's not going outside of the record for speaking demure . i could be wrong, we will get that to you
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quickly. they latch onto that to say pay no attention to the reality of what happened in this courthouse and in the court filings, which destroys their argument. with that, your honor, i will sit. >> we want to pull out a little bit from this hearing that we have been watching and listening to for the majority of the morning. i want to bring back lisa, melissa and barbara. it seems as though the judge may be about to, let's just listen really quick to what the judge is saying. >> going with the first amendment issue, i think we need to figure out where we are procedurally. it sounds like, you know, this should be a pretty common most -- motion. georgia is not quite as clear.
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let's start with just the authority to take a scaffold to the indictment and cut out things we don't like. >> your honor, there are two components to this motion. one, there's the dismissal that we ask, which is also a component of the other. we cite state tran i warrant on the issue of being able to or the allegation. >> after some clarification i want to bring back our panel. i think you for being with us. lisa, explained to us once the first amendment motion passed and they went into another phase, what are we witnessing right now? >> i believe judge mcafee is going to a third motion, a
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motion to strike specific language that craig gillen alleges reaches inappropriate legal conclusions, meaning he is saying the prosecutors are trying to take the ultimate authority away from the judge and make conclusions of law, as opposed to allowing that to play itself out in the process of the case. that is the third of three motions that were argued. the first was former president trump's motion to dismiss the indictment on first amendment grounds. we then saw a motion to dismiss several counts brought by david shafer, formerly the chairman of the georgia republican party and also involved in the fake electors scheme. he was trying to dismiss specific counts on the ground they do not meet statutory requirements. he was saying he cannot be charged with impersonating a public officer because presidential electors are not
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public officers within the meaning of the georgia statute. similarly, he said he did not forge documents within the meaning of georgia statute because forgery in georgia requires basically you are imitating somebody else's identity. here, he was not trying to assert anyone else's identity. he signed it as david shafer, just in the role of an elector, duly elected in georgia, but not in the names of the real body elect wars. we are having argument on the third of these three motions today. it remains to be seen if judge mcafee will rule from the bench. my guess is no, but he may telegraphed to us what he is thinking. to zoom out even further, this is fairly standard at this stage of a criminal proceeding for defendant to try to dismiss particular counts or all of an indictment, prior to getting to trial, and to be rather surgical, if not weedy in doing so. >> barbara, what do you see? the judge has asked very few
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questions. do you read anything in that? >> not necessarily. i think he is asking some questions about this last motion about striking surplus and extra words in the indictment that could tend to either be misleading, suggestive or inflammatory to a jury. as lisa said, take away issues that are legal questions and give them to the jury. one of the things i think to keep in mind is there are some novel legal theories at issue in the case. that is because it is a very novel case, never before in the history of america has a former president or co-defendant been charged with trying to field an election. some of the theories are novel, the idea of whether electors are public officials. who knows, it hasn't been decided. rather this is an appropriate use of the georgia forgery statue. did they intend to mislead or defraud by signing their names?
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it is a little bit of a square peg in a round hole. the judge is going to have to make some decisions about whether the legal theories are valid, in light of the fact there is not a lot of precedent. you will hear the lawyers talking about this case or that case. they are doing their best to try to use a prior case to analogize those facts. there are not really perfect analyses out there. the parties and the judge will have to do their best to decide if these legal theories are sound and should go forward. they may be able to chip away at the margins. >> melissa, bringing in earlier we were hearing how the state was bringing in other federal cases that the former president is also facing. is there relevance on that, for example the first amendment issue that may be outweighs others? >> certainly the case of whether or not he has first amendment protections is going to be relevant. whether or not he is immune from prosecution will definitely be relevant.
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what was mentioned in the david shafer case is here in fulton he is alleging that we do not know what a public official is. he's trying to get the case removed to federal court. allegedly he was acting as a public official. arguing both sides of the coin there. i think for most of these motions they are routine. we see them often in criminal cases, but what i am seeing from the defense is a lot of defense being argued in their demure, meaning this is our position in the case. this is what we are alleging. if you are doing that and going outside of the four corners of the indictment, you are not talking about the sufficiency of the indictment anymore. i do not think judge mcafee will rule from the bench. i do think that is an indication there are are not the problems in the indictment the defense is alleging and most of the charges will go
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forward. >> i cannot thank you enough for being with us. we are going to continue monitoring this hearing and of course bring you the very latest. next, we are going to take you lot to baltimore where we are learning new details about the lives lost after a cargo ship slammed into a major bridge and caused its collapse. collapse. skin-carving next level hydration? new neutrogena hydro boost water cream. a vital boost of nine times more hydration* to boost your skin's barrier for quenched, dewy skin that's full of life. neutrogena. hydro boost. smile! you found it. the feeling of finding psoriasis can't filter out the real you. so go ahead, live unfiltered with the one and only sotyktu, a once-daily pill for moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, and the chance at clear or almost clear skin. it's like the feeling of finding you're so ready for your close-up. or finding you don't have to hide your skin just your background.
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>> we are expecting a judge to sentence sam bankman-fried, the founder of ftx, the cryptocurrency exchange in ms abroad and conspiracy case. back in november he was found guilty on all counts. i want to bring in christine. great to see you. what's been going on in the courtroom today? >> he took the stand and said i was responsible for ftx and its collapse was on me. a more apologetic tone then we have heard up until now about all of this. his attorneys are asking for no more than 6 1/2 years in prison. he could face 110 years, decades and decades. the government has suggested 40- 50 be appropriate given the scope of the crimes. let's rewind a little bit. what was ftx?
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this was a crypto exchange widely advertised and endorsed by celebrities, who by the way were paid. it was pitched as the way for main street to get into the riches of the criminal world. what was happening behind the scenes is a jury agreed he was using it as a personal bank and making risky investments in alameda, an affiliated hedge fund. that he was using the money to buff up his own prestige in washington and to live a lavish lifestyle. hubris and access is what the jury believed. we are waiting, any hour we could get the verdict from the judge. >> thank you so very much. appreciate the update. new developments about the six workers presumed dead after a bridge collapse in baltimore. just last night officials recovered the bodies. bodies.
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35 years old and originally from mexico he had been living in mexico. we are also learning more about the other victims. miguel luna 38, originally from el salvador, a husband and father of three. he had been living in maryland for at least 19 years. the washington post reports he was a big soccer fan as well. jose lopez originally from guatemala who have a young daughter who has not stopped asking about her father according to his brother. brot his brother says he had a entrepreneurial mind and always dreamed of having his own business. he is being remembered as always being full of joy.
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with us now from baltimore is antonia hilton. what else do we know about these extraordinary workers and how are the recovery efforts going today?>> reporter: the recovery efforts are now shifting to salvage, that is because officials tell us here it is incredibly unsafe. the conditions in the water with all of the complicated debris is unsuitable for those divers to still be moving along with the recovery side of things. the understanding is the four remaining bodies are very likely deep underneath it all. of course this news brings immense pain to the families, to the friends and the communities. these men were fathers, uncles, as you mentioned, all immigrants who came here to do a very difficult job. a shift that many locals here would not have wanted to do.
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they did it anyway and were supporting their children, their nieces and nephews in some cases. frankly, it is hard to fathom the grief many are feeling. take a listen to some of the families speaking about their pain. r pain. >> reporter: what you just heard her say there was that, you know, her loved one was the strength of their family. that her hope is that god is able to make sure they are able to find and recover them. officials say they want to give the families closure. that is a priority, but it also
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is becoming very clear how complicated things are. our colleague george talese was able to speak with the wife of one of the survivors. he experienced a wound to the chest and survived by the grace of god, a miracle. he was unable to swim his wife told george. again, it is a shock. it is going to take a while for these families to get the support, the full information and closure they deserve. >> antonia hylton, thank you very much. joining us now is tom perez, the senior adviser to president biden and assistant to the director of the office of intergovernmental affairs. tom, you and i have known each other for so long. i know that you were there, you went to baltimore, a place, a state and city that you know so
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well. you met with the families of these men. how are they doing today?>> reporter: it is so hard. the woman that you just referenced, she was inconsolable. i understand. the most fundamental right that any worker has when they go to work is to come home safe and sound. they didn't. i didn't sleep well last night. my issues pale in comparison to what they are going through. one spouse kept saying i just want his body. i understand that. so does the president. the president instructed us from the moment we learned about this roughly 48 hours ago
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to move heaven and earth to help everyone. our first job here is the search and recovery. as your reporting correctly noted, yesterday was a horrible weather day and today is not much better. notwithstanding those first responders were there and able to remove and identify two of the bodies. we still wait for the remaining four. we are moving heaven and earth. there is a heavy lift crane vessel that will be there later today to help with the debris. we are also incredibly sensitive to the notion that this is also the resting place for 4 fathers, four brothers, four sons. the humanity of the moment is still something very much on the mind of governor moore. he has been doing a great job, president biden and all of our local partners in baltimore county and baltimore city.
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>> thinking back over the years you and i have known each other. i remember being with you in las vegas when we spoke to and learn from so many people from our community. i just think it is so easy for people to forget or not even know about what our community does, how our community contributes anonymously -- anonymously to our country. these are people who went to work on the night shift to fix potholes and never returned. i am just thinking is there something, tom, that you think we could do to not only support these families, but also to help illustrate the extraordinary work and efforts of our community?
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>> as said many times, immigrants, we get the job done. that is what we saw the last couple nights. the six people who perished, the two others who survived, this is america. immigrants repairing potholes. i have spoken to so many farmworkers in california and elsewhere and when i hear about candidates who say i want to send everyone home, i wish you could sit down with people and understand the value here. here in maryland immigrants are not only repairing potholes and doing other service jobs, they are our doctors, they are our teachers, they are our first responders. we have such a rich tradition.
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in 1900 the port of baltimore was the ninth largest port of entrance. marilyn has a proud history of welcoming immigrants and we will continue to do that. as a resident i feel this is a gut punch for the president and for these families. we are going to do our best to make sure we help them. to make sure we take care of them. to make sure the search and rescue operations continue and that we move forward. that is the president directive, move heaven and earth and we are going to continue to work closely. >> tom, is this something the federal government can do the white house et cetera to help us imitate? i presume the families of these
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men in mexico, honduras and guatemala would like to come here at least for a short period of time to be in the mourning process, is there something you guys are doing to help on that front? >> i asked yesterday and a number of them asked if relatives come in? there is humanitarian parole where people are able to come in for a limited amount of time for reasons exactly like this. we are continuing to work with those families. we are trying to address all of their needs and we will continue. this is a horrific tragedy for these families and our communities. i so appreciate you, jose. you understand. you and i have had these
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conversations. family is everything. that is why this is so sad. sa >> a wife asking to please, find his body. tom, i appreciate everything you are doing. i think it is an important you are there and i am grateful. >> thank you, my friend. always a pleasure. sam bankman-fried, founder of ftx was just sentenced to his conviction in a massive fraud and conspiracy case. let's bring in christine romans. what romans. >> more than his team had been asking for, 6 1/2 years is what they wanted no more than. it's 25 years is what a judge sentenced sam bankman-fried to, defrauding investors. these were main street investors
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who were enticed into joining the ftx exchange as a way to get into the crypto craze. he was using that money to invest in risky hedge funds that he was affiliated with. he was spending the money. he was donating the money to political campaigns. in a pretty quick sentencing here, more than two decades in prison for him. he had faced up to 110, if you look at the statutes there. in fact, 25 years is what this judge has decided on here. i will say that sam bankman-fried, he was more apologetic than we have seen in appearances past. he had been defiant. he said, i was responsible for ftx and its collapse is on me. a judge sentencing him to 25 years. >> just a reminder, the collapse was multi hundreds of millions of dollars. >> that's right.
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this was not a small potatoes enterprise. this is one of the biggest financial frauds in american history here. he is compared with madoff who perpetrated a crime for many decades. one thing that captivated so many people on main street and the media and celebrities is that he wasn't your stereotypical ceo. he had bushy hair. he was a disheveled man who wore t-shirts. he would conduct interviews while he was playing video games. he had this persona that he crafted but certainly attracted a lot of money of people trying to get rich quick in the crypto world. >> and the slep ritcelebrities t helped him were attracted by the amount of money he had. coming up, why former
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president trump is heading to long island to honor a fallen nypd officer fatally shot at a traffic spot in queens. you are watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. mt needs to be for more than just work. like when it needs to be a big soft shoulder to cry on. which is why downy does more to make clothes softer, fresher, and better. downy. breathe life into your laundry. this is patrick's look of pure bliss. and this is his john deere 3 series tractor. it easily connects to every tool he needs, to clear the way, ♪♪ lift heavy loads, ♪♪ and as he puts it, add the strength of 10 extra people to his family's land. ♪♪ every 3 series tractor built to deliver confidence. you just have to get in the seat. learn more at johndeere.com/getintheseat zyrtec allergy relief works fast and lasts a full 24 hours
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55 past the hour. tonight in a major show of force, president biden will be joined by former presidents
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obama and clinton. they are expected to raise $25 million tonight, breaking fund-raising records. former president trump will be on long island where he will attend the wake of an nypd officer killed in the line of duty this week. joining us now, mike memoli in new york city and rehema ellis on long island. mike, how important is the fund-raiser for the biden campaign? >> reporter: this is a significant event. start with the sticker shock of how much money the biden campaign is going to bring in. you mentioned, $25 million. the biden campaign said that's more than any other single fund-raiser event raised in our history. it will cost $250 the minimum for a ticket, up to half a million dollars gets you a photo with the three presidents. think about the message this is sending. the 42nd, 44th, 46th presidents
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sitting on stage together talking about -- they will go down memory lane. all these men worked together closely in their respective administrations. to talk about the future vision for the country and what's at stake. this is a message the biden campaign is sending about how his party is behind him when we know republicans are still fractured coming out of the primary with questions about donald trump. >> mike, anything can show up if you have the money? how is it working? this is significant. >> reporter: it sold out. you can't get in at this point. 5,000 people in radio city, we are told. there's a virtual fund-raising option. the biden campaign wants to bring in small dollar donations. $25, you are able to witness a separate conversation between these three men as well. a lot of entertainers. queen latifah among others. >> thank you very much. rehema, tell us about the death of the nypd officer who will be -- donald trump will attend today.
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>> reporter: in fact, i should tell you according to a campaign spokesman for donald trump, he was invited by the officer's family to attend the wake. that 31-year-old officer, jonathan diller leaves behind a wife and a young child, a 9-month-old son. he was killed earlier this week following a traffic stop in queens. his brother-in-law said, he is a man who loved his family. just listen. >> he taught me how to be a better person, how to be better for his sister. i will never forget that. >> reporter: i should tell you that the alleged driver of that vehicle is being held without bail on gun charges. the police say the man who shot and killed officer diller was shot by diller's partner. that man is in the hospital.
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this is the first fatal shooting of an nypd officer in the last two years. the officer's funeral is being scheduled for saturday. >> our thoughts and prayers, of course, to officer diller and his family. rehema, the former president has been highlighting violent crime in new york city. how does data show -- what does data show about crime in the city? >> reporter: there is a perception that there's a rise in crime because of some high-profile crimes, if you will. according to the nypd, major crimes are down something like 2.3% in the city, and this is compared to this time last year. perception is one thing, and nypd says the reality is something else. >> of course, again, once again thinking of officer diller who lost his life this week. rehema ellis, thank you very much. appreciate that. that wraps up the hour for
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me. i'm jose diaz-balart. you can always reach me on social media @jdbalart. you can watch clips from our show online at youtube. thank you for the privilege of your time. andrea mitchell picks up with more news right now. right now on "andrea mitchell reports," donald trump's lawyers were in court in fulton county, georgia, arguing that most of the charges against him in the georgia case should be thrown out because his false claims about the election being rigged are protected under the first amendment as political speech. prosecuors say the lies about the election were criminal conduct. president biden bringing in the big guns. arriving to share the stage at radio city music hall with presidents obama and clinton in a star-studded democratic fund-raiser. new

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