Trump Berates MAGA Over Epstein Files

15:26Antonia Hylton:If you talk about this, I'm going to excommunicate you. Well, you're not the Pope, bro. Anyone who disagrees with anything I say is banished. I'm not saying Trump land is a cult. The Democrats are the cult of hating reason and logic and common sense. But when Trump starts behaving like that, it starts getting into cult territory.

15:56LaMonica McIver:And joining me now is Brandy Zadrozny, MSNBC senior enterprise reporter and an expert in all the dark online weird spaces that many of us avoid for our mental health. Brandi, when you've lost Alex Jones, you can hear him in that clip, like struggling with the cognitive dissonance of it all. What do you make of it?

16:18Ed Markey:Yeah, I mean, well, last time he got on camera, he said he almost threw up and he was crying. So this is kind of a step up, I think. He's doing better, you mean? Seven stages of grief for us. Yeah, it's really a nightmare for Trump. This is like, somebody made a joke that it was like they all got into a meeting together and decided the worst way to handle it. and then they did even worse than that. Like it really, they couldn't have handled this any more poorly. And so like, what do you do now? What's the answer, right? And so if they wanna get their base back, the good thing is about this for them at least, and I hate to give them tips, but it's just to release as much information as possible because as one of your last guests said, there's no way, like Trump can always, for the base at least, he can always get out of whatever he does.

17:06Ed Markey:He had that famous quote, I can shoot someone on Fifth Avenue. He can pretty much do anything he wants. And unless there's something really, really horrific in these files, if it's just a name, I can't imagine what it is that would make his base leave him. The only thing that will make his base angry is withholding this information. So you think even if he is in there, he doesn't lose his base? We don't know what's in the files, right? We really have no idea. But if seemingly, if there was a crime that was that obvious, then someone would be charged for it, right? It was in investigators' hands.

17:38Ed Markey:There was investigators. It's not like they buried. We don't think we have no evidence to suggest they buried all of this. So evidence would seem to suggest that whatever's in there isn't so bad that it would be such a crime that it would alienate his base or make his base angry with him.

17:53LaMonica McIver:break down for me why for so many on the right and in these sort of conspiracy adult spaces, Epstein matters so, so deeply. I mean, people get emotional over this stuff. And people who otherwise kind of take Trump's bait and his explanation, his story, they're not buying right now that this is all just about Comey and Obama and Biden, which Trump has kind of tried to twist this to be the last few days, it doesn't seem like they're accepting that narrative, which tells me there's something deeper here. What is it?

18:29Ed Markey:Well, every good conspiracy theory has a kernel of truth, right? And this one has an ear of corn. It has a really, at the center of it, a horrific story with hundreds of young girls abused by a man who seemingly used his wealth and connections to evade any real sense of punishment, right? He got the sweetheart deal. He did get a sweetheart deal. There are questions surrounding that sweetheart deal that have never really been answered. But at the heart of it, I wanna remind us is those hundreds of girls who that sweetheart deal never considered, never consulted. They left them without real justice.

19:07Ed Markey:And the same thing is happening now. We're talking all day long about the Epstein files, the Epstein files. What about the girls who are at the center of this? What about the victims? How do we protect them? I think that's really important. But going forward, that's a reasonable person would be concerned with that, right? Like your family members who really care now about it. Let's talk about the conspiracy theories that have been born out of this. There is a central conspiracy theory that has gone from Pizzagate to QAnon, and that is that the world and before that, the protocols of Zion and conspiracy theories that are hundreds of years old.

19:42Ed Markey:And that is that there is a big cabal of powerful people. Usually they're Jewish and they control the world and they either dine on the blood of children or they sexually abuse children. That is the conspiracy theory. And that exists today in various forms. For the MAGA faithful that really embrace this conspiracy theory, Trump is the one who will save us all. And he always has been. And so for Trump now to say, losers, there's nothing here. Look at what we're doing over here.

20:14LaMonica McIver:He was saying today that he doesn't even really want the support of people anymore who are into this. I mean, it made me wonder for a second, like if I had hallucinated that more than a dozen right wing influencers were invited to the White House not that long ago. did photo ops with binders. Like that happened, right? Well, I didn't make that up.

20:32Ed Markey:No, but that was the beginning of the betrayal, right? Because we have strung the, and by we, I mean them, they have strung their supporters along for so long. We're going to get it. We're going to release it. Here's some binders full of things that have already been released. And that was the first crack in the dam that I saw when they released those binders and humiliated those right-wing influencers in front of all of their supporters. They genuinely felt humiliated by them. They said the word humiliated, that they brought them there. They humiliated them. That's why everybody was against Bondi at first is because she was the one that passed out the binders.

21:00Ed Markey:So that fault was with her. And that was the first crack in the dam. But now, again, this unforced error that I'm hearing, somebody tell the man to stop tweeting. He is with each time he just makes it worse. It's kind of wild to see. But again, the thing is, I truly believe knowing this population that he can make it better in an instant by giving them some real information, whether that's good for victims, whether that's good for people who are implicated in these files that didn't do anything wrong, but are about to get, you know, WikiLeaks or pizzagated by this, you know, data dump, that remains to be seen.

21:34LaMonica McIver:Well, I don't think the path out of it is going to involve the president losing his phone anytime soon. If there's one thing you can be sure, every day when I wake up, I'm like, well, what happened on Truth Social? He's just going to post through it. He's going to post through it. Okay. Brandy, thank you so much for being here. Always great to see you. Later in the show, the Obamas talking politics and getting candid. Plus, I'll talk to Congressman LaMonica McIver, indicted by Trump's DOJ, on Trump's push to target other lawmakers. And heat on Republican Josh Hawley trying to undo Medicaid cuts that he just voted for.

22:11Antonia Hylton:I think these future cuts to hospitals with Medicaid is a mistake. I like things my way, my coffee, my schedule, and my treatment. So I talked to my doctor about self-injecting with the Vivgard Hytrulo Pre-Filled Syringe, which contains F-Gartigamide Alpha and Hyaluronidase QVFC. It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment, my way. Visit VivgardMyWay.com. That's V-Y-V-G-A-R-T MyWay.com. And talk to your doctor about Vivgard Hytrulo. Brought to you by Argenics. Finding the right size rug can be hard.

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23:44LaMonica McIver:more shake-ups at the department of health and human services as secretary robert f kennedy jr moves to fire both his chief of staff and deputy chief of staff the new york times reporting quote both were seen as practical and effective government veterans the turmoil at hhs coming amidst a continuing measles outbreak with cases reported in more than half of u.s states and a looming crisis of health care access stemming from cuts in Trump's budget bill. Some Senate Democrats are looking for ways to close the gap, introducing a health care initiative to support universal health care, saying accessible, affordable health care should be non-negotiable.

24:25LaMonica McIver:The bill is unlikely to go anywhere while Republicans control both houses of Congress and the White House. But officials from both parties have expressed concerns about the health impact of the Republican budget, particularly on Medicaid and rural hospitals.

24:41Antonia Hylton:I think these future cuts to hospitals with Medicaid is a mistake.

24:45Ed Markey:You are at risk of losing five of your rural hospitals in this one congressional district.

24:50Antonia Hylton:So it means that health care is at risk. I don't want rural hospitals in particular adversely affected at all. People in health care hospitals, they're in a panic.

24:59LaMonica McIver:Joining me now is Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts. Senator Markey, you were one of the Democrats who introduced this health care bill. What would it do? And do you expect any buy in at this point from your Republican colleagues?

25:13Christina Greer:Well, the Republicans just voted two weeks ago to have a one trillion dollar cut in Medicaid, in the Affordable Care Act, in Medicare. And it's going to have a devastating impact on rural hospitals across the country. I released a report two months ago that 338 rural hospitals could go out of business because of these cuts that the Republicans just voted on. And now the Republicans are returning with crocodile tears in their eyes about how concerned they are about rural hospitals. Well, they knew that going in, and they also knew the impact on community health centers. They also knew the impact on nursing homes.

25:54Christina Greer:They also knew the impact on Planned Parenthood. They also knew the impact that it would have upon the tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of hospital workers who will be laid off. They knew all that. And now they are saying that they're concerned about it. Well, it was only two weeks ago. So the legislation, which I've introduced with Ro Khanna, just says we have to give more power back to the states. We have to have individual states have the ability to create a health care system that does, in fact, provide for every single resident of that state. But the Republicans are absolutely adamant about keeping the cuts, no matter what they say, because they need the money for the tax cuts for the billionaires.

26:38Christina Greer:That's what this is all about. It's a transfer of money, especially from the poorest and the sickest and the most elderly in our society into the hands of the richest who are already benefiting from our great country. So that's what their whole plan is. And there is precisely zero chance that the Republican Party is going to come back and all of a sudden fund rural hospitals in our country. It is not going to happen.

27:05LaMonica McIver:I'm curious, as you sort of describe it as a sort of crocodile tears situation here, as now this rescission process moves forward, we're looking at billions of dollars of additional cuts to things like foreign aid programs and public broadcasting around the country. You know, we've heard colleagues of yours, like Senator Lisa Murkowski, express concern about the direction Republicans are moving. I want you to take a listen and then I'll get your reaction on the other side. There has been probably no issue, no single issue that has drawn out more interest across the state of Alaska than support for public broadcasting.

27:45LaMonica McIver:The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is there for reason, and I think it has stood the test of time. Senator, what do you expect to happen now, as it looks like the vast majority of Republicans are planning to move forward with this, regardless of the concerns that Democrats have raised or Republicans like Murkowski?

28:06Christina Greer:Well, Senator Murkowski is right. Alaska has been hit with a 7.2 earthquake on the Richter scale today. And the local NPR stations are sending out the warnings of a potential tsunami right now. So obviously, NPR, the local stations, especially in the remotest part of our country, they are the early warning system. They are the emergency alert system. And that's just one example, but there are hundreds of them with regard to the role that public radio, public television plays in the lives of small town America in the same way that rural hospitals are the center of life in rural America. They are the center of it.

28:53Christina Greer:And the Republicans in a two week period are devastating the local rural hospital system in our country. And they're devastating the local public broadcasting system for the remotest parts of our country. And those are the parts that disproportionately Republicans represent. They are much more likely to be red states. They're much more likely to have voted for Donald Trump. And yet the Republican Party has turned on these people. And again, they're looting the money, even from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, to send it to billionaires, to send it to the wealthiest people in our country.

29:29Christina Greer:It is unconscionable.

29:30LaMonica McIver:Senator, do you think the voters right now, they know a lot about the big, beautiful bill, now mega law, but do you think they're connecting these dots? Or is that going to be on Democrats to hit the road and make sense of this for people?

29:45Christina Greer:Well, right now, the public already by 20 points says that they did not like the big, beautiful bill in terms of those Medicaid cuts and the impact it's going to have upon their local communities. communities. That's why you're starting to see some Republicans walk back their own vote just two weeks ago. And the same thing is going to be true very quickly in terms of those communities that had come to rely upon their local public radio station or television station, which could go dark in the very near future without the funding that the federal government has provided over many, many decades.

30:24Christina Greer:So, yeah, the dots are going to get connected. It's already happened on Medicaid. It's already happening on the education cuts. It's already happening on the environmental rollbacks of the Trump administration. And he's only right now Trump at 37 percent favorability in his handling of the economy in our country. The public is being hit by the tariffs and their costs in their own daily kitchen table budget balancing of where they can spend the limited incomes which they have. It's all coming home to roost and it's going to build as each month goes by heading into the elections of next year.

31:04LaMonica McIver:Senator Markey, thank you for your time tonight. It's great to talk to you because I know that you've been involved in the you know, there have been waves of these conversations, particularly around the cuts to public broadcasting and what stations like PBS and NPR represent to people. And I know this is not your first time speaking out about it, but it now seems like we're really at the at the very edge. So I thank you for your time tonight.

31:26Christina Greer:And thank you for focusing upon that critical issue. Thank you.

31:29LaMonica McIver:Of course. Coming up, Barack Obama and Michelle getting personal and political. You'll want to hear what they have to say to Democrats. But first, Congresswoman LaMonica MacGyver on Trump's abuse of power. He's gone after lawmakers. Now he's targeting protesters.

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33:18LaMonica McIver:We turn now to the Trump administration cracking down on ICE protests with troubling news out of Washington state, where nine Spokane residents have been arrested and indicted for taking part in protests over a month ago. The defendants facing charges of conspiracy to impede or injure officers, plus assault charges for two of them. Those two remain in custody while others have been released pending further proceedings. In June, hundreds of Spokane residents gathered to protest the detention of two young men who are legal immigrants, police deploying smoke and pepper balls, according to the local reporting.

33:56LaMonica McIver:The former Spokane City Council president is among those charged, speaking out after the clash.

34:04Antonia Hylton:How do you deal with a situation where something wrong is happening and you've done all the legal things correctly? The law is being broken. And I think at that point, civil disobedience is, to me, the only other option.

34:19LaMonica McIver:The mayor is calling the arrests politically motivated, saying, quote, The Trump administration's weaponization of ICE and the DOJ is trampling on the U.S. Constitution and creating widespread fear across our community. This as ICE arrests are up dramatically, more than doubling in 38 states since Trump took office. People are continuing to speak out across the nation through the right to protest. Joining me now is Democratic Congresswoman LaMonica MacGyver from New Jersey. She was recently indicted by the Trump Justice Department after clashing with police outside a Newark ICE detention center in May.

34:56LaMonica McIver:She has pled not guilty. Congresswoman, thank you for joining me this evening. What do you make of Trump's DOJ now targeting citizens, protesters for speaking out?

35:08Brandy Zadrozny:So it's a pleasure to be on with you today. Great to see you. I mean, once again, it's another example of this administration being cruel and trying to stop people's First Amendment rights and their ability to be able to protest against the administration and the things that they are doing. I think it's very important. And that's why we see more and more of individuals all across this country who are holding protests and speaking out about the cruel things that this administration is doing each and every day.

35:37LaMonica McIver:There's been some recent Gallup polling showing that, you know, unprecedented numbers of Americans actually right now support immigrants and immigration. I'm curious if you see a tide turning because of the kinds of images that we've seen of what happened to you, Mayor Raz Baraka, of what we've seen happen to protesters in places like Washington and Los Angeles. Do you think the conversation is changing here? And does that put Democrats in a position where on an issue where normally they're seen as having to be on their back foot? This is Trump's winning thing. You know, can they take more ownership here now of the conversation around immigration and justice in the U.S.?

36:17Brandy Zadrozny:Well, I think, one, the conversation is changing and people are maybe feeling a little different because, one, Trump promised us that he would be arresting criminals. And I think we all can get behind, you know, arresting and holding people accountable who have who have committed crimes. But when you hear of these different instances happening where people who are being arrested, who are literally at work, targeting workplaces, arresting grandmothers, moms, children who are suffering from cancer, revoking student visas and deporting students who are attending school here legally. I mean, all of these different cases that we see that these folks do not have criminal charges and they have literally been detained.

36:57Brandy Zadrozny:I think it changes the conversation and Americans feelings about how this administration is handling immigration. And it's cruel and it's wrong, everything that they are doing. And Democrats have been speaking out about it. Many some some people, even Republican Americans, are speaking out about it as well. We've seen that on many occasions. But at the end of the day, it's cruel and we should not be handling immigration reform in this manner.

37:21LaMonica McIver:Are voters, you think, aware of the extent to which this new budget law supercharges ICE's budget? I mean, ICE now is larger than the FBI. It has a bigger budget than many foreign countries' militaries. Do people understand what that might mean on a day-to-day basis on the streets of our country?

37:43Brandy Zadrozny:No, I do not think so. I think this is the reason why, you know, it's my position as well as other elected leaders all throughout this country to be able to talk about what this big, ugly bill is doing, what it has done and what it's going to do. Because some of these things in this bill, like, you know, taking Americans off of their Medicaid, restricting SNAP benefits, some of these things may not go into play right away. Some of these things are set to go into play after the midterm election and people will be blindsided. Right. They're going to be surprised because people are not paying attention.

38:17Brandy Zadrozny:People are absolutely exhausted from this administration and they have literally turned off. I talked to the people of the 10th congressional district that I represent in New Jersey and folks are just like, look, I'm tired. It's depressing. It's exhausting. You don't have to take a break from listening to the news of what's happening. And so, you know, some people are not informed or engaged as they should be. But look, it's our job. It's everyone. Everyone has a job to play in this, you know, holding this administration accountable and bringing to light the things that they are doing each and every day.

38:48LaMonica McIver:Congresswoman, thank you so much for your time tonight. You know, I'll quickly just mention that I know you introduced a bill to recognize and commemorate the 1967 Newark riots. So continuing to draw all those connections between police power and protests here in the U.S. So thank you for for being here this evening.

39:07Brandy Zadrozny:Thank you so much for having me. It's good to be on with you.

39:10LaMonica McIver:We'll be right back with breaking news from the Trump Justice Department.

39:17LaMonica McIver:We're back with breaking news. New tonight, three sources confirming to NBC News that Maureen Comey, a prominent SDNY prosecutor and daughter of former FBI director James Comey, was fired today. She played a big role in prosecuting Epstein, as well as Ghislaine Maxwell, and in the Diddy trial. We cannot confirm a link between Trump and the firing at this time, but Trump has been going after Democrats, including James Comey, the FBI reportedly opening a probe into him last week. As for her role in the Maxwell case, as it pertains to the Epstein files, Politico reporting, quote, A judge upheld the FBI's denial of access to the bulk of the Epstein records.

40:01LaMonica McIver:The judge's ruling rested largely on a formal declaration from a federal prosecutor deeply involved in the Epstein and Maxwell prosecutions. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen Comey, the daughter of former FBI Director James Comey, she argued that disclosure of the investigative records was likely to interfere with the appeal in Maxwell's case. The exact reason for termination remains unclear. But sources say she was terminated pursuant to Article 2 of the Constitution. Joining me now is Barbara McQuaid, former federal prosecutor. Barbara, thanks for joining us on this breaking news tonight. Let me get your initial reaction to the early parts of what we know.

40:44Ed Markey:Well, I think this story is chilling. We don't know. Perhaps there is some misconduct that has not yet been reported that accounts for her termination. But this message about it is pursuant to Article 2 is very consistent with some other terminations that have been occurring in recent weeks. E-mails sent from Pam Bondi to federal prosecutors and other federal employees simply saying you are hereby removed from federal service pursuant to Article 2. Article 2, of course, is simply the provision in the Constitution that gives the president the power over the executive branch. It does not account for the kinds of civil service protections that federal employees are entitled to.

41:23Ed Markey:And I think this has been a push by Trump and his administration to suggest that there are no such thing as merit protections. Those are unconstitutional because nothing can prohibit a president from doing what he wants to do in managing the executive branch.

41:37LaMonica McIver:So, again, knowing that there's much about the motivation behind this that we don't know yet tonight, are you concerned that this is in connection simply to her relationship to James Comey, someone that we know President Trump does not like going back many years now? Or is it possibly connected to the conversation over the Epstein files right now and the president's need to sort of show supporters, show people who raise questions about that case specifically, that there is some kind of accountability, some action taking? What pieces of this are standing out to you?

42:12Ed Markey:Yeah, you know, in light of Trump's history with mendacity, it's difficult to know what the truth is here. And I think we should wait and see what further facts develop. But I can't help but notice that she is an accomplished prosecutor by all accounts, has a very fine reputation in the Southern District of New York. She was assigned to some very high profile cases, including the Maxwell case, as you mentioned, and the Diddy trial that recently was completed. You don't give those kinds of cases to people unless they are very strong prosecutors. So that says to me she has skills that are not the kind of thing where someone would be fired simply for incompetence or inability to do the job.

42:52Ed Markey:Perhaps it is smokescreen designed to suggest that somehow she's the one who is preventing the Epstein files from being released. But, of course, that's not true because the FBI recently announced that they've reviewed it and there's nothing there that should be released. this retribution. You know, you can't help but take Donald Trump at his word when he said that he would seek retribution against his enemies. Jim Comey is certainly high on that list. We know from reporting that there is an investigation at DOJ about him. There was an investigation about him when he simply posted some seashells arranged in the form of 8-6-4-7 a few months ago.

43:32Ed Markey:So he certainly is in the crosshairs of the Trump administration. And so I suppose the best way to hurt him would be to hurt his daughter.

43:38LaMonica McIver:Barbara McQuaid, thank you for joining us so quickly on this breaking news. We're going to be right back.

43:48LaMonica McIver:We're back with that breaking developing news. Maureen Comey, a prominent SDNY prosecutor and daughter of former FBI director James Comey, was fired today. She played a big role in prosecuting Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell and in the Diddy trial. No word yet on why she was fired, but it comes amid Trump's very public attacks on her father and the MAGA meltdown over the Epstein case. That's going to do it for me tonight.

44:16Antonia Hylton:I like things my way, my coffee, my schedule, and my treatment. So I talked to my doctor about self-injecting with the Vivgard Hytrulo Pre-Filled Syringe, which contains F-Gartigamide Alpha and Hyaluronidase QVFC. It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment, my way. Visit VivGuardMyWay.com. That's V-Y-V-G-A-R-T MyWay.com. And talk to your doctor about VivGuard Hytrulo. Brought to you by Argenix.