KRISTEN WELKER:
This Sunday: Shots fired.
SECRET SERVICE AGENT:
Get down, get down, get down, get down.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Former President Donald Trump injured and rushed off the stage at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania after an apparent assassination attempt.
FBI SPECIAL AGENT KEVIN ROJEK:
This evening we had what we are calling an assassination attempt against our former president, Donald Trump.
EYEWITNESS 1:
The man beside me suffered a gunshot wound to the head, was instantly killed.
EYEWITNESS 2:
Somebody got shot this close to where we were.
KRISTEN WELKER:
The threat of political violence now looming over the election.
PRES. JOE BIDEN:
There is no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick. It’s sick. Everybody, everybody, must condemn it.
KRISTEN WELKER:
How will the 2024 political campaign change? My guests this morning: Republican Congressman Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Biden campaign national co-chair Senator Chris Coons of Delaware and Independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Joining me for insight and analysis are: NBC News Washington Managing Editor Carol Lee; Charles Benson, from our NBC affiliate in the Convention city of Milwaukee; former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki and Lanhee Chen, a fellow at the Hoover Institution. Welcome to Sunday, it’s Meet the Press.
ANNOUNCER:
From NBC News in Washington, the longest-running show in television history, this is Meet the Press with Kristen Welker.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Good Sunday morning. The nation is waking up to a new reality after former President Donald Trump was injured in an apparent assassination attempt that left one person dead and two others critically injured. The suspected gunman was killed by the Secret Service.Here is the horrifying moment as it happened.Now, the former president posted, quote: “I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear. I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin.”This video shows the body of the alleged shooter on the roof of a building just 150 yards from where Mr. Trump was speaking.
[START TAPE]
EYEWITNESS 1:
I heard a, “Pop, pop, pop, pop,” then everybody’s on the ground. Everybody’s on the floor.
EYEWITNESS 2:
He had a rifle. We can clearly see him with a rifle, absolutely.
EYEWITNESS 3:
If he had not moved his head at that nick of time, it could have been a lot worse.
EYEWITNESS 4:
The man beside me suffered a gunshot wound to the head, was instantly killed. I’m honestly shocked this didn’t happen earlier.
EYEWITNESS 6:
I was anticipating this to be another unbelievable night but not this way.
[END TAPE]
KRISTEN WELKER:
Well, New York Times photographer Doug Mills captured the moment: what appears to be a bullet on the right hand side of the image passing the former president’s ear.A spokesman for the Secret Service said the suspected shooter "fired multiple shots toward the stage” from “an elevated position outside the rally venue."Overnight, former President Trump, landing in New Jersey, walked off his plane. Early this morning the FBI, which is now leading an investigation involving the Secret Service, ATF, state and local law enforcement, identified the alleged gunman as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20-years-old of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
[START TAPE]
FBI SPECIAL AGENT KEVIN ROJEK:
This evening, we had what we're calling an assassination attempt against our former president, Donald Trump. It's still an active crime scene. As I mentioned, we have a number of agents on scene. We also are working closely with other federal agencies, our state partners and our local police partners as well.
[END TAPE]
KRISTEN WELKER:
President Biden was briefed on the shooting after leaving church on Saturday and spoke out, condemning political violence.
[START TAPE]
PRES. JOE BIDEN:
Look, there is no place in America for this kind of violence. It's sick. It's sick. It's one of the reasons why we have to unite this country. We cannot allow for this to be happening. We cannot be like this. We cannot condone this.
[END TAPE]
KRISTEN WELKER:
And this morning on the Today Show, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson also weighed in.
[START TAPE]
SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON:
We’ve got to turn the rhetoric down. We’ve got to turn the temperature down in this country. And we need leaders of all parties on both sides to call that out. There’s no figure in American history, at least in the modern era, maybe since Lincoln, who’s been so vilified, and really persecuted by media and Hollywood elites, political figures, even the legal system.
[END TAPE]
KRISTEN WELKER:
Now we are covering all of the angles of this developing story. And we begin with NBC News correspondent Dasha Burns, who was at the rally when the shooting happened. She joins us now from Butler, Pennsylvania. Dasha, we are all so grateful that you are safe. Walk us through what happened and the very latest there.
DASHA BURNS:
Kristen, you, and I and our colleagues, unfortunately, we've all covered shootings as part of this job. It's become a sadly familiar assignment. We race to the scene of the tragedy and the aftermath. What's far less familiar is actually witnessing the moments of the tragedy firsthand. And that's what my team and I experienced last night. I'll just tell you from our vantage point what happened. We were on the press risers, which were positioned in the center of the venue as usual, just behind the seated section of the audience. We were actually finishing up filming a stand-up as the former president began his speech, again, all as usual. My producer, Bianca, and I started to walk down the stairs from the riser just to grab our laptops, when we suddenly heard those loud cracking pops that are now so familiar from that video we've been playing over and over again of that devastating moment. We, like many of the people that we interviewed afterwards, initially thought it might be fireworks. You know, sometimes former presidents' events have pyrotechnics. But when those sounds kept going, and then when Mr. Trump stopped speaking, we took cover behind some stage equipment, again thinking it was just a precaution. And we experienced this sort of rapid rollercoaster of emotion alongside the crowd. It went from a standard political event, people were cheering, buying merchandise and food, dancing to the song YMCA, which often comes on just before the former president makes his entrance. It went from that to confusion and chaos as those sounds rang out. And then fear set in when we realized that this could actually be gunshots, something we never imagined. We were still taking cover when we heard those cheers from the crowd that you could hear in the video as the former president raised his fist into the air with blood on his face and was taken to safety by Secret Service. And Kristen, in those moments, for anyone who wasn't sort of front and center, who saw people get injured, one unfortunately ultimately killed, it wasn't immediately clear to us how dangerous and deadly the situation really was. So some people in the crowd began to leave the scene, but others, they stuck around. And we got back up on the press risers, reunited with our crew, who was thankfully safe, and we began reporting live. And one thing that struck me, in those moments, it was after that that some people in the crowd started to come to the risers. They started to get heated with the press. And this struck me as I was thinking back to these moments because we’ve been talking about sort of the division and polarization that's an inevitable part of this story, right? And this crowd gathered near the media, started blaming the press for what had just happened. Some, screaming at journalists and getting pretty aggressive. Of course, emotions were running high in that moment. It was a chaotic scene, and we didn't know the details at that moment. We were ultimately told to leave the scene in the middle of our live report. A Secret Service told us that this was now an active crime scene. Our crew had to abandon their gear. We made our way to the parking lot where there were thousands of cars that would ultimately take hours to get out of there. There was really only one entry and exit point. And so there was a massive traffic jam. And it was sort of in that traffic jam, as everyone was coming to grips with what just happened, that we spent hours speaking to witnesses. We were exchanging our stories, hearing their stories, trying to fill in the blanks. And pretty quickly a picture of total horror emerged as we met people who witnessed the tragic death of one attendee. A man named Joseph that I talked to was standing next to the gentleman who was killed. He told me that that man died on impact and that he helped carry the man's body away. People described watching the former president turn his head slightly to point to a screen just onstage just as those first few bullets were getting fired. One woman telling me that potentially the lethal shot was missed by inches, maybe centimeters. And this morning the former president gave another update, addressing supporters on Truth Social, writing, "It was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening. We will fear not, but instead remain resilient in our faith, and defiant in the face of wickedness. In this moment it is more important than ever that we stand united and show our true character as Americans, remaining strong and determined, and not allowing evil to win." Kristen.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Dasha Burns, just extraordinary what you witnessed, and that update of course from the former president could be a bit of a preview of what we might hear at the Republican National Convention. Dasha Burns, thank you for all of your extraordinary work there. Tom Winter is NBC's investigative correspondent. He's been up throughout the night, talking to law enforcement officials. Tom, what do we know at this hour?
TOM WINTER:
Kristen, what we know at this hour is that the word from law enforcement officials who've done their own independent investigation, from the investigation so far on the ground in Pennsylvania is that it is very unclear what this motive might've been for the alleged shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. He was born in September of 2003. He appears, according to a video we saw on YouTube, to have graduated from high school just several years ago. We know that based on voter registration records in Pennsylvania he registered as a Republican. He also donated $15 to a Democratic cause. So that's what we've seen there. We can find no criminal history on this individual, no sign of any civil lawsuits. We check for that because sometimes people file suit against individuals, it helps get some insight into their mindset. And for a 20-year-old male in America, he has an incredibly low online social media presence. Now, of course there's these different chat rooms that are out there in some dark crevices of the internet. We don't have all the answers yet. And that's something that obviously federal investigators and the FBI in particular will be focused on. I think understandably, given the fact that this shooting happened, and it was an attempted assassination of the former president of the United States, the presumptive Republican nominee, who should be the nominee in just several days' time, it's a formality at this point, as you well know, that folks are focused on what is the political motive here? And in law enforcement circles, they have to examine everything from, "Did this person have a particular animus against Trump because they didn't like their policies? Were they driven by what's been said about Trump, either in the press or from other politicians? Was Donald Trump not conservative enough?" Just to show you the gamut of the different types of things that they have to look at. But we should note that it's not necessarily the motive if there's a political cause here. In other words, there could be another motive here, as we saw with the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan. That was motivated by, the shooter there trying to impress somebody, or impress a woman in that particular instance. So we have to keep an open mind. That's what investigators are doing, that's what they should be doing. And the FBI will just look at, "Look, this is where the evidence is, this is where it's taking us."
KRISTEN WELKER:
Tom, such important context there. Incredible reporting. Thank you so much. President Biden will receive a briefing from Homeland Security and law enforcement officials later this morning. NBC News Chief White House correspondent Peter Alexander joins me from the White House. Peter, I know you've been talking to your sources throughout the night. What's the very latest there at the White House?
PETER ALEXANDER:
So Kristen, we learned that late last night, or learned late last night, that President Biden and former President Trump spoke hours after the shooting yesterday. Right now we don't have any better details about that conversation. When the shooting took place President Biden was at Mass near his home in Delaware. We're told that when he learned about the assassination attempt, it was right after he left and he wanted to address the nation, we're told, as soon as he was fully briefed. Among those briefing in, the Secret Service Director, Kimberly Cheatle, the Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas.This morning the president, he is back here at the White House after publicly condemning the violence, saying that he is, quote, "grateful Mr. Trump is doing well," saying that the country needed to unite. We should note a Biden campaign official says that the campaign was pausing all outbound communications and working to take down its television ads as quickly as possible because of the seriousness of this moment. As you noted, the president is to be briefed by his law enforcement team this morning. A senior White House official telling us the rest of the day is fluid. So no indication whether or not we'll hear again publicly from President Biden today just yet. Kristen.
KRISTEN WELKER:
All right. Peter Alexander for us at the White House. Peter, thank you so much. And joining me now is Republican Congressman Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania, who was seated in the front row near Trump at the rally last night when those shots broke out. Congressman Meuser, welcome to Meet the Press.
REP. DAN MEUSER:
Thank you, Kristen. Nice to be with you.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Well, I really appreciate your being here with us on what is a somber day for you, for your community, and frankly, for this entire country. You obviously, as I just said, were in the front row yesterday. You were near former President Trump when this all unfolded. I do want to ask you about the events that you witnessed. But first, I just want to ask you, how are you doing? How are you holding up, and those in your community, holding up today?
REP. DAN MEUSER:
Oh, I'm fine. Certainly there's a lot of people that are – that are very upset. This is quite, quite shocking. Certainly at the rally people were – were very – having a lot of conversation, a lot of – a lot of "God blesses," a lot of, "How are yous?" as opposed to thinking about themselves, which was pretty touching. And you know, throughout the evening and this morning a lot of outreach from Republican colleagues, as well as Democrat colleagues. I've – I’ve heard from both sides who really, really feel terrible about this, and want to do all we can to keep it from occurring moving forward.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yeah, absolutely. Can you walk me through what you witnessed yesterday, Congressman, as it occurred, when those shots rang out?
REP. DAN MEUSER:
Sure. Yeah. Dasha, your correspondent, gave a – gave a very good description, as she was there. But it was a typical rally. President Trump came in. We did our pre-rally speeches, got the – got the crowd excited. And you know, just great people. They're there for one reason, to hear who they want to be their president, their leader, talk about the great things that America should be. President Trump did the pictures, as he does. He was in enormously good spirits, as he – as he always tends to be. He came out. It was no more than six or seven minutes, as was stated, into his – his remarks when the shots rang out. And frankly, I was standing in the front row with Senate candidate Dave McCormick, my House colleague, Mike Kelly, Christine Toretti, who's our national committee person in Pennsylvania. And anyway, a bunch of people, of course. And the shots rang out. And the first two, I – I really looked at Dave and he looked at me, and we just looked around. We turned around, we knew where they were coming from. And then my eyes just turned fast to the President, fixated on him. And that's when he was – he was hit. And – and – and he hit the deck. He wasn’t – he didn't look like he went down from the shot, but he hit the deck and put his hand up on his head. And I really was – was thinking the worst. And so you – you get – you get a surge of anger, of frustration, of wanting to do something. So we were trying to even get over the barrier. And then of course, the Secret Service was – was on it immediately. They – they deserve all kinds of credit. They surrounded the President. And I'll tell you this, it was certainly chaotic. I mean, people were upset, people were screaming. But at the same time, it was controlled, particularly when – when President Trump put up his fist and let everybody know that he was okay. And I think that was a sign to everyone that they were going to be okay as well.
KRISTEN WELKER:
You know, you said something in the beginning which is of course, the question becomes how to prevent this from happening again? Obviously, we are about to have the Republican National Convention this coming week, the Democratic National Convention in August. Our political rhetoric in this country, undoubtedly, we have discussed this, has gotten quite heated at times. What do you think? What would you like to see happen, Congressman, to try to prevent something like this from happening again, to lower the temperature, quite frankly, right now.
REP. DAN MEUSER:
Yeah, well, this individual, let's face it, let’s – we’ll get to the bottom of it. We don't know if he has mental illness or what his dysfunction is, and, you know, if there were some flags prior to that, we need to do a better job in that regard. But, look, the – the overall atmosphere, the environment – there's plenty of blame to go around now. On the same note, I will say that I was listening to Mike Johnson a little bit earlier speak, and he had stated how, you know, this president just gets vilified. President Trump, I mean. There's just from – from “fascism” to – to “Hitler” to “dictator” to – and – and, frankly, none of it's true. That's not what – what – that’s not what our Constitution is about. That's not what our constitutional republic is about. That’s not what our laws are about. So – so I can easily point that out, but I'm willing to state at the same time we all need to take responsibility to cool things down, to say what we mean, but don't say it mean. To not get – get personal, to have dialogue rather than – rather than attacks. And – and from the words I got, I heard from President Biden, and the words I've gotten from some fellow members and primarily Democrats – I actually heard from Governor Josh Shapiro immediately as I – as I was leaving – “Hey, what happened? What can we do? Are we – do we have enough state troopers?” – who did a wonderful job, as well, just really, really sincerely caring about correcting this to the best of our abilities.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Congressman Meuser, thank you so much. Our thoughts are with you, your community, obviously everyone who was injured, and the precious life that was lost there yesterday at that rally. We really appreciate your joining us. Well –
REP. DAN MEUSER:
Thank you Kristen, very much.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Thank you. When we come back, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina joins me next.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Welcome back. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina joins us now. Senator Graham, welcome back to Meet the Press.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Thank you.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Well, Senator, you and I have been together on many a Sunday. I wish the circumstances were different –
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– this Sunday. I know that you're not just an ally of Former President Trump — he is one of your friends. I know you're hoping to speak to him soon. What will your message be, once you are able to connect with the former president?
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
I'm grateful you weren't hurt any worse, and I love you. You know, we were supposed to play golf this morning at 8:30. I have talked to him three times this week. There's a lot going on in the world. He was excited about playing golf. He thought he had something that could help my swing. I’ve had – all I can say is he's got five children and five grandchildren. He is a human being. There are a lot of people love this man. He is one of the most strong people I've ever met. He – he has an ability to absorb punishment like anybody I've ever met. Obviously, God is not through with President Trump, and I look forward to seeing him later this morning. I'll let you know how he's doing. But, for the country, we probably need to do some soul searching as a nation.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Well, I – I want to follow up with you on that point, Senator. I could see the emotion in your eyes, and I can hear it in your voice. Can you tell us what your initial reaction was, when you witnessed what happened, when you learned what had happened, when you understood that he came, quite frankly, within inches – if his head had turned in either direction, this could be a –
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– different conversation today, Senator.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
I wish I could say I was surprised, but I've been worried about this for a very, very long time. You know, if he wins, democracy is not going to end. He's not a fascist. He represents a point of view that millions share. The rhetoric is way too hot. But I was just grateful that he made it. I mean, fate stepped in, God, the hand of God, call it whatever you'd like. But let's don’t forget, there is a man who lost his life by attending a political rally. He's dead. His life came to end. Other people are hurt. Who to blame? Let's blame the shooter. But let's all try to do better. I can tell you one thing about President Trump: he is very determined to get this country back on track. And his initial reaction, after being shot, will be an iconic moment in American history. Literally bleeding from a gunshot wound, he raised his fist. Don't give up. Keep going.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Senator, there's a lot we could say and discuss about political rhetoric. I want to ask you very specifically about –
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– some of the responses we've seen and just – just get your reaction. Senator JD Vance, as you know, a potential VP nominee, said, in the wake of the shooting, quote, "Today is not just some isolated incident. The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump's attempted assassination." Another Republican congressman, Mike Collins, said, quote, "Joe Biden sent the orders." I just want to get your take, Senator, because you are talking about where this country –
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah. Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– needs to go. Do you think and do you have concerns that that type of rhetoric, drawing those conclusions so immediately, could only fuel –
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah. Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– this moment and the tensions?
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah. Well, there is a lot of frustration, on our side, about the way President Trump has been treated. But I'm just grateful, today, that he's alive. I – I mourn for those - the man who didn't make it. And, you know, we'll have a chance here to talk about, you know, what's best for America. But let's just, today, be grateful that our former president, political nominee, survived an assassination attempt. And I'll try to do better here. I don't – I don’t want to go down that road, right now.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Fair enough, Senator. I do want to ask you, because you, myself, so many others, are about to head to Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention, where Donald Trump will officially become –
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– the Republican nominee, and here we are in the middle of this 2024 election cycle. How do you think this moment, this horrific act of political violence, how will this impact the – the – the campaign, more broadly?
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
You know, that's very, very hard to say. I think President Trump, I'll - I’ll talk to him later in the day, is determined to stay on schedule. He needs to pick a vice president, you know, today underscores why that's an important pick. He wants somebody that is ready on day one, that can help him win, that can grow the map. I think the Republican base adores President Trump. There's going to be a lot of love coming his way. But I am glad to see my Democratic colleagues are saying really good things. And, you know, this is a moment where America's been traumatized. And it's good to see – I'm glad President Biden called him. There will be plenty of time to talk about politics. But today, we just all need to be grateful and mindful of how dangerous – how could this happen? How could somebody get within 130 yards of the president with a rifle? His Secret Service team around him, his personal team, are the great Americans who are very brave. But what I thought of, when he got up and raised his fist and bleeding, was Teddy Roosevelt. This is the toughest guy, I think, I've ever met. He's the modern version of Teddy Roosevelt. And it's just an amazing thing to be his friend and in his orbit. And – and I look forward to seeing him here soon.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Well, Senator Lindsey Graham, we really appreciate your joining us. Again, our thoughts are with everyone who was injured and, as you so rightfully and importantly point out, the life that was lost yesterday that we mourn as a nation for. So thank you. Thank you for all of your comments this morning. We appreciate it.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM:
Thank you.
KRISTEN WELKER:
When we come back, I will speak with Independent Senator Bernie Sanders and Biden campaign co-chair, Senator Chris Coons. Stay with us.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Welcome back. Independent senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont joins me now. Senator Sanders, welcome back to Meet the Press.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS:
Thank you.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Thank you for being here on this somber Sunday. Senator, I'm wondering if you can give us your reaction to the events that unfolding in Pennsylvania yesterday and what you think needs to happen in this country to prevent this horrific, completely unacceptable act of political violence from ever happening again?
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS:
Well, Kristen, thanks very much for allowing me to be with you today. For a start, I think everybody in this country no matter what their political views are wishes former President Trump a rapid and speedy recovery, mourns the loss of innocent lives and those who are wounded, and understands that political violence of any kind or shape or form is unacceptable, it is un-American and we've got to put an end to it. I think in this traumatic moment it's time for all of us to take a deep breath, remember what this country is about and what political campaigns are about, and they're about serious discussions of serious ideas as to how we address these serious problems facing this country. So let's use this moment. If there's any silver lining in this tragedy, it's to figure out how we go forward peacefully, constructively and intelligently.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Absolutely, Senator. And you obviously have been impacted by political violence yourself. In 2017, that horrible moment when Republican Congressman Steve Scalise was shot at baseball practice, you came out and forcefully denounced what had happened upon learning that the suspected shooter had been a volunteer for your campaign. How does that experience inform how you think the country can move forward right now?
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS:
Well, let me also say that a couple of months ago my office right here in Burlington, Vermont, with seven – I was not there at the moment, but there were seven staff members there, it was almost burned down by somebody who's in jail right now. Seven people could've been burned alive. So, yeah, I am familiar with political violence in all its forms. The bottom line is what we need as a nation, what a democracy is about, is not radical rhetoric. What it is about is a serious discussion of where we are as a nation and how we go forward. You know, in a certain way, Kristen, politics should be kind of boring, you know? Our health care system is dysfunctional. How do we fix it? Well, it's kind of a boring discussion, but we need a health care system that guarantees health care to all people. We have massive income and wealth inequality. Well, maybe a boring discussion. Should three people own more wealth than the bottom half of American society? So I think what we have got to see is serious discussion of serious issues and not this kind of harsh rhetoric that we have heard for the last number of years.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Senator, you know, before all of this had happened I invited you to come on to talk about your op-ed, your perspective on the 2024 campaign. Obviously, there has been a lot of discussion about whether President Biden should pass the torch, whether he should be the standard bearer. In your op-ed you say enough of all of that discussion. You say it's time to put the divisions, quite frankly, to rest about whether President Biden should be the nominee. I wonder if you think this moment will impact that debate, and if so, how?
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS:
No, I don't. Look, I don't. I mean, I think President Biden is the strongest candidate the Democrats have. I think he has a very, very effective record that he can run on. We are finally lower the cost of prescription drugs. We are rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure finally. We're beginning to deal with the existential threat of climate change. We're trying to do our best to protect a woman's right to control her own body. It's a strong record. But what I have been critical of -- and I'm seeing good things. I thought President Biden's speech on Friday night was really good. And I think he talked about what he wants to do with a Democratic congress in the first 100 days of his administration. And, you know, when he talks about expanding Social Security, Kristen, you know, we have half of our seniors in this country are living on less than $30,000 a year. We've got to improve benefits, and we do that by lifting the cap. You've got millions of seniors who can't afford to go to a dentist. We have to expand Medicare to include dental, hearing and vision. Workers who want to join a union, unable to do that. We have to pass the PRO Act. We have to raise the minimum wage, which is about $7.25 an hour to a living wage. That's what he talked about. And I think if he continues to talk about that I think he gets reelected.
KRISTEN WELKER:
All right. Senator Sanders, you said something significant today, that our politics, it is your hope, should be boring again. Here's to that happening. I think everyone, no matter what their political perspectives, can agree to that this morning.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS:
Right.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Senator Sanders, thank you very much for your perspective. I really appreciate it.
SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS:
Well, thank you for having me. Appreciate it.
KRISTEN WELKER:
And now, I want to bring in Democratic Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, a Biden campaign co-chair. Senator Coons, welcome back to Meet the Press.
SEN. CHRIS COONS:
Thank you, Kristen. It's good to be on with you on this somber morning.
KRISTEN WELKER:
It is really great to have your perspective on this morning, even though it is difficult for everyone across this country. And I do want to start there. We heard that forceful, full-throated condemnation by President Biden about this political violence, saying, "It cannot be tolerated. This has to end." What do you think needs to happen, moving forward? And how might this horrific moment impact the 2024 campaign?
SEN. CHRIS COONS:
Well, Kristen, there have been too many close calls, in the time that I have been in Congress. As you referenced earlier, there was that tragic day when Steve Scalise was shot. My close friend Jeff Flake, a conservative Republican senator came back to the Capitol. I'll never forget standing with him, praying with him as he was in his baseball uniform, spattered with the blood of Congressman Scalise. Congresswoman Giffords is and was a close friend and was shot in the head at the political event. And Speaker Pelosi's husband, Paul, was brutally beaten and hospitalized in an attempt at attacking her. And then, last night’s shocking event, by the grace of God, not a tragedy. We would be in a very different place, this morning, if there had been a different outcome. And so, first, President Biden did last night, as he so often does, the things that I most hope a president would do. He was at church. He was briefed. He called former President Trump to wish him a full and speedy recovery. He went on national television to denounce political violence and urge us to come together. He's pulled down campaign ads. And as you heard from Congressman Meuser, and from Senator Graham, and Senator Sanders, all of us are reaching out to each other in Congress. As you know, I'm an active member of our senatorial prayer group that tries to not just lower the temperature but to be role models to each other of how to respect each other as people, how to carry out the vision that President Biden shared in his inaugural address, that we would see each other not as enemies, but as political opponents with different values and views, and we would speak about each other and act towards each other in ways that are more respectful and more supportive. That's my prayer for our nation, this morning, Kristen.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Senator Coons, as you know, the Republican National Convention gets underway on Monday. The Democratic National Convention gets underway in August. What concerns do you have, not only in terms of the rhetoric in this country, but from the security of both of those events, as we prepare to head into this incredibly busy summer season?
SEN. CHRIS COONS:
Look. I am so grateful for the service of the state troopers and the Secret Service who protected President Trump last night, so regretful for the loss of life at a political rally. And, as you put it, we need to be more concerned and more diligent than ever in ensuring that our two conventions and the rest of this presidential campaign comes off safely and securely. We went through, as a nation, a period of political violence in the late '60s. I was a high school senior when there was an assassination attempt at President Reagan's life. And, as I've mentioned, there have been too many relatively recent events. We have to reduce the rhetoric and the tone. I'd urge folks to turn off their phones, and get off of social media today, and take some time with your family, and reflect on who we are as a nation and who we want to be. Part of why I admire and support Joe Biden is that his tone, his leadership as president, has been geared towards trying to bring us together. And, as you heard from my friend and colleague Senator Graham, we have folks who feel strongly, and deeply, and positively about both presidential candidates. We need to get through both of these conventions with a more respectful and constructive tone and recognize that Senator Sanders said that while we have huge issues at stake in this election, they need to be more boring and less troubling.
KRISTEN WELKER:
All right. We'll leave it on that powerful note. Senator Coons, thank you so much for joining us today. We really appreciate it. And when we come back, we'll have the very latest reaction from inside former President Trump's campaign ahead of the Republican National Convention. Stay with us.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Welcome back. The Republican National Convention gets underway tomorrow, and former President Trump will officially become the Republican Party's nominee. NBC News senior Capitol Hill correspondent Garrett Haake is covering the Trump campaign and joins me now. Garrett, how will all of this impact the convention?
GARRETT HAAKE:
Well, Kristen, in the short term the Trump campaign is urging its employees to stay home today, not go in and work from their office. And they're ramping up security as they worry about what might happen next in all of this. But the message from the Trump campaign, and indeed from Donald Trump himself, has been essentially that the show must go on. They intend to begin the convention tomorrow as planned. The four days of events, I'm told by a senior official involved in their planning, won't change structurally, meaning that broadly speaking the plan that was in place Saturday afternoon is still the plan for what we'll see at this convention, including their as-yet still secret plan to announce Donald Trump's running mate. That said, this official says, and I think we know this is facially true, that the events of last night will change the tone and tenor of this convention. We will see more emotional resonance, and I think we'll see some of what you heard from Senator Graham: allusions to Donald Trump as a – as a Teddy Roosevelt like figure, discussions of that photo as iconic. Remember, this is someone who built their entire political identity on being a fighter and trying to be tougher than the other guy. I expect you'll hear a lot of that going forward in Milwaukee, Kristen.
KRISTEN WELKER:
I anticipate we will, and I will see you there. Garrett Haake, thank you so much for your great reporting. Really appreciate it. When we come back, how will the assassination attempt of former President Trump change the 2024 campaign? Our panel is next.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Welcome back. The panel is here. NBC News Washington managing editor Carol Lee, Charles Benson, anchor and chief political reporter of our NBC station WTMJ in Milwaukee, former White House press secretary Jen Psaki, host of “Inside With Jen Psaki,” and Lanhee Chen, Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.Thank you to all of you for being here on, we continue to say this throughout the morning, it's a very, I think, heavy morning for our entire country. Carol, I want to start with you. One of the things that struck me about the conversations that we've been having throughout the morning is that everyone, all of the guests who we just spoke to, had a very similar message, that this has to stop, this can never happen again and that the country needs to find a way to lower the temperature on our politics.
CAROL LEE:
It was really striking. The one thing that everyone agreed on in your interviews, Republicans and Democrats, that this – that this is a horrific moment in the country's history and how does the country move forward. And you heard Senator Graham there saying that there needed to be soul-searching in the nation, you heard Senator Coons say that it's a time to take the tone down in our politics, and I think the – the question is how long that lasts and whether the country is ready to do that, because this is all playing out against the backdrop of a political campaign in front of a deeply divided country.
KRISTEN WELKER:
I think you're absolutely right, that is the question. And, Jen, in fact we've already seen the finger-pointing begin. Some people even blaming President Biden. We heard that very forceful condemnation by President Biden of what happened. As someone who used to work with the president, what are you anticipating in terms of – he's obviously pulled his political ads –
JEN PSAKI:
Yeah.
KRISTEN WELKER:
– forward, but as Carol said, the question is how long does this moment last. And how do you think he sees his role right now?
JEN PSAKI:
I mean, I think his role, I'm – I’m betting that how he responded was as a human being, which is how we just saw Lindsey Graham at moments during that interview and Senator Sanders and Senator Coons respond. That's how everybody should be responding. For anyone out there –
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yeah.
JEN PSAKI:
– who has a platform who thinks the moment right now is to be political and attack the other party, you are feeding into the danger. You are making it more likely there's retaliation. I'm incredibly scared. I'm scared for journalists. I'm scared for people who have public platforms of all parties. And that's how people should feel. So for President Biden, I – Imean, Senator Coons mentioned he was in church, he's somebody who's very prayerful. He is someone who attends church. I think he probably is relying on that. And in this moment I think his instinct would be not to be political. And you just take it day by day. That's where he would be. I mean, he has a huge interview tomorrow. And the moment there is not to talk about the political path forward. It is to be a healer and to lower the rhetoric and the – and – and the – the tenor in the conversation in the country.
KRISTEN WELKER:
It – it's just fascinating. Every conversation is going to be different, including that interview, Jen, tomorrow. Lanhee, former President Trump released a statement on his Truth Social account this morning calling on the country to be united. He obviously has a powerful role to play in this moment too, even as he recovers and as everyone is wishing him a full and quick recovery.
LANHEE CHEN:
You know, all political leaders have an important role to play. On the night that Abraham Lincoln was shot, he wore a jacket and inscribed in that jacket was the phrase, "one country, one destiny." And never has that been more true than this morning. We are one country with one destiny, and the notion that we talk about you – how divided we've been, we have been very divided, and the rhetoric has been hot. But we can go in one of two directions now as a country. We can either double down on that division, increase the rhetoric, increase the heat, make it more challenging for us to have a real discussion, as Senator Sanders said, about the issues. Or we can move in a direction where we come together and decide we actually want to solve some problems. And I think that leaders – whether it's President Biden, former President Trump – certainly everybody you've had on your show today has modeled the right kind of tone we need to take in our politics, a tone of civility and a tone that says, "Let's come together to address these issues." And I hope that's where we go.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yeah. Charles, you know, everyone is talking about the Republican National Convention next week and the context of tone.Talk a little, I mean, there's so much excitement in your city, and – and obviously now a somber start to what will be this, you know, officially naming Donald Trump as the Republican nominee.
CHARLES BENSON:
Yeah. I'm – I’m saddened as well. I became a political journalist –
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yeah.
CHARLES BENSON:
– because I became fascinated with conventions and these political campaigns. They're exciting. They're exhilarating. It's a chance for voters to get up front with these candidates. And it's a fascinating process to watch, and I'm hoping it doesn't change all that dramatically. The security will. I – I've been fascinated by Senator Graham talking about Theodore Roosevelt. You know, Theodore Roosevelt was shot famously in Milwaukee. And I say "famously" because after being shot he sort of, it was – it was just a graze, you know, he just kind of brushed it off, gave that speech, and then went, you know, to the hospital afterwards. So what I think now is when does the former president come into Milwaukee and give the speech to set the tone for not only the convention but going forward.
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yeah, people will be hanging on his every word. That is for sure. Carol Lee, you've been doing a lot of reporting about the fact that the Biden campaign is wrestling with these calls for President Biden to pass the torch in the wake of his debate performance. How does this moment, does this moment, impact whether or not those talks come to a standstill? Has that already happened?
CAROL LEE:
Well, that feels like ancient history, right –
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yes, it sure does.
CAROL LEE:
– and think that tells you where this is headed, and that is when you talk to Democrats they say that this is just not – this is all paused. I mean, everything. The president's reelection campaign is effectively paused. And their – the White House is sort of in this hour-by-hour discussion about when does the president come out to speak again. What does his schedule look like this week? Is he going to continue to travel? He had campaign events. And so it just remains to be seen exactly where this goes. But for now the tone and the tenor is, "It would be really tone-deaf for a Democrat to come out and say, 'It's time for the president to go.'"
KRISTEN WELKER:
Jen?
JEN PSAKI:
I – I think that's what I'm also hearing. It feels all paused right now. One thing for all of us to remember is it may not feel paused tomorrow or Tuesday. And part of that is because the convention is starting –
CHARLES BENSON:
Right.
JEN PSAKI:
– and unless the programming changes, the rhetoric and how the programming is set up is not actually calming the tone or restoring civility. We'll see if that programming changes, but if it stays the same that is escalating it. It is not – it is not a civil approach –
CHARLES BENSON:
That's what –
JEN PSAKI:
– to a convention.
CHARLES BENSON:
– I'm worried about.
LANHEE CHEN:
It can be tough to execute a convention program when you have a – some event that's thrown in like this. In 2012 when I had to help execute the – the Romney campaign convention program, we had a hurricane. This obviously is far more horrific and creates a whole set of different challenges. But it will be interesting to see how that's navigated over the next several days –
KRISTEN WELKER:
Yeah.
LANHEE CHEN:
– because the focus was going to be on immigration and on, you know, how to make America safe again, and all these other themes. Is that going to continue or is there going to have to be a dramatic shift in the program because of this, maybe more unifying tone, one that allows former President Trump to use this week in a really unique way?
KRISTEN WELKER:
We will be watching all of those questions. Thank you all for being here this morning. We do have a programming note. Our Sunday Meet The Press broadcast will be off the air for a few weeks during NBC's coverage of the British Open and our around-the-clock coverage of the Olympic Games in Paris. I will be in Milwaukee all this week anchoring our daily streaming show, Meet The Press Now, where you can always find us weekdays at 4:00 p.m. Eastern. That is all for today. Thank you so much for watching. Please do take care of yourselves as the nation continues to grapple with what just unfolded. We'll see you back here in August because if it's Sunday, it's Meet The Press.