The Weeknight 5/19/26 | MSNOW Breaking News Today May 19, 2026

Added: 2026-05-20

[00:00:01]Good evening and welcome to The Weeknight. I'm [music] Alicia Menendez with Michael Steele and Luke Russert in for Simone. Breaking tonight, Donald Trump wraps up his getaway to China focused on one issue, his ballroom. In just a moment, how the HGTV president wants to punish the American taxpayer [music] with his misplaced priorities. Then Tennessee's lone House Democrat ends his re-election bid after Republicans carve his district into pieces, but this fight is far from over. Democrats in the South are going toe-to-toe [music] to stop Trump's power grab.

[00:00:35]>> And later, Congresswoman LaMonica McIver joins the table as she fights [music] Trump's costly retribution campaign.

[00:00:42]We'll discuss her brand new push to turn congressional [music] power against the president's ICE agents soon.

[00:00:49]But folks, let's begin with some breaking news. Donald Trump just arrived back home after a three-day visit to China and his key takeaway wasn't a trade deal or foreign policy agreement.

[00:01:02]He has ballroom envy. Trump writing moments after taking off, quote, China has a ballroom and so should the USA.

[00:01:12]Take that. If Trump gets his way, that ballroom would will be built thanks to $1 billion in taxpayer money.

[00:01:19]The president who once decried waste, fraud, and abuse is now trying to rob the American people and the ballroom grift isn't an isolated incident. Trump has filed a 10, get this, $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over the unauthorized release of his tax returns.

[00:01:39]Even Trump sees the conflicts of interest.

[00:01:44]Yeah, I have to work out some kind of a settlement. I'm supposed to work out a settlement with myself. If you're making a substantial amount, nobody would care because it's going to go to numerous very good charities.

[00:01:56]Yeah, sure.

[00:01:59]One of those charities apparently could include capital insurrectionist.

[00:02:04]According to ABC News and the New York Times, Trump is considering a settlement essentially with himself as he just said that would create a $1.7 billion retribution fund to compensate anyone who claims they were harmed by the so-called weaponization of the Biden Justice Department. I wonder if they're going to have one for his Justice Department. Anyway, Trump won't be able to receive payments directly from the fund, but he would handpick the commission that does.

[00:02:32]Now nothing has been finalized, but even the prospect of a deal raises serious ethical and legal concerns. Here's Congressman Jamie Raskin.

[00:02:41]It's like watching The Sopranos and waking up in what is the scam of the day. What is the rip-off and the caper we're going to do today? They don't have a plan to get health care to the American people or lower inflation on day one or bring down the price of groceries or housing. No, they've got plans to get themselves rich. So this is corruption versus democracy.

[00:03:05]Can I just say I'm coming back from China and instead being focused on this ballroom? Yes, it's part of the micro grift, which is the ways in which he wants to enrich himself, but it's also part of the macro grift, which is that he campaigned on making America great and instead he has succeeded only in making America weak. I mean, Luke, you you watched this summit. It was a shadow of what it was supposed to be. It was the first time we saw a potential shift in the world order. He was supposed to come back with deals. The details on those have been scamped. You had investors selling off stock. You had the Dow futures down, the larger S&P futures down. This was not the trip he wanted, so I am not surprised, Luke, that upon his return what he is talking about is his big, beautiful ballroom.

[00:03:55]I think that if you were another country watching what transpired in China right now, you have no doubt who the preeminent uh world superpower economy that you want to do business with is.

[00:04:06]And it's not the United States right now after what we saw in China, for sure. I would also go further to say that it speaks volumes that for so long in this century, we were expecting to elect leadership in government that would position the United States to be able to compete with China. And frankly, with Donald Trump, we are losing. All that being said, seeing those images over there, the Chinese knew exactly what they were doing, putting the kids clapping in front of him on the tarmac.

[00:04:35]Then they had all the uh ostentatious displays of strength and power. Trump loves that autocratic stuff. He loved it with Putin, he loves it with Orban, he loves it with Erdogan. That is his that is his wheelhouse. So, in no way did this better position the United States.

[00:04:51]So, hence, Trump is going to talk about the ballroom. And I'll say one more thing. Who went over there with him, Alicia?

[00:04:57]Billionaire CEOs.

[00:04:59]That is who his is his most important constituency is, because as he said this week, "I don't think about anybody."

[00:05:06]What was the exact quote? "I don't think about Americans' financial statements. I don't think about anybody." And that was reflected on who his guests were in China on behalf of the United States.

[00:05:15]So, not a great foreign policy week for this country. No, you both have just nailed it. I I really don't have anything other than add, except that this was a crap show from day one. It ended as it as it was going to end because Donald Trump was in it and doing it. Um and the reality of it is, the ballroom is the most important thing this man has to offer America.

[00:05:38]Uh and now he wants to take 1.7 billion dollars out of our pockets to pay himself and criminals and insurrectionists and thugs and a whole bunch of people who every day find some part of Donald Trump they want to attach themselves to. So, we'll just leave that at that, but I thank you both for being so well-spoken on it because where I wanted to go >> [laughter] >> Anyway, joining us at the table, Sky Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, and Rich Logis, founder of Leaving Maga. He's the author of One Betrayal Too Many: Why I Left Maga.

[00:06:12]Welcome to you both. Michael, I look forward to that articulation. The night is young. Um I want to talk about um Sky, about this fund that the the president seems to be imagining. I mean, just uh on its face, um there is the baseline obscenity of this lawsuit. There is the undeniable conflict of interest, Donald Trump um suing his own IRS. And then, there is this reporting today from ABC that he has still, it seemed, found a way to benefit. How is it possible that any of this is legal, Sky?

[00:06:50]It's not, but I don't want to bury the lead here because you'll remember when he filed the lawsuit, what he wanted to do was he wanted to settle the lawsuit so that he could get $10 billion.

[00:07:01]We came on this show and we said that isn't going to happen. The judge isn't going to let him do it, and he can't do it. And just like every other hairbrained scheme that this administration tries to do, you have him now backing off of pocketing the $10 billion and saying, "Now I'm going to do $1.7 billion into a weaponization fund."

[00:07:18]That also is not going to be lawful.

[00:07:21]There's going to be a number of questions about who this commission is.

[00:07:23]We've shut down a number of commissions at Democracy Forward in suits and those types of things, but I want to make sure because he wants to scare people about a retribution agenda, and he wants people to believe that he's just so powerful he's going to be able to pocket all this money. And he has backed off yet again of what he intended to do in the first place was to pocket the money. Now we'll have to go fight this fight as well, but I do think it's very important that people see that this administration is not actually as strong as they want you to believe. And that's one of the big pieces of this story that I think is getting a bit lost. Rich, I was thinking today when I saw this story about, interestingly enough, Whitewater and the Clintons. Do you remember that? Okay, that was over tens of thousands of dollars. It was something that occurred in 1978. It was then investigated again by Republicans in 1994. It led to a four-year investigation. It literally dictated the Republican policy on Capitol Hill for much of the '90s.

[00:08:16]That was in the tens of thousands of dollars. This is in a over a billion dollars. It looks like a total carve-out and giveaway to Donald Trump. This the 1.7 billion settlement would have no oversight. It's essentially a slush slush fund where he can give away to whoever he wants. How do you think that that plays for the fiscal conservative non-MAGA Republicans? Well, let me just preface by apologizing to viewers for my past MAGA activism and my support of Donald Trump.

[00:08:48]When When Trump ran, I fell for the lies that he would drain the swamp and would root out corruption. And he was correct in pointing out the graft and the fraud and the abuse. But what he has done is he has continued to enrich himself and his own family at the expense of the American people.

[00:09:14]I realized that Trump was lying and that I had allowed myself to believe these lies, which eventually led to my leaving of MAGA.

[00:09:23]And I think that there are more than ever who are in the MAGA community who right now are having doubts about their support for Donald Trump. We have a a nationwide billboard campaign. And our message is very simple on the campaign. It's having doubts, you're not alone. And for those who might be seeing this who right now are starting to question their beliefs, are starting to perhaps feel confused, they're they're wondering if the MAGA movement comports with their values anymore, we want them to know that they're not alone. And I think the president knows that he is losing support. I believe that many in MAGA do have a red line. I think when people reach that line of demarcation, when there is one lie or one betrayal too many, it starts to make them wonder and question if this is a movement that they can continue to support. And I think that Trump continues to abuse his office and the office of the president recklessly, and I think that many in MAGA are starting to recognize that. You know, Rich, you touch on a lot of pieces there that really I think a lot of folks around the country wondered. [snorts] And you've given some light and some answer to that. You know, how is this playing in in various pockets of the MAGA verse, if if you will, and and how people who like yourself have said, "You know what?

[00:10:50]This is not what I signed up for." And it reminded me a lot of the early days of the Tea Party. A lot of those were individuals, were grassroots activist Republicans who were very frustrated with the Republican Party's lack of consistency around the constitutional norms that they professed, the idea that they were for a smaller government footprint, that they wanted to keep the expenses to the American people low, and so they were mad about the cost of the Iraq war, and the impact that was having. And you see those parallel universes in this in this moment with for a lot of folks.

[00:11:26]And and it really is I think an important inflection point, Sky, um to uh what Trump is trying to achieve.

[00:11:38]Luke and I grew up here in D.C.

[00:11:40]And what we're seeing uh happen to the city that we grew up in is the the the Trump-ification. Yes. Uh I call it the crapping on the city cuz he's squatting everywhere and he's leaving a very big butt print. Yeah. All right? I just to put it out there. Look at Look at what he's touching. Look at what he is is changing into his own image from the mall to the reflecting pool, not the reflection pond, to, you know, to the skyline of the city, to the White House itself.

[00:12:19]And now we've got this $1.7 billion fund. So, here's the thing, while all of that's going on, that's one distraction away from the grift, which is the ultimate game. Cuz while we're fussing about an arch, he's giving the having the IRS drop $1.7 billion into his pocket. So, stay focused, people.

[00:12:39]>> Right.

[00:12:40]Here's the question for you.

[00:12:43]So, what?

[00:12:44]Who's going to stop him? How do you stop him?

[00:12:47]Republicans in Congress might as well just take the take the the trash bags and the briefcases with the money in it and take it down to the Oval Office and put it on his desk cuz that's all you're worth at this point. That's all you're worth. You ain't doing a damn thing about it. You're sitting silent or you're egging it on. So, how does this change? Well, I think, and we talk about this all the time, the people are the ones that are going to stop it. And you already see, there are defections starting within the MAGA movement.

[00:13:18]You're already seeing that in these billboards and people across the country in red areas like I grew up in. People understand corruption. They They like grift. They also, by the way, don't like their voting rights being taken away from them. Like, regardless of political party, people value the right to vote.

[00:13:34]So, that's one piece. Is the elections in November, which is why they're trying to decimate the voice of the people now, because they don't want to be held accountable by the people. The other piece is don't, you know, don't rest on the federal courts. Now, the federal courts are not able to stop every single thing he does. They're They're not. And we're not going to pretend like they are. But, at the end of the day, this is an administration that is facing over 750 lawsuits. It's amazing.

[00:13:59]>> in history. They're losing all the time, and often in their game of whack-a-mole, they actually back off when you confront them. And that's why it's so puzzling what members of Congress are doing. And what Republican members of Congress are doing, or people that just don't agree with the president. Like, what are they doing? Because this is a president that is not impervious to political and social pressure from the people. We see that all the time. He'll change his tune in a minute. But, yet, why is Congress sitting there? But, the people are going to have the voice, and the people are going to be the ones that will stop him.

[00:14:31]Rich, um, I I'm sure you heard the sound from the president on Tuesday. He was asked to what extent Americans' financial situation is motivating, um, his making a deal with Iran. He had said not even a little bit. The only thing that matters when I'm talking about Iran, they can't have a nuclear weapon.

[00:14:47]I don't think about Americans' financial situation. Well, just in the past hour, um, there was an interview with the president and Bret Baier that aired on the Fox News. Bret Baier asked the president about criticisms of what he had said. And here's the president given an opportunity to revise and extend.

[00:15:06]It's very simple.

[00:15:08]When people hear me say it, everybody agrees. Short-term pain. It's going to be short-term pain. But, the pain is much less than people thought.

[00:15:18]Rich, does everyone agree? Is the pain less than people thought?

[00:15:24]Well, I I think most Americans would disagree with that statement. Um I think that Americans, many of whom voted for the president in 2024 with the hope that costs would be lowered, that their groceries, their gas, their health care, their housing costs would be lowered.

[00:15:41]And for many of them, what they're discovering is that not only have costs remained high, but for many the costs are even higher right now and then it then they were in 2024 and with a lot of regret and remorse, I talk in my memoir about some of the reasons why I supported the Trump campaign. I I did believe as an outsider that he would disrupt the status quo and unfortunately, we did get a disruptor, but one who is an anathema and antithetical to democracy and I I write in the memoir as well about not only reasons that people fell prey to MAGA, but how hard it is for someone to walk away from MAGA, but it is possible to do it and I think that the cracks are showing right now. I think the chasms are going to continue to widen because of the fact that the president is not keeping his promises and and I believe that many in the base right now are starting to recognize that the president is a dishonest person. I think most people in MAGA deep down know that something is amiss in the country. I said at the DNC convention on night one, I worked on the Kamala campaign that Trump's toxic superpower is lying and I think there's no issue small, medium or large that the president is not willing to lie about.

[00:16:59]Rich Lowery just thank you so much for being with us. Guy, you're sticking with us because after the break, we want to discuss the Republican plot in the South to rig the midterms and how voters are fighting back [music] with massive protests planned for this weekend. And later, Congresswoman LaMonica McIver she's going to join the table to discuss her own [music] fight against a weaponized Trump Justice Department.

[00:17:19]You're watching The Weeknight.

[00:17:24]They don't want to redistrict. They're really they're not for us.

[00:17:31]D. Reed, Alabama organizing manager for Black Voters Matter, joins us now. Sky Perryman is still with us.

[00:17:39]D., welcome to the show. This last week you've seen one party rule essentially be put into power in the south of the United States. It's almost as if it's the beginning of a balkanization of America. Two different Americas with two separate rules of law and two separate representations of democracy.

[00:18:02]I want to ask you cuz I think one thing that's being lost in the national conversation is the level that the Republican Party is taking these recent developments that have come out of the Supreme Court to really gerrymander local districts for the State House and for the State Senate. And a party that is very much about local control does not seem to be very comfortable with local control in areas that for long time have been represented by people who look like the ones who live there.

[00:18:32]That's right.

[00:18:34]Yeah, so listen, it is a lot going on, but what I will tell you all is that we are steadfast in the call that we have to defend voting rights.

[00:18:43]Ultimately, what we saw in Louisiana and what we've seen now in Tennessee and what we've seen in Virginia, what we've seen in in now Georgia, and even what we're seeing here in Alabama is that this isn't just an issue isolated to one state, right? But it impacts all of us.

[00:19:02]And we're not going to stand by while lawmakers redraw lines to determine outcomes. We believe that voters should determine outcomes, not the other way around, um which is why we are hosting this national day of action right here in Montgomery in Alabama, which we know has always served as um ground zero for movement work. And so, we're going to start tomorrow in Selma with a moral moment, really grounding folks and reminding us of the legacy that we have, right?

[00:19:33][clears throat] When it comes to fighting back, when it comes to disruption, um and and also reminding folks about the divine sense of urgency in this moment and how there is a clarion call for all of us to stand up, for all of us to lean in, for all of us to use our voice in a way uh that really will call for change.

[00:19:53]D, I I I I applaud that. Uh thank you.

[00:19:57]Um it's clear, uh it's focused, um it's rooted in history, and it's also rooted in the future. And and that's the that's the part of this that people in my party seemingly have completely forgotten. Um and so, just go smack them upside the head, girl. Go do your thing. D, on that point, um I loved what uh D just said um uh about um legacy.

[00:20:25]And Sky, I meant uh I I was I I meant I meant Sky, but thank you, D. Uh Sky, I really do appreciate that legacy point. And here's why, because um in the clip that we had coming in, um uh Marsha Ann uh Camille said said exactly what needed to be said to the Louisiana legislature. I want to play a little bit more of what I thought was the defining um moments. They're two back to get back uh that I think encapsulate exactly what we're talking about here.

[00:20:59]If y'all can give us less than zero seats, you would do it. The beautiful thing is, the children that y'all have made and the people that's younger than y'all don't support none of this racism that y'all want.

[00:21:11]The MAGA party is the last breath of the Confederacy.

[00:21:15]And I'll be happy to see millennials and Gen Z bury y'all.

[00:21:20]I I ain't got nothing. What what I mean cuz it it just nails it. It just nails it. It right out of the gate, you know, if you if you could give us less than zero seats, you would do it. Cuz you've already shown us who you are, right? And but then that legacy piece, y'all are relying on something that's not going to be there for you. The next generation that's coming into voting, that's growing into voting and taking ownership of voting, are looking at what's happening and realizing that's not who we are. And so yeah, this is the last breath of the Confederacy as the South tries to rise again. That is the hope, and that is the fight, and that's why it's that's the work.

[00:22:02]>> And there is going to be a catalyst for bold change in this country out of this crisis. But it is the work. And anybody that thought that the types of freedoms that we've had, like the right to vote or any of the types of freedoms that we have, were sort of these things that we just get to inherit. That's not what it means to be an American. It's not in our bloodstream. It is in our work and our dedication from generation to generation. Ronald Reagan said something >> Right. Very familiar, right?

[00:22:28]>> Here we go. But that But that But that's what this is. And it's actually why um I have confidence that the American people will be able to overcome this. It's not just the age of these people.

[00:22:39]>> Right. Right. Let's talk about what the population of this country is. We are a bold and vibrant and diverse country.

[00:22:46]You can try to ban the word, which you can't really do in the Constitution. You try to ban the word, but you're not going to ban the reality that that's what this country is. It's who this country is, and we're going to win this fight, but it's going to be hard. And we know from our history um how hard.

[00:22:59]Right. Do you you, talk about some of the hard because you were deep in the work of the hard. You referenced the organizing that is happening this Saturday. All roads lead to the south and national day of action organize as I say the demonstrations are focused on voting rights protections and concerns about policies they believe restrict black voters access. Um, black voters know what's on the line. They they've known what's on the line.

[00:23:23]It has been communicated to them generation passed down generation to generation.

[00:23:28]What's your message to white voters about why this moment matters for them?

[00:23:33]Absolutely and I'm so glad that you lifted up that question and even as they were talking earlier, what stood out to me was the people power aspect of this, right? And when we talk about movement, we know that we can't do that in isolation. So y'all, I'm from Alabama, so I have to tell you that my father was a pastor and so there's a scripture that I think is so fitting. It talks about how one can chase a thousand but two can chase two can chase put 10,000 to flight. Meaning that we, you know, in in by ourselves, we can do a little but when we come together, we can do a whole lot. And so what we're seeing is this really is a multi-generational, multi-cultural movement in six days with tomorrow being the seventh day, we already have thousands of people who have registered to be right here in Montgomery between Selma and Montgomery.

[00:24:31]We have more than 200 buses that are coming in from all across the country. I mean all colors, all character, all socio-economic backgrounds, ALL ZIP CODES, RIGHT?

[00:24:44]BECAUSE PEOPLE recognize that it's bigger than just one demographic, right?

[00:24:49]That all of our freedom is tied together and so we are looking forward to the shift uh we will see take place um as we're continuing to call for fair maps, for fair representation. We know that African-Americans here uh represent 1/3 of the population. And so, we're we're ultimately not asking for anything that we just want. We're calling for what it is that we deserve. And we are grateful to be in partnership with so many diverse organizations and groups that realize that the only way we get free is if we work towards that freedom together.

[00:25:26]Sky, quickly, do you think the Democratic Party is meeting the moment right now in terms of fairness representation? Because you see how quickly the Republican Party moved after the Supreme Court decision to cut the Voting Rights Act. You see a lot of Democrats saying, "Hey, New York, Illinois, you got to get with it. You got to move on this." Just before we came on the air, the Democratic governor of Colorado, Jared Polis, uh gave clemency to an election denier, which is now getting a lot of buzz and people saying, "What is the Democratic Party doing? Are they meeting the moment? Do they see the speed that needs to happen in order to try and make sure that folks are not permanently marginalized out of voting?" Let me just say, people are meeting the moment, and that's what you're going to see. I'm going to go down to Montgomery tomorrow. People are meeting the moment, and that's what we need to be talking about. Everybody wants to talk about, "Is this politician meeting this moment? What's going over over here? What's happening here?" These are distractions. The question in this nation right now is are the American people going to fight for themselves, and are we going to fight for our democracy? And I think you're going to see this weekend, you will see that. You have seen it in the number of protests across this country, the single single largest days of nonviolent direct action in the country's history have taken place over the last year. More people in this country have been trained in nonviolent direct action than at any point in our history, including in the Civil Rights Movement. And so, you know, I think everybody needs to be doing more. And so, that'll be my answer to your question there. I'm not going to defend people that aren't using every bit of their power to make change in this time, but the question should be are the people meeting the moment and they are, and that is why this administration is coming straight for the people. And that is something we've shown on this network for the last year is the people are in the streets and the people are really trying to be heard, so D. Reed Scott Perryman, thank you so much to both of you. Stay with us. We're going to speak with Congresswoman LaMonica McIver who's demanding accountability for ICE even as the Trump Justice Department targets her over her past [music] attempts to hold ICE accountable. That is only on the weeknight. Stay with us.

[00:27:33]It's been nearly 1 year since the Trump Justice Department indicted Congresswoman LaMonica McIver after federal agents tried denying her entry to a detention facility in her district.

[00:27:43]Despite this ongoing legal battle, McIver hasn't backed down introducing a bill this week that would mandate immediate access to facilities for members of Congress conducting oversight. The timing is urgent. The Trump administration just shut down the office of the immigration detention ombudsman, a watchdog where detainees could report complaints and safety concerns. According to Reuters, at least 18 people died in ICE custody in the first 4 months of 2026.

[00:28:14]That is a two-decade record.

[00:28:17]Joining us now is Democratic Congresswoman LaMonica McIver of New Jersey. She's a member of the House Homeland Security Committee. Welcome Congresswoman. 18 people have died in the custody of the federal government of the United States of this administration. You have put forth and are working to garner support for a bill that would appropriately allow members of Congress to do their oversight duties and carry out their responsibilities through whatever means that are appropriate to make sure that these facilities and the detainees are what the facilities are being run well and the detainees are being protected. So, as you're putting this together, what are the reasons any of them that the Republicans are giving you why federal officials, house members should not be allowed to carry out such oversight responsibilities at facilities in their own districts? Well, thanks Michael for the question and you know I have personal experience with having this administration try to stop you from having oversight, but I think we've seen since the Trump has been sworn into office and this administration has come into our lives that they have literally at every step of the way tried to stop members of Congress from conducting oversight visits at detention centers. Just about a week and a half ago another judge ruled again that, you know, members can have the right to have show up to a detention center unannounced and conduct their oversight you know, duties. And so that's why I wanted to introduce this bill along with two of my colleagues from New Jersey, both Rob Menendez and Bonnie Watson Coleman, the No Delay Act which basically just codifies that we have the right to inspect a detention facility and we cannot be delayed. You cannot hold us up or you can't create a situation that, you know, denies us access to these facilities.

[00:30:14]There's a letter from inside one of those ICE facilities, Delaney Hall, which is the site that you are speaking about and it's from signed by 300 apparent detainees. This is what they write. We are being tortured physically and psychologically due to the poor food resources provided in these detention centers. We see with deep helplessness and frustration that our due process rights and defense have been violated disregarding benefits granted under the fourth, fifth, and sixth amendments of the United States Constitution. And this is part of a very lengthy statement that DHS released to MS now. This is what they have to say. No lawbreakers in the history of human civilization have been treated better than illegal aliens in the United States. Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority of ICE.

[00:31:06]They emphasize detainee access to medical care and meals before encouraging undocumented undocumented immigrants to self-deport saying, quote, and this is what I want your response to, being in detention is a choice.

[00:31:21]You know, just awful. A awful statement. First of all, I just I want to give those folks who were covered had enough courage to basically report this, you know, what they're going through, their experience there, because it's real. Like I've gone there, I've spoken to numerous um detainees there, and it's it's true.

[00:31:40]Like I see with my own eyes, lack of food, lack of medical care. I mean, literally, I had a uh resident who died there less than 24 hours from a medical emergency when they were a healthy individual that went in there. And so, literally, it's just awful. And you know that those folks are literally being targeted right now. Like they've been mistreated. Meals are being held up because of them relinquishing this kind of information. But it's what we have been saying since last May. That's why we showed up there in the first place to go and inspect this place that people reported these things were happening.

[00:32:11]And since then, nothing has changed.

[00:32:13]That's why we had detainees escape, you know, broke down a wall and left there cuz they weren't receiving food. That's why we had this unfortunate situation of this, you know, Haitian immigrant dying there. But once again, not a shocker, something we've been alarming people about and been demanding answers from DHS about the conditions of not just this detention center, but many across the country.

[00:32:37]Uh before my next question, we should mention that uh, Congresswoman Menendez, the co-sponsor of the bill you mentioned up front, is Alicia's brother, so I just want to get that out of the way.

[00:32:47]Uh, but Congresswoman I want to ask you something. Um, congratulations, you are pregnant. You had an announcement in People magazine. I want to read it. It says, "Quote, I don't want to be remembered just as LaMonica McIver, the congresswoman. I want to be remembered as LaMonica McIver, the mother of two beautiful children at home, a good mother, a good wife, a good daughter, and a good sister." Now, why is that important? Because right now, you are facing the prospect of 17 years in prison because of your attempt to go into one of these facilities to check on the uh, conditions of those who are being held by this administration. Um, I want to ask you something.

[00:33:24]What does it feel like that one, you are going to have to pay for your defense in this case because you're not allowed to accept pro bono because of the House ethics rules. This could be legal fees of $1 million. But what does it feel like that as a sitting member of Congress, this administration seems more fit to go after you than the ICE officer that killed Renee Good?

[00:33:47]It's disappointing and it's honestly, it's a shocker still, to be honest with you. I can't believe as an elected official, this isn't my first post as an elected official in New Jersey, um, to be going through this. I never thought, you know, being charged by the federal government would be on my vision board.

[00:34:03]You know, that wasn't something I planned for and truly it's unbelievable to be going through it even a year later, you know, where I'm constantly raising dollars for my defense, constantly having to battle in you know, uh, uh, tactics that are being used against me from my Republican colleagues and constantly fighting back, but still showing up to do the job, you know, at the end of the day cuz that's what I signed up to do. And so, it's very frustrating, but it's also disheartening to see that this is happening, um, from our executive level. I never thought a government would be able to operate like this. I never thought I would be in a situation like this for just showing up to do my job.

[00:34:38]Congresswoman, we've got a little less than a minute left.

[00:34:42]But I I I just want to A, say congratulations to you.

[00:34:45]>> Thank you.

[00:34:45]Number one.

[00:34:47]And number two, to Luke's point about the the personal toll that this is having, the fact that you had the financial obligation to try to you know, defend yourself against these these baseless charges in the craziness of the Trump administration coming after you.

[00:35:05]There are those out there who do want to help and have been trying to help.

[00:35:09]Marie Claire and the Congresswoman's PAC put together this effort to quote support stretched from the House floor on Capitol Hill to a federal courtroom in Newark to a group chats that never went dark. It needed to because the Democratic establishment, as MacGyver would learn the hard way, had no playbook for fight like this. So the women built one themselves with with the understanding that one of them could be next. Talk about that. That kind of support coming for you. Thank you so much for that, Michael. First of all, I'm super grateful to these women, the Congresswoman's PAC. I mean, I'm definitely just in debt of gratitude to them. They've been extremely helpful in helping me raise dollars, being there to support me, praying for me, checking in on me. And you know, we I wish I had more support. You know, honestly. And people can join me in that support. You know, join me in this fight as we continue to fight for our democracy and and for what we know our country is better than. And so, you know, look follow us, check me out, lamonicaforcongress.com all the time to join us in the fight.

[00:36:15]But at the end of the day, just grateful for the support that I'm getting from that group of women and and many others who have really pitched in and helped me in this fight.

[00:36:24]All right, Congresswoman LaMonica MacGyver. Thank you so much and all the best to you.

[00:36:30]We have some breaking news, folks. A new dismissive reaction from Trump about the economic pain Americans are feeling.

[00:36:37]We're going to roll the tape for you when The Weeknight returns. So, get that drink, come on back. We'll be right here.