we also expect her to name-check both senator chuck grassley and republican presidential front-runner, donald trump. she is going to be calling on grassley. he's the chairman of the senate judiciary committee, she will call on him to do his job, at least has she defines that job, arguing that the court job should be at the top of voters' minds and that voters should be concerned about the kind of nominee trump might put forward. it's an issue where she appears to have the electorate on her side. our new nbc news/survey monkey online national poll as well as other polls have consistently shown the majority would like to see senators take up the nomination, rather than punting to the next administration. you see the numbers on your screen right there. and to that end, merrick garland, the nominee, was on capitol hill today. he was meeting with two democratic senators, joe donnelly from indiana, and ben cardin from maryland. and in this clinton speech, the one we're waiting for any minute now -- in fact, it looks like it's about the to start now. so let's listen into hillary clinton on t

just as chuck grassley is. i think this is going to be a good head to head contest. >> tell me, governor, what your sense is beyond this issue or the other areas in which senator grassley is vulnerable? he obviously has been in that office for a pretty long time now and seems to be one, not just won a number of election gs, but won them commandingly. what are the other issues on which you think he would take the fight if you're the nominee? >> well, you know, we never know in an election how things will turn from now until next fall, but i definitely believe that he is vulnerable on issues like protecting social security, affordable health care, affordable college, raising the minimum wage. these are all issues that should be happening. he and the republican leadership are stone walling on them, and there are things we need to make happen. and soon, after this next election. >> just a political analysis for your state, it has become a battle ground at the presidential level has gone blue the last couple cycles,

. >>> ahead of the speech urging republican lawmakers to hold hearings on the nominee, chuck grassley told politico quote, with all of the troubles she's getting on e-mail and the fbi's going to question her, i would imagine she'd want to change the tone of her campaign. as expected, clinton returned fire in wisconsin saying this about the republican senator from iowa. >> senator chuck grassley, the head of the judiciary committee, could hold a hearing tomorrow if he wanted. but he says we should wait for a new president because and i quote, the american people shouldn't be denied a voice. well, as one of the more than 65 million americans who voted to re-elect barack obama, i'd say my voice is being ignored right now because of their obstructionism. >>> last night, president obama chose the dias of one of the most prestigious places of journalism. while speaking at the toner awards dinner, he called on the fourth estate to hold themselves to the higher standard and while taking some responsibility for the divisive culture in american politics, he called on american companies to inves

>> do we know when that meeting will happen with chuck grassley? >> we do not. we just know he spoke with him by phone and publicly said i will meet with him. but it is different than any other supreme court battle we have seen. >> ari, thanks so much. from new york. let's flip over to washington. president obama's court pick is meeting with democrats today. merrick garland just wrapped up a meeting in fact on capitol hill with senator patrick deahy, ranking member, as ari just said, ranking member of the senate judiciary committee. let's break in luke russert on that. what did we learn from pat leahy? >> if this was a normal process, he would come here and this would be the first step. you meet the member of the party of the president who is relevant on the judiciary committee. in this case, senator leahy of vermont. they had a very positive meeting. senator leahy said he with like to see a confirmation vote done by may 25th. mitch mcconnell will not allow that to happen. and take a listen to lachey's comments on the meeting. >> an unprecedented number of reces

grassley. whether or not jane kelly is ultimately president obama's nominee for the high court, her name being floated is designed to put chuck grassley on the spot about his decision he's not going to hold hearings or take meetings with any nominee no matter who that nominee is. thinking is it will become particularly hard for senator grassley to defend that stance about holding this vacancy open on the supreme court no matter who the nominee is. the thinking is that will become particularly hard for him to defend if the nominee is someone he praises as qualified to be a federal judge. i bring this up not only because it's news, and it's an interesting story about what might happen on the supreme court, i also bring it up to show, to prove to you that there are some aspects of what's going on in the news right now that are kind of normal. where even on very important matters political figures are taking interesting and explicable political action designed to elicit political responses from the

but it's in the hands of what the political standing of chuck grassley in the next six weeks. great panel. great discussions. that's all we have for this week. we'll be back next week after more primaries, because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." >>> out of control hoarding. >> you think, wow, why am i doing this? i need to stop. >> leaves a mother and daughter overwhelmed. >> it's very chaotic and stressful thncht is hoarding. >> a real estate investor finds a real steal. >> there was no way anyone could live in the house. >> and gets more than he bargained for. >> you couldn't walk around. huh to climb over it. >> a race against the clock. >> turned out to be 700 cats on the property. >> to save hundreds of lives. >> they were really, really sick and really malnourished. >> and when the experts step in -- >> a stinking rotten mess. >> -- even they can't believe their eyes. >> what i saw would make anybody want to vomit.

grassley have all said they'd be open to meeting with garland. now lawmakers are reportedly talking behind the scenes about confirming him in a lake duck session if hillary clinton wins the presidency. refusing to hear a holding on the nominee takes the gop's congressional dysfunction to new lows, it pales in comparison to the state of crisis in the republican primary. donald trump won four out of five of the state contests held last night. more than doubling his lead over ted cruz and forcing marco rubio, who lost his home state of florida, to drop out of the race. trump now needs to win 55% of the remaining delegates to secure the nomination, difficult but distinctly possible. cruz needs 80% and john kasich needs a mathematically impossible 106% even after winning ohio last night. those odds explain why kasich is openly banking on a contested convention and cruz praising marco rubio after months of trying to tear him down. >> it is unlikely that anybody is going to achieve enough delegates to avoid a convention. they're going to look at somebod

but senator chuck grassley is leading the gop crowd intent on delaying the nomination until after the election. >> everybody knows any nominee submitted in the middle of this presidential campaign isn't getting confirmed. everybody knows that. the white house knows it, senate democrats know it, republicans know it. >> everybody knows that, well except for a senator named chuck grassley in 2008, who was really excited about removing politics from the confirmation process. back then he said, quote, the reality is that the senate has never stopped confirming judicial nominees during the last few months of a president's term. and in a radio interview this week, one republican senator admitted things would be different if there was someone different in the white house right now. >> it's a different situation. and generally, and this is the way it works out politically, if you're replacing -- if a conservative president is replacing a conservative justice, there's a little more accommodation to it. >> it's a different situation. sounds to me like the same, old right-wing hypocrisy. we'll se

but it's in the hands of what the political standing of chuck grassley in the next six weeks. great panel. great discussions. that's all we have for this week. we'll be back next week after more primaries, because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." >>> hillary clinton will, she leads in deldelegates. >> i'm not a one issue candidate because hi

however, when i went back and looked at the video of chuck grassley, the senate judiciary chairman, he said of garland in 1997, i find no fault with the nominee the president has put forward. grassley voted against garland because he did not want the d.c. court of appeals to expand or stay at 11 members. he thought it was a waste of taxpayer money. that's what democrats will hone in on, saying grassley had no problem with him in the past. same from orrin hatch. now, in terms of procedure -- >> i'm going to cut you off. >> there you go. >> the president and judge garland are coming out to the microphones. accompanied by the vice president. >> good morning. everybody please have a seat. of the many powers and responsibilities that the constitution vests in the presidency, few are more consequential than appointing a supreme court justice. particularly one to succeed justice scalia, one of the most influential jurists of our time. the men and women who sit on the supreme court are the final arbiters of american law. they safeguard our rights. they insure that our system is one of laws and

. >> chuck grassley do? he is up. he has to think about a general election now. >> he does have to worry about a general election but you don't want to hurt all your base. so i think grassley will stay put. this is a base election for both sides. and i don't think garland will bring out those activists in any way, shape or form on either side. that's probably a good thing. some people care about process, not many voters. they care more about bigger issues. this is not going to be about the supreme court. this is about economics and what are you going to do for me personally and have you been a good senator. one of the thing is that hurt rubio is he spent so much time campaigning and not enough time being a senator which hurt him back in the missed state. >> i don't know about the missed votes hurt him, you're not doing the job we hired you to do, you're moving too fast in the age of obama. if there's no barak obama, i'm not sure that story line would hurt him. republicans believe barak obama moved up the chain way too

grassley have all said they'd be open to meeting with garland. now lawmakers are reportedly talking apd t ining behind the confirming him in a lake duck session if hillary clinton wins the presidency. refusing to hear a holding on the nominee takes the gop's congressional dysfunction to new lows, it pales in comparison to the state of crisis in the republican primary. donald trump won four out of five of the state contests held last night. more than doubling his lead over ted cruz and forcing marco rubio, who lost his home state of florida, to drop out of the race. trump now needs to win 55% of the remaining delegates to secure the nomination, difficult but distinctly possible. cruz needs 80% and john kasich needs a mathematically impossible 106% even after winning ohio last night. those odds explain why kasich is openly banking on a contested convention and cruz praising marco rubio after months of trying to tear him down. >> it is unlikely that anybody is going to achieve enough delegates to avoid a convention. they're going to look at somebody

grassley. whether or not jane kelly is ultimately president obama's nominee for the high court, flo to put chuck grassley on the spot about his decision he's not going to hold hearings or take meetings with any nominee no matter who that nominee is. thinking is it will become particularly hard for senator grassley to defend that stance about holding this vacancy open on the supreme court no matter who the nominee is. the thinking is that will become particularly hard for him to defend if the nominee is someone he praises as qualified to be a federal judge. i bring this up not only because it's news, and it's an interesting story about what might happen on the supreme court, i also bring it up to show, to prove to you that there are some aspects of what's going on in the news right now that are kind of normal. where even on very important matters political figures are taking interesting and explicable political action designed to elicit political responses from their political opponents and we c

but chuck grassley, if a poll comes back and he's under 50 in his election, i think that's the one way we could see it. >> you're saying we could see them? >> there's more chance but it's in the hands of the political -- what the political standing of chuck grassley in the next six weeks. we'll see if it's worked anyway. great panel, great discussions. we'll be back next week. after more primaries. because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." >>> it's monday, march 21st. right now on "first look," history. president obama is the first u.s. president to visit cuba in almost 90 years. donald frum plans to beef up security at his campaign rallies as he and other candidates prepare to address the american israel public affairs committee today. >>> the captured suspect in the paris terror attacks is squealing to authorities. we have new details ahead. >>> plus an 11-year-old's joy ride aboard a cement mixer? >>> gas pains at the pump as prices skyrocket. >>> and fantastic finishes as march madness heads to the sweet 16. "first look" starts right now. >>> good monday morning. hopefully you

. >> chuck, let's talk about -- more about chuck grassley, the chairman of the judiciary who remains the key to this. >> i agree. >> tonight on "with all due respect" we'll have patti judge, the former lieutenant governor of the state who will run as a democrat against grassley. what will it take for her, the "des moines register" and other voices in the state to pressure grassley to change his mind which i think, again, is the key to the whole thing. >> apoll that shows grassley under 50 against patti judge. we've seen -- chuck grassley is somebody that listens to his constituents. in 2009, chuck grassley and orrin hatch were working with the white house, were talking about health care, were -- he was part of that working group with max baucus of a bunch of republicans that were working in good faith on a health care bill. then grassley saw what was going to happen to him at home, experienced the town halls, saw that he'd probably get primaried and lose, saw where republican primary voters were. he was up in '10, he listened to his constituents and he backed away from health care. t

but it's in the hands of what the political standing of chuck grassley in the next six weeks. great panel. great discussions. that's all we have for this week. we'll be back next week after more primaries, because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." >>> hillary clinton, she leads in delegates. >> i am not a one issue candidate because this is not a one issue country. >> and tomorrow she's looking to win big in five key states. >> you don't make america great by getting rid of everything that made america great. >> but as bernie sanders proved last week, thinking can happen. >> tonight hillary clinton makes her case to the societiers of hill notice. >> i get things done. >> hoping to stepped her lead. >> this is

. >>> chuck grassley has become a bigger target for democrats in the fight to fill the supreme court vacancy. former iowa lieutenant governor patty judge told "the des moines register" knee is now considering running against grassley this fall. during an interview with the advocate, caitlyn jenner said she likes ted cruz as a conservative and constitutionalist, but not on transgender issues offering her services as ambassador. jenner said let's say he goes on to become president and i have all my girls on a transissues board to advise him on making decisions when it comes to transissues. isn't that a good idea? no word on the offer from the cruz campaign. >>> and dr. ben carson's campaign winds down, jimmy kimmel read a story to help ease it to rest. >> in ben carson's bedroom, there is a phone and a red balloon. and ben and jesus jumping over the moon. good night, lion, good night crab, good night friend he tried to stab. good night tree, good night stump. good night america because here comes trump. >> that is your morning dish of "scrambled politics." in washington i'm joined now

top among them, judiciary chair chuck grassley. nbc news has confirmed at least eight republican senators have said they're open to at least meeting with garland, though some say that may not be productive. senator grassley was quoted yesterday as saying if i can meet with a dictator in uganda, i can meet with a decent person in america. but still, several republicans are holding steadfast. utah's orrin hatch who has praised garland in past yesterday said he still supports his party's blockade. >> we have taken the position that the correct thing to do, the right thing to do, it's a principled position, is to put this on the next president, whoever that may be. it may be hillary clinton. so, you know, that's pretty reasonable approach. >>> there was plenty of finger pointing into the water crisis in flint, michigan. governor snyder said that the water was safe, this while the head of the epa, gina mccarthy accused the state of providing unreliable information. but ultimately conceded that the agency did not respond quickly enough.

grassley and minority leader, harry reid. and patrick leahy and joe biden. it's the first time they met since the death of justice scalia. the republicans reiterated their stance they won't take up a president obama nomination this year. afterwards the two senate leaders expressed their drastically different points of view. >> if the shoe were on the other foot, do any of you think the democrat majority in the senate would be confirming a republican president's nomination in the last year of his term? of course not. >> all we want them to do is fulfill the constitutional duty and do their job. and at this stage, they have decided not do that. they think that they're going to wait and see what president trump will do as far as a nomination. >> senator reid added after an impasse was reached early in the morning the leaders spent the rest of the time chatting about basketball. >>> well there are shocking new revelations from declassified documents seized where osama bin laden was killed. one letter showed that bin laden was par

. >> reporter: chuck grassley, head of the senate judiciary committee may meet with garland in april after the break. others are undecided. >> if i do meet with him, it may not be a good use of his time because i'm not going to change my position because it's based on the principle. >> reporter: the senate's top republican spoke with garland by phone, but says he won't meet face to face. in a new op-ed, mitch mcconnell calls waiting for the next nominee a fair and reasonable compromise. the house speak agrees. >> the president has every right to nominate whoever he wants to, but the senate has every right not to act on that nomination. >> reporter: this afternoon, senate democrats will rally outside the supreme court urging republicans to act. >> if merrick garland can't get bipartisan support, then nobody can. >> have the guts, the guts, to vote yes or no. >> reporter: but for now, republicans vow no hearing, no vote. and now we're hearing from the nra the national rifle association. they they strongly oppose this nomination after their review of judge garland's record on the second

grassley, all of whom have vowed not to take up any of president obama's nominees. but in a speech on the senate floor in 2013, senator grassley highly praised the long time public defender from his home state and she was confirmed unanimously to her current position as a federal appellate judge. the white house has not commented on any reports of potential nominees. >>> now to a new twist in the $75 million lawsuit brought by sportscaster erin andrews after a stalker secretly taped her naked in her hotel room. there are new allegations that an executive of the company that opened the hotel who just testified in the case was seen in public tuesday watching that stalker's video with friends while they commented on it. nbc's morgan radford bring us the details. >> reporter: run arriving at the courthouse for day six of testimony. but there would be a delay. and a bombshell. >> do you have any comment? >> reporter: neal peskind had testified on monday. >> so the owner was the franchisee? >> correct. >> reporter: he and two friends were at a restaurant where the video w

senator chuck grassley, who heads the judiciary committee in the senate, you know, he's been poking at her about these e-mails. >> right. >> remember, keeping -- >> that personal server. >> the personal server. and so some people see a little personal payback here. i think there may be an element of that. hillary is also looking at the polls that show that most americans think that -- that we at least ought to have a vote on this new nominee. >> but -- and talking about, and it's an issue that really pits, you know, the right against the left, when it comes to this nominee, do the voters really care, though? >> well, you know, the court is hugely important. maybe not the average middle voter, but those bases on both 150ids care very much about who's going to be on the court. because you know those judges are going to decide whether all this future stuff is legal. >> absolutely it's a very important seat indeed. ellis, thanks so much for your insight. >>> just ahead a super weekend for a movie panned by critics. plus your chance to own a major piece of star wars this. we have those deta

. >> there's renewed pressure senator chuck grassley. grassley takes flak for stance on top court. they may be in microcosm of larger problem. as the election gets closer, it's going to be harder to keep party unity particularly if the nominee is donald trump. molly, you've done some reporting on this. it strikes me that one of defining features of the republican congress, house and senate is the unity. there's been some infighting about the shut down but they have been pretty good at keeping them together, not letting people defect. do you think they can hold that together as we come barrelling toward november? >> i would not say unity has been a defining feature of this republican congress at all. mitch mcconnell has been good at holding his caucus together in the senate. we're seeing that unravel. at the same time in way they feel the strategy is almost vindicated by what's happened. just agreeing to meet with him looks like a concession. much less going the extra step of holding hearings that they would see as total defeat. putting the goal posts where they have, they have allo

republican senator chuck grassley argued why the next president should select the replacement. he reaffirmed why he's going to make the unprecedented move of denying the president's nominee even a hearing. one republican in that room deviated from the party talking points delivering the sobering reality of this obstruction tactic. >> we are setting a precedent here today, republicans are, that in the last year at least of an eight year lame duck presidency we won't support it. support what you're doing, mr. chairman. i want the members of this side to know, if we lose view of wha president to come will be able to do is the same. if it is hillary clinton or bernie sanders and they send over a qualified nominee, i am going to vote for them in this committee and on the floor because i think that's what the constitution envisioned. >> up next, what to expect as the four republicans hoping to replace president obama face off in their 12th debate. >> the contested convention a few weeks ago but last night on the eve of the final republican debate before another super tuesday primary

grassley of iowa, the senate judiciary committee, has agreed with that, no hearing, no vote. essentially the idea that came out right after scalia passed away in february. it will be interesting to see if more meetings like this of moderate republicans or republicans that are open to the constitutional process playing forward, such as having a hearing, will put any dents in the dam that mcconnell has erected. all that being said, i think mcconnell is a master chess player when it comes to politics. he's comfortable with some of his more moderate members, running against him on this issue. and he believes that any conservative backlash he would get for allowing garland to be seated on the court, perhaps seating it 5-4 in favor of democrats is way worse than any negative op-ed he could get from a mainstream newspaper or democrats bashing him for saying he's not abiding, or what has been tradition here on capitol hill. it's a gamble for mcconnell, but one he's comfortable with. >> and interesting, the context for this. mark kirk in a tense battle with tammy duckworth in illinois

chuck grassley the chairman has been in iowa over this recess week and has reiterated that moving forward with the hearing would simply just be political theater, that they don't need to be a part of. now, whether or not there's any break in the dam will be interesting to see. if kirk comes out and says you know what, i think this guy is very qualified that starts to get some momentum, maybe, just maybe you see a bit of a brea, but mcconnell is pretty steadfast. >> we'll be waiting to see what he has to say. luke russert, thanks for that. >>> ahead, wisconsin governor and former presidential candidate scott walker, about 15 minutes from now he is expected to announce who he will be endorsing in the republican race for president. this is a critical endorsement. wisconsin and the next state up, wisconsin's home walker has suggested that trump might not be the best candidate, but could backi ining one of trump's riva carrying him to victory. >>> im tights for the your business entrepreneur of the week, he hated leaving his beloved pooch at the kennel when he went out of town. he knew there h

one of the people leading that is chuck grassley. grassley took a political swipe in a political article published a few moments ago saying, quote, with all the troubles she's getting on e-mail and the fbi will want to question her, i would think she would want to change the tone of her campaign. the "new york times" are stating that they are in the process of setting up interviews with long-time clinton aides, and the "washington post," that clinton aides warned security warnings. joel, it's good to have you with me. the "washington post," that's pretty alarming as people get down to the nitty-gritty and read that. 64% believe they have a trust issue when it comes to hillary clinton. does the fbi investigation suggest that hillary clinton was acting with political entitlement or just with bad judgment? >> secretary clinton has addressed this. the "washington post" had absolutely no new ground in there. the "new york times" story, secretary clinton has encouraged everybody who was involved in her e-mails and servers to answer questio

mitch mcconnell spoke to him by phone and the judiciary chairman, chuck grassley but personal meetings not expected. there are a few republicans who are considered vulnerable in their own reelections. democrats could easily be elected and they have opened the door to the pobt ssibility of meetings and a moderate republican, not up for reelection and said she would be happy to have that meeting. what we will see today is that senator harry reid and the top democrat, patrick leahy, will have the conversation and the personal time with merritt garland. what matters here is that that is normally sort of a checking of the box that's done for a supreme court nominee going through first, the whole committee of the judiciary, which would make the first several steps in processing a nomination, and then it would go more broadly to, in some cases, all 100 senators. but for merritt garland, someone widely praised from both parties and held in great esteem for s accomplishments, there are road blocks and it does not appear that there are going to be any breaks in that just yet. i should mention, k

one key person to watch is chuck grassley of iowa. he visits all 99 counties in iowa. he has a real grassroots approach to his home state, and if he hears a lot of pushback, perhaps he would have some sway with mitch mcconnell. some of the republicans who have been quoted saying they would be willing to consider a garland nomination, should hillary clinton be the victor in november, they're responding to questions and those who have said that they might be open to that. jeff flight of arizona is often a more moderate, willing to reach across the aisle kind of republican. that is different than what would be sanctioned from the republican leadership. and that's the key here. individual senators will maybe open the door. leadership is what we have to watch. >> orrin hatch said he would consider a lame duck hearing. luke russert, this is a classic battle. this confirmation battle in an election year, no less, and in fact, a lame duck session might be something they would consider on lame duck hearings not just hillary clinton but what if donald trump were the victor? some

court of appeals, and battling him then, as now, was senator chuck grassley. but this is a more volatile time. bigger time, and this is a major issue in the presidential race. i want to bring in nbc's justice correspondent, pete williams. pete, you know merrick garland, you've known him for years, and i was watching him in the rose garden and thinking, wow, it takes a certain personality, a certain temperament to put yourself in this situation, and why someone might say, even to the president of the united states, i have no interest in being a sacrificial lamb. tell us about his personality and how you see him playing this. >> i think it does take an exception personality and i think he's dedicated to public service. there has to be a nominee and he's willing to step up and play that role. and at the same time, i think the white house is hoping that even though the republicans say now they won't give a home, if a democrat is elected in november, though many in the white house are thinking, the senate might stop and think, maybe it would be better to confirm me

. >> no republicans are on the schedule yet for merrick garland but chairman chuck grassley agreed he will meet with garland. if i can meet with a dictator in uganda, i can meet with a decent person in america. few other republicans are open to meeting garland. most republicans who have agreed are in vulnerable seats in 2016. jeff flake the only republican member of the committee other than grassley who has agreed to a meeting. >> if republicans are not successful in the november election, i hope we are, but if we're not, then we ought to look at this nomination in november. i would rather have a less liberal nominee like merrick garland than a nominee that hillary clinton if she were president would put forward. >> senator susan collins of maine is not up for re-election in november but does believe garland deserves a hearing. she voted for him in 1997 for the dc circuit. nice to see you. >> thank you so much. >> let me start with how you would be advising senator mcconnell to handle this mom nation. would you be treating this the same way we've treated all sorts of other supreme cou

in this case, chuck grassley. these meetings rpt happening. the reason why is that the republicans said look, we are going back to what we said after justice scalia died. we want to have the american people make this decision. it is not the person. we might like judge garland now. we may have liked him in the past. it's our principle. take a listen to what judge mcconnell said about this. >> we think the people have a voice in this instance and the president does not. so we act as a check and balance. >> senator reid of nevada has been very forceful saying this is a huge breach of protocol. you may not like that president obama is a president and gets to make the selection but he has over 200 days left in his presidency. not to mention that every single nominee in recent history has at least had a meeting with the judiciary committee and hearing before the judiciary committee. a lot of conservatives bring up how he is not grate killed off a nomination years ago. the different between what bjork and mcconnell are doing, they say, at least have

clinton is challenging senate judiciary committee chuck grassley to hold a hearing on president obama's nominee to the supreme court. also today, merrick gar land met with joe donnelly and ben cardon on capitol hill. joining us now from new york to discuss this and more is democratic strategist harold ford, a former congressman from tennessee, and former chief of staff, the vice president al gore, democratic strategist michael feldman. welcome, gentlemen. mike, let me start with you. isn't this inside baseball, where you think the voters will think whether there's a hearing or not on a high court nominee? >> oh, i think they'll care. they'll care about who's going to fill out the supreme court. this is good primary politics for secretary clinton, in that it energizes the base and gets people focused on what's in the electi election. there's going to be a choice, whoever gets elected is going to ultimately be responsible for the makeup of the court. not just this nominee, but potentially two or three others during the course of his or her presidency. this is good politics all the way aro

so you have this crazy thing this week where chuck grassley and mitch mcconnell, they took a phone call with the nominee, but couldn't meet him in person because of the stance they have taken. that said, i'm even a little cynical about the mark kirk. mark kirk is running for the senate in illinois where the democrats are going to win the presidential nomination. i'm sure he told mitch mcconn l mcconnell, i'll going on out there in public criticizing. and michigtch mcconnell was lik what you have to do. so now we have 8 people of the 54 saying i will consider meeting with the person we're nowhere near a hearing yet. still looking pretty strong to me. >> let me play what mark kirk said more. he was on the radio on "the big john howell show" in chicago, and here is what mark kirk had to say. it was more than just i'm going to maybe talk to him. take a listen. >> just man up and cast a vote. the tough thing about the senatorial jobs, you get yes or no votes. your whole job is to either say yes or no. and explain why. >> mark kirk is considered the most vulnerable senator up for re-election.

grassley in the next six weeks. great discussions. that's all we have for this week. we'll be back next week after more primaries because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." >>> cameras are rolling all day every day. you'd be surprised what they catch. unlikely thieves. >> let it go, let it go, let it go! >> heroic bystanders and downright brazen criminals. >> i just don't understand what kind of person it takes to be able to steal from the boy scouts. >> a man chases a woman into a building, smashing his pickup through the doors. >> it was like, oh, my god. >> this guy drops in unannounced. >> i never expect all this mess. it was destroyed. >> and a strip mall casino

and the one person that was not on your list is actually the chairman of the judiciary committee, chuck grassley, has indicated that he intends to meet with chief judge garland after the two-week easter recess that the senate is prepared to take. so we're just going to steadily chip away and continue to make a strong principled case that senator hatch has made more effectively than anybody else. and that is that chief judge garland a consensus nominee. to make that case to democrats and republicans. >> and if hillary clinton says she will reappoint merrick garland to the opening, if she's elected president, is that something that helps your cause in order to get confirmation hearings now? >> chuck, if there is still a vacancy when the next president takes off, it would be an unprecedented delay. an unprecedented display of destruction on the part of republicans to delay it this long. it's been more than 40 years since we've had a vacancy -- >> but if she says she will support him now, does that help your case now? >> look, we would welcome support from anybody, frankly, for chief judge

as has chuck grassley, the chairman. we'll see if they hang on to that. that is unheard of, at least in recent memory. >> another big piece of news, not supreme court related, but you know capitol hill, you know john boehner well. look at this headline in the last few minutes. john boehner, the former house speaker saying this morning he packs paul ryan for president. if it gets to convention, he would like the convention to turn to paul ryan and not one of the current candidates. >> john boehner says a lot of things. sometimes at these private events, he goes off the cuff, especially if they're spirited events or if he has good friends around him. his spokesman, i reached out to him. he said, look, he's already backing john kasich. he was simply talking about a hypothetical. remember, john boehner is the guy who pushed paul ryan into the speakership, when all out catholic guilt on him. basically made him take the job. this scenario is a little different. i personally from covering paul ryan do not think that he would be receptive of this. he does not nec

so mitch mcconnell and chuck grassley, the judiciary chairman, they have a situation on their hands. they have to figure out now. i think they were preparing for president obama perhaps to make a nominee that would fire up one of the bases within the democratic party, either the asian american base, the african-american base, the latino base. by doing this, he's saying, look, here's someone who you liked in 2010. got 76 votes back in the '90s. prosecuted terrorists, what's the problem here? you won't even give him a hearing. that's where they sit. >> yeah, and i mean, luke, let's talk about that. because there's a hearing, there's a confirmation and a whole senate vote. but before that, it's pretty amazing, and we talk about it in the world of politics. but the fact that some of them have said, some elected officials in the senate said they wouldn't even meet with the nominee. not even meet with him. and luke, you know this from our conversations in spanish. being courteous doesn't make you any less valiant. it just makes you not courteous. we have gotten to the point where people ar

grassley, to move forward with a hearing. we'll see. they're pretty adamant they're not going to do that. every single one of these photo ops is a push, a push, and the more and more republicans who meet judge garland and say he's qualified, had a good conversation with him. at least give him a hearing, maybe that changes things. right now, mcconnell is pretty steadfast, no hearing, no vote. we'll see. >> luke russert, good to see you. thank you. >>> coming up, why marco rubio wants to hold on to his delegates until the convention. i'll have that for you next. why are you all here? to learn, right? so you can get a good job and you're not working for peanuts. well what if i told you that peanuts can work for you? while you guys are busy napping, peanuts are delivering 7 grams of protein and 6 essential nutrients right to your mouth. you ever see a peanut take a day off? no. peanuts don't even get casual khaki fridays. because peanuts take their job seriously. so unless you want a life of skimmingifi off the neighbors, you'll

but either chuck grassley, chairman of judiciary, who are getting a lot of heat back home, not just from their editorial pages, from a lot of republican leaders have said this, and they will crack. and i think the likelihood is we will have hearings and a vote. i can't predict how this will come out. but you know these hearings are sort of magical. if the nominee comes off very well, they get appointed and confirmed and we've had that. two democrats and two republicans, the last four justices on the court, two by democrat, two by republican, both approved by bipartisan majorities. the hard right's approved that once there are hearings, a guy like garland will get on, but i believe there are going to be hearings. and there's one other point, chris. that is this. now that trump looks like the front-runner, a lot of people are going to say, i don't want donald trump choosing my nominee. let's go with this guy. i think republicans might say that. >> what would you the -- you're the smartest guy on the hill, as far as i'm concerned. >> thank you. >> what were you do you were stuck in a positi

but chuck grassley is getting a lot of heat back in iowa, but mcconnell, from everyone i have spoken to close to him, he is going to hold firm on this because he thinks that conservative outrage against him and against republicans if he were to move, just an inch, would not be worth it in any capacity. >> luke, quickly, do we have any sense, garland has to know all of this is maneuvering is going on around him. does he really think this is going to end with him getting a vote, getting a hearing, getting on the court? >> maybe he's an optimistic guy. maybe he's not as jaded as you and i are that we think this is not going to happen. i think he walked in right behind me, but garland is kind of the perfect selection for this. he's 63. he's viewed as a moderate. if in fact he does go down, he can be this phoenix who has risen from the ashes to be known as the good guide. he went out there for the president. went out and showcased his middle of the road sensible credentials. and he does go back to the d.c. court of appeals. not a bad place to be. seemingly, he probably understands the sta

grassley. nbc news has confirmed at least eight republican senators have said they're open to at least meeting with garland though some say that may not be that productive. senator grassley was quoted as saying if i can meet with a dictator in uganda i can surely meet with a decent person in america. well, thank you. joining us now -- is that weird? >> no i think hi he made a logical comment. he made it clear how absurd it is for some republicans say they won't meet with him. >> delayed reaction. >>> joining us now, congressman steve israel of new york, chairman of the house policy and communications committee. welcome back. how are you? >> i'm doing well, thank you. >> what do you make of the garland bat until you think there will be one? >> this is a matter of common sense. this is where republicans are so out of touch with the american people. the american people are paying senators to do a job. they expect their senators to have a confirmation hearing, they expect their senators to debate a