Meet The Press – June 21, 2015

Guests:

Ron Allen

Alana Simmons

Daniel Simmons, Jr.

Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC)

Mike Huckabee

Eugene Robinson - Washington Post

Helene Cooper - New York Times

David Brooks - New York Times

Jerry Seib - Wall Street Journal

Todd: Racism! Gun violence!

Huckabee! Dynasty candidates!!

Todd: omg Charleston is the worst

racist attack since the Civil Rights era

Todd: this is like the bombing

that killed four young girls

Todd: but the healing has already

begun which is awesome

Todd: good morning Ron Allen –

it's looks like a happy sunny

morning in Charleston

Allen: not at all Chuck – it's a sad day

and we're remembering the lives lost

to murder and terror also those

brave slave insurrections

Todd: dwelling on the past

Allen: also we're recalling when

a white cop in Charleston murdered

a black man in 2015

Todd: Charleston is an amazingly

wonderful place

Todd: Rev. Daniel Simmons Sr. 

is one of the victims who served people 

at Emmanuel AME and who also served

in the Vietnam war

Todd: my condolences for you loss

Alana Simmons: thank you

Todd: you said hate won't win

which is just wonderful

Alana Simmons: Although this man 

killed my grandfather we immediately 

forgave the murderer because love 

is more powerful than hate

Todd: tell me about your dad

Daniel Simmons: he was an

inspirational leader and loved 

his family and community and god

Todd: would he tell us all to

forgive and move on if he hadn't

been murdered in a domestic terror attack?

Daniel Simmons: I want to thank the community

Simmons: he loved Charleston

Todd: A lot of people want to

use this incident for political purposes

– isn't it better to forgive and move

on and reconcile

Simmons: we just want to focus on

our families and healing and not on

politics after our family member was

just murdered in cold blood

Todd: what about faith and forgiveness?

Simmons Jr: it's love

Simmons: we love each other

Todd: you an example to us all that

we should never politicize terror

attacks and forgive terrorists

Simmons: we just want to celebrate

the lives lost and heal together and

have people come together regardless

of race or gender or religion or orientation

Todd: well if that kind of bipartisan

togetherness happens then maybe 

it was worth it

[ break ]

Todd: welcome Representative Clyburn

Clyburn: thank you Chuck

Todd: many of the victims

were friends of yours

Clyburn: yes Senaor Pinckney

was the salt of the earth – we

had a close personal relationship

Todd: wow

Clyburn: I knew many of the

victims in a very personal way

Todd: you lived through the

civil rights era – did you ever think

something like this could happen?

Clyburn: oh absolutely – I've been warning

about white racist terrorists for a long time

Todd: I see

Clyburn: by the way that's not

a confederate flag – it's a terrorist flag

Todd: strong words

Clyburn: we created a climate

that allowed this murder to happen!

Todd: do you regret putting this flag up?

Clyburn: that's bullshit Todd

– the racists crackers defied the

compromise and flew this flag!

Todd: oh okay

Clyburn: the legislature doesn't

have to wait – they can take this

flag down anytime they want!

Todd: thanks for coming Congressman

Clyburn: yeah you too

[ break ]

Todd: Gene you're from South Carolina

Robinson: my great great grandfather

had a blacksmith shop around the

corner from the Emmanuel AME chuch

Todd: ooh a small businessman

– I bet he hated big government

Robinson: do you know when that

racist battle flag was first flown over

the South Carolina state house?

Todd: Ooh I know this one! 1961!

Robinson: look at the big brain on Todd!

Todd: not 1861 - 1961

Robinson: it was a motherfucking  

middle finger directed at the 

fucking federal government!

Todd: I don't think you can say 

'middle finger' on tv

Robinson: it was a symbol of racist 

resistance to desegregation – period

Todd: you go Gene

Robinson: they didn't care about

their stupid ancestors until their

precious white children had to

compete with black people in school

Todd: the confederate flag is

boring – the stars and bars was

Robert E. Lee's battle flag

Robinson: damn crackers

Todd: David Brooks you're an

expert on morality or something

Brooks: I don't want to talk about

the murders – I want to talk about 

how wonderful black people are 

for forgiving white terrorists

Todd: no doubt

Brooks: they are true examples to us all

Todd: so true – unlike Donald

Trump who is a jackass

Brooks: by which I mean black

people should forgive their white

murderers - not that white people 

should forgive ISIS for killing brown people

Todd: I hear you Brooksie

Brooks: also this black forgiveness

reminds me that both sides in Washington

bicker too much and we should get along

like we all do at a Georgetown cocktail party

Todd: you are so wise

Brooks: these magic negroes will

truly bring redemption to us all

Todd: why do white people love

the loser rebel battle flag so much?

Seib: do we want to talk about

the flag or talk about how wonderful

the black people in Charleston are

for forgiving white people?

Todd: do white people need

to look at white culture?

Cooper: probably – but for for

me that flag is a symbol of hatred

Brooks: you'll pry that ham and mayonnaise

sandwich from my cold dead hands

Todd: David you're Jewish

Brooks: noooooo!!!

Obama: every country has crazy people

– but only we are awash in guns!

Todd: Our producer made a video with

killers in Sing Sing so let's watch 

and please be like Stephen Colbert 

and don't see color because

all the criminals are black

Inmate: guns made me feel strong

like I was invincible

Inmate: when I was 17 my friend say

you should should carry a gun and

it became my security blanket

Inmate: we had an argument at

a movie theater so I pulled out

my gun and I shot a little boy

Inmate: it happens so fast – I killed a child!

[ break ]

Todd: what is it with these

young men shooting and killing people?

Brooks: young men feel weak

and guns make you feel strong

Todd: it made him secure –

it was like a binkie but with

a hair trigger than can kill

Brooks: with a gun they can

feel powerful which men need –

also they're black and have no 

jobs or educations

Todd: but laws can't affect the culture

Robinson: no but if we took guns

out of their hands they wouldn't

have any guns now would they?

Todd: I suppose that's true

Robinson: I would also point out that all

the people in your video were black and

you and David Brooks make gun violence

sound like a black problem but the escaped 

murderers in upstate New York and the 

mass killer in Charleston are all white

Todd: good point but I'm not racist

– I was talking about gun culture

Robinson: sure ok

Cooper: if white people won't do

anything about guns when little

white elementary school children

are murdered they certainly won't

when some black folk are killed in Charleston

Seib: no but we might have some

rewarding cocktail party conversations

before doing nothing

Todd: GOP Presidential candidates

went all-in with evangelical  

Christians this week

Todd: but then the Pope said capitalism

is turning the earth into filth

Bush: religion should stay out of politics!

[ break ]

Todd: welcome Mike Huckabee

Huckabee: nice to see you Chuck

Todd: in 2008 you were asked

about the confederate flag and

so of course made anal rape jokes

Huckabee: Did you know that South

Carolina has a black U.S. Senator

and an Indian-American Governor?

Todd: I did actually

Huckabee: also they have good

black people who don't riot

Todd: but should the state

government endorse racism?

Huckabee: we need to keep America

safe from terrorists! The brown ones!

Todd: would you display a racist 

terrorist flag?

Huckabee: it depends on the level

of government – the federal government 

should be anti-gay and states can hate blacks 

and cities and towns should despise the Irish

Todd: if you were President how

would you heal racism?

Huckabee: I would defend Christianity

from the war on Christianity and forgive

racists like those wonderful black families did

Todd: that sounds like a plan

Huckabee: Christianity is not some

cartoonish bunch of carnival barkers

exploiting prejudice while demanding suckers

give them money to buy private jets

Todd: oh no?

Huckabee: no we're also black

people fighting for civil rights

Todd: that sounds like you

Huckabee: When I was a young pastor

we took in one token black person

and we got death threats

Todd: sounds like a wonderful 

bunch of people

Huckabee: you're missing the point! 

I'm an anti-racist hero!

Todd: if you say so

Huckabee: that pastor is so

wonderful for forgiving terrorists

Todd: you said God tells us be

good stewards of the earth

Huckabee: the earth belongs to the Lord

– but the oil belongs to Exxon

Todd: I think I get it

Huckabee: I would say to the Pope 

the best thing we can do for the poor 

and destitute is to lower the price of 

gasoline by drilling in our national 

parks to honor Jesus

Todd: okay but under Obama the

price of gas has gone down a lot

Huckabee: cheap air conditioning for

sweltering southern grandmas

is the great moral issue of our time!

Todd: okay – but is man-made 

climate change is real?

Huckabee: I was taught global cooling

was real which proves scientists are dumb

Todd: all right

Huckabee: also the Pope said abortion

is wrong which proves leftists are bad

Todd: so would act on climate change or not?

Huckabee: we need to drill more and

more to take on our enemies like Russia

and and Iran Saudi Arabia as God intended

Todd: what if we let candidates choose

how much time they want to spend on

any give topic during out so-called debates?

Todd: as viewers know I am obsessed

with calling Bush and Clinton equal

dynasties since Both Sides Do It

and the People Hate Dynasties

Todd: but holy cow we took a

poll and I was all wrong about everything

Todd: it turns out people are most

concerned about excess influence by

rich people and corporations – 

that was big surprise!

Todd: in fact 96% didn't care about

family names at all-America

– the convention wisdom was wrong!!

Todd: also 75% of Republicans say

they can tolerate Jeb which is great 

news for him

Todd: but 66% say they can't 

stand Donald Trump

Todd: the leaders now are Bush and Rubio

and Huckabee and Walker

[ break ]

Todd: well my producers tell me

we're getting called out on twitter

for making it seem like black people

only use guns – and that today might

be the wrong time for that

Todd: I understand some people

only see things through black

and white – but I don't see color

Robinson: of course not

Todd: people tell me I'm white and

I believe them because I have a

network talk show even though there's

an orange hamster on my face

Robinson: we should talk about race

more so maybe you could avoid dumbass

videos like the one you just showed

Todd: since 9/11 50 Americans were

killed by terrorists and 400,000 were

killed by gun violence

Brooks: also many white people are

poor and have values that fail to live

up to my expectations

Todd: Obama went to guns first

and avoided calling out racism

Seib: he can't talk about race

because he's black and therefore divisive

Todd: I asked White House staffers why

Obama only talked about guns and they

said because proposing banning guns

is less divisive than Obama's skin color

which is kind of amazing

Cooper: when Obama said something

sensible like arresting a black Harvard

Professor on his own doorstep was

stupid he got this huge backlash

Todd: white people don't get pulled

over due to the color of their skin

Robinson: we also could talk 

about mass incarceration and 

disparate drug sentences

Todd: we could if only

we had some venue to do so

Robinson: also by the way President

Obama actually talked about

race after the Charleston terror attack

Todd: that's true

Robinson: and Hillary

Clinton was very tough

Todd: yes she was –

also happy Father's day

Todd: and that's another

episode of Meet The Press