AUGUST 21, 2019

Photo: Loren Elliott / Reuters

"Less than three weeks after a mass shooting aimed directly at Latinos and arguably fueled by Trump's own words, we're back to the politics of cruelty and fear.

This morning the Trump administration announced a new rule that would allow the U.S. to hold migrant families in detention indefinitely if they cross the border illegally.

That would be the latest turn of the screw at the U.S.-Mexico border where Trump's policies have also separated families, put babies in cages, and adults in woefully inadequate detention facilities, all justified by rhetoric from the president comparing hispanic migration to an infestation.

11th Hour

"On day 944 of the Trump administration, President Trump found a novel way to describe himself.

“I am the chosen one,” Trump told reporters on the White House lawn while looking towards the sky. “Somebody had to do it, so I'm taking on China.”

Today's comments from the chosen one amounted to a swirl of distractions:

Look over here, as he calls a female foreign leader nasty.

Over here, as he uses a historically anti-Semetic trope.

Over here, as he attacks Obama.

Over here, as he jokes before veterans today that he wanted to award himself the Medal of Honor.

It clouds up the water to obscure a walk-back on guns, and the coming signs of economic trouble including a soaring deficit that is now completely out of control.

His remarks were a compilation of grievances, contradictions, policy reversals and falsehoods.

All In

"Wednesday morning, in what was a truly bizarre moment, President Trump posted to Twitter a transcribed quote from an infamous right-wing crackpot conspiracy theorist who claimed that Jews in Israel view Trump "like he's the King of Israel. They love him like he is the second coming of God."

There was no first coming for Jews. That's the point. That's kinda the whole thing.

By the way, the crackpot who said that has suggested that President Barack Obama was hell bent on killing all Americans, that the mass shooting in Las Vegas was coordinated by Muslims, and that Democrats were behind the murders of Seth Rich and Heather Heyer, among many, many other lies.

That's who the president of the United States was quoting.

In Case You Missed It:
Videos from MSNBC Today

President Trump: 'I am the chosen one'

“I am the chosen one,” President Trump told reporters in defense of his trade war with China. “Somebody had to do it, so I'm taking on China.” (Andrea Mitchell Reports)

Governor Jay Inslee announces exit from Democratic primary race

Washington Governor Jay Inslee tells Rachel Maddow that he is leaving the race of the 2020 Democratic nomination for president, having been unable to secure a spot in the third Democratic debate, but satisfied with having helped amplify climate change concerns among the issues driving the 2020 campaign. (Rachel Maddow)

Donald Trump makes up a lot of awards

Donald Trump is a LOT of things, but "Michigan Man of the Year" is not one of them. It's not even an award that exists in real life - just in Trump's brain. (All In)

OPINION. Trump says only 'disloyal' Jews vote for Democrats. Here's what he really means. Why should American Jews defer to Israel? The vast majority of us aren't citizens of Israel. And most of us don't like Netanyahu; his government's approval among American Jews stands at a dismal 41 percent. The answer from Trump's perspective is obvious. America was founded by and for white Christians like himself. Jews are ethnic and religious others who don't inherently belong. By Noah Berlatsky.

OPINION. Ignoring racism in America allows racist ideas to flourish. Here's how to be antiracist. Some commentators have argued that in the run up to the 2020 election, Democrats should avoid talking about racism altogether. Democrats, they say, must emphasize kitchen table issues like health care, or face racist backlash that could help re-elect Trump and strengthen racial divides. By Noah Berlatsky.

What to watch

On Friday, Chris Hayes will anchor a special edition of All In with a live studio audience at Rockefeller Center in New York City.

During a special hour on Sunday, watch Christian Picciolini, a former white supremacist who helps others escape the movement he once helped build, help the former leader of the largest neo-Nazi organization in the U.S. leave behind an identity and a livelihood based on hate. Watch "Breaking Hate," Sunday at 9 p.m. ET.

This newsletter was prepped for you by Stephanie Haberman and Cameron Taylor Oakes.

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