If it is Friday, catch me if you can.

The Republican primary field grapples with how to handle a twice indicted frontrunner

as the Republican National Committee pushes for every candidate to pledge to support the

party's eventual nominee, even if it's a convicted felon.

Plus, the Justice Department's multi-year probe of the Minneapolis Police Department in the

aftermath of George Floyd's death finds a pattern of unlawful abuse, racial discrimination,

and systemic misconduct, all detailed in a scathing new report.

And communities across the South dealing with deadly and destructive tornadoes that killed four, injured dozens more with more severe weather in the forecast.

Welcome to Meet the Press Now, I'm Peter Alexander in today for Chuck Todd.

And it has now been eight years to the day since Donald Trump first announced his intent to seek the Republican presidential nomination.

You remember that escalator right now. Like much of the last eight years, Trump is dominating the political conversation, leaving leaders in both parties hand-wringing about what to do. Let's start at the White

House, where my NBC colleagues are told the President Biden has delivered the message to AIDS and to his

broader re-election team that they should say nothing about Mr. Trump's legal troubles to avoid

any impression of tainting his upcoming trial and the ongoing work of the Justice Department.

But Democrats, they want to seize this moment in part to prevent Mr. Trump from using his megaphone

to sort of shape the narrative around a criminal case that could decide the 2024 election. One Democratic

aide even calling this malpractice for the party to stay silent. Dan Pfeiffer recognized that

name. He's one of former President Obama's top advisors. He said that, quote, silence could end up

being a mistake. Democrats, he added need to go on offense to push back on Trump's messaging

before he discredits the investigations and distracts the public. As Democrats try to navigate

our new post-indictment politics, the field of Republican presidential rivals that grew to 12

this week is also searching for a strategy.

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