you, you're dying of diabetes, telling the doctor i'm going to transition off of donuts over time. it has to end. the fossil fuel will have to end in a certain point for the problem to stabilize right now. and current rates, the world is decarbonizing at the rate of 10% by 2030. it needs to be over 40%. and this really gives them a chance to stay with business as usual and most vulnerable to climate change weren't in the room as the gavel came down. they said this won't get it done. wolf? >> and bill weir reporting for us. thank you very much. i'm wolf blitzer in the situation room. erin burnett and our friends start right now. upfront next, the breaking news, house republicans just

voting to begin the process of impeaching biden as a defiant hunter biden rips the gop. and also breaking, trump's 2020 election interference case is now on hold. does that mean trump gets through the old election without going to trial? together it lasts, his story we've all been following since the october 7 attacks as you know him and he speaks out, finally together with his wife and those little girls. sharing new details on what they endured. let's go out in front. good evening, i'm erin burnett. out front tonight. the breaking news, voting moments ago to launch the impeachment inquiry. every single republican voting to authorize this inquiry despite having no direct evidence that biden broke the law. just moments ago, he is responding in a statement saying, "instead of doing anything to help make american lives better, they're focused on attacking me with lies.

now they claim this inquiry will give them more power who traveled to washington, defying the subpoena for the closed door deposition because he's ready to speak, only testify publicly. in a rare statement, he slammed the republican investigation. >> i'm here today to answer at a public hearing. i've been the target of the unrelenting trump attack machine shouting where is hunter? i'm here. there is no fairness or decency and what they're doing. they have lied over and over about every aspect of my personal and professional life. so much so that their lives have become the false facts believed by too many people. no matter how many times it is debunked. >> and now hunter biden says his

father didn't do anything wrong and that joe biden never benefited financially with his business dealings. here is the truth. legal scholars and even republicans have agreed to this that there is no evidence put forth of the wrong doing by the president. >> they haven't taken me to that point to say the president's ability of anything. >> i don't know if you will see the high crime. >> we don't have the evidence now, but we might find it later. >> and so they say they have no evidence. yet 221 people every single republican, 221 people without evidence voted to launch the impeachment inquiry, designed to distract from the case involving trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. in fact tonight, we have exclusive new video of an oval office meeting with then president trump. he is telling michigan prosecutors that at the

meeting, he told trump how he could still win using the so-called electors. listen to this part. >> i ended up explaining that arizona was still possible because they voted. and i explained to the whole logic because they voted that we would have more time. >> and of course trump embraced chesebro's theory claiming he won the election even though now we know person after person of experts sat in the oval office and said he lost and he accepted that. he's an unindicted co-conspirator as well. we'll get much more. but first i want to get to capitol hill on the impeachment vote that just passed, as i emphasize that they supported it. you've been talking to some of them. what are they telling you? >> and they say the

investigation should continue. but i pressed a number of them on whether they believe he should be impeached. he would be the fourth president in american history to be charged with high crimes or misdemeanors. that's a high bar to me and they are saying that they have not yet met that bar and they say the impeachment needs to gather the evidence that they are searching for, tieing joe biden, accusing him of taking direct action to benefit his son's business while the president, the president was in office. they don't have that yet. and a lot of these members are hoping they can find that evidence, so they could support impeachment ultimately. in some of those members, they come from the swing districts. indicating to me that yes, they will vote now to move forward on this inquiry. whether they vote to impeachment is another question. >> ready to go as far as impeaching the president? >> no, i'll allow the committees to continue their work and

develop their articles. show their evidence. and then we'll make a separate choice there. >> how close are you to being ready to support actual impeachment of the president? >> we are not there. we voted tonight to allow for the investigation to continue. this was a vote to authorize the investigation formally because the white house has taken the position that it was an informal inquiry and hay didn't need to comply. >> and this is going to put speaker johnson in a bind in the weeks ahead. a number of members on his right are pushing for impeachment of the president of the united states. some of those swing districts are still waiting for this investigation to gather more information to prove joe biden acted corruptly. you can see that they have only

afford to lose three votes whether they could get there remains a huge question. >> all right, thank you so much on capitol hill. speaking to those congressmen and i. he's on the committee as they refused to appear today, saying he wanted to testify publicly in front of everyone. so it is now done deal out of the committee. are you prepared for the impeachment hearings and everything else that this investigation will likely entail in an election year? >> it is very sad because they want us focused on the cost of living and the crisis. there is a distraction. i think that it could backfire on the republicans as you see impeachment hearings in the past that have benefited the president. i think it is not just a waste of time, but damaging for them. >> the one republican who had

expressed hesitation about voting for the impeachment, he was hesitant, but he voted for it as they all did. when i spoke to him on monday, he criticized the white house saying they would not hand over the election. the whole point that this is informal and we will not hand over the documents. so today then, they referenced the financial records in his press conference very specifically as i wanted to play one thing he said. >> reporter: james comber, jim jordan, jason smith, and their colleagues have distorted the facts by cherry picking lines from the bank statement. manipulating the texts i sent. editing the testimony of my friends and former business partners. and misstating personal information that was stolen from me. >> now congressman, all of this

is true as they lay it out. why won't the white house and hunter biden hand over the records? because you know they can't just cherry pick and put them all out there if it would resolve themselves of the accusations? >> because it there is no evidence or allegation that he has done anything slightly wrong in his role as president. this is litigated for five years. it is rich for the republicans to be demanding all of this with the personal financial information, whether they don't release their taxes. he has provided far more financial information than anything biden has. this is a witch hunt. here is what i haven't heard. i haven't heard the republican say what has biden, since he has been president, done wrong? they focused on something they said in their press conference, that he was not involved in hunter's business. i played that part a few moments

ago and that he was not financially involved. jordan says that is significant and it will show the story is shifting. first he had no involvement and now it is no financial involvement in his business. do you support the chairman's focus on the use of the adjective, financially? >> i don't understand what it is all about. if they want to make that a case in the campaign, fine. it can be litigated in the campaign and they have been doing this for the past few years. but you can't impeach the sitting president in the united states for conduct that was years ago. first of all there is no evidence that he did anything wrong, but they're going after things that he did potentially as vice president. i mean can you imagine if the democrats have said we're going to impeach donald trump for all the bad things he has done? we would focus on the action while he was president and they have not had an allegation that this president has done anything wrong since he's been in

office. >> all right, congressman, i appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you. next, breaking news, a judge hitting pause on the federal election case. tonight they're celebrating. what does this actually mean for the government's case? whether this will go to trial before the election? and plus together, his story we have been following, speaks to us about seeing his wife and their two young daughters after being freed. he opens up about what they endured in the 49 days they were held hostage. tesla's reputation is suffering a major blow tonight. two million cars recalled. we'll tell you why.

breaking news, the interference case is now on hold. so the trial was scheduled to start on march 4 of next year, 2024, but the federal judge overseeing it has temporarily paused all deadlines while the appeals play out. ryan goodman is here with me. so his campaign is saying this decision by the judge is a big win for trump and our rule of the quote from them.

that he wanted to delay. and if they play their way through the system. is it a win? a possibility that it does not happen until after the election? >> it is a win as it will pause the trial, it might mean that the march 4 date doesn't get met because of the supreme court that will take forever to decide the issue when it goes to the supreme court and then time has run out in november of 2024's past. they would decide quickly. that just happened within hours of their upon just a few minutes ago where they said we're going fast and we're going to decide this basically before the second week in january. it is not be there and that they intend to go quickly because they said they will take it, but

moving very fast. so it could be a big win and it depends on if they will go fast. and they centered on the false statements that they made about the two poll workers in georgia. and now of course trump spread the conspiracy theories about the two civilian poll workers, working at the polls, including the famous call. here is some of that call, which is actually played in court today. here is what we heard. >> 18,000 vetters, having to do with that vote and a professional vote scammer. a hustler. that was the tape shown all over the world that makes everybody look bad. you, me, everybody else.

>> all right, those bleeps were not swear word, but freeman's name. when you play this all the way out, you'll have 18 times where trump said her name on the call. attacking her, you know, saying these disparaging things. how important could she be at trump's election trial? >> and we recently got a strong signal of this in a very recent brief for the first time for them. and strongly suggest they will be witnesses for the prosecution in the case because trump was publicly and privately spreading these lies about them and that they were receiving death threats. jack smith says this is him using violence to try to keep a hold on power when he knows the result of his public statements against these individuals is that they put them in harm's way. they are very compelling witnesses, and that's a part of your tape as well. they appear before the select

committee. many people's eyes started watering when they tell what happened to them. so imagine that with a jury. >> absolutely. ryan, thank you very much. of course, trump has made his legal center piece of his campaign. right now he has just taken the stage in his campaign stop. this time it's in iowa, rallying supporters there. the all important iowa caucuses are a month away. kristin holmes is out. what is their thinking about iowa right now? a place where he said oh, i'm forced to be in court all the time, so i'm not on the campaign trail. well he's there tonight where you are. >> reporter: yeah, erin, he is. when i talked to his team, there's increased level of confidence particularly with the des moines register poll. showing him at 51% to ron desantis' 19%. the chatter on the ground here among gop operators, both pro and anti-trump for months has been while the polls show trump leading. they did not believe the margin was as big as the polls were

showing. but given the des moines register poll with that huge margin, that had shifted. they do believe there is quite a wide margin that it will be according to these operatives impossible for desantis to overtake trump at this time. you can really hear that when you're talking to members of his team. they're confident here now. now that does not mean they're confident completely in early voting states watching them very closely as well as nikki haley. one indication of that, he never, trump, responded to ron desantis' attacks directly from last night's cnn town hall, but did respond to the endorsement of nikki haley, giving you an idea of where exactly his mind is at. now trump is wrapping up his campaign schedule, increasing his presence on the campaign trail after iowa. he'll go to new hampshire, nevada, and then he'll be back in iowa next week. something we are vigorously watching closely. but erin, keep in mind even with

this increase in campaign stops, he is being far outpaced by his gop rivals. however, it doesn't seem to be making a difference in the polls either in iowa or nationally. erin? >> all right, kristin, thank you very much live in iowa. of course, we will hear if he does respond to desantis' attacks last night. out front next, reunited. an incredible story. we have been following closely out front, talks about what it is like now to be with his wife and his two toddler daughters again. shares new details about their time as hostages with hamas. and plus abraham lincoln, harriet tubman, michelle obama, and now oprah winfrey. gayle king is out front on herer best f friend's trtremendous h r todaday.

tonight president biden meeting with the families of those held hostage by hamas. it comes as israeli forces are again pumping sea water into tunnels in gaza as they would try to root out the hamas fighters. this is a story we've been following closely. age two and four, were among the hostages for 49 days. we've been following their story. and tonight this is a ray of light. they're safe in their home, laughing, playing, they're together. it was the same home that i visited while they were being held captive, feared they were dead, and their little precious

pink shoes. so this day has come, all those timeses that we spoke. and here they are in your home. and how you could put words on how it feels? i'm feeling like i got my life back as a gift. and i was like what you told me many times before in hell. i got back like hell and they are here and alive and they are okay, so i got my life back. >> it's amazing as you say your life back.

everything in your home and your life. i keep looking at it in these recent days. what was it like when you finally could put your life on them? >> and it was the most amazing feeling that i would have in my entire life. you know, like you mentioned, i told you that they didn't watch the videos and to hear their voice after so much time was like hearing something strange. once you don't hear them for a long time and then you hear it, it will sound different in some way.

i'll never forget that sound. they immediately started to talk and saying that they're dreamt to get back home. >> and when i was with you and your home and the girls were gone, you should me your toys in the bay area. i remember how you said they would sort of pretend to make a dinner and to serve the wine. i wanted to play that moment to share it with everyone. they like it so much. they love to pretend everything. >> i know you were talking about whether they would be able to do that again.

are they playing those games again? are they doing those familiar things? and they had saw their home at the first time. they were very excited. they were playing and running that night past midnight. they are starting to get back to their old toys. yes, they did. they played and they were so happy and they got a lot of presents and candies. i saw that on them as they would open the closet of where we would put some food and they said look at how much food we

have. so when they saw all those things that we have on our closets and our refrigerator, they were very excited. >> are they talking at all about their time in captivity? >> well, they have their own language. and like i mentioned, many times before. they don't know the words, like gaza. and like war. captivity. they have their own language and they are describing the situation where evil people came to grandmother's house with knives and made a mess and they

broke their beds. and they took them on a tractor. and this is that terminology that they are using. they are saying a lot of things. roz, the older girl talks less. and because she's younger, she doesn't understand the meaning fully, so she talks more. the older girl understands not fully like an adult, but understands very well what they have been through, and she experienced the hard sights and things. >> your wife has suffered greatly. you know, she's lost her brother. she lost her mother.

and all of this, she was held captive in trying to keep your girls safe. how is she doing? and how has she been able to share her experience with you? >> like you said, she had to mourn her brother. the second day we got back from -- to our home, i had to tell her that her brother is not alive anymore. that it was very difficult. and in addition to that, her mother is not alive, and that was in her arms.

she is just starting now to process this horrific news and this information. because she didn't have any time to process it. on cap privity, she was focused on taking care of the girls. she was injured, and she lost a lot of blood. >> was he able to be with the girls the whole time while they were held hostage? was she able to be with them? were they ever separated as far as you know? >> they weren't separated. and after she lost a lot of blood, she got stitched with no substance. her wound, her injury was stitched and no substance. she was very painful. but yet she managed to keep them together.

>> has she been able to say who was holding them or where or anything you were able to share? were they in the dark in the tunnel for these weeks you were separated? >> i can tell you a few very important facts that they were held in some kind of structure for a few days and later they were transferred. one of the most risk elements were the fact that if the people, the population, and the first days, if the population outside will know that they are there, and they can be killed by the mob. so this was something that was very risky for them.

very dangerous. i assess this is one of the reasons they were transferred later. because of this risk. you can only imagine what kind of reality they were on. and also when they were transferred, they were also seeing a big risk for that reason, for the reason that they had to be disguised. there was some situation that they were something like 10 people in a private vehicle. driving in an enormous speed including my daughters and my wife inside that vehicle, so there were very bad conditions. and it was very hard for me to hear. >> one time when we were talking

and they were gone, you said if they ever came home, you would promise them something. this is what you said. >> i believe in all my heart that they will come back to me. it's hard, but i've got to keep on believing that. i will hug them and i promise that i will never tell them to go to their bed and not come to mine. i will sleep with them and they can bother me to sleep as long as they are with me in my bed. >> joni, have you kept that promise to them? >> well, i did and even more. over the last three weeks, 24/7, only with them. i didn't do anything that the normal person does. i was only a father and a

husband for the last three weeks, and i was with them so much time. and they are sleeping with us in our bed. but we are trying to get back to some routine, you know, because at the end those girls, they need stability. they need routine. they need to have a normal life and kindergarten. so this is something we are inspired, and we want to get soon. but i can't leave them and they can't leave me since they got back. we can't be separated. >> thank you so much for speaking to me and for sharing the miracle that is everything to you and such a small, but very bright light in all of this horror that we've seen. thank you.

>> thank you, erin. thank you for the support. we wish you all the best. and next a breakthrough nearly 200 countries have struck a deal. we'll tell you what it's about. plus tesla recalling nearly every car it has sold in t the uniteded states. wow. why?y?

all right, tonight a historic milestone. well those are the words of president biden. and the reason is 200 countries, well close to it, struck a major climate deal after overtime negotiations that have been in question with a breakthrough, which was reached after two weeks of talk. bill weir is our chief climate correspondent, traveling the globe on this out front. bill, so this is -- i mean it's a significant deal when you can get this many countries on board? >> sure, to agree on anything. >> and it almost didn't get there, so they got it over the finish line. but you know, when you get a deal like this, how meaningful is it? what does it mean for those watching and their daily lives? >> well, that's a great question. it is only historic because it's taken humanity this long, 30 years, to name the problem that's at the source of this. this is a fossil fuel crisis. the fuels that built our modern world and everything in it, unfortunately is coming back to bite us. we're realizing that now. so unwinding that is the hardest thing humanity has ever done. it matters to people watching in ways they can observe in the

changing weather patterns and insurance rates depending on where they live, the food prices. the supply chains get more complicated on an unpredictable planet. all of that, but it also just speaks to, you know, we're on the blue marvel of eight billion people hurling through space, and we are all connected coming up from this problem economically and some are coming out of it. it's a small island nation. they were not in the room when the gavel came down from the ceo of the major oil company, announcing victory, essentially. but he's going to go back to the day job and expand oil and gas investments to the tune of $100 billion. the united states is the biggest metro state in the world right now, leading the world in oil and gas exports right now. but that has to change the science tells us. and how fast that happens is going to come down to sort of this tug of war of human nature. >> it's funny because when you were saying this little marble, carl sagan, and all the life that you will know that you have ever known is on that one spot.

>> exactly. >> it's a speck, right? and that's us. you have been everywhere on that speck. there is a magnificent planet, the sea ice is melting, you have actually been there to see that. maui, after the wildfires ravaged. i mean antarctica pictures, unbelievable what you filmed there. idalia hit. i mean place after place that you have been where you have seen the impacts of this. so does, i guess it is almost impossible to tell. but does something like what happened today change that? >> well, you've got to hope. [ laughter ] >> right. you've got to hope. human action is really going to determine the fate of our children, grandchildren forever. every tenth of a degree matters. all of this glorious planet that i've had the great privilege of exploring. it evolved in a very specific goldilocks climate. just the sweet spot. we've already moved out of that. so we really don't know what comes next as a species. we can dry to hold it together and predict with computer models

right now. but the paris accord moved the needle. it didn't stop emissions at the rate it probably should have, but it got countries on record to say this is a problem that we're going to do something about it. it will take it a next step further, but the job is never done really. >> that you point out the great fear here, we don't understand what we have unleashed. >> exactly. >> bill, thank you very much. as bill will keep exploring. next, gayle king and charles barkley on tesla's driverless cars, oprah's day, and the first broadway show ever. plus albany's team releasing a disturbing update about the putin critic safety. we've got that up next for you.

tonight recall. tesla recalling two million vehicles that are on the road right now in the united states. so the issue is tesla's autopilot system, which has caused nearly 1,000 crashes. the national highway traffic safety administration says this feature is easily misused by drivers, and there are not enough safety controls. tesla, of course, has been promoting what it calls full

self-driving vehicles in ads like the ones you're seeing next to me, which promotes increases in safety and convenience, their words exactly. so how far does this set back tesla? the host of cnn king charles talked to some people about this today. found out about the recall, went out, talked to people, and here is what happened. >> reporter: would you ever ride in a driverless car? >> no. >> i agree with her. >> that's scary. >> i would. i would not be opposed to that. >> i think it's safer than a lot of the drivers. >> it depends on who is driving. >> if you're driving, i'm not getting in the car. >> reporter: if i'm driving, chris, you'd be safe with me. >> all right, gayle and charles are here. so you thought about it? >> yeah, out front now skblchlt out front now. >> you thought about getting a tesla. >> my son has a tesla and -- i thought about getting a car and

i thought about getting a tesla. the driverless car still scares me. i hate to sound like the old lady in the room. they say the technology is here and we have to get on board. i'm not there yet. >> i'm the old man in the room, and i'm not getting in no car that's driverless. i would like them to be honest and say how often you have to touch the steering wheel. i've heard you have to really keep your hand -- you can't go more than seconds or a minute without having your hand on the wheel. so, it's technically not driverless. but there's no way in the world i would get in a driverless car. >> even in a driverless car, you should be vigilant. >> why you get in a driverless car then? >> they set you up to be on your phone the whole time. >> you heard the statistics. they say a driverless car is much safer than a human driver. we've heard that time and time and time again. they say they have the facts and figures to back it up. >> they say it. >> i always wondered who they

are. >> who is the they, yeah. >> that stat, 100%, cannot be true. because there's millions of people every day. there's very few driverless cars. so, how would you compute those numbers. there's not millions and millions of driverless cars but there's millions of people driving every day. there's no way they could justify the data. >> i'm not a tesla person. >> would you -- no, you would not. >> no. i was talking to my kids the other day, and they're little. nine years old. no way would i get in a driverless car. >> they said no way. >> they wanted the car. it's a human thing. >> i think if you're in a car, you can slam on brakes, you can swerve, you can speed up, you can slow down. you at least have some modicum of control when you're behind the wheel. >> the one thing you would never have -- >> i'm a very good driver. go ahead. >> don't hurt yourself. so she says. the number one thing you can't control, it's other drivers.

and can you imagine one of those cars in new york city? i mean, when i'm in a taxi here i'm like, oh, man, this is really awkward. you have to concentrate like you're driving. but i just would not feel comfortable personally. so, i would never get in one of those cars personally. >> when was the last time you were in a taxi? >> a couple days ago. >> really? >> yeah. >> like a yellow cab. you're out there going, taxi. >> yeah. i was in a hurry. i didn't want to walk. >> gayle, i want to ask you about your dear friend oprah. >> yes, this morning. >> this morning, national portrait gallery. it's amazing. michelle and barack obama, tubman, abraham lincoln -- >> john kennedy. >> and oprah winfrey. >> even she had to go, boy, my life -- she had a great speech, as she always does. she says from mississippi, where she lived in a house that has an outhouse basically, now to montecito, one of the most affluent communities in the

country. now she's in the national portrait gallery. even she was in awe this happened to her today. >> it's amazing. it doesn't matter, all the fame and celebrity has come to her, there's still a moment like, wow. >> it was still, like, a pinching moment for her. >> of course she's in "color purple" and she's wearing the beautiful purple there. so, tonight, charles, you both are going to be speaking to cory hawkins, who stars in the new film, an adaptation of t color purple. >> he plays harpo. it came up because "color purple" had not been to broadway. you had not been to broadway. >> he hasn't been to one broadway play in his life. a grown man has never been to broadway. >> we made a deal -- >> we're going to go. >> i play golf every day. i'm going to take her golfing and she's going to take me to a play. >> i'm going to pick something i think he'll enjoy. i'm thinking "lion king." let's keep it simple.

>> i'm not 12. i'm not 12, gayle. >> lots of colors, lots of music, lots of costumes. i think you would like that. >> you know i'm not a teenager. i'm 60, right? >> i want something with music. >> that's called a radio. >> i have a plan. i have it all planned. >> everybody, you can get a whole lot more of this -- >> all of this. >> -- at 10:00 eastern, "king charles" tonight only on -- >> that's funny, erin. more, this. that's good, that's good. >> thanks for having us. >> yes, thank you. >> thank you. all right. and we hope you'll be watching later on tonight. we have an update next, though, a really important one on top putin critic alexei navalny. he went missing eight days ago. we've got an update after this.

first time i connected with kim, she told me that her husband had passed. and that he took care of all of the internet connected devices in the home. i told her, “i'm here to take care of you.” connecting with kim... made me reconnect with my mom. it's very important to keep loved ones close.

we know that creating memories with loved ones brings so much joy to your life. a family trip to the team usa training facility. i don't know how to thank you. i'm here to thank you. finally tonight, concerns growing over the fate of top

putin critic, alexei navalny. his team telling us now it's been eight days since they last had contact with the opposition leader. navalny, we understand, had been held at one of russia's harshest penal colonies. he had been supposed to transport to a more dangerous facility. no one was clear if this was that point. he's missing, so we don't know. reporting now that navalny is in moscow and that investigative actions are being carried out with him. but navalny's team tonight saying this. today, we checked most of the pretrial detention centers in moscow. none of them had alexei navalny. investigative actions are not carried out without lawyers. all investigative actions have already taken place. according to navalny's team, his health has been deteriorating. last week we became ill in his cell and had to be hooked to an iv. that is the last they heard from