>> one of the many reasons why we love coy wire so much. >> fascinating piece. fascinating series, by the way. "cnn this morning" continues right now. a couple days early on after election day when trump seemed to be aware he lost according to multiple people, and a short time after that he dug in on the idea he had not lost. in fact, he was going to make sure that the transfer of power didn't take place. and this is part of that effort. >> good morning, everyone. happy friday. it's december 22nd. go ahead and dispatch with the notion of a slow holiday week on the news front. this morning, inside donald trump's pressure campaign in michigan and on democracy itself. the 45th president recorded urging election workers not to certify some 2020 results. national gop chair mcdaniel

reportedly involved, too. humanitarian crisis at the southern border. a video captures a woman crying crossing the rio grande while carrying a baby. texas officials responding to claims that she was ignored and the biden administration answering new calls to take executive action. deadly shooting in prague killing at least 14 people. this hour of "cnn this morning" starts right now. ♪ there are tapes, there are more tapes -- >> more tapes. >> -- apparently, according to the "detroit news." of donald trump urging election officials to block certifying the election, this time in michigan. there is a reported phone call of trump urging two election officials in wayne county to not certify the results. but trump called them after this

meeting in 2020 where the same two officials initially put to block in the certification before backing down. >> there is no reason under the sun for us to have not certified this election. this is reckless and irresponsible actions by this board. >> in the phone call after the meeting, the "detroit news" reports trump told officials, quote, we have to fight for our country. we can't let these people take our country away from them. rnc chairwoman mcdaniel was also on that call and said, quote, if you can go home tonight, do not sign it. we'll get you attorneys. then trump added, quote, we'll take care of that. those officials ended up refusing to sign the official certification. they admitted trump called them. here is how one of the officials described that call a couple days later. >> he thanked me for my service. asked how i was doing. there was a genuine concern for

my safety with the threats he heard coming in. >> are you saying the president's call had no influence on you recanting your vote? >> absolutely. >> cnn has not heard the recording, but it could be crucial evidence for special counsel jack smith as he continues to pursue felony charges against trump for trying to overturn his election loss. trump's campaign spokesperson responded saying, all of president trump's actions were taken in furtherance of his duty as president of the united states to faithfully take care of the laws and ensure election integrity. >> joining us the reporter who broke this story for the "detroit news." this is a huge scoop and crucial at this moment particularly. we only hear -- you heard it -- four minutes of the call. can i ask for people wondering why they're not hearing the call, why it's not public? >> my answer would be that there's a whistle-blower that possesses the audio of these recordings.

and the timing of the release and the ultimate decision on whether to release these recordings publicly is up to that person. you know, we were able to go as far as we could possibly go working with this person and another individual for this story. and the decision on whether the recordings will be released will come down the road, i think. >> it's an important point, why and how this story came to be matters. i think how you did this story, craig, is important for people to understand who don't do this every single day. in terms of when you heard this, you guys had reported, our team reported as well, that a call had occurred. there was the denial there was any influence from -- by monica palmer we heard just there. were you surprised or did you suspect this was the case? >> you know, i suspected for a long time that they had to have discussed the election on this

phone call because it was the biggest issue at the time. it was the focus of the then-president at the front of his mind, at the front of the mind of the chairwoman of the republican national committee. and the idea they would not have mentioned what the canvassers had just done didn't seem to fit with everything that we had seen in social media posts and then public statements. monica palmer, who you played the audio of, of her comments before i came on, you know, she has said, i don't recall what was said in this conversation. so, she has provided a little bit of info about what she thought was said, but has said, overall, i don't recall a lot of the details. i think these recordings will fill in some of the details. >> that reflects what she told the january 6th house committee as well, speaking to them. can you speak, craig, to the larger picture here, because this -- michigan is part of special counsel jack smith's

election fraud federal case. can you talk about how this might weave into that and do you know if he has this record? >> i don't -- i don't know if jack smith has these recordings. i can't really speak to that. i think that, you know, investigators at multiple levels looking into the pressure and the effort by donald trump and his supporters to overturn the election in michigan. and this -- these recordings seem to fit with a lot of other information we have already. >> craig, thank you very much. i would urge everyone to read your reporting in the "detroit news" this morning. thanks for getting up early for us. >> hey, thanks for having me. this morning the supreme court watch continues. this all leads into that issue, front and center. the big question, how will the justices handle cases with enormous political implications just weenks before the iowa

caucus. jack smith asking the supreme court to decide immediately if donald trump has presidential immunity for crimes committed while in office. jessica schneider joins us again. timing here, it seems like we're all waiting with baited breath. do we know when the court will weigh in? >> we don't know. it could be at any moment. we're expecting it could be today before the christmas break. the supreme court could decide at any time if they'll quickly hear this immunity case. they'll eventually decide it, but what the special counsel is asking is they take this case up now instead of waiting for this appeals process to play out. truch's team has been arguing the former president is immune because they say he was operating within his official duties on and around january 6th. they say, therefore, he can't be prosecuted. they are also arguing he's immune because he was acquitted by the senate in his impeachment trial. the lower court here, the district judge said trump is not immune. trump's team is now appealing this to the intermediate circuit

court of appeals. the special counsel saying, supreme court, you're eventually going to weigh in so just weigh in now rather than waiting for the appeals process to play out. really spinning this as a matter of public interest. so, writing that the public interest in a prompt resolution of this case favors an immediate definitive decision by this court, stressing the charges here are of the utmost gravity. so, jack smith has filed his briefs. trump's team has filed their briefs, phil. it is in the supreme court's hands. they could act at any moment, potentially today, about whether they'll fast-track this case and hear it in the next several weeks. >> just the overarching legal strategy of the trump team to delay has been very clear and extends to the civil trial set next month in a lawsuit by e. jean carroll. what are the legal options here? >> they really want a delay here. they don't want this defamation trial to start on january 16th. they're asking a federal appeals court to pause that defamation trial for about 90 days because

they want to have time to consider other ways to challenge the basis of this defamation case. they recently challenged it saying trump was immune from this case, kind of like in the special counsel's case. they lost on that issue. now the legal team wants to go back to the drawing board to determine if they do have other avenues of appeal because, of course, the clock is ticking. we had that january 16th trial date and they want to put that trial date on pause. phil, as we head into 2024, we are seeing a cascade of legal cases. the e. jean carroll was scheduled to be the first trial, but then you've got the jack smith case here in d.c. lined up, if that date sticks for march 4th. the classified documents case in may. the hush money case also in march. so, donald trump is facing a long list of legal cases just as he's ramping up piz presidential campaign. >> jessica schneider, thank you. to the southern border where a woman's desperate plea for help while crossing the u.s.

border may have been ignored? that is the accusation against some texas officials. she's struggling there trying to carry a baby. texas leaders deny any wrongdoing. rudy giuliani is declaring bankruptcy after that $100 million defamation. the judge this week said ruby freeman and her daughter could go after those assets immediately. stay with us.

this morning we're getting a heartbreaking look at the humanitarian crisis on the southern border as an overwhelming surge of migrants. new video that activist says is a woman with a crying baby trying to cross the rio grande and the texas national guard ignoring her. >> they made it.

>> what she's saying is, don't abandon me. help me. help me. this entire incident lasted about seven minutes. the texas national guard denying those allegations. our priscilla alvarez at the white house with more. that is very difficult to watch. what more are you learning this morning? >> it's those type of incidents that cause alarm here at the white house over the situation along the u.s./mexico border. in this video, as you saw, a woman is seen crying for help with a baby in her arms as those members of the texas national guard watch in two nearby boats. they do not intervene. we know the woman eventually was able to make it back to the mexican side of the border with the child. and as you mentioned, it was an immigration activist who shot this video while on the river doing another project on public safety. it took place on december 12th. the texas national guard denies

there was wrongdoing and they didn't help, saying the following, quote, texas national guard soldiers approached by boat and determined that there were no signs of medical distress, injury or inxaf tags and they had the ability to return the short distance back to the mexican shore. the soldiers remained on site to monitor the situation. but this underscores what has become an untenable situation at the u.s./mexico border as an increasing number of people try to cross into the u.s. so much so that president biden jumped on the phone with mexican president just yesterday and the two agreed additional enforcement actions are urgently needed. now, the u.s. has historically leaned on mexico to help stem the flow of migrants, but the u.s. clearly putting more pressure here to try to get a handle on the situation. senior u.s. officials, including secretary of state antony blinken and dhs secretary mayorkas will head to mexico in the coming days to continue that discussion.

>> speaker mike johnson writing a letter to president biden asking him to take executive action on the border, while lawmakers are being asked to take legislative action. how is the white house responding? >> reporter: they're slamming them for not moving on a supplemental request, which includes $14 billion for border security. a white house spokesperson saying when the president presented congress for another bill, house republicans refused to take it up. speaker johnson and house republicans decided to go home in mid-december. it later says, if speaker johnson and house republicans want real solutions, they should provide dhs the resources it needs, not seek to defund it. clearly here through this letter, though, the house speaker digging in as house republicans push the administration for more actions on the border. it's worth noting, though, there are limits to what the president can do. it's really up to congress to get the money they need. >> and has been for a couple

decades. priscilla alvarez, thank you. just into cnn. sad news. an israeli hostage has been killed in gaza. will ripley joins us from tel aviv with more. what can you share with us this morning? >> reporter: hi, poppy. confirmation just came in minutes ago. gadi shais hagai, 73 years old, who was kidnapped while he was walking with his wife in the vineyards, they were taken, shot. judy, his wife, said her husband was badly hurt at that time on october 7th. she was able to get in touch with friends before they were kidnapped and they were taken into gaza. while we don't know the exact circumstances of gadi's death, we have been hearing from hostages newly released who talk about just total information blackout, being separated from their loved ones, sometimes being held down in underground

tunnels, hearing every single air strike, feeling like maybe they were forgotten about. 73 years old. the same age as my parents. can't imagine what the families have been going through and feeling, poppy. but this is the situation for families here in israel, families throughout this whole conflict who have been losing loved ones every single day. israel has been trying and has made an initial offer to hamas for a week-long pause in fighting in exchange for people like gadi who presumably would have been in need of urgent medical care if he was shot on october 7th, given all the hospitals in northern gaza have been leveled. just a handful of hospitals in the south are operational, barely functional at this stage. he along with his wife, judy, one of the last remaining women who are being held, both in their 70s, so they fit the category of elderly, they might have been able to go home had this hostage deal been able to come together, but hamas

rejected that effort. not in any rush to negotiate too quickly, hoping to get more concessions out of israel, including the exchange of their high-level militants who have been convicted of crimes to get handed over in exchange for these he wouldly and women in desperate need of medical care. >> will ripley looking at that photo of them, embracing each other. that really says everything. of course, it's so hard. all the work you're doing there is really, really important, will. thank you. if i could, before you go, there is the u.n. vote today finally on potentially a pause and much more aid for gaza. what do we know? >> reporter: well, what this means is finally the united states, which has delayed these votes repeatedly as they pore over the language of this, the u.s. has vetoed past u.n. resolutions calling for a

cease-fire, for getting desperately needed humanitarian aid into gaza, mostly because there wasn't strong enough language for condemning hamas for coming into israel unprovoked and murdering hundreds of people on october 7th and kidnapping hundreds of others. there had to be strong enough language in there condemning hamas. and the u.s. said they were concerned the language might slow down the delivery of the humanitarian aid that the people in gaza so badly need, given be there are reports from two health ministries, one in ramallah, one in gaza, indicating the death toll has surpassed 20,000 people in gaza killed. so, the united states signing this. it does pile on the pressure of the israeli government, prime minister benjamin netanyahu, to find a way to negotiate a cease-fire and continue their military objectives, which is to go after hamas but leave the civilian population out of it. >> that's right, because the u.s. has not been on board with prior drafts of these resolutions, so it does really

potentially change things. will ripley reporting for us from tel aviv. thanks again. harvard's president is under fire again. plagiarism allegations, forcing claudine gay to correct her work and putting the university back in the hot seat. we have new body camera showing police racing to respond to that deadly university shooting in prague. officers ran up the stairs to try to evacuate people and stop the shooter. as the chaos broke out, students were barricading in their rooms. some even hid on the ledge of a building to escape the attack. police say the shooter died by suicide. it was a student at the university..

this morning harvard president claudine gay facing new pressure over more allegations of plagiarism. harvard said yesterday she does plan to update her 1997 ph.d. dissertation to correct additional instances of, quote, additional citations. it did not accuse her of plagiarism. the university said gay's past

mistakes did not constitute punishable offense. >> as the harvard crimson first reported, that was not sufficient and now the house education committee is investigating. joining us, the editor of the "cr "crimson." in this moment right now, if you look at it from outside campus, you're saying, how long can she last with issues this dramatic that have continued? what's the sense on campus? >> so, the finals are an important point to all of this, of course. students were hold up in libraries, preparing for their final exams, finishing their final papers as all these plagiarism allegations emerged. the students were not focused on that. it's hard to pay attention to the president's plagiarism allegations when you're worried about passing your chemistry exam. so, on campus, there's not been

a massive student movement that is calling into question whether president gay should remain in office. that being said, these allegations are really bad for her. they're embarrassing and it's clear that people are taking notice. both on campus but also elsewhere. >> also in congress. the fact that a house committee is investigating this is significant, is it not? >> yeah, of course it's significant. congress is definitely trying to turn up the pressure on president gay. they first called her to testimony over the university response to the israel-hamas war and its efforts to combat anti-semitism on campus. obviously the decision widen the investigation to include the president's plagiarism is remarkable. >> it is remarkable. it's not typical of a congressional committee. >> it's fascinating they're trying to include this as part of their investigation. and it makes it very clear that the people who were upset at her

handling of the university's response to anti-semitism on campus are very concerned about her plagiarism allegations now. it shows that they are taking a really hard look at harvard right now and they believe president gay needs to be held accountable. >> there's an undeniable political aspect of it. it doesn't necessarily make the actions right or wrong. my question i've had throughout all of this, especially when we look at other universities involved in the initial blowback, is what matters more on campus, campus leadership and students or the money, the donors, the alums? >> so, on campus it's really hard to say. for president gay and the harvard corporation, of course, the donors matter. money is an important part of any university's functioning. president university relies on major donations. just yesterday bloomberg reported a major donor would halt donations to the university.

that is a dramatic step now for president gay and a major development in this entire story. if she loses the support of major donors like that, people like lynn, who have donated over $200 million to harvard overall, he made the largest single donation to harvard medical school, that could spell serious trouble. >> our former colleague and friend, brian seltzer pointed out the tweet. you broke the news that the harvard corporation was going to stand by her being a president. can you speak to being a harvard student, in final exams, breaking any news that any news organization would want to break, just what that experience has been like for you? >> yeah. it was remarkable. that is when i was still a reporter for "the crimson," covering the university's president and provost with my fantastic colleague, claire, and the two of us were able to get that scoop and break the news.

that night was -- i remember itle well. we were going back and forth from the library. we kept trying to study, but this was a major story for us at "the crimson," a major story for harvard. we kept trying to get the scoop. and our books were not able to distract us from the journalism. we kept going at it and eventually we landed something and we reported it at 4:00 a.m. >> you got it. thank you very much. >> thank you. new overnight, a judge rejects a challenge to kick donald trump off the primary ballot in another state. how colorado's ruling could impact other looming decisions on trump's constitutional eligibility. a deal to sell u.s. steel sells outrage in the rust belt and beyond. now the white house isis taking crucial l look at ththe deal.

new overnight, a district judge rejected another effort to kick donald trump off the ballot. that lawsuit is one of several filed using the clause to argue that trump was constitutionally ineligible to be on the ballot because he allegedly incited an insurrection on january 6th. maine secretary of state could rule on a similar challenge as early as next week. that's what we'll talk about. joining us, maine former secretary of state, spearheading efforts to keep trump off the ballot in his state. when did you decide you wanted to move forward on this front? >> i actually did some homework on january 6th and the 14th

amendment since a lot of maine heroes were involved in writing that to keep jefferson davis off the ballot and began to understand there was a concept of insurrection out there. i really believe that trump was a significant part of an insurrection on january 6th. so, that started me and then i was called and asked if i would be interested in joining this argument in front of the secretary of state of maine. i said yes. >> you know, to your point, one of the arguments that's been made against it has been, there has been -- he's not been criminally charged nor convicted of insurrection. what do you say to those who argue that? >> well, if you read the 14th amendment it doesn't say anything about convicted. it just says it created an insurrection against the state. that's why i don't believe we need to have a conviction to go forward. >> and it's self-executing as well. it's been interesting, particularly in conservative circles, there's a split, a divide in the legal movement. some believe this absolutely has merit. some completely dismiss it, including former attorney general bill barr. listen.

>> denial of due process is fatal here. the federal investigation has not charged president trump with insurrection or incitement. it's sort of mushy what's an insurrection, what does engagement mean. every state will make their own rules on this. everyone does it different and knocks national candidates off ballots. it will be chaos. >> bill barr kind of ticking through the three or four core arguments against it here. the last one is an interesting one to focus on. as the supreme court weighs what they're going to do here, do you have concerns about kind of a patchwork situation where several states, we've seen reject it, several decide to move forward with it, and what that means? >> i think ultimately, the ultimate decision will be made by the u.s. supreme court. but i think we have to have a place holder on you the there. i believe in our state, or statutes allow us to do this because we charged the secretary of state. that is probably one of the big

differences in maine. all the other cases have gone to court. ours is not in court. it's in front of our maine secretary of state. that's a huge difference. she could make a decision and then move forward into the courts. at the end of the day, i really do believe that the u.s. supreme court will make the final decision. >> any insight into how the secretary of state is going to act here? >> no, but, you know, she was very interesting during her deliberations last friday. she made it very clear she wanted both sides, our side and the other side, trump's side, to make it clear why or why she should not step in. then she went on to say, now that you've made that argument, prove to me that, in fact, there was an insurrection. i thought that was interesting because we put all the cases on you the there where trump clearly incited a riot on january 6th. >> it will certainly be something everybody is watching in the days ahead. we appreciate your time. thank you. >> thanks for letting me talk to you. good luck. bye-bye. it is one of the most joyous times of the year, right, and

also the loneliest. the surgeon general will join us and how you can feel closer to peopople and howow he's dealalt isolation.n.

i'm a little anxious, i'm a little excited. i'm gonna be emotional, she's gonna be emotional, but it's gonna be so worth it. i love that i can give back to one of our customers. i hope you enjoy these amazing gifts. oh my goodness. oh, you guys. i know you like wrestling, so we got you some vip tickets. you have made an impact. so have you. for you guys to be out here doing something like this,

it restores a lot of faith in humanity. feelings of loneliness can last all year but the holidays can be especially difficult for people who feel isolated. a recent surgeon general advisory says lacking social connection can increase your

risk of death by 60%. it also raises the chances of dementia, stroke and heart disease and can be the equivalent of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. it suggests loneliness is more widespread than diabetes and obesity. the surgeon general declared it an epidemic. this is what he wrote in "the new york times" recently. as it has built for decades, the epidemic of loneliness and isolation has fueled other problems that are killing us and threatening to rip our country apart. and he joins me now. thank you very much for being with us, especially at a moment like this. >> of course. good to be with you, poppy. >> you have called this one of the defining issues of our time. usually when a surgeon general declares something an epidemic, we're talking about aids, for example, or cigarettes. that is how severe you believe this is for people. >> i do, poppy. most people think about loneliness as just a bad feeling, but it is much more

than that. we know that when we struggle with a sense of loneliness and isolation, it increases our risk of depression and anxiety, also for heart disease, dementia, for premature death. we also know when societies more broadly struggle with loneliness, it puts them at increase risk of violence. it puts them at reduced recy yens in face of adversity and sets them up to be more divided and polarized. so, at a time when we are struggling as a country with a mental health crisis, when we are seeing, sadly, the impacts of division and polarization, our connections with one another could not be more important to emphasize. finally, to remember this, this is not uncommon. one in two adults are struggling with loneliness and the numbers are even higher among kids. this truly is a public health threat and needs to be a public health priority. >> the fact you say the numbers are even higher among kids, i've been fascinated by the sort of national tour you've been doing, actually focused on college

kids. you were in my neck of the woods at barclays center in brooklyn. you're focusing on them and also putting out these steps. it's a five for five challenge. what can people do? >> well, this is the great news, poppy, that we can do something about loneliness. small steps, it turns out, can make a really big difference in how we feel. the five for five challenge we issued to college students recently, and then subsequently to the entire nation a few weeks ago is really simple. it involves taking one act of connection each day over the course of five days. that could either be by expressing gratitude to someone, by extending help to someone, or by asking for help yourself. and these are very simple. it can take up to just 60 seconds a day to reach out to a friend, to call them to say, hey, i'm thinking about you. i remember how you showed up for me last year. and i want you to know how much that meant to me. or can involve thinking about a friend you may have had a recent

loss. i think about my best friend from middle school who lost her mother unexpectedly a few months ago. this is a really tough time for people like my friend and others around the holidays. i just want people to remember, especially during the holidays, reaching out to other people to check on them. it could be one of the most powerful things you do, one of the greatest blessings you offer others during this holiday season. a lot of people are struggling. sometimes just a call from you, reminding you that you see them, they matter, that could be the gift they need this holiday season. >> social media is such a big part of this, as you write about and acknowledge. and i was really struck by the ceo of airbnb brian chesky came on the show with us. you worked for a while with the company. you are the one that got him talking about loneliness. this is what he said is driving part of it in his experience. listen. >> the mall becomes amazon and the theater becomes netflix and the office becomes zoom. all these -- and it's not --

it's not anyone's fault, it's just all these things are a step forward, but they ultimately maybe have the fact of isolating us. we still need to get out. >> what do we need to do? not everyone is going to quit these apps. i stopped using instagram a couple months ago and i feel a little bit better. what do people need to do? >> i think one of of the things that's important to recognize is we didn't get here overnight. covid certainly contributed to this loneliness crisis but it was a problem long before as a result of lesser participation in the commuter organizations that used to bring us together, rec leagues, churches, synagogues, et cetera. also the impact of technology and social media has not always been positive. it's often diluted the quality of people's relationships taking them from in-person interactions to online interactions. one, you can draw boundaries around your use of technology. have spaces in your day that are tech-free. particularly your time in person with others. your time around meals, your time before you go to bed.

but it's also important for us to proactively build time in our day to reach out to other people. i try to put 15 minutes aside each day to reach out to someone i care about. sometimes that's just calling my mother, sometimes it's just calling a friend to say, hey, i'm thinking about you, i want to know how you're doing. those small moments matter. and they matter even more at a time when so much of our attention and energy is being pulled aside and being pulled apart by technology, work and other forces. >> mom, i'm going to call you right after the show, if you're watching. finally, quickly, you experienced this yourself. you went through isolation and loneliness. i think that might surprise people. what can you share? >> well, i know what loneliness feels like. i know how it can feel like it's tearing you apart inside, how it can feel like this deep void that you feel ashamed about and that you don't talk about because you feel like admitting you're lonely might be admitted that you're not likeable or loveable. i want everyone to know that is not the case. if you are struggling with loneliness, you are not the only

one and you are not broken. what i had to do is recognize that. . took years for me to come to that realization. but it was my wife, alice, a few years ago who helped me realize that, you know, i was struggling with loneliness. sometimes it's hard to see in yourself. it was just a couple of friends, two good friends in particular, who made a commitment to check in on me regularly, who helped pull me out of that deep abyss of loneliness. that's critical message to remember. this is about quality of friendships, quality of interactions, not quantity. i know the age of social media has convinced us we need thousands of followers and thousands of friends. we do not. we just need a few people in our life who see us for who we are, with whom we can be ourselves and who can show up in a crisis and hopefully we can do the same for them. >> such an important message around the holidays. surgeon general murthy, thank you very much. >> thanks so much, poppy. good to be with you, as always. >> merry christmas.

no one wants to be called a tie tyrannical -- that's next. >> i don't want her to do anything except for resign. i'll tell you what, if she doesn't, we'll remove her.

we have been talking about "the detroit news" report about the phone call then-president trump made to election workers in michigan pershing them not to certify the 2020 vote. another issue in that state's republican party. a cnn investigation finds its out of money and rocked by turmoil. local republicans fear that could jeopardize their chances in 2024 and tell cnn's jacele

carol. blame falls on the state party chairwoman would who is a trump ally. >> it's ground zero. >> this is the person some are accusing of being behind the trouble plaguing michigan's republican party. >> i saw firsthand the system. >> reporter: christina, former community college professor, former poll watcher, election denier, conspiracy theorist and the chairperson of the michigan republican party. >> she is charismatic. >> she was grassroots. >> reporter: for a time, bree and andy were among her biggest supporters. now some of her strongest critics, calling for her to be removed from office. >> i am sorry. i voted for her. >> she is hemorrhaging reporters. >> reporter: another referred to her as a tyrannical incompetent

dumpster fire. she lacked political experience but rose quickly within the state gop promoting her steadfast support of donald trump and strong christian beliefs. in 2022 she lost the race to be michigan's secretary of state. but in february was elected chair of the state's republican party. since then her critics say the state party has been bogged down with infighting, dysfunction and, according to documents, dismal fundraising. >> we're bankrupt. broke. correct. she tran it into the ground. >> reporter: warren carpenter a former chair and supporter who shares her election denying views and conservative values her disdain for the establishment and lack of political experience was a part of appeal to her supporters. you understand what critics say. you got what you asked for and this is the person -- >> i was wrong. full stop.

i was wrong. i was on her team until i saw the financial situation. >> reporter: warren shared documents with cnn that appeared to show the party had a net income of about $71,000 between march and november of 2023. compare that to how much she said she hoped to raise. >> at least $50 million. i am confident i will be able to raise that. >> reporter: millions needed and little to show for that. couple that with what questionable spending decisions, a $110,000 to pay an actor who pushed false q non-conspiracy theories. the situation so dire, some members have resigned. a member warned the party faced imminent default on the line of credit and worries the dysfunction in michigan could have broader implications in a state where trump won in 2016 and flipped and biden won in 2020.

both by narrow margins. >> when a state party is falling short on fundraising it can have an impact on anybody on that ballot. president, senator, mayor, member of congress. >> reporter: she wouldn't speak to cnn. >> we come to the table and almost no political experience. >> reporter: her deputy chief of staff and a candidates chairman say her critics have not given her a chance. how much are you raised this year? >> far less. it's been a challenge. >> reporter: how much? >> i don't know the exact dollar amount. but it's, you know, i don't know that it's over a million. >> she is not a business person. we knew that when we elected her. >> reporter: is that starting to come back to sort of bite you because the business of this is not working? it's failing. >> she is motivating a bunch of people within the community to get active inside their own neighborhood. >> reporter: the republican

establishment set her up to fail he says by sending donations to other gop state organizations. >> these folks are pulling the rug out from christina and blaming her from falling. >> reporter: arguing she has gone out of her way to alienate them with statements like this. >> the michigan republican party operates like a political mafia. >> reporter: a list leaked to the press has not helped. it ranked potential volunteers one to four. one being patriot to four being me first or rhino. premogenberg was ranked a four. >> she is disenfranchising the voters and us. that is not how you build up a team. that is not how you unite the republican party. >> reporter: detractors took steps to try to remove her from office in this meeting. >> if they would take the energy to try to use us and try to help us with the experience that they have, we'd be unstoppable.

>> reporter: too late for former supporters such as carpenter. >> i don't want her to do anything except for resign. if she doesn't, we'll remove her. >> reporter: jason carroll, dearborn, minnesota. "cnn this morning" continues right now. >> there is a whistleblower that possesses the audio of these recordings and the timing of the release and the decision on whether to release these recordings publicly is up to that person. there are investigators at multiple he levels looking into the pressure and the effort by donald trump and his supporters to overturn the election in michigan and this -- these recordings seem to fit with a lot of other information that we have already. >> good morning. it is the top of the hour. you have heard the phone call where then-president trump pressured election officials in georgia to reverse the outcome of the 202