stuttered instead of kid who was the bully. these republicans sitting there, they're choosing the bully. they're still scared of the bully and they're still chooses him because they're scared. and it's incredibly sad. thanks very much. >> appreciate it, anderson. we'll be back. now let's go to chris for "cuomo primetime." >> thanks, anderson. the prosecution rests. can they convince you that trump didn't want what happened? that he didn't say what he said on january 6th and on so many other occasions leading up to the farce of the stop the steal rally? that it's okay he did nothing to stop the insurrection for hours? that's their task for the open minded. and that last part is most important. the best shot the defense has is to argue that trump ran his mouth all the time but he didn't

necessarily know where it was going. and by that they'll argue he didn't want a capitol attack. if so, the question for them is, then why didn't he stop it? he learned that there was an insurrection going on right away. and he delayed. he delayed in a way that may have let five be killed, in a way that may have let 140 officers be injured or maimed or or tortured by his mob. they may argue he didn't know what to do, but he was told what to do and refused. that's what the managers argue. then there's another expression of what he knew versus what he wanted. you remember this? when he was worried about being in a group with security issues, he had the military tear gas and

forcefully clear protesters near the white house so he could do a photo op at a church. remember the whole holier than thou deal with the bible? he knew how to create the sense of security, how to protect, but didn't do that with the same senators expected to protect him now. now, i say expected because at least 15 in the gopq weren't seated at all at the trial today, at least at one point when prosecutors were given their closing argument. that's the sketch. cameras weren't allowed in. but there were a few and they had praise for impeachment managers. top trumper tubberville -- good job. made points i hadn't seen.

even marco rubio -- good job. then this part, my favorite -- i don't believe the facts are largely in dispute. a rare honest moment for the bible verse babbler. they are not in dispute, the facts. because this acquittal is about fear and fealty, not facts. they're not even pretending to be fair about their duty here, which, remember, is not to punish. the duty is to remove from office to prevent, to protect against this happening again by the same person, to set a precedent here so that you don't let someone think this is an okay way to act if you lose. to stop trump's ability to do this again by running again. how impartial is it if three of them -- cruz, lee, and paul, actually go and meet with trump's attorneys, which is what

they did this afternoon, to discuss their legal strategy? en wyou know, they took oaths before this. it's not a real legal trial, but you do take an oath. you raise your hand to god and say, i solemnly swear i will do impartial justice according to the constitution and laws, so help me god. they all took it. they all pledged that to god -- impartial justice. you tell me what definition of that phrase equates with going to meet the defense counsel and help them with their case. did they also meet with house managers? do you know what would happen if a real juror did that at a real trial? now, take a listen to this. >> is there any political leader in this room who believes that if he is ever allowed by the

senate to get back in the oval office donald trump would stop inciting violence to get his way? >> impeachment is not to punish, but to prevent. we are not here to punish donald trump. we are here to prevent the seeds of hatred that he planted from bearing anymore fruit. >> reporter: >> now, those are really key points. because to be honest, you guys already decided the matter of donald john trump, okay? you kicked him out of office with more votes than any other presidential candidate has received ever. he's been weighed, measures and found lacking. but this is about setting the precedent that someone else will think this is okay. or if he runs again and wins again, he'll do it again. you know he will. not to punish, but to prevent. the answer to the question of trump's incitement is clear -- you know this. he did little else but incite. but this trial is not just about him. it's about future presidents and

right now it's about the party that he apparently owns. they are on trial every bit as much as he. will they put hands to god and be anything but impartial? and then not only fail to prevent but send a message of encouragement to some of the worst extremist groups in the country? these men and women are on trial here as well. if they acquit, they will be saying, this was okay for trump to do. he will celebrate it. and the message of vindication, of victory, will echo through the ranks of the odious. those who came to hurt and kill in the name of hate and killing. of course trump could do more of the same if he ran again, whether he won or he lost.

the dangerous unknown is what will happen next when the worst of us realize their attack was seens a righteous by the right. that takes us to senator graham. he may have secured top billing with every alt-right and white nationalist group in this country by echoing their animus. listen to what he said. >> i think most republicans found the presentation by the house managers offensive and absurd. and here's what i want to know -- what did nancy pelosi know and when did she know it? if this was so widely knownly the fbi and capitol hill police come to -- violence i want to know what she heard about that. >> i have only heard that from this senator and lemmings from alt-right media and my radio

show. those were the only people. that's who he's echoing, and he's doing it on purpose. that man voted to convict a president for lying about a sex act, but won't hold one accountable for an act of terror. and now he is spewing the same poison as the extremist perpetrat perpetrators. the next time is on you, brother graham. and the others who are willing to ignore the obvious and play to the odious. the request really will be here, why were they so desperate to do anything to keep jobs they clearly don't want to do? let's turn to the better minds about the state of play, david gregory and michael smerconish. i'm quick to make the point this is not a legal trial, does not play by the same rules, but they did take an oath, they did raise their hand and promise to be impartial. how can they go and meet with

defense counsel to give them tip on their case? >> you think optics alone would prevent them from doing so, but it's not a legal case. i don't think you need to get lost in the legal ese of what does insurrection mean? or how about the removal language in the constitution? instead it's all common sense that comes from the time line. and what i mean by that is that only an arsonist lets a fire burn and for 90 minutes plus, the fire was burning. you take a look at that time line and take a look at the fact that vice president pence was removed at about 2:14 p.m. it's 10 or 11 minutes later when president trump sends off a tweet that criticizes him for having lacked courage. there's a real question now as to whether he knew the vice president was imperilled and still sent that tweet. what i ask you to ask yourself is, did someone who didn't like the rioting then taking place have comported himself and acted

a way the way president trump did? it's really all you need to know in this case. >> several tactics were used. i want to get your guys' take on them. david, we'll start with you. let's play them using the words of republican senators to make their case today. >> i love the old days. you know what they used to do to guys like that? the guards are gentle with him. he's walking out, big high fives, smiling. i'd like to punch him in the face. >> i think the campaign has a responsibility for creating an environment when the candidate urges supporters to engage in physical violence, to punch people in the face. the predictable consequences of that is that it escalates and today is unlikely to be the last such instance. >> and then they had marco rubio saying, people are going to have to really answer for their support.

back in 2016, of what they did by backing trump and doing to our party. do you think that can move anybody's mind on this? david? >> no, chris. i don't think the minds are moveable because they're entered into this pact. they've entered into a pact to be part of the trump wing of the republican party, and they're too afraid to move beyond it. i'm sorry, there's nothing that's going to get us past that. we all sigh with this anxiety and this frustration. i have been covering lindsey graham for years. i don't believe what i hear come from his mouth on these things that are just contempt for the institution that he represents. that's the real problem here. i mean, i think the strength of that sound bite alone -- ted cruz, ted cruz who had the temerity to attack the chief justice of america for his position on the affordable care act and shows utter contempt for

the institution of which he is a part -- he shouldn't be in the same conversation as the chief justice. and yet he was a clerk for the chief justice of the united states. so this is very, very powerful and, it's powerful in two ways. it's powerful because people are taking this in in the general public. they see what trump has always been -- promoting violence. you know, when you and i were on, when you are on "new day" from day one, i always said donald trump doesn't care about the presidency. he doesn't care about the institution that's been born out 100 different ways now it's not just peep in the country. the whole world is watching to see how the united states government comports itself through all of this. they want to know our democracy's going to be okay. and that's in a way what's on trial here, too. >> i want to give michael the

last word that is in part a -- what an arsonist does. lets play the gop gallagher sound. >> as representative gallagher described in realtime -- >> and we don't think other countries around the world are watching this happen right now. we don't think the chinese communist party is sitting back and laughing then we're deluding ourselves. so call it off, mr. president. we need you to call hthis off. >> it establishes two things, michael. one, that's a republican. that they believed this was sending a message of what's possible in america. and two, that for whatever reason, the president was the one man who would be able to call off what they're now going to argue he did not intend. go ahead. >> right. it was an acknowledgement of the hold that the president held over the very rioters who were then storming the capitol. look, those senators that you made reference to, they're looking for a figure leaf, and

they didn't get it on day one, the opening arguments of this trial and i bet they're scared to death tomorrow is going to be also bobbled in the response. i believe it will be all about jurisdiction. you know what they say, if the facts are not on your side, go is the law, if the law is not on your side, go with the facts. i think they go back to the beginning and say, we shouldn't be hearing this case to begin with. >> the problem is, chris, they're giving the defense team tips because real lawyers won't represent president trump anymore. >> well said, and thank you. so let's talk about what the trump defense will look leike tomorrow. how do you defend what seems to be so obvious. we're going to take it so someone who was a real lawyer. was on trump's last impeachment team. mr. robert reyes quire. reflections on what's to come, next.

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this is a very interesting insight into what we can expect tomorrow -- donald trump's lead attorney told cnn he doesn't believe anyone said they heard directly from trump that they should attack the capitol. has he heard from any of these rioters? >> we were invited by the president of the united states! >> i thought i was following my president. i thought i was following what we were called to do. >> president trump requested that we be in d.c. on the 6th. >> well, heat of the moment. chaos of the crowd. all right, what about what they started to say once they had time? okay, they still support the president, but attorney after attorney representing those who did some of the worst at the

capitol say this -- >> i've referred to him as a cult leader. donald trump was a cult leader. >> for people like jake, for millions of americans, they truly did hang on every word of their president. >> he's the commander in chief. they're telling them to fight and stand up for your country and to do all these things. >> the only reason any of these people went to the capitol and storm it and to do whatever they did there was because trump demanded it and asked for it and wanted it. >> the president of the united states said that the election was being stolen and it was time for citizens to stand up and take action and take control. and so he followed those instructions. >> now, remember, this is about the court of public opinion. this is political, not legal. you could dismiss this and say, lawyers. they say anything for their clients. okay, but why do federal prosecutors in filing after filing keep saying things like this -- >> he marched to the u.s. capitol because president trump said to do so.

these people are saying it right to the prosecutors, and they still support trump. that tells you the danger here. they believe what they did. they did it in open, unmasked most of them. took videos and pictures and gave interviews because they thought it was righteous because they thought the president wanted them to do this. they're even linking trump, these prosecutors to some of the most violent members like the leader of the oath keepers who indicated she was awaiting direction from president trump. as for who else thought was tried to the riot, republican senators in the moment. listen. >> when it comes to accountability, the president needs to understand that his actions were the problem. >> the mob was fed lies. they were provoked by the president. >> you know, when you hear senator graham you really got think about whether he's okay.

he said that january 7th. now he's saying it was nancy pelosi. seriously, i hope you are well, senator, because you don't sound it. now the defense team wants you to forget everything you just heard and argue that no matter what he said, trump didn't want a riot. then they have to answer to this question -- if he didn't want it, why when he knew it was happening, did he do so little to stop it? defense is going to have to try to explain that away. we have one of the few legal minds who have not only defended a president in an impeachment trial, but defended trump last year. robert ray. welcome back to primetime. good to see you, sir. what do you expect is the biggest hammer they can swing? >> i think the thing that should be emphasized and repeated until the point is carried is that, you know, it's not just about a link with the activity that

transpired at the capitol. it also has to be under brandenburg versus ohio that donald trump made a direct call for lawless or violent action, and i don't think -- this is what i thought at the beginning of the trial. i don't think that house managers were able to prove that. i don't think any amount of video evidence is going to prove that. and i think the defense should focus in that area. now, i will say also that you start with the fact that you have 44 senators who believe that at least based upon their most recent vote, that this trial is unconstitutional. so i -- you have to be careful about not snatching defeat from the jaws of victory here. you start with that. there's no reason to think that if they thought it was unconstitutional then that they're going to vote for conviction now. it's not as if once that motion is decided the slate is wiped

clean. so i think you start with both of those things. i imagine that's a big part of what the defense will be tomorrow. >> i'll take the points on as a matter of law for a second, but aren't you worried -- we know they're going to acquit him. aren't you worried these extremists are going take that as a win? we know they're doing it online. we know what happened here, robert. >> chris, i am worried. i do think that -- you know, the new thing that i learned -- i try to keep an open mind as well. d the time line between 1:00 in the afternoon and 4:30 in the afternoon on january 6th is profoundly troubling. i think this is a dereliction of duty. i don't think that constitutes a impeachable offense because i don't think that constitutes a high crime for misdemeanor. >> you don't think allowing

members of congress to be hunted by people acting in your name is an impeachable offense? if that's not an abuse of authority, what is? >> well, it has to be a high crime or misdemeanor. >> you were letting people try to kill members of congress when all you had to do was say stop. >> it's reprehensible and i think what i would like to have seen here -- i hope that it can happen. i do think there would be bipartisan support for a censure. i don't think he's going to be convicted. i don't think the votes are there. but yes, am i troubled by what happened after what was charged in the impeachment article, which is the statement, you know, fight like hell or you won't have your country anymore? those words in my judgment do not constitute the incitement of crime. i think on that basis he can't be convicted. i understand it's not a court in a criminal proceeding but i think you have to show an

impeachable offense and i think the managers failed to do that. >> i don't agree -- as we both know, i consult with brother ray. i respect him as a superior legal mind, for sure. >> i respect your -- you have a different opinion, and it's not like you're alone. >> i don't think brandenburg applies. we're not in a court of law. as gerald ford said, an impeachable offense is anything congress says it is. he obviously said the things that made these rioters want to go and riot because he told us they did, robert. they tell you what you need to know. the link is the people who did it say they did it because of him and they still support him. they're notenemies. >> well, subliminal messages, not to be flippant about it, it's like we got a signal from the bat cave to go riot from the

president, and that is -- it is partially relevant to the president's intent, and i do think that context is important, but it doesn't change the fact that the first factor under the brandenburg test could not be satisfied. something that, by the way, noah feldman does agree with. he thinks it's an impeachable offense, but acknowledges you wouldn't be able to prove incitement. >> it's a different forum. i think the harder question is the one that you brought up earlier. if he didn't want it, why didn't he stop it? you say that's a dereliction of duty. i say that's being kind. this is what we call in the law where guys like you teach guys like me something called sigh enter which is malice afore thought. when you know they are busting up the capitol and the only call you make is to ask guys to slow down the press on the inside, you are looking to advantage from a riot, and you don't give a damn what happens to the people inside. how do you get past that if you're sitting in one of those chairs as a senator?

>> i don't think the president intended that people be killed or hurt or maimed in this incident. reasonable people can disagree. one of the dangers of political rhetoric is we have seen on both sides what can happen when this gets out of control. >> who ever said anything like what trump is saying? who do you make his equal on the left? >> let's accept that as true for the moment. the fact of the matter is that the country needs to lower the temperature. i would like to think that we can move forward from here somehow toward a better place where, you know, our better instincts control. i do think it's a problem at this impeachment trial, frankly and honestly, which is why i think he'll be acquitted to displace the will of 74 million people who voited him that the

congress with what would be needed, 17 senators who override what the country may decide to do four years hence and whether or not trump is a candidate. >> robert, hold on a second. fair point until you enter an unknown where there is a known. the polls show you still have 78% of your people in your party that believe a lot of scary things, but his numbers dropped precipitously. his numbers with those people who voted for him are not where they were before because he did that after they voted for him. so why make them the scapegoat? he showed after they voted for him he was willing to incite a riot, and they reject it. 56% of the people in this country say he should be convicted you're not preserving their will. you're perverting their will. >> i don't think so. i have great faith for democracy and the people to decide that question. i don't think 67 united states senators with regard to a former public official should be making that judgment.

>> do you balance that -- then i'll let you go -- do you balance that with, if you acquit him and he celebrates and he tells all his people, we beat them again. they'll never stop us. it's us versus them, and we're coming back, baby -- and then a bunch of those guys grab me or come after my family or go after another statehouse and feel emboldened and say, here we come, it's us versus them. was that worth it? is that a price worth paying right now? >> two things i will say about that -- living on the edge of two impeachments in one term as president is no way to conduct a presidency, and the second thing is, to get to your point, that's why i think a censure is appropriate. >> your guys won't do it. >> whether it can be done as part of this impeachment -- >> did i lose robert, or did you lose robert?

can you hear me, robert? that's all right. we'll let him go. robert ray, that's okay. i can't hear you anymore. you'll never be silenced on this show. >> there he is. can we still hear him is this. >> robert ray, be well. we'll watch it tomorrow and see what happens. now, one of the things they're doing that's already smart on the defense side, keeping it short. do not, as robert ray, said, snatch defeat out of the mouth of victory. why? it's rigged. it's rigged. they're doing this on the basis of votes. i mean, rigged. they're doing it on the basis of votes and they already broke their oath. they're not impartial. they're helping his side win. they'll win if they don't screw it up or trump doesn't say something that causes another insurrection tomorrow or the next day sophomore this could be

over in two days but i argue it would be just beginning for the rest of us. let's turn to someone with a front-row seat to history for what we have going on behind the scenes. a member of the jury next.

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i'm not afraid of donald trump running again in four years. i'm afraid he's going to run again and lose. because he can do this again. >> that is a powerful point that those who acquit will have to own. that's why they are on trial here every bit as much as the former president. he could absolutely do this again. he may do it as soon as they tell him that he is acquitted. can't lose sight of how

consequential the vote will be. impeachment is about preventing that type of activity. they're going to do the opposite and potentially encourage it. okay? now, what does that mean? well, if he get a run for future office that could be in play, but it could be in play any way. let's get a feel for where things stand. juror and democratic senator chris van hollen. thank you for taking time on such heavy days. >> good to be with you. >> do i know all i need to know about the fact that cruz, lee, and -- met with -- >> yes, now they're conspireing with trump's defense counsel to, you know, put on the defense. these are the jurors saying that they're going to collaborate to put on the defense, and we saw, i think you mentioned it -- the tweet from lindsey graham saying they found today's managers case

offensive, when what's offensive is the fact that donald trump sent an angry mob down to the capitol to beat up and spit on capitol hill police officers for the purpose of overturning the election. they should focus on that. >> do you ever talk to lindsey graham? do you know him at all? >> i do know lindsey graham. i have not talked to him recently. i talked to him a while. it's like the invasion of the body snatch efforts. he has, it seems to me, lost any sense of moral purpose if he ever had one. but he clearly has lost it on this, especially now joining the qanon conspiracy theory somehow blaming nancy pelosi for the attack on the capitol, people who wanted to openly assassinate her. i mean, it's gone the a different level of absurdity. >> i'm just saying if he has any

friends people should see if he's okay. these aren't like political pivots. this is like schizophrenia. do you think these republican colleagues of yours understand the risk of the signal this may well send? this acquittal will immediately be a victory and immediately be an echoed em powerment signal who believe they did the right thing in the first place by trying to find you and kill you? >> that is the big danger here. president trump when asked about it said everything he did was appropriate. we also know the violent mob when they were heading home on airplanes and other means were celebrating. they thought it was a great day. donald trump told them, remember this day in history. and that is exactly the danger. because if he is not held accountable, we have just lowered the bar as low as it can

go on what a president can do in terms of committing crimes against the constitution and get away with it. chris, i remember time after time republican senators saying, you know, let's just let this donald trump action pass, and next time he'll have learned from his lesson. well, if republican senators haven't learned by now when they were under attack, they never will. >> how do you work with these guys after this? you all could have gotten done dirty if they had found you, and these guys are willing, men and women are willing to give trump another pass even though you were the targets. how do you work with people like that? when you know that fealty to him is way more important than any job they seem reluctant to do? >> chris, i have to tell you, those of us on the democratic side of the aisle, as we listed the evidence, we also spent a lot of time looking across the

aisle, trying to look into the ie eyes of republican senators trying to understand what they're thinking, and i will say, it is very difficult to understand how a fellow american can reach a conclusion that's totally inconsistent with the facts and the law here. so look, we're in the middle of a pandemic. president biden is working hard to pass the american rescue act. i certainly am going to work as hard as i can, and with anybody who wants to work together, to get that passed. right now we don't see many republicans wanting to join us in partner as that, so that's why we have set up the budget resolution reconciliation process. but i will work with whoever wants to help solve the pandemic and then get economy going again. but the answer to your question is a very difficult one, i think, for all of us.

>> yeah, i don't know why you think they'd work if you on that kind of stuff if they're willing to lose close their eyes to what happened. they were the targets. you were one of the lucky ones. capitol police said, don't go that way. you got to go back to the office and take cover there. when you think about that day and what could have happened, what comes to mind? what hits you in the head and heart? >> what hits me in the head and heart, chris, is the fact that our capitol was under attack, these individual members' lives were at risk. the capitol police were out there putting themselves on the line to protect or democracy and these fellow members of the senate, and they owe those capitol police officers and they owe the country the truth. not the big lie. they for too long went along with the big lie. president trump admitted in that tweet late on the afternoon of

january 6th that these things happening when an election is stolen. it was just earlier that day that he said the election was stolen. so for anybody to argue this was not foreseeable to donald trump, it was. hours after hours refusing to do anything about it. i get very angry about what's happening. i get angry about what happened that day to our democracy and our capitol, and i get angry at those who refuse to defend our constitution and our democracy. >> well, thank you, senator, for your perspective here, and for trying to induce some reason into people on the other side. it can't just be worth it for a job. and for cointroducing the bill to award officer eugene goodman, made famous, and rightly so, what what we've seen of him,

african-american officer directing the mob away from where senators were, where there were collection points, saving romney and others. you nominated him for the congressional gold medal for him. that is at least one way to seize on something that wasn't abjectly terrible about that day. good luck and stay safe. >> i hope we can pass that unanimously tomorrow. >> if that doesn't pass unanimously, all is lost. so hopefully it does. >> democrats do need 17 from the other side, though, to get a conviction of what is so obvious. remember, that's why we've never lived through anything like this before. there's not even a question. so, what's the over/under on who might flip? before you say nobody, remember what the presumption is. wait until you hear what the wizard of oz has to tell you. next.

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senator mitch mcconnell, the minority leader, keeps signaling to his party, vote your conscious. but they fear the primary.

but many of these senators don't have to. you get six-ier terms for a reason. the wizard of oz is here to break down the numbers for us. let's look first at about the ones who voted to -- that allowed to trial to go because it's constitutional. how many of them were vulnerable? >> none of them. you can pull it up on slide one, and what you'll see is pretty much then of them are likely running for re-election in 2022. toomey's retiring. the only one who is running is lisa murkowski, but she's running in alaska which has this weird top four open primary some none of these folks who said it was constitutional among the republicans, in my mind, are vulnerable at all in 2022. >> i'm not criticizing them. it's just smart political cover. the next slide, the undecided unknowns on conviction. how many of them could vote conscious and survive? >> i think, again, probably most

of them. maybe todd young would be the only one who couldn't. maybe wcrapo as well. what we see here essentially is it's whether or not you're upper election in 2022 and likely running and, that is the direction in which the votes are going. >> as a ratio, running, not running for re-election, what do we see? >> this is the biggest thing we should point out overall which is among republican senators the ones likely running for re-election, it's just 16 of them. 34 are not likely running for re-election. so the vast majority of republican senators do not have to worry about a primary in the next year, year and a half. most are not going to have primaries because they're not retiring or won't be for many years down the road.

the reality is they're fearing trump when they don't have to perhaps for years. >> right. and again, this means that you don't have that primary fear. this is why you got the six-year term, because you're supposed to be insulated from this. but you're playing to it any way. if you think you'll still be a dealt a death blow, look at mcconnell's numbers. >> mitch mcconnell had these big tussles with trump in 2017 over the health-care vote, and we did see his favorable ratings drop from 51% to 31%, but then they recovered. they recover in the 2018. that was a little bit more than a year later. so even though we might see people like mcconnell's ratings fall now, give the voters time. there are so many things that might happen. but they're allowing for trump to dictate the terms, and that was their best opportunity if they wanted to get rid of trump to do it and in fact what they're really voting for is trump to run the republican party for the foreseeable

future. >> harry, thank you. i'm not doing this for the senators. i'm doing it for you, the republicans who are like, i don't want to be connected to these people. what is going on? how do i get rid of this trump stain? they don't have to do this. the party doesn't have to be about this. it's telling how even those who were once seen at rising conservative stars are now choosing ubservience. let's take the test case, senator rubio. >> first of all, i think the trial is stupid. i think it's counterproductive. we already have a flaming fire in this country. it's like taking a bunch of gasoline and pouring it on the fire. >> we are going to take a week that is not going to help anyone with the thing that matters in this country the most right now, and that's a terrible thing. that's as a of our time. >> david frum joins us now.

welcome back to "primetime". it's been a minute. what do you see in senator rube y rubio? >> you see fear and somehow a knowledge that he's worked his way on to the wrong side of a bet he knows he's going lose. just today president biden announced there are going to be enough doses of the vaccine to vaccinate every american by midsummer. so the reason that rubio gave in that video yesterday as to why he can't convict president trump, that reason is already gone. but he is terrified now of his own shadow. trump broke him. they confronted each other in 2015 and trump found a kind of inner weakness and cracked and it that soul has never been put back together again. >> rubio said today, i don't think the facts are largely in question. he happens to be right. but then how do you vote to acquit? >> there's something i think people need to consider as they

watch programs like yours and maybe get upset, which is, you know, we talk about this as if the senate is the jury. but that's -- that's technically true, but it's not fundamentally true. the democratic managers are talking past the republicans to you, and what they are doing is every day putting up evidence not with the view of convincing republicans. they know they're locked in. there was the moment first two or three days after the attack that mcconnell thought about doing something. but republican bolted their faith to trump. when you run for election in '22 or '24 that shows that general mattis thought trump committed insurrection. john bolton thought trump committed insurrection. chris christie, most of his cabinet, most of his staff. and you, senator your name here, you voted to let him get away

with it. they're showing them the future. how do you think it cops out? you think it's an acquittal? what does it mean for the party? >> i fear it probably is an acquittal. it means the chance the republicans had to close the books and renew and rebuild, instead of a chance to do that in five minutes it's probably going to take a political generation. many of the kwyoung people, talented people in the generation, senator lankford who was speaking when the mob arrived, they're betting their future on this, and it's a long future. we are going to have to wait for another whole half generation or full generation of political talent for the republican party to be what it is right now. david frum, good to see you. we'll take a break. we're going to be back in the moment. but first a look at the new cnn original series "lincoln".

sit perfectly timed to what we're living through. divided we stand. lincoln freed the slaves. >> it's more complicated than that. ♪ some people got real problems ♪ >> a new president, a prairie lawyer with no experience, trying to hold together the american experiment. ♪ i'm only human ♪ >> the stakes were extremely high. ♪ i'm only human after all ♪ ♪ don't put your blame on me ♪ >> his election is an earthquake. >> the biggest misconception of lincoln is that he was perfect. ♪ i'm only human ♪ ♪ i made mistakes ♪ ♪ i'm only human it's all it takes ♪ ♪ don't put the blame on me ♪ ♪ don't put the blame on me ♪ >> he's a man who found a way to make democracy safe. >> lincoln, divide wed stand.

premiers sunday night at 10:00.

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we'll be back at midnight eastern with a special live late night edition of primetime, but now cnn tonight with d lemon. >> whoo, you came early. >> like christmas. >> i was getting myself together here. so, chris, you know, we have been preaching and yelling and talking forever -- >> that's more you. i'm reasoning and -- >> oh, please. >> don't beg. continue. >> we keep asking, how can they not do this? it's got to be better. they're never going to change. this republican party right now

is never going to change. they are what they have been doing. they are what the president has been doing. they are the party that is condoning what happened at the capitol. they are the party that is condoning bigotry, the party that's condoning racism. they are complicit in all of this. because you are what you eat, and guess what? they have been eating everything that donald trump has been regurgitating for the past five years and that is the republican party right now. >> because that's what's on the menu. they will be forced to own it. this is more them on trial than trump. >> i'm not saying they shouldn't have to trial, i'm just, how can can they not face all this evidence? that's what they're going to do. >> i'm with you. that's why i look at it in reverse. america already decided about donald trump. he was voted out with the biggest number we've ever seen. this trial is much more about the future of his party than anything else. with this