let's bring in d lemon.

"don lemon tonight," right now. i owe you 40 seconds. but the 40 seconds that the audience got, um, with that kid is a gift, brother. it's so rare that somebody can reinforce the blessing and curse of this life, and the fragility of our humanity, at the same time, you know? >> yeah. well, listen. i -- i did not know her story. i'm not a -- it's agt, right? america's got -- i'm not an "america's got talent" watcher. but, to that end, i'm sure a lot of our viewers aren't but you introduced her to them. and you, also, introduced the -- what's happening in this country right now. and then, the fragility of life. just how fragile life is. and how we have to live our lives but we, also, must do what is right in order to continue to live our lives, in the right way. which is relatable, as it comes to this pandemic. and the -- and the delta variant. and getting a vaccine. i think it's all related.

live your best life and the best way to do that is to follow the science. >> i mean, the idea of watching that kid, and her -- i know she's not a kid. i -- i know she's a full-grown adult. i know that. i'm just saying, i'm old. >> anybody who's under 30 is a kid to us. >> but the -- you know, to hear her talking about relishing any chance that she has to extend her dreams. >> yeah. >> when so many of us, in this country, have a chance to protect ourselves and won't. >> uh-huh. >> i just -- i -- i got to tell you, i everhave been doing this long time. i don't get hit by people very easily. i was telling jane in the break, nightbirde, that there is only one other person i've ever met, in my life, who has impacted me the way her music and her voice did. and it was this kid named matty stepanik, who was a child poet who really helped us get through 9/11. some people are different, don.

some people are not the same, as you and me. they have something in them that circumstance brings out, that is a gift. this kid, matty had it. and nightbirde has it. not everybody can take on that fight, the way she's taking it, and make it into a beautiful expression of life. >> and help many people in the process and i think that's a good place for us to leave it and move on and discuss other things in the news. but thank you for bringing us her story and bringing her to the cnn audience. we appreciate it. i love you, brother. >> i love you. but i got to tell you that was a little act of love for myself. i did that for me. i love you, d lemon. >> hey, look. you are, you know, go on. do -- do what you have to. i'll see you soon. this is d"don lemon tonight" thanks for joining, everyone. and we have got news, really big news, on multiple, big stories. the clock is ticking for new york governor andrew cuomo. a majority of new york state assembly members, 80 democrats and republicans, telling cnn that they would vote to impeach.

a source says articles of impeachment could be referred as soon as next week. that as at least four district attorneys are now investigating allegations of sexual harassment against the governor. the long list of powerful democratic politicians calling on governor cuomo to step down. a list headed by the president of the united states, himself. that list is getting longer, tonight. the leader of new york's democratic party, a longtime cuomo ally, urging him to step down. democratic committee chair, jay jacobs, saying, and i quote here, i believe the women. i believe the allegations. he reportedly only went public, after trying, privately, to get cuomo to resign and not being able to convince him to do so. i am going to talk to jay jacobs, in just a few minutes, so hang on. you want to hear what jay jacobs has to say. this is happening, as cnn's k-file has uncovered multiple

times that the governor spoke out against sexual harassment and attacked republicans for not taking a stand. >> we want equal justice for dr. kristen blazy ford and for all victims of sexual assault. >> when donald trump's infamous "access hollywood" tape came out. >> you are a star, they let you do it. you can do anything. grab 'em by the [ bleep ]. you can do anything. >> the governor was outraged. >> that's not how you treat women. that's not how you talk about women. it's not okay. it won't be sanctioned. >> in a facebook post, in 2018, he slammed the then-president for mocking the me too movement and women who spoke out against sexual harassment. he praised new york's sexual harassment policy saying, quote, sexual harassment of women is real. it is undeniable. and this is the moment in

history to make the reform and end it and end it, once and for all. and we are learning more, tonight, about just how close we came to an attempted coup in this country. how far the disgraced, twice-impeached, one-term, former president was willing to go to steal the election. and it, all, happened just days before the insurrection at the united states capitol. house investigators have talked to a former-doj official, who drafted but never sent a resignation letter over what he said were the then-president's, quote, direct instructions to weaponize the department to push his bogus-big lie of election fraud. this is from that unsent letter, and i quote here. this evening, after acting-attorney general jeff rosen, over the course of the last week, reportedly, refused the president's direct instructions to utilize the department of justice law enforcement powers for improper ends, the president removed jeff from the department. rosen actually survived the

meeting so the letter wasn't sent. but about half a dozen officials had signalled that they'd resign, if rosen were fired. a nixon-style saturday night massacre, all over, again. we didn't know how close we came. we really didn't. and there are major developments, tonight, on covid to tell you about. the biden administration working on a plan to mandate vaccinations for nearly every foreign visitor to the u.s. as defense secretary lloyd austin is expected to make vaccines mandatory for active-duty troops. the highly-contagious delta variant now makes up more than 90% of the cases in this country. just look at this time lapse from the cdc. that sea of red is the delta variant spreading over the past month. look at that. and with concerns about delta on the rise, former-president barack obama has scaled back his plans for a big-60th birthday

bash on martha's vineyard, this weekend. and as delta spreads, misinformation is spreading, too. and we need to tell you about that. misinformation that is holding america back. some anti-vaxxers in new jersey got an earful from governor phil murphy, just today. >> these folks back there have lost their -- you've lost your minds. you are the ultimate knuckleheads and because of what you are saying and standing for, people are losing their life. >> wow. do more people need a talking to, like that? or do you continue to coddle? or try to coax people? you decide. and then, there are the latest antics from the florida governor ron desantis putting politics ahead of the health of the people of his own state. with this rant. here it is. about a so-called biomedical-security state. >> we can either have a free

society or we can have a biomedical-security state. and i can tell you, florida, we're a free state. people are going to be free to choose, to make their own decisions about themselves, about their families, about their kids' education, and about putting food on the table. and joe biden suggests that if you don't do lockdown policies, then you should, quote, get out of the way. let me tell you this. if you're coming after the rights of parents in florida, i'm standing in your way. >> sometimes, you just can't push people when they're stuck on stupid. and in boston, the acting mayor, kim janey, compares requirements for proof of vaccination to slavery-era freedom papers and birtherism. >> there's a long history, in this country, of people needing to show their papers. during slavery, post slavery, as recent as, you know, what the immigrant population has to go through here.

we heard trump with the birth certi certificate nonsense. here, we want to make sure that we are not doing anything that would further create a barrier for residents. >> i -- i'm not sure what she's talking about. doesn't sound like she was, either. there's, already, a lot of vaccine hesitancy in communities of color. the last thing we need is rhetoric that could turn people away from vaccines. federal judge in d.c. ruled, today, a couple who stormed the capitol on january 6th carrying anti-vaccination signs will be sentenced to home confinement. they are sentenced to quarantine. okay. and that brings us to the man who said this before the rioters stormed the capitol. >> today is the day american patriots start taking down names and kicking ass!

>> oh, my gosh. who are these people listening to? and why? where are they getting their information? are they even getting information? is it just political rhetoric? or are they just that dull? now, congressman mo brooks is fighting a lawsuit by congressman eric swalwell who accused brooks, as well as the then president and several others of inciting the insurrection. and mo brooks is defending himself in the most mo-brooks way possible. representing himself. what could possibly go wrong? also, writing about himself in the third person, rarely a good sign. and offering what he calls verified brooks facts in his reply to the lawsuit.

stating that he is 67 years old, has never smoked tobacco, does not consume alcohol, and has never experimented with or taken illegal drugs, which has nothing to do with anything. oh, but there's more. verified brooks facts number seven. he's always been faithful to his wife. all of his children are married. none of them are divorced. none have been arrested. they have college degrees and jobs. and he has ten grandchildren with another on the way. verified brooks facts. look. all of which, may be true. but, you know, whatever. i'm not judging. it -- that may be true. god bless him. but none of that has anything to do with what happened on january 6th. nothing, at all. you know what happened on january 6th? that's when blood-thirsty trump supporters, not tourists, not peaceful patriots, not black lives matter or antifa, trump

supporters stormed the capitol. hunted lawmakers in the hallways. forcing them to run for it. that's when they -- these blood-thirsty trump supporters, when they beat police officers defending the capitol to within an inch of their lives. those are not the brooks facts. those -- those are the verified facts. verified facts. the insurrection deniers are, still, trying to sweep under the rug. don't fall for the okeydoke. i said we have a lot of news. big news, tonight. on multiple stories. new york's governor facing the possibility of impeachment in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment. >> this is classic gas lighting. the victim misunderstood. they didn't misunderstand. they knew exactly what he was doing. but all my employees need something different. oh, we can help with that. okay, imagine this... your mover, rob, he's on the scene and needs a plan with a mobile hotspot.

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back now with our big story. the pressure is mounting on new york governor andrew cuomo to step down. one of his closest allies and the leader of the state's democratic party, jay jacobs, is now joining the long list of people calling for his resignation. saying the governor has lost his ability to govern, both, practically and morally. new york democratic committee

chair, jay jacobs, joins me now. thank you for joining us, chairman. i appreciate it. >> thanks for having me. >> so, let's talk about this. you, personally, called on governor cuomo, today, to step -- you, personally, called him today, i should say. did you ask him to resign? what did he say? >> i did. i -- i spoke to him, at length. and i -- and i laid out for him that i thought, you know, he had a great legacy here, in new york. and his legacy would be damaged, if we went through the process of impeachment, which looked like an inevitability, at this point. and certainly, going to trial in the senate and a possible conviction. that was no way for him to end his career in politics. and i, also, pointed out that, in american politics, you know, there's always room for redemption. we have seen it so many times, before. and -- and people do come back, in some fashion. but it all depends upon how you go out. and i said there just was no turning around, at this point. i didn't see any path to him being able to overcome this.

the toothpaste was out of the tube with so many of the members of the assembly coming out. in fact, unanimously, looking for him to resign or be impeached. so, i didn't see how he would have a path to salvation. >> all right. so, that's what you said. what did he say? did he say that he'll never step down? did he say i'll think about it? or i'm going to? what did he -- how did he respond? >> well, he didn't characterize, you know, his views on resignation. he was more directed to -- to how he was going to defend himself. i think that he feels that -- um -- he wants his -- his moment to tell the public his side of the story. to have his lawyers review the evidence from their perspective. and they -- he feels that that will be a more favorable -- present a more favorable picture of the matter. i -- i just told him that, no matter what the preponderance of the evidence, the number of cases, particularly, the last one which we hadn't heard before

of the state trooper on his protective detail. you know, coming out. all of these things made it just way too difficult to overcome it, at this point. >> yeah. so, you said -- look, you were one of his closest allies. that was -- that was the thing that -- that changed, right, for you. was that? >> well, i mean, i thought that, you know, i read the 168-page report, i went through it. and, of course, listened to the press conference. and it was, you know, staggering, in parts. so, you know, you -- you look for that -- you know, you look for that possible opening where, maybe, you know, there's some confusion. or it's not exactly the story that's being told. but the attorney general's report made it very clear. that, you know, what the allegations were, were valid. as she said, she believed those women and when you read the report, i do, too. and -- and i feel badly for the governor because i don't see him as -- as a bad person, at all. he's done so much good. but this is just an unfortunate set of circumstances and now, we

are where we are. >> well, you said that -- in your -- in your phone call with him, he was focused on, and correct me if i'm wrong, his defense, right, in all of this? and so, i am -- yes -- so i am wondering, i just want to get your take then, because this was his defense yesterday. that videotaped response. here it is. >> i do it with everyone. black and white. young and old. straight and lgbtq. powerful people. friends. strangers. people who i meet on the street. i do kiss people on the forehead. i do kiss people on the cheek. i do kiss people on the hand. i do embrace people. i do hug people. men and women. i do, on occasion, say ciao

bella. on occasion, i do slip and say sweetheart or darling or honey. >> what do you think of that response? >> well, i mean, i think he was referencing one portion of -- of the complaint. the women who talked about being kissed on the cheek in a public event or something along those lines. and i -- and i don't -- you know, look, that's not what i think is the most serious element here. and i don't think that's what constitutes the biggest complaints that are made against him. if that was all there was, i don't think we would be where we are today. the problem comes in from the -- the other women who alleged that either they were touched. there was one that -- that said that, in particular. one said kissed. or -- or just felt -- just made uncomfortable in the workplace. and i think that's where, you know, the difficulty arises for him. and i don't think that he addressed that sufficiently in that taped interview. and i don't think that the taped

interview, actually, you know, went over the way, you know, i suspect he was hoping it would. >> is there any truth to his assertion that this is politically motivated? >> well, look. the facts are the facts. and that is separate and can be exclusive of the fact that there are political motivations, among numbers of people. new york's a very complex state and there is a lot going on and the governor's a very powerful, strong governor who's made a lot of enemies over the years. and there are a lot of people who like to see him go. both, for political-policy reasons and for the promotion of their own, you know, agendas. but that has nothing to do with the tattorney general's report. and that has nothing to do with the conclusions that were drawn, unfortunately. those are separate and distinct issues and, you know, while i'd agree, on the one hand, that there is certainly some of that. the facts still remain the facts and we just have to live with those facts. >> i got a quick question for you, before i let you go. so you said he was focused on his defense. didn't say -- didn't

characterize anything about if he would step down or anything like that. if he doesn't step down, where do you see this going? impeachment? removal from office? conviction? what do you see? >> i do. i -- i think that the troubles begin to mount. i think that the assembly is going to be moving, at a much faster pace than we had ever thought before. i think there's a consensus in the assembly that he should be impeached. that could happen within a matter of weeks, if not sooner. and then, if it goes to the senate, i don't see any possible way he avoids conviction. and i think that would be just a -- just a terrible end to a -- a great career. i think it would be a stain on a legacy that, certainly, deserves, you know, our admiration for so many parts of it. and -- and i'm just hopeful that he listens to the advice that he's been getting. advice, perhaps, that i gave him and that others are giving him, i'm sure. >> the president of the united states is giving him. >> that's right. the best course of action, right now, would be to just step aside and let's get us moving forward.

>> chairman jacobs, thank you for your time. i really appreciate it. >> thank you. >> thank you. how long can the governor hold on to his office? i am going to ask someone who has been covering new york politics for years. that's next. gling vehicle sound) think premium can't be capable? think again. ♪ (energetic music) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ introducing the first ever at4 lineup. premium and capable. that's professional grade from gmc. welcome to allstate. (phone notification) where we've just lowered our auto rates. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ and savings like that will have you jumping for joy.

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cnn they would vote to impeach cuomo after the explosive report on allegations of sexually harassed -- that he sexually harassed 11 women. a state official telling cnn, lieutenant governor is preparing, in case she needs to step in as governor. she has cleared her schedule, and has been in back-to-back meetings with legislators and advocacy groups just today. so joining me now, someone who knows all about new york politics, cnn political commentator, errol louis. errol, thank you for joining. you have been doing this for a while. you know what the heck you are talking about. so the governor is hemorrhaging support. even president biden, his closest allies, say that he must go. you have covered new york politics for a while. how long can he hang on? >> i would say, longer than you might imagine. you know, if -- if he wants to run with the support and cooperation of his partners in government, then sure, he'd have to leave, probably, before the weekend is over. but if he wants to just tough it

out, this turns into something of a political-science experiment. how long can he hold on? you could ask donald trump about that. who was impeached twice, who had all kinds of accusations against him. and he said, i'm going -- all -- all of these women are lying, said donald trump, and i'm going to sue all of them. and it turned out that they weren't lying, and he didn't sue any of them. and, you know, he had a lot of problems in his presidency. but he kind of made that problem just go away, and acted like it didn't exist. we just come through five months, don, where the -- the governor acted as if these accusations and this ongoing investigation didn't exist. he cut ribbons. he met with people, including officials who had called for him to step down. he smiled and he laughed, and he gave out awards. and -- and five months later, this devastating report comes out. i wouldn't be surprised if he tried to do the same thing. just kind of, you know, look, the sun comes up tomorrow. he is still going to be the governor of new york. one day at a time. i could see him attempting it. and it would go -- it could go

much longer than you'd ever imagine. >> you think he can tough it out till the end? >> well, you know, it -- it depends on what the end is. you know, the -- the reality is for months, now, new york voters -- >> this term. this term. and there's something else i want to ask you about what you said. and then, the trump comparison. but go on. >> yeah. i mean, look, there's -- there's a primary for his job. you know, there's a -- a re-elect coming up. and the democratic primary will be in june of next year. that's not that far off. could he tough it out until then? it would be incredibly dysfunctional. it would be detrimental to the state. it would be a huge embarrassment. it would give late-night comedians endless material but it could happen and that would -- that would not be a good thing for anybody. you know, lot of pressing issues that are not getting dealt with. several lawmakers are telling me because everybody is absorbed by this ongoing drama. >> but if they start the impeachment process and he is impeached, it's not like the presidency. i mean, he has to go away until

they decide whether to convict or not, right? and then, kathy hochel will become the governor in the interim, am i correct? >> right. that's the other scenario you asked. can he hang on till the end? the end could come in just a couple months if the assembly impeaches, you are correct. in new york, unlike the federal system, you have to step aside pending the actual trial. the governor would then have 30 days to organize a defense. and then, there would be a trial. he would very likely just as jay jacobs said a few minutes ago, the chair of the state party, he would very likely be voted out of office. and that would be the end. all of that could happen, before the end of this year. >> okay. quick -- quick, then. can he say -- can the legislature or the assembly say it's too close to the election, why not let the voters decide? is that a possibility? >> yes, but it's highly, highly unlikely. >> okay. all right. i get it. i get it. i get it. because i want to ask you another question. >> no -- nobody's thinking along those lines on the democratic side. >> all right. but you -- you compared it to trump. but with trump, he -- he didn't

have -- he had the majority of the people who could save him, right? the democrats didn't have the votes. with the governor, aren't the calls coming from inside the house that are saying, hey, brother, you got to go? so -- >> that's right. that's right. >> him hanging on like, you know, sort of trump-like fashion. is that even possible? >> but you know what? here's -- here's another scenario and this is not quite trump like but andrew cuomo. the governor, generally, thinks that the state legislature, the members of the state legislature are not very competent. he doesn't have a lot of regard for them. he -- he has respect for some of them but generally, he -- he realizes that they can screw things up easily. especially, since we haven't had an impeachment since 1913. nobody living knows how this is supposed to go. and so, if they make a misstep, along the way, andrew cuomo, who is former attorney general and, you know, a pretty good lawyer, himself, will -- will pounce on that. and -- and the whole thing could

end up in court. and the state's highest court, conveniently enough, has seven members. each of whom, was appointed by andrew cuomo. this -- this -- this could -- this could go into some very strange places before -- before it's all over. >> oh, my gosh. what was the other thing that i wanted to ask you one more thing, and i can't remember since you brought up that scenario. oh! um, depending on public support, he could run, again. if -- if -- you know, if one of these things plays out the way that you say, it -- he could run again and possibly win. maybe. i don't know. who knows? >> yeah, the polls are all suggesting that most voters, even -- even before this report came out, did not want him to run for a fourth term. keep in mind, he is the dean of u.s. governors. there's no governor in america that's been in office as long as he has. you know, you are coming up on 12 years now, and, you know, the argument that he should have 16, another four years on top of it, there is such a thing as just staying too long. and that was a political problem he was going to face, even

before this report came out. >> errol, we're in strange times. so, look. you never know. you never know. >> never know. that's correct. >> thank you, sir. i appreciate it. see you soon. >> thank you. new details coming out about just how far the former president went to try and stay in office. and my next guest warns the gop's paving the way for another attempted coup.

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so, there are two shocking developments involving the justice department under the former president. showing how he pressured the doj to back up his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. cnn learning that a former-top official in the department drafted a resignation letter because of trump's direct instructions to use the doj to support his false-election fraud claims. and another draft letter, obtained by the -- by abc -- abc

news shows the trump loyalist within the doj wanting to urge top-georgia officials to investigate trump's baseless-fraud claims. i want to bring in, now, cnn's senior justice correspondent, evan perez. evan, here we go. it never ends. it's always one even more shocking than the last. so let's start with this resignation letter that was on the brink of being sent out. the official who wrote it was deeply concerned about what trump was doing to weaponize the doj, right? >> that's right. his name is patrick hovakimian. he was the -- the chief of staff to the then-acting attorney general, jeffrey rosen. and this all happened, don, around new year's weekend. and he knew that, on that sunday, january 3rd, rosen was going to the white house. and he -- they -- he and other officials expected that president trump was going to fire him, and replace him with this other official, jeffrey clark, who was an acting head of

the civil division. and that everything was going to change. as you know, the justice department had found that there was no -- there was not enough fraud. there was not enough evidence to support the president's claim that the -- that the election was stolen. and here's the letter that hovakimian wrote. it was a draft that he was prepared to send. and it says, in part, that the acting attorney general, jeffrey rosen, over the course of the last week, repeatedly, refused the president's direct instructions to utilize the justice department's law enforcement powers for improper ends. in the end, rosen was not fired. by the president. and hovakimian testified or -- or provided an interview to house investigators yesterday. we have another couple of officials expected to come in over the next couple of days because they are trying to get to the bottom of what exactly went down in those key days, don. >> okay. so, listen. the draft letter by the trump loyalists at the doj that shows forces within the department

that were trying to carry out trump's will and the lies that they were pushing in order to do it. talk to us about that. >> so, jeffrey clark is the official that i just talked about. he is the one that trump was talking about, about replacing jeffrey rosen with. and here's part of what he was doing. he wanted to -- he drafted a letter for rosen to send to georgia officials telling them that there was concerns about fraud. and that they should bring back the legislator -- legislature as the president was trying to do. and they were resisting it. and here's part of what, when he suggests this letter, rich donoghue, who was the deputy attorney general, at the time, acting, says there is no chance that i would sign this letter or anything remotely like this. from where i stand, this is not even within the realm of possibility. rosen responds, also, to the -- to this claim from clark. he says, it -- it confirmed -- i confirmed, again, today that i am not prepared to sign -- to sign such a letter.

and -- and, don, going back to, you know, hovakimian's letter, january 3rd is a day that president trump decides that he is going to bring clark and rosen to the white house, again. it's -- it's a sunday evening. and they spend the next few hours in some kind of bizarre relate-tv show like script where the two men are essentially vying for the job of attorney general. whoever wins is going to be able to -- to -- to decide, frankly, you know, the course of history here. and at the end, trump was persuaded by his advisers that it was not smart to do this. hovakimian and multiple other officials were ready to resign. this was going to be something like nixon, right? saturday night massacre. and so, we now know what happened three days later. people who were inspired by the president's fraud claims charged up the capitol, and -- and we know what happened. >> it sounds like a -- some reality-show competition. thank you, very much. i -- i appreciate that, everyone perez. i want to bring in now, max booth, senior fellow at the

council on foreign relations and "the washington post" columnist. and michael bender, white house reporter for "the wall street journal." he is also the author of "frankly, we did win this election, the inside story of how trump lost." good evening, gentlemen, to both of you. max booth, i am going to start with you. the pressure trump and his allies were putting on the doj was unprecedented and both of these developments show top officials were seriously worried about what could have happened if trump got his way. it is clear that he was trying to set the stage for some kind of coup attempt. >> that's exactly right, don. this is an event that is unprecedented in american history. have never had a president, before, who refused to recognize the outcome of -- of an election. and then, tried to overturn the election. and, you know, now, you are hearing a lot of excuse making for what trump did. there is a lot of people, on the right, who are saying, you know, this is all overblown. it was just a normal-tourist visit on january 6th. there was nothing to worry about. even people who admit that it was more than a normal-tourist

visit will say, well, the stability of the republic was never in question. this is all being overblown, overhyped by the media, by democrats, et cetera. no, it is not being overhyped. this was a genuine threat to the republic and the only reason trump was not able to carry out his plot was because republican office holders refused to do his bidding. for example, the georgia secretary of state, brad raffensperger. or in this case, the acting-attorney general, jeff rosen. those people stood up to trump and refused to carry out his -- his coup attempt. but we may not be that lucky, next time around because right now, republicans are purging anybody from the party who will put loyalty to the constitution above loyalty to donald trump. they are setting the stage for another coup attempt, in 2024. >> michael, you wrote all about the chaos in the final days of the trump presidency. and how even white house officials were worried that trump was -- was a danger. when you see this new reporting,

what does it say about the president's desperation just to remain in power? >> yeah, that's right, don. i mean, it is well beyond chaos in these last -- in these last -- in this last month, this last couple of months. the people around him were worried about what lengths he was willing to go to, to hold onto power. i mean, i have a story in the book here about in the early november, don, was when trump started talking about getting rid of bill barr. when he offered the job to other people. um, he even offered it to richard donoghue, at -- at the justice department. rosen's number two. but donoghue wanted to follow the -- the -- the chain of command here and trump eventually gave the -- gave the acting job to rosen. which shows how really, really close we -- we came there. rosen is someone who sees his allegiance to the constitution, not the office of the president. and -- and, you know, max mentions the chaos in -- in georgia. that story in this book, too. you know, by the -- by the

end -- by the beginning of january, lawyers were showing up in georgia saying the white house has sent us. we're with the white house. and that sounded very odd to the people down in georgia who had been there for, you know, several months who are actually from the white house. the first team that pat cipollone had sent with the campaign. they -- now, you know, mitchell and rudy giuliani's team was coming in, at the end, you know, just adding to, you know, the pandemonium down there. >> hmm. should the -- the doj now be investigating the former president and what he tried to do, how he tried to co-opt his doj? we will talk about that right after the break.

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we're back now. michael bender here with me. max, so many republicans are embracing the big lie and your column in the "washington post" today says that by denying trump's coup coup attempt the right is laying the groundwork for another one? i mean, is the threat growing? and if so what will it take to stop it? >> i think the threat is growing, don. because you see republicans putting everything in place. everything that they're doing right now, purging dissenters from their ranks, people like liz cheney who put the constitution above loyalty to trump, they're all getting removed from positions of authority. the republican party is making clear that you have to be willing to go along with the big lie and the big steal in order to be a republican in good standing. and right now all these republican state legislators around the country, they are passing laws to restrict the franchise, to restrict the vote. they're passing gerrymandering statutes.

all of that is making it more likely that republicans will take back control of the house next year and possibly the senate as well. and the big thing that prevented trump from stealing the election in 2020 was the fact that republicans only controlled one chamber of congress. imagine what happens in 2024 if republicans control both the house and the senate and the election is relatively close. once again, there will be pressure from the right to not recognize electors in swing states that voted for biden. there will be pressure to assign those electors to the republican candidate, who could very well be donald trump again. and are we really confident that republicans will resist that pressure in 2024? i'm not confident at all. i think the odds of a successful coup are actually growing. >> michael, that said, do you think the current department of justice, i asked this question before the break, should the current department of justice be investigating the former president's conduct? >> i think there are a lot of

questions that still have to be answered about what happened in the run-up to january 6th, is on january 6th, and there's a lot of -- going to be a lot of back and forth over executive privilege, who's allowed to testify, who's not. but one thing i'm watching here is that next layer, the people around trump who are not protected by executive privilege who trump is in regular contact with at the campaign, at the republican national committee, and you know, friends of of his and outside advisers. >> thank you, gentlemen. i appreciate it. i'll see you soon. >> thank you. the u.s. averaging more than 90,000 coronavirus cases a day right now. but instead of making public health a priority, the country's republican governors are using the pandemic to score political points. when you are shopping fow vehicle, how do you know which brand you can trust? with subaru, you get kelley blue book's most trusted brand winner, seven years in a row. in fact, subaru has won most trusted brand for more consecutive years than any other brand.

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tonight the pressure is building on new york's embattled governor andrew cuomo to resign.

the head of the state's democratic party says cuomo has to go. and the state assembly has enough votes to impeach him after new york's attorney general released a report on allegations cuomo sexually harassed multiple women. also tonight, the defense secretary expected to require all active duty u.s. troops to get the covid vaccine. it could happen as soon as this week. cases nationwide spiking. now more than 90,000 new cases each day. and florida's governor ron desantis sniping at joe biden after the president called on him and other gop governors to help fight the spread of covid or get out of the way. joining me now, cnn political commentator charlie dent and cnn senior political analyst ron brownstein. gentlemen, good evening to both of you. charlie, you're up first. the day after president biden was urging republican governors to help or get out of the way, florida governor ron desantis is firing back. listen. >> his solution is he wants to have the government force