power on trial return to charlottesville" airs this sunday night at 9:00 eastern. thank you, all, so much for being here. really appreciate it. i'm kate bolduan. "ac 360" starts right now. good evening. a vigil tonight in oxford, michigan, for the for four students kill at oxford high school on tuesday. this comes at the end of a day's worth of developments that have been together short of stunning and it is not over yet. first, the charging of the parents for manslaughter. then, the search for them and now just in details on that effort. they are james crumbley, who authorities say bought the 9 millimeter pistol for his 15-year-old son and the shooter's mother, jennifer crumbley, who texted him after he was caught at school. searching online for ammunition and told him, quote, lol, i'm not mad at you. you have to learn not to get caught. they remain unaccounted for. the couple was supposed to show up for a 4:00 p.m. arraignment.

these were patrol cars staking out their home late today. instead, they dropped off the way dar. a manhuntd began and though their attorney later said they were on their way back to turn themselves in, we have yet to see them tonight. in a moment, the county prosecutor who charge $them. first, cnn-a alexandra field joins us from oxford with new detail on the parents. alexandra? >> anderson, we are learning investigators had been keeping tabs on those parents. tracking their cell phone pings. at some point, the cell phones were switched off and it seems the trail then went cold. at least temporarily. a law enforcement official also telling cnn's mark morales, we now know the couple withdrew some $4,000 from rochester hills, the city in which they were supposed to show up for their arraignment earlier today. they never went to the courthouse. that, after a prosecutor decided to charge both parents laying out a passionate case for why they should be held accountable. while the shooter was the one who entered the high school and

pulled the trigger, there are other individuals who contributed to this. >> reporter: in a rare move, a prosecutor holding the parents of a school shooter responsible in the deaths of four teenagers. hunted down, investigators say, by their son in the hallways of a high school. >> anyone who had the opportunity to stop this from happening to have done it. >> reporter: james and jennifer crumbley, each, charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter following tuesday's attack. >> we have an active shooter incident. so far, we do have confirmed injuries. >> reporter: the oakland county prosecutor saying the father bought the semiautomatic handgun used in the shooting four days before the attack with his 15-year-old son by his side. this shooter, later posting a picture of it on social media with the caption, just got my new beauty today. and his mother in her own now-deleted post, writing mom and son day. testing out his new christmas present according to prosecutors. within days, their son's behavior sets off alarm bells

alt oxford high school. prosecutors laying out a series of glaring failures that followed. a teacher at oxford high school observed the shooter. >> searching ammunition on his cell phone during class and reported the same to school officials. >> reporter: jennifer crumbley doesn't respond to messages from the school but investigators say she does send a text message to her son. lol, i'm not mad at you. you have to learn not to get caught. the next day, the morning of the shooting, another teacher makes a shocking discovery. >> a drawing of a semiautomatic handgun pointing at the words, quote, the thoughts won't stop, help me. end quote. in other section of the note was a drawing of a bullet with the following words above that bullet, quote, blood everywhere. end quote. between the drawing of the gun and the bullet is a drawing of a person who appears to have been shot twice and bleeding. below that figure is a drawing of a laughing emoji. further down the drawing are the words quote my life is useless, end quote. and to the night -- right of that are the words, quote, the

world is dead, end quote. >> reporter: officials say the suspect and his parents met with administrators, law enforcement isn't notified. neither is the school resource officer. but the crumbleys who were told to get counseling for their son within 48 hours resist taking him home for the day. they never ask him where his gun is, likely in his backpack, investigators say. as news of a shooting at the high school breaks tuesday afternoon, a text from jennifer, don't do it. minutes later, prosecutors say james crumbley calls 9-1-1 to report a missing gun that had been stored investigators say in an unlocked drawer. >> i am, by no means, saying that an active shooter situation should always result in a criminal prosecution against parents. but the facts of this case are so egregious. this doesn't just impact me as a prosecutor and a lawyer, it impacts me as a mother. >> do you have any more late

details act this manhunt now? >> sure. the fbi, the u.s. marshals, the sheriff's deps have all been trying to track down this couple. the sheriff's officer said they had been in touch with attorneys representing the couple to coordinate the arrest but they say the attorneys then lost contact with the couple. now, bizarrely, anderson, later in the day, the attorneys put out a statement saying that the couple had not fled. they had simply left town for their own safety out of -- following the attacks. and that they would be making their way back. the last we saw them publicly, of course, anderson, was when they appeared via video link for their son's arraignment wednesday. it appeared at that time that they were in a car, anderson. >> alexandra field, appreciate it. joining us now, oakland county prosecutor, karen mcdonald. ms. mcdonald, appreciate you being on the program tonight. do you know where the shooter's parents are right now? >> i do not. i -- i am being briefed on any kind of update. but, no, i don't. though, i'm -- i'm confident they will be apprehended

swiftly. >> do you believe their attorneys when they say the parents left town for their own safety and are not actually fleeing? does that make sense to you? >> you know, their attorneys are doing their job. they're doing their best to represent their clients. so, um, no, i don't. i think just as they contacted our office last night, we don't -- we purposely don't reveal information about what we're doing, and when we're doing it to a defense attorney on this kind of crime. so, you know, i don't -- if they were going to turn themselves in, this was announced the -- the warrant was around 11:40 and it's now 8:00. so um, i think it -- it actually isn't surprising, given what's now been revealed. and -- and i know i mentioned to you last night that there was a critical piece of evidence that -- that really, um, showed their culpability here and based

on that, it doesn't really surprise me that they -- they won't stand up and -- and follow the -- the court order and turn themselves in. >> it is -- is what we learned today -- is that -- is one of those pieces the piece of critical evidence you had been referencing? >> the drawing that was produced at the meeting with the -- the school officials and parents and shooter -- their son. at that moment, there was -- and your -- your story indicates -- there were some really, really, um, troubling facts, such as -- um -- blood everywhere. the world is dead. um, there -- there were drawings of guns, drawings of a bullet. drawing of a person, um, holding up a gun or being shot. it -- that, coupled with the search on the cell phone with -- of ammunition. you know, what really -- i -- i

can't -- as long -- it's been -- i -- i would say, three days knowing this. but to think that they sat there knowing that, looking at those drawings, and also knowing that they had purchased a gun for their son, given it to him, allowed him access. he -- he acted as if it were his own. he posted it was his. mom posted as -- as -- we published today -- that she was giving that -- a gun for her baby. proud of that. and then, left no obstacles for access to it. and that they didn't say to the school officials or anyone else, hey, uh, just so you know, he has a weapon. i think we should take him home. just so you know, he has access to a gun. instead, they resisted taking him and their decision was made that he should go back to class. and what we know now is there was actually -- we -- we have to assume, based on the footage

that we have sand a lot of othe things, that gun was in the backpack with the child at that meeting. and it wasn't two hours later, that he walked into a bathroom, walked out and began to systematically try to kill as many people as he could. so, yes, i think they are culpable and i think their actions, upon hearing that there was an active shooter at their son's school, are even more disturbing. >> this may be a dumb question but do you know when they were told to come to the school that day? did they know what it was in reference to? i -- i assume -- i know they had been contacted the day before, and didn't respond about i guess about the ammunition. i don't know if they were told about searching for the ammunition. um, i guess, i -- i'm asking that question because -- >> they were. there was a voicemail left about that. >> because if they knew this was about disturbing images of a gun and stuff, you would think as a parent, the first thing you would do is say, oh, you know what? before we go to the school, let's just check, make sure see

where that gun is. um, i mean, is it possible they knew the gun was actually in the backpack with their child in the very meeting? >> i -- i can't say, um, with certainty. but let's just take it another step further. upon looking at the drawing which, by the way, wasn't really a drawing. it was a worksheet handed out by the first-hour teacher on -- about a review. and so, on the worksheet, there were drawings of all these disturbing drawings and statements. upon looking at that, why wouldn't they go straight to their home? putting aside -- which actually, i can't put aside that they didn't even disclose it at that moment or check to see if their -- their son was -- had that weapon -- go right home and look to see where the weapon was. they did not. and how do we know that? we know that because right after the -- the public being notified about an active shooter, dad

doesn't do what you and i would do, anderson. he doesn't immediately run to the school and ask about his child or call his kid to see, are you okay? is everything okay? he drives to his house and it was -- it's for one reason. to look for that weapon. and -- and finds it missing, and then makes a 9-1-1 call and says this gun is missing and i think my son is -- is the shooter. and -- and i have reviewed these facts for three days. >> jeff toobin here. i -- why didn't you arrest them, first? and then, hold the press conference? wouldn't that have eliminated the problem today? >> the prosecutor's office doesn't arrest people. we were in constant, um, communication with the sheriff's office. our -- our prosecutors, um, that were look -- leading the -- the case. and they were surveilling them and we were told they were surveilling them. we were getting updates about

the cell phone pinging and they -- they conveyed to us that they were confident where -- where the two people were. um, one of the detectives working on the case who is -- who's very skilled swore to the warrant immediately after we had the press conference. this was all laid out very early in the morning in terms of the timing. but -- but two, at least a day and a half prior to this, i specifically said to one of my assistant prosecutors who is the lead on this case, do we have eyes on those two? and he left the room. he made a call. he came back. they know where they are. they -- they're comfortable with that. >> so what happened? >> now, what happened between the -- i -- i can't speak to it. um, and i know that there was a representation that they would be turning themselves in. so um, you know, look. this isn't a perfect science. and i'm not going -- i'm not in law enforcement and there are a lot of things that they don't disclose to the public. but it's possible that -- it's possible to evade for some period of time.

and that doesn't -- that doesn't mean that there's any -- anyone did anything wrong . but i know that i certainly wouldn't go on tv and announce charges and then just hope for the best that these two people would be apprehended. you know, and i know this is an interesting story and i -- i -- i understand why. but we have victims in oxford watching this. and i think it's a -- it's a real discredit to these families and these victims to be talking about why these two defendants have not been apprehended yet. um, they will apprehended, one way or another. and i just don't want that story to be about those two anymore. this story should be about that community suffering. that's what this story should be about and -- and what we are doing to hold people accountable. >> let me just ask you on that finally. the terrorism charge, it -- it's -- it caught a lot of

people's attention because it's unusual to hear that charge in this. but it seems to speak to what you just said, which is that the victim -- when you say victims, you are not just talking about those killed, those shot. you are talking about the school community, who lived through this, whose lives may be forever changed in ways we can't even imagine. and is that what's at the heart of the terrorism charge? that i mean terrorism is a often thought of as, you know, it's violence in order to have a political or social end to it? >> well, the federal terrorism charge is different than -- than the -- the charge in michigan that requires an act against a community, not a government. and charging the shooter with first-degree murder, four counts. seven counts of intent -- assault with intent to murder. that captures the brutal, brutal murders and assaults. but we also need to respect the hundreds of students that were

in that school that -- that day. running for their lives out of the building. running. hiding underneath, um, desks, in bathroom stalls, and sending messages. i've had an opportunity to look at some of the messages or review that those kids were sending their parents. and i can't even imagine what that must have been like. receiving a text that your -- your teenager is saying i love you so much. i -- i -- i think i'm going to be killed. um, what -- what are we -- what charge addresses that? and the answer is the terrorism charge. >> and just briefly, do you hope that this -- >> i think it's appropriate. >> -- the charge -- charging the parents -- that that sends a message to other parents in the future about gun responsibility? about, you know, just being decent parents in -- when you have a troubled child? >> yes, you know, i have great compassion for parents who -- with kids that are struggling. i -- i -- we've -- my husband

and i have raised five teenagers and there are lots of things that happen. and i'm certainly not suggesting that every parent of a child who commits a criminal act should be criminally responsible. but this is something different, anderson. this is something totally different and -- and i, you know, laying out the facts today in the press conference, you just can't deny. i mean, mom texting her son don't do it. i don't even -- i don't -- i don't understand that. i don't understand how the day before, upon hearing the voicemail that he was looking up ammunition, her text was, lol, just make sure you don't get caught. >> yeah. >> this is -- this is something completely different. and it's -- and it's criminal. and -- and i -- i couldn't even imagine not -- not holding those two people responsible. they bought a weapon for their son and had every reason to believe -- at least the day

before and certainly the morning of -- that he was -- was very likely going to commit a violent act. and they did nothing. they did nothing. they allowed him to go back to -- to class and walked out of that building and never once thought or cared enough to say to a school official or anyone else, our son has a gun. >> karen mcdonald, i appreciate your time. >> and, you know, we have -- we have -- we have answers to give to these parents. we just do. >> yeah. ms. mcdonald, i really appreciate your time tonight. thank you. >> coming up next, more on the manhunt and the unprecedented step today of charging the parents. we will talk to jeff and the rest of our legal and law enforcement team. cnn just obtained a copy of mark meadow's book. what we are learning from it including what he said the former president told him on january 6th right after telling a crowd to march on the capitol.

there are beautiful ideas that remain in the dark. but with our new multi-cloud experience, you have the flexibility you need to unveil them to the world. ♪ like many people with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis or crohn's disease, i was there. be right back. but my symptoms were keeping me from where i needed to be. so i talked to my doctor and learned humira is the #1 prescribed biologic for people with uc or crohn's disease. and humira helps people achieve remission that can last, so you can experience few or no symptoms. humira can lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections, including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas

where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. be there for you and them. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, remission is possible. learn how abbvie could help you save on humira.

step up. prep up. to help keep you free from the risk of hiv. descovy for prep. a once-daily prescription medicine... ...that helps lower the chances of getting hiv through sex. it's not for everyone. descovy for prep has not been studied in people

assigned female at birth. talk to your doctor to find out if it's right for you. descovy is another way to prep. descovy does not prevent other sexually transmitted infections, so it's important to use safer sex practices and get tested regularly. you must be hiv-negative to take descovy for prep. so, you need to get tested for hiv immediately before and at least every 3 months while taking it. if you think you were exposed to hiv or have flu-like symptoms, tell your doctor right away. they may check to confirm you are still hiv-negative. serious side effects can occur, including kidney problems and kidney failure. rare, life-threatening side effects include a build-up of lactic acid and liver problems. the most common side effect was diarrhea. tell your doctor about all the medicines and supplements you take, or if you have kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis. if you have hepatitis b, do not stop taking descovy without talking to your doctor. ask your doctor about your risk of hiv... ...and if descovy for prep is right for you. get help paying for descovy for prep. learn more at stepupprepup.com.

as we speak, the parents of the alleged oxford michigan school shooter remain una i counted for. earlier today, withdrew $4,000 from a local atm. jeff toobin is back. sara azari. also, former fbi deputy director, andrew mccabe. andrew, so the fbi, the u.s. marshals now involved in this manhunt. can you just walk us through what they're doing right now to find these people? >> sure, anderson. so immediately, the analysts at the fbi and the marshal service will be putting together every known fact about these two individuals. so, that's their -- the telephone numbers they use, the e-mail addresses they use, their social media accounts. their addresses, former addresses, businesses addresses, colleagues at work, friends in the neighborhood. and all of those pieces of -- of -- of fact, those pieces of evidence are being run down by agents on the street. people are being interviewed. um, electronic data is being searched. known credit cards would be

tracked with -- through the use of a legal process. their cell phones could be pinged. if you have those cell phone numbers, you can go to the -- to the service providers and find out what towers those phones are currently accessing. it gives you a general area where that phone might be. so, there's many, many different, um, investigative avenues that i'm sure all of those folks are -- are running down right now. >> jeff, you heard the prosecutor defending herself against criticism about announcing the parents without having them in custody. is that -- is that -- >> i mean, let's ask andy. i mean, andy, you know, you -- the fbi arrests people all the time. do you hold a press conference, before you have people in handcuffs where they could just disappear? >> you know, it's -- it's -- it's confounding to me, jeff. it's -- to a case of this prominence where you plan to do a press conference. i mean, press conferences are not done until after people are in custody. i mean, typically, fbi cases --

people don't know they're going to be arrested because there aren't press conferences so you don't have this concern. but in big cases like this, it's confounding that they would take -- make a move like that, without already having their hands on those two. >> sara, despite the fact the attorneys for the parents claim they will turn themselves into be arraigned, they didn't do so today. i mean, this just lands them in more legal trouble, doesn't it? i mean, this is obviously a really dumb thing. it's not like they're mastermind criminals who are going to be able to, you know, live. you know, get a private jet and go somewhere. >> no. so -- >> sorry, sorry, sorry, andrew, that was for sara. >> oh, sorry. >> that's all right. >> that's what criminal defense attorneys do to sort of bring down the temperature. you know, they tell the court and the prosecutor, they are on their way, they are coming. they just left for their own security. they hit traffic? i mean, it's ridiculous. and really, this is going to work against them, anderson,

because now they are deemed to be fleeing. they are deemed to be a flight risk. when you don't show up to court, doesn't matter where you are, you are a flight risk. and so, if and when they are arrested or decide to surrender, that's bad fact for them in it terms of bond. they may not get bond and may stay in detention. >> andrew, one of the things that's so just sickening about this case is that, you know, there were red flags and there were red flags that were noticed by vigilant teachers who took a photograph of the drawing made by the suspect. because the suspect later, you know, changed around the drawing by the time he had the meeting with the parents. there was the teacher who saw the -- him searching for ammunition the day before that. you know, there was the meeting that the school officials had. and yet, this still took place. >> that is the heart of this tragedy, anderson. there were so many people who did the right thing. those teachers who brought their concerns to the administration of the school. of calling in the parents to have that meeting. but the final step wasn't taken.

and of course, the parents it appears completely abdicated their responsibility to maintain the -- the -- the security of that weapon. and -- and cater to their son's obvious problems. so, you know, the -- the -- i guess, the message here is you have to get everything right. any mistake, any dropped ball in that series of events could lead to the sort of tragedy we saw on tuesday. it's just heartbreaking. >> what's interesting is, legally, um, it's going to be interesting to see what the prosecution says the parents did. >> right. i mean, how tough is it to go against the parents? >> it's very rare that we prosecute people for omissions. you know, this sometimes comes up with bartenders when they serve like really drunk people and they go out and have a -- you know, kill somebody with a car. those cases are very hard -- hard to make. and, you know, as i was listening, i mean, this story is horrible. but what the parents did is terrible. but, you know, the criminal law

is about acts. and like, when did they commit a crime? did they commit a crime by failing to take the gun out of the backpack? did they commit a crime by saying don't do it? to their son. i don't know. >> well, isn't it a crime -- i mean, it's a crime to buy a gun and -- and not for yourself, to give it to a 15-year-old, isn't it? >> no, it's not. i don't think it is. you know, michigan is a state where teenagers hunt with their parents all the time. i mean, there -- there is not -- you know, and -- and michigan is a state that's very pro-gun in its laws and so there are not rules about, you know, you have to secure a gun. there are not rules about, you know, who can have access to guns. so i mean, look. i'm as horrified by this as anyone. but, you know, the -- the legal case against the parents is -- >> sara, do you agree with that as a defense attorney? that -- that it's actually a tough case for prosecutors? >> yes and no. i mean, i agree with jeff that it's rare that you have a case of omission, versus act. but i ever had cases of omission. and, you know, i mean, these are

some really egregious set of facts. that's why we say the charges are unprecedented. so are the facts. you know? and i think the prosecution does have a chance here. the text messages are bad. the events that took place at the school are bad. i mean, knowing that your child is in mental crisis and you bought him a gun and he has access to the gun. and instead of pulling him out of the school, you leave him there after he's basically drawn out what he is about to do. i mean, i can't think of anything more criminally negligent than that. and so, if they are convicted, of course, they are facing up to 15 years on each of those counts. and so, you know, we'll see how it goes. but i think the prosecution has a shots but i agree with jeff that it's not common for us to, um, see cases of omissions, versus acts. >> there is also the mom texting the son, allegedly, saying you know, well, you just got to figure out how not to get caught in the future. sara, really appreciate it. jeff toobin, andrew mccabe as well. thank you. coming up, emergency

medicine physician joins us to talk about troubling new data about how quickly the new coronavirus variant may spread. ♪ i'm a reporter for the new york times. if you just hold it like this. yeah. ♪ i love finding out things that other people don't want me to know.

mm-hmm. [beep] i just wanted to say... ♪ find yourself in these situations and see who you are. and that's just part of the bargain. ♪ are you one of the millions of americans who experience occasional bloating, gas or abdominal discomfort? taking align every day can help. align contains a quality probiotic developed by gastroenterologists. it adds more good bacteria to your gut

to naturally help soothe your occasional bloating, gas and abdominal discomfort. support your digestive health with align, the #1 doctor recommended probiotic. try align today. and try new align fast acting biotic gummies. helps soothe occasional digestive upsets in as little as 7 days.

tonight, cdc director dr. row rochelle walensky says data shows omicron variant could be more contagious than others. also, health officials in south africa raising concerns over the

variant. joining us now, emergency medicine physician inside medicine newsletter writer, dr. jeremy faus. dr. faus, covid cases have quadrupled since tuesday. rising from 4,000 to 16,000 new cases today. what do you make of -- of what we know about omicron variant in just one week? >> good to be with you, anderson. we have learned so much. we didn't know this existed a week or two ago. and now, we know a lot. and we're learning more. we are concerned about the transmissibility, the contagiousness of this virus. but we actually have really, so far up until now, largely been going based on genetic information. and we really -- the science on this is developing, and it's fascinating. what do i mean by that? when we look at a genetic sequence of a mutation or a variant, we don't really know what that means. we aren'tcal make a lot of inferences but we are starting to be able to, the way that meteorologists can stack storms and say this one worries us. we're not sure but watch out. and some of them turn out to be duds and some of them are

category five. and that's where we have been with this so far. now, we are learning it certainly seems to be as contagious or may be as contagious as people were beginning to worry about. but i think the question on people's minds is what does that mean? does it cause worst disease and in whom? >> the person in minnesota who was infected with omicron variant had a mild case of covid. got two vaccine doses, and a booster dose. in the uk, of the 22 confirmed cases of omicron, 14 people had received at least two doses of vaccines. is -- is that a concern? i mean, mild cases, as far as we know, um, at least on the one hand, the u.s., does that tell you that the vaccines are working? does it tell you what? >> these anecdotes are difficult to parse out. not all anecdotes are symmetric. there is a little bit of asymmetry. if we were to hear we had a lot of icus full of people who had been boosted and on ventilators, i think a small number of cases would alarm us. so right now, it is too soon to

know the severity of these conditions on a -- on a systemic population level. i do think that it's reasonable to prognosticate and to guess that this is breaking through people who have had vaccine or booster. the question is, as you say, is it really just an example of the vaccine doing what they were always design today do? they were always designed to do stop the serious suffering, the bad outcomes and we got this gift in terms of the effect -- the infection protection. which that clearly was a short -- shorter-term thing. and that we can boost to -- to -- to get that better. but really, these vaccines were always designed to keep the worst outcomes from occurring. and even in the delta period, i think we saw them hold up remarkably well. greet study out in the new england journal of medicine this week showing across all age groups, effectiveness even during delta was just outd standing for two doses. now, we know certain groups definitely need three. but really, these vaccines are doing what they are design today do. >> yeah. doctor, appreciate it.

thank you. up next, former white house chief of staff mark meadows says the former president told him right after he stepped off the stage on january 6th.

new information tonight about the former president's behavior on january 6th. cnn has just obtained his former

chief of staff mark meadow es's book. in it, he he accounts a conversation he had with the former president where he called on people to march on the capitol and quote fight like hell. meadows wrote when he got off stauj, president trump let me know he had been speaking metaphorically about the walk to the capitol. he knew, as well as anyone, that we couldn't organize a trip like that on such short notice. it was clear the whole time that he didn't actually intend to walk down pennsylvania avenue with the crowd. not sure it was clear to the crowd. joining us now, cnn contributor and former nixon white house counsel, john dean. and cnn senior political commentator and former senior adviser to president obama, david axelrod. david, uh, in the days leadling up to the rally, the former president telling his aides he wanted to march to the capitol with supporters but he was told secret service would be unable to protect him. that's according to maggie haberman in "the new york times." i also don't think he used the word metaphorical. >> yeah. well, it -- it may well be. for -- yeah. i can't exact -- exactly imagine president trump saying i was

only speaking metaphorically. but be that as it may, look. um, i think that it is true that it is hard to organize a walk down pennsylvania avenue with the secret service. i mean, my -- my sense was the president at that time never had any intention of going down there with the crowd. he was trying to get them to go down there. >> of course. >> and so, but in terms of what meadows was up to, i think a lot of this book seems to be a rationale for a bunch of stuff, conspiracy theories that -- that the president was trying to foster over those months and -- and meadows was the instrument for a lot of that. >> john, this is the only conversation that meadows discusses between himself and the former president on january 6th. does writing about this conversation or this part of the conversation, as well as others on other dates undermine any claims of executive privilege? >> good question. whether there's a waiver or not. there's no litigation whatsoever

that i'm familiar with that has ever been addressed by a court. in fact, any kind of a waiver case you get into are pretty nuanced and difficult. so, you know, he may well claim that he has a right to reveal what he has revealed because he's carefully considered whether this is something that is executive privilege or not. and use that before the january 6th committee. i don't know that that will work. it -- it would, again, be endless stalling to litigate this. whether he's waived it or not. but it -- he's going to clearly try to have it both ways where he can give enough to sell a book. but not give away anything that's going to get either his boss or himself in trouble. >> yeah. we'll see how many books he actually sells with this thing. david, meadows engages in more revisionist history. he writes quote no one would be focused on the actions of those hundreds of thousands of people in the months to come, all those peaceful supporters of president trump who came without hate in their hearts or any bad intentions. instead, they will laser in on the actions of a handful of

fanatics across town who decided all on their own, by the way, with absolutely no urging from president trump, to break into the capitol building and try to wreak havoc. i mean, he clearly doesn't have a fact checker because i mean, a handful of fanatics. that's how he dismisses the worst attack on the capitol building by americans since the war of 1812. i mean, why should anyone expect that meadows is going to be honest and forthcoming when he sits for his initial deposition by the select committee? >> well first of all, i wonder whether he decides that he had to sit for -- sit with the committee because he had this book coming out and he knew that he had things here that would raise questions about privilege. but yeah. no, look. there's so much evidence that this -- you know, he calls this organic, all of the activities of january 6th. there were people planning this. you know, steve bannon was touting that -- that all hell was going to break loose that

day. they were meeting over at the willard hotel. someone -- you know, there were or or organizers from trump's campaign who were involved in organizing this event on january 6th. so, you know, to say that it just happened was -- it belies the facts. and to -- by the way, the president himself of late has been defending the people that were there. you talk about revisionist history. the new revisionist history is that this was all benign, this activity. people expressing their first amendment rights. i had mark short, vice president pence's chief of staff, who was with him that day on my podcast this week. and pence and short said, you know, was really offended by that. having been in the middle of it. said this -- these weren't people -- these weren't patriots. this was a mob. this was a riot. that's the truth. but so, you know, maybe meadows had to turn his manuscript in before the president changed the knobs on his story. but the story now is that this was all benign.

>> well, i also think meadows delayed testifying as long as he could because he knew his book was coming out. and he wanted his testimony to be around the same time the book came out so that, you know, it would perhaps boost book sales. which i'm sure he's very, very concerned about. john, we also learned that this evening that john eastman, the conservative attorney who helped craft the baseless legal theory that former-vice president pence had the constitutional authority to interrupt the certification of the election. he's going to defy the subpoena from the january 6th select committee. do you think he will be held in contempt? >> very, very possible. but not likely with the fifth amendment if that's what he is going to take. in fact, i think that's what clark is relying on in claiming, when he does appear, he's going to take the fifth. this is an area that you really are not likely to find any resolution of congress holding somebody in contempt for, unless it's so specious and so outrageous that they -- there's

no choice. but i think both will be careful enough. i think somebody ought to ask mark meadows, incidentally, to put his book under oath. see if he will submit it this way. >> thanks. up next, race and politics. we take you to rural virginia for a closer look at how some culture wars are playing out in elections across the country. pad tier 2 prescription drugs. ♪ wow! ♪ ♪ uh-huh. ♪ $0 copays on primary care visits. ♪ wow! ♪ ♪ uh-huh. ♪ and with unitedhealthcare, you get access to medicare advantage's largest provider network. ♪ wow! ♪ ♪ uh-huh. ♪ most plans even have a $0 premium. so go ahead. take advantage now. ♪ wow! ♪

feeling sluggish or weighed down? it could be a sign that your digestive system isn't working at it's best taking metamucil everyday can help. metamucil psyllium fiber, gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down. it also helps lower cholesterol and slows sugar absorption to promote healthy blood sugar levels. so you can feel lighter and more energetic metamucil. support your daily digestive health. and try metamucil fiber thins. a great tasting and easy way to start your day.

small businesses like yours make gift-giving possible. now, comcast business has an exclusive gift for you. introducing the gift of savings sale. for a limited time, ask how to get a great deal for your business. and get up to a $500 prepaid card with select bundles when you switch to the network that can deliver gig speeds to the most businesses.

or get started with internet and voice for $64.99 per month with a 2-year price guarantee. give your business the gift of savings today. comcast business. powering possibilities. take for example virginia where republican governor elect glenn youngkin won with a focus on parents' rights around what their kids learn in school. similar things happened in the state house of delegates race in franklin county. republican candidate ren williams won his race after he vowed to ban critical-race theory even though it's not even taught in virginia schools. donie o'sullivan went to franklin down toy for a closer look. >> i'm in the community. i am a hairstylist so i talk to a lot of people. we did not care nothing about no

critical-race theory until he started bringing it up. >> critical-race theory. it's a way to study systemic racism in the united states and it's a term many many never heard of until this year. but now, it's central to the co country's culture wars and it's playing out here virginia. >> i've watched propaganda, bring it here to a small town, divide us. >> a democratic underdog lost to republican rand williams in a state legislature race in november. williams, who worked on the failed recount last year, promised he would introduce a bill to ban the teach lg of critical race theory in schools in virginia even though the virginia department of education says critical race theory isn't on the curriculum. but in politics it's not so important whether critical race theory is a real issue or even what it means. >> what is critical race theory?

>> so, effectively what it is, simply put, it's a lens, it's a way to look at the world through the lens of race. >> if you stop there, that's pretty close to even what the founders of critical race theory would say. it's what comes next is what opponents of this aspiring politician say he is misguided. >> and what's unfortunate about that or not productive about that is basically you are suggesting that because we're white that we are more -- more better off and better able to do things. and then because you are not white, you are oppressed or you aren't looking for the future of success, you won't be able to overcome those things. >> reporter: but the theory's founders have said it was originally an examination of how past laws based on race are still with us today in the legacy of inequality they were meant to enforce.

but republicans on their own terms have made it an effective battle cry. >> you know, when we start off with these fresh clean slate of children, we can effectively teach them you can be anything you want to be in this world. you have to work hard. you have to continue to try to get an education. and you will be successful. to say anything else or otherwise is just flat out wrong. >> well, maybe not wrong, but maybe -- i mean, the numbers nationally when it comes back to en incarceration of men, when it comes back to poverty, black people have a tougher time. >> i mean, would you say that same thing for hispanics? i mean, would you say that same thing for poor whites? >> data provided to cnn show how mentions of critical race theory exploded in right wing media in

2021. >> what republicans are calling critical race theory. >> critical race theory is critical racism theory. >> on fox news, talk of critical race theory spiked around this november's election in november. >> critical race theory is not being taught in k-12 in this county or in the state of virginia. k-12 does not teach theory of anything. but they know that's the dog whistle that you need in order to get the votes. >> penny blue is on franklin county's school board for eight years in a seat that she says was specifically created for a member of the black community to address past discrimination. >> you were in a seat that was created to have -- >> an african-american representation. >> and that seat has been filled by an african-american for 40 years? >> since it was created in about 1973. >> you lost this seat to who?

>> a white male. >> did you get pushed out? was there a campaign against you? >> oh, yes. i would say this has been the most visceral campaign that's been in franklin county that i am aware of. >> blue says she received threats and even this letter. >> you promote division and hate against white people. >> she says the level of vitriol around this school board election was unlike anything she had experienced, but she says it's not really critical race theory that some republicans have a problem with. >> they don't want african-american history taught in the school system. >> so, you're saying really when people say they're against critical race theory, you're saying they're actually against african-american history. >> which is american history. they are against african-american history being a part of the american story or the american history.

>> you are not against, i take it, the teaching of the history of slavery in this country? >> oh, no, not at all. those are objective facts we can be taught. >> putting in history into the context of systemic racism, would you agree there is still systemic racism in this country? >> i've said there are bad apples everywhere, and that's an issue. but as far as organizations in government particularly i don't believe that racism has been embedded into every system in our world. >> how do you feel when you hear someone saying, systemic racism, we're not sure it's a thing. >> it's because you don't live it. you don't experience it. you don't live in this black skin i have to every day. for you to say you don't see it, it's a smack in the face.

it's right here in your face. it's right here. >> donie o'sullivan joins us now. it's a well-told piece. shh this issue is not going to go away. it's going to be a big culture issue ahead. >> and as i reported, peace out, began to learn this is a debate about systemic racism in this country and people denying that it exists. it obviously does exist. than it does an academic tier. but what it does show is this can be weaponized, a scary term like this and used around social media. one thing i did see was qanon type events was people being told run for your school board, run for your school board, which should be a good thing to engage with democracy at that level, but so much is happening on a level that has been encouraged by misinformation or disinformation. >> school boards and battlegrounds. appreciate it as always.

we'll go to michigan next for a powerful moment of community support. good! looking good start with bounce wrinkleguard, the megasheet designed to prevent wrinkles in the dryer. ♪ it wasn't me by shaggy ♪ you're never responsible for unauthorized purchases on your discover card. ♪ ♪

♪ (sha bop sha bop) ♪ ♪ are the stars out tonight? (sha bop sha bop) ♪ ♪ ♪ alexa, play our favorite song again. ok. ♪ i only have eyes for you ♪ the new sensodyne repair and protect with deep repair has the science to show that the toothpaste goes deep inside the exposed dentin to help repair sensitive teeth. my patients are able to have that quality of life back. i recommend sensodyne repair and protect with deep repair.

this evening an honor walk was held to pay tribute to one of the oxford school shooting victims, justin schilling. hundreds gathered outside the hospital to celebrate schilling after he made the decision to donate his organs. his family released a statement today expressing their grief and sa saying, in death he continues to give of himself as an organ donor. the news continues with a special report from fareed special report from fareed zakaria. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >> announcer: the following is a cnn special report. china's visionary leader threw open his country's doors