and a happy new year ♪ ♪ good tiedings we bring to you and your kin. we wish you a merry christmas and a happy new year ♪ >> nice voices from some of the guys out there. didn't know they had it in them. >> very funny. okay. thanks so much, andy. andy scholes with christmas cheer this morning. thanks for joining us. i'm christine romans. "cnn this morning" starts right now. no man who would behave that way at that moment in time can ever serve in any position of authority in our nation again. >> well, there you go. all roads lead to donald trump,

but will the former president be charged with a crime? that is the question. good morning, everyone. you see kaitlan but not poppy harlow. she's off. we had a late night flight back, we were in d.c. because of the january 6th panel delivering blift e blistering merges. we'll break that down. >> and in limbo after chief justice john roberts temporarily froze a trump order in place that expired. now waiting for the white house. >> the soldiers told us to follow in their footsteps exactly. be very careful where we step. this whole island is littered with land mines. >> you recognize cnn's will ripley. the first journalist to visit the infamous snake island.

what cameras captured. live in odesa with this exclusive. but we begin with january 6th. the committee dropping the mic on its last public hearing and putting the ball in the doj's court. the congressional panel making history recommending criminal charges again former president donald trump calling it a road map to justice for the capitol insurrection. the question now is, will the special counsel, jack smith, follow it, toss it or take another route? the answer could have brought implications for the 2024 presidential race. let's begin now. cnn's senior legal affairs correspondent is paula reid who joins us now from washington. hello to you. new reporting on the special counsel. what can you tell us? >> reporter: good morning, you know, special counsel jack smith working remotely from europe overseeing investigations of former president trump. the special counsel will be back in the u.s. by early january. he'll face a pile of criminal reaches just announced by the

january 6 committee. at you saw, yesterday in the final hearing focused squarely why they believe smith should hold the former president criminally responsible for what happened on january 6th. >> we are prepared to share our final findings with you. >> reporter: in a historic hearing lawmakers on the january th committee laid out why they believe the justice department should pursue at least four criminal charges against former president trump. >> president trump lit the flame. he poured gasoline on the fire and sat by in the white house dining room for hours watching the fire burn. and today he still continues to fan those flames. >> reporter: lawmakers concluded there is evidence of obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the united states, false statements to the federal government, and inciting or assisting in insurrection. >> the president's actions could certainly trigger other criminal

violations. >> reporter: the committee also released a summary of its final report monday describing in extensive detail how trump tried to pressure anyone who wasn't willing to help him overturn his election defeat while knowing that many of his claims were not true. the committee played previously unseen clips from interviews with top white house aides like hope hicks who shared what happened when she challenged trump on his election lies. >> i was becoming increasingly concerned that -- we were -- damaging -- we were damaging his legacy. he said something along the lines of, nobody will care about my legacy if i lose. so that won't matter. the only thing that matters is -- is winning. >> reporter: the committee vit chair woman believes these legal recommendations should also have

political consequences. >> no man who would behave that way at that moment in time can ever serve in any position of authority in our nation again. he is unfit for any office. >> you know the old way -- >> reporter: in addition to trump lawmakers recommended his election attorney john eastman on two counts impeding an official proceeding and conspiring to defraud the united states. he was the author of a two-page memo outlining what he said was a plan for then vice president mike pence to block the certification of a presidential electoral count. >> john eastman admitted in advance of the 2020 election that mike pence could not lawfully refuse to count official electoral votes, but he nevertheless devised a meritless proposal. >> reporter: in a statement eastman's lawyer dismissed the referral as a product of an absu

absurdly protestant process. refusing to comply with subpoenas for this investigation -- >> referring four member of the congress for appropriate sanction by the house ethics committee for failure to comply with lawful subpoenas. >> reporter: trump's attorneys believe prosecutors would face an uphill battle proving he did not believe the election was stolen but yesterday we saw lawmakers address that head-on playing all those clips of top white house advisers telling trump otherwise. the lauckmakers made think case in the court of public opinion. it's up to the justice department whether or not it wants to bring this to a criminal court. >> thank you. paula noted one of the serious charges the committee represented for trump is insurrection. it might also, though, be the most difficult to prove. the law itself says anyone who incites, sets on foot, assists or engages in think rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the united states

or laws thereof or aids in one could face up to ten years in prison and "shall be incapable of holding any office under the united states," but until now, in the justice department's 900-some criminal cases against u.s. capitol rioters, not a single person has been brought up on insurrection charges. instead prosecutors relied on laws related to violence, obstruction, a few cases you've seen seditious conspiracy. with the committee set to release its full report in coming days that could include tens of thousands of pages of transcripts, potentially hours of footage from the interviews with thousands of witnesses it will be up to attorney general merrick garland to decide what's next. joining us to break down everything you saw yesterday is former assistant special watergate special prosecutors nick ackerman and chief intelligence analyst john miller. thank you both for being here. obviously, historical perspective here and i wonder what you thought of the final public hearing yesterday? >> i thought it was excellent

summation of the evidence that they've come up with over the last year. they really dug into this deeply. they put together each of these schemes, all of the same object in the end, which was to stop the lawful transfer of power. they showed through video clips. they showed through other testimony, basically proof that donald trump was behind each and every one of those schemes. this was not something that we saw with the senate select committee of watergate. that was an investigation that started right from the get-go. they didn't really know what was there until they got testimony from witnesses. it was an investigation that unfolded in front of the public. but here you had a committee that was unified in terms of what it was doing. there were not any obstructionists on this committee. they put it together very succinctly. put it together in an organized way, and i think the public really knows what the proof is

and what they have found over the course of time. >> what about the justice department? >> well, i think the justice department, we don't really know, because all of that is under the umbrella of grand jury secrecy. i think it's clear, though, that the justice department has a lot of this evidence. i mean, they had it before. and even the committee in its summary report acknowledges as much, that a lot of this, the justice department has learned either from them or through other sources, and don't forget. the committee didn't uncover everything. i mean, there's some big gaping holes that they did not answer. one -- what was the connection between the proud boys and the oath keepers in the white house? i mean, we have interesting tidbits that came up about roger stone, who was present at the time. donald trump's chief political ally. we have some interesting stuff about general flynn, the former adviser to donald trump, who was present with the oath keepers

and the proud boys but we don't know what the connection is. the committee didn't dig into that or what was going on at the war room, at the willard hotel, in terms of what were all of those no-goodniks doing. >> so that won't be part of, officially, if charged, none of that -- >> of course it would be. because we don't know what the department knows. also, they have pat cipollone's testimony now. i mean, the committee was going up against the wall of executive privilege, but they've broken that wall and so that's going to be very significant testimony. >> you're saying that the american people, and we that shot just rely on the information from yesterday on the recommendation. there are other things that the president, that the doj will look at, other than what the committee may have? >> absolutely. >> okay. john, let's look at this. obstruction of an official proceeding. defrauding the united states, making false statements. assisting or aiding in insurrection. now, i am told, i'm not a legal

expert here, that the one that is probably the most chargeable, that's the thing, is obstructing an official proceeding and defrauding of the united states. is that correct? >> so the crux of the case is that they were trying to make the counting of the vote the certification of congress not happen. that is purely obstructing, in its purest sense, an official proceeding. so that's a solid charge, but as nick points out, you know, they're looking for, in this case to compare it to, i don't know, an organized crime case. who's that sammy gragravano, th person high enough in the white house, in the chain who can connect the planning, what the contacts with people outside were and what led to the storming of the capitol? what's really interesting and which got very lif attention in this discussion, because we're all focused who's going to lock up the president, is that going to happen? what kind of historic moment are

we in the middle of is the issue of the intelligence failure. the committee's report says they had intel from the fbi, if dhs, secret service, donohues information from the capitol police. got it right. who's in the feedback of that loop of intel? not just going to law enforcement but also to the white house. the missing link was none of that intel did or could have predicted that the sitting president of the united states was going to go out on the ellipse that day and tell them, know, you've got to fight like hell to save the country followed by other speakers saying things like, trial by combat. it's just very interesting that the white house wasn't feeding that intel back, because, of course, they knew what the president was going to do. >> if you're looking at this, say you're in new york city. similar thing happened at city hall. what do you think the outcome

would be? do you thinkal people saying, "fight like hell" and all of the things you mentioned, would there be charges? how do you think that new york city would handle it on a local level? >> well, it requires the same connective tissue. >> that's why i'm asking. >> still have to go to a grand jury, somebody has to say this was the plan, who was behind it and legitimate conspiracy. >> i'm asking because everyone. not everyone. the presidential supporters say unheard of to charge a sitting president and they are just targeting the current, at least the ex-president donald trump because he is who they snchs certainly historic. remember, we have history. donald trump has been investigated three times, once before by a special counsel, by old boss at the fbi bob mueller. the difference, one stark difference in these cases, was, that the guidance from the department of justice at the time was that it is not legal to charge a sitting president of

the united states with a, he's not a sitting president. so the game is a little different on his side. >> interested in what you said about the security failures, because when i was reading the executive summary yesterday, talking about tony ornato, obviously at center of what we heard from cassie hutchinson when she testified and it talked about how he came in and said he couldn't recall things like what she said about the secret service's incident. he talked about getting the intelligence that, of course, we now know there were warnings about it, but not being sure what happened once it was passed on to mark meadows. >> not sure, after he heard it, whether or not he told anybody, you know, tony ornato is not just your deputy chief of staff. he's a former special agent of the secret service, the former head of the presidential detail. that's not the kind of training you get to not remember things. >> final record. what do you think happens? everyone wants to know. >> i think donald trump will be indicted. indicted in georgia and i think indicted by the feds. i think they've got the

evidence. we don't know exactly what a lot of these cooperating witnesses are saying. and i think that you've got someone like mark meadows who's probably the weak link. looking for one witness, the most likely to turn, i would vote him the most likely to turn. as the guy who might put it all together. >> all right. >> thank you both. >> thank you. >> thank you. ahead, the january 6 committee member congressman adam schiff you saw yesterday will join us to talk about the historic session yesterday and what he thinks will happen next. this morning the controversial touch era immigration policy title 42 is still in place, for now. because the supreme court chief justice john roberts granted a last-minute request by a group of republican-led states to extend the pandemic border restrictions. now he's giving the biden administration until today to respond. cnn's arian devoe joins me now. good morning. quite a surprise coming yesterday evening. what is behind justice roberts'

ruling? >> supreme court is under the spotlight again. remember, this district court in november struck down this policy, and gave a deadline until tomorrow. the biden administration was okay with that, but it infuriated the republican-based, and raced in, wanted to become a part of this lawsuit and we want this program to remain in place pending appeal. here's what roberts did. basically put a temporary pause on that deadline, but it's really not a ruling on the merits. he basically just wanted to preserve the status quo to give the justices a little breathing room, a little time to digest all of this before they issue this important order. >> so did the court asked administration to respond by five p.m. today. do you have an inclination what the response would be? we saw what the press secretary was saying yesterday during the briefing at the white house. >> that's a really quick deadline. supreme court knows it's got to

move quickly. the biden administration can come in and say, look, you cannot allow these states never a part of this lawsuit in the first place to come in at the last minute and ask to put everything on hold. the really appeal to the procedural aspect of that, look, some of the justices, they may think, okay. this policy is all right. but they may really wonder if they should allow the state to come in at the last minute. that's what to look for, and we'll see it in briefs. they're due today at 5:00. >> all right. watching closely. thank you so much. >> thanks. all right. cnn is live at the southern border in brownsville, texas. rosa what are you hearing from official there's who have been basically bracing for this to lift. now they've got this temporary freeze. what are they saying? >> reporter: you know, officials here on the u.s. southern border are breathing a sigh of relief, because they were, of course, very concerned about a potential spike and a very quick spike in

migration, but i also talked to migrants on the other side of the border, kaitlan. we have drone video of the cacamps that have gone up just yards from where i am on the other side of the border. i talked to three migrants who are there and they say that they were joyous, they were happy, that the reaction from these camps was one of joy. now, that sounds counterintuitive because title 42 allows agents to swiftly return migrants to mexico, but they say the u.s. government issued so many exceptions to title 42 that's a humanitarian-type rule allowing them to go like the ones behind me and actually get processed. they'd rather wait in line, wait in these camps to get one of those exceptions to title 42. i've covered this before. i can tell you, the u.s. government issued thousands of those exceptions to title 42. you can't have exceptions to title 42 without title 42. >> interesting. you have been reporting, rosa,

changing demographics at the border complicate the title 42 issue. what do you mean by that? >> reporter: don, you're right, because earlier this year you just look at the data. the number of migrants, the surge is being driven by migrants from central america, from mexico. so title 42 was a very effective tool for the u.s. government, because they were able to apply it and quickly return those migrants back to mexico. well, late in the summer, if you look at the data, numbers show you this. the surge was driven by migrants from venezuela, cuba and nicaragua. those countries mexico wasn't taking them back and the u.s. government has frosty relationships with those country so they couldn't take them back. why we saw back in october an extension to include venezuelans and see the camp it's built in mexico, because venezuelans knew if they crossed the border they could be returned quickly.

>> the tension between the united states and mexico. rosa flores, thank you. ahead, we are going to be joined by judge richard cordos who asked president biden to visit the border twice. which he has not down. he'll tell us what is on the ground. and passing a $1.7 trillion government funding bill for the government. a catastrophic shutdown, avoided. little room forary as government funding expires friday at midnight. cnn's lauren fox live for us on capitol hill with more this morning. lauren, good morning. what is in the bill? >> reporter: the bill dropped in the middle of the night. it this, of course, an 11th-hour negotiation that yielded this result. $1.7 trillion in government spending. this will keep the government funded through september of next year, and it includes key provisions that lawmakers were fighting for, including the electoral count act. that would really shore up the

vice president's role as just a ceremonial one on a day like january th that we saw two years ago. we also expected this bill will include $45 billion in ukraine aid as well as $40 billion in sullmental funding for floods, fires and other national disasters across the country. there's really something in here for everyone, which is why leadership is very confident that they are going to be able to move this bill forward before the christmas holiday, don. >> so the list of states banning tiktok is growing. now a ban included in the appropriations bill. why are elected officials targeting tiktok? >> reporter: a lot of concern right now, don, on capitol hill about the way that tiktok is being used on federal devices, and that is what this ban that is included in this appropriations were will be. pushed by josh hawley and supported by house speaker nancy pe pelosi. they don't usually see eye-to-eye but shows diverse voices up here on capitol hill

supportive of this. this is the last vehicle. this huge funding bill, to move through capitol hill. it's very, very important anything lawmakers want to include is put in this bill because next year the dynamic on capitol hill will be very different with republicans controlling the house of representatives. >> thank you very much for that. so he was voice of the oath keepers and later a witness before the january 6th committee and will join us live on what he thinks about the referral for criminal charges against trump. plus this -- >> [ bleep ] -- >> it was one of the most iconic moments from russia's invasion. ahead, cnn's exclusive look at snake island. the first time journalists were able to go there since that infamous radio exchange. i'm a laidback mediterranean hotel, looking for someone with simple needs.

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i'd like to thank our sponsor liberty mutual. they customize your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. contestants ready? go! only pay for what you need. jingle: liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. a year and a half long investigation, releasing the full report. got look at it yesterday during that final session on capitol hill. the entire vort based on more than 1,000 interviews with witnesses. one person that i spoke to is a former spokesperson for the right-wing militia group the oath keepers.

he testified before the committee back in july. this is what he said. >> i think we need to quit mincing words and just talk about truths and what it was going to be was an armed revolution. i mean, people died that day. law enforcement officers died this day. the there was a gallo set up in front of the capitol. this could have been a spark that start add civil war and no one would have won there. that would have been good for no one. >> jason joins us now. thanks for being here this morning. you had said that you wanted accountability here. do you think you got it yesterday? >> i think we're certainly a step forward in that. it still remains to be seen what the doj will do with the referrals but more than anything, we had a victory for america. even if just within the public perception realm.

with all the evidence laid out in such an easy to digest way, i think it's becoming harder and harder to keep perpetrating these lies. >> do you think that the justice department, if they don't heed what the committee referred to them and doesn't actually charge trump, does that still look like accountability to you? >> i mean, again, i think we're dealing in the realm of public perception, because that public perception goes on to inform voting and also goes on to inform policy. so i think it's a win either way. >> you were a spokesman for the oath keepers and we were just speaking with nick ackerman about this, how he doesn't feel there was a specific connection drawn between the extremist groups and what happened that day and circling it back to former president trump himself. do you think that that could have been a connection that was made in a stronger way to signify what that actually looked like?

>> i don't know if they had the evidence to really connect that in a sound way. now, i personally believe that the trump administration had been reaching out to the right-wing militias and back during his campaign days even, but i don't know whose done necessarily in a direct way. so i don't know how much evidence they would have been able to uncover that drew a clear line from a. to b. on that. >> talking about what it signifies for public perception of trump himself. what does the summary of this report, volumes of evidence we're expected to get when they release the full report, what does that mean for groups like the only keepers? what kind of signal does it send to them, do you think? >> i think it sends a signal that there will be accountability, because largely before this, this happening, there was no accountability. you know, the leadership of organizations never held to real legal account.

they'd always gotten off fairly scot-free and the lower-level pawns, i would say, that really paid any price and that and the victims of their actions. so having leadership actually has to pay a debt to society based on their actions and their leadership. i think it's definitely a win, and i think it will have a -- a quieting effect to a certain degree. i think it will splinter things. it remains to be seen kind of what will rise up in that power vacuum after peel like stewart rhodes has been put into prison. but we'll just have to see how that goes. >> jason van tatonhov thank you for joining us this morning. >> thank you. coming up -- >> before the waves get too big and before the russians know we're here. >> you're going to want to see this. cnn is getting a first visit to

that infamous, that famous black sea snake island where ukraine defenders stood up to the russians. we'll tell you what will ripley saw. that's ahead. plus, republican congressman-elect george santos under fire following a report, very interesting, questioning whether he lied to voters about his background and other things. gaps in her resumes. we're going to talk about that next. two loads of snot covered laundry. only one will be sanitized. wait, what?

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right there the sun coming up. welcome back to "cnn this morning," everyone. coming up, they put their middle fingers in the air in defiance against the russians. now cnn is first to visit snake island and what it looks like now. plus, house democrats, voting on president trump's years of tax returns. what should we expect. and covid to cost more than 1 million deaths.

what else does data tell us? that's straight ahead. starting with the remarkable story don started with there. snake island. did not hold back, a russian warship threatening to bomb them in early days of the invasion. [ speaking non-english ] . >> that moment became a symbol of defiance. ukrainians celebrating resistance by creating a stamp even showing a soldier flipping off the russian forces. and now in a cnn exclusive, we had the chance to actually visit the island first time since that infamous exchange. will ripley is live in odesa. will, what was it like to go there, such a mainstay of key

moments of this invasion so far. >> reporter: yes. kaitlan, snake island ask really almost a chief legendary status here in ukraine and cnn has been working with months with our excellent team on the ground here to try to make this trip happen to show people what it's like on this remote piece of rock in the middle of the black sea that is strategically crucial for ukraine because it allows them to bring cargo in and export out. if they don't control the island russia could barricade the whole place especially odesa. ukrainians are there and told us their remarkable story and holding down the fort. the saying goes, whoever controls snake island controls the black sea. the safest way to get there, the ukrainian military's inflatable speedboat with seating for six. it's small enough to stay out of sight. >> we are really getting tossed around out here but we need to take a small boat, because we need to stay out of the sights of russian reconnaissance

aircraft. >> reporter: safer than a helicopter, but no protection from the black sea's big waves, bitter cold and whipping winds. by the end of our stomach-churning journey, snake island's craggy cliffs are a welcome sight. up close, pier, pieces previewing destruction we're about to see. we enter snake island by climbing up a pile of half sunken slippery sea rocks. we're the first journalists allowed here since ukraine recaptured snake island five months ago. russia blanketed the island with boobytraps before bailing out. >> the soldiers told us to follow in their footsteps exactly and be very careful where he step. this whole island is littered with land mines, unexploded ordnance. basically a powder keg. >> reporter: a powder keg with plenty of cats wandering through the wreckage of ten brutal months of war. not a snake in sight. on february 24th, the first day of russia's full-scale invasion

russia's black sea flagship aimed its arsenal at snake island demanding dozens of ukrainians surrender or die. [ speaking non-english ]. >> reporter: what happened next is how legends are made. [ speaking non-english ] [ bleep ]. >> reporter: five words seen at the time as a final act of defiance. everyone on snake island presumed dead. russian bombs raining down. the island's radio went silent. those five words telling the russian warship where to go. instantly iconic inspiring t-shirts, postage stamps, pop songs. [ speaking non-english ]. >> [ bleep ] -- >> reporter: ukraine later learned snake island defenders were alive, prisoners of war. some released in a p.o.w. swap

earlier this year and others remain in russian captivity. >> intimidating to look out see a giant russian arship and now you're a small group here? >> translator: in anyone tells you he's not scared is a liar. it was chaos russia captured the island quickly taking the island back took a long time. >> reporter: on snake island we find a graveyard of russian weapons. the result of relentless ukrainian attacks for several months earlier this year. this is one of russia's most expensive anti-weapon aircraft systems. weapon systems. not much you're any more. in april, ukraine says its missiles sank the "moskva." where did they go? bottom of the black sea. hu humiliated russia said a drone strike. and this helicopter turning in a

fireball. this is what's left of the helicopter pulverized along with its crew of about eight. a twisted plan to transform this remote black sea outpost into a permanent aircraft carrier. >> what's it like to live out here? we need 0 be on guard 24/7, she says, so we never get bored. he noticed his russian accent. turns out he lived in russia, married and moved before the war. now part of a russian corps protecting russia from ukraine. >> how do you feel? >> reporter: for many they're enemies. most lived here before the invasion. we were living life, had families, good jobs. here comes russia attacking us. if some our country attacked us we would fight, too. life on snake island means almost total isolation. soldiers tell me the simple act of switching on a cell phone

brings russian rockets within 40 minutes. they say russia attacked the island just last month. we you out of time. been on the island about an hour. important to get off before the waves get too big and before russians know we're here. the ukrainian say russia blew up snake island's historic lighthouse and museum on the site of an ancient greek temple. eve's spirits are rumored to roam these acres of rock and sand bearing witness to centuries of bloodshed. ukraine is not the first nation to control snake island, but vows it will be the last. those defenders of snake island were presumed dead. people mourned them and then they found out they were alive and now have been awarded as national heroes. how did they do it? how did they muster up bravely in the face of that russian warship? teamwork. being there together in the brutal cold. something that my photojournalist and producers

all certainly got a little taste of that. never been more cold in my life. i think i can speak for the other guys. they feel the same way. yet it makes feel alive, feel stronger and that strength got the ukrainian through such a horrific ordeal. >> small island but so important to this overall. will ripley, thank you. >> fighting for every bit of territory they can hold on to and doing a good job. >> yeah. harvey weinstein, switching topics, convicted of rape again. the disgraced movie mogul now facing even more prison time. more ahead. and donald trump is a focus of another house committee meeting today. this one about his taxes. yes, another one today. about his taxes. what could be at stake here? we're talking about it. that's next. quin ting? i can't! i'm just telling everyone!! hey! use your vision benefits befofore they expire. visionworks. see the difference.

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breaking news just in pap northern california countsy on high alert this morning after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake shook a city near ferndale. more than 55,000 people lost power this morning. the video is from a resident showing damage inside her house after the tremors. so far no reports of, there are no reports of a tsunami linked to the quake but we'll keep you posted with latest developments as we learn more. it has been a years' long battle full of controversial promises over former president donald trump's tax returns. >> i have a great company. i've done a great job, which i

have run and you'll see i've done a great job, a full disclosure of finances, tathts returns? >> maybe tore tax returns when obama does his birth certificate. >> if i run for office i'll submit my tax returns absolutely. >> i will tell you up front as a private person, i would be -- you know, i'm very proud of this. i want to pay as little taxes as i can as president. >> of course, of course. >> when the audit is complete i'll release my returns. i have no problem with it. doesn't matter. let her release emails and i'll release my tax returns immediately. >> and they showed he didn't pay any federal income tax. >> that makes me smart. >> actually, i pay tax and you'll see that as soon as i tax returns, they've been under order for a long time. the irs does not treat me well. i called my accountants. under audit. i'm going to release them soon as we can. i want to do it and the it will show how successful, how great this company is. >> promises, promises.

and then -- more excuses. today with only two weeks of control left, the democratic-led house ways and means committee is likely to hold a vote whether to release several years of the former president's tax returns. so joining me now investigative reporter for the "new york times" russ buettner looking into trump's taxes for years. russ, good morning. so glad you're here. you saw the clip that we put on there. promises, promises, promisesance as i said, and then more excuses. done everything possible to stop people from seeing his tax returns. so today could possibly be worse for the former president than even yesterday's criminal referrals from the january 6 committee, because this is something i think that concerns him the most. his wealth and whether he was accurate about his taxes which will show what he's actually worth. >> yeah. that's a good point, don. i think this really goes to the heart of not only his, how he's presented himself to voters and

the public at large, but how he sees himself as well. which is, a man of incredible wealth, can never seem the find outer ranges of -- just goes up and up and up every time he talks about his wealth, and his tax returns, the 2020 re-review showed a very different story. bulk of his income came from entertainment, no real business expertise on his part and inheritance from his father. the businesses he has run have kind of suffered or been consistent at best. there's a report that comes out of this, i think it will probably show the same thing we found. >> did they show that $11 billion or so in assets, the billionaire he claims to be, when you look at those tax returns, did they actually confirm that? >> tax returns don't show the

value of assets. they'll have a book value, which is just, how you kind of handle accounting over the years. there are ways that businesses can be valued based on revenues. >> an indication? >> it is an indication. valuing a golf course at $5 million and profits aren't enough to keep, sort of keep it afloat, that sort of suggests it's maybe not worth what you're saying it is. >> so, russ, what happens if the committee releases some, or all of the tax data? what should we expect to see? how is this going to work? >> well, i think they're going to vote today on what they're going to do. whether they're going to try to release a report out of this or the returns themselves. if they're going to do that it's yob utley going to happen very quickly because democrats are about to lose control of that committee, and then we should see, one of the more interesting things, he's had, talked about the audit and the great clips ran at the start of this.

he said an ongoing audit by the internal revenue service for more than ten years of a $ 73 million refund requested and received in about 2010. all taxes he had paid for most of the last 20 years on initial windfall from the "apprentice e". we'll see whether he's resolved that, i think. whether it's still outstanding's we'll see nature of any audits internal revenue service may have done of hill. at least that. we'll see, again, how much taxes he's paid. when we looked at it he hadn't paid any taxes in 10 of the prior 15 years and in two of those years only paid $750. so that's a lot of stuff. we could also see how covid impacted his businesses. his businesses, the once he normally owns outright are largely hospitality businesses. he had his banquet facilities and golf courses, hotels.

those sorts of things really suffered during that bad time, and we could see part of the pressure that forced him to start selling off assets including his kind of crown jewel, the hotel in washington. >> in washington, d.c. got to ask you quickly, because i'm running out of time. sorry about that. listen, he's spent the bulk of his time, he and his, you know, allies, buffering him from accusations he has attacked the justice department, the fbi, attacked the media, because of lies, they're not in his favor. if the committee found trump didn't pay taxes or did something wrong, what do they do? do they ask the internal revenue service to do something it? alert the doj, because he's also attacked the irs as well? >> either one of those things. he's attacked the irs in part because of this very audit. yeah. i would expect -- of course he started that last night. started the trying to spin what he expected people sew see on

these returns as not important and always said irs is out to get him. no hint of his changing course. >> thank you for joining us. >> thank you. former ftx chief sam bankman-fried to continue his extra addition hearing after a chaotic day in court. when will we finally see him return to the united states? straight ahead. ke ep you up, try vicks nyquil severe. just one dose starts to relieve 9 of your worst cold and flu symptoms, to help take you from 9 to none. for max-strength nighttime relief, nyquil severe. i was born here, i'm from here, and i'm never leaving here. i'm a new york hotel. yeahi'm tall. 563 feet and 2 inches. i'm on top of the world. i'm looking for someone who likes to be in the middle of it all, but also likes some pce and quiet. you hungry? i know a place, and few others nearby.

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all right. this morning a new study says that china's sudden exit from

its zero covid policy could lead to potentially nearly a million deaths after three years of incredibly strict lockdowns. mask testing. experts warn the country is extremely unprepared for an unprecedented wave of unprotection. live in beijing we have more. selina wang, what are officials saying what they feel they're prepared for this? >> reporter: look, some public health experts in china admitted they've been "unprepared" in certain aspects, but that estimate of nearly 1 million deaths, coming from some new 1 studies is a worst-case scenario. if china can increase vaccination rate and increase the anti-virulents it can reduce that rate. what happens if it spreads to an area of much weaker preparedness? hospitals dealing with outbreaks among staff. long lines forming outside

hospitals in big cities like this video. you can see a line snaking as far as the eye can see. china also has only announced a few covid deaths since reopening, but what we see on the ground tells a different story. just today i went to a major creamtorium in beijing. you see the long line of cars waiting to get to that cremation area. the parking lot full as well. several told me their loved ones died from covid. an employee told me they are swamped with dead bodies. >> selina wang, we'll follow it closely. thank you. still to come here on cnn, the big question hanging over washington and the country. will the doj make a move against the president? all are of - ahhhh. listerine. feel the whoa!

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