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make sure you have downy unstopables in-wash scent boosters. >> well, tonight, we've got some newly-released video from the august deposition of the former president donald trump as part of the new york attorney generals civil investigation into fraudulent practices at the trump organization. trump taking the fifth more than 400 times and his deposition, saying in the released video that, well, he'd be a fool not to take the fifth. >> anyone in my position not taking the fifth amendment would be a fool, an absolute

fool. one statement or answer that is ever so slightly off, just ever so slightly, by accident, by mistake, such as it was a sunny, beautiful day, when actually was slightly overcast, would be met by law enforcement. >> but this is frankly just one piece of the broader investigation surrounding trump as he's trying to jump-start his 2024 campaign. i want to bring in cnn political commentators charlie dent and ashley allison, back with us also is cnn legal analyst elliott williams. i want to begin with you on that point, because the idea of trump saying he'd be a fool not to take the fifth, which is of course, a change in tune. we can all remember the moments he was talking about, what it means to take the fifth. but i do wonder in this position, is he right about this? >> yes and no, right. you'd be a fool not to take the

fifth because if you think you might face criminal liability at some point, then yeah, you've got to plead the fifth. it's your right as a citizen. the problem is these are civil cases often. and it can be used against you in a civil case. we plead the fifth, then you're opponents can then go to court and say, well look, he's pled the fifth, he must have something to hide. so it cuts both ways. the other thing is that there is this other case among many going on with the state attorney general in new york, where he wouldn't even admit to basic facts like does the trump organization exist? and they're seeking to have him held in contempt of court over that. it's a way of gaming the system and not actually participating fairly in it. so, yeah, maybe has a right to plead the fifth, he certainly does as a citizen. but, you know, it's another tactic. >> i mean, the tactics, and politically speaking, one of the things that people talk often about trump's ability to use and capitalize on tactics that have been successful in some part politically. and then of course, unsuccessful given the fact that he's not the president of

the united states, although he would like to be. i'm wondering, you may have learned cnn as well, but he is struggling to fund-raise in the first weeks of his campaign. i want to put up this full screen. because he's pulling in last in the six weeks after his november announcement then in the six weeks prior to his announcement. charlie, what does that say to you? >> well, his campaign went dormant after he announced. and frankly, we all recognize that he's been a diminishing figure. and he's been blamed, rightly, four republican underperformance in the midterms in numerous states. his interventions in those primaries made enemies, he already had enemies among democrats and independents, but among republicans. he infuriated people in a state like pennsylvania. a lot of republican leaders are incensed he got involved and help doug mastriano became the nominee and then the wipeout occurred. so, he's picked up a lot more barnacles. he's a diminishing figure. his campaign went dormant. and people want to turn the page, they want to move forward. so not surprised that his

numbers are off. >> someone say there is more so actually walking to the presidency, as opposed to running for the presidency. but there is a significant handicap if you cannot fund-raise, if you wonder what that means. and we know that recently he has appealed to and -- successfully to be a part of meta and facebook and instagram yet again. you are known for a coalition building and the idea of using social media, obviously and other platforms, to try and generate support and enthusiasm across different lines. how significant will this be that trump will soon have access again to, what, 34 million followers? >> it's dangerous, i think, to our democracy. because we know that he used social media to organize an insurrection. but it will benefit his campaign. we know that there are populations that are on facebook. they are typically older americans. there's a lot of disinformation on meta now. and that's what trump thrives off of. he thrives on being able to

spew hate, few disinformation, confuse voters. and then do this whoa is me act that he will clip, and be like, i can't say one thing is wrong before the media comes after me. this is exactly the playbook that he wants to play. i agree with you, charlie, that i think his campaign is dwindling. i still will not count him out until we find out who's going to run on the democratic side. but him being on meta is dangerous. it will give him some wind. and if he takes the opportunity to be on, and on twitter, when really the competition gets tough, i think that it could benefit him. but could also expose him yet again to the type of person that he. is >> you know, you think about his concerns about pleading the fifth and one bad statement, and use the example of overcast skies against sunny skies, again, he was wrong. i totally appreciate the idea of having been as a civil

litigator as well, the idea of deposition testimony, and you better be precise. or otherwise it can be used against you. but then you've got the wild, wild west of the twitter or facebook thumbs, right. and the idea that those two could be used. and it's also dangerous for him, when all the different investigations looming, for him to use the platforms recklessly. >> sure, it's evidence, right. it's statements being made by a party. and you can use them in court, and if you contradict something he said you know, as he did today in a deposition, that certainly can be used against him. i think the challenge, this is where the political and the legal come together, i don't know if any of this actually hurts the former president with his supporters. where so much of his brand has been built on grievance, and grievance at the behest of the legal system. that perhaps being targeted by these lawsuits and prosecutions investigations actually which people up. maybe like charlie saying, a dwindling proportion of the republican electorate, but

still, a lot of people -- he touches something in them. >> until that point you've raised, to the dwindling, charlie, just to build on that point, the campaign may be dwindling. but you're not actually hearing from republican incumbents who are vociferous about wanting him to go away. >> well, i like to say is diminishing figure. but he's still a dangerous one. he still commands enough support to cause problems. and you're seeing to that a lot of these other likely candidates for president on the republican side, whether they be chris christie, pompeo, nikki haley, pants no one wants to be the first to jump into that pool donald trump. because they'll become his target. so, i think they're all waiting around. even though they recognize his vulnerability. so, this kind of this conundrum. you only need one, maybe two candidates to challenge him. there can be too many, because of there's too many candidates out there, that will split the anti trump vote too many ways, and he can walk away with a plurality. >> but are they waiting for trump? or are they waiting to see the

democratic nominee? >> i think it's both. i think that, you know, folks are waiting to see. the state of the union is next week. they're waiting to see what president biden says, if he declares are not. i think whether or not president biden runs or not, i think there will be more republicans that jump into the field. but i think they are just trying to hedge their bets because once joe biden announces, they can say, i can be the person, trump already lost to him, i can be the person who might be able to beat him. will they be correct? i'm not sure. one other thing i just want to say is the interesting thing about this deposition is i feel this is the most control we ever might have seen donald trump be. and to say one line over and over. but when he really gets on twitter, he just can't control himself. he won't have his attorneys around him. and that's where he'll start to say those contradicting statements that will get him in trouble. >> well, he can lie on twitter. he can light at the media. but lying in a deposition is another matter. and legal advice is to take the fifth amendment, he's a

terrible witness. >> look, angela clear, he has been invited back to twitter. but he's still on truth social. facebook and instagram, maybe other fundraising opportunities to what he would like to do next. but we're all really waiting to see what impact. if we're talking about the idea of who takes the fifth, remember the mob takes the fifth. if you're innocent, why are you taking the fifth amendment, all those different aspects of it. it'll be interesting to see how that will be compartmentalize away now that there's conversations around ongoing witch hunts, so to speak. stick around everyone, because next, the latest chapters in what seems to be the never-ending saga of one george santos. he says that he is stepping back from his committee assignments until his issues are resolved. so, which issues does he mean exactly? the issues about the lying on his resume? or any other aspect of it, maybe volleyball this time? what is it? day without heavy perfumes? try downy light in-wash freshness boosters. it has long-lasting light t scent,

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congressman george santos is speaking out after deciding to step aside from his committee assignments, at least until the investigations into his lies are resolved. here's what he said to right-wing network oan earlier today. >> i've learned my lesson. and you can guarantee -- i can guarantee you that from now on, anything and everything is always going to be above board. as largely always been above board. i'm just going to go the extra step now to double check, cross reference everything. >> i know you're thinking, double track and cross reference your own stories? okay, well, he was asked about the issues with his campaign finances, or animal charity, but he wasn't asked about the many lies he told bars employment and religion and family history and even his mother's location on september 11th. but he did say this. >> i've made my sincere apology

multiple times. i've earlier said that i thoroughly apologize for lying about my education embellishing to resume. i made that very, very clear. i don't know what more can be said other than admitting. is there anything more humbling and humiliated lighting admitting that a national television, caitlin? >> charlie dent, ashley allison, and elliott williams are all back. sensors -- question >> he could do, more he could resign. that be the easiest thing to. do but look, lying about your, resonate your schooling, working and gülen's acts, the holocaust, 9/11, i mean, that's not a crime but. his bigger problem of course is this 700,000 dollar campaign loan. he's got fcc problems and probably doj problem. he's got problems all over the place, legally, and certainly ethically. >> but what's the real story? you've been behind the scenes. what's the real story, that

he's been assigned a committee assignment, and now saying, you know what, i think i'll go ahead and step back. what really happens? >> you know what happened? i suspect he was guaranteed committees. they needed a speaker. vote now leadership, republican leadership wants to kick illinois more off of her committees. but it's hard to kick her off the committees, the foreign affairs committees, when you have santos on his committees with his baggage. so, i'm sure he didn't voluntarily trump office. committees i'm sure he had the meeting with the speakers and said we need to get you off the committees. and then he said i'm stepping down. that's what i think is the back story. >> no, question right. and that sort of the behind the scenes horse trading. but in practice, what you have now is a member of congress who has recused from serving on committees. that's basically like a mcdonald's employee who's recused from touching big macs. it's literally a core function of the job that he's not doing on behalf of the people. and frankly, set aside whether he resigns or not, the people of the third district, the congressional district of new york, they ask do i really want

this clown show representing the in congress? he's not serving the people. >> on that point, it's an important. one on the idea of, you know, what happens when you're not on a committee. you know, congresswoman marjorie taylor greene, paul gosar, there were the same notions of, hold on a second, they're not going to be on committees. what are they really going to be doing at that point in time? and you mentioned the. people congresswoman elise stefanik talked about this earlier today. listen to what the fourth ranking house republican had to say, because she goes back to talk about, look, this is about the process and the people. >> we're like, all my colleagues, particularly in new york state. i supported george santos as the nominee. and the people of his district voted to elect him. now, we just got out of conference and george has voluntarily removed himself from committees, as he goes through this process. but ultimately, voters decide. >> -- resign [inaudible] >> again, this process is gonna

play itself out. >> actually, on the point. it is about the voters, but the voters did not vote for this particular person as he really is. and just on that point, i want to show everyone this new polling that we have out here. it's from newsday in a cnn college poll, one question is, should he resign? these are people in his own district, 78% said yes. also if you want to know the breakdown, republicans, democrats, independents, you also have 80% democrats, 72% independents, 71% republicans. so, here a larger point that elliott was racing as well, the idea, of look, what's he really doing it is not some committee? but also asking, what's he doing there at all? >> okay, first in his interview with oan, he lied about not lying. he's like, everything's been above board, above board. but it's not aboveboard. it's like bro, you're lying, just stop. second, this is why it's so important about all these deals that were being cut during the

speaker vote. because to your point, maybe there was a deal that will put you want committee to become speaker kevin mccarthy. and now kevin mccarthy has what he wants. so, you can be gone because you bring us down. and we want to do some other things with congressman omar. the final thing is that the voters did not get a fair shot to elect the person that george santos -- if they really knew who he was and all the lies, he would not have one. but the reality is is that in two years, that seat is going to be up again, if not sooner if he is not forced out of office. and of his behavior sustained for these two years, i have a strong premonition that's going to be a blue seat. and when you only have a four vote gap right now in the house, and we don't know what 2024 is going to look like, santos could really flip your majority with four votes in that district and surrounding districts that we know went red in 2022. they could go blue in 2024. >> there's a question i have, then.

and it's really a question for charlie. do you really think, if republicans had a 20 seat majority right now, he'd still be in congress? >> no, i can answer. that >> right, right. but congresswoman -- >> her name is also charlie right now. >> congresswoman alison, that's what i mean. >> i've been involved -- i was on the ethics committee, i was involved in members being forced to resign. it's not a pleasant task. but usually what happens, is the members who had resign, because they brought discredit upon themselves and people their district, they feel shame. and they resigned to protect their families and the constituents. the challenge we have here with santos is i'm not sure you can feel shame. and that's why he's not resigning right now, even though he should. he should get out. i think the leadership does have more leverage they can pull to force this guy out. >> but the thing is they don't have to get rid of, him because they need a seat. >> right. >> that's the point. >> and even if the dems were in control -- >>. yes >> and it was a slim margin, i think they would still push him out. this is literally a play about

politics. and stefanik is saying let the process go, it's about the people. it's not being truthful and not being honest and it's just a politics of power play right now. >> and let me just say this to right now, this is the moment, talk about congresswoman ilhan omar, she is on the house foreign affairs committee. this is not a permanent committee. so, mccarthy does not have the unilateral power to take her off. but let me leave you with this moment, things that make you think for a second. congressman matt gaetz coming to her defense. listen. >> i view the shift and swallow well matter differently and then i view the ilhan omar matter. the reason i think a lot of republicans want to kick ilhan omar off the foreign affairs committee as they don't like what she has to say. it's one thing to do dangerous things to the country with intelligence. it's quite another to say i don't like your viewpoint. and thus, i want to remove you. >> that's an homage to our senior hall, things that make

you go hmm about what's happening. trying process. that when we come back, i want to return to the alarming spread of antisemitism in this country. and what benjamin netanyahu told our own jake tapper about fighting it. that's next. sometimes you're so busy taking care of everyone else you don't do enough for yourself, or your mouth. but eventually, it will remind you. wh it does, aspen dental is here for you. we offer the custom dent treatments you need, all undeone roof, right nearby. so we can bring more life. and more smile to your life... affordably. new patients without insurance

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>> as part of his exclusive one-on-one interview with cnn's jake tapper, israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu talked about rising antisemitism and the constant battle against it. >> what i learned for my father and what i've learned from history is that you may not be

able to eradicate it if it's been around that long. but you have to be able to resist it. and resist it, first of all, the jewish people have to stand up proud and be strong. non-jews have to realize that hatred that begins with the jews doesn't end there. we saw that with hitler, it just spreads and involves. >> a lot to talk about tonight with jonathan greenblatt, ceo and national director of the national anti-defamation league. jonathan, thank you for being here this evening. you know, the israeli prime minister also spoke to jake more broadly as well about really the roots of antisemitism. i think it's very important to focus on that as well to try to better understand how to eradicate it in part. let me play for you for a moment, i want you to respond on the other side, what he had to say about the roots in present day. >> my late father who is a great historian who is also a historian of antisemitism. and i learned from him that antisemitism has deep roots.

it actually goes back as a doctor it, 2500 years to helen's stick egypt actually. that's where it began, 500 years before christiane 80. it's, you, know taken on shapes, change shapes, but it basically says, if it holds the jews responsible for all the ills in the world. and just pervades these horrible myths about the jewish people, they drink the blood of christian children, that's what they said in the middle ages. they actually say that about israel today. >> i mean, jonathan, just hearing that. why -- just help us to really echo why this is so dangerous today. >> well, i think prime minister netanyahu kind of gets it right. antisemitism is often described as the oldest hatred. but in today's parlance, it's really a conspiracy theory. it's a warped view of how the

world works. laura, it centers suffering on the jewish people as the cause. and you know, for thousands of years as the prime minister alluded to, jewish people after the expulsion from their ancient homeland in the area we now call israel, jewish people lived as a minority and majority in countries, spoke in different language, they had different rituals, they had different dietary practices, different cultural customs, they were ethnically distinct, and they were a convenient scapegoat, weather for the emperor or for the church or for the crown or the caliphate or the cossacks and the czar and the third reich, blaming the jews was a way that people in positions of authority can shift the blame for their own failings. and unfortunately, it's mutated overtime. but it has persisted and remains with us today.

>> i'm a point, i have to tell, you i was pretty stunned to see some of the results of the new anti-defamation league survey. it was released earlier this month. and the numbers are stunning. you talk about the historic context and where we are right now. just for part of it -- the survey found that the percentage of americans who believe in antisemitic tropes has actually spiked in the last three years. that's 85% that now believe that in at least one anti jewish trope, compared to 61% in 2019. why do you think that is? it contributes to that rise in just the last several years alone? >> laura, i'm glad you asked. this adl data -- which we have been doing this kinds of polling -- since the 1960s. so, we have a lot of context on a lot of experience. and indeed, in a world in which our leaders are normalizing antisemitism, whether from the right or from the left, blaming the jewish people or the jewish state, they normalize troops

like globalists, the idea that jews control the banks and wall street and whatnot. it has become part of the political conversation -- you have number one, politicians weaponizing -- number two, extremists feel emboldened. they can make wild claims, again, about zionists or globalists. these are euphemisms for jews. and literally, they are running for office on such wild charges. and then, thirdly, social media is a superspreader of stereotypes. what we are seeing on facebook and twitter and fake tiktok would make your head spin. so, taken together, whether it's the extreme right demonizing the jewish people, the radical left humanizing demonizing the jewish -- have reached an all time a high. we have tracking that for

almost 45 years. we have never seen the kind of numbers that unfortunately we have seen today. >> you mentioned politics and while you were talking we showed on the screen some of the stereotypes that people are thinking mostly true. but i do want to play for you -- because jake tapper did ask netanyahu if he had any concerns speaking of social media, about trump potentially being back in the white house in 2024. listen to what his answer was. >> okay. >> i did praise president trump because he did great things for us. he recognized jerusalem as our capital. he moved the american embassy there. he recognized our sovereignty in the golan heights. he went out of what i think is the dangerous nuclear deal with iran. he helped forge the four star peace accords with the arab states. so, he's done courageous things. i think he made a big mistake on this kanye west thing. and i said so. i'm not going to intervene in your politics. you know that. you tried. it's good. to try to get me involved in

your politics -- but you do my job, and i will do my job. i want to stay away from your politics. let the people decide. >> that's a luxury that many do not have, to sort of compartmentalize or distance. what do you think? >> i think netanyahu is smart. and he's going to try to stay away from the politics. he's right about the things trump did for israel, many of which were politics positive. i wish he would emphasize negotiations with the palestinians more, to be frank. but i disagree with him about the pattern of behavior we saw from the president. from charlotte's -- tweeting out and you wish me during the campaign -- dismissing the alt-right marchers, to, again what we just pointed out, by, my dinner with kanye and nick fuentes. it's kind of inexplicable. trump is complicated, laura. he has jewish grandchildren. yet he's dining with neo-nazis. but at the end of the day, what is real and undeniable is with

the rise of antisemitism, we need use and non-jews, all people, to realize that this problem, as the prime minister said in the earlier segment, is not just a jewish issue. it is everyone's issue. because it starts with the jews but it never ends with us. it is a sign of decay of democracy. we have all got to stand up against hate of all kinds. >> we certainly do. and justice anywhere is an injustice anywhere. >> here, here. >> thank you so. much jonathan greenblatt, i speaking with you. >> thank you. >> what's going on at the dallas zoo? 2 am for -- monkeys have been now recovered from one closet in it abandoned home. of course, the question? how in the world they get there?

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frankly, after another this month that the dallas is. it seems like someone is tempering with the animals. and now there is some good news tonight. to emperor tamarind monkeys disappeared yesterday -- well, they have now been found. police discovered them in an empty banded house in a dallas suburb. they were hidden in a closet but who put them there? and why? i want to bring in cnn correspondent rosa flores. also with us here is dan ashe, president and ceo of the association of zoos and aquariums, who is the former director of the u.s. fish and wildlife service. i want to begin with you here tonight, rosa flores. we learned two hours ago that these two tamarin monkeys have been found. what do we know? >> it seems according to the

dallas police department, they had a tip about this, because they have been asking the public for help. they followed that tip. and they found these two monkeys in an abandoned home inside a closet. there was nobody inside that house. so, no one was arrested. but laura coates, the police did release surveillance video and a photo of an individual that they are not calling a suspect -- they are not calling this individual a person of interest. but they do say that they are interested in speaking to this person in relation to the disappearance of these monkeys. now that individual is wearing a beanie, a hoodie. they are eating chips. it's unclear why that was happening when his photo was taken. but again, these two monkeys were missing yesterday. and now, laura, we know that they deaths just did not disappear. they were apparently abducted because they were cut recovered today by police. >> what is the dallas zoo and -- offering today as any potential leads or explanations?

>> you know, laura, they are taking this very seriously. the police is conducting a criminal investigation. they say that they are very serious about this. they're trying to figure out what all the suspicious activity is. they are not going into the potential charges. but they do say -- i mean, this could include animal cruelty. and then when you think about the animals that are being tampered with or, in the case of the vulture the vulture has died. some of these animals are vulnerable animals. in the case of the clouded leopard, there's only about 10,000 of those in southeast asia. the vulture is an endangered species. that vulture was killed. the zoo says that the cause and manner of death are trying to figure that out. but they do say that the death of the vulture was not by natural causes. so, they are investigating. they are trying to figure out who killed this vulture. and there is a 10,000 dollar reward for the arrest and the indictment of the individual that is responsible for that.

another obvious question here is, all these questions cases related? -- go into those details, laura. but in the case of at least two of these instances, they happen on the same day. so, it's difficult to separate those. but again, police are taking this very seriously. this is a criminal investigation. and it continues. it is ongoing. >> i want to bring in dan to the conversation. because this is the very latest incident in a string of incidents, as rosa mentioned, dan. these two tamarin monkeys, they were found in the closet of an abandoned home. if anyone is watching the news about what is happening in dallas, specifically, it's freezing there. these are warm weather creatures, as i understand. they could have died in terms of thinking about what could have happened if they had not been found. >> they could have. and i'm going to begin by accessing my admiration and appreciation for everyone at the dallas zoo in the dallas police department for the dedication and seriousness with which they have taken these

matters. but, yes removing animals like tamarin monkeys from their habitat at the zoo is very dangerous. because they do have specific climate conditions -- this is definitely a serious issue for their health and safety. >> all right. do you think the dallas zoo is doing enough, given the string of events at this point, to try to prevent another animal from being impacted? >> absolutely. i think the dallas zoo has acted in exemplary manner. they knew something was wrong. and when you think about this, this is really kind of an allegory for what is happening to animals in nature, at a much larger scale. it's humans going into their habitat, taking them out of their habitat, trafficking them. and it's wildlife trafficking and human persecution and poaching. they are driving a lot of their animals towards extinction. what we are seeing here is a

same thing on a smaller scale, it's a human going into their enclosure, taking them out, presumably for personal collection or possibly for to traffic them. and so what we are seeing here in dallas is the same kind of struggle that we are dealing with in dealing with conserving animals in nature. i think dallas zoo has done is exemplary job. and later this year i will be at dallas zoo actually taking part in a wild life trafficking event to highlight the challenges associated with protecting animals, even now, as we see, in spaces that are designed for their safety and protection -- >> the way you phrase it, it's quite a microcosm of a larger issue. and i do wonder what we will know about the motives and be able to capture the person who is engaged in this behavior. thank you to you both this evening. >> thank you, laura. >> well, alec baldwin, formally charged today, over the fatal

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safety founder, dutch merit and then neil franklin. let me begin with you, dutch, on this particular -- that they believe are negligent, including him not taking firearm training seriously, having a cell phone distraction moment, also the idea of pointing of the gun in particular. and i want to go there because certainly there is common sense is as you should never point a gun at someone. and there are obvious reasons why. i do wonder, from your experience, though, when we are talking about a movie set of in particular, the crux of this issue -- are the standards notably different because of the pantomime-ing and the scene setting? >> yeah. they absolutely are different. there is real world gun handling and then there's motion picture gun handling. and we have a slightly different set of rules. in the real world, they say never point a gun at another person or something you don't want to destroy. in the film world, we say,

always pointed in a safe direction. and the safe direction is open to interpretation. we might have a gun pointed at a camera. but there will be a sheet of lack or polycarbonate there to safety that. so, it's always not pointing at a person, per se, technically. but again, i think they're putting so much focus on the actor -- he, in my experience -- we are supposed to safety the stage as the -- so that the actor can play fully, almost like a four year old, so they can completely be in that character, in that space, and almost not worry about any other details. so, we make it very realistic. and ultimately, entirely safe. so, hence, blank use for over 100 years. it looked like a real gun and it -- no bullets. >> on that point, neil, baldwin insist that he did not fire the revolver, that it just, quote, went off. the da's office is saying that they have had fbi analysis done and found that to be not

truthful, that the weapon -- malfunction. what do you think? >> so i think whether on the set of a movie or in some other situation, you should always take gun safety very, very seriously. so, even in that -- as dutch merrick said, even though you want them in this role or they can act, for instance, like a four year old, and do what they need to do in that acting situation, when it comes to pointing a gun in a safe direction, it is still your responsibility -- everyone's responsibility who handles that firearm -- to check, to make sure that it is either loaded or unloaded, whether it has blank so it does not have blanks. and to have someone else check with you at the same time -- you just don't want to check yourself. you show it to someone else. they check with you, so it can be confirmed what the condition of the firearm is. and pulling a trigger, if you have taken the course seriously,

you know that you just don't have to pull the trigger for that firearm to discharge. pulling the hammer back will do the very same thing, depending upon the firearm. >> elliott, let me bring you in. here because one of the points that dutch merrick raised was a lot of onus being on the actor. and the assumptions that ought to be able to be relied upon if you have this safe space. but he is notably -- alec baldwin, again -- there is someone else, hannah guiterrez-reed also charged. and another producer who has pleaded guilty already to a different charge. but he is also being charged and factored as a producer as well. that's been a big sticking point for you. >> no, it is. because -- what they do in this probable cause statement where they lay out why they are charging over the basis for the charges, is, number one, these are all things that alec baldwin, the actor did, sort of failing in his duty as an actor -- and then alec baldwin as a producer, who had some responsibility for what happened on the set. even if we are not looking at him as an actor, and this is how this producer failed the set. so, they are sort of putting

forward to alternative theories for how he did it, for how he went wrong. what this comes down to and what any manslaughter cases going to come down to his called reasonableness. and you know that, laura, of course. it's -- why is this person's actions -- how does it relate to how a reasonable, quote unquote, person would have acted in those circumstances? dutch merrick had said earlier, a lot of these things are open to interpretation, like what ought to be the right way to behave on a movie set, whether as an actor or as a producer. so we will see how it all plays out. >> and of course -- he is saying he is more of a creative producer not something in the nuts and bolts. with that make a difference to -- >> the prosecutor seem to disagree with him. regardless of whether he is a creative producer -- and that's a thing -- but he was also, i think they use the term principle producer, maybe not executive producer. but he had a senior management role there. that's what they are hanging their head on here. and it is hard to see how this comes out, being how subjective it all. is >> we are a long way away from this being fully resolved, everyone. but we are out of time tonight. and i thank you all for

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- [announcer] do you have an invention idea but don't know what to do next? call invent help today. they can help you get started with your idea. call now 800-710-0020. >> good evening, we begin tonight keeping them honest with the person that is hard to keep it honest, congressman george santos, who said today that he is stepping away from his committee assignments, and the house republican leadership calling for him to just leave it at that. according to the congressman's statement, with the ongoing intentions surrounding my personal and campaign financial investigations, i've submitted a request to speak to mccarthy and be temporarily recused from my committee assignments until and cleared. the republican has been disowned by his own local republican leadership for lying to them and is facing calls to resign from other members of

his new york republican house