records -- and position of needless barriers to employment, housing and educational opportunities. too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana, it's time we write the songs. the president is also commuting sentences of 11 drug offenders who were serving disproportionately long sentences for nonviolent drug offenses, noting that quote all of them would've been eligible to receive significantly lower sentences if they were charged with the same offense today. to our viewers, thank you very much for watching, i am will return the situation room, i hope you have a very merry christmas and a very happy new year. erin burnett out front struts right now. up front next, the supreme court sides with trump at least for now, would be the way in on

the former presidents immunity claims in the 2020 election case . what does this mean for the trial's start date? plus israel says it is expanding its offensive in gaza tonight, as a new cnn investigation uncovers where israel has been dropping massive 2000 pound bombs. new concerns about american paul wheeling as he reveals a prison official that is targeting him inside that dangerous russian labor camp. how worried is his family about his safety? his sister is my guest. let's go out front. you do good evening, i am internet for erin burnett. out front tonight, for now the when you donald trump, the supreme court fusing to decide right now if trump is immune from the alleged crimes he committed as president, including his efforts to overturn the election. the decision from this court came in the one page, one

sentence order, rejecting the request by special counsel jack smith for expedited review. this means the issue, which is at the core of the election interference case will now play out in a federal appeals court first. smith and his prosecutors had hoped to bypass the appeals court to speed up the process, since the case will ultimately end up at the supreme court. this raises the likelihood that the start date for trumps federal 2020 election trial will now stretch beyond the currently scheduled march 4 start date, that could have major implications on the 2024 presidential race. trumps team tried to delay his numerous trials. if they are pushed past the election, trump could order some of the charges be dropped if he wins the presidency. evan perez is out of my. evan,

so, what exactly happens now in this case? and how quick is it? >> will, what this means is that the january 9 scheduled oral arguments before the d.c. circuit is a lot more consequential, a lot more important. keep in mind that after jack smith went to get the supreme court to ask for this step, the appeals court came back and put pretty aggressive timelines on, very tight deadlines for the truck team and jack smith, to get ready for oral arguments. that is, we don't know, we don't know whether this influenced the supreme court's decision, but it could have played a role. what this means is that by the time this comes back to the supreme court and almost certainly it will come back before the court, there will be a fuller record, a record not only from the district court, which said that donald trump does not have immunity, simply because he was acting as president when he was trying to

subvert the election or allegedly trying to subvert the election, and the other big question he raises as part of this is because he was impeached by the house and acquitted by the senate, that he would violate the constitutional double jeopardy clause. so, those are the two big questions that are now before the appeals court, january ninth, just a few days before the iowa caucus. look, you brought it up, the date of the trial, march 4, almost certainly in danger now, in the question is how much further does this go into the campaign? this is also a big thing for the justice department is one of the things they were trying to do was to get out of the way of the campaign. that is looking a lot more difficult to do. >> a lot of trial dates sprinkled throughout the campaign timeline. thank yoo so much for joining us. ryan goodman and former special counsel of the department of defense.

in the former excel nixon white house counsel, thank you all. ryan, i wonder, what does this reveal around the courts right now? could this be a smart decision to let the appeals court later this out first? >> absolutely. so, trumps brief in response to jack smith and the supreme court has a strong argument. one of them is this kind of issue has never been decided by any court in the country, save for one. let the regular course of litigation proceed, have the d.c. circuit way in and get their judgment before you decide, and made a second argument which was to say maybe you should leapfrog in certain instances, but in this they are fast tracking the process. why jump ahead when we can just get the circuits review, it does not necessarily reveal which way they might go, but

that is a pretty strong argument for not a huge delay, but at least letting the process straight play out. >> trump is celebrating this as a big win for him. from a political perspective is he right to celebrate? you make it to win in the sense that he wants to delay as long as he can. what this does is it puts the start date in march very much in jeopardy. we don't know, as we have been saying, the court of appeals has put this on the next but i did track, they are hearing arguments january 9, that is pretty quick, we don't know how long they will take to rule one way or the other, once they rule. it will go to the court, the supreme court. we don't know how long the court will take. so, trump wants to play this out as long as he can, potentially until after the election. that is what jack smith did not

say in his motion, because he does not want to do is to play out after the election. he wants to get it done before the election, and presumably way before the election. this really does not help them. met john, the special counsel pointed to a watergate era case , which i know that you know well, in that case the supreme court leave out the appeals court to quickly hear a case in which the judges ultimately rejected them, pres. richard nixon's claim and the subpoena over oval office kate tapes. you think the supreme court was wrong to reject smith's connection to that case, and smith's argument in that sense? >> smith did not make a really strong argument to me. when i read the brief, the nixon case i would have put on a scale of 1 to 10, a four, i would put this on a nine or 10. and that's not to really build that case, they felt no urgency

in the briefing. i think of it as a practical matter, they want to have all their options, this is very highly charged political stuff. and they may want to be able to not be the first to be put in and go after the president, but rather sit back to make a court of appeals, which is going to reject his immunity. >> right, of course as gloria noted his tactics here and in many legal cases, was to delay. what happens once the appeals court decides, and does trump have a long runway there to keep the delay or his appeal to the supreme court? >> potentially, if this were the normal course of litigation , then you have like a certain period of time where he can say he wants to have the entire court of appeals look at it, then after that period of time, 90 days in which he could decide if he wants to go to the supreme court, but i don't think that will happen.

as a way in which the court of appeals can control it. they could say, as what just happened in colorado, we are going to lift the stay on the district court and allow the district court to proceed if you do not petition with an x amount of time so they can easily force him to go to the court quickly or jack smith can do what he suggested, that after the d.c. court of appeals rules, then the supreme court can expedite. and that is the option available to the courts, it is in the courts hand what they want to do. >> do they have the expiration date, do you see a scenario where trump could, if the chips fall, all the chips fall in his direction, could delay beyond the election? >> it is not impossible, but i think not likely. as ryan said, we really have the court in control of how much evidence and how the court proceeds, the trial court, to a

greater degree here. and i would be shocked if the court does not take charge and go forward. so, i don't think he can prevail with the delay strategy, the d.c. circuit is very privy to donald trump's delay tactics, and know what to do with them. >> gloria, this is such a central question, to all of the cases facing trump. is he immune? and i just wanted the potential consequences. like this decision has enormous implications for this election, but really for presidential power, does it not? >> absolutely is is president- setting, that's one of the reasons the supreme court decided that it needed a record set first by the court of appeals, and to go through the regular process. but, this is an incredibly important case for not only donald trump, but for the country. and i think what there is no

control over, in terms of timing, is how long the supreme court will take to decide this case. and we don't know the answer to that question. >> before we go, it is so normal now to look at every case through a lens of a conservative core, a liberal justice, is there a clear conservative liberal split, in your view, on the presidential immunity question? >> i don't think so. i do think that the court might very well rule 9-0, in that they will say that in a minimum, there are certain forms of conduct at an incumbent president cannot engage in that would be criminal, the only question is how broad of any scope of immunity or is there no immunity, there's a very good likelihood that the country will see a unified court on that issue, and i don't think it looks strong for trump, maybe a question of it being a majority equipment -- or unanimous. >> enormous consequences in that case. thank you so much.

and happy holidays to all of you. >> thank you. next, israel says it is going to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties in gaza. is that true? our special investigation looks at where israel's 2000 pound bombs are landing. plus we take you to the focal point of the border crisis where thousands cross into the u.s., despite miles of razor wire and thousands of federal state and local authorities on the ground. a mother of seven, who served in the idf now facing what could be her biggest challenge, a shot at replacing george santos. are you ready for this? >> yes. i know that people will be with me, because they want a new voice.

tonight the israeli defense forces say they are preparing to quote expand the war into new areas with an emphasis on southern gaza. this is the idf says it is quote gradually competing its goals and another gaza, though israel's defense cheap ones that the ongoing war will be quote a prolonged one. it comes as an estimated 20,000 people have been killed in gaza

since the war began, including some 8000 children. that is according to the palestinian ministry of health, that we cannot independently verify those numbers. jeremy is out front, the idf says it plans to expand military operations in gaza, despite all of the pressure we have heard from u.s. officials to him those in? >> that's right, the idf saying that they will expand the military campaign to new areas of the gaza strip with an emphasis on southern gaza just earlier this week they added thousands more trips to their offenses. but, they also appear to be poised to expand their operations in central gaza as well, ordering the evacuation of resident in the -- refugee camp in central gaza and southern other neighborhoods in parts of that gaza strip as well, despite the international pressure, despite the u.s. pressure to transition the

operations to something lower intensity, they are very much moving forward with that campaign. at the same time it facing increasing pressure to increase the amount of 80 deliveries going to gaza, we see how dire the need is for that aid, according to the u.n. world food program, about half of gaza's 2.2 million population is now facing severe or extreme hunger, but to despite that, there is, the israeli military expands the delivery of aid into gaza, 300+ truck going directly from the shalom crossing into the gaza strip. we were there earlier today when using dozens of those trucks making that journey. but, still, there is a gap not only in the amount of aid, but also in the israeli military's willingness to acknowledge what is happening in gaza. the israeli military officer charged with delivering the aid into gaza told me today that there is no food shortage in gaza, i pressed him on that, listen. >> like i have told you, there

are tens of trucks located with food entering the gaza strip every day. there are thousands of tons of food entering the gaza strip every day. >> why would you say there is no food shortage in gaza? does that just you are disconnected with the realities of people experiencing it? >> like i have told you, we are doing a daily analysis of the situation, which the international -- and with other parties in other sectors like the private sectors. >> while he pointed the finger at the u.n. and international organizations, they are pointed right back at him, the u.n. secretary-general saying it is the way that israel conducts its military offensive that is hampering and putting up massive obstacles, the distribution of aid in gaza, we saw that on thursday at the israeli military conducted a strike on the other side of the karen shalom crossing. >> i've been told similar such

as unicef, thank you so much. there also tonight, a new investigation revealing that israel has dropped hundreds of massive 200,000 pound bombs bombs on gaza contributing to a soaring death toll in one of the most densely populated places on earth. -- is not sprint. >> even at a distance, he ruled on gaza it is unmistakable. >> we are a few -- from the boundary with gaza, even here you get a sense of the degree of the israeli bombardment of gaza, the sheer intensity and scale. this is what that looks like up close. >> scenes of destruction have become all too familiar. here the aftermath of another israeli airstrike. this time in late october at

the refugee camp. one of the most densely populated residential areas in gaza. the bond that caused this damage is a 2000 pound bomb, likely made in the usa. dropped by the israeli air force , at least four times as powerful as the vast majority of bombs used by the u.s. in its fight against isis. in densely populated gaza, the human cost is incomparable, whole families wiped out in one blow. the refugee camp is one of the epicenters of israel's bombing campaign. to understand the complete picture and tell of the destruction in gaza you need to look from above. in coordination with artificial intelligence companies, synthetic, cnn was able to locate over 1900 cases left behind by bombardment in just the first month of the war. using ai we analyzed the diameter of these, over 500 of

which were greater than 40 feet in diameter. consistent with american-made a 2000 pound bombs used by the israeli air force. our analysis covers the one month period from november 6 in which a staggering 10,000 people are believed to have died, the u.s.'s most senior diplomat testified on november 9, the number of dead could be even higher. >> this period of conflict and conditions of war, it is difficult for us to assess what the rate of casualties are, we think they are very high, frankly. and it could be that they are even higher than they are being cited. >> reporter: yet the u.s. continues to back israel's bombardment. so, why is that that death toll so staggering? because it is not just about to the point of impact. this is a creature caused by a 2000 pound bomb, the potential kill zone could spread up to

365 m. that is 1200 feet. an area equivalent to roughly 60 soccer pitches or around 90 american football fields. the idf told cnn in stark contract to hamas is attacks on israeli men women and children, the idf follows international law and takes his cautions to mitigate civilian harm. but is that true? this is just north of the refugee camp, along the maine coastal road, when you go in closer you can see ingested this small neighborhood, at least nine creatures consistent with 2000 pound bombs, which means the potential kill zone could encompass this entire area. cnn and synthetics analysis of the devastation of gaza shows extensive bombardment, in an area this densely populated, using these bombs, it is inherently indiscriminate. and the human cost continues to soar. surpassing 20,000.

many of the dead still unburied. still under the rubble, with no end in sight. >> fantastic reporting. out next, america's border at a breaking point, federal officials in capturing record number of migrants, 10,000 per day. what is fueling the latest surge ? we have a special report, next. as american paul we'll end says he is being targeted inside a brutal russian labor camp where he says most people carry knives. how is he doing it? his sister is my guest.

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tonight, nearly 10,000 migrants a day, that is what federal officials say they are encountering at the u.s. southern border on average, in december that is the one of the highest numbers ever recorded, and with multiple border entry points remaining closed as the surge at the southern border escalates, u.s. officials now warning that the situation is nearing a quote breaking point.

>> reporter: apprehensions of migrants crossing the southern u.s. border are reaching record levels. the department of homeland security official telling cnn the average number of encounters in the last week is 9600 per day. this rate of apprehensions has not been seen since earlier this year in the days before the lifting of the covid era restriction known as title 42. republican congressman tony gonzalez says the situation is spiraling out of control again. >> borders of patrol agents are doing everything they can, but they are completely overwhelmed. completely just overwhelmed with the situation. it is getting worse. >> this is spot along the rio grande in eagle pass, texas, is the focal point of the southern border migration crisis. despite the miles of razor wire, steel containers on the riverbank, and thousands of federal, state and local authorities on the ground, thousands cross this spot every day. sheriff tom says zero-tolerance

immigration policy will not keep migrants from crossing the border illegally into the u.s., but he says that biden administration needs to do more to get it under control. >> the best thing to do is -- to work with the government of mexico persuading them to put some kind of a portal system over there on their border. and help us. >> reporter: president joe biden spoke with the mexican president on thursday, the administration said both and agreed more needs to be done to stop the historic migration flood. in the mexican president announced friday that he will meet with -- next week in mexico city. u.s. border authorities remain overwhelmed. immigration processing facilities are filled, and the strain on resources is creating

staggering delays in long lines at ports of entry for border residence. no one has figured out how to overcome the tidal wave of misinformation that largely influences migrants as they make their way north to the u.s. border. border authorities say the migrants are convinced that crossing illegally between ports of entry is routine. >> there's a lot of misinformation going on on the mexican side, the migrants believe that this is an official port, or an official way to enter the u.s., which is completely wrong. >> reporter: in places like eagle pass, the daily flow of migrants crossing the rio grande does not appear to be slowing down anytime soon. >> you do have you, are there any signs that gov. abbott's law, the new controversial law to arrest migrants will the church people from coming is go if misinformation has been such an influence in here. >> reporter: that law is not

supposed to go into effect until march, it is likely to be tied up in the course. we asked the sheriff what he thought about it, she did not think it would do anything to curtail people want you to cross the border, in the mexican president has been critical of the law it is bowing to help mexicans and migrants, defending them in this situation. that could also very well complicated discussions that he's scheduled to have with u.s. officials next week in mexico city. >> thank you so much. now democratic strategist have you both. maria, you heard ed's report, record levels each day, you know that politically this is hammering democrats, including president biden. does he need to get a deal done in january as quickly as possible? or risk losing the election? >> well, they definitely want to get a deal done, but what they should do is they should lean into what the vast majority of americans agree with, that is that in order to

deal with immigration and the border, we need a balance approach. the problem here is that republicans are negotiating incompletely bad faith. the only thing they are offering is to shut down the border, eviscerate the asylum processes, they want to offer what passed in the house which is hr two, the completely ciccone and maga extremist inspired proposal that democrats don't want, that the white house does not want and crackly, won't work. so, what we need, with the administration needs, they don't have, partners on the other side that want to negotiate in good faith to really get to this immigration issue under control, and to fix it. as you know, biden cannot do it alone, the white house cannot do it alone, this has been congress's responsibility forever, they are the ones that need to come together in a bipartisan way to your out how you expand legal pathways so you reduce the pressures of people coming here, and

increase border security. by the way, the biden administration offered $14 billion in border security to increase smart border security, more resources and more border control, more drones, more technology, increase asylum processes, or people who process them, immigration judges, and republicans turned them down. the hypocrisy and the ignorance on behalf of republicans is rampant, until they come together, come to the table with a real effort to get this fixed, we are not going to get where we need to be. >> well, congressman, as you know, it seems republicans want more, you know big picture how hard it is to get any bipartisan deal through congress when it involves immigration. i wonder, do republicans want a deal now? or do they prefer an issue for the 2024 election? >> well, i think many do you want a solution. it is true, members on both side of the aisle have used

immigration as a political issue, they don't want a solution. but, i think the issue that i think republicans have to be fair, is this a silent system is broken. most of the people coming across the border are economic migrants, they are not legitimate asylum in cases. i think the fear that republicans have is want to admit people into the country, they disappear into the interior of the country and then good luck getting people to show up to deportation hearings, or asylum proceedings. that is one of the major concerns. no, they have to fix this asylum system. i'm not sure they will be able to do this in the context of the supplemental appropriations bill, but i think the biden administration has been late on this issue, and, you know, i am not for shutting down the border, i think that is ciccone and can we have to deal with this seemingly, but americans expect an orderly system of admission and exits, we don't have that right now with 10,000 migrants per day.

>> maria, as you know, president biden sent a clear message to democrats, they need to work with republicans to deliver and make concessions and here's what he said recently. >> i am willing to make significant compromises on the border. we need to fix the broken border system, it is broken. >> compromises how democracy works. i am ready and have offered compromise already. >> i propose a conference of immigration read form on day one. we need congress to act. >> it appears he's willing to make compromises while certainly more security, raise the fear standard for asylum seekers, the issue seems to be with parole power for the president, allowing, in effect, the president to make decisions about who gets treatment through the process. to both of you, what concession is key here? max so, you heard the president. he is willing to make concessions, he's always been willing to make concessions.

so much so that some of his allies are mad at him for making too many concessions, but i have to draw the line at the extremism that republicans are asking for, because it is not a serious proposal what they want. that goes to what charlie was saying. i don't think republicans want a deal, the majority of them are not working toward a deal, which is what we want. america deserves better. the border communities in the cities deserve better, the president was willing to give that money and republicans said no. so naturally, with a reasonable concession for republicans to demand at this time? it's been a big concession for republicans? the biggest one they can make right now is to get rid of some of the extreme veterans who are shutting down the border, they need to move away from that and get serious about negotiating more barriers, more bad, more immigration judges, technology and maria said, drones, and of course they need the democrats to move on asylum.

in a big way, and also to help with the interior enforcement problem, that is something that bothers many republicans, i was on the homeland security committee for years, dealing with these issues, they don't have to bend here, then as maria says, negotiate in good faith, some of the numbers on the republican side of the house are not voting for a deal that includes her ukraine funding regardless. >> it seems the key is raising the standard, but not eliminating the standard. we will see if i can find common ground. happy holidays to both of you. >> thank yoo so much. -- concerns going from the safety of american paul whelan as he reveals he has to fight off other prisoners. plus, a mother of seven and a registered democrat, republicans are banking on her to r replace geoeorge rentals.s soso, who is s she?

visiting that the kremlin is dismissing safety concerns raised by the wrongfully detained american paul whelan. the former u.s. marine has been held in russia for nearly five years now. details cnn he has been targeted by a russian prison official who is now urging other prisoners to attack him. it comes just weeks after he said he was punched in the face by another prisoner. inside a sewing room, like the one we are showing you right

now. cnn asked the kremlin spokesman about this today, he said quote to be honest, we don't know about this, i cannot say anything about this. thanks now is paul's sister elizabeth weiland, good to have you on tonight. >> thank you so much. >> your brother is telling cnn that this prison official moved into a more dangerous part of the barracks in this remote labor camp, already dangerous enough, he said quote most people carry knives here and use stimulants which make them wild and violent, a deadly combination for any sort of conflict exists. my heart goes out to you because hearing these accounts from afar, must be just heartbreaking for you. how worried are you about his safety right now? >> we've been worried about his safety every day he has been in russia. people tend to think that an american who was wrongfully detained overseas is just

sitting like a toy on a shelf waiting to be exchanged, when they are actually dealing with horrible criminals, terrible present situations, every single day. >> and listen, it is deliberate. we have seen russia carry out this type before. cnn asked the white house about this, here is what they said. >> we are very concerned, as we hear those accounts from paul. i would tell you again that while i don't have a breakthrough to announce today, we did come in recent days, put forward a serious proposal that the russians rebuffed, and we are working hard to see what we can do to get another proposal in that might be more successful to get him and evan out. >> speaking of heaven, the wall street journal reporter, do you think there is any deal that russia will accept to bring your brother home? and ultimately is russia using him to send the u.s. a message?

>> well, i think that russia has very little to hold over the u.s. and paul, and unfortunately evan as well, are two of the figures they do have. so, they are definitely playing games with the u.s. in all, paul is a tourist. he should not have to be doing what any deal whatsoever to get him home. the fact that the u.s. government has worked hard to put forth two significant proposals, both of them rejected , is just ridiculous, a sign of a weak mac government in russia, that they cannot even reasonably negotiate. >> is, that is hostage diplomacy. next week will mark five years since your brother was arrested in moscow. he spent more than 800 days in prison, your family put out a statement from paul as the milestone approaches and i want to quote from his statement. my parents are quite elderly and i have given up hope of seeing them again, friends have moved on, relatives have passed away. i was told everyone was doing everything they could to secure my release. in my mind that has

not been done at all. you have noted that you cannot communicate to him all that the u.s. is doing to try to gain his release, but do you believe the biden administration could be doing more? >> well, it is so difficult. i have seen them work so hard to get something done. you know, i talked to the officials every single week. plus, i do think we have to continue to press on them to see what else can be done. there must be some way to get paul home. >> well, i am only hoping, and i know the holidays must be particularly difficult to have that empty seat at the table. we wish you and your family the the new year. >> thank you very much. out front next, the race to replace george santos is heating up and republicans hoping that they registered democrat can help them keep that seat. plus, alexi noe valley, missing now for 17 days. today

his team is growing even more alarmed. [ music ] the cnn republican presidential debate, live from iowa january 10 at 9:00 pm eastern.

tonight, off to the races. the special election to replace expelled congressman george santos now in full swing. democrat, tom swazi, who held the seat before santos looking to leverage his home court advantage and name recognition. and he's not shy about where his party is falling short. >> the president should take a play out of bill clinton's book. he should adopt the immigration issue as his own issue instead of just getting beaten up on it, make it his own issue. propose a comprehensive bipartisan solution that's moderate and that includes border security and treats people like human beings. >> swazi is up against little known gop opponent mazi pill p, a mother of seven and a registered democrat. miguel marquez is "out front." >> reporter: it's on, the race to replace expelled congressman

george santos. the democrat -- >> my name is tom swazi. i'm running for united states congress. >> reporter: the contenders hand picked by both state parties. >> thank you. >> reporter: the republican, mazi pilla, mother of seven, ethiopian born and orthodox jew who served in the israel defense forces, immigrated to america, has successfully run for local office twice. now facing maybe the biggest challenge of her life. >> are you ready for this? >> absolutely, yes. and i know that people of the third congressional district will be with me because they want to live with a fresh face, the person who cares about them. >> mozzi, the campaign emphasizing her first name. she's running against a democrat who has worked in long island politics for decades and

represented the third district as a congressman for three terms. he left to run for governor. he is well-known to voters here. >> i know people and people know me. that's why i'm getting a very, very enthusiastic reception from people because they trust me and they want me to work for them. >> will you resign -- >> i have no clue -- >> reporter: george santos tossed out of congress for ethics violations and after his serial lying became a national joke. >> i'm no longer congressman santos. i'm just regular old professor general astronaut santos, protector of the realm, apprentice of gentleman noef i can't. >> reporter: the race to replace him now considered a test case for where the country might go in november. >> what works in the former george santos district will work in a lot of the competitive suburban districts that are going to determine which party

controls congress. >> and maybe takes the white house as well. >> absolutely. >> reporter: new york's third district outside of new york city, sans to won it by about 8 points in 2022. the district boundaries had changed during that 2022 election. biden would have won the same shaped district based on 2020 numbers also by about eight points. >> this is a fair fight. it's a democratic leaning district, but republicans have done well the last few election cycles. >> mazi pill p, who happens to be a registered democrat but has run and won as a republican, sees her registration as an asset. >> people are going to report to me because of who i am. i registered as a democrat. i was democrat. but this party with the lefty progressive agenda left me. >> reporter: as pillip sharpens her message, her opponent drawing on years of public service has hit the ground running. >> if you feel like saying hi,

you know where to find him. >> reporter: tv ads already reintroducing him to voters. some democrats here can't wait for election day. >> how motivated are you to vote? >> oh, i am -- >> oh, i will be there. 7:00 in the morning if that's when the polls open. >> so, you're motivated? >> oh, highly motivated. >> reporter: but for independents like noah, who voted for tom swazi in the past, he may not know mazi pillip's name -- >> i can't even remember her name, but it was pretty persuasive and it's something we need more of in america. >> reporter: this race is expected to be mammoth, attracting tens of millions of dollars in spending. and it is a sprint. we're just a little over seven weekm the february 13th election date. early voting starts february 3rd. it's going to be a wild ride. back to you. >> it could be a bellwether as well. thanks, miguel marquez.

"out front" next, concerns over putin critic alexei navalny's health, as he failed to show up for t two trials s t. totonight his s team respoponds.

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front," quote, putin is just hiding my father from us. and now navalny's team is offering a reward for information, writing, today alec xi was supposed to have two trials. we offer a reward, cryptocurrency for any complete and reliable information about alexie. the length of navalny's absence from public view is unprecedented and sparked concerns about his well being and his safety. the kremlin has refused to say anything about where navalny is. a quick programming note. erin will be hosting a town hall with nikki haley live january 4th at 10:00 p.m. eastern. that will be right after another cnn town hall with ron desantis also from iowa. thanks so much to all of you for joining us. we wish you a very happy holiday. holiday. "ac 360" starts now. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com well