which is why xfinity mobile is a different kind of wireless network that lets you design your own data. choose unlimited, shared data, or mix lines of each and switch any line, anytime. giving you more choice and control compared to other top wireless carriers. save up to $400 a year when you switch. plus, get 50% off when you buy any new lg phone. xfinity mobile. click, call or visit a store today. that is our show for today. "a.m. joy" will be back tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. eastern. and kamala harris will be here. i'm very excited about it. >> ooh! >> alex witt, pick it up from here, my sister! >> can i just say, happy dance, joy's back! we're so happy to see you. we missed you, and you look fabulous. >> thank you. >> all right, my friend, i'll take it from here. >> have a great show. >> good day, everyone, from msnbc world headquarters in new

york, welcome to "weekends with alex witt." we begin with breaking news. we are awaiting the president to leave the white house for the lsu/alabama football game. hunter biden is among the list of witnesses republicans would like to testify in the phase of the impeachment inquiry and we have a look at the letter sent to adam schiff from devin nunes. aside from former vice president joe biden's son, other highlights on the gop's wish list include hunter biden's former business partner devon archer, the unknown whistle-blower, and all of the individuals relied upon by that whistle-blower in drafting his or her complaint. so, it's unclear how many of these requests witnesses, if any, will be approved by house democrats. let's go to nbc's hans nichols, joining us from the white house. hans, as you look over this list, what do you think is most significant in it? >> reporter: well, i think what's significant is the president trying to go on offense and his allies on capitol hill trying to do the same, so they want to call hunter biden, as you mentioned,

also call the whistle-blower in some sort of public way. now, the interesting thing here is that you see a little bit of a divergence from the house and their strategy and what the president is saying, because the house looks to be looking forward to the public phase of this testimony, the public phase of this entire impeachment inquiry. while the president himself yesterday reversed himself after weeks of saying that he wanted to have all of these private transcripts made public, yesterday he said he wasn't supporting this public phase. >> well, they shouldn't be having public hearings. this is a hoax. >> can you explain just so that people understand why you are not allowing people like mick mulvaney and others to comply with subpoenas? >> i don't want to give credibility to a corrupt witch hunt. i'd love to have mick go up, frankly. i think he'd do great. i'd love to have him go up. i'd love to have almost every person go up when they know me. what i don't like is when they put all of these people that i've never met before. >> so, mick mulvaney himself doesn't feel that comfortable going up. his attorneys have asked to be

added to this lawsuit, and it's a lawsuit initially by charles kupperman, the national deputy security adviser and then by john bolton. basically they're saying the courts have to decide whether or not they can appear before these congressional committees because they say the president, the executive branch is directing them in one direction and congress is trying to compel them to do something else. so, mulvaney has attached himself to that lawsuit, or rather, he wants to in federal court, looking for clarity from the judiciary. now, there may not be time in all this, because if you look at the timeline, at least what the democrats are saying publicly, to have testimony from either mulvaney, bolton, and/or kupperman, it might not be in time because they wouldn't get a ruling from the courts for this to actually meet their time schedule. so, there's that aspect of it. the president talking about going on offense, is hinting about releasing a second transcript. this would actually be a first one that took place in april. unclear if his lawyers will agree to that. the president seems predisposed

to putting that out. so, we'll see. we're going to get another chance to potentially talk to the president here. i hear a helicopter behind me. that means marine one may be landing, and we'll see whether or not we have a south land departure mini press conference where my colleague and i, kelly o'donnell, may be firing questions to the president, and by firing, i mean shouting because it gets pretty loud out there, alex? >> we'll be looking forward to that. we have a camera trained on that and hopefully you make an appearance shortly. before i let you go, the time frame you were talking about, my understanding is the judiciary is not expected to rule on this lawsuit and whether or not these people can be compelled to testify until what, maybe mid-december? i mean, it's quite a ways yet. >> reporter: december 10 i believe is when there is a hearing on that. so, that's what would potentially gum that process up. what you hear from house democrats is that they're just going to take the noncompliance and nonappearance as another move or article of obstruction -- >> obstruction, right. >> reporter: as they potentially have a second charge on

obstruction. and i should mention on all this, the president is going to a football game. they've got this important governor's race in louisiana. the president clearly wants to make sure he talks to as many voters as possible. he'll be heading back to louisiana on wednesday. they vote on saturday down there and remember, they've got parishes, not counties, alex. >> given i'm a usc girl, i will say and cede the fact, this is actually the game today. so it is what it is. takeoff, okay? we'll take you perhaps on the other side on the south lawn. thank you, hans, for that. joining me now, john harwood, cnbc's editor at large. john, we're expecting janelle ross to show up, but i'll just start with you here. this republican witness list. what's your interpretation of who they have asked for? >> reporter: well, they're trying to redirect attention away from what the president did toward the issue of hunter biden and vice president biden. i don't think that's going to work, although hunter biden clearly was influence peddling. that's why he was hired by that

energy company. there is no evidence that joe biden did anything wrong. and what hunter biden was doing was cashing in on his name. that is an unsavory thing that happens in washington with many people close to people in power, so republicans think that by shining a light on that, they can minimize attention on what the president oo's son -- i don think that's going to work, though, because the president's the president, and his conduct is what is squarely on the table here. >> okay. janelle's here to answer this question. realistically, are we going to see any of these people testify? because you know, chairman schiff, he's got to approve them. >> you know, fourof course, thi a matter of -- there are many steps, many procedures that are going to have to be followed. and of course, it is true that there are going to have to be some decisions made by the chair. however, you know, it is very clear that there are individuals who would rather not testify, there are individuals who have been -- certainly, there are

questions, reasonable questions to be raised about the choices they've made, statements that have been made, directives that have been given to diplomats, so, it would certainly seem reasonable that they would want to avoid testifying. whether this will occur, i don't think anybody can predict. >> so, john, adam schiff, if he does reject these names, is there risk in doing so in the interpretation of that? >> well, republicans are going to cast a negative interpretation, whatever he does, and we know that in every stage in the process, they've complained that the process is unfair. so, i think adam schiff probably is not going to be dissuaded by those attacks because they're going to come no matter what he does. but i do think the charge for democrats is to try to make plain to the public the case that they believe that they have, and all of the evidence suggests that they do have, in a way that moves the american people. clearly, democrats have all

moved en masse toward favoring impeachment of the president. independents have significantly moved. about half of them in public polling. but the number of republicans have moved is quite small. and if democrats think that the ultimate objective is to get the president out of office, they need a heck of a lot more republican support than they've got now, and that will depend on the public case they can make. >> okay, guys, let's pivot specifically to john bolton, of course, the president's former national security adviser. his attorney is now teasing that bolton's got information about ukraine that's not yet been made public, but he says bolton needs a court order to testify. in the statement released yesterday, his attorney wrote bolton was personally involved in many of the events, meetings, and conversations about which you have already received testimony as well as many relevant meetings and conversations that have not yet been discussed in the testimony thus far. so, janell, can you take an educated guess as to what kind of information he could be alluding to and if he were to testify how big a deal that is?

>> of course, i cannot begin to guess what conversations the former national security adviser has had with the president, but certainly, given that he's played a critical role in the trump administration, that he was in regular contact with the president directly, one would imagine that he has an incredibly detailed understanding of some of the events that have already been described by others in these meetings with members of congress. so, certainly, at minimum, it would seem that mr. bolton might be able to fill in some additional details about things that are already known, and according to his lawyer, as you pointed out, there are things that mr. bolton is aware of that perhaps others are not, given that he was in a particularly senior position. that also seems completely feasible. >> well, look, we're not in a position -- >> alex, the one thing to remember about john bolton is the quote where he said to a colleague, "i'm not part of whatever drug deal they're cooking up," meaning, referring to giuliani and mulvaney and

sondland. that shows not only his knowledge of what was going on ukraine, but his attitude toward it. he thought it was corrupt. he thought it was wrong. if he is willing to in public describe it as sharply as he did in that private quote, which has now come out in testimony, that could be extremely damaging to the president. >> yeah, you know, and to further this, the interpretation of bolton -- i think you can read, john, his approach to all of this, because there was that meeting that he just stopped immediately. i mean, he -- there's talking, descriptions about his grimacing. i mean, that's in the transcript. what do you take from the body language, the bankrupt nature, the scowls, the everything that we get a sense of from his interpretation of what was happening? >> that he was very negative about what's going on. remember, he is a national security hawk. he is not somebody who is predisposed to be friendly with kim in north korea or putin in russia or xi in china, for that

matter. so, as a national security hawk, he got a very close-up view of what the president and his agents within the government were trying to accomplish. he did not like it. and again, the question is, when he is under the lights, will he describe it in as sharp terms as he has done privately? many republicans shrink from doing that because they're scared of being attacked by the president. john bolton may not be scared. john bolton's been around a long time. he's not running for any office. he is somebody who was fired by the president for what he, john bolton, considers bad reasons. so, i think that there is at least the possibility that if he gets a court order that directs and allows him to testify, that he will be a very damaging witness. >> yeah, and we should say, according to fiona hill on that testimony, he referred to rudy giuliani as a have hand grenade, so there's that as well. both of you, good to see you. john, janell, thank you.

mayor pete buttigieg confronts an issue that's dogged his campaign head on. how he reacted to a direct question about it. it is an nbc news exclusive. parade invite? the president's new response to attending a huge celebration in moscow courtesy of that man there, vladimir putin. the answer may surprise you. vl. the answer may surprise you.

-excuse me. uh... do you mind...being a mo-tour?

-what could be better than being a mo-tour? the real question is... do you mind not being a mo-tour? -i do. for those who were born to ride, there's progressive.

let's go now to the 2020 democrats. it is saturday on the stump and

getting an early start today, pete buttigieg in new hampshire, elizabeth warren and cory booker, both in south carolina. and here's a look at the wider field. you've got five presidential hopefuls who plan events in iowa today, three in new hampshire, two as we mentioned in south carolina, also kamala harris, the lone campaigner in nevada. following mayor pete on a four-day bus tour is josh lederman from lebanon, new hampshire, and mike memoli is following the biden campaign, 60 miles south in concord, new hampshire. josh, first to you. i understand you got a chance to raise a couple fairly thorny questions with mayor pete today, so tell us all about that. >> reporter: thorny issues, indeed, alex. we talked to mayor pete about an issue that's coming up over the past week or so relating to his ability to appeal to black voters and his sexual orientation after there was a memo from his campaign that leaked to the media that had shown he had done focus groups that suggested one obstacle particularly in south carolina

for him among black voters was his sexuality. some people blamed him, basically saying he was trying to brush off his problems with black voters by blaming it on homophobia. also talked to him about mike bloomberg's potential entrance into the race. let's play a little bit of our interview. >> so, let's talk about the big news on the campaign this week, mike bloomberg potentially getting in. he says he's not going to campaign here in new hampshire and iowa, the first four states. do you think that's a mistake. >> it's not my place to comment on anybody else's strategy, but i can tell you about our strategy. we think that the four early states, iowa, new hampshire, south carolina nevada, are critically important. it's where we can demonstrate that personal connection with voters that doesn't come across over the air if you're on more of an air war, commercial-based approach. and for me, it's definitely best to make sure that the things we're doing on television are matched by the things i am doing in person. >> reporter: i want to ask you about a controversy over the last week or so regarding black voters and homosexuality and a leaked memo. your own campaign has been

distancing itself from some of your supporters who have cited that memo as a potential reason why you're not doing better among black voters. so i want to know, was if a mistake for your campaign to ask about that question? >> well, you know, i'm not going to get into kind of campaign approaches. we obviously try to get as much information as we possibly can. but let me say this, homophobia is a problem, and it is not a problem that just affects one part of america. indeed, if you look at the most anti-lgbtq policies and the politicians that have pushed them, they have generally not been politicians who have a lot of support in the black community. so i think it's unfair to suggest that homophobia is only an issue in the black community when really it's an issue in america and it's also an issue where america is moving in the right direction. >> reporter: and alex, pete just wrapped up his town hall. he had about 1,300 people here today. his campaign said that was his

biggest event here in new hampshire for the whole event so far. he's off to the next stop in his four-day new hampshire tour, a tour filled with a lot of stops at town halls, some pubs and even a few barns. >> okay. well, go catch that bus, josh. we'll see you again later. thank you so much. let's go now to concord, new hampshire. nbc's mike memoli is covering the biden camp for us. mike, what's the latest from there? >> reporter: alex, it's a chilly, late fall afternoon, but we're about to see joe biden behind me here dishing out chili along with his supporters, the international association of firefighters. they're going to be having a canvas kickoff here. as joe biden really tries to -- you talk about mike bloomberg and his potential entry into the race. it's being seen in some ways as a sign of a lack of confidence in joe biden's ability to really take the fight not just to donald trump in the general election but also to really hold his own against elizabeth warren and bernie sanders, the two progressive challengers in this race. what we've seen from joe biden on the trail, much more in these last few weeks especially, is a focus on health care, and

elizabeth warren's proposal for medicare for all. we saw his campaign a week ago be really tough saying the numbers don't add up. she said if joe biden has a problem with this, maybe he is running in the wrong primary. biden responding strongly, saying that is a response of an elitist way of thinking. yesterday he was asked about using that word as he filed for the primary ballot in new hampshire, which some people saw as perhaps a gendered term. let's see how joe biden responded to that criticism. >> i wasn't referring to elizabeth warren as being elitist. i said the american people out there, they understand what's going on, and they don't like being instructed on what they should believe and what they don't believe, when whether or not if they disagree, somehow they must be wrong. they're pretty darn smart. they know what's at stake. and so, i'm referring to the fact that you can't label the american public if they disagree

with you as somehow they're just dead wrong. that's not how a democracy functions. and that's not how you get anything done. >> reporter: during that conversation with reporters yesterday at the statehouse in concord, biden was also asked about what it would be for mike bloomberg to the race. he said listen, welcome to the race. mike's a good guy. he would certainly have a lot to offer. but he pointed out, in his view, he is still in a strong position in the polls, both in the early primary states and in the general election, suggesting it's not necessarily in his political interests to get into this race after all. biden, of course, going to be spending some more time here in new hampshire before heading to iowa early next week and then the build-up to the next debate here on nbc, an important test for his campaign at this point. >> that response sounds gracious but yet a little bit wary. okay, mike memoli. thank you so much. new polling suggests an uphill battle for president trump's re-election and even more so after tuesday's elections in both virginia and kentucky.

monmouth university national polling finds 55% of registered voters say they want someone new in the white house. 42% say trump should be re-elected, and that number is up three points since both september and october. so, what do the democrats' latest victories mean for the 2020 election, if anything at all? joining me now from charlottesville, virginia, larry saba sabato, professor at the university of virginia, the man behind the crystal ball. we'll ask you to put your hands on it, figure this out. first, tuesday's elections, are they anomalies, or do you think it's proof of some sort of a shift towards the democrats? >> i think there are two lessons that apply to 2020, alex. the first is that the trend we saw across the country in 2017 and 2018 in the midterm elections, the trend of suburbs and exurbs that have long been republican and even fairly

republican for trump, have turned towards the democrats because of trump's behavior in office, not to mention some of his policies. that's continued. in some cases, it strengthened. it wasn't just virginia, kentucky. we also saw it in mississippi, of all places. we saw it in pennsylvania and the races that he had there, so that is very good news for democrats. they have sustained that for three years. they need to accelerate it for the presidential election. then the other lesson that i think people might want to focus on really came out of kentucky. now look, that's a deeply red state. to be honest, no democrat should ever win there statewide. and in fact, every other race in that election statewide went to the republicans. it was just the governorship. well, why? why, alex? because matt bevin, the republican governor, has been seen as mean, nasty -- alex, who's that remind you of on the

national level. >> i think we can all figure out the answer to that, but does that mean this is a repudiation of matt bevin because of that description, or because of the association with the guy at the top on the national level? it can reflect him as well? do you think it was bevin or a bevin/trump vote against? >> they doubled down. that's a good point. the fact is that the two of them together were even more toxic. and it's true, bevin lost only by 5,000 votes, but go out and look for 5,000 votes. you can't find them when you need them. i can guarantee you that. >> so, the suburban voters, who has turned them away from the republicans. >> some of it is policy. they see in immigration, policies are so harsh involving children. i don't think most people respond well to that.

most suburbanites are concerned about climate change. this is a nearly universal concern, outside of hard-core conservatives. so there are a lot of things about the trump administration that does not appeal to suburbanites. but again, they are highly educated for the most part. trump's approach, the way he uses language, the nastiness of his tweets, that does not appeal to suburbanitis. >> can i ask you what we saw with matt bevin? do you take that as any sense for mitch mcconnell? >> not really. mcconnell has an approach that's much quiet equieter. yes, he can be tough when he needs to, but he's not the tweeting type. he occasionally tweets, but he doesn't say and do the things that trump does or bevin did. remember, bevin ran against mcconnell in the republican primary for senate, and that was a very bitter election. so, i'm not saying he can't

lose. anything can happen and he's been in there forever. but i think he's a very different kind of republican candidate in a very conservative, red state. >> okay. i want to ask about the expanding billionaire vote. michael bloomberg has all but declared his presidential came pain, but it's not the first time he floated the concept of running. monmouth polling in march had him at about 2% support with democratic primary voters. what do you think overall, about the news that he might actually run? what's his role in all this? >> i find it very odd, to be honest. he's not going to expand his vote much. it's not just that he's late, but also because of his history. he's been a republican and an independent and a democrat, and i don't think he fits the current climate or electorate

terribly well. that's not to say he doesn't have a major role. come he dipped his toes in the water and said he wouldn't run, he said he would spend an awful lot of money. if he could spend a couple billion helping democratic candidates or the eventual nominee, it could make a big difference. so he's got another role to play in the campaign. i can't imagine it would be as the nominee for president or vice president. >> larry sabato, as always a role to play on my show. we look forward to seeing you again. msnbc and the "washington post" are sponsoring the next democratic presidential debate on november 20th, at 9:00 p.m. eastern. you can watch it here on msnbc. president trump runs the risk of more booing at a major sporting event today, despite an apparent warning against rowdy fan behavior. but is booing really a no-no? that's next. but is booing really a no-no th'sat next. - choosing to foster a child is choosing to nurture and emotionally support children in urgent need. it's not just about opening up your home; it is also about opening up your heart.

consider fostering. a wealth of information. a wealth of perspective. ♪ a wealth of opportunities. that's the clarity you get from fidelity wealth management. straightforward advice, tailored recommendations, tax-efficient investing strategies, and a dedicated advisor to help you grow and protect your wealth. fidelity wealth management. i am royalty of racing, i am alfa romeo.

man 1 vo: proof of less joint pain woman 1 oc: this is my body of proof. and clearer skin. man 2 vo: proof that i can fight psoriatic arthritis... woman 2 vo: ...with humira. woman 3 vo: humira targets and blocks a specific source of inflammation that contributes to both joint and skin symptoms. it's proven to help relieve pain, stop further irreversible joint damage, and clear skin in many adults. humira is the number one prescribed biologic for psoriatic arthritis. avo: humira can lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections, including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. man 3 vo: ask your rheumatologist about humira.

woman 4 vo: go to humira.com to see proof in action. i must admit. i had a few good tricks to help hide my bladder leak pad. like the old "tunic tug". you know it, right? but i don't have to, with always discreet. i couldn't believe the difference. it's less bulky. and it really protects. watch this. the super absorbent core turns liquid and odor to gel, and locks it away. so i have nothing to hide. always discreet. for bladder leaks.

the amount of student loan debt i have, i'm embarrassed to even say. we just decided we didn't want debt any longer. ♪ i didn't realize how easy investing could be. i'm picking companies that i believe in. ♪ i think sofi money is amazing. ♪ thank you sofi. sofi thank you, we love you. ♪ the president is heading to alabama today for his third major public appearance at a sporting event in just the past couple of weeks. joining me now are two reporters in the cotton state. nbc's monica alba and alabama political reporter and columnist josh moon. with a welcome to you both, monica, we'll start with you there at the game.

the president is heading your way soon. after, though, he was booed in d.c. at the world series and also at a recent ufc fight at madison square garden last weekend. so talk about the atmosphere down there. what are you sensing? >> reporter: hey, there, alex. so, certainly, today college gameday, football is king and politics can kind of be cast to the side. a lot of the folks that i've spoken to here, a lot of alabama fans, but you've got some lsu fans here, too, say that they welcome the president's visit here, they have a respect for the president, they're happy to see him coming to the game, but that, really, they're quite focused on this pretty high-level s.e.c. matchup. but of course, you mentioned those two sporting events in the last couple of weeks. it's really notable to see the president going to these kinds of games. this is not something that he did as often in the first couple years of his presidency, but of course, he was roundly booed at game five of the world series there in washington, d.c., and he was even met with some chants of "lock him up." that's not at all what we're

expecting here down in alabama where, of course, this is a state the president won by double, high double digits in 2016. so this is likely to be a much friendlier crowd, and the atmosphere's certain to be much more one of respect, at least that's what folks here predict, but we'll have to see. last weekend when he went to that ufc match in madison square garden, it was a bit more of a mix. there were some boos but also some cheers. i think if we have to put this on the spectrum, he will be met with some more cheers here, but interestingly, i was actually with the president last year when he went to the national championship game, alabama/georgia, in atlanta, and that was a game that i think can be most similar to what we'll see today in terms of the president's attendance, and he was on the field for the national anthem and that was far more of a cheering, supportive crowd. so tonight we'll see the president and the first lady, actually both coming down here to tuscaloosa. so they'll both be here. it's not clear exactly how they're going to be presented, whether they'll be shown on the

big screen and at what point, but it will be fascinating to see how the crowd receives him. but again, down here, it's all about the tailgatinged hft b ah the big game. >> that's not surprising. it's about the college kids. but to monica's point, how he's received, what can you tell us about the alabama students association letter to the students and what came from the letter in the end? >> there was a letter sent out, basically a warning to behave during the game. i think the sga president came back later and said it wasn't necessarily meant for trump and they weren't trying to suppress anyone's first amendment rights or anything like that. but i think that was more of a cover. i think they don't want sort of an embarrassment there today, at least in their eyes, of a bunch of booze. but i'll say, i think that it's going to be -- there will be a few more boos than there will be cheers at that place because that's a college educated crowd, and he typically doesn't do well with those. >> yeah, okay. so, there's no ramifications for someone if they do get caught booing or being in a big, loud

section of boos? no. students are going to get in trouble or are they? anything they might lose? >> no, i don't think so. i think that was more designed to ward off any sort of signs or any sort of displays of that nature. >> okay. >> i think that's what they were trying to stand out there. >> can we chat about your latest op ed? i'm looking at it, and it's pretty darn harsh there about the former senator jeff sessions. you pose questions for alabama citizens, one being, is that what we've become in this state, so weak and cowardly ourselves that we would elect a man who won't stand up for himself, even when he knows he was right? what are your thoughts as outlined in this op ed and beyond, on a new sessions campaign? >> well, i just thought that the entirety of his announcement, of the announcement, you know, ad campaign that started there that looked basically like a hostage video -- it just, it seems like just the weakest possible entrance into this. and after trump has just

absolutely killed this guy for, you know, months now. he said the most awful things about him, about the way he talks, about putting down his law degree from the university of alabama, by the way, you know, just all sorts of insults and calling him an embarrassment to alabama. then to come out when jeff sessions for once in his political life was right to recuse himself, for him to come out and not take a stand for himself, i just thought it was the weakest possible way to enter this race, especially when you have tommy tuberville and bradley burns and some of the never trumpers here that are riding on president's coattails and calling jeff sessions some of the awful names that trump has called him. >> hmm, interesting. and yet, jeff sessions, you think he would jump into the race as a front-runner? >> yeah, there's no other way to look at a guy who held that seat for 20 years, i don't think. i think, you know, the political narrative has shifted a little bit on him at this point, but i don't know that it's enough to knock him down to the second or third round, especially behind a guy like tuberville.

>> okay. monica alba, josh moon, guys, thank you so much. much appreciated. >> thank you. amid the many turns in the impeachment inquiry, a nagging question looms around a key figure and the answer may be equally as disturbing as the scandal itself. that is next. as disturbg inas te scandal itself that is next ok everyone! our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition... for strength and energy! whoo-hoo! great-tasting ensure. with nine grams of protein and twenty-seven vitamins and minerals. ensure, for strength and energy.

sleep this amazing? that's a zzzquil pure zzzs sleep. our liquid has a unique botanical blend, while an optimal melatonin level means no next-day grogginess. zzzquil pure zzzs. naturally superior sleep.

secretary of state mike pompeo is back in the u.s. after unveiling a statue of former president ronald reagan on friday at the u.s. embassy in berlin. pompeo has kept a very busy

foreign schedule since the impeachment inquiry began. a question about his whereabouts asked and answered in the "washington post" this week. joining me now, david ignatius, the columnist and author of this particular column. welcome to you, david. glad to have you here. >> thanks, alex. >> because in this column, you focused on pompeo's silence. while his diplomats are targeted for their testimony in the impeachment inquiry. but doesn't this whole ukraine affair reveal just pretty astounding dysfunction in the state department? >> well, we have diplomats who have been trying against the efforts of the president's lawyer, rudy giuliani, and a circle of presidential appointees working with trump have been trying to do the country's business. the united states through our congress appropriated military aid for ukraine, which is a front-line state standing against russia. during the summer, that aid was stopped effectively so that president trump could try to lobby the ukrainian president to

do a political favor of raising the issue of vice president biden and his son, hunter, all those related issues. our professional diplomats have been doing their best. what's disturbing to me is that they kept looking for the secretary of state, their boss, mike pompeo, to defend them. and one thing that is clear in the record, the transcripts of the interviews that we've had will be even clearer next week during the open sessions, is that pompeo, basically, these last few months has been in hiding. he's been so concerned about not offending his president, donald trump, that he bowed out of protecting his diplomats. and i think that's really disturbing. one thing a secretary of state needs to do, it's like being a general in an army, you need to take care of your troops. and pompeo didn't. >> is it really, david, because he's afraid of what the president might say, do, tweet about him?

i mean, when you think about how so many have expressed concern about ambassador yovanovitch, the way she was treated. there is zero love lost between pompeo and giuliani. so, is it really all about the trump effect, that's why he's running scared? >> let me tell you what i discovered in my reporting. in the beginning, when these groundless accusations were being spun by rudy giuliani about ambassador yovanovitch, pompeo asked one of his senior advisers to confront giuliani and said, what's your evidence? what's the proof for these charges? and there never was any. and for that period, yovanovitch stayed in her job and pompeo was silent publicly, but he didn't fire. finally, trump said, i want her out. and pompeo did nothing to defend her. and i -- why does he do that? i think he's a politically ambitious man. i think that he wants to be trump's closest adviser and has been. does he want to preserve that hold on trump's political base for his own future? we don't know. what we do know is that he was

silent publicly when people kept asking him to do something. >> i want to ask you to speculate on length of time he would have allowed giuliani to keep going on this, because you had the former senior adviser, michael mckinley, directly contradicting pompeo, who said that mckinley did not raise any concerns about yovanovitch. you remember, she testified, she felt her personal safety was at risk. >> yes. >> so, how far is pompeo going to let him go, giuliani, with this effort? >> so, he let him continue. let's remember, he listened in on the phone call on july 25 in which president trump basically uses menacing language to describe our former ambassador, marie yovanovitch, and says, you know, bad things are going to happen to her. pompeo listened to that and he didn't do anything about it. and that's part of what bothers people so much. she felt that this was personally threatening. his senior adviser, a 37-year veteran of the state department,

william mckinley, went to him three times asking him to issue some statement to stand behind his former ambassador, and pompeo didn't do anything. and finally, mckinley said, that's it, i'm out of here, and resigned. and you know, that's the kind of stand on principle that should make us proud of our diplomats. >> david, you've said you think he's one of the smarter people in the trump administration. >> i do. >> so, is this all about just his own personal political gain? is he going to try to stay under the radar and get out relatively unscathed, or might all of this come back to haunt him? >> i don't know. we'd be speculating. he is an ambitious man. some of his defenders say the following, and it's worth all of us thinking about it. they say the best thing for him personally right now would be to resign. everybody would clap and we'd say, you know, stand on principle. but is that the best thing for the country? the country's foreign policy is in dangerous disarray. would we be better off if pompeo left, you know, leaving the field of the giulianis and trump himself, or are we better off

with him staying? that's a tough question, but i do think that pompeo, his reputation, his stature have been diminished by his staying and doing the president's bidding. >> "washington post" columnist david ignatius, never with a stature that's been diminished. that's for sure. thank you, david. >> thanks. coming up next, why president trump says he may attend russia's mayday military parade next year and why it probably shouldn't surprise anyone. t year and why it probably shouldn't surprise anyone ♪

♪

i was on the fence about changing from a manual to an electric toothbrush. but my hygienist said going electric could lead to way cleaner teeth. she said, get the one inspired by dentists, with a round brush head. go pro with oral-b. oral-b's gentle rounded brush head removes more plaque along the gum line. for cleaner teeth and healthier gums. and unlike sonicare, oral-b is the first electric toothbrush brand accepted by the ada for its effectiveness and safety. what an amazing clean! i'll only use an oral-b! oral-b. brush like a pro.

the pain and swelling.. the psoriasis. cosentyx treats more than just the joint pain of active psoriatic arthritis. it even helps stop further joint damage. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before starting, get checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor about an infection or symptoms, if your inflammatory bowel disease symptoms

develop or worsen, or if you've had a vaccine or plan to. serious allergic reactions may occur. get real relief, with cosentyx. and giving you a look right now live at the president, who is there on marine one. he is at joint base andrews and will be heading to tuscaloosa, alabama, as we know for the big tigers/alabama crimson tide football game today. alabama the home team, of course, and so we'll keep an eye on the president again, leaving marine one. but as we watch the president, i want to bring in right now some of our guests as we watch the president there. we have victoria defrancesco soto, professor for the lbj school at the university of texas, julian maxwell with sirius xm and rick tyler. zerlina and rick are msnbc political analysts. can we talk about what the president is weighing this offer

from vladimir putin to attend the mayday celebration? let's take a listen to what the president had to say about that. we've been keeping an eye on the president now at joint base andrews, but let's hear from him yesterday. [ inaudible ] >> for the may day parade. >> that's right, i was invited. i've been thinking about it. it's a big deal, celebrating the end of the war, et cetera, et cetera. it's a really big deal. i appreciate the invitation. it is in the middle of the political season, so we'll see if i can do it, but i would love to go if i could. >> zerlina, you get the first crack. what about the president saying he may attend the may day parade in the middle of a sticky presidential race? >> i don't know what the president is doing anymore when he's coming out from the helicopter and sort of ranting and raving about a witch hunt. i mean, he's -- a lot of the lines are rehearsed from the mueller investigation. and what's interesting about this comment, about going and it being such an honor to go and be invited by putin?

it just reminds us about the mueller investigation that we spent two years trying to unpack all of the connections between the trump campaign and russia, and now this week we're learning through steve bannon's testimony that roger stone was the conduit to wikileaks and the russian operation during the 2016 election, and the president seems to be loyal more so to vladimir putin than he is to the interests of american voters. and i think that theme is also coming up in the ukraine investigation, and it's very concerning. this is a national security issue, and it always has been. >> as i get to victoria with this question, i want to let everyone know we're monitoring what the president is saying there. he's talking about jobs and the economy and my executive producer nick is on top of that in the control room, so we'll bring you tape playback of anything he says that is pertinent. but the message the president is saying with the response we just heard, with regard to attending the mayday celebration in

russia, what are your thoughts? >> alex, the first thing that came to mind is distraction. this is a big, shiny disco ball. this is something that president trump does extremely well, that we have seen him do throughout the past three years. a sticky situation, he'll throw out a distractor, and this is going to be a particularly sticky week with the public impeachment hearings, so he puts this out there. and the other thing, to the distraction and kind of the outrageous things that he might say, such as hey, i'm going to go to russia and hang out with putin, is that he has cultivated a brand of changing his mind. he always says that. well, i say one thing, but it's okay, i'm going to change my mind. so, he has already built in the wiggle room to say i'm an open-minded guy, i'm just thinking this through. and in the meantime, he's distracted us, even if just for a couple of seconds from the big impeachment query hanging over his head. >> yeah. and we should say that, speaking of volleying between different

prospects, the president suggesting china and trade right now. but rick, why do you think the president is addressing this in the first place? >> i agree, it's a big distraction, but it's so disturbing from the historical context. the may day celebration in russia was a victory over the nazi germany. it was first celebrated in june of 1945. it then became used as a nationalistic propaganda tool because what happened -- it wasn't victory for all the countries that got consumed in to creating the soviet union and then were literally oppressed and killed for 50 years, and it kind of fell away after the fall of the soviet union and the berlin wall, but putin brought it back because it's a propaganda tool. i don't think the president will go because every democratic ad-maker would love a picture of president trump reviewing the

soviet troops with vladimir putin and tie that to every single republican who is running for re-election. >> interesting, as we watch the president standing near the belly of air force one, rick, we know he's heading down to alabama for today's game. this marks the third sporting event he's attended in the past couple weeks. there's an op ed in "usa today" titled "president trump's increased interest in public sporting events hardy a coincidence. >> is that for me? >> yeah, the tragedy was, he went to the world series games on the heels of the killing of abu bakr al baghdadi, and he was supposed to be a national hero, and you know, everybody, republican, democrat, independent, were going to hail to the chief of what a wonderful job he did. everybody was going to cheer. it didn't turn out that way and he got chants of "lock him up." >> right. >> so, he thinks that, you know, somehow, if he's going to choose alabama, which is a very red state, he's going to get these big cheers and he's going to use this, of course, again, for political advertising and

propaganda to show how popular he is. but look, it's great for the fans down there. you know, an extra hour waiting in line, traffic snarls, just introducing politics into the game, it's terrible. >> voice dripping with sarcasm there. zerlina, your thoughts on this? why would he go? we point out the boos from the washington nationals game, lots of boos last weekend here in new york at the ufc event. i mean, there's a risk he could get booed down there to some degree. >> oh, there's definitely a risk and you know he doesn't like it because he likes the cheering fans. they feed his ego. and so, the booing is something that i think -- like, if you saw his face at the washington nationals -- we're playing the video on the other side of the screen -- you know, he didn't like that. he did not like the boos and he was trying to hold it together and sort of keep his poker face. but the president definitely takes it personally when americans are saying negative things about him, when the media is saying negative things about

him. and again, going back to a more serious point, when you have the commander in chief internalizing personal insults and then reacting in his capacity as the president, that's when it becomes an issue that we all need to be concerned with, because you know, you cannot have somebody that is that quick to react be in charge of the nuclear launch codes and the military and setting policy. that impacts all of us. so, the president, he likes cheers and he's probably not going to get them, you know, complete audience that likes him in a big stadium like alabama. >> all right, rick, zerlina, victoria, you guys, thank you so much. victoria, we begin with you next time. we'll give you an extra bit of time with us. our breaking news, house republicans are demanding hunter biden testify in the upcoming impeachment hearings. but he's not alone. latest from the white house on that, next. alone latest from the white house on that, next ♪ limu emu & doug and now for their service to the community, we present limu emu & doug

with this key to the city. [ applause ] it's an honor to tell you that liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. and now we need to get back to work. [ applause and band playing ] only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ you're smart,eat you already knew that. but it's also great for finding the perfect used car. you'll see what a fair price is and you can connect with a truecar certified dealer. now you're even smarter. this is truecar. itso chantix can help you quit slow turkey. along with support, chantix is proven to help you quit. with chantix you can keep smoking at first and ease into quitting. chantix reduces the urge so when the day arrives, you'll be more ready to kiss cigarettes goodbye.

when you try to quit smoking, with or without chantix, you may have nicotine withdrawal symptoms. stop chantix and get help right away if you have changes in behavior or thinking, aggression, hostility, depressed mood, suicidal thoughts or actions, seizures, new or worse heart or blood vessel problems, sleepwalking, or life-threatening allergic and skin reactions. decrease alcohol use. use caution driving or operating machinery. tell your doctor if you've had mental health problems. the most common side effect is nausea. quit smoking slow turkey. talk to your doctor about chantix.

that could allow hackers devices into your home.ys and like all doors, they're safer when locked. that's why you need xfinity xfi.

with the xfi gateway, devices connected to your homes wifi are protected. which helps keep people outside from accessing your passwords, credit cards and cameras. and people inside from accidentally visiting sites that aren't secure. and if someone trys we'll let you know. xfi advanced security. if it's connected, it's protected. call, click, or visit a store today. good day, everyone! from msnbc world headquarters in new york, welcome to "weekends with alex witt." it is day 47 of the impeachment inquiry. there have been several critical and rapid developments across the last 24 hours, from the white house to capitol hill. here's a snapshot of what has transpired right here on msnbc as we bring you the very latest. >> we have just received the transcripts. i've got them here, from two key witnesses. they are packed with new insights. fiona hill, the former top russia adviser on president

trump's national security council, and lieutenant colonel alexander vindman, the nsc's top ukraine expert. >> john bolton, former national security adviser, a man who is already a major figure in this ukraine saga, apparently has information that impeachment investigators do not. >> republican allies of the president are now launching a desperate bid to save the president by sacrificing three of trump's top deputies. that's according to the "washington post," which reports today republicans are sewing doubts about whether sondland, giuliani, and mulvaney were actually representing the president or freelancing -- freelancing! they were rogue. >> we'll start with the impeachment inquiry as it gets closer to officially entering the next phase. public hearings are scheduled for next week with three key witnesses. >> and while the president insists there was no quid pro quo, at least six officials have now testified that there was. >> a little bit of breaking news. according to the "washington post," house republicans are planning to ask that hunter biden and the whistle-blower testify in the impeachment

probe, a request that democrats are expected to reject. >> we have a team of reporters and analysts following the latest for us this hour. and as you just heard, we've been following the breaking news today with house republicans submitting their list of witnesses that they want to testify in the impeachment inquiry. and among the noteworthy names on that gop wish list are hunter biden, the whistle-blower, and all of the individuals relied upon by that whistle-blower in drafting his or her complaint. now, it is certainly unclear how many of these requests witnesses, if any, will be approved by house democrats. joining me now, nbc white house correspondent kelly o'donnell. kelly, with a welcome to you on this saturday, what's the takeaway in your mind from this witness list? >> reporter: well, certainly, republicans have a plan to try to tell their own story during the impeachment public phase, and that will be namely to try to shine the light back on where president trump and many of his associates wanted to begin the focus long ago, and that's looking at what was happening in ukraine, was there any improper

influence from the former vice president, joe biden with his son, hunter biden. that's of course been challenged and debunked by many, but it's something that president trump and his allies believe is worth examining. so, on that witness list included one burisma official. that's the ukrainian energy company on which hunter biden served as member of the board. hunter biden himself is also listed and alexandra chalupa, who was a dnc official who had also had work that she did with the ukrainian embassy in washington. they're looking for anything that can try to examine the early phase of the 2016 election and was there any involvement from ukraine in the election. now, that has been widely challenged that it was russia, not ukraine, that was involved. but this is about a messaging contrast to the democrats. now, as you pointed out, alex, it's important to note, the democrats get to approve the witness list because they have the power of the gavel and are in control of these public hearings. and so, republicans are

submitting their requested list. we'll have to see what democrats decide to do, if any of these witnesses will be called forward, certainly by putting the whistle-blower, who does not want to be identified publicly. that is to make the point that there have been people who have been accusing the president without putting their names and faces to it. and that, of course, is part of what we have heard from the president and his allies. we spoke to the president briefly today as he was heading to alabama for the big lsu/alabama game. the president didn't engage in questions, but here's what he had to say. >> so, the stock market hit an all-time high yesterday. the country is doing really well. the witch hunt continues. a lot of witch hunt continues. the republicans have never been so united. and i think the people of our country have never been so united. we're going to alabama. we're going to watch the alabama game versus lsu, two great teams. i think it's going to be very

interesting. and on monday, we have a very big parade in new york, so that will be good. have a good time. strongest economy we've ever had, number one. thank you. >> reporter: so, i asked the president if hunter biden should testify. he did not respond to that question as he walked away from us and waited for the first lady to emerge from the white house, and they headed off. so, the president just giving us some of his top-of-mind thoughts but not taking questions today. alex? >> kelly o'donnell, thank you so much, from the white house. joining me now, karine jean-pier jean-pierre, msnbc contributor, betsy swan from "the daily beast" and sondland -- the president said the country's never been so united. was he talking about this country? because i don't know, i'm curious, karine, what was your reaction to that when he said that? >> well, he's -- i don't know what country, maybe planet two. i have no idea. he certainly was not talking about this one.

he is the divider in chief and we have seen this throughout his administration over the last almost three years where he divides, he divides, and he makes that really clear, it's an us and them type of scenario, and i don't -- i'm not sure what's going on there. i think he's just trying to put a talking point out there for us to chase down. >> i don't know, begtsy, as you follow this president, report on him, this does sound typical trump, but really, saying that? >> the president likes saying the opposite of whatever his critics are saying, and he also likes taking criticisms that are directed at him and turning them around and directing them at his opponents. he did this all day long with hillary clinton during the 2016 campaign. people who said that he was -- people -- one thing that clinton and her allies frequently said about him is he was unhinged, and his response after a couple weeks of that was to start calling hillary unhinged. so, for him to say that the country is now the most united

it's ever been when most of his critics are saying, you know, with ample sort of empirical evidence, that it's extraordinarily divided, is very much of a piece with the way that he interacts with criticism. he takes what people are saying about him and then asserts frequently that the opposite is actually true. >> sonham, you want to weigh in on this as well? >> yeah, it's interesting. we saw this taking over his entire twitter feed during the russia investigation when his campaign was being investigated for potentially colluding with russia. he said that the democrats had colluded with ukraine in order to undermine his presidency, and then he later, obviously, accused the democrats of obstruction of justice. this was, of course, after we found out that mueller was investigating him for obstruction. so, i think, you know, definitely want to echo what betsy said, is that whenever he's criticized for anything, he sometimes uses the exact same phrases to launch many of the time bogus allegations against his critics. >> and it seems to work with his

followers. okay, betsy, you first on the gop witness wish list, if you will, by republicans. what's your reaction? >> you know, this list reads like it's essentially corralling the characters who congressman devin nunes has been focused on over the last couple of years. you know, while mueller was investigating russian interference in the 2016 election, nunes, who was the chairman of the house intelligence committee and is now its top republican member, spent years sort of going after this alternative narrative, trying to unearth, for instance, trying to prove allegations of ukrainian collusion, which have not in any meaningful way then corroborated, trying to push this notion that the real story was an opposition research dossier that fusion gps put together. in fact, he pressed ambassador gordon sondland on fusion gps when sondland was being deposed in one of his impeachment

inquiries. and sondland responded by basically scratching his head and saying he didn't know what it was about. one of the witnesses is nellie ohr, a contactor for the company that produced that dossier and another is alexander chalupa, who was iaconsultant for the dnc, alleged to have been involved in sort of the theory of ukrainian collusion. both of those things are very much in the nunes sweet spot and are part of the nunes and fox news counternarrative regarding what happened in 2016. it's a little bit hard to understand what they would have to do with impeachment, but when i look at this list, that's what i think of. that's what jumps out at me. >> so i call this a wish list by republicans, kaline. how much do you think that adam schiff and company will say, okay, check, we'll let all of these guys get there onto the witness stand? >> i think democrats should just reject this list outright. and when you look at this and you see hunter biden on that list, it's not serious. they're trying to turn this into a circus. they're not trying to get down

to the truth, and they're playing a game here. because at the end of the day, it is not about joe biden, the impeachment inquiry. it's not about hunter biden. it's about donald trump and his criminality. it's about donald trump asking a foreign government to interfere in our elections for his own political gain. that's it. i mean, this is what it's all about. and so, they're trying to go after, look into, dive into the corruption, which does not exist, with hunter biden, and make it something that's not about what we're talking about here, which is donald trump and what he did with the ukraine president. and so, they should outright say no, move forward, stay focused on the task at hand. the public opinion is with the democrats on this. and once the public hearing happens, i think we will see the numbers move even higher. >> ladies, stay with us. we want to get to another big story we're following this saturday. democrats now gearing up to

officially begin the next phase of the impeachment inquiry with those public hearings. they are scheduled for next week. there are three key witnesses to include there. house lawmakers are set to hear from bill taylor, the top diplomat in ukraine, deputy assistant secretary george kent and former u.s. ambassador to ukraine, marie yovanovitch. the closed-door testimony from those three among the thousands of pages released by house democrats this week from eight current and former administration officials in total. so, there were plenty of key moments in these transcripts that were released this week that would include the u.s. top diplomat, george kent, saying the president wanted to hear three words from ukraine's president -- biden, clinton, investigations" also former top russia expert at the white house, fiona hill, saying john bolton described giuliani as a hand grenade that is going to blow everybody up. so, are these words the democrats want to hear in public testimonies? can you give me what you think that kind of a difference would make, karine, if they're able to

put that out there and let people hear it for themselves? >> yeah, alex. as you just said, i mean, these transcripts have been -- these depositions have been explosive just reading it and going through it and with all of the things that you just laid out. and i think when the public sees that themselves, sees these diplomats who are, you know, not political, they're there to do their job, they've been doing this for a long time, sit there and actually answer questions in the hearing, i think that will make a difference and it will make a change. we have to understand, the numbers as i was saying, these impeachment inquiry numbers have just moved up and up and up and even impeachment -- to impeach and remove the president, which is insane to see. and so, that's just from what we've been, kind of the leaks that we've been hearing, what's been reported. so imagine these diplomats just sitting there raising their hand, you know, taking the oath

and giving their truth, what they saw happened in their first account with the impeachment inquiry. >> you know, sonam, you've done a really deep dive, particularly into lieutenant colonel alexander vindman's released transcript. what do you think is the main headline from his deposition? >> so, i think first of all, when we look at vindman, he is the prototypical example of an unimpeachable witness. he is someone who is a purple heart recipient. he is a career foreign service officer, a career diplomat and a national security official. so, there is that veneer of credibility that he certainly has going for him. the other -- there were a couple of really interesting things about him that make him a particularly damaging witness. the first is that he has direct knowledge of the phone call at the center of the impeachment inquiry. he directly listened in on the call and he was able to corroborate the broad outlines of the whistle-blower's complaint. the second is that he provided direct evidence of a quid pro quo. he said there was no ambiguity in his mind that the president

was pressuring his ukrainian counterpart to deliver political dirt, and that was the only way they were going to get military aid and a white house meeting. the other thing that i think is really going to hurt republicans is people like alexander vindman and also fiona hill pretty sharply pushing back on allegations of ukrainian corruption. i mean, when we look ad hill's testimony yesterday, at the transcript, we saw her say, you know, i'm not going to be part of this essentially misinformation campaign that republicans are putting out. and so, i think that's something that if republicans want to have these people come out in the open, that's something that could be really dangerous to them. >> betsy, do you think we're learning anything new in the public hearings next week, beyond what's been released in transcripts? >> i think it's quite unlikely, and that's something that democrats have been sort of grappling with as they're planning the way that these impeachment hearings are going to move forward. remember, it was just over a week ago, i think -- my sense of time is warped by how crazy the last week has been -- but it was just about over a week ago that congress voted to authorize the

impeachment inquiry and not a single republican got on board with it. at that point, we had some, but not all of the information we have now, now that these depositions have come out. the challenge for democrats is going to be to figure out if these hearings can be so meaningful and significant that they will actually change the minds of congressional republicans, including those republicans who have already gone on the record saying they don't support this impeachment effort. it's very unlikely that anything that came out in the depositions of these three witnesses isn't -- is not going to be -- or is going to be amplified or shifted by what comes out in the public hearing. that said, public hearings can be crazy, and you never know what's going to happen. so, ultimately, we'll have to wait and see. >> so we'll just say buckle up to all of that. betsy, sonam, karine, thank you very much. and can we make a mention? can we see this book? karine, this book, "moving forward," i just want to know what inspired you to write it? and can i tell you that i read it, and i don't always get a

chance to read cover to cover every book that i'm able to talk about on tv. >> wow. >> but i did. and i found it to be hopeful. it was inspirational. >> thank you. >> it was heartwarming. it was a great read! it just -- i sat down -- >> thank you. >> -- intending to read a couple of chapters and i sat down on my couch and didn't get up for a couple of hours. >> thank you so much, alex. thank you. >> tell me, why did you want to write this book? what's your goal. >> yeah, my goal -- it's a two-part goal. as you mentioned, there's a memoir. it tells my story. i have some up-and-down. it talks about the immigrant kind of experience here in this country. but also, it's a call to arms. it's as we're going into 2020, i really wanted to lay out how people can get involved, how people can really, you know, step into the political arena, and it's not the time to sit back. it's not the time to look back and think that your voice doesn't matter. so, i wanted to lay that out in a clear way. but just to finish this off, i dedicated this book -- and i thought about this for a really long time -- i dedicated this

book to everyone who's ever been told no. and i hope my book inspires them and motivates them. and that is the key for the book. i think that's the main ingredient of "moving forward." >> well, i think it definitely does. i know i'm singing your praises along with my friends and colleagues here. i know joy was doing it earlier. mi mika's done it, nicole's done it, so add my name to the list. by the way, we saw a couple of the books in the makeup room and we talked about it. it's all good. >> thank you. i appreciate that. >> and both of you ladies, when you have a book out, come on and i promise i'll read them cover to cover. >> thank you. coming up out in the open, next week's public hearings a chance to raise public support for impeachment. it happened during watergate, so could it work the same for president trump? a house lawmaker is joining me next with his take. dan kildee. he's right there. ke dan kildee he's right there

mornings were made for better things than rheumatoid arthritis or psoriatic arthritis. when considering another treatment, ask about xeljanz xr, a once-daily pill for adults with moderate to severe

rheumatoid arthritis or active psoriatic arthritis for whom methotrexate did not work well enough. it can reduce pain, swelling, and significantly improve physical function. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections like tb; don't start xeljanz if you have an infection. taking a higher than recommended dose of xeljanz for ra can increase risk of death. serious, sometimes fatal infections, cancers including lymphoma, and blood clots have happened. as have tears in the stomach or intestines, serious allergic reactions, and changes in lab results. tell your doctor if you've been somewhere fungal infections are common, or if you've had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. don't let another morning go by without asking your doctor about xeljanz xr. ♪

let's go now to alabama. that's where nbc's monica alba is waiting for the president's arrival. monica, he is wheels up from joint base andrews, so what are you hearing from the tailgaters down there who are anticipating his arrival? >> reporter: hey, there, alex. so, i've actually been to a lot of trump rallies this year, and tailgating isn't exactly the same, but there are some elements. you've got a lot of music, fired-up fans. we've seen some maga hats. we've seen some trump merchandise for sale. but folks here really are excited to talk about football and the big matchup here between lsu and alabama later this afternoon. but as you mentioned, the

president is going to be heading down here. and we don't know what kind of a reaction he's going to face, but if the last few sporting aevents he's attended in recent weeks is any indication, it could be a mix. we saw him get roundly booed at game five of the world series in washington, d.c., but then we saw him get mostly cheered at that ufc event in new york city. so what will he see here in alabama? we don't know. but talking to folks in the crowd, i found a lot of folks who do support the president. some people said hey, today is not about politics, it's about football. but an interesting sort of mixed reaction. listen to one gentleman's thoughts on the president. >> i am a democrat, so therefore, i did not vote for the president. however, i will say that my 401(k), my stock has gone up. so, in the big picture, i look at scenarios that's going to affect me and my life. so, yes, i'm -- with what's

going on with the presidency as of right now. >> reporter: see, hear kind of an interesting dynamic there, alex, somebody who says he hasn't supported the president, but he likes what he sees on the economy. and that's something we hear again and again on the trail. so interesting to see here not everybody that's in a fully trump supportive crowd, but of course, alabama was a state that he won handily in 2016 and where they expect to do pretty well again next year. whether the crowd is an indication of that, once we get into this giants stadium, this seats over 100,000 people. it could be a complete mixed reaction. of course, you're talking about students as well. and there was a letter earlier in the week trying to enforce no disruptive behavior from the crowd. whether that actually categorizes into boos or not, we'll have to see at kickoff in a couple of hours. >> yeah. well, no surprise we've heard the phrase that people vote their wallets and it's clear that gentleman with whom you spoke will be doing that as well. monica in tuscaloosa, thank you.

breaking news. house republicans have submitted their list of witnesses they would like to testify in the impeachment inquiry. among the gop's wish list is hunter biden as well as the anonymous whistle-blower. michigan representative dan kildee is the chief whip of the caucus. welcome back to the broadcast. >> thanks, alex. >> can we expect to see any of these witnesses approve? >> well, i'll leave that obviously to the committees of jurisdiction, but i would think that calling hunter biden or even calling the whistle-blower -- i mean, i'm surprised they didn't put in a request for president obama's birth certificate. i mean, this is a debunked, bogus notion that somehow hunter biden was under investigation. he was not. that's been very clear. but they don't want to deal with the facts that surround the president's behavior. they just don't want to talk about it. so they're going to try to talk about something else. and of course, the idea that they would call the whistle-blower, first of all

denies the notion that the whistle-blower protection act -- >> right, right. >> -- is intended to encourage people without fear, without any possible retribution, to point out wrong-doing in the united states government. we benefit from that. that protects our democracy. and the idea that they would try to out this whistle-blower in order to keep others from coming forward -- let's be clear, it's not because they think that somehow they're going to find something out from the whistle-blower, because there are so many other fact witnesses that have come forward to corroborate what the whistle-blower pointed out. >> yeah, at one point, it's almost irrelevant at this point, you know. >> it is. but it's intended to send a chill into the administration, into those offices so that anybody else who might think about pointing out one of the many wrongdoings that this administration is perpetrating will think twice before coming forward. that's what it's intended to do. >> do you have any concerns that not approving these witnesses could be used against your party

by republicans? >> you know, they're going to say that, but i don't think we are going to, because of that, participate in a side show. so, of course they're going to try to find every fault they can with the process. first they said that it wasn't a public process. now it's going to be a public process and they don't like that. so, they're going to find every reason to not talk about the president's behavior and to try to pick away at what they see as flaws in the process, but they can't expect democrats to be complicit in their effort to try to create some sort of a circus environment. if they're going to do that, which they will, we're not going to be a party to it. >> i'll tell you, with the word process, i mean, after, there must have been some conference call or something, because the week before last, that is all we heard out of republicans' mouths, talking about process, process, process. but as we talk about the democrats gearing up for the first public hearings this week, testimony is scheduled from three key witnesses, and the transcripts from these witnesses were made public this week.

so, why do you think the public impact could be when people hear these witnesses testify and say things in their own words? >> i think there's a lot of strength that will come from looking at these professionals, these people who in many cases have devoted their entire lives to protecting this country. i think about lieutenant colonel vindman, for example, who suffered battle wounds. to hear them say with their own words their observations of the behavior of this president i think will be really compelling. and i do think we have a responsibility to hold these public hearings, because while public sentiment is everything, as lincoln said, he also said that those who are able to shape public sentiment can achieve amazing things. we have a responsibility to help shape the public view of this by having these facts come forward and have them be able to see and hear from those witnesses and tell their own interpretation, their own story.

i think it will be very powerful. of course we know the republicans are going to try to make a mockery of them and try to question their sincerity and patriotism of these people. that's expected, but i think the american people are smart enough to make their own judgments. >> can we take a quick listen to part of what the president had to say about the release of the transcripts this week? here it is. >> in some cases, they really turned out to be very much honest and fair, but in no cases have i been hurt. in no cases that i see have i been hurt. this is just a continuation of the hoax. it's a disgraceful thing. >> so, i'm curious your response to that the big takeaways from the testimony because there is a new morning consult poll which has support for impeachment at 47% right now, but that number has been slowly ticking downward since peaking at 51% mid-month in october. so, did democrats potentially wait too long for these hearings to get launched or do you think once the public hears these impeachment issues, hears them

for yourself publicly, that support will begin to build again for the hearings and for impeachment? >> yeah, that's the reason that -- and i do understand that people may have felt we should have moved more quickly, but this is a really serious subject and this is an historic moment. we have to do it right and we have to be careful of how we do it. and i think the public hearing process is a very important part of that process. it i think will help shape public opinion. but i also think it's important for my fellow democrats and also republicans to sort of set aside to the extent we can what we think the political implications of this moment might be. i think one big mistake that we could make as policymakers, as legislators, is to weigh this question in the light of 2020 electoral politics. the long view of history will not treat us well, if we think about the political implications of this. i swore an oath to uphold the constitution, not just the fun parts of the constitution, not just the parts that are easy, but the whole thing.

and i think we have to do that. and i'm very disappointed that my republican colleagues have seemed to have sworn an oath of fealty to donald trump, not to the document that's really been the foundational document of this country for two centuries or more. >> well, i am very glad you are in office, representative dan kildee to do what you say you intend to do. thank you. aoc and bernie sanders teaming up for a progressive push today. that's next. plus, billionaire candidate tom steyer facing tough questions over cash for endorsement offers. it is legal, but we'll discuss it. he joins us next. ss we'll discu it he joins us next - [narrator] meet the ninja foodi air fry oven.

make family-sized meals fast, and because it's a ninja foodi, it can do things no other oven can, like flip away. the ninja foodi air fry oven, the oven that crisps and flips away.

now on the road to 2020, senator bernie sanders is taking his campaign back to iowa this weekend with just three months before that state's caucuses. this time, he's bringing what he hopes is a secret weapon in the form of congresswoman alexandria ocasio-cortez, of course, one of the presidential hopeful's biggest endorsers. joining me now from des moines is nbc's shaquille brewster. so, shaq, what is the campaign hoping to gain from aoc and her presence? >> reporter: they really are just kind of tapping into that star power that she brings. she had that rally last night in council bluffs, iowa, then look at what you're seeing now. this is a climate crisis summit on the campus of drake university in des moines, iowa. you see it's nearly 1,500 -- well over 1,500 people here. we know that's how many seats were available for people here. they're having a panel discussion with national leaders

and local iowa climate change leaders and advocates. and what you're really seeing is this campaign trying to tap into the energy that you see among democrats on this issue of climate change. this is an issue that democrats list as one of their top issues. and of course, the people here are not all committed to bernie sanders just yet. we talked to a lot of undecided voters here. listen to the conversation i had with two undecided voters just earlier today. >> the energy needs to be towards what we're going to change, because everyone knows about trump. we've seen him for four years, three years, doing what he does, and it's just like, okay, we get it. everyone wants him impeached, but what are you going to do besides that? you know, i don't want that to be the basis of anybody's conversation with us. >> i feel like also focusing on climate change l because that's like a huge issue that our generation is dealing with right now. >> right. >> so i feel like that should be like one of the main focuses. >> reporter: and we spoke to a lot of voters who are just happy to see alexandria ocasio-cortez, who have seen senator sanders before but was brought back because of congresswoman

ocasio-cortez being here. they want to hear about the green new deal. they want to hear about those focuses on climate change. aoc is also bringing some star power on the road in terms of activism and knocking on doors. this morning she actually helped launch a canvassing group, a door-knocking group. the group is going to knock on thousands of doors just this weekend. so in addition to organization and events, you see her bringing a little bit of star power here to iowa. >> indeed. all right. well, thank you so much. it is a packed house there. shaq, thank you so much, from des moines. and developing right now, a top iowa aide to democratic presidential candidate tom steyer has now resigned. pat murphy's stepping down after being accused of privately offering campaign contributions to local politicians in exchange for endorsing steyer's 2020 white house bid. now, after the initial report, murphy released a statement saying in part, "as a former legislator, i know how tricky the endorsement process can be for folks in iowa. it was never my intention to make my former colleagues uncomfortable and i apologize for any miscommunication on my part." steyer's campaign said, "tom has

not made any individual contributions to candidates in iowa this year, and he will not be making any contributions. our campaign policy is clear that we will not engage in this kind of activity, and anyone who does is not speaking for the campaign and does not know our policy." well, joining me now is tom steyer, president and founder of next-gen america and a 2020 democratic presidential candidate and a good friend of the broadcast. nice to see you again, but we're going to get right into this here. you have seen the headlines. we have read the statements. are you at all concerned that the optics of this could be a problem for voters? i mean, can you clear up the miscommunication part from pat murphy? >> look, alex, in a campaign, something happened that was unauthorized and was improper, and we took i think at most 48 hours to make sure we had our facts straight, and pat resigned. you know, if things happen -- things are going to happen in this world. i've started a lot of organizations. i started a pretty big business

and i've started grassroots organizations around this country. and if something happens that's unauthorized and improper, then you have to deal with it. that's exactly what we did. we did an investigation. we came to a conclusion. pat resigned. that's the way it goes. that's how you run an organization. when things happen that you don't want to have happen, you react to them and you deal with them with the utmost integrity, and that's exactly what we did. >> and you did. and we should point out that donating to campaigns is not illegal as long as those things are indeed reported as campaign donations. so there's nothing illegal about this. but the timing here, tom, because the accusation came just a couple of days after a steyer campaign staffer in south carolina resigned after being caught stealing campaign data from senator kamala harris' campaign, right? tell us what happened there. >> alex, if i could -- actually on that one, what i said was, when something happens, you do an investigation and act. that staffer resigned to protect us, but it turns out, my

investigation seems to be entirely unclear that he ever did anything wrong. so, in fact, let me say this -- i've been running organizations for the last 35 years. it's important to get to the truth and to deal with that truth. in the case of iowa, something improper happened and we dealt with it immediately. that staffer in south carolina resigned to protect us because he didn't want any controversy lingering, but it's unclear to me -- and we're going to make sure to find out exactly whether something bad happened. i don't believe it did at this point. >> okay. here's the situation, though, and you can't be separated from this, because you are a successful businessman. you are a billionaire. your campaign has faced accusations of paying for your place in the race right from the start. how, tom, do you counter that? >> look, alex, to me, i've said this from the beginning -- what matters in this race is what i have to say, whether it's

different, whether it's important, whether people believe it, and whether i'm trusted to make it happen. for ten years, i've been fighting against what i believe is corporations buying our government. i've been putting together coalitions of ordinary american citizens to fight that, and we've been winning, and i've been putting together big grassroots organizations to go door to door and to organize on campuses like next-gen america. i also started the need-to-impeach movement. >> mm-hmm, you did. >> more than 8 million people, starting two years ago, signed a petition to impeach and remove this president. so i know for the last decade as an outsider, i've been taking on the corporations who have bought our government, and i'm saying that's the issue. so, i think americans need to understand from every presidential candidate, including me, what do you have to say? is it different? do you have an answer? i've been saying term limits, 12 years for every congressperson

and senator. no one else will say that. i've been saying a national referendum. take away the congress' monopoly. let the people make the laws. so, my question to everybody in america is what am i saying? i've been working on this for over a decade successfully beating these corporations, and that's why i'm running. i listen to those debates. and people were talking about very important policies that we need to get -- affordable health care is a right, the green new deal. but we're not getting them. and we're not going to get them until we break the corporate stranglehold on our democracy, and that is the issue in front of the american people and that is the issue i'm talking about and i have a decade-long history as an outsider of winning on that. >> yeah. well, in terms of having a platform in which to do that, you are one of the ten that have qualified for this month's debate here on msnbc. you were 1 of 12 candidates on the stage at last month's debate. as the stage, though, begins drawing fewer candidates, how, tom, do you want to stand out in this debate?

what do you plan to do? >> look, i think, alex, i'm completely different. i really am an outsider with a decade-long history of fighting corporations. i also think i'm the person on the stage at this point who has the most economic expertise and experience that if mr. trump hasn't been thrown out of office -- or whoever the republican is -- the only thing they're going to be able to claim is that they've been good on the economy. and i can go toe to toe and prove they haven't, that they are devastatingly incompetent when it comes to jobs and the economy. they're going to talk jobs, but we're going to point out that, in fact, americans have been suffering. they can't live on the jobs that are created in this economy. so i believe i'm in a completely different position. and the last thing i'll say is this -- you were just talking about climate change. i'm the person who said it's priority one. the only person. i'm the person who said i'd make it a state of emergency on day one. and i'm the person who said i'd

do it from the community level up. we'd go to the environmental justice communities, the communities where pollution, air pollution, water pollution, has been concentrated, and get their leadership in terms of write-in policy and their leadership in terms of executing policy. this is priority one as far as i'm concerned, because unless we do it, we're in a lot of trouble. >> all i can say, those kids at drake university from whom we heard would sure be happy to hear you say that. john steyer, we'll seeing you november 20th and will be taking notes. see you again. >> thanks. president trump looking for a fall guy? who the president might be targeting to take the blame for the ukraine pressure campaign. the ukraine pressure campaign. a. a wealth of perspective. ♪ a wealth of opportunities. that's the clarity you get from fidelity wealth management. straightforward advice, tailored recommendations, tax-efficient investing strategies, and a dedicated advisor

to help you grow and protect your wealth. fidelity wealth management. i have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. now, there's skyrizi. 3 out of 4 people achieved 90% clearer skin at 4 months after just 2 doses. skyrizi may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. before treatment your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms such as fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches or coughs, or if you plan to or recently received a vaccine. ♪ nothing is everything ask your dermatologist about skyrizi. ♪ nothing is everything verizon up gave us tickets to the super bowl! we were able to meet shawn mendes. verizon got me into the nfl combine. they don't even sell tickets to this thing. (announcer) verizon knows you love live music and sports. we got to be this far away from the stage. (announcer) that's why we give you access to more jaw-dropping experiences, including nfl games and events. i have never had a vip experience before like that. probably the best moment of my life. (announcer) switch now and you'll get access to thousands of tickets on us

and get up to $750 toward our best phones. because the network more people rely on gives you more. gordon sondland said at the beginning of september he presumes there was a quid pro quo. then there was a telephone call to you on september the 9th. had he ever talked to you prior to that telephone call -- >> let me just say you, i hardly know the gentleman, but this is the man who said there was no quid pro quo. and he still says that. >> president trump there on u.s. ambassador to the eu gordon sondland yesterday after sondland did change his testimony to acknowledge delivering a quid pro quo message to ukraine. his new declaration made public and available for anyone to read through the impeachment inquiry. well, joining me now, bill press, host of "the bill press pod," michelle bernard, president and ceo of the bernard center for women, politics and public policy, and republican

strategist rina shaw. ladies and gent, welcome. and michelle, i'm going to start with you here. the comments from president trump just a month after he called sondland -- what was he calling him there -- a really good man and a great american. i mean, he did that in a tweet. how much harder does it make for the president to now distance himself from sondland? does he not know a guy who gives him $1 million, you know, in donation for his inauguration and the campaign? >> you know, if we were dealing with a normal presidency, i would say that it would be very difficult for the president to distance himself from sondland, but he has a habit of distancing himself from anyone with the mantra of fake news, fake news, fake news, you know? so, anything is possible with this president. but that being said, it doesn't mean that congress will allow him to distance himself from sondland. he is the person who appointed him to this ambassadorship. so, in that sense, it's going to be very difficult from the congressional viewpoint to

distance himself. what goes on in the president's brain is a completely different matter. so, we will see. >> yeah. you have the "washington post" reporting that house republicans are zeroing in on sondland as one of three potential fall guys that they could use to help protect the president. do you think voters are going to catch onto this? i mean, it's a pretty dramatic shift from republicans. first he's an ally, then he's an enemy. >> to sounds to me -- >> i think the -- >> -- absolutely ridiculous -- >> i'm sorry, that one was to rina. sorry, michelle. >> sorry. >> no worries. look, this is not unusual for republicans in washington to want to find some strategy, to find some way to explain to the trump base who they need to hang by, and they need to say, there are people here who don't want the president to succeed. this has always been the mantra. they say there are people that just literally want this president out and that sondland is now getting with the democrats because it's politically expedient. well, what's happened is that

sondland has courage and he has morals and he's realized what's happened to manafort, cohen, even a coffee boy like papadopoulos. these are the people that have had to suffer because this president, they once pledged allegiance to the trump organization. they took the fall, and now the change of heart is happening. >> mm-hmm. i want to get to a point -- another big thing that we're covering. and we'll start with you, bill, on this -- is the impeachment witness list from the house republicans. it includes hunter biden. and i want to let everyone know, we have just gotten word from chairman schiff, he's put out a statement on this minority witness request, saying "the committee is evaluating the minority's witness requests and will give due consideration to witnesses within the scope of the impeachment inquiry as voted on by the house." he goes on to say, "as we move into the open hearing phase of the inquiry, the committee is mindful that we are engaged in a sober endeavor rooted in the constitution to determine whether the president of the united states engaged in misconduct that warrants impeachment by the house." he finally says, "this inquiry is not and will not serve,

however, as a vehicle to undertake the same sham investigations into the bidens or 2016 that the president pressed ukraine to conduct for his personal political benefit or to facilitate the president's effort to threaten, intimidate and retaliate against the whistle-blower who courageously raised the initial alarm." give me your thoughts on what was just put out there by chairman schiff. appropriate? strong enough? what do you think? >> well, first of all, let's not miss the forest through the trees. what this proves is that the democrats are in charge. adam schiff is running the show. it is not kevin mccarthy. it's not jim jordan, even though he put him on the committee. chairman schiff will make the decisions. i think he knows they have a strong case. he's not going to be bamboozled by this list of witnesses that the republicans want to call, which if you look at it, it's clearly an effort on their part to change the subject, to put all these distractions on there, to focus, for example, on the

whistle-blower, right? i mean, let's face it, the whistle-blower's testimony now is really not even needed. they have six witnesses, including ambassador sondland, including colonel vindman, including fiona hill, and the others, and including ambassador taylor, who have said under oath that there was a quid pro quo. one of them, colonel vindman, who actually listened in on the call. so, i think this, again, from the beginning has been -- and if you -- a final point. if you read the depositions, and i've read most of them, right? the republicans on the committees, none of them defended donald trump's call to the president of ukraine because they can't defend it. they know it's a quid pro quo. i think this is an attempt to change the subject, distract it, which is donald trump's m.o. >> michelle, a couple witnesses lined up for the beginning of the open hearings, the public ones beginning on wednesday. according to a morning consult poll, democrats are heading into

these hearings with public support for impeachment declining four points since mid-october. to what do you attribute that and how big of a difference might the open hearings make on these numbers in terms of impeachment support? >> you know, i would say that the fatigue that we're seeing in that poll, number one, we should realize it's just a snapshot in time, and i think it's fatigue. there is one drama after another with this presidency, and you're going to see polls continue to go up and down, depending on what is the news of the day. and the public's appetite for hearing more about impeachment. i think when the hearings become public starting on wednesday, it is going to bring in a national tide of change. i think it is going to be very disheartening, some of the testimony that we expect to see for trump supporters, even the most diehard supporters and i suspect the public's appetite and belief and necessity for this impeachment inquiry is going to go sky high. >> yeah.

hey, on "a.m. joy" robert de niro had a couple of things to say. let's take a listen. >> if we don't go through this impeachment inquiry, we're letting him get away with something. he can't get away -- you just got to move foerrward and take r chances. tactically feels it will give him more information later, but he has done something wrong needs to pay for it. pay for it, put on notice, even if the republicans don't go through finally with impeaching him, he has to be held accountable, period. >> pretty clear from robert de niro. each give a succinct answer. >> robert de niro gets to the point. one question in front of congress and in front of the american people. is it okay for a president of

the united states to ask a foreign government to intervene in an american election? yes or no. if you believe in the sanctity of our democracy the answer has to be, no. >> quickly? >> you know, i think robert de niro is a gifted actor but hear republicans saying he needs to keep his nose out of our dealings in washington. he's a hollywood big guy. this is what all of hollywood thinks. what i hear from republicans in my home state of west virginia as i travel up and down the east coast. sick and tired of hearing from hollywood people telling us what to do. >> i think robert de niro was right on key, everything he said is so important. we are a nation of laws. the republican party used to be a party that stood by the rule of law and we have to do everything we can to protect our democracy. no man or woman is above the law. >> thank you all. good to see you all. thank you so much. middle ground.

how a new jersey state lawmakers's strategy helped him keep his seat and what it could mean for races across the country in 2020. try in 2020. ♪ born to be wild... born to be wild...♪ 25 cent boneless wings at applebee's. get 'em while they're hot.

tuesday's blue wave skipped new jersey, considered a democratic stronghold picking up effort is republican seats first time in a decade. joining me new jersey republican assembly minority leader re-elected thursday. welcome. i think that was your ninth election in a row that you won. kudos to you. >> it was. very happy common sense leadership was the day. >> look, you were the highest ranking republican running on thursday. you consider yourself a moderate, distanced yourself from donald trump. is there a political risk to being a moderate republican in this, the trump, era. almost ten governorships flipped since he became president? >> absolutely not. people want common sense. two years ago i called the president out when he talked about john mccain.

i hear the other day he called mike bloomberg little mike. this kind of language is unacceptable. i said that and what i ran into was on the right two people said i wasn't trump enough and on the left too much like trump. i won a district democratically controlled in terms of number of people in that district, and i'm very proud that i think that people want common sense, moderate leadership. what they're looking for in this country. >> yeah. made the case your party's got to find a way ba to moderate roots, in fact, to win over suburban voters. worried it's too late? most republicans in congress contradicted themselves consistently depe lly defending president's language? >> we are not in a cult. we see language i don't like, something i wouldn't want my grandfather to watch i'm going to talk about it. poverty, 3% unemployment, i mention that as well.

not in a cult, never be in a cult i'm in a party and we call out bad behavior, that's what i did and blad i dglad i did it. >> look at america and the divide now. what does the future look like if people from both parties continue to fail to work together? >> i think most people in this country are in the middle. they want democrats and republicans to work together. i don't really believe the fact that people are extreme on one side or the other. i think that's promoted some way, sometimes by the media. sometimes by the public who are put on tv. bottom line is, people want common sense leadership and that's the direction i think this country will eventually go. >> tell you something. get a megaphone and spout it out. love hearing what you're saying for sure. thank you for your time and congratulations on the win. >> thank you. house republicans lining up witnesses days before the start of open impeachment hearings. familiar names topping the list. h

so they'll only pay for what they need. your turn to keep watch, limu. wake me up if you see anything. [ snoring ] [ loud squawking and siren blaring ] only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

i don't have to worry about that, do i? harmful bacteria lurk just below the gum line. crest gum detoxify, voted product of the year. it works below the gum line to neutralize harmful plaque bacteria and help reverse early gum damage. gum detoxify, from crest.

oh, yeah. ton of the hour. i'm out of here. a couple seconds late, kendis. >> it's cold outside, yeah. last night it was. >> stay warm under the lights. hi, everybody. i'm kendis gibson live msnbc headquarters in new york. a new development as congress prepares for public hearings on impeachment. republicans demanding hunter biden take the stand along with the