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tv   Andrea Mitchell Reports  MSNBC  January 12, 2021 9:00am-10:00am PST

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tremendous anger. and you're doing it and it's really a terrible thing that they're doing. i think it's causing tremendous danger to our country and it's causing tremendous anger. i want no violence. >> the president's defensive posture are on high alert for further violence by militia insurgents. federal and state law enforcement officials say they're preparing for a potential wave of attacks against government issues. barricades are up around the u.s. capitol as lawmakers are now learning what they describe as chilling and horrific details, new warnings from security officials who have been briefing them. federal and local officials were also moving up inauguration week closures in washington where streets will be shut down starting tomorrow instead of next week. the house is already reacting to last week's mob violence. the vote tonight calling on vice president pence and the cabinet to invoke the 25th amendment and remove the president from office right now. since that is unlikely to occur, the house is also forging ahead with a plan scheduled for tomorrow to pass an article of
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impeachment against the president for his repeated lies about the election outcome, the pressure on georgia officials to change the vote, and inciting violence against congress' counting of the electoral college. joining me, nbc chief white houseristen welker, co-host of "weekend today." casy hunt, host of "way too early," and pete williams. the president speaking again today before boarding air force one for texas. first time we've heard from him in six days. what can you tell us about it? >> reporter: it's remarkable, president trump choosing to speak out today, andrea, after not addressing reporters or the public for six days as you point out. today he came out and meat ade clear he'll cap out the final days in office defiantly. he's headed to the texas boarder to out the his border wall, highlighting his key
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accomplishments in these remaining days. but he also had a message for those who are threatening to come to the capitol, to other states' capitols, to inflict violence. he essentially said do not engage in violence. he also lashed out at the impeachment efforts, revooifring his talking point that it is a witch-hunt. he was asked by our colleague kelly to didn o'donnell if he b responsibility for his supporters who marched to the capitol last week. take a look at that exchange. >> if you read my speech, and many people have done it and i've seen it both in the papers and in the media, on television, it's been analyzed and people thought that what i said was totally appropriate. >> reporter: so there you have president trump defending his remarks despite the fact that democrats and republicans frankly have said that his remarks, which he called for his supporters to march to the capitol, saying he was going to
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march with them, undoubtedly were to some extent the root of their decision to go to the capitol and do what we saw unfold there. in terms of what's happening behind the scenes, tensions are mounting here. the resignations continue. and the pressure is on vice president mike pence. what is he going to do? based on our conversations with those who are familiar with his thinking, we are told that he is just not inclined to invoke the 25th amendment. we know the two men met yesterday in the oval office. one official described it as a good conversation. but we know, andrea, there were tensions between the two men, particularly because president trump hadn't reached out to pence since the hours before the attack on the capitol and didn't reach out to him while he was sheltering in place while that attack was under way. that is the state of play here. there's a lot of uncertainty about what will happen next and what president trump's offering will look like, andrea.
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>> and pete williams, there's a lot of concern of course about what will happen on inauguration day. you spoke with the secret service agent in charge of the operation. here's part of that conversation. >> well, you need to make changes in the security plan. for example, will you need to say push the barrier out further, bring in more law enforcement, that kind of thing? >> well, rather than get into specific means and methods to our protective operations, what i would say is when an incident of that size happens, obviously there are lessons that can be learned from it. we're constantly looking to evaluate intelligence, constantly looking to refine and enhance our security plan, and i'm comfortable with the level of resources and planning that's gone into this process. >> what lessons did you learn from it? >> the lessons that we learned from it is that this is a poignant reminder of what can happen and that's exactly why we spend over a year planning for these events. >> pete, we also had a
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disturbing report from "the washington post" of a secret service agent who had posted comments, really radical comments, on facebook, accusing lawmakers who formalized biden's victory as treason, and the agency told nbc news that the u.s. secret service carries out its law enforcement mission in an objective and apolitical manner. any allegation that an employee is not carrying out their duties in that manner will be investigated. as this is a personnel matter, the agency will not be further commenting. can you shed any more light on this snilt's rather remarkable. this would be obviously someone in the secret service responsible for protecting officials including the president and lawmakers and, you know, foreign visitors, visiting dignitaries. >> i've talked to -- sorry. i've talked to a couple sources who say that this is not an agent, it's a female member of the uniform division. as you know from your experience at the white house, the uniform division folks are the ones who
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obviously wear a uniform, not the agents on the protective detail. but the secret service has a very low tolerance for any kind of political expression, so i suspect that there will be some pretty harsh disciplinary action here. i don't know what's going to happen. they won't tell us what kind of disciplinary reaction would be taken, but i wouldn't be surprised if this officer is no longer with the secret service at some point. >> how unusual is this at such a critical moment? >> reporter: i'd say very unusual. >> yeah. it certainly seems striking to me. kasie hunt, up on capitol hill, there are two critical votes in the next two days as house democrats are learning more of just about how bad it was, how much worse it could have been, in fact, what was really planned. they've had security briefings, which are continuing throughout the day. >> reporter: that's right, andrea. i would say that the level of fear and concern about what the next not just the inauguration
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day but the next week leading up to the inauguration may hold for members of congress as some of these very scary possible plans have come into focus. it's obviouser saying online about what they were going to do at the capitol, what their plans were. that obviously has changed, and now they are being told in pretty stark detail some of the things that people are talking about. now, of course, whether or not any of that's going to happen depends on that law enforcement response that pete was just reporting on. but the vote theys eel take tonight and especially tomorrow when they do plan to move forward with this impeachment vote, i mean, you heard president trump there. you know, he was the one who -- he's going to be charged with inciting this riot. he told his supporters to go down to the capitol. and while in that statement that he made today he said he doesn't want more violence, he also said
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there's all this anger about the impeachment, almost seeming to justify it. i think there's real concern among members on capitol hill that something tomorrow could potentially focus the attention of some of the people who came to the capitol. that's a pretty scary proposition. i will add, andrea, that there are some republicans that we expect may be willing to vote for impeachment tomorrow. it's still very much a live conversation. people are grappling with questions about their own personal safety, about what this meant, what they should do. it's not something that's been answered in a lot of cases. but it is something that many are weighing and considering doing. if you were able to see a large group of republicans move forward to impeach this president, that could change the political calculation going forward. i think a lot of the focus today, as much as people are trying to decide, okay, what's the right political thing to do, is really about their personal safety and security.
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>> and the big concern about covid because bonnie watson coleman and now pramila jayapal as well as brad schneider are all covid positive just days after we heard their c redfielda potential surge from the mob surge and from the house position, i believe, the position of the capitol, saying they had been locked up together and they are complaining that some of their republican colleagues refused with political comments, refused to put on masks while they were all held together for hours and hours. >> reporter: it's a nightmare scenario for coronavirus, andrea. looking at the video from the gallery where our producer tailey talbot was with those members. they were take on the a secure room in the house complex, a secure location, and there's some video from inside that room where you can see republicans sitting around in a circle not wearing masks and democrats offering masks to them and
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politely saying, hey, do you need one, i have an extra one, perhaps you should wear it. they refused. now we're seeing the consequences of that because of course members were in close quarters, not socially distanced, inside in exactly the kind of environment where this spreads. as you can see, i mean, this is a disease that puts people's lives in danger, andrea. >> and pete, i just want to bring you back because you know william webster, judge webster, so well from his years at the fbi and then cia and now he, a life long republican, has come out saying there should be the removal, impeachment, or censure, but some action taken against the president by his own party. >> pretty extraordinary, andrea. and, you know, all of this concern around the inauguration and the congressional votes has got the rethinking of how the security arrangement should be for the inaugural. you mentioned early on that they've extended the time that this is going to be declared a national special security event.
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that'll begin tomorrow instead of next tuesday as it was going to, which gives the secret service the power then to basically control all of the various assets that are streaming into washington. thousands of police, federal agents, and national guard will undoubtedly lead to further restrictions around town much earlier than we would have expected them to be put in place for the inauguration. >> and inaugurations are always a national security event, a special event, which is exactly what many argue should have been in place for the january 6th event because of all of the warnings. >> right. >> nbc's kasie hunt, kristen welker, pete williams, for all of your expertise, thank you all so much. everything you've been doing. barbara come stock joins me now. she's call for the impeachment and removal of president trump. great to see you.
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>> great to be with you. >> let's get your reaction to the president saying -- now, the president of the united states has said that his comments on wednesday were totally appropriate. that's his first comment on this in six days, after six days of silence. your response to that? >> well, i think the president's comments are just one more part of the support for impeachment. they were outrageous. i dare any republican to say they were appropriate. i think the president should resign, but unlike nixon, you can't even rise to that level of doing that. certainly would like to see the 25th amendment used if that could be, but impeachment, looks like what it's going to need to be. i signed a letter with other former republican members of congress, i think we're up to about 25 or 26, say this is unprecedented behavior that cannot be ignored. i still don't think the president has any appreciation
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for any minute he is there we are in danger because this is somebody who is still i think a threat in and how talks to his supporters, the people who came and rioted and pillaged the capitol. he told them you're special people. he still hasn't denounced them, even though he said he doesn't want any violence. i think the way he's saying, hey, if you impeach me, you don't know what might happen. that itself is why we should have impeachment to address these conspiracies and to make sure the people understand how wrong and out of line and beyond anything we've ever seen before this has been. >> well, if that's the case, if you think impeachment needs to be done, but that he really oulgt to be removed because it's also dangerous, why not more pressure from republicans, former republicans, former and current members, on the vice president to do something on the 25th amendment? that would remove him from
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office for the next eight days. >> well, i certainly know that people have reached out to the vice president and to his staff and made their views clear. i think they seem to think this would take too long, although they're still holding it out there i think because of their own concern. you see the stories that came out just last night where everybody around the president was appalled at his reaction to what was going on in real time, that he had no appreciation for the danger that he had put congress in, to have one branch of government, to attack the other, to hear "hang mike pence" from the hallowed halls of the capitol where i worked as an intern, as a staffer, as a member of congress. that is so appalling and beyond the pale and i think republicans should look at people like william webster you talked about. look at the ten secretaries of defense who really are concerned
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about this president. look at people like ben silas, who said this was evil. and, you know, my friend peggy noonan, who said in the "wall street journal," who called for his impeachment, because he's a bad man and he is a dangerous person to be in this position. so i would implore republicans who are going to go over this tonight to take this very seriously, their lives and constituents' lives, and vote to remove this man from office. >> there are reports that 10 to 20 republicans might vote for impeachment with democrats or at least considering it. maybe one of them is mist cheney, who's been very outspoken. what do you think about that? >> i was proud of liz cheney to stand up and write that 21-page memo. she comes from a very conservative state and district, so i particularly appreciate that, and her leadership in that role. so i think, you know, continuing
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on, i hope that they would vote for these -- you know, for the resolution tonight, and if that doesn't prevail, the vice president doesn't do something, proceed with impeachment. i do think it will be bipartisan both in the senate and now you're hearing -- i mean in the house, you know, this week, and in the senate you are hearing more and more people who are discussing this because they are hearing from people as ben sasse pointed out from the white house, who nobody will defend the president's conduct. it's chris christie who was working with the president on his debates just a few months ago said if this isn't impeachable, what is? i can't answer that. i would challenge all of my republican colleagues to do this, do it swiftly, and take that vote to make sure he cannot run again. >> former congresswoman barbara comstock, republican of virginia. thank you very much. good to see you. thanks for being with us today. >> thank you. policing the police.
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new worries as police are investigated for aiding and supporting the rioters at the capitol. across the country, state capitols are on alert amid calls for armed protests in the coming days. ♪ ♪ (quiet piano music) ♪ comfort in the extreme. the lincoln family of luxury suvs. what if your clothes could stay fresh for weeks?t smell clean? now they can! this towel has already been used and it still smells fresh. pour a cap of downy unstopables into your washing machine before each load and enjoy fresher smelling laundry for up to 12-weeks.
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protests at all 50 state capitols ahead of president-elect biden's inauguration next week. back in april, an armed group forced their way into michigan's capitol and six men were later indicted for an alleged plot to kidnap the democratic governor. i spoke with governor gretchen whitmer a day after the violence at the capitol last week. >> you can't fan the flames of hatred and throw gas on them and then show up later with a bucket of water and pretend like you've been on the right side the whole time. no one buys it. every one of us has to hold our leaders to a higher standard. >> joining me now is nbc's gabe gutierrez in lansing, michigan, the state capital. what are the preparations looking like? there was a decision legislatively to stop open carry where weapons have been a big issue there. >> reporter: that's right, andrea. good afternoon. yes, yesterday a michigan commission vote unanimously 6 to
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1 to ban open carry, i should say, in the state capitol behind me. critics say, though, that it does not go far enough, that concealed carry is still allowed and some democratic legislators especially feel that what happened yesterday is not enough. in fact, michigan's attorney general this morning tweeted, "my job is not to provide state employees and residents or other visitors to our capitol with a false sense of security, especially given the current state of affairs in michigan and around the nation. i repeat, the michigan capitol is not safe." now, drae, thandrea, this comes last april when extremists went into the capitol. they were armed. several state legislators continue to have bulletproof vests in their offices because they are scared of what could happen. as you mention, an fbi mem know now circulating suggesting that it's possible in the coming days there could be armed protests at
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state capitols across the country. in wisconsin, for example, they've already boarded up the state capitol there. other states like washington state are also implementing new security measures. so, andrea, this is something that many public officials are watching across the country, especially at statehouses like this one, which are expected to be less fortified of course than the u.s. capitol in washington. andrea? >> indeed. gabe gutierrez, thank you so much. in lansing, michigan. joining me now is the former assistant director of the fbi's counterintelligence division. his new book out today is "the fbi way: inside the bureau's code of excellence." frank, let's talk about what we're hearing from gabe just now about the precautions states are taking after the fbi is warning of possible armed protests at all state capitols. how unusual is this? are states prepared? >> it's virtually unprecedented to see this kind of broad yet
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specific intelligence bull lingo out to everyone in every state. particularly based on a domestic threat, not an international threat. this harkens back to my days after 9/11 and the scope of the threat we are facing. there's good news and bad news. the good news is you'll see an incredibly hardened perimeter that defends washington, d.c., for the inauguration. the bad news is the bad guys will see that and consider planning for softer targets like statehouses and capitols. combine that with intelligence through social media that indicates there are plans afoot to do some acts of violence at those statehouses and you have the bulletin and the briefing that congress has been receiving. >> now, "the washington post" just broke a story that we're still working on which you may have some information on, that the day before the rioters stormed congress, an fbi office in virginia issued an explicit internal warning that extreme i
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wases were preparing to travel to washington to commit violence and, quote, war. the democrat says an onlyde thread discussed specific calls for violence to include being ready to fight, congress needs to hear grass breaking, doors kicked in and blood from antifa slave soldiers being spilled. get violent. stop calling this a march or rally or protest. go there and get your president or we die. nothing embassy could achieve the goal. you could not be more explicit or radical than that. how could that have been overlooked? >> well, here's the thing. what i'm saying now on record is that what happened at the capitol was not so much an intelligence failure but rather a failure to act upon available intelligence. you could sit at home and watch at least in the publicly available postings all of this being played out, and it strikes at what's going on inside every fbi field office right now, the incredible challenge of
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separating wheat from chaff, separating the aspirational postings of a guy on his couch eating potato chips versus the bad actor ready to execute and move down that path toward violence. they are inundated with an avalanche of such posting by the tens of thousands. so this shouldn't shock anybody that the bureau discovered this. we know from nbc news reporting over the weekend that the fbi shared its intelligence with the capitol police, with the washington metro police, and the nypd intelligence unit shared similar concerns about violence at the capitol with the capitol police. the question we should be asking is twofold. first, why didn't anybody staff that perimeter at the capitol sufficiently, number one? and was there higher-level involvement in allowing this to happen? and number two, moving forward, how do we get our hands around the problem of social media fueling and fanning extremism when we still don't have a law against domestic terrorism? >> and when the agencies in
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washington, with the mayor not having authority over the capitol and not being able to interact with the national guard, i mean, all of this is of the piece. the fbi is workingtips we're to. how do you former colleagues even approach an investigation this large? >> they tell me this is a race against the clock. you have the inauguration coming up. and even social media planning in posts that violence will occur prior to the inauguration. so you have this tension between let's build the strongest case while we're identifying everybody that got inside that capitol, let's hit them with felony charges, let's get grand jury indictments, take an enterprise approach to try and take down groups, contrasted against the ticking clock. let's make arrests right now on complaint charges and come in later with superseding grand jury indictments. that's what's going on right now while everybody 24/7 is searching through social media posts by the tens of thousands
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and trying to figure out who this person is and whether they're going to act out for real. >> former assistant director for counterintelligence at the fbi, frank figliuzzi, the author of "the fbi way" out today. could not be more timely. if democrats move ahead with impeachment, can joe biden still achieve his campaign promise of healing the country? we'll talk about that with chris coons from delaware. and the major changes the trump administration is making to american foreign policy as they head out the door. when they toy work wasn't essential walls enclosed around me with the words "you can't do this" tattooed to its surface. an unshakable feeling. pressure that swelled beyond my capable strength. how do i break through...alone? i don't... the strength to break through has always been built together. crafted with the people who stand beside us. introducing career services for life.
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as house democrats are poised to vote on impeachment tomorrow, in the senate, it faces an uncertain future. now a key senator, west virginia's joe manchin, who's expected to play a big role in the evenly divided chamber in the coming months and years is splitting from the party, echoing arguments made by some republicans that it would be divisive. >> i think this is so ill-advised for joe biden to be coming in trying to heal the country, trying to be the president of all the people when we'll be so divided and fighting again. >> joining me is democratic senator chris coons of delaware, arguing in "the new york times" column today that the world is watching and the president needs to resign, like now. senator, thank you very much. what do you think about what senator manchin is saying that impeachment will only make things worse? >> look, i'm mindful of the
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vigorous debate that's going on between how do we make sure that we advance president-elect biden's nominees and agenda as quickly as we responsibly can while also ensuring there is accountability for this remarkable, tragic, unprecedented assault on the american capitol by a mob incited by president trump. there will be action, i believe, this week in the house that will send impeachment over to us. the minority leader chuck schumer of new york is exploring a pathway towards having us promptly reconvene and take this up, something that majority leader mcconnell has said is not possible but may well be possible under something that was agreed to after 9/11 that allows the majority and minority leader to reconvene the senate. i'm going to be working with my colleagues to make sure that we find a path towards accountability for president trump and those who supported this unprecedented challenge to the certification of a free and
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fair election while also trying to advocate for the prompt confirmation particularly of the vital national security and foreign policy nominees that will make up the core of president-elect biden's cabinet. >> in fact, the vote also might be the first defense secretary not confirmed before january 20th in recent years because there has been a policy of doing that. but wouldn't impeachment get in the way of that? >> it depends how we proceed with impeachment and whether or not it's done quickly or slowly, whether or not it is the only matter that the senate deals with or we can possibly split our days. but, look, let's not get ahead of ourselves, andrea. what we said in my editorial, which has been repeated by many republicans and democrats, is that president trump should resign. failing that, the responsibility for this falls on the vice president and a majority of the cabinet. they have the power to remove him immediately and prevent us from having to go through this
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exercise. if they refuse to do so, if they won't take responsibility for these actions last wednesday, then congress has to consider its alternatives. and i do think it's important that our caucus leader, senator schumer, is calling for us to reconvene promptly and to move ahead with this before we get to the inauguration. >> the u.s. capitol police who have, by the way, not done a briefing yet, which is remarkable, have revealed that several of their officers have been suspended after wednesday's riot. how concerned are you that law enforcement might -- some of them, some were heroic and some tragically died, but law enforcement may have been involved? >> well, that's exactly why we need a prompt and thorough investigation of and accountability for the incidents at the capitol last wednesday. we should first stop and reflect on the fact that two capitol police officers, officer brian
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sicknick, who was bludgeoned to death by rioters, and officer howard liebengood, known to me and my staff well as one of the warmest and most engaging and positive law enforcement officers, people of any background, that i've melt in my decade in washington, both of them gave their lives in line of duty deaths associated with this event on wednesday. and i saw dozens of capitol police officers bravely risking their own safety and security to keep us safe, those of us who serve in congress or work in the capitol complex. there are also troubling allegations that there may have been some who were not doing their duty, and there are of course real challenges in terms of the planning and the preparation that are more urgent than ever given that the president-elect and vice president-elect will be sworn in next week on the 20th, and as you were just reporting, that there's now plans for or
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beginnings of plans for violent demonstrations at state capitols across the country. it's urgent that we get to the bottom of what has happened here while also making certain we respect the members of law enforcement who risked or in those two cases gave their lives to keep us safe. >> we should be in the secretary of defense, a new executive branch. the designation of the houthi as a terrorist organization in yemen as well which just happened is going to significantly complicate humanitarian relief in yemen, a nation that is suffering through one of the worst humanitarian disasters on the planet right now. i had urged the secretary of state, secretary of state pompeo, the outgoing secretary of state, not to take that action, and this is just one of several ways in which the actions of this last week may well cause challenges or problems for the incoming administration that are not
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helpful. >> to say the least. thank you very much, senator chris coons, democrat of delaware. right now the heads of operation warp speed briefing on the cdc's new plan to recommend that states expand access to the covid vaccines now. if you have postmenopausal osteoporosis and a high risk for fracture, now might not be the best time to ask yourself, 'are my bones strong?' life is full of make or break moments. that's why it's so important
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>> joining me now is dr. patel, a physician in washington, d.c., who served in the obama administration. thanks for being with us. this means more doses will be made available, those that have been held back. will there be doses, do you think, for the second shots, the administration and of course joe biden and his administration saying that they believe the manufacturing can ramp up? what if it doesn't? >> i do, andrea, and good to be with you. i do think we have enough for second shots. and that's for a couple of reasons. number one, we're actually not even doing a great job of getting the supply we currently have in freezers and refrigerators out the door. make a point to say that they would be working moving fo be working wi understand what they've already administered so that they can ensure that second doses are available. having said that, you and i both know, andrea, the change and transition of power next week, but i have confidence that the
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biden-elect team is doing exactly that. and you've already heard from the leading manufacturers of the vaccines that they're confident that they can also put out the supply. to your point, andrea, if necessary, i think president-elect biden would need to use the defense production act to kind of ramp up that manufacturing. but i would love to have that problem. we're not even getting the vaccines we currently have into people's arms. >> you've been working on vaccinations in the district. what has your experience been? >> yeah. so, andrea, our experience, i have to commend the mayor, muriel bowser, and her department of public health. they've already moved the next phase where we are starting to vaccinate people over the age of 65 as well as the frontline workers. so we haven't necessarily finished the job with all health care workers, but i commend the district for kind of moving on forward, and i would really hope that some of the changes made at hhs today can make that available.
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andrea, here's the biggest problem i worry about, the misinformation. all of this chaos around the vaccine rollout has unfortunately masked the information we need to get out about what the vaccine is and is not. we're so busy trying to figure out how many doses we'll get, we haven't had the time in health care to talk to our patients about the importance of the vaccines and to dispel any of the common myths that are out there. >> i was on the website yesterday and appointments are now being taken for people who are not in nursing homes. i'm aware of that myself. the country is also recording more than 100,000 covid hospitalizations for 40 days in a row. nbc's erin mclaughlin got an inside look at one of the largest hospitals in l.a. this is l.a. county hospital on the complete of being overwhelmed. you can see some of the footage here. it's harbor ucla medical center. there are two doctors on what
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are supposed to be caring for patients. this is what they have to say. >> every day is a new day of making thins up as we go. >> it means that people who are victims of car accidents or violence will end up waiting longer than they should to get the lifesaving care they need. >> this is a situation that we're going to see around the country because we're not yet even seeing the full impact of the holiday surge. >> yeah, andrea. and one of those doctors is a good friend of mine. they're doing -- truly doing god's work. around the country, we are almost at 100% icu capacity -- alabama, georgia, texas. half the country is seeing increasing rates that should be very concerning to anyone watching or listening and all the more reason that even though we have these vaccines, we have to continue all the good things we've talked about -- masks, distance, and washing hands. >> dr. kavita patel, thank you for the good work you and your
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colleagues are doing. less than a week after the siege on american democracy, how history might hold those responsible to account. stay with us for michael beschloss coming up next. liberty mutual customizes your home insurance, here's one that'll really take you back. wow! what'd you get, ryan? it's customized home insurance from liberty mutual! what does it do bud? it customizes our home insurance so we only pay for what we need! and what did you get, mike? i got a bike. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ less sick days! cold coming on? zicam® is clinically proven to shorten colds! highly recommend it! zifans love zicam's unique zinc formula. it shortens colds! zicam zinc that cold! have a good day, behave yourself.
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>> man: what's my my truck...is my livelihood. so when my windshield cracked... the experts at safelite autoglass came right to me... with service i could trust. right, girl? >> singers: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ . after last week's attack on the capitol lawmakers are moving rapidly towards an historic second impeachment vote but house republican leader kevin mccarthy who voted to overturn the election results that
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wednesday night, even after the riot reportedly only broke with the president in a tough conversation last night when president trump was insisting that the left wing group, antifa, not his supporters, were storming the capitol. according to axios republican leaders now are telling their members they won't tell them how to vote on impeachment, leaving it as a matter of conscience. joining me is michael beschloss. we understand that mccarthy, according to axios in that conversation with the president last night, was basically saying, no, mr. president, you're wrong, it was your people, not antifa. and kasie hunt is reporting that mccarthy was telling the president that this impeachment thing, it's apparently happening, or at least was trying to tell his own supporters not to vote for it but now they're letting them vote for it, if they want to. >> andrea, this is one of the nightmares of all times, we've got an irrational president who's desperately trying to hold on to power. he's facing enormous legal and financial problems, if he leaves
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the presidency. even if it's irrational, he's going to try to do almost anything he can to hold onto the presidency even though we rational people know it's impossible. i think we have to look at the next 13 days as sort of a domestic cuban missile crisis where we have to move our country safely through this period. we've got two things, i think, mainly to worry about. number one, donald trump during the last four years has shown that he's intoxicated with this idea of a president who is able to use emergency power, so called, including marshal law if there are riots and disturbances in the cities. so therefore if that is true he would feel that it is in his interest to foment discord in the 50 states in the district of columbia between now and inauguration day so that he can use those powers, which may even include declaring marshal law and even trying to, you know, delay leading the presidency his great adviser rudy giuliani,
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after 9/11, went to the governor of new york, and said i think we should cancel the city election of november 2001, and i should be allowed to stay in office. that's who's advising him. that's domestic threat. the other threat is that the president will take the united states into an unnecessary war during the next week in order to try to stay in office. you just reported on the fact that the secretary of state, mike pompeo is declaring a number of countries terrorist states. it is very easy. we have seen through history, for instance as mckinley did in 1898, the spanish sank an american ship so we have to go to war against the spanish all around the world. trump knows if we are enmeshed in a war it is easier for him to grab some kind of emergency powers. i hope this is all something that we don't need to worry about, but eternal vigilance, we've got to watch this
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extremely carefully. >> and you've got such erratic behavior. lindsey graham who only last week began to break with the president after the riot is now flying back on air force one with him today. you know, are republicans going to back off of their criticism as more time passes since the riots rather than reacting to the even more alarming warnings that we're now learning about, that they're being briefed on? >> right. >> as to what -- >> yeah, our constitution says that if you have a president who is half crazy, and desperate for power, and trying to go against the meaning of the constitution, that congressional leaders will keep him or her in check. that hasn't been happening for four years with republican leaders, the shocking thing is even after last wednesday, the first time an american president has incited a domestic terrorist attack against the congress of the united states, and maybe we'll find out that he even planned it, the leaders are doing very little and what you
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just said is a great example of that, it's horrifying. >> very briefly, mike pompeo has apparently just cancelled his trip to nato, first and last trip to nato, aeld allegedly because he needs to work on the transition, not exactly a high priority since he's been taking steps in iran, cuba, elsewhere around the world, china, that completely impede the transition from taking place smoothly on foreign policy. that remains to be seen. congressman clyburn is saying that the inauguration should be reimagined. others believe it should be held on the west front as scheduled, that it can be secured. what say you? >> i say if safety first, if we have to naug rate biden and harris in an underground cavern that's guarded to be safe, let's do that, let's not take any risks with our incoming president and vice president just for the sake of symbolism. one thing more, you mentioned
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pompeo staying home, i hope it's not for this reason but that's what secretaries of state do when they're expecting a very turbulent week in the world. >> well, and let's hope he's not adding to the turbulence because certainly the decisions over the last three days do. nbc news presidential historian michael beschloss, thank you so very much. that does it for this busy edition of andrea mitchell reports. chuck todd is up next with "mtp daily." o clean as you go. it cleans grease five times faster on easy messes, just spray, wipe, and rinse. on tough messes, the spray-activated suds cut through grease on contact, without water. just wipe, and rinse. get dishes done faster dawn powerwash dish spray. spray. wipe. rinse. wanthen make a name foname for yourself.ng?
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. it's tuesday, president trump remains defiant, refusing to take responsibility for inciting the insurrection attack on the capitol as the house is moving ahead with plans to impeach president trump tomorrow. plus, the security crisis in washington and across america, as the fbi sounds the alarm for all 50 state capitols, and house members are