w to add comcast business securityedge. call today. good day. from msnbc world headquarters in new york, welcome to "weekends with alex witt." developing this hour, the acquittal of donald trump in his second impeachment trial is reverb rate on capitol hill and across the nation. senators on both sides of the aisle giving new insight and

reaction today to that 57-43 verdict. >> i condemn what happened on january the 6th, but the process they used to impeach this president was an affront to rule of law. could the president have done more, yeah? did he incite this riot by his speech? absolutely not. >> and what this was about to me, chris, is about not hiding history. this will now be seared in the memory of americans for generations to many could. i was disappointed in the result, but it resulted in the most bipartisan vote we've ever seen in age people in the president of the united states. >> seven republican senators voted to convict donald trump, one of them bill cassidy being censured by the republican republican party and here's what he had to say. >> i'm holding president trump accountable and that's the trust i have from the people who elected me and iconfident as time passes people will move to

that position. >> and as lawmakers move past impeachment the calls are growing today for the creation of a 9/11-style independent commission to investigate the attack on the capitol. some democratic lawmakers stressing its importance earlier today. >> there's still more evidence that the american people need and deserve to hear. we need to spend months and months unearthing all the evidence that can possibly be gotten to through a 9/11-style commission. >> of course there must be a full commission, an impartial commission, not guided by politics but filled with people who would stand up to the courage of their conviction. >> we have reporters and analysts in place covering all angles of the acquittal and its political fallout. let's get right to mariana sotomayor who joins us from capitol hill. new repercussions at this hour for many of the seven republicans who voted to convict trump. what's new for them?

>> reporter: hey, that's right, you mentioned that one republican senator bill cassidy, so far the only one who has faced a censure motion by the republican state party, but you'll remember that a majority of the house republicans who voted for impeachment, they also get censured by their state party so it's likely that could half. senator lindsey graham in the sunday morning interview saying burr not running for re-election, it's likely that trump's daughter-in-law could in fact win a seat like that so this isn't necessarily changing the dynamics of the party but even so democrats are pointing out that those seven republicans who joined the democrats in order to convict former president donald trump, they will look -- they say that they will be seen very well in the course of history, and they are pointing to senate minority leader mitch mcconnell for that reasoning. they note that mcconnell himself even said that democrats did a good job outlining the evidence

and that moving forward he very much believes that trump did in fact incite the violence that we saw here on january 6th. the democrats, of course, sharply criticizing him for more or less wanting to have his cake and eat it, too. take a listen to what some democrats had to say this morning about mcconnell and the influence of trump and the republican party. >> raskin and his team did an extraordinarily good job and importantly in the history our country they spoke up at the right moment. let me say another word. we were never going to reach 67 votes in the senate without mitch mcconnell voting guilty, so he went up on the floor afterwards. he basically gave the speech that jamie raskin would have given to the senate and then tried to justify his vote for acquittal. >> i think we successfully prosecuted him and convicted him in the court of public opinion and in the court of history.

he's obviously a major pliflt call problem for the republican party and as long as he's out there attempting to wage war on american constitutional democracies he's a threat to all of us. >> reporter: while they were not able to convict are the former president, they are feeling very good about the evidence that they presented but you noted in some of the interviews with other democrats. they want a commission to try to dig up more evidence make sure that they can put and argue for history what happened here on january the 6th and for the next couple of weeks democrats will pivot forcefully to focus on biden's agenda. they real want to pass that stimulus bill in the next couple of weeks so that's what you should expect in the weeks to come. >> all right. the mariana sotomayor on capitol hill, thank you. there's been new backlash to senator mcconnell's rebuke on the senate floor. let's go to monica alba in west palm beach, florida. monica, what is this all about?

>> well, mitch mcconnell's words yesterday really were quite an intense rebuke of donald trump, and those will probably last on for a good while to come even though the senate minority leader voted not to convict the former president. his takedown of his behavior is something that now you have republicans like lindsey graham saying could be used in 2022 mid-term ads against republicans and this really sets up a major divide within the gop party and essentially those who stood by donald trump when he was in office hand now some who have not and who have broken with him and then, of course, those who completely voted against him. of course, you have the house gop lawmakers who voted to impeach and now that donald trump said he'll ted kate hits time to campaigning and running against those-of-candidates in the next mid terms. yes, many so of the republican senators are retiring and many are not who will go for the in the next election and say i want

donald trump's help potentially to do their campaigns because they know how much impact those 70 million plus people who voted for him in the last election could have in their own. that's what sets up such an interesting dynamic, of course, for the republican party ahead but take a listen to what senator graham had to say a little bit more in detail this morning, specifically on mitch mcconnell's speech. >> he's mad at some folks, but i understand that. my goal is to win in 2022, to stop the most radical agenda i've seen coming out of the democratic presidency of joe biden. we can't do that without donald trump, so he's ready to hit the trail and i'm ready to work. all i can say is that the most mow temp force in the republican party is president trump. we need trump plus. the. >> that's why you've seen even some republicans over the last couple of weeks come down here to mar-a-lago or call donald trump to try to essentially kiss the ring and get his blessing

for their future races. that's something we might see more of in the weeks and months to come and we'll see what we'll hear from donald trump in person. he released that lengthy statement, of course, simultaneously with when he was acquitted for the second time talking about how the move hadn't he has starreded, quote, has only just begun and he'll have a lot more news on that and maybe we could see the return of some campaign-style events or rallies as he continues to contemplate a run for 2024. none of that is decided and what could complicate is some of this potential criminal liability and exposure that he has in new york and georgia as those cases move forward but you can bet that donald trump will spend a lot of his time also trying to mount these primary challenges against republicans who spoke out against him, especially ahead of 2022. >> all right. monica alba live for us in florida. the thank you. joining me now is illinois congressman mike quigley, a

democratic member of the house intelligence committee. congressman, thank you so much for your time this afternoon. let me just start off by getting your general reaction to the acquittal of former president donald trump. >> i think we saw the betrayal of the oath of office of 43 republican senators. the when we swear in the congress, we all pledge an oath to protect this country against all enemies, foreign and domestic. on january 6th the president of the united states was a threat to our country. i was in the room, but i think far more important he threatened the lives of the vice president, speaker of the house, what, two, three, four in lines succession. among the dead were three police officers, is 40 injured, but the very fabric of our country was attacked, and those that would acknowledge the president's culpability and still being responsible voted no, i think they betrayed our oath and hurt

our country. >> let me play for you what nancy pelosi, speaker of the house said yesterday, yesterday about censuring president trump. >> take a listen. >> these cowardly senators who couldn't face up to what the president did and what was at stake for our country are now going to have a chance to give a little slap on the wrist. we censure people for using shagsary for the wrong purpose. we don't censure people for inciting insurrection that kills people in the capitol. >> do you agree with that? would you rule out a censure at this point? >> absolutely. i practiced criminal law for a really long time. the president committed a fell any. a censure isn't even a misdemeanor punishment. it's more like a moving violation of a traffic offense so i think it's an insult to those who were injured, those who died and, again, the fact that the american people witnessed an assault on the open

election of the next president of the united states. >> a prominent progressive group is calling on attorney general nominee merrick garland, if confirmed, to investigate and prosecute trump and his associates. is that something that you would be in favor of based on the intelligence and information that you have seen? >> well, look, the republicans gave us no choice, right? the trump legal team seemed to imply that was a more appropriate remedy here. mitch mcconnell spelled out this. leader mccarthy talked about the president being solely responsible. well, if he was as he just said, then that's a felony, and he should be investigated, but i do think it's important that the justice department be given the leeway and independence and if it is al howard to go forward then it should be done and allowed on an independent basis. >> i want to ask you more about the larger picture of the

democracy that we find ourselves in, and it was pointed out by a writer from "mother jones" who tweeted a shocking statistic from campaign finance and elect rag reform at the centers for american progress. the senators voting to impeach represent over 61% of america and the senators voting to acquit represent 38% of americans so the 57 senators who actually voted to convict trump, they represent 76.7 million more americans than the 43 senators who voted to acquit. what does that say to you about the u.s. senate and the state of our democracy at this point? >> they lack profiles in urge coo. just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should and the fact we're already seeing people like lindsey graham talk about what's really important is that we win in the next election, not that there was an assault on our democracy. they are clearly putting power and politics above country, and

it's just despicable. i was -- i was there on the 6th. that was as bad a day as our country faced in our lifetime, but acquittal and the reaction after the fact by those who acquitted him is almost as disturbing. >> what was it like for you to watch that video, some of the newvideo that we've seen during the trial, you know, the house managers, they showed the trauma caused by the insurrectionists. we saw the new video of nancy pelosi staffers scrambling into a conference room to barricade themselves in and minutes later the mob finding themselves into the same hallway look for their boss breaking one of the two doors while pelosi staffer hid a few feet away under the table. when you saw that video and others how much did it affect you? how did it take you back to that day and for your staff as well? >> and i feel for the staff that

were involved and particularly for the police officers who were horribly outnumbered and clearly ill equipped. it's very hard for me to watch the videos of just them getting the hell kicked out of them and still fighting and saving our lives. it was hard to watch. you know, i know what happened, but i'll tell you on that day i -- i don't think that i was afraid. i was reacting. frankly i was angry. i was very happy when i heard that the vice president on the day said let's get back to work. that was what was on my mind. watching the videos with the realization that this outstanding impeachment team was racing to a stop sign, i think that's when the events of the 6th really got to me, you know. i can handle it that day. the fact that there was no accountability and frankly no justice at this point for those who died and those who were injured is -- is incredibly

difficult for me to experience as well. >> speaking of accountability and just tills, you're on the house intelligence committee which is one of the four probing the security posture that day on capitol hill. can you update us on that next, what have you learned and should there be had a nevin-style commission as to what happened on that day? after 9/11 there was more than one investigation and the final results of the investigation brought about significant change that keeps us safer, so i do think there will be more than one investigation. as you said, the house select committee on intelligence chaired by adam schiff has already begun. we've already asked the intelligence community for information begun what took place. we'll learn more startling things. who knew in the impeachment trial we'd learn of the conversation between leader mckaerlt and trump.

i think it's important and it's absolutely vital that we v a 9/11-type commission with the ability to get the information that they need. the american mom have a right to know while he's apparently running again. more apparently, like the 9/11 investigation it has to yield results so it never happens again. >> congressman quigley, thank you for your time. greatly appreciate, it sir. >> thank you. it was one for the history books in more ways than one. is precedent set by him people trial and the patriot missile on its future. l and the patriot min its future the patented blend is clinically shown to help manage blood sugar levels. boost glucose control products contain high quality protein and key nutrients to support immune health. try boost.

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>> west lawn of the capitol. we've been breached and we've lost lives. >> get the [ bleep ] out of here! >> don't touch me, [ bleep ]! >> no.

they work for us. e [ bleep ] [ bleep ]. >> new today more capitol police officers are speaking out about bearing the brunt of that brutal attack on january the 6th, decrying failures of leadership at all levels, and one congressman says officers asked him about why witnesses close to donald trump and mike pence did not come forward to participate in the impeachment trial. >> i said a lot of them are just afraid to come forward. i've talked to a lot of them around the president or republican house members and he said -- i can't say everything that he said on the air but he said i hoped they would at least have the same courage that we had when we were out there in hand-to-hand combat defending

the capitol and we weren't asking, you know, these members or people around the vice president or president trump to show the same courage that those officers showed. we were just asking them to live up to their oath and duty and many of them failed the test. thankfully our law enforcement did not. >> joining me now danyell goldman, lead council in the first impeachment trial of donald trump, former director of investigations and former assistant u.s. attorney in the southern district of new york. daniel, good to see you, my friend. as someone who worked on capitol hill, do you think the senators who voted against impeaching trump considered these officers when they were making this decision? >> they may have considered them, but ultimately they moved as so often politicians do with what worked best for their political future and what they thought would be the best political move. it is a political proceeding, impeachment, but at some point we do hope and expect that or

elected officials will take their oates of office and oates during the impeachment very seriously and look at the facts and the law and rule accordingly, and a number of republican senators did do that, but it is a -- it's a perilous time i think right now in the republican party because it's not just a function of political future. thereto as eric swalwell mentioned, there are real fears from intimidation and violence if in retribution if people go against donald trump and that's a very scary thought and i think when you talk about where we are right now after this impeachment proceeding it does appear for at least this moment that some of the bad actors using the threat of ford and violence as intimidation are winning.

>> to your point. elaborate on that a little bit and certainly who we heard from eric swalwell. how do you say that those close to the president and republican house members were simply afraid to come forward? >> >> well, i think there needs to be a thorough investigation and people need to feel comfortable knowing what they now. the problem with acquitting donald trump is emboldens trump and his followers. his followers have morphed over the last four years, from you know, just rabid sort of trump fans to paramilitias, and these -- it has turned into domestic terrorist organizations who are supporting, you know, a once deposed authoritarian

dictatian, and that's scary. that's the kind of thing that happens in countries where there's coupes and if these domestic terrorist organizations which are apparently being investigated by the d.c. u.s. attorney's office are left to continue on this path of intimidation we've got a real problem on our hands way beyond trump and we saw it in ukraine where there were significant threats on the whistle-blower and because of the safety issues we did not pursue the whoebl yore's testimony and then you saw retribution against those that did testify and now it's really esexcited to a different

level and the fact that so many people of these members of congress are literally afraid for their lives if they go against donald trump. >> you might have seen my earlier interview with mike quigley and he brought up the issues of accountability and justice which were not delivered as a result of this impeachment trial. where do you now get accountability and justice for what happened on january 6th. is it through the department of justice, through a 9/11-style commission? how do you bring about accountability and justice to the victims that we saw and to our democracy and its institutions? >> yes. this cannot be the last of what we've herd about january 6th. it's one of several avenues that our government should pursue.

there needs to be a thorough in-depth investigation into what transpired piggybacking off the amazing investigation that the house managers and their staff did in a short amount of time. we need a deep type in understanding what sort of the brew that was took up by donald trump in the weeks and months leading up to january 6th, what that was all about. i do think that a bipartisan commission independent of cook and with subpoena power, significant subpoena power and authority as representative quigley pointed out should push forward into getting to the bottom of what occurred. there were security issues and lapses no doubt, but we also really need to do -- have a full undertaking to understand what precipitated this hand who these people are and -- and where we

are and frankly if congress really wants to act they should enact domestic terrorism laws. >> sorry. let me ask you really quickly. from a local and constitutional perspective what is the one thing both impeachment trials have taught us. should there be something changed in the impeachment process that can be the subject of not being held hostage, you know, to this political reality we find ourselves in? >> look, getting two-thirds of the senate to agree on anything is nearly impossible in our two-party system. when the framers created the constitution, there was not an entrenched two-party system, and i think they were aware of factions and factionism, but they were not aware of and did not predict or anticipate the

entrenched two-party system that we have now. i do think that over time donald trump is going to lose power, that the precedent of these two impeachment is going to weigh heavier in history than it may appear right now, and i do think that there is some value in impeachment even if you don't have conviction. we had an amazing accounting of what occurred and what donald trump's role was. the 43 senators decided not to convict which was nine more than -- than were permitted for there to be a conviction, but 57 is a lot. i mean, that's a lot of senators to vote to convict a president. seven in his own party, the most ever, so from a historical perspective i do think there is some message of accountability and i think the american public understands very well what happened which will decrease donald trump's influence. >> yeah, no doubt about that. it was an historic bipartisan vote. daniel goldman, always a

pleasure. thank you so much, daniel. >> good to see you. >> likewise. >> a former staunch defender defender breaking with trump. what nikki haley said in a new interview. that's next. said in a new interview. that's next. n her skin, and out cleans our old bargain detergent. tide pods plus downy free. safe for sensitive skin with eczema and psoriasis. trelegy for copd. ♪ birds flyin' high, you know how i feel. ♪ ♪ breeze drifting on by you know how i feel. ♪ ♪ it's a new dawn... ♪ if you've been taking copd sitting down, it's time to make a stand. start a new day with trelegy. no once-daily copd medicine has the power to treat copd in as many ways as trelegy. with three medicines in one inhaler, trelegy helps people breathe easier and improves lung function. it also helps prevent future flare-ups. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition

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president joe biden is weighing in on the impeachment trial after weeks of silence. nbc's kara lee is at the white house. the good to have you with us. what are we hearing from the president on the days and weeks ahead? >> reporter: nice to see you. as you know, he's not really said very much so we're hearing from him in the most significant way since the impeachment trial started. he's really tried to keep his distance from that saying that he's no longer in the senate, that it's up to his former colleagues in that chamber to decide. on friday he did say that he hoped that some senate republicans would, in his words, quote, stand up, and in that statement he released last night, late last night, he noted the significance of that record seven republicans voting to

convict former president trump. he also said, i'll just read you part of his statement. while the final vote did not lead to conviction, the substance of the charge is not in dispute. unithose opposed to the conviction like senate majority leader mcconnell believed donald trump was guilty of a disgraceful dereliction of duty and practically and morally responsible for provoking the responsible unleashed on the capitol, so you're essentially hearing the president say that donald trump was guilty as charged, and at the same time we know that the trial is something that the white house was worried would overshadow the president's agenda, and we heard in the president's statement he also said that he hoped the country would now unite and move on. that's obviously something that's easier said than done, burr in terms of how joe biden hopes that the country moves on, he hopes that the country moves on and backs his coronavirus relief plan which is what he really intends to pivot towards and focus heading into this

coming week. he's going to be traveling to wisconsin on tuesday and then again on thursday he'll travel to michigan and a pfizer plant where they are making the coronavirus vaccine so really trying to turn the page other. >> carol lee live for us in washington, carol, thank you. women people behind them democrats are hoping to finally move forward with president biden's legislative goals while republicans are wasting no time already on how to reclaim the majority and for some of the gop as we heard from lindsey graham that plan includes donald trump. lindsey gamm will meet with the former president to talk with the future of the party and work with republicans to ensure they take back the house and senate in 2022. great to have you both with us. susan, let me begin with you.

what's the message of the republican party moving forward when you hear what you just heard or saw lindsey graham saying that he wants trump plus to be part of the republican party because he is such a potent force? can they still claim to be the party of national security and being tough on crime after what happened yesterday with trump's acquittal? >> it depends what you mean by the republican party. it's really divide right now, so there are those that hold on to the traditional republican values. we saw seven of them vote to convict donald trump yesterday on the imimpeachment charges, and then there are those who decide to live in a fantasyland and live as a sycophant to donald trump. chuck todd asked a great question and said would you buy stock in donald trump today? his influence will go. the only thinging that will matter is the money that he can raise and that's why mitch mcconnell offered the commentary hel did after his not guilty

vote and let his donors know that he's not continuing down the path of trump. >> let me if play what was said specifically about that and trump in the republican party. look. >> my goal is to win in 2022 to stop the most radical agenda i've seep coming out of the presidentic presidency of joe biden. we can't do that without donald trump, so he's ready to hit the trail, and i'm ready to work with him. >> the republican party is more than just one person. the american people want those ideas, but they want a leader who is accountable and a leader who they can trust. i think our leadership will be different going forward. >> elizabeth, whose idea of the future of the party is more accurate and realistic from your perspective, senator graham or senator cassidy. >> i think senator cassidy is vote until.

i'm grateful and this shouldn't be met as a criticism. they is there lost all major elections, lost the presidency, the house and the senate, so it's not exactly like you can just revert back to what they were doing and somehow win again. it is very clear that those are dedicated to trump are not interested in participating what you might republican so that wedge and division within the party is deep and if they want any hope of rebuilding in the future that means you have to appeal to people who left the party and are angry at what they have seen over the last five year, over what has been exposed over decades of -- of the partying nothing things like there has been a root of racism in the party, was never fully

rooted out and a allowed to take hold over the last five years and really get amplified and inflamed by the president so until we start to acknowledge that things that went wrong. i don't know that you can build back and ever have enough numbers to win an election. >> let me share with you what nikki haley said because she's breaking with president trump according to politico. she said we need to acknowledge he let us down and he went down a path he shouldn't have and we shouldn't have hiltd her or listened to him and did this hurt her political future? we've seen republicans distance themselves from her. >> i think this helps from a security perspective for more republican voices to come out and denounce the lies, in particular the big lie around the election is still a big concern for me. there are a lot of people out there who think the election was stolen because that's what they

have been told by people they trust and some small percentage of them are going to think that that then justifies violence. in fact recent polling indicated a high percentage of people say that violence is justified to achieve their political ends. that's real concerning from a security perspective so i need their voices to come out and denounce what trump did and the big lie. that said i have a lot of skepticism about nikki haley. i kind of thing we need a fresh slate of people that maintain their integrity. that needs to be the leadership moving forward. people who said the right things even under difficult say, circumstances, even under pressure from trump and sadly will's only a handful of those that lead us into the future. >> there's been talks from anti-trump republican officials on potentially forming a breakaway party. you were on that call and so was

elizabeth i should note. good idea or will it give democrats the upper hand in every election moving forward if the republican party splits into two? >> well, i think we may have to karr a dual path there. he's nothing wrong in thinking about a third party, but i'll be honest as a practitioner that takes a decade and people don't want to wait a decade so what you need to do is start building coalitions to get behind like-minded republicans running for office, whether they are running as a republican or perhaps an independent, and that the republicans that were on that call and no other people have to start trying to get back into the grassroots of the republican party. they have to go on to the state committees and the local committees because that's how donald trump took over the party. once he was elected and inauguration came, his people went in and festered within these -- within the state parties, and that's why you see the censures that you have recently of the likes of senator cassidy and sasse, but that can

change fairly quickly and that's i think you have to run a duel course of republicans who want to make a change. they have to do it within within and potentially without. >> i have to ask you about the lincoln project. there's a lot of controversial surrounding one of the founders john weaver. you were part of that organization, not not a leadership role but you left there in jaefrmt were you aware of any of the controversies during your time there? did you know anything about the allegations that have been coming out? >> not even a hint. not a whisper, nothing. it was not clear. again, as you said i was not focussed in leadership. i was doing coalition-building with women for -- lincoln women and republicans and independents for biden. it was my lane and i just kind of stayed in in. >> all right. thank you both so much for your time this afternoon. greatly appreciate it the impeachment aftermath getting ugly for the gop. could democrats be seeing a

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(giggles) ♪ local eats, wayne's world, yummy. ♪ all right. now to the latest in the coronavirus pandemic and some coronavirus news. some rate of enough cases is declining in every state across the country. there are now 27.6 million cases nationwide, but it is the first time in two months the u.s. has not added a million new cases in a week or less. the cdc says it is not

recommending mandatory covid testing before domestic flights at this time. the idea has been floated by the biden administration and heavily criticized by airlines. testing is already required for all international flights. british officials say the uk virus variant is likely more deadly and linked to more hospitalizations than the original strap. 981 cases that have strain have been confirmed here in the u.s. across 37 state, according to the cdc. florida has nearly a third of those cases. joining me now is an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist at nyu school of medicine and bellview hospital and also served on the biden/harris transition covid advisory board. great to have you on with us this afternoon, doctor. first of all, how concerned are you of the findings of the uk study and its rapid spread across the country? should we be taking extra precautions? >> this is not the time for us

to be lightening our adherence to the public health measures, the masking, social distancing and vent las vegas. the cdc projects by the end of march the uk variant will be the dominant strain here from the united states. this is a more infectious, more transmissible variant so it spreads more easily from person to person, and it's probably on the order of 30% to 40% more deadly causing more severe disease. so we are in, if we don't change our behavior now, we're in for another surge in late march and into april resulting from this uc strain. right now i think people are relaxing. they think things are getting bet, and i think, unfortunately, this is the calm before the storm, and it's very hard to sort of shake people out of this feeling, this complacency to take measures to prevent what is inevitably coming in march and april. >> so what do you attribute that to? what do you think is behind

these numbers as you mentioned and there is a decline in numbers across the united states right now? what is that a result of? >> well, remember, the numbers reflect what happened a few weeks ago, so we had a increase in cases from from what happened over thanksgiving, christmas, new year's. so people socialized, not socially distanced, not wearing masks with family and friends. they mixed from different parts of the country together, and that resulted in a huge surge over thanksgiving and then another one in late december and into january, and so right now people are not celebrating holidays. they are not mixing in that same way, so of course, over the course of january, you had less transmission and now we're seeing fewer cases and hospitalizations. that is temporary and with the uk variant on the rise, we will see another surge coming up here. >> so with the spread of -- with the spread slightly slowing down, how likely is it for

someone who hasn't had the virus to get it now? is it likely that that would happen now than it was at the end of last year, or even last month given this uk variant spread? >> yeah. the risk remains very high, and i think it's important that people understand that. yes, cases are decreasing after having gone through that big surge over the holidays, but cases are still as high as they've ever been, you know, as high as they were over the summer for example in some of the hardest hit parts of the country. really it's just all relative. it's not as bad as it was over the holidays, but it's still pretty bad, and your risk remains quite high still, because there is widespread community transmission in much of the country. >> what do you think about the decision right now to not require testing before getting on domestic flights? if we're doing it for international flights, why not do it for domestic flights? the volume of flights is much more, and the airlines are upset about that economically

speaking, but from a health care perspective, wouldn't that be important? >> from a health perspective, we should be minimizing unnecessary travel, nonessential travel, period. we know when people mix, that leads to increased transmission, and it's not just what happens in the airport or on the plane. it's what happens on the ground once you get to where you are going, and very often the people we're visiting are people we trust. it's people we might not feel like we have to wear a mask because we trust them, but that's not how the virus thinks. the virus really does hitch a ride on our personal relationships with people, and it's those very people who are most likely to infect us, and that we're most likely to infect. >> let me ask you finally about what's happening overseas for a moment. the world health organization investigator says that chinese officials are refusing to hand over the raw data for more than 100 of the first cases recorded in wuhan. what's your reaction to that? what could we learn from that

information? why is it so important to get? why would the chinese officials or authorities not want to release that to the world? >> yeah. i think it's really concerning. i do think this pandemic has shown yet again that we really do need to be collaborating, working together to prevent big outbreaks, big pandemics like this, and that does mean sharing a bit of information. it means sharing capacity. our doing surveillance for these emerging and infectious diseases hand in hand with other countries and also thinking about the global response with respect to vaccination rollout, and i think, you know, unfortunately this kind of behavior really does make it very difficult to have the right kind of collaboration across countries which is what's really needed right now. >> all right, dr. celine gounder. always a pleasure. thank you for your time and

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