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headquarters in new york. welcome to "weekends with with the with the." breaking news, new reaction to president biden's covid relief bill. he did not do a victory lap. he called on the senate to take the next step. >> we're one step closer to vaccinating the nation, one step closer to putting $1,400 in the pockets of americans and one step closer to extending unemployment benefits for millions of americans, one step closer to helping millions of americans feed their family and keep a roof over their head. we're one step closer to getting our kids safely back in school. and we're one step closer to getting the help they need. >> 219 to 212, democrats are plauding biden's cautious approach. >> it's prudent to be cautious.

it isn't law yet so i'm thrilled the house passed this incredible relief plan under speaker pelosi's leadership but it still needs to be passed in the senate and of course signed into law. >> they are also promising to continue the fight for a $15 minimum wage and in a few minutes i'll be talking with ted lieu for his reaction to all of this and backlash for president biden after he released a cia report implicating the saudi crowned prince in the murder of jamal khashoggi. biden is facing criticism for not punishing mohammad bin salman more strongly. donald trump will make his first public address, this to the cpac conference emphasizing election lies embraced by many in the republican party. we have nbc reporters standing by with the latest on the headlines of the day. we'll begin with shannon pettypiece in wilmington where the president is expected to be spending his weekend shortly. another welcome to you on this saturday. the president's remarks were quick. any sense of the strategic

reason for the statement that he made? >> reporter: continuing to keep the pressure on congress. no spiking the football yet. the administration and the white house realize they have to get it through the senate. they're expected to not have an issue getting it through the senate with the support of the democrats now that this minimum wage procedure is not going to be an issue because that will be removed under senate ruz. here say little bit more about what president biden had to say a few hours ago. >> we have no time to waste. if we act decisively, quickly and boldly, we can finally get ahead of this virus, we can finally get our economy moving again and the people of this country have suffered far too much for too long. >> reporter: and part of this is of course a message to republican. the white house from the beginning of this had believed they could get some republican support on here, maybe not the 60 votes in the senate to get

this through the normal legislative process, but one or two republican senators. now, that's not looking very likely at this point. i asked an administration official what is the strategy going forward? they said they are still talking to republicans. they are still working with them but at the same time, they are throwing this back on republicans, framing this as republicans voting against sending stimulus checks to many americans who had qualified even though that is only one aspect of the bill. >> thank you, shannon. let's go live to capitol hill, amanda golden is standing by. we heard president biden urge the senate to act quickly. do you have a realistic time line for this bill? >> that's the question of the hour. we're waiting to see just how quickly things can turn around now that the relief bill passed through the house, making its way to the senate, there are additional hurdles to come. in light of the $15 minimum wage increase being revoked from going into the senate version of

the bill saying it cannot be moved with the stimulus, that's been assuring some democratic senators to continue to support this, senators sinema and manchin were on the fence and we're waiting to see if they'll continue to support this bill now that it's headed to the senate but the fight for $15 is still on the table and you heard from house speaker nancy pelosi make some passionate remarks to that point just last night. >> as we advance this legislation, we will continue to fight for 15, which would give 27 million americans a raise. we will seek a solution consistent with senate rules and we will do so soon. >> reporter: waiting to see how that plays out to continue that fight for 15 that house speaker was alluding to but for the senate the 50/150 support to move forward making sure you have all democrats on board is the bare minimum.

in president biden's remarks he's encouraging congress and the senate to take that swift action. this is by no means a done deal. we are hoping to see this move forward. the democrats are hoping that this can be signed into law before those unemployment benefits expire in mid march and that is just two weeks away. >> thank you, amanda golden. new today, reaction from president biden after he received backlash for his decision to not directly penalize saudi crowned prince mohammad bin salman for approving the killing of jamal khashoggi. this is what he had to say on friday during a univision interview. >> we are going to hold them accountable for human rights abuses, and we're going to make sure that they in fact if they want to deal with us, they have to deal with it in a way the human rights abuses are dealt with. >> joining me is former u.s. ambassador michael mcfaul. good to see you. i'm curious what your reaction was when the report was released. >> well, i applaud the fact that they released the report, the

ldni report. it says categorically that the crowned prince killed, you know, didn't just order, he killed jamal khashoggi and it's very clear, it's crystal clear. i'm glad they also put people on the visa ban list, 75, 76 people, i think those are positive steps. i just thought they could have done a lot more. number one, there has to be some punishment for the crowned prince. you can't call him a murderer and then say there's no accountability. the president just said they have to be held accountable and his administration so far is not holding him accountable, they're holding accountable those who carried out his orders. i was disappointed they released this banned list when they could have used the global magnitsky act and outed, named those people. that would have been damage to reputations rather than private visa ban list. number three, recalibrate the

bilateral relationship and i hope they are honest about that and do it in a comprehensive way. because i think for years if not decades, we got the balance of power wrong here. the saudis need us a lot more than we need the saudis and i hope the administration will take that recalibration effort seriously. >> speaking of the recalibration with regard to mbs, you know, this could be just the beginning. it was damning to accuse him and here is the proof. this guy killed jamal khashoggi, but doesn't president biden still have room to add penalty if he wants to, in the future? >> without question and i hope they're not just checking the box yesterday and moving on. they can link human rights

progress to armed sales, there's legislation that demands they do that. they cannot meet with the crowned prince. they can just make sure that everybody knows that's not welcome to meet with senior administration officials, and most certainly not the president of the united states. i think if they choose to do so, there are many other steps they could take. we have to wait and see. >> okay, but the timing here in a lot of folks, that would include our friend here, nicholas christoph of the "new york times," they've been unhappy with president biden and the way this all played out right now. but the fact is, president biden must be considering diplomacy as well and how to deal with saudi arabia. you know all about diplomacy in tight, difficult situations. do you think that is a calculus right now for president biden and his team? >> yes, without question, and it's always a very difficult issue to thread the needle between our human rights interests and promoting universal values, and our

security interests, our economic interests, dealing with iran, working with saudi arabia, and i don't want to minimize how difficult that is. >> yes. >> i do think over time, we overestimate why we need these autocratic allies. you go back to the cold war and we heard the same exact arguments about apartheid south africa, chile, the shah of iran, the saudis, we need them in the balance of power politics to defeat the soviets. now you're hearing about saudi arabia, vis-a-vis china and i think we should learn from that history. we didn't need those autocrats to win the cold war and the saudis need us more than we need the sawed east.saudis. we don't depend on saudi arabia for our oil. 7% of our imports. we don't need to balance against iran. they need us to deter and contain iran and i think changing that balance of power equation that if you want to be our ally, you have to change your ways, is a message the

biden administration needs to deliver especially remember because the biden administration, the president himself has said they want to convene a summit on democracies, bring the democratic world to ally against the autocratic world. you have to be tough on your autocratic enemies and your autocratic friends. >> you knew jamal khashoggi. i have yet to speak with you about his death. i'm sure it came as a horrifying shock. did he ever talk to you knowing while he was speaking truth to power, he was also going to be in danger for doing so? >> well he most certainly thought that. that's why he moved to the united states. he was living in the united states when this happened at the time, just went back to turkey to get papers so that he could get married. we here at stanford run a program on arab reform and he participated in many of our

meetings. he spoke here just a few months before his death and i think it's important for your viewers to understand, he was not a revolutionary. he was not calling for the overthrow of the kingdom. he was not storming palaces. in my opinion, knowing some of the other kinds of people around the world, he was a very moderate critic, and that's what i think makes it all the more tragic, just this heinous thing that they did to him where they lured him into the embassy, and then they killed him and then they chopped him up and buried him. >> uhh. >> people need to recall that is our allies that did that and why i think they need to be held accountable. >> last question to you, michael, you presented that way that he wasn't one of these really outrageous and constantly throwing flames at the government there in saudi arabia. why do you think mbs wanted him dead then? >> well, i can only speculate, but at the time, he was in a power struggle to try to make

sure that he remained the crowned prince, and remain the successor, and i think the trump administration, you know, gave them a green light to say that we're not going to care about human rights and these kinds of issues in our bilateral relationship and maybe that he felt that he was emboldened to do so. >> okay. michael mcfaul, a good friend to us, glad to see you. thank you for weighing in. this breaking news to share, iran in the past few hours condemning the united states today in a new response to the air strikes on iranian backed militias in syria, this comes as local reports are claiming the strikes killed at least 22 people. let's go to ali arouzi in london. welcome. what are we hearing from the iranian foreign minister on this? >> reporter: that's right, alex. he was hosting the iraqi foreign minister today, it was a coincidence he was in iran after the air strikes but he strongly condemned the attacks. he said this was an illegal act of aggression by the united

states. he said that they have to abide by u.n. security council resolutions on syria, and he went a step further. he said the united states deliberately launched these air strikes to cause a rift between iranian government and the iraqi government, because there has been a lot of sensitivity over strikes that were done in iraq and i think that's why this administration was very careful to launch the strikes in syria, so it wouldn't embarrass the iraqi government, but nonetheless, the iranian foreign minister strongly condemned it and said it was dangerous the iraqi government had cooperated with the united states to coordinate these attacks. so a lot of condemnation from iran but they have to also tread a careful line with iraq. it's a sort of an ally and they have a lot of militias in that country and they want to keep them close, and try and pull them away from the united states.

but i think what's very important to point out about this air strike, alex, was that it's not so much the air strike that was significant but the messaging around the air strike that's particularly significant. this is joe biden telling iran that, telling tehran that he wants peaceful resolution, diplomatic resolution to the nuclear issue, but at the same time, he's not going to tolerate any attacks by iran or their proxies on u.s. assets or those of their allies in the region. it's a very strong message from iran, but these attacks are also a message from iran if the united states wants to expand beyond the nuclear file in negotiations with iran that's a nonstarter for them. iran derives real power from the proxies, it gives them tangible power and this is their message saying these proxies are nonnegotiable in any future negotiations between the united

states and iran. >> ali, we report that 22 people were killed in this strike, but that number it's been a bit of time until we got to that number. there's been some confusion along the way. how challenging is it to get to these numbers and do you think 22 is the accurate one? >> reporter: it's very difficult to tell, alex. there's a fog going on there. they have different agendas, people have different propagandas. all i can tell you is that there's been varying reports. initially, the syrian observatory for human rights based in london, but they have people in syria said 22 people had been killed in the attack. iranian state media hours after the attack said 16 people had been killed. then a senior militia member told the associated press that only one person had been killed, and as soon as he said that, iranian state media based in iraq reporting out of iraq then

followed suit and said only one person had been killed. so they've dramatically changed their numbers, even iranian state media going from 16 to 1, so it's very difficult to the determine exactly how many people were killed. >> yes, okay. ali arouzi in london, thank you for that. is the former president in the rear view mirror or in the driver's seat? ant thee scaramucci on whether the republican party can move past donald trump coming up a bit later. fine, no one leaves the table until your finished.

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we have no time to waste, if we act now, decisively, quickly and boldly, we can finally get ahead of this virus, we can finally get our economy moving again, and the people of this country have suffered far too much for too long. we need to relieve that suffering. >> president biden today stressing the urgency for getting his $1.9 trillion coronavirus package passed, that

brief speech after the package passed in the house and now over to the senate. joining me is congressman ted lieu. always good to talk with you. i'm curious, sir, when you hear the president say there's no time to waste, put that into perspective for us. how detrimental it is to not get this done as soon as possible. how much do your constituents need relieve? >> thank you for your question. one reason the house of representatives waited until 2:00 a.m. in the morning is the urgency to finish this pill and send it to the senate. we didn't want to wait one more night and it's a great bill. it has direct stimulus checks to the american people, funding for small business loans and help schools reopen, gives money for vaccinations for vaccine distribution and rollout, contact tracing, renters

assistance. we expect to get the bill to the president's desk before march 14th. >> the house kept the $15 minimum wage provision in the bill that passed overnight. it is expected to be stripped out. why include it in the house bill if it has to come back to face another vote without it. does this prolong the process of getting relief to americans? >> it does not. the senate was going to make other changes as well. due to arcane senate rules the $15 minimum wage proposal won't be in the senate version. at the same time, i do support senator bernie sanders and ron widen's proposal to put in i provision to penalize large corporations who do not increase their wages to at least $15 an hour so there might be another way to get at the problem.

>> let's turn to syria now where the u.s. launched air strikes in the first military operation of joe biden's presidency. listen to what alyssa slotkin said. >> they killed an american contractor and wounded one of our soldiers and we're going to respond and we hit back at them and it's just sort of resetting expectations that if you hit at us, we're going to punch back. >> do you agree and does that message complicate any efforts to reengage in the nuclear deal? >> i have previously criticized the obama and the trump administration for using force in a syrian conflict. i believe congress did not authorize the united states to engage in syrian conflict. this situation is different. iranian backed militia groups

launched a rocket attack at a u.s. facility that killed a contractor, wounded a u.s. service member. the biden administration claims this attack on iranian backed militia groups in syria was an act of self-defense. i look forward to the classified briefing to have them show us why it was in self-defense. at the same time i appreciate the message, iran, you can't just act with impunity in the region. >> i'll have my director pull up the full screen, this is why tim kaine had to say about the air strike and wanting to get congressional approval for this thing going forward. this was something that also senator chris murphy and congressman ro khanna expressed sentiment. seems you agree. are many pushing back or does that have bipartisan support? >> it has bipartisan support.

i believe congress ceded way too much of our war-make powers in the constitution to the administration. we need to reclaim our war powers authority and i look forward with working on that issue. >> another issue you helped spearhead, an effort with three dozen of your house colleagues urging president biden to relinquish his sole authority to order the launch of the nuclear weapons. there's conservatives suggesting you're questioning his ability to execute on this. is that what it's about or trying to prevent someone like donald trump from making threats like he did against north korea? >> the issue is a systematic floor and it's unconstitutional. if you look at the constitution it says only congress has the power to declare war. there's no way the framers of the constitution would have given one person the sole authority to launch nuclear

weapons that can kill hundreds of millions of people in less than an hour. you need to have more controls and more people involved and we can't rely on one person to determine the fate of a free world, regardless of a democrat or republican president. >> getting anything done in congress is challenging. if you do something on an imagine basis, trying to do this by committee are you confident it will be effective? >> great question. i introduced legislation with senator ed markey to say a president cannot launch a nuclear first strike without the approval of congress. two situation. the president acts quickly and

second situation, premeditated nuclear first strike where there is time before launch and that's what we're trying to restrict a president from launching nuclear weapons when there was not a justification for doing so. >> glad you made that distinction. let's look at this week's hearings on the acting capitol police chief warned of new threats. let's take a listen to that. >> they have stateded they want to blow up the capitol and kill as many members as possible with a direct next to us the state of the union which we know that date has not been identified. >> can you put this threat into perspective and how confident you are that we can or can't defend it? >> one of the tv shows my wich

and i like is "survivor" and this is the scenario. we see fiction into reality, and it's unfortunate that we have all this political violence. one way for republican leaders to reduce the risk of further political violence. all they have to say is one truthful sentence. the election was not stolen. that's why we still have body armor patrolling our capitol today. >> your thoughts on the disturbing trend of attacks on asian-americans, anti-asian crimes surged 1900% since the start of the pandemic. more than 2800 attacks across 47 states. what is your reaction? >> i condemn the hate-filled violence against the asian-american community. it was not helpful last year you had a former president of the

united states use racist phrases like kung flu. i'm pleased joe biden signed an executive order on hate crimes and devote more resources to attacking this problem and anyone who experienced a hate crime or hate incident should report it to the local authorities and we'll make a big push to make sure those responsible get prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. cpac awaits its golden boy, yep, up next, what to expect from donald trump's speech and what it means for president biden's efforts to unify the country. is that creepy? yes, it is. but they can't be held back. they want to be set free. to make the world more responsible,

and even more incredible. ideas start the future, just like that.

breaking news, the fight for the republican party is under way in florida, the annual conserative political action conference is in full swing. one figure towering over the

event, let you guess who. ali vittaly joins us. how is he factoring into the event, donald trump and the election lie, how is that playing? >> it's a key focus here, alex. this conference in the past when i covered it has been a focus on a broad range of conservative ideas for the future of the party. this year what it feels like is a trump themed airing of grievances. key among them are those concepts of the big lie that trump sowed after the 2020 election. there are seven different panels here on protecting american elections. yesterday the themes were things like how judges and the media ignored the facts. tomorrow they'll bridge into the idea this was sort of a long con created by democrats so more people could be able to vote and do so by mail.

that's a theme that congressman devin nunez picked up on here. take a listen. >> people forget, right wing, right when this pandemic hit one of the first people saying we'll have to do absentee voting was obama and they said that back in may. i think it was april or may is when he first said that, first time that i had seen that, and i was thinking, what? of course they went to all their friendly places they could get this done and started the first step of saying that everybody has to absentee vote and we know what happened. >> reporter: we should point out florida has a really robust absentee and vote by mail program. had it for many years. this is a state that had its share of election that snafu. it's a state held up as a paradigm for election security at the conference probably not

coincidental here that trump won the state of florida, so people feeling confident about the way that it's conducted its election results. >> okay. ali vitaly, thanks for the heads up in florida and beyond. joining me anthony scaramucci, founder and comanager partner of skybridge capital and former communications director under president trump. good to see you again. given what's been reported from cpac so far, any thought to having it be renamed trump pac? >> it's probably con-pac, because it's a big con. i want to point out from ali's reporting, president trump was against the mail-in ballots but when yelled at by the florida officials, we to go back to tweeting it was okay for mail-in ballots in florida, just not the other places so this is just more of the hypocrisy that's going on, and so listen, it's very disturbing but your lead-in was is he in control of the

republican party and the resounding answer is yes. he's in total control of the republican party and so i agree with senator romney, unless he is stopped as a result of criminality or potential investigation, if he decides to run again he has a good chance of getting the 2024 presidential nomination. >> yes. we're going to talk about that in a second. can i ask to you comment on that golden statue if you haven't seen it? we'll put it up right here. absolutely stunning, and a moment ago while you were speaking, anthony, there was a guy who was on his knees and he had his hands folded. i mean, as if, this guy. look at this guy. looks like he's looking up and talking to him. what do you make of this kind of adulation and it's also kind of creepy, that statue? >> yes, looks reminiscent of the ten commandments, cecile b.

demille's false idolation. he is the last hope for many of these people. thedemography is changing, they will buy my pillows from fox news interruptions. they're sitting in the last gasp of white power movement former president trump represents that. that's why voters idoltry to him and shifted the narrative to talk about lies and disinformation. this is the tyranny of the minority. their goal is to suppress vote, bring out the vote in areas where they think they can win, and see if they can control the three branches of government, even though demographically, their ideas are stale, and the people associated with the party now are stale. it does not look like the mosaic of the american people, alex, and so that's what we're going to get for now. >> is he going to run in 2024 or

is this just a great excuse to fund raise? >> i think it's both. i think he's going to run in 2024, this is the most money he's ever made, imagine making $300 million off of these rubes that's coning, after the election with his big lies, so he'll run again in 2024. will he go to the finish line? maybe not. there are 10 or 12 republicans that see themselves as a future president. they're going to try to find ways to undermine him. obviously governor nikki haley already started that process, so i don't know if he gets to the finish line but why would he not run and raise money off the rubes that's raising money from? >> right, but if he runs, do you really think he doesn't get the nomination? today he would. there's no doubt today he would get it. do you think in 2024 he wouldn't get it or he'd pull out and say all right, i'm not going to run? >> i think it could get interrupted by the potential

criminal investigations that are going on and the potential indictments, so if he runs and there are no indictments and i think he has a clear path to that nomination, and that's why senator mcconnell said of course i'm going to support him, which is even more levels of hypocrisy, but yes, he runs, he wins the nomination. there is risk here, though, because of his potential tax fraud case and other cases, even the d.c. case related to the insurrection is a potential speed bump to him getting that nomination. >> certainly party leadership would have to think long and hard about it. at this point in time, they're divided over trump. let's listen to an exchange between kevin mccarthy and liz cheney. here it is. >> do you believe president trump should be speaking, former president trump should be speaking at cpac this weekend? >> yes, he did. >> kongwoman cheney? >> that's up to cpac. i've been clear in my views about that.

president trump and the extent to which following january 6th, i don't think he should be playing the role in the party. >> on that high note, thank you all very much. >> we should note you saw steve scalise and he of course would be in the kevin mccarthy camp. what is your take on the divided sentiments in this party? >> right there, you had a case study in hopeless equivocation and weather vaning by mccarthy and a case study in principle of leadership and backbone by representative cheney, so my take is that's where the schism is. they run the risk that 5% to 15% of the people hive off and crush and liquidate that party. if that party becomes a maga white christian nationalist party, there's a group of rationalists, myself included, that will find a way to liquidate them. it's only 5% to 15% of the

people at the break and then that party goes into a minority status for likely a generation. representative cheney is somebody i have a lot of respect for and she may be the future of the party and it's not unclear to me if she decides to run for president, she'll have a lot of support on her way to a potential nomination. >> look, she may be the future of the party but right now, you'll ask my director to put up the list again of those not attending cpac. don't you have to go through cpac to gain the kind of power you need to run for national office at the top levels? these folks are looking at, not attending cpac, invited or declined or saying i'm not going to attend. wouldn't it be more powerful for them to get there and speak, and start maybe breaking this hold that donald trump seems to have on everybody who is there today? >> i think their calculus is a little different. they probably would have said that about cpac in 2008, '12 and

'16. i think they're sitting here thinking that cpac is demographically going off the rails, and i think it's becoming this extremist convention that i think people that are looking to recapture the imagination of the american public and going after those independents, remember, you've got more independents now registered than you do republicans, and so those people you put up on the screen, some of which are going to be running for president in 2024, i think they're trying to show some leadership and trying to reknit a coalition for republicans that looks different from the donald trump coalition. remember, trump lost the house, the senate, and the presidency. he's the herbert hoover of our generation? he's an abysmal failure and i think those people you put up on the screen know that, and they think cpac represents that failure of trumpism. >>ant knee scaramucci, always good to see you. >> thank you. everything you wanted to

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visible, wireless that gets better with friends. breaking news now on the coronavirus pandemic. the fda is expected to approve the johnson & johnson vaccine for emergency use. a panel signed off last night and once approved, j&j plans to ship millions of vaccines as soon as next week. by the end of march, the company

says it would have 20 million towses available for americans. dr. dan baruch, lead researcher for the johnson & johnson vaccine and director of vaccine research at beth israel medical center. you are the big man to have here and i'm glad you're here. how long will it take for j&j to make this official? >> thank you, alex. pleasure to be here. the committee vote yesterday was unanimous 22-0 in favor of a vaccine and we expect the fda will approve the rack is seen imminently. i can't tell you exactly when that will be hopefully today. j&j will ship millions of vaccine once approval is granted. >> we hope it happens as you say imminently. i have to ask how it must feel,

the months of research testing, finally culminating in this moment. we are close to seeing the first vaccines get distributed for j&j. what is it like for you? >> incredible feeling. we worked so hard on this vaccine over the past year, many different partners and individuals, but we have put so much time and effort into creating this vaccine over the last year. it's really an incredible feeling to watch it come to fruition now and we really haven't spent too much time reflecting on it but want this to be rolled out as quickly as possible and start saving lives. >> what about your reaction with the results of the vaccine and what it brings to the vir us? >> we were enthusiastic about the results of the show showing a high degree of safety and efficacy, particularly against severe disease. also the fact that it's a single shot vaccine and does not require sub-zero freezing.

we think that will aid in widespread distribution of the vaccine. >> absolutely. it has been heralded as a game changer but you mentioned the efficacy rates. they are lower than pfizer and the moderna vaccines. a new study that suggests, doctor, that pfizer's first shot provides up to 85% efficacy and for that reason the biden administration is planning a messaging campaign to stress the j&j benefits of the vaccine. what's your reaction to that and to anyone who raises efficacy concerns about j&j? >> well the trials were done at different times. the j&j in the peak global surge in the presence of the biovariants particularly those in brazil and south africa. those parameters weren't present. so what is important for people to realize is although the vaccines are highly safe and effective.

>> what about trials for a two-dose version of j&j vaccine from detroit to charlotte, north carolina, the university of kentucky as well, dr. barouch. what is the idea of studying two doses. you exists? is there something about a two-dose regimen that you think would work for this vaccine? >> well, we do know that a second shot of this vaccine does increase antibody responses. and so -- so -- so the purpose of the two-dose trial is really to show whether a two-dose version of the vaccine is any better than a single-shot vaccine. it would have to be a lot better to be used because the convenience and simplicity of a single-shot vaccine really can't be overestimated. but we are interested in seeing what a two-shot version of the vaccine will do. >> uh-huh. what about pfizer and moderna? the -- both have tested, rather, said that they are testing a booster shot. even a dose to specifically target the south-africa variant.

what about j&j's plan to address variants? >> so, we are, also, very interested in potential-vaccine revisions that might directly address the variants. so, i think it's important to be prepared, and to have additional-vaccine constructs ready to go. the extent, to which they're going to be needed, clinically, i think, remains to be determined. and that will really be determined by population studies. >> all right. well, doctor dan baruke, i know you said you are not taking ra lot of time to congratulate yourself but i congratulate you and all your efforts. thank you so much, doctor. >> lost and found. the mystery surrounding the shooting of lady gaga's dog walker and the recovery of her precious pups. that's next. that breaks the internet? that means working night and day... ...and delegating to an experienced live bookkeeper for peace of mind. your books are all set. so you can finally give john some attention. trusted experts. guaranteed accurate books. intuit quickbooks live.

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watch the week with joshua johnson it will be at 8:00 eastern right here on msnbc well, lady gaga's plea for help has been answered. her two dogs returned after a terrifying shooting of her dog walker and police released some new details on the suspects who are still at large. let's go to nbc's steve patterson with the latest. >> reporter: lady gaga's two beloved pets, her dogs recovered safely and unharmed after being abducted in a violent attack, leaving the dog walker with a gunshot wound. police say the woman found the french bulldogs, and returned them to lady gaga's staff, at an lapd station last night. just hours before, lady gaga posted an emotional appeal on social media. writing, my heart is sick and i am praying my family will be whole again with an act of kindness. reaffirming a $500,000 reward for the canines' return. >> male, conscious and breathing, approximately 35 years of age suffering from a

gunshot wound. >> reporter: gaga's dogs were taken wednesday night after her friend and dog walker, ryan fisher, was ambushed and shot in the chest in a hollywood neighborhood. a doorbell camera captured part of the shooting. the video, obtained by tmz, is graphic and may be disturbing. police say two suspects then speed away in a white, nissan sedan. fisher remains hospitalized, and his family says he is expected to fully recover. lady gaga calling him a hero. hollywood dog walker anna marie serves clients right next door to the scene of the shooting and says the attack has sent shock waves through the dog-walking business. >> everyone is scared. there are dog walkers that are not taking evening clients, any longer. >> wow. >> reporter: meanwhile, police have yet to list any suspects, and won't say if the abduction was targeted or a crime of opportunity. a question, now central to the investigation as police try to track down the dog nappers.

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good day, everyone. from msnbc world headquarters here, in new york, welcome to "weekends with alex witt." here is what's happening as we approach 2:00 p.m. eastern, 11:00 a.m. pacific time for ya. no time to waste, that is president biden's message to congress today as his $1.9 trillion covid relief package moves from the house to the senate. and is even likely to face more hurdles, in the upper chamber, as democratic hopes for a minimum-wage hike hangs in the balance. i will speak with congressman about what is next for the $15 an hour provision in just a moment. but first, fbi investigators closing in reportedly on what they are calling an assailant in the death of police officer, brian sicknick. "the new york times" and "washington post," both, report investigators pinpointed a person on video who attacked officers, including sicknick, with a chemical spray. and major developments on the covid front. any