good day. i'm andrea mitchell in washington. brittney griner is free. she was sentenced to nine years in prison for possession of less than a gram of medicinal cannabis. she was released in a prisoner swap in the united arab emirates with viktor bout. u.s. officials say griner is on a flight to a military hospital in san antonio where she will be reunited with her wife who is

flying there after meeting with the president in the oval office. president biden and griner's wife both speaking moments after they both had talked to brittney by phone. >> she's safe. she's on a plane. she's on her way home. after months of being unjustly detained in russia, held under untolerable circumstances, she will be back in the arms of her loved ones. she should have been there all along. this is a day we worked toward for a long time. we never stopped pushing for her release. it took painstaking and intense negotiations. i want to thank all the hard working public servants across my administration who worked tirelessly to secure her release. >> today i'm just standing here overwhelmed with emotions. the most important emotion that i have right now is just sincere gratitude for president biden and his entire administration. it's just a happy day for me and my family. i'm going to smile right now. thank you.

>> joy for brittney griner. left behind, paul whelan, the american businessman and former marine, who has already served four years of his 16-year sentence. >> what do you say to the whelan family? how soon will he be home? >> kristin welker, she will be with us in a moment. his brother issuing a statement saying, while disappointed, they believe the president did the right thing in getting brittney home. they are personally devastated. the russians refused to release whelan unless the u.s. turned over a russian spy. the u.s. says they have no russians in american jails to turn over and that whelan is not a spy. kristin welker joining us now. this feels like it happened so

quickly, but there were months of negotiations that went into this release. the russians were saying in those last days and weeks, it was one or none. either the u.s. takes brittney back and does not get paul whelan or no one would be released. >> reporter: that's right. this development does follow months of incredibly intense negotiations, according to senior administration officials, that really came together in recent days, when it became clear this was going to be a one-for-one swap. just in the past 48 hours, we are told according to multiple officials here that brittney griner's wife was invited to the white house for a briefing yesterday to get the very latest. it was not until this morning that she was told by president biden himself that she was sure and certain that her wife was going to be released, was on her way home. they were able to speak with

brittney griner just before 8:00 a.m. eastern time today. the president saying, we are told, andrea, quote, it's joe biden, welcome home, welcome home. a significant development. you could hear the emotion palpable in the voice of her wife. that disappointment you talked about, the fact that paul whelan remains detained. i spoke to a senior administration official who said talks are very much ongoing to try to secure his release. there's really no sense of the time line, what that might look like at this point. again, i pressed the president on what we are hearing from paul whelan's family, the fact that they are saying, this is a catastrophe for him. he remains detained. we will hear from the press secretary. those are among the questions that we're going to be asking. what does the time line look like? what are the status of those negotiations to secure paul whelan's release? this is a very good day for this administration. everyone is feeling very good.

at the same time, they sure wish they had gotten paul out, too. >> thanks so much for all of your reporting. we will speaking later in the program with david whelan, paul's brother. here is more of president biden's explanation to the american people or why paul whelan is not coming home with brittney griner. >> this was not a choice of which american to bring home. sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, russia is treating paul's case differently than brittney's. we have not succeeded in securing paul's release, we will never give up. we remain in close touch with the whelan family. my thoughts and prayers are with them today. they have to have such mixed emotions today. we will keep negotiating in good faith for paul's release, i guarantee that. i say that to the family. i guarantee you. i don't want any american to sit wrongfully detained one extra day if we can bring that person home.

>> joining me now from the white house is john kirby, coordinator for strategic communications in president biden's national security council. john, i want to read -- start by reading part of a statement from paul whelan's legal team. it reads, the russia side offered an exchange one to one and the american side then chose to exchange griner because she's a woman and this is more humane and secondly, she's an olympic champion, that is more significant for them. but i believe in the next month or two the exchange of paul whelan will be made. there are 300 russian citizens in custody in the u.s. 50 to 60 people for serious charges. that does not track with what we are hearing from u.s. officials who say that the russians are insisting that whelan, inaccurately, inappropriately, but they are insisting he is a spy and they want a spy for what they consider a spy. there was no give on this.

we don't have anybody -- any spies in american custody. give us your reality check here. >> it's accurate that they have set up a separate set of expectations for mr. whelan than what they had set for miss griner. the deal that we got with miss griner was the only deal we could get and now is the only moment we could get it. so we took advantage that was to get one american home. as the president said, we will stay focused on mr. whelan. this was not, as the president said, some choice between the two. i would push back on this notion that we deliberately -- we chose brittney over paul. there was only one way to get one american home, and that was this particular deal. so we're going to stay at it. we were working on it yesterday. we're working on it today. i can guarantee the whelan family that tomorrow and every day hereafter, we will work to bring paul home.

>> he could be serving years and years in prison. i know this must be very frustrating to you. what channels of communication do you have? is the war in ukraine and the hostility between the u.s. and russia -- is that complicating this? >> great question. we do have the ability to speak directly with mr. whelan on occasion. obviously, he is being detained. he is in jail. it's not an open line that we can just talk whenever we want. but we do have the ability, as we did this morning, to speak directly with mr. whelan. we can apprise him of what was going to happen directly. we have that ability. of course, we stay in close touch with the whelan family as well. >> do you think -- first of all, when you did speak with him and the u.s. official spoke with him i assume from the embassy, what was his reaction? >> again, i don't want to speak for mr. whelan.

i think his brother david, i think, put it very well in his statement. they are disappointed. clearly, mr. whelan is disappointed by not being able to get on that plane and come home where he belongs. but they also -- he expressed gratitude for the effort to get brittney griner home and for the effort to work on his case. he knows how hard we are working to bring him home. again, we are going to stay at that. >> again, what is the impact of the war in ukraine and the fact that there is so much hostility between vladimir putin and the white house? how does that impact the efforts to try to get whelan out? >> thanks for following up with that. i forgot to answer that part of your question before. these negotiations, andrea, these discussions to get wrongfully detained americans home happen in their own way, on their own time line and are

separate and distinct from other discussions, particularly with russia on ukraine. we are grateful that we were able to get brittney home. we will continue to have, as we do now have conversations with the russians about mr. whelan. those are going to continue to go on for as long as they have to, until we get a successful outcome, until we get him home. it's not affected by and it doesn't relate to the tensions between the united states and russia bilaterally over this unprovoked, illegal war in ukraine. we will continue to put pressure on mr. putin. we will continue to try to make it harder for him to wage war against the ukrainian people. we are going to continue to support the ukrainian people and the ukrainian armed forces as they fight back for their own sovereignty and integrity. that will remain the case. these discussions are a different category and handled separately. >> what if anything can you tell

us about brittney griner's condition? the president spoke with her. she's accompanied by diplomats from our hostage negotiation team. so she's on the plane with them. what do we know about how her physical state is? >> i'm going to be careful not to speak to her personal health and conditions, because obviously that's a privacy concern. she was in good spirits when she spoke to the president. she was able to walk and get on the plane. in general, good health. i don't want to get ahead of her doctors or her family in speaking to her physical condition. she's relieved. we are all relieved she's now on an airplane heading stateside. the first thing she's going to do is make sure that -- we will make sure she gets the health care she needs just to make sure that everything is okay with her. then, obviously, she will get right back to her family, her teammates and her life.

>> what is your message to americans from all of this? i heard the admiral talking about just not going to russia right now. they clearly have a policy of grabbing americans as bargaining chips. >> one of the things the president talked about this morning, andrea, was this new designation the state department has on detention risks. all you gotta do is go to state.gov, look at countries around the world. if you are traveling, whether it's for business or for pleasure, i urge everybody to go to that website and see if that country you are wanting to go to has a risk of detention. it's not just russia. there are others like that. russia clearly is on the list where the risk is high. we have seen that, obviously. our message to americans is, obviously, we want you to travel. we want you to get out and about.

do so safely. do so properly informed about what the risks might be wherever it is you are going. the other message the president clearly wants the american people to know is how hard he will work if they get wrongfully detained to get them home. that means making tough decisions. this was not a decision that the president took likely. sometimes it means making a tough call like this. but he is always going to side on the -- he is going to come down on the side of making sure that we are looking after the safety and security of american citizens and we get americans back home where they belong. >> john kirby, thank you so much. i know this has been a difficult challenge for the whole white house and national security team. >> it's a bittersweet day, for sure, yes, ma'am. >> thank you. up next, how brittney griner release was possible during open hostility between washington and moscow. russia's ultimatum that kept paul whelan behind bars.

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brittney griner was taken into custody one week before russia invaded ukraine. how did the u.s. negotiate her release despite the hostilities between the white house and vladimir putin? joining us now is richard engel in kherson, ukraine, the former supreme leader of nato and michael mcfaul. welcome all. richard, first to you. this is a high wire act for american diplomats getting griner out, even as the u.s. is backing ukraine and arming ukraine against russia. >> it's extraordinaily difficult. the u.s. -- i don't want to say is asking for a favor, but asking for vladimir putin to give something up at the same

time that the united states is sending a tremendous amount of weapons to this country, is sending intelligence assistance. the biggest ask that russia could and often makes is, stop arming ukraine. stop doing all that you are doing to help the ukrainians win this war. that is generally the kremlin's line. it's been the kremlin's line up to today, that unless russia is allowed to win or win partially, for now, in ukraine, they will continue to see the united states as a hostile force, as the main -- as its main enemy. when you look at russian media -- look at the statements from russian officials, they don't see this as a conflict with ukraine. they describe ukraine as a western puppet, as a united states poodle. they think they are actually in a fight again of the united states. that's clearly not the case. it's ukrainians who are fighting. they are fighting effectively. they are fighting bravely.

i've seen it myself for nearly the past year. but that is the russian line. from their perspective, why would they give up anything when they think that the united states is just out to destroy them and bring them down? >> michael, how big a victory is it to get griner out? paul whelan left behind. that has to be -- it's devastating for his family, his friends. and there are others as well, whom you know very well, who are still there. what is the calculus that vladimir putin has to insist on just griner coming out and not trade honestly for any of the others? >> well, remember, andrea, they have been trying to get viktor bout out of jail for many years, including when i was in the government, a long time ago. his name came up constantly in negotiations with the russians. we described him as an arms dealer and a criminal. but he has relations with

intelligence officers. vladimir putin is an intelligence officer. this is something they wanted to do for a long time. they calculated, and rightly so, that they had a lot of leverage with brittney griner because of the public outcry, including from you, andrea, and everybody, rightly so to try to get her out. when the trade came down, you heard it from kirby, and what i heard from senior officials today, it was either one for one or no deal. they decided to take the deal now and then continue to work for future deals. first and foremost, paul whelan -- it is devastating. i cannot imagine what it feels like today for that family. the biden team has assured them they're going to continue to work on him. i don't want people to forget mark fogle who is wrongfully detained for the same alleged crime as brittney griner. mark was a teacher for us at the

angelo american school. he taught our diplomats. he a patriot wrongfully detained. he should not be forgotten as well. >> we are not forgetting him as well. you are absolutely right. admiral, what concerns do you have about viktor bout being a free man? >> i have quite a few concerns, to be honest with you. i recall vividly talking with a good friend, mike braun, head of operations for the dea, on the day they caught him. boy, let me tell you, this is a dangerous man. by all accounts, he has maintained a lot of connective tissue. i would not be surprised if we see him conducting operations, being part of the espionage services as ambassador mcfaul said. not a good day to see that guy go free. on the other hand, you balance it with the real joy you heard

in the voice of brittney griner's wife. you balance it with the extremely classy response from the whelan family saying they are joyful that brittney griner got out. now they want to see the same for all the other individuals. it's a day of mixed emotions. our mutual good friend john kirby said it's a bittersweet day. i think that's a fair categorization. one final thought, andrea. it's simply worth thinking about one good thing here is that at least we still have open channels of communications with russia. does that mean we're going to negotiate the ukrainian war? no. but at least we are talking to the russians. might open prolonging the grain deal, which has been successful. might be able to get to strategic arms limitation talks. it's good that we at least continue these conversations.

that's another good aspect of bringing brittney griner home. >> richard, what is the state of play on the battlefield right now? more threatening comments by vladimir putin today, again talking about nukes. is this a defensive posture because he suffered a considerable loss? >> reporter: to follow up on what the admiral was talking about, on a micro level, there's cooperation. there is this dialogue between -- i wouldn't say cooperation. there is still a dialogue going on between the united states and russia and european countries and the iaea. there's also talk that there could be some sort of deal to limit the exposure at the zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is in the crosshairs right now. it's right on the front lines. the ukrainians and many international officials are sounding the alarm saying, if

the fighting continues around that nuclear power plant, russians and ukraines are blaming each other for attack -- carrying on attacks in the area, it could be a catastrophe. on some practical level, prisoner exchange -- there have been exchanges where russian and ukrainian soldiers who are captured in battle are swapped, the brittney griner situation, potentially the zaporizhzhia plant, that's happening. on a macro level, i don't think we have seen relations -- i have not seen relations worse between washington and moscow, with moscow believing washington is trying to bring down vladimir putin's government, bring down him personally. we saw him today not exactly saber rattling, not making nuclear threats, but reminding the west, reminding the white house that he is still a nuclear nation and wants to be treated as such. raising once again, after not having done it for several

weeks, the specter of a potential nuclear conflict. although, there's no indication that russia has taken any steps to mobilize its weapons. >> richard, admiral and ambassador, thanks to all of you. coming up, a former teammate of brittney griner and the head of the basketball players association both joining us with more reaction about the news that the wnba superstar is headed home. prayers for paul. while graciously welcoming brittney griner's release today, the family of paul whelan voicing its frustration and fears. his brother david joins us ahead on "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. ver. and thanks to voya, i'm confident about my future. voya provides guidance for the right investments. they make me feel like i've got it all under control. voya. be confident to and through retirement. this holiday... -happy holidays! get extra merry with wayfair! let's eat!

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wnba superstar brittney griner is on her way to texas for a medical evaluation in a military facility. the wnba and her teammates are celebrating her release. the phoenix mercury tweeting out this picture with the caption -- >> joining us is brianna turner,

brittney griner's teammate, and terry jackson. welcome both. it's good to see you. a happier frame of mind. we have talked for months, all of us, about how could we get her home and what would happen in court and the appeal which didn't work. brianna, what is your reaction to the news she's on her way to texas? >> i'm just so excited. it was the best news to wake up to, especially during the holiday season. push excitement from me. >> terry, how concerned are you about her health? she spent so much time in prison. she didn't have enough exercise time. the facility was cold. she didn't have good nutrition. then she went to prison camp, the labor camp. that is notorious in terms of how bad the facility is.

i'm sorry. we will re-establish there with her. we have lost that signal. brianna, let's talk about that. you have to be concerned. you are an athlete. you know about conditioning. you know how little exercise she was getting. what is your understanding as to what kind of physical shape she's in? >> i think obviously bg is a professional athlete. her physical shape will get back. the focus is her mental and making sure she has time with her wife and family and she's able to get her bearings back together before we think about where she's going to be at physically or the future of her playing status. >> talk to me about why it's really necessary to make a living because of the lack of pay parody with the nba, why is it necessary for people like brittney to go -- she was very popular playing for russia.

>> i think to maximize the playing career. the wnba season is in the summer. in the off season, players make more money, make most of their opportunity. athletes have a short playing span. she wanted to go overseas to maximize her earning potential. >> what about her -- the career of a wnba player, someone at her superstar status? she's lost ten months. can she recover that kind of conditioning? >> i think she can definitely do whatever she wants. again, i think really her primary focus should be on her mental health and on getting back and being with her family and really taking time to herself at this point. >> in terms of that, how do you think she's been coping just

emotionally through all these terrible months in captivity? >> i bet it's been really challenging, really difficult in a foreign country, a country you don't speak the language there. it's probably been a terrible experience. i know she's so relieved to get back on american soil and be with her wife and be with her friends and family. just really take time to recover. >> do you think she will return to basketball? >> i don't know. whether she does or doesn't, that's up to her. there's no pressure whatsoever. if she needs to take time away, that's fine. if she wants to come back and play, that's fine. just really whatever she feels like what's best for her. >> brianna, thanks so much. brianna turner, appreciate it. all the best to you. >> thank you. left behind. american paul whelan now passed over three times in prisoner

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because just one dose can help protect me from pneumococcal pneumonia. ask your doctor or pharmacist about getting vaccinated with prevnar 20® today. while there's joy for brittney griner coming home, her friends, her fans, her family, another american is still behind bars in russia. paul whelan, a former marine, businessman was taken into custody four years ago. he is serving a 16-year prison sentence in russia after being accused of spying. something the u.s. has always strongly denied. joining us is david whelan, paul's brother. david, this is such a difficult day. we have talked so often. what are your emotions today? >> well, they were stronger yesterday. it was very gracious of the white house to give us advance notice this was happening, that

paul would be left behind a second time. we were able to process a lot of that yesterday and to prepare for today and tomorrow and each day that we need to support paul. we are back to work today and continuing to advocate for paul and for his release and to encourage the u.s. government to do what it can to make that happen. >> john kirby said the white house had spoken to your brother today. have you been able to speak to him? >> no. he is not able to call me. he was able to speak to our parents. he confirmed he had spoken to people from the u.s. embassy or the u.s. government and that he was aware of what was happening and he is very disappointed. >> your parents are 83 and 85 years old. christmas is approaching. this has to be very painful for them. >> it is. it's difficult. you can imagine that it's hard when you get to important holidays or events in your family and to not have your

loved one there. sometimes you can accept it when the person isn't able to make it because of work or something else, but for them to be in a russian labor colony year after year, it's hard. as you get to later years, you wonder whether you will see your son again. >> a senior u.s. official is telling us they tried everything they could to get paul out. the russians are treating him differently because they say his is an espionage case, something that is not true, according to the u.s. government. so the u.s. says they were faced with getting brittney griner out or no one at all. the russians were telling them one or none. how do you feel about that? >> i think president biden made the right decision. his job is to protect all americans and to care about all americans. it would have been wrong for him to leave behind an american when he had the ability to bring them home. i appreciate that he may have waited, he may have delayed in a hope that paul might have been able to come home. it was absolutely the right decision to bring miss griner

home. i'm glad that he did. i'm super excited that she's free and able to spend the time with her family. >> you released a statement over the weekend with paul saying after he had talked to his parents that there's something on the table for somebody to be turned over. do you have any idea whether there's progress on that? the u.s. says they don't have any russian spies in custody, and the russians are insisting they want a spy. >> if that's really what the deal is, then i think the only opportunity for the united states is to find a russian spy. i don't know if there are potential candidates in norway and sweden or if the u.s. government needs to go on a spy hunt in the u.s. i think it's really unfortunate. at some point, the u.s. will need to say that we do not want to become our enemy and act like our enemy. it's a really awkward, tricky position for the u.s. government to be in. they want to bring home americans. it's not just paul. there are americans being held

in china. there's one in syria. there's one in iran. there are americans who are in similar positions. each one of them requires something unique. i'm not sure that america has that concession available to make to bring those people home. >> paul's russian attorney issued a statement which is in some conflict with what the white house is saying, what the u.s. ask saying. he believes an exchange could be made and there are other options, hundreds of prisoners in the u.s. who could be exchanged. that doesn't comport with what the u.s. is saying. do you know anything you can share in. >> as far as i know, he has not been in communication with paul since june of 2020. he likely has no idea about anything related to this case any longer. i would doubt that that has any basis in fact. >> we can certainly discount that.

how do you keep your hopes up going forward? >> well, today i don't have any hopes. i'm going to focus on the work and do what i can to support paul and to advocate and come on programs like this to remind people that it is day 1,441. tomorrow is 1,442. i think we keep doing the work. frankly, i don't think the u.s. has the tools that they need to get paul home. i'm not sure how they acquire them. >> we are counting the days with you as well. let's stay in touch and speak often. he is in all of our hopes and prayers. thank you. >> thank you. a final say. the january 6th committee reportedly getting ready to release its last report, its big report, including criminal referrals just days before christmas. you are watching "andrea mitchell reports." that's next on msnbc. orts." that's next on msnbc

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as serious reactions can occur. tell your doctor if you are or may become pregnant. disrupt the itch and rash of eczema. talk to your doctor about rinvoq. learn how abbvie can help you save. the january 6th committee is releasing its final report in less than two weeks. merry christmas, everyone. preparing new criminal referrals. this as two more classified

documents were found in a storage facility belonging to the former president near his mar-a-lago club months after his lawyers had signed documents, statements they had turned everything over. at the same time, frustration is mounting among senate republicans who blame trump's choice of election deniers and other less qualified candidates like herschel walker for losing their chance to retake the senate. joining me now is nbc senior capitol hill correspondent garrett haake who covers the trump campaign and barbara mcquade and jonathan lemire. what a great group. garrett, you have this report coming. if it's anything like the 9/11 commission report, where they will hold a business meeting, a hearing, bring it out and have a lot of indexes and -- bennie thompson promised the affidavits, the transcripts as well. >> the goal of the committee is to make everything available. they know that republicans might want to weaponize whatever it is that they leave on the cutting

room floor, as it were. they will not leave anything on the cutting room floor. there will be this expansive report and then the sum total of their investigative work will be released. i think the section that a lot of us will be thumbing to is whether or not they make criminal referrals. bennie thompson indicated they are going to. they said in court filings, they think donald trump has broken the law, john eastman has broken the law. you think that is probably where they are starting on that process. if you are donald trump, you are probably watching that curiously. you are waiting to see what's going to happen with the mar-a-lago documents. this is a noteworthy one. the two dock uchuments found, t were found by trump's own lawyers essentially hired to do due diigence and make sure something hadn't slipped through. something has. this will be ab interest in the special counsel who is

overseeing that case. i think the appointmentment of the special counsel is what jolted that investigation back into the forefront of this. but for trump, this is coal in the stocking to borrow the christmas metaphor. these are not things he was asking for this holt dau season. >> and barbara, these lawyers could be on the hook in the past signing documents after there were searches that everything had been turned over. already there were questions about some of their cooperation with the authoriies. >> i really have to wonder if we have all the documents this time. as you know in june, trump lawyers signed an document saying after a search, they had found everything. this was at this slim file followeder. this was the last of it. and then the justice department developed cause. they found 13,000 more documents. and now after all of the hapgs

in court, there are more documents. it also begs the question if there are documents at the properties. trump tower, there's been reporting that trump liked to carry documents with him on air force one and sort through them while had he was traveling. now they can't just go in and look on a fishing expedition. they would need probable cause to believe the documents are found at one of those particular places, but if i'm the justice department, i might be looking a little deeper for probable cause to see if i can't go search for myself rather than relien trump and his lawyers to turn this over on their own. >> and they are able to track these. these documents are numbered. they are signed for. they should be able to know exactly what's missing. jonathan, trump is focusing his social media posts on the growing criticism about his role in the midterms. he's slamming critics as rinos and touting all other endorse

thes he made. how are insiders reacting to this? clearly his reputation as a inwither has been damaged. >> this has been a campaign kickoff for donald trump. he announced his candidacy a few weeks ago and celebrated that with dining with a white us is premise cyst and offering to terminate the constitution. republicans i talked to say what could wound him even more than those scandals, perhaps even more than the legal peril, the fact ta they faired so poorly in the midterms. in particular the hand picked candidates. the social post is correct that the majority of the candidates he endorsed won, but most were running for republican seat who is had no real challenge and no real shot at losing. in contested seats, a lot of them lost. in the senate, it's really stark. the sux most competitive race, only wrun of them won. that's vance in ohio. so many others that he put his name behind lost.

that includes dr. oz in pennsylvania and this week herschel walker in georgia. so this does feel like the con influence of pressure points for trump, this is probably the weakest he's been in the republican party since the immediate aftermath of january 6th. but we know the republicans didn't abandon hum then. even though there's some senators and some party leaders who have signalled they would like to turn the page, it remains to be seen whether rank and file republicans agree. most of them for polling still like trump. >> what happens after this committee goes out of business in january? when the republicans take over, this committee disbands and all the work they have done and are continuing, can the senate committees pick it up? >> the senate judiciary committee might be the place that pick this is up. the committee is hoing to leave bread crumbs for the department of justice and the special counsel.

there was this whole back and forth this fall about when and if they would share their investigation with the doj. they landed on waiting until they shared it more broadly with the the public. federal prosecutors, anybody who wants to dig into this further will have access to everything that they have put forward. so, too, will house republicans who have given every indication as in so many others, they may want to investigate the investigators and will try to pull apart how the january 6th committee did their work, if they can find it useful to do so. >> before i let you go, of all the investigations, fullton county and new york staut, the civil case, everything that we have seen, what should donald trump be most worried about, do you think? >> i think the out of georgia. it strikes me as the one that's moving the most quickly and aggressively. ask where we might see charges soonest. there's also no pardon power that comes down the road with it. i think georgia poses the

greatest threat at least at the moment. >> garrett haake, barbara, jonathan lemire, thanks to all of you. in the last hour on the house floor, final passage of the respect for marriage act granting protections for same-sex couples. 39 republicans joined democrats in passing the landmark legislation. 169 republicans voted against it. outgoing speaker nancy pelosi says she's proud to have this measure pass as one of her last acts as speaker. >> on this vote, the yays are 258, the nees are 169. present won. the motion is adopted. >> what a run she's had. she was joined by democrats and republicans at a bill enrollment ceremony, that is a ceremony before it's sent to the president for suggest. and he will sign that. that does it for this edition of

"andrea mitchell reports." stay tuned for all of the information about brittney griner to come tonight and tomorrow. remember to follow the show online on facebook and on twitter. chris jansing will be here right after these messages. chris jansing will be here right after these messages remember this? but i spoke to our advisor, and our vanguard investments are on track. “we got this, babe.” so go do what you love. thanks for being our superhero. only at vanguard, you're more than just an investor—you're an owner. giving you flexibility to follow your dreams. that's the value of ownership. [coughing] hi, susan. honey. yeah. i respect that. but that cough looks pretty bad. try this robitussin honey. the real honey you love, plus the powerful cough relief you need. mind if i root through your trash? robitussin. the only brand with real honeyand elderberry.

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