good morning. 11:00 a.m. eastern, 8:00 a.m. pacific, i'm jose diaz-balart. breaking this morning, alex murdaugh sentenced to two consecutive life sentences after convicted of murdering his wife and son. we have all the developments and a look ahead to the other legal challenges he faces next. anger boiling in east palestine, ohio, as residents face off against officials at a town hall about last month's toxic train derailment. >> i want you to tell me why everybody in my community is getting sick. >> i want the same answers. >> why am i sitting here -- let's get them. >> victory for police officers and members of congress looking to hold former president trump liable for damages from the violence on january 6th.

coming up this hour, an honor that is long overdue, president biden will award a vietnam veteran with the medal of honor for his incredible bravery almost 60 years ago. we begin with breaking news out of south carolina where just in the last hour disgraced ex-lawyer alex murdaugh was sentenced to spend the rest of his life behind bars. after he was convicted of murdering his wife maggie and youngest son paul in a high profile case that captivated the country. >> in the murder of your wife, maggie murdaugh, i sentence you for a term of the rest of your natural life. for the murder of paul murdaugh, whom you probably loved so much,

i sentence you to prison for murdering him for the rest of your natural life. >> before he was sentenced, murdaugh addressed the court this morning. >> i'm innocent. i would never under any circumstances hurt my wife maggie and i would never under any circumstances hurt my son paul paul. >> pretty much all he said. last night in just under three hours of deliberations, the jury found murdaugh guilty of two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during a violent crime. joining us now is nbc news correspondent ellison barber, who has been so closely following this trial from outside the courtroom, and charles coleman, civil rights attorney, former prosecutor, as well as glen kirschner, former federal prosecutor, charles and glen are msnbc legal analysts. ellison, you've been there for so long covering this trial. what has the reaction been like there today and this was such an unusual morning in so many ways.

>> reporter: right, this is a state that has what is commonly known as allocution, where victims have the opportunity to address the court prior to sentencing taking place. that moment that we heard from alex murdaugh, he didn't say a whole lot. he maintained his innocence. at one point later, a back and forth with the judge, he reiterated those same statements, those same remarks you see on the screen. that's him arriving this morning. he arrived very differently than he has every other day in court, he was no longer in plain clothes. he was in a prison jumpsuit, his hands and feet both shackled because he is a convicted murderer. he has maintained his innocence, but the judge in his remarks prior to sentencing asked him about the repeated lies and said to him, my question to you is when will it end? as alex maintained his innocence, the judge at one point said it might not have been you, it might have been the monster you have become.

moving forward, we do expect the defense to file appeals after this. we were thinking we might hear something from the defense in a press conference after court. they have not yet made any sort of public comment other than yesterday when one of the defense attorneys, jim griffin, was leaving the courthouse and told reporters they were disappointed in the verdict but said they wouldn't have more detailed comment or fuller official comment until after the trial ended. we did, however, hear in a press conference outside of the courthouse from the police chief with the south carolina law enforcement division. he said i want to be clear here that this -- there are no winners today. he said, but this is in his view a moment where justice has been served. there is only one surviving member of this immediate family and that is buster murdaugh, he was in the court today, sitting alongside alex murdaugh's siblings, something they have done throughout this trial, from our court room team, our

producer who was inside there, she said there was no emotion at all from buster murdaugh and said alex murdaugh, when he went to leave, he did not turn around at any point to make eye contact or say anything to the family that was in the courtroom. jose. >> just incredible stuff, and, charles, you know, i was talking about the fact that it was unusual this morning, the judge in his comments and his conversation with murdaugh was -- the judge was so eloquent, so -- so amazing, what was your reaction to what we saw and heard from the judge this morning? >> well, jose, i'm very familiar with judge clifton newman and nothing i heard from him today from the bench was a surprise. he is a model of american jurisprudence and this being his last year on the bench, i can think of no better way, no way that is more fitting for him to preside over a trial of this nature. when you talk about what it is to be a judge, you're talking about a sense of impartiality

throughout a proceeding. at the same time, judges are people too. it is important to understand that when a case is going on, and you are trying that case in front of a judge, you are not supposed to have any inkling or insight as to what that judge feels. today, after the conviction, after he's been found guilty, you saw judge newman put into context everything that we have watched unfold before our very eyes. you saw judge newman bring up the fact that, listen, you come from a family of prosecutors. many of whom have likely convicted other people who have faced death and more harsh penalties than you are about to receive for having done less. you heard him talk about, i believe maggie and paul paul visit you at night. he brought an element of humanity to this conversation in how he framed it and talked to the defendant who was still unwilling to accept responsibility for what it is that he has now been convicted of. i thought it was a very classy way of having this conversation, but also clear as he created the

record around why he sentenced him to two consecutive life sentences. >> and, glen, we also heard from one of the jurors on the case this morning. let's listen to part of it. >> it was two not guilty, one not sure, and nine guilty. >> what was your vote? >> guilty. >> we started deliberating, going through the evidence, everybody was pretty much talking and about 45 minutes later, we, after all our deliberating, we figured it out. >> so it took basically 45 minutes for you guys to come to a decision? >> probably about that, 45, maybe an hour. >> that's really fast. >> evidence was clear. >> it was really fast, right? were you surprised that the jury reached a verdict so quickly?

>> i was somewhat surprised. usually, jose, after a six-week trial or an eight-week trial, you're going to have jurors wanting to pour through the evidence, look at the exhibits, have detailed discussions, go over the legal instructions that were provided by the judge, but i think the speed with which this jury returned its verdict is a testament to just how overwhelming the circumstantial evidence was. you know, when you heard the jurors say, you know, we took a straw vote, which is not unusual. often when juries return to begin their deliberations, they'll take a preliminary vote to sort of, you know, read the room, so to speak. and the two jurors that initially were inclined to vote not guilty, those must have been some really soft not guilty, you know, preliminary votes, because the fact that within about an hour, all 12 jurors were on the same page that the evidence had proved guilt beyond a reasonable

doubt, i think it is a testament to the strength of the circumstantial evidence and the presentation by the prosecutors. >> and let's talk about that. you've mentioned you tried 52 murder cases, and you're not sure you've seen circumstantial evidence as strong as what we saw in this trial. what did you mean by that? and what is that evidence that is unusual and that was so strong? >> yeah, it is really interesting because there are circumstantial evidence cases and then there are direct evidence cases. a quick example of direct evidence is an eyewitness who observes the crime and identifies the perpetrator or maybe the perpetrator gives a confession to the police. those are pieces of direct evidence. those trials look very different from circumstantial evidence trials because the defense attorneys properly so will focus like a laser beam on a witness for example who makes an in court identification of the

perpetrator and they will do everything they can to knock down the credibility or undercut the memory or the ability to observe of that one witness. that is a very different thing for a jury to have to decide. is an eyewitness telling the truth or not? when there is a circumstantial evidence case, it is like putting a puzzle together. no one piece of the puzzle tells you what picture will emerge until all of the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. and, you know, the jurors actually sort of get to play detective a little bit, along with the prosecutors and build the evidence, put the puzzle together, and eventually a picture of the defendant's guilt emerges. >> and, charles, south carolina attorney general told nbc news that murdaugh's testimony was the nail in the coffin for his case. what is your takeaway on that? >> you know, we can't necessarily know what was so influential in front of the jury. i tend to disagree. i think it was the rebuttal closing that was put on by the

prosecution yesterday, because up until that point, i was certain that reasonable doubt existed in the minds of more than just one or two jurors, and it was interesting to hear the commentary from the juror who has already spoken to the media. i think the rebuttal closing yesterday was the thing that began to get the prosecution away from a narrative that i thought they couldn't maintain around this motive that what they were trying to construct and sell to the jury that just really wasn't landing, and they shifted theme yet again and started to talk about murdaugh and his counsel putting law enforcement on trial, about the investigation, and questioning or challenging law enforcement. in the state like south carolina, that is going to resonate and is going to play very well. i thought it was a brilliant move by the prosecution in this case. i also think that with respect to him testifying, the defendant didn't necessarily do that poorly, but for anyone like yourself or anyone else who is wondering why would you let your client testify, i say this all the time, lawyers often make the

worst clients because they believe that they understand this world, this system, this game, this process more than anyone else and the truth is, even as you may have cross-examined someone before, even as you may have direct examined someone before, you never have been on the stand, you've never sworn yourself in, and given sworn testimony in front of a jury, it is an entirely different experience and i think that in this case murdaugh may have done that, taking too much light to what it is that actually is entailed in that process and ultimately played to his detriment. >> what is next as far as other investigations involving the murdaugh family? >> reporter: yes, so there are a number of different threads, layers to this story, to this family. alex murdaugh, he is facing nearly 100 charges related to financial crimes, everything from embezzlement to he's been accused of running a drug and money laundering ring to being

accused of insurance fraud. that is related to that roadside shooting he and his attorneys claimed was a botched attempt to take his own life so his son buster murdaugh could collect a $10 million life insurance policy. on top of that, there are questions about other deaths surrounding, near the murdaugh family orbit, if you will. there is one particular case as it relates to their former housekeeper, gloria satterfield. one of her sons testified in this trial because alex murdaugh admitted to stealing some $4 million that was supposed to go to her surviing family members after she fell is what the initial report was, fell and died on their property. there have been questions about the circumstances surrounding her death. law enforcement has said they are reinvestigating and going back and looking at some of that

now. there also was a case, a death years ago of a man named stephen smith. initially local police said that they believed he was killed in a hit and run accident. his family has adamantly said they do not believe that that's what happened here. buster murdaugh, the sole surviving son of this family, his name had been mentioned in some different circles, in different inquiries as it related to the death of stephen smith. police have not named anything official, tieing that death to this family. but the law enforcement division, south carolina law enforcement division, they said that they were opening an investigation to look into the circumstances surrounding stephen smith's death because of information that they found while they were investigating the double homicide of maggie and paul murdaugh. so those are all things to watch moving forward. the most immediate thing for alex murdaugh will be those charges, those 99 charges related to financial crimes.

we will also likely see his attorneys appeal his murder charges here. jose? >> ellison barber, charles coleman, glen kirschner, thank you so much. today marks one month since a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in east palestine, ohio. a month ago today. and last night residents angrily confronted representatives from norfolk southern, the company that operated the derailed train, along with federal and state officials at a town hall. >> we're very sorry for what happened. we feel horrible about it. >> and as people continued to express health and safety concerns, the epa ordered norfolk southern to begin testing for highly toxic dioxins. joining us from canfield, ohio, is jesse kirsch.

good morning. what more can you tell us about the situation there as we mark one month since this disaster? >> reporter: yeah, good morning, jose. so last night at the town hall, the epa said that once it approved the norfolk southern plan, the railroad would be able to start temporarily removing train tracks to then dig up soil and get rid of contamination. we're trying to get clarity on if that process has started yet. we do have a new update from the epa, though. they say that tracks and ties are expected to be removed today from the site of the derailment and the epa says that it is possible that people in the area may smell odors as the soil from the derailment site is moved. odors from the chemicals involved in the derailment can be strong at levels much lower than what is considered harmful to health. the epa last night did also say that there could be vapors released. this was one of several issues that concerned residents that we were speaking with who continue to express doubt and skepticism, both in the railroad, and in

their government. here's part of what we heard. >> complaining of headaches every day. so you got to imagine that all the traffic going in and out from the remediation work is going right by the house, so we just have, like, a massive dust bowl right now. >> reporter: you would rather lose out on the rent money and just get her out of there? >> money, material and monetary things can be made up. health and well-being of your people, absolutely not. >> reporter: so that man is -- says he's a landlord in the community and is trying to get his tenant out of there. his property, he says, is right near the derailment site. one thing that came up at this town hall last night, jose, something that has been expressed again and again over the recent weeks is health concerns, of course, for people. there is also the financial concern. people are worried about their future, trying to figure out if they can have a future here. people were calling on norfolk southern last night to

potentially pay for them to move out of town and the railroad said that isn't something that was being planned at this point, but that is something people are thinking about beyond their health, trying to get answers, trying to find out if there is a way they can have their property paid for and get out of there because they're worried about the the properties having any value moving forward. that is the situation on the ground. we're now a month out from this derailment, which still has a lot of people very concerned in this community, jose. >> jesse kirsch, thank you so much. still ahead, we're going to speak with an iranian american journalist about a wave of what appears to be attacks against school girls in iran. what's happening and why? plus, a house panel launching a new probe into congressman george santos, who admitted to lying about his background. what investigators are looking for. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports." r. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports. ...will remain radioactive for years to come. well, thank goodness. it's time for the "good news of the week." and, boy, do we need it. [ chuckles ]

well, this safe driver saved money with the snapshot app from progressive. -how do you feel? -um, good? he's better than good. he got rewarded for driving safe and driving less. sorry, barb, just to confirm, this is the feel-good news of the week? this is what we found. -yay, snapshot! ♪♪ we all have a purpose in life - a “why.” maybe it's perfecting that special place that you want to keep in the family... ...or passing down the family business... ...or giving back to the places that inspire you. no matter your purpose, at pnc private bank, we will work with you every step of the way to help you achieve it. so let us focus on the how. just tell us - what's your why? ♪♪ introducing new sweet and savory crepes. whether you like the flavor of cinnamon bun after sunset.

or prefer to wake up to a little eggs and bacon. day or night, it's always time for crepes. for a limited time, buy one, get one free with five flavors that are delicious any time of day. only from ihop. download the app and earn free food with every order. having diabetes can raise a lot of questions. like my morning ride, will it help lower my glucose? with the freestyle libre 2 system, you can know where your glucose level is and where it's headed without fingersticks. know what activities work for you. manage your diabetes with more confidence and lower your a1c. ask your doctor about the freestyle libre 2 system. it's covered by medicare for those who qualify. visit freestylelibre.us/medicare to learn more. ♪♪ ♪ ♪ to all the chevy silverado owners out there. the adventurers

and the doers. to everyone that works hard and plays hard. whether it's your first silverado or your tenth. thank you for making chevy silverado the #1 best-selling retail full-size pickup. millions have made the switch from the big three to the best kept secret in wireless: xfinity mobile. chevy silverado that means millions are saving hundreds a year with the fastest mobile service. and now, get the best price for two lines of unlimited. just $30 per line. there are millions of happy campers out there. and this is the perfect time to join them... right now, switch to xfinity mobile and save up to $800 on the new samsung galaxy s23 series. to learn more, visit your local xfinity store today.

21 past the hour. alarm growing this morning over the suspected poisoning of hundreds of school girls in iran and authorities say the poisonings may have been deliberate attacks designed to prevent girls from seeking an education. local media reports say for months now young iranian students have been hospitalized after saying they smelled gas. i would like to bring in an iranian american journalist and activist. always a pleasure to see you.

what have you been hearing from folks on the ground there about what has been going on? >> jose, it is very, very scary. i've been talking to students and their parents. more than a thousand students were transferred to hospital due to suffering from chemical attacks. and i have to say that. many of them believe this is an act of revenge, by the islamic republic against those -- for leading a massive protest against this -- right after the death of massa amini. and now many concerns are concerned the islamic republic tells them that the day that they -- that's why they believe that this is an attack deliberately.

>> the ngo called human rights activists in iran says more than 19,000 people were arrested in these recent protests. more than 500 were killed. and amnesty international says the regime killed 94 people just this year. they call it a chilling execution spree. nbc news has not independently confirmed that data. what is that reality for people in iran, since 1979 human rights have not been at all respected by the regime there. >> life is like a hull right now. as i always say that, killing, torturing, executing is in the dna of the islamic republic. you know what bothers me and millions of iranians? right now the u.s. government actually called on the iranian regime to do an investigation on this recent chemical attack on a school.

it means to put criminals who kill its own innocent teenagers, who execute people for the crime of protesting to be in charge, to do an investigation on their own crimes. so that's why iranians are actually calling on the rest of the world. this is the moment that we need youth to actually hold the islamic republic accountable. when as you mentioned yourself, 500 innocent protesters got killed only in five months. 20,000 of them got arrested. five of them got executed. there was no punishment by the west. so there is no reason for islamic republic to stop killing its own people. that is why now they're trying actually to create a fear, to use terror tactic to drive out the students, the teenagers who became a threat for islamic republic from the streets. >> and, you know, let me tell you something, you know better

than anybody else, you're one of "time" magazine's women of the year for elevating voices, but that prominence has come with risk. the doj announced an assassination plot that apparently was against you. this is -- these are the tentacles of a regime that sees that the world does not stand up to whatever they do. you know what, masih, there is a pattern there. when you have dictatorships around the world that are able to do what they want, within the confines of their own country, and the world stands idly by, this is the kind of stuff that they feel they have the right to do. >> exactly. look, this is the -- they are not being punished. then there is no reason for them to stop harassing and killing their own citizens. as you mentioned about my situation, i cannot even celebrate to be woman of the

year for "time" magazine because, look, my daughters, my sisters, my fellow women are being raped in prison right now, but at the same time i see that the high representative of the -- are -- in europe. i see biden administration, instead of meeting with opposition leaders and figures, they asking the same criminals to negotiate with them, or to do an investigation about their own crimes. so i believe that when it comes to islamic republic, money, business, oil, these are the things that stop the democratic countries to care about human rights, but believe me, believe me, we the people of iran are going to get rid of the islamic republic, but the history will judge the democratic countries and if the democratic countries do not take strong action, all these criminals who are killing innocent people inside iran, in the middle east, they will come

after the westerners, after the u.s. citizens here on u.s. soil. >> certainly they attempted to assassinate you and your family. masih, thank you for being with us. it is always a pleasure to see you. >> always appreciate your support for iranians, jose. thank you so much. >> thanks. coming up, moments from now, president biden will award one of the nation's first black special forces officers the medal of honor, how he risked his life several times during an ambush while wounded to save his men. we'll bring you that ceremony. so important. live, next. ceremony. so important live, next come here! you know why people are always looking at their phones? they're banking, with bank of america. see cousin jimmy over there? his girlfriend just caught the bouquet so... he might need a little more help saving. for that engagement ring... the groom's parents. you think they're looking at photos of their handsome boy?

they're not! she just saw how much they spent on ballroom dance classes... won't be needing those anymore. digital tools so impressive, you just can't stop banking. i think i'm ready for this. digital tools so impressive, heck ya! with e*trade you're ready for anything. marriage. kids. college. kids moving back in after college. ♪ finally we can eat. ♪ you know you make me wanna...♪ and then we looked around and said, wait a minute, this isn't even our stroller! (laughing) you live with your parents, but you own a house in the metaverse? mhm. cool...i don't get it. here's to getting financially ready for anything! and here's to being single and ready to mingle. who's ready to cha-cha?! ♪ yeah, yeah ♪ (vo) with verizon, you can now get a private 5g network. so you can do more than connect your business, you can make it even smarter. now ports can know where every piece of cargo is. and where it's going. (dock worker) right on time. (vo) robots can predict breakdowns and order their own replacement parts. (foreman) nice work. (vo) and retailers can get ahead of the fashion trend of the day with a new line tomorrow.

with a verizon private 5g network, you can get more agility and security. giving you more control of your business. we call this enterprise intelligence. from the network america relies on. ♪ music (“i swear”) plays ♪ jaycee tried gain flings for the first time the other day... and forgot where she was. [buzz] you can always spot a first timer. gain flings with oxi boost and febreze. if your business kept on employees through the pandemic, getrefunds.com can see if it may qualify for a payroll tax refund of up to $26,000 per employee. all it takes is eight minutes to get started. then work with professionals to assist your business with its forms and submit the application. go to getrefunds.com to learn more.

subway keeps upping their game with the subway series.

an all-star menu of delicious subs. there's the philly, the monster, the boss. if i hadn't seen it in person, i wouldn't have believed it. eating is believing steph. the subway series. try subway's tastiest menu upgrade yet. 31 past the hour. we're keeping a close eye on the white house. any moment now president biden will hold a ceremony to present the medal of honor to the nation's highest military award for bravery to retired colonel paris davis for his remarkable heroism during the vietnam war, nearly 60 years after he was first recommended for the honor. there you see the -- this is

inside the white house. allie raffa is in washington, d.c. with us to talk about what we're about to be witnessing at the white house this morning. >> reporter: yeah, jose, this is just a remarkable story of patience and perseverance. 83-year-old retired army colonel paris davis was originally recommended for this most prestigious honor, the most prestigious award u.s. service members can receive nearly six decades ago, but that paperwork for his submission was lost, then resubmitted, then lost again. finally it took a group of volunteers in 2016 to submit this for a third time and finally get it through. some of them have argued that racism was the reason this couldn't happen any sooner, but davis himself has said that he's chosen not to dwell on this. so you can imagine how special this moment is going to be today when he finally receives this long and well deserved honor. he was one of the first black officers to lead a special forces unit during the vietnam

war in 1965. he led his unit during this nearly three-day long battle in a vietnamese army camp. he suffered multiple gunshot wounds, was hit with shrapnel from grenades and despite all of that, he managed to call for air support. he didn't leave any of his unit behind. as a matter of fact, he saved -- he personally saved three of his soldiers. there are even reports his hand at one point was so mangled from the shrapnel from grenades he could only shoot his rifle with his pinkie finger. so, nearly six decades after that he will finally be receiving this award he so deserves, jose. >> and as soon as that ceremony begins, we will, of course, bring it to you. meanwhile, later today, the president is set to meet with german chancellor olaf scholz. what are the two leaders expected to be talking about? >> reporter: yeah this is going to be the third visit to the white house since 2021 when chancellor scholz was first elected. but this is going to be his

first since the war in ukraine began over a year ago now. so, white house officials telling us we should expect that to be top of mind during this bilateral meeting he's having with president biden this afternoon. we know both of them have personally met with ukrainian president zelenskyy in just the last month. of course, the president meeting with him during that surprise visit to kyiv, and chancellor scholz meeting with french president macron as well as zelenskyy during a trip to paris last month. so, this white house official is saying expect that to be on the agenda when these two meet, to talk about what sort of aid they can continue to give ukraine as this war continues as well as that possible lethal aid that could come from allies of russia, helping russia in this war. of course, we know that both germany and the u.s. have committed to send armored tanks to ukraine to help in this war effort. john kirby announced yesterday that there is going to be

another aid package announced and unveiled today, so we can expect to hear more from that after this meeting, possibly more aid announced by germany for their part after this meeting, jose. >> allie raffa in washington. thank you. keeping a very close watch on the white house. as soon as that ceremony begins, we'll bring it to you. you see the podium, you see a lot of the officials standing by and colonel paris davis is there and we'll bring you that ceremony live here on msnbc when it starts. i want to stay in washington for a bit. there is new reaction after the justice department said former president donald trump can be sued over the violence at the u.s. capitol on january 6th. the justice department says trump does not have absolute immunity from lawsuits filed by police officers and even members of congress seeking to hold him liable for damages stemming from the attack. however, the doj did not take a position on whether trump is criminally or even civilly

liable for causing the riot. trump's lawyers argued he was acting within the poundbounds o official duties at the time. joining us is ken dilanian. what does this mean for the lawsuits that have already been filed? >> this justice department opinion was entered in a particular case where some capitol police officers and members of congress have sued donald trump and a federal judge has already ruled he wasn't immune, now it is in the appeals court and the appeals court asked the justice department to weigh in, so it is deeply significant because the justice department generally jealously defends presidential immunity. in this case, they're saying what donald trump did by giving that speech at the ellipse, and what he may have done on twitter had nothing to do with his presidential duties. they're not saying it is an issue of incitement, but they're saying he can be sued, he can't invoke presidential immunity to shield him from the lawsuits. they said in addition to the one at issue here there are five

other cases that they're aware of that are making the same argument. it really opens the door to a lot of litigation against donald trump. >> yeah, i mean, is there -- is this in some way fast track any more lawsuits filed against him in the future? >> certainly removes a big hurdle because, you know, presidents are immune for their conduct in office for -- generally from civil lawsuits, not from criminal liability, but from civil lawsuits. and what this ruling says is that the stuff that donald trump did allegedly inciting the january 6th riot is not covered by that and that certainly doesn't bite. many people who believe they were damaged by everything that happened on january 6th to sue donald trump, jose. >> ken dilanian, thank you so very much. appreciate it. president biden as we have been telling you is about to award the medal of honor to retired u.s. army colonel paris davis for his heroism during the vietnam war. we will, of course, be bringing

that to you as soon as it begins. there you see the process is also starting, but the president has yet it arrive. as soon as he does, we'll bring it to you. now to capitol hill, more potential trouble for embattled new york republican congressman george santos. the house ethics committee voted unanimously to investigate his past business practices, his campaign finances, and allegation of sexual misconduct. santos acknowledged fabricating parts of his background including his education and work experience. he has denied any control wrongdoing and denied the sexual misconduct allegation against him. his office tweeted he's fully cooperating with the investigation. julie sorkin joins us from capitol hill. where does the investigation go from here or is it various investigations? >> that's a good question and a big question here. now that we heard the house ethics committee has now launched this investigation on multiple fronts by the way, everything else they do during

this investigation will be behind closed doors. we will not get any updates on the official side from the committee, but, look, this is certainly ramping up pressure on santos as he potentially considers mulling yet another run, despite all of the fabrications and multiple investigations into him not only in this building, but also in new york, by the fbi, even in brazil. and the ethics committee is the -- one of the most least partisan entities here in the capitol, a ten-member panel, five and five on each side, they created a separate subcommittee to investigates santos more specifically here. and as you mentioned, his office saying he will not make further comments on this, though he is fully cooperating. so what can happen as a result of this investigation is probably the number one question on people's minds. we know speaker mccarthy, republican leadership had supported this inquiry, we know actually two of the complaints filed were filed by santos' democratic colleagues from new york. but what happens as a result of it is a lot less clear. in the past, though they do have

the ability to technically recommend removing a member for any crimes they find to be worthwhile here, and any crimes in their investigation that they find worthwhile, it is not likely that will happen. most likely what we see is a fine, a slap on the wrist and a messaging tool here because at the end of the day, the other investigations happening outside of this building will usually carry more water. so a lot to watch here. certainly important step from the ethics panel, but not one that is unprecedented. >> and, julie, so, the most, i guess, that the committee panel could do is levy fines against the congressman, but only make recommendations other than that? >> reporter: yeah, in theory, that's pretty much it. there has been a lot of criticism in the past, this committee tends to move slowly, it already has been over two months of the new congress and they're just formally launching this investigation despite multiple members referring him for investigations.

including one of the things they're actually investigating, a volunteer staffer of santos, who worked in the office for about a week period. he filed a complaint of sexual misconduct, not only to the ethics panel, but also to the u.s. capitol police that we're told are also looking into that as well and despite all of this, and despite them outlining these specific charges that they're looking into against him, including whether he misused campaign funds and he didn't report them properly for his 2022 campaign in the last cycle, it is pretty notable they're explicitly outlining what they're going to investigate. but, remember, his term is only two years. this investigation could potentially take as long as that. and it is not clear if they'll be able to wrap any sooner because traditionally they do take a long time and this is despite a republican-led house, very bipartisan panel, 5-5 and they'll be working together to investigate this matter. it is one that not only santos isn't going to be commenting on, but one the committee won't be commenting on as well as they

continue this. >> julie tsirkin on capitol hill, thank you so very much and i want to take you now back to the white house where the ceremony is about to begin. >> -- enriched by the character, selflessness and heroism of colonel davis and may his life, which has been marked by a commitment to you and sacred commitment to all that freedom loving people cherish and hold dear. finally may this ceremony serve as a testament of hope for the world's oppressed and terrible warning to the oppressor because our nation still has men and women like colonel davis in our ranks, across our military services, who stand ready to step into the breach. we thank you, lord, for this reality as your most holy name i pray, amen.

>> please be seated. >> i have to say at the outset, i had the great honor, we have other medal of honor recipients here, and one of those medals, and we have five here, but this secretary may be the most consequential day since i've been president, incredible man. i 158 years ago today, president lincoln was putting the final touches on his second inaugural address. and he wrote let us strive to finish the work we're in to bind up the nation's wounds and care for him who shall have born the battle. today, 58 years after he bore the battle, we honor a true hero of our nation.

colonel paris davis. i've had a chance to get to talk to him a little bit, we talked on the phone, and he doesn't know, but we're going to talk a lot more. incredible guy. the medal of honor, created during lincoln's presidency, is our country's highest military award recognizing gallantry above and beyond the call of duty. that word gallantry, not much used these days. gallantry. but i can think of no better word to describe paris to describe you. i really can't. gallantry. and everyone here feels exactly the same way. that includes secretary austin, secretary mcdonough and the vice chairman grady and general mcconnell, representative bier. where is represent bier? thank you for pushing this. appreciate it. for joining us today. now, as many of you know, paris

will be the first to tell you that he hates the word i. that it was his team who served, his team who sacrificed. so today i'm truly honored to welcome one of those teammates ron dice. where is ron? ron? [ applause ] he was the airborne spotter for that team. and only a few days ago, right? i also want to thank previous medal of honor recipients here, join us to recognize their brethren in arms, leroy petri, william swenson, melvin morris, matthew williams, and arrol pomley. stand up. [ applause ]

you're looking at courage in the flesh. and finally, greg and stephanie, you know this, but your dad was a hero. he didn't have to win this medal for you to know that. you knew it all along, you really did, didn't you, when you were kids, you knew growing up. and like you, i wish your brother christopher was still with us to see your dad finally recognized. it is a story that didn't just begin, the vietnamese, 58 years ago. picture paris in 1956, the son of a midwestern foundry worker, starting his first year at southern university, in the heart of louisiana. college football team quickly noticed paris had the grit and the guts they needed on the team. before long, paris not only joined the team, but he's named all american. very slow learner, this guy.

i tell you what, off the field paris saw constant reminders, to many he was less than an american. and that in the eyes of the law he was less than a person. signs on bars that read "whites only", seats on buses -- that were off limits for african americans, schools, streets, shops, divided by segregation. paris endured all of this and still chose to join his college rotc unit. volunteering to serve a country that in many places still refused to serve people who looked like him. right away it was clear that paris was a born warrior, he became an army ranger, then he jumped at the chance to join the green berets becoming one of the nation's first black special forces officers. paris liked the green berets because they were elite. it wasn't just as paris once said joe here, joe there, it didn't offend me, you said joe

here, joe there. that didn't bother me. but the green berets, like our country then, weren't free from discrimination either. people pulled paris aside and warned him, are you sure you want to join? there aren't a lot of people like you who look like you in this outfit. this was only 14 years after president truman desegregated our military. only 14 years later. paris didn't listen to them. and thank god he didn't. paris helped write the history of our nation and this year we celebrate the 75th anniversary of our first fully integrated armed forces and the name paris davis will stand alongside the nation's pioneering heroes. you know, in the early hours of june 18th, 1965, then captain davis and his team with three other green berets were wrapping up a job well done.

together they just finished a ten-mile march through the night to support a company of south vietnamese soldiers on their first combat mission, a raid against the vietcong, thick in the jungle. the raid was a success. but as the sun began to rise, the men heard that haunting sound ring out. a bugle. a bugle. a sure sign of a counterattack. within minutes, the jungle lit up with enemy fire. hundreds of vietcong began to swarm captain davis and his team, pinning them down in a rice paddy with no cover. captain davis rallied his team to fight back. getting so close to the enemy, he was battling them hand to ba hand. hours -- this is the part that stuns me. hours into that fight, captain suddenly heard a sound worse than the bugle. his teammate crying out for

help. his team sergeant had been shot badly in his foot and his leg, trapping him. it got worse. on the far side of the field, his weapon specialist was stuck in a pit after being temporarily knocked out by shrapnel. even further beyond him was his medic who had been shot in the head. captain davis realized he was the last american standing. without hesitation, he yelled, i'm coming for you. i'm coming for you. he called in friendly fire and gave cover to run out and rescue his team. on his first attempt to get to the team sergeant, captain davis was shot in the arm and had to turn back. captain davis waited for another window and sprinted back out again. his team sergeant was stuck. captain davis couldn't break him free before he had to return to cover.

he didn't give up. that's not the green beret way. for his third time as enemy fire reigned down, he ran out. captain davis freed his team sergeant, threw him over his shoulder and started carrying him up the hill to safety. captain davis got halfway up the hill before a bullet pierced his leg. in front of him, another green beret sergeant who just arrived to the battle to reinforce the team was shot in the chest and now needed to be rescued as well. captain davis limped up the team with his sergeant on his shoulder. he had been fighting for ten hours. but captain davis didn't hesitate. he went back down the hill to retrieve the reinforcement who had been shot in the chest. all 240 pounds of him. next captain davis ran to his weapons specialist who was struck in that pit. vietcong continued to fire.

he hauled his teammate up the hill. by this time, the rescue helicopter had landed. captain davis' commander gave him a direct order. get on board. his response was just as direct. sir, he said, i'm just not going to leave. i still have an american out there. unsure if he was alive, captain davis began to plan how he would get his medic. just a day before the medic had found out he was -- good news, he was a new father. his wife had given birth to their first child. captain davis was going to give him a chance to see his baby boy. he pinpointed the medic's position and began crawling toward him with gunfire and grenades exploding around him. when he got there, the medic still alive asked him, am i going to die? am i going to die? captain davis said, not before

me. still fending off vietcong, he hauled the medic up the hill and nearly 20 hours -- nearly 20 hours later, after that bugle first rang, captain davis had saved each one of his fellow americans. every single one. just as the story of paris davis did not begin in june 18, 1965, it does not end there either. captain davis went on to become colonel davis. even after he hung up his uniform, he continued to serve the community. founding the metro herald, a newspaper that focused on his local community and civil rights issues. wish i could say this story of his sacrifice on that day in 1965 was fully recognized and rewarded immediately.

sadly, we know, they weren't. at the time, captain davis returned from war, the country was battling segregation. return from vietnam to experience some of his fellow soldiers crossing to the other side of the street when they saw him in america. although the men who were with him on that june day nominated him to receive the medal of honor, somehow the paperwork was never processed. not just once but twice. you know what captain davis said after learning he would finally receive the medal of honor? quote, america was behind me. america was behind me. he never lost faith, which i find astounding. he never stopped believing in the founding vision of our nation, a vision that lincoln kept alive 158 years ago.

a vision paris fought to defend 58 years ago. this vision for a more perfect union, one where all women and men are created equal. you know, we are the most unique nation in the world. we are the only nation founded on an idea. ever other nation is founded based on philosophy, based on ethnicity, whatever. an idea. it's captured in, we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men and women are created equal. endowed with certain rights. we never fully lived up to it. but we never walked away from it. this is evidence we're still not going to walk away from it. look, folks, we never walked away from our troops who give all to our nation. paris, you are everything this medal means. i mean everything this medal means. look, you are everything our generation aspired to be.

you are everything our nation is at our best. brave and big-hearted, determined and devoted, selfless and steadfast, american. american. now at long last it's my great honor to ask lieutenant colonel roe to read the citation. >> the president of the united states of america, authorized by act of congress, march 3, 1863, has awarded in the name of congress the medal of honor to captain paris d. davis, united states army, for conspicuous

gallantry at the risk of his own life above and beyond the call of duty. commander, detachment a321, first special forces, distinguished himself above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an advisor to the 883rd company during combat operations against an armed enemy in the republic of vietnam on june 17 through 18, 1965. captain davis and three other u.s. special forces advisors accompanied the vietnamese regional force company on its first combat mission, a daring nighttime raid against a vietcong headquarters. he allowed the company to gain a tactical advantage, allowing it to surprise the unsuspecting force and kill approximately 100

enemy soldiers. while returning from the successful raid, the company was ambushed. captain davis consistently exposed himself to the hostile small arms fire to rally the inexperienced and disorganized company. he expertly directed both artillery and small arms fire, enabling other elements of the company to reach his position. although wounded in the leg, he aided in the vacuation of other wounded men in his unit. following the arrival of air support, he directed artillery fire within 30 meters of his position. with complete disregard to his own life, he braved intense enemy fire to cross an open field to rescue his seriously wounded and immobilized team sergeant while carrying the sergeant up a hill to a position of safety, captain davis was wounded by enemy fire. despite two painful wounds,

captain davis again refused medical evacuation, remained with the troops, fought bravely and provided leadership and inspiration to the regional force company as they repelled several assaults. when friendly reinforcements arrived, captain davis refused medical evacuation until he recovered a u.s. advisor under his command who had been wounded and presumed dead. while personally recovering the soldier, he found him clinging to life. captain davis directed the helicopter extraction not leaving the battlefield until after all friendly forces were recovered or medically evacuated. captain davis' heroism and selflessness beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the united states army.