got us. oh... he used to be a competitive gamer but with the higher lag, he can't keep up with his squad. so now we're his “squad”. what are kevin's plans for the fall? he's going to college. out of state, yeah. -yeah in the fall. change of plans, i've decided to stay local. oh excellent! oh that's great! why would i ever leave this? -aw! we will do anything to get him gaming again. you and kevin need to fix this internet situation. heard my name! i swear to god, kevin! -we told you to wait in the car. everyone in my old squad has xfinity. less lag, better gaming! i'm gonna need to charge you for three people. let me set the record straight. are people born wicked? or do they have wickedness thrust upon them? oh! -ah! [ laughter ] no need to respond. that was rhetorical. hm, hmm.

good day to all of you from msnbc world headquarters here in new york. welcome to alex witt reports. we begin this hour with donald trump transition to the white house, and 55 days until inauguration day. the names are coming in fast and furious for key cabinet and administration roles, but no word yet on pics for positions of treasury, commerce, and labor secretaries. meanwhile, four of trump's picks are drawing criticism, and following speaker mike johnson to suppress an ethics report on sexual misconduct and drug use allegations against matt gaetz, who denies all of it.

>> i would say in the case of matt gaetz, i would guess they are going to have to withdraw his nomination. i think that is a bridge too far. no one should underestimate how much these house republicans dislike him. that ethics report is looming, there is a good chance that that might come out as well, and those reports are not pretty. i was chairman of that committee, and i can tell you, you don't resign from congress if that report is going to be clean. and a new broadside against former hawaii commerce woman pull together, trump mikey pigford director of national intelligence. here is what natalie dean told me earlier. >> she is a democrat who has flip-flopped, she is now a republican. she cozies up to these dictators. those who really harm their own citizens. that is appealing to donald trump. she is not a serious pick for this extraordinarily important position of national intelligence. overseeing 18 different national intelligence agencies. knowing every single one of the most important secrets that our country has to be able to hold closely.

also new today, with florida republican marco rubio chosen as trump's new secretary of state, new reaction from the person being floated to fill his senate seat. trump's daughter-in-law, laura trump. >> well, there has been crazier things that trump has had done in the past. what we did at the rnc was part of the big win donald trump had. and if i am tapped to serve in another capacity, it truly would be my honor. we are also following breaking news from overseas. president biden expected to meet with chinese leaders xi jinping today on the sidelines of a summit with asia-pacific leaders. we are going to have a live report on this in just a few minutes for you. we also have reporters and analysts in place covering all the galloping story lines, and we are going to begin this hour with nbc's allie rother in west palm beach, florida with more of the controversy surrounding trump in cabinet choices. >> reporter: alex, the trump team is willing to do anything possible to get its picks

across the finish line quickly, including potentially confirming nominees without a senate vote. only adding to the growing fallout over the president- elect's cabinet choices. new pressure on the house ethics committee to release its report on former florida congressman matt gaetz. new testimony emerging on friday from a woman who says she saw gaetz quote having sex with a minor at house party in orlando in 2017. according to a statement from her lawyer, who says the woman testified before the committee in april. a gaetz spokesperson responded, saying merrick garland 's doj cleared matt gaetz and did not charge him. are you alleging ireland is part of a cover-up? gaetz, who was president-elect donald trump's pick for attorney general, faces allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, which he denies. the house ethics investigation into gaetz effectively ending this week after he resigned from congress following trump's announcement. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle now calling for the committee to release its report before a confirmation vote. >> i'm going to demand release

of the ethics committee report. >> there should not be any limitations on the senate judiciary committee's investigation. >> reporter: but how speaker mike johnson argues the report should stay buried. >> it is very important to maintain the house's tradition of not issuing ethics reports on people who are no longer members of congress. i think it would open a pandora's box. >> reporter: more than half of senate republicans privately say they don't see a path for gaetz to be confirmed, according to multiple people who spoke to nbc. but the trump team remains confident he will be. meanwhile, president-elect trump's pick for defense secretary, pete hegseth, is facing sexual misconduct questions, as well. police in monterey, california say he was investigated in 2017 for an alleged sexual assault after a gathering at a hotel hosting an event for republican women. he was not arrested and no charges were filed.

hegseth's attorney telling nbc news, quote, he was cleared, it did not happen. the trump transition team saying hegseth has vigorously denied any and all accusations, and no charges were filed. there is also a new voice speaking out against trump's selection of robert f kennedy junior for health and human services secretary. his former vice president, mike pence. condemning kennedy over his support for abortion access, calling the pick an abrupt departure from the pro-life record of our administration. the president-elect also elevating two of his campaign spokespeople to top communications roles. stephen chung, a longtime trump loyalist, who briefly served in trump's first term, will serve as medications director and assistant to the president. caroline leavitt becomes the youngest white house press secretary in history at just 27 years old. >> thank you for that. now let's go to julie sirkin on capitol hill.

julie, you have exquisite reporting today on matt gaetz, so why don't you share it? >> reporter: well, alex, the reporting is that in my conversations with over 15 sources, republican sources, i should add, and in our conversations with senate republicans even on the record, more than 30 senate republicans are privately expressing consternation that they might not vote for matt gaetz had the vote been held today. now, not in january when president-elect trump has time to pressure senate republicans and do the things that we had seen him do. but now. is because of all of those allegations that you heard allie layout. it is because not only of the house investigation, but the doj that investigated gaetz, never cleared him, but decided not to charge them. and certainly it is because of the personal interactions that gaetz as a congressman here, until wednesday, had with republicans and democrats across both chambers, that they find him completely unserious and unqualified to lead the department of justice. you had a conversation with madalyn dean, who spent sometimes with gaetz on the

judiciary committee. i want to play that for the audience. >> what i think and what i assume most people think is that for this important pick, the two criteria i believe are integrity and independence. but guess what? my two criteria were not donald trump's criteria. his criteria is loyalty and a love of chaos. smash the furniture on my behalf. >> reporter: certainly the pickup gaetz shocked people in trump my in orbit, it shocked republican to talk to him here frequently , because they really did not see it coming. he was not on the short list of people that anybody was considering or anybody was watching, and certainly he gave gaetz a nice exit out of congress, just a couple of days before the house ethics report was set to reveal a damning potentially report against him. >> and julie, will we ever see that report from the bipartisan ethics panel? >> reporter: well, that's a great question. how speaker mike johnson told me another reported yesterday

that he, after meeting with president-elect trump, though he did not get that direct reason, at mar-a-lago just the night before, that he now thinks that the chairman of the ethics committee, the republican chairman, should not release this report. in fact, he said he would strongly recommend he doesn't, citing tradition and presidents, saying that the house ethics committee has a long-standing not to release the report of former members of congress. now, this is not just a former member of congress. this is a former member of congress as of two days ago, who is now nominated or appointed, at least, at this point, to lead a very critical agency. so senate republicans want to see that report. look, whether it comes out as a report from the house ethics committee, whether they hand over the multiyear investigation, some of the interviews, the files that they have amassed to the senate judiciary committee that will be leading sort of this first point in matt gaetz's very

steep hill towards his confirmation process, they will get the information they need to get their hands on. and that is not taking my word for it, that is senate republicans who sit on that very panel. >> okay, julie tsirkin, thank you so much for your reporting. joining me now we have alexi mcammond, msnbc clinical analyst and host of the podcast in sync with alexi. as i welcome you, how many more of the extreme cabinet picks do you expect to actually go through? >> well, as we have seen in the few picks that donald trump has announced already, he is not afraid of picking people who are viewed as controversial, not just by many in media and otherwise, but by fellow republicans, as we have seen in the case of matt gaetz. we have seen republicans come out against rfk junior, leading hhs. there is something to be said, though, about the republican party's willingness to fall in line with donald trump. you have seen some congressmen already saying things to the

effect of if donald trump tells us to jump three feet we will jump three feet. really, just remembering, reminding folks, rather, that they are willing to do whatever it takes to help president- elect trump enact his agenda and get the people he wants installed in his cabinet and his administration. >> so, we know house republicans, certainly mike johnson, trying to stop the release of the house ethics committee report into matt gaetz, despite the fact that these reports are usually released even if the member of congress resigns. and now we are learning the woman told the committee that she sought gaetz having sex with a minor at a party. does it make the optics even worse that they are trying to bury the report, and, frankly, do optics even matter anymore? >> unfortunately, it seems as though optics don't matter, at least so far as it comes to donald trump and who he is picking. i mean, it makes my stomach turn hearing about someone, especially a member of congress who could be leading the doj, being alleged of having sex with a minor, which is, of

course, rape . that cannot be a consensual situation with anyone. he has denied it, sort of, in the past. but you just showed the response that his office has given to these allegations and in light of this ethics committee report, not coming out just yet, in which there was not a direct denial. they are simply deflecting and asking reporters tongue-in- cheek questions about whether we think merrick garland is involved in some sort of cover up. is a disgusting and heinous allegations that if you are not guilty of, you would be fighting it every day from sunday. but apparently he thinks because he was previously cleared, even though young people have been testifying, saying they have seen him doing the things he is alleged of, it is just a crazy situation. and one that should go beyond optics and should go to ethics, of course.

>> yeah, i appreciate your deep diving into that and explaining it all. let's say there has been a blanket denial from matt gaetz and we will move on to my next question, which is the selection of tulsa gabbard as director of national intelligence, which has raised alarm across the intelligence community. gabbard has no background in intelligence, and has made questionable statements about russia and syria, including echoing russian propaganda. so, this position was created after the 9/11 attacks, to ward off critical threats. would you expect republicans to be concerned about those threats being potentially ignored or mishandled? >> i mean, it is hard to know what to expect from republicans, especially as we are waiting for a second trump term. of course, again, anyone that donald trump wants, republicans will, it seems, rally behind. of course we are still waiting to see how that all shakes out formally, but we know that they want to see donald trump's picks get through. tulsa gabbard along with some other picks is putting donald

trump in a curious situation, because we know the most hard- core of the maga base don't necessarily view women in positions of power in a fond light. they don't necessarily view people of color, even, in a fog light. we've seen some of the ways they talked negatively during the republican presidential primary. so i would expect to see some of that coming from the most hard-core of the maga base in the future with tulsa gabbard. >> what about sarah matthews, deputy press secretary during the first trumpet administration, by the way, who responded to the theory that trump's controversial nominees are meant to be a distraction. let's take a listen to that. >> he knows that he is drunk on power right now because he feels like he was given a mandate by winning the popular vote. he has control of both chambers of congress, and he does not have to worry about running for re-election. so, in this term, he wants to

put up the people that he wants. so it is not some game of chess he is playing of trying to put out a sacrificial lamb like a matt gaetz for ag, so that way his other nominees can squeak through. >> so, regardless of intent, will republican senators block gaetz and potentially use that as permission to confirm his other extreme nominees? i have heard him refer to as a sacrificial lamb. >> yeah, alex, it's a great question. and we could certainly see something like that happening, not just because senators have already expressed issues with former congressman matt gaetz. but also because, from all reporting and conversations, this was sort of an 11th hour appointment and decision. and matt gaetz was not even on the list of folks that trump had apparently been considering for ag. so it is really a pick that took a lot of people by surprise, and as you know well, you don't want to catch anyone by surprise, but especially the people you are relying on to get your person over the finish

line. >> okay, alexi mcammond, it's always good to see you, my friend. see you again soon. what to expect from president biden's meeting with xi jinping in the next hour. plus, china's big plan for donald trump's terrace. how it might retaliate. we are back in 90 seconds. chase really knows how to put the hart in your local community. see what i did there? hey, jackie! (♪♪) evan, my guy! you're helping them with savings, right? (♪♪) i wish i had someone like evan when i started. somebody just got their first debit card! ice cream on you? ooo, tacos! i got you. wait hold on, don't you owe me money? what?! your money is a part of your community, so your bank should be too. like, chase!

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moments president biden will meet with chinese president xi jinping on the sidelines of an economic summit in peru. this is expected to be the last time the two leaders will sit down together before biden leaves office. and with the president in lima. give us a sense of what we can expect from that conversation. >> reporter: well, it's the last time these two leaders met face-to-face. just about a year ago when the u.s. hosted the apex summit in san francisco. that meeting was all about trying to prevent a further deterioration in the u.s. china relationship. remember, that was months after president biden had ordered the downing of that spy balloon from china that had been hovering over the united states, which really put a freeze on communications between these two important countries. this time they are really looking forward at jake sullivan, national security advisor, said this is in part an effort by the president to maintain stability, clarity, and predictability in the u.s. china relationship during a time of transition. they want to make sure that there is still the kind of

direct communication between these two countries to avoid miscalculation on issues like taiwan, the navigation of the south china sea. now, that does not mean president biden does not have issues he wants to raise directly and one late with the chinese president, including alleged hacking that china engaged in of u.s. political and government officials, the continued support that china has provided, material support for russia in their war against ukraine. but this is all about trying to continue to make sure that this strategic competition, as they like to call it, remains on a level playing field. now, we look forward, of course, to the biggest questions china has coming into this meeting about what the u.s. trade policy will be. will donald trump follow through on his threat to impose steep tariffs on china? those are questions that president biden will not be able to answer. but china does potentially want to see this moment as an opportunity to reassert itself at a time when biden has entered so much of his foreign policy about countering chinese influence through alliances, through domestic policy like the chips and science act, through the infrastructure law. this is a very interesting moment, but also the end of a

long relationship between these two men that began 14 years ago in 2011 when then vice president biden met with then vice president xi jinping in china. so there's a personal dynamic to this, as well. >> thank you so much for reporting from lima, peru for us. now let's bring in victor shaw, senior msnbc foreign affairs contributor, president of the geopolitics department. and career chair at the center for strategic and international studies. also author of the new book, the black box, demystifying the study of korean unification and north korea. victor, it's good to see you. welcome back to the broadcast. i am curious what you expect them to talk about today that will still be relevant when biden is no longer president. >> i think mike had it just about right. their message is that biden certainly with regard to ukraine, in terms of providing a lot of industrial support to russia in terms of tools and

microchips that they use in their message. that is the message he can give and that will be consistent when trump comes in office. particularly, i think part of the reason he is meeting with biden is not just to say goodbye, but he also has an eye on the u.s. investment community, which has been largely leading in china because of what they say is a hostile business environment. so i think he's trying to show there is still some stability in that relationship, so americans will not be afraid to go into china. broadly speaking, i think biden is going to talk about really consolidated u.s. alliances and partnerships in the region with taiwan, korea, japan, the philippines, as a way to contend with the challenges posed by xi and his assertive actions in taiwan and the south china sea. i would expect that is going to be consistent in a trump administration, as well. >> xi and biden have a somewhat competent relationship over the last four years. as mike was saying, they have known each other for 14. is xi happy to see biden leave

and trump return? or do you think it is the other way around? >> that's a good question. so, i do think that one of the things that the biden administration was very successful at was building all of these coalition, the quad, which is the u.s. japan indiana caucus. the u.s. japan and korea, u.s./japan and philippines. a lot of these coalitions that made xi very nervous. in fact, one of the reasons he wanted to meet in san francisco last year , as mike said, was because he thought biden was being too successful in terms of getting all of these countries to move off the fence between the united states and china and join with the united states. with trump, of course, xi is worried about a tariff war. like we saw in the first trump administration, which really did not benefit americans at all, consumer input prices went up about 20% of u.s. consumer imports were under heavy tariffs. so is not really good for consumers. and i think xi is really

worried we will see another tariff war. >> victor, donald trump is rolling out his picks for his next administration, which includes senator marco rubio for secretary of state, and former fox host pete hegseth for defense secretary. how do you think china might interpret those two? >> i think in both cases china will see them as real hawks. marco rubio, his position on china has moved quite a bit. he is very much of a hawk on china, as is pete hegseth . but i think their focus will really be on trump. it won't be on his cabinet, it will really be on trump. and the signals are very clear. 60% tariff increases. unpredicted ability on taiwan. trump could be firmly behind taiwan or he could sell taiwan down the river for a trade deal with china. so there is still a great deal of unpredicted ability for the chinese as they look at this and look past the biden to

january when trump comes in office again. >> i want to get back to the tariffs we were discussing, because trump has vowed to posed pretty steep one, as much as 60% on china. but the washington post reports beijing is repairing a plan to retaliate. what could that look like? >> well, they will probably do like they did last time in the first tariff war with trump, where they retaliated with their own parents. we put tariffs on $350 billion worth of goods and the chinese retaliated with another 100 billion or so on their side. so they will probably do the same thing. it is important to remember, also, that if trump does this, it is not entirely new. because the biden administration, when they came into office, kept a lot of tariffs on china. they move some of them with regard to allies, which trump put on allies. but they pretty much left the ones on china. so it's not, the noise will be

a lot louder under trump with regards to these terrorists. but i think china has a package ready to go if trump does that. >> victor, is there any way to predict what china might do, if they are going to make a move on taiwan over the next four years? >> there's a lot of speculation about that, alex. as you know, here in washington, d.c., among experts, i personally think the war in ukraine has made the chinese more sensitive and tentative about trying to take an action, in the taiwan strait. the russians are very bogged down with the war, and nobody thought ukraine could be as resilient as it is. so i think they've learned a lot of lessons, which may make them more cautious. but i think at the same time, if you have a trumpet administration that talks about america first policy , that is decoupling from its commitments to his traditional security partners in the region, including taiwan. that might cause the chinese to feel more confident and see an opportunity, a window of

opportunity to try to take some sort of action. >> yeah, we are going to watch them closely, with your help. good to see you again, thank you so much. what the house ethics report into matt gaetz could reveal that has speaker mike johnson opposing its release. we need your support now more than ever. go online, call, or scan this code, with your $19 monthly gift. and we'll send you this "care. no matter what" t-shirt. it is your right to have safe health care. that's it. go online, call, or scan right now.

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matt gaetz. johnson said he will strongly request the panel shuttered the investigation without letting the senate see the report ahead of a possible confirmation hearing. joining me now is katie benner, msnbc contributor and national reporter for the new york times. kitty, welcome to you. i know that you have reported on investigations into matt gaetz, and fat, since they began. gaetz abruptly resigned from congress on wednesday, creating speculation he is trying to make the house ethics probe disappear. what is he afraid the report will reveal? >> i think one of the things that we know about the report is that it very closely follows the justice department investigation into matt gaetz that began years ago. just as a brief recap, that investigation looked at whether or not matt gaetz had sex with an underage woman, which would be a federal crime, and it would come with a mandatory minimum sentence. now, ultimately the department decided this year not to pursue a criminal charge against

congressman gaetz. basically what i'm told is that inside the justice department they worry that the witnesses would not hold up under scrutiny in a cross examination. that they can be easy for the defense to attack, and that mr. gaetz might not be convicted by the full jury. that said, we have already seen reporting that, for the congressional panel, they found many of the same allegations. and some witnesses even said that they witnessed mr. gaetz have sex with a minor . >> do you have a sense of why the doj dropped their prep? were there things missing from the case, things they could not confirm? >> you know, the probe stemmed first from investigation into one of mr. gaetz's friends, a man named joe greenberg, who was infected of federal crimes, and who turned against mr. gaetz and became a witness for the federal government into this probe. mr. greenberg is an interesting witness. he is flawed in many ways. he is not known to be completely truthful, and he has now been convicted of crimes of his own. so when you are looking at

witnesses like that, the government is always nervous about trying to build a case around those folks. and there was a question about whether or not some of the witnesses, including the women who had sex with mr. gaetz would, like i said, stand up on the cross examination. whether or not the defense would be able to successfully attack them on their integrity. and whether or not they still loyalty is to matt gaetz. >> so if gaetz's resignation on the house on wednesday, why is speaker johnson trying to stop the release of this investigation for the senate to even consider in deliberating and discussing his potential appointment at the top law enforcement officer in the country? >> i think that it is safe to say that by putting a halt to the release of this report and the findings of the house, that the house speaker is certainly protecting mr. gaetz's reputation. it is a move that i think could be seen as protective, if nothing else. but i have my doubts about whether or not the information in this report will remain

private. one, i think that the senate is going to forcefully insist the senate judiciary committee, at the very least, will insist that he gets to see the report before it votes on mr. gaetz's nomination. and it is a report that has already been widely distributed to several people on capitol hill, which is a place known for being very leaky, and a lot of information often comes out of that chamber. >> and the fact that johnson has used the verbiage i am going to strongly request, that indicates he has no legal authority to keep that report from being released? >> it means that, for example, he knows that there is going to be pressure from within congress to see the report. and it is going to be hard for him to make a case for why. he does not have legal powers to say absolutely nobody else can see this. it is a product of congress. and realistically speaking, people have seen it and people do have copies of it. now, what he wants to do is he wants to basically take some of the heat off of matt gaetz. what i find interesting is that

this is the nomination that seems to be the most hotly contested to be the nominee who republicans and democrats feel the most strongly about right now. however, lindsey graham has already come out and said that he believes that republicans in the senate need to give matt gaetz a chance to be confirmed. i find that fascinating, because grandma's often a bellwether for when and how republicans are going to cave to donald trump's will, and the fact that he already seems to be softening the ground for gaetz to be treated like any other nominee is certainly interesting, and we have several more weeks to go before any confirmation is going to happen. >> let me ask you quickly, beyond the fascination you're describing on the reaction, i am curious what your reaction was, given the fact that you have covered him so extensively, when he was picked for attorney general and why do you think gaetz wants that role? what do you think he might do with that kind of power?

>> you know, i'm going to start with the second part of your question first. the idea of matt gaetz as attorney general, one, why does it seem so egregiously wrong to people, and two, what he might do with the power. because they are very related. keep in mind, matt gaetz would be the first person to be investigated by the justice department for a sex crime who would then run the justice department. this is one of the most powerful positions in government, and it has always come particularly in the post- watergate era with a sense of a need for integrity. with a sense, because of the awesomeness of the responsibility and the intense powers given to this figure. you can understand why people were pretty shocked by the nomination. but also, keep in mind that in the second trump term, one thing that donald trump and his allies have said on, off the record, on the record on background, one of the things he thought he did mistakenly in his first term was to bring in people who are not completely in 100% loyal to him.

matt gaetz will be completely and 100% loyal to donald trump and he will use the justice department to do things like pursue cases that donald trump feels are righteous, but that many, many people, legal scholars, former cabinet officials who worked for donald trump, former allies of donald trump believe would be an egregious abuse of power. >> okay, katie benner, thank you for the conversation. please come see us anytime. a bullet striking a southwest airlines plane in dallas is the latest in a string of scares. what it means for your travel as the holiday season begins. n

new today, a bullet struck a southwest airlines plane in dallas. that bullet hit near the cockpit as the plane was repairing to depart from woodfield to indianapolis last night. no one was injured, and the plane was taken out of service. but it is the latest in a series of scares as airlines gear up for the holiday rush. >> reporter: panic at 36,000 feet. sas flight 957, stockholm to miami, was west of greenland and it hits severe turbulence. passengers cups and backpacks thrown about the cabin. as one engine shutdown, the pilots guided the plane down 8000 feet before restarting the engine. no significant injuries, but sas says any plane that hits severe turbulence must be inspected upon landing. still far from miami, the crew turned back, landing in

copenhagen. in honolulu, the faa says an air traffic controller ordered a departing american airlines flight to climb fast to avoid a mountain. after a crew failed to make a right turn fast enough. >> the exit that you through, turn right. >> reporter: the crew received right turn clearance and complied with control instructions. >> the crew was late making the turn, but they did not receive a ground proximity warning alert, so it says that they were well above the terrain at all times. >> reporter: meanwhile, children brace for an emergency landing before a rough but stay planning on alaska airlines flight at l.a.x., after blowing a tire during takeoff from washington dollars. the scares, a week before the thanks giving rush kicks off, with airlines expected to carry record numbers of flyers, paying higher prices and leaving few open seats.

>> tom costello, thanks for that. next inside the massive effort aimed at stopping president-elect trump's second term agenda. the president and ceo of a legal group heading up the new initiative joins me after the break. break. an important message for americans ages 50 to 85. over 50 and looking for life insurance? you can't be turned down for guaranteed acceptance, whole life insurance from colonial penn. there's no medical exam, no health questions. that sounds good, but is it really that easy to apply? i'd like to hear what colonial penn customers have to say about that. laura f. says, "the form is very simple, with just a few questions to answer." and you should know, not one of those questions is about your health. must be expensive. rates start at $9.95 a month, 35 cents a day.

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pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. ask your doctor about breztri. a new report reveals a liberal leaning legal organization is planning a large-scale effort aimed at thwarting president-elect trump's second agenda. using product 2025 as a

blueprint, democracy forward is employing more than 800 lawyers to challenge what is identified as 600 priority legal threats under trump. joining me now is chief executive officer of democracy forward, skype harriman. sky, good to see you. let's talk about which potential threats of the trump 2.0 agenda are your top priorities, and how will your organization challenge them? >> well, our priority is simple. is to protect the american people and the constitution. there is a president-elect an incoming administration that ran in their campaign, saying that they were distancing themselves from project 2025, from a range of harms from restricting reproductive health care access, to undermining the very functions of our federal government, to undermining education. they ran from that. they sought to run from that agenda during the campaign trail. we are already seeing the early appointments that they are announcing, that they hope to make. a real effort to accelerate that harmful agenda. the vast majority of the

american people do not approve of project 2025 in this extremism. we saw that on ballot initiatives across the country, we saw that as why, of course, the incoming president had to distance himself from it on the campaign trail. so we are preparing, along with a lot of other organizations, to hold them to account. if the administration seeks to implement this harmful agenda. >> i'm curious, sky, would you say that democratic activists were largely unprepared for the onslaught of policies that trump unleashed during his first term in office? >> i think the american people were unprepared for the level of extremism that we saw in the first trump administration. and i think that they are likely going to be surprised this time, because we saw time and time again him seeking the distance himself when he talks from this extremism. but then, of course, on the campaign trail, distancing himself. now making a series of appointments that will really accelerate this extreme agenda.

so we are just going to make sure that people in communities across the country have the ability to make their voices heard and hold their elected leaders to account. >> so, the report suggests that democracy forward has spent two years preparing for a possible second trump term. how have you done that, and what will be the day one response? >> well, we started seeing this coalition, a very far right organizations, these project 2025 organizations wreaking havoc in courts and communities across the country, doing everything from seeking to ban abortion access to banning books in communities across the country. so have been monitoring those threats. it was no surprise to us when we saw project 2025 published and now that we are seeing the incoming administration seeking to embrace those policies. so we have been preparing, understanding those threats, and really understanding that the law will block some of

these threats. our constitution and our democracy provide a range of tools for the american people and this time, and that is really what we are focused on ensuring that people and communities have that voice. >> you mentioned other groups, and there are certainly other progressive groups beginning to organize against trump's policies. this week two democratic governors announce they are forming a group to challenge the administration at the state level. will democracy forward work with the democratic party and elected officials? i mean, how does your organization fit into the broader constellation of party leaders and advocacy groups to accomplish all of your goals? >> well, we are an organization that is really focused on people and focus on communities, and focused on protecting our constitution and our democracy as a whole. we welcome cooperation with any elected leader, with any group or community that wants to be part of this fight. we have been pleased to work with a range of people and communities for more conservative leaning people, the more liberal leaning people.

all who understand that the stakes are far too high and this time for the american people to not have all the tools our democracy provides and our constitution provides, to ensure that their rights are protected. >> give me a quick sense of advice for americans to remain energized and focused on doing the kind of work you're going to do. >> you know, what i have to say is this is a country that has overcome odds. we have been in difficult times before. it is we, the people, that are going to be the force that ensures that our country continues forward. and there are going to be a lot of threats. it is going to be very hard. we have seen this extremism throughout the last week, with a number of appointments. we have seen attempts to undermine our civil service, to undermine people's individual rights. there is nothing that we can't do if we do it together. and that is really what we are seeking to enable and empower communities across the country to do. >> good to talk with you, thank you so much. a report on the ongoing red flag warnings affecting more than 40 million americans across the northeast, next. ort

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conditions are the driest they've been in nearly 120 years. in greenwood lake, new york for us. so, perspective, how dry is out there? >> it is bone dry out here, alex. the good news is that the firefighters tell us they have

the jennings creek fire, which we are talking about at the new york new jersey border. under control. you may not be able to see it where i am, but you can see some of the control happening in the mountains. you see some of the smoke here. 5000 acres burned, but the conditions so dry, the concerns here also with the was forced. one thing you might be able to know, and it's good news. greenwood lake, this is where the helicopters have been collecting some water. some water they have been able to dump over this fire. we have not seen those today, giving you an indication that they feel they have this fire pretty much under control. but right now, no mandates with those water restrictions that are in place. but that could change if these dry conditions persist. new jersey forest fire officials giving us an update, and really giving us a sense of what they have been dealing with with the terrain and just how much these firefighters have been at war with these fires. they have just been raging here for the last several weeks if not months. take a listen. >> october 1st this year, our agency has had 551 wildfires. for a total of 4355.

that number continues to grow each day. we have had some weather the last couple of days where winds were in excess, gusting over 35 miles an hour. we had some warm temperatures, humidities were dropping. >> we have had some whipping wednesday, about 20 or 30 mile an hour gusts. we do not know how much it has hindered firefighters progress today, if at all. fema offerings and federal help to keep these first responders going, some of them coming out west now to help with the firefight here. they are pledging some money to keep this operation going, which should help with first responders. but i've got to tell you, the one thing they're looking forward to most is that much- needed rain coming to really just get ahead of all of these fires. >> absolutely. thank you for that, george. that's going to do it for me on this edition of alex witt reports. i will see you tomorrow at 1 p.m. eastern. up next, the beat weekend. week.