those acts but john eastman was joined by peter navarro, michael flynn, rudy giuliani, all inside of the ballroom down at mar-a-lago for the film presentation. donald trump spoke highly as the italian prime minister watched on. of course, all of this coming on the heels of the anniversary of the gentry sixth attack but now as we are about to be on our way from the certification of donald trump victory ahead of his inauguration on january 20th. jose? >> vaughn hillyard, barbara mcquade, thank you so much. that wraps on social media at jdbalert. thank you for the privilege of your time. andrea mitchell picks up with more news right now.

right now on andrea mitchell reports, the congress braves a blinding snowstorm to fulfill a constitutional mandate, to certify the election results, a peaceful transfer of power, far from the violence from trump supporters trying to stop the process four years ago. also this hour, president biden is scheduled to leave washington for new orleans, where he and the first lady will meet with those affected by the bourbon street attack. canada's prime minister justin trudeau announcing he is resigning as prime minister, triggering a lengthy period of uncertainty for our neighbor to the north. and 10,000 people pay their final respects to jimmy carter before the week-long state funeral continues here in washington tomorrow with him lying in repose on wednesday in the rotunda at the capitol.

and good day. i'm andrea mitchell in washington. our nation's capitol is under a snow emergency on a crucial day, the peaceful transition of power. a striking contrast to the deadly insurrection at the u.s. capitol that erupted four years ago. next hour house and senate members will come together in a joint session to officially certify donald trump's election win. today's national security event is colliding with the biggest storm to hit the capital in years. the certification process does not require full congressional attendance, but does require a majority and it's scheduled to begin at 1:00. as president of the senate, trump's 2024 opponent, vice president harris, will preside over certifying the results of an election she lost, calling it a sacred obligation. >> the peaceful transfer of power is one of the most fundamental principles of american democracy. as we have seen, our democracy

can be fragile, and it is up to then each one of us to stand up for our most cherished principles, and to make sure that in america our government always remains of the people, by the people, and for the people. >> all of us remember the violence that occurred four years ago with the attack. despite all of that, president-elect trump is calling the '21 attack a day of love and is promising to pardon some of the convicted rioters. today in a new op-ed, president biden warns americans, quote, we must remember the wisdom of the adage that any nation that forgets its past is doomed to repeat it. we cannot allow the truth to be lost. in the house gallery will be former d.c. metro police officer daniel hodges. you'll recall and you can see it here, he was assaulted by rioters during the 2021 attack,

crushed in a revolving door. january 6th committee member congressman adam schiff wants to remind the country what really happened that day. we begin with capitol hill correspondent ryan nobles, investigations reporter, and the post senior and national political correspondent, ashley parker, and former republican national chairman and co-host of msnbc's the weekend, michael steele, and correspondent lisa rubin. thank you for joining us. ryan, first to you. until four years ago most americans paid little attention to the date january 6th. so what do we expect this time, both inside and outside the house? >> reporter: andrea, i think it will be somewhat of a regression to the meme, this is going to be a lot like it used to be for decades on capitol hill where the simple certification of the electoral votes that were cast is given the thumbs up by members of congress and that paves the way for the inauguration without very much

drama. in fact, inside the house and senate chambers it's going to look very much like that. it's not going to look like it was four years ago when you saw these violent rioters attacking the capitol and trying to stand in the way of the peaceful transfer of power. that's what you'll see on tv cameras. but outside of this building, in the halls of this building, you do see a much different posture than what we saw before. this is a national security event now, that means there is fencing up and around the capitol complex, not just on capitol square itself around the building, but around the house and senate office buildings as well. there is an enormous law enforcement presence. you see police officers from the capitol police, from d.c. metro police, even from the new york city department in and out of the halls of the capitol here today. and also, an increased presence of just security personnel, making sure that everyone has the appropriate credentials to be in this building on this day. despite all of that massive security presence, there isn't a real threat here today, and that's because the biggest difference between what happened

here in 2017 versus what's happening now in -- i'm sorry, in 2021 versus what's happening now in 2024, is that donald trump won this time around, he didn't lose. and there's been no effort by his supporters or anyone else to protest this election result. in fact, democrats have gone to great pains to show that they understand that they lost the election and they are not going to stand in the way of the peaceful transfer of power, much different than what we saw four years ago. meanwhile, donald trump, for his part, continues to say that he bears no responsibility for who took place here on january 6th, and has even suggested he's prepared to pardon some of the hundreds of rioters that were convicted for the role they played on that day. it's going to be much different than four years ago, but it's going to be much more like it was in the decades prior to what happened four years ago. >> this morning i spoke with former capitol police officer harry dunn, he was there on january 6th and was one of the four officers that testified to

the january 6th committee. he says he's in disbelief about where we are today. take a listen. >> just physically, mentally, ptsd, how are you doing? >> i've had a lot of time to heal, i've had a lot of people around the country, around the world, be so supportive, and i'm thankful for them. but it still tugs at my heart a little bit that we're here and donald trump is headed back to the white house. it's just unfortunate that what we went through -- i won't say it's in vain, because we protected democracy and allowed the transfer of power to happen. but not without great loss. >> he really is that tall. it's kind of humorous. it's obviously a sober moment for all of those officers, for their families. you know, daniel hodges is going to be in the gallery at adam

schiff's invitation. reflect on these attempts to rewrite the violence that happened that day. >> yeah, andrea. if it's any consolation, i'm 5'11" and even i look up to harry dunn. he's so tall. but this idea of betrayal is something that keeps coming up in conversations with some of the police officers and law enforcement officials who risked their lives on january 6th, 2021, during that attack, to protect the democratic process that makes our country really what it is. this idea of pardoning 1,600 january 6th defendants is also something that some of those involved with defending the capitol on that day are feeling really betrayed by. donald trump spent the last four years essentially rewriting the history of january 6th, and by all accounts, he has really sort of been pretty convincing with all of his supporters, hosting john eastman and a handful of

the chief architects, people who created the plan to try to stop the electoral certification at mar-a-lago over the weekend and praising them for their efforts and continuing to propagate falsehoods and criticisms of mike pence for failing to follow through with that certification. but our colleague, spencer hugh, he had an interview with capitol hill police chief on sunday on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the attack, who said that he was really against trump promising to pardon these 1,600 defendants, and he called it the wiping away of accountability for attacks against law enforcement, and this goes beyond politics at the end of the day. but it's just a negative message that is sent to police officers across the nation, that, as he said, quote, if someone doesn't think that a conviction for assault or worse against a police officer is something that should be upheld, what do we ask police officers to do every day?

so it's, i think, very -- a dramatically different day than it was four years ago, obviously much smoother, but one of introspection and sour feelings for those currently on the hill now protecting our lawmakers as they do every single day. >> and i know lawmakers and i know journalists who were in the chamber and were trapped in the chamber, and who still have -- have effects, and they're very reluctant to be here today, as a matter of fact, because it's still so raw. michael steele, donald trump is bringing groups of congressional republicans to mar-a-lago next weekend, including freedom caucus members, blue state republicans. what does this invitation list indicate to you after he played a critical role on friday during

the first roll call in cementing the speakership by such a narrow margin for mike johnson? >> yeah, i think, you know, what donald trump has been doing for quite some time now is effectively locking in his control of the republican members of congress to try to remind them that they are where they are because of him, and they will be able to stay where they are because of him. the power they have he gives to them. that's the symbolism, if you will, of what we saw just the last few days with johnson's election. every effort was made to make sure that that happened on the first ballot, and a number of us were, you know, kind of sitting there going, this is going to be a done deal on the first ballot, because you knew that trump was going to come in at that right

moment and say, okay, this is what i need to have happen. so this idea of mike johnson owing him and those members that he spoke to being cajoled or threatened or whatever happened, that's all part of the narrative. and i think when you broaden the lens out real quick, if i could, andrea, to what jackie just said, which i think was very important to not misunderstand the realities of capitol hill, this moment, but for me, a lot of this was less of, you know, looking back at history or history, you know, sort of being that placeholder, but more of what donald trump is saying and what republicans are saying, this is okay. what happened on january 6th, four years ago, was okay.

this is how we do it now. this is how the game is going to be played in order to keep power and to control power, and to make sure we get our way. everybody -- you know, all the republicans around town are giddy about today, you know, this, quote, peaceful transfer of power. why? because they won. now, if they hadn't won, what would today be like? what would we be saying in this moment? we would be probably in a very similar space to four years ago because that drum beat of control for power and retribution would have been signalled. but there's no need for that now, because everything fell in place the way we wanted it to. we're getting our way. and that's going to be something that will be interesting to watch play out, not just today with the events today, but what we've already seen, with how donald trump came in and saved mike johnson's speakership. so how do you think mike johnson is going to repay him?

>> well, that's a very good question, ashley parker, because the other piece of this is the freedom caucus and some of the others who really are not happy with mike johnson, not on a personal level the way they were unhappy with kevin mccarthy, but overspending and what happened with the debt ceiling -- not the debt ceiling -- well, yes, the debt ceiling, but more importantly, with the continuing resolution. and it's no accident that there were nine people who initially withheld their votes, three who voted for other people, six who didn't vote at all, and that was all a signal, a very strong signal, because it now will take nine to vacate the speakership. that was a signal to mike johnson, very clearly not a coincidence that they could take him down any time they want to. >> that's right. i mean, both things are true and it creates this fascinating fine

line that the speaker will have to try to walk, which on the one hand as michael steele just articulated quite well, president-elect trump has tremendous power. republicans, the entire party on the whole, is incredibly loyal to him. and even those who privately might wish he was doing different things at times, different priorities, behaving differently, are also largely fearful of him. he's shown a willingness to play in primaries and be quite effective. so through that combination of loyalty and respect and fear, right now at least, he does have the ability to largely move his party in congress where he wants it to go. the flip side is there are incredibly narrow margins for republicans in both the house and the senate, and on some issues where there is still real disagreement in a party that donald trump has essentially taken over, for instance, foreign policy and aid to

ukraine, when there are those fault lines and there's that dissent and people disagree with the president and they disagree with the speaker, there's not very much room for error at all, and that's something that obviously speaker johnson is well aware of, he's reminded of it, and he's going to have to grapple with it just about every day that he remains speaker. >> we'll have more of that in our conversation later in this program with debbie dingell on how that is going to revolve. the january 6th charges against donald trump are dismissed and he's scheduled to be sentenced in the hush money case. unsurprisingly, he's now filed an appeal to block that. so what's his argument, what's the likelihood he will be successful? >> andrea, he has two arguments, essentially. one of them is that some of the evidence that was used to convict him, he says was evidence of his official acts while he was president, and

therefore falls into that category of evidence and acts for which he can't be prosecuted, and which evidence of cannot be used in any prosecution of him. then he has the separate argument that has a matter of timing, because he's the president-elect, that the supreme court's holding should effectively be extended to this transition period and shouldn't justify the sitting presidents, but also to presidents in waiting. you asked how likely is it that trump will be able to block the sentencing scheduled for this friday, and i think on the whole, as a substantive issue, do i think he'll win the war, no. but i think he'll win the battle in terms of getting an administrative stay until he can get an argument before this new york appeals court. and that may be enough for him, because, again, as long as he can push this until after january 20th at 12:01 p.m., that's effectively a victory. that's when former president trump becomes current president trump again, and therefore has this timing-based immunity that applies to all and all

prosecutions and anything related to a prosecution during his term in office, andrea. >> thank you so much, lisa rubin, ryan nobles, ashley parker, michael steele. in 90 seconds, canada's prime minister is stepping aside, creating instability for a key u.s. ally. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. starting at just $16.99. like garlic shrimp scampi. get your shrimp on today, only at red lobster.

now to the big breaking news from canada, justin trudeau just announcing he intends to step down as party leader and as canada's prime minister. the parliament will be suspended while a new leader is chosen. >> last night over dinner, i told my kids about the decision that i'm sharing with you today. i intend to resign as party leader, as prime minister, after the party selects its next leader through a robust nationwide competitive process. >> joining me now the nbc news senior white house correspondent, kelly o'donnell. ten years ago, he was -- he had the hollywood looks, he was the prince, he came in, the son of the former prime minister, and then, with a progressive message of environmentalism, women's rights, of doing something for

the indigenous people in canada who had been so terribly treated for decades, for centuries. and then covid and inflation and immigration, all of the same problems that are bedevilling leaders around the world, including joe biden. and i guess the question was the resignation of his long-time key adviser, deputy prime minister, finance minister. but then the mocking from donald trump after he proposed the 25% tariff and then called him the governor of canada after that visit in november, that was it. >> reporter: justin trudeau has been a political star on the world stage for a long time, and certainly surpassing what we're accustomed to in our country of a president having at most eight years in office. it will be a dramatic change for the international scene and certainly for north american leadership, and it was expected

that he would seek a fourth term until recently, and part of his rationale, as he described it today, he indicated how he spoke with his children and all of that, but he also went on to say that he has come to know that with the internal struggle within the liberal party of canada, that he could not put his own name forward when there is so much internal strife about his leadership. and so he says that it is best for him to step aside and for a robust process to follow to find a new lead and certainly that will be something that will be watched closely. he was quick to race down to mar-a-lago at the invitation of the president-elect just weeks ago around the thanksgiving time to have a meeting with donald trump, with whom he had a relationship with, of course, when he was in office the first time. and the talk of tariffs, which will be an ongoing issue, and certainly the belittling, as you pointed out, of making canada

appear as if it is somehow the 51st state or should be treated in that way, fundamentally disrespectful, of course, to the people of canada and the long partnership of this continent where the american president is always typically close to the prime minister of canada and the president of mexico. so this will be a big change on the world stage, he and joe biden have enjoyed a very positive relationship. and so really a chapter closes for this white house and for the government in ottawa with justin trudeau announcing his plans today, andrea. >> kelly o'donnell, thank you. just moments ago on capitol hill, the electoral ballots were brought to the senate chamber in those historic boxes. later this hour they'll be brought to the house chamber, where later this afternoon during a joint session of congress, they'll be certified. paving the way for president-elect trump's inauguration. and later this month, of course, more on the latest from capitol hill coming up. first, a live report from

new orleans and new information about security on bourbon street and the trips that the attacker took to new orleans before new year's. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. one? don't be. you know, at verizon, we'll pay off your phone. and you'll get iphone 16 pro with apple intelligence, on us. now with genmoji. that's a value of up to eighteen hundred dollars. only on verizon.

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that's its fourth highest single day snowfall since records began back in 1888. officials there say it's going to take days to clean out the snow. right now nearly 60 million people remain under winter weather alerts, including those of us right here in washington, are bracing for anywhere between 6 and 12 inches. nbc news correspondent sam brock is with us here in snowy washington. hey, sam. you've had a cold morning. >> reporter: it's definitely a cold one. it's going to be worse in the next couple of days after this part of the system passes, andrea. as you look over my shoulder on the national mall, this is not a typical occurrence for d.c. to see this much snow. the last time we saw double digits in d.c. in a single snowfall, 2019. now, we're not there yet. it's about 6 or so inches, roughly half a foot thus far. if reagan national manages to get up to 8 inches, there will be more snow than d.c. saw all of last year. and it's also grinding things to a halt, not just legislatively,

but our own kelly o'donnell shot some video across the beltway into downtown d.c. earlier today. there's no one on the streets. it's snow and snowplows. you're seeing folks now walking around, some of them are cross-country skiing and enjoying the rarity of this occurrence. as we spread it out and look at more of the country, 11 inches in kansas city on sunday alone, their fourth highest total since 1888, but that wasn't the highest total in that area. kansas saw, chapman, kansas, 18 inches of snow. st. george at 18 inches. cameron, missouri, 13 inches. we're seeing all of this accumulation. so many states under a snow emergency that goes for arkansas, kansas, west virginia, virginia, maryland, new jersey. it's a huge swath of the country. and then back to d.c. now, there's a lot of somber notes here today, it's january 6th, it's the election certification. we're also a day away from president carter's body being brought to the capitol to lie in

repose. we did get the opportunity to speak with a couple walking along the mall to ask them about the confluence of this weather event and the milestones of today. here is what they told me. >> it's nice, actually, i woke up this morning and forgot for a second it was january 6th, and got to ski on the mall and then was reminded, of course, as congress is going in to certify the election. so i actually feel really grateful that we have this day and it's more positive this time around. >> reporter: a lot of people are sort of going to be able to reflect and spend time outside, andrea, as we know all federal offices for the most part are closed. schools from d.c. to philadelphia and pittsburgh also closed. and then what we have coming up here, temperatures that will be dipping 10 to 30 degrees below normal after the system pushes through. so that's what we're looking for in the next 48 to 72 hours

ahead, andrea. >> and we are certainly hoping we start to see the snowplows in our neighborhoods that have not shown up yet. it's at least been plowed downtown. >> reporter: i'm so sorry, andrea, the what in our neighborhoods? >> snowplows. you know, those big trucks that come and -- >> reporter: yes, so, actually, those things. i've heard of them. so we actually have seen some smaller versions on the mall itself and the larger plows have been in the streets. frankly, every 20 or 30 minutes. it just hasn't been enough to really keep the roads clear. the accumulation has been significant. now things are tapering off a little bit. >> we hope they get out to the streets where people live. thank you very much, sam brock. any moment now, president joe biden and first lady jill biden are going to be leaving the white house to go to new orleans to console the families of the 14 people who were killed and to meet with local officials and community members about the new year's terror attack. the visit comes as the fbi has

released a shocking video showing the attacker rode a bike through the french quarter wearing smart glasses that filmed the quarter as he planned his strike. meanwhile, safety concerns remain as new orleans prepares to host the upcoming super bowl and the mardi gras celebrations. the city's mayor acknowledging the new barriers that have been installed on bourbon street for the super bowl, they can, at best, stop a vehicle going only 10 miles an hour, not nearly enough, according to safety experts. nbc news correspondent jesse kirsch is live in new orleans and has been tracking all of these developments. jesse? >> reporter: andrea, what you just mentioned there from the mayor is an acknowledgment that she cannot guarantee at this point that they have enough of a safety plan in place for the upcoming super bowl. the mayor saying that she is asking the white house for help getting a tactical expert to new orleans this week to review the city's safety plan. and this is an important moment,

because we have heard from, as recently as hours after this attack, from the city, from the governor, from the police superintendent, that this city is safe, they're prepared to host big events, ready to welcome crowds. now there's this acknowledgment that they don't actually know with 100% confidence that the plan they have in place is enough. and that really stuck out to hear that from the mayor yesterday. as you mentioned, we also are learning more from federal investigators, they shared videos showing the man behind this attack riding a bicycle through the french quarter in october. that was one of two visits that authorities say he made to new orleans in the months leading up to this attack. authorities also sharing that in 2023 shamsud din jabbar made a visit to care iro, egypt, and canada. they are looking into those visits, so that is something that is also being looked at as

the investigation continues. today, as we continue to look into the accountability, not just forward looking, but if there were any potential opportunities to make changes that were missed running up to new year's day, the attorney general for the state of louisiana is now announcing that she is opening a probe into the planning around new year's eve and the sugar bowl, which was played at the super dome. so a lot of questions about what could have happened, what could have been done, and also about what needs to be done with the super bowl just weeks away, andrea. >> yes, jesse, it's really notable that the mayor is now acknowledging the security gaps, which you documented the last couple of days down there, and they're finally acknowledging what you've been reporting on. thanks for all your work. up next, i'll speak with jimmy carter biography as thousands come to the carter center over the weekend to pay their final respects to the former president. in about 30 minutes, a joint session of congress will convene in the house chambers to vert

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right now, former president jimmy carter is lying in repose at the carter center in atlanta, before his body travels to washington tomorrow. the 39th president will lie in state at the capitol rotunda on wednesday for the public to pay its respects, prior to

thursday's funeral, the national funeral at the national cathedral. all five living presidents are expected to attend, with president biden set to deliver a eulogy. the nation's longest living former president will then be buried next to rosalynn, his beloved wife of 77 years, in plains. joining us, author of his very best, jimmy carter, a life, ms contributor, jonathan alter. it's been an extraordinary couple of days, and now a return to washington. it's quite befitting that the president's funeral procession began in plains. how did this rural georgia community help shape jimmy carter's life? we saw the farm, which was extraordinary, the ringing of his bell that would awaken him every morning. as you described it, i think it was a sears roebuck craft house. >> that bell which we heard rung 39 times to commemorate the 39th

president, it rang an hour before daylight, so every morning when he was growing up, the bell would be rung by the black foreman of the carter farm, and jimmy carter would get up and start working an hour before daylight. so i think to the question of what did he learn in that community, first, i would say hard work. being a farmer is very, very hard work, especially since they had no mechanized farm equipment in the 1920s and '30s. he also had no running water or electricity in his home. so you're talking about an astonishing american journey, an epic american story, to go from barefoot boy to global

humanitarian icon. and i don't think that any other american life really compares to this. in many ways he lived in three centuries. the town he grew up in might as well have been the 19th century. of course, he was part of all the great movements and was president of the 20th century. and the carter center has been on the cutting edge of global health and conflict resolution, democracy promotion, the big issues of the 21st century. it's not just that he lived 100 years, it's that he crammed a dozen lives into those 100 years. he had an astonishing array of skills. only 12 of those years, andrea were in public office, four as georgia state senator, four as

governor of georgia, and four as president. but when you think of what he did in those other years of his life, i think the tributes are just scratching the surface so far of his immense contributions to helping other people. >> you know, it is astonishing. you think how that transition began from the farm boy helping his father, a very strict parent, and came really from another century because he was a segregationist -- >> yes. >> -- and then going to be a nuclear engineer, trained in annapolis, and speaking up for the one black midshipman, and so his intellectual and emotional change was so profound. >> well, that had to do, i think, with -- he really had three parents. so his father was a white supremacist, no getting around that. his mother, miss lillian, who

was famous when he was president for going on johnny carson and cracking everybody up, she was the only person who had anything nice to say about abraham lincoln in all of southwest georgia. she was a liberal who took care of black patients for free as a nurse, and then he really had a third parent, a woman named rachel clark, an illiterate black woman farmhand, who gave him much of his love of nature. he became, arguably, our greatest environmental president, doubling the size of the national park system, signing 15 important pieces of environmental legislation, talking for the first time anywhere in the world, any leader talking about global warming. i think people know about the solar panels on the roof of the white house. so much of that love of nature came from rachel clark, and, of course, his deep faith. and much of that also came from

this illiterate woman farmhand, at whose grave jimmy carter wept when he would visit it on occasion. so this is a really astonishing story, and i think carter is arguably the most misunderstood of all of our presidents. i'm not suggesting that he belongs on mount rushmore, but the easy shorthand, mediocre president, great former president, doesn't do justice to the complexity and to how much he accomplished. he was a political failure, but a visionary success. >> you have done so much to help restore our understanding, expanding the national parks more than any other president. but we have a lot more to talk about as the week progresses. thank you, jonathan. >> thank you so much. >> appreciate it. and right now, vice

president kamala harris is en route to capitol hill as congress prepares to certify the 2024 presidential election and republican majority to take control on both sides of the capitol. we'll be joined by democratic congressman debbie dingell. this is "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. the best way. client: is it? at schwab, how i choose to invest is up to me. driver: exactly! i can invest and trade on my own... client: yes, and let them manage some investments for me too. let's move on, shall we? no can do. client: i'll get out here. where are you going?? schwab. schwab! schwab. a modern approach to wealth management. (vo 1) when you really philosophize about it, there's one thing you don't have enough of, and that's time. time is a truly scarce commodity. when you come to that realization, i think it's very important to spend time wisely.

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always dry scoop before you run. listen to me, the hot dog diet got me shredded. it's time we listen to science. one a day is formulated with key nutrients to support whole body health. one a day. science that matters. the 119th congress is slated to convene to begin the legally required process of certifying the ballots to confirm president-elect trump's election victory. just a few moments ago, house speaker mike johnson spoke about what the certification means for the country. >> this is a great day for the country. we're going to certify the election of donald j. trump as the 47th president. that's our focus today. stay tuned for the rest. >> the and joining me now is democratic congresswoman-elect debbie dingell of michigan. thank you very much for being with us. let's talk about -- and you've

been sworn in, have you not? >> yes, we have. we got sworn in on friday. >> so you are not a congresswoman-elect. you are a congress member. >> and was on friday, too. >> a voting member of congress. so let's talk about the certification, which will be peaceful, and as joe biden had to as vice president, and al gore before him, kamala harris will have, for her, the painful duty of certifying the results of a man who defeated her. >> that's what you're going to see. but what you're going to see today is democrats are not election deniers. you know, as i walk around these halls today, and i look at the men and women of law enforcement that worked to keep us safe four years ago, 140 of them were injured, some were killed, our democracy sometimes is more fragile than people realize. we did survive what happened four years ago and democrats are committed to a smooth transition from the president on down, and

that's what you will see on the floor of the house as we have the joint session. >> and whatever is going to take place today right afterwards, mike johnson is planning, according to mr. trump, to try to pass a single reconciliation bill in the coming weeks. that would address all of his priorities, border security, energy, an extension of the 2014 tax law that equals one big, beautiful bill. how is this going to pass without democratic votes, or is it going to get democratic votes? >> it is highly unlikely. i mean, we haven't seen the bill, so i'm not into talking about theoretical. but i think it's going to be a real challenge. the republican caucus is not united in the way democrats have been so far. there will be different things in that reconciliation bill that different people want to see. but we really need to see what it looks like. everybody says, you don't even know what you're voting on. i'm one of those democrats, and i think a lot of my colleagues are people that want to see

exactly what's going to be in it. but the list that he's talking about is going to be very hard to get democrats to support. there are pieces in there that we want to support, but let's see what the bill actually looks like. and speaker johnson is going to have a hard time finding a majority in his caucus on some of these issues. >> now, president trump is also talking about pardoning many of the january 6th rioters. how do you feel about that? that's his right. i mean, presidents have sole pardoning authority. >> you know, i have very mixed feelings. well, i don't have mixed feelings. i will not forget january 6th, because people died and i was scared that day. i was scared. but what i hope is that he does not pardon anybody who attacked a law enforcement officer. he says that that's important to him in other pieces of legislation. i hope he walks his talk. we'll see who he is that he's

going to pardon. we'll see how many. but i hope -- what i worry about is no american forget what happened at the capitol four years ago on january 6th. they never take our democracy for granted. it withstood, it's strong, we're here today. we will see a peaceful transition. i respect the office of the presidency. so let's see where this goes. but i sincerely hope that any person that attacked a law enforcement officer or contributed to their murder is not somebody that's pardoned. >> and very briefly, finally, nancy pelosi flew back just to be there for the roll call. every vote was needed for the 2015 votes on the democratic side. but how is she doing? she's had hip surgery, she's certainly not wearing her, you know, famous high heels anymore, as she's recovering. >> nancy pelosi is a tough woman, as we all know, and

proud. she got herself in there, she wouldn't -- i was in a wheelchair a couple weeks out of surgery. she was not going to do that. she was going to do her job. look, she's healing, but she is one tough lady who showed up and will keep showing up. >> and we'll always remember her on january 6th and what she did. >> correct, correct. >> thank you very much. congresswoman debbie dingell. next, a closer look at the security surrounding the u.s. capitol today. you can see that's a live picture minutes before the joint congress certifying the 2024 election results. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. c. chris! jason! boop! friends. let's go, let's go, friends! hold onto your dice. woohoo!! -nice frosting, pratt. -thank you! how we doin', keke? tastes like money to me. i can't go back to jail!

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in just a few moments you're going to see, as you see people in statuary hall, senators walking across, a joint session of congress will convene in the

house chambers to begin the task of counting electoral ballots and certifying the 2024 presidential election. four years after thousands of rioters stormed the capitol in those corridors, as congress met to certify the 2020 election, there's a massive security presence in place on capitol hill. windows and doors have been replaced, temporary fencing around the capitol grounds, including all the house and senate office buildings. joining me now is former chief of homeland security and intelligence for the district of colombia. a lot has changed. i think the head of the capitol police has powers to get the national guard in on his own or get help on his own. we don't have to go through the bureaucracy of getting the army's approval. so they feel very secure and there's certainly no threat from democrats or anybody objecting to this process as we watch the senators crossing over.

donell? >> this is a huge difference between now and what we saw four years ago. four years ago we saw thousands of trump supporters descend upon the capitol, and in pretty short order violently storm the capitol. subsequently, over the last four years, we've had the whitewashing of that event, just as your previous guest was talking about, the congresswoman. and so we've gone from these individuals being insurrectionists to now them being political prisoners, or even patriots. that day was called -- >> let me interrupt you because the session has just gavelled in and we want to carry it live. so watch along with me. [ applause ]

>> as we see -- i think we saw some of the ballot boxes there that are still in the house chamber. those look like the formal ballot boxes. i'm not sure. we'll check that out. ballot boxes. we will check that out. as you saw the senators walkling in, we see on the podium, vice president harris and mike johnson, the speaker who just won by bare majority on friday in the first vote call.

they just shook hands. so let's stay with this while we watch senators coming in taking seats. and whatna is going to take plae is during this joint session, they will of course have an opportunity for people to object but there is a new election count law that rules committee ranking member and the rules committee chair helped shepherd through, that is amy klobuchar on the democrat side. she k was in charge of the rules committee previously. and klobuchar is new rules and the new election count rules do not permit debate unless there is a widespread agreement on anyone challenging. let me turn this over to chris jansing who is going to pick up

coverage of the certification of the vote. >> thank you so much. i'm live from msnbc headquarters. we are witnessing something that is extraordinary, tha peaceful transfer of power, a stark contrast to four years ago when a mob stormed the capitol fuelled by donald trump's false claims that the election had been stolen. now we are looking at vice president kamala harris who hoped that this day would be about certifying her election but she will momentarily preside over her own election defeat and a second term in office for donald trump. she has called this moment a a sacred obligation. she put out a recorded messagere committing to the peaceful transfer of power that we did not see of course four years ago. president bidenrs also warne