marine and businessman paul whelan is now calling him a hostage. ly says feeds russian propaganda. paul's sister elizabeth whelan is here in washington to keep pressure on the biden administration and congress to secure paul's release. and elizabeth whelan joins me here right now, and it is so good. we've talked on the phone. i've talked to your other brother, david. but it's so good to see you and to find out what you know about paul's condition. >> well, i think that he is -- i would say he's hanging in there as best as he possibly can. we finally saw him a few weeks ago in a russian propaganda video that was placed, and we were really surprised to see how good he looked considering, and he sent the message back through my parents for me to tell basically the american public that it's thanks to them helping with his go fund me that he is actually doing well. that money goes via the u.s. embassy in moscow to paul for good food and vitamins and that sort of thing to keep him going. but he shouldn't be in that prison in the first place. it's been alm

i discussed paul whelan who russia has been holding in the prison and russia is holding our ukrainian citizens. when with the leaded states get engaged into the discussion of overturning ukrainian citizens. >> thank you very much. first let me say that for me the well-being of the united states and americans everywhere and particularly overseas is my number one responsibility, and that very much goes to americans being unjustly detained, including paul whelan. we are focused every day on trying to bring them and other americans home. when it comes to ukrainians who were being detained, civilians as you heard dmitro refer to as well as prisoners of war, of course, ukraine has been in the lead on seeking to secure their freedom, but if there are any ways we can support that effort and help that effort, of course we will do it. >> next one goes to jennifer. >> thank you so much for doing this. mr. secretary, yesterday russia and saudi arabia announced they would continue voluntary oil production cuts, and that has seen a surge in oil prices. are you concerned this will have an impact on

they view paul whelan, in our view wrongly, as ans asset of te u.s. intelligence community.governor richardson will be sorely missed in these efforts, because if anybody could work these kinds of issues and bring people out of these bad situations, it was him. >> cedric leighton, colonel, we appreciate you being with us today. if you are just joining us, former new mexico governor bill richardson has died at the age of 75. much more coverage here on cnn. listerine is 5x more effffective than floss at reducing plaque above the gumlmline. for a cleaner, healthier r mouth. ahhhhh. listerine. feel the whoa! right now get a free footlong at subway. like the subway series menu. buy one footlong in the app, get one free. for freeee. that's what i'm talking out. order in the subway app today. when migraine strikes. are the tradeoff of treating worth it? ubrelvy is another option. it quickly stops migraine in its tracks. do not take with strong cyp3a4 inhibitors. allergic reactions to ubrelvy can happen. most common side effects were nausea and sleepiness. ask about ubrelvy. it's eas

paul whelan is serving a 16-year sentence on similar charges. forces in azerbaijan fired on armenian military positions today, killing at least five civilians and wounding scores more. the shelling happened in the long disputed nagorno-karabakh region that's under ethnic armenian control. azerbaijan's defense ministry released video of today's strakes. -- strikes. they called it an "anti-terrorist operation" launched after a land mine killed several soldiers and civilians. india expelled a senior canadian diplomat today, hours after canada did the same to an indian diplomat. the dueling dismissals come amid allegations that indian agents murdered hardeep singh nijjar in vancouver back in june. he was a canadian citizen and leading advocate for sikh independence. india has called the claims absurd, but canada's prime minister justin trudeau defended his decision to investigate. >> we are not looking to provoke or escalate. we are simply laying out the facts as we understand them. canadians have a right to know and need to know when things are goi

paul whelan, as well, a former marine, being accused, convicted of espionage in this country.r a serious offer as the biden administration framed it to get those two men out of russian prisons has not been responded to effectively by the russians. so this is an ongoing saga which we will be covering closely. >> matthew chance, thank you to you and your team, as we saw you get in there, try to ask the important questions facing a lot of opposition, obviously. remarkable to see. appreciate that that. >>> president biden will different a foreign policy speech at the united nations general assembly. he will promote his administration's achievements around the globe and call for more international support for ukraine. several key heads of state will be absent. concerns increasing about what the u.n. can hope to achieve. kayla, who was at the table with us earlier, outside the u.n. that's the question, right? what do these words actually mean? what action, if any, do they result in? what's the goal? >> reporter: well, the goal is to get some sort of unity among like-minded nations t

so we now have to get paul whelan out. the inside stuff, i can't get too much into it, but we were hoping for a two for two, paul whelan and britney for boot and another russian. but at the end, i think the geopolitical differences, the bad relationship between russia and the united states, russia said we'll do one for one. i think the president was right to go ahead with britney griner, get her home to her family, to her father, to her wife, who i'd been talking to constantly. >> actually, that was a clip from your december interview. wolf, the question remains. you've interviewed him multiple times. what can you tell us and our viewers about how the governor will be remembered and his legacy? >> well, i think it will be very, very positive, because he really did amazing work, not just as a congressman and governor of new mexico, but as the united states ambassador to the united nations. i had a real opportunity to cover him over the years. in t2010, i went with him to north korea. he was working to get six americans out

marine paul whelan for five years on similar charges. his sister elizabeth joins us in studio.. and we try to keep a light on this case. you requested a meeting with president biden this week but you did meet with congress and u.s. officials. do you feel any more hopeful for your brother's release after the meetings. >> i try to keep a sense of hope all of the time. my concern has been that this entire effort to get paul home has been moving at a glacial speed, the speed of bureaucracy and not during the speed of hostage taking. in almost five years we've seen two other people arrested and release so i need to come down to make sure that paul will be coming home in the near furture as well. >> do you think it hurts that evan grer sh cove itch. >> i think it is helpful because it helps people around world not just in america understand the vile nature of tate sponsored hostage taking. you told my colleague this week you were relieved when you saw the video of paul, first video of him in years, from inside the prison saying he -- there he is -- looks like himself, you said. that

so if you look at my case as one example, the russians took paul whelan hostage. states asked hem to release him, they immediately asked for concessions to make an exchange to get something in exchange for paul, and the united states refused to negotiate with them, which is what a lot of people are saying, well, if you negotiate with them, then there's no reason why they should take americans hostage. so the united states did not negotiate. they refused to negotiate to bring paul whelan home, and after that, the russians took me hostage. at that point the u.s. government also refused to negotiate to get me home. and after that, they gave brittney griner a hugely disproportionate sentence, which was completely political. so if you just look at that one example, i think you can see anyone that is reasonable can see that your refusing to negotiate with these governments does not guarantee that they're not going to take other hostages. and any of those governments that are already taking americans hostage, they don't need an incentive to take americans hostage. they're

citizen paul whelan. not stop until they are home. i want to take a minute to echo the president's sentiments on senator feinstein. she was a history-making trailblazer who dedicated her life to the people of california tore over a century from the city of san francisco to the and she turned it into purpose to benefit the lives of all americans. as the president said he had his own close relationship with the senator forged over 15 years together in the senate and she was a cherished friend. and before i turn it over to our guest, i wanted to make one more thing very clear which we have been doing as an administration, now as you know, extreme house republicans are solely, solely to blame for marching us towards a shutdown. that is what we are seeing right now. it is a basic fact and you have reported. i know you love i quote folks, so here we go. politico wrote, speaker kevin mccarthy's choice to go back on the deal with the president is about to plunge the federal government into chaos. punch bowl says, and i quote, mccarthy is the

elizabeth whelan's brother paul is certaining a 16-year sentence in russia for espionage. she last spoke with biden a year ago, just months before another unlawfully detained american was released in a prisoner swap, who was brittney griner who was swapped with viktor bout. >> because i feel bad or sorry for any person who's going to be used as a pawn, whether they committed something or not. >> well, of course, paul whelan has not committed any sort of a crime, but, nonetheless, years in russian prison in a penal colony. we're going to be speaking to his sister in a moment. but first i want to go straight to our will ripley who has covered kim jong un extensively. and, will, i know you've got some breaking news. >> reporter: yeah. we've just learned via kcna out of pyongyang that kim jong un invited vladimir putin to pyongyang, the north korean capital. putin apparently accepted the invitation. they haven't set a date for when he's going to go there. also learning that kim jong un has now said good-bye to president putin and he's heading to another destination, unknown. i

it is unacceptable that evan gershkovitch and paul whelan are still languish in prison.sian prisons on charges that are baseless. russian authorities have not provided any evidence to support the espionage charges against gershevitch. paul whelan, an american convicted of espionage in 2020, is currently in a russian penal colony serving a 16 year term. five former american hostages were reunited with their family and friends earlier today after landing on us soil and they were released as part of a controversial deal between the us and iran. we get more this afternoon from fox's rebecca castor. a morning of celebration and tearful reunions when the plane carrying five former iran hostages made it to the us. it's an honor to be the first to welcome you back to the united states of america and to freedom. it's a moment one of them, siamak namazi, could only dream of while he spent nearly eight years in an iran prison. in a statement, he says he's excited to get to know his niece and nephew, be outside in nature and visit the apple store to check out the latest iphone. than

ambassador to russia lynne tracy called it unacceptable that he and fellow prisoner paul whelan remain detained on baseless charges, saying the u.s. will not rest until they are home safe >>> in a new court filing, lawyers for hunter biden say he will plead not guilty to felony gun charges. he was indicted last week on three counts the filing also requests that his arraignment be held virtually. attorney abe lowell wrote in the filing that biden is not seeking special treatment and wants to minimize the burden on government resources an in-person appearance would require. a date for the arraignment has not been set >>> senator tommy tuberville is planning a one-time work around on his own hold on military nominations. later today, the republican from alabama will attempt to force a floor vote to confirm the new calm dau commandant for the marine courp. chuck schumer has refused to put individual military nominees on the floor. arguing that it could set a damaging precedent for the chamber. >>> a mexican transportation company says it is halting service on some trains due to the ongoing

marine paul whelan also being held in russia on espionage charges. the russian court gave him a 16-year sentence. the u.s. says whelan has also been wrongfully detained. >>> i want to bring you some breaking news just into our newsroom. nbc bay area's skyranger over the scene of a car accident. it actually led to a fire. you see fire crews there on the scene. they had to put out this fire. this is on 580 in oakland, eastbound lanes. you can see they clearly remain closed. no doubt there will be a backup on the westbound lanes as well as people stop to look and see what has happened. this all happened near the 35th avenue exit. we don't know of any injuries at this time. but we can see the skid marks there on the road of the accident as well. we'll continue to monitor. >>> in other news, president biden speaking at united nations this morning asking the free world to keep supporting and supplying ukraine. >> scott mcgrew says the president's appeal came as some leaders skipped the meeting. >> that's right. it was not surprising that russian leader vla

paul whelan certainly is near the top of that list of many americans who are being held in countrieshe house and senate that would make sure that when americans return from captivity, they don't face unjust fines and fees from the irs for a failure to pay their taxes while they were imprisoned. that actually happened to "washington post" journalist who, when he returned after more than a year in iranian prison, faced tens of thousands of dollars of irs fines and fees. it seems unimaginable that that's the actual practice, and it requires a change to law for us to make sure that hostages who are returned don't face that. we also have a bipartisan bill to create a national day and flag remembering those americans being held overseas unjustly that has passed the senate and we hope will pass the house later this year. >> senator coons, good morning. jonathan lemire. that certainly seems like common sense legislation, to not make people who are imprisoned overseas have to come back and pay and face fines for unpaid taxes. want to talk to you about where things stand with ukraine's counter

you mentioned elizabeth whelan, paul's sister, that you spoke with her. complementary of all the work that you and your team have done. but she does have frustration with some parts of this. she didn't get a chance to meet with president biden last week. he didn't have time while she was in washington. and she talked about that. she was very gracious. but she was frustrated. and here's what she said, roger. >> i'm a little frustrated and trying not to be depressed. i don't have a lot of leverage to use to get meetings like that. i'm not a big media company. i don't have a lot of expensive lawyers. i don't have a sports team. and, so, it's easy to wave off someone like me. but i'm going to keep fighting for my brother regardless. >> what do you say to her, roger? >> i talk to elizabeth all the time. i think my office speaks to her pretty much daily. when we talk with elizabeth, we're open and honest on both sides. what i would say to elizabeth if she were here now, i'd say that we are working hard on this. but more importantly you don't have to be famous t

there are other americans being held elsewhere such as in russia, evan gershkovich, paul whelan, whoe clock to bring home as well. >> it tells us something important about regimes like iran and russia however much they swagger and use means to display themselves as if though they have weight and are rich and powerful, they effectively have to resort to these criminal desperate tactics of taking hostages, preferably american hostages whenever they can in order to try to get concessions out of us and out of other countries. is -- is there some sort of regime that the united states could lead, some sort of compact the united states could lead to further disincentivize rogue countries like that from plucking off individual americans for this type of reason? >>ia know we certainly work in the united nations with our partners, with other allies to make it as difficult as possible for these countries, to hold them accountable at every opportunity we can hold them accountable in every forum where we can call them out for their bad deeds. this is something that is a core value for us in worki

his remarks come as paul whelan remains wrongfully detained in russia. rks one year since his family met with president biden to try to bring him home. senior correspondent rich edson live with the latest. hi, rich. >> now paul whalen's sister is in washington again securing another meeting with president biden to bring her brother home after nearly five years as a russian hospital. she is pushing to meet with the president this week. it appears she will meet with white house officials and members of congress ahead of one of her congressional meetings she told us she was struck by f.b.i. director christopher wray admitting last week that the russian spy presence in the united states is still way too big. >> that took me by surprise because i would think if there were russians here spying, wouldn't that be a great idea to arrest one of those guys and trade them for paul? i have questions when i meet with people at the nfc to find out what's going on. >> the russian government is hostage taking and distorting the system in order to coerce the u.s. governmen

today, the us ambassador to russia met with american paul whelan at a penal colony where he is being held. the us says he was wrongly convicted of spying by russia and it has been six months since wall street journal reporter evan gershkovitch was taken into custody in russia, accused of trying to obtain classified information. fox news seb cotton has the latest on efforts to free the two men. no family should have to watch their loved one being used as a political pawn. the biden administra nation making a big new push for the release of an american journalist they say is being wrongfully imprisoned overseas. wall street journal reporter evan gershkovitch was detained in russia about six months ago. since then, he's been held in a russian jail accused of spying for the us government. his family joined the us ambassador to the un on wednesday, urging world leaders to help secure his release. if this can happen to my brother, it can happen to any journalist trying to report the news. we just want evan home. gershkovitch's mother says he's holding up and staying strong despite the cond

marine veteran paul whelan, if the u.s. ever wants any of those people back, the kremlin is now signaling that they want some kind of trade that will give them back the swing set mountain bike assassin from berlin. they want their russian special forces fsb hit man out of prison in germany. not because he didn't assassinate a guy in broad a daylight in a public park in germany, but because they asked him to do it. he was just doing his job for the russian government, and now they would like him back. so they'll take american t hostages in order to get him back. it's not even like dealing withe a country. it's like dealing with a drug gang, like a cartel or some sadistic low level mob boss. right? l this is how they do things. we've got the berlin assassin from 2019 back in the news right now because maybe russia wants to trade him for the american reporter they took hostage in march. somebody end up with cement shoes here? somebody going to be swimming with the fishes? right?is are we checking each other for k switch blades

from iraq to north korea, most recently traveling to russia working to free britney greener and paul whelanrichardson died in his sleep at his summer home. >>> joining me, david sanger, cnn political and national security analyst, white house and national security correspondent for "the new york times." such sad news to digest for so many. this man's resume was long, and yet it really doesn't begin to reflect, i think, the profound depth of his career and, more importantly, the character of the man. how and why was bill richardson such a singular politician and such a diplomat? >> i think what was remarkable about bill richardson is two things. first, he held a variety, a remarkable variety of positions in government. of course, he was governor of new mexico. he was ambassador to the united nations. he was energy secretary. he was briefly and somewhat disastrously a candidate for president of the united states and dropped out. but he's really remembered for something that he did outside of all of those appointments, and that was his brilliance at hostage negotiating. and he did it with this

citizens, particularly paul whelan, also held for espionage. the u.s. ambassador said that.urt, after the hearing ended, and made her point again that this was fundamentally wrong that evan gershkovich, who she denies -- the american government denies he engaged in any espionage on their behalf. she pointed out again how fundamentally wrong it is that he is being held by the russians. take a listen. >> evan is fully aware of the gravity of his situation. yet, he remains remarkably strong. true to his profession, evan is always eager to discuss the lailaid e -- latest headlines. he knew his parents delivered a petition to the u.n. last week, petition that calls on the u.n. to make clear that he has been arbitrary detained and to push for his immediate release. >> reporter: the ambassador went on to say journalism is not a crime. of course, sometimes in russia, it feels a bit like it is. >> matthew chance, thank you. >>> more fallout for russell brand as he faces multiple sex abuse allegations and denies any wrongdoing. important things aren't worth compromising. at farmers, w

so the united states did not negotiate, they refused to negotiate to bring paul whelan home.the u.s. government also refused to negotiate too get me home, and after that they gave britney griner a hugely disproportionate sentence, which was completely political. so, if you just look at that one example, i think you can see anyone that is reasonable can see that refusing to negotiate with these governments does not guarantee that they're not going to take other hostages. and any of those governments that are already taking americans hostage, they don't need an incentive to take americans hostage. we are going to continue to do that. their incentive for taking americans hostage is that there are americans, and they can show that to their own citizens. that they've done, that they cited the u.s., they've embarrassed us, and the united states can't do anything about it. that's enough for them. they don't need material concessions, a hostage, money, if they can get those things, they will try to do that. but that's not going to stop them from continuing to take hostages. >> you al

paul whelan as well. why do you believe you would be better at handling these sensitive and complex issues than some of the people running against you, former president, former vice president, former ambassador to the united nations, those who have dealt with those kinds of issues before? >> look, first off, the former president has showed himself to be someone who, in this iteration of his political career, cares only about himself and more of his statements today just prove that. he puts himself before he puts any of the american people. so, i think he'd be off the list. and let's face it, the former vice president and the former u.n. ambassador had no experience doing this as well. i spent seven years as a prosecutor, and in that job, i had to get involved in negotiations with a lot of criminals, a lot of folks who were committing crimes, and trying to resolve those issues using law enforcement and using intelligence capabilities. oouf done that before as the united states attorney in the fifth largest

i'll share with you, when lavrov was there when we had the last meeting on ukraine, and i had paul whelan'she room, and i asked her to stand up. and i said, i want lavrov to see what's in your eyes. i was looking at him. i was -- sorry, i was looking at her. i was not looking at him. but when i talked to her later, she said he raised his head and looked at her. he heard exactly what i said. >> ambassador, thank you for coming the in and joining us on this very busy week for you. >> thank you so much. delighted to be here with you. >>> also tonight, conspiracy theorist and protrump lawyer lynne wood now denying he has, quote, flipped on the ex-president, after it is revealed he is witness for the prosecution in the state of georgia. that drama ahead. r the hottest stocks? (fisher investments) nope. we use diversified stratetegies to position our clients' portfolios for their long-term goals. (other money manager) but yoyou still sell investmens that generate high commissions for you, right? (fisher investments) no, we don't sell commission products. we're a fiduciary, obligated to act in our

. >>> and the family imprisoned in russia with a new push to the white house to try to get paul whelan home. >>> and nasa is set to speak about at the new report about ufos and how the government will study sightings in the future. i'm sara sidner with john berman. kate bolduan is on assignment. this is cnn "news central." >>> all right. breaking news out of fulton county, georgia. and by the way, you are looking at live pictures from inside of the courtroom before judge george mcafee and the subversion court case. and now, two of the defendants are about to appear before the judge. you are seeing the live pictures there before our eyes, but donald trump and the rest of the co-defendants will be tried separately and later. we will get to zach cohen, and the details of what we are learning so far, zach. >> yeah, john, the top line is that donald trump will not be starting his trial in georgia in five weeks alongside at least two of the co-defendants sidney powell and ken chesebro and trump and two others who said they don't want a speedy trial, and the judge said they can prolong it out

but i'll share with you, when lavrov was there, when we had the last meeting on ukraine, i had paul whelan's i said, i want lavrov to see what's in your eyes. i was looking at him. sorry, i was looking at her. i was not looking at him. but when i talked to her later, she said he raised his head and he looked at her. he heard exactly what i said. >> that's a powerful moment. ambassador, thank you for coming in, and for joining us on this very busy week. >> thank you so much. delighted to be here with you. >> also tonight, conspiracy theorist and pro trump lawyer, lin wood, now denying that he is a, quote, flipped on the ex president, after he was revealed he's now a witness for the prosecution in the state of georgia. that drama ahead. moderate to severe eczema still disrupts my skin. despite treatment it disrupts my skin with itch. it disrupts my skin with rash. but now, i can disrupt eczema with rinvoq. rinvoq is not a steroid, topical, or injection. it's one pill, once a day. many taking rinvoq saw clear or almost-clear skin while some saw up to 100% clear skin. and, they felt dramatic and

russia last year to discuss the release of basketball star brittney griner and former us marine paul whelandson died in his sleep at his summer home in massachusetts. assets sag after while already on strike with film and tv studios may strike against video game companies to the union announced it will vote on a possible second strike ahead of negotiations that are scheduled to resume later this month. they also say talks reached a stalemate and the union must continue to advocate for pay raises and protection from i sag is asking for an 11% retroactive pay bump for video game performers and a three year contract. sag-aftra also represents tv news anchors and reporters, including us. we'll take you outside for a live look at sfo this morning, where come monday, millions of americans will be on the move again. the tsa saying that an estimated 2.7 million travelers were screened on friday and another 2.5 million are expected today. and for those opting to drive, expect highways to be packed on monday for the return home. triple a says to hit the road after 7 p.m. to avoid the worst of the tra

russia last year to discuss the release of basketball star brittney griner and former us marine paul whelan. richardson died in his sleep at his summer home in massachusetts. singer jimmy buffett, who inspired millions of parrotheads with hits like cheeseburger in paradise and margaritaville, has died. but his music and his legacy will live on. the 76 year old built up a huge following with his laid back island influenced style that he would later turn into a business empire. here's abc's whit johnson with a look back at his career and honey i didn't know. that i'd be missing you so come on day it'll be all right. >> this morning the world's celebrating the life and music of jimmy buffett with sting away again in margaritaville. searching for my lost shaker song. >> a gulf coast native and avid sailor buffett alongside his coral reefer band, became a symbol of island escape ism. the pain. but i think there is no about as far. he began his music career as a country singer in nashville, but soon established his easygoing beach bum persona with tropical hits like margaritaville and cheeseburge

russia last year to discuss the release of basketball star brittney griner and former us marine paul whelan . richardson died in his sleep at his summer home in massachusetts. sag-aftra while already on strike with film and tv, studios, may strike against video game companies, too. the union announced it will vote on a possible second strike ahead of negotiations that are scheduled to resume later this month. they also say talks reached a stalemate and the union must continue to advocate for pay raises and protection from i sag-aftra is asking for an 11% retroactive pay bump for video game performers and a three year contract sag also represents tv news anchors and reporters, including us is what we want to take you to a live look at sfo this morning where come monday, millions of americans will be on the move again. the tsa saying that an estimated 2.7 million travelers were screened on friday and another 2.5 million are expected today. and for those opting to drive, expect highways to be packed on monday for the return home. triple a says to hit the road after 7 p.m. to avoid the worst of

we still have evan gershkovich, paul whelan, potentially others in their custody, and we're talk aboutith the u.s. right now in terms of these dynamics and diplomacy. what do you think the message is if you are russia and you're watching this? >> yes, russia is absolutely watching what's going on, and they -- it's very clear that they've increased their efforts to take innocent americans for potential bargaining chips as the ukraine war unfolds, and when they have now, for example, they have delayed the pretrial detention of evan gershkovich, right now his trial is due for november 30th. the reason is because it's arbitrary. it has nothing to do with him or with -- or the actual charges he's facing. it has to do with negotiating with the united states making things more emotional, making things more difficult, dragging it out, showing that, again, they don't play by the same rules. they have no problem hanging on to him. when they see what could be possible, they could get more prisoners, high stakes prisoners. they could get perhaps some kind of access to frozen funds, which there are

they are also press aring for freedom for fellow american detainee paul whelan.ld is urging member states to join the call for their release. well, it's the end of the line for the pennsylvania fugitive, the harrowing story of his capture is next at least 56 people are dead in an apartment fire in vietnam's capital the building's location at the end of a alley made rescue operations difficult. first responders working around the clock trying to dig through the wreckage from last friday's devastating earthquake. authorities report more than 2900 deaths so far. morocco has limited the amount of aid allowed into the country to just four countries, spain, the united kingdom, the united arab emirates and qatar along with nongovernmental organizations. >> this is a live look at london. one of the big stories there tonight britain prince harry and wife meghan attending the invictus games. they were seen in the stands as they watched a wheelchair basketball game. prince harry opened the game saturday. he founded the competition for wounded, injured and ill service person

we're making diplomatic moves to move this forward on paul whelan's case. go to talk to him yesterday. the president is dead serious about trying to find ways to bring all of these americans home. under the biden administration, we've now brought over 35 americans home over just a 2 1/2 year period. the president is intent upon making the hard decisions required to bring people home to this country. >> you jumped to my next question, which was about evan gershkovich. there was news today that his demand to be released during this pretrial detention period was rejected again today. roger carsons, thank uhs for being with us this morning. >> thank you very much. >>> we're two minutes into the fourth hour of "morning joe." 6:00 a.m. on the west coast, 9:00 a.m. on the east coast. in one of his strongest rebukes of the republican frontrunner yet, president joe biden told a crowded broadway theater in new york city last night that he was running for reelection because donald trump was determined to destroy the nation. democracy is at stake, he told the audience a

the first time, of course, was when we traded victor boot but didn't also get paul whelan home and henlawful custody in russia. and this deal, i think, is even worse. iran is, of course, a state sponsor of terrorism. and they have a relationship to al qaeda, they fund hezbollah and hamas and they are targeting former u.s. government officials inside the united states and europe, if they are in europe, for some sort of retribution for donald trump's actions when he was president of the united states. and also, bill, the equivalence of this, these americans who i'm glad are coming home, are inn innocents, we, the biden administration, is sending back to iran foreign agents involved in the theft of super computer data for iran, cruise missile programs and on and on and on. so we're swapping good people for illegal foreign agents. i think the deal wreaks. i think congress ought to look very closely into the circumstances. >> dana: two questions, michael. what about the two iranians who say they want to stay in america because they like their life here? and the second one, could you tell u

citizens, particularly paul whelan, also held for espionage. and, -- the u.s.court down the steps outside the courthouse, after the hearing ended. and, she made her point, again, that this was fundamentally wrong, that evan gershkovich, she denies, and the american government deny that he engaged in any kind of espionage on their behalf. and she pointed out again, how fundamentally wrong it is that he is being held by the russians. take a listen. >> evan is fully aware of the gravity of his situation. and yet, he remains strong. true to his profession, evan is always eager to discuss the latest headlines. he knew, for example, that his parents had delivered a petition to the united nations last week, a petition that calls on the u. n. to make clear that he has been arbitrarily detained, and to push for his immediate release. >> well, ambassador tracy went on to say that journalism is not a crime. but of course you know, sometimes in russia it feels a bit like it is. >> matthew chance, thank you. coming up next, more fallout for comedian and youtuber russell bra

i would like paul whelan home from russia. what you do now to get them back will indicate the chances of this happening again. >> lawrence: what does it do to empower them, as to your point, to kidnap more americans, brian. >> brian: right. >> lawrence: i think the non-preparation from the white house is the most concerning thing. did they brief members of congress on this? it's been bipartisan condemnation in the sense of, look, we want our americans home. but, what does this do to empower the number one state sponsor of terrorism? and i think that kinds of gets buried amongst us celebrating our americans coming back home. >> ainsley: we also have the "wall street journal" reporter over in russia. we would like him home as well. crist particulars are saying this is only helping tehran. signaling, no matter what this regime does or any regime does, it's not going to be met with meaningful pressure. we also are concerned does this send a signal to other countries that you, too, can house americans or grab americans off the stre

cnn is reporting that elizabeth whelan, the sister of paul whelan, who was arrested in russia in 2018 for meetings this week and she's been seeking a meeting with the president. does the president plan to meet with her? admiral kirby: i don't have any meetings with the president to speak to, but she is in town and she is going to be meeting with white house officials. it'll be a good opportunity for us to update her on our efforts to get paul back. and those efforts are very active and they're very ongoing. yeah. ms. jean-pierre: thanks. thanks, admiral. appreciate it. admiral kirby: thank you, karine. >> thank you. >> thank you, john. ms. jean-pierre: okay. darlene, it's good to see you. >> it's good to see you. ms. jean-pierre: i feel like it's been a while. maybe? all right, go for it. >> will the president cooperate fully now that speaker mccarthy has pulled the trigger on an impeachment inquiry? ms. jean-pierre: so, i'm going to refer you to my colleagues over at the counsel's office on any specifics to the inquiry. i'm certainly not going to speculate on what has been a baseless

those five americans from iran last week, they continue to work on the case of evan gershkovich and paul whelan. six long months for a great "wall street journal" reporter that we hope comes home soon. >> we will be following that. donny, thank you. we'll see you in our fourth hour with a new addition of brand up, brand down. >> kids are staying home from school today. that's the only negative. it's popular, but the negative is that the school system really takes the brunt of this. >> they have to watch brand up, brand down so they can talk about it over the weekend. >> bring it back here to d.c. still ahead on "morning joe," congress has less than two days to reach a government funding deal. we'll have the latest on the looming shutdown and what it could mean and talk to democratic senators chris murphy and gary peters about a potential path forward through the upper chamber. also ahead, senator bob menendez receives a muted response after he addressed colleagues for the first time since his federal indictment. we'll show you what new jersey democrat is saying about the growing calls from with

paul appreciates it. >> thank you, elizabeth whelan, and that does it for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." "chris jansing reports" starts right now. >>> good day, i'm chris jansing live at msnbc headquarters in new york city. today new pressure from president biden calling on automakers and union workers to cut a deal and dispatching white house officials to try to make it happen. the first of its kind coordinated strike is now just 13 hours old, but the uaw has a plan should it continue for months. >>> and with the dow sinking today, is there a reason to worry a strike could take a bite out of the economy as a whole? >>> plus, the diametrically opposed approaches to the new hunter biden indictment, less than an hour ago, the president ignoring a question about whether his son could be pardoned while we get first reaction from donald trump who then tied it to his own legal peril. nbc's exclusive interview with the former president is coming up. >>> and a hearing coming up in our next hour for the ex-police officers who allegedly beat tyre nichols to death. the latest on when they may final

. >> cnn is reporting elizabeth whelan, the sister of paul arrested in russia in 2018, is in washington and wants to meet with the president. >> she is in town and is going to be meeting with white house officials. it will be a good opportunity for us to update her on our efforts to get paul back and those efforts are very active and very ongoing. >> thank you, karine. thanks, everybody. >> darlene, good to see you. feel like it's been a while, maybe. >> maybe. >> will the president cooperate fully now that speaker mccarthy has pulled the trigger on an impeachment inquiry? >> so, i'm going to refer you to my colleagues over at the counsel's office on any specifics to the inquiry. certainly not going to speculate on what has been baseless inquiry that the house republicans can't even really defend themselves and many house republicans have said they could not support their own votes. so again, i'm going to refer you to my white house counsel on specifics. >> sorry, and the speech tomorrow he's going to maryland. why is he going to maryland, blue state instead of maybe a red state to talk