of the members of congress who went to cuba to bring home the american prisoner -- we will ask chris hollandow many cigars he brought back. ♪ >> our guest tonight's democratic member of congress who flew back to cuba to bring back alan gross. we wish you were here in the studio so we could be puffing on cigars, but alas, we cannot. congressman chris van hollen thanks for talking to us. this is a pretty momentous day in foreign policy history. tell us what it was like to go down there and come back. >> it was a huge day for alan gross and his family, but also a big day for our country and setting us on a new direction in u.s.-cuban relations. i think all of us were very nervous right up to the last moment that this agreement might somehow fall apart. we've been working to try to bring alan gross home for the last five years, no one more so than his wife judy, who was of course on the airplane. it gave us all a great feeling when we walked off the tarmac in havana into the building at the airport to see alan gross. while he is very fragile and frail, he just had this huge smile that led, the d

chris van holland told chris hayes -- >> the president recognized if we want to help empower the cuban people as opposed to empower the cuban regime, we need to fully engage. and that's what he did. >> nbc's tracie potts is in washington with more on the timing of all of this. good morning, tracie. >> reporter: well, angie, the timing is significant. congress is gone. it is the end of the year. they'll have to get involved. and the government is going to have to review and likely remove cuba from its list of terrorist states after 50 years. both countries now ready to put the past behind. three cuban spies released by the u.s. arrived in that van ha exchange, one american spy was released, alan gross, he supports opening relations. >> two wrongs never make a right. >> reporter: the trade embargo will not be lifted right away. congress mandates that. but soon you'll be able to use your debit card there, travel will become easier for families and tourists, eventually cuba's famed cigars now banned could make their way legally to the u.s. >> neither the american nor cuban people are well

congressman chris van holland with gross told this to chris hayes. >> the president recognized if we want to help empower the cuban people as opposed to empower the cuban regime, we need to fully engage. and that's what he did. >> nbc's tracie potts is in washington. the timing of this is significant. >> reporter: well, right, frances, congress is gone and they're going to have to get involved, but step one here in washington is removing cuba from the state department's list of terrorist states and that's something we're told could happen fairly soon after a year and a half of secret meetings. both of the countries now say they're ready to work together and put the past behind. three cuban spies released by the u.s. arrived in havana, in exchange, one american spy was released in prison for 20 years, alan gross. he supports reopening relations. >> two wrongs never make a right. >> reporter: the trade embargo will not be lifted right away. congress mandates that. but soon you'll be able to use your debit card there, travel will become easier for families and tourists, eventually cuba'

joining me chris van holland of maryland.were personally involved in this venture to havana to see the release of mr. gross. is the president doing the right thing? are the republicans on the wrong side of history here? >> they are totally on the wrong side of history and on the wrong side of all the evidence of the last 54 years because the policy of isolation and trying to punish cuba has been a miserable favorable. the goal was squeeze cuba to get rid of the castro brothers and bring about democracy. isolating cuba has only squeezed the cuban people. the castro brothers have survived eight american presidents and are doing just fine, thank you. the burden is on people like senator rubio to show why five or ten more years of a policy that has failed for the last 54 would get a different result. we all know the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. >> it seems that mr. rubio is focused on a bad deal made by the president that we didn't get enough. what's your answer to

. >> reporter: chris holland flew to cuba to bring him home. they're fiercely opposed to the deal. to senator marco rubio. >> this policy contradiction is absurd and it is disgraceful for a president who claims to treasure human rights and human freedom. this president is the singing worst negotiator we've had in the white house in my lifetime. >> reporter: he changed his position on the embargo over the years from his days as a state senator. >> i think it's time to end it. >> reporter: to a candidate for president. >> i will maintain the embargo. >> reporter: but in his final years in office the president wants to turn the page. >> today we are making these changes because it is the right thing to do. >> now former u.s. president jimmy carter called decision to restore ties with cuba wise and courageous. carter, of course, tried during his administration to normalize relations with havana and worked to free alan gross. the former president poke to cnn's anderson cooper about u.s./cuban relations over the phone. >> i hope that congress will go ahead and remove the embargo or the s

. >>> ahead we'll speak with congressman chris val holland who worked tirelessly to get alan gross freedrom that jail. he was on the plane that brought him back to u.s. soil. he'll join us next. people with type 2 diabetes come from all walks of life. if you have high blood sugar, ask your doctor about farxiga. it's a different kind of medicine that works by removing some sugar from your body. along with diet and exercise, farxiga helps lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. with one pill a day, farxiga helps lower your a1c. and, although it's not a weight-loss or blood-pressure drug, farxiga may help you lose weight and may even lower blood pressure when used with certain diabetes medicines. do not take if allergic to farxiga or its ingredients. symptoms of a serious allergic reaction include rash, swelling or difficulty breathing or swallowing. if you have any of these symptoms, stop taking farxiga and seek medical help right away. do not take farxiga if you have severe kidney problems, are on dialysis, or have bladder cancer. tell your doctor right away if you have blood or

yes and lindsey gram a south carolina republican, member of the armed services committee and chris van holland, a maryland democrat and a national correspondent for the "atlantic." the sunday network t.v. talk shows are on c-span radio. they are brought to you by a public service by the networks. the reair of the 5 t.v. network talk shoes again at noon eastern. listen on 90.1 fm here in the washington, d.c. area. across the country on xm satellite you channel 120. download our free app for you're smart phone or go online to c-span.org. >> this month is the tenth anniversary of our sunday prime time program q and a, we are fear touring one q and a from each year highlighting authors answer, film makers and policy thinkers from 2005. ken he can't feinberg's interview on the september 11th victim compensation furch. lonnie bunch on the importance of the african-american experience to u.s. history. from 2007, robert novak on his 50 years of reporting in washington. from 2008, renu kiter and 2009, conservative commentator s.e. cupp, a decade of compelling conversations. december 22nd, through the 2

. >> reporter: some leading house democrats are unhappy including maryland's chris van holland saying i will vote against the bill. we can keep the government open without big money give aways that hurt working families. others would call it compromise, jon? >> it might be a good thing if both side rz unhappy. mike, thank you. >>> president obama making good on his promise to expand early childhood education. announcing a investment in learning programs for toddlers and babies and preschoolers. the president took part in a summit in the white house. 500 million will go to 40 states to expand head start and child care programs. >> republicans weeks away from taking control of the senate and installing leadership. and that means harry reid as majority leader are over. he tells the new york times that the gop will get a fight. nina is a columnist and editor for fortune magazine and jamie weinstien a editor for the daily caller. if mitch mcconaugh nel. >> it is interesting. i go out and speak to a lot of people in washington and there is so much frustration with the bitter divide and the

senators marco rubio of florida and lindsey graham of south carolina and democrat of north carolina chris hollandre stolen earlier this year. staples is the latest of a long list of retailers to be hit by computer hackers is. >>> the u.s. supreme court refused to stop gay marriages in florida. the court decided not to step into a florida fields case. they had previously declared gay marriage unconstitutionals. same-sex marriage licenses can stat being issued in the state after january 5th. >>> when it comes to weddings many thing bigger and bolder is better. that including a wild ceremony involving exotic animals. that leads to logistical issues. here's david begnaud. >> reporter: when dreaming of a perfect wedding, nothing says love quite like llamas? >> i never would have thought ever in a million years that two llamas would have shown up at my wedding. >> paintball pete and serendipity wore matching tuxedo bibs as they stood near their i-dos. >> there were a lot of screams laughing oh my god. it was a great surprise for everybody. >> reporter: exotic animals are becoming a must have for couple

chris van holland. senator, how quickly do you think this change will take place.a delegation in january. they are talking about going on a trade mission. how long would it take to establish relations and open embassie embassies. >> it is going to go a lot quicker than most think. i agree with what the pope said at the beginning of your piece. this is very, very good news. like you, i traveled many times and chris has too to cuba. there a lot of people who are proamerican there. i think you will see significant changes. i think the quicker, the better. the better for the united states. and the better for cuba. >> congressman, what about making sure that cuba releases the prisoners and doesn't put pressure on the ladies in white and the women protesters who. >> i want to salute the senator for long time leadership, recognizing that our past policy was not producing the results we intended. he led the charge on that. look, the 54 political prisoners that were released as part of this agreement, we are going to have to make sure that they stay released and i believe w

. >> reporter: maryland democratic congressman chris van holland says that's not the way to run government. >> that creates so much instability and uncertainty in the economy and that's a bad deal for republicans. if we can't come together and come up with a funding deal that's prioritized government funding through the etched of september, we should all pack it in. >> reporter: north caroli . >> for us to do something that's short-term, that allows us to either address it in a reasonable way, during the lame duck or address it again in january or february of next year, is really what the american people are looking for. >> by partisan lawmaker were close too a deal on a $440 billion package over ten years on so-called tax extenders to avoid are retro active tax hikes and vetoes. >> the president has been very clear that he believes that our economic policies need to be focused on what we can do to benefit middle class families and those who are trying to get in the mid class. because our economy grows best when it's growing from the middle u out. >> reporter: in this indication they're be

all of the members of congress from all sides of the aisle such as senator -- representatives chris van holland and barbara lee and numerous others who spoke up or visited me, subjected themselves to my ranting and helped me regain some of my weight. even in cuba m & m's melt in your mouth, not in your hand. to all those who tried to visit me, but were not able to. thank you for trying. i'm at your service as soon as i get new teeth, and i hope they'll be strong and sharp enough to make a difference. to the washington jewish community, ron halber in particular, and his staff of the jewish community relations county, the jcrc, all the executives director, staff and volunteers of participating jcrc's, federation synagogue schools, and other jewish, christian, and muslim organizations nationwide, god bless you and thank you. it was crucial to my survival knowing that i was not forgotten. your abbings have been sustaining, and to my extended family, especially my sister bonnie, my cousins and friends, howard, bruce, our shabbat group, larry, and so many others who exemplify the true meaning of frie

lindsay gram, two republicans, very much against this, and maryland's democratic congressman, chris van hollandthat went down to havana last week, and brought back the american who had been held in a cuban prison for five years. so, these are free extremely significant stories, i think, by anyone's gauge, and we'll try to bring as much perspective as we can. >> all right, bob, we appreciate it, thanks for the preview. >> 8: 39 right now. we'll have more news and weather when we come back. of course carol going to be talking about that storm system. that's said to hit right around christmas eve into christmas, so could impact your holiday plans, just a bit. we'll give you the full run down coming up next on "eyewitness news", stay with us, we'll be right bac ♪ ah, ♪ h it. ♪ push it. ♪ p...push it real good! ♪ ♪ ow! ♪ oooh baby baby...baby baby. if you're salt-n-pepa, you tell people to push it. ♪ push it real good. it's what you do. ♪ ah. push it. if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. it's what you do. ♪ ah. push it. i'm pushing. i'm pushing it real g

so far, representative chris van holland of maryland has said he will vote no, as will senator elizabethtts. senior gop leaders said they will not renegotiate the agreement, and if democratic support falls apart, the house would revert to a three or four month stopgap bill and set up a government funding battle in the early days of gop controlled capitol hill. >>> white house press secretary josh ernest was asked about the spending bill at "today's" white house briefing. here's a short bit of what he had to say. >> chris van holland, the leading democrat on the budget committee in the house while you were speak announced that you should take the internet away from us -- he's announced that he's voting against the omnibus because he's very concerned about it lifting campaign finance limits and also about the dodd-frank roll backs that are in there, does the white house have any feelings about how democrats should vote on this measure? >> as always, we believe the democrats should vote their conscience, they should make those kinds of decisions for themselves. the president's decision abou

. >> let's bring in someone with a different perspective, chris van holland who made the trip to cuba to bring back alan gross. he was also part of the delegation that met with president raul castro to discuss the gross case last year. congressman, thanks for joining us. before we get to the policy you were on the plane to go and get him. at what point were you confident, oh, my god, we'll pull this off or were you nervous the whole time that it was going to be ruined? >> i've been very nervous over the last couple of days that something would go wrong, jake, because so many piece his to come together to make this happen. we've been working for five years to try to get alan gross' release. his wife judy has spent every day in this effort and so, you know, it ain't over until it's over. it wasn't until after we walked out of the building on to the tarmac in havana and climbed on to the president's airplane heading home that i was really able to breathe a sigh of relief and i'm sure that's true for alan and his wife. >> he showed composure and i was at the press conference earlier today

will hillary clinton withdraw as leader endorse chris van holland in order to battle with steny hoyer pelosi? >> hoyer was on the other side -- >> what planet do you reside on, joy? what planet -- >> they stick together. >> no, no, no. >> gene, isn't it in the wind right now or in the water right now that nancy's going to -- she's a brilliant makeavalien politician. she has a vote for steny hoyer? who is going to win? >> chris is doing a lot of high profile stuff. on the plane to cube back and steny -- >> i just think -- >> i can see -- >> chris is smiling. >> i say february look for the battle royale. >> it will be because he was on the other side. i think financial reform is a sleeper issue democrats are really outraged. >> joy, i suggest there's a little more. i think nancy brilliantly and perhaps treacherously left steny hanging with 58 and she took the rest of the caucus. >> that's right. i used to work on the hill right before -- right before pelosi took office and there was always this jockeying because steny wanted that. what she's done is basically brought him in as close as

the members of congress from all sides of the aisle, such as senator flake, representatives chris van holland and barbara lee and numerous others who spoke up or visited me, subjected themselves to my ranting and helped me regain some of my weight. even in cuba, m&ms melt in your mouth, not in your hand. to all of those who tried to visit me but were not -- were unable to, thank you for trying. i'm at your service as soon as i get some new teeth. and i hope they'll be strong and sharp enough to make a difference. to the washington jewish community, ron halber in particular and his staff at jewish relations council, jcrc, all the executive directors, staff and volunteers of participating jcrcs, federations, synagogues, schools and other jewish, christian and organizations nationwide, god bless you and thank you. it was crucial to my survival knowing that i was not forgotten. your prayers and your actions have been comforting, reassuring and sustaining. and to my extended family, especially my sister bonnie, my cousins and friends, howard, our s shabot group, and so many others who exemplify th

by the hollande tunnel. first, go to chris cuomo with protesters. chris, exactly where are you and what's the scene like? >> reporter: we were on the way, anderson, to the hollande tunnel. when we got there, there was police and crowds. so much bigger than last night. there was hundreds last night. hard to calculate, but certainly 10,000 at least. and they are now walking down hudson back towards into the tribe tribecka area of manhattan. the streets, a metaphor for shutting down the system. they're shutting down traffic. very eclectic crowd. so much different than ferguson. a lot of young people. it's not unusual to see groups of white kids walking saying "end white supremacy." why are they saying that? you don't have to be a minority to believe in injustice for minorities. also making an interesting point, saying you need the young white people. people from an eclectic background to make change. can't just be about minorities fighting for change. so what is their plan tonight. they're going to keep moving. they believe that is their key to staying