mike pence said no. he resisted the pressure. he knew it was illegal, he knew it was wrong. re fortunate for mr. pence's courage on january 6th. our democracy came dangerously close to catastrophe. that courage put him in tremendous danger. mike pence made it clear that he wouldn't give into donald trump's scheme, donald trump term the mob on him. a mob that was chanting hang mike pence a mob that had built a hangman scout just outside the capital. thanks in part to mike pence, our democracy was still donald trump's scheme and the violence of january six. to the danger has not -- there by my colleague, mr. aguilar, today we will lay out the facts for the american people. but first, i recognize my colleague from wyoming, miss cheney for any opening statement she care to offer. >> thank you very much mister chairman, let me take just a few minutes today to hit get the topic of our hearing and broader context. in our last hearing, we heard unequivocal testimony. president trump was told his election fraud allegations were complete nonsense. we heard this from members of the trum

>> hi, mike pence. good to see you? good to see you. >> i'm delighted to be here. >> iowa in the rain, yeah. >> how are you? >> mike pension, nice to meet you. [indiscernible] >> thank you so much. how are you, dear? everybody good? great to meet you. i'll see you. >> hi, senators. >> good to see you. >> you're going out here in the rain. >> yeah. got out of the rain -- >> say hi. hi. >> there you go. congratulations. how are you? >> thank you. how you doing? >> how you doing? >> nice to see you. >> senator chuck grassley. >> sorry. >> this is the vice president. >> that is the vice president but this is senator chuck grassley. >> good to meet you. >> i stuck my hand out and he said vice president pence. and he said aren't you senator grassley? [laughter] >> it would have been fun. >> hi, how are you? >> good, how are you. >> vice president pence. >> how are you? >> how you doing? >> thanks for coming. >> nice to meet you. >> pleasure to meet you, sir. can i get your autograph, maybe? >> thank you. thank you for all you'

i would say. >> laura: whether it is mike pence or someone else like mike pence or anyone talking liked of reform? don't we do that as conservatives, what is happening? >> it is strange. you can have a democracy of federal agencies are curious in elections. it is that simple. it's not just the fbi. it is certainly the intel agency, the former directors on twitter declaring war against the american population. this is out of control and scary and i know that ever but he talks about the pending democracy, defending democracy. if you wanted to defend democracy which is the system of self-government, you will push back against government agencies trying to affect election outcomes, which is what they are doing. this is nuts. and mike pence in new hampshire does not see it. >> laura: a journalist for the financial times tweeted that i have covered extreme is on the a violent ideology is around the world, my career has never come off of a force more nihilistic and contemptible than today's republicans, nothing close, to which former cia director michael hayden of course deep state extraordin

. >>> mike pence makes way. the former vice president reacts to the fbi search of mar-a-lago and signals he would not automatically say no to testifying in front of the january 6th committee. >>> plus, it is rudy giuliani's day of reckoning. under oath. a target now in the criminal investigation of donald trump's bid to steal georgia in 2020. >> do you believe president trump is the ultimate target of this investigation? >> i won't comment on the grand jury investigation. >>> liz cheney loses her job in a landslide. her next fight? urging midterm voters to reject you know who. >> i hope you do whatever it takes to donald trump out of the office. >> are you thinking about it? are you thinking about running for president? >> it -- ah, that's a decision i'm going to make in the coming months, savannah. i won't make any announcements in morning. it's something i'm thinking about and will make a decision in the coming months. >> liz cheney is on the losing end of this. she's on the losing end because she stands up to

james: up next, mike pence calling out attorney general merrick garland but defending fbi agents and the former vice president has advice for the gop, that's next. >> i call on attorney general garland to give the american people a full accounting of the reasons why this action was necessary. james: former vice president mike pence this week calling for more transparency from the biden justice department but also telling fellow republicans to stop criticizing fbi agents for the raid on trump's mar-a-lago home. >> i also want to remind my fellow republicans, we can hold the attorney general accountable for the decision that he made without attacking a rank and file law enforcement personnel at the fbi. the republican party is the party of law and order. our party stands with the men and women who serve on the thin blue line at the federal and state and local level. these attacks on the fbi must stop. calls to defund the fbi are just as wrong as calls to defund the police. james: speaking of law and order or lack there of, the country struggles with rise in crime on our city streets an

what is mike pence saying? he is “oininu a what is mike pence saying?e pence saying? he is joining a whole raft of _ what is mike pence saying? he is joining a whole raft of other- what is mike pence saying? he: 3 joining a whole raft of other senior republicans who in many ways are being brought back inside the trumpet tend to defend him. this is the upside for donald trump of this raid if you like and it strengthens his position if he chooses to remain again. having said all that, he is facing other legaljeopardy is as well. today he will be questioned by the attorney general of new york state in a civil investigation in which she is looking at whether or not the trump foundation and trump companies inflated and understated the value of their companies for loans and insurance purposes. that won't end up in any kind ofjail term if he is found guilty but it could be a hefty fine. add to all that investigations in georgia and the wider look atjanuary that investigations in georgia and the wider look at january the 6th and the attempted insurrection on th

this question that mike pence is raising, these are two important strands in the republican party andters generally, we like liberty we don't like and intrusive federal government we are suspicious of federal government but we like law and order and we tend to like cops on the streets. is there a contradiction here saying i don't trust the fbi but i love my local police department? >> the former vice president seems to think there is, i would also know he made the statements from new hampshire, he is indicating that he is interested in running for president, he is looking for a lame here in which the party to run. in fairness to the vice president pence he has done this before call the republicans that he thought had gone too far in the rhetoric, i'm speaking of after the russian invasion of ukraine, he called on republicans who were praising vladimir putin after he invaded ukraine, he's done this before members of his own party and he's doing it now. i agree i agree with what he saying. go after the leadership of these organizations not the rank and file fbi agents that are doing the

this is the humor and the irony of mike pence. everyone now knows that the president of the united states essentially wanted, didn't care if he was harmed on january 6th and he has remained quiet. he makes hints willing to speak but at least and i will say it matters, at least some leaders of the republican party are coming out condemning the targeted violence, coming out of trump, trump's children, trump's camp towards fbi agents and the judge and the magistrate, the judge in this case in florida. it's really important that is condemned because we know why they're saying it. they want to terrorize. we know why trump and his people are saying it. they want to terrorize the law enforcement agencies and judiciary in hopes either that someone gets hurt or that we all get distracted by it so it's important to stay focus it was donald trump who took the classified information and believed it was. >> important nonetheless that leaders speak out against and condemning the violence and toning it down where they can when they can. good to

also today, former vice president mike pence made a stop in the first of a nation primary state of new hampshire today. at an a event popular among those considering a run for the white house. and pence may have sent a message to the january 6 house committee. >> i don't want to pre-judge. if ever any formal invitation were rendered to us, we'd give it due consideration. >> sara murray starts off our coverage today from atlanta with more details on why giuliani is under investigation by these prosecutors. >> re >> we won't talk about it until it is over. grand juries as i recall are sk secret. >> reporter: rudy giuliani keeping a tight lid on the grand jury that just wrapped. just days after he was told that he is a target into investigation in efforts to subvert the 2020 election results. rudy giuliani is the closest adviser to donald trump to be named a target raising questions about trump's own krcriminal exposure here. >> the investigation is ongoing and i do not have the right to look the other way on any crime. >> reporter: ahead of today's appearance, giuliani's attorney warning

i'm saying that acknowledging that mike pence was loyal to donald trump fur four years. mike pence stood up on january 6th and if he testifies before the committee, which now seems likely, that's another case where he's standing up at some potential cost to his longtime goal of becoming president of the united states. >> i agree he stood up on january 6th, but beyond that i think it would nice to sort of get the retrorespective from him. >> worth remembering that on january 6th that people were attempting to kill him, his short-term interest in staying alive, what mike pence is doing -- >> they were literally saying, hang mike pence. >> so, i mean, i will never understand why he's slow-rolling this, because if people were chanting "hang jane coaston" i would not be this nice. i think he should go before the committee, but i also think that it's worth -- if i could send a message to him -- it's worth remembering that his loyalty to donald trump and his loyalty to the republicans closest to donald trump hasn't been resip row kated at all. >> if he comes before the committe

he had with donald trump hours before rioters breached this capitol and started chanting "hang mike pencekepticism because there are other witnesses who have spoken to the committee and have simply declined to discuss their conversations with then president trump at the time and it's not clear pence would be willing to break that mold. there's the fact that the committee knows beyond that a great deal about mike pence's story through top aides of his at the time, including gregg jacobs and mark short. they know the story of the pressure he faced from trump, the fake lectors plot and thought process and getting to no on that. beyond that, it's certainly not lost on this committee that asking a vice president to testify before congress is a nontrivial step. the last time that happened according to historical records goes back to the 1800s. they would want to have their ducks in a row. they're keeping that door open and obviously the compressed timeframe they have over the coming months when they want to wrap up this investigation. it's worth noting mike pence said this in new hampshire wher

hang mike pence! hang mike pence! >> reporter: though his top advisors have testified from the committee, pence himself has been reluctant to talk about what happened that day, sometimes even downplaying it. but now as he considers his own run for president, pence says he's ready to open up about what he went through. >> the american people have a right to know what happened that day. and in the months and years ahead, i'll be telling my story even more frequently. >> reporter: then there's the question of donald trump. could he be asked to testify too? cheney did not close the door. >> i don't want to make any announcements about that this morning. >> reporter: but it's possible you would ask him, before wrapping up, to testify? >> yeah. again, i don't want to get in front of committee deliberations about that. i do think it's very important. his interactions with our committee will be under oath. >> jonathan karl joins us now from washington. jon, if republicans take over congress in midterms, the w

i don't want to beat up on mike pence, but i mean, get some if you're that detached from realityt , youto take d a break and think deeply about yourself and whether it's the pence or someone else like anyone talking about this, isn't there a need for o reform in the u.s.? i mean, are we not supposed to do that? and the conservatives, what's happening? it's arranged. you can't have a democracy if federal agencies are openly interfering in elections. it's that simple. it'sit not just the fbi. it's certainly the intelcy agencies, these former directorsor are on twitter declaring war against the american population. this is out of controlinst. h it's scary.e and i know everyone talks about defending democracy, defending democracydi. ou but if you actually wanted to defend democracy, which is a system of self-government, you woulds t push back against government agencies trying toec affect election outcomes, which is what they're doing. this is nuts, and thisdo mike pence in new hampshire doesn't see it. well, a journalist fores the financial times today, tucker tweeted that i'vena covered e

you see mike pence making a point he would consider it but there are constitutional issues and executivesues he would have to consider. the pence folks had two top officials testify before the january 6th committee and there's a feeling they've said what they really need to say and i think that's mike pence's feeling as well but i don't think he wanted to kind of sort of close the door on it completely, until he got an official ask and i don't think that's been offered yet. >> we should note the january 6th committee did not respond to a request for comment on that. gabby, let's broaden things out. >> that's right, they're staying out of this. >> exactly. let's broaden things out, gabby, to the trump effect on these midterms. beyond just the house races, let's look at the senate races, trump is 7 for 8 so far in terms of the candidates he's endorsed in those house races. he is 17 for 21 statewide races, 16 for 22, so in all that's 85% of his candidates that he backed won in their primaries. cheney is launching the great task, but when you see how much sway president trump still has with

>> look, i do not know what mike pence knows, other than to say he probably knows everything. you are talking about flipping, mike, let me put it this way. there is going to be so much flipping. let me do it donald. voice there's gonna be slow much flipping, it's gonna be like watching a gymnastics event. that's really what we have going on here. every single person is going to -- lay on that would happen to me. none of them want to go to prison. you have to be out of your mind to want to go to prison. there is going to be so much flipping,, mike. you can't imagine. that's just what don was going to. do he likes to play the victim here, despite the fact that he is responsible for everything. and you, know mike, i talk about my new upcoming book, revenge. we just have donald trump weaponized to the department of justice. to go after his critics. he is doing the exact same thing now. he is playing the victim. because he knows the game plan. why is the game plan? he weaponize the justice department to go against his critics. so what does he do? he deflects, which is a prime part o

mike pence has authorized of the chaffin steve count -- chief counsel. a matter of just remembering how this what took place, that would be important. yamiche: peter, that is why we have you on the show to bring together the nixon and trump and the gerald ford to bring it together so we know exactly how this goes into the history of america. susan, another thing we have to talk about is liz cheney. you are the best person to talk about this because you have written several books about women in politics. i wonder when you think about who she is. she's vowing to fight on. what does success look like for liz cheney and how much can she impa given the fact that she is the face of the anti-trump movement in the republican party but also it is a lonely island of people willing to do what she is doing. susan: she lost the primary by 37 percentage points. that is a pretty stunning. number it is a message from republicans in wyoming she was not representing them. it is a sign of the hold the donald trump continues to hammer over the republican party and yet, she

our supporters have the right idea, mike pence deserves it." you will hear evidence that president trump refused for hours to do what his staff, his family, and many of his other advisers begged him to do, immediately instructed supporters to standdown and evacuate the capitol. tonight, you will see never before footage of the brutal attack on our capitol. an attack that unfolded while a few blocks away, president trump sat watching television in the dining room next to the oval office. you will hear audio from the ray police officers battling for their lives and hours, fighting to defend our democracy against the violent mob donald trump refused to call off. tonight and in the weeks to come , you will see evidence of what motivated his silence -- this violence, including directly from those who participated in the attack. you will see video of them explaining what caused them to do it. you will see their posts on social media. we will show you what they have said in federal court. on this point there is no room for debate. those who invaded ou

how is it that mike pence, the hang mike pence guy, is the loudest and seemingly only voice condemning all of this. the gop here actually not care about the political violence that it is inciting? >> they don't. i think that's what mike pence realized and then alarm bell went. off look i will struggle. is mike pence speaking with conviction or naivety when he talks about with the values of the republican party maybe should be. certainly, he didn't uphold those working for donald trump. but, again, in the interim. playing you king george, mark scott, mark levin, and others. look, this is a shameful moment for a bunch of would-be leaders. demonstrating, a coward is in agreement for politics that is stoking violence in the united states. danielle is right. this ultimately leads to violence. because what trumpism injected on the party, a man, is that the deep state, the big government, the athletes, the liberals, -- they're coming for your way of life. they are coming for your freedom. that when donald trump, then you can bridge, and rich got say your way of life. your freedom is being tak

mike pence is also for kleefisch. we have seen in the in race after race.nt. >> in this race, you have them fighting over the fact of, like, who is, you know, going to say that the 2020 election was fake enough to have michels basically saying he would try to pool the registration or whatever that wisconsin did for the 2020 election. and kleefisch is the moderate, i guess, and just by saying you can't constitutionally do that, like the 2020 election is over. we can't take it back. like, that is how extreme this is right now. >> desatcertify the 2020 electi three years after the attack, 2 1/2 years after the fact, whatever. >> and wisconsin is obviously 18 months, what are we on now, wisconsin is something trump watches closely. he pays close attention to this. it is interesting to see this playing out again of him and pence. he and pence being pitted against one another when it comes to who they endorse. it comes down to who is often the loudest voice who is the most stringent against pushing back on the outcome of the election and what they're saying. mike

committee, bennie thompson, said nearly two months ago the panel did invite former vice president mike penceo come in and talk to them. >> we would love to have former vice president pence's testimony. we have sought it, we've talked to his attorneys in the past. >> okay. and then what about the next part? mr. pence claimed it would be, quote, unprecedented for a former vice president to testify before congress. but former vice president gerald ford did just that in 1974. and he was not only a former vice president. he was a sitting president when he appeared voluntarily before a house judiciary subcommittee to talk about his pardon of richard nixon. in fact there's a whole list of sitting presidents and vice president harris -- and vice presidents who have testified before a house committee. a source with knowledge of mr. pence's thinking cautious us not to read too much into his comments, citing the constitutional concerns that pence alluded to. if he's not really considering meeting with the committee, why did he say that? we should note he said it while he was in new hampshire at the pol

the republican party, putting former president donald trump up against his former vice president, mike pence closed in arizona and ballots being counted, supporters of kari lake hope she will be the republican nominee for arizona governor. kari lake, a former tv news anchor, catapulted into the national spotlight after being endorsed by former president trump. >> no one understands better than kari how to fight back against the fake news media and the radical left. >> reporter: tonight's primaries testing former president trump's power over the republican party and perhaps a signal of where the gop is headed. >> the trump endorsement meant a lot in arizona. and the idea of running on the maga and trump banner, that is how kari lake tried to define herself. her loyalty to the false claims around the last election. she did not have the republican establishment backing. >> reporter: lake has been a fervent supporter of trump, continuing to push the false claim the 2020 election was stolen. >> we will no longer accept corruptness, and i know for a fact we will no longer accept rigged elections.

who's mike pence? name but you don't know who it is. hint: it's what mike pence doesn't want to be in the locker room with. >> people? >> be more specific. >> gay people? >> gay people! gay people! let's find out what people know about vladimir putin. c.i.a. director bill burns was quotedda as saying, "there are a lot of rumors about president putin's belange." and as far as we can tell meas blank. >> his virility. >> sanity. >> sanity. why do you say that? >> he seems crazy to me. >> describe this body to me. >> it looks built. >> built? >> yeah, i feel like he hits the gym. >> describe vladimir putin's body. there are a lot of rumors about president putin's blank? >> i want to say penis, but that wouldn't work. >> i guess his health. >> his health. why did you say that? >> because i heard people think he may have some type of disease and he's not being shown anymore. >> wow, where did you dig up this? correct answer! there's been a lot of rumors about president putin's health. but as far as we can te

mike pences says he would consider testifying if he is asked. was a pressure campaign led by trump for pence to overturn the 2020 election and not certify the electoral votes in congress. white house officials told the committee when pence didn't comply, the former president called him a wimp and rioters called for his hanging. pence's comments came as rudy giuliani spent his day under oath. we clearly have a lot of news to get to tonight, and cbs' jeff pegues will start us off from atlanta. good evening, jeff. >> reporter: norah, this georgia investigation may pose the most imminent legal jeopardy for the former president, but it's also the work of the january 6 committee, and its political impact ahead of 2024, and now that committee may have yet another star witness. >> if there was an invitation to participate, i would consider it. >> reporter: today's remarks by former vice president mike pence were the closest he has come to saying he might testify before the january 6 committee, even though the relationship between pence and mr. trump is

mike pence. it sounds like he is ready and he wants to, and he is using this moment to define himself against trump and the lawlessness of january 6th. >>> speaking of, rudy giuliani testified yesterday before a grand jury in georgia that is looking into efforts by former president trump and others to overturn the 2020 election. he spent 6 hours at the courthouse in atlanta. it is not clear what questions he answered. the former personal attorney for donald trump told the far-right news outlet earlier this week that he would likely invoke attorney/client privilege if asked about the former president. giuliani's testimony comes days after he was told he was a target in the criminal investigation of election interference. >> ken, i'm curious if you heard any reporting from georgia, if you can help us out here. if you're pleading the fifth, that usually doesn't take 6 hours. at the same time, if giuliani is now the target of a criminal probe, i guess it is just the lawyer in me, i don't really know

once again, it's a proxy battle between former president trump and vice president mike pence.have each backed a rival gop candidate for governor of wisconsin. cnn's political director david chalian is with us now. what are you watching for in wisconsin? >> that top marquee race you just noted there, the republican gubernatorial primary between the outsider businessman tim michaels who has donald trump's report, and rebecca clayfish who searched under governor walker who has mike pence's support. we saw round one in georgia. pence won that one when brian kemp won his primary there. in arizona, trump won, kari lake became the republican gubernatorial nominee here. we'll see how it shakes out in battleground wisconsin tonight. that is one key race to watch. i should also note, you know, it's no longer just do you believe the 2020 election was rigged because both of these candidates say that it is, but rebecca clayfish does not believe the vote in wisconsin can be deserted where as michael sort of suggests everything's on the table for that allegiance to trump in pursuit of this c

and mike pence today doubling down on defending the fbi. >>> the emotional day in court. vanessa bryant, the wife of kobe bryant, breaking down on stand, describing her pain after first responders leaked photos of the helicopter crash that killed the nba legend and their daughter. >> reporter: after a summer of travel chaos, the department of transportation cracking down. our exclusive with secretary pete buttigieg, the ultimatum he's giving the airlines ahead of labor day. >>> danger in the water. two shark attacks at the same beach on the same day. >>> and uniting for ukraine. the music with a message inspiring america. >> announcer: this is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. we are reminded again tonight just how high the stakes are in the war in ukraine as focus turns to the state of the ukrainian nuclear power plant now in the hands of russian forces. ukraine official making some pretty disturbing claims of what they say are russian intentions at the plant. that potentially risk a radiation spewing nuclear accident. one ukrainian energy expert cal

former vice president mike pence sets the record straight. >>> and fighting monkeypox in the bay area. the new plan of attack from local health leaders to try and contain the outbreak. the news at 5:30 starts right now. thanks for joining us. i'll audrey asistio. >> and i'm raj mathai. not just republicans, but trump republicans. there are strong indications that former president trump has a hold on this current republican party. congresswoman liz cheney lost by a landslide last night in wyoming to a candidate backed by mr. trump. cheney is the eighth house republican who voted to impeach the president that has either left or been forced out by voters. here is nbc's alice barr. >> especially wonderful to be here. >> reporter: an overnight loss for congresswoman liz cheney of wyoming, handing a victory to former president trump. his sharpest republican critic losing in a landslide to trump endorsed harriet hageman after cheney won that house seat by more than 70 points two years ago. she insists she could have won again. >> but that path would have required that i accept, that i embrac

>> mike pence has -- >> did people appear angry as you walk to the capitol? >> yes a lot of people appeared upset. >> people were screaming all types of stuff. they were mad, vice president pence was going to accept the electoral's. >> i believe that vice president pence was going to certified the electoral votes -- or not certified them, the position changed. it's a big disappointment. there are 700,000 people here who are very disappointed. >> president trump did not try to call -- did not try to calm his supporters. at the same moment that the riot was getting out of hand, he sent his 224:00 tweet. the president said, vice president pence -- president trump called vice president pence a coward and placed all the blame on him for not turning -- when we ask you about your reaction to seeing 224:00 suite in real-time, you used the same imagery to describe it. you made the decision to resign after seeing this tweet, could you please tell us why? >> yes. that was shortly after i'd gone back to the white house. i began to see, for the first time, those images on

mike pence. i want to play something he said this week. >> january 6th was a tragic day in the history of our country. the american people have a right to know what happened that day. and in the months and years ahead, i'll be telling my story more frequently than i have. >> to be fair, he hasn't been telling it very frequently. for a while pence seemed to be downplaying the significance -- he was downplaying the significance of january 6th. he's been a little bit more out there. what did you make of that? >> it sounds like he's rolling this out gently. i think at some point -- look, go before the committee. he said tefshe was waiting for invitation. it's not a surprise, not that he's sitting by the mailbox. he can do this. i just don't know how compelling it's going to be at this point because he's waited a long time. i think we'd all love to hear what mike pence has to say about that day. >> i think you're not giving him enough credit, i say that acknowledging that he was extremely loyal to don

using the same language, and he's looking at pence. >> he called mike pence an f-ing loser?ll him directly, but he was looking at him when he was saying it, and it really caught my attention. >> seth: trump called his aides, including his own vice president, mike pence, [bleep] losers i have to imagine that's when pence went into chameleon mode again. you know that thing he does where he closes his eyes and tries to blend into the background, hoping to disappear? it's the same he does when he's walking in the zoo and he sees two monkeys getting it on. [ light laughter ] "this isn't happening. this isn't happening they're just wrestling they're just wrestling." [ laughter ] he looks like he's waiting for scotty to beam him out of there. "this is commander pence away team is ready energize." [ transporter warbling ] so, why was trump calling them [bleep] losers because they referenced "doctor who" and "star trek" in the same "closer look" surprisingly, no he called them losers because he wanted them to put active-duty troops in the street to attack protesters, and they refused

it's no secret that mike pence wants to run for president— that mike pence wants to run for presidenty think it would be very unlikely — ultimately think it would be very unlikely. he would not necessarily as politically beneficial to him and the mike — as politically beneficial to him and the mike pence i came to know working — the mike pence i came to know working with him when he was in congress — working with him when he was in congress and with him directly what he was _ congress and with him directly what he was vice — congress and with him directly what he was vice president of the us, he did not— he was vice president of the us, he did not display a great deal of courage — did not display a great deal of courage when it came to standing up donald _ courage when it came to standing up donald trump. he did in that final moment— donald trump. he did in that final moment where it mattered to make sure he _ moment where it mattered to make sure he did — moment where it mattered to make sure he did not overturn the election. _ sure he did not overturn the election, but i would not e

. >>> also tonight, former vice president mike pence saying he'd consider testifying before the january 6th committee, and his message to fellow republicans attacking the fbi over the search at mar-a-lago >>> it comes as rudy giuliani appears in court. what we're learning about his six-hour testimony before a special grand jury investigating alleged election meddling by donald trump in georgia. >>> congresswoman liz cheney, mr. trump's most vocal gop critic, losing her primary in a landslide. what's next for her and could it involve a run for the white house? >>> the deadly spree in arkansas, 17 shootings over 30 hours. are they connected >>> the countdow to liftoff for nasa's return to the moon >>> and harry's smith on the end of the road for two american classics >>> this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening over 93 million covid cases in today came a stunning admission from the head of the cdc. "in our big moment our performance did not reliably meet expectations." with her agency still confronting not just the pandemic but evolving threats including monkeypox and

is vice president mike pence going to testify? is that likely? >> unlikely.ighly unlikely is the answer to that question. that's mostly coming from the people in and around the former vice president. we did hear him talk about the possibility and they are discussing it. then the rest of his answer, when he was in new hampshire, by the way, earlier this week was about the constitutionality of it and the questions around that. just sort of speaking -- the way i read that and more importantly the way that one of his top advisers told me to read it was, it's very unlikely. >> of course. you mentioned he was in new hampshire. that's an important point. he has not yet announced he wants to run. you teetering on that moment? >> new hampshire first, then iowa. he is teetering in a big, big way. he is seriously considering it. he is trying to sort of stake a claim very, very interesting spot, which is somebody who has the experience with donald trump but certainly it has not necessarily left on his own volition, but kicked out of trump world because he had the audacit

. >> there's still an open question about whether the january 6th committee will still call mike pencetial testimony in the january 6 committee. the vice chair, liz cheney, saying, yeah, we might call him. but pence, chalian, to your point, is always talking about the trump-pence administration. it's a hard and fine line to walk when on the one hand he was being -- hang mike pence, that was the chant on january 6, and on the other hand he wants to say we should all take credit for what we did as an administration. >> yeah, you said it. it is a fine line. it's going to be interesting to watch how he navigates it. but when you talk to especially republicans on the hill and many republicans too, behind the scenes quietly, privately, they were all talking about, man, mike pence would be a good president because he stands for something. we don't want this trump. we don't know -- we like him, we like his policies, but we don't know how he's going to react, right, or how he's going to necessarily be as president again. we've seen what happens. however, they know that he mobilizes the base. so

sort of speaking mike pence if you well.ore importantly the way one of his top advisers told me to read it was it's very unlikely. >> you mentioned he was in new hampshire. that is an important point because he has not yet announced that he wants to run but you think you may be teetering on that particular moment? >> he also went to iowa. new hampshire first and then iowa and he is teetering in a big way. he is seriously considering it obviously. and he is trying to stake a claim to some very interesting spots which is someone who has the experience with donald trump but has not necessarily left on his own volition but been kicked out of trump world because he had the audacity to follow the constitution and the law on january sixth. so he's been trying to sort of accept that fate and stake out a separate place. thinking maybe there is a lien for him. the biggest example of that was when he said that it is appropriate to question and ask for transparency from the justice department. but it's not appropriate to say that you sh

mike pence says he would consider testifying if he is asked. u may recall there was a pressure campaign led by trump for pence to overturn the 2020 election and not certify the electoral votes in congress. white house officials told the committee that when pence didn't comply, the former president called him a wimp and rioters called for his hanging. pence's comments came as rudy giuliani spent his day under oath before a grand jury in atlanta that's investigating attempts to overturn the presidential election. we clearly have a lot of news to get to tonight, and cbs' jeff pegues will start us off from atlanta. good evening, jeff. >> reporter: norah, this georgia investigation may pose the most imminent legal jeopardy for the former president. but it's also the work of the january 6th committee and its political impact ahead of 2024. and now that committee may have yet another star witness. >> if there was an invitation to participate, i would consider it. >> reporter: today's remarks by former vice president mike pence were the closest he has c

the rioters chanted hang mike pence. the president of the united states, donald trump, said that, calls, mike deserves it and that rioters -- those rioters were not doing anything wrong. in an interview with nbc correspondent jonathan carle, president trump was asked about the supportive chanted hang mike pence. instead of condemning them, the former president commanded them -- defended them. >> it is common sense that you are supposed to protect -- if you know april is fraudulent, how can you pass on a fraudulent to congress? rep. cheney: president viewed that the writers were not doing anything wrong. also to understand why the president did not ask the rioters to leave the capital for multiple hours. he put this tweet out at 2:24 p.m. ms. hutchison, do you recall seeing this between -- this tweet? ms. hutchinson: i do. rep. cheney: what was your reaction? ms. hutchinson: as a staffer that worked to always represent the administration to the best of my ability and to showcase the good things he has done for the country,

mike pence said he would consider an invitation to speak to the january 6th committee. here is what i do not understand. why in the world has he not been subpoenaed yet? >> you know, congress is running into a little bit of difficulty trying to enforce it it's subpoenas. it has to rely on the justice department and except in the most egregious cases, steve bannon was the first one. doj hasn't really backed congress up in the way that congress might have hoped they would have. there would be a lot of difficult legal issues that the former vice president could throw up, to try to at least delay testimony. so, it is really in the committee's interest to try to get to a negotiated situation, where pence would agree to come in and testify, given the way the clock is running. that could be a better move for them to make. of course, if doj decides that it needs the former vice presidents testimony at point, those issues do not really apply. doj would be able to issue a subpoena. it would be extraordinarily unusual. it could even be inflammatory. but if pence's testimony is ess