Actions by iran or its proxies, and we will act to preempt any attacks on our forces, or personnel, by iran or its proxies. Melissa trey yingst is live in amman, jordan with more. Trey . Melissa, good afternoon. A striking interview on fox news today with u. S. Defense secretary mark esper. Esper acknowledging the United States is considering offensive actions against iran and its proxies in the region to try and stop some of the threats that could take place against u. S. Citizens or u. S. Troops in the region. Today it does appear the United States and iran are both preparing for the possibility of a direct military confrontation. As we speak, hundreds of u. S. Troops are headed to a military base in kuwait. Those troops coming from the 82nd airborne division. Their battalion does have thousands of more soldiers on standby, as the iranians today are considerin achieving their n rhetoric. He said they are not afraid of conflict. The commander adding that they have the power to break america several times. All this after the u. S. Embassy in baghdad did come under siege for two days earlier this week. Militia men and protesters destroyed many parts of that embassy, lighting fires and other parts of the compound. In response, this was all coming from an attack on sunday by the United States against an iranianbacked in iraq. Killing some of the fighters are part of the responsible for rocket attack on the friday previous that killed one american contractor. All this a very complicated situation, as irans supreme leader, the ayatollah khamenei, open to talks if President Trump pulls back some of those economic sanctions he has put on the Islamic Republic. So far the americans do not appear like they are open to that offer, thus a stalemate between the United States and iran continues. Back to you. Melissa apparently its about money. Trey yingst, thank you. Lets bring in senior fellow at the foundation for the defense of democracy. Thanks for joining us. What do you think is the appropriate response from the u. S. . Happy new year, Melissa Perry agreed to be with you. We are seeing the appropriate response play out in real time. The president is deploying more troops to the region. Looks like multiple members of the administration, of course, are taking a firm line. We know that secretary pompeo delayed his trip to ukraine to send a good message from the state department to diplomat abroad. The real question is, how will, in the next few months, the chief adversary as long as the Regional Agents of influence, read these moves . Would look at it is resolved or is weakness . Melissa is it significant to you that the ayatollah, and his comment, when he talks about getting together and talking and stopping this proxy work, what he wanted at a first step was an easing of sanctions. It wasnt about violence, it was about money. What does that tell you . Speak of this is a ploy par excellence. They want to trap the administration into the same trap they got the Obama Administration into. They have a phase negotiations where the administration has to handicap its most powerful tools of punishment, coercion and deterrence, and that most powerful tool is sanctions. The Temp Administration sanctions have been remarkably effective and in record time, i might add. Melissa but there are those who disagree with that and say that it is the president s approach that has caused this problem. One is the former ambassador to syria. He had this to say about the u. S. approach right now. Its time to stop thinking about america as being the sole country that dominates regions like the middle east. Its time for adroit diplomacy where we work with other countries and other allies to build coalitions, to maintain a balance of power. Melissa so is there an ally or a coalition that would solve this problem better . The ambassador image the word dominate. America is not dominating the middle east. Thats why have to sharply disagree. That investor is quite good, i might add. But iran dominates the middle east. We are seeing in real time populations rise up in lebanon and iraq, saying they run out. They are not saying america out. The protests in iran most recently, they were pointing a finger at their own government officials and not america for the problems they face at home. So its iran that is dominating, not the United States. Melissa the other theory is that because of the sanctions that have been imposed that iran has been losing some of its some holes on its people that you see increased uprisings within the country. And this is sort of a way to say, look over here, look this other way, they are acting outward over in iraq to detract attention to the fact they are getting a lot of pushback at home. Do you think that pushback gets worse . What do you think of that . In the short to medium term can expect to see one of the same, domestic repression and foreign aggression. These are things that unfortunately the Islamic Republic excels at. These sanctions are so effective, thats why iran is actually feeling right now. I like in the Sanction Campaign to choking somewhat out. Asphyxiation. The closer you get a choking them out, the more likely they are to keep weaving. Thats why iran is throwing everything it has at us without provoking an overt conventional war. These sanctions are effective, again, in record time. Melissa democrats would say we see this because of the policy before. In essence, President Trump because this attack in iraq by getting out of the nuclear deal. That would be, again, fundamental misreading of situation. Its objective. They have changed their National Security strategy starting in may. It was absorbing sanction pressure, and i was responding to it with kinetic force in the region. The Trump Administration held its powder dry for six months as iran did everything from shoot an american drone out of the sky to attack from worlds most Important Oil facility, still nothing was done. Now that an American Life has been lost and a base in northern iraq, the Trump Administration responded appropriate league with strikes on the militia that carried out the attack in iraq and syria. This is a responsible and judicious, prudent, and some might even say too late use of force. Melissa behnam ben taleblu, thank you for your time today. Thank you, my pleasure. Melissa another fox news alert, wildfires in australia growing more destructive pleated flame scorching over 12 million acres there. So far more than the nearly 2 million acres that burned in californias most destructive wildfires back in 2018. The australian Prime Minister praising the nations response. The strength of the individuals on display there, i think that says everything about australia, and the spear that will get them through this weekend. This period that will help them rebuild. Melissa Benjamin Hall has more on this developing story. Benjamin . Hi, melissa. Weve seen over the last week or two, the creation of these magnifiers. Thats where dozens of existing fires come together to create fires over southeast australia. Thats almost double the size of connecticut. 17 people have been killed, 17 missing. These are the worst fires on record in australia, and they are caused by extreme heat waves and severe droughts. In fact, its been the lowest rainfall there since 1900. Tens of thousands of people ive had to abandon their homes after authorities called for evacuations on. The state of New South Wales has ordered thousands of tourists to leave 150mile stretch of a once picturesque coast. More than 1400 homes have been destroyed, and now at seven everyday state of emergency has been called. That gives authority more power to move people out, and the military has been called and paid in one remote region, navy Troop Carrier is preparing to evacuate over 4,000 people trapped on a beach by the advancing wildfires. Prime minister scott morrison, you mentioned, has been heavily criticized for his response. He was vacationing in hawaii when the fires got going, and also for insisting to responsibly for fighting the fires belonged to state rather than federal governments. Serious firefighters have refused to shake his hand, refused to talk to him. These fires have been burning for months and they are expected to continue for months, at least until the rain arrives. They are so hot they are melting fire trucks and smoke reduced visibility on the roads down to 6 feet in places. That makes work for the firefighters highly dangerous. Just today, a contingent of u. S. And canadian firefighters got there to offer their advice, their help, but the fear is these fires will get worse before they get better just because of the conditions i had. Melissa . Melissa what a situation. Benjamin hall, thank you. The Trump Administration expected to announce its highlyanticipated new policy on ecigarettes. So what will remain on the shelves . Despite concerns from health experts. Plus, the big develop and its in the 2020 democratic field. Why its becoming less diverse, as one of the candidates announces a major cash haul. We dont raise money from the wealthy and the powerful. We dont have a super pac. We are raising our Campaign Funds are marking people all this country. I am grateful and appreciative. As a struggling actor, i need all the breaks that i can get. At liberty butchumal cut. Liberty biberty cut. Well dub it. Liberty mutual customizes your Car Insurance so you only pay for what you need. Only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Mortgage rates just dropped to near 50year lows. One call to newday usa can save you 2,000 every year. }du ithat car is one of mine. And soon, its going to be one of theirs. But they would have never even known it existed. If it werent for the power of targeted tv advertising. Its smart. It grabs peoples attention. It works. Its why Comcast Spotlight is changing its name to effectv. Because being effective means getting results. Melissa so, its now official the fda putting out its ban against certain unauthorized flavors of ecigarettes, saying that this includes the fruit and mint flavors. Under the policy, companies that do not cease manufacture, distribution, and sale these unauthorized flavors within 30 days risk fda enforcement actions. We will have more details on this breaking news as we get it. The 2020 democratic field getting less diverse, as Julian Castro announces he is dropping out, leaving just four people of color in the race on the democratic side. Castro making it official on twitter. With only a month until the iowa caucuses, given the circumstances of this campaign season, i have determined that it simply isnt our time. Today its with a heavy heart and with profound gratitude that i will suspend my campaign for president. Melissa and the latest fundraising totals are out, showing Bernie Sanders raising more than 34 million between october and december. That is the largest quarterly figure to date for any of the democrats seeking the white house. Peter doocy has more from iowa. Peter, thats a lot of moolah. That is a lot of money, melissa. First, Julian Castro, remember, is a former Obama Administration official who later criticized the Obama Administration policy on deportations and then failed to qualify for the last two democratic debates. With just 1. 2 support in the real clear politics average of national polls, he decided to quit today with a highlight video of campaign clips. I am so thankful to all of our supporters, the folks who knocked doors, made phone calls, donated, or told their friends and family about our bold vision. They put people first. Im not done fighting. I will keep working towards a nation where everyone counts. A nation where everyone can get a good job, good health care, and a decent place to live. As castro quits, Bernie Sanders is counting his last quarters haul. The oldest candidate in the field, the democratic socialist who recently suffered a heart attack raised 34. 5 million in a still life in crowded primary field, trailing present trump by more than 10 million but leaving all the democratic rivals have opened up their books so far. Like pete buttigieg, andrew yang, and tilson gabbard. They are elaborating on where their money came from in a race that reads, teachers were the most common occupation of the fourthquarter donors. The five more common employees were amazon, starbucks, walmart, the United States postal service, and target. The average donation was 18. 53. We still dont know where joe biden ranks in relation to sanders 34 million for the last quarter, but he will be here within the next hour or so, so we will ask him, melissa. Melissa looking forward to that. Thank you so much. The power panel joins us now. Kayleigh mcenany is president press secretary, sorry, for the term religion campaign. Dave brown is former Senior Advisor and Committee Counsel to democratic senator patty murray. Things to both of you for joining us. We start with you. What do you think of the fact that there are only four candidates of color left on the democratic side . That actually only one of them, andrew yang, is going to be on the debate stage. Well, look when we started this process, this was the most inclusive field. I think that the Democratic Party has ever posted. We had 20 people on stage during the first two debates. When secretary castro exited the race, and even before that when senator Kamala Harris exited the race, both had talked about the issue of diversity, the challenge of ensuring that every voice is represented on the debate stage and also in the primary in a meaningful way. I think so far if we talk about numbers in a minute, how money becomes a proxy for electability. That people have disposable income to donate to campaigns. I think there is an issue there. Theres an issue that is systemic to our political syst system. Also what secretary castro said in the past, whether or not iowa and New Hampshire should be the first mover states for both republican and democratic primaries. Do these states actually represent what america looks like today . Lastly, the last point i make, he has taken the media to task. He talked specifically about senator harris, theres a different standard ascribed to women, people of color, in terms of eligibility. These are smart points that should be debated. We always have to do better. Melissa kayleigh, as dave said, democratic primary voters were presented with a whole bunch of candidates to vote for, and they havent supported the candidates of color as much as the others, as is shown by he was left standing. What does that tell you about those voters . Thats exactly right. For a party that extols identity politics and uses that all of the time, this field is lacking in diversity, but more than just that diversity they are lacking and ideological diversity. Its amazing, when you look at these candidates come over there its biden or bernie, how far left this field has gone. Biden of course supporting a public option, the same as a government takeover of health care. In limiting tens of thousands of jobs in order to address Climate Change and illuminate fossil fuels. This is a party that has zero ideological diversity, and that is not going to play well in 2020. Kennedy i take issue with that, though. Dave, i will let you respond. When you look at how the numbers shake out, Bernie Sanders, super far left, who would be proud to say that. 34 million paid t. Pete buttigieg, thats a huge hall. Haul. Andrew yang, so far the furthest of those who have reported what they got in the last quarter. 60 million dollars, beating out elizabeth warren. Then you see joe biden there, just looking on the screen, that is from the far left to more center left. Its a pretty diverse group, dave. No . It is, things are living respond. I think either kaylee was answering different question or switching to a different talking point. Kennedy doll next to him now, now. [laughs] you are absolutely right in the way you lay this out. Pete is occupying what you can argue is sort of the centrist lane. Andrew yang, the fact that he is reporting the numbers he did in this past quarter, it speaks to the fact that he is a fresh and interesting voice. Certainly not to the far left. We know who sanders is. He has never apologized for who he is. Melissa i want to let kayleigh respond pay 105 million cash on hand to President Trump. The only other one is michael bloomberg. Your thoughts . Thats right, we have raised more money than any president ial campaign in the history of politics. We are prepared, our coffers are deep, notably we had our best fundraising month. 46 million raised, the very month that democrats i argue with daves point, there is no centrist lane. Obama would not be on this debate stage today. Melissa back later for more. Critics slamming President Trump after he appeared to dismiss north koreas threat to develop new weapons. Since weve heard that rhetoric before, is there anything to worry about here . And joe biden also under fire for suggesting coal miners should learn a new trade, like coding. How would that play in states like West Virginia and pennsylvania . The third stair always creaked. And your mother told me all her life that i should fix it. And now it reminds me of her. Im just glad i never fixed it. Listen, you dont need to go anywhere dad. Meet christine, shes going to help you around the house. The best home to be in is your own. From personal care and memory care, to help around the house, home instead offers personalized Inhome Services for your loved ones. Home instead senior care. To us, its personal. Home instead senior care. 12. 99 all you can eat now with boneless wings. Only at applebees. Va Mortgage Rates have dropped to near 50year lows. Newday usa can help you refinance your mortgage and save thousands a year. Newdays va streamline refi makes it fast and easy because theres no income verification, no appraisal, and no out of pocket costs. I urge you to call newday usa now. Melissa fox news alert, we are awaiting an announcement from the Trump Administration about ecigarettes. The fda actually, we just got that announcement before the last break. Let me update that for you. They have banned some flavored cartridges, in an effort to try and stop the epidemic. Doug mckelway has a story from washington. Doug . Hi, melissa. We expected the formal announcement to happen tomorrow, instead it came moments ago, as he pointed out. The fda saying, the United States is never seen an epidemic of Substance Use arise as quickly as our current epidemic of youth use of ecigarettes. Hhs is taking encumbrance of, aggressive approach of enforcing the law passed by congress. But still, this band, to be real specific about it, will apply only to the sale of fruity flavor debate products marketed in cartridgebased ecigarettes. It does not apply to vb cartridges designed taste like tobacco or menthol tobacco. It will still permit the usage of open to grouping systems, popular with adults, where users can make their own flavor. The ban is somewhat of a compromise. We have to protect our families. At the same time its a big industry, we want to protect our industry. As you know, youre taking it off, the flavors, for a period of time. Certain flavors. We are going to protect their families, our children, and the industry. This new band is expected to draw criticism from both sides of the vaping debate, from those who say does not go far enough to restrict all forms of leaping and from others who say they will likely lead to more deaths. In fact, yaletrained psychologist sally sentelle, affiliated with the American Enterprise institute, wrote last october, when flavored groups are no longer available, many nicotine users want just click dont act will just quit. They will turn to cigarettes. The speed of vapingrelated lung disease and death we saw this past years, its been attributed to unregulated blackmarket formulations. The new restrictions will have an impact on the 9 billion vaping industry come flavored cartridges attempt on my account for about 80 of e cigarette sales last year. Melissa, its fascinating to watch a different approach is being taken in the United States and many of the European Union countries, britain included. Britain looks at it as a real Success Story because it has drawn kids away from actually smoking cigarettes, which is infinitely more harmful. It is the smoke which really harms your lungs, not the nicotine, which is addictive but not nearly as harmful as the smoke. So some people see great advantages in vaping, but not hhs on the food and drug administration. Melissa thats an exact problem. Its a miracle for some people but they are kids who never considered smoking at all here in the u. S. Who have basically they were attracted to making. Thank you for that report. My pleasure. Down 300 to 300,000 feet in the mine, they can learn how to program, as well. We dont think of it that way. Anyone conferral to a furnace can learn how to program, for fr god sake. Melissa hmm. Could be another gaffe for joe biden there. Hes facing backlash over suggesting coal miners start training for other jobs. This comes on the heels of controversial comments he made about bluecollar workers at the last of a car debate. Listen to that. As president , would you be willing to sacrifice some of that growth even knowing potentially could displace thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of bluecollar workers in the interest of transitioning to that greener economy . The answer is yes. The opportunity for those workers that transition to highpaying jobs, tom said, israel. Melissa joined me and i was guy benson, most of the guy benson show. Hes also fox news contributor. This is so interesting to me, because this is where you hear joe biden give an actual answer that is really a rich persons point of view. This idea of putting the environment above anything else. A coal miner here is that and thanks, you are shading my way of life, the way that i feed my family, the way i pay my mortgage, and thats very threatening. What is your take . Hey, melissa. Happy new year, by the way. I know that there are some risks being taken here by joe biden when he gives answers like that. Part of the appeal, part of the allure, part of the argument, frankly, behind bidens candidacy is that he is perhaps the only democrat at least thats how he has argued this to be the case hes the only democrat who can move forward and go into some of these states that President Trump won, especially in the industrial midwest, for example, an win back some of those bluecollar, overwhelmingly white and in many cases male voters that have traditionally been democrats. A lot of them are in unions and that sort of thing, but they crossed over for President Trump and they are put off by a hard left Democratic Party. Biden has been saying, hey, im the guy, im scranton joe, to go back and make inroads and when some of those people back that. Theres an argument to be made that hes putting a little bit of that in jeopardy with these types of answers. Melissa candidates have made that mistake before. Who could forget when Hillary Clinton said last time around . Listen to that. Im the only candidate which has a policy about how to bring Economic Opportunity using clean, Renewable Energy as the key into coal country. Because we are going to put a lot of coal miners and Coal Companies out of business. Melissa do you remember how that reverberated . There were a lot of people who said, you want to basically start my family, is what youre saying. She always has a golden touch, Hillary Clinton. So smooth with her rhetoric. And that was a huge gaffe. Whats interesting about this, melissa, is president obama, thencandidate obama, said something very similar bakken 0708 when he was first running, giving an interview ton a liberal city. He said essentially the same thing. He became a bit of an issue but the media was so obsequiously in the tank for him that it got smoothed over and didnt become a huge problem for him that it might have been. Also, the politics were different, with the economic meltdown, et cetera. If the possibility in my mind that joe biden sat there, watch that play out, saw obama give a similar answer and not really get harmed by it and said, i can survive this. I think he might be mistreating the politics of the moment. The politics of the media. Things are different in 2020. Melissa meanwhile, andrew yang, who did raise a lot of money last quarter, said this is a race we cannot win between jobs and human value. Interesting stuff. Anyway, thank you so much, guy benson. Critics going after President Trumps north korea policy amid escalating threats from the hermit kingdom. Whether there is still hope for diplomacy. Attention veterans. With the newday va streamline refi, you can refinance at near record low rates with no income verification, no appraisal and nothing out of pocket. Its not getting in my way. . I had enough {]nbvxbj joint pain, swelling, tenderness. Much better. My psoriasis, clearer. Cosentyx works on all of this. Four years and counting. So watch out. I got this watch me. Real people with active Psoriatic Arthritis are feeling real relief with cosentyx. Cosentyx is a different kind of targeted biologic. It treats the multiple symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis to help you look and feel better. It even helps stop further joint damage. Dont use if youre allergic to cosentyx. Before starting, get checked for tuberculosis. An increased risk of infections and lowered ability. To fight them may occur. Tell your doctor about an infection or symptoms, if your inflammatory bowel disease symptoms develop or worsen. Or if youve had a vaccine, or plan to. Serious allergic reactions may occur. I just look and feel better. I got real relief with cosentyx. Watch me feel real relief. Ask your rheumatologist about cosentyx. I have a very Good Relationship with kim jong un. I know he is sending out certain messages about Christmas Presents, and i hope his Christmas Present is a beautiful vase. Thats what id like, a vase. He likes me, i like him, we get along. He is representing his country, im representing my country. We have to do what we have to do. Melissa im sure it be lovely either way. President trump facing backlash from critics for appearing to dismiss north Korean Leader kim jong uns threats to develop new weapons, and end a moratorium on nuclear testing. A former aide to president clinton arguing the president is out of his depth. Kim jong un has played the president like a stradivarius violin. He has used the time and the photo ops to gain credibility internationally, while at the same time gaining time to continue to develop his weapons. Melissa lets bring in fox news correspondent gillian turner. She served on the National Security council under president george w. Bush and barack obama. What do you think of that opinion . Is he playing the president like a very fine violin . Gillian the reality for kim jong un is a lot bleaker than i think a lot of Foreign Policy analysts have been letting on in recent weeks. Its not an easy situation that he is in at the moment. Not a lot of leeway here for negotiating. If you think about it, the timing hurts him, right . On the one hand he is sort of desperate for sanctions relief from the United States, because u. S. Sanctions and sanctions from the International Community have hit his regime really, really hard this year. But on the flip side of the coin melissa worse than before, that hes hurting more than before . Gillian hurting more than before right now. The flip side as much is that probably incentivize them to want to strike a deal of whatever kind with President Trump, he is also keenly aware that President Trump might only have another year left in office. Hes up for reelection. Whatever comes next, if its not President Trump, could do that, which would come back to bite him. Melissa but then you have the argument, why not make a deal . Hes out of office, you can just go back on it. It could kind of it almost gives you like a free bite at the apple. Gillian the problem with that is you get something in motion, its that argument like you are better off never having won the lotto than winning the lotto and losing money. People are held politically accountable for that at home, because the cat voted out of office because hes an evil dictator. But he will feel that pain at home. Melissa hes also been flitting from our conflict with china, trying to get a deal with them. It benefits china to stir that pot and keep north korea as a thorn in our side. I dont know, does that help him at all can make the fact that we are also at odds with china a bit . Gillian i think any regional tensions that the Trump Administration has with the neighbors useful for him, but china really hasnt backed off the way the United States has. Its a different calculus there. Melissa what do you think happens from here . Do you think its realistic that some kind of a deal happens in the next administration maybe . It didnt work. So it makes sense that you flip the strategy. In truth, no one has had any success. Gillian defense secretary esper was on our air a few hours ago. He said, for all the criticism, the term strategy here is very clear. We believe that a political solution is the way forward, but at the same time we are keeping our military at the ready in the region. Right . So it sounds like its a fairly balanced strategy, but then you have folks like former ambassador john bolton who weighed in on twitter yesterday and said, im not buying it, and called for congressional hearings to get to the bottom of whether the u. S. Military really is ready for an Armed Conflict in the region. For some kind of an Armed Conflict with north korea. So that gave a lot of Foreign Policy analysts pause. A lot of worry. Melissa a lot to think about and worry about prethink you so much, gillian turner, appreciated. Chief Justice John Roberts sounding off about fake news. Why some think it might have been a dig at the president , as roberts gets ready to preside over the Senate Impeachment trial. Plus, incarcerated former governor Rod Blagojevich says his fellow dems would have impeached abraham lincoln. This is argument carry any weight . Attentions veterans with va loans, va Mortgage Rates have just dropped to near 50 year lows. Veterans can refinance their va loans with no income verification, no appraisal, and no out of pocket costs. Newday has extended our Call Center Hours so that every veteran in america can take advantage of this unexpected drop in interest rates. One call can save you 2000 every year. To start saving on your next mortgage payment go to dana hi, everyone. Im dana perino. A teenager facing charges in the murder of a College Freshman, set for a Court Appearance at the top of the hour. Live outside the courthouse. Plus, karl rove on his big predictions for 2020. Anybody ready for a contested convention . And a concerned parent looking for a nanny for a college student, comedian joe piscopo weighs in. Thats coming up on the Daily Briefing. Melissa the house is back on tuesday, the first day of Speaker Pelosi sending over the articles of impeachment to the senate. It is, as chief Justice John Roberts, who would preside over any senate trial, is warning about the dangers of fake news. Some read it as a rebuke of President Trump. Roberts saying in his annual new years eve message, in our age when social media can instantly spread rumors and false information on a grand scale, the public needs to understand our government and the protections it provides is ever more vital. Back with over time, our power panel, Kayleigh Mcenany and dave brown. Kayleigh, what do you think about that . He never mentioned President Trump, so those who are putting this on President Trump and acting as if its some sort of criticism are reading into it something they perhaps wish to see that just doesnt exist. In fact, when i hear that, i hear and maybe calling out the left for the fake news that President Trump repeatedly calls out. Thats after all a term that President Trump uses to call out the fake news regarding impeachment, the fake news regarding the transcript. When he says, read the transcript for yourself, dont listen to the fake news the left is putting out there. I think people are reading into what Justice Roberts said. He never mentions trump. Melissa dave, i dont know. Maybe its a rorschach, people see what they like. Maybe its like the constitution itself when people see whats there and some people see other things. What do you think . Smarter people than me will debate that question. What struck me, actually, the sentence before the passage you read, when he talks about and warns about any of us taking our democracy for granted. And he extorts in that piece the need for greater Civic Education and, frankly, Greater Transparency so that citizens you, me, everybody watching we understand not only would our government does but what it should be doing. We also understand our role in it. Im not sure if i read in it a term critique. I believe that others. But his warning about mob violence in the story he reads about john jay and the federalist papers, that is speaking to a particularly fraught time in our history which is this is a time when tensions are a flame. Melissa its just good advice. Meanwhile, former illinois governor blot dominic raab will go a veg, himself impeached now serving a 14year term in federal prison for corruption, ripping his fellow democrats over impeachment. Writing todays democrat would have impeached lincoln for obstruction of congress and abuse of power when he unilaterally issued his emancipation proclamation. Lincoln didnt ask congress for permission when he declared an end to a weird 250 years of slavery and offered freedom to millions of in the american south. Thats a pretty good point. He makes a really interesting point and gives the several of lincolns actions that democrats would not impeach him over. It goes back to the side of the federalist papers, so Justice Roberts. It should never be used based on the comparative strengths of party, but based on innocence of guilt and the constitutional parameters. The federalist papers lent on the side of the president. The constitution does come too. Blagojevich makes a very interesting point. Lincoln would be impeached today and future president s will be impeached by the center they have set down. Melissa that may be true. We know that blago was on the apprentice and President Trump has been in favor of pardoning him. This is what he had to say. I think he was treated unbelievably unfairly. He was given close to 18 years in prison. A lot of people thought it was unfair like a lot of other things. It is the same gang. The comey gang at all these sleazebags that did it. Melissa dave . I forgot he was on the apprentice. Welcome to 2020, thank you for that. [laughter] i read the piece and i think its absurd on its face. I wont dignify the merits of the piece. The entire republican congressional caucus in 2015 from illinois wrote the president , President Trump, a letter urging him to keep the former governors sentence in place. They talked about how if the present use his power in this instance it would undermine his focus on public corruption, ending public correction, they walk through a litany of crimes of this person, blagojevich, who i cannot say melissa but the lincoln thing . Its absurd, hes trying to draw some sort of weird analogy to end lincoln was engaged in hang on, kayleigh when lincoln was engaged in a political discussion preconvention with someone who would later be part of his cabinet, engaging with lee before the civil war. The strength you like liken it to the prequel quote with ukraine pay thats absurd. Melissa that was one heck in the executive order, to get out there and free the. But thats a different question, its about no crime was committed. Thats the point. Melissa happy new year to you both. We will move on. Happy new year. Think you. Melissa to cope mainstream newspapers under scrutiny for the Embassy Attack in baghdad. The Washington Post and New York Times describing the iranianbacked backed militia as protester and mourners. The backlash, and whether its warranted. Thats next. Veterans. Mortgage rates just dropped to near 50year lows. One call to newday usa can save you 2,000 every year. And once you refinance, the savings are automatic. Thanks to your va streamline refi benefit, at newday theres no income verification, no appraisal, and no out of pocket costs. Activate your va streamline benefit now. Everything your trip needs for everyone you love. Expedia. For everyone you love. Most people think as a reliable phone company. But to businesses, were a reliable partner. We Keep Companies ready for whats next. man we weave security into their business. second man virtualize their operations. woman and build ai customer experiences. second woman we also keep them ready for the next big opportunity. Like 5g. Almost all of the fortune 500 partner with us. woman when it comes to digital transformation. Verizon keeps business ready. Melissa Media Coverage getting major backlash, taking it for labeling the iran men as protesters. One republican staffer tweeting that they should simply be called terrorist. The New York Times facing similar criticism for describing the attackers as mourners. Joining me now is Jamie Weinstein, a host of the Jamie Weinstein show podcast and a Founding Partner at jam w strategies. What do you think of this . Do you think terrorist is too far . I think that the framing of the post of the New York Times certainly was a disservice to readers and their own reporters who are reporting on the ground. Obviously, they never write the headlines. These were not merely protesters. They were a militant group funded by iran, responsible for american blood on their hands. They are great newspapers, but i think that headlines here drops the ball the ball. Melissa i dont even know how you could do that. We all know of the structure that exists in iraq in this group that is funded alongside hezbollah, reacting to things that happened in iran. I dont know how you could call them mourners or protesters. Would it be too much to you call them terrorist . Is that too strong in the other direction . Certainly iran funds a separate branch of hazlet in lebanon which is a terrorist organization. I dont know if that what exactly apply to this militant group in iraq it, but they are pretty close. They are enemies of the United States with american blood on their hands. Melissa in the meantime, Tulsi Gabbard hitting the wave in New Hampshire, surfing and 4. Banking on the picture to carrier to victory, even in New Hampshire. According to real clear politics average, she is nine elsewhere. I mean, this is pretty good surfing. I have to say. What do you think . It gets her Media Attention obviously. It is a nice political stunt. It seems unlikely that she is going to have some surgery or she is going to win the New Hampshire primary and the democratic nomination. Stranger things have happened. Rick santorum i remember in 2012 was pulling where she is now and went on to win the iowa caucus. Did not ultimately win the iowa caucus. I think the chances are likely, but she is doing her best to try to get her name out there and create a search. Melissa field is shrinking. Julian castro dropping out. Your thoughts on that . He wasnt getting even the surge that Tulsi Gabbards, which is impressive, considering she is just a congresswoman, and he had bigger offices behind his name. He failed to build momentum, and we will see what happens. Melissa the interesting one to watch will be michael bloomberg. He has so much money on hand. More than 100 million in the coffers, ready to spend. You know that he is going to spend a lot, firing back. You wonder if he is a serious candidate or if he is just looking to spend against President Trump. Thank you so much for coming out today. We appreciate your time. Thank you for joining me. I am melissa francis. I will see you on the Fox Business Network on after the bell. But for now, lets get to the Daily Briefing with dana perino. Dana fox news alert. 13yearold boy allegedly involved in the killing of a College Freshman due in court any moment viewed hello, everyone. I am dana perino, and this is the Daily Briefing. The 13yearold suspect is charged in connection to the stabbing death of the 18yearold student, tessa majors. About three weeks ago, police say about the teen and at least two others were intending to rob her near campus. She managed to stagger up some stuff from the park before collapsing in a crosswalk. David lee millers live outside the courthouse. David lee, what else are we expecting to see today