this. evan gershkovitch and paul whalen are americans. a chance they could come home. putin hopes to find a solution to release them from jail. they have been in moscow for some time. what it all means is not clear. gershkovitch is the reporter for the "wall street journal" detained since last may. whalen has been behind bars for five years, december of 2018. so we're watching that story. we'll bring you updates if they become available. meanwhile we are off to the races, america. a federal prosecutor accused of running interference for joe biden will testify this morning all part of the official house impeachment investigation which became official as of 5:29 yesterday eastern time. good morning, everybody. it's thursday. you almost made it. i'm bill hemmer. >> dana: i'm dana perino and this is "america's newsroom." the news broke during "the five" yesterday. we got all our opinions out there and more news today. they aren't wasting any time. today's witness is lesley wolf. a federal prosecutor who worked on the hunter biden investigation. whistleblowers say they actively discouraged investigators from pursuing evidence on the president and turned a blind eye to allegations of bribery. >> bill: those whistleblowers ziegler and shapley, we'll hear from them in our next hour. stay tuned. all this adding to the president's legal problems. he is now facing an official impeachment inquiry and republicans are moving to hold hunter biden in contempt for defying that congressional subpoena of yesterday. >> dana: jim jordan is here, former federal prosecutor, andrew is also standing by. let's go to aishah hosni on capitol hill. hi. >> good morning to you both. i'm told that lesley wolf is expected to testify really any moment now here in the next hour. this is going to be a closed deposition so we won't hear from her. we will see her and we will alert you as soon as we have eyes on her. but this is a huge get for the judiciary committee especially after what happened yesterday. we saw that live on this show. i.r.s. whistleblowers allege that wolf obstructed the f.b.i. from investigating president biden during a five-year long probe into hunter biden limiting questioning or leads about the older biden were waving investigators off a search of the younger biden's home after hunter biden defied a congressional subpoena yesterday refusing a deposition. offering public testimony while also defending his dad. here is a back and forth exchange in the white house yesterday about whether he should have done that. >> does the president believe that congressional subpoenas are something that individuals should ignore? >> i'm not going to speak to that. just not. >> he has been subpoenaed in his career. >> i will have you speak to the white house counsel on this. i'm not going to speak to that. >> house republicans say they are going to follow the process to hold hunter in contempt of congress. it is a lengthy process that has to go through committee first, dana and bill and then go to the house floor to be voted on. if it's approved by the house, it will be up to the d.o.j. to then prosecute. i did get to ask chairman comer after that inquiry vote late last night in the house if he is going to use his expanded authorities to try to bring hunter biden back in and depose him. he looked me in the eye and said we are going to depose him. dana and bill. >> dana: thank you. >> bill: jim jordan, house judiciary chairman with us now. good morning to you. lesley wolf, call for number one. assistant u.s. attorney for the d.o.j. out of wilmington, delaware. five-year investigation into hunter biden. served with david weiss and deviated from protocol and known to be a democratic donor. how could one person hold on this up? is it that simple? >> it was the whole investigation. took them five years, still ongoing now. now special counsel david weiss. lesley wolf according to shapley and ziegler who said we won't look into campaign finances concerns that others in the investigative team thought should be examined and you can't use the term big guy or political figure gnomeber one. we w want to ask her questions about all that and most importantly why the investigation decided to let the tax years 2014 and 2015 when the bulk of the burisma income was coming to hunter biden why they let the statute of limitations -- it is one thing to charge hunter biden on a gun charge in delaware. you get into burisma, you do. we want to ask her questions about that as well. >> dana: what will happen to that testimony? i think there was a little confusion yesterday what hunter biden said he was coming to do or not. in is a closed door deposition. will you be able to release a transcript of that or do you hold that? >> you hold the -- we'll are he lease them at some point. you don't want to release it until you've interviewed everyone else. if you release it there is a template for other witnesses. you do the depositions behind closed doors, a transcript developed and then at some point you release a transcript, you do a report. but in an impeachment inquiry there will be a report at some point if we decide to move to articles of impeachment. >> bill: you mentioned years 2014 and 2015. do you consider those to be the most serious charges? >> yeah, because i think the theory of this case is i think it's an old story. you have a politician who does certain things, those actions benefit his family financially and an effort to conceal it. the effort to cover it up and conceal it was now david weiss and lesley wolf handled the investigation. it is hunter biden's involvement with burisma. there are four fundamental facts here. fact one hunter biden gets put on the board and not qualified to be on the board burisma. fact three, the executives there asked hunter biden weigh in with your father and help us with the pressure from the prosecutor. key fact four, joe biden goes to ukraine three days after he gets that request and conditions the funding of ukraine that's already been approved on the firing of that very prosecutor who is applying the pressure to the company that hunter biden sits on the board of. those facts are i think clear as could be and that's sort of the pattern when it all started and then you have the actions with david weiss and the justice department and how they left those key tax years out of any charging even though ziegler, shapley and the team thought they should have been charged. >> dana: yesterday when hunter biden went to capitol hill and gave that statement he used a very specific word. >> let me state as clearly as i can, my father was not financially involved in my business, not as a practicing lawyer, not as a board member of burisma, not in my partnership with a chinese triefsh at businessman. not in my investments at home nor abroad and certainly not as an artist. >> dana: your reaction to that particular word financially. >> you have hit on the key word and what he with saw yesterday right away as well. that qualifier is important. again, remember, the pattern. initially joe biden said i had no involvement whatsoever, none at all with my son's business. this summer when we deposed devon archer, the story changed, well there are dinners, meetings, phone calls, but we just talked about the weather. there was no business talk. now it's to he wasn't involved financially. so again, i think that just raises the concerns we've had all along and shows that -- if you come back to the fundamental question, what were they providing? what was the service and product and what were they offering? it seems obvious to me and anyone with common sense it was access to the brand that devon archer talked about and the brand was joe biden. access to the guy who had influence. that was what they were offering. >> bill: thank you for your time. feels like we're just at the beginning of this again. jim jordan, thank you as we mentioned a moment ago the whistleblowers are joseph ziegler and gary shapley and they'll be our guests later this morning. >> dana: want to bring in a former federal prosecutor. the headline right here, will joe biden pardon hunter? is that possible. biden is the one person in america to spare his son the consequenceens of his actions. the temptation to pull that trigger will be overwhelming. the consequences of doing so would be disastrous. we're probably a long way between now and a possible pardon. is that a situation where you think hunter could be in a lot of trouble? >> it does look like he is in a lot of trouble. we saw him blaming on what he called a right wing conspiracy putting out the idea it's all trump based. it is not. he has engaged in a long line of criminal behavior, that's what the allegations are now. and the evidence is quite strong against him. so it may be his father who is his only hope. maybe in the last couple months of his presidency to pardon him. between now and then he looks like he has a lot of trouble to face and he does look like that he is going to face contempt proceedings for his failure to show up yesterday. >> bill: you were sitting with jim jordan while he was talking. what did you learn? >> i think jim jordan has got his eyes on hunter biden and wants to get answers to the questions. he is not willinging to play games with letting hunter biden make the rules of the game and come before a public audience. it is something these depositions that they do is very standard. it is something that allows the opportunity to have full questioning as opposed to these open sessions where it is five minutes apiece and people are reclaiming their time. that's not really an opportunity to ask deep questions. >> dana: lesley wolf, the federal prosecutor will be deposed today. one of the things jim jordan talked about are the two years of 2014 and 2015. the bulk of the burisma money coming to hunter. they will ask her why were those exclude? is there a logical explanation for that? >> i'm curious to hear what the answers are. prosecutors have to regularly limit the scope of their investigations. they have to make those tough calls when there is evidence pointing one way or another. time and time again it looks like special favor was being given to the bidens. when we look at burisma, that's the most upsetting part of all of this. it is that opportunity to kind of put together the pieces of the puzzle to show that it wasn't just hunter biden who was getting these great business deals but that he was connecting it back to his father and there was the opportunity to burisma ultimately to get what they were looking for. >> bill: last question here. do you think ultimately gyms jordan and james comer get their way? they said they forced us to testify behind closed doors and hunter should get the same treatment. >> i think they absolutely will. they'll continue to push this now that the impeach. proceedings have begun, there is no question whether it will be considered a legitimate deposition. so i do think that they are going to get him behind closed doors. >> bill: with all the counts he is facing why not take the fifth? >> he will do that. that's part of the show of it. to get him to sit there and assert the fifth is the effort i think that jim jordan has at this point and i think he will be able to do that. >> dana: thank you for being here to explain it all to us. good to see you again. >> bill: 12 past the hour now. jake sullivan is going to israel. the prime minister netanyahu vowing to continue the fight against hamas until the end. that is a quote from benjamin netanyahu. >> dana: menorahs are being vandalized nationwide. >> bill: the surge in migrants no longer limited to the southern border. can you believe this? the emerging threat on the northern border coming up next. >> we're not only seeing the threats but the real issue as well we can't even secure the border. we don't know what's coming through. ♪ ♪ i got the power of 3. i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. i'm under 7. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease. i'm lowering my risk. adults lost up to 14 pounds. i lost some weight. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles. don't take ozempic® if you or your family ever had medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop ozempic® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may include pancreatitis. gallbladder problems may occur. tell your provider about vision problems or changes. taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. living with type 2 diabetes? 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(horse neighing) rsv is out there. for those 60 years and older protect against rsv with arexvy. arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects are injection site pain, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and joint pain. i chose arexvy. rsv? make it arexvy. there's challenges, and i love overcoming challenges. ♪ when better money habits® content first started coming out, it expanded what i could do for special olympics athletes with developmental needs. thousands of bank of america employees like scott spend countless hours volunteering to teach people how to reach their financial goals. it felt good. it felt like i could take on the whole world. >> dana: national security advisor jake sullivan says israel's war with hamas won't be over any time soon and heading to israel today for serious conversations with prime minister benjamin netanyahu. trey yengst is live in southern israel as close combat kicks into higher gear. a preview of what jake sullivan will say when we heard what biden said behind closed doors at a fundraiser last week. it seemed to show a little distance between him and netanyahu. >> good morning. we're getting new information in right now from a spokesperson for israel's defense minister who just met with national security advisor jake sullivan. he told sullivan quote, i will last more than several months but we will win and we will destroy them. an indication this is going to be a long war for israel and their operations on the ground in gaza will go well into the new year. it comes as fierce battles rage on in the northern and southern part of gaza. another israeli soldier was killed overnight bringing the total to 116 since the ground operation began. on a call with reporters an israeli officials declined to provide details about a timeline about securing territory in northern gaza and described what efforts look like in southern gaza around the city of khan younis. operations are taking place in pockets, not with the aim of holding large piece of land. with the war expected to continue for months, u.s. officials continue to weigh in on the conflict. national security advisor jake sullivan arrived in israel today meeting with top officials including prime minister benjamin netanyahu right now. still 69 days into the war washington is not calling for a cease-fire. >> we all want the war to end as soon as possible to stop the human suffering and establish conditions for an enduring peace. something the president and the entire team continues to pursue. unilateral cease-fire with a terrorist group like hamas is not the answer. as the president has said hamas could release the hostages today. >> hamas continues to control vast parts of southern gaza though you can see here in this new video the amount of destruction in gaza's second largest city. reports indicate around 20% of structures in khan younis have been destroyed and that number is expected to rise as the war continues. not just the southern front that remains active. more fire into northern israel from the lesbbanese group hezbollah and israel striking back. >> bill: israeli was saying a week ago they could wrap it up. now it will go for months according to that. the hamas chief is a gentleman by the name of hanea. any arrangement in gaza and the palestinian cause without hamas or resistance factions is a delusion. so a quick google search tells you he lives in qatar. two of the other hamas leaders live in qatar. they've been taking in how much money for how many years? far from the action and the destruction and the war that's happening now in gaza. >> dana: they are protected by the qatar there. netanyahu said i will not let israel repeat the oslo mistake. so i think basically what they're saying is we cannot live and survive if hamas is part of this situation. hamas folks are saying is we aren't leaving. so maybe that's why the israeli are saying the war will take a little longer. >> bill: it could. depending on what happens in the west bank. whether it remains to have the flash points that we hear about all the time. whether it gets greater than that is something we'll take into the new year and hopefully it doesn't go that way. >> dana: the hostages are still being held on the ground. >> bill: on and on and on. back here in this country let's get to this. new video southern border shows a seemingly unending line of migrants waiting to get on this train and head toward the southern border. this video, by the way, goes forever. mike tobin has more on that now senior correspondent who is not on the southern border but rather the u.s./canadian border in buffalo, new york. what's happening there, mike? >> well, bill, i can tell you of all the people on the terror watch list picked up trying to enter the united states, 85% of them were nabbed at the northern border. the border patrol union says while the attention and resources head south people trying to find a weak point come to the nation's longest border. even as the niagara river rages and frigid temperatures migrants are taking the chance to make it into the united states from canada. in november over four days four people, three from mexico, attempted to cross in flimsy inflatable rafts. as others attempt on foot border patrol encounters with migrants at the northern border have increased seven fold since 2021. yet the number of agents remains the same. >> the biggest concern is the border control people that they cannot perform what they need to perform because of lack of manpower and lack of funding. >> buffalo, new york is getting it from two sides. unable to handle the crush of migrants in new york city, migrants were bused to the buffalo area where three hotels serve as shelters. local police have already dealt with cases of rape and sexual assault. >> no concern or no regard with our laws. >> he says migrants aren't being tracked and some are bringing in illegal drugs and weapons. >> we have knives, tasers, not allowed to be search. the room searches we were doing turning up a lot of weapons and narcotics are no longer being done. >> that source tells