Hes been planning his exit now with a record low Approval Rating and facing serious jeopardy in a potential senate trial that is looming. New evidence emerging as well inside the insurrection at the capitol. Meanwhile, you can look at maralago today where the moving trucks are there, getting ready for the expresident to return home soon. He will not be shielded by the legal powers he currently holds when donald trump arrives in florida. Joe biden will be inaugurated. And that is the sight in washington today. It is emptied out for the most part. It is on a total lockdown in all key government areas. And there are still Credible Threats being tracked by the authorities. It is a veritable fortress. Over 20,000 National Guard troops are also deployed in washington to keep the peace and safety. The evidence that i mentioned, this has been building on reporting that we and many outlets have been doing. This time new videos from the new yorker magazine on exactly whom these rioters said they were listening to. Whoo whose house . Our house. Treason treason treason get a snap of that. Theres got to be something here we can [ bleep ] use against these scumbags. They said they were listening to donald trump. Quote, we are listening to trump. So this isnt just a sight to behold, although it is that. This isnt just a better understanding of who was doing what and why, although it is that. This is also, wering about b. To show you a little bit more of it, disturbing Video Evidence that may play in the senate trial of donald trump, including what they were up to, what the rioters wanted to do. Here they are invoing speaker pelosi. While were here we might as well set up a government. Hey, lets take a seat, people lets take a seat nancy pelosi. [ bleep ]. Guess what . America showed up its only a matter of time. Justice is coming. Justice is coming. That was actually stated from the place where the Vice President is constitutionally supposed to sit. A former marine and one army veteran charged in connection with the capitol riot, they are both linked to a rightwing militia. Also an Army Reservist who actually has a secret security clearance including access to a cache of military supplies. Now criminally charged, facing five federal felonies. Our coverage begins tonight with the New York Times maura gay and brittany packet cunningham whos been an activist working on police reform, a former member of president obamas policing task force. We are gathered of course to discuss all of this on Martin Luther king day. We have more on that in the program as well. Brittany, your thoughts about what we are learning from the videos. So theres a lot that we are learning but theres also a lot thats being confirmed. Whats being confirmed is that white domestic terror has been a threat to humanity for centuries. Certainly since 1492 or 1619 right here in america. So after all the hand wringing and the shock and the horror the question is what are we going to do about all of it ultimately once and for all . So with what were learning obviously theres individual accountability that has to take place but we know this is not due to one person or one thing, that a deeply intertwined massive constellation of people and elected officials, platforms, rhetorics, organizations, funds, all of these things came together to create this moment in history thats a continuation of many others. So we need to see the senate take corrective action that is swift and broad because all of the things that i just named can be subject to regulation if congress is willing to show the kind of courage that its going to take. Otherwise, were going to be right back here in a matter of no time with a trumplike figure who is just as racist, just as problematic, but more ready for prime time. And that we have to be ready for. And maura, with that in mind were covering this transition of power with far more tension, far more strain than weve ever had in the modern era because explicitly of both Donald Trumps conduct and how much support it got including the support of the big lie that power those insurrectionists among other things by so many Top Republicans. Im curious what you think being part of a News Organization like the times thats trying to cover this with clarity when it is not normal, nor should it be normal. When we have more troops as many have observed stationed in washington right now more than we do in places like afghanistan and iraq because of the threat assessment that were dealing with, and its homegrown. Yeah. You know, ari, a couple thoughts. My first thought is that in terms of News Organizations and really anybody with a platform this is a very important time for us to hold ourselves accountable and make sure were not just doing the work of stenography, which is to say he said this, she said that, some people say this is true, but really to do the hard work of journalism, which is actually to tell the truth in a nonpartisan way but to just tell the truth. Sometimes that means calling the shots and being the referee. So if its the president of the United States whos telling lies we need to call that what it is. If this is White Supremacy we need to call it by its name, this is what it is. And i really think that we need to stop shying away from that. Im someone who works on an opinion staff so, its easier for me. But ive been on the other side as well. Ive worked for the wall street journal too on the news side. Its just as important no matter what your job is. The other thing i would say is i really hope that we can as a country start to move away from only the work of analyzing these people who are out committing this treason against the United States. Thats an important job and certainly one that the fbi and hopefully an independent 9 11 Style Commission will look at. But i also think its important that we start doing the work of building up our institutions and our democratic traditions because if we do that well then this minority of people will not be able to have the power that they showed, that they had when the rest of us are caught off guard. If we take hate seriously and we take democracy seriously, we wont be in this position. Yeah. You say take democracy seriously. And mara, i want to draw your attention to one of these figures that on the one hand seems like a rough approximation, if you look at insurrection and these killings and the nature of it, to then go to polling seems a little off. Having said that, theres been a lot of conventional wisdom about how nothing donald trump does is will ever be held to account. The trial in the senate is a constitutional version of that. And the public, whatever you think of the 74 million plus who did vote for trump, the public is clearly recoiling from him as he leaves office. I want to put up the lowest Approval Rating hes ever registered, which is saying something because hes one of the least popular president s ever. He never broke 50 the way most president s do at some point. And hes now down to 34 , mara. There are more and more americans of both parties who see the president for the grifter that he is and i think the insurrection on the capitol is a clear example for anyone who is still of sound mind who is still committed to democracy, that this is not a movement that you want to remain a part of. So i am heartened by that. But i have to say our history in the United States, you know this, ari, very well, we like to move on and talk about unity but we dont ever address the underlying cause of our conflict and injustice. And i just want to make it clear, it is White Supremacy that needs to be addressed. It is hate and intolerance. And that is the threat to democracy. If we dont address that, this will continue to happen. And so we cant move on until theres actually accountability and justice at every level. I think those are very important points. It actually goes to our next guest, which is why im going to keep this block moving. I want to thank both of you for kicking off our coverage. We have a very newsworthy next guest, which is the newly appointed impeachment manager for the democrats on that very trial we were discussing. Congressman joe nagoose. Congressman, good to have you here. Your thoughts on what accountability looks like. Good to be with you, ari. Accountability looks like a conviction in the United States senate. Myself and my fellow managers lead by our lead impeachment manager jamie raskin, all of us are experienced litigators. Some are former prosecutors. Weve been preparing to present a very compelling case to the United States senate when the trial commences. There is no question that this president gravely endangered the security of the United States. He threatened the integrity of the democratic system. He interfered with the peaceful transition of power. And ultimately imperilled a coequal branch of government. And its important to hold him accountable, and in my view that is essentially securing a conviction in the United States syndrome and disqualifying him from holding any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States pursuant to the constitution. Let me play you something that a noted bush republican said about some of the ideas that were being kicked around as potential defenses for donald trump, why they were so bad that karl rove thought giulianis ideas might actually make it more likely that you would win, that you might win this conviction, pardon me. Take a listen. When he suggested that the argument was going to be, well, there couldnt have been incitement because all the charges of widespread voter fraud are true. Frankly, they arent. They have been given every opportunity to prove them in a court of law and have failed to do so. So i think it really boils down to whats the defense the president is going to make and if its Rudy Giulianis defense i think it raises the likelihood of more than 17 republicans voting for conviction. How do you approach that and what is your core argument to republicans who may not agree with you on all of your criticisms of donald trump but are open to hearing the evidence in a case about this high crime allegedly, this National Security infraction . Well, for the first time i suppose i agree with karl rove. I mean, look, the president is entitled to his own counsel, but to potentially appoint someone like Rudy Giuliani who by all accounts assisted the president in terms of inciting the very insurrection that is the subject of the impeachment trial wouldnt be a prudent legal strategy in my view. But of course thats his own judgment. Look, i think at the end of the day republicans, democrats, independents, americans of good faith all recognize that what happened on january 6th can never happen again. As liz cheney said so eloquently during the impeachment proceedings in the house, this president incited the mob. He summoned the mob, he assembled the mob, he lit the flame of the attack, and of course every single United States senator was a witness and ultimately a victim to the armed insurrection. Many of the managers. I was on the floor of the house the day that the armed insurrection took place. We all experience td it in real time. It is abundantly clear that this president has no interest in ensuring the peaceful transfer of power. And i think that ultimately if the senators apply an impartial lens to the evidence that we present during the trial i think they will reach the same conclusion that republicans and democrats in the house reached, which is that the president committed a high crime and misdemeanor and that he ought to be convicted. Congressman neguse, this is a busy time for you. As i mentioned, one of the new impeachment managers. Well be checking in with you throughout of course this trial as well. I thank you for your time tonight, sir. Thank you, ari. Appreciate it. We have now just our shortest break of the hour. 30 seconds. When we come back, new reporting on attempts to profiteer over pardons. New evidence revealing that the rioters thought they were directly following ted cruz and others. What does that mean for them . A lot more. Well be back in 30 seconds. T me well be back in 30 seconds. A v. Hold the phone in front of you. Hows that . Get. Get mom. [ding] power e trade gives you an awardwinning app with 24 7 support when you need it the most. Dont get mad. Get e trade and start trading today. Stay restless with the icon that does the same. The rx crafted by lexus. Get 0. 9 financing on the 2021 rx 350. Experience amazing at your lexus dealer. New signs tonight that donald trump is a quitter. Hes largely quit doing the job of president since losing the election in november. Out of sight after bailing on public appearances that president s normally have on meetings, on covid prep, all of this a damning fact which is of course also sometimes obscured by the other drama and problems regarding all the other things donald trump has been doing with his time. That includes his focus on how to use the final waning days of his powers for selfinterest and personal goals. New reports he has a final pardon spree planned with debates over possibly pardoning himself or his adult children. Exactly who may get Donald Trumps last pardons is especially controversial amidst separate bombshell reporting from the New York Times that some trump allies are already profiteering off the pardon hunt to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars or more. Connected lobbyists pleading for wellconnected wealthy convicts ranging from a senators son to a manhattan socialite who pleaded guilty in a fraud scheme. We are joined now by a guest who knows his way around these exact issues as well as the legal threatens from the trump presidency. Former acting u. S. Solicitor general neal katyal. Good evening, sir. Good evening. Just two days left of all this. But pardons loom large. Walk us through what is important in your view for us to keep in mind if and when we get any of that news. So the pardon power was put in the constitution. Its the kind of majestic thing, and president s normally use it to wield mercy to show theres a problem with some sort of criminal conviction. Donald trump has used it, however, in a very uneven way. Hes used it toward friends of his like michael flynn, roger stone, paul manafort. Hes used it for a rogues gallery of folks like dinesh de souza, sheriff joe arpaio, people like that. A study analyzed all of trumps pardons and found 84 of them were given to people with a personal or political connection to the president. So we start with that, and now we have this bombshell New York Times report showing that theres a market for pardons, that in fact Rudy Giuliani according to the times offered one of them up to somebody for 2 million. So thats going to be a serious problem because either the president has a broad pardon power, the Justice Department has said its not unlimited and theres bribery and other things. President clinton was investigated at the end of the administration for that. And that was such a limited thing. The limited imagination. Thats like a retail pardon. Trumps wholesale. Hes like the costco of pardons for sale here according to this report. Yeah. Costco of pardons, which i guess when youre buying in bulk it really depends what youre buying. If they were done through a pardon attorney for the right reasons, in individual warranted cases, we might all support costco. But if youre buying corruption in bulk, right . Thats a big problem. Im glad you mentioned that piece. I wanted to ask you about it, neal. Specifically reading from one former Government Official who was also convicted, said that he broached his quest for a pardon during a meeting last year, with mr. Giuliani whose confidence turned to him and suggested giuliani could help but hes going to want 2 million. From the New York Times. Do those things need to be investigated whether or not, in fairness to this or any president , whether or not the president knew about such an illicit scheme in advance, if that reporting is anywhere near true it looks like a new legal problem for giuliani. Yeah. Since trump is stiffing him for his legal bills i guess rudys figured out another way to get his legal fees. But its certainly not a legal way to do it. And you know, again, you have to see if that report is accurate and so on. But if it is, its a real problem. You cant you know, this is a majestic power of the president. Its a noble thing that madison and others put into the constitution about mercy. And its emblematic of the trump presidency. He takes this noble thing and he perverts it in a way for him and his friends to get some bucks, stroke an ego or two and the like. You know, its just its so horrible and wrong. And yes, it will be the basis of a criminal investigation. All good points of clarity. Neal katyal, thank you as always. I want to remind viewers as part of the special series here with us on the beat you can always go to msnbc. Com openingarguments. You can find this and other pieces weve done with neal. We always say its like free law school, which is really something. When we come back, democrats are now exploring new ways to limit the normal powers that an expresident like donald trump would have. One of them being access to intelligence. They say thats got to end. Also, the new disturbing video that might be evidence against donald trump in his senate trial. Were going to show you exactly who else maga rioters invoked and why they thought they were under the cover of law, which could be bad for some people in the senate. Later the party of trump faces a reckoning as he leaves office in disgrace. We have a very special guest. Stay with us. Sgrace we have a very special guest stay with us with moderate to severe Crohns Disease, i was there, just not always where i needed to be. Is she alright . I hope so. So i talked to my doctor about