Tie tonight for our top story, so what we will present to you are series of top stories including an overwhelming vote in the house of representatives to rebuke the president of the United States. President trump was on the losing end of 245182 on a resolution to terminate the president s declared emergency at the southern border to build his wall. The author of that resolution congressman wakeen castro will joins us and will also be one of the members of congress who will question Michael Cohen in a closed door hearing later this week. He has much to say to us tonight. Tomorrow when Michael Cohen testifies publicly to the House OversightCommittee President trump will be watching his former lawyers testimony in his president ial hotel room in vietnam where the president is meeting with the north korean dictator kim jongun. We are lucky to be joined tonight in a Rare Television appearance by president Obamas National Security advisor who will tell us what to look for in the negotiations with north korea and what he thinks of President Trumps hope that north koreas beaches will soon be the home of glamorous beach resorts attracting tourists from around the world. And in my last word tonight at the end of this hour we will show you the most important piece of video that you absolutely must see from the house of representatives today. A new star was born in the house of representatives today, and you will see her in action at the end of the hour. But first, we knew as i said on this program at the time, at the moment that it was announced that Michael Cohen would testify publicly in a congressional hearing, that that day was going to be the worst day of the year for the Trump Presidency. We now know that it will surely be that, although there might be many worse days coming for the Trump Presidency after this testimony. President trump and his most fervent allies are apparently living in such abject fear of Michael Cohens time that it has driven one of them to the point of possibly committing a crime. Florida republican matt gaetz tweeted this threat to Michael Cohen this afternoon. Hey, Michael Cohen, do your wife and fatherinlaw know about your girlfriends . Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if shell remain faithful if youre in prison. Shes about to learn a lot. It is a federal crime to threaten witnesses who are coming before a congressional committee. 18 u. S. Code section 1505 says that specifically applies to congressional hearings. Congressman gaetz surely didnt read that law before he wrote that tweet, and congressman gaetz is not a member of any of the committees that will be questioning Michael Cohen this week. So what does that threat mean . Did congressman gaetz engage in a conspiracy with other members of congress who are on those committees to threaten Michael Cohen . Is that tweeted threat coordinated in a conspiracy with other congressmen who are on those committees who will then ask Michael Cohen the questions that congressman gaetz is threatening in his tweet . Are they also complicit in what could be a federal crime . Heres what congressman gaetz told reporters about his threatening tweet. We already know that Michael Cohen lies to congress. We already know that Michael Cohen lies to law enforcement. Now were going to find out if Michael Cohen lies to his own family. Because, i mean, if a guy lies to his own family that does it, right . In congressman gaetzs world, whos not currently married, is obviously going to make the case if Michael Cohen has ever lied to his family, anyone in his family he cannot be believed about anything. That same congressman gaetz worship at the alter of donald trump as if donald trump is a god and donald trump has lied to everyone hes ever been married to. Donald trump has lied to his children. One of his sons depzed his fathers lies so much that he stopped talking to his father for a year. So not only has matt gaetz risked indictment today in this crazed defense of donald trump, the man who lies to his family nonstop, congressman gaetz has announced a standard of credibility for Michael Cohen that donald trump could never pass, not for one day in Donald Trumps life. We already have leaks about what Michael Cohen will testify to tomorrow, and the leaks are block busters before we even hear the specifics of the testimony tomorrow. A knowledgeable source told nbc news today that Michael Cohen will detail his allegations of the president s lies, racism and cheating as a private businessman and that Michael Cohen will provide evidence of donald trump alleged criminal conduct since becoming president. From the wall street journal also reporting on that same score, Michael Cohen will provide documentation of his reimbursement for the 130,000 of the Stormy Daniels payment. Michael cohen will show a panel a signed check. The wall street journal is also reporting that, quote, donald trump signed some of the checks reimbursing mr. Cohen, which mr. Cohen began receiving after mr. Trump took office, according to another person familiar with the payments. Michael cohen began his week of congressional testimony today with nine hours of testimony today behind closed doors to the Senate Intelligence committee. Afterward Michael Cohen made a rare, short Public Comment to reporters. First of all, i want to thank you all for sticking around and waiting for me. At this point in time i really appreciate the opportunity that was given to me to clear the record and to tell the truth. And i look forward to tomorrow to being able to give my voice to tell the American People my story, and im going to let the American People decide exactly whos telling the truth. So i want to thank you all again for sticking around. Have a good night. Senator mark warner, the top democrat on the Committee Told reporters this about Michael Cohens testimony today. Two years ago when this investigation started i said it may be the most important thing im involved in my public life in the senate and nothing that ive heard today dissuades me from that view. On the eve of such a hearing that could in effect be the beginning of impeachment hearings in the house of representatives, we need to hear from people with Legal Expertise and the vision and experience to place events like this in their historical and political context, and we are fortunate tonight to have all of that in our lead off panel tonight. We are joined now by joyce vance, the former u. S. Attorney for the Northern District of alabama. An msnbc legal contributor. Also joined by Jennifer Ruben whos an aopinion writer at the washington post, and eugene robinson. And joyce vance, i want to gen with you just on the legal matter, this breaking news, possible federal crime by a congressman today via tweet. In your reading of the statute controlling this and in your reading of that tweet, do you see the possibility of the crime of intimidation and interference in a congressional hearing by congressman gaetz . Based on just the tweet itself its something that prosecutors might take a look at. It doesnt look to me like something offhand i would charge unless there was much more significant evidence that gaetz actually intended to prevent cohen from testifying completely or was trying to get him to not testify about different subjects. I think its when you pull the camera back further out and you think about the fact this is sitting congressman making this kind of comment to a witness whos coming out on a serious matter involving the president that you see that its just so awful. Its so vulgar, its such a schoolyard bully kind of taunt that even if it doesnt technically violate the law, that doesnt really give gaetz much to hang his hat on. And eugene robinson, of all the things for a republican congressman to turn to endefense of donald trump, he turns to the question of if someone ever lies to anyone in their family then you cant possibly be telling the truth. Yeah, that would be like attacking cohen for having funny looking hair or small hands. Its almost tailor made for the, you know but, look, youre arguing in defense of a guy who literally lies all the time. I mean, the lies so far outweigh the truth. But the president has very specifically lied to all of the people he has made every single one all the time. And by the way, all the mistresses and casual lovers and whatever, im sure hes lied to them, too. Jennifer ruben, the blockbuster leaking about the blockbuster testimony is really quite extraordinary, and we basically with the wall street journal reporting what were getting is apparently that Michael Cohen is going to hold up in that hearing tomorrow that famous big donald trump signature on a check to him reimbursing him for his Stormy Daniel payments. And that check would have been written and signed during the Trump Presidency. That check in and of itself, that Payment Scheme has been called a federal crime by the prosecutors in manhattan in the Southern District of new york. So we are going to see evidence of the president of the United States committing a federal crime in that hearing tomorrow. This is big news, folks. Circle the data in your calendar. We are in essence getting the back story to those Court Filings that we have seen from the Southern District of new york. The allegation by the prosecutors that he was directed to engage in illegal conduct. Were going to see and hear, i guess, from michael cohow much donald trump knew, what direction he gave him, how specific it was. It sounds like were going to go into the belly of the beast. And you have to go back to the Michael Cohen raid on his office and the fear that that instilled in donald trump and those around him. They knew that this was the most dangerous source of nfrgsz because Michael Cohen has been there from the beginning. He knows just about everything having to do with donald trump. Now, hes not going to testify about russia tomorrow. The committees have worked that out. But hes going to testify about a lot of other things. And its those other things that, frankly, may be even more persuasive both for the public and for congress when they hear and see physical proof of that. The one thing we know hes going to be testifying about is the Stormy DanielsPayment Scheme. Lets watch those 20 seconds on air force one that will surely be quoted in tomorrows hearing in which President Trump lied about those payments and his knowledge about those payments to Stormy Daniels. Mr. President , did you know about the 130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels . No. Then why did Michael Cohen youd have to ask Michael Cohen. Michaels my attorney and youll have to ask michael. Do you know where he got the money to make that payment . No, i dont. So joyce vance, thats the guy who congressman gaetz is trying to defend by calling Michael Cohen some who lies to his own family the trouble is his client there, in effect donald trump, is right there on video lying to everyone in america when he says, no, he didnt know about the payments to Stormy Daniels. And thats what were going to be hearing about in the hearing tomorrow. Donald trump has definitely flunked the matt gaetz test, right, for honesty and integrity. Right there on air force one. The most interesting thing about this, and this happened so often for prosecutors in trials and its true here, too, nothing that cohen is going to testify to tomorrow will come as a surprise to the president. The president lived through these experiences with cohen. None of this is new. And the danger to trump from cohen is cohen is really the first real witness who was with the president , who knows what the president said, who may know what the president thought. And the challenge for cohen, now a convicted felon for lying to congress, may be coming with cooberation, whether thats physical receipts that proves with any sort of a doubt whatsoever that what hes saying is true. And thats the real challenge, whether theres any incremental space between what cohen says and brings along with him and what one needs to accept as god emphasis truth to find this president is responsible for crimes. Eugene robinson, the talk of impeachment turned a very serious corner when the evidence in the Michael Cohen case became pulk in court and Michael Cohen was pleading guilty, and what he was pleading guilty to was very specifically pleading guilty to committing crimes at the direction of the president. Of the president. And so now we are taking those revelations to a new level, where Michael Cohen will be testifying about them for hours on end publicly. Hell be questioned in detail about them. And it reminds me of the stage of the watergate hearings before there were impeachment hearings. The Congress Went about investigating what happened here, and they werent in an impeachment process. But those were the hearings that then laid the foundations. We have this nub of a fact. This puts substance and context around that fact and also makes clear, apparently, that the president committed crimes while in office. And that fact sits there and festers and something has to be done about it. Now, if that something is ignoring it, thats a decision, an affirmative decision by congress that will have consequences and that will be debated and ultimately theyll be accountable for if they move toward impeachment, same thing. But something will have to be done. Some decision will have to be made. You have a president committing a crime. That calls for some kind of accountability. And so where does that accountability come from . And jennifer, the republicans in congress when the Michael Cohen information first came out, they started to say things like, well, this was about a Campaign Finance violation, and Campaign Finance violations are common. They tried to pretend this one is like other Campaign Finance violations where you got the address wrong on a contributor form. And now theyve got the problem theyre going to have to live with apparently tomorrow is that the Campaign Violation, the Campaign Finance violation that Michael Cohen and the president engaged in paying off these women carried over into the presidency, long after the campaign was over with the president signing those checks. And that, i think, is a little tidbit that im not sure that we all realize. That hes sitting in the oval office or wherever he sits, maybe this is what we does in executive time, he pays off women. And he is signing this check. And it also makes clear this is not just an ordinary Campaign Violation. This was a Campaign Violation meant to disguise and defraud the American People to hide his relationship because he believed that had that relationship come out before the election, that it could have contributed to his loss. Its also significant enough that while in office he continued to coverup, to lie about it. Thats not what one does with a clerical Campaign Finance violation. They always point to obama did that, obama did that. Well, many of these are in the variety of a Campaign Violation. And theyre quickly cleared up and people pay fines and they go forward. They dont lie about them continuously. They dont begin harassing witnesses who are going to testify about them. This is a whole different kind of ball game that were in here now. And i think its going to be very hard for members of congress who seem to be continually moving the goal posts, well, its nauticalution, well its just a process crime, well its just a little process crime to really escape the import of what he is saying. I dont normally i try to avoid coverage of whats going to happen tomorrow tonight. I usually have enough to handle with whats happening today, but this is one of those nights we really had to set the table for whats happening. And you have done that perfectly for us. I rea