Transcripts For MSNBCW Weekends With Alex Witt 20200104 : vi

Powered by our gigspeed network. Because beyond technology. There is human ingenuity. Every day, comcast business is helping businesses go beyond the expected. To do the extraordinary. Take your business beyond. Its a new hour here on weekends with alex witt at msnbc World Headquarters in new york. Im alex witt and we begin with this breaking news with new reports of a rocket landing inside the green zone in baghdad. That is, of course, the secure area where the u. S. Embassy in iraq is located. Another rocket across the river from the green zone has been spotted as well. No casualties, though, have been reported. U. S. Troops, though, on the way to the middle east right now following that u. S. Air strike that took out Qasem Soleimani, irans top military general. The u. S. Is bracing for reprisals. Iran has threatened harsh retaliation for the killing. In gaza city, members of iranbacked groups, hamas and islamic jihad, have burned israeli and american flags to protest soleimanis killing, joining tens of thousands who turned out in the streets of baghdad to celebrate the martyrdom of soleimani. Then across from the white house, a protest by code pink and a number of antiwar groups urging the president to bring u. S. Troops out of iraq. Meanwhile, nato Just Announced it is suspending the training of iraqi forces amid fears for the lives of several hundred nato personnel inside iraq. Nbc correspondents are spanned out across the middle east to bring you the latest developments in these tense times. We start with nbc chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel in erbil, iraq. Good day or evening your time to you. What do we know about the breaking news on this rocket attack in baghdad . Reporter so, when we last spoke, what was it, about an hour ago, there were these initial reports of explosions, thuds being reported in parts of baghdad. Well, just in the last few minutes or so, weve spoken to the iraqi joint security coordination bureau, which is a combination of their army and their police forces, and they say that there were three katyusha rockets fired, one landing in the green zone near to the u. S. Embassy. It hit not far from where an iconic location where there is this the old parade grounds were held, saddam husseins old parade grounds. So, fired in the direction of what is considered an american enclave there, not far from the u. S. Embassy. The second one may have also been fired at the same target because it landed not far away. These are generally unguided rockets, sort of you sort of point and shoot. That one fell in a neighborhood that is just across the tigris river. And then according to the same iraqi media center, another rocket was fired toward an american base in baland, iraq, different part of the country. So, this is the main theres been no claim of responsibility, but the presumption is that this is some sort of response from the Shia Militia Groups who all day were out on the streets vowing to take revenge for the killing of Qasem Soleimani. It is, i should say, the kind of thing that they have done in the past. This is along the level of violence that they knowly do whenever they want to show their anger, their frustration. They take these unguided rockets, they point them at the green zone, they point them at an american base and they open fire. And that is what that kind of attack a couple of weeks ago is what started the chain of events that were seeing right now. Yeah. So, last night the president said that we took action to stop a war, not to start a war. And yet, richard, u. S. Troops are being deployed to the front lines fr lines. From the iraqi perspective, are there concerns that the u. S. Is starting a war . Reporter yes, there are. Its very hard to know where your actions are going to lead in general, especially in the middle east. Its hard i dont know exactly how President Trump can say that he took this action to stop a war and not start a war. I think if you look at the history of iraq, it is often a slippery slope. You often get involved in one thing and then find yourself down a corridor that you dont know exactly where it is going. Famously, its been said about iraq, tell me how this ends, and im not sure people have that answer quite clear right now. The troops that are coming in are to provide extra security, but there are many in iraq, many in the Iraqi Government, including the iraqi president who i spoke to who are concerned that we are once again entering a cycle of violence that brings this country to its knees and could potentially bring this country into another state of war. So, as i stand here tonight on a rooftop in iraq talking about rockets flying into the green zone and rockets flying i know the layout there well, the parade ground. So many rockets have been fired at this in the past. The neighborhood where it was also fired. There is a sense of weve seen this movie before with u. S. Troops coming and rockets firing toward the embassy complex and other u. S. Bases and another u. S. Base here. Very concerning on so many fronts. Richard engel there on that rooftop in erbil, iraq. Thanks very much. Lets go to iran where the leaders have promised to retaliate against the United States for the assassination of general soleimani. Nbcs Tehran Bureau chief and correspondent ali arouzi is joining me once again. Ali, do you have a sense of the kind of retaliation the u. S. Should be preparing for . Reporter hi, alex. Thats right. Well, i dont think its going to be conventional retaliation in terms of a conventional war from iran, because the Iranian Military is no match for the u. S. Military. But we can expect iran to deploy its militias that Qasem Soleimani had so effectively built up in this region and that were so fiercely loyal to him. We have heard now that a general has stepped out of the shadows, ismail ghani, who has replaced Qasem Soleimani. So, although Qasem Soleimani was a cultish figure, he wasnt irreplaceable. Mr. Ghani has been at his side for decades. He knows all the people that Qasem Soleimani knows. So, those operational tactics are still very much in force. And alex, were seeing a lot of telltale signs that revevlg is being plotted by iran, that they want to get they want to strike back for Qasem Soleimanis death. The head of the irgc said that the United States is going to pay a grave price for killing Qasem Soleimani and that they made a strategic mistake taking him out. And very interestingly, alex, just hours ago i saw footage of a mosque in irans holiest city. Theres a mosque there and above that mosque always flies a blue flag symbolizing one of their imams. Today, over that mosque, a red flag had been hoisted up, and in shia culture, that red flag symbolizes revenge. In all the years ive been here, ive never seen anything like that. So, the messages are coming across that some sort of retribution for the United States is coming. Now, iran usually keeps its powder dry. They play the long game. So, whether that will be imminent or whether it will be a more longterm strategy remains to be seen. Something could happen tomorrow. It could take months. We just dont know what the strategy here on the ground is, but something is being planned. The Iranian National Security Council has been holding meetings. Thats being chaired by ayatollah khamenei, which shows how seriously he is taking it. And today, irans president , haasane rouhani, visited the family of Qasem Soleimani. Qasem soleimanis daughter asked rouhani, how are you going to avenge my fathers death . And rouhani answered that this whole country will avenge your fathers death. So, this is a very, very different scenario we have stepped into than weve seen before. The tensions are ratcheted up as high as they will go between washington and tehran. And whatever unfolds Going Forward is going to be extremely unpredictable. As richard was explaining, again, there were rockets fired into the green zone in iraq. Were not sure the source of those or the extent of the damage. But thats what triggered off these latest series of events that were seeing now. So, everything is up in the air right now. There is a feeling of boiling point here in iran. And as of tomorrow, massive funeral processions are going to be starting for Qasem Soleimani. Weve already seen the beginning of those in baghdad. His coffin draped in an iranian flag in iraq, being carried essentially by iraqis mourning his death. This has struck a chord amongst the people that were very loyal to him across this region that werent iranian. So, this is a very, very unpredictable scenario weve entered, and it feels unsafe in many ways, and the iranian people dont feel very comfortable. Theres a feeling of revenge here in this country, but theres also a feeling of trepidation as to what irans next move is going to be, what americas next move is going to be, and what are the consequences for the people that live in this country. Nbcs ali arouzi with a very comprehensive report worth listening to every word. Thank you for that. Lets head from tehran now to doha, qatar, where cal perry is on the ground near centcom. Okay, cal, with a welcome to you. With Coalition Forces saying they did not conduct the air strikes following the report of the attack on the iranianbacked troops in northern iraq, but the disarray, the tension in the region, speak to that and what you think it all says about that. Reporter well, i listened to richard and ali, its this deja vu. Its this feedback loop and weve all link lived this before, where you send troops in to protect the embassy, they take fire, they return fire, then theres more fire and then theres confusion about air strikes and thats been iraq for the last 20 years. And unfortunately, the people who pay the price for that more often than not are the civilians who live there. And thats what were seeing now. So, this air strike that allegedly took place earlier today was misreported. There was rumors of a u. S. Strike. There was probably an explosion there. And the first thought in peoples minds isoing to be the u. S. Have hit again. We should mention, of course, there are American Helicopters once again over baghdad. They have been there tonight. They were there last night. And thats whats causing this confusion. Thats sort of what weve seen time and time again. And thats, frankly, what iran is counting on right now. They dont have to respond at this moment for Qasem Soleimanis death. They can sort of focus on making him a martyr, on making him a hero in tehran. They can focus on the funeral. And they can allow these shia militias to do what they do, which is to retaliate in these cities. And thats exactly what were seeing happening, alex. Yeah, and given the fact that youre near centcom with this deployment right now under way of 3,000plus troops from ft. Bragg, North Carolina, the 82nd airborne. Can you be specific on what their deployment is, what their assignment is there . Reporter yeah. So, the 82nd airborne out of ft. Bragg in North Carolina is sending 3,000 troops to kuwait. They will arrive in kuwait and then they will be deployed in iraq. Where i am here in qatar, there is the centcom Forward Operating base, basically, which is a massive air base. It is the largest air base that the u. S. Has in the middle east. It houses some 10,000 u. S. Personnel. It is, as i said, it is a force to be reckoned with. Its about 30 minutes from where i am here. And its what puts qatar in a very interesting and difficult and delicate position. Its why the Qatari Foreign minister was in tehran today speaking to the Iranian Foreign minister, speaking to the iranian president. This is a small country with big ambitions. Thats what they say about qatar. And they are geographically caught in the middle, so they are urging for calm, something we usually hear from the United States. Were now hearing from countries like qatar and bahrain. The other thing worth mentioning, i think, is the iran nuclear deal. When it was torn up by President Trump, one of the things that was lost when that agreement went away was a line of communication. I mean, you look back at those meetings in vienna between foreign minister zarif and secretary of state john kerry, and they built a relationship and they were able to speak when these things went wrong. So, when you had iranian sailors take u. S. Personnel in the gulf behind me for, you know that 12 to 14hour period a few years ago, it was able to be deescalated. There was able to be a discussion. That no longer exists. That communication no longer exists. We understand that the u. S. Is passing messages through the swiss. How efficient that is, not very. So, the ability to deescalate where this conflict is going has seemingly disappeared on us. Well, the swiss were effective in 2015, thats for sure. Okay, cal perry. Thank you so much from doha, qatar. Joining me now, california representative gil cisneros, democratic member of the House Armed Services committee. Congressman, with a welcome to you, sir. So, we have right now more than 3,000 u. S. Troops heading to the middle east after soleimanis death. I know your fellow congressman, gregory meeks, talked to nbc earlier today and says he sees this as a sign that there has to be some panic and concern in the white house. Do you agree or do you see this as a prudent move . Well, you know, the president s talking about how hes preventing a war, but if that was the situation, why are we sending more troops to the region . Why are we asking american citizens to get out of iraq . To me, really sending more troops is really showing how the president has really escalated the situation without really a plan Going Forward. And i think it is a time to kind of worry about whats going on. So, with iran vowing harsh revenge, what do you think is next . What do you expect . Do you expect an allout war or a more targeted response . Its been suggested that a military war, a conventional war is not what we would see. So, what would we see . Well, i think we know from the past, when we push iran into a corner that theyre going to respond. Could be an attack against a embassy. It could be, you know, trying to attack more oil fields. It could be going after Service Members there that are stationed in iraq. The thing is, we dont know how theyre going to react. We dont want a conventional war. They dont want a conventional war, because when it comes down to it, their army wont be able to stand up against ours. So theyre going to use other means in order to go in to do that. And the thing is, is were in a situation now where we dont really know what theyre going to do. We just know that theyre going to act. And they can play the long game. Theyve been playing it for over 40 years and theyll continue to do that and theyll look for their situation where thats open to them and theyll try and attack. And we know that that is going to come because thats what theyve always done. Yeah. I guess we all could buckle up and see what happens next. Sir, as i ask you to switch gears and turn now to impeachment, you have Senate Majority leader Mitch Mcconnell giving new reaction as House Speaker nancy pelosi continues to delay handing over both those articles of impeachment. Lets take a listen to Mitch Mcconnell here. About this fantasy that the speaker of the house will get to hand design the trial proceedings in the senate, thats obviously a nonstarter. No member of this body needs condescending lectures on fairness from House Democrats who just rushed through the most unfair impeachment in modern history. How do you defend the criticism here . Is there any expectation among your party that republicans will actually agree to terms, find some compromise, or the suggestion that its all for show, the delaying of sending over the articles of impeachment . How do you defend it . Well, Mitch Mcconnell should listen to the president. The president s talking about how he wants a trial. He wants to go through this process. We need a fair trial that is going to make sure that this just isnt a rubber stamp on an acquittal for the president. I agree with what the speakers doing and the fact that she was holding these and that we need to know what the senate process is going to be. And for how long, sir . How long do you think this can go on before it reaches a stalemate and becomes ineffective . Well, im not going to put a timeline on it. I have faith in the speaker. She knows what shes doing. Shes been leading our caucus and leading the house of representatives i think successfully. You know, i will put my faith in her to know when the time is right. But you know, we need to make sure that the senate has a process that is going to be just and really not just be a rubber stamp to say, to acquit the president. California representative gil cisneros, thank you, sir, for your time and happy new year. Thank you. Thank you. Happy new year to you. Is it a matter of trust . Why would the president believe intel agencies now about iran and then doubt them on so many other topics . Them on so many other topics whats going on . Its the 3pm slump. Should have had a p3. Oh yeah. Should have had a p3. Need energy . Get p3. With a mix of meat, cheese and nuts. Oh, oh, announcer ® onceweekly ozempic® is helping many people with type 2 diabetes like james lower their blood sugar. A majority of adults who took ozempic® reached an a1c und