gaza, why said the situation is getting worse each minute. >> u.s. coast guard rocked by allegations that leaders held back information for years failing to keep people safe pick reporting on reforms they plan to make, we follow these major developing stories coming into cnn news central. >> a 24 hour dictatorship, that's how donald trump will start a second term in the white house. his comments coming during an iowa town hall after he already signaled he would use presidential powers to carry out personal vendettas, his allies have echoed those plans leading to a host of former government officials, constitutional scholars, and other republicans warning trump would usher an era of authoritarianism. now last night, the former president ally and adviser, and also fox news anchor sean hannity offered him and out. trump did not take it, listen to this. >> under no circumstances you are promising america tonight you would never abuse power as retribution against anybody. >> except day one. except for day one. >> meaning? >> i want to close the border, and i want to drill. you're not going to be a dictator? no, other than day one. we are closing the border and drilling, after that, i'm not a dictator. >> cnn's kristin holmes has been tracking all of this, unpack that answer for us. >> as you noted, sean hannity is an ally of donald trump. som close to the former president, like many allies of donald trump, there is a concern overall that some of trumps ramped up rhetoric is not going to play well outside of his loyalties say if he were to be the nominee and there was a general election, this is a close ally giving him not one but multiple opportunities to categorically deny he would be a dictator, that he would abuse power. instead what you got was this nonanswer, nonsubstituted and really tongue-in-cheek. i will be a dictator in order to drill, it gives another opening to biden and his allies . what they have been trying to do is that if this is a rematch between job inviting, they want to paint this as a rematch or a choice for voters between authoritarianism and democracy. this is just another opening, the former president has tried to turn this argument around to say it is actually biden who is against democracy and anti- democratic because of all the legal battles trump is facing. that's biden sending in his department of justice to go after his political opponent being donald trump, that's not really an argument that seems to be resonating outside of his close crew of supporters. this would have been an opportunity for him to say hey, that's not happening yet he did not take it. >> is also an opening in theory for his republican rivals on the debate stage, we will see if they take an opportunity, kristin holmes, thank you so much. >> former vice president mike pence could end up inside of a georgia courtroom in the 2020 election subversion trial, cnn has learned he's on a secret list of potential witnesses that was just submitted by the fulton county district attorney, we have cnn zac cowan with more on this reporting period if pence is called to testify, he can be a key witness . >> it's hard to imagine there's a bigger name on this list which we are told contains over 150 individuals, mike pence has to be the biggest one. we have learned because this document is under -- he's among them and he could not be called to testify in a trial situation obviously, against his former boss, donald trump once we get to that stage, it is important to remember what makes that case different is that the courtroom does not allow cameras, there is a scenario imaginal where mike pence is testifying in the same room as donald trump here it >> he has signaled a willingness to cooperate when it comes to being a witness in federal trial. do you know what his thinking is in this case? >> it's really interesting because pence did not interact with prosecutors in the georgia case preindictment, he never testified under oath. he's doing this in the federal case with a grand jury under oath. look at what pence said about testifying in a federal trial. >> i have no plans to testify but we will always comply with the law, but look, i want to tell you that i don't know what the path of this indictment will be. there are profound issues around this, pertaining to the first amendment freedom of speech. >> no plans to testify, raises first amendment issues but does ultimately say he's willing to comply with law, it will be interesting to see if that also applies to the georgia case, we are told our colleague has told us that pence was surprised to find out he was on this list, he found out the reporting. he sort of wondering why he was included again, he did not have any interactions with prosecutors leading up to this point. why would they want me to come in and testify? if he has information, new information that could be harmful to donald trump in a trial situation. >> how are the pence and trump cancer reacting to this news? >> the mike pence camp is surprised, trying to figure out what prosecutors want to question him about. i think we saw this coming, specifically using the reference of pence as the potential witness to try to get the judge to facilitate the handover of evidence at the federal case to the trump team in georgia. both sides reacting differently, maybe different expectations coming in. as of now, pence can be called to testify once we get to that stage, the question is when will the trial start? >> possibilities? the range? >> the prosecutors want to start august 2024, trump wants to keep it from happening until he leaves office. that's about a five year difference. >> five year difference between the two, there you have it. zac cowan, thank you so much. >> the colorado supreme court is set to begin in oral argument in a closely watched case that aims to keep the president trump off the ballot in that state. it centers on the u.s. constitution's ban on insurrection it's holding office. the colorado district judge found trump engaged in insurrection on january 6th, 2021 but they argue the band is not specifically apply to those running to presidency, the case was brought by a republican and independent voters in coordination with the liberal leaning watchdog group called citizens for responsibility and ethics, representatives of from the group join us now, live for us in denver. thanks for being with us, i want to bring up the specific section of the constitution where this comes up to illuminate where the disagreement is, section 3 of the 14th amendment says that if you have engaged in insurrection, your prohibited becoming a member of congress, other positions, even an elector of the president but it does not specifically say you cannot run for president. what is your counterargument to the judge's decision in colorado the highlights the argument? >> quite simply, as our team will be arguing as you said in about an hour in front of the court, the provision clearly says that you cannot be an officer of the united states and we think that law is quite clear, the constitution is clear on many different places at the president -- presidency as an office of the united states and that makes the present and -- president and officer of the united states. it seems really pretty incredible to think that the president in the united states would not be continued -- considered an officer, more that this provision that was meant to protect the public from those who had attacked it, those who had engaged in insurrection would cover every position in the federal government and a whole lot of positions in the state government except for the most powerful one, it does not make a lot of sense and we think it is not supported by the language of the constitution or the history the documentation and how people have used this at the time. >> trump has prevailed in similar challenges in other states, how confident are you that this three-judge panel or rather the colorado supreme court is going to see it the same way that you do? >> i think one thing that is really significant in this case is that it is the only case in which a trial court held a real trial, heard from witnesses including law-enforcement officers, members of congress, experts on constitutional history and extremism, on the powers of the president. after all that made this really incredible judgment that as a matter of law, donald trump had engaged in insurrection, in many ways, the hard part of the case already came in favor of our clients. we think this is a narrow legal question. we have heard in recent weeks, experts across the political ideological spectrum who agree with our take that ranges from legendary conservative judge j michael in professor laurence tribe, professors, a lot of really major poison saying we have looked at this and studying this, we think it is clear the president has covered this provision, we think that there is obviously going to be up to the colorado supreme court, they will hear argument today, there's a real argument that they accept this judgment that the district court made on evidence about donald trump's engagement in insurrection, they end up feeling like on this narrow legal question where they are considering it whether the president is an officer, that decision was not correct. >> you sound bullish about the supreme court in colorado, it's highly unlikely this winds up in front of the supreme court, federal supreme court. the body that is made several controversial decisions leaning conservative on three justices appointed by former president trump, what are your thoughts on your odds there? >> we are taking this one step at a time, obviously we don't know what the colorado supreme court will do. we think we get a really fair hearing today, we feel like there is a real chance there, even if this does make it to the u.s. supreme court, i will simply say that the u.s. supreme court has been very fair on issues of checks and balances, and potential abuses of power by the former president that with everything there is a strong argument for the 14th amendment applying, that is a type of argument the supreme court tends to be interested in, we will take it one step at a time, we think of it does make it there, then we will get a fair hearing. you know, we will see what happens. >> noah bookbinder, appreciate you. i look forward to more conversations down the road. >> thanks for having me. still to come, potentially the last presidential primary debate and front runner donald trump will not even be in the room, what we will be watching for next, meantime, president biden's approval rating drops even further in the latest cnn poll, the details on those important numbers and later, israeli prize -- prime minister benjamin netanyahu has said troops have surrounded hamas leaders room in gaza, when we come back. where less than six weeks away, can you believe that? the iowa caucus in tonight, chris christie, nikki haley, vivek ramaswamy, ron desantis all facing often the primary debate here it >> yet again, the court -- front runner, donald trump will not be there. he will be campaigning in florida instead. let's discuss with david shelley and and jessica dean. the dynamic changes, fewer candidates and nikki haley has emerged as the prime trump alternative. is it fair to see we will see them go after her the most? >> she has a lot of wind in her back and momentum, that has been because in part to her performances on these debate stages, she has been able to convert those performances in two growing support, i would argue she's been the most effective at that because we only have four. there is obviously more time for them to go at each other, that is going to be a different dynamic. we have seen very pointed back and forth between her and vivek ramaswamy. i anticipate we see more of that tonight, then you have florida governor ron desantis who has made it through debates without harming himself, without causing any major problems but where is that big moment like nikki haley has seen over and over, can he do something like that? timing wise, we are ever closer to the iowa caucus, it's a prime time but the bottom line is they are all still running to be the trump alternative >> you're right, we might be looking for the moment where he takes on vivek ramaswamy. what does that by herbicides this watercooler moment people are having, did she really need to take on donald trump, does she need to take him on over comments about dictatorship? >> i would imagine that there will be asking about tom's comments at the town hall, about his refusal to rule out the notion he would abuse power. he refuses to change that, we know where chris christie stands on that, he made that the centerpiece of his campaign. i do think it is a valid question about the nikki haley desantis strategy, trump has been a question throughout this entire cycle because it is so clear the republican primary voters, even those supporting candidates not named trump are not all that interested in hearing trump be attacked, he is the dominant figure because he's a very popular figure among republicans, how they navigate that is something to watch and i would note that nikki haley in this new position of this momentum no doubt, she's going to be ready for lot in coming, how she handles that not just from vivek ramaswamy will be important. >> notably to david point, chris christie's approach has not really won him much, he got qualified to be on the debate stage tonight, do we anticipate at any point that the other republicans on the stage are hoping for anything other than a conviction perhaps for some break in the dam that might actually give them substantial hope? >> there is a pervasive theory to just be the last person standing and whatever happens happens to donald trump, here's the alternative when he goes down, i will be the person, a couple of things i think you are exactly right. i have been in rooms, i'm remembering one evangelical gathering when he was booed trying to give his message. there were parts of the party that have not welcomed his message about the former president at all. it's worth thinking about new hampshire where he's doing really well and i think he's trained a lot of his efforts. nikki haley also looking to new hampshire, that kind of puts them in an interesting spot, we have not seen them going at each other, i don't know we will see that tonight. it is something to keep an eye on. >> you have to hedge your bets besides running to be number two in case something happens to donald trump? cover both bases maybe, do you think we will see that? >> try to actually out right and the race? >> you bring up this novel strategy. why not do that? >> a crazy idea, i think it would all tell you, we have to know, i'm not running for second place, and running to be the nominee but the situation and environment remains at this point, that is the layout. >> no one has voted in this contest, not only are they waiting to see donald trump, there waiting to see how voters cast their ballots in this race. >> notably david, cnn has new polling about president biden and his standing on the economy and it's not a good picture. >> this is why all four folks are eager to take on the president, his standing is pretty weak, take a look at his overall approval rating, he's at 37% approval, 63% disapprove, that 37% is about where he's been hanging out in the cellar but it is a numeric low, way down over time in the last year, look a year ago, he was at 46%, january 45 noun down to 37%, on the economy which is issue number one in this poll, his approval rating is worse at 33% approval, 60 see -- 66% disapproval despite the economic growth we've actually seen take place obviously, americans are blaming joe biden for what they are not intrinsically feeling on the economy. >> it is tough, there are good economic indicators but americans are dealing inflation on some key issues, they are feeling get on housing, they cannot ignore that is biden is trying to sell his message, he will still do that, thank you so much, we are looking to see what happens this evening, coming up, months after a cnn investigation, the u.s. coast guard releasing its own report into its own misconduct and sexual assaults finally, we will tell you what they found and the sweeping reforms they are planning just ahead. two months since hamas slaughtered 1200 people in gaza, they have encircled the home of hamas's top official, yahya sinwar. he's not home. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu is hoping it sends a message. >> translator: last night, i set our horses could reach anywhere in the gaza strip, now they encircled yahya sinwar's house. he can escape but, it's only a matter of time before we get him. >> joining me now is the prime's minister senior adviser, thank you for being with us. unless israel he hamas brutalized, he's not home or caught unaware, what is the goal here and circling his home? >> it's a symbolic victory for israel but will be a real victory very soon, it's only a matter of time before we get the man who is directly responsible for the massacre of 1200 israelis on october 7th, the brutal massacre, the atrocities, the burnings, the beheadings, the rape we will reach him and justice will be done. >> of course, your following very closely, u.s. congress is debating a funding bill, senator bernie sanders says it is quote absolutely irresponsible to give israel unconditional aid, what is your message to american lawmakers like him who want to condition the aid? >> look, israel's fight against thomas is america's fight too, because hamas represents a sort of barbarism, this extremism, this terrorism and they might have attacked israel on october 7th, but that sort of extremism can attack europe and reach america. it is important that we win here not just for israel, but for the whole free world, we have to show that the short of barbarism is destroyed, nip it in the body, we cannot allow them to have a victory and israel's victory will be america's victory too. >> there are of course americans who are questioning how israel is executing its war in gaza, the idf says that it's ratio of two civilian deaths for every hamas militant which is the math that israel is looking at his quote tremendously positive given the challenges of urban terrain and combat. one democratic lawmaker, seth moulton who is himself a combat veteran, he deployed multiple times in this. >> i think it is dead wrong, by that number, israel so far killed about 5000 hamas terrorists in the process, they have recruited about 100,000 new adherents, this is really bad news for israel. >> he's referring of course to the stanley mcchrystal theory that for every sibling you kill, you recruit 10 new insurgents, as israel is eradicating hamas, how do you plan to deal with insurgents the war will inevitably create? >> we think when this is over, we are already seeing signs now that hamas's path of extremism, their path of terrorism, their path of brutality is being discredited because the people of gaza are not stupid and they can see where the path of hamas has brought them, they know who started this war and they know who ended the cease-fire by refusing to release more hostages, we are already hearing that it is now in a small level but it will grow to a crescendo as the people of gaza, strongly against what hamas has brought upon them, on that basis, i think we can build a future with gaza when this is over, post hamas gaza which will be demilitarized and just as important, d radicalize and i think in that aim for a demilitarized andy radicalized gaza. we will have many partners in the arab world who want to see a better future for the people of gaza. >> you think if an israeli missile killed someone sibling or child, or parent, they will blame hamas instead of israel? >> you have seen other examples like at the end of the second world war, i don't make a comparison but it is interesting to think about, berlin was destroyed. germans blamed hitler who brought the destruction upon them, it could well be the same in gaza. gazans can see what hamas has done to them, hamas can see that the leaders are underground while they are above ground trying to find a safe place. hamas can see how they treat citizens while israel is putting them into safe havens and zones will they will be out of way, hamas uses gaza civilians as human shields , wanting them to die on the altar, they are crazy, radical, extreme agenda, the people of gaza were seeing signs of this, when hamas is finally out of power and they don't have the power of an autocratic regime that they've had where they can roll through there were -- terror. when people of gaza no longer have hamas as their regime governing them, you will see this outpouring of pent-up anger against hamas leadership. >> you think you can superimpose this situation post- world war ii germany onto what you're seeing now? are you using the way multiple nations joined together to administer that territory afterward as a model? how are you comparing these two things because they appear to be incredibly different. >> it was not my comparison, we had visiting here two weeks into the war, we had the german chancellor. schultz, he said during his visit hamas are the new nazis it's -- the massacres they committed. >> i'm asking you, i think we are all very clear of the horrible things that happened on october 7th, but i'm talking about the administration of the situation in gaza following this, that's what you were talking about, you were talking about after the war. >> correct, so we don't want to have a situation where israel he rules the gaza strip or govern the people of gaza, we prefer they govern themselves. it is clear for the immediate postwar period we will have to have overriding security control to make sure there is not a resurgence in terrorism, we think with the help of the international community and importing countries in the arab world, we will have partners in an effort to find a new gaza, a gaza committed to the world being if the people would live there, ultimately gaza has been rolled for 16 years by hamas, 16 years and what have they bought the people of gaza? hardship, misery, bloodshed and poverty. the peterborough -- people of gaza deserve better. >> that is. to what they're going through right now, what do you say to self moulton who says that number will be bad for israel, the civilians killed. he saying that someone who has seen what happens when civilians are killed, he saying that number is going to be very bad for israel. it is not going to be bad for hamas and good for israel. what do you say to him about that number? >> i would say we are trying as a democratic country to keep civilian casualties to a minimum, we really are. that's why we have been urging gazan civilians to move out of areas -- >> the numbers don't reflect that. the numbers of deaths just don't reflect what you are saying. >> i would like to have a one- on-one with the congressman because we don't have to agree about everything. surely when we look at the numbers, right i am convinced that when this is over, the civilian to combat ratio for fatalities will compare very well with america's own operations when you had to fight against isys in iraq and syria, it is difficult fighting in an urban area. it's made more difficult by the fact that hamas deliberately embeds itself under civilian neighborhoods, under hospitals, schools. abusing the population of gaza for a human shields, we are trying to be as surgical as is possible in a difficult comeback -- combat situation. >> you look at the afghanistan numbers and they pale in comparison, those are numbers americans are familiar with, we're arguing degrees, the american course took a lot of criticism for those numbers and frankly, the numbers in gaza make those pale in comparison. mark, we will continue the conversation and appreciate your time. thank you for being with us. >> thank you for having me, when this is over, i really believe the people of gaza will get a better government that will look after their interests and israelis won't have to live with the threat of terrorists butchering their children, that's better for both sides, israelis and palestinians. >> thank you so much. we will be right back. the coast guard just released a report highly critical of its own internal behavior, saying a quote failed to keep our people safe, a direct result of cnn's investigation that revealed coast guard leaders covered up damning information about sexual assault and other misconduct for years, cnn chief correspondent pamela brown joins us, what have we learned? >> this report is unbelievably direct about the problems in the coast guard for months, cnn has been covering a culture that goes back decades of sexual assault ignored and victims told to keep quiet, survivors sometimes punish wall perpetrators were not brought to justice, the head of the coast guard as a result launched a 90 day review interviewing hundreds of current coast guard members, sifting through data and the resounding message is this, these failures and lack of accountability are entirely unacceptable, the coast guard must do something about it, the report shows the coast guard failed to live up to its core values to help victims in the aftermath, too many coast guard members are not experiencing the empowering workplace they expect, not less than half of the women surveyed thought they would be treated with dignity or respect if they were assaulted, one thing that is repeatedly noted is the loss of trust in the coast guard by its members, while the coast guard took a look back at the history, this is a forward- looking report, what they call a road mac -- road map, some of those reforms in this latest report include new training for everyone from recruits to senior executives on sexual assault response and recovery, creating a so-called safety report policies of victims are not worried about being penalized for minor misconduct. improving oversight of the coast guard academy to hold people accountable, including coast guard members heading for retirement, it is worth noting they found multiple cases were people accused of wrongdoing were about to retire with full benefits. >> this is really impactful reporting, pamela brown, thank you so much. >> there is new video out there that shows the moment that u.s. border patrol agent rescued a migrant from the rio grande on friday. you can see them and struggling to stay afloat as the agent comes, is thankfully he was okay, they arrested more than 8000 migrants over the past three days, we are joined from a border town in south texas, we understand ea have witnessed troubling scenes, tell us what you are seeing. >> this part of the rio grande is one of the deadliest parts for migrants and this is according to a medical examiner that services about 10 counties along the border, let me start with a big picture of the u.s. southern border because the federal government is dealing with two epicenters on the southern border right now, one here in eagle pass, texas where i am, the del rios center also in lukeville, arizona part of the tucson center, these two areas have been receiving thousands of migrants entering every single day, that has prompted the federal government to close two international crossings between the u.s. and mexico. what they are doing is redirecting those employees at ports of entry to process migrants at processing facilities, let me set up the scene where i am because this is eagle pass, texas. what you see behind me is an international bridge that crosses into mexico if you look below that bridge, you can see there are probably hundreds of migrants out here right now, these individuals have entered the country illegally and now they are waiting to be transported to processing facilities, you see there are buses, that's what we have been saying all day long, these migrants wait out probably for a few hours according to law enforcement, the top nationalities are venezuelan and honduran, and according to the source in the past three days more than 8000 migrants have entered this part of the u.s./mexico border illegally, that is 3000 on sunday and about 5000 in the past two days. i want to take you to lukeville, arizona because the scene is very similar, there are hundreds of migrants waiting outside by a border wall to be transported to processing facilities, now according to u.s. customs and border protection, the challenge agents have in that part of the u.s. southern border is that the cartels and the smugglers are dropping off very large groups of migrants in the arizona desert, a very rugged and desolate area, it forces u.s. border patrol agents to then respond to these areas, sometimes in atvs, to try to transfer these migrants to processing facilities, that is a huge headache and is a transportation nightmare for the federal government, they're trying to figure out ways to make transportations quickly, to the point of how the u.s. federal government deals with this crisis right now, not only are they redirecting personnel like i mentioned earlier, they are also using enhanced expedited removal, a fancy word for saying swift deportations. what happens, this is part of their strategy right now. the u.s. federal government is having asylum officers make determinations on migrants relief immigration relief in the united states while there in custody, if the migrant does not have a legal basis to stay in the united states, these individuals are being departed very quickly, again back to where i am here, in eagle pass, texas i can tell you the part of the river you see behind me, you don't see it because there's some border barrier. this is very dangerous, we covered this area for a long time and i can tell you that not only are adults dying as they are crossing the river, there's an increasing number of children who are also dying according to the medical examiner the services this area, you can see in this video how close this game to tragedy, just a couple more breaths without assistance to grab this man and it could've been a very different story. thank you so much for giving us an update for the border, we do appreciate it. coming up, legendary television producer norman lear has died, a look back at his life and influential career that spanned decades. >> dean lear dominated 70s culture with all in the family, the jeffersons, and mod. some people may know his name and shows, but they do not realize how revolutionary he was. what was so special about the stories that he told. the way he chose to tell them? >> this is a huge loss, what an incredible life, what made the story so special that norman lear told his he was really the first to bring social commentary into comedy at a time when nobody was touching topics like racism, feminism, and abortion, and rape . he was doing that in the 70s and dominating ratings, we have seen an outpouring of support from the biggest names in hollywood from tyler perry to george clooney who were all saying at 101 years old that this is the life loss too soon because of the great impact teammate, norman lear himself in his 2014 memoir even said that his goal of course was to bring big laughs to audiences but he knew the best way to do that was if they really cared, they would laugh more. they would cry more, i think we have some tape of him speaking about his relationship with the audience. most of my life with 300 people, in a theater with four, five, six cameras and some wonderful performers. why should an audience guffaw, a belly laugh, it happens and i think to myself that had seconds, minutes, weeks. who knows. >> you know, even recently, norman lear was back continuing to greet on abc. he has his life in front of a studio audience which was a re- creation of all of his classic shows with some of the original cast members but also some of the biggest a listers. he really continue to do this up until he was 100 years old. >> he was a legend of television and change the national discourse, thanks so much. stay with us, we will be back in a few moments.