released today from gaza, under the brokered and sustained though intense u.s. diplomacy. she's now safely in israel, and we can continue to press that additional americans be released as well. we will not stop working until every hostage is returned to their loved ones. >> that was president joe biden speaking yesterday about an american girl who was orphaned by hamas terrorists and taken hostage and now free. we'll have the very latest on the remaining hostages and the humanitarian pause in gaza straight ahead. plus, new developments overnight in the shooting of three palestinian students in vermont. an investigation that now includes the fbi. also ahead, a conversation on the dysfunction on capitol hill, which is a major factor for some lawmakers who are now not seeking re-election next year. ♪♪ good morning and welcome to "way too early" on this monday, november 27th. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for being with us. we hope you all had a nice long thanksgiving weekend. and we'll begin this morning with the ongoing humanitarian pause in the israel/hamas war. today is set to be the final day without figing inside gaza unless the pauses extended, which would allow more hostages to be released. hamas so far has released 58 hostages since this truce took effect early friday morning. 14 israeli and three thai hostages were released yesterday and first american dual national american abigail idan was released. she turned 4 while being held by hamas. he parents were killed in front of her during a terrorist attack on october 7th. now, under the initial deal, israel agreed to extend the pause one day for every additional ten hostages released by hamas. on sunday hamas put out a statement saying it wanted to extend the truce, but as of late last night, there issy it to be an official agreement. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu said there's an extension to the truce. he told the "financial times" the truce could be extended if hamas is able to locate additional hostages being held by other armed groups within gaza. now, a group of white house staffers requested a meeting with the president's top advisers earlier this month over their concerns with the administration's handling of the israel/hamas war. "the washington post" is reporting that the war has caused more issues among staffers than any otherine event during the president's first term. roughly 20 staffers met with white house chief of staff jeff seitz and others as the war entered its sixth week. the staff wanted answers on how they're working to curb sieve yanl aths, overall messaging strategy, and the united states' postwar vision for the region. however, despite listenle respectfully, biden's top aides reportedly fell back on talking points, including one source familiar with the meeting. this includes israel minimizing civilian casualties as it goes after hamas. joining us now, former i special agent and national security analyst for nbc news and msnbc, clint watts. clint, good morning. good to see you. let's start with your take on what we've seen so far with this pause, the hostages out so far, and do you have an anticipation that the pause will be extended? >> jon, it's an interesting dilemma really for both sides. once the hostages are all released, let's say if israel gets that, there would be no reason for israel to stop their military campaign, so there's probably a calculus how many hostages can be released, vis-a-vis, how long the truce can go on. it's likely the truce will be extended. i wonder at this point if israel's military objectives may be limited, meaning they have not discovered the large kmabld centers that they claim they're going after. they may not be really hitting hamas' leadership at this point, so why not take a pause, gets a many hostages as possible, and then start to reset what your military objectives might be? that comes with all the pressure internationally that's currently there for reduction in civilian casualties, and to do that would be to come up with a more surgical plan rather than to just kind of very broad taking all of northern gaza. it could be israel could use this time to reset what their military objectives are other than just completely destroying gaza. i'm hopeful there will be more hostage exchanges and there will be a longer truce the next few days. >> so the related question to that, clint, the prime minister said in a video yesterday he told the united states president, president biden, once there's a pause, the war would continue, full power. that would be contrary to the targeted strikes you're suggests. what do you think it means? >> yeah. i think the idea or pressure of continues military action from the israeli military is continually strategizing without continuing to press the way it has before. you're just not going to see that kind of negotiation go the way. we've seen them take lots of northern gaza, refugees moving to southern gaza. we've seen israelis go in, take into that tunnel, a little bit into that one tunnel the al shiva hospital but talking about moving south again, pursuing different targets. that's very, very difficult. that would mean lots of civilian casualties. so i think they need to weigh what their military objectives are. if hostages are the focal point -- it seems like it is, a pause seems to make more sense. secondly, the mounting pressure internationally that will come on netanyahu will be intense, so they'll have to pick some sort of a middle ground, i think. total annihilation of gaza is not going to be a palatable choice of most international supporters of israel. >> clint, i feel like we've mentioned an underreported story here, that hamas doesn't have all of the hostages themselves. they've been taken by other splintered groups within gaza and there are some hostages whose whereabouts are unknown even to the hamas leaders. tell us about the challenges that that poses. we know there are still some americans unaccounted for, perhaps with these different groups. how difficult will it be to get them back? >> it's going to be very difficult, jonathan. the other thing, this is more what we would see in tribal pakistan, that you might remember ten to 20 years ago. if somebody was captured or lost, they would be pushed between one group and another. we used to call it al qaeda or the taliban, but, really, it was dozens of different groups all pursuing their own interests. i think here in gaza, the palestinian jihad was one of the groups taking action. remember, some of the hamas leaders have been killed in recent weeks, which means you have a shakeup in terms of chain of command and who's in charge and who's respected. it would involve several groups all with different interests. i'm not sure how that would play out over time. i'm sure some would be more resistant, some more amenable. we're talking several different groups of hostages. >> we appreciate the insight from national security analyst for nbc news and msnbc clint watts. thanks for starting things off this morning. we'll speak with you again soon. meanwhile, president biden has not ruled out the possibility of sending aid to israel with conditions. that's according to national security adviser jake sullivan who appeared on "meet the press" yesterday. >> just to be very clear, should we take his words that it would be a worthwhile thought to mean that the president is open to signing legislation that would provide aid to israel that comes with conditions? >> i thought the president really couldn't have been clearer when he answered the question. he had acknowledged the idea, and then he said, but the way that i have conducted our diplomacy -- >> is he open to it? >> that's what he's done so far, and that's what he's going to do. >> is he open to it? >> again, he's going to focus on what is going to generate results. what he has said in the press conference and what you can see quite clearly with the release of hogs tajs in the past few weeks, he's taking steps to protect presidential policy behind closed doors. that's what we're seeing right now. that's the course we're on. at the same time senator majority leader chuck schumer has written a letter to his democratic colleagues that he intends to bring the president's $105 billion emergency national funding package to the floor for a vote next week. now, this supplemental package would provide aid to israel, ukraine, make improvements to the u.s. immigration system, and devote some resources to the indo-pacific. the republican-led house has already passed an aid bill for israel, but it includes massive cuts to the irs and excludes humanitarian assistance. that's simply a nonstarter for the white house and democratics. schumer pushed for a bipartisan package in the coming weeks. he also revealed a resolution he'll bring to the floor that would bypass tommy tuberville's promotions, but the clock is ticking on that funding, because if we reach into the new year, congress would be gripped again with another spending fight to keep the government open. still ahead here on "way too early," we'll bring you some new reporting on a questionable pardon from donald trump on the final day of his presidency and what it could mean if he were to win a second term. plus a recap of the busy holiday travel week following last year's transportation troubles. those stories, a check on sports and weather, when we come right back. and weather, when we come right back known as a loving parent. known for lessons that matter. known for lessons that matter. known for being a free spirit. no one wants to be known for cancer, but a treatment can be. keytruda is known to treat cancer, fda-approved for 16 types of cancer. one of those cancers is advanced nonsquamous, non-small cell lung cancer, where keytruda is approved to be used with certain chemotherapies as your first treatment if you do not have an abnormal "egfr" or "alk" gene. keytruda can cause your immune system to attack healthy parts of your body during or after treatment. this may be severe and lead to death. see your doctor right away if you have cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, diarrhea, severe stomach pain, severe nausea or vomiting, headache, light sensitivity, eye problems, irregular heartbeat, extreme tiredness, constipation, dizziness or fainting, changes in appetite, thirst, or urine, confusion, memory problems, muscle pain or weakness, fever, rash, itching, or flushing. there may be other side effects. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions, including immune system problems, if you've had or plan to have an organ or stem cell transplant, received chest radiation or have a nervous system problem. depending on the type of cancer, keytruda may be used alone or in combination with other treatments, and is also being studied in hundreds of clinical trials, exploring ways to treat even more types of cancer. it's tru. keytruda from merck. see all the types of cancer keytruda is known for at keytruda.com and ask your doctor if keytruda could be right for you. welcome back to "way too early" on this monday morning. donald trump is far away from the presidential front-runner and with the possibility of donald trump returning to the white house, there are new details how he reportedly used his power as commander in chief. "new york time reported this weekend at 12:51 a.m.n his final day in office trump granted clemency to a convicted mann trafficker named jonathan brawn. at the time they were still after mr. brawn in an entirely separate matter. his work as a predatory lender making what judges later found were fraudulent and serious loans to cash strap small businesses. according to the times brawn was put on trial by charles kushner, the father of trump's sunday and white house provider jared kushner and he heard a broader investigation buy his own doj into predatory lending. in an interview with the "times," brawn said he did not know how his commutation was decided is and described a picture of hymn and his wife with donald trump as a chance encounter at one of his gulf clubs. we'll have more on "morning joe" this morning. meanwhile a former minneapolis police officer accused of killing george floyd recovered. on friday derek chauvin was stabbed at a federal correction at institution in tucson, arizona. the fbi confirmed an uncars rated vick was assault at12:30 local time. he was suffered from life-threatening injuries and was taken to the hospital. on saturday it was confirmed in a statement that chauvin is expected to survive. in 2021 he was convicted of murdering floyd, a minnesota resident accused of trying to use counterfeit money at a convenience store. chauvin was sentenced to 22 years in prison. last year he was convicted on federal charges and give about a 21-year concurrent sentence. floyd's death sparked nationwide protests. it's monday now and millions of americans made their way back home over the weekend after the thanksgiving holiday and more people were set to pass through america's airports yesterday than ever before. nbc u.s. correspondent melissa parra has more. >> reporter: the biggest test for the nation's airports ever faced. the mad rush home for the holiday leading to what's predicted to be the biggest travel day in american history. >> hopefully we can get through the line and get to the gate very quickly. >> reporter: nearly 3 million people expect to take to the skies. >> i'm sure tsa has their hands full. as we make our way around the corner, we're crossing our fingers it will be calm. >> reporter: the airplane airport saw 30,000 passengers before 9:00 a.m. and los angeles errant projected up to 230,000 passengers. weather across the u.s. affected thousands of airports. cancellations, less than 50. >> there is going to be some snow on the roadways. >> reporter: 14 million were under a winter weather alert from iowa to maine, all the roads snow, ice, causing accidents across kansas. but in the air -- >> i think it's a little bit of the victory lap for the industry because everything has gone smoothly even with a couple of storms thrown in the mix. >> reporter: tsa has seen seven of its ten busiest travel days on the year without the meltdowns like last year. >> that's massive getting that many people through the airport. >> good news indeed. still ahead here on "way too early," we'll turn to sports and a look at yesterday's action around the nfl including an overtime thriller in philadelphia and the worst game ever played. we'll bring you all that and a look at the forecast to start off the workweek when we come right back. the workweek when we right back [camera shutter sfx] introducing ned's plaque psoriasis. 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we are, my friend. we are. this is the lowest scoring steal in some time. downfield hit caught by johnson. >> lawrence looking deep for christian kirk. he's got him. kirk at the 10, 5, and he puts the ball out to the pylon. >> from the ram 22, williams adding to his rush total. there he goes. williams. >> under pressure from simmons. picked off. isaiah simmons was in the face of zac jones. bobby brings it back for the giants. >> really hard to be on time and have your cadence down and everything else. >> play fake, he hits bryce young, and that ball belongs to jeffrey simmons. >> falcons coming app carr. picked off. jesse bates, he's got a shot. fakes to midfield. to the 40, to the 30, to the 20, no question, pick six. >> mahomes underneath. rice on the move. deep block. that is a kansas city touchdown! >> this should be a back-breaker for buffalo fans, and this would be the pedigree of championship teams. >> there he goes. hurts to the end zone, and the eagles have won it in overtime. >> those were some of the biggest plays from across the nfl yesterday, including the career-high fifth touchdown of the fame for eagles quarterback jalen hurts. that completed philadelphia's record-tying fourth consecutive comeback victory. that was the play of the day. the bills are in serious jeopardy. patriots lose 10-7 after missing a chip shot field goal. pathetic. i guess it helps their draft position. let's go to ravens and chargers. zay flowers scores twice. he sealed the game late in the fourth on a 37-yard catch and run as the ravens' top seed beat the chargers 20-10. week 12 of the regular season concludes tonight in minneapolis with the minnesota vikings hosting the chicago bears on "monday night football.." time now for the weather. let's go to michelle grossman. how are we starting off? >> we're starting quiet, the most of us. we had some heavy snow? the great lakes. i'll get to that. the big story is the cold. we're well below normal for most of us across the country. but we're looking at the really heavy storm across the great lakes. we're looking at 6 million people impacted by winter weather alerts across the great lakes and into portions of new england, maine, upstate new york. we have winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories, and we're going to see a lot of snow in some spots. there's the radar. warm water. we're seeing snow into portions of new england. heavy rain in maine. but that will move off for the most part. the big weather story will be this snow. generally we're looking at 3 to 6 inches in most spots. but downwind we're looking at really blockbuster snow. up to 4 feet in some spots in portions of upstate new york, the upper plateau region. the other story, temperatures across the country, we're looking at 27 degrees in chicago. that's 23 degrees below what's typical at this time. 34 in pittsburgh. as we go throughout tomorrow, we're going to keep that chill in place including erie and milwaukee. feeling very winter-like across the country. >> all right, michelle grossman, thank you so much. great to see you. still ahead here on "way too early," we'll switch back to politics. it appears that house republicans will lose a member of their slim majority this week. embattled congressman george santos says he expects to be expelled. we'll go through that and the other big stories from capitol hill when we come right back. g l hill when we come right back you want to be able to provide your child with the tools or resources they need. with reliable internet at home, through the internet essentials program, the world opened up. fellas, fellas. that's how my son was able to find the hidden genius project. we wanted to give y'all the necessary skills to compete with the future. kevin's now part of this next generation of young people who feel they can thrive. ♪ ♪ early." it is 5:30 a.m. on the east coast, 2:30 out west on this monday morning. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for being with us. from the it girl to the mary magdalene of the united states congress, that's how embattled republican congressman george santos described his own trajectory on capitol hill during a defiant speech friday night, a speech that was sprinkled with taunts and obscenities aimed at his fellow lawmakers. santos went on to say he expects to be expelled when the house votes on the matter, which is likely to happen laterhis week. santos at least is suggesting he doesn't seem to care. >> i don't care. you want to expel me? i'll wear it like a badge of honor. i'll be the sixth expelled member of congress in the history of congress, and guess what? i'll be the only one expelled without a conviction. joining us now, co-founder of punch bowl news, jake sherman. hi's also an msnbc political contributor. good to see you. jake, was anything george santos said noteworthy, and secondly, what are the mechanics of what will happen? >> i don't know what he means by it girl. he was a back-bench congress who's been here for a year. there was nothing notable about george santos besides the allegations that are stunning. by the way, jon, it reported in rich detail in an ethics committee report that was out this week, so i mean we're not talking about the second coming of lydon b. johnson here. we're talking about a member of congress being entrenched in a serious legal battle with the department of justice, can which has indicted him. that's number one. number two, there's been an expulsion resolution filed against santos. some member of congress will have to raise that as privilege, which begins the clock ticking on a vote. so that could happen wednesday or thursday, the vote. santos could resign beforehand. he seems to be indicating in that twitter space or x space that he's not going to do so, so that means he's going to be expelled, which, by the way, narrows the majority once again. just to add, jon, if bill johnson of ohio who recently accepted the job to be president of youngstown state university, if he goes and december 8th is the filing deadline for california, let's say, just for argument's sake that kevin mccarthy goes, you're at the smallest majority you can have in the house of representatives. >> the republicans for years have already struggled with a slim majority, one that might shrink further as you say. let's move on to the aid package. it was mentioned earlier that chuck schumer is trying to bring that before the senate next week. give us a sense as to how that will play out and what are the odds they're going to be able to get something done, senate and house, on this aid package? is it going to include anything on the loud voices of those who will oppose it? >> i would say no. first, mike turner said, i believe, on "meet the press" yesterday, that nothing will happen until next year. that's a huge blow to the administration. but ukraine and israel will have to move through the house of representatives, there's no question about that. mike johnson became the first speaker in history -- not in history but recent history to condition israel aid to domestic spending cuts which has held up the israel aids process. so a lot happening here, but i don't see any quick solution at all in any way, shape, or form. >> all right. we'll certainly be tracking that in the days ahead. co-founder of punchbowl news, jake sherman, thank you. we'll speak again soon. still ahead, we'rer go ing to be joined by our friends at cnbc for a look at this morning's business lines as well as the inside markets which are down before the bell. you can see the red there. that's all straight ahead. d the. that's all straight ahead. new emergen-c crystals pop and fizz when you throw them back. and who doesn't love a good throwback? 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[group laughing] admit it. you use my old spice body wash. i'm not letting hotel soap. near my skin. it's the lavender and mint for me. let me get that, savannah, if you don't get your moisturized hands off my body wash. welcome back. it's time now for business from cnbc london with julianna tatelbaum. wall street is coming off a winning week. how is this week starting off? >> oh, jon, great to see you this morning. hopefully you had a great holiday weekend. as for u.s. futures, this morning we're looking at a pretty muted start to trade. downbeat but muted. we do have a number of indicators to look at. we'll have the preferred measure of inflation. we'll hear from a number of fed officials. and later this week we'll be keeping an eye on energy. you've got the opec plus meeting taking place, so oil prices are going to be watched by the investment community. >> we, of course, as you mentioned, it was thanksgiving weekend, which also means black friday. and early black friday sales data has pointed to a pretty good holiday shopping season at least online. tell us a little bit more. >> exactly. i think that's key. online sales have been quite strong. still the jury is out on how foot traffic has faired this black friday. we've got -- according to adobe analytics, black friday sales came in at $5.8 billion. consumers clearly were looking to take advantage of the big deals. according to the survey, $79 million of the sale came from consumers who used the buy now/pay later flexible scheme, up 50% from last year. it tells you a little bit something of the consumer health and wallet at this stage. what are people buying? best-selling categories, electronics, smart televisions, phones, gaming, toys. on the flip side, home repair tools underperformed. >> ha. well, i didn't buy any, that's for sure. lastly, the long-term u.s. mortgage rate fell for the further time in as many weeks. good news. what does it mean for prospective home buyers. >> jon, i'm also with you. i didn't contribute to the home repair tool sales, but on to the housing market, this is pretty interesting data. the average long-term mortgage rate fell for the fourth time which brings the 30-year rate to 7.29% on average to 7.44% last week. it is down, but still very elevated from where we were a couple of years ago. a few years ago the average home loan rate was about 3%. more than double where wre were. also, despite the recent pullback, it looks like potential home buyers are holding out for more rates to come down further and more inventory to come online. a trench to watch. >> no question. so much on happiness about the inability to afford a home in the united states particularly among young people. cnbc's julianna tatelbaum live from london. as always, terrific stuff. we'll talk to you tomorrow. still ahead on "way too early," we'll break down the role president biden played in securing the release of 4-year-old abigail idan, the first american hostage to be released from gaza in the fighting against hamas. plus, an exodus from congress. why dozens of republicans will not be seeking re-election next year. that's coming up next on "way too early." year that's coming up next on "way too early. day or night. mucinex dm. it's comeback season. my name's dan and i live here in san antonio, texas. i ran my own hvac business and now i'm retired. i'm not good being retired. i'm a pain in the neck. i like to be able to have a purpose. about three or four years ago, i wasn't feeling as if i was as sharp as i used to be. i saw the prevagen commercials. after a short amount of time taking prevagen, i started noticing a difference-- that i'm remembering this, i'm remembering that. i stopped taking prevagen and i found myself slacking back so i jumped right back on it. prevagen. at stores everywhere without a prescription. looking for a bladder leak pad that keeps you dry? when i'm at work, i need to feel secured. what i'm looking for in a pad is, super thin, super absorbent. all 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going in and hostages are coming out, and there's still a structure so it can be extended to keep building on these results. that's my goal, our goal to keep this pause going beyond tomorrow so we can continue to see more hostages go out and serve more humanitarian need to those in gaza. >> as we return to our top story now, that was president biden yesterday in nantucket speaking about abigail idan, the first american hostage released as part of this pause agreement between israel and hamas. abigail turned 4 years old on friday while being held captive by terrorists. joining us now, pentagon reporter for "politico" lara seligman. good news. tell us about the role of the united states and in particular president biden played in getting the little girl freed. >> good morning, jonathan. thanks so much for having me. president biden has played a key role in this negotiation. he's made multiple phone calls to his israeli counterpart and visited israel in the early part of it. this is a win for the biden administration. we're hoping to see a fourth round of hostages released today. the question now will be whether both sides can agree to extend the cease-fire, which is something president biden has been personally pushing for to allow much needed aid to flow into gaza, and, of course, the release of additional hostages including-mile-an-hours that are still held in gaza. it's not clear whether hamas in particular is going to agree to an extension of the cease-fire. it turned up on saturday. it almost backfired because both were pointing fingers at each other. a fragile truce right now. >> no question about that. lara, who might know as to who might have them there in gaza, and tell us about the challenges that we now face to try to bring them home. >> so one of the problems here is that it's not just hamas that's holding these hostages in gaza. it's also other groups like palestinian islamic jihad and other groups like that. we don't necessarily know where all of the hostages are, so that does make it very difficult. another question that we will be watching here is whether the biden administration can use the pause to urge israel to when it does resume combat operations actually decrease the significance of operation and maybe lessen it and make it more targeted and allow some needed aid in. but, of course, it doesn't seem like israel has much insensitive to do that, to pause its operations further or to end them completely because it has stated from the beginning that it wants to completely destroy hamas and gaza. it has doesn't that yet. it's reached gaza city. hamas has a foothold in the south. so it doesn't seem like this war is going to end any time soon. >> bent gone reporter for "politico," lara seligman. meanwhile back in the united states a suspect has now been arrested in connection to saturday night's shooting of three college students of plipian descent that took place in vermont. a 48-year-old white male was detained yesterday after law enforcement found probable cause during a search warrant on his apartment to carry out the arrest. the alleged shooter will be arraigned in court later today. this comes as two of his victims are in stable condition while one sustained more serious injuries. the group of friends were in burlington, vermont, for thanksgiving break, having known each other since attending the same quaker school in the west bank. the friends were walking home from a relative's home speaking arabic and wearing traditional palestinian scarves. police say the suspected shooter did not say a word before he fired at least four times. he hit all three men. the family is asking for it to be investigated as a hate crime. we'll have more on this story as it develops throughout the"way dozens of lawmakers on capitol hill are heading for the door. we'll dig into what's behind their decision not to seek re-election and the potential impact on the balance of power there on capitol hill. then, coming up on "morning joe," the emotional scenes out of tel-aviv, as israel and hamas trade prisoners for hostages. we'll hear live from one woman who was reunited with her aunt last night. also ahead, national security council official john kirby will join the conversation as the biden administration works to continue to free more americans being held in gaza. 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[ting] ♪♪ live in the moment. ask your doctor about otezla. welcome back. longshot candidate for the democratic presidential nomination, congressman dean philips, is saying he will not seek re-election to the house. the minnesota democrat who is currently challenging president biden in the primary made the announcement on social media over the weekend. he's not the only congressional lawmaker calling it quits. "new york times" is highlighting how more than three dozen members of congress have announced they won't seek re-election next year, as some pursue other offices, while others are simply getting out of washington. in fact, 12 have announced their plans to quit just this month. "the times" points out that chaos and dysfunction in the nation's capitol has republicans increasingly worried that they could lose their slim house majority next year. it's a concern that typically prompts a rash of retirements from the party in control, which doesn't want to then go back to the minority. joining us now, senior politics reporter for "axios," eugene scott. good to see you this morning. for dean philips, it is somewhat understandable, i guess, because he is probably going to face the wrath of minnesota voters for taking on president biden, so he thinks he might lose if he is to run again in the house. tell us some other factors that you are seeing that lead to this record-breaking exodus from the building behind you. >> there's a few factors, as you noted. some individuals are seeking higher offices, such as phillips. quite a few, though, are really frustrated with the drama that we've seen on capitol hill in this last year. dan kildee, a house democrat from michigan, told "axios" there's no respect for the institution and norms are gone under gop control here. so many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are rethinking all of this. i think an important note to mention is that quite a few are retiring because of age and health issues. this senate is the oldest in american history. the commute to washington and the workload of being a lawmaker is no longer attracter to some of these individuals. >> as we follow these requirements, what's the early sense as to how it can impact the 2024 election, particularly in the house, where the gop has a slim majority? we know they're anxious about holding on to it, preserving some seats that were won in districts also captured by president biden. what's the early sense as to how this could impact the majority next year? >> most of the republicans in the house that are retiring are in safe districts, but a few democrats in swing districts that biden won are heading out, as well. republicans are hoping to pick up those seats so they can maintain control of the house. this will be perhaps a challenge given the unpopularity of the gop and democrat efforts to win the majority, something they've been working on for a while, quite before these retirements were announced. the end of the day, it's a toss-up, but we will see. >> of course, these lawmakers are also going to face scrutiny as to whether or not they can get the aid package done to ukraine and israel. eugene, stay with us a second. i want to get your take on this story, as well. republican presidential candidate chris christie is calling out donald trump's use of intolerant language against marginalized communities, saying his behavior encourages others to do the same. take a listen. >> when you show intolerance towards everyone, which is what he does, you give permission as a leader for others to have their intolerance come out. so, you know, intolerance toward anyone encourages intolerance toward everyone. that's exactly what's going on here. that's been going on for quite some time, not just with donald trump, but with university professors. there should be no campus in this country where jewish students are afraid to leave their dorm, a jewish student is afraid to go to their classes or to even have a meal in the dining hall. i think there have been a lot of people contributing to it, and i believe donald trump's intolerant language and conduct gives others permission to act the same. >> well, eugene, we certainly know that a lot of trump's followers model their behavior after him. we've been noting this uptick in incendiary, racist language used by the former president. does chris christie have a point? >> he does. one thing important to remember during trump's term, there were reports from schoolteachers who noted they were seeing language used in the classroom as early as elementary school that was mirroring what they saw and what we heard coming out of the white house. in part, because their parents were watching cable news all of the time, and modeling some of that language that, historically, has been viewed as inappropriate, as normal. we're seeing it in capitol hill. we're seeing it in university campuses. to chris christie's point, this can be more common and could become more common if trump returns to the white house. >> it is important to note that it's not just the rhetoric, but also he's now saying some of the policies he is going to implement were he to be elected again. it's important to keep the stakes of this current election in mind. eugene, as you talk to republicans there on capitol hill or elsewhere in the country, how are they reacting to some of the things that donald trump is proposing to do, which includes a draconian overhaul of the nation's immigration system, but also potentially using the power of the government to crack down on his political opponents? >> of course, it depends on which republicans you talk to. i mean, the republican party is more idealogically diverse than i think a lot of people realize. there are gop members who are not so on board with donald trump's plans for policy related to refugees and immigrants and other foreign issues, but they have not been as vocal as some of his most ardent supporters. those individuals have made it clear, if trump is re-elected, they'll work as hard as possible to help him implement this legislation he is proposing. >> the republican debates haven't amounted to much, but there is another one in two weeks' time. we'll see if some of trump's opponents take on his rhetoric and condemn it like others have from the other side of the aisle. senior politics reporter for "axios," eugene scott, thank you, as always, for joining us this morning. thanks to all of you for getting up "way too early" on this monday morning. "morning joe" starts right now. what she endured is unthinkable. abigail was among 13 hostages released today from gaza. under the brokered and sustained, though intensive u.s. diplomacy, she's now safely in