Transcripts For CNNW The Lead With Jake Tapper 20191213

Welcome to the lead. Im Brianna Keeler in for jake tapper. And we begin with the politics lead. President trump facing a full house vote to impeach him next week after the House Judiciary Committee approved to articles of impeachment against the 45th president of the United States this morning. All 23 democrats on the committee voted to impeach. All 17 republicans voted against in a strictly partyline decision. And the white house blasted this move. Calling it a, quote, desperate charade and said the president looked forward to receiving due process in the senate. As Alex Marquardt reports, the president said today he wont mind a long trial where the whistleblower could be called to testify. Reporter history in the making. The Judiciary Committee will come to order. Reporter for only the fourth time in history a vote by the house to approve articles of impeachment against a sitting president. The question now is article one of the resolution, impeaching president donald j. Trump for abusing his powers. Reporter in an otherwise quiet process, republicans make their anger known. Am i recorded is the gentleman recorded. Youre recorded at no. I want to make sure. Reporter in just minutes obstruction of congress and abuse of power approved in the House Judiciary Committee along party lines. The article is agreed to. The resolution is amended and reported favorably to the house. Reporter no rejoicing among democrats who emphasized it was a solemn and sad day. Were defending the constitution and the 2020 election. Reporter they argued for democrats it is only ever been about impeaching a president who they dont like. Impeachment is their drug. It is their obsession. It is their total focus. Reporter next up the full house vote set for wednesday meaning that by christmas President Trump will almost certainly be impeached. Then early in the new year, the senate trial where it is republican turf. Leader Mitch Mcconnell insists that is where impeachment stops. There is no chance the president is going to be removed from office. Reporter even though democrats agree they were outraged after mcconnell told fox news he is in lock step with the white house despite being on the jury. Everything i do during this, im coordinating with the white House Counsel. Reporter one House Democrat telling cnn mcconnell should recuse himself and another calling it outrageous. The foreman of the jury, Mitch Mcconnell, who decides all of the rules is going do coordinate with the defendant. That makes no sense whatsoever. It is an outrage. Reporter Mitch Mcconnell and the White House Legal Team are pushing for a short, fast trial that will almost certainly result in the president s acquittal. The president s sources say they had wanted a bigger spectacle, a fullthroated defense. The details are being hashed out including how it will work and a potential start date, but it will be early in the new year. Alex, thank you so much for that report. Lets talk about all of this. Because it is been quite a week. There have been a lot of th theatrics but at the end do you think any minds were changed . No. And we had poling on this and npr that showed that even weeks ago that people were locked in and basically said most americans were saying that nothing could happen that would change their mind. But still, you did have the nation evenly split on whether the president should be impeached and removed and a large majority of people who said they felt like he did something wrong. Even if they felt like he shouldnt have been removed. So there is some consensus in this country and in the consistency it seems the president did engage in bad behavior. So what was accomplished . Well i think democrats their goal was to again put toward the facts and i think the main thing is they narrowed it down, so there is to articles of impeachment, the whole question last week about whether or not mueller would be included. And i think they presented their evidence and did a good job of presenting the evidence and moved the process forward. That is the purpose of this week, obviously. The articles of impeachment voted out of the House Judiciary Committee, that doesnt happen every day. And it happened. And i think very much to the democrats credit and they decided and i didnt agree and they decided the Mueller Report did not provide enough grounds for impeachment. And Speaker Pelosi was not encouraging people to bring it up. The ukraine story broke and the facts emerged quickly and seven democratic freshman in congress men and women wrote the letter saying this is too far. The party came together on that. I think they did a pretty good job. Despite all of the insanity and the republican theatrics, between the Schiff Committee and nadler committee, they laid out the facts and i think there are grounds for impeachment. So i give them credit for that. And the house will vote next week and the question is do we get a real trial in the senate that if republican senators want to say we dont think there is anything there to convict. He did some things wrong but doesnt rise to the removal from the office level, fine. But if they take the attitude that we dont need to have a trial. It is obviously there is nothing there and that is ridiculous substantively and inappropriate constitutionally. So for me the burden is on the republican senators to not let Mitch Mcconnell just handle this like some tax bill or appropriations bill and whip his senators and dispose of it. To that point. Lets look ahead at the senate trial acoupling t assuming t democrats have the votes in the house. We know that Mitch Mcconnell is working very closely with the white house. He is in lock step with counsel for the president. So is this something that is operating as it should be, carrie, or is this outside of the norm . Well really the senate is supposed to be a venue that is a trial. This isnt a criminal trial, it is impeachment trial. But they are supposed to be independent arbiters of the facts presented before them and it is up to the president to submit who his legal team is, who is going to defend him in this case and then it is up to the house and Speaker Pelosi to determine who is going to make the arguments on behalf of the case. But the senate really it doesnt strike me as appropriate for the Senate Majority leader to be saying that hes going to conduct this completely in lock step with the white House Counsel. The senators are supposed to at least give the appearance of having an open mind about this. And what im really looking for in the senate versus the house is are the republican members of the senate going to take this seriously . Are they really going to wrestle with the facts that have been revealed . Because we didnt see that in the house. We saw distractions. We didnt see the republican members in the house really seem that they understood the gravity of their historical moment. Two foot notes to what carrie is saying. When impeachment comes to the senate, the senate reconstitutes itself as a court of impeachment. A court. Who presides . The chief justice. Not the senior senator or Vice President who couldnt do that. And they take a new oath. They take the oath to the constitution when they become senators. When the Impeachment Court the court of impeachment is convened the senators take an oath and it is different from the legislative oath. It is to judge fairly and without bias and Something Like that. If they sign it. If they sign it or but that shows how its supposed to proceed. And i was but will it . That is the question. It is hard to see that it would, my read on what mcconnell did today and i felt it was inappropriate and that felt more like a message to trump to calm him down after the tweetstorm of yesterday. And every reporting weve been hearing is that behind the scenes and we saw this today in the photo opportunity around 11 00 that hes focused on this. This is where his attention is at. Nothing else seems to be getting done. And i think the republicans in the senate, theyre going to try to make it less of a show trial like we saw in the house. But at the same time, i think they also know they have to keep trump calm. Lets listen to the president today. Ill do whatever i want. We did nothing wrong. So ill do long or short. Ill do whatever they want to do. It doesnt matter. I wouldnt mind a long process. Because id like to see the whistleblower who is a fraud. But we hear the president over and over say ill testify, ill do this and whether it is the Mueller Investigation or what and then he doesnt. When you read what he said there, aisha, how do you decipher that. I think the president wants a show and i think he would like to see the whistleblower called and who was the whistleblower talking to and call hunter biden and joe biden and adam schiff and everybody. I think that is what he wants to see and i think that is why you have some push and pull with Mitch Mcconnell and Lindsey Graham because they know that that likely is not a good idea and if you bring in witnesses youre opening up the door. You dont know what is going to happen when you do that. And i think they want a more controlled process. So i think that is part of what theyre trying to manage right now. And likely trying to convince the president , you really dont want to do that. You dont want to call hunter biden and the whistleblower. I dont believe that for a minute. Who is the person stopping witnesses from testifying . The president. Right . Who has actual knowledge of what happened . John bolton and mick mulvaney. He doesnt want to be defended. He said that because he wants to look bold and confident. He wants a short trial. He doesnt want these facts litigated. He could say he wants hunter biden to testify and if it were to tradeoff between john bolton and mick mulvaney, he wouldnt take it. Fresh off his trip to ukraine, another trip to ukraine, Rudy Giuliani is paying a visit who the white house today. Is he helping or hurting his clients case in the senate . And then the former Kentucky Governor making headlines as he left office issuing hundreds of pardons including one for a 41yearold man who raped a 9yearold girl. Travel site and youll experience a whole new range of emotions like. The relaxing feeling of knowing youre getting the best price. And the magic power of unlocking your room with your phone. I can read minds too. Really . Book at hilton. Com and get the hilton price match guarantee. Choose the longest lasting thiaa battery. Son music energizer ultimate lithium backed by science. Matched by no one. 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Hello grandma for every family going home for the holidays, there are countless people working to help them get there. Thank you to everyone we rely on to get us home to the ones we love. Have you ever worked with dr. Francis . Oh yeah, hes ok. Just ok . Guess who just got reinstated well, not officially. Nervous . Yeah. Yeah me too. Dont worry about it, well figure it out. Ill see ya in there just ok is not ok. At t has americas best network, now with our best plans, at our best prices, starting at 35 a line for 4 lines. New from at t. I looitaly avel. Yaaaaass. With the united explorer card, i get rewarded wherever i go. Going out for a bite. Rewarded going new places. Rewarded anytime. Rewarded getting more for getting away. Rewarded learn more at the explorer card dot com. And get. Rewarded and were back with the politics lead. What President Trump is calling an embarrassment, the House Judiciary Committee approving two articles of impeachment against donald trump today. Kaitlan collins reports the president is lashing out as he faces the increasingly likely prospect of being the third president in u. S. History to be impeached. Youre trivializing impeachment. Reporter after the House Judiciary Committee voted to advance two articles of impeachment against him, today President Trump accused democrats of making light of a serious matter. I think it is a horrible thing to be using the tool of impeachment which is supposed to be used in an emergency reporter while the president has made clear privately he doesnt want impeachment on his resume, today he touted the benefits. It is a very sad thing for our country. But it seems to be very good for me politically. Reporter his Campaign Manager is making the same argument telling the reporters it has boosted fundraising, inspired volunteers and, quote, lit up our base. Trump may be touting the benefits but hes not offering much clarity on what he wants when it comes to the senate trial. First saying this ill do whatever i want. Reporter then moments later saying hes listen to republican senators who have advocated for a short trial with no live witnesses. Ive heard mitch and lindsey. Reporter trump referencing but not naming Lieutenant Colonel alex vindman, the ukraine expert for the National Security council who testified that trumps july call with the ukrainian president was improper. Hes another beauty. Reporter vindman still works at the white house. And cnn has learned senior aides are now restricting who listened in on the president s calls with foreign leaders. Today his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani was spotted entering the west wing. Giuliani recently returned from another trip to ukraine seemingly unfazed by federal prosecutors who were probing his business activity. The wall street journal reports trump called giuliani while his plane was still taxiing down the runway asking what did you get . More than you can imagine, giuliani told him. Now we should know that giuliani said he wants to put his finding in this 20page report and then brief lawmakers on it. Though it is unclear when hell do that or where it will go if he does. We should note that he was at white house today, the white house officials have said repeatedly over the last several weeks they do not think what hes doing is helpful as they are trying to fight off this impeachment inquiry. You could say that. Kaitlan, thank you. Kaitlan collins at white house. It is stunning. You have all of this happening. Rudy giuliani who still on the same mission at the very heart of the impeachment inquiry and the articles of impeachment and off to ukraine he goes and comes back and first call to the president and visits the white house on the day articles of impeachment are passed through the Judiciary Committee. What does that tell you, karen . Well it is a lot of hubris, isnt it . It says they are trying to continue the mythology there is nothing wrong, nothing wrong with going after ukraine. And this whole thing about trying to make it about going after corruption even though Paul Manafort helped to elect a president of the ukraine was the most corrupt. So, look, theyre just going to keep doing what they want to do. I think the president ive heard from sources people in the white house think, look, were able to survive the Mueller Investigation, we are going to survive this no problem. It sounds like the president , he wants to lean into these conspiracy theories about ukraine. There are people around him who do not think that that is a smart or wise decision. But it doesnt matter what the people around him think. Because what we see repeatedly is that it is what the president directs. And what he wants to have happen. And he obviously has tasked Rudy Giuliani his private agent to go out and collect information that will assist him politically and they have moved members of congress and the American Public across a line where now its okay to solicit information from foreign entities and foreign governments into our electoral process. And so they are they have crossed that line now. And now they are really desensitizing the rest of the American Public to think that thats okay. And i think it is going to have profound consequences for future campaigns and future elections if the house and if the senate doesnt open their eyes to the historical consequences. And the consequences, next year, they wont stop. If they get away with this, we all think oh, the president was just talking when he said china should do something. I dont put it beyond him to try to get china or if they start to do something, do we have the confidence the president will stop it . If the dni comes in and tells the president the russia is interfered in 2020 do you think the president would say that is terrible and im going to stop it and put sanctions on it or publicize it. This is serious in terms of next years election. But really Foreign Policy in the immediate future there are multiple sources telling cnn they are further limiting not only the people on the phone calls of the president where foreign leaders but even those who have access to the transcripts of it. It makes you wonder if this all replayed again the folks who raised some concerns, went to the nfc lawyers and if they would have been on the call to raise their hand and say this was not all right. And part of the reason why you have because ive talked to people who have been on these sort of calls and the reason why you have all of the people on the call is because it is supposed to be about setting u. S. Policy. So the president on these calls and hes supposed to be dictating policy and then the people on the call then go out to their different agencies and to the different people in the government who are supposed to carry it out. So when you have less people on the call, youre not going to have those people who know what is the u. S. Policy . What are we supposed to be doing toward ukraine or whatever country. There is also sorry. It is part of the point of the calls is the continuity of our relationship with those countries. This is not about donald trump. These calls are supposed to be about the United States and whichever country it is that were speaking to or negotiating with. And of course he makes it all about himself. And as the house is preparing for a full vote on impeachment next week, will all of the democrats be on the same page . Were going to ask one congressman next. Im a verizon engineer, and im part of the Team Building the most powerful 5g experience for america. 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Prof Maria Ramirez mom and dad Maria Ramirez to help more employees achieve their dreams. Next wednesday the full house is expected to take up articles of impeachment against President Trump. And this comes as the president for his part said today that impeachment will be bad for the country and that it only helps him politically. I want to bring in congressman joaquin castro, back home in san antonio today, sir. Thanks for joining us. Thank you for having me. Safe to say you will vote yes on impeachment . Yeah. I plan to vote yes. I think the president has clearly abused the power of his office and we cant allow a precedents to be set. First that a president can ask a country to interfere in our elections, another country to interfere in our elections and secondly to allow we cant allow a president to ask a country to investigate an american citizen, a political rival for that president s own benefit. And if the congress does nothing to hold donald trump accountable, thats exactly the precedent that will be set and i suspect it will happen again in the future if we do nothing. That he will be that he will do Something Like this again . Is what youre saying . I think it will give him the green light to try to do Something Like this again. Remember, brianna, the day after bob mueller came and testified to Congress Donald trump picked up the phone, called the president of ukraine, and tried to get him to interfere in the 2020 election. So i think donald trump will do it again. But it also cleared the way for the future president to do this again. Because there will have been a precedent set that the congress of the United States told the executive branch, the president , that this is okay. I want to ask you about something that one of your republican colleagues leveled against you. A claim. This is congressman John Ratcliff and suggested that you have a conflict of interest as you participate in the impeachment process because your brother Julian Castro is running for president. Lets listin. I keep hearing over and over again you cant investigate political opponents. My colleague on the intel committee, mr. Castro, was investigating President Trump at the very same moment his brother was running to replace President Trump. What do you say to that . Well the first thing is that i have my own career. Ive been on the Intelligence Committee now more than three years. I was part of the russia investigation that investigated the president for that. So my brother is not in congress. My brother is the one that is off running for president. But also i would ask john, my colleague, mr. Ratcliff, if he thinks that my opinion and my perspective about what donald trump did would be any different if my brother wasnt running for president. Donald trump abused his office and he is obstructed congress and he those be held accountable. I want to ask you about the senator majority leader because were looking at this, it does seem the democrats very likely will have the votes to move these articles of impeachment forward next week, before the full house. And so then it is on to the senate. Led by republicans and Mitch Mcconnell and he said hes working closely with the white House Counsel as potential senate trial is looking more real. Lets hear what he said. Everything i do during this, im coordinated with white House Counsel. There is no difference between the president s position and our position. As to how to handle this this is essentially the jury in the case coordinating with the defense. What do you think of this . I think as soon as americans heard that and saw the clip of that, they understood that this is not a fair trial. Not if Mitch Mcconnell who is basically heading up the jury is coordinating with the defense team. That would not be considered a fair trial in any american courtroom. Yet that is exactly what is going on. And i think a big part of the reason for that is that Mitch Mcconnell is deafly afraid of losing his reelection in kentucky and he feels like he cant do any little thing to upset the president and have the president say a bad word about him because he needs the Republican Base that the president brings to stay loyal to him. But in the meantime, as hes doing that, hes corrupting the american system really of justice here. I wonder though about accountability. Because hes able to do this. And if the house votes to impeach the president , if the Senate Acquits him and that is where all arrows are pointed now and he wins reelection, a very real possibility and ho do you and congress hold President Trump accountable . Well, youre right. And it is a concern. And i think it has been on peoples minds. Under the constitution impeachment is the way that you would hold the president accountable for these actions. But what we have in this modern era now, this contemporary era is one Political Party that decided to completely bury its head in the sand, to deny reality, not to accept facts, and to cling to the president no matter what he does and it is sad to say but donald trump was somewhat right a few years ago where when he said that he could go to fifth avenue or wherever in new york and shoot somebody and at that point im convinced that some of the people would still stick by him. As strange and bizarre as that sounds, that is where weve come to in the Republican Party that folks have decided to close their eyes completely and it is very dangerous and it is very scary for this country. Congressman joaquin castro, thanks for joining us on the lead. Thank you. House republicans using the clinton impeachment as an argument against democrats. 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We bundled our home and auto with progressive, saved a bunch. Oh, we got a wobbler. Progressive cant protect you from becoming your parents, but we can protect your home and auto when you bundle with us. Thats what the extra menus for. When you bundle with us. Here, it all starts withello hi . How can i help . A data plan for everyone. Everyone . Everyone. Lets send to everyone wifi up there . Uhh. Sure, why not . Howd he get out . a camera might figure it out. That was easy glad i could help. At xfinity, were here to make life simple. Easy. Awesome. So come ask, shop, discover at your local xfinity store today. Announcer this is cnn breaking news. We are bankruptcy. The Supreme Court has Just Announced it will hear cases related to President Trumps efforts to stop the release of his financial records. I want to bring in cnn reporter Kara Scannell and cnn Supreme Court analyst joan biscubic with us. We just got the news out of the Supreme Court they are going to hear Donald Trumps appeals to block subpoenas to his Accounting Forum and to his bank. Now there were three cases up before the courts and theyve granted in all of them saying they will hear them. That has to do with both the manhattan d. A. , they sent a grand jury to Donald Trumps Accounting Firm seeking his tax returns and the court will hear that and theyre also going to hear the other appeals where you have the House Democrats wanting to obtain Donald Trumps financial records from his Accounting Firm and from Deutsche Bank and capital one two banks that have done business with the family to the Supreme Court will hear those cases. That sets up big arguments and debates about president ial immunity as it relates to the grand jury investigation as well as separation of powers and what Congress Oversight could be of the president. Now the Supreme Court also set a calendar for this saying they will hear arguments in these cases in march. That means a decision is likely by june. So in the middle of the president ial campaign, well have a decision from the Supreme Court. In the meantime these subpoenas for the documents are on hold. But the ultimate fate will be known in june when the Supreme Court rules on these cases. And joan, you cant really overstate what a big deal this could be to the president. Especially as even though there is a 54 conservative majority on the court, it is unclear where it might come down on Something Like this . That is right. Weve got three different cases. It takes only four justices to agree to hear a case. But five to decide it. And i cannot stress enough that this is not just a moment where the fate of President Trump hangs in the balance in terms of the misconduct potential misconduct at issue in these cases but it is also a very defining momenter for the roberts court. You mentioned that it splits 54 along ideology lines but think of everything weve heard from john roberts over the past two years about how this is an imer partial body and wants to stay out of politics and doesnt want to define itself as obama or trump or bush judges as he happens to be and this puts these nine justices squarely in the middle of a clash between the branchs involving the house documents but also in major claim of absolute immunity that the president is pushing in the new york grand jury case. It is a huge story. Joan, cara, thank you so much for that reporting. Unite or fight . That is one of the questions facing the democratic president ial candidates right now. N . I had enough its not getting in my way. Joint pain, swelling, tenderness. Much better. My psoriasis, clearer. Cosentyx works on all of this. Four years and counting. So watch out. I got this watch me. Real people with active Psoriatic Arthritis are feeling real relief with cosentyx. 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Com in our politics lead, december 12th, 1998, a front page for the history books as the House Judiciary Committee approved articles of impeachment against bill clinton. Nearly 21 years later to the day, the House Judiciary Committee approved articles against President Trump and as cnn tom foreman explains from the time line to the charges, trumps impeachment is doing down differently than president clinton. Reporter start with the evidence. This is something very, very serious. Reporter the impeachment of bill clinton began with the investigation of the whitewater land deal in arkansas. It turned into a wideranging fouryear probe by independent counsel ken starr. The president in the course of those efforts misused his authority and his power as president reporter starrs massive report laid out the complete allegations against clinton for congress to consider. With donald trump, the ukraine scandal has been unfolding in reel time with new witnesses and testimony day by day compared to the clinton case it is moving at lightning speed. Next, the charges. When asked about his relationship with a white house intern, billion clinton under oath misled investigators just as he had the public. I did not have sexual relations with that woman. The important thing is that bill clinton lied to a grand jury. That is a crime. Reporter but trump this president isnt even accused of committing a crime. Reporter still democrats say clinton lied about a personal matter. While trump used taxpayer dollars to strongarm a forei foreignal ally to foreign a rival and help his own political ambitions. There is no eyer crime than the president to use the power of his office to corrupt our elections. Reporter and then there is congress. Clinton and trump each faced a house of representatives controlled by the opposition party. Both arguing the investigations were partisan hit jobs, both resisting participation. Clinton by insisting on specific terms for his testimony, trump by going much further. Instructing his team to ignore subpoenas, claiming absolute immunity this president has achieved a new low. Reporter and belittling his accusers. These people are stone cold crooked. Reporter and as for the likely next step, a senate trial, even the republicans held a solid majority during clintons impeachment, several gop senators crossed over to help democrats defeat the charges. For trump, the republicans are in charge again but this time while Democratic Leaders say their members should vote as they wish, republicans my open is that there wont be a single republican who votes for either of these articles of impeachment. Reporter here is one more stark difference in all of this. At the height of impeachment, 60 of americans thought president clinton was doing a good job and wanted him to stay. Donald trump has never been anywhere near that level of approval and about half of the public thinks he should go. Brianna. Tom foreman, thank you so much. Up next, the fight for the presidency and the Democratic Party. At fidelity, we make sure you have a clear plan to cover the essentials in retirement, as well as all the things you want to do. Because when youre ready for what comes next, the only direction is forward. Itintroducing the new braava jet m6 robot mop. With an adjustable Precision Jet spray and advanced pad system braava jet breaks up messes and gets deep in corners. Braava jet. Only from irobot. At chevy, were all about bringing families together. This time of year, thats really important. So were making it easier than ever to become part of our family. Thats why our chevy employee discount is now available to everyone. The chevy price you pay is what we pay. Not a cent more. Family is important to us. And we want you to be part of ours. So happy holidays. 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Unlike some democrats for the nomination, im not counting on republican politicians having an epiphany mayor pete has had difficulty garnering black support in his home city. The thing about about the purity tests is the people issuing them cant even meet them. In our 2020 lead. Elizabeth warren is attacking joe biden. Biden is going after Pete Buttigieg and buttigieg is taking a jab at senator warren. But at the end of the day, who is actually winning over voters to be the democratic nominee . As abby phillip reports, it is not just a fight for votes, but a fight for what the Democratic Party stands for. They cant bring the country together. Well in real, real, real trouble. Reporter in the 2020 race. Some democrats are pitching themselves as healers. I am running to be the president who can do that. Who can gather up those pieces and bring the American People together. Reporter while others present themselves as fighters. When i got into the race for president , i knew what i would be fighting for, i knew who i would be fighting for. Reporter with just 52 days to go before voting starts, candidates are in a fierce debate about what america will need in a posttrump world. What we need to do right now is galvanize, not polarize. Reporter buttigieg taking a jab at senator Elizabeth Warren. We will fight when we must fight. But i will never allow us to get so wrapped up in the fighting that we start to think fighting is the point. Reporter biden echoing that message, criticizing the progressive candidates approach on health care. They are sending out my way or the highway. Reporter warren hit back in a speech in New Hampshire and without naming them targeted biden. Unlike some democrats some candidates for the democratic nomination, im not counting on republican politicians having an epiphany reporter and buttigieg we know that another false people who raise a quarter of a Million Dollars for him and his quote, National Investors circle and he offers them regular phone calls and special access. Reporter as Elizabeth Warren has stalled in the polls, shes upped her criticism of her more moderate rivals. Im not betting my agenda on the naive hope that if democrats adopt republican critiques, progressive policies or make vague calls for unity, that somehow the wealthy and wellconnected will stand down. Reporter biden insists warren is wrong. Telling donors at a fundraiser last night that if we cant unify the country, you all ought to go home now because nothing is going to happen except by executive order. And voters do tell me despite the differing approaches they are deciding between Pete Buttigieg and Elizabeth Warren. That iss w that is why weve seen those two going after each other more and more and they are duking it out for the College Educated voters, especially in iowa. Thank you so much for that report. And it is pretty interesting to look at this. Because you were seeing like it is almost the end of the sprint and who is really digging it out at the end of it. What do you think as you watch this . Absolutely. Were getting closer to iowa. There is only a couple weeks in december when you really think that voters are paying attention because of the holidays. So theyre trying to get digs in now and again things are tightening up. That is what were seeing. It is like i think especially Elizabeth Warren and the others have noticed that joe biden is not collapsing even though everyone has spent weve all spent nine months explaining well he has temporary lead because he was obamas Vice President and name i. D. But it cant be sustained and hes in pretty good shape. So i do think there is a real candidate can can they stop biden. And this is the fundamental divide in the democrat. Race. Do you want a change or moderate or looking toward incremental change. That is what this debate is about and that is why it is fierce because it is down to the meat of it for the votersment the answer to that question could decide who the nominee is in this race overall. And voters want someone who will beat donald trump so is that an outstanding question . I think that is why youve seen strength with biden. No the because not because he has this great idea but because voters feel like he could beat president be president bush i mean President Trump. History in the last go on. [ laughter ] that is how long shes been around. 1988. Well yeah, but i think so i think that is what this is coming down to. When you have people choosing between buttigieg and warren, these are two totally different candidates. So theyre not just looking at policy there. You also heard buttigieg today talking about purity tests that hes accused that is right. Accusing of warren of issuing a purity test that she cant meet and saying when she was senator she was fundraising in a traditional way and transferred the money into her president ial account. So hes trying to kind of unpeel some parts of the onion and say it is not fair to hold candidates to this kind of standard today when a few years ago they werent being held to that standard. And she implied that biden is kind of naive when he thinks he can unify the country. Look, weve just gone through on the house side this impeachment inquiry, what we discussed earlier is no minds have changed. Does she have a point . But biden would say is given the relationships that he has, particularly with people in the senate, he has the ability to get some things done. Weve heard him make that argument that you have to have ideas and get them done. So i do think hes right. I think he has a better relationship. Take a look at what happened with trump. No relationship and that was kind of rocky at the beginning. Tune into cnn this sunday morning for state of the union. Jake tapper will speak with republican senator rand paul and republican congressman will hurd. That is at 9 00 a. M. And 12 00 p. M. Eastern this sunday. You could follow me on twitter at Brianna Keeler at cnn and our coverage on cnn continues right now. Announcer this is cnn breaking news. Im wolf blitzer in the situation room. Were following multiple breaking stories this hour. The stage is now set for House Democrats to impeach President Trump next week. And now that the Judiciary Committee has approved two articles of impeachment in party line votes. Also breaking, weve just learned that the u. S. Supreme court has agreed to hear the appeal from President Trump to keep his financial records out of the hands of House Democrats and prosecutors investigating him. Lets go to capitol hill. Our correspondent manu raju is with us. It looks like the president will almost certainly b