Fighting. We can bring certainly most of our people back home for the first time in many years. Simultaneously, a Big Development in the impeachment inquiry with the testimony of Ambassador Gordon Sondland telling house investigators that President Trump delegated American Foreign policy on ukraine to his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani and sondland saying giulianis goal was to involve ukraine in the trump reelection bid. Then amid all these escalating controversies, chief of staff Mick Mulvaney announcing that the g7 summit will be held at President Trumps doral golf course. Setting off ethical alarm bells. But mulvaney also said the partly to get them to investigate democrats. A statement that directly undercuts trumps claim that there was no quid pro quo. We actually did an analysis of what other countries were doing in terms of supporting ukraine. What we found out was that i cant remember if its zero or near 0 from any European Countries for lethal aid. They are really stingy when it comes to lethal aid. The president did not like that. I know im still going. So that was those were the driving factors. That he also mentioned to me in the past that the corruption that related to the dnc server . Absolutely. No question about that. Joining me now from the white house is nbcs kristin and garrett hayes. So kristin, the president is tweeting essentially claiming victory here. But Vice President i think was a little bit more muted. He explained this is a pause but is the white house feeling now that some of the pressure is off after so many republicans voted yesterday in the house to rebuke him . Reporter they felt like this was a necessary step, chris, in order to try to tamp down some of that pressure they were getting. That rebuke you talk about, that bipartisan reduke yesterday and some of the president s closest allies Lindsey Graham saying this is essentially the biggest Foreign Policy error of the trump presidency. So thats part of why the administration was so forceful in trying to get this cease fire. But youre absolutely pause. Now, part of why thats so important if you take a step back, ch and youve covered the white house as well. Cease fires dont always work and they dont always hold. Take a listen to President Trump getting pressed on that point. We have a fiveday cease fire. During that five days, the kurds and other people are going to be taken great care of. Theyre going to be moving around, moving out of a safe zone, which is something turkey has always wanted. The isis they call them we call them isis. The isis fighters we have captured, theyll be under very, very strict control of various different groups. But we will be watching. We will be in charge. Weve gotten everything we could have ever dreamed of. Reporter so, again, the question, chris, is can i just stop you there, kristen . Weve gotten everything weve ever dreamed of . Well, this is how President Trump has been trying to essentially explain what we are seeing. These difficult, painful, deadly images out of the middle east. These images and reports of isis fighters being released from their detention facilities. President trump making the broader case that he ran on a promise to withdrawal american troops from these foreign conflicts. America first Foreign Policy. So his broader argument is, look. Let me interrupt you for just a question because mitt romney is on the floor of the senate saying this is not a victory. Lets listen in. We know the truth about our kurd allies. They lost 11,000 combatants in a joint effort to defeat isis. We dropped bombs from the air and provided intelligence and logistics behind the lines. The kurds lost thousands of lives. 86 brave americans also lost their lives so tragically. Its argued that the kurds were fighting for themselves. Of course, they were. Thats the nature of an alliance. We fight together, each pursuing our own vital interests. American leaves no soldiers behind. Often, a great cost in blood and treasure, we recover our dead and our wounded and we free our men and women who are held captive. This is a matter of american honor and promise. So, too, is the principle that we stand by our allies. That we do not abandon our friends. The decision to abandon the kurds violates one of our most sacred duties. It strikes at american honor. What we have done to the kurds will stand as a bloodstain in the anals of american history. There are broad strategic implications of our decision as well. Iranian and russian interests have been advanced by our decision in a time were applying maximum pressure on iran by giving them a stronger hand in syria, weve actually weakened that pressure. Russia subject to play a greater role in the middle east has also been greatly enhanced. The kurds, out of desperation, have now aligned with assad. So america is diminished. Russia, iran, and assad are strengthened. And so i ask how and why this decision was reached . I serve on the Foreign Relations committee and given the syria decision taken by the administration, i might be forgiven for wondering why our Committee Even exists. I say this because apparently, the decision to leave syria was made without consultation with the committee or even with the Committee Chairman and ranking member. Just three weeks ago, our Sub Committee held hearings to receive an extensive analysis that the conditions and the way forward in syria. It was presented to us by the Syria Study Group. A bipartisan congressionally mandated condition. And to trprovide recommendation for american strategy going forward. So far as im aware, the Administration Made no effort to contact those who attended that hearing or to speak with the Syria Study Group to be able to understand the content in their extensive published report. I ask whether it is the position of the administration that the United States senate, a body of 100 people representing both political parties, is to be entirely absent from decisions of the magnitude just taken in syria. Now, some argue that we should not have been in syria in the first place because there was not a vote taken to to by the senate to engage in war there. I disagree. Congress has given the president Legal Authority and funding to fight against terrorists in syria. However, even if one, for purposes of argument, believed that no authorization had been given, thats really irrelevant to the decision as to the withdrawal once we have allied with a people, the kurds, committed to defend them, and together defeated isis. Once you jump in the ocean to save a drowning soul, you dont turn around with the excuse that you didnt have to jump in in the first place. It is a matter of commitment. Others argue that we should just get out of a messy situation like this. The middle east, they say, has had wars going on forever. Just let them have at it. Theres a course of certain logic to that position, as well. But, again, it applies only to the original decision as to whether or not we should have gone into syria. Once we have engaged and made the commitments we made, honor, as well as selfinterest, demand that we not abandon our allies. Its been suggested that turkey may have called americas bluff. Telling the president they were coming no matter what we did. If thats so, we should know it. For, it would tell us a great deal about how we should deal with turkey now and in the future. Some have argued that syria is simply a mess. With warring groups and sub groups, friends and allies shifting from one side to the other. We had to exit because there was no reasonable path for us to go forward. Are we incapable of understanding and shaping complex situations . Russia seems to have figured it out. Are we less adept than they . And are our principles to be jettisoned when we find things get messy . The administration claims that none of these reasons are accurate. Instead, the president has said that we left to fulfill a commitment to stop endless wars. To bring troops home. To get them out of harms way. Perhaps to save money. I find these reasons hard to square. Why . Well, we withdrew 1,500 troops in syria but were adding 2,000 troops in saudi arabia. And all totaled, we have some 60,000 troops in the middle east. Assuming for the sake of understanding that getting out of endless wars was the logic for the decision, why would we take action so precipitously . Why would we not warn our ally, the kurds, of what were about to do . Why would we not give them time to also withdraw . Or perhaps to dig in to defend themselves. Clearly, the turks had a heads up because they were able to start bombing within mere hours. I simply dont understand why the administration did not explain in advance to erdogan that its unacceptable for turkey to attack an american ally. Can we not insist that together we develop a transition plan that protects the kurds, secures the isis prisoners, and meets the legitimate concerns of turkey as well . Was there no chance for diplomacy . Are we so weak and so inept diplomatically that turkey forced the hand of the United States of america . Turkey . I believe that its imperative that public hearings are held to answer these questions. And i hope the senate is able to conduct those hearings next week. I note in closing that i also hope the ceasefire agreement is honored and that turkey ends its brutal killing. But i note that lives are already lost and american honor has already been tarnished. We once abandoned a red line. Now, we abandon an ally. Mr. President , we need answers. What has happened in syria should not happen again and we, the senate, must take action to make sure that it does not. I yield the floor. Senator from rhode island. Thank you, mr. President. I, too, rise this afternoon to discuss the situation in syria. Let me commend my colleague, senator romney, for his very thoughtful and very timely and very important comments. We all recognize that the situation senator mitt romney on a day when there have been a lot of moving parts but lets be clear here. Theres still a deep concern on capitol hill. You heard a couple of major points brought on by mitt romney who said we have to not be seen as abandoning our allies. And decisions like the decision to leave syria should not be made without congressional consultation at the very least. Garrett, let me go to you. Its only been about an hour since weve heard what mike pence and mike pompeo had to say about this pause. And be clear, kurdish fighters now just have five days less becaus do you sense that it changes any of the frustration . Any of the concern that youve on capitol hill about what this means both for u. S. Policy and for stability in that region . Well, its so interesting because this is very much Donald Trumps party now, not mitt romneys. But i guarantee the vast majority of lawmakers in both parties agree far more with the language that you just heard from the junior senator from utah than they do with the president of the United States and the way he has described both how we got into this situation and how the president at least believes were getting out of it. The reaction has been relatively muted so far on the hill on the house side weve been mostly focused on impeachment and on the death of Elijah Cummings. On the senate side, we have heard a bit more. Ive talked to a couple republican senators in the last half hour or so who said they are cautiously optimistic. And the emphasis here is on caution. The cease fire will prove better than what we have now, right . One republican senator said to me its better in syria right now than it was this morning and at least thats a start. But they do not trust erdogan and they do not trust that this cease fire will hold or that it accomplishes any strategic objective whatsoever. Here was Lindsey Graham talking about it after speaking with both the president and the National Security advisor. Heres what he said. I dont know the terms and conditions. I told the president this is something maybe that we can build on. Please, consider our congress. I dont know what the end product will be but it seems to be somewhat encouraging and i appreciate the president calling me and i told him i would lend all the support i can to build upon whatever breakthrough has happened in turkey. That said, there is this posture of distrust and verify on the cease fire right now and the chairman of the senate Foreign RelationsCommittee Just told reporters a short time ago they are speaking to the level of just pretty blatant distrust for our nato ally to uphold even this temporary cease fire. Actions that contradict what the president said just a short time ago that this is an amazing outcome. Kristin walker at the white house for us. Garrett on capitol hill. Thanks to you both. Joining me now colonel jack jacobs. He is an msnbc military analyst. Are you surprised to hear that folks there are in a distrust and verify mode . Yes. No, im not surprised at all. Its exactly what youd expect. Im less worried about erdogan than i am about the extremist militias who are erdogans allies in the region. Theyve been causing a lot of havoc in the area and theyre not bound by this by this cease fire. Furthermore, theres no guarantee. I mean, five days is a relatively short period of time. Its long in combat but in real time, its not. Its not very long. Im fairly well convinced that there will at least be skirmishes on the phase line that the turks have drawn south of their border. The turks also want to get as many of their Syrian Refugees that are currently inside turkey. They want to get them out of turkey and theyre going to pass them through checkpoints on that phase line to get them out and into syria. And then theyll probably go directly where many of the other Syrian Refugees have gone and thats into iraq. Who doesnt need any more Syrian Refugees and cant handle the ones they have. What youre saying is far from it. No, as a matter of fact, there is going to be more chaos. Itll be more fragmented. I we, the United States, got absolutely nothing in return for what we for the bargain and turkey got absolutely everything. They got an establishment. And thats what you just heard from mitt romney. His frustration. I mean, the president , as we said, is saying this is an amazing outcome. This is a win. This is a success. Let me play for you a little bit of what he said in texas just a short time ago. I just want to thank and congratulate the president erdogan. Hes a friend of mine and im glad we didnt have a problem because, frankly, hes a heldl f a leader. Hes a tough man. Hes a strong man and he did the right thing and i really appreciate it and i will appreciate it in the future. Said that about putin, too, you remember . Hell of a leader. And by the way, they have not cancelled his visit to the white house. No. Here. The bottom line here is that everything notwithstanding, we have demonstrated that were not interested in defending our own interests anywhere. That we would prefer to withdrawal totally from the world stage and thats going to make our own defense much more difficult over time. Colonel jack jacobs, thank you very much appreciate that. Joining me now, House Majority democratic congressman from South Carolina jim clyburn. Id like to get your reaction to the cease fire in northern syria. The president claimed this is an amazing outcome. It is an amazing outcome. Amazingly catastrophic. I cannot believe that what weve done is an ultimate surrender. Cease fire by another name. We cannot be serious about this and i would hope that the house and congress, house and senate, will not capitulate here. We just passed a resolution calling for sanctions on turkey. We need to reinforce that two or three times over because what they have done in this instance is allow this massive deconstruction of our coalition around the world to take place. And its putting us in a really, really bad place for future relationships among those people who help us carry out what needs to be carried out on behalf of this great country. So when we heard from Vice President pence, he said that he was sent there to make sure that the violence was ended and thats what has happened now. At least for the next five days, this ends the violence. You dont buy it . No, i dont. Surrender is surrender by any other name and thats what weve done here. And he ought to be ashamed of himself for making a Statement Like that. To end it absolutely not. Our democracy. The relationship with our allies are all worth fighting for. And that is what we are failing to do in this instance. Meantime, where you are on capitol hill, the impeachment inquiry goes on and as you know, ambassador sondland has been in for questioning throughout the day. But we got a look at some of his early statement. His Opening Statement. And and at the same time, we heard from acting white house chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, who said that money was withheld depending on them investigating what took place in 2016. Essentially, contradicting what the president said that there was no quid pro quo. When you have that statement from Mick Mulvaney and you have sondland saying that Rudy Giulianis goal was to involve ukraine in the trump reelection bid, is the impeachment inquiry at a different place now than it was just 24 hours ago, congressman . Yes, it is. Theres no question about that. With each passing moment, we seem to be getting reinforcement to the notion that this president , this administration, will turn the constitution on its head in order to further his personal agenda. Whatever that is. So, yes, we are in a different place than we were 24 hours ago. But i suspect over the next 48 hours, we will be in a different place as well. It is becoming very clear to the American People that we have an outlaw in the white house. We have an administration that is conducting itself as if its some crime outfit. We are in a different place. The soul of this great country is at stake and i am hopeful that our republican colleagues on these committees will begin to ask the right kinds of questions and stop trying to defend this lawlessness that has taken place in this administration. As all of this is unfolding, congressman, one of the great statesman in the history of your chamber passed away this morning. You were one of the first to tweet about the passing of Elijah Cummings saying weve lost a giant. He was a Public Servant to his core. He served his constituents in maryland with dignity and grace while defending our democracy with a sense of duty and steady strength. Talk to us about the man you knew. Elijah cummings was absolutely one of the best people ive ever met in my life. I knew elijah before i came to the congress. Elijahs roots run deep. In South Carolina, he is a son of South Carolina share croppers. If my memory serves, his mother was one of 17 children. They came to baltimore in search of a better life. And so he was raised in baltimore. But his family was an integral part of all the activity that led to the original case that led to brown versus the board of education in topeka, kansas. Elijah and i talked about that often. I would bring him back to South Carolina to speak at various Community Groups and naacp banquets all over the state. He was just an incredible human being who himself lived the american dream. One of the things i like to talk about is Elijah Cummings, who graduated law school phi beta kappa. Elijah was placed in special education in grade school until a teacher saw what was going on with him was inquisitiveness, not mischief. And took him out of special education and put him where he needed to be. That happens to too many children. Elijah talked to me about that often and he worked hard to make sure that no child growing up on the streets of baltimore or growing up anywhere in this great country would be subject to that kind of dismissive behavior. And he worked hard to make sure that everybody got a chance in life. He was just a great human being. He was someone to model and to emulate. I talked with him at length just three weeks ago when he called on this same day three weeks ago to talk to me about my wife passing on this same day. And elijah was a personal friend. He and his wife mya and my wife emily, the four of us were very, very close. I will miss him dearly. Well, i think his leadership will live on and the example that he set reaching across the aisle the way that he spoke clearly, plainly, honestly always. And a consummate gentleman. He indeed will be missed. Congressman jim clyburn. We are sorry for the loss of your friend. The country is sorry for the loss and we thank you for taking time to talk to us about so many issues happening today on capitol hill and around the world. Thank you, congressman. Thank you so much for having me. And of course, one of those issues remains the situation with the temporary fiveday cease fire. Lasting 120 hours to allow those kurdish led militias to withdrawal from the northern border region. I want to talk about the situation on the ground in northern syria. Thats where nbcs news chief Foreign CorrespondentRichard Engel is standing by. Colonel jack jacobs is still here as well. Richard, weve been saying this. Donald trump says the kurds are very happy with this deal. What can you tell us from on the ground . They are not very happy with this deal. They want to save their lives. So, yes, stopping the artillery, stopping the air assaults, of course that is welcome. But the idea that any kurds are happy that now a piece of syria, a piece where the kurds have carved out a homeland, has just now effectively been given to turkey and that is somehow going to make the kurds happy is completely delusional. What we just saw now was was the United States surrendering a new prorcvince to turkey. A piece of this country, what they are calling the safe zone, has been handed to turkey for an undetermined period of time. Until apparently turkey feels safe enough. According to the terms of the agreement, turkey says it does respect the sovereignty of syria but it also says that turkey is going to be controlling this area. Its an area about 20 miles deep. About 250 miles long. Turkey has longterm plans for this area. It wants to control it. It also wants to settle between one to three million people. Syrian arab refugees who are living in turkey into this area. So what would happen tonight is the United States agreed to give a pocket of syria to turkey and turkey wants to settle people here. It plans to build homes for them here. It is going to extend its authority on top of what has been a kurdish homeland. They lost their homeland tonight. So, yes, theyre happy that the artillery stopped for now. But they lost their homeland to turkey. This is not something that they are celebrating. Yeah, and richard, i mean, we were hearing from capitol hill about the distrust about this deal and, in fact, we know erdogan had repeatedly said that there would be no cease fire. And he and he essentially chided western allies for suggesting that he negotiate with what he believes are terrorists. Thats how he refers to these kurdish militias. Officially, what is the word there . Have we heard anything from erdogan . Erdogan must be very pleased tonight. He got exactly what he want. He said that he would not negotiate unless he got the terms that he got tonight, which was the withdrawal of Kurdish Forces from this area and the creation of this safe zone. What we havent heard is the official response from the kurds themselves. But frankly, they dont hold a lot of cards. They were getting slaughtered. They were facing the second largest army in nato. An army that apparently had the green light of the United States even though President Trump says he never gave the green light. But the u. S. Never actually tried to stop this conflict. There were there have been, throughout this time, American Forces in syria who were ordered to do nothing to stop the turkish assault. So this this this was a great victory tonight for erdogan. I think he is trying to go down in history as the person who extended turkeys borders, added a new province, and is now going to put between one to three million new new turks, if you will, on syrian territory. And, colonel jack, in the Bigger Picture here and back to what mitt romney was saying about our allies, if the United States has does to the kurds what they what what we have done as a country, the decision that President Trump has made, what does it mean to those relationships . What does it mean to any time in the future . And certainly in the near future where we want to get the support of someone and theyre wondering does it do they worry about their own security . Do they worry about the ability of the United States to hold to their word . Well, what does it mean now . I mean, we have advisors of the type we had with the kurds all over the world doing exactly the same thing. Teaching indigenous forces to defend themselves. Trying to inculcate in them the same values that we have and all the we have them in african. We have very important strategic interests. In southeast asia. And and in other places in europe. Theyre all thinking exactly the same thing that we cant be trusted. That maybe alliances with us dont make any sense. Dont forget you had a president who started his administration out decrying nato, the strongest alliance weve had for over 75 years and is now substantially weakened as a result of the president s approach. Now, everybody is the people i talk to and others talk to are saying exactly the same thing. Were not certain that we can rely on you not just to support us, they say, but even to pursue your own interNational Security objectives. Its very, very dangerous time. Well, there are people on the hill, including republicans, who are questions even that. Jack jacobs, always good to see you. Colonel, thank you. Richard engel, we appreciate your reporting as well. Coming up, a key witness in the house impeachment inquiry is giving his testimony to investigators even as we speak and he is breaking ranks with the president. Youre watching msnbc. Youre watching msnbc. With fidelity Wealth Management you get straightforward advice, tailored recommendations, taxefficient investing strategies, and a dedicated advisor to help you grow and protect your wealth. Fidelity Wealth Management. Hi, im joan lunden. When my mother began forgetting things, we didnt know where to turn for more information. 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His Opening Statement reads, it was apparent to all of us the key to changing the president s mind on ukraine was Rudy Giuliani. And he goes on to say, our view was that the men and women of the state department, not the president s personal lawyer, should take responsibility for all aspects of u. S. Foreign policy towards ukraine. I want to bring in former ambassador who served as deputy s assistant secretary of state for african affairs. She is author of the case for impeaching trump. Ambassador, between sondlands testimony and what we heard from Mick Mulvaney, is the democrats impeachment case stronger now than it was yesterday . I would think so. And throughout the crisis that were facing during the day, i want to give a shoutout to our Civil Servants who are proving, and our Foreign Service personnel in particular, on whose shoulders the syria saga is going to fall. We live in a healthy democracy because we have an ethical and competent Civil Service and Foreign Service. I want my grandchildren to grow up like them. So notwithstanding the political let us be grateful for a moment for those people who are keeping us going under tremendously different difficult circumstances. So, elizabeth holtsman, i think the picture is becoming clearer of the way that President Trump and not just circumvented all traditional avenues. You have somebody like a Rudy Giuliani who has no security clearance, who has no role, formal role, in the white house. But is the president s personal lawyer. Essentially, directing Foreign Policy. But then you have somebody who was a big supporter of the president , gave the inauguration 1 million. Ambassador sondland breaking ranks and suggesting mr. Giulianis goal may have been an effort to involve ukrainians directly or indirectly in the president s 2020 campaign. Mick mulvaney with the quid pro quo. You were in the middle of the nixon impeachment. How do you see this affecting the case . Well, i think were almost at the point where even the republicans cant say that theres not sufficient evidence. Not just for impeachment but for removal. Because they are they basically were saying, well, yeah, the president made this phone call. But its okay for him to say, you know, i want you to help us out. I want a favor. But nobody was yet saying that its okay for the president to use the power of the presidency to force ukraine, to blackmail ukraine, and to bully ukraine into helping the u. S. Not helping the u. S. Helping donald trump personally. And now, were getting very close to that. We have some evidence of that. I think mulvaney didnt tell the whole truth yet. I call this the modified limited hangout. Hopefully, you know, he thinks if he can just say that they were we wanted them to get the server, that that will suffice. I believe the conversations also included getting dirt on joe biden and his son. And im sure that thats going to come out sooner or later and i think probably the reason mulvaney did this is because he knows more information is going to come out. I want to compliment the ambassador for complimenting our Civil Servants, who regardless of the price they will pay, have tried to do an honorable job, cooperate with congress, and tell the truth because whats at stake here is are we going to have a country where the president of the United States twists our institutions of government so that he can get reelected . And thats wrong. Its unconstitutional. Its impeachable. And now, i think were just about i dont see how the republicans can pull back anymore. Yeah. I mean, sort of to that point, Ambassador Gordon Sondland, one of the things he said was we were disappointed by the president s direction that we involve mr. Giuliani and yet he did it. I mean, how do you read that . Do you think it simply is him exposing his background of somebody who was not a career diplomat, somebody who seemed to have no idea of how the state department or diplomacy works . Or you think there might have been something bigger at work here . Well, theres certainly that. That there was an extraordinarily inexperienced person who went into say im a disruptive diplomat, which is like a doctor going into the medical team saying im a deadly doctor. Who wants that . But beyond that, what im seeing is the tension that we often see in washington between doing things right. That is, making your boss happy, getting yourself in line for promotions, sucking up, which is another way of putting it. And doing the right thing. What we see displayed in front of us is a man who is doing things right by his personal ambitions to agree to a rogue operation with the president of the United States. And fellow colleagues of mine from the Foreign Service who did the right thing. Who who denied their bosss injunction not to testify and went up to the hill nonetheless. I will also point out that the entire impeachment process and investigation began not with the congress but with the Civil ServiceNational Intelligence whistleblower. Again, good on them. Theyre going to see us through. Ambassador. Elizabeth holtsman. Thanks to both of you. Now, i want to bring in congressman who was the chief deputy of the democratic congress. I have a lot of stuff i want to get to. But let me pick up where we left off, which is on impeachment and some pretty big statements today. Both by the acting chief of staff, mick mull vain dwvaney, gordon sondland, who is continuing to testify where you are on capitol hill. Do you see this changing the equation at all . Where do you see impeachment heading and how quickly . Well, i think it certainly creating more momentum. I think many of us came to the conclusion that by the president s own admission, he had committed acts that were by themselves impeachable. But, of course, all the while denying no quid pro quo, which is not a prerequisite to a crime having been committed. But then to see Mick Mulvaney doing what i think is essentially a controlled burn, trying to get it out there and normalize the idea that its okay to insist on some consideration in order to receive congressionally approved support. And essentially, acknowledging that part of that consideration was that they investigate democrats. So i think he put that out there for a reason and i think in many ways, all of the republicans who have been saying, well, but there was no quid pro quo have now had that rug ripped out from underneath them. And they are going to have to come up with yet another creative excuse that theyre been coming up with regularly to try to normalize this president s unlawful acts. Mick mulvaney made those comments when he was actually announcing in the White House Press room that the g7 Economic Forum next year is going to be held at Trump National doral. I know the house judiciary was already looking into the plan to host the g7. Mick mulvaney said, look, hes not going to make any money off it. This is totally legit. Do you believe there is a problem here . And violates potentially ethical standards . It doesnt pass the smell test. Think about it. This is a big country with lots of facilities that could easily host the g7 meeting. His claim few things going on. You didnt get to listen to the whole press conference. His claim was they looked at ten different places, that this was by far the best for a whole host of reasons. And when he was pressed by the press corps, would the white house then be willing to share the documents that essentially lay out what you looked at and why you came to the conclusion that it should be at trump doral . His answer was absolutely not. Yeah. What an amazing coincidence that the one place in america where they can host such an event happens to be a trump facility. If donald trump were a board of education member or a township supervisor and did what hes doing, he would be in jail. I mean, this is preposterous. The idea that somehow it becomes normalized over time because, oh, you know, thats trump. No. This is wrong. This is just patently wrong. Is there something you can do about it . Yeah. We can impeach him. I mean, what what you know, basically, my understanding of it is that the president is the host. The white house, the United States, is the host of the next g7 and he can basically decide where its going to be. Well, that is true but he cant decide to do something that is against the law. And when he uses his authority to enrich himself, that is fundamentally wrong and is a violation of law. I mean, there is there is a clause that relates to his ability to enrich himself through the business he has control over and this is what hes doing. Like i said, if ehe were a loca government official, hed be in jail. So we have to be sort of simple sometimes in analyzing these things and not taking as fact that theyve gone through some exhaustive blind process and low and behold, as luck would have it, it would turn out that doral is the right place to hold this event. Thats just preposterous on its face. And finally, in the last minute, i want to ask you about the death of your colleague, Elijah Cummings. Im sure there is a bit of a paul over capitol hill today on both sides of the aisle. What would you want us to know about this congressman . Well, i loved this guy. You know, he was one of the first more senior members i got to know when i came here. And it went beyond that. He came to my aid when i needed somebody like him to stand up for me. He came to flint, michigan, as part of the first delegation of members of congress. And then went farther. Not just a photo op. He ensured that hearings were held to bring the truth to light about what took place in flint, michigan. And he, as part of his legacy, will be responsible for the fact that some justice, some measure of justice, has been delivered to the people that i represent. Hes a hero in my hometown and hes a hero to me. And ill ill never forget him for it. Congressman dan of michigan. Its good to see you and i really appreciate you coming to talk to us. Thank you. Thank you, chris. Up next, President Trump sparks yet another ethics fight for the house with that g7 announcement. Who better to talk about that than Richard Painer . Youre watching msnbc. R . Youre watching msnbc. Its tough to quit smoking cold turkey. So chantix can help you quit slow turkey. Along with support, chantix is proven to help you quit. With chantix you can keep smoking at first and ease into quitting. Chantix reduces the urge so when the day arrives, youll be more ready to kiss cigarettes goodbye. When you try to quit smoking, with or without chantix, you may have nicotine withdrawal symptoms. Stop chantix and get help right away if you have changes in behavior or thinking, aggression, hostility, depressed mood, suicidal thoughts or actions, seizures, new or worse heart or blood vessel problems, sleepwalking, or lifethreatening allergic and skin reactions. Decrease alcohol use. Use caution driving or operating machinery. Tell your doctor if youve had Mental Health problems. The most common side effect is nausea. Quit smoking slow turkey. Talk to your doctor about chantix. I want to play what the acting chief of staff said about that. How is this not just an enormous conflict of interest for the president to host this at his home resort . T okay. A couple different things. First off youre not making any profit. I think we have already established that. I would simply ask you all to consider the possibility that Donald Trumps brand is probably Strong Enough as it is and he doesnt need any more help on this. Its not like this is the most recognizable richard said the event would be dramatically cheaper at doral. And trump has made it clear that he will not profit. So what about that . He is profiting. He is profiting through advertising his Trump Properties withtr foreign governments. He is profiting when the foreign governments pay to use the facilities. He is profiting. He is using his office for personal gain. This is a violation of the emoluments clause. And it is aem very, very dangers situation when foreign governments can, in effect, bribe the president by handing him money. And he is asking for money from foreign governments. We have crises all over the world. And this president is unconstitutional. And its very dangerous in the United States what hes doing. Richardwh painter, its alwa good to hear your point of view. Thank you so much. We appreciate you being with us from connecticut. And a very important story that we want to close this hour with. He lived the american dream, and he wanted it for everyone else. Thats how House Speaker nancy pelosi describes congressman Elijah Cummings who has died at the age of 68. Condolences quickly poured in from officials and colleagues from both parties honoring cummings legacy as a civil rights activist and a highly respected moral voice in congress. Joining me now reverend al sharptonme who is host of politics nation with us here on msnbc. Reverend, i know you knew him well. First of all condolences to you and so many people who are feeling this oploss. Yous. Witnessed the way he play a key roley in the fight for civil rights. You witnessed the way he conducted himself on capitol hill. What should people know about what was lost this morning . Ou i think that they should kw that Elijah Cummings was a fighter without bringing any rancor or any arrogance to the fight. He was one of the few people that i saw that knew how to be what we would call a man without trying to play phony macho. He really believed in human rights for everyone, and his position never changed his person. He lived ced in the same house, served the same people. So even as he rose to be the chairperson in oversight, he was the same Elijah Cummings fighting for the same things, havingin a balance of strength d humility at the same time. And itst very rare to see tho ingredients in one personality. But thats who o he was. And he is truly missed because hes trulyss special because he had a way of challenging you without belittling you even though they were opposed to him. You tweeted a photo of the two of you together back in 2015. You called him the embodiment. What a great picture. Tell us about your experience with him. Well, i had an experience thats actually a little lighter. So, i was in the capitol a day or two after the death of freddy gray. Fr and people in baltimore were taking to the streets to express understandably their anger and frustration. The night before i was in the capitol, i had seen the coverage of chairman s cummings live on msnbc walking among his constituents andam calming them down a few at a time saying things like, now you go on home, you dont want to make your mama worry. He just did this, you know, with so many people. And he really did calm the tensions to some extent. So when i saw him in the capitol on the day, you know, on the day of this picture, i was like a groupie, i ran over to him and i said, congressman, i am carole king, i admire you so much and youre amazing. And he looked at me skeptically and said do you know who i am . I said the congressman from maryland. His face lit up the room. He said i was just checking. People often mistake me for john lewis. [ laughter ] you know what, ive heard him say that before. He is a funny guy. He is an incredibly warm guy. And the one thing that i saw today that did not surprise me in the least, as his wife said, he was working until his last breath. That was him. The congressman in house leadership told me earlier today that when last week they were having the House DemocraticConference Call because all of them were in their home district, he was surprised because congressman cummings had been sick. He helped to cochair the call with Speaker Pelosi all the way to the end. He was one that would work. Ive noticed he was always a workerwa and a civil rights fighter and a fighter for what he would call saving our democracy. And he wasnt just a major voice forus democrats. He was a moral leader. And i think before we go, its worthe playing what he said earlier this year about the stateth of our democracy at the hearing with michael cohen. We are dancing with the angels. The question will be asked in 2019 what did we do to make sure weo kept our democracy intact . No one will ever have to ask that question of him, what did he do to keep and i hope as he dances with the angels he looks down and see what were all doing a small part of his work to continue. Amen. Carole king, thank you so much for calling in. Rev, thank you for coming in to honor your friend. And again our sympathies on this great loss. Congressman Elijah Cummings dead way too young age of 68, and impossible to quantify how much he will be missed. Aloha and namaste, everyone. I am John Heilemann in for nicolle wallace. And the stunning admission from President Trumps acting chief of staff that despite the president s repeated public denials, the white house did in fact hold up nearly 400 million in military aid to ukraine, conditioned on our ally undertaking an investigation into the democrats in the 2016 campaign. From the White House Briefing room just a couple of hours ago, here is how Mick Mulvaney described the president s decision to withhold that military aid that ukraine was desperately seeking in the midst of a hot war with russia. That he also mentioned to me in the past that the corruption