Make donald trump the first president in the United States history to be impeached twice. Andrea, unlike last time, todays expected Impeachment Vote will be bipartisan. Thats because a growing number of republicans have already defected, including the number three republican in the house, liz cheney, also the most powerful republican in the senate, Majority Leader Mitch Mcconnell reportedly pleased about the impeachment. Privately, backing kasie hunt said sending up white smoke, if you will. Thats right. We have our team of reporters and analysts standing by, including our panel for the next 60 minutes. Claire mccaskill, michael steele, both msnbc political analysts, chuck rosenberg, senior fbi official joins us as well. We want to start on capitol hill with Leigh Ann Caldwell who can take us through what we are seeing. We are in the middle of a procedural vote on this motion by republicans to set up a commission effectively to look at what they describe as the failures of the election. Thats expected to fail. Obviously, the vote has not been gavelled. Then we hit a second procedural vote. Thats the one to finish up the debate about the debate and move on to sort of the meat and potatoes, the substance of impeachment. Do you have that right . Reporter you have it absolutely right. This vote that they are taking thats taking place, its going to take a while. Thats because of covid safety precautions that are in place and also because members are allowed to vote been proxy. Every time a member show th mem votes by proxy, their representative has to stand up. It could take an hour. The second vote is on what they call the rule of the debate regarding the impeachment article. Its a common procedural tactic that has to happen. It could give us a signal on where republicans stand, where lawmakers stand on this article of impeachment. We know that five republicans have already come out in support of impeimpeachment, publically declaring their stance, including liz cheney, the number three member of the House Republican conference. She is widely speculated to be the first woman speaker of the house. Shes a rising star within the party. She also has those deep, deep roots into the old establishment Republican Party. She is showing this is exemplifying a deep divide that is taking place in the Republican Party right now. She has separated herself from House Republican leader Kevin Mccarthy who has not come out very strongly at all publically admonishing the president or distancing himself from the president. He said in a private phone call that the president bears some blame but he has not said that yet publically. Its going to be interesting to see if he takes to the floor today and what position he will take during this impeachment debate. Leigh ann caldwell, thank you very much. With us now, congressman eric swalwell, democrat from california. There are ahandful of republicans, but importantly liz cheney how many republicans do you think are considering switching sides . For the sake of the country, hopefully more would be better. Having Republican Leadership on board shows that this is a unity impeachment, telling the country that we will seek to protect you by removing the individual who incited an attack on the capitol. Congressman, its Hallie Jackson here. You are laying out your argument for why the president should by impeached for an unprecedented second time. There are those we heard this argument this morning from some republicans, although as we noted, last hour, republicans handed over the rest of their time, something you very rarely see in a situation like this. The argument that this is a rushed process effectively. How do you respond to those arguments that this is, in the eyes of some republicans, going a little out of bounds here in order to impeach this president for time number two . I will tell you about a rushed process. Just a week ago i was sitting on the house floor as we were counting electoral ballots and i was watching on my phone the mob that the president had sent over to the Capitol Breach six perimeters. Then i heard screaming and smashing on the house floor. I was told to take out a gas mask and i was told to duck under a chair in case gunfire came into the chamber. Then i listened to the chaplain offer a prayer to the members and the staff for their safety as this mob the president sent was attacking the capitol. That was a rushed process. We have to move at the clip of the president s chaos. Thats what we are doing here today. Congressman swalwell, craig melvin here. I want to ask you about democratic colleague of yours a few hours ago shared this, i guess, report, if you will, that there are republicans that he has spoken with who are open to the idea of impeachment, maybe even a couple of dozen in the house, but they are concerned about their own personal safety, concerned that if they vote to impeach the president , they could, in fact, be fearing for their lives. Is that a sentiment you have heard from republicans as well . It is a sentiment i have heard. Who wants to live in fear . Who wants to live in a fear in a country as free as ours . Living in fear like that only enables the president , it inspires his supporters to believe they can do this again, and there are plots do this again. You have to stand up to the bully. I understand the fear, but i dont think the fear should guide decision making. On this idea of safety and security there at the capitol, we heard from one of your colleagues over the last 18 hours or so talking about what she viewed as a recon mission, if you will, the day before the january 6th attack on the capitol, led in part by some of your fellow members of congress. We heard something similar. She didnt go as far from congresswoman demings. I didnt see that. But they are two individuals with military and Law Enforcement credentials of the highest integrity. I hope we understand if there was an inside job, whether it was members or staff or anyone working at the capitol who helped these attackers better navigate the capitol, that is going to be investigated. With just 160 some odd hours until the inauguration and multiple plots to attack the capitol, we have to remove the greatest threat right now, and democracy, and thats the president. Two things that stood out as well, the fact that while you were in lockdown, some republican members refused to wear masks and were political and laughing about this suggestion and that now you have several members who believe that they were infected during those many hours being locked down during the siege with members refusing to wear masks as well as the fact that some republican members were objecting to the security. What is being done about that . The speaker is very concerned about health and public safety. Shes trying to ratchet up ways to protect members. I got my negative test back last night. That was the first time that i was really sweating what the result will be. We have done everything to try and follow the guidance we tell others to follow. We were put in an impossible position last week when we were put into a room with hundreds of other members, where dozens on the republican side would not wear their masks. When we asked them to wear masks, laughed at us. Its predictable that people are testing positive now. We had just survived this common experience of being attacked, nearly killed, and you would think after that the last thing you would do would be to take an action that could kill somebody else around you. Its really just the height of selfishness. Its not what we should do when the country needs unity. Eric swalwell, thank you. Appreciate your time. I want to bring in our panel now. Claire mccaskill is with us. So is chuck rosenberg, michael steele, former chair of the rnc. Mr. Rosenberg, let me start with you. One of the chief arguments as you know against impeachment has been theres simply not enough time. Here we are a week away from the inauguration of joe biden. Theres, of course, the holiday on monday. What say you to that argument that theres not enough time to impeach, then convict President Trump . I have a couple of things to say to that. Theres enough time. It requires that the house and the senate move a little more quickly. Second, those who drafted our constitution didnt include a clause that said that a president can be removed for committing high crimes and misdemeanors unless time is running out. No such thing. I guess they could have put in that clause. The notion is that if a president is dangerous to the republic, and this president is, then he ought to be impeached and removed. I would point out its my analogy. But its like somebody driving drunk for four years who gets pulled over as they are a block away from their home and tries to convince the cop that everything is okay because i almost made it back to my living room. Thats not the way it works. What the president did last week was unforgivable. It was heinous conduct, despicable, disgusting. The constitution permits his removal if the house and senate see fit. I hope they do. Because thats what ought to happen here. Claire, i want to first of all play for you some remarkable accusations from the two house members we have been alluding to and get your reaction on the other side. I think we dont have that tape yet. We will get to that in a minute. Want to ask you about Mitch Mcconnell, from your long experience in the senate and your knowledge of Mitch Mcconnell, how do you read all of these signals he is sending through background notes in the New York Times and other media, what is he about to do . Is he looking to stretch this out and looking for cover . Listen, what Mitch Mcconnell did yesterday was not a whisper. It was a foghorn. It was a loud, amplified message to every republican senator and beyond that he is done. I dont know what will happen. Nobody, i think, is lobbying for votes or whipping votes to try to protect this president. The interesting thing will be what he does in terms of how quickly the senate takes this up. We will see his cards fairly quickly. As soon as the house impeaches, they will send it down. Then they have an opportunity, Mitch Mcconnell and chuck schumer, to bring it immediately to the floor, to bring the senate back. They could work all weekend. By the way, there would be some really symmetry or symbolism of the Senate Voting on conviction next monday, on Martin Luther king day, after he would saw confederate flags. I think Martin Luther king would approve of the Senate Working on the day that honors him in terms of convicting donald trump of high crimes and misdemeanors. We were talking with rich lowery earlier today. This describes the idea of the president willfully making statements that encourage the lawlessness, riots we saw at the capitol. Some people hear that and think, the president literally said, if you dont fight like hell, you are not going to have a country anymore, a statement that was cited in the article as well. How do you see that . I get the lega semantics. The country is fixated on the actions. The country saw what happened. The country heard the president , as you just relayed, express the words, lets go to the capitol. The reality of it is, if the republicans want to play sort of the legal kind of semantics, well, how do we know it was willful, how do we know it was that, thats not how the country is looking at this. Thats not how they should look at this. This is prima facie. Its very cleared on on its face. You cannot mistake what happened. You can connect all the dots, hallie. Thats what Mitch Mcconnell and thats what liz cheney and so many other republicans who are coming out have done. I think going on that hook is not going to be a helpful argument to make when you are confronted by your constituents back home. Why did you stand with the successionist, with the insurrectionist, why didnt you stand with the country . You dont want to say because i couldnt show it was willful. Thats not the argument you want to take. Michael, senator, stand by for a moment. We want to turn now to the number three democrat in the house, House Majority whip congressman James Clyburn from the great state of south carolina. Congressman, lets play devils advocate for a second. Senator joe manchin, he has said that impeachment is illadvised. We are seven days away from the inauguration of joe biden. Make the argument that impeaching the president and convicting the president somehow moves america forward. Thank you very much for having me. I think its the first time i have seen you since the loss of your brother. I offer my condolences. Look, we are good buddies. I mean that. We do these shows together. We interact together here in this building. But we dont always agree on everything. Thats the way it is. I disagree with him on that. I do believe that when anything as egregious as this takes place, its incumbent upon us as legislators, as people who have the responsibility to be a check on this executive, we have to do our jobs. I think its very clear that this president has violated his oath of office in a way that no president before him has ever done. We have to do our jobs. Conviction is up to somebody else. Thats not our job. Our job is to lay out the facts for the American People, take it to a vote and impeach, which is no more than an indictment. Then he will go to trial and let those people do their work. He is a part of that effort. So we will see what happens when the facts are unveiled as they put him on trial in the senate. Congressman clyburn, Andrea Mitchell here. I wanted to talk to you about your role of chair of the inaugural. You have expressed concerns about security and scaling further back. I want to ask you about that. The president elect said it will take place on the west front as planned. Is it still safe enough, do you believe, to have that ceremony out front . I know the parade will not be happening as we have imagine and all the things that have been anticipated. What about the Outdoor Events that are so traditional, the military review on the east front, were those things still possible . Do you think those should be done do them in a bunker if necessary, just get him sworn in. The know the president elect has a prerogative of making that determination. We as members of the inaugural committee will carry out his wishes. I, for one, would much rather see it done inside for security purposes, in the rotunda, or in the hall of the house, for that matter. But if he prefers to follow tradition here, im sure the men and women in uniform, the washington, d. C. Police force, the Capitol Police officers, they are going to do what they can to protect him. I really believe we will have a different outcome last week if all of these entities had been engaged in a process as they are now. I do feel that they are going to do their jobs. They will keep him and the Vice President elect protected. A point that some people say that there is a symbol of resilience of having it on west front, that you are telling the world that we cannot be intimidated by the thugs and rioters who invaded. We cant be. I was one of the first to say to the speaker, lets get back into the capitol last week because i think that we have to demonstrate the resiliency of the this country. You just cant express it. I think we came back in the building, we went on with our business, we demonstrated to the American People that thugs, irrespective where they get their direction from or from who, that we are going to do the countrys business and do it in such a way that the American People can be proud of their country. Congressman, its Hallie Jackson. You were one of the voices that suggested perhaps waiting, delaying on sending the article of impeachment if it passes over to the senate so as not to distract, if you will, from president elect bidens first 100 days of office. We heard from leader hoyer that it looks like the article will be sent immediately if it passes the house. Do you no longer have the concern about an impeachment trial being a distraction in the start of future president bidens tenure . I still have that concern. The question is whether or not we will get cooperation from the senate for it not to be a distraction. It seems as if the last 24 hours, we have heard from the majority and the soon to be minority leader, that he will move this forward so that we can get out of the way of the new administration. Irrespective what we are trying to do to clean up the current administration, theres a new president , a new Vice President , a new government. People want us to respond to their dreams and aspirations. They want us to get beyond the pandemic. We cant get beyond the pandemic having a trial. We have to put in place a new administrative effort to get beyond this pandemic. We have to put in place those things that are necessary to help people move forward with recreating this economy in such a way that we can all move forward together. I dont want to see us boged down with the trial. If the majority leader will keep his word and move forward, this can be done and we can have the vote to expel from office on monday. Congressman James Clyburn of south carolina. Thank you very much for your time and what i know is a very busy morning and day for you. I appreciate. President trump is on the brink of being the first president to be impeached twice. This time, for incitement of insurrection, a week after the siege on the capitol. I want to bring in monica alba. You and i have been talking with our sources. Im told the president is still, even as recently as the last day or so, musing about the possibility of a selfpardon, to give you a sense of where his head is at, entrenched in his defiance at this point. What are you hearing from folks that you are talking to today . Thats right, hallie. We are really hearing from some republicans around the president who are also expressing some surprise at what has become incredibly clear, which is there is no coordinated strategy by the white house or Republican National company to defend President Trumps actions as he faces this historic Impeachment Vote today. Thats visible from everybody from his closest allies and aides and normally those people who would be top surrogates are not on the airwaves trying to justify his controversial actions, nor were any of the normal talking points that usually get sent out to those top surrogates and people who can go defend the president go out. Those havent gone out in days, because theres such a bare bones staff operating out of the white house and certainly the Communications Part of that. Also because you have such a small group of people currently around the president. He is as isolated as ever, increasingly so. Just take a minute to zoom out and think about where the president was the last time that he was impeached and what an allout defense and response he mounted in response to that. He was actually at a rally in battle creek, michigan, that i remember being at, back in december of 2019 when those votes were taking place. They were so proud, in fact, of how many House Republicans voted against the impeachment that an aide brought out a cardboard cutout with the numbers to show the president , just from off stage, so he could tout that in the middle of his speech. He was incredibly pleased with in his words how held the how strong the republican faction held. Thats not really something were going to be seeing from the president today, of course, as you hear more and more republicans say they will come out and vote for his impeachment. How many is unclear. Our hill team is trying to track that down. Hallie, as you know, this is a president also who when he does want to come out and speak or address the cameras, does he so. He has not been in the recent weeks. Without his twitter megaphone, we dont have a good way to know what he is thinking in this moment. There isnt the press secretary or the president s children out here defending him because simply in the words of some of the republicans im talking to, there is no defense here that sticks or lands. Monica, is he planning to leave washington before the inaugural, so we wouldnt have the normal process of the coffee with the incoming and outgoing and riding together up pennsylvania avenue to the capitol . Thats not going to happen because hes not attending. But he will leave washington officially the day before, do we think . Its still up for discussion, andrea. That is something thats been a part of the conversations. The president is having these. He has indicated he wont be attending president elect joe bidens inauguration. He isnt going to participate in any part of the inaugural events, which start on tuesday, the day before the inauguration, because thats what the Incoming Administration wants to do. Those around the president have indicated its possible he would want to leave washington before all of that gets underway. Some questions remaining on the schedule. Also exactly on where he goes. Does he end up going to maralago, to florida, to his resort there as had been previously indicated . Were told this is something that has not been completely nailed down. There were some discussions weeks ago about whether he would even leave for florida sooner than just days before the inauguration. Something else i can tell you now that we are learning after the president went to alamo, texas, and delivers remarks on immigration and his own perceived successes of his administration, some aides are trying to convince the president he should do more of those events in the final week to try to at least pretend and convey that the president is focused on what he was able to do over the last four years when we know he is laser focused on himself and what this may mean and, of course, as hallie indicated, the potential still for pardoning himself and how that would work legally. We have so few days left here in order for the president to do anything. We should point out that the Vice President doesnt have anything public on his schedule today either. No indication what they will be doing for their remaining days in office with just under a week to go. Monica outside the white house. On the other side of your screen, you have been looking at the first procedural vote. Its likely to fail. The next procedural vote will get us moving towards the more substantive piece of the impeachment debate. We are, as you pointed out, getting close to the end of the first procedural vote. We will take a quick break. Msnbcs special coverage of the second impeachment of donald j. Trump continues. All of these things that i found through ancestry. I discovered my great aunt ruth signed up as a nursing cadet for world war ii. You see this scannedin, handwritten document. The most striking detail is her age. She was only 17. Knowing that she saw this thing happening and was brave enough to get involved and do something that was eye opening. Bring your Family History to life like never before. Get started for free at ancestry. Com you cant plan for your periods. To life like never before. What the gush moments. But the right pad can. Only always ultra thins have rapiddry technology and, they absorb 40 faster. The gush happens fast. Thats why always absorbs faster. 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We saw metal detectors posted at the entrance to the floor of the u. S. House. We have seen armed members of the National Guard sleeping inside the capitol, ready for the day ahead, ready for the days ahead, things also very different outside the capitol as well. That is where we find nbcs vaughn hilliard. You were outside that Building Seven days ago in the wake of the riot and insurrection. What are you seeing . Reporter i want everybody to get a sense of what washington, d. C. And these Capitol Grounds look like right now. One week ago there was nothing here. This was free roaming terd. There is nothing but a fourfoot fence near the Capitol Building. You can see a sevenfoot barrier. Look down east capitol street. This perimeter now extends two blocks, as of today. You see another sevenfoot fence manned by National Guardsmen as well as Capitol Police officers. We will swing over to the right. The library of Congress Also part of this perimeter. You will remember one week ago, it was also put on lockdown. There are tunnels that connect the library to the Capitol Building. There is nobody but us, our crew, these National Guardsmen and women and Capitol Police. What you see say presence thats very stark, especially because of the National Guards plan to ramp up presence over the next week. I got off the phone a bit ago with the department of defense official who tells me, there are more than 6,600 National Guardsmen in washington, d. C. They will ramp that up to 15,000. The other significant news, overnight the secretary of the arm approved arming of National Guardsmen. It wasnt until after the sun went down the National Guard was deployed and brought on the seen after the insurrection. What you see is the National Guard stepping in. We just watched several m4 rifles be carried from the other side of the trucks. You see over the morning, an increased number of individuals armed here. This is a striking sight to be standing here, here at the heart of washington, d. C. In just silence here as this perimeter is built up one week after the insurrection, as the impeachment proceedings happen inside in one week before inauguration day. Silence except for the sirens we can hear behind you. Vaughn, thank you. On the left side of your screen, you have seen the house of representatives move on to the second procedural vote. This is the vote that essentially closes the debate over the debate on the rules and moves on after a couple of hours of debate on impeachment to the final vote. This is that vote thats happening now, the second procedural vote. After this, after this wraps up thats what you are seeing on screen you will see the debate on the impeachment itself. I want to bring in pete williams. I understand that you have breaking news now as we are talking about security and what happened january 6th on a new arrest. What do you know . Right. This is an arrest of a person who was seen wearing a tshirt that said camp auschwitz on it. He has been charged with unlawful conduct, entering the capitol without permission, and disorderly conduct. His name is robert keith packer. He is 56. He has been arrested down in the newport news, virginia, area. This is part of the now were told 200 cases that the federal authorities have identified, people inside the capitol. They have been working through an astonishing amount of evidence. We have been told that the fbi has received 100,000 digital images and video clips. Thats not just 100,000 tips over the phone. Thats 100,000 pieces of digital media, which in addition to what the fbi has been able to gather on its own from publically available sources and surveillance cameras in the capitol, gives them a huge amount of evidence. They can also track the cells of people there to prove they were inside the capitol. They are using facial recognition software. Its an enormous investigative effort. There will be hundreds more of the cases in the days to come as the u. S. Attorneys offices work 24 hours a day to try to figure out who these people were, get them charged, get them held if they can, so that they cant come back to the capitol. They are looking at a range of charges from a misdemeanor like simple trespass to some that may not have occurred to people initially watching this. Theft of mail, theft of digital devices, potential theft of classified information, assault on Police Officers. Were told Authorities Say 14 Police Officers were assaulted during the riots. Of course, the death of a Capitol Police officer raises the potential of murder charges. We also learned that yesterday they are considering a charge of is a conspiracy. That in addition to the murder charges, a serious felony. A 20year maximum sentence. A very vigorous investigation going on thats going to grow in the days to come. Thanks, pete, so much for all of that. Kristin welker standing by. What comes to mind is in addition to that man who was arrested i had seen the pictures of camp auschwitz when it was happening. There were tshirts that said, 6 million w. E. 6 million jews killed wasnt enough. Theres a strong theme of antisemitism, along with the white supremacy, along with the horrific views of the confederate flags. Has anything been said by the president . He has spoken rarely. Anything about this broad theme of the people who were wearing maga hats and were his supporters . Reporter no. Thats why you are seeing a president who is increasingly isolated. He has come out, including yesterday, urging his supporters not to engage in more violence. But not condemning those specific images. In talking to some of his aides and allies inside and outside of the west wing, i can tell you that it is those images that you cite that has infuriated so many of them. The fact that there hasnt been a stronger response. Let me set the scene right now at the white house. President trump we do not believe is in the oval office. He is presumably monitoring this from the residence. If you go into the west wing, there are a few staffers there. Its a stark contrast to what we witnessed during the first impeachment when you had a number of staffers, his communications team, his legal team buzzing around throughout the west wing. Now there are few people, which raises the question, who is still adviing him, who is around him . I have been talking to those who are close to President Trump, who are outside of the white house, who are concerned about that. Who specifically is doing the business of governing and helping to advise President Trump in real time . Does he have a legal strategy . We know that among the names that have been floated to help lead his legal strategy, if this does go to the senate for a trial, which is what is anticipated, Rudy Giuliani certainly at the top of the list. No clear indication of what a legal strategy would look like, what the arguments are going to look like. I can tell you what the political argument is. His allies trying to make the case that this is the ageold fight between President Trump and the establishment wing of the Republican Party. Increasingly, this is looking very different with defection after defection from the gop on capitol hill and also inside the president s own administration, with a cascade of resignations that started, frankly, in the hours after the raid on the capitol. Kristin welker live at the white house. Thank you. We have learned that in 35 minutes officially, you will see the debate begin on the second impeachment of President Donald Trump. Thats coming from House SpeakerNancy Pelosis office. Thats about 35 minutes from now is when that will kick off. Thats when the second procedural vote will presumably have been wrapped up. You havent seen any republicans vote yes on this. I want to bring in Leigh Ann Caldwell. In the last couple of minutes here, as we have been having conversations with other reporters, there have been new developments on the hill, on and off the house floor. House Speaker Pelosi telling your colleague on capitol hill, kasie hunt, that shes not committing i believe this is the language. Not committing to sending over the article of impeachment immediately. Shes not announcing it one way or the other. Thats different from what we heard from hoyer, her number two earlier today. I understand you have new reporting on Mitch Mcconnell, of course, the Senate Republican leader and where his head is at related to impeachment. Bring us up to speed. Thats right. Speaker pelosi spoke to kasie hunt, our colleague, just in the hallway in the capitol. She was asked when she would send over the articles of impeachment. The direct quote is that she will not be making an announcement right now. Should we read into that . Is that just her keeping it a little bit behind the scenes, close to the vest, before this go further . I think its not wanting to get too far ahead of the ball game before they have even officially impeached him. I think its more that. I dont think we should read into it as far as they are going to hold these for much longer. This is something that democratic leader hoyer said earlier today told me that they would be sent immediately. These discussions, they have a strategy. They havent officially announced them yet. As far as mcconnell is concerned, we have really been trying to figure out what mcconnells play is over in the senate, especially if democrats send these article this article of impeachment over relatively soon. We do know in the New York Times theres a big bombshell story last night that said that mcconnell supports the democrats moving forward with impeachment. That was just a huge, huge signal to his colleagues. But we are hearing this morning, our colleagues, that mcconnells Leadership Team had no idea that that story was coming, did not know about his position. There have been no Conference Calls scheduled among Senate Republicans. Senate republican aides were complaining to me yesterday morning that they hadnt heard from mcconnell yet. This is before the story, saying that they needed guidance. They needed leadership. They didnt know what to do. Everything has been completely silent. Then this New York Times story came out. That was the first Senate Republicans have heard from their leadership. Now they are wanting to get something formal, some sort of conversation so that they can get a clear understanding of what the process is moving forward. Hallie . To be clear, they didnt dispute the story. Did they . They did not dispute the story, no. A couple other organizations confirmed the story. Theres no one disputing it at all. Mcconnells Strategic Team is very good at what they do. Theyre very purposeful. That story was put out there in the New York Times, and that was a big signal to the press. That was a big signal to his colleagues. That was a big signal to the country where mcconnell is. We do have our own reporting that mcconnell has not spoken to the president since december 15th, the day that he declared he congratulated joe biden as winning the election and he was going to be the next president of the United States. He hasnt spoken to the president since then. He has no plans to speak to the president moving ahead. Were told he is done with the president. The ball is right now in mcconnells court. He just hasnt officially said publically what he is going to do. But that story in the New York Times is a big signal. Leigh ann caldwell there following all the twists and turns on the hill. Stand by. We will come back to you. Lets turn now to our panel once again, former democratic senator Claire Mccaskill of missouri, chuck rosenberg, senior fbi official. I want to welcome to the conversation donna edwards. Since you are the newest to the party, we will start with you. Again, it seems to be unclear whether the speaker of the house is playing this close to the vest or whether she is legitimately not serious about committing to sending over the articles of impeachment to the Upper Chamber immediately. What might her strategy be here, congresswoman edwards . I think it sounds like she either has not made a decision yet, because shes trying to read whatever the tea leaves there are coming from the senate, or shes made a decision and shes not telling all of us about it. I think that makes sense, because she doesnt want to show her hand as shes trying to navigate getting as many votes in a bipartisan strong bipartisan vote in the house of representatives before telling everybody what shes going to do. It doesnt surprise me at all that theres a delay on that decision. I think there must be some consideration of the Incoming Administration and what that will mean to the first few or 100 or however many days going into the new presidency. Chuck rosenberg, i want to ask you about the legal precedent, if there is any, for having an impeachment trial, a senate trial, after the president has left office. There is some precedent for it, andrea. Its a great question. Lets go back all the way to 1876. Grant was president. His secretary of war was a fellow named belnap. He was taking money on the side. Just before the house was to impeach him, i think that morning the secretary tendered his resignation. Grant accepted it. He was out of office. It did not stop the house of representatives from impeaching him. They went forward with the vote. I believe that day. It did not stop the United States senate from trying him. They went forward with the trial. I believe he was acquitted in the trial. Nevertheless, you had both an impeachment in the house and a trial in the Senate Following belnaps resignation. There is precedent. I dont think its ideal that a president is already gone for a trial to be taing place. One of the biggest penalties, of course, of the two, conviction and removal being number one and disqualification from further office being number two, of those two, one is gone. He is already out of office. There is precedent, andrea, to your question. Senator mccaskill, worth pulling back, big picture. 24 hours ago excuse me, a week ago, to the minute, i was standing on the roof of this building as the president was holding what at the time was a protest rally over on the elipse. It turned into the riot at the capitol, the same building where we are seeing members cast their vote now. In just under 30 minutes 25 minutes by my count, you will see the debate begin. The Security Posture is very different today. We have seen the images of members of the National Guard sleeping in the capitol visit center, in the halls of the capitol. This is moments ago, House Speaker nancy pelosi if we can pull up that shot. Thanking members of the National Guard outside the capitol. One of our producers said she recognized the people called in to protect the members of congress as they go about their business. Senator . Yeah, you know, one week later, and our capitol capitol country is at war. And that is part of the trump legacy is that were going to spend the last days of this administration with new fencing, thousands of military troops armed, i might add, armed military troops, not there for crowd control. There in case someone wants to do what they did a week ago. It is remarkable, and its incredibly heartbreaking. Ive been to inaugurations. I have been to inspirational inaugurations and to inaugurations that i wasnt as excited about. This is going to be much, much different. Now, let me point something out that chuck said about the trial in the senate. Whats important to remember here is they cannot disqualify him from Holding Office unless and until he is convicted on the impeachment charges. That is a separate vote in the senate. It would take place after and only after he was convicted, and that vote only takes a bare majority. So if, in fact, Mitch Mcconnells idea here is to rid the Republican Party of donald trump, hes going to have to be on board with having the trial and convicting him because they can never get him off the ballot unless they move to that special motion to disqualify him from ever running again or Holding Office in this country. Senator mccaskill, craig melvin here. Quickly, south carolinas senior senator Lindsey Graham put out a statement a few minutes ago, obviously opposed to impeachment. A good friend of the president s. But in that statement he also raises the idea that impeachment and or conviction could lead to more violence, the violence akin to what we saw a week ago, the riots, the insurrection, senator graham with President Trump yesterday. Senator mccaskill, what say you to that, that all of this could lead to more bloodshed, more of what we saw there at the capitol last week . First, i would assume that lindsey is one of the few republican senators thats still talking to President Trump. He went with him to texas yesterday. He is still trying to manage his inner circle status to keep trump under control in the closing days. Having said that, i think he is doing this probably to show support for trump, but lets remember one thing this is america. This is about doing the right thing and not showing fear. You cannot show fear at a moment that is so galvanizing in terms of its historical context. And i think most senators would say this is not about whether or not im afraid. This is about whether or not im afraid of what it will mean to our democracy if we dont act. Claire, you know, we were talking about the speaker thanking the National Guard troops outside and given them challenge points as a recognition of gratitude. I was there after 9 11, and you know better than almost anyone here the terror that people who were in the building, in the chamber, our colleagues, your colleagues, and, you know, partner father of my child ine capitol as this was happening. Sure. What i am seeing and hearing from people who were there and good friends of mine and producers and also members whom i know very well and senators, there is an anger and a fear and a resilience that is so palpable and is so profound, and i think this is motivating ive known liz cheney since she was a little girl, and when people like liz cheney came out as strongly as she did, that is a strong signal. I think the overwhelming feeling for people who were there, right, and you mentioned reporters, our colleagues, was this sense of not just fear but sadness, right, sadness at seeing what happened to this institution that is a symbol for so many people of democracy. Here its different for us in washington. We see the Capitol Building every day, come to office, as you can see behind us across the street from the u. S. Capitol. To people around the country, this building holds so much significance. The shot were looking at here. There was also and we saw this unfolding, andrea, and it was striking on the night this happened, the night of the riots, anger at these rioters, that they will not win, they are not going to derail this process, not going to stop us. And that anger is part of what has fueled the politics that weve seen here. And frankly the politics of what has happened with President Trump, with more and more republicans willing to break with him publicly and even privately as we are seeing from Mitch Mcconnell. Now, liz cheney, for example, there is some reporting from punch bowl that perhaps shell be facing a rebellion from some on the far right piece of her republican caucus, but there is i think a real sense that emotion in many ways has driven the political fallout that weve seen and institutionalism. Part of that is the history of the moment here. Mitch mcconnell is an institutionalist. He is looking at this with the eye of history. Whether you like him or not, that has been his perspective for years, for his career, craig, and he is now looking at how i believe, based on the reporting that weve seen, how history might judge this moment. Craig . Halle, you are correct and we are by my watch 20 minutes away from the start of the debate on the floor of the house as members consider impeaching President Trump a second time. Again, it would be the first time in the 255year history of this republic. We will take you there after a short break. Youre watching live special coverage here on msnbc. Oh, oh, oh, ozempic® announcer onceweekly ozempic® is helping many people with type 2 diabetes like emily lower their blood sugar. A majority of adults who took ozempic® reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. Heres your a1c. Oh my a1c is under 7 announcer and you may lose weight. Adults who took ozempic® lost on average up to 12 pounds. I lost almost 12 pounds oh announcer for those also with known heart disease, ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke, or death. It lowers the risk. Oh and i only have to take it once a week. Oh oh, oh, oh, ozempic® announcer ozempic® is not for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. Do not share needles or pens. Dont reuse needles. Do not take ozempic® if you have a personal or Family History of medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to ozempic®. Stop taking ozempic® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, itching, rash, or trouble breathing. Serious side effects may include pancreatitis. Tell your doctor if you have Diabetic Retinopathy or vision changes. Taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. Common side effects are nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain, and constipation. Some side effects can lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. Onceweekly ozempic® is helping me reach my blood sugar goal. Oh, oh, oh, ozempic® you may pay as little as 25 for a 1month or 3month prescription. Ask your Health Care Provider today about onceweekly ozempic®. Want to sell the best burger in every zip code . Add an employee. Or ten. Then easily and automatically pay your team and file payroll taxes. That means. World domination or just the west side. Run payroll in less than five minutes with intuit quickbooks. You love your pet. But hate wearing their hair. Did you know that your clothes can actually attract pet hair . With new bounce pet hair lint guard, your clothes can repel pet hair. One bounce mega sheet has 3x the hair fighting ingredients of the leading dryer sheet. Simply toss into the dryer to bounce out hair lint. Look how the shirt on the left attracts pet hair like a magnet pet hair is no match for bounce. Its available in fresh scent unscented. With bounce, you can love your pets, and lint roll less. Weve roofed the top of the hour in our special coverage of the second impeachment of President Trump. Im Andrea Mitchell in washington along with my colleagues Hallie Jackson and craig melvin. We continue to keep our focus on the house of representatives this hour and the historic bipartisan vote that we will witness this afternoon. We have been watching two procedural votes on the house floor through this morning. We are in the second one now. We are looking ahead to two hours of debate. Within about 15 minutes that will begin. Hundreds of lawmakers, the entire House Democratic caucus and at least five House Republicans, including liz cheney, expected to vote to impeach President Donald Trump for a second time. That would put the ball in the senates court. Hallie, that is where things get interesting. There are critical questions on the senate side about when anothe