temperatures. plus escalating tensions between israel and gaza militants. the most violent in over a year. we ll go live to southern israel for the latest. live from cnn center, this is cnn newsroom. with lynda kinkade. we begin in washington, d.c. where a marathon voting session is currently under way in the u.s. senate. democrats are hoping to push through a sweeping healthcare climate and tax bill that tackles some of the key policy objectives. first, they have to clear one more procedural hurdle, what is known as a vote-a-rama, a series of back-to-back amendment votes with no time limit. the bill is ultimately expected to pass, then head to the u.s. house for a vote. cnn s jessica dean reports. reporter: senate democrats are pushing through midway through this complex budget process that will allow them to pass legislation focused on climate, healthcare and some tax provisions with just the senate democrats voting. they will not need senate republicans. but
schumer on a major reconciliation bill that would lower prescription drug costs and invest hundreds of billions of dollars to combat climate change and clean energy programs. sinema s support is crucial to get the bill through a 50/50 senate and to the democratic house for a vote. vladimir putin s top spokesman was annoyed the u.s. had gone public about ongoing talks for a prisoner swap to free brittney griner and paul whelan. tony blinken is expected to call sergei lavrov for the first time since the ukraine invasion after shunning him since the invasion in february to talk about a possible swap. president biden spoke with china s president xi this morning as tensions have risen over potential congressional trip to taiwan led by nancy pelosi and the passage of a senate bill increasing competition with china in the semiconductor market. we begin with the president and the economy. joining me now, nbc white house correspondent carol lee, nbc capitol hill correspondent ali vi
we start with the bombshell new details in the justice department s investigation into the capitol attack. nbc news confirming with an administration official that the doj has been asking questions about former president trump s actions leading up to january 6. the official adds there is not a criminal investigation of mr. trump himself. nbc news reached out to a trump spokesperson for comment. the doj is not officially commenting on the story but in an exclusive interview with lester holt attorney general garland states that no one is above the law. we will hold accountable anyone criminally responsible attempting to block the peaceful transfer of power. that conversation between merrick garland and lester holt. we want to bring in pete williams, charlie savage, chuck rosenberg. we have a great group to get us started. pete, confirming the questions asked related to donald trump s actions on that day and leading up to that day. what specifically do we know? what is the f
uae. this is an incredibly busy day for the u.s. president on what is his first tour of the middle eastern gulf since he became u.s. president. the brutal murder of jamal khashoggi in 2018 has cast a pall. president biden hoping this trip will help move the two countries forward while still making clear he holds mohammed bin salman responsible for that killing. here s what he said after meeting with the crown prince on friday. i made my view crystal clear. i said very straightforwardly, for an american president to be silent on an issue of human rights is inconsistent with who we and who i am. some will find it difficult to square the president s rhetoric with him greeting the crown prince with a fist bump. it was mr. biden who labeled saudi arabia a pariah just a few years ago. the president says he doesn t regret the remark, but both men close to ignore reporters questions as their meeting started on friday. jamal khashoggi, will you apologize to his family, sir? t
president trump will take the stage at the america first summit an hour from you. the first trip back to d.c. in a year and a half. he s speaking at an event less than a mile from where his former vice president mike pence looking and talking like a candidate, too, this morning. as part of a q&a pence was asked about the division between the former president and what it means for the party. i don t know that our movement is that divided. i don t know that the president and i differ on issues. but we may differ on focus. i truly do believe that elections are about the future and that it s absolutely essential at a time when so many americans are hurting, so many families are struggling that we don t give way to the temptation to look back. to be fair trump s speech is billed as his vision and dealing with crime. that said, pence wasn t the only one who tried to take some of the steam out of trump s return to washington. his remark is kind compared to president biden s stun