that s about 25 miles north of dallas. the began coming around in 5:30 pm eastern time. there are reports of multiple casualties but nbc news has not confirmed a number. the city of allen issued a public safety alert warning residents to stay away from the allen premium outlets. we ve seen what appears to be hundreds of people walking out with their hands up, presumably to indicate to authorities outside they are not a threat. frank figliuzzi, i want to bring you in here and ask, as you watch this unfold, which questions remain for you? the question is, obviously, is this contained? it s the shooter identified? and either apprehended or deceased? there are signs that that could be the case here in in terms of the tone and pace we are seeing now. that has changed drastically over the co what is the toll? for the casualties? how many? who are they? and then everybody has the same question. why? why did this happen? and then, of course, alicia menendez, there is the larger
top of the hour here in the cnn newsroom. thanks for joining us. i m erica hill. i m jim sciutto. happening now, attorney general merrick garland on capitol hill to testify before the jen at judiciary committee for the first time here. you see senators cruz and holly. he is expected to be hit with a wide range of questions including allegations from republicans as they said that the justice department is being weaponized against conservatives as well as updates into investigations into trump and biden and we ll take you there live as it happens. the annual cpac conference happens today as we get new cnn reporting about what trump s allies are doing to get house republicans in his corner. for 2024, not all of them are there. sdwloo also ahead, closing arguments are expected to begin today in the double murder trial of disgraced former lawyer alex murdaugh. jurors in that case at the crime scene at this hour. we will take you live to south carolina. let s begin this hour with
little to anything against churches and pro life centers. they will get in a lot. senator ted cruz asking garland during his last appearance before the committee about promise he made to keep politics out of the d.o.j. it went like this. i asked you quote, will you commit to this committee that under your leadership the department of justice will not target the political opponents of this administration? your answer, quote, absolutely. it is totally inappropriate for the department to target any individual because of their politics or their position in a campaign. that was your promise just a few months ago. i m sorry to say you have broken that promise. dana: that was more than a year ago. the committee will have plenty of ground to cover today. jason chaffetz ahead with reaction. david spunt starting us off on capitol hill. attorney general taking a seat behind me ready to answer those questions. he said multiple times he wants to keep politics out of the d.o.j. he wi
of mar-a-lago for classified documents. but also since he launched not one, but two special counsel investigations into both former president trump and president biden. we just saw garland walk into the hearing room moments ago. he didn t answer any questions on the way in. we are live on the hill. also, congress intensifies its scrutiny of china. one lawmakers even warning of a, quote existential struggle with the nation during the very first meeting of a house select committee dedicated to china. what we learned. plus, the warning from the head of the fbi about china s efforts to hinder investigations into the origin of covid. we are also following breaking news in greece, a devastating head-on collision between a freight train and a passenger train carrying 350 passengers. officials saying dozens were killed with reports of people being thrown out of windows from the impact. the desperate search this morning for survivors in the wreckage. and an extraordinary moment
scenes of chaos at the border pandering to the far left extremist. with every parent in america. and a kidnapping a four americans then found dead. and after that the grotesque handwritten drug cartel responsible. as a customer service mixup. within narco terrorist organizations to completely taken over mexico to infiltrate the mexican government here is a map showing where they are active in it is basically everywhere. we told you about a drug cartel extermination site just a few miles from the us border. it was forced to close temporarily after the latest atrocity the response for the biden administration about as reassuring as it would expect. us law enforcement is in touch with mexican law enforcement the department of state and homeland security is coordinating with mexican authorities. and bring those responsible to justice. after congratulatory tweet you will never disrespect us government. but that collapsed pretty much straightaway just before our 2020 election f