mccarthy and perhaps not surprisingly he is refusing to cooperate. he says the probe is an abuse of power and he calls it illegitimate. a jarring 180 from this comment that mccarthy made last may. >> would you be willing to testify about your conversation with donald trump on january 6th if you were asked by an outside commission -- >> sure. next question. >> so even with that, i doubt the committee ever really believed mccarthy would answer anything. what is significant, though, is if you really look at this letter sent by the committee chair bennie thompson, the committee meticulously lays out this road map for what they're investigating and really what they found already. what was trump doing during the hours of the insurrection, what did trump do after to shape or maybe change the story. this letter cites an interview that mccarthy gave to cbs during the insurrection where mccarthy admitted to speaking with trump, asking trump to tell the rioters to stop. >> in a cnn exclusive, liz cheney, the vice chairwoman of the select committee, not ruling out the possibility of issuing mccarthy a subpoena. she suggests the minority leader is attempting to cover-up what happened. >> we know that leader mccarthy was pleading with the president to tell people to go home, when police officers and others were being beaten here at the capitol. so, you know, i wish that he were a brave and honorable man. he's clearly trying to cover up what happened. he has an obligation to come forward and we'll get to the truth. >> joining us now, cnn senior legal analyst and former federal prosecutor elie honig. elie, this is a really interesting letter that has been sent to kevin mccarthy. it specifically -- it is one of those things where maybe someone isn't going to answer the question, but the question is going to tell you a lot. >> yeah, brianna, they're making two key statements in this really interesting five-page letter that the committee sent to kevin mccarthy. the first thing is they want to know from kevin mccarthy what did you know about donald trump's state of mind as this attack unfolded. we all know that kevin mccarthy had this really important phone call. he's inside the capitol, while it is being ransacked, he gets on the phone with donald trump and says call off your people. is donald trump displeased by what's happening? no. he's angry that kevin mccarthy is upset by what's happening. that's really revealing. the committee made a point of saying, hey, kevin, we know this. the other thing the committee is interested in, whether there was some effort to tamper with kevin mccarthy as a witness, potentially to obstruct justice. the committee is making a statement in that letter to kevin mccarthy. >> you know, we talk about speaking indictments, which are different here, mccarthy is not being indicted, but speaking indictments where a prosecutor lays out what you have. this felt to me like a speaking letter from bennie thompson. this is what we have, this is where we're going, and on that subject of a possible cover-up there, look, i'll read you that sentence, your public statements regarding january 6th have changed markedly since you met with trump. at that meeting or at any other time did president trump or his representatives discuss or suggest what you should say publicly? and mccarthy faced tough questions about that from our new colleague chris wallace. listen. >> has the president ever reached out to you, since that report came out, to discuss what you and he talked about in the january 6th phone call and did you say to him, i can't because we're under oath? >> no. >> that never happened? >> never happened. >> and you -- >> never even close. >> interesting. people wondered why wallace was asking it at the time. i wonder why this graph is in this letter, elie. >> well, john, one of the great things with the law and the investigation like this, we're allowed to use common sense. the committee is allowed to use common sense and when you have a person like kevin mccarthy who goes through such a 180, there is early january kevin mccarthy who says the president, quote, bears responsibility for what happened and then you have late january and beyond kevin mccarthy who says i have nothing relevant to add here. it is logical to ask what happened in between. we know what happened in between. kevin mccarthy makes that journey down to mar-a-lago, i wonder about what is said there, what happens there, as a result of that, he comes out with this completely different voice, completely different perspective. it is perfectly logical for chris wallace to ask, for the committee to ask, for all of us to wonder what happened there? what did that very powerful person say to you, kevin mccarthy that caused you to completely change your story? >> what are we actually likely to learn here, elie, what does this moment tell us about where the committee is? >> well, so the committee has a really important moment of decision before it here, brianna. now that kevin mccarthy, like jim jordan before him, said no thanks, we're not going to accept your polite invitation to testify voluntarily, the committee really only has two choices. choice one, to say, sorry, kevin, sorry, jim jordan, sorry for bugging you guys, go about your day, we're done with you. that would show real weakness. option two, to issue the subpoena. we saw the clip of liz cheney saying that's not off the table. they need to be thinking more than one step ahead, because if they issue that subpoena, you can bet kevin mccarthy and jim jordan in all likelihood will continue to defy and the question then is whether the committee's ready, willing and able to take that next step of potentially voting to hold them in contempt and send them over to doj for potential prosecution. it is what the committee did with steve bannon, it is what the committee did with mark meadows. we'll see whether their own congressional colleagues have to play by the same rules. >> a member of congress defying potentially a congressional subpoena is something to behold. elie, thank you so much. >> thanks, brianna and john. breaking moments ago, president biden is set to announce plans to deploy military medical teams to michigan, new york, rhode island, ohio, new jersey and new mexico to provide relief to overwhelmed hospital staff. nearly a quarter of hospitals across the nation are reporting a critical staff shortage, more than any other time during this entire pandemic. joining us now to discuss is deann chriswell, the administrator of the federal emergency management agency, which is coordinating this response, along with the department of defense and the white house. administrator, thank you so much for being with us this morning to talk about this. tell us what the most critical need is at these hospitals where these medical teams from the military will be heading. >> good morning, brianna. thank you for having me on today. our regional administrators and our staff here at headquarters have been in constant communication with all of our states and our state directors trying to understand what their needs are and as we have seen the rise in the omicron cases here recently, the number one request continues to be staffing. so these teams are going to provide critical support to help relieve some of the drain and the strain on the healthcare system. and give them the well needed resources that they need to continue to fight this pandemic. >> so what are we talking about, are we talking about screening patients, checking patients in, doctors what kind of skills here? >> it can be a wide variety of all of that, right. the needs are across the spectrum. i would say primarily we're looking at medical care providers with nurses and physicians to come help support the covid patients. but we also send additional individuals in to help with some of the administrative needs as needed as well. >> so right now, it seems like we may be plateauing in certain east coast cities. there are other places around the country where it seems like omicron is heading or they're really in the throes of a surge now. what is the timeline that you're prepared for? >> we are prepared as we have been since day one of this pandemic to continue to support the states. we remain in constant communication to anticipate what their needs are. and as the needs or as the resources become available, and not needed in one state, we'll forward deploy them and move them to the next state in greatest need. this is a constant evaluation, making sure that we can try to stay ahead of the anticipated need and get the resources in place ahead of time. >> are you thinking other states will need these resources? >> i think it is probably a good possibility that we're going to see additional states as we have seen these surges, they spread in a wave across the country. we have been doing this again since day one, sending resources out, moving them from one state to the next, in order to help all of those hospitals maintain the level of care that they need to. >> so what do you do if some of these staff members end up sick themselves. >> they have protocols in place to make sure that we're protecting our workforce as well as those that they're treating. it is not uncommon to see some of the individuals get covid and then they isolate just as anybody else would. >> yeah, certainly provides that gap in care, allows the gap in care to be covered, which is so important. administrator, thank you so much for being with us. >> thanks, brianna. happening moments ago, vice president kamala harris defending the biden administration on their covid response. she acknowledged the frustration with the state of the pandemic and said when the covid tests -- she talked about when the covid tests that the white house ordered are going to be made available. >> the 500 million tests that have been ordered that are going to be sent to every american, do we know when those are going snout. >> shortly. they have been ordered -- i have to look at the current information. i think by next week. but soon. absolutely soon. and it is a matter of urgency for us. >> should we have done it sooner? >> we are doing it. >> but should we have done it sooner? >> we are doing it. novak djokovic listed as the number one seed in the australian open. will the country allow him to stay to compete? and how did fake election certificates claiming that trump won in seven states that actually he lost in make it to the national archives? what a republican lawmaker tweeted about covid measures and the nazis. it may have gotten him blocked in germany. don't like surprises? 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>> well, we were waiting with bated breath, john, for the draw to come out, to see if novak djokovic was going to be in it. of course he is the top seed, based on the fact that he's the number one player in the world. when the draw was postponed, which is highly unusual to happen at a grand slam tournament, we all thought, okay, this is it, they're throwing him out of the country, well, not so fast. we have been trying to predict how this is going to play out through the course of the last week. at the moment, novak djokovic is in the tournament. i've gotten a real education, john, on politics down in australia in the last week, having spoken to multiple sources down there in the political world, in the journalism world as well. and essentially this is playing a huge part in the decision here because if the prime minister and the federal government decides to kick out novak djokovic, they're sort of sending a message to the world, sort of, you know, we got rules here, you got to play by our rules, but remember the government trying to open up their economy. they have been under strict lockdown. most of the population is double or triple vaccinated. so the country, the people are ready to open up, they're ready to get back to normal life. if they throw djokovic out, it sort of plays into what the public perception is with the population in australia, but from a tennis standpoint, can you imagine, john, if novak djokovic actually takes the court next week? it is going to be a zoo, but another thing, the ratings will be sky high. maybe that's factoring into this decision as well. >> i can't imagine either scenario at this point. that's what makes it so unusual. he's the number one seed. awfully hard now to go in and say you can't play to the number one seed, now that the draw has been announced, but at the same time, like you said, i can't imagine him walking on to the court and actually playing. you talk about public opinion in australia, it swung wildly back and forth and back and forth and back and forth. at first it felt like it was against djokovic, then maybe for him, after the court ruled. when it turned out there were lies on his entry form, and that he flouted covid protocols, it seems the public opinion is against him again. >> it is literally -- it is like watching a tennis match, back and forth, back and forth. you're 100% right on the public opinion side. i think when djokovic won the appeal, the public said, okay, you know, we didn't treat him that well, looked bad, didn't look good the way he was held in a detention center for fife day s. that's not a good look for anybody. when he put out his instagram saying there is a lot of misinformation -- that's an old card. we're used to hearing that card being played. but really, where is the misinformation? it is coming from you. that's where the -- we're just reporting on what you put on your visa, now it is all out there for the public to see. when that came out, the way he did, the australian public said, wait a second, we're doing everything we have done. we have been double, triple vaccinated, we stayed home, we abided by the rules that the government have put forth and now you let this guy in who is clearly lied on his application and who sort of is flaunting the idea that he can do whatever he wants and, by the way, john, i'm also hearing from my sources on the players side, they're getting very, very tired of this whole novak act. they have had enough, for a while they were standing up for him because he was standing up for himself. now, remember, the 97% of the male players are now vaccinated. djokovic is out there on an island by himself and he's drifting further and further away. >> to use a tennis metaphor, the ball is in the government's court. we need to hear whether he'll be allowed to stay or go. patrick mcenroe, thank you for being with us. >> thank you, john. here's what else to watch today. an actual case of election lies, trump allies creating these fake documents saying trump won in seven states that he lost. we're going to speak to the head of elections in one state where this stunt went down. plus, president biden compared some lawmakers to segregationists in his push for voting rights. did he go too far? 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(laughter) a stove that inspires magnificent hot cocoa. and a perfect ski-in ski-out. but the thing they'll remember forever? grandpa coming out of retirement to give a few ski lessons. the time to plan your get together is now. find it on vrbo. the pandemic made teaching and learning really hard. but instead of working to help students safely return to the classroom, the san francisco school board focused on renaming schools and playing politics. and they've even saddled our district with a $125 million deficit. our children can't wait for new leadership. here's our chance for a fresh start. on february 15th, please recall school board members collins, lópez and moliga before our kids fall even further behind. moving is a handful. beforno kidding!fall fortunately, xfinity makes moving easy. easy? -easy? switch your xfinity services to your new address online in about a minute. that was easy. i know, right? and even save with special offers just for movers. really? yep! so while you handle that, you can keep your internet and all those shows you love, and save money while you're at it with special offers just for movers at xfinity.com/moving. cnn has learned in the weeks after the 2020 election, allies of former defeated president trump sent fake certificates to the national archives declaring that trump won seven swing states that he lost. joining me now is jocelyn benson, democratic secretary of state for michigan, one of the several key battleground states won by biden where trump sought to overturn the election result and for which these fake slate of electors was submitted. secretary of state, thank you for being with us. what exactly was this document, what happened here? >> well, we, as the governor and the state election officer, we submit a formal document to the national archives after the election detailing the electors who have given their electoral votes to the winner of the vote in the state, which was joe biden. so we were first notified in december 2020 by the national archives that there was a second document that was not real, it was fake, and it was attempting to submit an alternate slate of pro trump electors illegally to the national archives. we referred the matter to the attorney general, and it really illustrates the moment that we were in, what trying to overturn democracy looked like. and guarding democracy looked like. there were so many attempts where we had to go to the courts, and other -- look at all other avenues to block against these, you know, multiple fronts that we were defending against of people using anything, all based on lies, to overturn valid accurate election results. >> a fake slate of electors. you say illegally submitted here. how so? and did you receive any indication that this is being investigated further? >> well, the michigan attorney general is investigating. now there was no state seal, no fake signatures on the documents, so there wasn't a clear forgery, but federal law does include specific provisions for how electors are chosen and this group obviously did not follow them. they are chosen by the voters, not by a political party or a campaign or candidates, and so, you know, the bottom line is that the january 6th committee investigation is really what proceeded these documents becoming public and it is why it is all the more important that we spend time now really sifting through the embers of everything that was attempted to overturn the 2020 election, because mark my words, they will come back in 2024 or in future elections and try it all again. >> what is your contact been with the january 6th committee at this point? >> my office and i directly have spoken with the investigators of the january 6th committee. i think it is important for everyone called to submit information or testify before the committee to do so. it is your duty, as an american, as a citizen, as anyone who is committed to ensuring the truth is uncovered and that accountability and justice is served for those who were part of a coordinated attempt to try to block the will of the people, in 2020. >> were these fake slates of electors, part of the discussion you had with the committee? >> yes, and some of what we provided was that documentation. that's another thing, we not only witness all of these attempts from my office in michigan, but we kept the receipts and we're going to continue to provide the evidence that we have, that there were multiple attempts at every level to try to block the will of the voters in 2020, again with an eye toward not just ensuring there is accountability for what happened, but for preparing for anything that could happen again in the future. >> secretary of state jocelyn benson, thank you for being with us. >> thanks for having me. >> today president biden will head to capitol hill to push for voting rights legislation, despite strong resistance when it comes to changing the filibuster. but is filibuster reform really such a crazy idea? john avlon has your reality check. >> that's right. the fight to vote is in overdrive now. and it is happening from the halls of congress to state courthouses near you. in washington, d.c., senate democrats are poised to push through a debate on the freedom to vote and john lewis voting rights act ahead of martin luther king day. they argue some version of this legislation is needed to defend our democracy from voter suppression and election subversion efforts that passed in 19 states from the back of the big lie. but here's the thing, their efforts can run smack into the face of republican filibuster, and that, of course, will accelerate calls to reform the filibuster as president biden and former president obama urged in recent days. there is still no sign that democratic senators joe manchin and kyrsten sinema have changed their minds about opposing the filibuster reform. and this frustrates their colleagues who feel the fierce urgency of now and dr. king's words, but manchin seems genuinely concerned about what getting rid of the filibuster might mean for democrats when they're in the minority next. i haven't heard a good reality based argument for why democrats wouldn't be singing a different tune with the republican senate majority as they have in the past. but there is one widespread argument for keeping the current filibuster that is just bunk. >> tradition of the senate -- >> we need to be very cautious about what we do. it is what we have had for 32 years. that's what makes us different from the rest of the world. >> the current filibuster has not been senate tradition for 232 years. it is not in the constitution. and it changed a lot over time. and that's actually why mending the filibuster, not ending it, is totally consistent with senate traditions. if you see mr. smith goes to washington, one of my favorite movies, or read about southern conservative democrats like strom thurmond trying to block civil rights legislation, then you know that in its og form, the filibuster required a senator to take the floor and speak for hours. it was supposed to be a mechanism for protest by the minority. and let's look at the data. this is a graph showing cloture votes in the senate, needed to try to block a filibuster going back to 1917. for first 50 years or so, filibusters are very rare. they start creeping up during the civil rights era. in 1975, a rule change allowed senators to filibuster a bill from the comfort of their own office or home. it became a painless procedural move, a poison pill, rather than an extended stand. so the abuse began. but as you can see on the right side of your screen, things got really ugly with partisan polarization this century. bumping up with president bush and rocketing toward routine, reflexive obstruction under presidents obama and trump. so the current filibuster rules are actually a break from senate tradition, and a prime driver of our division and dysfunction. returning to the old talking filibuster as president biden proposed would restore some sanity by requiring the minority party to take the floor and make their case. it would adjust the -- away from this tyranny, the minority that reduces faith in a functioning democracy. here's the thing, the urgency around voting rights right now is real. and yesterday we saw two reasons why. in ohio, redistricting reform advocates were given a win when the state supreme court voted 4-3 to reject an absurd partisan gerrymander of the state legislature that voted a -- violated a constitutional amendment passed by the voters a few years ago. and the republican chief justice sided with democrats in a decision on congressional maps is expected soon. so stay tuned. but on the opposite side of the ledger, a north carolina court allowed the republicans lopsided 10-4 congressional seat map to move forward, despite there being 300,000 more registered democrats in the state. the court even said that it neither condones the active maps nor their anticipated potential results that could, quote, potentially lead to results incompatible with democratic principles and subject our state to ridicule. that's the thing. in the absence of state or federal law regarding partisan gerrymandering, they thought their hands were tied and that's precisely why new legislation is needed to address the rigged system of redistricting and other ongoing efforts to subvert truly representative democracy in america. that's the defining challenge of our times. and that's your reality check. >> all right, john, thank you. we'll see you back here shortly. inflation hitting a 40-year high, but what about unemployment? we will break down the numbers released just moments ago. and the u.s. loses an icon. 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>> vo: my car is more than four wheels. it's my after-work decompression zone. so when my windshield broke... >> woman: what?! >> vo: ...i searched for someone who really knew my car. i found the experts at safelite autoglass. with their exclusive technology, they fixed my windshield... then recalibrated the camera attached to my glass so my safety systems still work. who knew that was a thing?! >> woman: safelite has service i can trust. >> singers: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ all right, just in moments ago, the weekly jobless claims, we have our cnn chief business correspondent christine romans with these numbers to break them down. what are we seeing here? >> good morning, brianna. this is more welcome news in the american labor market, 230,000 first time jobless claims, that is -- look at the trend, that's what you want to be seeing. we're back to prepandemic levels. in fact, that number was up a little bit, but still very near a 52-year low for jobless claims. what does that mean? that means that companies are so hungry for workers, they're not firing the workers they have, layoffs are very, very low here in what is overall a strong job market. we also got new data just in on producer prices. remember that cpi index yesterday, consumer prices, these are factory level inflation numbers. and you can see it is up here, 9.7%. that is also near a record. this number only goes back to 2010 or so, but still we can say near record inflation for the prices that are happening at the factory level. so consumers and businesses, the downside of this strong economy overall and this, you know, booming consumer demand is that prices are going up. we saw those consumer prices yesterday, you dig into those numbers just about every place you look over the past year. you're paying higher prices. that's because consumers are -- their demand for goods and services is rising pretty aggressively. same time you have some supply glitches still because of covid and the pandemic world that we live in. so overall, i think the picture, brianna, of the economy here is good news on the jobs market. and the economy is strong, inflation is a problem. the fed is on the case. the federal reserve is the official inflation fighter and we'll start to see higher interest rates as the fed tries to tackle inflation in the near term. >> yeah, bacon up 19% on your graphic. >> it is a crime. >> wishing my kids did not like bacon so much. >> it is a staple of the food group in my house. >> they eat it. we serve it. christine, thanks. dozens of republican lawmakers comparing covid measures to the nazis. why they need to go back to history class. and senator marsha blackburn speeding down the democracy hig highway. your dedicated advisor will help you create a comprehensive wealth plan for your full financial picture. with the right balance of risk and reward. so you can enjoy more of...this. this is the planning effect. ♪ got my hair ♪ ♪ got my head ♪ ♪ got my brains ♪ ♪ got my ears ♪ ♪ got my heart ♪ ♪ got my soul ♪ ♪ got my mouth ♪ ♪ i got life ♪ ♪ my name is austin james. as a musician living with diabetes, fingersticks can be a real challenge. that's why i use the freestyle libre 2 system. with a painless, one-second scan i know my glucose numbers without fingersticks. now i'm managing my diabetes better and i've lowered my a1c from 8.2 to 6.7. take the mystery out of managing your diabetes and lower your a1c. now you know. try it for free at freestylelibre.us narrator: on a faraway beach, the generation called "our greatest" saved the world from tyranny. in an office we know as "oval," a new-generation president faced down an imminent threat of nuclear war. on a bridge in selma, alabama, the preacher of his time marched us straight to passing voting rights for every american. at a gate in west berlin, a late-generation american president demanded an enemy superpower tear down a wall and liberate a continent. american generations answering the call of their time with american ideals. freedom. liberty. justice. for today's generation of leaders, the call has come again to protect our freedom to vote, to fortify our democracy by passing the freedom to vote act and the john lewis voting rights act because america - john lewis: we are not going back, we are going forward. ever rushed to a doctor's appointment and thought: [whispers] "couldn't i do this from home?" only to get inside, where time stands still. "how long do i have to wait here?" healthcare makes many of us feel anxious, confused, exposed, and overwhelmed—but it doesn't have to be that way. letsgetchecked offers virtual care with home health testing. take the test. get your results. and get the treatment you need. letsgetchecked. care can be this good. this morning, outrage over a tweet by ohio republican congressman warren davison who a, historically, according to holocaust survivors and german law, absurdly compared covid measures in washington, d.c. to the nazis. so noting d.c.'s requirement for masks and proof of vaccination to enter certain establishments like bars, davison posted a picture of what he seems to think is a nazi health pass and wrote this has been done before. the nazis killed 6 million jews in the holocaust versus wearing a mask to get a beer. how offensive is the statement from the ohio congressman? the auschwitz memorial in poland respond to the tweet is a symptom -- a sad symptom of moral and intellectual decay. how offensive is the statement from the ohio congressman? twitter appeared to block his post in germany because it violated anti-hate laws there. how offensive is the statement from the ohio congressman? well, if he doesn't believe holocaust survivors or the nation of germany, maybe he'll take the nazis' word for it. there is record of the nazis' opinions on vaccinations, yes, they wanted to withhold them from people as part of their genocidal policy, keep them from people in order to kill them. one of hitler's key henchman, one of the 20th century's most evil men, wrote in 1942, the sell-o slavs are to work for us. compulsory vaccination and german health services are superfluous. don't give the slavs vaccines because we want them dead. that's what bohrmanis is saying. maybe martin bohrman didn't want vaccine requirements for the slavs, whom he wanted dead, and warren davidson doesn't want vaccine requirements to get to bars in d.c. as long as we're quoting nazis here, there is a saying attributed to nazi propaganda refugee joseph gerbils, repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth. cnn has found two dozen state and federal lawmakers from the republican party who have in some way connected covid restrictions to the nazi party. john avlon back with us and they just can't seem to let go of these absolutely incorrect and offensive nazi comparisons. >> yeah. they always seem to be trumpist congressmen and state legislators who can't quit the nazi comparisons. and that list to me is actually the most dangerous part. this has been widely circulated bile that people keep returning to, whether it is margy taylor green, lauren boebert, scott perry, some of trump's strongest allies in congress and it gets worse to the local level. candidates running state party chairs and state legislators. so why this impulse to trivialize and insult the holocaust? the holocaust is the holocaust. they're comparing mass murder, one of the worst things humanity has ever done with an attempt to save lives during a pandemic. and the fact they keep doing this speaks it a deeper sickness in our politics. >> if you want to take on vaccine mandates, take on vaccine mandates. congressman davidson has every right to do that. he doesn't have a right to warp history here. once you pissed off the a auschwitz memorial, you know you've gone down the wrong road. thank you very much. if confirm ed mathis will b the first black tennessee on the court that has jurisdiction over tennessee. yesterday, mathis hit a speed bump during his confirmation hearing. senator chuck grassley, then a speed hump, senator marsha blackburn, concerned about his failure to pay three speeding tickets, more than a decade ago, including one that was for driving 5 miles per hour over the speed limit, a deal breaker it appears for blackburn. >> on the eve of his hearing, it has been made public that he has a rap sheet with a laundry list of citations, including multiple failures to appear in court. in tennessee we expect our judges to respent the law. not disregard it. if mr. mathis thought he was above the law before, imagine how he'll conduct himself if he's confirmed as a federal judge. i cannot in good conscience support the nomination. >> mathis says he must have put the tickets in his glove box and forgotten about them and he doesn't remember being notified that his license had been suspended. he says when he learned of his license being suspended, he fixed it. at his hearing, he took blackburn's concerns seriously and gave an emotional response. >> i highly regret that i'm in this situation. i feel like i have embarrassed my family. and i truly regret that. while i deserve this, they don't. >> democratic senators on the committee didn't take blackburn's concerns nearly as seriously. >> senator blackburn refers to your rap sheet, what she called it. well, if speeding tickets are a rap sheet, i've got one too. >> i laughed with my staff that i have a rap sheet now, probably much longer than the witness's. i was pulled over quite a few more times than they were. and we all knew what it was about. especially back in those days coming over from washington heights if you were driving with a gw bridge and my brother and i used to think we were black, we would prepare for being pulled over. and sometimes i was pulled over for going 3 miles over the speed limit. >> senator booker mentioned race there, and it does matter here. blackburn calls mathis' speeding tickets a rap sheet. a rap sheet say criminal record. mathis doesn't have a rap sheet. he doesn't have a criminal record. but blackburn waited wheel well high into a stereotype that black men are criminals. not every republican on the committee was worried about mathis' speeding tickets, not as worried as blackburn, for sure. here is senator john kennedy of louisiana. >> i have some experience with our department of motor vehicles in louisiana. i spent a year there one time trying to get my son's lost license renewed. i remember all -- i didn't bring any reading and i remember all they had were copies of popular mechanics from, like, 1997 or something to read. >> senator kennedy highlighted how mathis grew up in his local boys and girls club and now gives back to his community. and kennedy was quite sympathetic to mathis, even as he validated blackburn feeling slighted for not having a private audience with mathis for which kennedy seemed to blame the white house. maybe. but with the white house cannot be blamed for is blackburn trafficking in a racist trop, even if inadvertently, especially since blackburn herself knows a thing or two about speeding tickets or rather getting out of one. just last year capitol police pulled her car over as blackburn's driver was racing her down constitution avenue to the airport to catch a flight home. she hopped out of the car, flashed her congressional pin, and away she went. most people don't have that luxury. andre mathis didn't when he was ticketed for going 5 miles over the speed limit. but for senator blackburn, life is a highway, where you don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy. new evidence that omicron may be peaking in several east coast cities, the data being called a glimmer of hope. and new finger pointing after the deadly rust movie set shooting. the film's armorer is now taking legal action. but, first, you know her face, but do you know her story? discover the life and legacy of the true marilyn monroe in a new cnn original series reframed marilyn monroe premiering sunday at 9:00 p.m. eastern and pacific. ♪ you don't own me ♪ >> marilyn monroe knew she was more than a pretty face. >> she wanted control of her own destiny. >> it is frustrating that people can't think about her in terms of her intellect. >> marilyn challenges what it means to have agency as a woman. >> to see a woman that is so in charge of her sexuality is extremely empowering. >> this woman is so comfortable in her skin. >> she was rolling the dice with her career in very real terms. >> marilyn would have been the biggest influencer of all time. she had her own production company, getting films made. >> marilyn monroe is a mirror for people's ideas about women's sexuality and women's power. >> it is hard to know where to start, if you don't start with the truth. >> reframed, marilyn monroe, sunday at 9:00 on cnn. trelegy for copd. 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(music) ♪ i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ these are the faces of listerine. the face of millions of germs zapped in seconds. the face of clean. the face of whoa! some are of intensity, others joy. all are of... various: ahhh... listerine. feel the whoa! we're a different kind of dentistry. one who believes in doing anything it takes to make dentistry work for your life. so we offer a complete exam and x-rays free to new patients without insurance - everyday. plus, patients get 20% off their treatment plan. we're on your corner and in your corner every step of the way. because your anything is our everything. aspen dental. anything to make you smile. book today at aspendental.com, walk in, or call 1-800-aspendental. a young woman works through grief and depression to win olympic silver in today's the human factor. >> i started swimming competitively when i was 6 years old. a big part of it was because my dad was a swimmer. he played a big role in teaching me to enjoy the sport. he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. my mom was taking care of my dad. i felt really alone during that time. i started to realize i was gay around right before my dad's diagnosis. i'm going through the turmoil of coming out, while my dad is going through his illness. my dad passed away when i was 16 years old. i made the national team for the first time three weeks after he passed. i couldn't get to swim practice anymore. i pushed everything down for so long to try not to feel anything. my coach got me a therapist. nine hours of therapy a week for six months. the whole mental health and coming out, i was just lucky to have a support system behind me. the moment i won the silver medal in tokyo, in the olympics, it felt like i was living a dream. i feel like i represent america, i am queer. i am asian-american. my mom is a first generation immigrant. having other people be able to look at me and be, like, i see myself in her, oh, maybe i can do that too, is more rewarding than the medal around my neck. >> what a story that will resonate. the loss of a legend. ♪ ♪ be my be my baby ♪ ♪ say you'll be my darling ♪ ♪ be my baby now ♪ >> '60s pop icon and lead singer of the ronettes ronnie spector has died. she was known for that sultry voice, her sky high beehive hairdo and hits like that one "be my baby." her family says she died in the arms of her husband after a brief battle with cancer. she was 78. cnn's coverage or i should say we have a moment here to reflect on this, berman, i mean, what a special performer. and that song is -- it just stirs something in me. it is beautiful. >> it is because it is at the beginning of "dirty dancing". >> well, yes. >> ronnie spector is more iconic than "dirty dancing" is. the role she played in the ronettes, the role they played in music, and in society, you know, it is super important, and they had hits. they had really great songs, but i think their historical role is bigger than that. >> as you say, may her memory be a blessing to all of us. cnn's coverage continues right now. very good thursday morning to you. i'm jim sciutto. >> i'm bianna golodryga. our top story this hour, the highest ranked republican in the house, minority leader kevin mccarthy, rejecting a request from the january 6th committee to voluntarily cooperate and provide information about his communications with then president trump and others during and after the insurrection. mccarthy calling the committee's investigation, quote, illegitimate. that's a big reversal since last