tonight. jonathan hunt in los angeles where the county district attorney is defending himself against criticisms of his progressive policies and practices but we start with correspondent bryan llenas in new york. good evening, brian. >> bret, good evening. numbers don't lie. tonight crime statistics are validating how many people feel in cities across the country. crime is up across the board and leaders are struggling to find solutions and silver linings. >> new york city, the safest of the top 20 big cities. >> no,'s mayor bill de blasio painting optimistic portrait today of crime in the big apple despite startling headlines like the murder of a columbia university student stabbed to death in a city park sunday or the nypd's own statistics showing crime is up 3.4 percent in the big apple compared to last year. while murders are nearly the same, felony assaults are up about 9%. auto grand larceny is up more than 14%. >> and hate crimes are nearly doubled. nypd commissioner dermot shea says the problem is progressive bail reform laws. >> when you have mass amounts of people put back on the streets that have traditionally been held in jail, you are seeing some of that permeate here as well. i mean, that's just a fact. >> nationwide, at least 12 major cities have reportedly broken all time high h in 2021. including philadelphia, where 523 people have been murdered this year. that is up 13% compared to last year. and breaking the previous record set in 1990. despite this, philly's progressive district attorney larry krasner says there is no crime crisis. >> basically, we don't have a crisis of lawlessness. we don't have a crisis of crime, we don't have a crisis of violence. >> philadelphia's former democratic mayor michael nutter called krasner's comment ignorant and insulting. i have to wonder what kind of messed up of white wokeness krasner is living in to have so little regard for human lives lost. danielle outlaw says the d.a. refuses to prioritize illegal gun and narcotics charges to reduce crime. >> we absolutely have an issue with violent crime. >> police in portland, oregon are so short-staffed and so overwhelmed by record number of shootings and homicides, that they warn residents to expect delays in responses. bret? >> bret: thank you. the district attorney of los angeles county is expressing pride in judicial reform measures. critics say those are measures are leading to spike in crime levels. chief correspondent jonathan hunt has details. >> we have made incredible progress, even in this unprecedented times. >> the los angeles county d.a. has been in office for exactly one year. a year that has been marked by a surge in violent crime. the murder of a high profile philanthropist in her beverly hills home last week just one of a burst of killing that has seen the murder rate rise by almost 45% so far in 2021 over the same time period in 2020. armed robberies, while down in the early part of the year, have also recently shot up. but the district attorney called today's press conference to announce he would be, quote: outlining a accomplishments during his first year in office. >> i am proud of our entire team in the l.a. county district attorney's office. we cannot prosecute our way out of social inequalities, income inequalities, the unhoused, the desperation that we have. the. >> the reasons for the crime surge are, obviously complex and can't be entirely placed at one person's door. put l.a. county sheriff told us today the d.a. has to accept some blame. >> message he has delivered to the criminal community they have heard him loud and clear. >> and the sheriff says there has to be change he is going to be recalled. that's the change we need. i cannot see him, you know, doing a 180 and saying well that was bad idea. no, he is going to double down on stupid. >> the district attorney and his supporters point out that voters elected him on the basis of the policies he promised and is now implementing. the sheriff acknowledges that, too. and says it should serve as a reminder to voters that elections have consequences. bret? >> bret: jonathan hunt in los angeles. jonathan, thank you. ♪ >> bret: breaking tonight, the jury has the case in the trial of an actor accuse of staging an attack on himful is. himself.both sides delivered cle arguments in the jussie smollett case. jury deliberations are begun. matt finn has the latest in chicago. >> good evening, bret. we just learned that the jury has been dismissed for the day. so deliberations will now continue tomorrow morning. in closing arguments today, special prosecutor dan webb presented the jury with six points he says destroyed smollett's credibility. in short, webb and police allege smollett withheld critical evidence like cell phone data because he never wanted the alleged hoax to actually be solved. the prosecution also telling the jury that smollett mislead police about attacker's i.d., lied but the news and lied about communication with the osundairo brothers. corroborate osundairo testimony that they held back punches. a doctor testifying under oath that smollett had no known injuries. smollett's defense telling the jury that jussie smollett had anti-motive upcoming historic black gay marriage on tv and impending video he didn't want his face damaged paid for training not the hoax. telling the jury they don't have to convict just because chicago's police spent thousands of man hours on the case. the defense reminding the jury a security guard testified under oath he saw at least one white person run away from smollett's scene backing up smollett's claim that one of his attackers was white. if convicted smollett faces up to three years in prison but probation and community service are also on the table. we will keep you updated, bret. >> bret: matt finn covering this trial from the beginning. matt, thank you. stocks were up today. the dow gained 35. the s&p 500 finished ahead 14. the nasdaq rose 100 today. president biden made a sales trip to the heartland today. he was in kansas city, missouri to promote his infrastructure law which, of course, has made it through congress. signed into law. and his massive social spending bill which has not yet made it through congress. white house correspondent peter doocy is in kansas city, tonight. >> the coming weeks i'm going to be traveling all over the country. >> but missouri republicans are puzzled by the president's trip today. >> it wreaks of a politician desperate to change the subject. >> even though biden tailored today's pitch to locals. >> roads cost missouri and kansas drivers more than $500 per person per year. >> republicans believe there are other more pressing issues in the state. >> what he should be explains is why he has driven up gas prices in the state of missouri up by 40%. missouri's inflation is worse than the rest of the country and it's bad everywhere. >> g.o.p. senators not the only ones alarmed by inflation. >> we had 17 nobel laureates say nothing problem. they were wrong. experts say this comment about covid test. >> should we just send one to every american. >> maybe. >> yes. that's exactly what some experts want. >> i think jen psaki is a fabulous press secretary but that was not her best moment. >> psaki is cleaning it up today tweeting key additional context of what i actually said on testing earlier this week. our objective is to continue to increase sebilityd and decrease cost costs. >> good news this morning. >> he is that the latest pfizer lab test on the newest covid variant. >> the expectation is that the existing vaccine protects against omicron. >> on the road the president stayed mows mostly on message as his mosts compared this event to signing of obamacare and faux pas. >> this is a big working deal. >> i will tell you what, i don't know where that phrase it's a big deal came from. lawsuit. >> so, crime, supply chain, immigration, russia, not part of today's program. instead, they are sticking with the thing that already passed and polls well for them. infrastructure. that is all the president came to the show me state to show you. bret? >> bret: peter doocy traveling with the president in kansas city. thank you. up next, an update on the john durham probe into the trump-russia fbi investigation. we're still following it. first, here's what some of our fox affiliates around the country are corresponding tonight. fox 5 in atlanta with the discovery of what is believed to be the remains of a missing auburn university student who disappeared more than 45 years ago. tuesday, deputies in alabama found a car submerged in a creek it matches the vehicle kyle wade was last seen driving before he disappeared. bones and an identification card were also recovered. fox 5 in new york as pfizer says a booster of its covid-19 vaccine may offer important protection against the new omicron variant as you heard there in peter's piece even though the initial two doses appear significantly less effective. the dug maker says while two doses may not be strong enough to prevent infection, lab tests show a booster increases antibody levels capable of fighting off omicron. pfizer says two doses still should prevent severe disease or death. and this is a live look at orlando from fox 35, our affiliate there one of the big stories there tonight, big news in golf, tiger woods will play his first official tournament next week in orlando. 10 months after that suv crash in california that nearly cost him his right leg. woods tweeted although it's been a along and challenging year i am very excited to close it out by competing in the pnc championship with my son charlie. i'm playing as a dad and couldn't be more excited and proud. golf fans could not be more excited either, tiring. tiger.that's a live look outside "special report." we'll be right back ♪ ♪ i had a dream that someday ♪ ♪ i would just fly, fly away ♪ (vo) with verizon business unlimited plans, you can get 5g, truly unlimited data, and more hotspot data. because every business deserves better. and with plans as low as $30, better costs less than you think. visit us in store or book an appointment to save time and money. you're a one-man stitchwork master. but your staffing plan needs to go up a size. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire we've been waiting all year to come together. ♪♪ happy holidays from lexus. get $1500 lease cash toward a 2022 rx 350. ♪♪ it's the season of smiling. get $1500 lease cash toward a 2022 rx 350. and at aspen dental, we make it easy to gift yourself the smile you deserve. new patients, start today with a full exam and x-rays, with no obligation. if you don't have insurance, it's free. plus everyone saves 20% on their treatment plan with flexible payment solutions for every budget. we're here making smiles shine bright so you can start the new year feelin' alright. call 1-800-aspendental or book today at aspendental.com hey, angie! you forgot your phone! hey lou! angie forget her phone again? yep. lou! mom said she could save up to $400 on her wireless bill by switching to xfinity internet and mobile. with nationwide 5g at no extra cost. and lou! on the most reliable network, lou! smart kid, bill. oh oh so true. and now, the moon christmas special. gotta go! take the savings challenge at xfinitymobile.com/mysavings or visit an xfinity store to learn how our switch squad makes switching fast and easy this holiday season. >> bret: a prosecutor in the manslaughter trial of a white former minnesota police officer who killed a black man says kim potter violated her training and, quote: betrayed a 20-year-old kid. the defense says potter made an innocent mistake by pulling her handgun out instead of her taser when she shot 20-year-old daunte wright in april as he tried to drive away from a traffic stop it. says police had reason to believe wright had a gun in his possession. scott peterson has been resentenced to life without parole for killing his pregnant wife in 2002. california supreme court overturned his death sentence a year ago. the district attorney opted this time to settle for the lesser punishment saying the process was too painful for the victim's family to endure again. lacy peterson's disappearance christmas eve of 2002 set off a month long search for her partial remains and those of her unborn son. they washed ashore along sphran bay the following april. scott peterson has maintained his innocence. now tonight we want to update you on the investigation into the origins of the fbi probe into alleged ties between donald trump, the donald trump presidential campaign of 2016 and russia. special counsel john durham and attorneys for one of the suspects he is pursuing made arguments today. correspondent david spunt tells us what happened from the justice department tonight. good evening, david. >> bret, good evening to you. that suspect is michael sussmann and today both sides met before a judge on the phone and argued over declassifying sensitive information. michael sussmann's attorneys they say they want to move this process along as soon as possible. a judge has yet to set a date. but right now is looking potentially at late june, or late may, i should say, or early june of next year. sussmann's team wants to get this done. sussmann is a former clinton campaign attorney. he was charged in september with lying to the fbi. specifically lying to then general counsel james baker during a conversation that took place just before the 2016 election. special counsel john durham claims that sussmann went to the fbi and delivered information he knew was suspect about donald trump's campaign, communicating with the putin government via a russian bank. the information turned out to be false. the indictment claims that when sussmann went to the fbi he failed to disclose that he was working on behalf of the clinton campaign. a new court filing alleges that sussmann did disclose his client although he mentioned the word cybersecurity experts in a meeting with the fbi. >> i think it's a very difficult case for the government because they have to prove what was said not easy to do difference of recollection between baker and sussmann. they have to prove that the things they say was false was knowingly false. >> as for where john durham goes interest here, there are two possible options, bret. one is that these indictments are the durham report and speak for themselves. the other is that durham will produce some sort of report highlighting a narrative that people tied to the clinton campaign were out to peddle a fake story about donald trump his campaign and russia to the media and to the fbi. bret, what we do know for certain tonight is that john durham is not giving up. his budget was recently renewed. this was confirmed by attorney general merrick garland. that means the durham investigation not over. bret? >> bret: and we'll continue to follow it david spunt at the justice department. david, thank you. up next, president biden talks tough after his video call with russian leader vladimir putin about ukraine. we'll look at that. first, beyond our borders tonight. france releases the saudi national arrested at paris airport over suspected links to the killing of journalist jamal khashoggi. a case of mistaken identity. interviewed a man by the same name of the saudi royal guard reported to have been involved in khashoggi's killing in 2018. >> the saudi embassy in paris says the man arrested in paris has nothing to do with the case. a helicopter crashes on its way from the air force base to the army defense services college killing india's military chief and 12 others, including his wife. air force says an inquiry has been ordered into that accident. japanese fashion tycoon and his producer who is filming the mission reached the international space station, this is the first visit by self-paying space tourists to the orbiting outpost in more than a decade. they are scheduled to spend 12 days in space. just some of the other stories beyond our borders tonight. we'll be right back. ♪ >> man: what's my safelite story? 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(crowd cheering) therabreath, it's a better mouthwash. at walmart, target and other fine stores. like pulsing, electric shocks, sharp, stabbing pains, or an intense burning sensation. what is this nightmare? it's how some people describe... shingles. a painful, blistering rash that could interrupt your life for weeks. forget social events and weekend getaways. if you've had chickenpox, the virus that causes shingles is already inside of you. if you're 50 years or older ask your doctor or pharmacist about shingles. >> bret: angela america era is over in germany. america retiring after 16 years of chancellor there. center left leader owe loan schultz become's germany's ninth chancellor since the end of world war ii. vice president confident that vladimir putin got the message during video conference ukraine tuesday that message is what the president calls severe economic consequences will come if russia invades ukraine. the president also says direct u.s. military intervention is not off the table. all this comes as the u.s. deals with increasing challenges from china as well. state department correspondent benjamin hall is here with the latest. good evening, benjamin. >> good evening, bret. yes, russia and china both being very aggressive at the moment and for many the nightmare scenario would be simultaneous attacks on taiwan and ukraine. there is no doubt china are forceful president biden will be in the face of this russian military build up and president biden himself today reiterated just how firm he had been in virtual meeting with putin. again, making it clear there would be no military response from the u.s. >> the idea that the u.s. is und states use force to confront russia invading ukraine is not in the cards right now. >> the administration is also warning china, after secretary austin acknowledged to you, bret, that incursions around taiwan were rehearsal for inner investigation. secretary blinken warned there would be terrible consequence gs they tried anything. jake sullivan added this. >> the united states is going to take every action that we can take from the point of view of both deterrence and diplomacy to make sure that the taiwan scenario never happens. >> china and russia though continue to strengthen their political economic and military relations holding a series of military exercises and high level diplomatic meetings leading many corporation from two former adversaries. russia and china issuing own advisories today. there would be dangerous consequences for u.s. behavior in the region and last month president xi told president biden directly that any push for taiwanese independence would be, quote: playing with fire. bret? >> bret: benjamin hall live at the state department. benjamin, thank you. president biden's decision to stage a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming winter olympics in china is being criticized as a half measure by many lawmakers, several republicans. here at home. congressional correspondent aishah hasnie has this part of the story tonight from khalil. good evening, aishah. >> good evening to you, bret. the point of contention here is over the president's diplomatic boycott. it only covers, it only bans government officials from attending these games. this would in turn pretty much protect american athletes from seeing years of training on the drain here. this also means that corporate sponsors can still engage with china. that is not sitting well with many republicans tonight. senator tom cotton, for example, has been long calling for a total boycott of the games saying this: american businesses should not financially support the chinese communist party and we must not expose team u.s.a. to the dangers of an authoritarian regime that disappears its own athletes. now, when asked about a corporate boycott, democrat senator ron wyden wouldn't commit to that but said this. >> i'm for sending the strongest possible message right now about human rights. this is particularly, you know, important time. we haven't even been able to get the specifics with respect to this chinese tennis star. so i am for our sending the strongest possible message. >> so far, it looks to be business as usual though. delta airlines, which is a team u.s.a. sponsor, will stick with its plans to carry american athletes to the games. they say its partnership is, quote: rooted in support for athletes and athletes first. others like nike, sales force and dloit have yet to comment. meanwhile, senator rick scott is blasting olympic broadcaster nbc tonight saying the network has not done enough to share true pink china's atrocities. >> here to talk about what happened to martin lee and jimmy lye. have they done it? no. they will want to make money. >> so house democrats feel like they are doing enough. they are actually going to try to pass a resolution on the floor tonight to condemn genocide and by the way, bret, canada and the u.k. also just joined the u.s. in issuing a diplomatic boycott. so this is now expanding. >> bret: aishah hasnie live on capitol hill, thanks. >> you bet. >> there could be no longer business as usual with china. china is watching and the world is watching. >> if we do not speak out for human rights in china because of the commercial or economic ties, we lose all moral authority to speak out against human rights violations anywhere in the world. >> bret: rare bipartisan on the same issue about china and human rights on the house floor. let's bring in florida republican senator marco rubio who sits on the intelligence and will foreign relations committee. senator, thanks for being here. >> thank you. >> bret: what about what's being done when it comes to china and the olympics? is it enough? your mind and what should be done? >> well, there is two things at play here. obviously the first is doing the right thick. right? i mean calling these things out should matter irrespective of how powerful that country is or how important they are geopolitically. the other thing that's evidence here pretty clear how dependent our economy has become on china. when i say our economy. it's the things we buy at stores. it's also our corporations. i mean, we have got large, very eninfluential powerful organizations in our country and the business sector who rely on the access to the chinese market and production in china for the bottom line. it is for them too valuable now to jeopardize. i think that's true for the national basketball association. i think that's been true for nike, for apple and a host of others and that includes, i imagine, nbc as well with the coverage of the olympic games. if their coverage gets out of line they could very well be barred from sending journalists there from covering an athletic competition. i think what we is are seeing here evidence how deeply intertwined they have come in our economy and how much control it gives them over how much we get to see, buy and companies able to say. >> in a speech you referenced bill clinton making this statement back in 2,000 about push for china to be a part of the wto, take a listen. >> we have a far greater chance of having a positive influence on china's actions if we welcome china into the world community instead of shutting it out. by joining the wto, china is not simply agreeing to import more of our products. it is agreeing to import one of democracy's most cherished values, economic freedom. >> bret: you called that silly and wrong; is that correct? >> yeah. 20 years of hindsight i believe that was speech was about 20 years ago this very week. when you listen to those words now, that's actually not what's happened. what we have done is exported jobs. we have sent american jobs, american manufacturing capability. we exported that to china. china took it. they made our companies dependent and in many cases they actually, you know, stole the secrets of those companies and now those companies are are no longer there because they are doing it instead. made you it incredibly dependent to produce all kinds of things to rely on including defender our country. also become a place now where we have a finance market now, a stock market on wall street where you have major american investment funds that are investing in companies that are developing weapons that will one day potentially be designed and aimed to kill american servicemen and women. and, that has been the outcome of the last 20 years. it was a bad decision based on flawed assumptions and now we are seeing the consequences of it. >> bret: is there a responsibility for lawmakers to be talking to these companies or to the nba or to others who they feel are doing the wrong things by interacting and dealing with china? >> i think there is i think that's what's happening. ultimately, you have to understand that all these companies that are publicly traded they have quarrel reports. if they get kicked out of china. their profits are going to go down and costs go up and they will have to answer to their shareholders. they are basically now in a trap. that trap that creates a situation in which we have american companies who benefit from being here in the united states and our laws and our system. american companies who consistently advocate now for policies or against -- they advocate for policies that are good for china and bad for america because of what it would mean for their bottom line. it's a very difficult situation to unwind now. we have to. we have no choice. this cannot continue on trend line or the world is going to look very different 10 or 20 years from now. >> bret: do you think the biden administration is weak. >> i do. weak on china. others practitioners and believers in the failed bipartisan consensus brought us to this point. john kerry wants to do a climate deal with china he doesn't want to say or do anything that forces or creates a ruckus with the chinese because he is hoping that his legacy in life is going to be that he cut some deal with the chinese on climate change, which by the way, the chinese won't keep because they don't keep any deal that's bad for them. >> bret: you know, candidate trump and then president trump talked a lot about china. you think former president trump is getting back in this race? >> i don't know. you will have to ask him. i mean, i believe that if he runs he is going to be the party's nominee. the most well known and popular republican among republican notice country. i don't have any idea as to what he is going to do. he doesn't have to make that decision now. >> bret: but, for you, you have men mended ways after all the 2016 back and forth? >> oh, yeah. look, i would tell people when president trump was president of the united states i got a lot of good things done for florida and our country. we had a very good working relationship. at the end of the day, you know, we didn't agree on everything, but he seemed to always respect that. i don't believe he said a single negative word about me since the day i stopped running for president. we had a good working relationship, which is possible. you know, with people you don't agree with 100 percent of the time. i give him a lot of credit on china. the orthodoxy the republican party and much of our politics is not what it is. was something very different and he challenged that and as a candidate and i think they deserves credit for it. >> bret: senator marco rubio, we appreciate your time. thanks. >> thank you. >> bret: up next, the u.s. supreme court considers a case that could give you more freedom to decide where your child attends school. ♪ at vanguard, you're more than just an investor, you're an owner with access to financial advice, tools and a personalized plan that helps you build a future for those you love. vanguard. become an owner. kidney alert for type 2 diabetes! forty percent of people with type 2 diabetes will develop chronic kidney disease, or ckd. did you know ckd can lead to kidney failure and dialysis? 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griddler. it's a real crowd-pleaser. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list event. >> bret: navy seals paying tribute to commander seal team 8. brian was a blood member of the u.s. naval academy of the class of 2001 and friend to all who knew him. the class of 2001 had just celebrated its 20th reunion in annapolis in october, a classmate tells fox brian attended and, quote: as always was one of the best and funniest guys to be around, especially with that contagious smile. he was a brother to all of us and will be missed. bu gemplet as he was known leaves behind wife and five children. he was 43 years old. the biden administration is planning to award medals of honor to three soldiers who fought in afghanistan in iraq that group includes the first black service member to be recognized with the nation's top combat distinction for either conflict. the medals may be presented later this month. the chairman of the committee investigating the capitol riot january 6th says then president trump's chief of staff could become the third person to face a criminal contempt charge for failing to cooperate. congressman bennie thompson says he has no choice but to advance proceedings against mark meadows who he says is who -- who says he is suing the committee and house speaker nancy pelosi. also tonight, former vice president mike pence speaks out saying he did what he thought was right on january 6th. >> we will do our part to make sure that the american people understand the issues on that day. i hope that they will see more and more that the work we did that day was consistent with our constitution and our laws. for my part, i know we did our duty that day. opening and counting the votes. even though i believe there were irregularities and states and pleased to see states around the country beginning to reform their state election laws to effectuate that. >> bret: meanwhile, speaker pelosi says she will never forgive president trump in what she called his bullies that -- who sent -- he sent to the capitol for the trauma to her staff and her words. a huge case in who decides where your children goes to school is now in the hands of the u.s. supreme court. justices heard arguments today in a matter that could up end parents' access to school choice. correspondent gillian turner has details. >> carson v. macon comes before the court as millions of parents across the nation are asserting their rights. claiming they want greater say over where their kids go to school and what they're being taught. in this case the carson family alleges the state of maine violated their constitutional rights when denying them permission to use the taxpayer funded tuition assistance program to send their daughter to a religious school. chief justice john roberts says the government should remain neutral when it comes to religious and nonreligious schools. >> you are discriminating among religions based upon their relief. >> justice stephen breyer countered that argument. >> if a state must give money to the schools they will get into all kinds of religious dispute. >> maine's attorney general tells fox news nothing in the constitution requires maine to include religious schools in public education system. parents' concerns don't stop at the school gates. >> good morning. >> good morning boys and girls. >> they say the pandemic has exposed major problems inside classrooms, too. they insist school choice is crucial. >> we had remote learning via zoom we saw what was being taught in the classrooms and parents are not happy with what they have seen. >> that was a eye opener for a lot of patients that just assume when you send your kids into those two doors every day that it's going to be focused on math, science, reading, writing, history. >> over 1.5 million students nationwide has been pulled from public schools this past year this according to the national center for education statistics. now, nationwide enrollment in public schools is down 3%. enrollment in public kindergarten is down 9%. and enrollment in public pre-k is down a whopping 22%. bret? >> bret: gillian, thank you. up next, the panel on america's crime drivers. ♪ as a professional bull-rider i'm used to taking chances. but when it comes to my insurance i don't. i use liberty mutual, they customize your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. wooo, yeaa, woooooo and, by switching you could even save 665 dollars. hey tex, can someone else get a turn? yeah, hang on, i'm about to break my own record. yeah. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. ♪ it's our holiday savings event on the sleep number 360 smart bed. onlywhat if i sleep hot?ed. ...or cold? no problem, the sleep number 360 smart bed is temperature balancing so you both sleep just right. and it senses your movements and automatically adjusts to keep you both effortlessly comfortable. so, you can really promise better sleep? yes! 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theft. >> we don't agree. we have seen some of these extremely disturbing videos showing retail theft and both major retailers and state and local leaders like governor newsom have identified this is a serious concern. we have sent additional support from the fbi. >> i'm also proud of the work that we have done to roll back the pernicious part of mass incarceration. namely, the excessive sentence that fails to recognize the way that people can and be do grow and change. >> everybody on the street knows all the criminals know there are no consequences. >> bret: well, the crime is real. and it's increasing in some big cities especially. the "wall street journal" poll asks which party will be best to handle crime and your opinion best able to handle reducing crime. democrats in congress 25%, republican you see there 45%. another question at this time next year will crime be better or worse or about the same? and 47% of those responds said worse. with that, let's bring in our panel, "the washington post" columnist marc thiessen, mollie hemingway senior editor at "the federalist" and josh kraushaar is politics editor for the "wall street journal." mollie, start with you, a different tone coming from the white house this relation that realizationalexandria ocasio-coz questioning the reality of all that we are seeing. >> i'm not sure if there was enough of a tonal change unlike some policy debates that we engage in, this is one where we really do know that crime is rising. violent crime in particular is rising. and it's rising in those areas where democratic leadership of local government has pushed policies like defunding the police no cash bail, the elections using left wing billionaire money of liberal d.a.s who refuse to prosecute crimes. so in these communities and in the neighbors communities that are affected by it, people understand that this is real thing that's happening'. and it's happening because of gal policy changes that they are now trying to pretend they never supported but we know they did. >> bret: josh, when it comes to politics, there are a few issues that really hit home. and crime is one of them. yeah, bret. i mean, i think the issue of crime and law and order is a bigger long-term vulnerability for democrats than even the economy and inflation and all the other issues on the home front. i mean, the democratic party was doomed for almost two decades between the late 60's and late 80's because of the per sense that they were soft on crime, that they put criminals rights ahead of victims rights. it took a lock to my knowledge for them to recover that branding problem. that substantive problem that the party faced for a long time. and i -- you just see a democratic party including president biden that doesn't seem to be able to confront those progressive forces that are calling for the social justice policies. anti-incarceration policies you heard from los angeles d.a. george gascon and, you know, a lot of talk these days about the vice president and vice president harris from the bay area doing a reset. have a political reset. she would be doing herself some good if she actually spoke out against some of these soft sentencing policies, the d.a. in her home new mexico the woods in san francisco is up for a recall. if she -- if the democratic party started talking tougher on crime, actually branded themselves more moderately, it would give them a whole lot of political -- >> bret: look at the incoming new york mayor, eric adams who ran on a get-tough kind of campaign in new york city. you look at somebody like val dedges, the democratic running against marco rubio likely in florida. former orlando police chief i bet you will start hearing more about that. it's a big issue, mark, there is a realization it is increasing around the country. >> no doubt. mayor de blasio said new york is the safest of the top 20 big cities in america. that's sort of like saying i'm the tallest midget. the only reason new york's numbers look good in chair son to the rest of the country because you have had 22 major cities in america that have seen murder race go up. 12 of those cities broke records and their previous record and five of them top records they had set last year. and new york has held steady. it went down 0.5%. virtually unchanged. last year the murder rate was up 57%. so mayor de blasio wants -- taking credit for maintaining the disastrous murder rate of 2020 and thinks that he should be praised for that. i say to josh's point, is he setting biden and kamala harris up for a sister soldier moment. right? they should go and just knock down bill de blasio and say we -- we are trying to take this seriously. dismissing these murder rates, dismissing this crime wave is bad for the democratic party. it's bad for the country. and they could gain a lot of traction if they did that. >> bret: do you think they are going to listen to you, mark? >> oh, no. not a chance. [laughter] >> bret: all right. >> they are not. >> bret: we did this story about john durham and the prone there. are you thinking that this is going to get some place as you look at this you have obviously covered this from the beginning as we update what coming out about this back and forth. >> one of the things important when you are trying to hold people accountable outside pressure. not just john durham alone with his crew pushing for accountability for this false and dangerous conspiracy theory. but, while we have seen some people in the media admit that they participated in this russia collusion lie, you have had a lot of people in the media just refuse to take accountability. so many people in the media are great at holding other people accountable but when they themselves are responsible for great wrongs, they don't do a good job of doing -- no one has returned the pulitzer prizes for won in these lies how it was that they uncritically rejudge rejudge date at a timed. i'm optimistic some will be had but lot to see more from outside people who believe their job is to hold people accountable as well. >> bret: does that fact for in at all josh as we get ready for next year. >> more of a media story than a political story as mollie noted. there is some serious credibility challenges with some of the coverage of that steele dossier but, you know, are voters paying attention to all the details it? probably not. if they are, they are already likely to vote for republicans. but, look, i think there is a larger story that's beyond politics that's going to be really important. >> bret: all right. panel, thank you very much. when we come back, what happened to the christmas tree outside fox news headquarters in new york and how we plan to go forward. ♪ (vo) for fourteen years, subaru and our retailers have been sharing the love with those who need it most. now subaru is the largest automotive donor to make-a-wish and meals on wheels. and the largest corporate donor to the aspca and national park foundation. get a new subaru during the share the love event and subaru will donate two hundred and fifty dollars to charity. 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(vo) with verizon business unlimited plans, you can get 5g, truly unlimited data, and more hotspot data. because every business deserves better. and with plans as low as $30, better costs less than you think. visit us in store or book an appointment to save time and money. >> bret: finally tonight, it's become a holiday tradition for all of us the last three years fox news media all-american christmas tree in fox square outside of our world headquarters in new york we held an on air lights ceremony this past sunday. early this morning, the 50-foot tree was set ablaze. >> someone did that. no one was hurt. thanks to the new york fire department for getting to the scene quickly and for the new york police department, which already has the suspect in custody. now, a new tree is under construction and it will be ready to go decorations and all, all the lights for a lighting ceremony thursday during "the five," can you see it live on fox news channel as the silver lining and act of kindness during the holiday season both fox news media and fox corporation made a 100,000 donation to answer the call which provides financial assistance to the families of fallen service members of fire and police departments in new york. thank you all for your service. tomorrow on "special report," president biden's covid policy questions about testing, now some democrats are souring on vaccine mandates. thanks for inviting us into your home tonight. that's it for "special report" fair, balanced and still unafraid. freedom hosted by tammy bruce tarts starts right now. hey, tammy. >> tammy: indeed. thank you very much, bret. i appreciate it good evening and welcome to freedom. i'm tammy bruce. and tonight as you heard from bret the biden policy crime wave continues unabated. we will get into the christmas tree shortly. democratic rhetoric pushing division and distrust and inflicting daily consequences on all americans as it plows along targeting you, your family, and businesses across the country. another example of the want on chaos comes to us again in indeed from new york city. when our