♪♪ a very good day to all of you from msnbc world headquarters here in new york. welcome to "alex witt reports." we're beginning with the breaking news, a tsunami advisory still in effect for the entire u.s. west coast along with hawaii and alaska and here's why. large waves have crashed onto the nation of tonga in the pacific ocean. this after an underwater volcano erupted. we're also getting some reports of a tsunami having hit some southern japan beaches and small waves reaching hawaii. let's take a look at this remarkable satellite video. it's capturing the very moment of eruption. you see it right there. it happened deep under the ocean there. let's go to nbc's guad vinnegas. what's the latest from your vantage point there? >> wow, impressive images of that volcano erupting. some of the residents of tonga reported hearing the eruption. they also saw ash go into the sky. the flooding that we saw in tonga made its way to the capital. some people had to flee to higher ground. the king had to be evacuated. that happening in tonga, and then of course this tsunami warning from the national tsunami warning center issued for the entire west coast. we're talking california, washington, oregon, even british columbia. so the warning says that these beach cities could expect one to two-foot waves which are not huge, but they can be dangerous, especially because of the currents that they can cause. so they are advising residents to stay away from the shore and not enter the water. now, the first wave of waves did hit this morning, but the alert says that that may not be the largest wave. so that's why the alert continues because more waves might continue throughout the day. >> you know what, guad, i got to tell you, i am just getting a "los angeles times" advisory, breaking news alert saying some of these waves may be hitting southern california beaches, basically in your backyard because you're right there in l.a., in the next hour and to emphasize the point you've made about asking people to stay away, they have actually closed some beaches. also marina areas like we're seeing right here on the screen because, i mean, you think a couple of foot waves is not that big of a deal, but that could cause major damage as well. apparently this is santa cruz, that's in northern california, a distance from where you are. it does speak volumes that officials are closing beaches in southern california, right? >> right, so we see these images from santa cruz, you have a lot of beaches from santa cruz and down through southern california, newport beach, huntington beach, san diego with mission beach with a lot of tourists that are often on the beach, not familiar with the way the ocean works. this is one of the reasons why they have decided to close some of these beach areas to keep people away from the shore and from entering the water. now, the alert has also been issued for people on boats with the water rising, and these one to two foot waves that could have an effect on the people that are on these boats, often in these areas. these boats could be pushed into rocky areas and eventually crash. these are the types of accidents that can happen when these currents increase. for now the alert continues, the advisory continues, and they're still asking people to stay away from a lot of these beach areas. as you mentioned at least here in southern california, many of them have been closed down. >> okay. we're also seeing a bit north of you there, west port washington, those beaches have been closed down as well, guad. again, we can't stress enough, this goes all the way from the southern california border there with mexico down below san diego all the way up through british columbia, the canadian coast into alaska, of course. it's really quite extraordinary. we're looking at dense fog as well, which only complicates things. but when you think about -- i know you've covered hurricanes. i've watched you cover and others hurricanes, and you see people -- i call them the looky-loos for lack of a better phrase. they say, oh, we want to get out there. we want to take pictures, we want to go out on the sand, we want to see how far we might be able to go out into the water and those surfers, ha is so ill-advised right now, even if things look calm at the moment. >> correct. so a lot of these beaches, especially in california, do receive lots of tourists, so many times the famous beaches in santa monica, huntington beach, newport beach, all across san diego and other parts of orange county, a lot of the people that are on the beach and that go into the water are tourists. they're not familiar sometimes with the way the currents can work. a current can easily drag someone into the ocean. it is very difficult to move or navigate your way through a storm or through higher waves. that's why it's so dangerous, especially for people that are not familiar. in fact, they're asking not just tourists but residents in these beach towns to stay away from the shore and from the water. >> i hope they are reasoning to -- listening to your report and doing just that. more breaking news to share, everyone. this from arizona at this hour. civil rights leaders are out on the streets marching in phoenix. they are pressing their case for federal voting rights laws in the home state of none other than senator kyrsten sinema. the family of martin luther king jr. is leading the day's events in honor of dr. king's birthday. let's go right to nbc's vaughn hillyard who's joining me from phoenix. vaughn, we have to remind you you had that great interview with three members of the king family. it was wonderful to hear from all three of them together and tell everyone why, remind everyone why as if we needed reminding, what exactly they're pushing for today. what's happening there now? >> reporter: they actually just wrapped up their march here in phoenix, and i think this is a pinnacle here, not only are midterms happening around the country, but here in the state of arizona for potentially a new legislature, potentially new governor, potential new secretary of state here. and what you're dealing with is the reality that there are 19 states that just in this last year alone passed restrictive voting measures. after a year in which house democrats and senate democrats worked to pass major federal protections for voting rights in those very states, senator sinema right here from the state of arizona took to the senate floor on thursday said that she would stand by the filibuster and essentially halt those voting measures. that is why i want to bring in congressman ruben gallego from phoenix here. you went to the house floor and you gave your own, if i may, damning speech, essentially an indictment of senator sinema. i want to go right to this here. she said her big concern is if republicans take the majority, essentially they'll roll back all the federal protections but go even further and pass further restrictive measures here. why is that concern not valid? >> if you're looking at the situation right now after dealing with a january 6th insurrection and all the bills that have been introduced just in arizona, you know that they already are going to go to the full measures they can to disenfranchise voters. in some states to actually make it difficult to even count voters like you're seeing potentially in georgia, even here. you have a whole conspiracy that's being run by the trump organization to help get trump supporters elected to secretary of states offices so they can affect the outcome. this is a threat to democracy. this excuse she's using that it may get worse is not true. it is worse. this is the dark times, and she needs to step up. help us pass the voting rights. make the exception to the voting rights action, like you made the exception to the filibuster two weeks ago to raise the debt limit. >> why arizona here? why is the focus on this state, focus federal protections from voting rights. joe biden won here by 10,000 votes. give me an idea of what you and the message of this march was. >> we know that we are always on the cutting edge, one way or the other of politics, and we know with the legislature coming back in session, the bills have just been introduced recently, they're all targeted at making sure the rising arizona voter, the voters that have decided they want a more moderate state are being targeted and we represent the problems and the issues that they're going to basically represent the whole country when it comes to voting rights. we are at the front lines, and that's why we have to defend here at the front lines with having speakers like the martin luther king family here. >> i was just talking with the king family, and i asked them the question what comes next in so many ways, a lot of folks here in arizona are looking at the senate race, not mark kelly's 2022 race but kyrsten sinema up for re-election in 2024. are you going to challenge senator sinema in 2024? >> i'm focusing on the now in 2022. making sure we ge reelected. >> what would keep you from running against senator sinema, you clearly feel like she's neglecting the people of arizona. >> i think that's the most important thing. if she came and actually had a town hall meeting with the people of arizona. she hasn't had a town hall in three years. she would hear how we need the voting rights act to protect the country. i'm going to make sure democrats get reelected in 2022. at the end of the day, it's the people of arizona who choose who's going to be the next senator, and i hope kyrsten sinema's listening to them and not just the big donors in washington d.c. >> the door is open. >> i always keep the door open to the future. >> thank you for your time. >> all good, vaughn hillyard, thank you so much. i'll be speaking with the congressman and ask him a lot of the topics you've talked about today. thank you my friend. joining me right now is alabama congresswoman terri sewell, a democratic member of the house ways and means committee. she is also co-chair of the congressional voting rights caucus, which means you've been having a heck of a time lately as i thank you for joining me. diving into this whole topic now, we have to look at what the senate's expected to do next week, which is take up the bills, but they have zero republican support to pass. it appears unlikely enough democrat support to change the senate rules via the filibuster to eke out a win. is anyone betting it will past next weekend. if it doesn't, then what? >> this is very personal for me, not only do i get a chance to represent my home state of alabama but my hometown of selma where marchers marched some 56 years ago for the equal right of all americans to vote. when i think about the vote next week, i am also reminded of what our former and beloved colleague john lewis said, the struggle for voting rights is not about one day, one week, one month. it is a struggle of a lifetime. and so i think that what he was saying by that is that we cannot be despaired but the lack of progress today. we have to continuously struggle to make sure that we keep the progress of the past and that we advance it. you know, i am honored every day to represent the historic cities of birmingham and montgomery and selma, and part of my job is not only to protect the people and to find resources and opportunities for people that are there today, but also to protect and further the legacy that is civil rights and voting rights in this country. we are in peril. we saw that with january 6th, and i think that we need everyone to amplify their voices. it's a really sad day that we are -- that the united states senate, which passed unanimously a reauthorization of the voting rights act of 1965 just in 2006, and now you know, there are 16 senators that are still there in congress, and we can't get them to join with us in voting for voting rights. i know we're focused on sinema and manchin, but frankly we need to be focused on every senator. we should not let the republicans off the hook. voting rights should not be a partisan issue. it should be bipartisan. >> well, i love that you're taking your cue from the late, great john lewis, so highly revered by so many including you. as we look at what happened this week, we had the president give quite the impassioned speech in favor of voting rights legislation. he did compare some lawmakers to segregationists and dick durbin said perhaps the president's rhetoric went a little too far. what did you think of the president's speech, and did it go just a bit too far and hurt any chances, slim as they may have been at that point, for any shot at bipartisan support? >> you know, alex, i was privileged to be part of the voting rights delegation that went with the president and vice president to atlanta, and what i wanted him to be was emphatic, and he was bold, and he was very clear that he thought that we should reform the senate rules in order to pass voting rights. i think it's really important that we have leadership at the top in this crucial time, and i believe that what president biden said making the -- making the comparison between segregationists but more importantly talking about for every senator, they have to make a choice of where they will come down and how history will judge them. will they be on the side of john lewis and those foot soldiers that marched across that bridge, and so faithfully, even when they were bludgeoned, still got up two days later and did the march again. 14 days later did the march which ultimately was a successful march. every time i think about the frustrations i feel and so many activists feel. i also have to be reminded of our foremothers and forefathers, today is martin luther king's b. it is also the 114th anniversary of my sorority. our foremothers and forefathers had sacrificed. they had to have faith that their sacrifice was going to be worth it ultimately. here we are standing on their shoulders. we cannot be deterred. we will not be deterred. we need action from the senate, and we need it now. we don't just need it from democrats. we need it from all senators. >> let me ask you lastly about the prospect of changing the filibuster. yes, that could get voting rights legislation passed potentially, but if democrats calculated that risk that has been highlighted by senator sinema and romney, might democrats live to regret it making those changes that then republicans could use if and when they take back congress to pass maybe a national abortion ban or revive the keystone pipeline. i mean, even if you entertain a one-time carveout in voting rights, how do you ensure it is used only once and doesn't begin the start of a new precedent? >> you know, i think that we have to live for the here and now. when we think about bipartisanship, surely we want it, but the reality is that great changes in america often came by one party. and we saw that with the 14th amendment. i wouldn't have the right to vote today let alone represent alabama in congress, had not one party did what was right and withheld the test of time. so i think that we should live, you know, we should seize the opportunity and the power that we have today. there's no -- nothing is promised to us. tomorrow's not promised to us. it may set a precedent, but the reality is it's a tragedy in america that 51 votes can choose a supreme court justice, but we need 60 votes just to debate voting rights in america. something is amiss here, and i think that the clear mandate that the democrats got in 2020 with folks in georgia literally giving their best and their all standing in those long lines is a mandate that we need voting rights and we need it now. >> so looking at options, let's say the voting rights bills fail this next week, what is plan b? can the bills be potentially downsized to get some republican support and some aspects into law? >> surely we can also go back to the drawing table and revise those bills, but i'm not going to give up on this. you know, the bill that i had the honor of leading in the house is the john robert lewis voting rights advancement act. it restores the full protection s of the voting rights act of 1965. that was struck down. the formula that congress used to decide which states should have preclearance was struck down by the supreme court, and since 2013, i have introduced this bill in four successive congresses. this is the first time i've done so without john lewis. i think we have to invoke not only his memory, his legacy, so many of these senators walked across that bridge with john in my hometown commemorating the events of bloody sunday. now they have an opportunity to write their own history. will they stand on the side of john lewis, or will they stand on the side of bull connor. i think the president made that comparison, and it was an excellent comparison. i know where i stand, and i'm sure you know where you would stand, too, alex. >> mm-hmm, i absolutely do, 100%. alabama congresswoman terri sewell, a pleasure to talk with you. i really appreciate your positive approach and can do attitude. keep it up. new alarm overseas as the white house is preparing for a potential russian invasion of ukraine. this comes as tensions between the two countries hit a new high on friday when ukraine was hit by a massive cyberattack warning its citizens to expect the worse. that's a quote. let's go to nbc josh lederman joining us from delaware. where do things stand right now? >> reporter: well, the temperature is only getting hotter. there is no doubt about it, alex. a series of extraordinary meetings between the u.s. and russia this week that also involved nato officials ended without any apparent signs of progress, and with the u.s. saying they don't think there's been an any lessen lg of the possibility that vladimir putin may mount an invasion of ukraine. we're in a position where the u.s. is taking the remarkable step of trying to publicly thwart what they say is a planned false flag operation by russia, a u.s. official telling me yesterday that the u.s. now has intelligence showing that russia has prepositioned operat ukraine. they're saying russia has put a group in eastern ukraine to potentially launch an attack against russia's only forces to make it look like the ukrainians started something with ukraine's military and then create a pretext for russia to defensively then mount an invasion of ukraine. so that's kind of the level of tension right now with a top u.s. and diplomat in europe saying that the drum beat of war is growing louder, and congressman jason crow saying this last hour on your show. >> what we have to do as a country in the united states, what we have to do is stand by ukraine and why it's important is we had this attack on democracy everywhere in the world. we have it at home now and abroad. and we no longer have the luxury of choosing when and where we're going to defend democracy and freedom. >> but the reality is, alex, that the u.s. is not going to defend democracy and freedom in ukraine if it comes to a ground war with u.s. troops on the ground there. it's just not going to happen. president biden has already taken that option off the table, and russia very clearly knows that, and so now the u.s. is trying to show there will be significant costs to russia including u.s. officials now saying that the biden administration is considering arming and supporting insurgents in ukraine to fight against russia if russia goes ahead with an invasion. >> that has been made official. thank you so much, josh lederman. we have an update to the breaking news about the tsunami advisory specifically for hawaii, everyone. that has just ended, but the national weather service is warning strong or unusual currents may continue for several hours yet. they say people should remain cautious there in the hawaiian islands. our local nbc station reports some small tsunami waves did hit several areas across hawaii cauing coastal flooding and minor damage. that tsunami remains in effect for the u.s. west coast on the mainland. we'll keep you updated on that. as well as omicron boosters, too little, too late? 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one week ago. highest to lowest in a week thus far, and that lowest is going to continue to go down. and new today, the cdc is changing its mask guidance advising everyone to wear medical strength masks instead of cloth masks. this week president biden said he's taking steps to make these masks available to everyone. >> i know that for some americans a mask is not always affordable or convenient to get. so next week we'll announce how we're making high quality masks available to american people for free. >> and students in boston and chicago are calling on administrators to revisit their covid safety protocols. on friday dozens of students staged a walkout about concerns over returning to in-person learning. while a number of states are seeing a dip in the daily case numbers, hospitals across the country are struggling to keep up with demand. let's go right to nbc's scott cohn who's joining me from outside the santa clara medical center in san jose, california. welcome to you. i know california governor gavin newsom is still taking heat for his proposals to try to help hospitals and staff cope. >> reporter: yeah, that's right, alex. we know by now that hospitalizations are a lagging indicator, so while cases may be coming down, hospitalizations tend to lag that, and what the state has done, is it's drawn a lot of fire from particularly health care unions and others is to say that for health care workers, if they test positive but have no symptoms or if they've been exposed and have no symptoms, they can still come to work. this is good through the first of february, so a couple of weeks from now. here's what we're looking at. as you can see, the hospitalizations are up. they're not where they were a year ago. it's not quite that bad, but the staffing is an issue because there are so many staffers that have been out. a third of california hospitals now reporting staff shortages, critical staff shortages and nationwide it's very severe with similar sorts of numbers. 17% of u.s. hospitals are experiencing shortages, and a quarter of them anticipate shortages. so while it is not ideal to have covid positive health care workers, some experts say there may be no way given a choice be short staffed which we know has detrimental effects on patient kaur and outcomes and risk of death versus having an asymptomatic clinician who's wearing a mask who may or may not be a big risk to patient asks other staff, that's a rock and hard place. >> fortunately so far we're not hearing any reports of hospitals actually implementing this. we'll see how that goes. here at valley medical center, they say they don't have staff shortages for now, but they have postponed all elective in patient surgeries to try and keep on top of this. we are not through the worst of this yet, even if the cases are starting to go down. >> okay. thank you for the heads-up on all of that, scott. we're going to continue this conversation as i'm joined by dr. peter hotez, co-director for the center for vaccine development at texas children's hospital and dean of the national school of tropical medicine at baylor college of medicine. dr. hotez, welcome, sir. your reaction, first of all, to the policy in california that would allow asymptomatic health care workers, those who have tested positive, to still go back to work immediately. is it a good idea? >> well, it's a desperation measure, alex, and one we had hoped to avoid. the reality is the reason omicron is such a problem is hospitalizations are mounting because of omicron, problem number one. if you don't have the staff to take care of them, the docs, the nurses, the respiratory therapists, that's when mortality climbs. people are still getting heart attacks and strokes and all of the other medical conditions, so we can't take care of them. it's a desperation measure. i wrote an article if you remember a month ago in the l.. times, we should offer boosters to this staff, but nobody want thes to go in that direction. >> that may still happen. we don't know. let's talk about the things that were said by dr. fauci saying that he believes the omicron variant will infect just about everybody. that came as a shock to a lot of people hearing that recognition from dr. fauci. do you agree with that? >> it's hard to really say. there's no question that this is by far the most transmissible covid variant that we've seen, almost as transmissible as measles. it doesn't necessarily have to infect everyone. i think he was just trying to make a point about the high level of transmissibility, especially if you've recently been boosted, it will have some effect on symptomatic infection and maybe even asymptomatic infection. but i think it was done to highlight the seriousness of this and to try to take every measure possible to interrupt transmission. >> so what about those, i've heard this new trend about those that are throwing omicron parties because they just want to get it over with. what are your thoughts on that? i think i know what you're going to say, but i'd like to give you the floor to do so. >> well, you know, there's no question we are seeing a rise in hospitalizations from covid, and omicron is just about the only variant we have now in this country, so the bottom line is people are still getting very sick from omicron, and if you can avoid getting it, you should do so by all means. there is nothing good about getting omicron, and don't forget, there's still the risk of long coe video, and neurodegenerative effects from long covid. we don't know the extent of that from previous lineages. we're hearing about diabetes in kids. this business of going around calling it omicold and this nonsense is not helpful. it's still a dangerous pathogen. >> what about what happened this week with pfizer and moderna both announcing they are working on boosters that will specifically target omicron. pfizer says they'll have a booster ready in march, moderna's will be launching in the fall. is that too late to target omicron? will the wave be over? could omicron or any other variant, though, then circle back around? part of the question is if we get rid of omicron, we move past it, can it come back or can delta come back? can alpha come back? i'm curious if these specific boosters will work given the time frame? >> so all of the above. for our vaccine, our recombinant protein vaccine we're preparing a covid specific variant. it's not clear whether it will be needed. first of all, we don't know what the durability of protection is going to be from omicron infection among people who have not been vaccinated, if it's like other upper respiratory coronaviruses, it will not be very durable at all, and people will still be susceptible to reinfection. we don't know what happens with omicron assuming this starts to subside in the coming weeks. here's what we do know, alex. we do know that other variants are now emerging in unvaccinated -- in the unvaccinated african continent, unvaccinated southeast asia and unvaccinated latin america. as long as we refuse to vaccinate the world's low and middle income countries, we will see new variants emerge. i think it's still likely we'll see another new variant emerge across the united states this summer just like it did in the summer of 2020 and the summer of 2021. which then raises the question, well, what should we be boosting with if we need a booster. it's not clear that the omicron specific booster is going to be the one. by we may want to go back to the original lineage. it's good we have them as a backup. it's not clear whether that booster will ever be used. >> dr. peter hotez, thank you for your sage insights. drip drip drip, new revelation the in january 6th investigation. why someone who first said he'd be cooperating is now saying nope. rst said he'd be cooperating is now saying were delayed when the new kid totaled his truck. timber... fortunately, they were covered by progressive, so it was a happy ending... for almost everyone. we hit the bike trails every weekend so it was a happy ending... shinges doesn't care. i grow all my own vegetables shingles doesn't care. we've still got the best moves you've ever seen good for you, but shingles doesn't care. because 1 in 3 people will get shingles, you need protection. but, no matter how healthy you feel, your immune system declines as you age care carefrom shingles with a vaccine proven to be over 90% effective. shingrix is a vaccine used to prevent shingles in adults 50 years and older. shingrix does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients or to a previous dose. an increased risk of guillain-barré syndrome was observed after getting shingrix. fainting can also happen. the most common side effects are pain, redness, and swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, tiredness, headache, shivering, fever, and upset stomach. ask your pharmacist or doctor about shingrix. shingles doesn't care. but you should. what happens when you block heartburn with one prilosec otc in the morning? 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[cheering] that was awesome. and, the hits won't quit, with peacock premium included at no additional cost. all that entertainment built in. xfinity. a way better way to watch. staying up half the night searching for savings on your prescriptions? just ask your cvs pharmacist. we search for savings for you. from coupons to lower costs options. plus, earn up to $50 extra bucks rewards each year just for filling at cvs pharmacy. are you taking a statin drug to reduce cholesterol? plus, earn up to $50 extra bucks rewards it can also deplete your coq10 levels. i recommend considering qunol coq10 along with your statin medication. the brand i trust is qunol. . enjoy to that major winter storm that could lead to a messy and potentially dangerous weekend for many of you, after dumping several inches of snow in the u.s., that storm is heading east. here's north carolina's governor this morning. >> now is the time to get prepared. this storm's a menace. plan to stay home tomorrow, sunday. today make sure you have groceries, medications, and other essentials like water, batteries and pet food you'll need for the next few days. >> let's bring in nbc news meteorologist michelle grossman. on the heels of what he was saying, i went to the grocery store yesterday it was packed and we're not expecting it in new york until sunday night into monday. >> i know, yeah, i did too. i said that to my daughter, we had that feel like you knew that snowstorm was coming. depending on where you are, we're going to see heavy rain, heavy snow, sleet, freezing rain, we could see severe weather, and we have those brutal windchills out there. we have it all over the next several days. we saw 11 inches of snow in some spots in iowa yesterday. taking a look at the maps, we have 66 million people impacted by these winter storm alerts. we have warnings, watches, advisories, and even that ice storm warning. that's going to be the biggest problem in terms of travel. here's what it looks like on radar. you see the blue. that's where the snow is, even some white there. you also see a little pink. we're starting to see those temperatures dropping. you're seeing a little freezing rain in some spots. otherwise we're looking at heavy rain where you see the yellows and oranges. that's indicating where that heavy rain is coming down. timing wise we're going to see this dip to the south. typically we see a lot of storms move west to east. this is taking a route down to the south. it's collecting moisture from the gulf of mexico. we'll see storms along the gulf coast, tampa, florida, we could see severe weather as well. we could see half an inch of ice in some spots. that's going to bring down power lines, trees and it's going to bring power outages. look what happens busy head towards the later part of sunday into monday. it intensifies once again. we're going to have fierce, fierce winds in parts of new york, new england, where we're going to see power outages as a result of that and also some coastal flooding. we could see two to four feet of some waves kind of pushing in. it's due to high tide, also full moon and that push of water onshore. in terms of snowfall, not a lot in some places but a lot in other places. we're looking at 20 inches in the highest mountains of north carolina. that's in western north carolina. so the appalachians. and we're also looking as you look towards west virginia, we're expecting quite a bit of snow there too. as we move closer to the north east and it's funny along the i-95 corridor, we're looking at less snow there into the interior parts. we're looking locally up to 18 inches. once again we're looking at heavy ice in some spots. this is what we're really going to watch tonight into tomorrow. we're going to be on air all day tomorrow. you're going to see power outages for sure in the carolinas. >> we'll see you tomorrow again, thank you. if not in the next hour or two. a dramatic new escalation in the investigation into the january 6th insurrection. the justice department charging 11 members of the oath keepers with seditious conspiracy. the first charges of its kind levied in connection with the attack. joining me now, hugo lowell, congressional reporter for "the guardian." there's always some new news. the significance of this, hugo, the seditious conspiracy charges. what is the significance, and does it signal something to you about the house committee's investigation, the seriousness or the direction it's taking? >> yeah, obviously it's significant from the justice department's point of view because this is the most serious crime that they have gone and charged someone connected to the capitol attack with. so that's really significant in and of itself. i think for me at least, the most interesting angle is, as you said, how it affects the select committee's investigation on capitol hill, and i think what is an interesting there, if trump knew of violence at the capitol and knew of plans by people like the oath keepers to attack the capitol, then he would be potentially a co-conspirator in that charge and i reported previously that trump called up the willard the night before the capitol attack and told his lawyers ask operatives to make sure that biden wouldn't be certified. if it turns out that those people at the willard also spoke with people like stewart rhodes, the chief guy with the oath keepers that could potentially connect the dots. we know the fbi already has the phones of people like rudy giuliani, so i think it's all coming together, and it could turn out to be pretty explosive for the committee. >> so then you have kevin mccarthy. rereleased a statement that said he shouldn't have to participate because his conversations with the form er president were not, quote, remotely related to the violence. first of all, should he be the one to gauge what was or was not remotely related to the violence? and you're really thinking that we all believe he was talking to the president as he admitted he did during the insurrection and saying to him, hey, what are you having for lunch there as you watch the insurrection on your television there, you know, in the dining room at the white house. come on. so where does this go? >> it's abundantly clear that kevin mccarthy is not the person to decide whether his messages and conversations with trump are relative to the committee. how does he possibly know what is relevant and what is not when he is not on the committee, but beyond that it's abundantly clear he does have relevant information to the committee's investigation because he did speak to trump as rioters were overrunning the capitol and he begged them to call them off, and trump told him, well, it looks like they're more interested in overturning election results than you are. and he went and gave more details about that phone call to the rest of his republican conference days later. we know there is more to that story. where the committee goes next is interesting, right? we know a lot that's already in the public domain. they're going to have to now consider whether they want to go and issue a subpoena to someone like mccarthy. this is the central question because they'd have to weigh whether the marginal gain of forcing or trying to force his testimony is outweighed by political consequences down the line if mccarthy lashes out or whether he has that much more information to share. but the committee is going to have to decide quite soon what they want to do. >> yeah, which may mean a subpoena, which will be entirely unique in itself. hugo, thanks so much. i guarantee you we'll be seeing you next week. in just hours, what might be tennis star novak djokovic's last stand with the australian government. last stand with the australian last stand with the australian government ♪ oh, oh, oh ♪ ozempic® is proven to lower a1c. most people who took ozempic® reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. and you may lose weight. adults lost on average up to 12 pounds. in adults also with known heart disease, ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke, or death. ozempic® helped me get back in my type 2 diabetes zone. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles. don't take ozempic® if you or your family ever had medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop ozempic® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may include pancreatitis. tell your provider about vision problems or changes. taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. looking to get back in your type 2 diabetes zone? 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(vo) verizon is going ultra, so you can too. in just hours, an australian court will decide the fate of novak djokovic. right now the unvaccinated tennis star is back in detention ahead of his last ditch effort to play in the australian open. that starts on monday. let's go to nbc's molly hunter following the story from london. this is a story that has taken on a life of its own around the world. lots of people are talking about it. >> reporter: lots of people are talking about it, alex, and i'll tell you, actually, australians, not that divided about it. australian officials are saying if djokovic is allowed to stay and play, that would really ignite the anti-vax movement. djokovic's legal team is saying, look, he's not jeopardizing anyone's health and if he's deported, it could ignite and excite that anti-vax movement. as of right now, we do not know whether the number one tennis player is going to be allowed to play. take a look. the best tennis player in the world is back in detention, spotted driving to the notorious immigration facility in melbourne, novak djokovic's visa was canceled. in newly released court documents, australian immigration officials worry his presence could foster anti-vaccination sentiment at a time covid cases are surging there. today, his legal team appealed the decision calling it patently irrational. the final decision will come sunday just one day before the australian open begins and potentially dashing his hopes of winning a record-setting 21st major. but fellow tennis stars who are playing by the rules are eager to focus on the matches. >> australian open is much more important than any player, so if he's playing, finally, okay. if he's not playing, the australian open will be a great australian open with or without him. that's my point of view. >> reporter: australians who have spent the last two years largely trapped inside the country have little sympathy. >> why is it fair that he can go around not being vaccinated and doing whatever he can whereas the rest of the public and australia has been stuck? >> reporter: djokovic has been locked in a battle with australian immigration officials since january 4th, tweeting he had an exemption permission allowing him to enter despite not been vaccinated. then, getting that permission revoked and later arguing that he should be allowed in because he had covid in december. controversy then erupting after he admitted attending an interview the day after his diagnosis. an unforced error which may cost him the chance to hit the court on monday. now, alex, as you mentioned, in just a few hours, we will learn, that is when the final hearing gets going sunday morning local time in australia, so we should know tonight whether or not he gets to stay. now, australia's immigration minister has said if he loses and alex, of course, this is a man not used to losing, he will be on one of the first flights out of the country. >> it's so unfortunate because this is contributing to his overall legacy but he doesn't like to lose and he rarely does it. we'll see about this one. thank you so much, molly. people all along the west coast of the u.s. have been advised to stay away from beaches and all water fronts. n advised to stay away from advised to stay away from beaches and all water fronts chicken, new peppercorn ranch, new hickory-smoked bacon, new... 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