and out west, two people dead in their cars as an explosive wildfire in california rips through a national forest. crews struggle to contain the blaze. and it s primary day in five key states with just three months till the november midterms. in kansas today is the first direct vote on abortions post-roe. sharice davids will join us today. and we begin this morning with a strike that took out one of the world s most wanted terrorists while still in isolation from covid, president biden announced that al qaeda leader ayman al zawahiri was killed in a drone strike in kabul, afghanistan, where he and his family had been hiding. justice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more. people around the world no longer need to fear the vicious and determined killer no matter how long it takes. no matter where you hide. if you are a threat to our people, the united states will find you and take you out. this morning the white house released this picture of the pr
americans with president biden declaring the mission a total success. we will explain how it was carried out, also, china is now threatening a military response over how nancy pelosi s expected visit to taiwan, the u.s. is warning beijing not to turn the trip into a crisis. we will go live to the white house to speak with john kirby. it is primary day across five states with major implications for abortion rights and election integrity. meanwhile donald trump stirring up confusion in missouri after an endorsement that has leading candidates in the senate primary both claiming the former pete president is supporting them. good morning and welcome to morning joe on tuesday, august 2. good to have everyone with us. good to have you with us. every september 11th for 20 years we have reflected either personally or on air about what was lost on that day, who was lost and you talk about people on the street, you talk about loved ones that you knew, it was deeply personal for me
this week the house select committee investigating january 6th wrapped up its summer series of hearings with the season finale of sorts. in a primetime event, they presented devastating evidence detailing the hours donald trump spent refusing to act as a angry mob tried to stop the certification of the 2020 election by force. even when it was clear the insurrection would not achieve its aims, did the commander-in-chief collin s meg army to step down? no. even a dalia later, never before seen outtakes show the president was unwilling to admit that the election was over. the bombshell hearings left me with plenty of questions. will the former president or anyone else in a position of authority ever be held accountable? will congress have the courage to strengthen the election system that trump and his allies sought to undermine. and we ll be hearing sway voters as they head to the polls in the midterm elections? we ve got a great lineup to talk about it, including minnesota s s
arizona. so who has the upper hand? let s go out front. and good evening, i m erin burnett. out front tonight, a victory for the rule of law. that s the words from the top two members of the january 6th select committee. after trump s long-time ally steve bannon was found guilty of contempt for refusing to appear before the committee. congressman bennie thompson and congresswoman liz cheney came out with a warning, for anyone else who tries to on strubt or stone wall their investigation, just as there must be accountability for all those responsible for the events of january 6th, anyone who obstructs our investigation into these matters should face consequences. no one is above the law. now bannon, i should note, is the first close aide to trump to be convicted as a result of investigations into the insurrection. he could face months if not a year in jail. after the verdict trump s former chief strategist lashed out at the committee. i only have one disappointment, and that
as a progressive place. then there s the future of democracy itself today, with the republican party, in some places like arizona, deciding through its voters tonight whether the party s nominees for top jobs are backers of the big lie of baseless election fraud claims, of attacks on the way we do nonpartisan democracy in this country, with trump encoursed candidates currently viewed as front-runners, including a maga governor candidate who s pushing claims of fraud, kari lake. those who do stand up to trump, including three who threatened to voted to impeach president trump. there s more at stake than a typical primary night, and a lot more issues. as the political guru s de la soul put it, issues close like an elevator door but open once we get to the next floor. as the stakes is high, you know the stakes is high. fact check, true. the stakes is high. it is primary election day in missouri, and several high profile races could help bring voter out to the polls. histor