Hegseth Fights Impeachment Effort

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1:02Can an A++++ from President Trump save Pete Hexeth from losing his job? I'll speak with the Democratic senator who is named in the articles of impeachment against the defense secretary. I'm Dana Bash. Let's go behind the headlines and inside politics.

1:25Fight, fight, fight. The now common Trump refrain is also the backbone of Pete Hegseth's response to the threat of impeachment. Today, the House will move forward with impeaching the defense secretary. President Trump says he still supports him. But the resolution could very well pass. CNN has learned that House GOP leaders will not twist the arms of any Republicans who are thinking of voting for it. This morning, Hexeth held a rare Pentagon news conference to defend himself. They impeached President Trump over a perfect phone call. They impeached him again in his final week in office. Both times they failed.

2:03Both times he came back stronger. And the American people sent him back to the White House. Now they're trying a third time. this time against a member of his cabinet. They will fail again. And if standing with President Trump puts me in that company, I'll take that company every day of the week. So what exactly is Hegseth being accused of? Well, there are eight articles of impeachment that were filed by Republican Congressman Thomas Massey. Among them, that he illegally waged war in Iran and Yemen in violation of the 1973 War Powers Act, that he ignored laws requiring he minimize civilian casualties, that he engaged in illegal acts of extrajudicial killings by striking suspected drug traffickers on boats in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, and that he sought to suppress free speech by members of Congress.

2:59That last article is about Hegseth's treatment of Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, a retired Navy captain who Hexeth sought to punish for a video that he and other senators made, urging service members to reject any illegal orders. Senator Kelly is here with me now. Thank you so much for being here. I mentioned that last article of impeachment. It specifically charges Hexeth with weaponizing the Defense Department to, quote, retaliate against and intimidate Senator Mark Kelly after, as I mentioned, And some of you and your colleagues made a video saying, don't follow illegal orders. I want you to listen to how Hexeth responded this morning.

3:39Politicians in Washington have accused the sailors and the pilots who struck narco-terrorist boats of war crimes for doing their job. Senators, in cute videos, have suggested the same. This resolution is the next step. put the secretary on trial today and the men and women who carried out those orders tomorrow. Your reaction? Well, he's not being truthful about what was in the video. We weren't talking about war crimes. I mean, he's suggesting that we're talking about war crimes that service members committed. No, we were telling members of the military that they can refuse to follow illegal orders.

4:26That's something totally different. We were making a case that members of the military need to obey the law. When the law and orders are in conflict, you follow the law. It's a pretty simple message. In response, Donald Trump said we should be hanged. Then he said we should be executed, then prosecuted. Ultimately, they tried to indict us, all six of us. When that didn't work, Pete Hegseth came after me because I have 25 years of service in the United States Navy. I'm a retired service member, tried to go after my pension and my rank, but I'm not going to have that. So I filed a lawsuit against him, which I initially won.

5:05That's still in court. He appealed. But this, Dana, this is not about me. This is them trying to silence millions of retired service members, trying to silence veterans. They don't want people speaking out. They would prefer if everybody shut up. Pete Hegseth has been a disaster as Secretary of Defense. He has botched this war in Iran, a war we should have never gotten into. He's firing senior admirals and generals who are valuable members of the department. Senior leadership, because, as we found out just the other day, because he didn't like it that they attended a conference or said something about vaccines.

5:47At every turn, this secretary of defense has just been a disaster. Should he be impeached? Yeah. Yeah, I think he needs to go. He should have never had the job to begin with. He wasn't qualified for the job. He should have been fired multiple times, starting at Signal Gate. I'd say the most recent thing, you know, calling for the execution, public execution of a prisoner. President should have fired him. At this point, you know, I think Tom Massey would prefer that he resigns. If he doesn't do that, you know, we're going to deal with it in Congress, as we should. Assuming that he is impeached in the House, the trial will take place where you serve in the United States Senate.

6:28You think there are the votes to convict him? We went through this with Donald Trump last time. After the insurrection, I was there. I was one of the jurors. As a U.S. senator, we got close. There were a lot of Republicans that voted to convict him. I don't know. We'll have to see. One of the eight articles of impeachment, several specifically referenced violating war powers in Iran and in Yemen. This morning, Secretary Hegseth said that he was carrying out, quote, lawful military operations and executing lawful military operations. Should these articles of impeachment be against Donald Trump, the commander in chief, and not the defense secretary?

7:12Well, I think what, you know, the representative Massey is getting at is that the secretary of defense has been a complete disaster. Many of those articles, I think six out of the eight, are about him following illegal orders, which I find quite ironic that if Pete Hegseth would have just watched our video, listened to what we had to say, and maybe internalize it a little bit, he wouldn't find himself in this situation. Those are Tom Massey's articles, and he strongly backs this, and I think he's right here that this Secretary of Defense has long surpassed his expiration date, and he needs to go.

7:58We'll see if this is the method to get rid of him, or maybe at some point the president decides to move on and find somebody who can actually do a decent job. Pete Hegseth talked about Congress going after service members. It's actually Pete Hegseth that has gone after service members and fired them without cause, basically. I mean, how many of them got fired? And he wouldn't even tell them why they were being dismissed. And I think we know why. This morning, Secretary Hegseth said that Congress was notified of actions in Iran, in Yemen, and with Nicolas Maduro. Is that true? I'm on the Armed Services Committee and the Intelligence Committee.

8:42I was not notified. Is it possible that the chairman or ranking were? No, I'm confident that under at least some of those circumstances, the ranking member was not notified either. You know, this administration is not being a, you know, we're equal branches of government, right? We're supposed to be told they're supposed to work with us. They don't work with us. They sometimes will work with the Republicans in the Senate and in the House and notify them of things. It's their responsibility to notify the Democrats, the minority as well. They just decide not to do this. And it's a pattern with these guys, breaking the rules.

9:22They don't care. You know, they'll go after me for doing my job, right? My job is to provide a certain amount of accountability, you know, for the Department of Defense. I do that. I get a letter of censure from Pete Hegseth. I have it hanging on the door of my office, that letter. One of their grievances against me, Dana, was that I said I would always defend the Constitution. In Pete Hegseth's mind, that is a negative thing. That is something that I should be censured over. I want to go back to what you were saying when I asked about whether Tom Massey is impeaching the wrong guy. And you said that you think that he is, ironically, the one who followed illegal orders.

10:11But again, you think that that is, or maybe some of these orders that you're discussing, they are absolutely impeachable. And do you think that some of this should be aimed? at President Trump? Hey, we've gone through this twice with President Trump. And I wasn't there in Congress the first time around. I was there for what happened on January 6th. Donald Trump sent a mob to attack the other branch of government. Hundreds, if not thousands of people, dead Capitol Police officers, many more injured. He clearly should have been removed from office at that point. I voted to convict him. We didn't have the votes.

10:54I don't think we should get into like a scenario where we wind up doing something and we get the same conclusion again. Impeachment for Trump is off the table. In a blanket way, not just for this? I just think we've seen this twice before. I don't think it's a productive thing to do this, But Pete Hegseth has been a failure as the Secretary of Defense in so many ways. This guy running around on stage like he's a 12-year-old playing army talking about killing people. I mean, it's ridiculous. We've never seen this in the history of this country. He has no idea what he's doing. He has botched this war in Iran.

11:35We have dead service members, many more injured, unnecessarily killed a bunch of Iranian kids because he just thought it was a good idea to just bomb as many targets as possible, well over 10 ,000 targets. And it's because they had no strategic goal and they let Pete Hegseth develop the plan. And the plan was a disaster. And now they are stuck. He said we won this war. I mean, they still control the Strait of Hormuz. You know, we haven't won anything. In fact, we're in a worse position today than we were back in mid-February before Donald Trump did this. Before I let you go, there's going to be a vote this week or next week on your leadership in the majority.

12:21Will you vote for Chuck Schumer as Senate Majority Leader? Well, let me just say that we have an opportunity, you know, right now to do things differently. And I think we will, regardless of who the leader is. It doesn't really matter whose name is on the door. Well, it kind of does. They're the one who's in charge. Well, no, it depends on, you know, what we, the work we do internally to get him to do things differently. And it looks like it's going to be Chuck Schumer. Will you vote for him? Well, I don't know if anybody else is running against him. There's no clear indication that that's the case.

13:00So, yeah, I will. You will? Yes, yeah. Okay. You know, this is a guy that worked incredibly hard over the last couple of years. And I know people have other opinions about this. But we have a mandate here to do things and get things done for the American people. And we can do that with Chuck Schumer. Senator Mark Kelly, thank you so much for coming on. Thank you for coming into the studio. It's great to be here. Appreciate it. Thank you. And coming up, so will Republicans stand with Pete Hexeth or help impeach one of President Trump's top cabinet officials? The calculations going on right now behind the scenes next.

13:35Plus, the crucial vote today, House Republicans, are taking to pick their new leader in the minority. We could find out any minute who they choose.

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14:33Join them to save up to 90 % off carrier rates from your computer or phone right now. Print postage for certified mail, registered mail, and packages in seconds. Then schedule a pickup right from your home or office. For a limited time, go to Stamps.com and use code PODCAST for a free welcome gift. Taxes and fees apply. Pete Hexet's full-throated defense of his own conduct has one big supporter. his boss, the commander in chief, the president in a post this morning gave him an A+++. That's a quote. You see it there. But we'll soon find out if Republicans on the Hill in the House agree the first procedural vote is expected this afternoon.

15:13And a source tells CNN that GOP leaders do not plan to mount an organized defense against Hegseth's impeachment. I'm joined now by a terrific group of reporters. David? Yeah, I mean, I think his performance at the podium today was probably the least surprising development of the day, right? I mean, I think that we... I don't know, it was surprising to see him at a podium. Well, that's fair. Fair. But, like, the fact that Pete Hegseth got out there to speak to Donald Trump and fortify his position and put himself forward as nothing but a total fighter, I think is what we expected to see from him, including, I mean, using Donald Trump's language in a reference to the first impeachment on the perfect phone call.

15:55I mean, it was just like so designed to make sure. And it got the desired benefit, as you said, with the review from the president. I still think this has ways to go to play out. This story is going to be with us for a little bit because it's not just what happens now, but what Democrats decide to do with Pete Hegseth when they actually do get the gavels and take over. Yeah, I mean, that's such an important point. And we sort of touched on this in noting that Republicans aren't telling their members which way to vote. They're still in charge. Republicans are still in charge. But let's listen to a little bit more of what Hex has said this morning.

16:28No secretary of war or secretary of defense has ever been impeached for carrying out lawful military operations. It tells our enemies, Iran, the cartels, every adversary watching that the United States will actually punish its own warriors and its own civilian leadership for successfully executing lawful military operations. Iran, the cartels, Maduro, Yemen, everyone was a lawful operation ordered by the commander in chief, then ordered by myself. What I find interesting is not what's coming out of Hegseth's mouth, but it is what we're actually hearing from Republicans on Capitol Hill. I thought it was really notable to hear Senator Ted Cruz today say that he saw that there was three potential outcomes here, that Hegseth resigns, that Trump fires Hegseth, or that he gets impeached.

17:23He did not offer a fourth other way out for Hegseth. And I think to have someone like Senator Cruz saying that so vocally and openly does speak to the fact that there are people in the Republican caucus on Capitol Hill who are not happy with Hegseth and are not shy about even saying that publicly today. And it does, you know, just remember time and time again, the president is all on board with the people he is publicly supporting until the minute he's not. Exactly. So I think that we've often seen the president, he likes to see how things play in the room, on television, on primetime. So I think his early assessment there on social media, I'm not sure if that's the final word from him.

18:03But the reality is there is a lot of pent-up anger, some regret from some senators who voted to confirm him in the first place. So I'm keeping my eye on some of those like the Bill Cassidy, Joni Ernst, Tom Tillis. And who knows if it will get to the point of a trial in the Senate. But there is a lot of pent-up frustration and anger, and he may be the one who sort of bears the brunt of that. Alex, what are you hearing from your White House sources? Yeah, you know, this was an audience of one with the president, and this was definitely his attempt to show that I at least have the president on my side, even as Republicans on Capitol Hill, even as people within the administration are starting to turn away from me.

18:43And I think the White House knows that the president, as long as he has your back, he has your back until he doesn't. I thought it was really notable when Hegseth also said if we had the chance to do Iran again, we would, echoing what the president said in response to Vice President Vance's big post after the midterm election blaming Iran. He's definitely speaking directly to the president on that. All right. Believe it or not, it has been only one week since Republicans got a shellacking at the polls. They're about to make crucial decisions about who will try to lead them out of the wilderness, who will lead them in the House and in the Senate.

19:19Stay with us.

19:24Observe. The North American Dad. 50s. Great polo collection. He enters his vehicle information on Carvana. An offer appears in minutes. Remarkable. He squints, reads it again, smiles, and says, dang, that's a good offer. The highest form of approval. No haggling. No hassle. No one called him boss. He's still on the couch. Astonishing. Sell your car today on Carvana.com. Pickup fees may apply. Any minute now, congressional Republicans will pick the people to lead them in the minority. In the House, the two frontrunners to be GOP leader are Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio. And the current number two in the House leadership, Steve Scalise of Louisiana.

20:14Scalise spoke to reporters ahead of today's vote. This is the start of our move to get this country back on track, to get the majority back. But obviously, we're going to have a lot of internal conversations, not just today, but in the weeks ahead, about how we can go win back middle America. And there's a path to do it. But it starts right now. Who Republicans pick to lead them will tell us a lot about how Republicans plan to handle life in the congressional wilderness for the next two years. Sabrina, I do think it's fascinating that not only are they making this pick between, you know, somebody who obviously is certainly conservative, but more establishment in Steve Scalise and Jim Jordan, who made his bones as a flamethrower, even though he's got a big job now as judiciary chair.

21:02The people who are going to be in the conference, those who are left, are among the most conservative in the House of Representatives. Yes, this does not favor Scalise. The reality is, I mean, Scalise being someone who has been a part of leadership for years in the House and being someone who, you know, worked well with Speaker Mike Johnson in these recent years puts him sort of in the position to carry some of the brunt of the blame for the midterm results. Now, he's trying to frame that, you know, this couldn't have been repaired or the reality that Republicans would have been in this situation no matter what, given the headwinds that they're facing.

21:45But Jim Jordan gets to come in and say that he is the one who can sort of lead the party. But I think the question, too, for us is as we look to Democrats taking over, who is going to work with Democrats? Who is going to represent Donald Trump? And right now they are both aligning very closely with the president and sort of talking of how. We're not working with them. They're not going to work with them. And over in the Senate, there's a discussion right now about a vote. I was told that they just took a break in their leadership discussions. Jeff, you have some great reporting this morning on the fact that there is a bunch, I think you said it was like a third of the Republican committee people who make up the RNC, who wrote a letter and you got the letter saying to the Senate, please postpone this Republican leadership vote.

22:35Members deserve to understand what went wrong and hear how those seeking leadership intend to address those failures before casting their votes. That assessment should inform the choice of leadership. Holding elections first gets that backward. Look, I mean, that is just the reality here of what the feeling is among some members of the Republican National Committee. And they don't get a vote on that, Let's be clear. I mean, this is a vote of the Republican senators, but it just expresses some of the anger out there. Some of the people who signed on to this are very staunch supporters of the president.

23:09This is from the right of the Republican Party, but they do not want John Thune to remain the leader. I mean, that is very, very clear here. So we will see where it goes. I mean, it's a secret ballot, which is one of the things that has long protected Senate leaders. And Senator Schumer is hoping it does the same for him when it's time for his party to vote on him. But it's a reminder of the angst that is out there inside the Republican Party. No one's calling for an autopsy, but we're about at that point. Let's listen to what the president said about John Thune.

23:48John's a good man. And I guess they're going to be voting tomorrow or maybe it's delayed. I don't know what the status, but, you know, he's a friend of mine. I wish the Senate could get more done. The president has stood by Thune. They have such an interesting relationship. So interesting. Like the Save America Act has been his biggest legislative priority for over a year now. And Thune is in the way of that. And yet he hasn't turned on him. I remember at the RNC midterm convention in Texas, he brought up Senator Thune and there were boos. like in the whole arena for him. And the president said, no, no, no, we like him.

24:24So he's really had his back this whole time. I think that will help him in this. But, you know, people like the RNC saying, let's pump the brakes. We need some soul searching here and go through this. And those are people that don't support Thune. It really will come down to maybe the president trying to steamroll this and say, let's support him. Or maybe he changes his mind on him. Let's go back to the House elections, which are happening right now. What do you think, David? Well, no, I think the secret ballot point Jeff was making applies to both of these things, the House and the Senate as well.

24:53And this is the reality is that, you know better than anyone, Dana, how many of these you've stood outside doors and covered. But the individual relationships that these people have built with members, a lot of prevailing political wins or environmental factors that are out there seem to not necessarily, history would say, apply in the room as much as these individual relationships do. when these folks are trying to lock down their votes. It's relationships, and I'm sorry, but it is also money. And Steve Scalise raises a lot of money, and some of the questions that I've heard is whether Jim Jordan has the relationships with the donors and whether that matters.

25:31I mean, it does matter in terms of party rebuilding. There's no doubt it matters in that respect. But the secret ballot can work both ways, but I think if we had to sort of read the tea leaves, because Scalise is in a harder position than John Thune is. If any of you would have said Jim Jordan, I don't know, 10 years ago was going to be the potential new Republican, definitely not Democrat, new Republican leader. And as you said, it's a more MAGA conference. It's much more MAGA. He kind of is the establishment of that wing of the party. Yeah, very good point. Coming up, two critical deadlines today could shake up Mississippi's undecided Senate race.

26:07I'm going to speak to the man behind the Mississippi newsroom that's exposing troubling voter roll errors.

26:40all get your Wayfair head start. For holiday decor you can count on year after year, Wayfair delivers. Observe. The North American dad. 50s. Great polo collection. He enters his vehicle information on Carvana. An offer appears in minutes. Remarkable. He squints, reads it again, smiles, and says, Dang, that's a good offer. The highest form of approval. No haggling. No hassle. No one called him boss. He's still on the couch. Astonishing. Sell your car today on Carvana.com. Pickup fees may apply. Today could be a turning point in the razor-tight Mississippi Senate race that's still too close to call.

27:26Right now, Democrat Scott Cologne leads Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith by fewer than 2 ,600 votes. But that could shift, could shift big tonight when two critical ballot deadlines hit. One for resolving certain provisional ballot issues, the other for receiving absentee ballots. And even if this race comes down to a handful of votes, there are no automatic recounts in Mississippi. Joining me now is Andy Lack, a former television executive who founded Mississippi Today to help fill the void of local journalism in local journalism in a state where he has deep family roots. Thank you so much for being here.

28:06Andy, right now officials are sorting through these provisional ballots, including those cast by voters who may have been improperly removed from voter rolls because Mississippi's Secretary of State used credit bureau data to identify people who moved. I know your publication, Mississippi Today, has done extensive reporting on these changes. How many eligible voters may actually be impacted? Well, it's in the thousands. How many precisely is difficult to say. But his lead right now, Colm's lead, is 2 ,500, 2 ,600 votes. I think he feels pretty good about where he is. It's a tight race. He knew that from the beginning.

28:49He knew how to plot where he's gotten to today. So I think he's feeling pretty good about his lead. And yes, absolutely. It seems that way. And by the way, we haven't even heard from Cindy Hyde-Smith. On that, anybody who works for your publication in Mississippi, have they heard from the incumbent Republican? No, and she hasn't been in the state since election night. And she's well known to be a D.C. person more than she's in the state. She's challenged that way. And that is how I think Scott Colom has gotten to where he is. He has, over the last couple of years, worked very hard in the state, not just on the fundraising part, but as you were saying in the previous segment, on relationships.

29:37He's got the relationships. His mom was a judge, a prominent lawyer in the state, and he's worked it. He's worked it hard for the last couple of years. So, again, not surprised that we find him in this position today. Our CNN colleague, Annie Greer, has been down in Mississippi and has spoken to multiple voters who are pushing to make sure their provisional ballot is counted. Here's one of them. I didn't vote last year because I had the same kind of problem. But I was determined it's time to get in. And I came down here this third time actually down here. They sent me to Canton. I went to Canton, and then I was going to Canton.

30:19They told me, Canton called out here and said I wasn't supposed to be here. I mean, this is just one illustration of one voter going to great lengths to vote. Many people don't have time for that. Do you think this attempt to clean voter rolls, as the Secretary of State of Mississippi said that they were trying to do, is ultimately disenfranchising voters there? It's risked that for sure. Experian is the organization that did it. Their credit rating service, people know them. It's one of the biggest in the country. It's unfortunate, no question. How to calibrate just what its impact is, I don't know.

30:59But I do know that he's ahead and those votes aren't going to be contested as far as I can tell. And now it's a waiting game between tonight when the last votes are counted or cast. And and by Friday, we'll know we'll have the answer. I know that I think he feels pretty good about where he is. And he got here. I know you believe and certainly we've talked about this viral video a lot. that got him where he is today. I want to show a little piece of it. We've gone by some beef, continuing to go up. You know, you have so many proteins to choose from. Pick another protein? Shit, I'd rather pick another senator instead.

31:43Pick another protein? She done lost her damn mind. I'd rather pick another senator. And just in case there's anybody watching the show who doesn't know what that's about, It's about her being asked about the price of beef, and she's saying, okay, well, she said, pick another protein, and that was his response video. It really is representative of who he is in terms of his personality. He has an authenticity that is very appealing to voters, and they buy into him for that reason, and it's personal. It's deeply personal, and he's worked the state with that understanding, and the folks in Mississippi responded well to it.

32:27Before I let you go, the reason you're here is because Mississippi Today is part of your mission to support local journalists who are checking claims, holding people accountable, people in power, they're doing it every day. The rest of the country is focused elsewhere, particularly national media. Does this Senate race show why, this is a rhetorical question, why this work is so essential to our democracy? Oh, yes. We've got 38 reporters on the ground in Mississippi. It's one of the smallest states in the country. But we're in the Capitol. We've been there with the best team of reporters we could assemble for the last decade.

33:06And we take that part of it, holding power to account as the real mission of what our news organization is. And everyone in the state knows it. So we've built a level of trust, which is the key word, as you know, as a journalist, we built trust with community after community in the state, small, large, the capital city. And that's how we put the organization together. I'm very proud of it for that reason, mostly. Yeah. Trying to make the desert bloom, desert being news deserts in so many places. Thank you, Andy. Local news matters. Thank you. Amen. Thank you so much, Dana. Thanks, Andy. And it's not just Mississippi.

33:44We're also waiting on more than a dozen house seats including in some of the trumpiest house districts in the country no one expected to be so close.

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34:29There are 13 uncalled house seats, none of which was expected to be a toss-up. 11 of those districts backed President Trump by double digits only two years ago. Now, How's it stands now? Democrats lead the nationwide House vote by more than 13 percentage points. We haven't seen results like that for either party since post-Watergate 1974. David, you have some interesting uncalled races to show us and where they stand. Yeah, so if you take a look at what's uncalled that will impact the balance of power, so a couple of those are sort of D on D or R on R from California, but what will impact the balance of power?

35:08We have three remaining where Democrats are leading in Republican districts. Okay. Currently in the vote count. They are Minnesota 1. This is the old Tim Walz district, if you remember. But look at that. The Democrat Jake Johnson is ahead by 321 points in that district. So waiting on certification there. Then go over here to, sorry, next door to North Carolina. And you'll see in North Carolina 5, Chuck Hubbard is ahead of Virginia Fox by 99 votes. 99 votes. and then go next door here to Tennessee. And this one, I think, is a real shocker if it goes down this way. Victoria Broderick against the incumbent Republican Scott Desjardins.

35:50So she's 280 votes ahead. If she ends up winning this race, Dana, this will be the Trumpiest district in America that would have a Democratic representative. Trump won this district by 23.9 % two years ago, okay? As it is drawn now. And by the way, this is a rematch. Two years ago, the lines were a little different. Victoria Broderick lost to Scott Desjardins by 43 percentage points. Oh, my gosh. And now in this redrawn district, which was not redrawn to actually have a Democratic win here, she may end up victorious in this district. So that would be really a stunner. It really will. I mean, that really tells the whole story of what we saw on Tuesday and continue to see.

36:34There are so many notable people who come on cable news and elsewhere who you recognize who are not coming back. We have a list. Lauren Boebert, Brian Fitzpatrick, Richard Hudson, we've been talking about. He ran the campaign committee. And the list goes on. I mean, you were talking about such a, I wouldn't say it was a diverse kind of number of Republicans, but it's more diverse than what we're going to have now in the House of Representatives. There's no doubt. I mean, this is going to be a very, very conservative House Republican conference. But if you look at the names there, I mean, Mike, Turner from Ohio comes to mind.

37:15I mean, he's a former chairman. He has been there for so long, but Ann Wagner, a former co-chair of the Republican National Committee, a former ambassador to Luxembourg, I believe it was. She kind of embodied the shift in the Republican Party from the country club Republican era to the MAGA era, but she fell short. So this happens obviously in every wave election, but just kind of absorbing who some of these new members will be and not seeing some of these very longtime members. I think the diversity is interesting in the sense of there There are members that President Trump stuck his neck out for, like Turner, Van Orden in Wisconsin.

37:48And then there's members that, like a Mike Lawler or a, they did help Lawler, but like him or Fitzpatrick, that were sometimes issues for their agenda. And so it's from both sides of whether you could be helpful to Trump or not in this next upcoming Congress that lost. And Mike Lawler in New York, Brian Fitzpatrick in Pennsylvania, those are two of the only three Kamala Harris won districts that Republicans were representing. Those were the swing districts, the frontliners we were looking at, not Scott Desjardins. That's what's remarkable. You have some great reporting about Florida, Sabrina, and I'm going to read it.

38:24Democratic gains make epicenter of MAGA more competitive in the next presidential election. Strike while the iron's hot and reinvest. That's Matthew Isbell, a Democratic elections analysts, they don't want to do that, we might not get another chance. I mean, just looking at South Florida, when we talk about races that haven't been called, I mean, right now in Florida's 27th congressional district, Maria Elvira Salazar, who a lot of people kind of came to know in the last few months because of her ad direct-to-camera telling Trump he had gone too far on his immigration enforcement tactics, I mean, that has gone into an automatic recount in South Florida, a district that she won by double digits, that Trump won by double digits in 2024.

39:06But there were some positive signs for Democrats in Florida at the end of the day, even though Salazar is ahead and is expected to possibly win even after this recount. And the fact that Byron Donalds and Ashley Moody both won statewide in Florida, there are these signs that show Democrats moving in a positive direction. But the question will also be at the end of the day if national Democrats invest. I saw you pulling up Florida. Is it too late to pull? I was just looking to say that because it is going to an automatic recount, but she's ahead in the vote. But look at the overall picture right now of where we stand.

39:41256 Democrats, 166 Republicans. And note the pickups on the bottom. So Democrats already have a net gain of 42 seats. That is the most the Democratic Party has flipped since 1974 in the Watergate era. And by the way, if indeed the Democrats win those remaining three that I said they're leaning in right now, they could end up with 259, maybe 260 votes. That will be the largest majority for either party since 1991. I was in high school then. But like that would be the largest majority for either party if they end up with that number. I'm sorry. I just had a flashback of the pictures of David Jallian in high school and I love it.

40:18New Jersey's finest. Jeff Zeleny, one of the things that we have been talking about is the fact that in the Senate, there are going to be so many more split delegations, meaning, you know, we are used to seeing in recent years, the Senate kind of looking more like the House where it is kind of one party. That's what it is right now. That's there are only three of them. And now there are going to be many, many more where the Senate. We don't know about Alaska. We don't know about Mississippi, but even the others that are called, so many where people who live in that state will be represented by a Democrat and Republican.

40:58I mean, it's such an interesting dynamic because, I mean, the long adage is that senators of the same party often don't get along, sometimes as well as senators of different parties from the same state. There are many examples of that. But this is, I think, one of the interesting sort of fallouts of the election. I mean, you're going to see so many of those with a split to delegations, which is how the Senate used to look. That did not used to be an uncommon thing at all. But in the history of the Senate, since the direct election was happening, three is the smallest it's ever been. So it's getting much back to normal, if you will.

41:37Since the direct election, meaning like back in the day when the state legislature used to pick the senators. None of us was here covering that, just for the record. None of us. None of us. Thank you all. Thank you for joining Inside Politics. CNN News Central starts after a quick break.

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