When you hear the top man who's the top negotiator calling him a humanitarian and saying he salutes him for that, were you surprised?

Sickened and surprised.

I think it will go down like Chamberlain's promising peace in our time or the praise for Stalin is one of the most famous misspoken comments of all time.

After all, what he did to Stephen Hubbard was to torture, starve, freeze him in a penal colony designed for everyday prisoners.

He is enabling Iran to target our troops and potentially kill them in the Middle East with intelligence sharing about their locations and providing fiber optic technology.

And Steve Witkoff ought to talk to the 30,000 children who've been kidnapped by Putin, the people who've been shot and killed.

I traveled to Bucha in one of my 11 trips to Ukraine and saw the mass graves there that, in effect, were the result of Putin's slaughtering Ukrainians, which he's doing right now by pummeling them with missiles and drones.

Do you think this is part of a plan by the Trump administration or desire by the Trump administration to, you know, to force Zelensky to some

Tell us what the message is from President Zelensky.

The message from President Zelensky is that Ukrainians are determined to fight.

He was fiery and passionate, as he should be, and at the same time, so deeply saddened by the bloodshed, the casualties, the deaths that they are seeing in real time.

And to go back to some of the commentary a little bit earlier that you played, I visited Bucha on my first trip to Ukraine, and I saw the mass grave where innocent civilians shot in the back of their head at the implicit direction of Vladimir Putin were buried.

And I went back on my 11th trip, and I saw the memorial visiting with the priest of the church nearby and the townspeople.

The Ukrainians know that Putin is no humanitarian.

He is a torturer.

Can you tell us what can be done in terms of Senate oversight or investigation into slowing down or throttling Starlink, which led directly to the death of Ukrainian civilians?

How do you react to that?

I want to hear from President Zelensky whether it has been restored and his defense chief.

The Trump administration claimed that there was no interruption and it's been forced to concede that, in fact, it was degraded for a period of time.

People should understand.

Garrett, what the intelligence sharing means.

And I've been to Ukraine 11 times.

I've been there when the sirens sound and people have to go to bunkers and shelters.

Isn't that something America's getting, even though it would rather not from this prolonged conflict?

Based on the president's actions and rhetoric, do you think the U.S. is still behind Ukraine in the war that Russia waged four years and seven months ago?

That's the question that President Zelensky is asking, and what we said today to him Members of Congress, I convened this meeting, asked President Zelensky to join us, to express to him our determination to continue to stand with Ukraine.

The vote on the Russia sanctions bill was an overwhelming 86 to 11, bipartisan in the Senate, likewise in the House.

The American people are with Ukraine.

The president is contradicting the will of the American people who want to stand with Ukraine and who want the Starlink service to be continued despite its continued disruption by the Trump administration.

They want that warning from shared intelligence to prevent the kind of missile and drone attacks that cause children to be killed atrociously, heinously, deliberately by Putin.

And that's the reason that I think that the moral will of the American people still is with Ukraine.

If they're not getting these weapons or sufficient technology, never mind the reports of the lack of intel, Sharon, which you heard the president deny, How much longer can Ukraine keep fighting this war?

Explain what he said.

Ukrainian civilians are going to die because the... barring or degrading of access to this Starlink communication systems means that, The Ukrainians cannot take down drones traveling more than 100 miles an hour, which means most drones that are killing civilians in Ukraine.

And equally alarming and absolutely abhorrent is the interruption in intelligence sharing with regard to warnings about missiles.

Our intelligence can give the Ukrainians and frankly, our own personnel, their warnings about missiles when they are launched so that the the minutes literally their only minutes can be used for civilians to go to bunkers.

So it leaves them kind of defenseless against the drones and the missiles that are destroying homes, hospitals and their energy grid, but also killing tens of innocent women, children, families.

What do you think that relationship is?

You know, I'm the last person in the world to try to get inside Donald Trump's head.

And there have been a variety of guesses, whether it's that Trump wants to enrich himself yet again by building a hotel or something else in Moscow after his presidency end, or maybe Vladimir Putin has something on Trump, or maybe it's simply Trump's adulation for strong men, whether it's Xi or Orban or Putin or other tyrants around the world, I am only speculating.

He used a different word.

Correct.

And there is no way of my imitating or really replicating Lindsey Graham.

Nobody can fill his shoes, but I really want to.

pay tribute to Darlene, who stepped forward in a time of pain and grief to keep Lindsay's vision alive.

And truly, Lindsay's spirit is with us today.

And I don't know what he's drinking up there, but I promise you, it's something good.

Yeah, yeah.

Senator, what was your takeaway from former special counsel Jack Smith's testimony today?

He was very direct, factual, low-key, as you could tell from those answers that you played.

He was going through the facts, the evidence, the law that led him to indict Donald Trump for obstruction of justice and for inciting the riot on January 6th.

that caused more than 140 Capitol Police officers to be assaulted and almost the counting of the vote to be stopped, the peaceful transition of power to be halted.

And on the other hand, as you also saw from some of the name-calling there, it was kind of a new low in demagoguery and incivility.

Recalling some of the great moments in that very room, senators earning the respect and dignity that is accorded to the United States Senate.

This kind of hearing was very much in contrast.

Would you support that bill?

Is that the type of break you envisioned? Is that Subtle? Too subtle? Not subtle enough? What do you think of what they're saying?

The break needs to happen on the floor of the Senate when they vote.

We've seen this movie before, and it ends with capitulation by Senate Republicans.

I'll believe it when I see it when the votes are counted.

this becomes the status quo?

Democracy is gone.

It becomes an autocracy when the President of the United States can simply say, "I am the law," which is what he is saying, in effect, in that statement.

But he's also saying that he's gotta build the arc with munitions and drones and snipers because of national security.

He's trying to clothe illegality in this national security blunderbuss broad statement, which is the way to autocracy.

And I think the courts have to stop him, and the courts have insisted on the law when it comes to elections, they need to do it now.

And my prediction is the courts will do it on the challenge fromMSNow, CNN, and Politico on this issue, just as they did with Jim Acosta.

Mm-hmm

Why would Congress or the government know more about how to control the safety issues here than the companies themselves, Senator?

It isn't a question of who knows more, it's a question of who has an interest in protecting all of us ordinary everyday people in the world from the potential dangers of AI.

We are becoming more and more aware of what those dangers are, but in fact, We started having hearings three years ago, Senator Hawley, Republican of Missouri, and myself, with Sam Altman, hardly a household word at the time, and all of the other AI leaders who said then, we need some oversight, standards, government scrutiny.

And analogously to the FDA, which regulates pharmaceutical drugs and medical devices, Those are well-established, mature companies, but we've decided that there ought to be review for whether or not these products are safe and effective.

Not a slowdown, not a pause, not excessive government intrusion, but simply expertise and experience through a group of scientists that decide whether or not these kinds of drugs or medical devices ought to be put on the market.

Same idea here.

Before these products, new technology, are deployed, there ought to be some objective review.

Do you have an idea of what capabilities basically would become dangerous enough that the model shouldn't be able to be released?

But that does seem to me one of the main points the whistleblower made is that when you're enjoined, you're enjoined.

It is one of the main points.

And the attorneys general make that point in the lawsuit that they have filed.

And first and foremost, Chris, I want to give a lot of credit to this whistleblower because it takes guts to come forward and to whistleblower aid people.

that is representing him.

And what he reveals is not only that the White House is breaking the law overtly, but for the first time, using the Postal Service as an online gatekeeper with a system that screens those ballots and then in effect disqualifies individual ballots based on some discrepancy, the name, the barcode, any tiny discrepancy and the whole batch is thrown back to state officials.

Now, the interesting thing and the outrageous part of it is that this online system is constructed in a way that is designed to fail.

Yeah, when they get to the merits in like June of 2020, you know, seven.

What specifically did you see in that report that concerned you?

I was really shocked by the incompetence in establishing this portal.

This system seems designed to fail.

which is consistent with the president's dislike of mail-in balloting, but it is also illegal, unconstitutional, and unconscionable.

The portal has two main problems.

One, it is rushed, mismanaged, and sloppy, and completely untested.

And second, it has a 0% failure rate that puts Americans' rights to vote at risk.

Senator, is that your understanding?

What can you tell us about the situation there?

This trip was exhilarating because Ukraine is clearly making progress.

It's turning the tide.

But it was also heartbreaking to see the toll that this war is taking.

The latest attack is only one of every night's bombardment of hospitals, homes, schools.

Putin is killing Ukrainians in cold blood with his missiles and bombs.

And I went to Dnipro, where I visited a military hospital where the most seriously wounded from the front were brought.

Have you been briefed on this? What should we expect in the coming months?

Uh, just fill us in on your meeting, if you would, with President Zelensky, how he feels the war is going at this crucial stage, and what more he needs from the United States.

Uh, President Zelensky rightly feels that Ukraine is turning the tide, and there's a through line to my 11 trips to Ukraine, which is the grit and guts of President Zelensky, but also of his people.

You know, I visited the military hospital near the border.

Uh, the fight that's ongoing in Dnipro, I was the first member of Congress allowed to go there since the beginning of the war, and that military hospital shows the face of courage and strength that President Zelensky echoed in what he said to me.

He needs three priorities: the Russia sanctions bill- Air defense because his people have been slaughtered by Putin's missiles and drones that are attacking civilian targets, not military, and he needs Starlink to target even deeper within Russia the sources of those missiles and drones, the manufacturing plants and the launch pads.

And I said to him I would take those three priorities, most especially the Russia sanctions bill because it passed the Senate by an 86 to 11 vote, completely bipartisan after painstaking negotiations over several years by Senator Graham and myself with the White House, the US trade representative, colleagues in Congress.

And we are now at the cusp of passing it in the House, and it will make such a difference between...

Um, what is the latest understanding about where we are in terms of our weapons stock? And I guess for people like me who, who don't really quite understand how you, how you go about replenishing it, what is the timeframe for getting it back up to a, a supply, uh, that would be satisfactory for you?

Senator, we're gonna talk about the, uh, Abraham Lincoln in a moment, but first, I wanna get your reaction to Trump's new approach to stop all conversations with Iran and strangle them over time.

We've heard for some time these reports that he might try to disengage from diplomacy.

I think it's another indication that he has reached a strategic dead end.

He has involved this nation in a seemingly endless, costly war, just as the Abraham Lincoln is on an endless, seemingly indefinite deployment with no plan for exit.

And the idea that he will strangle Iran seems pretty magical thinking because right now the costs of this war in everything from gas to groceries are affecting the world and the United States, maybe more than Iran.

So he's playing a dangerous game of chicken.

Have you gotten any response?

response?No response, unless you count the president saying they should have been deployed longer.

Do you consider that statement, Senator, at least a concession that the military is acknowledging there are issues to be dealt with here?

I wish they were more explicit in acknowledging that there are issues, but it is a beginning.

I consider it in some ways disrespectful to fail to face absolutely candidly the fact that conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln are abhorrent, lack of clean water and sufficient nutritious food, but also the mental strain and stress and anxiety that is produced by being at sea without a port call for a record continuous time and the prospect of no immediate relief.

Yes, the USS George Washington is supposedly on its way, but the time of its arrival is indefinite and they are dealing with a ship that itself is in need of maintenance and repairs in many respects.

So I think it's a kind of roundabout acknowledgement that they need to face facts here and I hope that they do.

How do you regard that?

The press has really been a tremendous asset here.

It has contributed to our understanding about what's happening on the Abraham Lincoln.

I just first wanna start with, what is your reaction from what you just heard from the father of a sailor aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln?

Uh, thanks for having me.

You know, it is a truism that we repeat on the Armed Services Committee, I've been a member for 15 years, that our military is the greatest and strongest in the world because of the men and women who serve and sacrifice.

They raise their right hand, and they know they're gonna encounter hardships, but they believe truly in the Pentagon's obligation to minimize those hardships, not increase them.

And what we see right now is, in fact, a, a lack of sufficient supplies, basic necessities like toothpaste, soap, clean water, and even food.

That is a betrayal of trust by the top officials in our Department of Defense.

And I call on the Secretary of Defense, he Calls himself the Secretary of War, to pay attention and do your job.

Uh, these things happen." I wonder what you say to that.

Mm

... which is reflected in that sailor going overboard.

But anyone who's familiar with how an aircraft carrier operates knows that these jobs are highly stressful, requiring stamina as these fighter jets land on An area that looks like a postage stamp as they begin their descent.

And these sailors, whether they are on the deck or below doing mechanics or at the surveillance systems fending off possible attacks, are all under tremendous stress and doing work that can be highly dangerous if they are either distracted or demoralized.

So it's a real strategic issue.

And remember also that there are reports now that the USS Washington is on its way to replace or relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln, finally, after a record of 200-plus days without even a port call, without setting foot on ground.

Well, the USS Washington is being taken away from its forward position in the Far East.

I mean, h- how is what's happening on the ship affecting America's readiness in the war, America's ability to conduct this war?

Uh, do you believe that this is unprecedented?

It is unprecedented, and it is surreal, as Dan has just said, but it's also downright scary.

This war has made the world less safe.

It's made the president less safe.

It's made our troops on bases in the region and around the world less safe.

It's made the Persian Gulf allies and partners less safe.

And it, we need to end the war, and we need to know more probably about this threat, as Barbara Starr has said.

Once this goes into place, how much of a difference do you think it's going to make?

Why would the Department of Justice do that? Do you see that as, say, a dry run for November? And then on top of that, how concerned are you that not only would the Trump administration send election monitors around the country in November, but that they also would send ICE agents to polling places around the country in November?

I'm deeply concerned that the message of sending those monitors to Lansing and Detroit and other cities in Michigan was essentially we're watching.

The message is we have monitoring.

monitors on the ground, even if they're unobtrusive and silent in this primary, they could be there actively intervening in some future primary.

And you're absolutely right.

They have to be seen as part of a pattern of efforts to assault free and fair elections and, in fact, suppress the vote.

The president of the United States issued an executive order in March saying that the United States Postal Service could not transmit or deliver information mail-in ballots if the names were not on the Postal Service's own list of eligible voters.

I'm wondering what you feel has been the impetus for Republicans to hop back on the pro-Ukraine wagon after a stretch of a lack of support for Ukrainian allies.

Senator, uh, what is your reaction to what you just heard from Bill Cassidy today, the reasoning that he laid out, a- and basically how he got to yes, even an un- unenthusiastic one?

Deep disappointment because this vote is so cravenly wrong for the country, as well as ultimately, I think, for Senator Cassidy.

I think it will go down as one of his graver mistakes, and not surprising because I have predicted all along that Republicans would support Blanche in spite of his being unfit and his being more loyal to the president than to the Constitution or to the country.

And so I am really disappointed, but not surprised.

I mean, is there a recognition of that? And, and if there is or there isn't, do you as Democrats think that there is any future moment where these Republicans will vote any differently, or does it not matter? Do the political stakes that they no longer have to be beholden to not change the underlying fact that they are just still Republicans?

Republicans?As I said when I was asked repeatedly what Republicans would do on this vote, I've seen this movie before.

We all have.

And unfortunately, it has ended this way before.

But ultimately, the answer to Republicans' lack of spine will be at the ballot box.

Senator Cassidy was defeated because Donald Trump opposed him in the primary, and you would think he'd be liberated by, in effect, having nothing left to lose.

That's is part of why I'm so deeply disappointed, because this vote could have been a matter of conscience and conviction.

You can put it on the floor now." I understand the diplomatic reasons that that was done, but when you talk to the Ukrainians and when you and Senator Graham were having conversations with people like Zelensky, how much time a- and leverage was lost because this bill was waited on? I recognize what you're saying about the impact it'll have now, but it could have had that impact a year ago.

What are your concerns?

My concerns are just as Cornyn and Tillis are saying, that this unconscionable, unacceptable, corrupt deal is there.

Todd Blanche says it's dead, but he won't put it in writing, and really, the obstacle here is the President, who stands to benefit from the deal.

The slush fund, I call it the thug fund, and more importantly, a tax immunity deal that is worth about $100 million to him personally.

So the question for everyone is, will the President forgo a $100 million tax immunity deal so as to confirm Todd Blanche as attorney general? But I also object to Todd Blanche because I think he's unfit.

He will be the President's lawyer, his personal advocate, his consigliere.

He's demonstrated that he will enable the crypto corruption, the vanity and vengeance projects, all of what Donald Trump is doing contrary to the law.

What do you think?

Uh, please tell us what's next and whether President Trump, you know, who has been war- has been warmer to this r- of late, whether you think he'll go for it.

I think he will go for it because one of, uh, uh, uh, Senator Graham's last shining accomplishments was in effect to persuade President Trump that it is in his interest and our national interest to support Ukraine by imposing these crushing sanctions and tariffs on purchases of Russian oil and gas, because they are fueling Russia's war machine.

You know, yesterday was a real emotional rollercoaster.

The sadness of That funeral service, saying farewell to our friend, Lindsey Graham.

But then the exhilaration of the Senate chambers vote with President Zelensky in the gallery.

What's next is that we will move on to the stages of approval that are required under the Senate procedures over the next few days, I hope, because we have such a solid coalition, a bipartisan majority, that is a tribute not only to Senator Graham, but really to the Ukrainian people because they have accomplished miraculous success on the battlefield, in developing new technology.

And President Zelensky, in the closed-door meeting we had with him before that vote, all of the senators were invited, and many of them, the majority attended, said to us, "We need this bill.

What can you tell us as to whether, what the administration might be willing to provide?

Where do you think the war is headed in the next couple months?

There's likely to be more kinetic action in the eastern part of Ukraine, largely stalled, but Ukraine, for the first time in a long time, is actually net gaining territory.

It's taking back territory in the east through the expert use of its aerial warfare, its advanced technology, which, by the way, is ahead of the whole world.

We should be learning from Ukraine, building manufacturing drones jointly with them, enabling them to have licensing agreements to build the anti-missile technology that they le- need.

But I think it was also very r- reassuring to President Zelenskyy on a, on a very personal level to see the system in the United States actually working.

Republicans and Democrats coming together in a powerful coalition to support his nation.

And I think that gave a great boost to his morale, and it's gonna be good, I think he said very explicitly, for morale on the part of the Ukrainian people as well.

What do you think the likelihood is of Todd Blanche getting through the Judiciary Committee?