he does seem to be taking pages right out of the arizona playbook. in arizona, the republican state senate leader used her subpoena power to force the board of elections to turn over ballots. this pennsylvania state senator also runs a committee that theoretically has subpoena power. in arizona, the state senate fronted $150,000 to pay for their so-called audit. the rest of the funding for it is coming from sources that nobody involved will disclose. this pennsylvania state senator is also trying to secure funding for an audit and has sought advice from a law firm about how to go about using money from a private non-profit organization to pay for vendors, consultants and anyone else. in arizona, all the republicans involved in the so-called audit have been claiming that it's not about overturning the 2020 election. it's about restoring integrity to the state's elections. right on cue in pennsylvania, a law firm tapped by the republican state senator said in a letter that the purpose of such an audit would be to -- hope you are sitting down -- develop

in phoenix, arizona. this is thursday last week, it was 112 degrees in phoenix that day. ♪ can't take it no more ♪ ♪ we're fired up ♪ ♪ we're fired up ♪ ♪ can't take it no more ♪ >> fired up, can't take it no more. 112 degrees that day in phoenix. not counting the radiant heat off the tarmac there. that was outside the office of arizona's republican attorney general, mark burn avich. those folks were protesting outside his office because of his role in promoting and defending new voting rights restrictions in arizona, including all the way up to the united states supreme court. also, arizona's new rules about how the state's elections will be conducted in the future, new rules explicitly designed to make sure officials from the democratic party can't play a top role in election administration in arizona anymore, only republicans will be allowed to do that from here on out. of those folks protesting outside attorney general's office in arizona, nine were arrested. it wasn't -- they weren't

today, arizona republicans who are doing their so-called audit in arizona, they gave a briefing on their progress. only two republican senators were there, but they tried to call it a hearing. this was -- this audit that they're doing in arizona, they launched it in april. they said it would take three weeks. it's, of course, now mid-july, and they're still going strong. they made clear today that they're definitely finding all of the fraud they have been fantasizing about, but it's definitely going to take lots more investigation, lots more materials, probably lots more donations from trump supporters nationwide. it looks like they will subpoena more stuff from the county, maricopa county, where they got all these ballots from. the way they were talking about it today, it sounds like they think they have weeks to go, maybe months still to go. it's such a big complex investigation. there's no sign actually that there was anything wrong with the presidential vote in arizona. nothing. there's no sign that there was anything wrong with it. at all. and i'm saying that not just like, because

"the arizona republic" reports tonight that one of the republican state senators in arizona who's been promoting the audit thing in arizona all along, he's now selling t-shirts promoting his cause. the cost of his t-shirts, it's a sliding scale by size. they're $35 to $45 for a t-shirt. wow, order yours today. it's $35 for a small or $45 for a double extra large, which frankly just seems rude. the "washington post" reports tonight former president trump seemed to have found a tidy path through the wreckage to pay his living expenses via this nonsense he continues to stoke. the headline in "the post" tonight, quote trump's pac collected $75 million this year, but so far the group has not put money into pushing for the 2020 tally he touts. it raised about $75 million the first half of this year as he trumpeted the false notion the 2020 election was stolen from him. but the pac has not devoted funds to help finance or push for similar endeavors in other states, according to people familiar with the finances. instead the save america leadership pac, which has few limits on how it can spend

ultimately apparently the texas democrats felt like that might be too risky going to arizona or west virginia, given that both of those states have republican governors. they worried those red state governors might somehow help texas republicans force the democrats back into texas to reestablish the quorum. that is the drama we're dealing with and why the texas democrats are in washington tonight. the planes have just landed in the past hour. they're not only trying to throw a wrench in the works on trying to stop this voter suppression bill from passing in texas but picked d.c. ultimately not as a purely symbolic thing but because they r begging for a federal response here. they are begging for a federal back stop to voting rights that would stop a state like texas or any other republican controlled state from being able to pass voting right restrictions like the ones these texas democrats are staring down the barrel at right now. joining us now on face time from a bus with his democratic colleagues in a parking lot at dulles airport just outside of d.c. and way outside the great st

maricopa county, arizona. the one being run by the cyber ninjas' guy, who is a qanon stop the steal conspiracy theorist. where they have been running through ballots. they have been taking the the ballots and running them under ultra violet light looking for bamboo fibers because maybe the ballots were secretly sent to america from east asia. today, the guy who's been overseeing the audit for the arizona republicans quit. after being locked out. i'm -- that's not a -- i mean, he was actually, physically, locked out of the building where the audit has been taking place. well, that was this morning. he quit. and then, later today, he unquit. so, that's going well. the whole arizona audit circus was supposed to last a few weeks. we are now four months in. the arizona senate republicans, just this week, sent a whole new batch of subpoenas to maricopa county for more stuff that they want to look at. they are just going to keep on looking. this thing is going to go on forever, so that donald trump and his allies can

it's still in full swing in arizona. we're expecting them to announce their supposedly scandalous results sometime soon. republicans even now are moving to also do it in wisconsin, also in pennsylvania, also in georgia. even also in oklahoma where trump won anyway by almost 30 points but they're also must of been democratic fraud. and his remarks today, president biden turned toward voting rights advocates have been getting desperate to hear from him. a full-throated call to acts and protect voting rights nationally in washington, which is the only way to stop the state by state devastating attacks on voting rights that republicans are not pursuing all across the country. watch. >> last month, republicans opposed even debating, even considering the for the peoples act. they stand united to protect the sanctity of the vote. we must pass before the people act. it's a national imperative. we must also fight the john lewis voting rights advancement act to restore and expand. restore and expand voting and prevent voter suppre

as their safe harbor, they regionally planned on setting up camp in arizona, where west virginia. why those two places? because those are the home states of two conservative democratic senators, kirsten sinema and joe manchin who's in who's hands the fate of a national voting rights bill, effectively sits. texas democrats hoped that might pressure those two u.s. senators to change their mind about to passing voting rights at the federal level, because without federal protections, texas republicans are going to do what they are going to do here. ultimately, the texas democrats felt that would be too risky going to arizona or west virginia, given that both those states have republican governors. they were those red state governors might somehow tell -- help republicans in reestablish the quorum. that's the kind of drama we are dealing with here. more than 50 democrats from the texas house are now in washington d.c. tonight. the flights from austin to d.c. carrying those democrats just have landed in the past hour. there are not only trying to throw a wrench in the works, trying to s

in arizona and florida they'll be kicking people off the absentee voting list, in arizona, iowa, florida kentucky utah they'll be expanding voter purges, kicking people off the voter rolls entirely. in florida, arkansas, new hampshire in wyoming there is harsher, stricter narrow voter i.d. requirements. and yes, in florida and georgia they're banning water or any food or snacks for anyone in line no matter how long the line gets, no matter how hot it is that the, no matter how old the waiting voter is. 18 different states, 30 different voter restrictions law and counting, those are past, those are laws. and the effort to find a way to stop it, to try to put a floor under voting rights nationwide so no state can restrict voting rights below that nationwide floor to hold them up, that fight still hinges on the for the people act, which has passed the house and it's stuck in the senate, is still stuck in the senate because of uniform republican opposition to it and the hope the republicans are getting in that effort from democratic senator joe manchin. as we've been reporting for the past c

the whole arizona audit circus was meant to last a few weeks, we are now four months. in the senators say that the new batch of subpoenas that -- they're just gonna keep on looking. this thing is gonna go on forever so that donald trump and his allies can keep pointing to it and say proof of all the fraud is coming, it's just around the corner. and it's spreading. in wisconsin, the republican chair of the assembly elections committee is gathering up for her own arizona audit. she doesn't just won a forensic audit, she wants a cyber forensic audit. we don't know what that is but i'm sure that it is much fancier than the regular audit. this is how a wisconsin we republican made a pilgrimage -- this is on top of the investigation initiated by the republican speaker of the wisconsin assembly who wired some ex cops to dig into the 2020 election results for him under the watchful supervision of a republican former wisconsin supreme court justice who became a stop the steal activist after the election. and there's also the audit of ballots in, wisconsin being carried out by a

this is the headline from the arizona republic today. quote, arizona representatives andy biggs and paul gosar votes to abandon afghan allies. what follows is a scathing editorial indicting these two congressman for being part of a small group of 16 republicans who voted against an overwhelmingly bipartisan bill to try to expedite the process and forgetting afghan translator to help u.s. forces day safety as america ends its longest war. quote, when the u.s. pulled out of vietnam, there were unfortunate, sometimes tragic repercussions for some of the vietnamese who assisted our troops. the idea of the house bill was to not let that happen again. to appreciate loyalty to. demonstrate empathy. to emphasize humanity. the bill before the most unmistakably and indisputably good. in voting, no, congressman gosar and biggs prove themselves to be unmistakably and indisputably the opposite. gosar and biggs are not the only republicans facing bash slash for voting against helping the translators. the veterans group released this ad targeting two d

today dozens were arrested in arizona for doing the same thing. i'll give you a few guesses as to whose office that took placeout side of. the answer when we come back. acf the answer when we come back . we recognize that energy demand is growing, and the world needs lower carbon solutions to keep up. at chevron, we're working to find new ways forward, like through our venture capital group. backing technologies like electric vehicle charging, carbon capture and even nuclear fusion. we may not know just what lies ahead, but it's only human... to search for it. this is the greatest idea you'll ever hear. okay, it's an app that compares hundreds of travel sites for hotels and cars and vacation rentals like kayak does for flights. so it's kayak. yeah, like kayak. why don't you just call it kayak. i'm calling it... canoe. compare hundreds of travel sites for thousands of trips. kayak. search one and done. i've never slept like this before. we gave new zzzquil pure zzzs restorative herbal sleep compare hundreds of travel sites for thousands of trips. t

today dozens were arrested in arizona for doing the same thing. i'll give you a few guesses as to whose office that took place outside of. the answer when we come back. ugh, these balls are moist. or is that the damp weight of self-awareness you now hold in your hands? yeah (laugh) keep your downstairs dry with gold bond body powder. keep your downstairs dry for bathroom odors that linger try febreze small spaces. just press firmly and it continuously eliminates odors in the air and on soft surfaces. for 45 days. >>> the for the people campaign is ramping up. it held 27 rallies in cities across the country. if phoenix, william barber and jesse jackson held a real rally to put pressure on kyrsten sinema's office. they held a march where they held a sit-in, blocking the entrance as they sang "this little light of mine." both civil rights leaders were arrested at the sit-in. barber posted this photo of him in zip ties with the caption "we've got to get these shackles off our democracy." and senator sinema's spokesman said there could be stricter voti

arizona senator kirsten sinema who was credited by the bipartisan group for bringing the deal together, anchored some in her party when she said that the three point million dollar price tag being floated for the larger reconciliation bill of -- which united a strong support from them, alexandra ocasio-cortez quoted good luck thanking your own party's investment on trial care, climate action and infrastructure while presuming you'll survive a three-vote house margin especially after choosing to exclude members of color from negotiations and calling that bipartisan accomplishment. joining us is -- of the caucus she will have a big role in deciding what kind of infrastructure deal can pass the house. thank you for joining us this evening. >> great to see you, ali. let's talk about your hesitation on this bill. has got to do with anything that's on the bill we don't know exactly what's in the bipartisan bill or is it all about not trimming staff off of the other bill you are more focused on. >> we don't know what's in the bipartisan bill so, we have to see it. we have to make sure we agre

arizona senator kyrsten sinema, who was credited by the bipartisan group for bringing the deal together, angered some in her party when she said that the $3.5 trillion pricetag being floated for that larger reconciliation deal is too high. she doesn't support it. which ignited a strong response from house progressives. democraticic representative alexandria ocasio-cortez tweeted "good luck tanking your own party's investment in child care, climate action, and infrastructure while presuming you're survive a 3 vote house margin especially after choosing to exclude members of color from negotiations and calling that a bipartisan accomplishment. pramila jay apal also let it be known she and her colleagues are not going to vote for the bipartisan deal unless their priorities are sufficiently funded in the reconciliation deal. joining us is washington congress qom pramila jayapal chairman of the caucus which will have a big role in deciding what kind of deal can pass the house. thank you for seeing you this evening. >> great to see you. >> let's talk about your hesitation about this bill. has

. -- >> there's also this, which we found today on the telegram channel promoting the cause of an arizona-style election audit in michigan. there. apparently going to hold an event in michigan where you can learn all about the confirmed existence of systematic election fraud in michigan. you can learn all about why they need to have a forensic audite a forensic audi cough up 20 bucks to get in the door. we tried contacting the organizers today to find out where that 20 bucks goes, if you in fact decide to hand over your hard earned money to attend the michigan fraud fest. so far, we have not heard back from them, but we'll keep trying. one other thing to watch or though, it's going to happen early monday morning. because it's not just grift-y potential fraud suspects in michigan who have been pushing the false election fraud claims in michigan. in late november, trump attorneys sydney powell and three other lawyers, filed a federal lawsuit in michigan trying to push many of the same claims. many of the lawsuit try to force the state of michigan into aborting its electoral votes to trump, even t

there is also this, which we found today on the telegram channel promoting the cause of an arizona-style election audit in michigan. they are apparently holding an event in michigan two weeks from now where you can learn about the confirmed existence of election fraud, why they need a forensic audit there. learn all about it off you cough up 20 bucks to get in the door. we tried contacting the organizers to find out where that 220 bucks goes if you decide to hand over your hand earned money to attend the michigan fraud fest. we have not heard back from them. we will keep trying. another thing to watch is happening early monday morning because it's not just grifty potential fraud suspects in michigan who have been pushing the false election fraud claims in michigan. in late november trump attorney sydney powell and three other lawyers filed a federal lawsuit in michigan trying to push these same claims. the lawsuit tried to force the state of michigan into awarding its electoral votes to trump even though biden won the election. the federal judge hearing that case in late november not onl