The Lead with Jake Tapper

The Biden administration vows the U.S. shall respond after a drone attack killed three U.S. service members in Jordan. Plus, Israel spells out the actions of 13 United Nations aid workers accused of participating in the October 7th terrorist attacks including kidnapping Israelis. We examine what the allegations mean for this major relief group still operating in Gaza. Learn more about your ad choi...

A jury said that Donald Trump should pay $83.3 million in damages. The verdict was the second time over the past year that a jury has awarded E. Jean Carroll millions of dollars in damages from Trump for his defamatory statements disparaging her and denying her rape allegations. Donald Trump's legal team said they will "immediately appeal" the verdict.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podc...

A bipartisan Senate border deal is at risk of death with Donald Trump urging senate Republicans to kill it so he can use the border as a central campaign issue against Joe Biden. Also, CNN is on the ground in the streets of Ecuador where gang violence plagues the country. This month gunman took over a TV station. Also, what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu allegedly said on a hot mic that...

Nikki Haley gets ready to make her new pitch in South Carolina about why she believes she should stay in the race despite losses in both Iowa and New Hampshire. Plus, a big endorsement for President Biden today as his campaign sees 2024 closing in on a two-man race between Biden and Donald Trump. Also, Russia accuses Ukraine of shooting down a military plane, allegedly killing all 74 on board.  Le...

Dean Phillips, Democratic congressman of Minnesota, joins to discuss what a successful result in the New Hampshire primary would look like and the importance of a large Democrat field of candidates. Plus, Donald Trump and Nikki Haley face off in New Hampshire tomorrow. CNN's John King asks Trump loyalists why they're so eager to vote for him again in 2024.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Senator Tim Scott is expected to endorse Donald Trump, even though Nikki Haley appointed him to the Senate. Four days before the all important New Hampshire primary, will his pick make a difference? Plus, President Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu spoke for the first time in nearly a month as Netanyahu openly rejects the U.S.-backed plan for the future of Gaza and the Palestinian people and the possib...

The Justice Department is out with its new Uvalde report and some families of victims killed that day speak out about the long list of failures the attorney general is calling out. Plus, a look at Donald Trump's latest immunity defense that presidents can do anything even when they cross the line. Also, Israel’s disturbing find in Gaza during a search mission to find hostages.  Learn more about yo...

We look at Donald Trump’s outburst in court when the woman who the court concluded he of sexually abused and defamed took the stand. Also, at the White House, President Biden met with leaders of the House and Senate as Senate Republicans urged House Republicans to take a deal on immigration and the border. Plus, a look at how often it is that students who are the ones preventing planned classroom...

After a blowout victory for Trump in Iowa, New Hampshire is next as Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley vow to stay in the fight. We go inside their campaigns to learn their battle plans after Vivek Ramaswamy and Asa Hutchinson suspend their campaigns. Plus, a new round of strikes on the Iranian-backed Houthi’s in Yemen.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tonight’s The Lead showcast has been pre-empted for coverage of the Iowa caucuses. For recent news updates, be sure to visit CNN’s ‘5 Things’ at: https://edition.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/5-things Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Iran backed Houthi forces vow revenge after the U.S. and U.K. strike against them in Yemen. Will President Biden be ready for what may be next? Also, the chief spokesman for the Red Cross joins to discuss the organization's role in the Israel-Hamas conflict. Plus, will snow and subzero temperatures impact turnout for the Iowa caucuses? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adc...

The World Health Organization recently said it cancelled six planned missions to northern Gaza because requests for safe passage were rejected. This as hunger and disease grip Gaza on the 100th day of the war. Also, Donald Trump gets a second chance, being allowed to speak in the closing arguments at his civil fraud trial. We examine what he said and why the judge shut it down. Plus, one day after...

Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis face off in a debate tonight, just five days before the Iowa caucuses. Can either win over the Trump vote or is this a fight for second place? Plus, Hunter Biden shows up unexpectedly on Capitol Hill, crashing a hearing on holding him in contempt of Congress. Also, a judge says not so fast to Donald Trump taking the stand.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podca...

Donald Trump has a day in court and his legal team argues that the former president cannot be prosecuted even if his actions were criminal. Plus, with six days before the crucial contest in Iowa, a new CNN poll from another key early primary state shows a candidate gaining ground on the GOP frontrunner. Also, the defense secretary has been treated for prostate cancer. The Pentagon has been pressed...

A crucial week before the caucuses in Iowa and Trump is not there, instead preparing for court. He is falsely calling the January 6th criminals "hostages." This as Michelle Obama says she is “terrified" about what 2024 election results will bring. Plus, a CNN correspondent is embedded with a group migrants trying to get across the U.S. border from Mexico. Also, a missing door found in an Oregon ba...

The US Supreme Court said Friday it will review the Colorado Supreme Court’s unprecedented decision removing former President Donald Trump from that state’s ballot. This as Trump is back in Iowa expected to speak at a live event ahead of the Iowa caucuses. Plus, a new batch of documents related to convicted dead pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has just been released. Also, subject of TV dramas for years...

A 17-year-old gunman killed a sixth grade student and wounded five other people Thursday at Perry High School near Des Moines, Iowa, authorities said. The gunman, who died of a self-inflicted wound, was armed with a pump-action shotgun and a small caliber handgun. Also, we look at key takeaways from the latest trove of unsealed documents from a lawsuit related to Jeffrey Epstein. Plus, ISIS is cla...

The White House is lambasting members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet. Specifically, two right-wing extremists whom critics say are calling for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza leaving some in the Biden administration to wonder if Netanyahu will have to choose between Biden and extremists in Netanyahu's government. Plus, in his first CNN interview since becoming House speaker, M...

Dr. Claudine Gay is stepping down as the president of Harvard University. Was it the poorly received congressional testimony about antisemitism on campus or the mounting accusations of plagiarism? Plus, a deadly airport runway inferno in Tokyo after two planes collide. Also, a senior leader of Hamas was assassinated in an explosion in Beirut. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices....

Russia launches its biggest air attack on Ukraine, unleashing unprecedented missiles and drones across the country with schools, factories, warehouses, and hospitals hit in one of the largest air assaults of this war. Plus, President Trump has been removed from the 2024 primary ballot again, this time in Maine. We examine how his rivals are responding. Plus, a rogue wave is causing chaos in Califo...

We have a brand-new CNN report revealing how Trump operatives flew fake elector ballots to D.C. in a last-ditch effort to overturn the 2020 election. We bring you those details and audiotapes detailing their plot. Also, Nikki Haley is under scrutiny over controversial comments she made on the campaign trail. Plus, the house where four University of Idaho students were murdered was demolished just...

Senior U.S. officials are urging their Mexican counterparts to do a lot more to drive down the number of border encounters. These meetings come as a record number of migrants is overwhelming both sides of the border. Plus, the latest development in another attempt to keep Trump’s name off a state primary ballot next year. Also, a look at why Americans are spending so confidently and yet don’t beli...

A top Israeli official is meeting with the White House over Israel's war over Hamas as the administration asks Israel to scale back the war strategy. Also, a new caravan of thousands of migrants is headed to the U.S. border from southern Mexico one day before Secretary of State Antony Blinken heads to Mexico City in an effort to deal with the crisis. Plus, if you're planning to return an unwanted...

The Supreme Court rejected a request by special counsel Jack Smith to fast-track arguments on whether Trump has any immunity from federal prosecution for alleged crimes he committed while in office. The court did not explain its reasoning and there were no noted dissents. Plus, an unprecedented number of immigrants are coming across the border as Biden makes an urgent call to Mexico to help manage...

Terrifying scenes in the Czech Republic after a gunman's deadly rampage, killing his father and then targeting a school. What we are learning at this hour about this rare type of attack for Europe. Plus, all eyes are on the U.S. Supreme Court as special counsel Jack Smith pushes back today against team Trump. Will the justices weigh in on whether or not Trump has immunity before Christmas? First,...