Good morning. It is Saturday, November the 4th. I'm Ali Velshi. We begin this morning

with a split-screen image that perfectly represents this moment of American politics, with democracy

hanging in the ballots. Donald Trump on the campaign trail and on trial. On one side, we see a disgrace,

twice impeached, multiply indicted former president raging at the system as the walls close in on him.

On the other, the seemingly untouchable frontrunner for the Republican nomination, giving his

supporters and the rest of the country a

preview of what his return to power will look like. In the eyes of the MAGA base, Trump is

barreling toward the White House in 2024, despite witch hunts on all sides. As he continues to lead

his Republican competitors by a long shot, he's also continued

to undermine and disregard key elements of what it means to be in a democracy and of how

democratic processes work. He's refusing to attend the third Republican debate. Instead, he'll

hold a counter-programming rally nearby next week, where he's likely to

continue a disturbing line of self-aggrandizing rhetoric, casting himself as a political martyr.

Even as two states are currently weighing the question of whether Trump is disqualified from

appearing on the 2024 ballot under the

insurrection clause, the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

Last night, Donald Trump once again took the stage at a rally to songs sung by criminals

who attacked the Capitol and said about January 6th rioters who've been convicted and are

serving jail time, he said, quote,

I call them the J6 hostages, not prisoners.

Meanwhile, of course, Trump is facing civil charges as well as 91 felony counts in multiple

cases.

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