Yahoo Finance’s Alexis Christoforous and Akiko Fujita along with Michael Isikoff, Yahoo News Chief Investigative Correspondent, discuss the GOP amid the Biden administration.

Video Transcript

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: We are waiting for President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to enter Arlington National Cemetery. They are there with several other former presidents and their families, and they're going to be laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. And here you're seeing live video of that right now.

Of course, President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are at their Florida estate in Mar a Lago. Trump's refusal to attend the inauguration marks only the fourth time in history that an outgoing US president has not attended the next leader's swearing-in ceremony. Before boarding Air Force One for the last time as President Trump, he addressed a crowd of supporters at Joint Base Andrews.

DONALD TRUMP: The things that we've done have been just incredible, and I couldn't have done it without you. So just a goodbye, we love you, we will be back in some form.

[CHEERS]

So have a good life. We will see you soon.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: I want to bring in Michael Isikoff now. He is "Yahoo News'" Chief Investigative Correspondent. So, Michael, what happens next? What form might we see President Trump come back in? Because, remember, he still has a Senate trial to go through where he may be convicted after being impeached for the second time.

MICHAEL ISIKOFF: He has a Senate trial. He has investigations in New York-- the district attorney Cyrus Vance is clearly in the midst of a far-reaching investigation into his businesses. He's got apparent investigations coming in Georgia for his attempt to pressure the Secretary of State to to change the election results in Georgia. And he's got lawsuits, including the lawsuit from the woman who claims-- who has alleged that he raped her in a department store dressing room.

So he's got a lot of legal troubles. Also let's remember, he has no access to Twitter. He has no access to mainstream sites that have kicked him off. So I'm not so sure you're going to be seeing all that much of Donald Trump in the immediate future other than in the context of his trials and investigations.

AKIKO FUJITA: Yeah, Michael, I think a lot of people surprised that he didn't move forward with those pardons for family members or for himself, given the legal troubles you said that await the now-former president. But let's talk about where the Republican Party moves forward from here. Certainly, those like Senator Ted Cruz attended the inauguration today, even after saying that he didn't believe that Joe Biden actually won. How quickly do you think-- or how likely do you think that Republican leadership is likely to come to the table on some of these key issues, especially on stimulus for Joe Biden in the first several weeks?

MICHAEL ISIKOFF: Well, I don't know about coming to the table, but they have clearly distanced themselves from Donald Trump. I mean, Mitch McConnell's speech yesterday was a pretty strong marker, saying the mob was fed lies, and it was clear that those lies came from the president and other powerful people, which is really a shot at some of his Republican colleagues like Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley.

So when you have the Republican leader in the Senate basically washing his hands of Donald Trump, saying, I'm through with you. I want no more to do with you. And even Kevin McCarthy, who was feeding the big lie about election fraud for weeks up until January 6 has retreated from that and is-- so that's significant.

But as far as, like, going along with Biden's agenda, I'm not sure you're going to see a lot of concessions on that. I think you'll see some. Just in the instance of comedy, McConnell will try to show that he can go along with Biden and help unify the country up to a point. But I wouldn't be surprised if pretty quickly they're at loggerheads about the stimulus package and much else.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Michael, I want to look ahead to four years from now. I know it's the first day of Biden's presidency, but four years from now, a lot of people are saying Biden-- he'll be 81 in four years, that he's a one-timer, most likely Kamala Harris would be running for president. Who might she face on the other side? I mean, if convicted, President Trump would not be able to run again if he's convicted in that impeachment trial. Might it be another Trump? Donald Trump, Jr. has certainly garnered a lot of support and has said that he has political aspirations. Who might become the face of the GOP?

MICHAEL ISIKOFF: If Donald Trump has been discredited and effectively marginalized, than Donald Trump, Jr. and other members of his family, including Ivanka, will feel the impact of that and will be diminished as well. I think that-- and I think that Cruz and Hawley, two people who had been, you know, positioning themselves to be the natural inheritor of the Trump mantle have hurt themselves badly by perpetuating these claims about election fraud that didn't exist.

They're going to have to live with that. And they will feel the sting of the magnitude of the lies they told the public. So you know, they may try, but I think they have been marginalized to a great degree as well. There are others-- Marco Rubio has sort of thread the needle between Trump support and maintained a relationship to those of us in the reality community. And Tom Cotton, obviously, is another one.

But I wouldn't also be surprised if there are some moderates who try to-- relative moderates who try to bring the Republican Party back to what it once was. And let's not forget Mitt Romney-- I mean, he'll be in his 70s then as well. But I'm not so sure that either he or a Romney-like figure won't be a serious contender four years from now as well.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Yeah, it makes sense. He certainly put distance between himself and President Trump during his tenure. Thanks so much, Michael Isikoff of "Yahoo News," good to see you as always.

MICHAEL ISIKOFF: Anytime.