Skip to main content

tv   CNN Newsroom With Fredricka Whitfield  CNN  May 13, 2017 8:00am-9:01am PDT

8:00 am
the kind of barbarity we're seeing today. we're doing very well in encountering it. you'll be hearing a lot about it next greek our generals. things are going along very, very well. through it all, he kept his faith in god, even in the darkest depths of despair. like so many others of his generation, george came home to a nation full of optimism and pride and began to live out the american dream. he started a family. he discovered god's plan for him and pursued that vision with all his might, pouring his passion into a tiny college in a place called lynchburg, virginia. did you ever hear of that? lynchburg. we love it. do you like it? we like it, right?
8:01 am
i flew over it a little while ago. it's a maze. what started as a dream with a few good friends he helped shepherd into the largest cpi university in the world. just look at this amazing soaring, growing campus. i've been watching it grow. because i've been a friend of liberty for a long time now, jerry. it's been a long time. thanks in great part to george's financial stewardship, hundreds of thousands of young hearts and souls have been enriched at liberty and inspired by the spirit of god. george, we thank you. and we salute you. and you just stay healthy for a long time, george. thank you. [ applause ] now it falls on the shoulders of each of you here today to
8:02 am
protect the freedom that patriots like george earned with their incredible sacrifice. fortunately you have been equipped with the tools from your time right here on this campus to make the right decisions and to serve god, family and country. as you build good lives, you will also be rebuilding our nation. you'll be leaders in your communities. stewards of great institutions. and defenders of liberty. and you will being a great mothers and fathers and grand mothe grandmothers, grandfathers and loving members, loving families. you'll build a future where we have the courage to chase our dreams no matter what the cynics and downtowners have to say. you'll have the confidence to say the hopes in your hearts and
8:03 am
to express the love that stirs your souls. and you will have the faith to replace the broken establishment with a government that serves and protects the people. [ applause ] >> we must remember we share one home and one glorious destiny. whether we're brown, black or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots. we all salute the same great american flag. and we are all made by the same almighty god. as long -- [ applause ]
8:04 am
-- as you remember, what you have learned here at liberty, as long as you have pride in your believes, courage in your convictions, and faith in your god, then you will not fail. [ applause ] and as long as america remains true to its values, loyal to its citizens, and devoted to its creator, then our best days are yet to come. i can promise you that. [ applause ] this has been an exceptional morning. it's been a great honor for me and i want to thank you the students. i also want to thank you, the
8:05 am
family, for getting them there. and i want to thank and congratulate liberty. may god bless the class of 2017. may god bless the united states of america. may god bless all of you here today. thank you very much. thank you. [ cheers and applause ] all right president donald trump there at liberty university, his first commencements as a sitting president with a variety of messages there everything talking about loyalty to citizens and its creator our best days are yet to come. he talked about messages of what is it to be an outsider. but to never quit he says. he's seen it firsthand. he said in america we don't worship government, we worship god. all right. welcome everyone it's 11:00 eastern. i'm fredricka whitfield here in the newsroom. this is the first commencement
8:06 am
address for a sitting president. president donald trump there in lynchburg, virginia. it's also his first public appearance since the firing of the fbi director and the fallout and this comes on the heelgs of one of the most difficult weeks of his presidency. also today not far away from lynchburg, virginia but in the nation's capital at the justice department in d.c., four candidates to possibly replace fired fbi director james comey. reportedly being interviewed for the job. this morning the president said a decision will come sooner rather than later. >> do you think you might make a decision or announcement before you leave -- before saturday. >> these are outstanding people that are very well known. highest level. we could make a fast decision. >> before the trip next week. >> even that is possible. >> let's bring in cnn's ryan nobles who is live at liberty university. the commencement still going on. the president just wrapping up
8:07 am
his address. quite the variety of messages. president sounding in expirational there frexpiration -- inspirational from the podium. >> reporter: the president tried to connect him self to the students at this university as being an outsider. this is an evangelical university. they wear their religion and faith on their slooef. some of the positions they take at the university are a little controversial in mainstream culture but the president embraced that. he told them to be proud of the fact that they are outsiders, to take risks because he said that it's the people that take risks that end up changing the world and he compared his victory in november as an outsider to the work that many of these students at this university at large are doing right now and will do in the future. the other thing that we can't ignore is how he just piled
8:08 am
compliments on the president and chancellor of this university, jerry falwell, jr., who is of course the son of dr. jerry falwell who was the founder of this university. falwell surprised people early on in the campaign when he endorsed donald trump during the primary. the first world major evangelical leader to do so and that really helped donald trump in a big way in the republican primary. to a certain extent this speech here today by trump was a thank you message to jerry falwell, repeatedly telling him how impressed he was with his work here at liberty, and how much he appreciated the support that falwell gave him during the campaign. been to your point, trump really tried to connect with the students and the faculty here on a faith level, connecting to their religion and you mentioned what he said before. let's play that moment with he talked about what type of nation the united states is.
8:09 am
>> america has always been the land of dreams because america is a nation of true believers. when the pilgrims landed at plymouth, they prayed. when the founders wrote the declaration of independence, they invoked our creator four times. because in america we don't worship government, we worship god. >> reporter: and that line was received very warmly by this crowd and from top to bottom the president was in front of a very welcoming crowd, given a stand ovation the first time he appeared on stage. this was definitely a friendly place for the president after a tumultuous the week in washington. >> thank you so much. so we heard the president's mess stlage there to graduates liberty university. but it's the contradictions all week that marked a tumultuous
8:10 am
time. when he was called out on messages on the james comey firing, he tweeted maybe things occurred too fast for them to keep up. he's considering a shake up of his communications team. let's take a closer look. we're joined by senior media correspondent brian steltzer. on the heels on the remarks from the president who kept it mostly positive but he did every now and then inject a few pointed, i guess points about, you know, broken government, a challenge to the graduates there, saying you'll have an opportunity to fix broken government. at the same time he gets an opportunity to leave the white house much more comfortable
8:11 am
outside of the white house. was his message one directly to graduates but was he also, you know, giving some foreshadowing of what's to come in his leadership? >> i think it's a reassertion of themes that have been for him from the beginning. he said you'll be successful to the extent you're like me an outsider who challenges the system the way he was defining himself. the most striking part of the speech, reference to motherhood and football was funny in the way he speck to cultural embattlements. christian conservatives are very important. devery well among blue collar evangelicals, much better than ted cruz expected. that's a big why he beat cruz for the nomination. in the general election he won about 80% evangelical christians are an absolute corner stone. what he did throughout the campaign and again in this
8:12 am
speech was essentially argue that they are under siege by mainstream culture and he's their defender and i think the republican consultant pointed out last graer the beginning donald trump has been able to overcome a lot of dissonance about the way he lives his life. i'll fight your battles for you and that's what he did today. >> this president is good at b subliminal messages. and there's a report today there's a shake up because mixed messaging, poor messaging coming out of the swhus big problem. the president saying maybe i'm moving too fast, his own people saying too fast. is it too fast or is there, does this highlight other inefficiency? >> he looks in the mirror and believes he's looking back at his own best spokesman, nobody can speak on his own behalf as
8:13 am
well as he can. this speech is notable because it's the first time in over a week we've seen the president in this format, speaking in front of the cameras. in this case speaking to a large audience. he was clearly pleased there was a packed house for the commencement. most folks there were to see their children graduate. it's a packed house. thrilling this time of the year to see students graduate. the president gave one fourth commencement speech, one fourth campaign speech, one fourth football booster speech for liberty university and one fourth religious speech defending white christian america in an increasing multi-cultural world. sort of talking about changes in the culture. it was all over the place which was revealing in and of itself and some sentences that really stood out as he was responding to a chorus of critics saying nothing is easier or pathetic than critics.
8:14 am
this man has been fed up of the criticism of his decision to fire comey and frustrated by his own spokes people. he's thinking about a shake up. >> there were words used like isolated and agitated to describe white house staffers, did the president with his commencement address today. deflect that at all? >> i don't know if he deflected it, but he certainly didn't show much irritation. he was very self-confident. basically sending the signal i'm doing what i need to do. i'm on top of my game. it was a remarkable speech. it was trumpian, nixonian defensiveness and reaganesque wrapped up in one speech. it's a much more religious speech than we tend to hear from the president.
8:15 am
it made it a very unusual speech from him. it was a commencement speech. good to hear him thank parents. part of this speech had to be directed at those graduates. very good performance. not a performance who somebody outwardly seems rattled by this week in washington. >> is it more a broken system tells you you're wrong the more certain you must be, you must be keep pushing ahead. it was hard not to read those quotes as being a response to people who were saying that he was wrong to fire comey. >> that's where i see that -- that's why i see a foreshadowing in some of what he was saying and then just prior to taking the stage for his commencement address he told reporters he's going to make a decision very fast as it relates to a replacements for james comey. and even that is at issue now in terms of the process.
8:16 am
here you have attorney general jeff sessions will be part of, we understand that interview process taking place today at the department of justice. the very person who had to recuse himself from investigations as it relates to russia and the white house. so how is it that jeff sessions can be part of interviewing any of these four people we understand who may potentially be up for the director position. >> look, there's been pointed questions raised even more about attorney general sessions involvement in the decision to dismiss director comey because that seems to more directly infringe on his pledge of recusal from anything to do with the russia investigation. particularly now that the president has acknowledged, you know, rather remarkably in his interview with nbc that was on his mind when he made the decision. do you have questions being raised by both legal scholars and democratic house members about whether attorney general sessions has violated his recusal pledge and what the
8:17 am
consequences should be and if so. to go back to brian's points. do you see the floor under president trump, the political floor under him. both becoming more secular and more diverse in the last two years for the first time in american history white christians are less than a majority of the country. that's something new in american history. and many there's a sense of embattlement around that demographic change. the president has been very skillful from the beginning at speaking to people who feel culturally demographically and economically displaced. they feel he's their voice. regardless of the other controversies swirling around him that fact remains true. that holds the floor underneath him despite the controversies. >> we have so much more to talk about. thank you so much for now. we appreciate it. still ahead, security experts are scrambling now after a massive wave of cyber attacks
8:18 am
hitting more than 75,000 computers across the globe. stay with us. not in vests. this is my retirement. retiring retired tires. and i never get tired of it. are you entirely prepared to retire? plan your never tiring retiring retired tires retirement with e*trade.
8:19 am
skinew band-aid® brand skin-flex™ bandages. our best bandage yet! it moves like a second skin. ♪ dries almost instantly. better? yeah. go! good thing because stopping never crosses your mind. band-aid® brand. stick with it™
8:20 am
i use what's already inside me to reach my goals. so i liked when my doctor told me i may reach my blood sugar and a1c goals by activating what's within me with once-weekly trulicity. trulicity is not insulin. it helps activate my body to do what it's supposed to do release its own insulin. trulicity responds when my blood sugar rises. i take it once a week, and it works 24/7. it comes in an easy-to-use pen and i may even lose a little weight. trulicity is a once-weekly injectable prescription medicine to improve blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes when used with diet and exercise. trulicity is not insulin. it should not be the first medicine to treat diabetes
8:21 am
or for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. do not take trulicity if you or a family member has had medullary thyroid cancer, if you've had multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to trulicity. stop trulicity and call your doctor right away if you have symptoms such as itching, rash, or trouble breathing; a lump or swelling in your neck; or severe pain in your stomach area. serious side effects may include pancreatitis, which can be fatal. taking trulicity with a sulfonylurea or insulin increases your risk for low blood sugar. common side effects include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite and indigestion. some side effects can lead to dehydration, which may make existing kidney problems worse. with trulicity, i click to activate what's within me. if you want help improving your a1c and blood sugar numbers with a non-insulin option, click to activate your within. ask your doctor about once-weekly trulicity.
8:22 am
if you were hoping for more clarity in the reasons why fbi director james comey was fired this week it's not coming from the president. but in a new interview the president is denying reports he asked comey for a pledge of loyalty over a private dinner after his inauguration. but does the president have the quote "tapes" to prove it as he's inferred in this tweet? the white house is denying the president threatened james comey with that tweet right there but it's prompting even more questions and confusion around the true motive for pulling the plug on comey. cnn's sara murray filed this report. >> reporter: president trump firing off an apparent threat to the oust fbi director. trump tweeting james comey better hope there's no tapes of our conversation before he
8:23 am
starts leaking to fres. the warning coming as the president is facing scrutiny for his private conversation with comey before he was fired. today the president is refusing to explain what tapes he was referring to and whether he's secretly recording conversations in the white house. >> i won't talk about that. all i want is for comey to be honest and i hope he will be. i'm sure he will be. >> reporter: as comey was overseeing the investigation into possible collusion between the trump campaign and russia trump said he asked comey repeatedly for assurances that he wasn't under investigation. >> did you ask him? >> i asked him, yes. i said, if it's possible, will you let me know, am i under investigation. he said you are not under investigation. >> those conversations which quickly raised ethical red flags coming twice in phone calls and once over dinner. trump says comey was vying to keep his job. >> i think he asked for the dinner. and he wanted to stay on as the fbi head.
8:24 am
and i said, you know, i'll consider. we'll see what happens. >> reporter: a source close to comey disputes that account saying comey did not request the dinner and had already been reassured by the president he would keep his job. during that incident ear source says comey was taken aback when trump asked for a personal pledge of loyalty which comey refused to provide. all this as the administration struggle tolls get the story straight why the president decided to fire comey after administration officials said it was after the prompting of justice department officials now trump says it was his call and said he was thinking about the russian investigation when he made the decision. >> in fact, when i decided to just do it, i said to myself, i said, you know, this russia thing with trump and russia is a made up story, it's an excuse by the democrats for having lost an election that they should have won. >> reporter: trump took to twitter to explain the discrepancy saying as a very active president with lots of things happening it's not
8:25 am
possible for my surrogates to stand at podium with perfect accuracy. thanks so much for that report. just as the justice department is conducting interviews for james comey replacements at the department of justice right now a congressional source tells the cnn the white house is in meltdown mode. sources describe plummeting morale and frustration over the president's conflicting message surrounding comey. let me bring back my political panel to talk more about this. good to see you all. so, brian, you know, this tweet where the president talks about, you know, tapes and has it in quotation marks and we're seeing that style from him before talking about wiretapping, in quotation marks. is there a consensus among fellow republicans now who are ready to pipe in after this kind
8:26 am
of pattern of behavior, via tweet and mixed messaging from the white house? >> it's really the opposite. i'm struck by the silence. if you look at television, read the papers, look at senators we're not hearing much from republicans on this. it's partly because the house is recess, lawmakers are back in their home districts, some avoiding town halls for various reasons. >> might be getting their ducks in a row, making sure there's a consensus. dhoo that could be the silence right now? >> if you look on the television listings for tomorrow's big political shows not many pro trump republicans. you're seeing folks trying to avoid having to defend these tweets. maybe because they are indefensible. people trying avoid defending them. >> steve, "the washington post" reporting today that trump is known to record conversations at
8:27 am
trump tower and listen in on talks at mar-a-lago. is there a feeling if he did that as the leader of this business why wouldn't he be recording people at the white house? >> you know, there's sort of a long and interesting history about who records what in the white house and what is required and what is protect under executive privilege. i think the jury likes so much about president trump and specifically in connection with the russians, the jury is still out. i was struck particularly by how this is really a good week for the russians. i mean they got into the oval office. sergei lavrov was making light of the comey dismissal. they see i think russians a lot in common with president trump to include recording and obtaining as much information on everybody as they can possibly for future use. interesting topic that i think requires more investigation. >> tim, roosevelt taped. so did jfk.
8:28 am
johnson. we know nixon. but the big problem with nixon he refused to hand over the tapes when subpoenaed. so would have to know within the white house if donald trump indeed were recording and, you know, would there be protection if it's not necessarily a system of recording within but could it be recording via his iphone? >> well the secret service would know. the white house communications agency would know. it's not clear to me how strong chief of staff reince priebus is. john f. kennedy and richard nixon worked with their chief of staff on the issue of installing a taping system. kennedy and nixon and johnson didn't tell very many people in their inner sir kshlcircle, but small group of people. company be using his iphone certainly. but if there's a real system in place, more people would have to
8:29 am
know. more people on the logistical side of the white house would have to know. let me tell enthusiast it would be a disaster for him if he put in a major league recording system. this will not end well for his administration. >> where do you say that? because once you have that record you have to hand it over? >> it's discoverable. i'm not a lawyer. but one of the things that richard nixon learned and ended his presidency, he learned it from the supreme court, is executive privilege does not protect you when it comes to criminal activity. if there is criminal predicate, a reason to investigate something for criminal reasons you cannot claim executive privilege over a recording. >> he can say firing the fbi director that's not criminal activity. >> that's an issue -- that's a question of obstruction justice and we have to know his motives and need evidence. i'm talking about subpoenas. i'm talking about if the congress or the fbi or the
8:30 am
department of justice working at the request of the fbi subpoenas his tapes, were they to exist, key not claim successfully executive privilege. if there's a reasonable reason, if there's a reason to believe those would be discoverable in a criminal case. so, he shouldn't -- he shouldn't think he's in 1973 any more. 1973, when richard nixon's staff revealed or when alexander butterfield to be precise revealed there was a taping system presidents had the reasonable expectations their recordings were private r property, they owned them. that has changed. watergate changed that. 1978 changed that. those recording, actually belong to the american people. he has some control over them but executive privilege won't save him if there's anything on those recordings that's relevant
8:31 am
to a criminal case. >> somehow democrats, elijah cummings, john conyers have sent a letter to the white house counsel asking, is it the case that recordings is taking place in the white house. steve, how or can the white house get around answering that. we're not talking about a subpoena right now but right now it's a letter asking for information. can the white house get around answering that? >> you know, i'm also not a lawyer so it's difficult to know whether or not they will try to do that. one thing we can be sure of, those is based on the experiences that we've seen in terms of how this administration communicates, they will certainly put up, i imagine, ba control this. this gets back to the russian investigation. that's why the president is concerned about what the conversation he is had with
quote
8:32 am
director comey because, of course, dismissing him in the middle of this investigation is something that does require much more investigation which is why you have members of congress and hopefully more on the republican side who wrcontrol it asking important questions. brian we've been talking about that deafening silence among republicans. paul ryan was asked about this whole issue, responding to that tweet by the president and whether he thought it was threatening or not. listen. >> i've decided i'm not going to comment on tweets of the day or hour. i haven't seen them all. i'm sure you all will ask this question as well. no one is disputing the fact the president has the right to hire or fire an fbi director. he made that decision. it's been made. i think it's important now we make sure there's a qualified and capable person that people have confidence in to take over
8:33 am
the fbi. i'll leave it up to the president to defend his tweet. i'm focused on what's in my control. >> brian, not commenting as potentially damaging as weighing in. >> i'm trying really hard not to laugh. he just said i haven't seen them all. paul ryan, you got a phone. you just open the twitter app and scroll down. listen, in some cases it's better not to look i suppose if you're paul ryan. you don't want to know. what he was saying there at the end, i under, i'm trying to deal with what's in my control. right now for i guess 72 to 96 hours what we've all been talking about comey not on policy priorities, not on law making priorities, it's all been this scandal. that's bad for paul ryan and donald trump. >> all right. gentlemen, thank you so much. appreciate it. we'll talk more. next, it's being called one of the most damaging cyber attacks in history. more than 75,000 computers in 99
8:34 am
countries have been hit around the world. new details after this. at tempurpedic.com whenand now with victoza®etes, there's a moment of truth. a better moment of proof. victoza lowers my a1c and blood sugar better than the leading branded pill, which didn't get me to my goal. victoza® works with your body to lower blood sugar in three ways: in the stomach, the liver, and the pancreas. and while it isn't for weight loss, victoza® may help you lose some weight. non-insulin victoza® comes in a pen and is taken once a day. (announcer) victoza® is not recommended as the first medication to treat diabetes and is not for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. do not take victoza® if you have a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer,
8:35 am
multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to victoza® or any of its ingredients. stop taking victoza® and call your doctor right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck or if you develop any allergic symptoms including itching, rash, or difficulty breathing. serious side effects may happen, including pancreatitis. so, stop taking victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have severe pain in your stomach area. tell your doctor your medical history. taking victoza® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. the most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting. side effects can lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. now's the time for a better moment of proof. ask your doctor about victoza®.
8:36 am
8:37 am
8:38 am
right now we're getting new information on a massive cyber attack that has hit users in nearly 100 countries across the globe. a cyber expert tells cnn the malware called wannacry has been halted at least for now but not before it infected hundreds of thousands of computers, locking them down and telling users to pay up or risk losing all of their data. let me bring in samuel berk and maria santos. samuel, you first. how was this malware stopped. >> a cyber security researcher accidentally stopped the spread of this ransom ware but we're not out of woods yet. this could be in your computer
8:39 am
at work and you show up on monday and still in this situation deciding if you want to pay $300 in bit coin in order to get your files back. i think what's interesting here is this all has to do with a flaw in windows that microsoft actually started patching back in march. but if you have not updated your computer and you're like so many people you see that pop up in the lower right-hand corner, you see that pop up in the lower right-hand corner, your don't want to restart your computer you say i'll do it tomorrow. but if you delay that could you be one of the few people who is vulnerable to this. if you updated your computer already or do it very soon you're safe. that's all that has to be safe. >> so, you were saying it's folks at home not just businesses and institutions that are being most affected here. >> absolutely. people at home. also big businesses and hospitals over in the uk. amazing to see how technology actually is affecting people's
8:40 am
lives. hospitals had to cancel out patient appointments. so this is an interesting case where it's not passwords or credit card numbers these are actual lives being affected. >> nina, on those 16 national health organizations in the uk that have been hit what are officials doing trying fix this, save their information, how is it impacting them overall? >> reporter: they are taking it very seriously. just among all of the countries around the world that have been affected the uk where we've seen a critical national infrastructure affected so badly someone was pointing out people missing appointments, doctor's appointments, sorry case surgeries. imagine if you're prepped for surgery and then the surgeon tells you they can't operate because he can't access what blood group you are, now that is all stored online and computers are committeely shut down by this. the government is taking it very seriously. the homeland secretary chaired a
8:41 am
meeting, special briefing which is a bit of like a situation room that you have in the united states dealing with emergencies like this. and she went into that meeting which just finished in the last 20 minutes or so. she had this to say about the fact that this is a very serious event but not just confined to national health service here in the uk. >> there will be lessons to be learned from this example but i think it's normal to focus entirely the different types of software being used. this is a major cyber attack. an international attack. in fact, the response has been good in the uk and i hope we'll be able to continue to disrupt it. >> reporter: the uk is in the midst of an election year. people are going to the polls in just few weeks from now. of course the national health service and how it's responded to this and being vulnerable to this attack will be high up on the political agenda. just going back to the international nature of this, we've also had euro poll, the
8:42 am
law enforcement agency coming out saying this is unprecedented, just like many eu countries, the uk and other places around the world have been beaten up. g7 biggest economies in the world their finance ministers met earlier today in italy and yet again stressed the need have a stronger commitment to shore up cyber defenses around the planet. >> thank you so much to both of you. fresh off the firing of fbi director james comey, 20 states attorney general are joining forces calling for an independent counsel to look into russia's role in the election. we'll speak with one of them right after this. it moves like a second skin. ♪ dries almost instantly. better? yeah. go! good thing because stopping never crosses your mind.
8:43 am
band-aid® brand. stick with it™ [fbi agent] you're a brave man, your testimony will save lives. mr. stevens? this is your new name.
8:44 am
this is your new house. and a perfectly inconspicuous suv. you must become invisible. [hero] i'll take my chances. ♪ you never know what'll inspire you. ♪
8:45 am
the rhythm of the waves. the language, the laughter. or the noise in the night. ♪ i take it all with me, and give it all back. experience moe as a member. the marriott portfolo has 30 brands in over 110 countries so no matter where you go, you are here. coloneed hair rehab.ing? get super fruit amla oil. in the all new fructis damage eraser. repair damaged hair in just one use. hair is 2x stronger. all new garnier fructis. super fruit. super hair. garnier. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ sfx: engine revving ♪ (silence)
8:46 am
♪ briathe customer app willw if be live monday. can we at least analyze customer traffic? can we push the offer online? brian, i just had a quick question. brian? brian... legacy technology can handcuff any company. but "yes" is here. you're saying the new app will go live monday?! yeah. with help from hpe, we can finally work the way we want to. with the right mix of hybrid it, everything computes.
8:47 am
on the heels of president trump's firing of james comey, 26 attorneys general have joined the chorus calling for an independent counsel to investigate russia's election hacking. in a letter addressed to deputy attorney general rod rosenstein they write quote as the chief law enforcement officer of our respective states we view the president's firing of fbi director james comey in the middle of his investigation of
8:48 am
russia interference in the presidential election as a violation of the public trust, as prosecutors committed to the rule of law we urge you to consider the damage to our democratic system of any attempts by the administration to derail and delegitimize the investigation. end quote. iowa attorney general tom miller signed that letter. he's among the 20 joining me now live. good to see you. >> nice to be with you this morning. >> i heard your colleague, d.c. attorney general carl racine say there's no courage in the republican leadership and he said quote we are in a constitutional crisis mode. how do you support that feeling? >> i think that there's a real need to move to a special prosecutor. i think there's a lot of conflict. there's a lot of concern. a lot of issues raised. many of those issues would be resolved by moving to a special counsel. who would pursue this, totally
8:49 am
independent of any pressure from the administration. totally independent of holding any job within the administration. and that have public perception of being independent. the rule of law really requires that in cases that particularly there's controversy and a lot at stake that the person making the decisions in the investigative side and in the prosecution side make those decisions totally independent of the kinds of circumstances that are swirling around here, aggravated by the firing much comey. more than ever we need a special prosecutor. >> among those who are critical of a special prosecutor is senate majority leader mitch mcconnell who said it would negatively impact the work that's already been done. do you agree with that argument? is that a possibility? you want a special prosecutor. you don't necessarily agree with the argument completely. is he making a goat argument in that manner?
8:50 am
>> no, i don't the special prosecutor could readily build on what has already been done. and most of what has been done so far is in the investigative stage by the fbi, not by the deputy attorney general. so it would be very easy for the special prosecutor to build on the investigation that is being done, share any thoughts from the deputy attorney general and move forward. it might slow it down briefly, but not very long and not at any significant cost relative to the costs that we're feeling now. >>s that already been slowed down in your view with the firing of comey? >> it probably has been slowed down somewhat, but not a lot before not something to worry about. i think that the fbi has enormous integrity and enormous persistence. we heard the words of the acting head of the fbi who was the deputy before, and that was very
8:51 am
reassuring. that they will go forward, they will do their duty as he sees it. and in a way the firing of comey really puts them a little more on the spot to do the right thing. and i think the fbi is going to be very capable of doing the right thing. >> so two democratic elected officials are calling for deputy attorney general rod rosenstein who authored that recommendation to the president to resign if a special prosecutor is not appointed. i mean, that is not likely to happen you would think under those conditions. but what most troubles you about the sequence of events and where we are now? >> well, it's the impact on the rule of law. that when james comey was in the middle and pursuing completely an investigation voching tinvol campaign of the president, for him to be fired under knows
8:52 am
circumstances, something like that has only happened once before in our history and it is something that really shook the whole situation i think. and put really -- >> and very different circumstances you're talking about the clinton firing the fbi director william sessions at the time? >> no,s i rk i'm talking about and having the special prosecutor. i think that is the parallel. but look at it from the deputy attorney general's point of view going forward. he could reasonably believe that comey was fired at least in part because of the thoroughness of the investigation. you look at sort of the president's sense of loyalty, the president has already expressed his views on the investigation, that it should be resolved quickly and thinks it might just be a way of impacting on his election, a very dim view of which what is there and what should come out. and finally and most
8:53 am
importantly, the president is so sensitive about anything that reflects on his election win. even the smallest thing seems to drive him to heights. but here if for good reason based on the law the deputy attorney general came forward and indicted someone in the campaign for collusion between the campaign and the russian folks, that would drive the president into the atmosphere i think. and here the deputy attorney general would be working for him, supposed to be loyal to him. those are really untenable situations. and that easily provide for the discretion and wisdom of appointing a special prosecutor. >> and quickly just yes or no you draw parallels to nixon. do you see the circumstances perhaps laying the same ground work for potential outcome, meaning getting proceedings for impeachment under way because of potential obstruction of justice?
8:54 am
? >> i don't see that at this point. what develops in the future is hard to say. y but i wouldn't say that at this point. >> attorney general tom miller, thank you so much. so many more straight ahead. but first, here is a look at a new high tech approach to entertainment. >> oftentimes i'll be talking with people and they will be like what do you do? i run a circus. oh, yeah, i have a web design firm and we're a circus, too. no, we're really a circus. like lasers, fire, robots. we're location based entertainment company creatig the future of fun. people have a lot of options for entertainment. we are adding on that landscape in a new way and adding new styles of interaction, new styles of play. a bunch of nerds would get together once a month and collaborate on stuff.
8:55 am
and we started making interactive art. and then microsoft called and said hey, would do you all the entertainment for our e-3 party. and all of a sudden we were like gosh, is there a real business here? are we actually a high tech circus? it was fascinating because the brands like kept coming. and so intel, honda, cisco, ibm, we started working with all these monster comes as just a tiny group of 30 nerd, but we were at the intersection of software and game design and fabrication and out of home entertainment. this stuff is really a ton of fun. sometimes i rail caneally can'te that i get to call it work. but it really is work. make no mistake. there's nothing traditional about my small business so when
8:56 am
it comes to technology, i need someone that understands my unique needs. my dell small business advisor has gotten to know our business so well that is feels like he's a part of our team. with one phone call, he sets me up with tailored products and services. and when my advisor is focused on my tech, i can focus on my small business. ♪ ♪ skinew band-aid® brand skin-flex™ bandages. our best bandage yet! it moves like a second skin. ♪ dries almost instantly. better? yeah. go! good thing because stopping never crosses your mind. band-aid® brand. stick with it™
8:57 am
with e*trade you see things your way. ♪ ♪ you have access to the right information at the right moment. ♪ ♪ and when you filter out the noise, it's easy to turn your vision into action.
8:58 am
♪ ♪ it's your trade. e*trade. start trading today at etrade.com ykeep you sidelined.ng that's why you drink ensure. with 9 grams of protein and 26 vitamins and minerals. for the strength and energy to get back to doing... ...what you love. ensure. always be you.
8:59 am
9:00 am
thank you so much for joining me. meltdown mode, that is how one congressional source is describing the inner workings of the white house this weekend amid the growing fallout from the president's decision to fire fbi director james comey. president trump is offering more conflicting narratives on his decision to fire the man who was investigating his campaign and whether it had any ties to russia. this as interviews are under way to find comey's replacement. this morning the president are says a decision will come sooner rather than later. >> do you think you might make a decision or announcement before you leave for saudi? >> these are outstanding people that are very well-known. highest

97 Views

info Stream Only

Uploaded by TV Archive on