nefarious about hicks leaving. the president calling her outstanding and a great person. an ally close to the president tel tells cnn the president berated hicks. >> one of hicks confidants says the last few weeks were really, really hard for her. the friend says hicks started thinking about resigning when the rob porter spousal abuse scandal erupted. hicks and porter were involved. >> for you keeping score, this is four communications directors. five now in just over a year. for the latest, we go to jeff zeleny at the white house. jeff. >> reporter: christine and dave, the headlines of the newspapers, hope hicks leaving the white house. stirring more concern in the west wing. of the resignations from staff members to the cabinet members, few have hit home to the president like hope hicks. one of his closest advisers. she has been with him since before he decided to run for presidents. she decide -- president. she decided to leave the white house. she will leave in the coming weeks. she wants to pursue other opport

you don't know hope hicks? no, i don't know hope hicks. but you're not buying her resignation, are you? >> to go from anthony scaramucci to hope hicks, literally the biggest contrast in profile you could ever have. no, jeff touched on this, she said she told maggie haber man -- or aids told maggie that she left because this was the perfect time to leave. it's the opposite of the perfect time to leave. you just went through the number of stories, don. that's just today. and really, that's just this afternoon. >> yeah. >> because yesterday, a sill lar open to the show, there was so much news, four or five stories, either of which could have been the big story or the only other story. >> and would have been in any other administration. >> her leaving now, a day after the testimony in the house intelligence committee a few weeks after the whole security clearance issue with rob porter who she was romantically linked. she's leaving at a time when donald trump is increasingly isolated. has fewer and fewer of that core group that he started with.

>> reporter: hicks told new york magazine, mr. trump looked at me and said, i'm thinking about running for president, and you're going to be my press secretary. during the campaign, hicks reportedly had a note from candidate trump above her desk that read simply, hopie, you're the greatest. >> hope, get up here. she's always on the phone talking to the reporters, trying to get the reporters to straighten out their dishonest stories. >> reporter: hicks had zero political experience, yet she was almost always by donald trump's side. through it all, her voice rarely heard in public. she didn't even release a statement after a very public screaming match with former campaign manager corey lewandowski. and at this campaign event in alabama, she seemed hesitant even to just say a few words. >> hi. merry christmas, everyone. and thank you, donald trump. >> reporter: with her position in the white house, hicks gained access to the world stage, taking part in this intimate gathering with the pope and also the japanese prime minister's stat

hope hicks, the communi

you don't know hope hicks? i said, no, i don't know hope hicks. but you're not buying her resignation, are you? >> first, to your first point about her low profile, to go from anthony scaramucci to hope hicks, literally the biggest contrast in profile you could ever have. no, jeff touched on this, she said -- she told maggie haberman or aides told maggie that she left because this was the perfect time to leave. it's the opposite of the perfect time to leave. you just went through the number of stories, don. that's just today. and really that's just this afternoon. >> yeah. >> because yesterday a similar open to the show, there was so much news, four or five stories, either of which could have been the big story or the only other story. >> and would have been in any other administration. so to me her leaving now, a day after the testimony in the house intelligence committee, a few weeks after the whole security clearance issue with rob porter who she was romantically linked. she's leaving at a time when donald trump is increasingly isolated, has fe

hope hicks' job, that's it. that's fine, the policy or the campaign slogans and the campaign chat, we'll get to that later. we're not talking about that. that's a rabbit hole. >> those aren't just slogans, that's real life. >> we'll see. there are people who -- >> that was a hell of an audition, steve. >> there you go. 11:43:35, you can send them the link. angela, chief of staff john kelly reportedly referred to hicks as a high schooler and joked about inexperience, immature, former white house official told olivia kelly thinks women should be subservient to him. what's your reaction when you read that? >> my reaction to that is that it sounds very similar to steve's commander in chief, right? this is a situation where donald trump -- >> angela, your commander in chief as well, by the way. >> nah. ain't. >> no rabbit holes. finish your point, please. >> i'm going to finish my point because we let you do all of that auditioning. my point is this. it's plain and simple. donald trump struggles in his relationship w

hope hicks, his communications director and long-time aid, resigning. >> hope hicks is a tremendously talented person. >> reporter: nbc news has learned hicks told the president personally according to a white house source and said her good-byes to staff in an emotional meeting. the president saying hope is outstanding and has done great work for the last three years. she is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person, adding he totally understood when she said she would leave. on seen but rarely heard in interviews or on camera, hicks played a pivotal part behind the scenes. a fierce defender of her boss, by his side for nearly every critical campaign moment. >> merry christmas, everyone, and thank you, donald trump. >> reporter: and with no prior political experience rocketing to a top job in the white house. word of her departure comes less than 24 hours after she appeared on capitol hill to testify about the russia investigation. apparently acknowledging she's occasionally told white lies as part of her job. >> the whole talk about a white lie is such a bad rap and

and hope hicks is the latest fall gal. and she definitely fell on the sword yesterday before the house intelligence committee, testifying before -- more than nine hours is no easy feat. but she wasn't forth come. i also under base on jim acosta's reporting what she was saying by the committee is looked at by the special counsel investigation. there you have it. >> so the president wants to take guns away. who am i talking about, everyone? >> this president -- this president? we'll be right back. last years' ad campaign was a success for choicehotels.com badda book. badda boom. this year, we're taking it up a notch. so in this commercial we see two travelers at a comfort inn with a glow around them, so people watching will be like, "wow, maybe i'll glow too if i book direct at choicehotels.com". who glows? just say, badda book. badda boom. nobody glows. he gets it. always the lowest price, guaranteed. book now at choicehotels.com 'sleep number spring clearance event'. the dual adjustability of the sleep number bed allows ea

white lies hope hicks might tell. based on this now famous video, a hope hicks white lie might be nobody saw your bald spot. >> alternative facts. >> reporter: white lies are the new alternative facts. confusion about whether the words white lies came out of hope's lips. her testimony was given behind closed doors and she acknowledged telling little not substantive lies. may have been the source describing her testimony who actually said white lies. whether she used fleetwood mack wordings or jason and the scorchers, it is the same gist taken at the president's love for nicknames. a "washington post" cartoonist created lying hicks with a nose that grows. not if it is a white lie. jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> and thanks so much for joining us. you can watch "outfront" any time, any where, "ac 360" begins right now. >> what a day. a lot of breaking news tonight. on top of more big developments all day long. knew reporting on the president and jeff sessions. mueller is focusing on the first time he did. also, the sudde

hope hicks is beautiful and it's great. but if you focus on whether americans were involved in allowing the russians to come in and affect our election, if you look at the meeting and the timeline, it's interesting because the meeting is set up. once the meeting is set up, the new jersey primary happens. and president trump is rifting after the new jersey primary win. he teases the press. we're about to have a big announcement about hillary. i'm sure the press will want to know about that. he teases that. it is fascinate to go watch. when you see, what does he know? something is up. then they had the meeting. they don't get anything in the meeting. and the following monday he's like, oh, never mind. we're not going to talk about that right now. so everything has to do with those e-mails and whether or not trump was involved. it is interesting to relook at what trump said. >> meaning the president knew about that meeting, knew what the expectations were, got nothing, said nothing. >> right. >> question about what nbc news is

hope hicks is out as well. the security clearances was sparked by hope hicks' reported boyfriend in the white house, rob porter, who was fired by the white house three weeks ago after the publication of serious domestic violence allegations against him. seriously, that was only three weeks ago. doesn't it feel like a million years? the other way to see this hope hicks story tonight, though, is just the math of it, the massive, massive churn of high-ranking, high-profile and important people in the administration, people who have already been chewed up and spats out barely one year into this president being in office. we literally got a bigger wall. we've been keeping a list of people who have been turfed off of the administration. i am not going to read this entire list again, because god only gave my one set of vocal chords. the white house communications office has lost press secretary, assistant press secretary. communications director then another communications director. now another communications director

hope hicks, the legendary hope hicks. she's very shy. she's actually a very shy person, but she's a great person. she's done an amazing job. >> reporter: before that, in trump tower, as an assistant to the billionaire businessman. a former model, she joined the family working on ivanka trump's fashion line. now, she helps run the white house. her handwriting right there on the president's note, reminding him to tell those grieving families from parkland, "i hear you." within minutes of news of her departure, the president releasing a statement, saying, "she is as smart and thoughtful as they come. a truly great person. i will miss having her by my side, but when she approached me about pursuing other opportunities, i totally understood." chief of staff john kelly calling hicks "strategic, poised and wise beyond her years. to say that she will be missed is an understatement." but her tenure in washington not without scandal. hicks was involved in crafting a misleading statement about that now infamous trump tower meeting between don jr. a

you worked with hope hicks. so do you think she may have felt that she had somehow let the president down, thought it would be best to leave? >> no, i don't think that at all. i think it is not really fair for people to wonder and assume and project on what was going through hope hicks' mind. this is someone that i know and love dearly. she has been with the president and she was definitely a trusted asset to thissed from, to t ses campaign still rewriting the political playbook. but she is young and courageous and she has other aspirations. she is one of the few people i've ever met who doesn't define herself by her job description. so when she says she wants to k3 floor other opportunities, i take that at face value. >> so that is why you think she's leaving, just because she -- is it because she's had enough or maybe because something may have been presented to her after all this exposure and the like? >> i think we'll find out soon enough. but i will say that everyone makes decisions based upon the totality

this has serious consequences. >> hope hicks. some called her trump's prozac. >> we have to find out. she was close to the president with him the longest other than his children in the white house. you know with him from the beginning. reports she was the last person to walk him to the residence every night. it is hard to imagine the trump administration without hope hicks. i guess we will see what that's like. >> interesting. most americans probably have no idea who she is as we never hear her speak. we understand her role is integral in the white house. it should be interesting in terms of guiding this president. who he confides in now that keith shiller and her are gone. let's talk about jared kushner. the first son-in-law. this new reporting suggests that two people whom he met with at the white house then provided major loans to the kushner companies. jared has stepped away from the compa company, but we are talking about $184 million for one. apollo global management and one more $325 million from citigroup. this is why whi

hope hicks admits to telling white lies for the president. so should her testimony in a russia investigation be trusted? >>> angry and unglued. in a new report the official os reveal the real reasons behind some of the president's unexpected moves this week. >>> the three american products that could be under attack if president trump creates a trade war with the world. >>> we begin with a live picture of the white house capping off a roller coaster week. nbc news now learning that special counsel robert mueller's team is looking whether jared kushner's foreign business ties influenced president trump's. officials from qatar and turkey and the united arab emirates. one member of the intelligence community is sounding new alarms of president trump's behavior this week. here's what john john brennan said on msnbc last night. >> he must be feeling this pressure. there is a part of me that was very angry at donald trump for the things he said and he did. i am worried into the realm of deep wery and concern. if we have someone in the oval office t

and hope hicks is the latest fall gal. and she definitely fell on the sword yesterday before the house intelligence committee, testifying before -- more than nine hours is no easy feat. but she wasn't forth come. i also under base on jim acosta's reporting what she was saying by the committee is looked at by the special counsel investigation. there you have it. >> so the president wants to take guns away. who am i talking about, everyone? >> this president -- this president? we'll be right back. (siren wailing) (barry murrey) when you have a really traumatic injury, we have a short amount of time to get our patient to the hospital with good results. we call that the golden hour. evaluating patients remotely is where i think we have a potential to make a difference. (barry murrey) we would save a lot of lives if we could bring the doctor to the patient. verizon is racing to build the first and most powerful 5g network that will enable things like precision robotic surgery from thousands of miles away. as we get faster wirel

hope hicks asked to speak with her lawyers. hope hicks went to speak with her lawyers and came back in and said, roughly, i have told white lies and gave the example of saying that the president is out of the office when he's really not or that the president is delayed in traffic or that he can't make a meeting when he doesn't want to go to that meeting. white house officials speaking on background offered the usual spin in situations like this saying that hope hicks's decision to leave the administration has been in the works for several weeks and had absolutely nothing to do with the russia investigation or her appearance in front of the committee yesterday. there is, of course, no way of knowing right now if that's true. one problem that hope hicks might have with the special prosecutor involves mark caroli who resigned last year, the "new york times" reported he is planning to tell mr. mueller about a previously undisclosed conference call with mr. trump and hope hicks, the white house communications director, according to

hope hicks is out as well. the security clearances was sparked by hope hicks' reported boyfriend in the white house, rob porter, who was fired by the white house three weeks ago after the publication of serious domestic violence allegations against him. seriously, that was only three weeks ago, doesn't it feel like a million years? the other way to see this hope hicks story is the map of it, the massive, massive churn of high-ranking, high-profile and important people in the administration, people who have already been chewed up and spats out barely one year into this president being in office. we literally got a bigger wall. we've been keeping a list of people who have been turfed off of the administration. i am not going to read this entire list again, because god only gave my one set of vocal chords. the white house communications office has lost press secretary, assistant press secretary. communications director then another communications director. now another communications director with hope hicks tonigh

to know what hope hicks knows about the trump campaign's contacts with russia. not that i know of. sources say president trump is furious that the attorney general jeff sessions pushed back in the latest insult, but asked if the president plans to fire sessions, white house press secretary sarah sanders says, not that i know of. >>> putin boasts of the new arsenal he says renders u.s. and nato defenses completely useless. talk of a hypersonic missile and underwater nuclear drone. is putin impressing the pentagon or his own voters? i'm wolf blitzer, and you're in "the situation room." >>> this is cnn breaking news. >> breaking news as the special counsel's investigation closes in,s white house is lurching from crisis to crisis with increasing scrutiny of the president's son-in-law, a feud between the president and his own attorney general, and now an unplanned last minute announcement of import tariffs, sending stock marketing plummets. adam schiff and kcorrespondents are standing by for complete coverage. jim, a rocky day for the white house and wall street. >>

hope hicks asked to speak with her lawyers. hope hicks went to speak with her lawyers and came back in and said, roughly, i have told white lies and gave the example of saying that the president is out of the office when he's really not or that the president is delayed in traffic or that he can't make a meeting when he doesn't want to go to that meeting. white house officials speaking on background offered the usual spin in situations like this saying that hope hicks's decision to leave the administration has been in the works for several weeks and had absolutely nothing to do with the russia investigation or her appearance in front of the committee yesterday. there is, of course, no way of knowing right now if that's true. one problem that hope hicks might have with the special prosecutor involves mark corallo who resigned last year, the "new york times" reported he is planning to tell mr. mueller about a previously undisclosed conference call with mr. trump and hope hicks, the white house communications director, according to

hope hicks, his communications director and long time aide resigning. >> hope hicks is a tremendously talented person. >> nbc news has learned hicks told the president personally, according to a white house source, and said her good-byes to staff in an emotional meeting, the president saying hope is outstanding and has done great work for the last three years. she is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person. adding he totally understood when she said she would leave. often seen, but rarely heard on cameras or in interviews, hicks is a fierce defender of her boss, by his side for nearly every critical campaign moment. >> merry christmas, everyone, and thank you, donald trump. >> and with no prior political experience, rocketing to a top job in the white house. word of her departure comes less than 24 hours after she appeared on capitol hill to testify about the russia investigation. apparently acknowledging she's occasionally told white lies as part of her job. >> the whole talk about a white lie is such a bad wrap and so unfair to hope hicks. she was asked did donald

"the washington post" says that silence made hope hicks intriguing recent article inside hicks romances between rob porter and corey lewandowski. why do you think the mainstream media is so fascinated with this woman? >> i first dealt with hope hicks the first week of the campaign when the campaign was her and corey lewandowski. she is very quiet behind the scenes but very effective. channels donald trump. knows how to read his mood. she delivers the bad news. because she is not out there on television. she doesn't have a twitter account. there is this sort of air of mystery that's developed around her i think what it says is that she doesn't care at all about her own image and devoted to the president. the fact that she is quitting now shows you how thoroughly drained she is particularly during her time as communications director. >> launch of president's campaign in june of 2015 up to her resignation from the white house on wednesday, why do you think it is that she has yet to make a television appearance? this is obviously a decision she made long ago but i'm wondering why. believe m

hope hicks. where's hope? hope. come here, hope. come here, hope. get up here, hope. hope hicks. the legendary hope hicks. >> reporter: before that in trump tower as an assistant to the billionaire businessman. a former model, she joined the family working on ivanka trump's fashion line. now she helps run the white house, her handwriting right there on the president's note, reminding him to tell those grieving families from parkland, "i hear you." within minutes of news of her departure, the president releasing a statement saying "she's as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person. i will miss having her by my side, but when she approached me about pursuing other opportunities, i totally understood." chief of staff john kelly calling hicks "strategic, poised, and wise beyond her years. to say that she will be missed is an understatement." but her tenure in washington not without scandal. hicks was involved in crafting a misleading statement about that now-infamous trump tower meetin

hope hicks, his communications director and longtime aide resigning. >> hope hicks is a tremendously talented person. >> reporter: nbc news has learned hicks told the president personally earlier today according to a white house source and said her good-byes to staff in an emotional meeting late this afternoon. the president saying, "hope is outstanding and has done great work for the last three years. she is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person." adding he totally understood when she said she would leave. often seen, but rarely heard in interviews or on camera, hicks played a pivotal part behind the scenes, a fierce defender of her boss, by his side for nearly every critical campaign moment. >> merry christmas, everyone, and thank you, donald trump. >> reporter: and with no prior political experience, rocketing to a top job in the white house. word of her departure comes less than 24 hours after she appeared on capitol hill to testify about the russia investigation. apparently acknowledging she's occasionally told white lies as part of her job. >> the whole tal

hope hicks dropping the bombshell that she is stepping down. and while some reports say she had recently talked about leaving the white house, her departure comes just one day after testifying for nine hours before the house intelligence committee. and as hicks has been drawn into other controversies involving the administration. counselor to the president, kellyanne conway, on her impact. >> it's going to be very difficult to replace hope hicks in the hope role which was very multidimensional role over the course of three years. i think it's important to talk about those three years. we have been here for 13 months. but hope is one of those unbroken threads between the early days of the primary campaign all through the campaign, on the plane, practically every day. including on weekends with candidate trump during transition with him and with us and certainly here since day one of the administration. >> harris: chief white house correspondent john roberts joins us now from the north lawn. john? >> harris, good afternoon to you. i think it's sa

hope hicks, latest member of the west wing to head to the door. this is a photograph, the swearing in of senior saf after the inauguration. look at the names who have disappeared. amarosa, walsh, flynn, bannon, and others there we can't see. is this week, i mean, i know it's been chaotic, but this is the first white house you've covered, so i have to say, i'm not patronizing, but it's normally not like this. >> bar is set high. >> it's normally not this crazy, but is this week particularly crazy? >> certainly. there's certainly that feeling in the white house, even among white house staffers. they texted me about the jared story saying i can't believe this. this is really ludicrous. it's not just -- this is not just a normal week. that's a running joke around the white house press, that this week is insane, but this week is a flurry of stories. hope hicks of a big significant story yesterday taking people by surprise, not just those of us who cover the white house, by people inside the white house. the very senior staffers very surprised. though t

hope hicks is 29 years old. she is the fifth person to hold the title of communications director in just over a year for this white house. she goes back to the start of the campaign. she was there on every flight, at every stop with donald trump. a photo posted to instagram by trump aide dan scavino indicates just how essential she has been to donald trump. that photo was taken on board the helicopter, marine one. that's mr. porter in the seat opposite her, the former staff secretary at the white house. hope hicks flying with the president. and when he was running for the presidency, donald trump made a point of singling her out at rallies. >> and hope hicks. this is hope. this is hope. this is hope. nobody takes more phone calls i think in a day than hope. i have a great staff, i have a great staff. one of whom comes from connecticut. hope hicks. she used to be in my real estate company. i said, what do you know about politics? she said, absolutely nothing. i said, congratulations, you're into the world of poli

hope hicks is the closiest thin to a taping system. she was around donald trump every minute, he loved having her around, he was calm in her presence, he was focused in her presence, a form of a deputy daughter, if you will. she's as close to a continuous record of everything donald trump said and did through the campaign and through the transition and through the presidency, no wonder she left. >> you put it well, as you often do, howard, michael conway, thank you for sharing your experience on that white house committee as well. >>> there is buzz about get out the post in meryl streep. first, fall back friday is back in just 90 seconds. supported by innovative packaging that extends the shelf life of foods and infrastructure upgrades that help us share our produce with the world. all across new york state, we're building the new new york. to grow your business with us in new york state, visit esd.ny.gov it can be sculpted in beautiful detail. or painted in luxurious strokes. and in rare cases... both. but i'm not standing still... an

hope hicks is 29 years old. she is the fifth person to hold the title of communications director in just over a year for this white house. she goes back to the start of the campaign. she was there on every flight, at every stop with donald trump. a photo posted to instagram by trump aide dan scavino indicates how essential she's been to donald trump. that photo taken aboard the helicopter, marine one. that's mr. porter in the seat opposite her, the former staff secretary at the white house. hope hicks flying with the president. and when he was running for the presidency, donald trump made a point of singling her out at rallies. >> and hope hicks. this is hope. this is hope. this is hope. nobody takes more phone calls i think in a day than hope. i have a great staff, i have a great staff. one of whom comes from connecticut. hope hicks. she used to be in my real estate company. i said, what do you know about politics? she said, absolutely nothing. i said, congratulations, you're in. right? she knew nothing. she wa

, again, withjust task and hope hicks was someone, again, with just emphasizing, task and hope hicks was someone, again, withjust emphasizing, who very much belonged in some senses to the family. she was someone who is reckless to be family and very close to the president himself. it blow, but i think it is also a blow in terms of the organisation of the white house, it's up. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. the international olympic committee has lifted its ban on russia, three days after the winter games in south korea ended. the suspension was imposed in december, after inspectors said they'd found evidence of systematic state—sponsored doping. president putin gave some of the winning athletes their medals earlier today. here's what the president of the russian olympic committee said about their athletes. translation: the letter we have received today says that the international olympic committee can confirm that all the remaining samples of the olympic athletes from russia were negative. that is, i'll be doping tests that our habits took in the last days of th

hope hicks, the communications director, had been a top aide to mr. trump and before that his daughter, ivanka, for years. we get more now on this from white house correspondent and "face the nation" moderator d?rgaret brennan. margaret, what happened? >> reporter: well, 29-year-old hope hicks is president trump's longest-serving political aide and his most trusted. hoe white house says she had been considering leaving her hesition for months, and now she wants to take on a job outside of government. >> so, no comment at all? ed reporter: the announcement came a day after she testified before the house intelligence committee, which is investigating russian interference in the 2016 election. sources say she told the committee that her work for the r esident required her to tell white lies, but she never lied about russia. >> she started off with us right from day one. >> reporter: she has been at mr. trump's side for the past three years. >> now hope hicks is a tremendously talented person. >> reporter: but tried to stay out of the spotlight herself. t

>> hope hicks leaving, josh leaving. on guns, republican feeling the heat. >> rick gates turning on him, flynn already turning on him. manafort about to. >> on guns the republicans are feeling the heat. suburban voters in places like philadelphia want to see gun control. republicans know the nra gets base voters to come out. they need to show some movement. that's why you saw the president today trying to show movement. >> he's got to deal with the appalachian wing of his party that doesn't want to do anything about guns. conner lamp is not talking guns. mieke, thank you for joining us. this is a political mess. it's about what is this president going to do in his situation? >> he's increasingly isolated. for a man who values loyalty, there is no one willing to go down with the ship with the exception of the family. >> dianne feinstein is 85 and she's sticking it out. this woman is 29 and she's going to spend time with her family? what family. i'm sorry. it sounds like the thing you do when you've been sacked. i've got t

two things are happening and hope hicks underscores it. a lot of people are thinking about their reputations and how soon do they have to get out to protect their reputations. it will be a badge of honor to work for donald trump in some circles. for a lot of other places, this is a really hard thing to have on your rÉsume, and you have to explain. the other thing is how do you then find the people you need to fill those jobs who are really good? >> we're going to take a quick break. more of this conversation when we come back. we'll bring in the rest of the panel. we'll also have new reporting from "the washington post" that robert mueller is examining that time period last summer when president trump seemed to fire attorney general jeff sessions. ...it starts a chain reaction... ...that's heard throughout the connected business world. at&t network security helps protect business, from the largest financial markets to the smallest transactions, by sensing cyber-attacks in near real time and automatically deploying countermeasures. keeping

. >>> plus hope hicks is leaving her white house job. she is routinely briefing the president which means she knows everything that passes his desk. >>> what should be the age to purchase a firearm? >> the discussion yesterday demonstrated there is a lot of different moving parts we can work with and come up with a package that can pass the house and senate. >> are you clear about where the president stands? >> this is what i call a brainstorming session, so we got a lot of different ideas, but as i said yesterday, it's going to have to get 60 votes to pass in the senate and that's really the acid test. >> back to that in a moment, but we begin the hour with the escalation of a personal feud that some worry coould evolve into a constitutional crisis. the president is feuding with attorney general jeff sessions. or if you drop the cartoon vocabulary, he is even madder at mr. magoo. why? because the attorney general stood up for himself, vowing to do something to provide integrity. going to dinner in public with his deputy rod rosenstein,

hope hicks herself went beyond that in some way. she was with president trump throughout the campaign and was with the family organisation for years before that and she was really seen as a very close adviser and aide to president trump. someone that he relied upon time and time again. in a statement tonight, he has talked clearly about her resignation does, just a day after she spoke to the house intelligence committee here in washington. this committee has examined a number of issues and on those issues, it seemed that hope hicks wasn't ready to respond. apparently, she wasn't prepared to talk about the meeting, the controversial meeting in summer 2016 between the trump organisation, the trump organisation, the trump campaign team and a russian lawyer. she also apparently a one stage did say that she apparently told white lies on behalf of the president, but, as i say, this is another blow for the white house, losing a key member of staff, but it is a personal blow to donald trump, too, as president, because he did rely so clearly

hope hicks is out. one of president trump's most trusted aides resigned from the white house. >>> plus, in the wake of the florida school shooting, mr. trump takes a hard stance on guns, stunning the nra and fellow republicans. >> it doesn't make sense that i have to wait until i'm 21 to get a handgun but i can get this weapon at 18. >>> and this. >> we've got an announcement to come. they said an active shooter. >> a georgia school goes on lockdown after police say a teacher barricaded himself in a classroom and fired a gun. >>> good morning from the studio 57 newsroom at cbs news headquarters here in new york. good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. we begin at the white house where another key staffer has called it quits. this resignation hits close to the president. communications director hope hicks was a valued member of mr. trump's inner circle. she announced her resignation yesterday following testimony on capitol hill that raised some eyebrows. the announcement came a day after she testified

hope hicks is out. one of president trump's most trusted aides resigned from the white house. >>> plus, in the wake of the florida school shooting, mr. trump takes a hard stance on guns, stunning the nra and fellow republicans. >> it doesn't make sense that i have to wait until i'm 21 to get a handgun but i can get this weapon at 18. >>> and this. >> we've got an announcement to on the intercom. they said an active shooter. >> a georgia school goes on lockdown after police say a teacher barricaded himself in a classroom and fired a gun. >>> good morning from the studio 57 newsroom at cbs news headquarters here in new york. good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. we begin at the white house where another key staffer has called it quits. this resignation hits close to the president. communications director hope hicks was a valued member of mr. trump's inner circle. advising him on all matters. she abruptly announced her resignation yesterday following capitol hill testimony that raised some eyebrows. m

two things are happening and hope hicks underscores it. a lot of people are thinking about their reputations and how soon do they have to get out to protect their reputations. it will be a badge of honor to work for donald trump in some circles. for a lot of other places, this is a really hard thing to have on your rÉsume, and you have to explain. the other thing is how do you then find the people you need to fill those jobs who are really good? >> we're going to take a quick break. more of this conversation when we come back. we'll bring in the rest of the panel. we'll also have new reporting from "the washington post" that robert mueller is examining that time period last summer when president trump seemed to fire attorney general jeff sessions. with exciting new dishes like dueling lobster tails and lobster truffle mac & cheese. classics like lobster lover's dream are here too. so enjoy these 10 lobsterlicious dishes while you can because lobsterfest won't last. and back pain made it hard to sleep and get up on time. then i found aleve

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hope hicks leaves. i don't know if general kelly had anything to do with it but it's certainly something that he would want which is get -- get the trump tower people out, move in the professionals. >> you can't overstate how close hope hicks has been to donald trump. she came up to the trump organization, not through the presidential campaign or the white house. she worked with ivanka many years ago and joined him from day one literally of his presidential campaign. you can hear in his statement and statements of ivanka and others how much she meant to him. we want to get now to the nbc exclusive, that special counsel robert mueller is reportedly looking into when and how donald trump learned e-mails from the democratic party had been hacked by russian operatives during the 2015 presidential election. multiple people familiar with the election tell nbc news mueller's team is asking witnesses pointed questions about whether trump was aware e-mails had been stolen and also whether he was involved with th

he's lost hope hicks who, as one source said to me, is his emotional support. this source also predicted the hope hicks resigning. >> there was also the reporter who harassed the white house secretary who was accused of marital abuse. we saw those pictures and she was having an affair with him at the time. >> that just points out the level of chaos she's been dealing with for many, many months, dating back to the inauguration in the campaign. with the focus of rob porter and the mueller investigation going on in the background, and she's clearly focused. she had to deal with that. she had to get a lawyer just like many west wing airdes have had to do. and that testimony she gave on the hill when she said at times she's told white lies for the president doesn't precipitate him, but she did help create a super pressurized department. the circle of people around him who know him well and he feels comfortable are really shrinking. now his son-in-law jared kushner is under all this scrutiny. the story we ran today about his business dealings, and now he's been strip

hope hicks suddenly resigned. >> one of the first to join the trump administration. her departure will be a big loss for president trump. >> reporter: today white house officials are already considering candidates to replace hope hicks as white house communications director. but even when that job is filled analysts say there will still be a large role that will remain unfilled, trusted confidant and aide to the president. >> hope hicks is a tremendously talented person. >> reporter: hicks worked in the trump administration and signed on to the campaign in its earliest days. >> it's not just that she's been in that crucial -- she has been somebody who kind of has a connection to him very few other people had. >> reporter: hicks announced her resignation a day after testifying about the russia investigation on capitol hill. she apparently said she's occasionally told white lies as part of her job. >> she was asked did donald trump ever ask her to lie, and her answer was that she never told an untruth on anything of substance. >> reporter: democrats blasted hicks' refu

she's not favored by hope hicks. the interesting thing is no matter what number of names are on this list of who could replace hope hicks, there is no one who could immediately replace hope hicks in the weight and role she served for donald trump. he trusted her more than anyone else, he called her hopy and hopester. he would sort of compare his instincts against hers and really relied on her for top level decisions in a way we haven't seen him trust anyone else. and i think that is something that will not only worry trump because he's realizing he's suddenly surrounded by people he can't trust like hope hicks. but that will make finding her replacement incredibly difficult. she's the third communications director. i don't know who would want to come into this role knowing that this turnaround is so high for this position, and they could suddenly be out of a job, especially considering trump will never trust anyone like he trusted hope hicks. >> then again, erin, "new york magazine" describes a cutthroat battle in th

. >> what we know about the sudden departure of hicks. then as the president demands his attorney general investigates his enemies. >> russia, if you're listening, i hope you're able to find the 30,000 e-mails that are missing. > an nbc news exclusive report. >> i love wikileaks. >> robert mueller is asking witnesses whether donald trump knew about the hack of the dnc before the public did. >> boy, i love reading those wikileaks. >> what to make of the president's gun show. >> i like taking the guns early. >> with the lawmaker in the room. >> i think you underestimate the power of the gun lobby. >> when all in starts right now. >>> good evening from new york. i'm chris hayes. white house communications director hope hicks is out. one day after testifying before the house intelligence committee, where she acknowledged telling, and i'm quoting because it's such an indicative phrase, white lies. white lies for the president. the president's longest serving aide is joining the extensive and ever growing list of senior officials to leave the t

hope hicks has been helping donald trump for years. it is exhausting just reading his tweets every day. imagine having that as your entire life. she is a 29-year-old woman. she has got great talent. she's got a great resume. and she's got great potential to really do something else. she's probably exhausted and just moving on. i think leslie is right. i think this has been going on. i have to disagree with leslie, i don't think the american people are thinking, well, she testified for nine hours yesterday. i don't think they are thinking about the mueller investigation at all anymore. it has proven to be absolutely nothing. >> shannon: all right. let's meet take you to another topic. the president is being tough on the attorney general again. they have had their spats, they've made up, details of jeff sessions trying to resign, being run down by reince priebus, being brought back. we told you about the president's tweet where he said, i don't like that fisa investigation, he needs to not use the inspector general. he says, we have init

we're going to start with hope hicks. she's been part of trump's inner circle since the very beginning and is considered one of the very few who understand the president and his thinking. her resignation means this white house will be looking for its fifth, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, fifth communications director in just 13 months. that's as many as obama had in eight years. hick was more on this just a communications director, she was the so-called trump whisperer and it will be difficult, if not impossible, for anyone to fill that role. now we got to turn to jared kushner, who is staying, at least for now, but for how long? on wednesday, we got word that foreign officials had been trying to manipulate him and robert mueller has been looking into his contacts overseas. today, there's reporting from "the new york times" that kushner's family business received half, ready for this, a billion dollars in loans from two companies just a couple of months after kushner met with their leaders, where else, the white house. i'll be speaking t

so that remains i think a big question, whether they will follow hope hicks. their spokesman who also left this week, whether they will follow them out of the white house. >> ladies, thanks so much. >>> coming up next, why the fbi reportedly is now investigating ivanka trump's financial wheeling and dealing. >>> and reaction to hope hicks' resignation from the realm of late night tv. >>> white house communications director hope hicks announced today that she is resigning from her position, which is weird, because i thought hope left the white house a year ago. >> hicks is not living on bad terms. in fact she said she had no words to express her gratitude to the president. the communications director has no words. and the president is hoping she'll have no words for robert mueller. >> according to "the new york times," hope hicks told the white house intelligence committee that she has occasionally has to tell white lies. or as melania calls them, "vows." one cause for dry mouth. dry mouth can cause increased cavities, bad breath, oral irritation. i like to rec

communications director hope hick,s resign issed yesterday. and one of his top advisers jared kushner is under scrutiny for his proposed business dealings inside of the white house. kenneth moton has the latest. >> reporter: one of president trump's closest and most loyal aides hope hicks is the latest to resign in the administration. >> hope hicks a tremendously talented person. starting off with us from day one. >> the departure is in the works for months but comes after the stunning admission to investigators that hicks occasionally tells white lies on behalf of the president. in a statement, there are no words to advocately express gratitude to president trump. and hicks was questioned by the council in the russian investigation after she helped to craft the president's response about the meeting at trump tower between the russian lawyer. and ousting the -- hicks and porter had been dating and adding to the turmoil. jared kushner's real estate turn got $300 million in loans from apollo management. after having meetings with kushner. >> the