Straight from the source tonight, country over party. That is the message from liz cheney and a passionate plea to americans while standing with the democratic nominee in the birthplace of the republican party also tonight, an old photo has surfaced as a republican member of congress in blackface. I'll dressed up as michael jackson tonight. Congressman mike lawler will join me live to respond and trapped in the flooding two people are dead, four more are still missing night and tennessee factory is under investigation after workers say they weren't allowed to leave to escape hurricane helene until it was too late. I'm kaitlan collins, and this is the source donald trump's efforts to overturn the last presidential election are front and center with only weeks to go before the next one the fallout from the culmination of those efforts by donald trump, january 6, is what pushed liz cheney to do something that would have been unthinkable for anyone in her family. Just four years ago the lifelong republican sharing a campaign stage today alongside the democratic presidential nominee and have all locations the birthplace of the republican party donald trump started spray tanning i know that the most conservative of conservative values is fidelity to our constitution sacrifice vice are capitol to allow law enforcement officers to be beaten and brutalized in his name and to violate the law and the constitution. In order to seize power for himself. I don't care if you are a democrat or a republican or an independent that is depravity and we must never become numb to it after those forceful comments. Liz cheney then stood over her shoulder as we saw the vice president goes somewhere that she has mostly avoided for months election that statement, of course, was the one thing we did not hear from trump's running mate, jd vance earlier this week on the debate stage. But this comes as the massive trove of evidence that the special counsel says it has on trump's efforts to overturn the election as all looming over this endorsement from liz cheney. Because the man who was quoted in that filing that we brought you here last night saying, quote, it doesn't matter if you won or lost the election. He's still saying this for years later won we won is a rigged election was a rigged election of course, he did not win in 2020, as we know my political sources tonight are former communications director to vice president harris jamal simmons, scott jennings, who served a long with vice president dick cheney and the george w bush administration. And journalists and cofounder of lift our voices. Gretchen carlson, jamal, that was a full throated endorsement day that we heard from liz cheney, just watching it. I mean, i know that we're used to everything happening in this day and age, but it seemed just almost just unimaginable a few years ago. And does it work though? that's the question i think think. For the record, that's what a lot of my career you campaigning against the chinese it's tough one, it's got to be surreal for you to see that. Didn't go very well we think i'd rather be on their side. I think. Listen, i think this does give some republicans who earn some moderates, maybe who are thinking about what to do. We know that sliver is getting smaller and smaller, but maybe it does give them some opportunity to come out and vote for vice president harris. I think she didn't just say do it because you know, trump's horrible. It's bad. She gave her a pretty big endorsement about who she was and where she comes from, and what her values are. I think she gave them a ringing endorsement and the vice president got up there and really didn't make i thought it was a very interesting she didn't make liz cheney applied for anything or stand there and take anything that she wouldn't apply for? she didn't talk about a lot of social issues. She didn't talk about any of the things that might be controversial between democrats and republicans. It was america first freedom. We're all in this together. Let's fight and win. And she said, i hope we can get back to a place where we have a vigorous twoparty debate in this nation. Obviously, we're having won, but she was saying the republican party is so different i mean, does what liz cheney did today create a permission structure for republicans who are our kamala curious about voting for her? yeah, but i don't think anyone who hasn't made up their mind yet is looking for permission from her. But i do think this was a very brave act on her part. It takes courage to do what she did after january 6. It takes courage to do what she did today. I thought what was most fascinating was that they didn't talk about policy at all they probably don't agree on much of anything except foreign policy. They did talk foreign policy, foreign policy agreed on that but i mean, that's a very insightful point that they stayed away from police i see look, liz cheney's mission there today was that she believes democracy is at stake. And that's the number one thing she's been talking about for the past few years. And she's willing to look past any other policy differences because she believes we won't have a democracy anymore if donald trump is elected, i mean, scott, obviously as the republican at the table, who did to work for dick cheney when he was vice president and that administration you know, when you see that today, what do you make of that? i revere big cheney. I was glad to work for him twice and honored to serve underneath them. I mean, i just want to mentally disagree that we won't have a democracy. I think this country is strong, stronger than any individual we will politician in either party. And so i believe deeply that the policy differences matter. So did liz cheney at one point, she used to call kamala harris radical liberal, who would raise taxes, take away guns, and health insurance, and explode the size and power of the federal government. Now this means something to a lot of people and so i don't begrudge her her viewpoints. And obviously if she strongly dislikes donald trump and what he represents, but there are a heck of a lot of people in this country who thought they were getting something out of bidenharris that they did not get. And there's a lot of republicans and conservatives who probably may have some proclaimed devotees that cheney has about what trump did on january the sixth, but are mortified at the policy outcomes of bidenharris. They were not moderates, they were radical liberals, just like cheney predicted, they would be. But what about when bill barr tells me trump can have all these policies that people say, well, i like his policies better, but bill barr said to me, basically his personality gets in the way he can actually achieve those policies i think kamala harris is personnel is on the way to i mean, i mean, they're politicians, they're human beings, they are things about them we like and are things about them we don't like, i think politics has a couple of purposes. Win elections and govern. And the way harris has governed last threeandahalf years, i cannot abide. It's like this is why she wasn't going after you for a vote today. She going after people who've already decided i work for george w bush and her dad, who would she be going after because that's not the republican party anymore, but that's what those are her people. Those people are they not? yes, but that's not who's running as a republican this election cycle that's the whole point of this discussion. She's going after the 2% of undecided that is, she's going after independence and she's going after republicans that hate donald trump. Those are the two groups. And it's a very small group. But when you have an election this close, it could matter. Well, let's talk to a republican that we have with us who worked for donald trump, sarah matthews is here and sarah obviously, you were the deputy press secretary in the trump administration when i was covering it you have endorsed liz cheney. You're voting for or sorry, for kamala harris. You're voting for or you're gonna be with liz cheney on the campaign trail next week are used someone who ever thought that you'd find yourself voting for a democrat? i think if you would have told me for years ago that i'd be excited to cast my ballot for kamala harris for president in 2024, my head would have exploded. So no, i did not envision myself being in this position, but i also didn't think that an insurrection at our nation's capital was possible. I also didn't think that we would ever have a president who would disrupt the peaceful transfer of power for the first time in our nation's history. So it made the decision easy because i believe that donald trump has shown us that he is wholly unfit to ever serve as president. Again and so yeah, i'm going to vote for the person who i think can beat him and will keep him out of office and away from the oval office. What do you plan to to say next week when when you do appear alongside, not just liz cheney, i should note, but also alyssa farah griffin, who our viewers will know well, cassie hutchinson, two other former prominent trump's supporters and trump staffers look, i think that all of us identify as lifelong conservatives. I can say that i've never voted for a democrat and my life and i believe that the other three have never as well, but we know that the stakes are too high in this election and we've seen up close and personal at least cassidy, alissa, and myself. What what kind of leader donald trump is. And we know him to be unfit. And so we don't want to sit on the sidelines in this election, and we want to make our voices heard in somewhere like pennsylvania where i believe that this message could break through. Obviously we know that pennsylvania is going to be critical and that the margins are going to be tight and i want to say that in pennsylvania during the primary process, there were 100 i'm 58,000 republicans who turned out to cast a vote for nikki haley in that primary. That is a closed primary. So that means that no democrats or independents can vote in it. And these people knew that their vote when it matter in the sense that donald trump was still going to be the nominee and he would win the primary. But they did it in protests. And so even if just a fraction of those people, we can convince to write in kamala harris instead of sitting this selection now or voting for donald trump are leaving the top of their ballot blank, then that could be something that pushes kamala harris over the edge and gives her a win in that critical key battleground state. That's a great point about those. Nikki haley voters. I want everyone to listen trump responded to cheney endorsing harris and a very public way she did today. This is what trump had to say about it congress she was terrible. Liz cheney is a stupid warhawk. All she wants to do is shoot missiles at paypal. I really think it hurts think frankly, if kamala i think they hurt each other, i think there's so bad boss women. How many times do we have to say this? he's calling her stupid. It just makes me cringe. It doesn't even matter who i'm going to vote for or what i think it's just why would he keep doing that? i guess i'll ask scott that. Why would he keep doing that and think that he might have a chance at getting some of those independent women and suburban moms. I just don't understand it. I mean, i look you're welcome to your opinions. I mean, my view is he debates his political opponents with great vigor and the independent and suburban women of this country may or may not have already formed opinions about him, but i doubt they're going to cast their ballot based on what his views of liz cheney or i hope they cast her ballot based on the inflation under which they've been crushed for the last threeandahalf years, for instance to me, this this idea that he's not allowed to fire back at his critics when they call him everything, but a good milk cow. I just think is ludicrous. It's a political campaign and its october buckle up everybody. Well, that's also paid system was really happening. He's not going to suburban women, right? he's not going after women. But yeah, maybe she is, but he's not he's going after those disaffected guys who are playing video games, watching wwe, not paying attention to politics. And they are trying to get every single one of them they can to show up in this election and vote for him. I got to tell you. It is so bracing i imagine it. I don't know if it's bracing for you. Not scott. It would be bracing for me that so many people who have worked into mentally with donald trump who know him so well from cabinet officials to military officials, to staffers have all come out and said this man should not be trusted with the white house again. Well, and the economy is the number one issue for voters. But impulse, we've seen democracy is really high up the other underneath it aren't even close. We had the republican house whip, tom tom emmer on last night from minnesota. We were talking to him about this and talking about what came out in that filing last night about the effort efforts to overturn the election, which is why liz cheney was up there today and listen to what tom emmer had to say this is something that you folks in the media want to focus on a regular basis. The american people, and thank goodness, jd vance and donald trump are focused on the election and how to fix this country trump went on at length today about the 2020 election, as we just heard saying that he wanted this isn't something that the media is just concocting. Trump himself is still talking about 20 and jd vance on tuesday night also, wouldn't give a straight answer on this. So look, it's an inconvenient truth that this is something that we're still talking about, but i think this whole thing could have stopped when mitch mcconnell had the opportunity to stop it on that day on january 6, we would not be looking at the same republican party today. We would not because he could have coalesced the members of congress right then and there to not allow donald trump to make them push back what they thought about it. And they could have impeached him and it would have be there to give her everybody a rudimentary civics lesson. The house impeachers. And it took them a long time to get to it. And yes. It was just talking about and then the senate, but it took a long time to get i don't disagree with you if they convenient done it that night, maybe they would have what it took less than a long time for pelosi to get around to it. It took too much time passed blame it on mitch mcconnell. I'm just saying the leader of the republican party at the time, and i think that that will go down in history as the greatest error of the republican party. Scott, you don't care about the liz cheney endorsement. You're a republican. What about this endorsement that we also heard from today? with full knowledge, my opinions know more or less important than those of any of my fellow citizens. Here's my answer. I'm supporting kamala harris for president and tim walz for vice president. And opposing donald trump and jd vance i am bruce springsteen's pretty convincing to some people. Couple of things. A i can't think of anything. I care about less than some more on celebrity. Be we got hulk hogan and that's all i need pennsylvania. He's pretty, he's not like some outoftouch la, so i don't i legitimately don't care because joe biden and kamala harris ran the country into the ground. I want directionally a center right government and i don't give a crap what some celebrity thinks about it. Who's got hundreds of millions of dollars? he's not affected by their policies that help working people in kentucky do care about it. And that's where i live and that's who i represent me with. Scott on that. I don't think these celebrity endorsements, i mean, maybe taylor swift moves it for people to register to vote. But i'm not but that has much to do with who they want to vote for in the end it's their pocket book, right? yeah? i was my final thought god bless bruce springsteen. All right. Well, no one here is getting backstage passes to bruce thank you all so much for being here up next you're going to want to hear this story. Donald trump is making a new effort tonight to dismiss that january 6 case against him are legal experts are going to tell us if he has a chance. Also, a new york republican congressman and a tight race now admits he did darkened his face as part of a halloween costume. And 2006, there is a picture we'll show it to you congressman mike lawler will respond here live tonight ever done this for a living james was famous for winning races, teams believes that change winds it's the economy stupid i apologizing to know what that man is it to 50 catcher, i am saying publicly for people say and i have enough money. I could just shut up carbon. 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This fault switch to a turbotax live expert and we'll beat the price national airport. This is cnn just a day after a judge unsealed, neverbeforeseen evidence and jack smith's case against donald trump. Tonight, trump's lawyers are trying again to get that case thrown out entirely. They're attempting to lean on an assist from the supreme court. My legal sources are former assistant us attorney for the southern district of new york and cnn senior legal analyst elie honig, also here, former senior investigative counsel for the january 6 committee, temidayo aganga williams. Great to have you both here. Elie, can we just start with what they are arguing? what trump's team is arguing? when here. Obviously we know the goal is, but what's the process that they're hoping they get there by? so this is the other issue we've been very focused for last several days and weeks on the immunity question, which is playing out. And i know we'll talk about in a minute. But what trump's arguing today is there was another supreme court decision a few days before the immunity decision that said the obstruction law there was charged to get hundreds of january 6 rioters does not apply to the physical attempt to block congress on january 6, the court, as a result, throughout 300 plus convictions for that. And by the way, i should say justice jackson ketanji brown jackson joined with five conservatives in that ruling. So trump's team is saying, aha, two of the four charges against me or the same obstruction statute. Therefore, it has to get thrown out. Jack smith's going to say, well, your case involved, fake documents, which the supreme court said is really the distinction it has to evolve fake documents or jack smith is going to say the fake elector certificates that keeps these charges on the books against you. Do you think the judge will say this is not going to work? they tried to get a lot of his cases thrown out. They were successful in the classified documents case. What's the situation here? do you think i think i always right? the argument we're going to hear, i don't think that's going to be successful. The distinction there is going to be about whether these, this law that was made after the enron scandal focused on documents is applicable to the former president. I think it's going to be a failure when he moved sword here. I think the judge is going to be pretty easily dismiss that that argument can i ask you about the other thing the judge did today, which was moved the deadline for when trump's team has to respond to what we went through last night, all this evidence that we had never seen before, some of it in the election interference case against trump saying this can still go to trial despite what the supreme court argued. Its november 7, two days after the election, would they want to not robot that before the election happened? yes, it's a good question you would think trump would want to put in his, hey, here's my response to this thing. You all just saw it's not going to trial obviously for a long time because it's going to go back to the supreme court. But this is unusual about the way this whole thing has played out. The brief we saw last night procedurally, it's all backwards with the way it works. You've been the prosecutor's chair you've got your indictment as a prosecutor, then the defense says, here's the motions. I'm going to make to try to dismiss jack smith here said, i want to go first and i want to speed it up. And judge chutkan agreed with him and that's why we've now seen this document 30 some days before the election, they really flipped ordinary procedure on its head here to get it done. Well, that's i'd trump is quoting you on truth social today. You titled this jack smith's october cheap shot yeah. I stand by that jack smith took the established normal procedures of any case and he said, i want to go first, judge chutkan said, this is an unusual request, and then let him do it. There's no reason to speed it up. There's no reason to flip it unless you as jack smith believe, while the american public needs to see this before the election, their job as a prosecutor and i argue in the piece of violates long standing doj policy to do anything with an election in mind it is out there and it is really interesting. We read through it all here last night. It's fascinating and there's one part we didn't get to last night, tim. And since you were on the january 6 congressional committee helping them with their very exhaustive investigation. I wonder one if you knew about this and what you make of it, which is this detailing about how trump operatives were trying to cause chaos? during the election. And this has to do with two unidentified trump campaign workers in detroit. It's on election night at where things getting crazy. And when a colleague told an unidentified person, we think a batch of votes heavily in biden's favor is right that unnamed person responded find a reason. It isn't give me options to file litigation when the colleagues suggested that there was not to be unrest, the polling place, this person responded, make them riot do it now we don't know who that was, but they were clearly trying to have some kind of moment where it looked chaotic, it looked like these we didn't know who these votes were for if they were legitimate when they were and they just wanted there to be seeing that they could use to their advantage so that was new to me. That's something that i was not aware of and i think it is, but i think it's consistent with what we've seen with both the former president and his allies, which is that they knew that their actions were likely to cause violence and they want to cause violence. I think it's entirely consistent and i must if i could kaitlan, i want to go back to what elie said on jack smith, which i must vigorously disagree with the contents of elie's article. I don't think what jack smith here has done is abnormal the doj rule reference about taking actions within 60 days is informal law. It's not the right rule that's not the right one. If you could rule that i'm not talking about like the kid that i think what i find problematic in that article, it's suggested jack smith is purposely trying to impact the election. It suggested jack smith going first is so abnormal because it's putting some kind of mens rea, which a state of mind and jack smith, the supreme court told jack smith to go forward and do exactly what he's doing. Jack smith filed that brief under seal. Judge chutkan chose to unseal this, not jack smith. And i do take issue with the framing that this case has been delayed or is going forward at this time because of jack smith it was delayed because the supreme court took so long to took this action. It was delayed because the former president has sorted every angle to stop this from going forward. So i do think that personally for me, i think what jack smith has done so far is prosecutor's case honorably, quickly and appropriately, and the public has a right. There's a public interest in an open process which means seeing this evidence, which means moving quickly and yes, moving quickly before an election that's what should happen. The people should know what happened and get the evidence that a grand jury, as beyond probable cause, said that the former president likely committed these crimes so that people should get to trial as quickly as possible and should not be stopped because an election happens to be happening, he's a defendant firms candidate second how many times did you ever file your motion first before there was a motion to dismiss as a prosecutor, how many times however, how many times i've ever prosecuted a former present for these crimes are unique circumstance. The supreme court rules are thrown out, knows really what then know what i'm saying is that a conservative supreme court told jack smith, take this back to john chutkan and do exactly what they did not say. You go first, you rush it the way motions work. You know, this the defense makes a motion first, they get to say, here's the basis. It got flipped on his head and let me talk about the delay issue. How long did it take doj to charge this case? you're talking long. Did it take doj to charge this case open to hold on. I i turned my turn. Now, go ahead and a half years you're saying donald trump delayed because he as a criminal defendant, raises a constitutional defense which goes to the supreme court and he wins. That's not delay. That's a criminal defendant vindicating his constitutional rights. That delay here is on doj. They didn't leave jack smith enough runway. He has done nothing but franticly expedite expedite to expedite at every step of this case, you can't tell me it has nothing to do with trying to get it in before the election. And the rule, the real rule here, it's section 98. 5 au says, as a prosecutor, you cannot take any action. People say, oh, it only means charging decisions. Know the rules says any action with an eye to the election. Sally yates said it was inappropriate to do just this a few years ago, if you'd a problem with what james comey did in 2016, you have to have a problem with this. You can't you can't you can't easily what james comey did is 11 days before an election, he announced that reopening of an investigation which are talking about here is a case that has been prosecuted, is motion practice continuing that is not the same thing out all it's completely different and i think it's inappropriate to suggest that jack smith has been doing something frantically. I think what you're doing is prosecuting the case as he should be great conversation elie honig thibodaux, agangawilliams. Thank you both up next here. Donald trump tonight is responding to the video from his wife and her new book hello, audio trump saying that she supports abortion rights. A cnn drop new reporting about how much her book publisher wanted from cnn. An exchange for an interview choose what i pay for. Slim let you do that. 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What does a robot know about love? it takes a human to translate that leap in our hearts into something we can see and hold oh, you already know brow eva, mckend on can cnn was one of trump's memoir will officially be out in five days. Notable, of course, given her role as the former first lady, the potential future first lady, and also one of the few people who can sway donald trump's political decisions. But listen to this also about the book release cnn reached out to melania trump's book publisher for an interview about two months ago. What we heard back was highly unusual. Her publisher was seeking $250,000 and a signed nondisclosure agreement in exchange for a sit down cnn obviously did not sign it. No interview ever happened. We did not pay the $250,000 and skyhorse publishing later said it was a mistake telling us, quote, neither melania nor anyone from her team knew anything about the nda and the document that was sent reflected an internal miscommunication my source tonight is kate bennett, the former cnn white house correspondent and author of free melania, the unauthorized biography, kate, you know, melania trump. Well, you cover have covered her for a very long time. Do you believe that it was a mistake? i don't really i think melania trump is often the thing that makes her most upset is that people make money off of her, right? there's a famous story that she wanted to take on. The bobbleheads that were being sold in a visitor's, a tourist shop near the white house. I mean, this is someone who has spent the majority of her time postwhite house post first lady at selling things on the internet and have nfts necklaces and now this book, so i don't think it's unusual. Also, cnn reported not too long ago that she had received and appearance fee for what was technically a campaign event in the amount of $250,000 as well. So i think this is what she feels is the cost of doing business. Of course not in journalism, but that's what she thinks and she's been really promoting this book heavily today. She released a video where she comes out and pretty fervent support of abortion rights. Obviously notable given it was her husband who helped end roe versus wade by appointing three conservative justice, justice this is to the supreme court. Listen to what she had to say about it today, and then also what trump said when he was asked fundamental principle that i safeguard without a doubt there is no room for compromise when it comes to this essential right that all women possess from birth individual freedom what does my body, my choice really what's your reaction to melania is memoir about championing, championing abortion rights and reproductive freedom. When you read it, what were your thoughts? we spoke about it and i said you have to write what you believe. I'm not going to tell you what to do head. What are you have to say about that? i mean, when have wanted trump ever done anything with the approval or not approval of donald trump? never. I mean, she has her tenure in the white house was the only one in recent modern history that the east wing had. Fortunately, no contact with the west wing when you think about that, there was no amplification of messaging, there was no we're doing a trip because the western wants to push this out and certainly this abortion moment, this reproductive justice moment that melania trump is having and talking about in her book feels offset and take i am a little hesitant to believe that donald trump even knew what was coming before this book came out. Melania trump does what melania trump wants to do. And at first, anybody who knows not to try them, swayed or the other way. It's donald trump. If she's writing a book, is that something that she would tell trump before before it becomes out or is that something that maybe he could have found out recently i i'm under the belief and i've spoken to some people that he probably found out recently. Again, the two orbits, although they are close, i'm not, i'm not saying they don't they don't communicate. They don't spend time together the work that melania trump does is often siloed and it's something she does on her own you know, when i think it's interesting to listen if donald trump could say anything to melania trump about these recent weeks or months, wouldn't it be, hey, can you get out on the campaign trail for me? can you help me get undecided women voters are he's an immigrants are people who would relate to your story. It's a typical thing that first lady's do for their husbands who are campaigning or their spouses who are campaign again, i mean doug emhoff is doing it for vice president harris so i think that if there was something he could ask her to do, it would be campaign not necessarily hocke the book but she's chosen otherwise yeah. And the question is whether or not she would say yes, kate bennett. Thank you so much for that and you can see more of keeping an eye talking about this story about first ladies and meloni has role. In particular, that's this sunday on the whole story with anderson cooper, i'm going to take you through a history of first ladies, including the four years that melania trump held that role? but look at how it's evolved, held the next person could redefine what it means to be a presidential spouse. That is this sunday right here on cnn at 8:00 pm eastern coming u up here on the source, a sitting congressman dressed in black face as michael jackson for halloween when he was a college student. Republican, mike lawler. Doesn't dispute the picture that it is him 2006, but he is going to respond to it right after this winning is everything's stupid. Saturday at seven on cnn, feeling from a backedup god mere lax whips naturally with the water in your body to your mood will follow for eight grams of fiber, try mirror fiber gummies what does a robot know about love it takes a human to translate that leap our hearts into something we can see and hold etsy best buddies him and he is then absolute joy again on the farmers dog, he just attacks of its incredible they're so tune in to you and i have such, such personality being whether out of dog. I don't know can imagine if you're shopping for a home, you could grasp or ever to find everything they want or compare home values. 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And a college student visibly darkening his face as he donned a red jacket back it and a black shirt for halloween costume. The time says lawler didn't dispute that the photo from 2006 is real, and i should note this comes as he is currently locked in a very tight race for reelection, running against former democratic congressman mondaire jones and congressman lawler joins me now. And congressman, thank you for being here tonight before we get to anything else. I do first want to just give you a chance to address for our viewers, for your constituents the choices that you made back when this photo was taken around october 2006? well, kaitlan, thanks for having me yesterday. I attended the funeral for the father of a friend. And when we went to the cemetery to bury him, we were approaching and it turns out his gravestone is going to be right behind my dad's and on my dad's gravestone, it says god grant me the serenity to accept the things i cannot change, the courage to change the things i can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Obviously, i can't change what happened 18 years ago but i certainly with wisdom and age, understand that that is not something i would do today and certainly understand why people would be upset or offended by it. And for that, i'm sorry but for me, there was no ill intent. There was no effort to milan in or make fun of or disparage black americans. It was really an effort to pay homage to somebody who was a musical idle for me. I've always loved michael jackson's music and his dance moves and his ability to entertain anyone who knows me knows that. And people who come visit my dc office can see today by andy warhol painting of michael jackson hanging in my office. So this was really not what i think would could truly be construed as blackface. But i certainly understand why people would be offended by it. And for that, i'm sorry it seems clear from what you said, but just to clarify, for people watching, i mean, do you ever think it's okay for a white person to put on black face? no, of course not. And in this instance as i said to the new york times, i had used a friend's bronzer but again obviously 18 years later, i certainly reflect upon and understand that how that can be construed. But i think there is a stark difference between dressing up for halloween and paying homage to somebody you like and respect versus dressing up in blackface to demean and dehumanized black people, which is what minstrel shows in blackface historically. Was about and that's obviously not what i was doing there. Yeah. And that's an important point, is that we have when this has become a thing we've seen it with other politicians, ralph northam of virginia. Obviously it was actually a michael jackson jackson costume as well it's because blackface does have such an ugly history. And you have 59 and thousand people, black people in your district. And so i just wonder with your comment tonight what would you say to one of them if you were if you were speaking to someone who said you know, that really bothers me that that in once well, look, certainly and i have spoken to many of my constituents today and in discussing it with them and certainly understand how someone would take offense. And for that, i do apologize because to me, obviously, given the history in america okay and given what we have seen with slavery, with racism and the civil rights movement, obviously we should not and cannot tolerate the demeaning and human nation of black people. And that is not something certainly that i would do or engage in were tolerant great and so again, i understand how this can be very upsetting to somebody and so certainly i do apologize for that, but for me obviously, i think intent here is important and there is a difference between when governor northam as a college student dressed up in blackface standing next to somebody in a kkk hood. Versus obviously me paying homage to michael jackson. Can ask about another detail on the new york times story. It says michael jackson biographer said that you attended parts of his criminal trial. You were in high school at the time? as to trial in which michael jackson was accused of molesting 13yearold boy. It ended in acquittal. But the buyer biographer is saying, apparently that you are removed from the courtroom at one point because you were saying derogatory things under your breath, do you just want to comment on that? i look, i j. Randi terror borrelli is a friend. I worked as a researcher, if you will, for him when he was covering the case for cbs news at the time, i had gone out to california to visit colleges with my family and ended up coming up to the trial for one day and i was in the courtroom and the mother at that point of the mother or the accuser had testified that michael jackson was going to steal her children in a hot air balloon and so i muttered under my breath yeah. Okay. And did get removed from the courtroom and obviously not a not ideal, but to me, ultimately, obviously, in that case a jury heard the trial and he was acquitted congressman lawler, appreciate your willingness to come on and address this photo tonight. Thank you. Thanks. Kaitlan. Appreciate it meanwhile, an investigation is underway tonight in tennessee, where the factory that workers say they weren't allowed to leave in time when hurricane helene was tearing through. Now, two people are dead, four others are missing. 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Rush to walmart and find total bce news night with abby phillip next on cnn blows captioning is brought to you by page publishing. If you written a book, will publish it for you. If you've written a book page publishing can help you through the process. We cut through the confusion of the publishing world to make it easy for you, call 800 630741 some breaking news tonight as there has been a major breakthrough to end that massive threeday port workers strike. We are told tonight a tentative deal has been reached and 50,000 workers from maine to texas are expected to return to their ports tomorrow. At should open up the flow of things like bananas, cherries, and sugar, internet now to the u. S. As a source tells cnn the agreement on wages amounts to a $4 per hour raise for each year of the sixyear contract. The final details are still being worked out in the full agreement will need to be ratified by the rank and file members. But they will go back to work. In the meantime tonight, hurricane helene has now become the second deadliest hurricane to ever strike the us mainland in the past 50 years. Only underneath hurricane katrina, 213 people have now died across the southeast in tennessee. Tonight, officials are now investigating after 11 workers at a plastics factory or swept away by hurricane helene's catastrophic flooding. Four of those workers are still missing tonight to have been confirmed dead. The others that survived say factory management refused to let them leave even as floodwaters were surrounding the building. Video shared by one of the workers that impact plastics shows them hanging on for their lives after they tried to escape, clinging to industrial tubes as floodwaters are rushing by at one point, a tennessee national guard helicopter hoisted some survivors out of the water witnesses say several others were lost. A spokesperson for the company said, tonight says that they will be cooperating with investigators. And quoting them now, say at no time were employees told they would be fired if they left the facility? one of the victims, bertha mendoza, had just celebrated her 56th birthday last month. Look at her beautiful photo here my source tonight is her son gear moment dosa and his attorney, greg coleman. And i want to just thank you all for being here, dad. You're here as well, and i just i appreciate you being here during such a tough time for your family and i'm so sorry to both of you gear you can can you just tell us because you were actually able to talk to your mom that night. What did she say to you? well originally she called me in the morning saying son is getting out pretty ugly outside. Don't go outside. Make sure not to take my grandchildren outside. Xi she always cared to do that whenever she felt like it just wasn't good weather. So that was my first call my first and last conversation with my mother so she was worried about your safety and the safety of your kids? yes again, she she always prioritize the safety of her grandchildren, her children that's just the kind of person she was to always check up on her family. Can you just tell me how you personally are feeling in this moment, what you've been able to learn what. Questions do you still have about what happened to your mom lost my mother, my grandmother, my children, my father lost his wife of 38 years mary layered of marriage we are not. Okay come together as a family and support one another. So we that's what we've done for the book for some motion we are united as one we're coming together as a family, as she would want us to do and greg, i know there are a lot of questions from a legal perspective that you have you're representing the family investigators in tennessee, say that they're investigating tonight and the company as you just heard, said that they'll cooperate, they haven't been contacted. They say by investigators yet. But what do you say to the company saying? we didn't tell anyone they couldn't leave well kaitlan. Thanks the problem with that narrative is that's not what a lot of people are saying or agree with the fact the exact opposite. Look, you know, this drill lawyers were supposed to deal in facts and that's what we're going to deal with. We've already talked to several that let's just say are opposed to what the company is saying. Now, after all the destruction this do you hold or who do you hold responsible for what happened to your mom? just refer to break. We're just trying to heal as a family very my mother with dignity. There's a time to heal and this right now with our family there will become a time to fight the right now, we are just trying to come together and heal as a family i completely understand. We can hear the kids. There in the background it's just it's heartbreaking i'm so sorry that you're going through this. Please give our thoughts to everyone in your family who's there and your father. Thank you for joining us. Cure most mendoza and greg coleman. I appreciate you thanks so much. Just thinking so much for that community, but we do have an update tonight as we did just get the preliminary internal investigation report from impact plastics, that company, they say the factory management actually let workers leave within minutes of the plant's power going out. And at the road in front of the plant appears i'm quoting appears to have been passable. The company says no one was ever trapped in a building or on its premises. We're going to keep you updated on this very important story and on what tennessee officials find. Thank you so much for joining us. Cnn newsnight with abby phillip starts now