but now the president is claiming he did not direct michael cohen to do so. he said those payments weren't even a campaign contribution, and he said that he was relying on his lawyer, michael cohen, to do his thing, basically distancing himself from his attorney. he will be sentenced tomorrow. he will be appearing before a judge tomorrow and his sentencing, where prosecutors from southern district as well as special counsel mueller's office will be in attendance. so really interesting here to see these headlines from the president during this reuters interview where he is downplaying all things having to do with russia and those charged in the investigation, erin. >> thank you very much. pamela. as more headlines come down here, we're going to discuss them. i want to go straight, though, to harry sandick and the former assistant secretary for the department of homeland security under president obama, juliette. he says it's not a campaign contribution, number one. it wasn't a campaign contribution. if it were, it's only civil.