Good evening. Im erin burnett. Welcome to a special edition of out front. Breaking news, president elect donald trump is about to arrive right here in bah washington less than 48 hours before hes sworn in as the next president of the United States. Its a significant night. His final flight aboard his own private jet before being president. Of course we know thats the one with the trump name emblazoned on the side, the t on the tail. The president elect arriving at Washingtons Reagan National Airport soon. Here to kick off a series of lavish inaugural events. Tonight a couple of exclusive dinners, one for mike pence, a second honoring his cabinet picks, some deeppocketed donors at these with donations of up to a million dollars, this as a trump transition official tells cnn trump has wrip his inauguration address draft himself, a draft he began working on maralago. President obama making his final public appearance, the last News Conference with several pointed remarks for donald trump taking the podium in the White House Pressroom defending the role of a free press and the importance of asking tough questions. Having you in this building has made this place work better. It keeps us honest. It maybes us work harder. You have made us think about how we are doing what we do and whether or not were able to deliver on whats been requested by our constituents. The president saying he has had cordial and substantive, his words, when he talks about his meetings and conversations with donald trump. Weighing in one last time on the question of entrail palestinian relations saying trump will have his own policy, cautioning him, this is volatile stuff. Michelle kosinski is at the white house. The president trying to cover a lot of ground. I imagine this was emotional but a lot of things he felt he needed to say in this last press conference. Reporter yeah. It was broad, but, no, it wasnt the rollicking last chance, ask whatever you want, good time that at least some of us hoped it would be. Pretty much followed the expected script. It also wasnt hugely sentimental, but it was clear the president wanted to send some strong messages to the incoming administration, starting with right off the bat standing there in front of the White House Press corps and lauding it for being essential to democracy itself. President obama opened his final perez conference as president by thanking the press corps, telling them they make the white house work better. Youre not supposed to be sycophants, youre supposed to be skeptics, youre supposed to ask me tough questions. America needs you and our democracy needs you. Reporter he defended his decision to commute the sentence of chelsea manning. Lets be clear. Chelsea manning has served a tough prison sentence. I feel very comfortable that justice has been served and that a message has still been sent. Reporter the president promised that a fundamental democratic principles are undermined in the days ahead he will not remain silent. Theres difference between that normal functioning of politics and certain issues or certain moments where i think our core values may be at stake. Reporter and the president offered up advice he gave to president elect trump, cautioning him on who he surrounds himself with. This is something i have told him, that this is a job of such magnitude that you cant do it by yourself. You are enormously reliant on a team. Reporter as the first black president , president obama said he expects he wont be the last to lead the nation. I think were going to see people of merit rise up from every race, faith, corner of this country, because thats americas strength. When we have everybody getting a chance and everybodys on the field, we end up being better. Reporter and finished this last gathering my expressing his optimism for the future of the country. In my core, i think were going to be okay. We have to fight for it, work for it, and not take it for granted and i know you will help us do that. Reporter leaving very popular but his intended candidate did not win the election. He ran his Historic Campaign on hope and change but ends by saying i think were going to be okay, we just have to fight for it. That is not a very optimistic attempt at an optimistic message. But it was also clear he didnt want to be critical as he has been in the past. He kind of framed everything as a sort of warning or advice, and also he wouldnt weigh in at all on all these democrats in congress who are now boycotting the inauguration. There are dozens of them. Even though his administration has weighed in and said they dont think theyre harming the smooth transition or contributing to division, this was president obamas chance to weigh in himself on it, and he just wouldnt comment at all. All right. Michelle, thank you very much. Mark preston, our senior political analyst, david gergen, and the rest of our panel. Nia, you heard what michelle just said. His words, i think were going to be okay. Is that calming or deeply unsettling . I think it was meant to be calming, but in many ways the fact that he felt like he needed to be calming speaks to how unsettled the country is. Talking about hope and change, the rising sun from his Campaign Logo and this was such a downgrade in terms of his message and brand. I think for some people it was unsettling. The context is the second biggest boycott in modern American History of an inauguration. Only nixons second term was bigger and that was about the vietnam war more than it was about even richard nixon. John lewis saying hes an illegitimate president , but it is deeply unsettling in a sense. No doubt. More than 50 democratic members of congress not going to show up, which shows how divided the country is. As much as we saw president obama today show some deference to donald trump, he also laid down the gauntlet and said hes not going away. He said when our core values are at stake, specifically going at the idea of a free press and also goes at the idea of trying to protect those children who were brought here unbeknownst to them and that the u. S. Being the only country that they know. He said that today, he would directly challenge donald trump i think was telling. On that point, he did talk about his conversations with the president elect. And they were very different than what he said during the campaign when at one point he said trump was uniquely unqualified for the office. It was much kinder and gentler today. Heres how he described the conversations. They are cordial. At times theyve been fairly lengthy and theyve been substantive. I cant tell you how convincing ive been. You youd have to ask him. Lengthy and substantive. I think from the very beginning since the election the president has tried to do for donald trump what george w. Bush did for him, to provide an orderly transfer, to be helpful where he can be. I think in this press conference he was trying to be helpful as well. Its good advice for david gergen, whos served half the president s in our history. He knows this. The notion you cant do it alone, you have to rely on your team. It was criticism. More of an admonition, in the form of admonition. The most important one i think he delivered was his point that it is absolutely normal for president s to take the country in a different direction, but he said just make sure you think it through because there are tremendous ramifications to lurches in policy, an sennial point. Kayleigh, he refused to weigh in on the boycott, which was a very significant thing. Didnt want to comment on it at all. Sure. He didnt weigh in on it. I would have obviously liked to have seen that and say, look, we should all come together, this is a time for unity. That being said, i have to commend president obama because he has handled this transition gracefully, respectfully, and i think today when i heard him say were going to be okay, i understood some saw that as dire terms, not as optimistic as they would have liked, but i saw it in the context of there is a boycott, this apoplectic view among liberals that we are not going to be okay, this is somehow the end of the United States. For him to say that you did find it calming. I did. I thought this was another part of him being grace informal the transition. While i disagree with obama on a lot, i have to commend him because hes done this transition very well. Should he have weighed in on the boycott in some way . He said he knew what he was going to be doing. Hes going to the inauguration. Its not for him the biggest statement he could make. Going to weigh in with the members of congress and a fight between congress and the incoming president and all that. Hes trying to ease out in the most positive way he can. He laid out three, four, five things he feels strongly about. Look, its not like he said oh my god the country is going to hell in a basket. He said i think were going to be okay. Hes being himself. One point, on the things he laid out, i think he laid them out not just in service of saying these are things on which i will comment if i feel i need to, it was also by way of telling people i am not going to be involved in the day to day, i am not going to get involved in policy fights. I dont think thats the appropriate role for a president. There are those who would love him to be the point of spear and unofficial leader of the party. He is clearly saying that is not the appropriate role for a former president. And this was his goodbye. It was his goodbye. We saw him last week in chicago, the longer speech and this his goodbye and his parting words, the idea about being okay. I think on the core issues he seems to also be saying if there is an attack on sort of american values, if there is an attempt to codify discrimination, thats when he would act. An attempt to put obstacles to voting rights, institutionalize discrimination against the press, thats when he would act. Next mike pence speaking to cnn, opening up about a former president now giving him advice about the job. And my exclusive tour behind the scenes of this years inaugural ball. The glitz and glamour. And trumps pick for education secretary asked if guns belong in schools answered this i would imagine that theres probably a gun in the school to protect from potential grizzlies. The senator who asked that question is my guest tonight. Hello, im an idaho potato farmer and i finally found our big idaho potato truck. 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Liberty stands with you™. Liberty mutual insurance. Is caringing because covering heals faster. For a bandage that moves with you and stays on all day, cover with a bandaid brand flexible fabric adhesive bandage. Breaking news, donald trump just landing in washington. As you can see, his plane there tonight the last flights aboard his trump 757. From then on of course it will be a military plane to washington and then air force one. Two days before he becomes president. Two dinners tonight, the first for president elect elect mike pence, big donors, 500,000 to 1 million for mike pence tonight. Dana bash had a chance to sit down with pence today in the final hours before the inauguration and asked him about a crucial issue facing trump. There is a bipartisan bill moving through congress that could end up on the president s desk pretty early to increase sanctions. To punish russia. Would you advise President Trump to sign or veto that . Well, were aware of that and ive talked to several members of the senate about that. Last week of course the president elect acknowledged that it was likely russia that was involved in the hacking last fall. And so well look at all those options. Well look at all those options. But ill start today telling you that what i advise the president after january 20th will be between him and me. I get that. But i think broadly do you believe that russia should be punished for trying to meddle in american elections . Our president elect has made it very clear that he is determined to try and improve the relationship between the United States of america and russia. Thats not to ignore the evidence that we have about russian involvement in hacking last fall, but its just his determination to come in, recognizing that we have a terrible relationship with russia right now and to explore the possibility of improving that relationship. But remember, its not so much about being friends with russia. Its about once again establishing respect between the two parties and the two nations and looking for ways, dana, that we can Work Together for common purposes. Most specifically finding ways that we might martial the resources of both of our nations to hunt down and destroy isis that represents a threat absolutely. And there are lots of ways to Work Together. But just a little on this, what ive heard from democrats and republicans, if we dont send a signal to russia, that this is not okay, then this is going to give a green light, not unlike the red line in syria, this is going to give a green light to other countries, you know what, you can med until american elections and you wont get punished for it. Well reach out and say youre our friend. Do you think theres something to that . I think the fact that this last administration, whether it was moving red lines or feigning resets with russia, established a pattern on the world stage that eroded the respect for our country so how do you stop that . By drawing a line . Cases by russia need to be met with american strength. I would imagine you would think thats the case if they meddled in american democracy. Well, i can promise you that when his right hand comes down this coming friday the world will see a americas strength in the oval office. And i truly do believe that our president elect, as he did last night at a diplomatic dinner, is going to reach out with a handle of friendship to all the nations of the world but hes also going to send a very clear message that america comes first, americas interests come first and that we will stand strongly for the safety and security of our people and all of our systems. My understanding is that you got a call from former president george h. W. Bush recently, who of course was not just president but Vice President for eight years under Ronald Reagan. He was. Did he give you any advice on how to be an effective Vice President . He did. We had a short call and obviously hes in our thoughts and prayers for a quick recovery. I have tremendous respect for our president George Herbert walker bush and his son, of course. But when you look at his long career, a child of affluence who made a decision after high school to enlist in the military, become a fighter pilot, was shot down, his long career in various roles, his service as president , but to your point, dana, i have really been taking a hard look at his years as Vice President. What have you learned . Under our 40th president. Well, it was an administration that changed the country and changed the world. Is there any specific, you know, sort of things that hes done or broad actions that he took that you look at and say thats how i want to be or act . Anything that he told you . The reason why i think about Vice President bush is because then, as now, i believe there was a transformational leader coming to bring real change to washington, d. C. When Ronald Reagan took to that stage, he said after all why shouldnt we dream great dreams. Were americans. Weve come to change our nations capital. Is that what youre going to be thinking about . Im going to be thinking about the privilege i have to stand next to another change agent as president. I really do believe that the kind of broad shouldered leadership that donald trump is going to bring to the oval office and bring to our nations capital, where hes going to demand that we have government as good as our people here in washington, d. C. , echoes that time back in 1981 with another inauguration. And so to see the way that then Vice President bush came alongside and supported a strong visionary leader is a great source of inspiration. Have you been able to soak in whats going to happen behind you . Have you been able to sort of take it in and say, wow, we were talking before the interview, when you walk through the halls of the senate there are busts of Vice President s. Youre going to be a bust in there at some point. I mean, does that have you digested that . Its all very humbling for me. My daughter and i pause before we came into your studio and we looked down the National Mall and, you know, i cant get too far from thinking about the man after whom i was named, my grandfather, who grew up in a lit twolineroom house in a town called the upper curry in ireland, and when he was 22 years old he got on a boat and came to america. He drove a bus for 40 years. He raised a wonderful, extraordinary woman who would be my mother. He watched her marry a fasttalking salesman who built a Small Business in a small town. But to think in the span of two family generations that we would go from the upper curry, ireland, and the American Dream to being able to stand with my right hand in the air and accept responsibilities to be the 48th president of the United States, it doesnt tell me so much about me as it tells me about this country. This is a great country and im incredibly humbled to have an opportunity to serve as Vice President. Your daughter charlotte, shes been on the campaign trail with you. Your son, a marine, will also be with you. He will. Im also wondering if youre thinking about the fact you will have an awesome responsibility when it comes to men and women of the armed forces and its personal for you since decisions you and the president will make will affect your son. Well, the president of the United States has no greater responsibility than that as commander in chief and i can tell you the connection that our president elect has made to men and women in the military or men and women who serve as First Responders across nothing like having a son in the military. They sense that he understands that. Hes committed to providing them with that support. And for my part, i just look forward to supporting his efforts to provide that kind of strong leadership to make sure that those that serve in uniform have the resources and training they need. But to be able to stand with my son and his new wife, our daughter and our youngest daughter, of course my wife, karen, is going to be a very special moment. And ill probably have a big lump in my throat when we do it. Dana bash joins me now along with the rest of our panel. You talked about a lot there. Very revealing of mike pence and where he is right now. Particularly on the day when we find george h. W. Bush hospitalized. He is frail, barbara bush also. Hes taking a hard look at his years as vp. I found out bf the interview that 41, george h. W. Bush had called mike pence last week so thats why i wanted to ask him about it anyway but obviously in light of the fact hes in the hospital, it was even of more interest to me. The fact pence sees parallels between reagan bush and trump pence, you know, well see if that turns out. But more along the lines of reagan trump and they both disrupted washington and so on. Was really fascinating. I should say when it comes to Ronald Reagan, mike pence i think its fair to say is obsessed with Ronald Reagan. I interviewed him at the reagan library. Hell be sworn in on the reagan bible. That connection he has to Ronald Reagan through george h. W. Bush i think very much trying to make that argument that reagan and trump are the same in being a change agent, you know, and that that is how he sees this analogy playing out. Theyre both change agents but very different. I think mike pence has chosen an admirable role model for his vice presidency. George h. W. Bush, you know, was very different from Ronald Reagan and yet he walked quietly behind him, never stood in his shad shadow, never injected himself, was always loyal, a good ambassador to capitol hill. Hed come up to the house gym to hang out with people. What made that relationship work and David Axelrod would talk about this, it was that early on Ronald Reagan agreed to have a weekly lunch with his Vice President , just oneonone, had lunch every week, nobody ever talked about what was said. Thats where he gave his advice. But interestingly enough, bush would often come around to us in the white house staff and say i had my lunch with the president , do you have a good joke i can tell him . Reagan always had a fresh joke. He always had something and bush he had all the policy stuff. He just needed to be armed with a couple good jokes. David, can he youre the pesh i go to. Can pence learn from h. W. On the issue of saying his own mind . Remember in his debate, he was against opposite side of trump on issue after issue yet here he is, youre saying walking in his shadow and not stepping on artful at reprogramming the question to sort of navigate around these conflicts with trump. I would make two points about george h. W. Bush and mike pence. One is Ronald Reagan chose george bush after george bush had run against him for president , attacked him for voodoo economics and so on, and he did it because he wanted to broaden his reach, because george bush had a reach to more moderate republicans and this was part of his effort. The second is george h. W. Bush had been ambassador to the u. N. , a congressman, ambassador to china, and a Vice President and when he approached the presidency of international affairs, talking about being more respected in the world, that may be, but right now the world is jiltry because of the way donald trump has approached Global Affairs in his transition. So he needs to take a cue from george h. W. Bush, who had enormous respect in the world and really respected global institutions. And george h. W. Bush, fair to say, was very embarrassed during this campaign when someone outed him for voting for Hillary Clinton. He didnt want that to come out. It did. As dana reports. They had a conversation last week, mike pence and h. W. Bush and he wrote a letter to donald trump and in it he said he made a joke, made a joke about how he couldnt come out in the cold, and then he continued to say well continue to be with you and the country in sprirt, i wish you the best as you begin this journey. If i can ever be of help, please let me know. Incredibly gracious. Incredibly. By far the most. Just incredibly its a giving statement. And take a step back from that. This is a father as well in donald trump really went at not only his son who was president but his son who was the governor, challenged him for the republican president ial nomination and it got very personal. Incredibly nasty. And to see george h. W. Bush write a letter like, that i really think shows actually the kind of politics that we should be engaging in right now while we may disagree on policy, things have gotten so nasty its personal. As trump begins his celebration parties in washington, motorcade on the way to the par fi for the Vice President elect, michael pence in the National Portrait gallery. Donald trump going there to honor his incoming Vice President. Chuck schumer is issuing a serious threat to the incoming team saying he may slow down nominations for trumps nominees. Tom price on the top of that list today defending his investments in companies that benefited from positions he took in congress. A diversified portfolio while staying clear of the Six Companies that were directly affected by your work on that issue . As i said, i didnt have any knowledge of those purchases. Senator murphy will be my guest in just a moment. First, sara murray is out front. Reporter donald trump appears to be set to br enter the white house without most of his cabinet picks. With just two days until he takes the oath of office, a number of trumps nominees are getting grilled on capitol hill. And publicly splitting with their new boss. Perhaps the most intense questioning was reserved for congressman tom price. Trumps pick to lead the department of health and human services. And dismantle pam care. I believe and i look forward to working with you to make sure every single american has access to the highest quality care and coverage that is possible. I have access to buying a 10 million home. I dont have the money to do that. Reporter price facing sharp questions not anl about plans to overhaul the Health Care System but his past financial investments. Thats after cnn reported price bought shares in a medical device manufacturer just days before introducing legislation that would have benefitted the company. Everything that we have done habibov board, transparent, ethical, and legal. Reporter today price insisted he had no idea what stock he owns. This is someone who buys stock at your direction. This is someone who buys and sells the stock you want them to buy and sell. Not true. So when you found out thats not true, senator. Because you decide not to tell them . Wink, wink, nod, nod, were all supposed to believe that . And said he didnt have any conversations with his broker about his political activity. Why wouldnt you at least tell her, hey, listen, stay clear of any companies that are directly affected by my legislative work . Because the agreement that we have is that she provided diversified portfolio which is exactly what virtually every one of you have in your investment opportunities. Reporter trumps pick to lead the Environmental Protection agency, scott pruitt, also urged democrats with his views on Climate Change. He acknowledged human activity contributes to it but wouldnt say to what extent. Why is the climate changing . Senator, in response to the co2 issue, the epa administrator is constrained by statutes im asking you a personal opinion. My personal opinion is immaterial. Really. To the job of you are going to be the head of the agency to protect the environment and your personal feelings about whether Climate Change is caused by human activity and Carbon Emissions is immaterial . Thats just a snapshot at some of the stumbles and questions that Donald Trumps cabinet picks faced. Nikki haley, his pick to be ambassador to the u. N. , splitting with donald trump publicly on world view issues in her hearing. And we see mick mull veney, Donald Trumps pick to be the budget director, now facing questions about failure to pay taxes on a household employee. That could cause him additional scrutiny. All these people may come out a little more batter and bruised from these processes. Were asking the vast majority if not all to be confirmed but not necessarily on the time line donald trump was hoping for. Sara, thank you. Earlier i spoke with chris murphy of connecticut. He questioned both congressman tom price today and the education secretary nominee betsy devos last night. I started by asking if he was satisfied with congressman prices answers to his questions about those very questionable stock purchases. I wasnt satisfied with his response. I articulated our concern, which it seems that the entire Trump Administration are made up of billionaires and millionaires that may be able to get rich off their participation in government. Tom prices answer, which is that, hey, my broker bought these stocks, i didnt have anything to do with it, isnt satisfactory because the broker can be watching congressman prices legislative agenda and be buying stocks that are in accordance with the work hes doing. So tom price should have said as a congressman to his broker, hey, if im working on a legislative issue, steer clear of the companies that are affected by it. He told us plain and clear today he was not willing to give his broker those instructions and thats pretty troubling. Are you then a no vote for sure on congressman price . Im a no vote on congressman price because, you know, hes made his career out of trying to destroy the Affordable Care act. So separate and aside from this question as to whether he was profiting off of his position as a congressman, im just not going to support anybody whos being put into the department in order to Rip Health Care away from 400,000 of my constituents. So i was a no vote frankly going into the hearing, but now i think theres real questions as to whether he can clear these conflicts of interest. You also were of course questioning betsy devos, trumps pick for education secretary, testifying before your Committee Last night. You asked her specifically if guns should be in schools or around schools. I just want to play that exchange for people. This is not something that can be paraphrased. I think thats best left to locales and states to decide. If the underlying question is you cant say definitively today that guns should. In schools . Well, i will refer back to senator enzi and the school that he was talking about in wyoming. I think probably there i would imagine that theres probably a gun in the school to protect from potential grizzlies. I dont know when she said that if she was thinking about where youre from, sandy hook, took place in your state, senator. What was your reaction when you heard that answer . Well, i think you could maybe see i was pretty stunned when she couldnt articulate just some compassion for what schools are going through when we have had in some years an average of one School Shooting every week. And this idea that you need guns in every school, a ban on gunfree school zones as donald trump says he wants, because we have to protect kids from grizzly attacks, i mean, its sort of on one hand laughable, on the other tragic, and the idea we are going to potentially put somebody into the department of education who believes its okay for guns to be in our schools, for teachers to be armed, boy, i think that sends shivers down the spine of almost every parent in this country. Youre a senator. We know democrats, some of them in the house, many of them now, have outrage about what is going on with donald trump. They have said they will go ahead and boycott his inauguration. No senator has said they will boycott at this time. Are your colleagues in the house making a mistake . I respect everybodys decision here. I understand the outrage people have at this administration. For me, and i can only speak for myself, the peaceful transition of power is about as important as it gets. I think that i can be at this inauguration to respect the fact hes going to be the commander in chief of a lot of soldiers, men and women in connecticut, also showing him my face, the face of someone who is going to pose him when he tries to hurt the people of connecticut. So i dont think that you are weak on opposition to donald trump just because you attend the inauguration. Hes going to have a lot of folks there who will be fighting pretty hard against him once saturday rolls around. Senator, thank you for your time tonight. Thanks, erin. Out front next, trumps pick for treasury secretary on the hot seat tomorrow. Does Steven Mnuchin make a billion dollar fortune on the backs of home owners during the crisis . Why are you checking your credit score . You dont want to ride the 13l forever, do you . The doctor said its not contagious. [coughing] credit karma, huh . Yeah, its free. Credit karma. Give yourself some credit. Mone hundredts thousand times a day, sending oxygen to my muscles. Again so i can lift even the most demanding weight. Take care of all your most important parts with centrum. Now verified non gmo and gluten free. Do you know how your you might be surprised. Stimulant laxatives make your body go by forcefully stimulating the nerves in your colon. Miralax is different. 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The next statement showed 8700, like nearly 9,000. Reporter when he couldnt keep up with the payments he tried to get a loan modification through the governments federal program, aimed at saving people from foreclosure. His bank had been bought by one west, owned by trumps treasury nominee, Steven Mnuchin, and his partners. We contacted them that seriously we need the modification. And they said that we dont qualify because we have never missed a payment. Okay, so ill do that. So we skipped two months. Reporter one west denies it gave that advice to customers but customers say there was a repeated pattern, a number of customers saying the bank told them to stop paying their mortgage for at least two months to qualify for federal help, help that didnt materialize. U. S. Treasury officials tell cnn there was no requirement to stop paying mortgages in order to qualify for assistance. Nicholas and eloise say it happened to them, too, though they admit they didnt manage their money well and got in over their heads after their mortgage ballooned. I told them that we need help and we were thousands of dollars behintd. Reporter say they one west told them to stop paying their mortgage. Then they failed to qualify for federal loan relief and lost their home. When donald trump nominated his treasury secretary, he said that Steven Mnuchin had run his bank have professionally. But a source close to one wests loan modification office says the bank was overwhelmed with just too many home loans under water, a loan modification office was disorganized and swamped with work, Bank Employees were getting confusing and differing sets of instructions from executives above. And as a result, homeowners suffered. The palumbos found that out first hand when they got two letters from one west bank on the very same day. The first telling them the bank was still conducting our review of their home loenl modification request. The second letter telling them their home had already been sold at a foreclosure sale two weeks before. Just brings back bad memories. You know . Just what a shame. Reporter though mnuchins critic say his bank was far too aggressive with foreclosures, some say he took a failing bank and made it profitable again. As for the claims of bad advice telling home owners to stop paying their mortgages, mnuchins transition spokesperson told cnn literally every Major Financial Institution involved in the Mortgage Business was accused of the same thing. Thats why there was an independent foreclosure review which onewest was the only major bank to complete. The findings of the review showed an exemplary record and an extremely low error rate. Steven mnuchin expects to discuss hiss successful record of modifying thousands of mortgages, saving peoples homes and jobs at his hearing. As for leron and vicky lee, after a fouryear battle with onewest, they agreed to a settlement and have kept their home. Senate democrats are going to slam Steven Mnuchin about this, right . One of the labels theyll try to put on him the idea he was a foreclosure king, prosmted on the backs of regular americans. Is that fair . Reporter you have to put this in context. Steven mnuchin in 2009 bought the remains of a bank off the federal government. Indie macwas in receivership. It failed and the reason it failed because it was one of the worst lenders, subprime loans, loaning people money who quite frankly did not have the ability to pay it back. So he takes this bank and all these toxic mortgages off the governments hands, gets a great deal, yes, and then, though, is left to work through all the mortgages, many of which can simply not be saved but many are. In the end he saves the bank, he sells the bank for a big profit, and in the process onewest did foreclose on thousands of home owners. Relative to the number of loans it had, especially the toxic loans it took over, you cant say one was worse than the other banks. By the way, the new group that took over onewest sent us a statement this afternoon saying its strengthened what it calls the overall operations and controls at onewest bank. Well see what Steven Mnuchin says about it tomorrow. We certainly will because indie mack one of the worst actors. All a lot more complicated than it seems just looking at the headlines. Next, my interview with the man putting all of this together, the biggest parties in town for Donald Trumps inauguration. Ill take you inside for a first sneak peek. And the former president george h. W. Bush and his wife barbara are both hospitalized in texas tonight. The latest on their condition. Be the you who doesnt cover your moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. 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Invest with confidence. Tonight donald trump attending a dinner for his Vice President elect mike pence. Two balls will be called liberty and freedom and held in the space here, more than 30,000 people attending those two balls. A third ball called the a salute to our Armed Services ball will take place in the space here at the National Building museum. About 2,500 servicemen and women and First Responders are expected there. In less than 48 hours, those spaces will be utterly transformed. Like president obamas first inaugural ball back in 2009, one of the most anticipated moments will be the first doonance. The obamas serenaded by beyonce in their first dance. Earlier today i heard about the trumps first dance. This is going to be the Armed Services ball. Whats going to happen here . Tights traditional hail to the chief ball and its a tribute to the military, fist responders, the police, the firemen, and the significance is the place its held in. This building was the original pensions billing so after the civil war in 1887, montgomery maintenan mains, the general quartermaster, who also did arlington cemetery, was commissioned to design this. And it was purposeful because there were pensions that were going out to the Union Soldiers but there was no place for them to collect. So this was the original spot and thats the significance of having it here. Theres a friese outside that was done by an italian sculpture that depicts various segments of the civil war so its historically an important place. Its a beautiful setup. This is going to be a very intimate ball, you can see by the space were in. Youre not going to have a lot of people here. Hell be interacting with the people attending. 2,500 people. Including First Responders, right, police, firefighters, and the president and the first lady will be dancing not with each other first dance but with people who are here. Absolutely. With a military escort. And we havent chosen who that will be. It will be a beautiful evening and a great tribute to all the people who make it possible for us to experience these kind of events. So how does the dancing work . This is one of those things that on that night, whatever your political persuasion, people watch, they watch for what theyre wearing and for the dancing. Are they ready . Actually, both of them are great dancers, and no practice, no rehearsal. Its just on. And at the Washington Convention center, you know, during Barack Obamas first inauguration, there were many, many balls. The trumps have decided to do three. President obama decided what he would do is divide it into constituencies. So in both of his inaugurations there were a series of balls, all at the Convention Center primarily, but divided into specific groups. President elect trump has decide head wanted to do it all together so theres two floors of the Convention Center, one the liberty ball, the other is the freedom ball. Together theyre about 32,000 people and that will be a great evening. What exactly will happen here . Fountain going right now. The most anticipated moment and kind of the Global Vision is the first dance. So the fountain goes and the stage goes on top and thatll be the sight where now the president will be by then and the first lady will dance with their counterparts, their military counterparts. There is a question that a lot of people watching will have, and thats what everyone will be wearing, particularly melania and ivanka. Are they wearing the same dress all night long, u. S. Designers . Anything you can tell us about that . Fortunately, theyve left me out of the design consultation, which is a benefit to them. I dont really know. I think theyre going to wear the same gowns to all three balls. But they havent consulted me on that. Tom, thank you. Thank you. All right. Out front next, george h. W. Bush hospitalized. Now mrs. Bush, barbara bush, also admitted to the hospital. The latest on their condition after this. New girl, huh . Yeah, im i couldnt help but notice you checking out my name your price tool. Yeah, this bad boy gives you Coverage Options based on your budget. Oh oh, not so fast, tadpole. You have to learn to swim first. Claire, heres your name your price tool. Oh, thanks, flo. Mmhmm. Jamie, dont forget to clean the fridge when youre done. She seems nice. She seems nice. [ door closes ] shes actually pretty nice. Oh. Yeah. George h. W. Bush is in the intensive care unit at houston Methodist Hospital in texas tonight. The 92yearold mr. Bush said to be suffering what they say is an acute respiratory problem stemming from pneumonia. He was sedated as doctor s performed a procedure to clear his airway. Today former First Lady Barbara Bush was admitted to the same hospital as a precaution. She had complained of fatigue and a bad cough. Getwell wishes pouring in from around the nation. Donald trump tweeting late today, looking forward to a speedy recovery for george and barbara bush. Bill and Hillary Clinton also tweeting, bill clinton writing 41 and barbara, thinking about you both and sending wishes for a speedy recovery, love 42. From Hillary Clinton, bill and i have have you in our thoughts and look forward to both being you back on your feet soon, wild socks and all. Of course this comes as george h. W. Bush himself had written a letter to donald trump saying he was sorry he couldnt be at his inauguration, he was worried it could be too cold and saying if i can ever be of help, please let me know, graciousry rea rlyg out to the incoming president. See you back here tomorrow night. Anderson cooper is next. Good evening from washington where inauguration preparations have ramped up and the man at the center is about to reach another milestone. In the final two days before becoming president , president elect trump landed tonight at National Airport for a pair of dinners tonight, one for mike pence, the other for his cabinet. When he flies back to new york later it will be his last time for a while on his private boeing 757. Hell return tomorrow on an air force jet which will land at joint base andrews and after friday hell be taking air force one. Breaking news about his cabinet and george h. W. Bush and barbara bush in the hospital tonight. We begin with the outgoing 44th president and a milestone for him, his