Transcripts For MSNBCW Andrea Mitchell Reports 20180419

The u. S. Senate as they enter the 21st century allowing the new mother Tammy Duckworth to bring her daughter onto the chamber floor. Good day, everyone. Im Andrea Mitchell in washington. President trump arriving in key west moments ago for a meeting on Drug Trafficking after raising some Big Questions about his north korea strategy heading into a summit with kim jongun. If i think that its a meeting that is not going to be fruitful, were not fwlougoing. If the meeting when im there is not fruitful, i will respectfully leave the meeting. Nbc White House Correspondent Kristen Welker is joining me now. Just imagine if he were to walk out of a meeting, walk out of a summit meeting with kim jongun. His whole approach to this seems to be very unusual, to say the least. Reporter to say the least, andrea. It goes right back to the moment that he agreed to these talks when he was meeting with the representative from south korea and he agreed almost on the spot to say yes to this offer from kim jongun. So in terms of what were hearing from the president , i think he wants to remain unpredictable. The fact that he said he would walk out of the meeting if he doesnt think it is unpredictable. It fits into what we know about President Trump and how he conducts Foreign Policy. On the other hand, this administration and Foreign Policy advisers are laying down the groundwork. We, of course, just learned yesterday about the trip that mike pompeo made to meet with the leader of north korea. He didnt secure a deal to bring home the americans who were still being held there. Of course, that is what this administration is getting a lot of pressure to do. And the president was asked if there were any preconditions that the white house asked for ahead of the meeting. He didnt get details about that. But the administration clearly taking this preparation very seriously, even as the president clearly wants to put on that unpredictable face that he feels will ultimately be productive with the highstakes talks. A lot of controversial questions in the summit. Well talk to bob corker about that coming up now. And it may, in fact, be playing into the confirmation decisions over mike pompeo. Meanwhile, on the homefront, kristen, well review where we stand. Mueller and rosenstein still sort of hanging. The president refusing to give them any kind of definitive answer to Jennifer Jacobs asking about their futures at the News Conference yesterday. And now, a lot of other questions about Michael Cohen dropping the whole case against buzzfeed against their publication of the socalled dossier. Michael cohen very much in the middle of so many controversies. The intersection between the nondisclosure agreement that is he negotiated for a variety of women as well as the criminal investigation into his own role and potentially his role in russia because he was the person negotiating in 2015 at the beginning of the campaign for a trump tower in moscow. Reporter when you talk to the president s attorneys, andrea, youre absolutely right. They try to downplay the significance of Michael Cohen. But the reality is they are concerned this obviously adds one more element of controversy to this white house. And as we know, some of the president s outside Legal Advisers have warned him that Michael Cohen could flip on him if hes ultimately charge ld. Now, i want to stress, he has not been charged with anything yet, but still, this is something that is making the white house, making the president increasingly nervous, increasingly frustrated. Now, when he was asked by Jennifer Jacobs about the status of mueller and rosenstein, President Trump really tried to downplay the speculation they may be on the outs, stressing that they are still here. Thats true, but he didnt, andrea, rule out the fact that he would fire them at some point in time. I can tell you, i have been speaking with sources who say in the wake of Michael Cohens raid, which you know infuriated President Trump, the talk about getting rid of rosenstein, thats really where it was focused and has been muted, in part, because he was dealing with the syria crisis. Andrea, his attention really focused shift to that at tehe ed of last week. And we have not seen it bubble up to the surface yet, but clearly we are watching that closely. Thank you for starting us off today. And joining me now as promised, senator bob corker, Senate Foreign chairs commission. Lets start with north korea. The president was very lets just say, unusual in his description of how he would handle this meeting yesterday when he said, if it doesnt go well, ill walk out. If it doesnt go well, we wont even have it. Theres no indication that they even brought up the whole question of three americans being held there. How comfortable are you with the way they approach this . All of us want to make sure the meeting is well and the professionals who repair the way are highly involved in a lot of precursor meetings. Thats one of the reasons i was glad mike pompeo was there. I think you know because of what you do every day. Our back channel to north korea has always been through the cia. So mike was exactly the right person to begin the conversations, but look, we need our department of energy leaders, we need folks from defense, i mean, all these people need to be meeting with those around kim jongun who are going to influence them and get the meeting set right in the first place. Otherwise, you know, its just a social event and nothing occurs. So it seems to me that the white house is taking seriously the preparation. I hope there will be many other individuals meeting there in advance. And look, i think all of us need to know, look, we need to approach this with skepticism and caution. Kim jongun has developed these weapons that he hopes will be deliverable to the United States in order to get a ticket towards dying as an old man in his bed. Its his survival. And so i dont think we should think that a meeting, if you will, all of a sudden hes going to give that up. Its going to take a lot of work. To me, probably a long period of time. Admiral the former premium commander was speaking on morning joe today. I want to share with you part of what he had to say. I think President Trump somehow feels he will walk in, slap the table like hes still in a building in manhattan, and walk out the door to collect his nobel peace price. Aint going to happen this way. This is a process to unfold. I dont know what the president s mindset is and that changes from time to time. But i a agree with his comment, its not going to be that way. And its going to take some dill je diligence and patience. Like everything in the past, thats when we sit down to talk, we relieve pressure. I think this administration is committed to continuing to put more and more pressure on. And hope over the longhaul theres a break through. Did mike pompeo tell you or anyone from Foreign Relations that he had actually gone to north korea . He did not. I dont think anyone i know one of the members was sharing with me yesterday that he was, you know, a little concerned. That he had shared that with him. On the other hand, up in of us ask. I didnt ask. I didnt know it. But it certainly didnt bother me. Actually, i was glad, as i mentioned in my earlier comments, that the administration is taking these kind of preparations and have been Something Like him there. So i wouldnt have just told him. I mean, i wouldnt have just volunteered it. The cia does a lot of things that we dont know about, even the leaders of the committee, the intel of this committee, dont know some of the things underway. So it didnt bother me at all. And i dont really think it bothers many people. Ive known a number of the democrats on our committee have said they are appreciative that he had been involved at then stage. At this stage. There are reports that it may have been leaked to help the confirmation process. Could have been. You know, you know about these things more so than me, but it could have happened. Well, its a very closely divided vote right now. 10 negative, 9 in favor on committee. And he can get confirmed without the recommendation of the committee, although its never happened, for secretary of state. Rand paul, let me share with you what he just said about whether he would change his vote. I just spoke with the president a few minutes ago. And he asked if i would meet with pompeo. I have not yet met with him individually. And because the president asked me to, and because i have a great deal of respect to the president , i will meet with director pompeo sometime before the vote. Does that mean youre open to the meeting . Im open to the meeting and well see what happens because of the meeting. Hes key because the democrats, we dont know for sure what chris cokoontz is goi to do, but right now rand paul is the only republican voting against. We dont know what jeff flake will do. Do you think rand paul is open to change . How important is it to get him out with a favorable vote . It doesnt matter to me how he gets out of committee. Look, ill let the president influence rand. He is a friend of mine. Ill leave that to the white house. And i hope they have a good meeting today with pompeo or whenever it takes place. But andrea, if i could, i understand where we are, and you do, too, i just saw you the other day, i always enjoy seeing you. Mike pompeo was at west point, top of the class, harvard law review, served in the military patrolling the iron curtain, understands the importance of diploma diplomacy, has built a great culture that we need at the state department and the cia. Look, secretary clinton andcare with 94 votes. You dont think they said things when running for president that republicans disagreed with . I mean, come on. I mean, you and i both understand that mike pompeo is very who could know more about whats happening around the world than the director of the cia . No one. He knows more about what is happening around the world than anybody here in washington. This is we understand, i dont even want to give him a hard time, i just want to get him confirmed, but my friends, my democratic friends, who know that the base, i hate that word, but the base as you view this as a proxy vote in support of trump, obviously are finding ways to not vote for him. This is very much against any kind of tradition that we have had here. You know that. And theres nothing in pompeos past that, in any way, could possibly disqualify him from getting an up or down vote on the floor. And it should be overwhelming, but we just live in a bipartisan time. I dont even want to give my friends a hard time because i know the pressure that they are under from this base of people that uphold the president. But i would just say to you and to everybody listening, and certainly my democratic friends, are you kidding me . You dont want someone like mike pompeo to go in with somebody like secretary mattis and ensure that the right kind of advice is given to our president who takes all kinds of input from all kinds of people at night and early in the morning . You dont want them sitting and talking with them about how terrible it would be just to walk out of syria without finishing dealing with isis . We dont want him doing that. So you and i know where this is, we know that this is most unusual, and i would say inappropriate. I dont even when i talk to my friends on the democratic side, i dont even want to give them a hard time because i know what it is theyre dealing with, but we need to get him confirmed. And people on both sides of the aisle should want someone like him sitting with the president , making sure that the president has the right kind of republic that hasnt the white house has become an adult day care center. Who is left looking after the president in the white house now . Now that tillerson is gone, kelly, disempowered, if you will, the president not listening to him, so other than mattis, who is in charge of the adult day care . Well, look, the everything that was just said speaks to the fact that we need mike pompeo to be confirmed. By the way, i would think if you took a truth serum to people on both sides of the aisle, they would want to ensure that someone like mike pompeo is sitting at the table with the president and leading our diplomatic efforts. So i you know that, i know that, they know that. Were probably going to have a very tight vote. I hope and think hell be confirmed. And thankfully, be in a position to be one of those people, as you just mentioned, like mattis, who is sitting there with general kelley and others advising the president. Its going to happen, i think. I wish it would happen in a little more overwhelming manner. But our nation, everybody in your audience, your listening audience, should hope that someone with this qualifications should sit there advising the president on what direction to take on our behalf. Earlier today you said you were not even sure that President Trump would run. You were asked whether you want support anymore 2020. Hes already named a campaign manager, brad pesqual. Isnt it clear hes going to run in 2020 . Im the last one to know what is happening in the president ial campaign. President s always want to act like they are running for reelection because they become lame ducks. I have no idea if the president s going to run for reelection. No idea who the other people might be that would be running against him. And i think most people with prudence are going to wait and see what the fields like, if the president even seeks reelection. I dont have any indication that that is a sure thing. And might even bet against it, are continue know. But well see what happens as time moves on. Was nikki haley right when she said on sunday there was finding to be russian sanctions, more sanctions, and then undercut clearly by the white house, by larry kudlow, saying there was no such decision, the president changed his mind, that she was confused. She said she didnt get confused. Whats the deal there with us telling the Russian Embassy in washington that there are not going to be sanctions . So so, look, i dont know what happened there, andrea. But look, just look at the last few weeks. We were going to put tariffs in place against our European Union friends. And then we didnt. We were going to put tariffs thankfully. We were finding to put tariffs if place against canada and didnt. And then we were going to do it against mexico and didnt. We were going to pull out of syria and then were not. So, look, its sort of a chaotic atmosphere there. You know that, i know that. Thats why mike pompeo needs to be confirmed. This happens a great deal. We have had a lot of great things that have happened over the course of the last 15 or 16 months for our nation. And im thankful for that, but no doubt, theres been chaos as that evolves. Or chaotic environment. And, you know, who knows what happens there. Candidly, i dont care. Its like so nonrell vaevant t as to who shot john or who was right or wrong. Its just another day in the life of communications out of the white house. Another day, except that the russians now have the signal that were not going to be standing strong against them. I dont know about all that and maybe thats the case, but i will say this. I would appreciate if the president s rhetoric against russia would be a little stronger. Ive shared that with him. But if you look at the actions that have actually been taken on the ground, we passed 982 katsa to put russian sanctions in place. Ive been in the skiff with many Others Holding classified might eggs and public hearing phone calls. This is the toughest we have been on russia. And i do think they are carrying it out in a responsible manner. The rhetoric could be a little stronger from my standpoint, but i dont think anybody can say we are not pushing back against russia. No doubt, Congress Took leadership in that. I agree with that 100 . And our committee was in the center of that. But were pushing back against russia. And i would say to you, andrea, our relations with russia are the worst since cuban missile crisis right now, the worst. The worst since the cuban missile crisis. So, you know, this is not a play thing. And i think that we need to be cognizant of the fact that things can get out of hand. Again, lets keep putting pressure on, but again, im thankful that secretary mattis who understands that probably more than anyone else and hopefully mike pompeo will be joined at the hip trying to make sure that we make good policy towards russia and other places. And with that, im so sorry, but i have people waiting on me in the office. I always love being on your program. And thank you for having me, okay. Let me quickly ask you about geena haskell, her confirmation has been delayed until may 9th. Do pompeo and them see about haske haskell . I dont think theres horse training going on. I couldnt pick her out of the lineup, i have never met her, know very little about her. Ill Pay Attention to the Committee Hearings that will take place, but i dont think theres anything relative to horse training. As a matter of fact, i would be positive thats not the case. Its probably just trying to work towards a successful conclusion. Thank you so much for your indulgence. Thank you for your patience. Thank you. Thank you. You bet. Coming up, still standing, President Trump dismissing questions about firing Robert Mueller and rod rossen stein. Ill talk to a member of the house intelligence. Stay with us here on msnbc. 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And that has been so found, as you know, by the house Intelligence Committee. Theres no collusion. And there was no collusion with russia, other than by the democrats. President trumps skipping over a few key facts. First of all, it was only republicans on a highly partisan Intelligence Committee that found no evidence of collusion. And as shes still under investigation, not only by the committee, other committees, but importantly by Robert Mueller, Eric Swalwell works for the Intelligence Committee. All the documents you want to look for, bank records, travel records, particularly with Michael Cohen, it is still up in the air whether he went to prague or not. What is it about the president not giving any affirmative statement that hes not going to fire rod rosenstein, which is, i think, the key issue after his fury over the raid of Michael Cohens home office, Hotel Residence . Hes never finding to give a clear statement about it. Its incumbent on congress to prevent him from doing the firing. There was a hearing today in the senate. I was encouraged to see leaders like tom till list uris to move and protect mueller. That way we dont have to care about what the president says. Mitch mcconnell says it will never get to the floor. I think hes conflicted on this. His wife works for the president. Even the most honorable person may have a hard time doing the right thing here. I think, you know, we should just put it up for a vote and maybe take it out of Mitch Mcconnells hands. What about the whole what we hear from the wall street journal story that the president talked to a former lawyer and friend. That Michael Cohen is going to flip on him. I think most people believe that theres something to tell. And so, you see this panic among the trump team that Michael Cohen may flip from our perspective. We have a lot of questions that may not flip from october 2015. And the russianamerican who helped trump with the hotel in new york. And also sunlighted that Vladimir Putin we dont have the records, we asked Michael Cohen to provide records as to whether he was over in europe at the time and never saw him. Michael cohen now a major factor in this. He is. Hes very close to the president. And again, it just highlights how premature it was for the republicans to shut down our committee, whether its what we have learned about Michael Cohen or Cambridge Analytica or new information thats come out about phoenix list felix sader. Bob mueller may tell people what he found out about the crimes, but theres a lot of information out there he may not be able to prove. But we want to prevent the ballot box from being attacked in 2018. Coming up, loyalty tests. More questions about cohens commitment to the president. Youre watching Andrea Mitchell reports on msnbc. Patrick woke up with a sore back. But hes got work to do. So he took aleve this morning. 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The wall street journals report that jay goldberg, a former trump lawyer and friend, told him during a phone call last week that cohen could turn against the president and cooperate with facebook prosecutors. On a scale of 100 to 1 where 100 is fully protecting the president , mr. Cohen isnt even a 1. Joining me now is Nbc National Security analyst frank mazizzi. And ruth marcus, marketplace editorial, and sam stein, politics editor from the daily beast and msnbc contributor. Frank, what is the significance of Michael Cohen . He said he would take a bullet for the president , but hes facing a Serious Investigation and potentially if convicted, of course, a terrible outcome. Yeah, even the toughest most loyal individuals will eventually reach the point where theyve got to consider flipping. Ive seen it over and over again in organized crime cases, tough guys who actually have to spend a few months in prison before they kind of get on the phone and say, hey, i would like to talk. I think ive rethought this process. So look at the bank fraud violation that cohen is potentially facing. The federal sentencing guidelines are tough on this. He could face 30 years in prison for bank fraud and go to the Campaign Election fraud violation, hes looking at up to another five years in prison. Hes got a family. At some point, we will break. And it might be after he spends a night or two in federal prison, or it might be on the eve of the trial. Well have to wait and see. Well, meanwhile, the attorney for Michael Cohen on the buzzfeed case, ruth, has dropped that case. This is a case over the publication over the dossier that conventional wisdom would be, you dont have to be deposed when facing a major criminal case. Sure. I think any reasonable, responsible lawyer would have advised him that prosecuting, pursuing this case right now is not a good idea. Because you expose yourself to questioning. Questioning that can harm you, in general, but can particularly harm you when youve got federal prosecutors breathing down your neck. So its not surprising that he did that. Its particularly interesting that it happened to come after these reports about whether he was or was not in prague. And meanwhile, karen mcdoug mcdougal. Her case involving ami. How do we keep track of all the cases . This one is an interesting one. The interview with Rachel Maddow was fascinating last night. She was on mj as well. You can see both sides saying they have a victory. In one specific case, she still would be penalized 75,000 if she sold the rights to her story, even though now shes free to tell her story. I think the Bigger Picture here is that, essentially, it encourages other people who may have signed a nondisclosure agreement with the president or under similar legal constraints when talking about their dealings with the president , it may encourage them to go forward and make similar efforts to get out of the agreements. That could be profoundly consequential. If there were any such agreements. Who knows. Frank, your take on the whole mcdougal case and the inquirer . This all impacts the Public Perception. Youll see ms. Mcdougal talk more now that shes been released from this kind of stranglehold on her. And this is going to be a drum beat constantly combined with stormy daniels, combine with Michael Cohen and the special counsel and what hes coming out with in the next days, weeks or months ahead, and this weighs on the entirety of Public Perception as we head toward the possibility of impeachment proceedings, Public Perception becomes very important, because the representatives of the public, the congress, will have to make decisions with regard to potential impeachment. So all this weighs heavily on the president , none of it is helpful. And the stress is increased while bob mueller is trying to negotiate the possibility of an interview with the possibility, which is becoming less and less likely in my opinion. And ruth, before i let you go, Tammy Duckworth, senator, first senator to give birth while a senator, shes just had this baby a couple weeks ago, and now they have had a vote in the rules committee on whether she could bring the baby. Now, shes tweeted, bring the baby to the floor. Theres a potential vote on the nomination of the new nasa head who barely made it out onto the floor in a vote, very closely divided vote. So she has said that she may have to take the baby to the floor today. And if she does take the baby to the floor, she hopes the dress code is okay. Because there are senate rules about that as well. Shoes are essential, and possibly coats and ties. You know, talk about babies on the floor, they should all grow up a little bit. A little cute baby upon the floor should be a welcomed thing. Happy 2018 were talking about a mom here who is a veteran who suffered grievously and managed to not only become elected. She does need a baby sitter. We are talking about a senator bringing her child to the floor. Wearing tennis shoes or flipflops will not apply to the baby. Coming up, block the vote. Can republicans save mike pompeo . I am joined by the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee member next. 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Obviously, are finding ways to not vote for him. This is very much against any kind of tradition that we have had here. You know that. Senator bob corker, the Foreign Relations chairman, moments ago here on nbc. Joining me is democratic senator jean that shaheen on armed services. Senator, are you saying you are against mike pompeo . Thats a good talking point because it allows them to not deal with the very real challenges that director pompeo has when we think about him as secretary of state. What are your concerns . Well, i think the secretary of state represents the United States to the rest of the world. And when we have someone who has past statements that can be construed as antimuslim, who has not taken on some of the hate groups that have existed in this country, who has made statements that can be viewed as antiequal rights for people who are in the gay community, then those present issues as he tries to represent American Values around the world. And then we have some of the other concerns around how is he going to work with our allies on as we look at the agreement with iran, as we look at Climate Change and the paris accords. And hes already been very vocal in his opposition to those. So i think all of those things raise concerns around his ability to adequately represent the United States. The counter argument would be, hes so trusted by the president that he was the secret envoy to kim jongun. Hes in the inner circle, finally, there will be someone at the state department that gets to talk to the president. And the president might listen. Well, im pleased to hear that he actually did the overture to north korea. I think it is important to know that this administration is laying the groundwork for those negotiations. And we need to continue to do that. But as we saw with nikki haley, we need to have someone who is going to speak their views and what they think is important to the administration. And we didnt hear any evidence at the hearing for director pompeo, that he was willing to do that. What did you think about the mansplaining by the white house and larry kudlow that she must have been confused . Well, she was very clear that she was not confused. And i have had a number of interactions with senator haley, and i dont think she would get confused on russia. Sadly, we have heard the voice on the issue and want the russian sanctions to be implemented. For whatever reason, this president is not willing to do that. Thank you so much, jeanne shaheen. It will be a busy day on monday when the vote comes up. Perfect comeback. Ambassador nikki haley show nothing confusion on her standing in the trump white house. Stay with us right here on Andrea Mitchell reports right here on msnbc. We cant predict what tomorrow will bring. But our comprehensive approach to Financial Planning can help make sure youre prepared for whats expected and even whats not. 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Joining me now, ron clan, former aide under obama. And rick tyler, former spokesman for Newt Gingrich and ted cruz, now an msnbc political analyst. You cant argue with whats been going on the last few weeks, rick. Argue with what argue with what bob corker, the way he described it no, no, look, i think that nikki haley probably wasnt confused about what she was told and she wasnt uncertain that she would have announced the sanctions because someone said go ahead and do that on a sunday show. But where she was confused is depending on the president not to change his mind. This is the fallout. Heres what nikki haley had to say yesterday when asked about all this. Hows your relationship with President Trump . Perfect. Perfect she said, her relationship with trump is perfect. Obviously the reporting is he was angry when he watched her on the sunday shows. You and i have been through this a lot in covering the white house. When people go on sunday shows, they are going with talking points from either the white house chief of staff or the National Security adviser. Theres no question, what she said was clear, it was a proved by the process, the system, as we say, and the talking points were circulated to other people. Maybe theres no system. But, you know, i agree with what rick said. Theres an entire system and then theres President Trump. And he either hasnt learn order doesnt want to learn or doesnt care to learn that he undercuts his own administration. He undercuts his own people with incidents like this thing with ambassador haley. And, you know, it works both ways unfortunately. I think she stood her ground. She made her point. She pushed back on larry kudlow taking a shot at her, you know, kind of distinguish herself, but in the end everyone around trump is colored and slimed in some ways by the way this whole thing works. And there is so much confusion overseas, i can tell you from talking to diplomats, weve got two big visits, macron, the first state visit here, rick tyler, next week, followed by Angela Merkel who has a terrible relationship with donald trump. She hasnt learned to flatter and schmooze. So shes now coming. Theyve got a big concern. Not only the iran deal, but also the the tariffs against the European Union. Well, in getting back to what bob corker said is who the United States, we dont have to be friends with everybody around the world but at a minimum we have to be predictable. Like, we have to mean what we say. We say were going to retaliate within a certain period of time, then we dont do that. People lose their confidence in us. If they lose this is the whole problem with the secretary of state tillerson. He just had nobody believe that he had was speaking for the president. So meeting with him was really kind of a waste of time. Youve got to have people around you that the foreign leaders know that this person speaks for the president. Unfortunately, the president often doesnt know what he is for or what hes going to do right up until he does it. While tillerson may have been more mainstream in his Foreign Policy, his ideology, he was so closeted by his chief of staff that major allies could not get their Foreign Ministers in a finally being told, im not going to have my Foreign Policy fly across the atlantic for 15 minutes with you. Look, Rex Tillerson may be a little bit push back against donald trump but also push back against his own department. Theres really no way you can be secretary of state if you divorce yourself from the state department. So shouldnt the diplomats now say wait a second, we may not like what mike pompeo says about either gay rights or the muslims in his past, but he is going to at least be a voice at the table and restore the state department, why do you vote against a guy like pompeo might be the argument. I understand that. I also listen to senator corker on your show explain all the chaos in the white house and why do you want someone who kind of is a donald trump yes man than in the state department . We havent really seen any evidence that mike pompeo is other than that. So, i mean, were in this terrible situation where the socalled adults in the administration get pushed out, dont get listened to by the president , and then the president s alternatives, well, give me more yes people, more yes men, more yes women that doesnt seem like its a fix either. In the end, mike pompeo gets confirmed in republican s line p and vote for mike pompeo. Republicans have the votes to confirm if they want to put those votes up so lets see what happens. Maybe with a negative recommendation or no recommendation from the Foreign Relations committee. Hanging in the balance is gina haspel to be cia director. Her confirmation hearing delayed. Maybe because they think if pompeo doesnt get confirmed, you dont need to go through the agony of trying to confirm her. Look, to her shes a controversial nomination and, you know, the i think the democrats are going to look at her. She brings this issue of torture is a big issue. And putting her in there i think would be tough. Rick tyler, ron, thanks for being ,here. More ahead, well be right back. Histil smuggled booze and dodged the law. Even when they brought you in, they could never hold you down. When i built my family tree and found you, i found my sense of adventure. I set off on a new life, a million miles away. Im heidi choiniere, and this is my ancestry story. 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Stop taking victoza® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck or symptoms of a serious allergic reaction such as rash, swelling, difficulty breathing, or swallowing. Serious side effects may happen, including pancreatitis. So stop taking victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have severe pain in your stomach area. Tell your doctor your medical history. Gallbladder problems have happened in some people. Tell your doctor right away if you get symptoms. Taking victoza® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. Common side effects are nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite, indigestion, and constipation. Side effects can lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. Change the course of your treatment. Ask your doctor about victoza®. And thats all for today. Thanks for being with us. Where well keep track of whether senator duckworth gets to bring her infant child on to the floor of the senate. Stay tuned to all of that. Follow us online on twitter mitchellreports. Craig melvin up next. Hi there, andrea. Were keeping a close eye on the floor of the upper chamber. Craig melvin here. Loyalty test. New legal battles pushing limits for loyalty for President Trumps personal lawyer Michael Cohen and now people who know both men are chiming in on to whether cohen could flip on the president. Also, this afternoon, power struggle. Right now, lights are coming back on in puerto rico after that islandwide blackout. But is this uncertainty . Is it the new normal for people still recovering from hurricane maria. And criminal case, the governor of missouri trying to get a felony charge connected to a sex scandal dropped in court today. But when it comes to politics, to some, his defense seems to be coming out of the trump playbook. Well look at all those stories in just a moment. But we start on this thursday afternoon with new drama over the legal battle surrounding this trump white house. The wall street journal and politico reporting concerns among President Trumps advisers that the president s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, could turn against him. And new