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"new day" continues right now. good morning to our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm john berman with brianna keilar. it is friday, november 12th. breaking news, newly released audio this morning of former president trump defending the threats made by the january 6th capitol insurrectionists to hang mike pence. listen to this. >> were you worried about him during that siege? were you worried about his safety? >> no, i thought he was well protected and i heard he was in good shape, no. because i had heard he was in very good shape. but, no -- >> you heard the chants. that was terrible, the -- >> he could have -- well, the people are very angry. >> they're saying hang mike pence. >> it is common sense, john, it is common sense that you are supposed to protect -- how can you -- if you know a vote is fraudulent, right, how can you pass on a fraudulent vote to congress? >> trump's remarks were made during a taped interview with jonathan karl of abc news for his new book "betrayal" out next week. pence was in the senate chamber during the insurrection and then after refusing to stall the certification of the election, he had to as you can see here be rushed to safety as rioters breached the capitol, getting into the senate chamber. some of them chanting this. >> hang mike pence. hang mike pence. hang mike pence. hang mike pence. hang mike pence. >> joining us now, cnn senior political analyst john avlon and cnn senior legal analyst elie honig. first, john, to you, donald trump is justifying the calls to hang mike pence. >> yes. we have hit something new in american history. never before has a president been on record approving of a violent mob trying to kill his vice president. and the reason i think you'll want to pull that back is because we get numb to donald trump's insanity and lies sometimes. but this is a ex-president, endorsing and rationalizing the murder of his vice president as a means to overturning an election to keep him in power. this is so sick that it is worth stopping and paying attention. and for any republicans who are listening, if you are still backing this man for president in 2024, you're endorsing this. you own this if you still support it. >> this is -- there is no ambiguity in what he just said there. it is a single entendre. these people are saying hang mike pence and donald trump is say, yeah, i understand why. >> more than that, it is common sense. it is common sense usually in most sane people's minds to defend the constitution, to defend the vice president. he says it is common sense to want to hang mike pence. >> elie, i think in hearing this there is a whole legal can of worms that has been opened here, maybe on several fronts. first and foremost, the very first part of what donald trump said was that he was being updated on the vice president's condition. and we had some reporting that donald trump was watching the insurrection on tv and maggie haberman and others are saying he liked what he saw, this is the former president saying he was being updated as to what was goingin ion there. how significant is that? >> that's a crucial fact. big picture, first of all, this is a constitutional nightmare. this is a constitutional worst case scenario. the utter madness of a president as john just said who is endorsing, supporting these people who are attacking his vice president. now, to the specific point, what it goes to is the president's intent. and this is what investigators in congress need to be thinking about and in the justice department. people who are defending the president and said when he stood in front of that rally, when he said be there, january 6th, we'll be wild. we'll go down to congress, and we're going to -- we're going to fight like hell, defenders of the president said, well, what he meant is go down there and picket and carry signs and exercise political speech. however, this shows that they were doing -- when they were in there breaking windows and attacking the vice president, they were doing exactly what donald trump wanted, and hoped and intended and that issue of intent should be at the heart of any congressional inquiry, or any prosecutorial inquiry. >> it has specific relevance to things that are being considered or deliberated today, right now, it has to do with the executive privilege claims and the possible contempt by former chief of staff mark meadows, former adviser steve bannon, not to mention these documents that the january 6th committee wants to get its hands on. how does this new audio impact all of that? >> oh, it is an absolute reminder of the vital importance of what congress is doing today, right now, at this hour. this is why it is so important that we, the public, hear testimony from the inner circle. i don't care how loyal they are to donald trump, meadows, scavino, bannon, all the people physically with him on january 6th, they need to come forward and be compelled if necessary and if not willing they need to be prosecuted. it is vital we know what donald trump was doing during the attack on january 6th. that will tell the story. all the spin in the world doesn't matter. if he was there cheering them on, please supporting them, like we heard in that tape, that's a violation of his constitutional duty and i argue that's criminal as well. >> fundamental violation of the constitutional obligation, of course. and, look, the issue of a president, cheering on in effect a violent mob trying to kill his vice president is nothing that is remotely covered by executive privilege. this is everybody's business. this goes to the heart of our democracy, and all the documents must be released and all the testimony must be compelled there is nothing more serious than this. what mike pence says about this, because his impulse has been to say -- >> you want to bet? >> i think we're both going it take the under, right? because mike pence is going to find a way to rationalize his boss calling for his own execution. and if that's not emasculating and disqualifying in addition, i don't know what is. that's just pathetic. >> we say this day differently, you know. >> yeah. i don't hear this tape the same way as some people. he cares about my feelings. >> it is like the song from chicago, i can't remember the exact name, like, i saw him as living -- he saw himself as living, i saw him as dead. that's how they see things differently here again. single entendre, the former president of the united states justifying those who wanted to hang the former vice president. that's what just happened. john, elie, thank you very much. still ahead, a judge throwing the book at a capitol rioter who punched a cop. his lawyer will join us live. a black police officer targeted by his boss with a kkk sign breaks his silence. he says a lot more happened besides this. you're going to hear from him right here live. and the mother of kyle rittenhouse defending the controversial judge as this trial heads to closing arguments. who is here? don lemon. don lemon is here to talk about two high profile cases now captivating the nation. when you hear, cough cough sneeze sneeze. 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[snowball splat and windshield wiper] the #1 longest-lasting aa battery. this morning, two trials capturing the nation's att attention. we're awaiting closing arguments in the case against kyle rittenhouse. and set for another day of testimony as three men face charges in the death of ahmaud arbery. joining us now, the host of cnn's "don lemon tonight," don lemon, the author of "this is the fire: what i say to my friends about racism." >> good morning. >> there is a lot going on in these two trials. >> yeah. >> and there are people who will make comparisons between the two and you're welcome to do that if you'd like. the kyle rittenhouse trial, as you're watching this, don, i know you got some pretty strong emotions about what you're seeing. >> i think people think it is normal. i listen to our political pundits and political pundits on all channels and they're used to giving deference to a judge, the judge's behavior. and most people are not in courtrooms every day like that. if that is the behavior that is happening in courtrooms every day, houston, we have a problem, kenosha, we have a problem, america, we have a problem. i think people are afraid to -- i have people on, on my show who are still actively pursuing cases that are, you know, are fighting cases that are in front of that judge and maybe they don't want to say anything about it, but his behavior is at the very least unusual, and concerning because we talk a lot about civility and you look at the segment you had before, with the former president, seeming to say it is okay for people to, you know, want to hang the vice president and that sort of behavior and what has happened to us in society now. this judge yelling at a prosecutor, anyone in the courtroom, treating anyone the way he treats i think is problematic. and i don't think it is normal. and people -- you can decide or not if you think he's biased, most of the people i've seen on television who analyze, does some analysis of courtrooms, seems to think there is a bias towards the defense, usually this judge is very pro prosecution and now he's sort of -- seems to be very pro defense, treating kyle rittenhouse as if he's his grandson. just berating the prosecution. no one needs to be berated like that in the courtroom. i understand that judges, attorneys, prosecutors, they have very tough jobs. but does that need to happen? does he need to make jokes about asian food, not arriving, you know, because it is on a boat on long beach in california? whether he was being, you know, racist towards asians or insensitive or not, he said in one breath that it shouldn't be political and wouldn't allow a question about a witness' bias because a witness works for a far right wing publication, but that shouldn't be about politics, but he's making jokes about the supply chain, it does not compute. i think people see what is happening. so this is the perfect case, this one, and the one that is happening in georgia, these are perfect cases to bring life to what happens in our criminal justice system in the court system, because everybody, most of the people, they think it is normal. i've been dressed down by a judge before, i've been whatever -- maybe it shouldn't be that way. maybe this is evidence that we need to reform our court system and our criminal justice system, just want to leave people with a picture here. imagine if kyle rittenhouse was a 17-year-old black kid -- >> that's a different issue. >> with a gun. how would people feel, how would the judge treat him, how would pundits think about this case? what about the people on the right who are making kyle rittenhouse out to be a choir boy because he went across state lines and inserted himself into a situation where he had nothing to do with, was carrying a gun that he wasn't supposed to carry because he was too young, it was illegal for him to carry that gun and he wanted to do it because he was cool, if a black kid did that, killed two people and injured another person, how would america feel about that, regardless of what the defense -- once you're in the courtroom and the legal system, what kyle rittenhouse says to the defense or whatever, that's a whole other thing. think about public popinion and public perception, i think it would be different. >> when we're talking about the role of race, not only in the kyle rittenhouse trial, but also in the trial of the men who shot -- pursued and shot ahmaud arbery. >> murdered. >> one of them killed ahmaud arbery. there is this theme of white wanna-be vigilanteism that i think encapsulates both of these trials and i wonder what you think about, look, laws aside, how is the defense doing aside, what do you think about just this idea that this is something people do, that in some places this is still okay. >> it is the same idea as i was saying about the judge, this is okay because people are used to it. this is the ultimate entitlement, that, again, you can insert yourself into a situation with a gun that you're not supposed to be carrying, kill two people, injure, and it is -- you're made to be a hero by the public. you -- you see someone jogging down the street, and you take it into your hands, you think it is your responsibility to stop that person, when you're not even sure if they are committing a crime because, what, it is your street, it is your town, it is your country. it is the ultimate degree of entitlement, when people believe that this is how they're supposed to be. what the writer is saying about kyle rittenhouse -- that's vigilanteism. that's not what -- we're not supposed to be vigilantes. we're not supposed to take justice into our own hands. imagine if every single person in america did that. imagine if you called for a black men or black folks to be armed and go out in the streets and, you know, do what they think, justice, take it back, remember what they did to you and slavery and whatever, go and take things, imagine if people were condoning that or doing that. would there be a different perception in this country about who should and shouldn't carry guns? would our gun laws be different? i think so. there is a double standard. there is an ultimate degree of entitlement. this is what i'm supposed to do because this belongs to me, meaning the street, this town and this country. i think it is tough for people to hear that, it is the absolute truth. i don't walk down street saying this is my -- i pay taxes here and therefore i -- no, if i see someone breaking the law, i call the cops. that's what they're there for. it is supposed to be law and order. this isn't about law and order. this is about unlawful conduct and disorder. >> brianna had an amazing conversation with the reverend william barber in the last hour about what i'm going to play right now. things that were said out loud and the jury wasn't in the room, and this was in the trial of the man accused of killing ahmaud arbery, the jury wasn't in the room, but other people were and the cameras were, listen to this from the defense lawyer. >> we don't want any more black pastors coming in here or other jesse jackson, whoever was in here this week, sitting with the victim's family, trying to influence the jury in this case. i think the court can understand my concern about bringing people in who really don't have any ties to this case other than political interests, and we want to keep politics out of this case. if a bunch of folks came in here dressed like colonel sanders in the back -- >> okay. >> was that sound bite from 1960? outside agitators and rebel rousers, we don't want them in our town, this dr. king, these people who are coming in, we're used to running our town, our city, the way we run it, we don't need outside agitators. come on, you know what that is. there are many people who go into a courtroom from every day, there are celebrities who sit in kr courtrooms because they're interested in cases. it is a public right for people to sit in a courtroom. i understand they don't want undue pressure. they may think this person is a celebrity, or somehow and may have some influence. but to say that, and to think that way, it is, it is ridiculous. >> and consider this, that lawyer thinks that it is helping his case. >> yeah, he thinks it is okay. again, this is our town, our city, and these are the rules, this is how it should be run, why do we have outside agitators coming in? jesse jackson wasn't even in the courtroom. jesse, by the way, can't travel, what have you, but -- this is where we are, where we are in america right now. and i think what i feel good about is that people like us, right, who are on the right side of history, who obey the rules, who understands the history of this country, that we have this platform to be able to bring light to this ridiculousness because there are people in america who think it is okay to behave that way and you have someone in the highest office of the land, leading by example. >> don lemon, thank you. >> next time i'll say -- >> next time feel like you can say things, don. open up next time. >> bk, come back. >> miss you. >> you can see don tonight on "don lemon tonight". growing tension ts between health officials over approving booster shots for all adults. >> the judge handed down the toughest sentence yet to a capitol rioter. we'll talk to the man's lawyer about it. this is elodia. she's a recording artist. 1 of 10 million people that comcast has connected to affordable internet in the last 10 years. and this is emmanuel, a future recording artist, and one of the millions of students we're connecting throughout the next 10. through projectup, comcast is committing $1 billion so millions more students, past... and present, can continue to get the tools they need to build a future of unlimited possibilities. new this morning, the washington post detailing a tense debate within the biden administration over covid booster shots. senior health officials are pushing to make boosters available to all adults, but the final decision would come from the cdc director and the post says dr. rochelle walensky expressed caution and wants to scrutinize the data from v vaccinemakers first. joining us, dr. ashish jha. scrutiny and analyzing data, i don't think anyone is opposed to that. broadly speaking at this point, why not lean into the idea of boosters? what would be the possible risk? >> yes, good morning. thank you for having me here. so, first and foremost, i agree with the premise of your question. i think it is important to understand what is the risk and benefit right now? we should be led by the evidence. and my read of the evidence that is out there is that all adults would benefit from a booster six months after their second shot. now, obviously fda and cdc have a process, they should go through that process quickly and make their recommendations. for me, the evidence is leaning pretty heavily towards making vaccines -- vaccine boosters available for all adults over 18, as long as they're six months out from the second shot. >> i want to ask you a big question that weighs on me. cases are at best static, perhaps creeping up a little bit in the country. vaccination rates are going up. at this point, i don't think tens and tens of millions of more adults are going to get vaccinated if they haven't been vaccinated. more kids might get vaccinated. don't think more people will start wearing masks in more places than they are. so it seems we are where we are. and i want to know what happens as we move forward, as fewer people wear masks as the vaccination rate doesn't skyrocket, what is going to happen in america over the next few months? >> yes, so, the other big thing that is about to happen is thanksgiving and the holidays. where people travel, people get together with each other, and we know what happened last year, we saw big spikes in cases right after the holidays. so that's what i am worried about as i look out to the next few weeks. and what is going to happen is in families fully vaccinated, things will go reasonably well and it will be safe, in places where you have people who are unvaccinated getting together, people get infected. particularly in the northern half of the country where the weather has gotten colder, i'm very worried about what will happen over the next six weeks and obviously all of it, at this point, is preventable. no good reason why people need to be getting sick and hospitalized and die. >> and this will predominantly happen among unvaccinated people, you were saying. this gets to my other question, long-term, something we all need to think about what do we know about breakthrough infections in this case. those who are vaccinated and get boosters, there are breakthroughs, but what do really need to worry about, if anything, with those? >> yeah, so i think couple of things. when i say it will be largely among unvaccinated people, that's true. unvaccinated people who infected, most breakthroughs will be mild, but for higher risk individuals, older people, people with chronic diseases, the breaks through can be quite serious. that's why i think people need boosters, certainly to protect themselves, also to prevent getting infected so they don't give it to other people who are vulnerable. breakthrough infections are real. they're not rare. and for some people they can be quite serious. >> that's interesting. sounds like we're saying for those of us vaccinated, breakthroughs not something we have to worry about, for unvaccinated people, might get sick. this is the choice they made at this point. the people who really are getting shafted for lack of a better word here are people who have been vaccinated but maybe immunocompromised. those people long-term are the people impacted by the endemic nature of covid. >> yeah. people who are immunocompromised, older, people with chronic diseases, there are a lot of them, a lot of americans who are at risk of having a bad outcome if they have a breakthrough infection. i think we have minimized the costs of breakthrough infections, for young healthy people, it is breakthrough infections tend to be very mild. for elderly people, for people with chronic diseases, breakthrough infections can be serious. this is why i think those populations kns need to get the booster more or less right away. >> dr. ashish jha, appreciate you being with us. >> thank you. capital rioter gets three years in prison for punching a police officer. we have live reaction from the lawyer who defended him in court next. and a black police officer opens up about the racist prank, just one of many, he says, that were pulled by his boss. thanks for coming. now when it comes to a financial plan this broker is your man. let's open your binders to page 188... uh carl, are there different planning options in here? 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>> well, thank you for having me. he's remorseful for the decisions he made that day, which are not a reflection of the life he had led up to that point. >> has he denounced qanon? >> he was never part of that. he was never part of any organized group or anything like that. he went there that day, alone, initially unarmed. he wasn't part of any group or anything else like that. >> well, he was par taking in conspiracy theories. >> to par take in a conspiracy is to take a step, he acted alone -- >> i'm not saying a -- i'm not saying he was taking part in a conspiracy, in large organized thing. i'm saying he was dabbling at the very least in conspiracy theories ahead of his actions at the capitol. >> well, his beliefs prior to the incident whether you want to category ease them as part of any mass conspiracy or anything like that, that's up to you, these were his own individual beliefs, he doesn't blame his act actions on any group or other organization. what he did, he did himself. >> i'm not trying to say he's part of a conspiracy. i'm saying he believed stuff that wasn't true and i wonder if he denounced it. >> he did denounce it, you're correct. he did believe in things that were not true. and he has denounced them. he no longer has those beliefs. the present divisiveness in this country requires that all of us, including scott fairlamb, critically reflect upon the basic assumptions of what we believe is true, what we believe is justice, and mr. fairlamb has now had that opportunity, that time alone in the jail, to critically reflect and think about what it is that comprised his belief system that led him to that action. >> harley, can you talk a little bit more about that? how does someone go from believing in things that are not true, what many people would call conspiracy theories, and going to the capitol, storming the capitol, you know, punching an officer, and now you say he's at a place where he's denounced that, he doesn't believe that trump won the election. how do you get from that first point to where he is as you describe it now? >> well, i mean, this country has a history of learning from its mistakes and understanding. george washington himself pardoned two people who were found guilty of treason during the whiskey rebellion and he asked for moderation and tenderness to the misled who have abandoned their errors. mr. fairlamb, having been misled through his own account, through his own fault, but nevertheless misled has abandoned those e errors and he is deserving of tenderness and moderation and forgiveness. this is a country that forgives people had they stand up and say i made a mistake, america's the land of opportunity, and forgiveness. he stood up, he quickly claimed a responsibility for his actions, he pled guilty, he assumed responsibility for what he did, and now he should be afforded just like all these other people who have been convicted of crimes in the past, they should be given consideration for forgiveness and tolerance. >> look, i think there has been some of that certainly when you see with some of these defendants, whether they are remorseful or not, and whether they carry that past the moment where they were actually before a judge, i did want to ask you on the length of the sentence here, you said that if had not occurred on federal property, that this would have been a simple trespassing and simple assault case. you know, i'm not really sure that is correct. but just it be clear on this, this, you know, this wasn't just some store, this was the seat of democracy as it was certifying an election. do you think this length of sentence is too long for that. >> well, if you're asking me if it is too long, inherent in your question is whether or not the federal sentencing guidelines are fair and just and we know that they're implicitly racist, they are not fair and just towards people of color or people in urban areas, but germane to your question about mr. fairlamb, it is true and lawyers will tell you that the geography of where this event occurred changes immensely the form of punishment. if mr. fairlamb or any other american citizen had had punched a gentleman in the face, in the face -- >> a police officer -- >> a police officer, even a police officer, he would not be doing three and a half years in prison. however, because it occurred where it did, and we, of course we recognize it is the capitol building, the penalties are as such. i do think it was a fair and just punishment? i think it is excessive. but nevertheless i think a message has to be sent that america is a democracy and there is a place and forum for its citizens to express their discontent, and that was certainly not the place, nor the manner of action to do it. >> harley breite, i appreciate the conversation. thank you so much for being with us. >> thank you, ma'am, for having me. >> harley is the attorney for scott fairlamb. developing this morning, thousands of people stranded at the border between belarus and poland, caught in the middle of an intensifying geopolitical dispute. many of them migrants trying to travel deeper into europe. matthew chance is in belarus, watching some of this happen. what a dramatic site there, matthew. explain what's going on? >> look, first of all, john, it is a feat in itself getting to belarus. there is only a handful of television crews that have been permitted access at this extraordinary moment to come here. as far as i'm aware, we're the only international crew that have been allowed to come to this migrant camp on the border of belarus and poland. and i don't know if you can get a sense of the sort of depth of the camp, there are 2,000 people that have come here from various parts of the world, maybe the middle east, iraq, kurdistan and iraq, other places in the arab world as well, a lot of people from kurdistan, and at least 200 of them, i'm told, are children, some of them just babes in arms. a lot of people here, i think, spin around here, chopping wood, getting ready to make fires, to get them through the very cold nights here on the border. 600 of them are women, the other 1200 are said to be young men. i'll flip the camera around, so i can show you some interesting scenes there. better look there at the sort of scenes that are playing out, unfolding here on the border between belarus and poland. and if you allow me to sort of walk you down here, we can actually see the razor fence, the razor fence that erected by the polish side. there you can see, i think, the actual polish police and border forces who are standing there, on guard, all the way down this razor wire barrier to prevent migrants from breaking through. you get a sense of how long this camp is, as it stretches down into the distance into the forest, out of sight. here is an interesting scene for you. something i came across earlier. to say the migrants are from iraq, from kurdistan, they are building makeshift shelters, because the temperatures, you can imagine, this part of the world here in winter are dropping down. let me drop inside. they built a shelter. how are you? where are you from? from iraq? from kurdistan? excellent. thank you. good luck. so, just a little sense of the scenes where we're witnessing here. i should tell you that, you know, both sides blame each other for this crisis. the western countries including the united states, the european union, poland, say that belarus is using these refugees as propaganda. it is encouraging them to come in and essentially directing them, forcing them towards this border to put pressure on the european union and to punish it perhaps for some of the support that the eu has given to belarusian dinsessidents and th sanctions it put in place. the belarusians say, as well as international aid agencies, the poles are not doing everything they can either to protect the rights of migrants and in some ways not living up to their obligations under international law. clearly it is a re divery diffi situation. there are 2,000 people in this camp at the moment. by the end of the week, there could be as many as 5,000 and there are thousands more according to belarusian officials who are on their way. john? >> matthew chance, i have to say, remarkable images, extraordinary work that you're doing there right now. and i understand it is technically challenging, stay safe. we're going to let you go do some report and talk to people and we'll get back to you as soon as we can. thank you to you and your team for everything you're doing. today's cnn hero became a successful personal trainer after spending a decade behind bars. now he's helping other people just out of prison follow his path to reshape their lives. >> after surviving prison, you come home thinking you're able to start over. you want to be part of society. but there is just so many layers of discrimination, boxes you have to get through just to get an opportunity. society thinks oh you should get a job and it is not that easy. once you have a record, nothing is set up for them to win. and up, one, good. at a second you foundation, we give formerly incarcerated men and women, certifications and job placements throughout new york city. you have to think outside the box. you can't give someone a mop and say this is your future, take minimum wage and deal with it. when you provide people with livable wages, they're able to be productive members of society. and that's why we are a second you. we want to give you your second chance at life. >> hector helped more than 200 former prisoners get certified and build fitness careers. go to cnn.com to vote for him or your favorite among our top ten cnn heroes. just in, travis scott's attorney says the warning there were mass casualties at the concert never got to him. now to a "new day" exclusive interview. the sheffield lake, ohio, police officer who was targeted by his own police chief in a racist incident over the summer is telling his story now. in this video, which you may remember seeing, you can see the now former police chief anthony campo placing a kkk sign on officer keith pool's jacket. now, later, campo put on a makeshift kkk hat telling a cnn affiliate at the time it was just a joke that got out of hand. cnn has made several attempts to reach out to campo, should say he could not immediately be reached for comment. the city of sheffield lake did not respond to requests for comment either. joining us now is the target of that attack that you saw on camera, officer keith pool, and his lawyer ashley sletfield as well. people are eager to hear what you have to say. they have seen this video. you say it wasn't just what we see on camera, it was part of a pattern. can you tell us about the other incidents? >> yes. before i started working there, i told mr. campo that i needed a new car. and he sent me a car of -- it was a blue kacar, it wasn't a police car, but it was on large rims and the windows were tinted. and -- >> a picture of this? >> excuse me? >> he sent you a picture of a car, right? >> and it had my name on it, k. pool, sro. >> and that was before you even started on the force there as the first black police officer. and then once you were there, there was also, i understand, your face on a picture of a grim reaper with a racist slur on it? >> yes. raccoon reaper. that was the next month. so i started september 9th, the day after my birthday. 2020. and that next month he posted that on the board as the raccoon reaper. >> and another time you have mentioned you were sitting in a squad car with another black officer who was hired after you. can you tell us about what happened then? >> that day he was -- chief campo was riding with another officer who had tinted windows. so he was very adamant about the offi officers writing for the tints. i said would you like me to write that card too. he said i thought you all your windows were tinted. my window was down. >> so, you know, it is unbelievable, sort of what you talk about enduring here. over and over. and i wonder, when you saw this kkk sign on your desk, what did you think? >> at the moment, you couldn't think. you're just, like, i reacted like are you serious? and it was shocking. especially coming from a police chief, who had mentioned going back before i started there, he told one of the workers there that he as long as he is the chief of police, he would never hire the n word. then when he did hire me, he told the worker that i can't believe this city just hired their first n word. and he repeated it between. i cannot believe this city just hired its first n word. >> i know, ashley, you want documents from the city. what are you asking for and how do you see the city's role in this? >> well, the fact that the ex-chief could cast what he did to officer pool as merely a joke tells us a lot about the type of workplace in which officer pool was expected to operate and perform his duty protecting his community. because officer pool began at the department only a year ago, we have a lot of work to do in peeling ban the layers of this onion to determine where blame belongs. so the documents we requested relate to prior acts of misconduct and harassment in which the chief engaged as well as if there was any training conducted in this department, which thus far we have seen no indication of. >> officer pool, i am so sorry for what you have endured and i really appreciate you talking with us about it and describing it, thank you so much to you as well as to you, ashley. >> thank you for having us. this morning, congressman dean philips, he never met his father, artie pepper was killed in vietnam when the congressman was six months old, but a discovery in boxes of family heirlooms let the congressman hear his father's voice, a recording of a call to his mother when he was just a baby. listen to this. >> say a few choice comments. we got to get out of this place. if it's the last thing we ever do. we got to get out of this place, got to make a better life for me and you. yeah, that's what they sang tonight, honey. and, boy, those words fit the situation to the tee. i really love you so much. and our little baby dean. i'm just getting a feeling for him, just pictures and his voice and everything. i really would like to give him a great big fat kiss. >> joining me is congressman philips. it is so moving to hear that recording of your father, a man you never met, and you only heard it a couple years ago for first time. what was it like to hear that? >> amazing, john. one of the great blessings of my life. my mom held on to these old reel to reel tapes she had collected. they exchanged when he was in vietnam, to hear his voice so many years later is both a miracle and an amazing blessing and reminder of there are 20,000 gold star children from vietnam, 5,000 from iraq and afghanistan conflicts, to know a parent through their voice or their photos, or the stories is a great blessing that very few get to have. so i feel quite blessed and i'm just glad i didn't inherit my dad dad's vsinging voice. >> you inherited his looks. you look texactly like him, whih is remarkable. but to hear him say, again, i can't imagine what it was like to grow up, knowing your father died in vietnam before you ever had a chance to meet him. to hear him say he wanted to give you a big fat kiss, even decades later, it would have melted my heart. >> it melts mine. it is, like i said, it is a great blessing and, john, he was killed just days after the moon landing in 1969. i think about the fact that he got to know the america at its very best at a time fighting a war that reflected some of our very worst. that's a blessing and his service and sacrifice in no small part illuminate my path in congress. i think of those who served and i keep those recordings, the one you played, plus many more on my phone, it remind me every day of my responsibilities. >> so you had these regardings. this one you release just for the first time now. why? you did for veterans day, yesterday, we should note, why did you want the public to hear this? why is this meaningful not just for you, but for the work you're doing? >> you know, john, as i reflected earlier, there are thousands of gold star families. you might not know their names, you might not know their faces, but thousands of grieving families from even afghanistan and iran conflicts, children who lost their parents, and i think sharing that say reminder of the cost of war. we all too often forget the sacrifices being made by our veterans, their families, for generations. and on veterans day in particular, i think about my father and so many others, and i think it is also important that we reflect on the united states. unfortunately my father knew an america that was quite divided that time. certainly in vietnam, aware of the protests back home, i'm sure there was a conflict for many who served in vietnam. 50 years later, we find ourselves once again in very divisive times and i think a reminder for all of us to reflect on the past, consider the future, and recognize that if we don't stick together, we got a lot to lose, including a lot more lives. i want to make my service in congress about reconciliation and bridge building and coming back together. that's what my dad would have wanted. i think all who have served want the same thing. >> you worked tirelessly on mental health issues for veterans, correct? >> yeah, john, we're losing thousands of veterans a year to suicide. in my estimation, preventable if we afford the resources. we're a country that always fines the resources to send young men and women off to war and somehow we can't find the resources to take care of them when they come back. we need to provide those services and if they exist to ensure there are connections to those. too many veterans don't know what they have earned and we have that responsibility to support them and i encourage everyone watching to reach out and give a hug to a veteran, many are struggling. >> or a big fat kiss, which is what your father wanted to send you. congressman dean phillips, thank you for sharing that recording with us. your father would be so proud of what you've become. >> thank you, john. keep the faith. >> you too. >> i think the big fat kiss, that is -- that is what the sacrifice is, berman. for his family, it is giving up that forever and for other families it is giving it up for a long period of time when normally you don't have to. >> i'm so glad he got to hear that. >> yes. >> cnn's coverage continues right now. good friday morning. i'm erica hill. >> it is friday. i'm jim sciutto. but really alarming new audio this morning, former president trump it appears defending the january 6th rioters who were chanting hang mike pence. it is from a call he had in march with journalist jonathan karl for his new book "be "betrayal." have a listen. >> were you worried about him during that siege?