investigation. also tonight, dramatic video captures a brazen ukraine drone attack on a major russian naval base leaving a kremlin warship badly damaged as it was towed from the black sea. and olympic gold medallist simone biles returns to the spotlight. the gymnastics star attempting to make a comeback this weekend, two years after taking a mental health break. welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer and you're in "the situation room." we begin with donald trump entering two not guilty pleas within 24 hours. the former president of the united states just filed his response to additional charges in the classified documents case aday after historic spectacle of his january 6 arraignment here in washington. cnn's senior crime and justice reporter katelyn polantz is following this for us. remind us what the additional mar-a-lago charges are all about. >> well, those are charges we do know about because donald trump was hit with them about a week ago. they build on the case that was originally charged against him in florida in the southern district of florida about the retention of classified records, national defense secrets after his presidency as well as obstruction. so the additional charges that he's pleading not guilty to in this signed document, so he's not going to have to formally go in front of the judge personally, in florida he's signed the paper pleading not guilty. it is one additional count of willful retention of documents and that document, that is the plan to bomb iran or to have an attack in iran that was, he said was provided to him by mark milley and there is audio of him waving that around after his presidency to people twho don't have security clearances. and he's pleading not guilty to obstructing the ability of the justice department to get access to surveillance video or trying to get it because that surveillance video showed others in his operation moving boxes that would have documents. >> and i thought it was interesting today that trump called on the u.s. supreme court to get involved in all of this. >> he did. he actually posted on social media his latest statement after we saw him in court yesterday saying my politicaopponent has hit me with a barrage of weak lawsuits including d.a. and a.j. and others, those entities which require massive amounts of my time and money to adjudication. it does take massive amounts of time and money to adjudicate cases criminal and civil but donald trump is a private citizen at this time. his lawyers are going to make arguments about him being a political candidate, whether that will have meaning to judges, so much so that it would take him out of the game in court, we'll have to wait and see if judges actually buy that argument. they may not. and then, he wanted to have the supreme court step in. it is not that easy. you can't just snap your fingers and have the supreme court tep in. hard to appeal before things go to trial. >> that is amazing. thank you very much. we have more questions for you. stay with us. >> we're joined by political director david chalian and defense attorney shan wu. and how will trump's defense now shape up given all of the legal cases that are about to unfold? >> well, for the documents case, i think primarily it is going to be what we call in criminal justice a nullification defense. which is he will have a hard time making a specific legal defense, he talked about one saying that the president records act protects him but that is wrong legally. he might still try to raise it with the jury saying maybe he was confused about that. he got bad advice. and, of course, he was' very busy man at the time so he overlooked this. so that is primarily what i would do if i was his defense counsel, trying to get clouded up and get the jury to be sympathetic to him. >> and i know, david, you're getting a hint on how the american public is responding to these legal issues right now. some new polls? >> there was a new abc ipsos poll that was a snap poll of a two-day period in the immediate aftermath of this indictment being revealed and take a look. whether or not americans believe the charges here are serious, 65% in this poll say that the charges in this case are serious. efforts to overturn the 2020 elections, more so than say that about the classified documents case at 61% or the hush money payment case, 52%. also whether or not the efforts to overturn the 2020 election were serious. i want you to look at this by party and you'll see some differences here. you note that 65% is what everyone said is serious. 91% of democrats say that. 38% of republicans, wolf, say that. and 67% of independents. that is the political story of our times. that 65% of the overall public could believe that these are serious, but that just roughly a little more than a third of republicans say so. and then whether or not trump should have been charged for efforts to overturn the election, a majority of americans say yes, 52%. again, 89% of democrats say that and only 14% of republicans believe he should be charged. this is why donald trump remains so dominant in the race for the republican nomination. but why many republicans on capitol hill and elsewhere are concerned that he's not the best foot forward as a general election nominee next fall. >> it underscores how divided the country is right now. kaitlan, i know you were in the courtroom yesterday and it was dramatic inside. we're about to see some of the most important cases ever in u.s. history go before a trial and a jury. what are the chances of those trials being televised? >> none. i wish i were wrong. it is none. there are no cameras in federal court. there are no photos in federal court. it would take a lot of judges who are sitting currently and have positions of power to make a change. and they just have never had appetite in that position to allow cameras in court even for something like this, seeing a former president tried, seeing the proceedings and explaining to the american public what is happening there. but i will say, we do a lot to make sure that our viewership and that readers across america could understand what is happening moment by moment in court. in the southern district of florida, in federal court, it was difficult, we used high schoolers and pay phones to run in information out to our producers and anchors and correspondents. but then in d.c., yesterday we actually had a wonderful response from that court to supreme court the media, to support transparency and we have been able to take computers in, to watch through closed circuit television, to use phones, being able to type and share the news as it is coming in as it is happening in a realtime feed which is what we're going to have to do going forward in these federal cases because all you get for images are the court sketch artists who are drawing them if realtime when they're sitting there. >> that is a pity, cameras in the courtroom for the american public and the world to see what is going on would be so significant indeed. david, it is going to be a packed political and legal calendar that is coming up. talk about that. >> to say the least. just think, yesterday the former president was in federal court pleading not guilty to these charges. today, he's on the campaign trail and in alabama tonight. accepting the endorsements of the alabama congressional delegation. this is going to be the zigzag he has to perform. and in his truth social posting today i thought we got in insight into his thinking he acknowledged this is draining resources and time. these court cases, away from his campaign. and it is the first time the former president gave insight into that notion that he's aware it is not all systems go on this campaign because this also demands his attention and his money. >> money is very important because it is draining millions of dollars going to legal fees as opposed to going to advertising. >> exactly. >> or whatever. talk about, shan, if you think trump could actually avoid all of this and evade all of these trials if he's re-elected president? >> well if he's re-elected president he could avoid this. he was already convicted maybe he could pardon mhimself. but the prosecutions could not happen and hand pick a attorney general who would dismiss the cases or plan b, prevail upon doj now that you're elected we have to put a pause on this until after your term is up. so if that is why for him, just as the money is intertwined, the legal defense strategy is one in the same in this campaign strategy right now. >> but can a sitting president pardon himself? >> well, we've never tested that before. but i don't see any reason why he can't. i mean, i'm not sure how you would channel his ability to do that. >> unfederal charges? >> yes. absolutely correct. >> thank you very much. kaitlan, thank you to you as well. coming up, a prominent trump critic on the back-to-back not guilty pleas by the former and potentially, potentially future president. ambassador john bolton joins us next. plus we've assess the damage to russia after ukraine unleashed an unmanned attack drone on a kremlin warship. to protect your ears from dizziness, ear ringing, and even heariring loss. never miss a moment with lipo flavonoid. we're here today to set the record straight about dupuytren's contracture. surgery is not your only treatment option. people may think their contracture has to be severe to be treated, but it doesn't. visit findahandspecialist.com today to get started. you tried. limiting when it was okay. no tech behind closed doors. but social media's algorithms of addiction always won out. it's not your fault. alone you can't stop it. together, we will. we have a plan. join us. 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[ sobbing ] sorry. she's just really good at that. the unprecedented array of criminal charges against donald trump underscored tonight by the fact that the former president of the united states just pleaded not guilty twice in 24 hours. joining us now, the former trump national security adviser former u.s. ambassador to the united nations, former trump supporter turned critic of the former president, john bolton. and ambassador, thank you so much for joining us. as you know trump has now pleaded, as i said, not guilty twice in 24 hours in classified documents case, down in florida, the january 6 case here in washington. how will history remember this moment? >> well, i think it will remember through the reverse prism of what the outcome of this case and the documents case turn out to be. if he's convicted, this will be another significant point in history. but if he's acquitted, the only thing that anybody will remember is that he's acquitted and that is -- that is why as correct as this course of action is, nobody should think that the indictment alone achieves anything. it doesn't achieve anything more than simply being a prerequisite to go to trial. >> well the fact is that no president sitting or former has ever been criminally charged along those lines. this is a historic first. >> yeah. no president has ever been convicted either. that is the headline that is going to matter. it is like nancy pelosi famously saying he will always be impeached. well that is just wonderful. because he was always acquitted too. and the acquittal, especially in the first impeachment trial, made him even more convinced that he was before that he was bulletproof and that he could do what he wanted. so, you know, as makaveli said, you must either car hess a peop, and he's been caressed and made powerful in his own mind. i agree with both of the federal indictments, i just say again, they better get the conviction. >> we shall see what happens during the trial. one aspect of yesterday's hearing, as you know, ambassador, that clearly frustrated trump was the judge who was residing referring to him as mr. trump, not mr. president trump. what is your reaction to that? >> well, i think that is perfectly consistent with my take on trump's personality. but, you know, what he translates that into is how am i going to get even and i'm sure while he was steaming at the moment, it was transmuted on the flight on trump 1 back to new jersey about how he was going to make the most of it. >> many of trump's 2024 republican rivals clearly have struggled to counter his election lies. i want you to listen to governor ron dpooe esantis today. he was asked if the 2020 election was stolen. >> it was not an election that was conducted the way that we want to but that is different than saying maduro stole votes or something like that and i think those theories proved to he about unsubstantiated. >> does that go far enough? why is it so difficult for republicans to talk about trump on this issue. >> as a matter of pure politics, forget morality, the person who will take the nomination of the republican party away from trump is the person who takes trump head on and rolls over him. and if you're not prepared to say that trump's con ducduct wa unacceptable and he may have violated the law and he's not fit to be president as his first term record shows. you're not going to beat trump for the nomination. so a number these republican candidates, i think, could win a general election against joe biden or any other democratic nominee. but to get there, they can't go around trump. they can't ignore him. they've got to go over him. and until they get that mindset, i think they're dooming to lose. >> only a few of them have done that. cnn has learned that top u.s. officials fear vladimir putin is waiting out the 2024 election hoping that if president biden loses, the u.s. will scale back its support for ukraine. as trump's former national security adviser, does that disturb you? >> well, it worries me because of what trump has said about ukraine and frankly what he said about nato. but i think putin's strategy is a little bit different. i think he wants to see if the ukrainians spring offensive now underway really changes the map of the battlefield in ukraine to any great extent. and if by sometime late september, sometime in october when it is neither spring or nor summer any more. and things are still looking pretty much like they're in gridlock, i think putin will then turn as he should have done frankly last september and say, you know, this war has gone on long enough. let's have a cease-fire and negotiate a resolution. and then hope to turn the cease-fire line into a defa fac new border and in the wouse, i worry that the temptation to agreement to negotiation will take control and we will end up with a cease-fire and russia will have a new border with ukraine. >> we'll see. ambassador john bolton, thank you so much for joining us. >> glad to be with you. up next donald trump hits campaign trail one just day after his third arrest and arraignment in just four months. how are voters reacting to the former president's latest legal peril? 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(chainsaw revs) (tree crashes) (chainsaw continues) (daughter screams) let's pretend for a second that you didn't let down your entire family. what would that reality look like? well i guess i would've gotten us xfinity... and we'd have a better view. do you need mulch? what, we have a ton of mulch. just one day after being arrested and arraigned for a third time, donald trump is back on the campaign trail today as he tries to win back the white house. cnn's kristin holmes is following the former president and joining us now from montgomery, alabama. how is trump juggling his campaigning and his court cases? >> reporter: well, wolf, it really is a balancing act. and we get closer and closer to campaign season, as it ramps up, it is only going to get harder to manage. we're weekis away from the primary debate at the end of august and trump and his team are expecting another indictment in fullon county, georgia, they are waiting and bracing for and that will mean another arraignment date, another trial date. all of this leading to trump's team believing that it actually plight be able to help them, at least in selling the idea that this is election interference. this is going back and forth between trial dates and campaign events. and whether or not they could sell this in a court of law, that is a huge question. but the other question is whether or not they could sell this with voters. an that is what they believe that they could do. and i want to show you two recent abc polls about trump's charges in january 6th. one showing that should trump be charged over the efforts to overturn the 2020 election, 52% of americans say yes, to 32% saying no. big margin there. are these new charges politically motivated? 46% said yes. while 40% said no. that is still a big number to have 46% of people say yes. but that of course is the campaign's narrative. they want to sell the idea that this is all political, that this is not legal at all. and this is just joe biden out to get the former president. and tonight what we're looking for is any of trump's actual reactions to what happened in court yesterday. of course, we saw his very brief statement. he ignored questions at the tarmac, but we haven't heard from him on the events yesterday. other than, of course, some ranting on truth social as well. so that is what we're listening to. this is a very friendly crowd, it is likely that trump will be in his full element, being supported by people who are likely to vote for him or at least support him in some way. wolf. >> kristin, thank you. i want to get some analysis right now. joining us are political commentators bakari sellers and alice stewart. how revealing is it that trump is back on the campaign trail an joying the limelight right now out there in alabama just a day after he was arraigned on charges of trying to subvert the 2020 presidential election? >> wolf, it is critical that he get out there and meet with voters face-to-face and engage in retail politics, because as we all know, his courtroom calendar is getting ready to get more filled up and he won't have as much time for his campaign calendar. and, look, alabama is a perfect place for him in terms of connecting with his hard core supporters. but what i'm hearing and seeing, there is polls out there, recent poll that we've had out today, shows that 47% of people in iowa are still supporting donald trump, and 20% supporting ron desantis. but when i talk with key gop officials in the state of iowa, they say that does not match up with what they're seeing on the ground. they say the numbers with trump ahead is it is very early and he has tremendous name i.d. and great sympathy with people in the state of iowa, his hard core base and as candidates get out there and engage if retail politics, they skexpect to see shift in the numbers. >> backar a, listen to what ron desantis said today in iowa about trump's indictment. listen to this. >> i think it is politically motivated, absolutely. i think you have people in d.c. and the justice department that are responding to a lot of left-wing pressure, they've been trying to get him since he became president. >> you heard our kristin holmes report that many voters out there agree with that thought. how do democrats beat back that perception? >> well i don't think you have to beat back the perception, wolf. i think what you do is allow the process to play out and see this is a special prosecutor, this is not a necessarily an arm of the department of justice. but even more importantly, ron desantis, that statement was, i think the kids called it weak sauce and it is an epitome of his campaign. he did not take a position outside of disney. he's afraid of donald trump and giving a mediocre statement, where there is smoke, there is firm i'm a criminal defense lawyer i don't know too many people with three diindictments who we could say is clean of anything. but the fact that they're running to the -- to be donald trump's cape and savior said a great deal about their candidacy and at least mike pence is standing his ground and chris christie and asa hutchinson. but you can't beat donald trump light. which is what ron desantis is trying to do. but i'm hard pressed to believe that anybody will get close to donald trump because they don't have the fortitude to do so. >> alice, take a look at that poll. now you mentioned that poll out of iowa taken before this latest indictment. trump is leading the pack with 44% followed by desantis with 20%. what lessons could desantis and other republdas draw from this? >> you could clearly look at these numbers, donald trump's numbers are not moving, his base is with him regardless of an indictment from every day now until the caucus. but i'm encouraged to see the favor ability of the different candidates. according to this poll, ron desantis is at 47%, donald trump is 44% and tim scott shortly after that. having a high favor ability is important to try to win over likely iowa caucus-goers and that he has in his favor. and people on the ground are looking for someone different than donald trump and they're willing to listen to the other candidates and as their out there making their case an owe the ground, they have opportunity to turn the page away from donald trump. >> bakari, howe much could this bog down his legal trial schedule coming up in the coming month? >> my good friends on left will not like that but i don't see a judge or a jurist take -- i know the dates are set and this is probably a question for our colleagues elie honig. but i don't see a judge actually setting a trial date during the height of the campaign season. i know we want to rush to get to a trial. i think his most jeopardy is in fulton county. i think you're going to see a litany of individuals indicted who will have to be paraded with mug shots and fingerprints, et cetera. fani willis is an amazing prosecutor and jurist in fulton county and i think that is his most jeopardy. but for the purpose of the campaign trail, he could use this as fodder. he could use this for fundraising. but it is a great possibility that you'll have a trial and if donald trump wins the election, which i hope he doesn't, you'll have a great possibility of a sitting president if trial for multiple felonies. >> bakari sellers and alice stewart, thank you for joining us. also tonight, the u.s. defense secretary lloyd austin is outlining a new plan to deal with senator tommy tuberville's blockade against military confirmations. our reporter natasha bertrand is here with me in "the situation room." how is the pentagon addressing this truly unprecedented moment? >> well, wolf, they're reshuffling positions all as cro the military. this is an unprecedented situation. but for the first time secretary of defense lloyd austin outlined how positions are going to be reshuffled in order to address this situation. now there are a series of steps that he recommended that they take in order to mitigate the damage that this hold is having on the military including having lower level officers actually lead organizations in an acting capacity as well as requiring that three and four star officer not be allowed to leave their current positions. but allowing them to essentially be able to perform the duties of that which they're nominated for and that is the spot that the now.ng come end ant are in right they're performing two jobd that is really big consequences because the acting commandant of the marine corp, he was able to give guidance but he issued a informal letter to the marine corp. this is having an impact on the national security community. the missile defense agency responsible for the layered defense of the united states from ballistic missiles, they have a one-star acting in the capacity of the director of that agency. where a three-star general has been nominated for that position. so clearly people with less experience, people who might not be necessarily as qualified to lead these very important agencies are now sitting atop of them. and here is what secretary of defense lloyd austin said just today about how this is impacting national security and military readiness. >> the failure to confirm our superbly qualified senior uniform leaders undermines our military readiness. it undermines our retention of some of our very best officers, and it is upending the lives of far too many of their spouses, children, and loved ones. >> so, wolf, just to put this in perspective, the hold, tuberville because he opposed the reproductive health policies, it is affecting over 300 senior officers and there is no end in sight. >> this never happened before. thank you very much. just ahead, a ukraine sea drone attacks a russian navy ship in the black sea. far beyond the front lines in ukraine. think hairspray's stuck in one dimension? 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[ laughs ] mara, your parents are -- exactly like me? i know, right? well, cherish your friends and loved ones. let's roll, daddio! let's boogie-woogie! a ukrainian source tells cnn that a sea drone hit a russian navy ship in the black sea causing what is described as serious damage. cnn's nick paton walsh is covering this story for us in ukraine. >> reporter: the footage is grainy and dark. then the target comes into view. russia amphibious assault ship. an unmanned attack drone approaching its target 450 kilograms of tnt detonated and the feed cuts out. russia claimed to have repelled this attack but the video tells a different story. ukraine's counter offensive has in recent weeks reached further and further behind the front lines forcing the russian military to spread its sea and air defenses. hundreds of miles from ukraine-controlled territory, this was meant to be a safe place. no longer. it used to be safe here. but kyiv's arm has grown longer. the rear no longer exists, he said. the fact that such unfortunate incidents occur one after another will certainly be something for them to talk about today. for the political leadership of the russia fascist regime, this is a serious slap in the face. >> reporter: all the same, russia maintains the image of being in control. it said defense minister sergei shoygu visited troops in occupied ukraine. the map they both point to, so much worse for moscow than ever imagined when me invaded nearly 18 months ago. now we're looking possibly at a thousand pounds worth of explosive according to ukrainian officials delivered here. russian bloggers saying that one compartment of that ship entirely flooded. and this so far from the frofrnt lines. hundreds of miles will have to have been crossed to hit this port on the black sea. a place that russia simply could not have imagined weeks ago, could be a ukrainian target, wolf. >> nick paton walsh in zaporizhzhia, ukraine, thank you so so much i. let's discuss this with mark hertling and evelyn, just how big of a blow is this to russia? >> it is a blowing obviously of prestige. because this ship clearly is done. it is pretty badly hurt. it will take a lot to repair it if that is even possible. it is also a blowing in terms of you already heard in the package that nick put together, it is a blowing to the russian military and the russian civilians, russian society. nowhere is safe. and that is exactly what the ukrainian government intended. of course, they want to cripple as much of the russian military infrastructure, the logistics, the actual platforms like the ship, but they also really want to damage as much as possible russian moral and that is not just military morale but of the civilians. >> what does it strike reveal to you about ukraine's capabilities right now and its counter offensive strategy? >> well, you know, it is interesting wolf, that blogger that you posted just now in the opening the report said nowhere is safe. i got to tell you, if the russians have -- and the ukrainians have not realized yet that there is no such thing as a rear area in modern combat operations, both of those sides are missing the point. but what it tells you about, is no areas are safe. this is a ship on the southeastern side of the black sea. several hundred miles away from ukrainian land mass. it is a football field long, it is called a row row ship, roll on, roll off. it carries all sorts of equipment. there are six of them in the pl black sea. their critical and it takes away another operational capability of the russian navy. russia never thought that this kind of thing would happen. this is now the second large ship of the russian navy that has been sunk by a country that doesn't have a navy of their own. so it is very significant. >> it is very significant indeed. evelyn, i want your thoughts on the russian opposition leader alexei navalny being sentenced to 19 additional years in principle. what is behind this russian crackdown on navalny and to dissidents for that matter? >> well, again, it is vladimir putin demonstrating that he's in charge, trying to also destroy their morale. you will never see the light of day, you have no hope. the irony is that the greater danger to vladimir putin and his regime is from the nationalists from the right, that is where we see prigozhin challenging him using milt force. but he wants to make sure that the opposition an the elites use him as the strong guide putting navalny down, trying to break navalny's will. of course he would like to slowly kill alexei navalny, because he doesn't like the challenge that he poses and the example that he sets. >> evelyn, let me follow up an a related issue. u.s. officials are telling cnner that concerned that putin is planning his war right now around the 2024 u.s. election. hoping that a republican administration would de prioritized ukraine. how much are they counting on putin to falter in its support for ukraine? >> oh, i mean, i we can't no un underestimate vladimir putin interfering in our politics. it shocks me the first time he did it in 2016 during that presidential election. it no longer shocks me. we should be on the lookout. but it points to the fact that the linkage between your question here and the story we started with is u.s. assistance to ukraine. we need to provide ukraine with the assistance they need to get at these targets in russia. these military targets and we need to also remove the restrictions that we placed when we give the ukrainians western equipment because my understanding is that we redistrict them from using our weaponry against russian valid military targs in russia. so if we could bring this war to an end faster, by removing thoughez restrictions, by giving better longer range artillery, then we reduce the likelihood or the likelihood that putin could succeed in interfering in our elections. >> evelyn farcas and general hurt ling, thank you very much. coming up, samone biles, the most decorated gymnast is making a come back. where is she competing. and police respond to a huge crowd creating a major security concern. we'll tell you what is going on. that is next. so you can improve your business however you see fifit. rosie used partt of her refund to build an outdoor patio. clink! dr. marshall used part of his refund to give his practice a a facelift. emily usused part of her refund to buy... i run a wax museum. let innovation refunds help you get started on your erc tax refund. stop waiting. go to innovationrefunds.com you really got the brows. 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