-- our coverage continues today of storm idalia. that's the storm that's wreaking havoc across large sections of the country tonight. i am abby phillip. and right now, idalia is a tropical storm after making landfall as a hurricane. the storms rain is now covering four states, stretching 600 miles from florida all the way up to north carolina. and that wind is now impacting half of that area. now, the danger remains as idalia continues to move north into the carolinas this hour. and the record storm surge threatens communities in those areas. now, homes are still underwater. and some of the damage is catastrophic. cnn's live across the southeast, including in charleston, where there are reports tonight of flooding right in the city center. we will go right there in a moment. but i want to start first with our meteorologist chad myers. he's over in the cnn weather center. chad, what is the condition right now of this storm? and where is it headed? >> we are losing some wind speed. and that's the good news. it's headed to the northeast. that's the second answer, toward the north carolina coast. but what i don't like on this map is how bright colored here the temperatures -- meaning the brighter the color, the colder the core, so, therefore, the heavier the rainfall. that is happening now in the piedmont of south carolina. also across the gulf stream here. some bigger storms are rotating in. those that are on the gulf stream could rotate in with a little bit of spin to them, and that means that there is a potential for some tornadoes tonight. we know there have been a few on the ground already. now, later on tonight, it does move off the coast. but we are still going to see some coastal beach erosion for sure. and still, the threat of tornadoes, especially across the low country there, north carolina, all the way through the south -- that is the area here we are most concerned with, because these storms are rotating around the center itself and every storm that rotates from the ocean on the land can actually cause a tornado to form. and now, it's nighttime. they are harder to see. you have to watch the radar. you have to keep your phone out so that you know that what is going on. >> all right, chad myers, thank you very much. we will of course be back with you as the night progresses and as things develop. and just into cnn -- we are getting reports of flooding in the city of charleston, south carolina tonight. i want to bring in charleston's emergency management director. so, ben, thank you for being here. the national weather service says water levels on the charleston level are exceeding what they expected. it's now at 9 feet, that's the 5th highest level ever recorded. what can you tell us about that? >> yeah, so, we had exceptionally high tides for today. and we knew we were going to have those ahead of the storm. we are actually just a coincidence that it is occurring at the same time. we get these about every year around this time and the floodwaters peak at a 9. 2 tide, a 9. 2 foot tide for us. they are currently receding right now which is good news. but we still have plenty of floodwater throughout the city right now. >> and as the night goes on, what do you expect to see in terms of the conditions in that charleston area as the storm moves through? >> we still anticipate some heavy winds to come through. we are seeing tornado activity throughout the day. -- the water is going to stick around a little bit longer -- and there will still be some rain -- yet to come through. >> has your department has to make any rescue efforts amid the storm? >> there have been some rescue efforts. but, for the most part, citizens of charleston have done what we asked and stayed indoors, which has been a great thing for us. >> good. and we will continue to monitor the situation there as the night progresses. ben almquist, thank you very much for joining us tonight. >> thank you. >> i want to bring in cnn cnn's gloria pazmino. -- gloria, what kind of damage are you seeing where you are there tonight? >> abby, let me give you an idea of what we have been dealing with all day. i have been at the same intersection all day. and i know it does not look like it right now. with this water that i am standing in has actually finally started to recede. it was much higher several hours ago. and we were watching as a lot of cars, really, had difficulty navigating, many of them actually ended up just turning around. now this is a crystal river. this is a small community. over in this direction a city hall. and we heard from the mayor of crystal river earlier today who told us city hall took on about eight feet of water at the height of that storm surge. so, this water that you are seeing here came from this direction. that is where the gulf of mexico is and the river -- those two bodies of water joining together, pushing all of that surge right up against the doors of city hall, eight feet of water causing significant damage there. now, as we speak, here in crystal river, there is now a curfew. and a local sheriff's department here is asking people to stay off the roads, and just to try to stay out of the street. because they are trying to make sure that they get to everyone who may be in need of some help throughout the day, in citrus county, which is where we are standing right now. there has been 75 rescues that were conducted throughout the day. earlier today, we were watching as the airboats go up and down the street. so, as i said, the water finally receding. but, abby, it is a full moon. it is actually right above me, and these tides, and the currents, are still being affected. so, there is still a possibility that, even though the water is receding with the currents, that some of this water could still push inland. >> yeah, that continues to be a concern. gloria pazmino, thank you very much. >> as the destruction from idalia is not sparing even the governor's mansion in tallahassee. florida's first lady, casey desantis, posted this image on x, formerly known as twitter, a 100-year oak tree that crashed into the building. casey desantis said that she was home, with her children, but that thankfully, no one was hurt. cnn's brian todd is there in the states capital tonight witnessing the damage throughout the city. brian? >> here in the big bend area of florida, including here in tallahassee, there's a lot of recovery left to do, a lot of damage to assess. and it is still kind of dangerous. as the day passes, the first full day passes, after hurricane idalia came to shore -- take a look behind me. this is a street in tallahassee. we talked to the homeowners here about their experience. and they were very jarred by what happened. take a look at this large pine tree look at the root system. the storm uprooted the entire tree, which is a large tree, covered in spanish moss and vine. it uprooted the tree, the roots, and it took the fence with them. it missed the house by just a few feet. the people inside are okay. they were in there with thei r daughter but they were they did hear and see this -- they came out and just were aghast at what they saw, near this tree, as we walk over here, came down and delayed across the street, but crews were get quick to get here and they moved apart across the street. but this family still has a lot of damage to recover from. and what officials were telling us tonight is that it is still dangerous to navigate the streets. if you are in your neighborhood, if you are determined to get back to your house, or to deal with rounds, be very careful. because there is still a lot of downed power lines. there is one there over my left shoulder right there. these are extremely dangerous. and this is a scene repeated all over the tallahassee area. officials are saying you have got to be very, very careful. a lot of generators are also running on this street. traditionally, after hurricanes, a lot of people die in generator related accidents. so, again, they are hidden dangers all over the region that was affected by hurricane idalia. and people here are just kind of now digging out and assessing their homes and dealing with those dangers. abby? >> all right, brian todd, thank you. and another part of florida that took the brunt of the damage -- the city of perry -- idalia dropped heaps of rain and snapped trees, some falling on homes. >> oh, i just heard something crack. look, there it goes. there it goes. oh my gosh. no! oh! >> [screaming] -- >> it's okay. it's okay, it's okay. oh, i just heard something crack. >> scary moment there. cnn's john berman is in perry at a gas station that got hammered by those winds. john? >> abby i am at a truck stop, in perry, florida -- 18 miles from where idalia made landfall. it passed over perry directly at about 85, 90 miles per hour, which is enough to do some pretty serious damage, which you can see right behind me. this is a truck stop, or, i should say, maybe was a truck stop. and the wind just pushed over the awning over these diesel pumps. you can see there the brick just exploded and the metal all twisted. the force of the wind did so much damage. all around here there are trees downed, telephone poles pulled up from their routes, and lines downed. there it was a little bit hard getting around here with so many lines that were down. but the cleanup, obviously, as begun. getting here was not easy. the roads were jammed with people trying to move about, hopefully, over the next several days that is something that will alleviate, it will improve over the coming days. and obviously, the people here in perry, a town of about 7000 people, they know, as bad as it is here, that they did not see the worst of it. yes, there is wind damage. yes, there is some freshwater flooding, puddles of water in different places, but it was the storm surge 20 miles away from here that would have been truly life-threatening. those areas where the surge did come up -- they are much more sparsely populated than this, which is a lucky thing. here in perry, they definitely have some cleanup to do. the work has started. hurricane idalia is long gone at this point. it will be a long time, abby, before it is for garden. >> yeah, it very much will. john berman, thank you. and we mentioned how the carolinas are getting hit right now, tonight. and we have new video just into cnn of a tornado flipping a car. we will take you there. plus, i will speak with a woman who rode out the storm in her apartment. and -- serious questions tonight about mitch mcconnell after the senate's most powerful republican froze again in public. icy hot. ice works fast. ♪ heat makes it last. feel the power of contrast therapy. ♪ so you can rise from pain. icy hot. >> -- each governor i spoke with know that there is anything -- anything the states need right now -- i'm ready to mobilize the support they need. i don't think anything anybody can deny the impact of the climate crisis anymore. this look around. historic floods -- i mean historic floods. more intense droughts. extreme heat, significant wildfires have caused significant damage, like we have never seen before. >> and that was president biden promising to help the areas that are being hit by idalia. and it is coming at the most opportune time, as they begin to assess that damage. now, flooding is a major problem across florida as well, we are storm surge hit historic highs. and now the carolinas are being pummeled by what is left of this storm. i want to bring in diane gallagher, who is in carolina beach, north carolina. diane, you were earlier on the beach. some tourists just running around trying to see how things are looking -- what are the conditions right now? and hopefully, other than you, not a whole lot of people around -- >> we are one of the very few groups of people who are out here right now, abby. and we are starting to see the wind pick up again. we had torrential rain just a few moments ago. you can kind of see the palm trees behind me with the wind. but i really want to show you here -- we are at the boardwalk area of carolina beach. you can see the rides that it is being pushed by the swings -- excuse me, pushed by the wind -- swings up in the air. they were literally almost perpendicular to the ground just a bit earlier. we are seeing these bands continue to come through. according to the forecasters here, the national weather service in wilmington, this is what we expect throughout the night. we are under a tornado watch until at least four a. m.. we have already had spotted tornado and a waterspout in the area. tornado warnings -- and we had a special marine warning that has been going on here with concerned about possible additional waterspouts. now, according to the town manager, the emergency director in new hanna newburgh county, the most concern they have comes on thursday, morning abby. and it is a fear of moderate flooding and also moderate winds in the early morning hours, due in part to those king tides that we have heard people talking about because the water is already going to be so high, the potential for about 1 to 3 feet of storm surge could create flooding in low-lying, in areas they call trouble area, they already have a kind of flood during king tides anyway, but because of the storm surge, could be even worse. they are asking people to just stay off the roads and of course they out of the floodwater, if you can. they anticipate the worst of it should be over by about midmorning. but again, they're asking people not to get in the ocean or in the floodwaters in the morning tomorrow. >> yeah, a dangerous coincidence for the storm to be hitting at the time of that king tide making that is a lot worse. dianne gallagher, thank you very much. and some florida residents decided to ride out the hurricane instead of evacuating, including my next guest. i want to bring in st. pete beach resident barb schueller. barb, thank you for joining us. you did ride out the storm from the bottom floor of a two story apartment building. what was that experience like? >> i did. and it was a bit harrowing. but we were prepared. and we set up our apartment to actually ride the storm out. >> you took some video from outside of your apartment, which is pretty close to the seawall. how high did the water end up coming up for you? >> it went over the seawall. we actually felt waves overcoming the seawall. it was a bit -- i was inside my apartment. and we did board up our apartment with sandbags. we were prepared. but i actually heard -- it felt like the beach was right outside my apartment. but we did get a bit -- of our efforts but we were able to take care of it and we took care of our apartment. and we succeeded and we are fine. >> good. i'm glad you are fine. will you be able to stay in your apartment? what will the days ahead look like as the cleanup is underway? it sounds like you took on some water, but perhaps not as much as it could have been. >> no. we did take on some water. but we spent a lot of time ringing out towels and cleaning up and the cleanup is over with. we -- our community. we live in a small apartment complex with lots of elderly people, and people that needed help and we were there to help them. >> that is a good upside of your decision to stay. we are really glad that you are safe, barb schueller. thank you very much for joining us tonight. >> thank you. >> and we will take you right back to the carolinas, where the floodwaters are rising this hour. but first, is mitch mcconnell being transparent about what is happening with his health? there is another scary moment today that raised some serious questions. plus, a student is told by his school to remove a don't tread on me patch. i will speak with the state's liberal governor who is now defending him. meet the portable blender we can barely keep in stock. blendjet 2 gives you ice-crushing, big blender power on-the-go. so you can blend up a mouthwatering smoothie, protein shake, or latte wherever you are! recharge quickly with any usb port. best of all, it even cleans itself! just blend water with a drop of soap. what are you waiting for? order yours now from blendjet.com before they sell out again! julian's about to learn that free food is a personal eating trigger. no, it isn't. (sigh) yes, it is. and that's just a bit of psychology julian learned from noom weight. sign up now at noom.com. hey little bear bear. ♪ ♪ ♪ i'm gonna love you forever ♪ to have and to hold from this day forward. ♪ you don't... ♪ c'mon, bear. ♪ you don't have to worry... ♪ ♪ be by your side.. ♪ ♪ i'll be there.. ♪ ♪ with my arms wrapped around... ♪ i may be known for my legendary football career, but truth is, i love a bunch of sports. the only trouble is knowing where to find them. that's why i got xfinity. so, i can easily find and watch whatever sport i'm into all in one place without missing a thing. even if it's football, australian football, or football football. in a word—it's fitz-credible. i got to trademark that one. this season, eligible xfinity rewards members can get up to $100 off nfl sunday ticket from youtube. sign up for xfinity rewards now. my sport propels me forward. contra costa college saw potential in me that i didn't know i had. focus. determination. drive. contra costa college helped me blaze the trail. now i'm a comet, and there's no stopping me. come on, this is your shot. take it. join the team at contra costa college. start today at contracosta.edu >> just weeks after the senate 's most powerful republican froze in public, it happened again, today, in a chilling scene. here is that moment. >> -- >> running for reelection in 2026. >> -- >> did you hear the question, senator? running for reelection in 2026? all right, i'm sorry, y'all. we are going to need a minute. senator? >> -- >> -- outside, senator? -- >> okay. >> that was senator mitch mcconnell during a press conference in kentucky earlier. the silence there is deafening. and as you saw there, the 81 -year-old republican leader, he froze while talking to reporters at this press conference. but it is almost identical to what happened to what he experienced at the capital back in late july, except at this time it actually took longer for him to react to help a spokesman told cnn that the republican leader felt momentarily light headed and on aide also either that mcconnell will consult with a physician prior to his next event. and here is how one doctor analyzed his apparent freezing. >> what i see, basically, is the senator becoming perhaps a little bit confused and then mute. and he stares off to the side, sort of to the upper side. and is unable to speak for about ten seconds -- and it looks like he is having a type of seizure called and -- seizure. the senator had a really traumatic brain injury back in march when he fell and about 10% of people who have a big enough injury to be hospitalized after an injury like that will subsequently have things like a seizure. and that is what it looks like to me. this is exactly the same presentation as five weeks ago. >> joining me now is cnn political analyst coleman hughes, rolling stone columnist jane michaelson, and pollster and communications strategist frank luntz. gentlemen, thanks for being here. frank, first -- what we heard from the senator 's office. this is the second time we have seen -- and their response has basically been, he is going to see a doctor and everything is fine. is that enough? >> i have sympathy for him having stripped suffered a stroke myself three and a half years ago. and i know how temporarily difficult it can be. i also have sympathy for him as he is committed to serving the people who elected him. but it is one of the problems that we have in washington, which is that there is a time to lead, and a time to pass on the torch to another generation. i thought that the comments that his office made were insufficient. i think they are going to have to be more forthcoming. i do not want to cast any aspersions on the senator, just as i do not with diane feinstein on the democratic side. but i understand what the public is saying about some of these people. give somebody else the chance to do the job. >> yeah. >> yeah, so, look -- i think between diane feinstein, as you mentioned, and arguably president joe biden and certainly mitch mcconnell, it is time to have a serious conversation about age limits for our public servants. right? there is nothing strange about the fact that many states have age limits for judges. there is age limits for air traffic controllers, all kinds of professions. why would we have it be that the most important jobs are public servants, are immune to age limits? but >> there is also -- what is interesting is that the question he was being asked about was about whether he would run again. and it just raises this question. if you are a kentucky constituent of mitch mcconnell right now, don't you deserve an answer about what is going on with his health more than just, oh, he was feeling light headed today? >> yeah, it feels really irresponsible, like frank luntz said. i think i really insufficient response. we are living in what some people of color gerontocracy, with leaders on both sides of the aisle are much older. and it's not -- you know, we want to not fall into the traps of ageism or ableism. they are politicians and other figures in their 80s who are very vibrant, who have all their mental capacities. paul mccartney and bob dylan are selling out theaters in their 80s. so, age isn't quite it. but when there are some of the symptoms of advanced age, whether it is with senator dianne feinstein, or in this case, with senator mcconnell -- i am not a doctor, but i am a rabbi. and there is a value of respect for elders that is not being honored by the people who are close to the senators, who are allowing them to engage in this behavior, which does not create more respect for themselves. >> it's so interesting. we as a -- culture -- a senate, the average age for a sitting senator is 64. it's about the same for republicans and democrats. this is a bipartisan issue. and then you also have just so many senators on that far end of the spectrum. 60s, 70s, and four in their 80s. this is not, though, a bob dylan situation. we are talking about people who are making laws that affect millions and millions -- hundreds of millions of people. maybe bob dylan should sing the times, they are a changing to some of the senators. >> i'm very glad bob has become center has become the center of the segment. that makes very happy. >> quick linguistics fact, the word senate in the word senile come from the same latin route, which is the word cynics. the deep roots linguistically to the notion that the people who lead us tend to be older. to what end? by the, way that is the single best thing i have learned all day. >> that's a good fact. that's pretty amazing. >> look, we're talking about mitch mcconnell, but i do wonder, i mean if joe biden, who republicans have said is basically a puppet, is being walked around by his aides and can't function as the president, if joe biden had done what we had seen from mitch mcconnell, what is the reaction we had seen we would have here? >> probably impeachment. they talk about impeachment. if joe biden did what mitch mcconnell did today, that would be the conversation. what if joe biden drink orange juice tomorrow morning? you'd be hearing the word impeachment from the republicans. >> yes, while wearing a pant suit. with the university of that scandal. the behaviors that we're seeing here are not the same. with president biden and with the senators. it's also, look, bernie sanders is an elder statement. difference between being an elder statesman, or an elderly state person. this is, again, this is not the kind of action that anybody who's fully in their full capacities would engage in. these are people who have people around them. they have staff. their families. really, i would call on them to make the decision that honors the legacy of these two, i certainly don't agree with mitch mcconnell, he has a proud legacy, it's being dishonored in both senator feinstein's case and his. >> at what point, coleman, if you think republican starts to say something? there's reports that mcconnell called over to his allies in the senate, just let them know he was okay. really, shoring up support. >> right, i think, as jay said, it's really up to the people closest to him. the people that care about him not just as a politician, but actually as a human being. that have to really pull that cord and say, look, it's time. >> all right, thank you all. coleman, jay, frank, thank you very much. everybody, standby for. us coming up, next 12-year-old colorado student removed from his classroom over a'don't tread on me'gadsden flag. and other patches that were on his backpack. that viral video even causing the governor of the state to weigh in. we'll have his response and it may surprise you. governor jared polis joins me next. so i choose new neuriva ultra. unlike some others, it supports 7 brain health indicators, including mental alertness from one serving. to help keep me sharp. try new neuriva ultra. think bigger. let innovation refunds help with your erc tax refund so you can improve your business however you see fit. rosie used part of her refund to build an outdoor patio. clink! dr. marshall used part of his refund to give his practice a facelift. emily used 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. how can you sleep on such a firm setting? gab, mine is almost the same as yours. almost is just another word for not as good as mine. save 50% on the sleep number limited edition smart bed. plus, free home delivery when you add a base. shop now only at sleep number. tonight, a viral video is sparking a big conversation on both the right and the left about politics in the school building. a school in colorado removed a 12-year-old student from his classroom over a gadsden flag, that's what you see there on your left. it was on his backpack, along with some other patches, but that flag, of course, including the famous don't tread on me phrase, one teacher was seen in a video with the boy's parents, basically saying that that flag was connected to slavery. in a statement, the district says the real issues were that the patches displayed semi automatic weapons. and those patches were removed, but the district decided that the flag, the gadsden flag, could remain. now, the state's democratic governor is defending that student. governor jared polis joins me now. governor polis, thank you for joining us tonight. >> my pleasure, abby. >> you've called the gadsden flag a proud symbol of the american revolution. what do you make of why this incident happened in the first place? >> well, look. i called a teaching moment. abby, we all remember a high school, college, there's kids with pins on their backpacks, maybe it's a feminist pin, an anti-war pin. maybe it's a conservative one. you know, that in which is the discussion. it's kids trying out different things. the don't tread on me flag, the gadsden flag, really an iconic american flag. it's flown over units over military. of course, it's been adopted i love the tea party and others, sure it has. a kid can have an i love the tea party pin on their backpack to. i, mean look, let's just let kids have their free expression, in school. and if they want to advocate for the political beliefs, i think that something that should be encouraged. it's all about free speech. >> yeah, i think it's perhaps the central question here. do you think that's why this teacher made that association to slavery? because it has been associated with the right? with the tea party, and perhaps, with the republican party? >> you know, it's a good opportunity to really go through the history and see that, as americans, we should all take pride in the gadsden flag. the rattlesnake, as ben franklin said, they never attacked first. they never back down. once they're in a fight. a lot of americans identify with that spirit. look, it goes deeper than that. if we want the moral high ground, abby, to say that schools shouldn't be banning rainbow flags on kids binders or backpacks to celebrate pride, we have to also say they should be banning free speech on the other side. this is a country that treasures free speech. frankly, i hope it leads to a frank discussion, in that school, and others around the country. about how free speech means we support the speech even when we don't agree with it. >> yeah, it interesting point. in the context of all the kind of against the bans, i don't wear the politics of this teacher, are i can't speak to that whatsoever. but this certainly seems to be a case where they were, to some extent, trying to police speech, even for a 12-year-old. are you concerned that this is something that could be more widespread, as people in your party, maybe on the left, you know, want to address types of political speech that they disagree with? >> i think what i see here, i think i see some people on the left saying, look, we see the right censoring our speech. schools where they say don't say. going against a woman's right to choose, they say, we should do the same thing to them. that's just not the right answer. the right answer, the moral high ground and say, we should treasure speech in all of its forms. whatever your argument or agreement, is you ought to be able to make it as you fly a don't tread on me flag. as one of fly a pride flag. that's your right. that's what it's all about, to be an american. i think that's an important civics lesson for our students in schools. >> just a question about you, yourself, your own political future. look, these are the issues that are animating this year's presidential cycle. you sound a little bit like a candidate. is it your message to your party? to the broader american population, as they go into 2024? >> it's a message that i'm working through with the national governors association and governor spencer cox of utah. i'm working on how to disagree better. and really restoring civility to our disagreements. rather than questioning somebody's motives or trying to censor them or cancel them, it's better to engage and have a legitimate discussion. the teachers say, what does that flag mean to you? why do you want to show that on your backpack? tell me what it means. look, it's one thing if a kid is promoting alcohol or cigarettes in a way that is contrary to the school rules and i completely agree that shouldn't be on a school. from political speech, for political speech, we should always give the benefit of the doubt to freedom of expression. because that's a treasured american value. >> all, right governor jared polis, really interesting case study for all of us about where the lines can be drawn. when it comes to speech, when it comes to schools. thank you very much for joining us tonight. >> thank you, abby. >> up next, donald trump claims that his mugshot is iconic, as it brings in millions of dollars into his campaign. one fox host says it helps trump with black america. we'll go there, next. chevy silverado has what it takes to do it all. with up to 13 camera views. and the z71 off-road package. ♪ you ok? yeah. any truck can help you make a living. this one helps you build a life. chevy silverado. scout is protected by simparica trio and he's in it to win it! simparica trio is the first chew with triple protection. whoa fleas! and ticks! 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(soft music) embarrassment. something that you want to hide. for donald trump, it appears that he sees himself right up there with sinatra and hendricks and even johnny cash. >> i think the fake indictment that they did in georgia was very helpful. it consisted of a mugshot, somehow it turned out to be very iconic. >> the truth is, both parties are raising money off of this picture. some of his allies are going even further. like a fox host who suggested that this picture is making him popular in the black community. >> the democrat soviet style tactics have alienated their most loyal voting bloc. the mugshot has breathed new life into the trump campaign, in broadened his appeal to black americans. over the weekend, with the help of mugshot merchandise, the trump campaign raked in over $7 million. today, my garbage man told me he's buying mugshot tshirts for everyone he knows this christmas. the mug shots up on the side of buildings in the inner city. >> the casual racism would be surprising if it weren't so predictable. his garbagemen? it's almost as if waters want is on his to believe his garbagemen is the only black person that he knows. but, if that weren't enough, the fox host also cited this graphic art of the mugshot in the city of atlanta to justify what he claimed, quote, the inner city is supportive of trump. if you look closely, the artist who, by the way, is white, was mocking trump's fourth arrest, along with maga, when asked about the message that he wanted to convey, the artist told people simply, vote. back with the table here, where to even begin? what do you make of this idea that conservatives, maybe they actually think this is true? the mugshot makes him more appealing to black voters? but it also seems like they think that conservative voters believe that black people are so aligned with felons and people have mugshots that they would actually support trump for that. i don't know with which one is actually worse. >> clearly, they want it to be true. you know, trump, since the beginning, he's wanted to convey himself as a candidate that's very popular with black america. though he has never been. this is what they call wish casting. there is no data to support the idea that the mugshot has helped with black popularity. >> helped with one alleged garbage man from one alleged fox news host. >> that's right. the question is not whether you could get, you know, i've seen one video of a black person on social media saying, oh, yeah i like the mugshot, -- the questions on whether you can find one person on social media. the question is, is this effect it anywhere close to large enough to move the needle in any national way? very unlikely. >> a president has a mugshot. i mean, i want you to consider that. when i was 13, 14, 15 years old. the idea that a president would be arrested would be arraigned, would be challenged with a felony, two felonies, 91. -- >> four times. >> 91 felonies. i've heard that, because of trump, the average president has now been accused of two felonies each. we are insane. and for him to laugh about it, a former president, this is serious. this is significant. and for him to turn it into a joke, or a fund raising appeal? every time i think we can't sink any lower, we do. as a country. and i'm not happy with what's going on, on either side of the aisle. i'm not happy with what's happening in america. all during the republican debate, i was there. booing all through the whole process. booing every time someone said something critical of the former president. we never used to boo. this was not part of the american process. >> in progressive circles, there's a lot of fundraising on the mugshot. i think there's a consensus that, you, know not just that this is a shocking moment for the rule of law on america, which i absolutely agree. but also ridiculous. i think that progressives are wrong. i think there's something in the hyper masculine pose the trump has on his mugshot that is actually appealing to a lot of people. >> which he staged, and practiced. >> i'm sure you practiced in front of the mirror at mar-a-lago many times. that's fine. this is trump. he's really quite good at presenting a certain construction of masculinity as this is what real men look like, and do. that, to me, goes to some of the root of this problem, this elevation of some of the worst aspects of human nature. the parts that blue and debates. that parts that are bullies. the parts that, right, for him it's masculine, but this is human nature. that, for, me is the darkness of the trump phenomenon. >> six out of eight of the republicans on that debate stage that we were just talking about raise their hand when asked, would you vote for trump? even if he were, would you support him? even if he were a felon or convicted? i mean, if that doesn't normalize this, i don't really know what does. >> yeah, no. look, as you said, trump is an entertainer. he's able to make the best of the situation by putting on his apprentice reality tv show hat and saying, what is gonna make for the best image? what is gonna make me look persecuted rather than prosecuted? >> compare his mugshot all the codefendants mugshots. rudy giuliani looks like a deer in headlights, looks terrified. some of the people were smiling in a way that trivialized. it trumps was by far the best mugshot. this was so well prepared, so well staged. i worry that it's actually very effective. >> a simple question all of, this do we still care about accountability? do we still care about the truth? in the end, is someone's behavior, does it actually matter? in the political process? i'm starting to have to teach my students, maybe it doesn't. maybe you can say anything and do anything, and the public will still vote for you. >> one of the other things that trump said, in this interview, had to do with what he would do if you are elected president. take a listen. >> you said, in 2016, lock her up. and then when you became president, you said, we don't do that in america. that's just not the right thing to do. that's what they're doing. do you regret not locking her up? and if your president again, will you lock people up? >> well, i'll give you an example. the answer is, you have no choice. they're doing it to us. i always had such great respect for the office of the president. the presidency. but the office of the president. i never hit biden as hard as i could have. >> it's interesting, because they accused biden of elaborate conspiracy to lock trump up. biden has never said something like that. >> no, this is normally republicans are fans of federalism. this is the georgia indictment is a state indictment, nothing to do with federal government. obviously, there's some kind of coordination in terms of tactics, this is not a federal case, obviously, nothing to do with biden. this was the mild trump interview on the subject. earlier, he and his campaign and said, purging the department of justice, weaponizing the department of justice, going after journalists, i mean, it is actually chilling. we used to say, you know, i remember 2016, 2017, a few people would casually through around the word fascist. responsible folks were like, let's not russian to use that word when it doesn't necessarily apply. this is what authoritarians weaponize the government to go after political enemies. it's one thing to say that as a sort of spin cycle, but to actually do that in power, it's chilling. >> do we take him seriously? or literally? >> look, i think the worst thing about trump, you can't believe anything he says. and the situation, the best thing about trump, you can't believe anything he says. >> you say that, but trump said a lot of things in the 2016 campaign, many of which he did. he wanted to ban muslims from coming into the united states. he attempted to do exactly that. >> yeah, he also said, you know, he'd make mexico pay for the wall. and then he would lock hillary up. all of that. and it being so much bluster. so, it stands, in some, way it's anyone's guess. look, he had crowd chanting lock her up. this time, he says it as a north korea says it's fired two ballistic missiles as a warning to the united states. the launches come just hours after the u.s. flew bombers for drills alongside south korea. this is just the latest escalation by kim jong-un's regime. well updates as we get them, but that's it for me and cnn prime time. cnn tonight, with laura coats, starts right now. laura? >> good to see you, for me, as well. good evening, everyone. i'm laura coates. this is "cnn tonight." we're covering all of the big stories on a very busy news

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