president trump's says the greatest tax cut is in question tonight. senator marco rubio says he will vote no on the current plan unless the legislation makes the tax credit more generous. senator bob corker who voted no on the latest version of the bill because it already costs too much won't say how he's voting but tells cnn i have all the same concerns that i have had. add to that john mccain and tad cochran, two senators dealing with health problems. these are serious questions given the razor-thin margin. vice president pence has delayed a trip to israel to be on hand in case he needs to cast a tie-breaking vote. the press secretary, sarah sanders, was asked about rubio's demand. she made it clear he should be happy with what he's got. >> we're extremely excited about the progress that we've already made to double the child tax credit. i think that's something important to note. and something that we worked very closely with senator rubio on. and we think he should be very excited. >> except for he's not excited. one big question tonight is how is the gop going to pay for this tax plan? which ultimately is this. a massive tax cut for corporations. while the treasury secretary, steve mnuchin, had long promised a study that would show the bill pays for itself and it would show how, he reportedly said more than 100 people in treasury are working around the clock on running scenarios for us. we've got it, it's one page. it's been widely panned by economists from both sides of the aisle, both for its basic simplicity and fuzzy math. even the former budget director, who is a supporter of the tax bill overall, came out and said it. he said this bill will not pay for itself. and he slammed mnuchin's one-pager. here's what he said. >> i thought it was just overpromising and certainly beneath the level of analysis that treasury is capable of. >> a lot of questions tonight about this tax bill that republicans are trying to rush to a vote as quickly as they can. we begin with sunlen serfaty on capitol hill. let's start with the razor-thin margin and they do not have all the votes. they have got to get there. is senator rubio posturing? >> he's issuing a very strong threat. he knows he's in a position of power because he knows republican leaders need his vote on this tax bill so he's trying to exert a little leverage to make more things happen for him. he has been very explicit in what he wants. he wants to see the child tax credit expanded more generous and he said, look, i'm not going to vote for this tax bill unless it is. we know now that senate leaders are right now working on ways to throw some more money at the child tax credit to potentially get him onboard, but this just underscores how precarious a situation this is for republican leaders up here on capitol hill right now as they barrel towards potentially holding a vote early next week. you had rubio, who was always in the reliably yes column making this today. you have a very slim republican majority which means they have such a slim margin for error here, with vice president pence voting, and he delayed his trip to potentially come up here and vote next week. losing three republican votes means that the bill would be sunk. republican leaders cannot count on bob corker tonight. he said he still has the same concerns he's always had about this bill and there's wild cards. senator collins, jeff flake, mike lee to add in the mix. also adding into the mix is serious concerns over senator mccain's health and if he's able and well enough to return to capitol hill next week to vote on this bill. so again, this just shows how precarious this is and where scenarios where republican leaders could come up short. >> and of course the american public, it is deeply unpopular with them so far too. thank you, sunlen. outfront now, the chairman of the council of economic advisers. he has been a leader in getting this bill through and designing this bill. kevin, good to have you back. >> it's an honor to be back, thanks. >> senator rubio says he's going to vote against the bill unless the child tax credit is expanded. are you willing to make it even bigger to get his vote? >> you know, i think that's something that the people in the senate will have to work out with senator rubio. senator rubio had an amendment that went to the floor and was rejected the first time around. he cares desperately about this issue and so he's trying one last time, i respect that. i expect they'll work something out. i don't think anyone thinks rubio will hold up this bill. >> you're okay with that, if that might get bigger? >> the president had a list of nonnegotiables that we talked about on your show and the child credit level, it's very generous right now and i don't think it needs to be expanded. i don't think anyone in the white house does. but we respect senator rubio and the process. >> so on this front, it's really important what the deficit numbers are. and again -- >> it sure is very important. >> and i guess i can agree with you that i think whatever numbers are out there i think are made up because nobody knows what's actually going to ha. but a lot of republicans as you know is saying this bill is going to pay for itself. i want to play for you, though, what conservative economist douglas holtz-eakin who said he's a supporter of this bill but here's what he said about this whole concept of it's going to pay for itself. >> i don't think these things pay for themselves. they never have. but i think the growth is really important. >> i mean that's a stunning admission. i don't think these things pay for themself, they never have. >> so what it is, and doug is a public finance economist. there were times when we were professors at columbia long ago and i really respect him enormously. the fact is some tax cuts can pay for themselves if you're cutting a tax that's responsive to it and some things don't. there's a heck of a lot in this bill that doesn't change the marginal tax rate that is potentially really good policy, like the child credit we were talking about but the growth effects of the child credit aren't enormous. they're good for distributional purposes but that's not a growth policy. but the corporate tax cut could welcome close to paying for itself. i think that the bottom line, though, is if we get growth in the 3% range over the next decade as compared to the 2% that we've had, there's going to be so much revenue that the extra difficueficit will be dwa- >> that $1.5 trillion. >> will be dwarfed by the revenue from growth. >> so the treasury secretary, steve mnuchin, as you know has been saying for months that this bill will pay for itself. this week he finally under a lot of pressure, put out this one-page memo backing that assertion. it is one page. and because of that, it has been widely panned by economists on both sides of the aisle because it's one page and doesn't get into any depth and because it uses a growth number that assumes a lot of things will happen that there's zero legislation for. like welfare reform and infrastructure investments. they assume this is going to happen for this to pay for itself. well, they're not in the bill. do you stand by the treasury secretary's one-page analysis. >> what secretary mnuchin did, and of course i stand by secretary of treasury mnuchin. what secretary mnuchin did is if we get the growth numbers that came out in the president's budget last year that was released in the spring, here are the revenue effects. they were estimated by the career professionals at treasury. they always come from three things, taxes, it looks like we're about to deliver on that. they come from deregulation and infrastructure investment. the infrastructure program is something that will be visible in the next president's budget and the deregulation is something we put out a report on today. sure enough if you look, we're probably about to have three quarters in a row of 3% growth. so it's not a mystery we think that can continue because of these policies. >> but i'm just making a simple point that these policies don't exist right now. the president may want them but they're not in legislation and not out there. >> the tax policy exists, the deregulation is visible. the tax reform exists and we're going to pursue through infrastructure and welfare reform the same process that we did that was so successful with tax reform. very soon we'll be talking about those things. >> so the corporate tax rate is at the center of this bill and it's all about companies are you believe going to bring their money home for a lower u.s. tax rate. when they do that, though, how are you going to force them to spend it on rising wages instead of executive compensation and dividends? >> right. >> there's got to be something to force them to do that or history shows a lot of them are not going to do it. how are you going to make them do it? >> right. well, we can't make them do that. you know, it's a free economy and we're a democracy, but what we can do is give them the incentives to do the right thing. we've given them an incentive to locate factories here in the u.s. let's say that you and i, erin, were going to start a factory, maybe cold medication, right? and we'll sell cold medication and we've got to build a factory to make the cold medication. we'd look around the country, try to find a spot where there are a lot of available workers and locate our factory there. when we do that, there will be a lot of people there that will get a job. >> why would a company do that? it's still going to be cheaper in china or other places like that. you've not solving the wage issue. you're actually saying they're going to pay them even more than they're paying them right now. >> right now there are a lot of factors that encourage people to locate stuff here or there. like if you want to sell it in the u.s., not having to ship it across the ocean is a big deal. it costs about $1500 to ship a car across the ocean. people right now have really decided to move a heck of a lot of stuff offshore because the tax rate is so high. so at the margin they'll wanting to move stuff here. but you're right, we're not going to get every little bit of economic activity by u.s. multi nationals to locate in the u.s. but there's going to be a heck of a lot more of it. and i think it should lead to about a 15% capital increase and that's a heck of a lot of gdp. >> the president made a promise about this bill. he made it again and again and again. i remember in an interview i did with him when he first even talked about a tax policy during the campaign. here is his promise. >> you know, many of your friends, they're hedge fund guys and you have the carried interest deduction and a lot of other deductions that frankly it's a joke. it's tremendous amounts of money and it's money that they really don't need. they want it because they're used to paying no taxes. i would take carried interest out and i would let people that are making hundreds of millions of dollars a year pay some tax because right now they're paying very little tax. we are, as an example, getting rid of carried interest, which is the darling of wall street. we're getting rid of carried interest provisions. >> this bill has a carried interest loophole. it is a benefit to a very few specific people while the private equity managers, including steve schwartzman who co-founded blackstone was a funder of the inauguration, worth more than $12 billion, hosted a fund-raiser for the president a couple of weeks ago. the president promised to close this. why is he breaking that promise? >> i don't think the president is breaking his promise, but this is not a dictatorship, it's a democracy. there are a lot of things that we in the white house would have liked to have seen in the bill that we understand in the democratic process we can't have exactly our way, like the 15% rate. what's going to happen is that carried interest -- >> but this only benefits a few people. he could have said it's a deal breaker but he didn't. he's willing to let it stay in there. >> and this is something that's negotiated with the senate and with the house. you even still wonder a little bit after all of this, is this going to pass the senate, don't you? and so the fact is that navigating this through this process is something that's a historic accomplishment. if this tax bill passes, you would have to concede it's one of the biggest moments in economic policy in the last 50 years. so of course there are going to be times when you don't get everything you want. that's the democratic process. >> all right, i appreciate your time. i appreciate it. >> thanks. you've been very generous with me, thank you. next, roy moore still refusing to concede. even as the white house, as trump, quote, likes doug jones. plus trump aide omarosa, why are taxpayers still paying her salary for another five weeks. and president trump talks to vladimir putin. tonight we are just getting the details of that conversation this hour. touch is how we communicate with those we love, but when your psoriasis is bad, does it ever get in the way? 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how much money lisa saved by switching to geico. wow! performance of the night. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. ♪ ♪ what would you do if you had even more time to explore? ♪ ♪ open up the world with platinum. backed by the service and security of american express. new tonight, roy moore standing alone. he is still refusing to concede. it has been 48 hours or just about, 45 hours since he lost to the democrat, doug jones. here is what he said today in his first public appearance since election night. >> do you plan to concede? no? what about a recount? >> thanks for your question, ma'am. i don't think he's -- >> we put out a statement. >> i saw your video. >> the statement he's referring to of course said that his campaign is waiting for the ballots to be certified. the earliest that would happen is the day after christmas, so that would be no concession until, what, a week from this coming tuesday? meanwhile the president, who so loudly, vehemently backed the accused child molester, roy moore, is now changing his tune now saying the white house says the president likes doug jones. he had originally said doug jones would be a disaster for the country. here he is. >> i think the president's position is pretty clear in his outreach to doug jones directly. he called and they spoke yesterday. they had a great conversation, a very positive conversation. he likes doug jones and looks forward to meeting him in person and hopes that he will come and follow through on his commitment to work with the president. >> outfront now, editor at large bill kristol and former state gop chairman for the missouri republican party, ed martin, who is the author of "the conservative case for trump." ed, the president couldn't have been more clear. roy moore, i'm trying to imitate his tone the other day, just do it. do it. vote for roy moore. now he says he likes doug jones. really? >> well, i mean, you know, he first went with luther strange and then roy moore. >> third time's a charm? >> look, president trump likes to do this. i mean he's going to try to lay on the charm offensive. i think what he may be betting on is maybe senator-elect jones has some issues because alabama is so conservative that he could meet in the middle on. but it is interesting to watch. we'll see what happens. >> bill. >> i'm looking forward to when roy moore does concede. he'll ride the horse, won't he, into the state capitol where the ballots are being certified? i like that horse, sassy the horse. roy moore does not seem very good at riding she or he. that horse was the highlight -- the highlight of election day was doug jones winning. >> there's a lot of blame being passed around among republicans. people were very honest, they did not -- you were very passionate about it, you were hoping that he would lose, and he did. luther strange, the senator who moore beat in that runoff, says, though, a lot of the blame rests on steve bannon. here he is. >> i've never seen him accomplish anything. he has accomplished one thing that i don't think anybody thought in america was possible and that's getting a democrat elected in the state of alabama. >> well said, senator strange? what do you say, ed? >> we've talked about this and i've talked about it on cnn. i blame two people, cory gardner and mitch mcconnell pulled the money out. you know, the primaries are a race where the fight in the primary can be amongst candidates. luther strange was backed by mitch mcconnell and donald trump. once he lost -- by the way, they spent a lot of money to beat mo brooks. once he lost, they should have backed roy moore. >> whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. so you're in the camp where you're okay with a child molester in the senate? >> well, no. i think you said to say alleged child molester. what i said was five weeks before an election, bill kristol knows from campaigns that they throw everything they have at a guy. what i said was get through the election and back the republican and then go and do the ethics committee and find out -- i don't have any reason to know if the women were telling the truth. >> oh, come on, come on, all these women made this up? >> sir, there were 30 people who corroborated their stories. it's absurd. it was excellent reporting and it's true. anyway, the voters spoke and the voters said what they were going to say. >> that's right, the voters spoke but the guy who stopped competing was mitch mcconnell. >> you're saying they would have won if they didn't pull the funding. rnc put the funding back in. >> rnc put $170,000 in. it takes millions of dollars. just the outside money from obama's groups was $3 million or millions of dollars to get out the vote. >> i have a higher regard for the republicans in alabama who did vote for jones or who stayed home or cast that 1.5% of the absentee ballots. they wouldn't have been persuaded by more money. to their credit enough of them didn't want to vote for roy moore that he lost. >> i mean, look, here's a big question to you. when you talk about the future of the republican party, which is clearly what we're all talking about here coming on the midterms, close friends of paul ryan, the house speaker, when you talk about leadership, friends of ryan are telling cnn he is soul searching, talking about his future. it's possible he could leave congress after the midterms if not sooner. that is a huge thing to say. some of them even saying ryan could be suffering from trump exhaustion, that he's just sick of the president. what do you say to that, ed? >> well, paul ryan -- the vision paul ryan has on some key issues, including amnesty for illegals and kind of the way he views a bunch of issues, trade issues, are not the ones that are rising in the republican party, so i think he may be tired. i told -- erin, i've said before until the $17 million that was paid out to abusers and harassment charges has been disclosed by paul ryan, we're going to have every congressman under a cloud. and i think paul ryan may be getting tired of it. it's a tough thing to do. i don't envy him. >> what are you hearing about paul ryan's future? >> i think he's unhappy at the prospect of the next year. i was told oh, there's nothing to it, he's not quitting. but think of this, i think president trump wants to fire bob mueller. i think the house republicans signalled that, that they're going to defend him and they're laying the groundwork for it. the house republicans have a very coordinated effort to legitimatize the firing of bob mueller. i don't think paul ryan wants to be the leader of a conference firing the fbi director, so i think that issue would be if the conference wants to defend donald trump, i guess i can't stop them, but i'm not going to lead a republican party that's going to defend donald trump trying to cover up the russian investigation. >> so the women harassers, all of those were straws but the ones that would break the camel's back would be firing mueller? >> it might be because that would be an actionable thing. there are things congress could do to stop them or they could work harder to react to it. paul ryan will not defend trump's doing that. they will have a conference that wants to do that. that could be the one scenario ryan could say enough is enough. >> ryan will have to have a line that cannot be crossed somewhere. thank you, both. senator lindsey graham says if north korea conducts another nuclear test, there's a 70% chance of a u.s. attack. and what was omarosa hinting about when she said this about her time at the white house? >> i have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally. she's nationally recognized for her compassion and care. he spent decades fighting to give families a second chance. but to help others, they first had to protect themselves. i have afib. even for a nurse, it's complicated... and it puts me at higher risk of stroke. that would be devastating. i had to learn all i could to help protect myself. once i got the facts, my doctor and i chose xarelto®. xarelto®... to help keep me protected. once-daily xarelto®, a latest-generation blood thinner... ...significantly lowers the risk of stroke in people with afib not caused by a heart valve problem. it has similar effectiveness to warfarin. xarelto® works differently. warfarin interferes with at least 6 blood-clotting factors. xarelto® is selective, targeting just one critical factor interacting with less of your body's natural blood-clotting function. for afib patients well-managed on warfarin, there is limited information on how xarelto® compares in reducing the risk of stroke. don't stop taking xarelto® without talking to your doctor, as this may increase risk of stroke. while taking, you may bruise more easily, or take longer for bleeding to stop. it may increase your risk of bleeding if you take certain medicines. xarelto® can cause serious, and in rare cases, fatal bleeding. get help right away for unexpected bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. if you've had spinal anesthesia, watch for back pain or any nerve or muscle-related signs or symptoms. do not take xarelto® if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. tell your doctor before all planned medical or dental procedures... ...and before starting xarelto®-about any conditions, such as kidney, liver, or bleeding problems. it's important to learn all you can... ...to help protect yourself from a stroke. talk to your doctor about xarelto®. there's more to know™. wifiso if you can't live without it...t it. why aren't you using this guy? it makes your wifi awesomely fast. no... still nope. now we're talking! it gets you wifi here, here, and here. it even lets you take a time out. no! no! yes! yes, indeed. amazing speed, coverage and control. all with an xfi gateway. find your awesome, and change the way you wifi. new tonight, omarosa's mysterious exit. the three-time "apprentice" star turned white house aide is pushing back against reports that she was fired. >> john kelly and i had a very straightforward discussion about concerns that i had, issues that i raised, and as a result i resigned and it will be taking place january the 20th when i leave this very interesting administration. >> now, the secret service says they have deactivated omarosa's pass that gives her access to the white house, but she's still being paid for another five weeks. >> if she's resigned but you said she will stay on through january 20th. why are the taxpayers continuing to pay her salary for another month if she's no longer here at the white house. >> as i just said, i'm not going to weigh in any further. as we often do and is the practice, we're not going to get deeper into personnel matters. >> why is she still on the payroll for another month? is that normal? >> there's a lot of different protocols that take place in the government. that's part of the process. if you want to reach out to hr, they might be able to walk you through that in a more detailed way. >> omarosa was paid the maximum salary for a staff member, $179,000 a year so taxpayers still paying that until january 20th. abby philip is outfront live at the white house. that exchange, you were there. the white house really struggling to explain why omarosa is still getting paid. >> that's right. it's not clear why she would be on the payroll until january 20th. i had ask the white house this afternoon if omarosa would continue to be coming in until that time and they won't say, they haven't been able to say. she was here at the white house today, and the white house is pointing us to legal issues that could explain this difference between her apparent end date, which was earlier this week, and when she's off the payroll. it could be severance, it could be sick leave or something else, but they won't say definitively. they're pointing us to this hr department, which, you know, none of us are that familiar with at the white house given that all of them are political appointees. >> right. so that's strange. now, what about this, omarosa was one of the most visible african-americans in the white house. now she's gone. so who's left? are there any other senior african-american aides in this white house? >> as far as we know in the west wing, omarosa was the one and only senior african-american in the west wing. now, there's ben carson, who's the secretary of housing and urban development in the cabinet, but of the more than three dozen senior staff members and cabinet officials in this trump administration, there are very few and now there is only one left, ben carson. so the white house asked about this earlier today was not able to explain who else is in the senior ranks of this administration. they point to diversity in other areas, specifically in the press shop, which is majority women. but again the number of african-americans is very small and they haven't been able to explain more than that. >> thank you very much. of course diversity comes in all different ways. when you don't have diversity in one area, it doesn't count that you have it in another. outfront chris cillizza and april ryan. april, let me start with you. look, you were the one breaking this news about omarosa's abrupt and let's say explosive departure in your reporting. you were in the briefing room today. why is there so much confusion over what happened here? >> you know, this whole situation is something that's very unexpected and shocking. the allegations of her departure. yes, we're hearing that she did sign a resignation letter that would allow her to leave january 20th, but we also understand there was this very bombastic exit after she tried to get into the residence. so the white house, if you listen to sarah huckabee sanders when she was clearly asked specifically about vulgarities, the actions by manigault, she said i don't want to get into the weeds. she did not deny it but she did not want to get into the weeds. this president today said she's a good woman. he's a friend to omarosa. he's been a friend for many years. he brought her into the white house. they have -- they're kindred spirits. so he's trying to respect her and to allow her to have an exit that is commensurate with who he feels she is. as the nation, many people are -- if you view twitter and listening to the groans and grumbles happening around the country, his feelings are totally different than a large segment of society. they're ready for her to leave. >> now, chris, omarosa told abc news this morning she did an interview with michael strahan. she said she's going to have a lot to say once she's no longer employed so i guess that's at the end of next month. here's how she put it. >> as the only african-american woman in this white house, as a senior staff and assistant to the president, i have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, that has affected my community and my people. and when i can tell me story, it is a profound story that i know the world will want to hear. >> okay. chris, that sounds like a pretty incredible threat. >> again, this is someone who is still on the payroll through january 20th, at least as far as we know. it's remarkable. it's essentially saying as an african-american -- i was at the top salary level. i was in a position where i felt uncomfortable and i have a lot of stories to tell that i will tell as soon as they stop paying me on january 20th. it's a remarkable thing. that said, april made the point, the reason that omarosa is in the white house is because donald trump likes her. donald trump feels sort of a shared spirit with omarosa. you know what you're getting there. you knew -- omarosa became famous and well known because she was a reality television star. so i can't -- we can't be surprised, i don't think, that she, like donald trump, in her television appearance there is sort of a, well, wait for this cliff hanger to come up next. wait until i can really tell the story. stay tuned for my book or my special. >> yeah. >> it's sort of -- that's par for the course. >> something the president can appreciate. >> right. >> i remember a conversation with the president at "the apprentice." and he sort of was asking a question as he was off to get advice when he had a point of view. he said should i bring omarosa back? he said i like her, man, people hate her and that is so good for ratings. and he genuinely liked her but he was kind of like, you know what, if people hate you, that's good. but here's the thing. he let john kelly take care of this. and here's -- when he was pushed about omarosa, here's what he said today. >> did oma rosa -- >> i like omarosa, she's a good person. >> so what do you think, april. is that going to be enough for her not to come out and deliver on what appears to be a threat to talk about racist things that happened in the white house? >> i'm going to say this. i don't believe the story is -- the chapter is closed or the book is closed yet. the story is still being written. this is not over. this did not sit well, you know, those words about her uncomfortability and things that she saw and hurt her deeply and concerned her. that didn't sit well with many people in the white house. so i mean this is still very fresh. it's still unfolding. so i don't think that it's going to be just that easy. she may be starting to put pen to paper and looking for a new job to land in, but i don't think the white house is finished yet. you know, i want to watch the back and forth because she gives as good as she gets and so does this white house. and general kelly doesn't play. so this story has not been finished yet. seriously, she really laid out something very heavy today, and the white house i don't believe, especially this white house, i don't think they're going to take it that easy. >> omarosa, chris, this president may have met his match. >> look, what's fascinating is i think even in those comments it shows to your point, erin, he has sort of a personal admiration and affection for her, even -- i'm sure it didn't sit well with a lot of folks in the white house, but when donald trump looks in the mirror, the personality traits that drew him to omarosa are because he sees those things in himself. pro provocative, not politically correct. willing -- not only okay with being hated but thriving in some way, gaining energy from that. so i think -- i don't know if he's met his match but he recognizes an kwl equal in term his personality in her. and he admires that even if he is not doing things that will help his white house. >> and i do remember that conversation. should i bring her back? and then he answers his own question. yeah, i'm going to bring her back. and of course he brought her all the way to the white house until today. thank you both so very much. next, the suspect who's accused of driving through the crowd in charlottesville protests killing a woman actually in court today. outside that courthouse protesters squaring off with white supremacists and president trump speaking to president putin on the phone late today. we're just getting word of what they talked about. we'll be back. 's good. lica misses you. i'm over it though. (laughter) that's fine. i miss her more than you anyway. ♪ ♪ hey, my window is closing. yeah that's okay. alright miles. i love you. (phone hangs up) ♪ ♪ yeah i love you too. ♪ ♪ but having his parents over was enlightening. ♪ you don't like my lasagna? no, it's good. -hmm. -oh. huh. [ both laugh ] here, blow. blow on it. you see it, right? is there a draft in here? i'm telling you, it's so easy to get home insurance on progressive.com. progressive can't save you from becoming your parents. but we can save you money when you bundle home and auto. progressive can't save you from becoming your parents. was supposed to be a wake reup call for our government?sh people all across the country lost their savings, their pensions and their jobs. i'm tom steyer and it turned out that the system that had benefited people like me who are well off, was, in fact, stacked against everyone else. it's why i left my investment firm and resolved to use my savings for the public good. but here we are nine years later and this president and the republican congress are making a bad situation even worse. they won't tell you that their so called "tax reform" plan is really for the wealthy and big corporations, while hurting the middle class. it blows up the deficit and that means fewer investments in education, health care and job creation. it's up to all of us to stand up to this president. not just for impeachable offenses, but also to demand a country where everyone has a real chance to succeed. join us. your voice matters. [he has a new business teaching lessons. rodney wanted to know how his business was doing... ...so he got quickbooks. it organizes all his accounts, so he can see his bottom line. ahhh...that's a profit. know where you stand instantly. visit quickbooks-dot-com. just in, president trump speaking tonight with russian president vladimir putin. the white house saying the two men talked about the north korean nuclear crisis. it follows a chilling warning by senator lindsey graham who says he believes there's a 70% chance president trump attacks north korea if kim tests another nuclear bomb. graham telling "the atlantic" magazine we're not to the tipping point yet, but if they test another nuclear weapon, then all bets are off. outfront now, the u.n. undersecretary general for political affairs, jeffrey feltman, who just returned from north korea where he met with senior leaders. ambassador, thank you so much for your time. did you walk away with a similar feeling to that of senator graham? >> i can't characterize what the results of my meetings will be because i think only time will tell. this is a typical diplomatic discussion where we had the time and opportunity to make lots of points, to present ideas, alternative approaches, to demand the compliance with security council resolutions and express the concern of the united states community. they had their points to make. and i believe that both sides need to reflect on what we heard and then to see the impact going forward. >> was it a real conversation? >> that's actually what surprised me a bit, because it was a very interactive, serious exchange. i'm not saying that they were flexible on their positions per se because they had certain policy positions in which they were operating, but they wanted to hear us out. they gave us the time to present the concerns of the international community. they quizzed us on some of the points that we made. they asked for more information. i got the sense that they seriously wanted to understand why we were saying what we were saying and get more details, presumably to prepare reports for the broader leadership. >> so on this point of what's going to happen, secretary of state rex tillerson has said the united states is ready to talk to north korea without preconditions. that's a significant thing to say, because obviously the white house and state department have tried to pull that back saying the united states is not ready to begin talks with north korea. as you know, the president of the united states' position is that kim must give up his nuclear weapons. is there any situation under which kim would give up nuclear weapons from the conversations you just had in pyongyang? >> keep in mind, it's not just president trump that says he has to give up the nuclear weapons. it is the international community as reflected in unanimous security council resolutions. when we were talking about pyongyang, i think there was an acceptance of that goal, peaceful denuclearization of the korean peninsula. but the question is what would it take to get there. and i think that the timelines that pyongyang were -- was considering are far longer than what the security council has in mind. the security council sees the need to move quickly and i think that the dprk officials, as presented to me at least, were looking for a longer period of deterrence leading to trying to rebuild trust, eventually moving there. i don't think we have that much time. i think that there's a risk of an accidental conflict given the lack of trust, the lack of any kind of real ongoing diplomatic channels and the fact that there's continued defiance of those security council resolutions. >> president trump and kim jong-un, as you know, ambassador, have been personal in their attacks. kim has called trump az dotard and here's president trump. >> rocket man should have been handled a long time ago. rocket man is on a suicide mission. little rocket man, he is a sick puppy. >> just last month of course the ambassador to the president tweeted in part, you know the operative line, why would kim jong-un insult me by calling me old when i would never call him short and fat. is this smart strategy by president trump? do you think it's working? >> i don't want to comment on what member states of the organization i represent say, except i will say those security council resolutions do call for de-escalation of tensions as well. including the resolution that the united states voted for, along with all the other security council members on september 11th, resolution 2375. it calls for de-escalation, so we would encourage all sides to look for ways to move away from fiery rhetoric and back toward the goal of some kind of peaceful diplomatic politicliol comprehensive solution on the korean peninsula. but it is with the dprk to abide by those resolutions just as the rest of the world, the de-escalation, sanctions and so forth. >> ambassador feltman, thank you for your time. >> thank you for having me. next, the man accused of murder during the charlottesville protest last summer in court today. outside kkk members were clashing with protesters. and jeanne moos on omarosa's white house departure. her angle, is she suffering a flashback to this? 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[ bleep ]. >> reporter: four months after hate turned into violence here, a member of the ku klux klan did this. james fields, the man accused of driving his car into a crowd, killing young protester heather heyer and the man who brought the protest to charlottesville. but in the midst of those trying to scream down hate, a rare occurrence. >> man, how are you doing? >> reporter: darryl jones, a member of the ku klux klan tried to meet and come to common grounds. >> my black history is a part of yours. >> sure it is. >> it's time we got to know one another. >> you're exactly right. >> so how do we convince these people to say, hey, look, we can spend all night arguing or we can move forward. >> you know as well as i do, my organization has a bad history. >> reporter: but their meeting wasn't welcomed by some. >> let me ask you a question. >> no, do not ask me a question about racists. >> reporter: davis says he does and has the kkk robes to prove it. >> how many robes have you gotten handed to you from klan members? >> i have probably 44, 45. >> reporter: how many robes have you gotten? >> about 44, 45. and klanswomen. >> reporter: who have said what? >> they are done as a result of meeting me and having these conversations. not overnight, but over time. >> reporter: for more than 30 years, davis has been on a mission to change minds, especially of those who would rather see him dead. he was drawn to charlottesville in part because he says the unite the right rally was not about saving confederate statues. >> the reason they were there was to initiate the first steps of a race war. >> reporter: surprisingly, the klan leader agreed wholeheartedly. >> a lot of them were not here for the statue. >> no. they were here to cause trouble. >> to cause a race war. >> that's right. >> reporter: a descendent of slaves, a sense of change they know will be a long road. >> do you understand what her concern is at all? do you see anything? >> yes. slavery was wrong. >> slavery was wrong? >> it was wrong regardless. but there were white slaves, too. you don't ever hear about that. you don't ever hear about the white slaves. >> and with that last sentence, imperial used a term used by racist who is try to equate hundreds of years of institutionalized slavery gets blacks here in america to what happened to irish that came to america and were forced into servitude but it doesn't phase darryl davis. when the conversation ends, well, that's when there is fertile ground for violence. erin? >> really fascinating and such a powerful report. next, a lighter note. jeanne moos on the question that so many have about omarosa. what exactly did she do at the white house? i can guide you in. no, thanks , santa. i got this. santa: uh, it looks a little tight. perfect fit. santa needs an f-150. that's ford, america's best selling brand. hurry in today for 0% financing for 72 months across the full line up of ford cars, trucks and suvs. for a limited time, get an additional $1,000 cash back on top of 0% financing for 72 months. get these exclusive offers during the ford year end sales event. tonight's white house mystery, just what did omarosa do there? here's jeanne moos. >> reporter: good thing omarosa already sent out her christmas tweet because she won't be dreaming of a white house christmas next year. >> bye, girl. good-bye. >> reporter: her departure was displayed. as she leaves her $180,000 a year white house job, many are left wondering -- >> what the [ bleep ] is omarosa doing in the white house? >> i typed in what is omarosa doing in the white house. the first result is an article that says no one knows what omarosa is doing in the white house. even omarosa. >> reporter: reports that she caused a scene leaving, reports omarosa denied, left anchors at -- >> what? >> what? >> that's awesome! >> reporter: omarosa implied she'd spill the beans in a book. >> and when i can tell my story, it is a profound story, that i know the world will want to hear. >> reporter: abc's robin roberts couldn't resist. >> i'm sure she'll be selling that story. >> i'm sure. >> reporter: bye fell liicia is based on the movie "friday." >> reporter: omarosa fired back at roberts in a text message to "inside edition". >> that was petty. it's a black woman civil war. >> reporter: let's take a moment as omarosa bows out to recall her comments about bowing down. >> every detractor will have to bow down to president trump. >> reporter: omarosa had to bow down. >> you're fired. >> reporter: the three previous times she got the boot on the apprentice and "celebrity apprentice". >> i've always been an omarosa fan, but omarosa, you're fired. >> yes! >> reporter: some pretended to be morosa about omarosa but when she's gone, who will do all of the nothing? jeanne moos, cnn. >> jobs, jobs, jobs. >> reporter: new york. >> thank you for joining us. watch "outfront" any time, anywhere. go to cnn. see you back here tomorrow night. "ac 360" begins right now. ♪ good evening. we begin tonight with the president saying today that the russia investigations are a form of mania cooked up by president trump's opponents in an effort to undermine him but it wasn't president trump who said that. it was russian president vladimir putin in his annual end of the year conference in moscow. putin praised president trump saying he's made a number of achievements. >> translator: this is all dreamed up by people who are in opposition to trump so as to make sure that everybody thinks that what he's doing, what he's working at is illegitimate. >> as you know, the