Transcripts For MSNBCW MSNBC Live With Ali Velshi 20170811 :

The ap report. So while publicly trump and kim are using bam basic rhetoric, behind the scenes some diplomatic channels are still operating. Just listen to secretary of defense james malt advertise. The american effort is diplomatly led. It has diplomatic traction. It is gaining diplomatic results. And i want to stay right there right now. The tragedy of war is well enough known. It doesnt need another characterization beyond the fact that it would be catastrophic. But that doesnt mean the tough talk is over. A short time ago Deputy Assistant secretary for Southeast Asia said this at the Foreign Press briefing. The North Koreans know my secretary of state, secretary tillerson, has repeatedly noted that dialogue is an option, but north korea knows the obligations and requirements. Dialogue is not something to be negotiated. Standing down on the pursuit of dangerous missiles and Nuclear Programs in defiance of the international community, in defiance of the Security Council resolution is whats at stake here and thats been made abundantly clear. So lets get caught up on the latest. Matthew peng ton is the associate press reporter who got that story of back channel diplomacy we just talked about. Matthew, so let me start with you. Youve had this rising tension caused by all this threatening language. Its been intense. Its ununnerving to say the least for people around the worl. But your reporting suggests there may be at least some hope for an alternative scenario here. To tell us about these two people who have been in touch. What do we know and do we know with any specificity exactly what theyre talking about . Well, i think on the substance of the talks between joseph yun from the u. S. State department and pack sun ill of the united nations, were still not really sure. The main focus, i think, for are the Trump Administration since it came into office in january has been to secure the release of americans detained in north korea. And this has been the sort of entray into reseeming this socalled new york channel which was suspended in the final months of the Obama Administration by north korea because it was angry over sanctions imposed on choourch. Now, these talks eventually led to the release of otto warmbier, a uva student, who was brought back to the u. S. By joseph yun. You may recall mr. Warm beer was unconscious and he died a few days later. So that issue is far from revolved. But what is of because three more americans are still being held. But what is of interest, i learned, is that those back Channel Communications through new york have been kept up on a regular basis. On the substance of them, im still in the dark, to be honest. But its interesting that both sides are still maintaining that channel of communication, and it suggests that they are keeping their options open. And it suggests that the u. S. Is, as spregsd by secretary of state rex tillerson, that theyre interested in negotiations with north korea. But the difficulties in getting them started. So, kelly, aside from President Trumps tweets this morning, any further word from the white house today . Where do they see that this situation stands . Well, it got less attention in the extent yesterday did acknowledge to reporters there that negotiations are something that are clearly on the table between the United States and north korea, but he is, of course, pressuring them to, quote, get in line and get their act together. But hes not for stalling that possibility as something that could be constructive. Weve seen rex tillerson, who is now in new jersey for this afternoons meeting with the president , along with the u. N. Ambassador nikki haley. He has talked about the importance of diplomacy. Ambassador hay at the u. N. Was talking about how to use sanctions and pressure to get north korea to change its behavior. So it does seem that there are multiple lanes operational at the same time. Youve got the president leaping heavily on a military strength that the United States has, a preparedness for this, military options that have been reviewed and updated and are ready to go, hence the locked and loaded comment. But there are also things were learning from top officials and from the president s own words about other ways they could try to address this. The president tends to get more attention for his bombastic words, so weve been drawn to that because it does have ramifications, but it does appear that there are still quiet channels that exist to resolve this in a different way. And its so important to be reminded that there are still three americans who are being held in north korea, and that is something that u. S. Officials are certainly aware of given the importance that President Trump placed on being able to return home even with a very tragic ending of otto warmbier, wanting to get him back to his family. And so it does seem like this white house is doing multiple things. We also learned today on a different topic that the president s soninlaw and a couple of his top advisors willing going back to the middle east. So this is something that is cooking at the same time with the approval of secretary tillerson and the new chief of staff john kelly, Jared Kushner and dina powell will be going back to try to talk middle east peace. Thats not something weve been as folk you had on in recent days, but thats something thats coming on the of this temporary white house here in new jersey. As far as we know, nobody has suggested to anybody in the middle east that theyre locked and loaded. So understandably the focus has been on north korea. I want to bring in, if i can, bill neely, who has been in seoul, south korea following if from there. And obviously as matthew really pointed out very clearly, you have a situation with people like the secretary of state who have not been closing the door on the possibility of some sort of diplomatic resolution going forward. But what are you learning there on the Korean Peninsula about any back channels, bill . Well, its interesting that the north korean man who has been named, i actually had dinner with him in pyongyang last year. Pack sun ill has a long history with the United States. He was based there for five years. When i met him he was at the ministry of Foreign Affairs in their american section in pyongyang. You know, hes a very afterable man. Hes very interested in the United States and hes now based at the u. N. In new york. So he would be a very good point person as a knowledgeable person on United States affairs. We talked about american president s and american history. He hoped to get his son into an american you university. So hes a knowledgeable man who has traveled a lot and knowledgeable on international affairs. So, you know, once again, if you want a point person between washington and pyongyang, this man, pack sun ill, you know, hes an interesting character, chris. Yeah. He does sound like somebody who at least from the American Perspective would be a positive, but is he someone who has kim jonguns ear . Because if he doesnt, whatever his back dpround is, whatever his personal desires or his skills with diplomacy are, it doesnt mean anything, obviously. Reporter well, it is interesting. I mean, who has kim jonguns ear . As weve seen, even in washington, if you work in the state department even, if youre the secretary of state, it doesnt necessarily mean that youre the president s favorite. But he is a man of some influence. You know, here what donald trump has said in his statement locked and loaded, you know, its an interesting thing. I think its unite the two koreas in a funny kind of way, funny if it wasnt so deeply dangerous, because north korea is saying donald trump in his later statement is driving the situation to the brink of nuclear war. South korea, the chairman of the governing party, without actually naming donald trump, has said highranking american officials are using excessive language, not carefully thought out messages, that just worsen the situation and play into north koreas hands. So theyre not too impressed here with the idea of locked and loaded. People here really wish that the rhetoric from both sides would damp endown because they feel very vulnerable in the firing line if any conflict actually broke out, chris. Bill, kelly, matthew, i want to thank all of you. And i want to bring in nbc military analyst, Major General bob scales who wrote the bob scales on war. The future of americas military at risk. Its good to see you. And. Hi, chris. Been a huge advocate of watch what they do, not what they say. Right. Because we have been focused very much on what these two men have been saying and obviously in particular the rhetoric that we have not heard from a u. S. President before, certainly not with the regulator weve heard it over the last several days from President Trump. So what do you see that tells you where we could be heading next . Well, right now i see very, very little action in the theater, both on the north side and on the south side, chris. For instance, theres no evidence that the North Koreans have started to move into any of their forward positions. Theres no evidence that they are going to conduct any civilian drills in pyongyang, which is another early indicator. On the south side, theres no evidence that the south korean army has gone to a higher deaf con. Theres no evidence that the u. S. Command there is on any elevated war fighting condition. The only thing that ive heard is that our intelligence gathering, our ow 2 has been heightened. Other than that, theres far more rhetoric involved in this kwon taking than there is any type of military action. So as a strategic move because im interested in your take on this as a military man, and in the military you deal with a lot of specificity. If you give an order, you want to make sure that the people youre giving that order to understand exactly what you want, when you want it it and how you want it to be performed. But the president making some rather broad statements which obviously has some strategic tactical point at looegts from his view. How do you view it. A couple of points, first of all, i think the military at this stage has clearly discounted president ial rhetoric. I mean, weve seen several pronouncements by the president , approximate tweets by the president relating to military affairs. Lets face it, that the people in charge at the top, jim mattis, joe dunn ford, mcmast sker and now john kelly are very levelheaded men who talk to each other and who have a wonderful dialogue. Its interesting to note, chris, that all four of these men served together in the same area in iraq. So the military exclusive dialogue has been very calm, very measured. The instructions to the combatant command, particularly those in hawaii and in korea have been very, very measured. So on the one hand you have rhetoric on both sields at the very top, but at the military level we see so far, at least, nothing but a very calm, measured response to the crisis, chris. And again, as youre looking to watch to see where this might be headed, how closely are you watching guam . Because a lot of what weve heard, again, a lot of people have not heard about guam for a very long time. Theyre learning that these are u. S. Citizens who live there, learning about the military basis that are there. But is there anything there that youre watching that will be an indicator to you . Yeah. Thats a great question. I spoke to a friend of mine in the pentagon this morning, and he said one of the things that they fear probably more than anything else is what they call a north korean, quote, demonstration. You may remember 2011 they sank a frig gat, a south korean frig gat. You may remember that they fired a few rounds over the dmz. They shot at a south korean island off the coast of the dmz. What theyre afraid of is the North Koreans might do something stupid like fire a demonstration round, a none Nuclear Missile in the direction of guam. That would just escalate the situation in guam, you know, absolutely over the top. Hasnt happened, no evidence that its going to happen, but it would make should that happen, it would make the people of guam extremely nervous, chris. I also want to read you this report that i thought was really interesting from the global times. Its a state media he had editorial, obviously basically a mouthpiece for the chinese. And im going to quote it here. China should also make clear that if north korea launches missiles that threaten u. S. Soil first and the u. S. Retail yachts, china will stay neutral and if the u. S. Strikes first, if the United States and south korea carry out strikes and try to overthrow the north korean regime, china will prevent them from doing so. What do you make of that . This is very interesting. You know, it speaks to how china is addressing this whole problem. Whats china interested in . Number one, keeping the north korean regime in power. And number two, its the south china sea. Their Strategic Center of gravity is not korea. Its the south china sea. That it is their resource zone. They have said this dozens of times in the public media. So the more thk keep the United States and its allies engaged in the north in the vicinity of north korea without prompting the south or the north to do anything untoward, it becomes an economy of force measure for china. So theyre perfectly happy to let the tensions bubble in the north, have the United States commit its resources to northeast asia and pull away from the south china sea. China is doing what they always do, and thats conduct diplomacy and military operations in their own interest, nothing has changed. Major general robert scales. Fascinating stuff. We thank you very much for being with us. Up next, the president unleashing on Mitch Mcconnell, forcing republicans to take sides in a dispute thats growing uglyier every tweet. Is the president did he railing his own agenda by attacking the majority leader. Were Just Moments Away from hearing the president , and we will bring you that live as it happens. Your brain is an amazing thing. But as you get older, it naturally begins to change, causing a lack of sharpness, or even trouble with recall. Thankfully, the breakthrough in prevagen helps your brain and actually improves memory. The secret is an ingredient originally discovered. In jellyfish. In clinical trials, prevagen has been shown to improve shortterm memory. Prevagen. The name to remember. How to win at business. Step one point decisively with the arm of your glasses. Abracadabra. The stage is yours. Step two choose la quinta. The only hotel where you can redeem loyalty points for a free nightinstantly and win at business. Hey, is this our turn . Honey. Our turn . Yeah, we go left right here. woman vo Great Adventures are still out there. Well find them in our Subaru Outback. avo love. Its what makes a subaru, a subaru. Get 0 apr financing for 63 months on all new 2017 Subaru Outback models. I said mitch, get to work and lets get it done. They should have had this last one done. They lost by one vote for a thing like that to happen is a disgrace, and frankly, it shouldnt have happened. That i can tell you. It shouldnt have happen. If senator Mitch Mcconnell stepped down say its time for him to retire . Well, ill tell you what, if he doesnt get repeal and replace done and if he doesnt get taxes done, meaning cuts and reform, and if he doesnt get a very easy one to get done, infrastructure, if he doesnt get them done, then you can ask me that question. President trump making a highly risky political move again, going after the most powerful man on capitol hill, snoit majority leader Mitch Mcconnell. The president hasnt been happy since the healthcare bill failed in the senate. Can you believe that Mitch Mcconnell, who has screamed repeal and replace for seven years couldnt get it done . Must repeal and replace obamacare. Net result, Senate Republicans, who hell need, by the way, to get his agenda through, taking sides, and not trumps. Senator orrin hatch, the most Senior Senate republican tweeted that mcconnell is the best leader that weve had in my time in the senate. Through very tough challenges, i fully support him. Senator jeff flake tweeted his support and said he does a tough job well. Tennessee senator bob corker wrote, from hemt care to tax reform to infrastructure, tough issues to tackle this fall. None better than Senate Majority leader to get a good outcome. And earlier today senator Susan Collins of maine added her voice. Majority leader mcconnell understands the senate is a dlib ra active and diverse body. He enjoys broad support in our caucus. For more i want to bring in bob could you sack who is the editor in chief of the hill and cnbcs john heart wood. So, john, here is the deal. Whats the strategy here to threaten Mitch Mcconnell, to force members of the senate whose vote youre going to need to come out and say we support him, hes our leader, almost as a postscript thats not written. He wins, you lose, donald trump. Whats the strategy . Chris, i dont think there is a strategy. I think what donald trump does from moment to moment are things that make donald trump feel good and look good. So in the wake of this failure on obamacare, by complaining about Mitch Mcconnell and complaining about Deputy Assistant<\/a> secretary for Southeast Asia<\/a> said this at the Foreign Press<\/a> briefing. The North Koreans<\/a> know my secretary of state, secretary tillerson, has repeatedly noted that dialogue is an option, but north korea knows the obligations and requirements. Dialogue is not something to be negotiated. Standing down on the pursuit of dangerous missiles and Nuclear Programs<\/a> in defiance of the international community, in defiance of the Security Council<\/a> resolution is whats at stake here and thats been made abundantly clear. So lets get caught up on the latest. Matthew peng ton is the associate press reporter who got that story of back channel diplomacy we just talked about. Matthew, so let me start with you. Youve had this rising tension caused by all this threatening language. Its been intense. Its ununnerving to say the least for people around the worl. But your reporting suggests there may be at least some hope for an alternative scenario here. To tell us about these two people who have been in touch. What do we know and do we know with any specificity exactly what theyre talking about . Well, i think on the substance of the talks between joseph yun from the u. S. State department and pack sun ill of the united nations, were still not really sure. The main focus, i think, for are the Trump Administration<\/a> since it came into office in january has been to secure the release of americans detained in north korea. And this has been the sort of entray into reseeming this socalled new york channel which was suspended in the final months of the Obama Administration<\/a> by north korea because it was angry over sanctions imposed on choourch. Now, these talks eventually led to the release of otto warmbier, a uva student, who was brought back to the u. S. By joseph yun. You may recall mr. Warm beer was unconscious and he died a few days later. So that issue is far from revolved. But what is of because three more americans are still being held. But what is of interest, i learned, is that those back Channel Communications<\/a> through new york have been kept up on a regular basis. On the substance of them, im still in the dark, to be honest. But its interesting that both sides are still maintaining that channel of communication, and it suggests that they are keeping their options open. And it suggests that the u. S. Is, as spregsd by secretary of state rex tillerson, that theyre interested in negotiations with north korea. But the difficulties in getting them started. So, kelly, aside from President Trump<\/a>s tweets this morning, any further word from the white house today . Where do they see that this situation stands . Well, it got less attention in the extent yesterday did acknowledge to reporters there that negotiations are something that are clearly on the table between the United States<\/a> and north korea, but he is, of course, pressuring them to, quote, get in line and get their act together. But hes not for stalling that possibility as something that could be constructive. Weve seen rex tillerson, who is now in new jersey for this afternoons meeting with the president , along with the u. N. Ambassador nikki haley. He has talked about the importance of diplomacy. Ambassador hay at the u. N. Was talking about how to use sanctions and pressure to get north korea to change its behavior. So it does seem that there are multiple lanes operational at the same time. Youve got the president leaping heavily on a military strength that the United States<\/a> has, a preparedness for this, military options that have been reviewed and updated and are ready to go, hence the locked and loaded comment. But there are also things were learning from top officials and from the president s own words about other ways they could try to address this. The president tends to get more attention for his bombastic words, so weve been drawn to that because it does have ramifications, but it does appear that there are still quiet channels that exist to resolve this in a different way. And its so important to be reminded that there are still three americans who are being held in north korea, and that is something that u. S. Officials are certainly aware of given the importance that President Trump<\/a> placed on being able to return home even with a very tragic ending of otto warmbier, wanting to get him back to his family. And so it does seem like this white house is doing multiple things. We also learned today on a different topic that the president s soninlaw and a couple of his top advisors willing going back to the middle east. So this is something that is cooking at the same time with the approval of secretary tillerson and the new chief of staff john kelly, Jared Kushner<\/a> and dina powell will be going back to try to talk middle east peace. Thats not something weve been as folk you had on in recent days, but thats something thats coming on the of this temporary white house here in new jersey. As far as we know, nobody has suggested to anybody in the middle east that theyre locked and loaded. So understandably the focus has been on north korea. I want to bring in, if i can, bill neely, who has been in seoul, south korea following if from there. And obviously as matthew really pointed out very clearly, you have a situation with people like the secretary of state who have not been closing the door on the possibility of some sort of diplomatic resolution going forward. But what are you learning there on the Korean Peninsula<\/a> about any back channels, bill . Well, its interesting that the north korean man who has been named, i actually had dinner with him in pyongyang last year. Pack sun ill has a long history with the United States<\/a>. He was based there for five years. When i met him he was at the ministry of Foreign Affairs<\/a> in their american section in pyongyang. You know, hes a very afterable man. Hes very interested in the United States<\/a> and hes now based at the u. N. In new york. So he would be a very good point person as a knowledgeable person on United States<\/a> affairs. We talked about american president s and american history. He hoped to get his son into an american you university. So hes a knowledgeable man who has traveled a lot and knowledgeable on international affairs. So, you know, once again, if you want a point person between washington and pyongyang, this man, pack sun ill, you know, hes an interesting character, chris. Yeah. He does sound like somebody who at least from the American Perspective<\/a> would be a positive, but is he someone who has kim jonguns ear . Because if he doesnt, whatever his back dpround is, whatever his personal desires or his skills with diplomacy are, it doesnt mean anything, obviously. Reporter well, it is interesting. I mean, who has kim jonguns ear . As weve seen, even in washington, if you work in the state department even, if youre the secretary of state, it doesnt necessarily mean that youre the president s favorite. But he is a man of some influence. You know, here what donald trump has said in his statement locked and loaded, you know, its an interesting thing. I think its unite the two koreas in a funny kind of way, funny if it wasnt so deeply dangerous, because north korea is saying donald trump in his later statement is driving the situation to the brink of nuclear war. South korea, the chairman of the governing party, without actually naming donald trump, has said highranking american officials are using excessive language, not carefully thought out messages, that just worsen the situation and play into north koreas hands. So theyre not too impressed here with the idea of locked and loaded. People here really wish that the rhetoric from both sides would damp endown because they feel very vulnerable in the firing line if any conflict actually broke out, chris. Bill, kelly, matthew, i want to thank all of you. And i want to bring in nbc military analyst, Major General<\/a> bob scales who wrote the bob scales on war. The future of americas military at risk. Its good to see you. And. Hi, chris. Been a huge advocate of watch what they do, not what they say. Right. Because we have been focused very much on what these two men have been saying and obviously in particular the rhetoric that we have not heard from a u. S. President before, certainly not with the regulator weve heard it over the last several days from President Trump<\/a>. So what do you see that tells you where we could be heading next . Well, right now i see very, very little action in the theater, both on the north side and on the south side, chris. For instance, theres no evidence that the North Koreans<\/a> have started to move into any of their forward positions. Theres no evidence that they are going to conduct any civilian drills in pyongyang, which is another early indicator. On the south side, theres no evidence that the south korean army has gone to a higher deaf con. Theres no evidence that the u. S. Command there is on any elevated war fighting condition. The only thing that ive heard is that our intelligence gathering, our ow 2 has been heightened. Other than that, theres far more rhetoric involved in this kwon taking than there is any type of military action. So as a strategic move because im interested in your take on this as a military man, and in the military you deal with a lot of specificity. If you give an order, you want to make sure that the people youre giving that order to understand exactly what you want, when you want it it and how you want it to be performed. But the president making some rather broad statements which obviously has some strategic tactical point at looegts from his view. How do you view it. A couple of points, first of all, i think the military at this stage has clearly discounted president ial rhetoric. I mean, weve seen several pronouncements by the president , approximate tweets by the president relating to military affairs. Lets face it, that the people in charge at the top, jim mattis, joe dunn ford, mcmast sker and now john kelly are very levelheaded men who talk to each other and who have a wonderful dialogue. Its interesting to note, chris, that all four of these men served together in the same area in iraq. So the military exclusive dialogue has been very calm, very measured. The instructions to the combatant command, particularly those in hawaii and in korea have been very, very measured. So on the one hand you have rhetoric on both sields at the very top, but at the military level we see so far, at least, nothing but a very calm, measured response to the crisis, chris. And again, as youre looking to watch to see where this might be headed, how closely are you watching guam . Because a lot of what weve heard, again, a lot of people have not heard about guam for a very long time. Theyre learning that these are u. S. Citizens who live there, learning about the military basis that are there. But is there anything there that youre watching that will be an indicator to you . Yeah. Thats a great question. I spoke to a friend of mine in the pentagon this morning, and he said one of the things that they fear probably more than anything else is what they call a north korean, quote, demonstration. You may remember 2011 they sank a frig gat, a south korean frig gat. You may remember that they fired a few rounds over the dmz. They shot at a south korean island off the coast of the dmz. What theyre afraid of is the North Koreans<\/a> might do something stupid like fire a demonstration round, a none Nuclear Missile<\/a> in the direction of guam. That would just escalate the situation in guam, you know, absolutely over the top. Hasnt happened, no evidence that its going to happen, but it would make should that happen, it would make the people of guam extremely nervous, chris. I also want to read you this report that i thought was really interesting from the global times. Its a state media he had editorial, obviously basically a mouthpiece for the chinese. And im going to quote it here. China should also make clear that if north korea launches missiles that threaten u. S. Soil first and the u. S. Retail yachts, china will stay neutral and if the u. S. Strikes first, if the United States<\/a> and south korea carry out strikes and try to overthrow the north korean regime, china will prevent them from doing so. What do you make of that . This is very interesting. You know, it speaks to how china is addressing this whole problem. Whats china interested in . Number one, keeping the north korean regime in power. And number two, its the south china sea. Their Strategic Center<\/a> of gravity is not korea. Its the south china sea. That it is their resource zone. They have said this dozens of times in the public media. So the more thk keep the United States<\/a> and its allies engaged in the north in the vicinity of north korea without prompting the south or the north to do anything untoward, it becomes an economy of force measure for china. So theyre perfectly happy to let the tensions bubble in the north, have the United States<\/a> commit its resources to northeast asia and pull away from the south china sea. China is doing what they always do, and thats conduct diplomacy and military operations in their own interest, nothing has changed. Major general robert scales. Fascinating stuff. We thank you very much for being with us. Up next, the president unleashing on Mitch Mcconnell<\/a>, forcing republicans to take sides in a dispute thats growing uglyier every tweet. Is the president did he railing his own agenda by attacking the majority leader. Were Just Moments Away<\/a> from hearing the president , and we will bring you that live as it happens. Your brain is an amazing thing. But as you get older, it naturally begins to change, causing a lack of sharpness, or even trouble with recall. Thankfully, the breakthrough in prevagen helps your brain and actually improves memory. The secret is an ingredient originally discovered. In jellyfish. In clinical trials, prevagen has been shown to improve shortterm memory. Prevagen. The name to remember. How to win at business. Step one point decisively with the arm of your glasses. Abracadabra. The stage is yours. Step two choose la quinta. The only hotel where you can redeem loyalty points for a free nightinstantly and win at business. Hey, is this our turn . Honey. Our turn . Yeah, we go left right here. woman vo Great Adventures<\/a> are still out there. Well find them in our Subaru Outback<\/a>. avo love. Its what makes a subaru, a subaru. Get 0 apr financing for 63 months on all new 2017 Subaru Outback<\/a> models. I said mitch, get to work and lets get it done. They should have had this last one done. They lost by one vote for a thing like that to happen is a disgrace, and frankly, it shouldnt have happened. That i can tell you. It shouldnt have happen. If senator Mitch Mcconnell<\/a> stepped down say its time for him to retire . Well, ill tell you what, if he doesnt get repeal and replace done and if he doesnt get taxes done, meaning cuts and reform, and if he doesnt get a very easy one to get done, infrastructure, if he doesnt get them done, then you can ask me that question. President trump making a highly risky political move again, going after the most powerful man on capitol hill, snoit majority leader Mitch Mcconnell<\/a>. The president hasnt been happy since the healthcare bill failed in the senate. Can you believe that Mitch Mcconnell<\/a>, who has screamed repeal and replace for seven years couldnt get it done . Must repeal and replace obamacare. Net result, Senate Republicans<\/a>, who hell need, by the way, to get his agenda through, taking sides, and not trumps. Senator orrin hatch, the most Senior Senate<\/a> republican tweeted that mcconnell is the best leader that weve had in my time in the senate. Through very tough challenges, i fully support him. Senator jeff flake tweeted his support and said he does a tough job well. Tennessee senator bob corker wrote, from hemt care to tax reform to infrastructure, tough issues to tackle this fall. None better than Senate Majority<\/a> leader to get a good outcome. And earlier today senator Susan Collins<\/a> of maine added her voice. Majority leader mcconnell understands the senate is a dlib ra active and diverse body. He enjoys broad support in our caucus. For more i want to bring in bob could you sack who is the editor in chief of the hill and cnbcs john heart wood. So, john, here is the deal. Whats the strategy here to threaten Mitch Mcconnell<\/a>, to force members of the senate whose vote youre going to need to come out and say we support him, hes our leader, almost as a postscript thats not written. He wins, you lose, donald trump. Whats the strategy . Chris, i dont think there is a strategy. I think what donald trump does from moment to moment are things that make donald trump feel good and look good. So in the wake of this failure on obamacare, by complaining about Mitch Mcconnell<\/a> and complaining about Senate Republicans<\/a> and complaining about john mccain, he is casting blame on other people rather than himself, trying to make himself feel bigger at their expense. And the problem for him is that increasingly senators are being smacked in the face with what theyve known all along, which is that donald trump doesnt care about policy, he doesnt care about the Republican Party<\/a>, he doesnt share their values, and hes going to do whats in their interest and is willing to throw them under the bus when anything goes bad. So, bob, what is the feeling on the hill here . It does seem like more and more people are feeling more and more emboldened to separate themselves further and further and away from this president , but its not just Mitch Mcconnell<\/a>. Hes picked battles with jeff flake, with lisa murkowski, with dean heller. Is there any way that this doesnt blowup in in face . Remember, this comes although a very bad time because september is going to be filled with a lot of fiscal deadlines that republicans are expected to lose. So raise the debt ceiling in a clean way which a lot of conservatives dont want to do and also fund the government. In all likelihood thats not going to include any kind of wall funding for trump does he sign a bill that doesnt include wall funding . To your point, obviously youre looking at 2018, and if theres a promise besides repeal and replace obamacare that he talked about more, its building that beautiful wall. Yeah. Thats right. And thats why the chances of a Government Shutdown<\/a> are on the rise, at least some point this fall maybe theyll have a short Term Extension<\/a> at the end of september, but trump wants that wall. I think thats far more important to him than actually obamacare because that was his number one promise on the campaign trail. So this is very difficult for the Republican Party<\/a> and democrats just have to sit back. You know, if they want to get tax reform, theyre going to have to be united. When we interviewed mcconnell earlier this year, that was his message. They are not united, and the last thing is remember, that trump has not endorsed jeff flake for reelection, and there are indications that possibly he could back primary challengers to sitting senators. That could be another problem for mcconnell. Yeah. And im wondering if that dome behind you might just explode if that happens, as if it hasnt already. He has a lot of people around him who dont know how washington works, who vnlt been part of the legislative process. Mike pence is not one of them. I mean, is no one saying to him youre going to need republicans because, mr. President , you are not getting any of the democrats on these big issues . Its hard to know what mike pence says in private. He is so sink oh fan particular in public its difficult to imagine him talking straight to the president , but maybe he does. I talked to one republican strategist today who said that you cannot believe the personal zbus for donald trump within the senate. And what that means is that there are some things on which they share priorities. They both feel a strong imperative to get something done on tax cuts. Probably not tax reform, thats too hard, but some cuts in tax rates. And doesnt everyone want infrastructure bill . I mean, virtually everyone . Well, republicans dont agree the priority that donald trump has attached on that. They dont want to spend a lot of public money on that, so thats one thats going to be trouble. And as bob indicated, raising the debt limit, passing a budget, all of that is in jeopardy. The odds of a shut down or a government default, those have been going up lately. And in the meantime, you have people watching this. Weve all seen the polls. Weve seen the president seem to be slipping with his base. Lewis berg dov who you see early in the morning here went out to North Hampton<\/a> county, pennsylvania, and he got a sense of at least an he can doeltsel what voters are thinking so far about trumps performance. Let me play some of that. I think hell be okay. Just got to get some stuff sorted out. I think he needs to address a few issues that need to be addressed. If this is something he wanted to grow into, okay, but at least show that youre looking ahead and a grasp of the issues for which youre responsible. I mean, its scary, like, okay, are we going to be in war in a month or two or three. I think hes doing a terrific job. First of all, he is hes kept his promises. Hes done as much as hes been able to do. He doesnt affect me any, but he does affect the children and the elderly, and im not happy about that. Its a little scarelyry, aid have to say. Im not quite sure where hes going to go, especially with the north korea threat. Hes doing a good job. What do you like most. Dont take any crap. Trying to get her done. Hes doing good with immigration. Im not really kevgt, but not r single choice has been terrible, but hes kind of getting in his own way. I do not approve of the job that our president is doing so far. Bob, mixed response to say the least. And he does have, and ive seen it when ive gone out, he does have this core group of people who have said to me multiple people have said to me theres nothing he can do that will make me not support him. They like that he continues to be a disrupter. They like that. Yes. He is not somebody who is out there and doing it the way that it used to be done before us, because they think the way it was done before is broken. Having said that, on the house side, how nervous are people starting to get because weve been talking a lot about the senate in recent weeks, but how nervous are some of these house members. Theyre very nervous, because the house is in place. Its going to be difficult for democrats to win back the house, but the map for the senate is a lot more gop friendly this cycle. So there are a lot of nervous house members. And theyre nervous also if they dont get something done like wall funding or passing a budget that trump will point the finger at them. I think theres a very nervous time. And honestly i think that its the job of the new chief of staff, generally kelly, hes got to get some order that this mcconnell feud has to be settled one way or the other because its going to be a very, very turbulent fall, ask it could be a very difficult 2018 for republicans. John kelly may be the only person who has more jobs than Jared Kushner<\/a>. Yeah, real quick, john. Chris, i was just going to say, yes, he has a core base that supports him, but that base is smaller than it used to be. Yeah. Thats why hes gone from the low 40s to the mid 30s, and the smaller that number gets, the less republicans are going to defend him against, say, the russia investigation that Robert Mueller<\/a> is pursuing. And were going to talk about that coming up as well. John harwood, bob could you sack. Thanks so much coming in on a summer friday afternoon. Thank you so much. Up next, shocking video of a near disaster at a parking garage. A park plungs seven zoers to the ground. What happened . And you have to be in it to win it. People lining up for not one but two chances at massive multimillion dollar jackpots totaling close to a billion dollars. What are your chances of winning . During our made to move 2017 clearance event, you can do endless online research. Or, you can take advantage of our best offer ever on an xt5. Dont wait. Our 2017 models will be moving fast. You can drive a car. Or you can drive a cadillac. Come in now before the end of our made to move 2017 clearance event and leave with the perfect cadillac xt5 for your next adventure. Choose a low mileage lease on this xt5 for around 339 per month. Ahyou the law . Weve had some complaints of. Is that a fire . Theres your payoff, deputy. Git velveeta shells cheese. Theres gold in them thar shells. When this guy got a flat tire in the middle of the night, so he got home safe. Yeah, my dad says our insurance doesnt have that. What . you can leave worry behind when liberty stands with you\u2122. Liberty mutual insurance. Them. Thats why in zwrun we began an Historic Initiative<\/a> to expand apprenticeship and Work Force Training<\/a> programs in all industries. Were expanding pathways to success, so important. And apprentice ships are one of the many avenues that lead to the great jobs completely debt free. And who knows more about the word atren r pren advertise than donald trump. In fact, under the apprenticeship you earn while you learn. So important and so great. And you love getting up in the morning and going to work and a lot of great things involved here. Were also here today to discuss additional steps we will be taking to expand apprenticeship programs, especially for women and minorities in s. T. E. M. Fields where women have been truly underrepresented, really i guess you could say underrepresented for many, many decades. Technology has become a part of nearly every industry, from manufacturing to retail. And we want all of our citizens, every single citizen, including women and minorities, to have access to highpaying tech jobs and other s. T. E. M. Related jobs. American workers are the best there is anywhere in the world, and were finding work for them. They p built the sky skarms of our cities, the roads and bridges across our land, and well be building plenty of new roads and bridges, by the way. The technology that has revolution iced the globe and so much more, as youre well aware. Their skills, talent and grit have always put america on top. And were going to remain on top, but at a much higher level than we are right now. And speaking of now, it is our job to make sure that they have the training immediately to lead us into the future. We have great, great hope. We have a great, great future, this country. Theres never been more optimism. And again, unemployment at a 16year low. So were honored to have all of you. Mr. Secretary, thank you very much, thank you very much. We appreciate it. And ivanka, congratulations on working so hard. Thank you. We really do appreciate it. Thank you. Any questions . Mr. President , what did you mean by military solutions are locked and loaded as it relates to north korea . I think its pretty obvious. We are looking at that very carefully, and i hope that they are going to fully understand the gravity of what i said and what i said is what i mean. So hopefully theyll understand, peter, exactly what i said and the meaning of those words. Those words are very, very easy to understand. Any problems on the diplomatic back channel . Well, we dont want to talk about progress. We dont want to talk about back channels. We want to talk about a country that has misbehaved for many, many years, decades, actually, through numerous administrations, and they didnt want to take on the issue, and i have no choice but to take it on. And im taking it on. And well either be very, very successful quickly, or were going to be very, very successful in a different wayic requestel. Angela merkel says she says a military solution to fight with north korea. Why is she wrong . Well, i think maybe shes speaking for germany. Let her speak for germany. Shes a friend of mine, very good person, very good woman. Shes a friend of ivanka. Perhaps she is referring to germany. Shes certainly not referring to the United States<\/a>. That i can tell you. Mr. President , you said you want to send a strange message to north korea. What do you say to critics who say the rhetoric is raising attention. Theyre only saying that because its me. If somebody else uttered the exact same words that i uttered, theyd say what a great statement, what a wonderful statement. Theyre only doing it but i will tell you, we have tebs of millions of people in this country that are so happy with what im saying because theyre saying finally we have a president thats sticking up for our nation. And frankly, sticking up for our friends and our allies. And this man will not get away with what hes doing, believe me. And if he utters one threat in the form of an overt threat, which by the way he has been uttering for years and his family has been uttering for years or if he does anything with respect to guam or any place else thats an american territory or an american ally, eltruly regret it and elregret it fast. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Thank you very much. So that was the president in bedminster, new jersey. You heard those questions being asked by our own Peter Alexander<\/a> and news being made, even though it was an event about apprentice ships, he was asked first and for most what exactly did he mean about locked and loaded. And he said thats its pretty easy to understand and he said that something would happen quickly. He didnt want to talk about any back channel diplomacy. I want to bring back Kelly Odonnell<\/a>. Bob could you sack is editor in chief. Let me go to you irs if. This is not a president is backing off in any way, shape or form. Every time hes been asked about his words that first raised eyebrows about north korea he has doubled down. He has. And as you can tell by Peter Alexander<\/a> being there as the nbc representative for tv today, he and Kristen Welker<\/a> and i were sort of gaming out would the president be open to taking questions on this subject even though the reason he brought the press pool together was for a separate subject that he began with, and we felt that clearly the president seems to believe that by continuing to make his points loudly around the world, that that will actually advance some of his agenda items with respect to north korea. So as peter was there with the question, the president knew that was coming, clearly. Multiple questions. And was prepared to talk about it. Yes. It almost seems like its a new tactic from the president that especially while he is at his home and wanting to emphasize that hes working. Thats been a big threat that weve been hearing from senior officials, but must believe that the extensive comments he made yesterday were good for his administration and therefore opening it up today as well. And so he was ready with those questions and clearly wants to make kim jongun aware that the tone of u. S. Posture toward him will not be the same as past president s. President trump likes to make that point, referring to the many years that the kim family has had the United States<\/a> as a rival on the world stage. And the president also not wanting to talk about some of the other news of this day, back Channel Communications<\/a> or negotiations or other diplomatic steps that may in fact be happening simultaneously, wanting to get that close to the vest as all of this unfolds. C i say. Actually, focusing a message here, john harwood, but im not sure if i was a betting woman i would have put my that are on him taking questions if i wasnt going to put it on the Mega Millions<\/a> today. And the fact that he is, again, day after day after day now giving essentially the same statement, same strong words, same threats, essentially, suggesting this man will not get away. If he utters one threat which hes been uttering for years or does anything with guam or any other u. S. Ally or territory, eltruly regret it. The fact that he did this today, does that suggest to you at all that some of his advisers who are in the military, generals surrounding him are signing on to this as a strategy. Yes, it did. I found his remarks a little bit confusing. On the one hand he didnt repeat the things that he said before, which seemed to me an attempt to turn the dial down slightly. By not using the phrase locked and loaded . Right. And or fire and fury. Right. Or whatever. So he didnt repeat those things. He also didnt comment on back channel negotiations when peter raised that question, which was a suggestion that maybe he thought some restraint was in order to given what was going on behind the scenes. So that was one thing. But then at the end he drew a line not just on doing something with respect to guam or other american potential targets, but he did it as you just said, in the case of an overt threat, which is something that is an on going thing that kim is doing. And so he was drawing a red line that is being crossed every day. So its hard to understand why he would do that again in those remarks. And bob, when he first said fire and fury a couple of days ago, is that when it was . Its sort of hard mou with all the stuff that was that wednesday, tuesday . Tuesday. Thank you, Kelly Odonnell<\/a> whose memory is clearly better than mine is. Bob, do you think the concern that was expressed by members on the hill pretty quickly, some of them, including republicans about the level of the belly kos it of rhetoric i guess you could say, do you think that has got them slugging . Is it making them more nervous . What do you think their reaction is going to be probably more privately than publicly to this. I dont think the president wants to look like hes backing down. But at the same time ep didnt take as many questions as he did yesterday and didnt add to another sound bite that hes given us, the media, for all most of this week. I dont think members of congress who are concerned about his rhetoric on north korea has much of an effect on what trump is going to say, because as trump as pointed out, like all the experts, they didnt have a solution to north korea in the past, so im going to do it my way. And of course his way is tough and it makes a lot of people scared and concerned, but the i do the listen, theres probably some back channel talks. Remember, guam has been threatened by north korea before, but the fact that its a new president and both sides are using some bluster, its getting a lot more attention. But i think thats an indication that there are some type of talks going on. Yeah. And i think that a lot of the concern that many of us have heard from people about how nervous this is making a lot of americans, he clearly believes the opposite, that tense of millions of americans actually feel better with his get tough talk. I want to thank Kelly Odonnell<\/a>, john harwood, bob could you sack. And well be right back. Does psoriasis ever get in the way of a touching moment . If you have moderate to severe psoriasis, you can embrace the chance of completely clear skin with taltz. Taltz is proven to give you a chance at completely clear skin. 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Because food is better when you start from scratch. Get 30 off at blueapron. Com cook finding the best hotel price is whoooo. Now a safe bet. Because tripadvisor searches. Over 200 booking sites so you save up to 30 on the. Hotelock it in. Tripadvisor. Concern that many of us have do you have any response to russian president expelling 755 workers from our embassy. No, i want to thank him because were trying to cut down on payroll, and as far as im concerned, im very thankful that he let go of a large number of people, because now we have a smaller payroll. Well save a lot of money. That was President Trump<\/a> yesterday, thanking president putin for expelling those u. S. Diplomats, but nbc news reporting now that Sarah Huckabee<\/a> sanders tells us President Trump<\/a> was being sarcastic when he thanked putin. Meanwhile, in the russia investigation, lets look at where weve been just over the last week or so. First youve got Robert Mueller<\/a> beefg up a team already heavy with lawyers very experienced in financial crimes. Paul manafort switches his legal team to a firm that also has a lot of expertise in financial crimes. And about the same time were learning that the fbi staged that dramatic predawn raid on Paul Manaforts<\/a> home. Let me bring in barbara mcconveyed a former u. S. Phone in michigan to look at what all this means. So are you at all surprised by Paul Manaforts<\/a> decision to switch legal teams, or is it clear when you look at that combination of events that i just laid out that hes convinced mueller is looking for leverage in financial documents and manafort is a target rich environment . Yeah. Im not sure of the reason that he might have switched legal teams, but you can see a shift in what his role may have been or what he perceived his role to be. You know, at one time he perceived his role to be providing information to congressional committees, and so perhaps he had a legal team that was best skilled at vising him in that role. And then once that search warrant was executed at his home, and remember, he gets a copy of the warrant, so he knows what violation a judge has found probable cause to believe has occurred. He sees the list of things that theyre looking for. Ask so that certainly has provided Additional Information<\/a> for Paul Manafort<\/a> to decide what his legal needs are now, and it may very much have shifted to target of a financial investigation, which brings with it differing needs for legal advice. And theres another development that i think is fascinating. A wall street journal reporter who wrote about the raid says he got an email from john dowd, the president s personal lawyer calling what happened to manafort a gross abuse of the judicial process and more like something found and employed in russia, not america. Is it unusual for trumps personal attorney commenting on something that happened to Paul Manafort<\/a> . You know, its always hard to predict what trump and his spokes people might be saying, inappropriate or abusive about using a search warrant. It is a Court Ordered<\/a> document. You demonstrate probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed. And a court gives you permission based on all of the information it has to go knock on the door and obtain documents from that location. And so i find the substance of the comments to really be out of bounds. Barbara mcquaid, former u. S. Attorney in michigan, always good to talk to you. Thanks so much. Thanks. Coming up next the president makes a surprise announcement throwing the weight of the white house behind the deadly opioid epidemic, calling it a National Emergency<\/a>. But what does that really mean . Well be right back. Hey, is this our turn . Honey. Our turn . Yeah, we go left right here. woman vo Great Adventures<\/a> are still out there. Well find them in our Subaru Outback<\/a>. avo love. Its what makes a subaru, a subaru. Get 0 apr financing for 63 months on all new 2017 Subaru Outback<\/a> models. Now through august 31. So find a venus smooth that contours to curves, the smoother the skin, the more comfortable you are in it. Flexes for comfort, and has a disposable made for you. Skin smoothing venus razors. So just yesterday the president did declare a National Emergency<\/a> on the Opioid Crisis<\/a> but only after being asked why he hadnt yet by a reporter. The white house issued a statement on the president s remarks saying theyll use all appropriate emergency and other authorities to respond to the crisis, but the rest of the details are still unknown. Lets talk more about this with a professor of psychobiology at harvard and on the white house opioid commission. Gary men dell is ceo of shatter proof. He lost his son in 2011. Bertha, i want to start with you because youre on this commission. You all wanted a National Emergency<\/a> to be declared. The white house indicated on tuesday they werent going to do that. Do you know what happened, where are we right now . Well, the president has declared an emergency and as far as im concerned thats the final answer to the question. Because we are only a recommendation body. Were an advisory body. We cannot make policy, we cannot make recommendations or regulations. And if the president and quite frankly declaring a National Emergency<\/a> requires a great deal of background behind it in order for implementation. Are you getting any indication thats going to happen because right now they just put out a statement. There is reasonable indication that thats going to happen, yes. You know, hhs secretary gary, tom price, he was asked about this on tuesday, and it wasnt needed because the administration was doing everything they needed to do. They were aware this was a terrible crisis. And they were dealing with it. From your perspective, is it being dealt with . No, its not being dealt with. I think its being dealt with at a very judicious level. For example, there are nine recommendations that we have made in our report and each one of them is being considered by ondcp, as well as in discussions with hhs, the department of justice. The veterans administration. All of the agencies that are involved, department of labor. In order to try to accommodate the recommendations and make certain that some of these have not gone beyond the bounds of the purview of the president and the executive branch of the government. Some of them require legislation from congress. Others require decisions made by state governors and others can be handled at the level of the president and his cabinet. So gary, i want to ask you, because you have been affected by this so personally obviously. And youre a business man. Sure. So youre used to taking a problem and dealing with it. What does this country need to do, first and foremost . I think its a great question. I think the country needs to do four things. And if we focus on four things and implement them, statistically theres no question it will reduce by more than half the number of parents who ever have to bury their child. Number one, we need to ensure theres enough capacity in this country so every american whos addicted has access to quality science based treatment. Number two, we need to make sure that naloxone which can instantly reverse an overdose and give someone an extra chance at life is everywhere. Everywhere theres a fire extinguisher there needs to be naloxone. Number three, need to end once and for all this feeling that this is bad people doing bad things. This is a chronic brain disease, its proven by brain scans. And you must have thought i want to get to your fourth point you wouldnt have imagined it could happen to you, right . No. Im a fixer, im a business man. I was very focused on ensuring that brian had all the best treatment and was treated the best way. And was a great kid. The best. I mean, so loving. Always caring about everyone else. Full of life. And full of compassion toward others. But in a lot of ways as i met a lot of people who suffer with addiction its the people who have the most compassion sometimes who feel the most. Sometimes its harder for them when they get keep getting labeled the bad kid as brian was and that was wrong. I was part of that. And then back to number four, we need to change prescribing practices in this country. We have the United States<\/a> has 5 of the worlds population, but we prescribe 80 of the worlds opioids. In 2015 as an example, doctors prescribed enough opioids to keep every american in this country fully medicated around the clock for three weeks. Come on. Thats a fact. Its on the cdc website. Thats a fact. So how do we solve these four things . Its not that complicated. The recommendations that bertha and the commission put forward attack many of those. But three of the four werent fully dealt with in my view. Lets take treatment capacity based on science. Theres not enough doctors and therapists trained to deliver evidence based treatment. How do you fix this . Couple easy ways. Number one, medical schools. Medical schools in this country only 7 have required course to teach doctors how to treat an addiction. Only 7 . Whats an easy fix . And the Administration Prior<\/a> and this administration have been asking medical schools to adopt it but whats an easy fix . The government gives billions of dollars in low Interest Rate<\/a> loans to students going to medical school. One change, you can only get that loan that goes to the medical school with a required course, how long would it take, threequarters of the schools would have a required course. We have to let that be the last word but i thank you so much for what you have done and for coming out and talking to us and bertha, thanks to you as well. Thats going to do it for this hour. Deadline white house with Nicolle Wallace<\/a> starts right now. Hi, everyone. Its 4 00. President trump today rolled out locked and loaded as his latest rhetorical salvo in the Nuclear Brinkmanship<\/a> between the United States<\/a> and north korea. 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