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Gunman Accused Of Sexual Harassment While In Army; Officer's Attorney: Castile Shooting Not About Race; Protest Organizer Calls For Unity; Mom Of L.A. Man Shot By Police Thinks They Will Be Charged; Investigating The Death Of Alton Sterling; Obama Addresses the Nation on Dallas Shooting. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired July 09, 2016 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: -- harassment by a fellow female soldier. He was honorably discharged back in 2015. This information comes as that city mourns the deaths of five police officers, who according to officials, were singled out and murdered as payback for the recent shooting deaths of African-American men by police in two other states. After searching the gunman's home, investigators found tactical manifestos and bomb making materials.

We have team coverage on all the developing angles of the story. Let's begin with CNN's Sara Sidner. She's on the scene for us. Sara, what's the latest you're learning?

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we're seeing people come and over and over again say their prayers, hug a police officer who is out here, and also we've seen tears. We've seen people coming up and just having a real emotional moment here at this memorial. You see it's growing. Balloons and flowers, absolutely covering two Dallas police cars.

What the Dallas Police Department wants people to remember are those five men who lost their lives in this shootout. A lot of people are also talking about the suspect and what is being found in his home and the fact that clearly this was a planned event -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Sara, very, very sad moment indeed. All right, stand by. I want to get back to you shortly. As police dig into the shooter's background, we're new details about Micah Xavier Johnson, on one hand friends described him as a jokester, fun loving saying nothing in his character foreshadowed his deadly rampage.

But police say he was infuriated and wanted to kill white police officers in general and wanted to kill white people. That's what he told me. Inside his home they found ammunition and bomb making materials and radical anti-white manifestoes.

CNN's Ed Lavandera has been looking into the shooter's background for us. He is joining us now with more details from Dallas. What else are you learning, Ed?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Wolf. As those detectives continue to unravel the psychological aspect of this case and of the killer, Micah Johnson, one of the things that they'll be looking at as well is a case dating back to 2015 -- 2014 while he was in the military, Micah Johnson was accused of sexual harassment.

This was not a criminal complaint. It was an administrative complaint that was handled within the military. The accuser in that case requested two things, a protective order custody, which she was granted as well as Micah Johnson being sent to get mental treatment and that sort of thing.

So those are some of the new details that we are learning in Micah Johnson's history. This dating back to his time in the U.S. military. This as investigators here in downtown Dallas still have a number of city blocks, cordoned off as investigators comb through the crime scene.

Finding shell casings on the streets and parking garage where all of this flurry of activity took place on Thursday night. That work continues here in downtown Dallas today -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, thanks very much, Ed Lavandera for that. We're also hearing today from the lawyer representing Police Officer Geronimo Yanez. He is the police officer who shot 32-year-old Philando Castile inside his vehicle on Wednesday in Minnesotat.

Castile's girlfriend livestreamed the aftermath of that shooting. CNN's Brynn Gingras is following the story. She's joining us from Saint Paul in Minnesota right now.

Brynn, Yanez's attorney is saying there's more to that traffic stop than what many have seen in the video and that race, the lawyer says, was not a factor. What else is he saying?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. In fact, Wolf, we had a brief conversation with Tom Kelly, Yanez's attorney, and several times he said this had nothing to do with race. Initially what he did is gave us a statement. I want to read part of that to you.

He said, "This tragic incident had nothing to do with race and everything to do with the presence of a gun. Regrettably the use of force became necessary in reacting to the actions of the driver of a stopped vehicle."

So that's what he said in the statement. When we followed up with a phone call and asked him to elaborate on that. He basically said during that traffic stop, before that live video, he said that a gun was shown.

And that Castile did not listen to commands of Officer Yanez, and of course, we now know how that traffic stop ended. But these are some details that we haven't heard yet and that we're hearing now from the officer through his attorney -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Brynn Gingras with an update on that, thank you.

Protesters are planning to march against police brutality in several cities today. Last night in Rochester, New York, 74 people were arrested for disorderly conduct as hundreds protested police shootings, most of the rallies have been a lot more peaceful from Philadelphia to San Francisco.

People marched to have their voices heard. In Atlanta, police blocked protesters from entering a major interstate and arrested two people.

Let's bring in one of the organizers of the protests in Dallas where the police officers were killed. Dominique Alexander is a minister. He is president of the Next Generation Action Network. Dominique, thanks very much for joining us.

[12:05:08]You're obviously condemning what occurred that tragic day. But now we're seeing protests overnight in other places, very peaceful, generally very peaceful. More planned today. Does this bring you hope to see people rising up? Do you think they're doing it the right way?

DOMINIQUE ALEXANDER, DALLAS PROTEST ORGANIZER: Well, I can tell you, Wolf, overall, overall people are outraged with the continuation of addressing police brutality in America. There are some issues in America and unless they be addressed we are -- the sad thing is that we'll continue to go through these different things.

We know two things that there is a problem with police brutality. One there is a problem with gun laws in America and these problems are not new. They didn't happen a week before, they didn't just become a new situation.

These problems have been a problem and our elected officials across the country from federal, state, and locals have not addressed the issue of the community's outrage when it comes to police brutality.

BLITZER: So what is the core of your movement? What is the most important issue you're trying to address?

ALEXANDER: The organization, The Next Generation Action Network's core mission is to eliminate hate in all different factions. The Next Generation Action Network do not condemn the violence all week long from Alton Sterling, from Philando Castile, from the officers shooting, from the two victims that also got shot.

One of the ladies shield her son while the officer was shooting. We condemn all of those things, but we also put the focus on our elected officials to take up the job and actually do their job.

We are tired of coming out here, addressing these things from Trayvon Martin all the way to now. These issues are not new. Yet we're coming across the country and responding to all of these acts of violence.

And our government is playing the rhetoric game and playing back and forth when the people are crying. The people are going through things daily of being victimized in every different fashion and we are not addressing the core root of the problem.

We are not addressing what Dr. King said years ago in the issue of poverty. All of these issues are a direct root cause of poverty in America that's been lingering for years now. BLITZER: Dominique, I'm curious, what was your reaction when you heard the Dallas police chief, David Brown, say that in the negotiations with the shooter, leading up eventually to his death by that robotic bomb, if you will, but he told police his goal was to kill white people, but especially to kill white police officers. When you heard that, what did you think?

ALEXANDER: Well, first of all, you know, Wolf, we do not condone violence in any kind of form or fashion. We know exactly what people have issues. They have different things of that nature. We know that violence cannot heal this problem. Violence and violence will not work to heal this problem and to change this problem.

We ask the community across the country don't use violence with violence. But actually use policy with policy. Change and reform. The change happens at Washington, D.C. The change happens in your state capitol. The change happens in your city halls and local municipalities.

Take it to the elected officials that's elected to serve the people, please do not result in violence in any kind of capacity. We know for over 400 years that African-Americans brutalized and tormented.

But to inflict pain on another person -- we know that that's not going to cause anything. That's not going to help anything at least.

BLITZER: All right, Dominique Alexander, Dominique, thank you so much for joining us.

ALEXANDER: Thank you.

BLITZER: The ambush in Dallas came after two deadly police shootings earlier in the week. Nick Valencia is in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with more. You're getting some new information. Nick, what are you learning?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tensions are still high here, protests expected for about 4:00 p.m. local later today. I'm Nick Valencia in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Coming up after the break, hear from the family of Alton Sterling who spoke frankly to CNN about how this tragedy has impacted them. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:14:06]

BLITZER: We're now learning now details about Alton Sterling, the man shot by police outside a Baton Rouge convenient store Tuesday morning. The officers were told about a man reportedly seen with a gun.

Our Nick Valencia is joining us now. Nick, I understand, you had a chance to talk to Alton Sterling's mother. What did she say?

VALENCIA: I spoke with the mother of his eldest child, she tells me that faith in God has gotten her through this grueling time. She's optimistic that the officers involved in the shooting death of Alton Sterling will be charged.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALENCIA (voice-over): In one of her first sit down interviews since the death of Alton Sterling, Quinyetta McMillon, is still raw with emotion.

VALENCIA QUINYETTA MCMILLON, ALTON STERLING'S MOM: My heart is really heavy right now.

VALENCIA: Next to her attorney, Chris Turner, she speaks frankly to CNN about the killing of her child's father.

MCMILLON: Just from the little bit that footage, I felt like they could have approached him different.

[12:15:07]The words they used could have been different.

VALENCIA: CNN was told by a source with knowledge of the investigation that it was a homeless man who made the 911 call against Sterling. The caller said that Sterling was brandishing a gun outside the convenience store. McMillon doesn't think that's how things started.

MCMILLON: I don't believe that there was a homeless man that asked for money and Alton didn't give it because he was not that type of person. Alton would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it. I do. You know, every time I get kind of emotional, I say, you know, come through to me.

Help me stand strong so I know the right things to say and do so that you can have justice. To me, justice is making sure everything is in order, making sure that the system that we have see what I see, and -- I want them to be in prison.

I want them behind bars. I believe deep down in my soul justice will be served. I don't hate them. I dislike what they did, but I don't hate them.

VALENCIA: Hate she says won't bring Sterling back, but she will never be the same again. Nick Valencia, CNN, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Nick, thanks very much. Joining us now for more on the investigation into the death of Alton Sterling is Colonel Mike Edmonson. He's with the Louisiana State Police. Colonel, thank you very much for joining us.

I want to get an update, is the Louisiana State Police force on a heightened state of alert now in the aftermath of what happened in Dallas?

COLONEL MIKE EDMONSON, LOUISIANA STATE POLICE: Well, certainly from a perspective of a law enforcement officer we're telling our first responders to be aware of their surroundings, remember their training and just be extra alert when you're tending to duty out here. Safety is something that's paramount to me.

BLITZER: Has there been any credible threats?

EDMONSON: No, there has not. I mean, we certainly dialed in from a national perspective, as well as a local and state perspective. So I was speaking to the authorities there in Dallas while that was happening the other night.

We're aware of what's going on, but right now there is no known actual threat to a law enforcement officer to an entity here in the state of Louisiana, certainly not here in Baton Rouge.

BLITZER: But is it fair to say that out of an abundance of caution your police officers are taking extra security measures?

EDMONSON: Certainly I think that's important, Wolf. You know, from a police perspective, we can't hit that pause button when something happens in front of us we can't sit and stop it and go let me think about this. They have to act on their intuition, their training.

I know what our guys go through, what our girls go through as far as training, what we expect from them as far as Louisiana state troopers, I'm confident in their training. I'm confident that they are making the right decision.

But I want them to be aware and stop and think. When I spent my mobile force out last night here at Baton Rouge police Department Headquarters, I knew what was going through their head. I want to make sure they understand we've got to be perfect.

We have to know what we're doing and make sure that we put our best foot forward, especially with the public. The expectation is that we're there to help them. These ones that are protesting, we want them to be able to do so, protect their right to do so.

We have to go cognizant of the fact that people out there want to cause things to happen. They want to cause elevated fear towards the police officers. I was proud of the men that was getting hit by frozen bottles of water, how silly is that. They kept their composure.

Thirty one arrests were made last night. Let me tell you something, for the most part, it was a calm event. We allowed those protesters to do exactly what they wanted to do.

They're looking for a voice somewhere in the country, Wolf. They're trying to find a place where they can get their best message out. To do it in a safe manner, we're going to help that.

BLITZER: What can you tell us about the investigation into the shooting in Baton Rouge earlier this week, last Tuesday, which, obviously, sparked a lot of anger?

[12:30:00]EDMONSON: Well, I sat down with our governor, with Walt Green, the U.S. attorney, with Jeff (inaudible), special agent in charge of the FBI. They made it clear to us that this was going to be on their time. That they are going to take all available facts.

The governor gave them full authority from my perspective, state police, whatever they need from us, we're going to do so. They thanked the Baton Rouge Police Department that they're getting everything they need from them. They've got the videos. They've got information.

It's going to be a very thorough investigation. I can assure you. I know these people. I know what they come to from the Civil Rights Division. It will be thorough. It will be fair. It will be consistent. It will be accurate. I think they want to get it right and I know they will get it right. I want to give time to do that.

BLITZER: Colonel, one final question, when you heard about those five police officers, who were shot and killed, seven others who were injured in Dallas, not all that far away from where you are right now, what went through your mind?

EDMONSON: I was in awe. My heart was broken because when you hear those sounds of those bullets, understand that five of them took a human life of a first responder that was going to help. Everybody's running away from it, but who did you see running towards it?

First responders who are trying to do their job and to hear a gun shot and understand that five of those gun shots took a human life of an individual that was simply there to try to help. It saddens me. I've been a police officer for 36 years.

To watch that and to hear that, I close my eyes because I know a human life was taken from an individual who was simply trying to help. It was a heart breaking moment. I feel for them. My heart, my thoughts, my prayers are there with them. It's something as a country we've got to come together.

Our leaders have got to come together. We have to stay focused on doing the right thing, interacting with our faith based community. We got to be a part of community, not apart from it.

I applaud our governor who came out very quickly, he met with us and met with the faith-based community. He asked for an investigation from the Department of Justice. The things that need to be done we're doing them in Louisiana.

We've got to keep doing that. I'm just heartbroken over Dallas because it's something that should just not have happened. They did not deserve to die like that.

But you know what, I get the message that's coming from our protesters, we've got to come together. We've got to be focused. We've got to do it right.

BLITZER: Yes, there's a lot of work all of us have to do and not only in Baton Rouge, but all over the country right now. Colonel Edmonson, thank you very much for joining us.

EDMONSON: Absolutely. BLITZER: We're awaiting for President Obama. He's getting ready to speak momentarily in a news conference in Poland. He'll be addressing the issue of what happened in Dallas. We'll have his comments on that and a lot more.

We'll have live coverage coming up. The president has a message to the American people. We'll share it with you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:27:21]

BLITZER: Hello. I'm Wolf Blitzer. We're continuing our special coverage of the Dallas police ambush. We're also learning that the president has decided he will cut short his visit to Europe and go to Dallas early next week.

You're looking at live pictures coming in from Warsaw, Poland. The president getting ready to wrap up his visit there. Part of a NATO summit. He's going to be holding a news conference opening with a statement.

We presume he'll be speaking about not only the NATO summit, but also about his thoughts on what happened in Dallas, the shooting incidents earlier in the week. He'll be answering reporters' questions. We're standing by for live coverage of that.

The president anxious to come back to the United States. He'll make a quick stop in Spain and Sunday night arrive back at the White House heading off to Dallas earlier the next week.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton meanwhile they cancelled campaign stops this weekend. They're responding to the Dallas shootings, the other shootings as well. CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A gut wrenching week of violence, shaking America and inflaming a divisive political summer. The gruesome police ambush in Dallas on the heels of police shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota creating a new test of political leadership.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is too much violence, too much hate, too much senseless killing, too many people dead who shouldn't be.

ZELENY: Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump canceling campaign stops in the wake of the massacre. She did appear Friday night before black church leaders in Philadelphia calling for national guidelines on use of force by police.

CLINTON: We will make it clear for everyone to see when deadly force is warranted and when it is not.

ZELENY: Trump released a video late Friday. (END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: We're going to interrupt that piece. The president now speaking.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: -- it is my third visit to Poland. Each time, we have been received with tremendous friendship and is signifies the close bonds between our two countries.

I want to begin this press conference with events back home. This has been a tough week. First and foremost, for the families who have been killed but also for the entire American family.

In my call yesterday to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, I stressed that the Justice Department and our federal government should continue to do everything we can to assist the investigation in Dallas, and to support the police and the city of Dallas as they deal with this tragedy.

[12:30:08] In my call to Chief Brown, I commended him for showing outstanding leadership during an extremely challenging time. And asked him to convey to all the officers and their families how the American people are grieving with them and that we stand with them.

I'll have the opportunity to convey our condolences and show our solidarity when I visit Dallas in a few days. But before I do, let me just make some very brief points.

First of all, as painful as this week has been, I firmly believe that America is not as divided as some have suggested. Americans of all races and all backgrounds are rightly outraged by the inexcusable attacks on police, whether it's in Dallas or anyplace else.

That includes protesters. It includes family members who have grave concerns about police conduct. And they have said that this is unacceptable. There's no division there. And Americans of all races and all backgrounds are also rightly saddened and angered about the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile and about the larger persistent problem of African-Americans and Latinos being treated differently in our criminal justice system.

So, there is sorrow, there is anger, there is confusion about next steps. But there's unity in recognizing that this is not how we want our communities to operate. This is not who we want to be as Americans. And that serves as the basis for us being able to move forward in a constructive and positive way.

So, we cannot let the actions of a few define all of us. The demented individual who carried out those attacks in Dallas, he's no more representative of African-Americans than the shooter in Charleston was representative of white Americans or the shooter in Orlando or San Bernardino were representative of Muslim-Americans.

They don't speak for us. That's not who we are. And one of the things that gives me hope this week is actually seeing how the overwhelming majority of Americans have reacted with empathy and understanding. We've seen police continue to reach out to communities that they serve all across the country. And show incredible professionalism as they're protecting protesters.

We've seen activists and grass roots groups who have expressed concern about police shootings but are also adamant in their support of the Dallas Police Department. Which is particularly appropriate because the Dallas Police Department is a great example of a department that has taken the issue of police shootings seriously. And has engaged in an approach that has not only brought down their murder rates, but also drastically reduced complaints around police misconduct.

That's the spirit that we all need to embrace. That's the spirit that I want to build on. It's one of the reasons why next week, using the task force that we had set up after Ferguson, but also building on it and inviting both police and law enforcement and community activists and civil rights leaders, bringing them together to the White House. I want to start moving on constructive actions that are actually going to make a difference because that is what all Americans want.

[12:35:16] So when we start suggesting that somehow there's this enormous polarization and we're back to the situation in the 60s, that's just not true. You're not seeing riots, and you're not seeing police going after people who are protesting peacefully. You've seen almost uniformly peaceful protest and you've seen uniformly police handling those protests with professionalism.

And so as tough as hard as depressing as the loss of life was this week, we've got a foundation to build on. We just have to have confidence that we can build on those better angels of our nature. And we have to make sure that all of us step back and do some reflection, and make sure that the rhetoric that we engage in is constructive and not destructive, that we're not painting anybody with an overly broad brush, that we're not constantly thinking the worst in other people rather than the best. If we do that then I'm confident that we will continue to make progress.

Now, here in Europe, this is a pivotal moment for our alliance. In the nearly 70 years of NATO, perhaps never have we faced such a range of challenges all at once, security, humanitarian, politically.

NATO nations, the United States, Canada, France, Belgium, and Turkey, have endured heinous terrorist attacks directed or inspired by ISIL. Russia has violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity of an independent European nation, Ukraine and engaged in provocative behavior toward NATO allies.

European borders and economies have been tested by millions of migrants fleeing conflicts and depravation. And a vote in the United Kingdom to leave the E.U. has raised questions about the future of European immigration.

In this challenging moment I want to take the opportunity to state clearly what will never change. And that is the unwavering commitment of the United States to the security and defense of Europe, to our transatlantic relationship, to our commitment to our common defense. And next year we'll mark the 100th anniversary of the first American troops arriving in European soil in the First World War.

And ever since through two world wars, along Cold War and the decades since, generations of Americans have served here for our common security. And quiet cemeteries from France to the Netherlands, to Italy, Americans still rest where they fell.

Even now more than 60,000 American military personnel serve in dozens of European countries. And my point is this. In good times and in bad, Europe can count on the United States, always. And here in Warsaw we haven't simply reaffirmed our enduring Article 5 obligations to our common security. We're moving forward with the most significant reinforcement of our collective defense anytime since the Cold War.

First, we're strengthening NATO's defense and deterrence posture, building on our European reassurance initiative which is already increased readiness from the Baltic's to the Black Sea. Our alliance will enhance our forward presence on our Eastern flank.

As I announced yesterday, the United States will be the lead nation here in Poland deploying a battalion of American soldiers. The United Kingdom will take the lead in Estonia, Germany in Lithuania and Canada in Latvia. This will mean some 4,000 additional NATO troops on a rotational basis in this region.

Moreover, the additional U.S. armored brigade will rotate through Europe including an additional 4,000 U.S. troops.

[12:40:16] Meanwhile, to the south, we agreed on new deterrence measures in Romania and Bulgaria. So NATO is sending a clear message that we will defend every ally. We're also strengthening the readiness of our forces against a range of threats.

So, NATO's joint task force is operational. And can deploy anywhere in Europe on short notice. With recent progress here in Poland, Romania and Spain, NATO's ballistic missile defense is coming online and we're launching a new effort to boost the resilients of Allies to better defend against new types of threats, including cyber attacks.

NATO is increasing our support to Ukraine. In our meeting of the NATO Ukraine Commission, we agreed on a new assistance package to improve online support for Ukrainian forces. Prime Minister Cameron, President Hollande, Chancellor Merkel, Prime Minister Renzi and I met with President Poroshenko and affirmed our strong support for Ukraine sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the need to continue political and economic reforms.

Thank you, I'm already getting applause. I'm not even finished yet.

And even as the NATO Russia Council will meet in Brussels next week, our 28 nations are united in our view that there can be no more business as usual with Russia until it fully implement its means obligations.

NATO will do more also to fight against terrorist networks. Every ally already contributes to the campaign against ISIL. Now the alliance will contribute AWACS, aircraft to improve our intelligence, surveillance and recognizance against ISIL.

NATO training of Iraqi security forces currently ran in Jordan will move to Iraq where they can be even more effective. And building on my decision to largely maintain the current U.S. presence in Afghanistan in to next year, 39 nations including the U.S. have committed more than 12,000 troops to NATO's training mission.

And in addition, some 30 nations have pledged upwards of $900 million to help sustain Afghan forces which is a very strong message of our enduring commitment to Afghanistan.

We're bolstering our efforts on NATO's southern flank. The alliance will increase our support to E.U. naval operations in the Mediterranean to stop arms traffickers and go after criminals that are exploiting desperate migrants. And we're going to do more to help partners from North Africa to the Middle East to Georgia to strengthen their own defense capacity.

And finally, after many years, NATO has stopped the collective decline in defense spending.

Over the past two years, most NATO members have halted cuts and begun investing more in defense. And this means, defense spending across the alliance is now scheduled to increase.

I especially want to commend our friends in the U.K., Poland, Greece, Estonia, all who along with the United States pay their full share of at least 2 percent of GDP for our collective defense. But for those of you doing the math, that means that the majority of allies are still not hitting that 2 percent mark. An obligation we agreed to in Wales. So we had a very candid conversation about this.

There's a recognition that given the range of threats that we face and the capabilities that we need, everybody's got to step up and everybody's got to do better.

So in closing, I just note that this is my final NATO Summit. Throughout my time in office, one of my top foreign policy priorities has been to strengthen our alliances, especially with NATO. And as I reflect on the past eight years, both the progress and the challenges, I can say with confidence that we've delivered on that promise.

The United States has increased our presence here in Europe. NATO is as strong as nimble and as ready as ever. And as we see from the presence of Montenegro at this summit, the door to NATO membership remains open to nations that can meet our high standards.

So nobody should ever doubt the resolve of this alliance to stay united and focused on the future. And just as our nations have stood together over the past 100 years, I know we'll stay united and grow even stronger for another hundred more.

[12:45:01] With that, let me take some questions. I'm going to start with Kathleen Hennessy of A.P. KATHLEEN HENNESSY, ASSOCIATED PRESS: Thanks Mr. President.

I wanted to specifically ask about the Dallas shooting and the attacker there now that we know more about the man who we believe did those crimes.

I'm wondering if you could help us understand how you describe his motives. Do you consider this an act of domestic terrorism? Was this a hate crime? Was this a mentally ill man with a gun? How should Americans understand why that happened? And then also, on the issue of political division and looking for solutions, they've been critics who noted that you immediately mentioned your call for gun control soon after the attacks. Do you think that in any way encourages or insures that people retreat to their corners as they think about this?

OBAMA: First of all, I think it's very hard to untangle the motives of this shooter. As we've seen in a whole range of incidents with mass shooters. They are by definition troubled, by definition if you shoot people who pose no threat to you, strangers, you have a troubled mind.

What triggers that, what feeds it, what sets it off.? You know I'll leave that to psychologists and people who study these kinds of incidents.

What I can say is that although he made have used as an excuse his anger about previous incidents as has been indicated at least in the press and as - chief brown I think indicated.

In no way does that represent, what the overwhelming majority of Americans think. Americans, to a large degree, want to make sure that we have a police force that is supported because they know our police officers do a really tough, dangerous job.

And witness the professionalism of our Dallas police officers as they were being shot at. The fact that they helped to clear the area, they helped to get the fallen and the injured out of there. They were able to isolate the suspect. And that you didn't have other casualties as a consequence of the police shooting back. That just gives you an indication of what a tough job they have and how well they do it on a regular basis.

So, I think the danger, as I said is that we somehow suggest that the act of a troubled individual speaks to some larger political statement across the country. It doesn't.

Now, when some white kid walks into a church and shoots a bunch of worshippers who invite him to worship with them, we don't assume that somehow he's making a political statement that's relevant to the attitudes of the rest of America.

And we shouldn't make those assumptions around a troubled Muslim individual who is acting on their own in that same way.

Now, with respect to the issue of guns, I am going to keep on talking about the fact that we cannot eliminate all racial tension in our country overnight. We are not going to be able to identify ahead of time and eliminate every madman or troubled individual who might want to do harm against innocent people. But we can make it harder for them to do so.

[12:50:20] And if you look at the pattern of death and violence and shootings that we've experienced over the course of the last year, or the last five years, or the last ten years, I've said this before, we are unique among advanced countries. In the scale of violence we experienced.

And I'm not just talking about mass shootings. I'm talking about the hundreds of people who have already been shot this year in my hometown of Chicago, the ones that we just consider routine.

Now, we may not see that issue as connected to what happened in Dallas, but part of what's creating tensions between communities and the police is the fact that police have a really difficult time in communities where they know guns are everywhere.

And as I said before, they have a right to come home and now they have very little margin error in terms of making decisions.

So, if you care about the safety of our police officers, then you can't set aside the gun issue and pretend that that's irrelevant. At the protests in Dallas, one of the challenges for the Dallas Police Department as they're being shot at is because this is an open carry state. There are bunch of people participating in the protests who have weapons on them.

Imagine if you're a police officer and trying to sort out who is shooting at you and there are a bunch of people who got guns on them.

In Minneapolis, we don't know yet what happened but we do know that there was a gun in the car that apparently was licensed. But it caused in some fashion, those tragic events.

So, no, we can't just ignore that and pretend that somehow political or the president is pushing his policy agenda. It is a contributing factor not the sole factor but a contributing factor to the broader tensions that arise between police and the communities where they serve. And so we have to talk about that. And as I've said before, there is a way to talk about that that is consistent with our constitution and the second amendment.

The problem is even mention of it, somehow evokes this kind of polarization. And you're right. When it comes to the issue of gun safety, there is polarization between a very intense minority and a majority of Americans who actually think that we could be doing better when it comes to gun safety. But that expresses itself in stark terms when it comes to legislation in Congress or in state legislatures. And that's too bad.

We're going to have to tackle that at some point. I'm not going to stop talking about it because if we don't talk about it we're not going to solve these underlying problems. It's part of the problem. Carol lee. CAROL LEE, PRESIDENT OF THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Thank you Mr. President. You mentioned San Bernardino and Orlando and Americans have been warned that similar attacks could happen here in the -- over there in the United States. And obviously, what happened this week in Minnesota and Louisiana and Dallas, these are not necessarily the same types of attack and the motivations may be different. But collectively they're having a real impact on the American public in that there's an anxiety out there where people are genuinely afraid going about their daily lives doing routine, things.

[12:55:10] OBAMA: Right.

LEE: So my questions are that, you know do you see any sort of common thread in these events, you know, is this sort of just a new normal? Is there anything that you can do about this and what's your message to Americans who are genuinely afraid? Because the anxiety just seems to be getting worse, not better. And these attacks seeming to happen in much more regularity that wasn't a part their experience even say year ago.

OBAMA: Well, Carol Lee I do think we had to disentangle these issues. When it comes to terrorist attacks, people are understandably concerned not just because of what's happened in the United States, but what happened in Brussels, and what's happened in Paris, and what's happened in Turkey. And what is consistently happening in Iraq and Bangladesh and all around the world.

And that's why the work that we've done with NATO and our counter ISIL coalition and other partners is so vital.

One of the things that's been commented on is that as ISIL loses territory and the fraud of the caliphate becomes more obvious. They're going to start resorting to more traditional terrorist tactics. They can't govern. They can't deliver anything meaningful to the people whose territory they control, the one thing they know how to do is kill.

And so we're going to have to redouble our efforts in terms of intelligence, coordination, our counter messaging on extremism, working closely with Muslim communities, both overseas and in our own countries to make sure that we are reducing the number of people who are inspired by their message or are in some coordinated fashion trying to attack us.

And obviously, we have built up a huge infrastructure to try to do that. The more successful we are in Iraq and Syria and Libya and other places where ISIL has gotten a stronghold, the weaker they are the less resources they have. The less effectively they can recruit. But when individuals are willing to die, and that they have no conscience and compunction about killing innocent people. They're hard to detect. And it means we've got to continually up our game.

Having said that, I think it's important to note just the success we've seen in the last several weeks when it comes to rolling back Al- Qaeda. The liberation of Fallujah got a little bit lost in the news, but that's a big town. And with our support, the counter ISIL coalition's support, the Iraqi government was able to move through their quickly.

They're now positioning themselves so they can start going after Mosul. In Syria, you're seeing progress along a pocket imagine that has been used for foreign fighter flows. And so they're on their heels and we're going to stay on it.

Now, when it comes to crime generally, I think it's just important to keep in mind that our crime rate today is substantially lower than it was five years ago, 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 30 years ago.

Over the last four or five years, during the course of my presidency, violent crime in the United States is the lowest it's been since probably the 1960s. Maybe before the early 1960s, there's been an incredible drop in violent crime so that doesn't lessen, I think, people's understandable fears, if they see a video clip of somebody getting killed.

[13:00:13] But it is important to keep in perspective that