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Priebus Named Chief of Staff, Bannon to Be Chief Strategist; John Sununu Talks Trump Staff Announcements; Will Donald Trump's Wall Street Rally Continue?; Fed Chief Janet Yellen to Testify on Capitol Hill. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired November 13, 2016 - 18:00   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

[18:00:43] POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Top of the hour. 6:00 p.m. this Sunday evening. I'm Poppy Harlow in New York. And we begin tonight with breaking news. A lot of news out of Washington, D.C.

President-elect Donald Trump announcing two mayor picks for men who will surround him in the White House. RNC chairman Reince Priebus will be his chief of staff. But this is frankly being a bit overshadowed by the man he also named tonight. Steve Bannon, his campaign CEO and the executive chairman of Breitbart News, will serve as his chief strategist and senior counsel.

Just the idea earlier this week that Trump was considering Bannon as part of his senior counsel had many Americans, including some Republicans, nervous. Why? We're going to dig into that in a moment. But I should note that the press release announcing this said that they would be equal partners running this country along with President-elect Donald Trump.

Our chief political correspondent Dana Bash, of course on top of this, helping break this story as always.

What can you tell us about Bannon's appointment in terms of, Dana, what it says about how President-elect Donald Trump is feeling heading into the White House?

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That he wants to keep the band together that got him elected. I mean, that's just as much as he possibly can. Not everybody will be but as much as he possibly can. So that is why interestingly he put out this press release today both appointing or I should say announcing Steve Bannon will be his senior counsel and chief strategist and Reince Priebus will be his chief of staff.

And I just want to read you one quote from that press release. It says, "Bannon and Priebus will continue the effective leadership team they formed during the campaign working as equal partners to transform the federal government, making it much more efficient, effective and productive."

That equal partners line is quite telling. You know, that there are various ways you can structure the White House. You've been talking to some guests who have been in the White House and explain that to you. But the fact that he chose these two men who represent very different things, very different sides of Donald Trump, and very different parts of the Republican Party and, you know, sort of the relationships to politics in general tells you a lot about the way he is planning to govern.

HARLOW: Dana, this -- Steve Bannon is also someone who in leaked e- mails said that he wanted to see Speaker Ryan gone by spring, who in an interview back in 2010 said the Republican Party needed to be, quote, "bitch slapped." Are you getting any reaction from Republicans on the Hill? Because Paul Ryan's statements tonight --

BASH: Right.

HARLOW: Only talked about Priebus. He didn't even mention Bannon.

BASH: Well, that tells you everything you need to know.

HARLOW: Yes.

BASH: Steve Bannon's publication where he was before he took a leave of absence to join the Trump campaign was at Breitbart, a conservative Web site which had been setting its sights very much on the Republican establishment. Kind of in keeping with, for lack of a better way to describe it, kind of the Tea Party ideals that the establishment was heading in the wrong direction, was leading the Republican Party in the wrong direction. And so they would go after on a regular basis Republican leaders including Paul Ryan.

But it's not just that, Poppy. Some of the concern that we're hearing so far privately from Republicans, we'll see if that becomes a public situation, is that while he was in charge of Breitbart, there were some things published that were just flat-out, frankly, unacceptable to most people.

HARLOW: Yes.

BASH: For example, I'll just tell you one example on that is about Bill Kristol. He is a --

HARLOW: A conservative.

BASH: A conservative, very much anti-Trump. Led the sort of anti- Trump, never-Trump movement and continued to do so. I don't know if we have it to put up on screen. Breitbart -- now he didn't write this but he was in charge of Breitbart. "Bill Kristol, Republican spoiler, renegade, Jew," which, you know, his religion has nothing to do with anything or shouldn't, but according to the publication, it belongs in the headline. So that gives you a sense of why people have pause there.

However, I will say that people who did not go into the campaign wanting to like or respect Steve Bannon said that what they saw in private was somebody who could perform as an -- almost as an equal to Donald Trump. [18:05:08] Somebody who despite the fact that he made his money often

calling after fellow Republicans was one of the people who tried to convince Donald Trump, the candidate, not to react every time a Republican criticized him because it was bad for the greater good, which was getting elected president.

HARLOW: So, Dana, let's pull up. I have some of those full screens, guys. So let's pull them up. These are three headlines from Breitbart News. Two of them from today and then we'll bring up the Bill Kristol one. One of them is, "Meltdown Continues, Wave of Fake Hate Crimes Sweeps Social Media." The next, "Anti-democracy Cry Babies March by the Thousands Nationwide." These are Breitbart's headlines today.

Why does this matter? Steve Bannon who will now be Trump's right-hand man in the White House was, you know, the executive of this news Web site until he joined the campaign. And here's the headline that Dana pointed out. "Bill Kristol, Republican spoiler, Renegade, Jew."

So, Dana, stay with me and let me also bring my panel in to talk about this. Brian Stelter is with us. Also David Gergen, CNN senior political analyst is with us. Charles Blow, CNN political commentator and an opinion columnist for the "New York Times" and Jack Kingston, a former congressman from Georgia and senior adviser to Donald Trump's campaign.

Brian Stelter, to you, give people the context of Steve Bannon and Breitbart and explain to the American public the significance of it when it comes to pushing an alt-right agenda.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Bannon has described Breitbart as a platform for the alt-right. This is a Web site that has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years and especially during Trump's candidacy for president. Because it was a real hub for pro-Trump news. It publishes lots of kinds of stories. Breitbart has lots of things. But one of the things it is it's a white nationalist Web site. A site that advocates for what it says is its audience. Now some of this is just baseline trolling. Some is just kind of troll behavior with a site and the alt-right rejects both mainstream conservatism as well as liberalism. That's why Paul Ryan, as Dana was saying, is a top target of Breitbart and Bannon.

HARLOW: Charles Blow, you are -- am I correct to say appalled by this appointment? Why?

CHARLES BLOW, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I mean, this is not really an argument. People keep wanting to try to split the hair and the hair will not be split. People want to say I accept the parts of this that I agree with and I can somehow push away or push out of my consciousness the parts of it that I don't.

I accept the parts of Bannon that I agree with because he has had different jobs and he seems like a nice guy in person. And I kind of push away the parts of him that are abhorrent and not normal and not right. I push away the part of Donald Trump who I still believe is a demagogue and a bigot and is a misogynist. I can -- because I want a Supreme Court that I agree with. I can push aside all of that.

These hair cannot be split. You have to continue to say this to America. You cannot have it both ways. If you are supporting Trump, who is bringing both of these forces to bear into the White House, then you're supporting that. That is part of what -- you have bought this. There is no way around that. There's no other way. There's no way to hide it. There's no way to say, I agree with part of him but not all of him.

No, you get all of it and what you are getting is Bannon. You're not getting just Priebus. You are getting Bannon. And that is a real thing. If you're saying somewhere out in America that you're not part of the hate, yes, you are. If you're supporting this man and you're supporting these moves, that's the way it is.

HARLOW: OK. I'm going to have the congressman respond to you of course in just a moment. But I do want to get to our Dana Bash for some other reporting.

Dana, just more on this pick of Reince Priebus. This is who Donald Trump's kids wanted as his chief of staff. This is who Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law, wanted reportedly, right, as chief in staff. They got both.

BASH: Right. This is the person who the Republican establishment, if you will, wanted and the people most importantly regardless of what you call them, the people who will be working with President Trump in the Republican-led Congress wanted. He -- as chairman of the Republican Party knows them all, helped get them all elected, for the most part. And most importantly he is somebody very, very close to the House speaker.

You mentioned when you came to me before that the House speaker has said in statement that he's very happy that Reince Priebus was chosen. There's a reason for that because Paul Ryan has been sort of toiling away as a policy wonk trying to get some big issues passed. And he is hoping that with a Republican president despite their differences, he can do that even more so with Reince Priebus as chief of staff. So that's the reason why.

And the other thing that we should keep in mind in terms of the people who got Donald Trump elected, Reince Priebus ran an RNC which had an unconventional, almost unprecedented role in the presidential campaign.

[18:10:04] They ran the ground game. They got people out to vote. He did it by, you know, practically making people angry three years ago by spending a lot of money in doing this -- in sort of building up the operations in key states in a non-election year. And at the end of the day that combined with the enthusiasm of Donald Trump, which was really like no other, they were able to get him elected.

HARLOW: But, Dana, let me ask you this because I was looking back -- Donald Trump didn't always love Reince Priebus.

BASH: That is true. HARLOW: I mean, he said in April the primary system is a, quote,

"scam, disgrace and rigged." And then he went on to say about Priebus, specifically, it's a disgrace for the party and Reince Priebus should be ashamed of himself."

BASH: You're absolutely right. And that is part of the reason why some people who are close to Trump had told us leading into this announcement that he was not so sure because he prides loyalty. I mean, loyalty is so important to him. And Steve Bannon has been incredibly loyal to Donald Trump because Bannon saw Trump as kind of the guy who is finally pushing the issues and the policies and sort of the ideals that he had pushed through Breitbart but Reince Priebus has a very different role.

He's chairman of the Republican Party and was during the primary process with 17 people running where he couldn't, you know, pick a horse. So it was not always easy. And even in the general election, Poppy, you'll remember, because of his role, he openly criticized Donald Trump when the "Access Hollywood" tape came out.

HARLOW: He did.

BASH: Did not make Donald Trump happy but Reince Priebus had to do it.

HARLOW: And about the Muslim ban.

BASH: Precisely.

HARLOW: I mean, you know, something interesting, Dana, and about the Muslim, he said, quote, "I don't agree. We need to aggressively take on radical Islamic terrorism but not at the expense of our American values." So, for example, that has been a key thing that Donald Trump has run on, along with the wall. You know, what happens when you've got Reince on one position on that and Donald Trump and Steve Bannon on another?

BASH: Well, Trump in the campaign a few months ago, at least, have had already sort of modified that Muslim ban and that something --

(CROSSTALK)

HARLOW: He calls it extreme vetting but he never really clarified.

BASH: Right. Look, and so what you have now is the hope of a lot of people who also didn't think that that was the right way to go, somebody in the White House who is going to say that to a President Trump. No, no, no, this isn't the right policy. Whether or not he will be successful, who knows. But you're exactly right. There were a lot of issues just like Republican leaders in Congress who until, you know, I don't know, six days ago wouldn't even say the name Trump. They would just call him the nominee, disagreed with Trump on it. Now it's a whole different world.

HARLOW: Dana Bash, great reporting. Helping to break this story tonight. Thank you very much for that. Back to my panel. David Gergen is also with us. Former adviser to

four presidents. And the Congressman Jack Kingston is back with us.

Congressman, I want to let you respond to what Charles Blow said earlier.

JACK KINGSTON, TRUMP SENIOR ADVISER, TRUMP CAMPAIGN: Well, I mean, basically, I just got called a racist because I supported Donald Trump. I guess that the new word for deplorables. But, you know, I sponsored and authored the bill to build the African-American museum on the mall, five blocks away from where we sit. With JC Watts I co- sponsored a resolution to recognize slave labor in construction of the U.S. Capitol.

I come from Savannah, Georgia. 50 percent of the city is African- American. I'm not a racist. And it's easy for the left to say well, if you supported Trump, you're a racist, you're a bigot, you're a homophobe. And I understand that. But you know what? The campaign is over. And I would say, take a lesson from President Obama's words the other day, Oprah's words the other day, when she was (INAUDIBLE), or Andrew Young. I mean, it's time to reconciliate.

And I'll say this, I would not want to be part and I'm not part of the administration but if I was part of it, I would not want to be part of some where there's racism going on. I firmly believe in my heart of hearts that when you see the full team that the left, the protesters that are out there right now are going to be pleased with the inclusion. And it's going to have all kinds of inclusion on it.

And I want to say this real quick about Reince Priebus. Part of his asset was Sean Spicer who ran that ground game that match what the Democrats and President Obama did in 2008 and 2012. And he also has that part of him along with the Glad Hannon and maybe the public face, he understands the strategy. So I think that the marriage of all of these people and these talents, it's going to be very powerful for a successful administration.

HARLOW: David Gergen, your thoughts. The news of Reince Priebus is getting a bit overshadowed just to be candid by this sort of surprise Steve Bannon announcement, I mean, and the fact that Donald Trump has said they will be equals in this. What is your take overall on these two big names this Sunday night?

[18:15:05] DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, these appointments send out very conflicting signals about the presidency that Donald Trump envisions. On one hand, Reince Priebus is well regarded, very promising appointment. Very reassuring to Republicans but to many other people in the country, Reince Priebus is not a -- he's not an ideologue, he's a mainstream conservative. There's really no signs of being anti-Semitic or racist or anything like that.

And I think that he wants to make the system work. On the other hand, you know, Steve Bannon is a very, very different character. And he sends out a completely opposite signals. Breitbart is known for, you read out one of the headlines, anti-Semitism, for racism, for sexism and he's known as an arch conservative. And what is I think up in question right now is who is actually going

to do what among this pair? It sounds like that what they have asked Priebus to do is to be the chief administrator to make the trains run on time, to be a good, you know, operating officer but in setting direction for the White House, you know, over the long term it's more Bannon. Now frankly, in a business, you would call Bannon then the CEO and Priebus the COO, the chief operating officer.

I don't know whether that's what they intend or not. I would imagine that would be a big let down to a lot of people. But I will tell you that if you select Steve Bannon for a major, major post, Charles Blow is right in this sense. If you select Steve Bannon, he brings his baggage with him and you have embraced that by appointing him.

This is discretionary appoint. So you do have to take some responsibility for the believes and the values represented by one of the top two people in the White House with you. Trump, himself, will obviously be in the end call all the shots but one wonders if in end of the day, Trump is sort of a composite of the two.

HARLOW: Well, when you say you are who you surround yourself with, the question is, Donald Trump has surrounded himself throughout this campaign and now as president-elect with very different people. If you look at a Kellyanne Conway, Reince Priebus, Steve Bannon, and they all come from very different perspectives and backgrounds.

Guys, stay with me. We got to get a quick break in here. I appreciate it. A lot ahead for us this hour. Coming up straight ahead, another White House -- former White House chief of staff will join me calling Trump's pick an outstanding choice. He will explain why. Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:20:51] HARLOW: All right. Breaking news. You've heard it by now. Two major picks for President-elect Donald Trump in Reince Priebus, his new chief of staff, and Steve Bannon his new chief strategist and chief counsel.

So last hour we brought you Mack McCarthy, former chief of staff for former President Bill Clinton. He liked the Priebus pick. What about President George W. Bush's former chief of staff? What does he think? Andy Card joins me now.

Thank you for being with me.

ANDY CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF UNDER PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Good to be with you. Thank you very much. This is an exciting day for Reince Priebus.

HARLOW: Yes. I know you like the pick and you like that Donald Trump did this early.

CARD: Well, I'm glad that he did it. I felt strongly that he should name a chief of staff among the very first, if not the first person that he would announce on his team, so the chief of staff can help in building the team that will serve the president especially the team in the White House. But also in terms of helping coordinate what the Cabinet would look like.

Reince has a phenomenal record as a party leader. He's done -- he's earned great respect on both sides of the aisle actually. And he clearly, I think, deserves a bulk of the credit for Donald Trump succeeding because I don't think we would have won Wisconsin without Reince Priebus.

HARLOW: Take us into that seat, literally having a seat next to the leader of the free world, having his ear, advising him day in, day out in the middle of the night. What will the next few days be like for Reince Priebus?

CARD: He hasn't accepted the job. He's made a commitment to serve. And the commitment is 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And he has a tremendous obligation to give the president advice and counsel. He serves at the president's pleasure but he can never work as if he's trying to please the president. He's just got to do the right thing to help the president do the job for the country. And he'll -- one of the tasks he'll have is to make sure the president never makes an easy decision. That's a chief of staff responsibility.

HARLOW: Andy Card, you are the man who had to deliver the horrific news to former president George W. Bush on 9/11 that this nation was under attack. That is also the role that he will serve, to bring the worst news to the president.

CARD: Well, the chief of staff has the responsibility of conveying to the president important information no matter when it comes in. And when I had to deliver that message the president was sitting in a classroom with second graders.

HARLOW: In Florida.

CARD: He certainly didn't expect to have to hear that message. I didn't expect to have to deliver that message ever. But it was a remarkable moment. It's an iconic photograph. I am not an iconic person. But I was a witness to how the president of the United States has to meet a responsibility that is now what they talk about as a candidate when they're running but it's one that's in the constitution that calls for them to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. And that's an awesome --

HARLOW: Andy, are you still with us?

CARD: I am.

HARLOW: I thought I lost you. What do we not know about the chief of staff role? What do we not know that we don't see in those photos?

CARD: Well, it's got three parts to it. The care and feeding of the president, policy formulation and then conveying the decisions of the president for the right people at the right time so they can implement to live up to the president's expectations. It's a tough job. You have to be -- you have to unvarnished with your counsel, have very thick skin to put up with the complaints and you have to take the spheres that are thrown at the White House and try to make sure they don't -- those spears don't hit the president.

HARLOW: What's the hardest part of the job, Andy?

CARD: The toughest part of the job is really answering the question, does the president need to know? And sometimes you're flooded with information and the president does not need to know it. And other times he -- a little bit of information comes in, you've got to tell the president. You don't want to do it but you've got to. So it's really managing personality, managing those staff, managing the process and giving good counsel and advice to the president.

HARLOW: And just quickly before I let you go, what do you make of the fact that not only was Reince Priebus chosen tonight but also Donald Trump named Steve Bannon as his chief strategist and chief counsel saying in the press release importantly they will serve as equals.

[18:25:01] CARD: Well, it's not the first time an announcement like that has been made. You know, when James A. Baker III became chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan, Ed Meese had been appointed as a White House counselor. I tend to like the role of a chief of staff not having an equal. I think there should be one staff -- chief of staff at a time. I don't believe in duets or troikas or in quartets or quintets but the chief of staff has the greatest burden.

HARLOW: Andy, Card, I appreciate you joining me tonight on this breaking news. Thank you, sir.

CARD: Thank you. And thanks for calling and have me call in.

HARLOW: Of course. Have a nice evening.

Reince Priebus chosen to be President-elect Donald Trump's new chief of staff. Ahead, we will learn more about the man who had to navigate turbulent political waters within the party to say the least to help get Donald Trump elected while keeping his party from breaking apart.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARLOW: Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus chosen today to be Donald Trump's chief of staff. Priebus has been the man in the middle who navigated Republicans through a challenging primary with presidential campaign that threatened to frankly, well a whole election that threatened to tear the party apart. Our special correspondent Jamie Gangel sat down for an exclusive interview with Reince Priebus back in April.

[18:30:00] Here's a part of that report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): You are the man in the middle. You have Donald Trump doing his thing, and then you have the GOP establishment, whatever that is.

REINCE PRIEBUS, CHAIRMAN, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Yes. That's a word that, apparently, no one can quite define, but, yes, I understand it.

GANGEL (on camera): Whatever it is.

PRIEBUS: Correct.

GANGEL (on camera): All those people over there who are not on the same side --

PRIEBUS: Right.

GANGEL (on camera): -- as Donald Trump, they're saying, well, it's all your fault. How did you let Trump -- why didn't you get rid of him?

PRIEBUS: Yes. Well, look, being in the middle, you have to accept the fact that there is a thousand opinions. I mean, I'm so used to it that I don't even care. It doesn't bother me.

GANGEL (on camera): You're not pulling out your hair?

PRIEBUS: No, I'm not. People assume, oh, you must be miserable. You got a horrible job. But I don't see it that way. I'm not -- like that's what I'm saying, I'm not pouring Baileys in cereal I'm not sitting here trying to find a Johnny Walker. I mean, this is fun.

GANGEL (voice-over): In fact, the day we spent with him, he raised $1.2 million with just a few phone calls.

PRIEBUS: Let's talk about money.

GANGEL (voice-over): Took a quick brief break for hoops.

PRIEBUS: All right. I'm going to take you guys down. We have a shot off this wall. There we go. Come on.

GANGEL (voice-over): And showed off his prized possessions.

PRIEBUS: This is --

GANGEL (on camera): The gavel?

PRIEBUS: The gavel. This is when I actually won in 2011. We have --

GANGEL (on camera): Ever tempted to use it?

PRIEBUS: Oh, yes. Well, listen, I don't have to try that hard. This is the chair that Clint Eastwood spoke actually to at the convention. So this is the one that --

GANGEL (on camera): Really.

PRIEBUS: Yes. So when this all happened, you know, I obviously was perplexed when I was watching it.

GANGEL (on camera): You and everyone else.

PRIEBUS: And then when I leaned over -- because I was down behind the stage most of the time. I leaned over the balcony to look and see the center teleprompter, and it was blank. And I thought, oh, my gosh. There's nothing on that screen. He's just winging it. And then I remember going back -- I left, went back behind the stage, and I told the Chief of Staff at the time, get me the chair.

GANGEL (voice-over): He also keeps three items nearby he says are critical for getting through the day -- the Greek Orthodox liturgy, the Republican Party platform.

PRIEBUS: This is my safe zone, the platform.

GANGEL (voice-over): And this.

PRIEBUS: And, of course, I've got the Brewers schedule on top because I will put on, you know, MLB.TV, and have that in that background if I need to not watch the news.

GANGEL (voice-over): Other escapes, time with his family.

PRIEBUS: All right. Try to eat with cameras in your face.

GANGEL (voice-over): And he plays the piano really well.

PRIEBUS: So I just goof off. That's what I do. That's well I play.

GANGEL (voice-over): But Priebus admits he's always been a proud political nerd. As early as third grade, he was lobbying classmates to support Ronald Reagan and he used the GOP to woo his wife.

You went to prom together. But, Sally, on your first date, he took you to a political dinner. He took you to the Lincoln Day dinner.

SALLY PRIEBUS, REINCE PRIEBUS' WIFE: Right.

GANGEL (on camera): Swept you off your feet.

S. PRIEBUS: Right.

(LAUGHTER)

GANGEL (on camera): What kind of first date is that?

S. PRIEBUS: It's crazy. I think he tricked me. I think he tricked me and I ended up at the political event, which I didn't know about at first because he told me we were going to the movies. But, you know, we made it. It was pretty boring. It was pretty bad, but we did go to the movie afterward and we had great time.

GANGEL (on camera): And he says you can't say you didn't know what you were getting into.

S. PRIEBUS: Right. Right, I did.

GANGEL (voice-over): That said, neither one ever thought their lives would be consumed by the roller coaster of Donald Trump.

S. PRIEBUS: Reince is very strong. He has a thick skin. He lets it roll off his shoulders. You know, he's tough. He doesn't tolerate a lot of drama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARLOW: Doesn't tolerate a lot of drama, from his wife. Fascinating piece, Jamie Gangel. Thank you so much for that.

[18:34:30] We have been talking to former White House Chiefs of Staff all evening about Trump's decision to name Reince Priebus. Next, John Sununu who worked in George H.W. Bush's White House joins me live from New Hampshire. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARLOW: We continue with our breaking news coverage of the two key White House staff announcements made tonight by President-elect Trump. Reince Priebus named as White House Chief of Staff; Steve Bannon named as Chief Strategist and Senior Counselor to the President-elect.

Priebus, of course, served as the chair of the Republican National Committee and worked closely with Trump to get him elected. He was also the former chair of the Republican Party in Wisconsin and general counsel for the RNC before that. Steve Bannon is executive chairman of Breitbart News. He's a former Goldman Sachs investment banker and a former naval officer.

So, right now, former New Hampshire governor and former White House Chief of Staff to President George H.W. Bush, John Sununu, joins me from New Hampshire. Thank you for being with me.

JOHN SUNUNU, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO PRESIDENT GEORGE H.W. BUSH: It's good to be here.

HARLOW: You came out, you endorsed Donald Trump. You said this is the only man who will bring change to Washington. This is certainly not exactly status quo to name two men as equals, as he described them in the press release, Reince as the Chief of Staff, Steve Bannon as senior counsel. What do you make of both of those announcements?

SUNUNU: Well, Reince is a great announcement. He understands politics. He understands policy. He understands process and people. And he's got a thick skin. And those are the basic qualifications that, I think, you need in a Chief of Staff. I think Bannon is close to Donald Trump. Donald Trump needs somebody close to him that he can talk to about broad strategy that is consistent with his own views, so I think that's a good appointment.

HARLOW: OK. So you think Bannon is a good appointment? Because that's definitely the controversial appointment. I mean, this is someone who -- SUNUNU: Yes.

HARLOW: -- ran Breitbart that obviously pushed, as a media organization, the alt-right agenda that has had, you know, anti- Semitic headlines --

SUNUNU: Sure.

HARLOW: -- to say the least. There are a lot of concerns about whether Steve Bannon himself is anti-Semitic and racist. And obviously he says he's not, but I mean there's concerns about him. Do you have any of those?

SUNUNU: Look, obviously, Breitbart is very controversial and Steve has been involved in that controversy. And sure, it's a controversial appointment. But if the President is comfortable with it and it's somebody that he feels has been giving him good advice and will continue to give him good advice, it's only important what Trump thinks about that appointment as counselor.

[18:40:09] The hard job of administrating the White House, of dealing with Congress, of working with the Cabinet, of making things happen constructively, and getting the President's agenda through is going to be Reince Priebus' job as Chief of Staff.

HARLOW: Let me ask you this, Andy Card, the Chief of Staff to George W. Bush -- so he came after you -- he said that he doesn't love the idea of duets or the Chief of Staff having an equal. What do you say on that?

SUNUNU: Yes, I agree with Andy. Andy was my Deputy Chief of Staff. He knows the White House as well as anybody alive today. And the fact is, once you create this -- some people want a troika, some people want two equals -- you're creating an unnecessary tension. They really have two separate jobs. They may be equal in status the way Cabinet officers are all equal to each other, but there are inequalities even within the cabinet. And I think, eventually, over time, you're going to see an inequality develop, and I suspect the Chief of Staff will end up being the go-to guy for the President.

HARLOW: I got 15 seconds. You said you think Trump will also pick a woman in his cabinet. Who?

SUNUNU: Oh, I think he'll pick a woman. I'm not sure who. Folks are talking about Kelly Ayotte, the senator from New Hampshire that lost.

HARLOW: Yes.

SUNUNU: She'd be great in the Cabinet.

HARLOW: Maybe Defense Secretary.

SUNUNU: She could do that. She was great on the Defense Committee in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in Congress, so I think she's got the capacity to do that. I think she'd be a great service.

HARLOW: She didn't support Donald Trump at the end, though. Would that be a problem?

SUNUNU: Donald's going to be a big man and that's not going to be an issue with him in his selections.

HARLOW: All right.

SUNUNU: It may be a consideration but not an issue.

HARLOW: Governor John Sununu, appreciate your time. Thank you, sir.

SUNUNU: Thank you. Yes.

HARLOW: All right. Quick break. We're back after this.

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[18:45:39] HARLOW: We are continuing to follow major breaking news tonight. Donald Trump naming RNC Chair Reince Priebus as his Chief of Staff, also selecting Steve Bannon, his campaign CEO and executive chairman of Breitbart News, as chief strategist and senior counsel.

Let's bring back in my panel. David Gergen, a CNN senior political analyst and former presidential adviser to four presidents is with us. Jack Kingston is back, former Congressman from Georgia. Brian Stelter, a CNN senior media correspondent and host of "RELIABLE SOURCES" is with us. And Symone Sanders, CNN political commentator and former press secretary for Bernie Sanders.

Let us dive in to see Bannon first because he's the one, frankly, getting a lot of the attention tonight over Reince Priebus, because this is a surprise announcement to name two men basically as equals, as Trump put it in the press release. And this is a very controversial pick, Brian. Why?

STELTER: Uniquely controversial. And I want to recognize a lot of our viewers at home. This is frightening to them, and I think we should knowledge that. This may feel, for a lot of our viewers at home, like a national emergency.

Why? Because Steve Bannon has been described as someone who has been described as a White supremacist, as someone who is an anti-Semite. Now, he would completely reject that but these are not random people on Twitter saying this.

These are people like Anna Navarro saying these sorts of things. There was a 2007 case between Bannon and his ex-wife where his ex-wife alleged, in court documents, that Bannon said he did not like Jews. Now, he denied that, completely denied that. And there are friends of his who say they have known him for years and have never heard a racist word or action from his mouth.

All that said, Bannon is uniquely controversial. John Weaver, a Kasich strategist, is saying on Twitter this evening, the racist, fascist extreme right is now represented footsteps from the Oval Office.

HARLOW: Congressman Kingston, why do you disagree with those descriptions of Steve Bannon?

JOHN KINGSTON (R), FORMER REPRESENTATIVE FOR GEORGIA: Well, when somebody quotes an ex-spouse, I hardly think it's worth responding. Ex-spouses never say or very rarely say complimentary things. I've worked with Steve Bannon. I was with the --

HARLOW: But even if you were to put that aside, respond to Weaver, a Kasich strategist who --

STELTER: I mean, Anna Navarro is calling him a White supremacist Neanderthal --

KINGSTON: You know, Anna --

STELTER: -- and she's a conservative.

KINGSTON: Well, Anna is a friend of mine, but she's also somebody who did not support Donald Trump. And, you know, I understand why people want to continue this campaign, but I can say this.

As somebody who has been involved with this campaign and worked somewhat with Steve Bannon, I found him to be an honorable guy, a hard working guy. I understand why the left fears him. I understand why they want to label him and continue to stir the pot. They're very, very disappointed in the results of this campaign.

HARLOW: But, sir, this isn't the left. I mean, Brian just pointed out John Weaver, a strategist for Kasich, and Anna Navarro. Those are two conservatives.

KINGSTON: Right. A strategist for Kasich is hardly an objective party. I mean, Kasich, you know, voted for John McCain. He's a never-Trumpery. I know John Kasich. I like John Kasich, but he's a never-Trumper.

I can say this, as somebody who worked with Steve Bannon, I did not see any of these horrible charges that keep coming up. And remember, this is what we heard in early August when he got on board, oh, the campaign is going to turn into a racist outfit and a horrible organization. But the rhetoric, which the left loves to refer to, all happened pre-Steve Bannon. And he worked extremely well with Kellyanne.

HARLOW: David Gergen, I'm running out of time. David Gergen, you know, what do you say to the Congressman on that point? He says, look, the worst stuff was pre-Bannon.

GERGEN: He's got some good points, and I think he's trying to represent the position honestly.

Look, I think it's -- well, fairly or unfairly, Steve Bannon has become a symbol for many outside who did not vote for Trump but who are now in the streets. And, you know, they're deeply aggrieved, and there's a real sense of being marginalized and that White nationalism has reared its head, that racism has reared its head, that sexism has reared its head. And there are people deeply concerned about this. Donald Trump is entitled to put anybody he wants in the White House.

That goes with the territory. But when he does that, he has to understand that, symbolically, it does send a message. And I do think the time is coming -- in fact, I think it's here -- when Mr. Trump needs to address the country to assure people that he is going to respect the rights of all Americans, that he is not going to diminish their rights, that he is not going after gays and transgender, and he's not going to put women -- I think he needs to appoint some women.

[18:50:05] Look, you know, "They New York Times" published a list of 44 individuals who are now being considered for a top post in the Cabinet, White House by Mr. Trump and his team. Forty-four individuals, five are women. Five are women. You know, this --

HARLOW: Symone Sanders --

GERGEN: He has to address some of these things.

HARLOW: Symone Sanders, your thoughts on the pick of Steve Bannon?

SYMONE SANDERS, FORMER NATIONAL PRESS SECRETARY FOR BERNIE SANDERS: I think Donald Trump just put the alt-right and, to put it more plainly, Donald Trump just put a White supremacist, the leader of a White supremacist movement, modern day White supremacist movement in the White House, in the top post in the White House. And that is absolutely dangerous.

We cannot normalize this. There was nothing normal about Donald Trump's campaign. And we are absolutely crazy to think that there's going to be anything normal about his presidency.

I agree that Donald Trump -- I agree with David, Donald Trump needs to come out and say something to assail the fears of the American people. But, unfortunately, by putting Steve Bannon in the people's house, again, a leader of a White supremacist movement --

HARLOW: Right. I am --

SANDERS: -- someone who has stoked anti-Semitisms, racism, that's not going to calm anyone's fears.

HARLOW: You will all be back with me. Obviously, Steve Bannon would say he is anything but a White supremacist, but you heard concerns from other conservatives as well tonight on this pick. Guys, I got to get to break. Much more of our breaking news ahead. Stay with us. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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[18:55:08] HARLOW: Wall Street wound up giving President-elect Donald Trump a warm welcome. The Dow last week jumped to its highest level yet, up 5.5 percent in the week alone, but will the Trump rally continue? Let's check in with Alison Kosik.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Poppy. Where stocks go from here depends a lot on what investors learn about Donald Trump's policies.

Yes, we saw a Trump bounce last week. The thinking is that a Republican-controlled White House and Congress will push through a pro-growth, low-tax agenda, but we could see a lot of volatility going forward. The devil is always in the details, and there is still so much to determine, including Trump's Cabinet picks.

Markets may also be rattled this week when Fed Chief Janet Yellen testifies on Capitol Hill. Investors will be looking for clues on interest rates, and many analysts are betting the Fed will raise them in December, unless a surge in post-election volatility gives Yellen and company a reason to hold off. Poppy.

HARLOW: Alison, thank you very much. Markets obviously opening Monday morning. In the meantime, check out the new CNN Money stream app. It is here. Your favorite business topics all in one feed. Every story, video and tweet hand-picked for you. Download it now on your iPhone or Android device. We will be right back.

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