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New Evidence Suggests Comey Fired Over Russia Probe; Russian Ambassador Visits White House; Controversy Over U.S. Decision to Arm Syrian Kurds; Besty DeVos Booed at Bethune-Cookman Commencement. 08:00a-09:00a ET

Aired May 11, 2017 - 08:00   ET

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


[08:00:12] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream.

Now President Trump defends his shock decision to fire James Comey as questions emerge about the president's motives for dismissing the FBI

director.

Meanwhile, the Russian ambassador to the U.S. visits the Oval Office, the same ambassador whose contact with Trump officials is under investigation.

And after the stunning developments of the past few days, hear what Trump voters are saying about the president's latest move.

And we begin this hour with the anger and contradictions at the heart of Donald Trump's abrupt

decision to fire the director of the FBI. On Tuesday, James Comey found out he was terminated while

addressing a group of FBI agents and not by the president, but by news reports on TVs in the room.

Now, we have learned from multiple sources that Mr. Trump spent the weekend apparently fuming over news reports about his campaign's ties to Russia and

stewing over what Comey told a Senate judiciary panel last week.

Very few people were involved in the decision, and the administration underestimated the explosive fallout.

Here is CNN's Joe Johns.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New details emerging about Donald Trump's closely-held decision to fire James Comey. A long-time

friend of the president telling CNN he was white-hot over the Russia investigation. That as anger had been mounting since Comey rejected the

president's still-unproven claims that President Obama wiretapped him.

JAMES COMEY, FORMER FBI DIRECTOR: I have no information that supports those tweets.

JOHNS: CNN reported two months ago that Director Comey was in disbelief over Trump's baseless allegation about Obama, but "The New York Times"

going a step further this morning.

MAGGIE HABERMAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST/"NEW YORK TIMES" REPORTER: He felt the president was beyond normal, almost crazy.

JOHNS: A source close to the president telling CNN Trump was spewing expletives over this comment Comey made during last week's Senate judiciary

hearing.

COMEY: It makes me mildly nauseous to think that we might have had some impact on the election. But honestly, it wouldn't change the decision.

JOHNS: Other sources say the president ultimately concluded that Comey was, quote, "his own man," fiercely independent, ultimately firing him for never

providing Trump personal loyalty and because the Russia investigation was accelerating.

CNN also learning that Comey requested additional resources for the Russia probe from the Justice Department the week before he was fired, a report

the DOJ denies.

This as the White House continues to change the narrative on how the president reached his decision. Initially touting Deputy Attorney General

Rod Rosenstein's letter, which cited Comey's handling of the Hillary Clinton e-mail investigation as the primary reason Comey should be fired.

KELLYANNE CONWAY, COUNSELOR TO DONALD TRUMP: The president took the advice of the deputy attorney general who oversees the director of the FBI,

brought those concerns to the attorney general, who brought them to the president, and they made a decision to remove him.

JOHNS: The president's explanation changing yesterday amid mounting scrutiny.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why did you fire Director Comey?

TRUMP: Because he wasn't doing a good job.

SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY: Frankly, he'd been considering letting Director Comey go since the day he was elected.

JOHNS: White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders telling reporters Wednesday that the reason for the firing actually went beyond

Rosenstein's letter.

SANDERS: Having a letter like the one that he received and having that conversation that outlined the basic just atrocities in circumventing the

chain of command in the Department of Justice. Any person of legal mind and authority knows what a big deal that is.

JOHNS: Huckabee Sanders calling Comey's actions an atrocity, but in November, she had a very different take on NEW DAY.

SANDERS: I think everybody wants to attack Comey and make him the enemy here. I think he's done the right thing by at least opening it up and

searching for those answers.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And that was CNN's Joe Johns reporting there. And in the midst of all of this, the

president has been meeting with the Russian foreign minister and the Russian ambassador to the U.S.

Now, CNN's Jessica Schneider joins me now live from New York. And first, Jessica, the story behind why President Trump fired James Comey, that just

keeps on changing. What's going on here?

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It does. You know, Kristie, the White House line is that President Trump had been considering firing FBI

Director Comey since after the election. And they also said that in the past week or so that he's gotten increasingly, would consider firing James

Comey. But you know sources that we've spoken with put it quite differently. They say that really the tension began building, President

Trump very angry with what James Comey had said back in March when James Comey had dismissed any claims of wiretapping by the Obama administration

to President Trump or then candidate Trump or any of his associates.

And then, of course, things got really bad for President Trump in the past week when James

Comey again testified before that hearing. And in that testimony we know that President Trump was supposedly white hot when Director Comey said that

Director Comey was mildly nauseous at the fact that he may have affected the election with all this press conference as to the Clinton email server

investigation and, of course, that letter at the end of October.

Of course, President Trump didn't like any implication that anything Director Comey did may have swayed the election at all, of course, because

President Trump has been very sensitive about his election win.

So, that really manifesting in the past week. And then of course earlier this week, that's when

President Trump met with the attorney general, the deputy attorney general and all this began unfolding in just a matter of days beginning Monday and,

of course, that firing coming on Tuesday - Kristie.

LU STOUT: Let's talk about the optics of those awkwardly timed meetings. Trump meeting with Sergey Lavrov and the Russian ambassador in the oval

office. What is the White House trying to signal here?

SCHNEIDER: It was a very odd turn of events that one day after the firing of the FBI director for the reason that many people believed was that his

probe was just getting too in depth about Russian meddling in the election, about any possible collusion between President Trump and/or his associates

and the Russians.

So, yes, to have this meeting the day after that firing was certainly a head scratcher. We do know that Secretary of State Rex tillerson also met

with the foreign minister at the State Department. It was an odd exchange there between Sergey Lavrov and reporters. One reporter said what do you

think of the firing of FBI Director James Comey? And that's when Lavrov turned to the cameras and he said, he was fired? You're kidding. Trying to

make light of the situation, but obviously an odd way to frame things, especially with all this controversy swirling.

Also Kristie, we know that it was revealed by Russian state media yesterday that President Trump will, in fact, meet with Russian President Putin at

the G20 summit in July in Hamburg. So, interesting that the Trump administration still continues to talk with the Russians, to have these

meetings. We know the closed-door meeting was with President Trump and Sergey Lavrov. There was that press availability for Secretary of State

Tillerson, but an interesting tact that we're not quite why the White House has been putting this on somewhat public display, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah. And in just a moment we'll go to our correspondent standing by in Moscow to just hear Russia's reaction to all this. But

before you go, I also need to ask you about what's going to happen next to the FBI? We got access to the farewell letter from James

Comey. He says, quote, I will be fine. What's next at the bureau? And what's going to be the future of this Russia probe?

SCHNEIDER: There have been a lot of meetings trying to figure out who will in fact be the interim FBIdirector. The acting FBI director right now is

Andrew McCabe. We know that he did meet with President Trump. He'll also be testifying on Capitol Hill today before the Senate intelligence

committee. This was a previously scheduled hearing. This was about worldwide threats.

But no doubt Andrew McCabe will likely be asked about the firing of Jim Comey and about the

future of the Russia probe. That's the big question here. We know that in the past week, Director Comey went to the deputy attorney general and said

I need more resources as to this Russia probe. There's some question as to whether or not that request for more resources to deepen this investigation

may have also led to his firing, but that is the question, Kristie, where does this Russia probe go, especially since we know from our sources that

President Trump has just been so angry that this probe has continued to stay in the spotlight.

LU STOUT: All right, Jessica Schneider reporting live for us from New York. Thank you.

Now, let's get reaction from Moscow. Diana Magnay joining us now. And Diana, Sergey Lavrov dismissing allegations all as, quote, fake

information. What does Vladimir Putin meanwhile say?

DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that line is consistent with everything that the Kremlin has been saying. And President

Putin, who was stopped on his way to a hockey match yesterday said pretty much the same thing. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We have nothing to do with that. President Trump is acting in accordance with his competence

and the constitution. What about us? Why we? You see, I'm going to play hockey with hockey fans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MAGNAY: President Trump then went on to score seven goals in that match, Kristie. But this must feel a little like a home goal for him, to have

viewed the way that Sergey Lavrov was welcomed into the White House by Donald Trump, the U.S. president, very, very different, for example, to the

sort of body language that we saw, for example, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

So I think that there is a certain degree of delight or interest certainly from the Moscow perspective looking at the optics and the political chaos

in D.C., Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, there is a feeling of chaos in Washington, D.C. The optics of it all, people commenting on, you have the firing, the dismissal

of Comey as this Russian probe under way and these senior Russian officials visiting the White House. But in the eyes of the Kremlin, does the Comey

firing is it going to have any significant impact on relations between the U.S. and Russia?

MAGNAY: I think they hope that it doesn't. Interestingly, Dimitri Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman in his call today, daily call with journalists, he

said it was too early to talk about a thawing of U.S.-Russia relations, and that there was a lot of work still to do, but that he was cautiously

optimistic. They are, of course, going to be meeting President Putin and President Trump on the sidelines of the G20 summit in July. That was

spoken about by the Kremlin the last time the two presidents had a telephone conversation.

And that is certainly what they are working towards. But I think this talk that we've been hearing over the last few days from the Russian president,

that he wants international cooperation on things like the fight against terrorism, on geopolitical issues like Syria, on the Korean - deescalate

tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Russia as much as the U.S. needs solutions to these crises, and it needs a stable partner, a reliable

partner, to a certain extent, in the White House. So, I think it is important for Russia to improve and work on that relationship and that

they're taking that pretty seriously. And it is not really the allegations over the hacking scandal

that have damaged that relationship, but more the chemical weapons attack in Syria and the U.S.

missile strike in response. And of course, that set the U.S. and Russia back into a sort of -- into the same kind of discussions as they had in the

previous administration.

It was the same kind of language we heard in the UN Security Counsel by Nikki Haley as her predecessor. It had apropos Russia. And takes a lot to

build that relationship back. And it certainly doesn't look like the sort of grand bargain that we were anticipating at the beginning of the Trump

administration, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Far away from that. And, indeed, Diana Magnay reporting live from Moscow, thank you.

In the U.S. the firing of James Comey has been raising a lot of questions and eyebrows, even by Trump supporters. CNN's Gary Tuchman went to

investigate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Tiny Delaware County in eastern Iowa is Trump country. The president winning big here in November. This

victory aided by the support of the owner and many of the customers in this deli, in the county seat of Manchester, Iowa. People we talked to, not

troubled at all by controversial things the president has done since taking office.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

TUCHMAN: So we were surprised to hear quite a few of them say the firing of James Comey is different.

Because there's an investigation going on with alleged ties between his campaign and Russian officials, does it bother you the timing of the firing

of the FBI director?

MACEY KINZTLE, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I would say, in my opinion, yes. I think that with his reputation that he has for all the Americans, but not

everyone agrees with his decisions, that he should have let the investigation go through before' made a decision like that.

TUCHMAN: The deli owner Shelly Shredder (Ph) didn't sound concerned.

What do you think of his decision to fire the FBI director yesterday?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's a good one.

TUCHMAN: Why do you think it's a good one?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think he should have done it a long time ago.

TUCHMAN: But after a follow-up question.

The attorney general recommended the firing to President Trump of Attorney General Sessions.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Correct.

TUCHMAN: Attorney General Sessions has recused himself from the Russian investigation.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know.

TUCHMAN: But yet, he recommended the firing of the man who is leading the Russia investigation. Does that trouble you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That it does.

TUCHMAN: You voted for Donald Trump for president?

DICK BOCKENSTEDT, TRUMP SUPPORTER: Yes, I did.

TUCHMAN: So how do you feel about the decision yesterday to fire the FBI director, the timing of it, and the decision?

BOCKENSTEDT: It was all of a sudden just like that, he should have told the people kind of his feelings or should have probably done it sooner. He knew

what was going on with the FBI.

TUCHMAN: So you don't think he was open up about why he did this?

BOCKENSTEDT: No. But that's the way Trump is. He's quick on action. I don't think he should be that way. But sometimes it's good, sometimes it's not

good.

TUCHMAN: There's no question many Trump supporters in Delaware County are completely fine with how the Comey matter has been dealt with, like this

former mayor of a nearby town.

JIM HEAVENS, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I think he walked into a tough situation there, and I would give him an a for what he's done as a former politician,

when you start to clean up a mess like that you're not going to be the player for a month with a lot of people.

[08:15:11] TUCHMAN: Does it trouble you that Donald Trump fired the man whose investigation could be imperiling his presidency?

BILL LUX, TRUMP SUPPORTER: Not at all. He needed to go. It just happened that he's maybe investigating him. He needed to go, you know that and I

know that.

TUCHMAN: But even among those comfortable with the president firing Comey, we did hear this from some.

Do you think maybe now it would be a good idea now to have an independent investigation of this possible Russian ties for this campaign?

ANGIE DITTRICK, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I think that would be the best decision to have to make, to do that, to investigate, there's no favoritism, there's

mutual people involved, you know, trying to investigate so there's that favoritism to one side.

TUCHMAN: Different opinions from people who all like Donald Trump.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Manchester, Iowa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now, the U.S. meanwhile is considering adding more airports to the ban on large electronics in carry-on luggage in U.S. bound flights.

Now, CNN has learned the Department of Homeland security is meeting with airline representatives this Thursday. And department chief John Kelly

will be speaking to lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Now, the current ban covers U.S.-bound fights from 10 airports in the Middle East and North Africa. And that includes key hubs like Dubai, the

world's third busiest airport. Nine airlines are being affected, including Emirates, one of the world's biggest airlines.

But some of these carriers are finding ways to get around the ban. Qatar Airways lends laptops to business class passengers at the gate. Emirates

and Etihad, they also have similar measures for their premium passengers. But for the rest of us, flying one of these airlines to the U.S. from eight

countires, you're not allowed to bring anything larger than a smartphone, let alone an iPad into the cabin.

Now, you're watching News Stream. Still to come right here on the program, the road to

recovery for dozens of girls freed by Boka Haram. We'll show you how they are rebuilding their lives after three years of captivity by the terror

group.

Plus, Turkey is slamming a new U.S. plan to drive ISIS from its Syrian stronghold. We'll break down what's at issue here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: All right, coming to you live from Hong Kong. Welcome back, you're watching

News Stream.

Now, South Korea's new president is voicing doubt about a landmark deal with Japan over wartime sex slaves. In a phone call with the Japanese

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Moon Jae-in said the majority of South Koreans find the agreement unacceptable. But he also

said the issue should not affect ties between their countries.

Under that deal struck in 2015, Mr. Abe offered apologies to the so-called Comfort Women. Now, Tokyo also set aside more than $8 million to help the

victims, but some victims say that Mr. Abe's apology did not go for enough.

Now, these are the Chibok girls. And just last weekend, dozens of them were freed by the terror group Boko Haram as part of a swap worked out with

the Nigerian government.

Robbed of three years of their lives, these girls and young women they are struggling to overcome the scars from their captivity.

Isha Sesay reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISHA SESAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There are the obvious signs and the subtle ones too, of a brutal three years in captivity under Boko Haram.

The released 83 Chibok schoolgirls will now join 22 others on the road to recover, here heavily guarded, until now, never before seen government

facility.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's like a hotel.

SESAY: A good portion of their days are spent in class.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They said what they want the government to do is to help them -- is to help them in the education of the girls.

SESAY: Amina Ally (ph) was the first of the long-time captives to escape from the terrorist camp. She met with Nigeria's president in May of 2016.

Under a head scarf, malnourished, and holding a baby. The minister says her progress is remarkable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: By september, they should have recovered fully psychological, and physically it will be the beginning of the next school

year, we just enrolled them in schools.

SESAY: The center has a full-time doctor, a team of psychologists, and a caretaker from Chibok.

(SINGING)

SESAY: Still, critics argue families don't have full access to the girls.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In terms of others visiting, not at all. I can say that because we have realities among us.

SESAY: The government maintains that the secrecy of the program is for security. These are, after all, the country's most famous daughters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The parents agreed we did not compel anybody, that they must be here, no way.

SESAY: Now as the center prepares to welcome the new arrivals?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just told them tomorrow I will take you to visit your sisters that just came in. They're dancing and laughing.

(CHEERING)

(SINGING)

SESAY: The end goal remains the same, giving the girls the education that was stolen from them.

Isha Sesay, CNN.

(SINGING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Turning now to Syria where U.S.-backed militias say that they have captured the strategic city of Tobka. ISIS has held that city since

2014. But an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters say that they took control of it on Wednesday and recaptured the country's largest dam.

Now, the move helps them advance on Raqqa, the operational headquarters of ISIS.

And to help recapture the city, the U.S. plans to arm Kurdish militias. That decision has infuriated Turkey. Ankara considers the Kurdish People's

Protection Unit, or YPG, a terrorist group.

Now, the issue is expected to come up when President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visits the White House next week.

Now, let's bring in Arwa Damon who has, of course, reported extensively in the fight against ISIS in Syria. And she joins us now live from Istanbul.

And Arwa, we know that Turkey has been lashing out on the back of that decision. What's the latest?

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Turkey's bottom line is that at this stage this is unacceptable and the reassureses that they have

been receiving from the United States that these weapons will not somehow end up being used against Turkey are at this stage

insufficient.

Remember that Turkey considers the YPG to effectively be one in the same with the PKK, the Kurdish separatist group that Turkey has been battles

since the '80s. And ever since the U.S. threw the bulk of its support behind Syria's Kurds. America does consider them to be

the most capable force when it comes to the battle against ISIS.

Turkey's president, various other officials, have come out and basically said the United States needs to choose. And this was happening even under

the Obama administration.

Now, there had been a sense amongst Turkish officials that perhaps with the Trump administration and supporting of the YPG would somehow be changed.

Clearly at this stage that is not the case.

And the rhetoric from Turkey has slowly been becoming slightly harsher. Turkey basically is telling America you cannot arm one terrorist entity to

fight another. But at this stage, we do expect when the meeting between President Erdogan and Trump takes place early next

week, this is of course going to be an issue that is going to be brought up.

But for President Erdogan to be able to sell this to his own population, he's going to have to make it seem as if Turkey is not simply being forced

into this, something has to happen in return.

And Turkey does have a number of demands, Kristie, at this stage, that the U.S. could perhaps use. But it's a very tricky situation, especially given

the volatile personalities, ofcourse, of both country's leaders.

LU STOUT: Yeah, a very tricky situation. Turkey is furious. They see the Syrian Kurds as an existential threat. Erdogan, as you reported, is going

to be meeting with Trump, two big personalities at the White House next week.

Is there anything that the White House could offer to Erdogan to ease Turkey's concerns?

DAMON: Turkey has had for quite ssome time a number of requests, things that it would have liked to see even the Obama administration fulfill back

when they were in the White House.

You have, of course, the extradition of the cleric Fetullah Gulen, that Turkey says was behind the failed coup that took place over the summer.

Turkey has, according to various government officials and the president, sent numerous boxes of evidence to Washington. They felt as if the Obama

administration was not taking their request to have him extradited or at the very least taken into custody seriously. This most seriously is

something that they have and will continue to bring up with the Trump administration.

Turkey also has been alluding to the fact that they want to play a role when it comes to the battle for Raqqa. They most certainly want to see the

Arabs that they are supporting, but also the various Arab units that the United States is supporting be it the tip of the spear of the so-called

force that ends up advancing on Raqqa. They do not want to see the Kurds being the force that is going to be the one left behind in Raqqa.

But again, it's a very, very tricky situation. And let's not forget that Turkey has flexed its muscle in the past. We did see them last month carry

out strikes against the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurds inside Syria. And we also saw them striking PKK targets within Iraq. So, Turkey

is not necessarily sitting this one out or sitting in a corner watching this all unfold. They definitely have moves that they can make at this

stage, and following the White House's announcement they were going to be arming and supporting the YPG, right now it's up to Turkey to make its move

to a certain degree.

LU STOUT: Yeah, and Turkey has threatened military action as we've heard. Arwa Damon reporting live for us, thank you.

James Comey may be canned, but the voices raising questions about that decision are only getting louder. CNN's Jake Tapper takes us through the

timeline leading up to Comey's dismissal.

Also ahead, President Trump's education secretary is booed while giving a commencement address. Why many of the students at the historically black

university turned their backs on Betsy DeVos.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:31:26] LU STOUT: Now, returning now to our top story: calls for an independent Russia probe grow following the firing of James Comey.

The Senate intelligence committee has issued a subpoena to former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn for documents regarding his interactions

with Russian officials.

Now, the panel will also hold a hearing. That's to take place in a couple hours. And CNN has confirmed that acting director of the FBI Andrew McCabe

will testify. We will be watching that.

Now, ahead of that, Jake Tapper took an in-depth look at what's happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Mounting evidence suggests that Comey was fired because of the president's irritation with the FBI's Russia investigation.

Now, the White House officially points to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, fresh on the job, writing a memo expressing concern about the

way Comey had handled the Hillary Clinton e-mail investigation last year.

Rosenstein faulted Comey for being unfair to Clinton for, among other things, holding a press conference in which Comey -- quote -- "released

derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation."

KELLYANNE CONWAY, TRUMP SENIOR ADVISER: The president took the advice of the deputy attorney general, who oversees the director of the FBI, brought

those concerns to the attorney general, who brought them to the president, and they made a decision to remove him.

TAPPER: Now, that's the official White House version.

The evidence to the contrary, however, is that we know from the president's public statements that he does not share any of Rosenstein's concerns that

Comey was unfair to Clinton.

In fact, the president has faulted Comey only for not going further, for not criminally charging Clinton. But, in addition to that fact,

Rosenstein's memo expressing his concerns, that was dated May 9, yesterday.

But White House officials tell CNN that the president had been considering firing Comey since the election, most intensely last week, we're told. Hmm.

If only there was some way for us to see what was on the president's mind in real time last week. Oh, right. There's Twitter.

Let's take a look at the president's late-night tweetstorm of May 2.

"FBI Director Comey was the best thing that ever happened to Hillary Clinton in that he gave her a free pass for many bad deeds. The phony

Trump-Russia story was an excuse used by the Democrats as justification for losing the election. Perhaps Trump just ran a great campaign."

White House officials tell us that the president last week was very frustrated about the Russia investigation. And let's take a look at the

letter that President Trump wrote to Comey yesterday, firing him. Number of references to his concerns about the Clinton investigation, zero.

But the second paragraph in the letter, that's all about Russia, with Trump claiming that Comey told him three times that he was not personally under

investigation.

Now, the White House apparently does not like any questions about any of this.

CONWAY: You want to question the timing of when he fires and when he hires. It's inappropriate. He will do what he wants to, just like he fired FBI

Director Comey when he was faced with evidence that was unignorable now.

TAPPER: Except, of course, that evidence about how Comey had treated the Clinton investigation that happened last year was quite ignorable for the

president, until apparently he need a justification for firing Comey.

And, by the way, reporters questioning the White House and the timing and all that, that's quite appropriate. And we're going to continue to do it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Jake Tapper there.

Now, in the last hour we heard former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone, he spoke to CNN about what led to Comey's dismissal. Now, sources have

told us that the long-time Trump confidant talked to the president last week and recommended James Comey to be fired.

Now, President Trump, he denied that and said he hasn't spoken to Stone, quote, in a long time. He said that in a tweet.

Now, here is what Stone had to say about that in an interview with CNN's Chris Cuomo.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[08:35:15] CHRIS CUOMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You have said many times, as you know, you remember what you say, that are in regular contact with the

president.

ROGER STONE, TRUMP CONSULTANT: I think I said occasionally. I don't speak to him every day. Donald Trump is his own man. There is no Karl Rove in

this administration.

CUOMO: And I'm not suggesting otherwise. But what I'm saying is why would he deny that he speaks with you on a regular, semi-regular basis? Why

would he say he hasn't spoken to you in many months when you say that's not true?

STONE: I actually don't think that's what he said, a while. I'm not sure how you define that. But beyond that, I'm just not going to characterize

what have been private conversations. Also, Chris, I'm an inveterate memo writer. There was ways to communicate besides the telephone.

And Donald Trump is a reader. So, look, I am a loyal supporter of Donald Trump. I believe he can be a transformational president. I understand his

idiosyncratic leadership style. It worked in business. It will work in government. He wasn't vice president for eight years like Nixon or four

years or three years like Lyndon Johnson. He hasn't been a student of the inside the beltway machination. He's got to get his sea legs. But so far,

so good.

CUOMO: Telling the truth is not something you only learn through politics.

STONE: That's true.

CUOMO: That's why. When he says he hasn't talked to you in a long time and we know that's not true, it just raises questions, well, if he's not

telling the truth about this, then how do we believe him when we go down the line. That's why I keep bringing it up. I just don't understand why

the president and people around him get their own way by these types of mistakes.

STONE: That would be a question you would have to direct to the president.

I'm sorry, but the Russian collusion scandal is a scandal in search of evidence. I still see no evidence that would ever hold up in a U.S. court

of law of Russian collusion with the Trump campaign. I myself am very anxious to testify for the Senate and the House committees in public. I

don't need a subpoena. I'm not asking for immunity. I'm going to give them whatever documents they've requested, although since I believe I've

been under surveillance, they probably have them anyway.

They can call me a dirty trickster, but there's one trick is not in my bag: treason. And Donald Trump didn't need help from the Russians to beat

Hillary Clinton.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And that was CNN's Chris Cuomo speaking earlier to former Trump adviser Roger Stone, a puzzling conversation there.

Now, Donald Trump's education secretary, she was met with boos and jeers at a graduation

ceremony. And up next on the program, we'll tell you why some students did not want her there.

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LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now, Donald Trump's education secretary Betsy DeVos delivered her first commencement speech since taking office, but it didn't go over well at all

with the graduates. Now, Betsy DeVos had raised eyebrows when she suggested historically black colleges in the U.S. were, quote, real

pioneers of school choice. Those colleges were actually founded as a result of American segregation.

Now, she has since walked back her comments on that. And the students at the historically black university in Florida made it clear that she was not

welcome. Here is CNN's Nick Valencia.

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[08:40:07] NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As her name was announced, the boos began. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos faced a chorus of resistance

during her commencement speech Wednesday at Bethune-Cookman University. Students at the historically black college were just as upset by her

presence as they were by the university's last-minute decision to invite her to speak.

Sophomore Bobby Luke was the only student to be kicked down during the ceremony for his protest. He spoke exclusively to CNN as he was being

escorted out. He thinks the university made a mistake.

VALENCIA: What are you standing up for?

BOBBY LUKE, SOPHOMORE STUDENT, BETHUNE-COOKMAN UNIVERSITY: I don't like what she said and nothing at the end of the day is going to change my

opinion.

VALENCIA: Outside, we meet alum Dominick Whitehead. He organized a petition to cancel her speech, one of several other petitions collected

more than 50,000 signatures.

For a college that expects a fair amount of free speech or should be a bastion of free speech, is this not the forum for someone like this?

DOMINICK WHITEHEAD, ALUMNI, BETHUNE-COOKMAN UNIVERSITY: This isn't the time and the place for her to do that right now. There's always a forum for free

speech, but I will say, you know, there's a time and a place for everything.

VALENCIA: Back inside the venue, DeVos tried to find common ground. Dozens of the graduates stood with their backs turned towards her.

BETSY DEVOS, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF EDUCATION: While we will undoubtedly disagree at times, I hope we can do so respectfully. Let's

choose to hear one another out.

(CROWD BOOING)

I want to reaffirm this administration's commitment to and support for HBCUS and the students they serve.

VALENCIA: Perhaps foreseeing what could erupt, the university president took the podium.

EDISON JACKSON, BETHUNE-COOKMAN UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT: If this behavior continues, your degrees will be mailed to you. Choose which way you want to

go.

VALENCIA: Before the speech, the university president was defiant toward those who said the university was doing the wrong thing by inviting her to

the school's graduation. Some said the decision was only about money.

JACKSON: We always about the business of making new friends. And if you don't have friends, it's very difficult to raise money. So why wouldn't we

want to make friends? Is it illogical to talk about making new friends?

VALENCIA: New friends, but maybe not for everyone.

Nick Valencia, CNN, Daytona Beach, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now, an incredible moment there.

And finally here on the news show, a newly discovered dinosaur has a face straight out of science fiction, so much so that paleontologists decided to

call it Zuul, yep, after the monster in Ghostbusters. Just like the name sake in that movie, the new Zuul is kind of short, kind of stocky, it also

comes with a ten-foot-long armor plated tail that researchers found in the U.S. state of Montana. They say Zuul lived about 75 million years ago.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. But don't go anywhere, World Sport with Christina Macfarlane is next.

END