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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees

Iranian Airspace Reopens; Iran's FM to Trump: Do not Repeat "Same Mistake" Made with Strikes; Trump: "We need Greenland for National Security;" No Greenland Deal Despite Trump's Pressure and Top-level Meeting; Flight Tracking Site Shows Danish Military Transport Lands in Greenland; Federal Judge Declines to Issue Temporary Restraining Order in Minnesota Lawsuit Against DHS; Pentagon Sending Military Lawyers to Minneapolis Amid ICE Crackdown; Buddhist Monks on a 2,300-mile Walk for Peace. Aired 8-9p ET

Aired January 14, 2026 - 20:00   ET

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

PHILIP ANTHONY MITCHELL, 2819 CHURCH PASTOR: Whether were young or old, Black, White, Brown, we all can agree that we live in a world that is broken when we see violent weather patterns, we see wars, we see crime, murders, lawlessness.

I want to be faithful to whatever the Bible says.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ryan Young, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: And thanks so much for joining us. AC360 begins now.

[20:00:30]

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "ANDERSON COOPER: 360": Tonight on 360 with the world brazing for possible U.S. action against Iran, a change in tone for the President who now says the regime has stopped killing protestors even as bodies overflow the morgues and the regime says it's back in full control. The question is, did the President blink? Did Iran, or is there more about to come?

Also tonight, the cold war of sorts over Greenland and the fundamental disagreement our NATO ally Denmark says there is after talks in the White House today.

And later meet the Buddhist monks and their dog on a pilgrimage for peace and loving kindness. And the growing crowds coming to greet them as they walk across the country.

Good evening, thanks for joining us.

We begin tonight with Iranian authorities closing their airspace for several hours this evening, and the world waiting for what, if anything, might come next. The airspace reopened just before air time, but take a look. This is what the skies over Iran looked like also, as of a few moments ago. As you can see, air traffic is going north and south of the country,

not over it. Now, a number of western countries have also advised citizens to leave Iran using as Spain's government put it today, "any available means." Additionally, some personnel of the U.S. airbase in Qatar have been urged to leave, according to a U.S. official who spoke to CNN earlier.

Also tonight, a warning from Iran and a chilling assessment from its hardline regime of its crackdown on dissent, which has now taken upwards of 2,400 lives. That's according to a U.S.-based Human Rights group. The full number may not be known. Here's what Iran's Foreign Minister told Fox News' Bret Baier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABBAS ARAGHCHI, IRAN FOREIGN MINISTER: My message is do not repeat the same mistake that you did you did in June. You know, if you try a failed experiment, you will get the same result.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Well, the Foreign Minister is talking about the strikes on his country's nuclear sites, which Iran claims did not significantly set back their effort, though President Trump says otherwise, obviously. And here's what the Foreign Minister said about his government's bloody repression of the biggest uprisings since the revolution that swept Islamic hardliners into power in 1979.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARAGHCHI: After three days of terrorist operation, now, there is a calm. We are in full control.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: whether that's true or not, graphic evidence has certainly emerged showing what the regime has been doing to try and regain control.

Images like these, the dead in body bags overflowing, morgues lined up row after row outside. Amnesty International, which analyzed video and photos from 10 Iranian cities, including Tehran, said today that, "mass unlawful killings," in their words, are being committed on what it calls a, "unprecedented scale," which, as you know, the President has repeatedly suggested could trigger an American military response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: On Iran, have they crossed red line yet to trigger a response?

DONALD TRUMP (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Well, now they're starting, too, it looks like and there seemed to be some people killed that aren't supposed to be killed. These are violent, if you call them leaders, I don't know if they're leaders or just, they rule through violence. But we're looking at it very seriously. The military is looking at it,

and we're looking at some very strong options. We'll make a determination.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: That was Sunday night. By yesterday morning, he was on social media saying, "Iranian patriots keep protesting" and telling them in all caps "help is on the way".

Now, he repeated those words on camera later that afternoon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: To all Iranian patriots, keep protesting. Take over your institutions if possible, and save the name of the killers and the abusers that are abusing you. You're being very badly abused. I say save their names because they'll pay a very big price.

And I've canceled all meetings with the Iranian officials until the senseless killing of protesters stops. And all I say to them is help is on its way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: The President also said the United States would take, "very strong action" if the regime hanged a 26-year-old protester named Erfan Soltani. Tonight, in that interview on Fox, Iran's Foreign Minister said there will be no hanging in his words today or tomorrow.

As for the President, he signaled as much this afternoon appeared to back away from any red lines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We have been notified and pretty strongly, but we'll find out what that all means. But we've been told that the killing in Iran is stopping. And there's no plan for executions or an execution or executions.

So, I've been told that on good authority. We'll find out about it. I'm sure, if it happens, we'll all be very upset. Including you will be very upset. But that's just gotten to me from information that the killing has stopped, that the executions have stopped, they're not going to have an execution, which a lot of people are talking about for the last couple of days, today, was going to be the day of execution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[20:05:32]

COOPER: Well, that said, when pressed, he declined to take military action off the table, saying instead he would, "watch and see what the process is". We start tonight with Kaitlan Collins, CNN's chief White House

correspondent and anchor of "The Source". So, is it clear where the President stands tonight on possible military action? Why he seems so confident that the Iranian regime wont execute protesters?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN'S CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT AND THE ANCHOR OF "THE SOURCE": Not really, Anderson, and that moment was from when we first got in the Oval Office. The President gave us that update on Iran later when he was taking questions from reporters. I asked him who it was that relayed that information to him, that the killings have stopped there because obviously there's been a major blackout, a huge internet outage there. We really haven't been able to get a ton of reliable information out of what's happening on the ground in Iran. We've seen snippets of it.

The President never disclosed who told him that the killing had stopped. He said it was from a source with information. He made the reference that it was coming from Iran. And obviously the question is raised by that, that if it is the Iranian regime, whether or not the President can trust them, given they have been historically incredibly unreliable and have lied outright about a lot of the things that they're doing.

And so, we know what we've seen on the ground. We've seen these images of the body bags that have already been out there. And just to be clear on where the Presidents line on this was over the last two weeks, Anderson, it wasn't. If there are executions for people who have been demonstrating and protesting that, then the U.S. would get militarily involved.

The President had already said about 12 days ago that if Iran was using lethal force and killing these protesters, that he said the U.S. military would intervene. That was a threat that he repeated multiple times, something that we know that has happened given we've seen the body bags that have been on the streets, and so that already in and of itself has changed.

And so, the question was how the President would respond, what that would look like. There's not a lot of military buildup in the area like there was last summer during those strikes and so right now it's just not clear, Anderson, on what this next step is going to be and whether or not the President was looking for an off ramp with those comments that he made to us today.

COOPER: Yes, Kaitlan Collins, thanks very much. Kaitlan will be back, obviously, at the top of the hour with "The Source".

Joining me now is John Bolton, former national security advisor during President Trump's first term, he also served as U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. under President George W. Bush. Ambassador, how do you read what the President is now saying versus what he has been saying?

JOHN BOLTON, FORMER US AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: Well, I think that's the sound of Donald Trump walking backward. That doesn't necessarily indicate what he's going to do. I think this is Trump saying one thing one day and another thing the next day. There's no doubt that there were mass murders of protesting civilians

on Saturday and Sunday night. And the figure of 2,000 to 2,500 dead, I think will turn out tragically to be very low, 10,000 or 15,000 when you get reports from all over the country, it was bad.

Now, the number killed on Monday and Tuesday night was much lower because people were not going out in many of the places that western journalists and others can identify, because they didn't want to get killed.

So, it doesn't mean that the conduct of the regime has gotten better. It means people stayed indoors. But I think without some American action to underline what Trump has previously said, if we basically do nothing, I think it will be a blow to his credibility because he did draw red lines and the regime did cross them. And as of right this moment, we haven't done anything in response.

COOPER: Yes, I mean, to Kaitlan's point, he had said, you know, if you're killing people in the streets, that was one kind of red line. And then suddenly it became executions, essentially. I mean, they have been executing people in the streets, the security services as, as we know, as you said, we don't know the full number, but whether its execution by hanging, as was going to be the case in Mr. Soltani by all reports or whether they're being slaughtered in the streets, it's still executions.

BOLTON: Sure, but it's Trump looking for the off ramp.

COOPER: Yes. To what extent do you think has the President backed himself into a corner with those vows on social media? You know, telling Iranian protesters to keep doing what they're doing, to try to take, to get into the streets, to keep protesting.

BOLTON: Yes, look, the famous Obama red line in Syria was, if I see them moving chemical weapons around, we're going to do something about it and he didn't to our detriment and I think the same thing applies here.

Look, it is true and I think acknowledged almost universally at this point that the regime is at the weakest point it's been since it came to power in the revolution in 1979, for a variety of reasons. The economic reasons we see manifest in these protests, but because of dissent by the youth, ethnic conflict, women who staged massive protests over two years ago after the murder of Mahsa Amini. The regime is deeply unpopular, it is thoroughly corrupt inside.

[20:10:30]

This is a moment when we could have regime change. I think the U.S. could assist that in multiple ways, which we're not doing. And if we miss it this time, there may not be another occasion until the Supreme Leader dies and they have to find a new Supreme Leader. And in the meantime, Iran will continue its nuclear weapons program, continue its support for international terrorism, and continue repressing the people of Iran. COOPER: What do you think the U.S. options would be militarily or

through intelligence means or other means in terms of trying to get about regime change?

BOLTON: Right, well, I think first you have to decide on your objective and my objective would be regime change. So, what I would look for would be strikes, at least the opening strikes that would impair the power of the regime to repress the Iranian people and that would instill in the people the feeling that at least the United States is prepared to do something to help them.

So that would seem to me, after clearing away whatever air defenses Iran may have to safeguard any planes we are going to be sending in. I would go after headquarters for the Revolutionary Guard and their besieging militia, who are really the thugs killing most of the people in the streets. I'd go after their bases and facilities and we'd be very discriminate in how we try to do that.

I would go again after the nuclear program, the ballistic missile production program. I'd go after the Iranian navy. I'd say to the regime, we are going to take you apart piece by piece and to the opposition, now is the time to go and look for commanders in the regular military, even in the Revolutionary Guard, to come over to the opposition. I think the rank and file in the military knows how bad shape the country's in, and the opposition could use them breaking away from the regime.

COOPER: Ambassador Bolton, I appreciate your time tonight. Thank you.

More on Iran next from a journalist held captive there for 544 days.

Also, the confrontation over Greenland and the President's latest demand on that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We need Greenland for National Security. So, we're going to see what happens. If we don't go in. Russia's going to go and then China is going to go in, and there's not a thing that Denmark can do about it, but we can do everything about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Later tonight, why is The Pentagon planning to send dozens of military lawyers to Minneapolis to accompany a surge of ICE and border agents to the city? We'll talk to a former military lawyer about that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:17:22]

COOPER: As we reported at the top of the broadcast, Iranian airspace has just reopened, uncertainty remains over what may come next, including any U.S. military action, which the President today appeared to back away from, though he didn't rule it out. Joining us now is "The New York Times'" David Sanger, who recently

interviewed President Trump at length in the Oval Office. He's also a CNN political and national security analyst.

Joining us as well, "Washington Post's" global opinions writer Jason Rezaian, who was imprisoned by Iranian authorities from July 2014 to January 2016.

David, let me start with you. Given what you heard from the President when you interviewed him recently in the Oval Office and what we've seen today, what do you make of these signals he seems to be sending or mixing?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, it sure did sound like he was looking for a bit of an off ramp tonight, but you have to wonder how long lasting that's going to be.

I mean, the rot in the Iranian regime is pretty clear. These protests have gained speed and frequency over the past time and if this one is put down, there will probably be another one at some point in the future.

And what we're left wondering, I think, Anderson, is what are the President's objectives out here? Is he trying for regime change? He hasn't quite said that, but he certainly did urge the protesters to go out. I think he said, and, you know, seize the institutions --

COOPER: And get the names of those who are tormenting you and write them down.

SANGER: Right, so that sounded like he was going after the regime. He may simply be looking to decapitate the regime, but have a government in place that he could work with and maybe get at the oil again, as we did during the days of the Shah. That would be the sort of Venezuela kind of model that we've seen. Maybe he has lesser objectives.

There's nothing in his National Security strategy that would tell you that he's particularly interested in restoring democracy.

COOPER: Jason, I mean, I'm wondering what you make of this apparent delay of Erfan Soltani's execution, if, in fact, there has been a delay. Do you buy the Iranian Foreign Minister's claim that there are no plans to hang protesters in the next day or two?

JASON REZAIAN, IMPRISONED BY IRANIAN AUTHORITIES FROM JULY 2014 TO JANUARY 2016: Maybe not in the next day or two, but certainly over the coming days, Anderson. We've seen these protest movements going back to 2009. The Green Movement in the wake of those, there's always trials, show trials, televised show trials and large-scale executions. Last year, over 2,000 executions in Iran.

So, I don't think that we should put much stock in the Foreign Minister's words. Sure, okay, maybe they don't execute anybody tomorrow or the next day, but I can't imagine them changing course on what has been one of their core tactics of repression for 47 years. COOPER: And, Jason, I mean, having spent so much time in captivity

there, I'm wondering what you -- when you see these demonstrators out in the streets, when you see, you know, night after night, the numbers of people out. I'm wondering, how weak do you think the regime is?

[20:20:20]

REZAIAN: I think it's quite weak, Anderson. But I also think that the resilience and bravery of Iranians right now is a real testament to the fact that in previous protest movements, it felt like they still had something to lose.

At this point, I think people are so disaffected by the economic woes of Iran, the lack of any foreseeable future, and they see real cracks in the security apparatus.

Iranian airspace over the summer was completely owned by Israel. There was zero defense in that 12-day war. The top leadership was taken out, except for the Supreme Leader.

So, I think that they do feel that its weaker than it's ever been. But that doesn't necessarily translate into they're going to, you know, walk away or collapse in the coming days. And I fear that there'll be much more brutality to come.

COOPER: David, how -- first of all, the U.K. closed its embassy to Tehran briefly. I'm not sure what to make of that. In terms of the military options that the U.S. has, I mean, it's not like the strike going after the nuclear facilities.

SANGER: That's exactly right. I think the British were simply trying to make sure there wasn't anybody around to be taken hostage and that makes perfect sense. Look, the strike in June on the military, on the nuclear facilities had a very clear objective. You could go in, collapse the tunnels, make it hard for the Iranians to get the uranium, the enriched uranium that was there.

We think that to this day they have not been able to dig that out. Eventually, they may be able to, but you could do that and leave.

That's not what this is about. Here, you can bomb some things for a while, but essentially, you're trying to effect a political movement on the ground and to make sure that if you lose this government, a harder line government doesn't come in. That's not something that lends itself to bombing.

Now, one thing they did, which I think could be very useful is free up Starlink and try to get the protesters back in communications and to try to broadcast into Iran in Farsi so people have real news.

It's worth noting that the State Department office that did that kind of internet work was shut down last year, and that Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Radio Free Asia were cut back as well.

COOPER: It's -- we're seeing some of the things, the ripple effects of some of those cuts. SANGER: That's right.

COOPER: David Sanger, thank you, Jason Rezaian, appreciate it as well.

Coming up next, Greenland and Denmark and the President's demand that Greenland belong to the U.S. What top officials from both countries had to say after a meeting in The White House today. Also live report from the disputed territory.

And later, why The Pentagon is sending a team of lawyers to Minneapolis as more federal agents arrive after last week's fatal ICE shooting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:27:27]

COOPER: Vice-President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio met at The White House today with the Foreign Ministers of Greenland and Denmark, who are pushing back on President Trump's talk of taking control of Greenland.

Denmark's Foreign Minister called the discussions frank and constructive, but said there is still, "fundamental disagreement about Greenland's future."

The meeting happened hours after the President posted on Truth Social that anything less than Greenland being in the hands of the U.S. is unacceptable. He hammered home his position this afternoon in the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We need Greenland for National Security, so we're going to see what happens. If we don't go in, Russia's going to go in and then China's going to go in. And there's not a thing that Denmark can do about it. But we can do everything about it. I can't rely on Denmark being able to fend themselves off.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Well, throughout his second term, President Trump has repeatedly stressed his goal of controlling the giant North Atlantic territory.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We need Greenland for National Security purposes. People really don't even know if Denmark has any legal right to it. But if they do, they should give it up.

Greenland is a wonderful place. We need it for International Security.

I think we're going to get it one way or the other, we're going to get it.

I think Greenland is going to be something that maybe is in our future.

We need Greenland.

We are going to do something on Greenland, whether they like it or not.

And if it affects NATO, then it affects NATO. But, you know, they need us much more than we need them.

REPORTER: We prefer to stay with Denmark. Do you see that as --

TRUMP: Who said that?

REPORTER: The Premier of Greenland.

TRUMP: Well, that's their problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: CNN's Nic Robertson joins us tonight from Greenland. Is there a sense, Nic, of what happens next there? Because, again, The White House doesn't seem interested in a compromise, at least not publicly.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: I think people here are still perplexed. They still don't quite understand what the diplomacy means. I was just talking to a couple of high school graduates here. And they wanted to know what had happened in the meeting in D.C. and what it really meant and they are both and their parents, they tell us, are still really worried about whether or not the United States might come here in a military form to annex the country.

Right now, I can just tell you, Anderson, that we've just learned through a flight tracking site something that we were hearing about earlier today, a Danish C-130 military transport Hercules aircraft has landed at Nuuk Airport.

The Danish had said that they were going to land, they were going to bring in more military into Greenland. It would be troops. It would be aircraft. It would be navy. We've heard that the Swedish, the Norwegians, the Germans, the French are all coming here to sort of step up a NATO military security presence, not per se to defend against the United States, but it will begin to establish an image for President Trump of what NATO can do to project the level of security that he is saying that he requires.

But I think in no uncertain terms, the reason that people like these young girls who we were speaking to before are concerned is because that meeting in Washington has left everyone with the understanding that both sides are still polls apart, high-level discussions to come. But it really buys a little time for Denmark to prepare, time to hope that the White House reconsiders. But the reality is the can has been kicked down the road and it is as big a can as it was before, Anderson.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST OF "ANDERSON COOPER 360": Yeah. Nic Robertson, appreciate you being there. Thank you. Joining us now, Democratic Congressman, Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts.

Congressman, where do you see this going? I mean, given the fact the president isn't budging, neither are officials from Denmark and Greenland.

REP. JAKE AUCHINCLOSS, (D-MA): Anderson, good evening. Before looking forward, let's wind the clock back to 2019. The Danish intelligence services uncovered a Russian false flag operation in Greenland that was attempting to sow discord between Greenland, the United States and Denmark by claiming that the United States was trying to secure Greenland, its independence and its annexation. That failed.

It turns out that the Kremlin need not have worried because the U.S. president is now doing its bidding for it. The U.S. president is doing exactly what Russian intelligence services hoped to accomplish in 2019, which is two things. First, fracturing NATO. At a time when NATO needs to be strong on its eastern flank, it is being weakened on its western flank. And number two, driving the Greenlandic people closer actually to Chinese and Russian influence for their own polar security.

COOPER: Why do you think that would weaken NATO? Why would the U.S. occupying, I mean, I don't even know how to phrase how the U.S. would do this -- but the U.S. -- a greater U.S. presence or control over Greenland, how would that fracture or increasingly fracture NATO?

AUCHINCLOSS: Well, I mean, Anderson, you may not have the right verbiage, but Article 5 does, which is an attack on a NATO member. The United States forcefully occupying Greenland, which is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, Denmark being a founding member of NATO, would be an attack on NATO by a member of NATO.

There is no treaty provision that can withstand that. NATO would fracture, and Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin would win.

COOPER: It's interesting because, I mean, the U.S. already has a military presence --

AUCHINCLOSS: Yes.

COOPER: -- on Greenland. I'm not sure of the exact number, but it's -- I mean, it's not a huge amount of people. Is it clear to you why a NATO presence is not enough for President Trump?

AUCHINCLOSS: I was watching the clips that you were playing of all the times the president has said national security, national security. It's interesting. He never actually describes what he's talking about. I serve on the Select Committee on China. I have a service record in the United States military.

I have no clue what he's talking about. We have hundreds of troops deployed to Greenland. It is our early air defense warning system. It's highly effective. We have a very close relationship with Denmark for ballistic missile defense. If we need more troops or more materiel stationed there, Denmark has always been accommodating of that. Until about six months ago, when this president opened his mouth, things were working fine. In fact, if anything, we needed closer partnerships with Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway in building and deploying polar ice cutters, so that we could have a greater footprint in the Arctic. What we don't need is to be sowing discord with our allies.

COOPER: Would you foresee, I mean, if the U.S. took control of Greenland, again, however that was done -- would you imagine there being tens of thousands of U.S. troops there? I mean, as you said, there's several hundred there right now. I think the number fluctuates. But do you think there needs to be a greater actual physical U.S. military presence there?

AUCHINCLOSS: No. And the scenario you're describing beggars the imagination. And I implore Republicans in Congress, House and Senate, to stop folding at every opportunity. They just folded tonight on Venezuela war powers. You saw Josh Hawley talk tough just like he did on Medicaid, and then fold just like he did on Medicaid, doing the same thing on Venezuela.

We need Senators and House members on the Republican Party to make very clear through authorizations and appropriations that this president does not have authority to deploy the military to Greenland for any use of force against our allies, because even the potential of that is strengthening Russia as we speak.

[20:35:00]

COOPER: Congressman Jake Auchincloss, I appreciate it as always. Thank you.

Up next, we have dozens of military lawyers headed to Minneapolis, the U.S. government does, to assist in prosecutions in the expanded ICE crackdown. A former military lawyer weighs in with us.

Also ahead, Buddhist monks on a long walk for peace and loving kindness. What we know about the pilgrimage to Washington that they are on. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Legal setback today for the state of Minnesota and the Twin Cities in their lawsuit to force the Department of Homeland Security to halt ICE operations on the ground. Federal judges declined to issue a temporary restraining order against DHS while the case gets underway.

The judge was quick to say that her decision "should not be considered a pre-judgment on the actual merits of the lawsuit," which claims that ICE actions are unlawful and unconstitutional involving warrantless arrests and excessive force.

[20:40:00]

Meanwhile, the Pentagon is planning to send dozens of military lawyers to Minneapolis to assist in federal prosecutions amid the expanded ICE crackdown. We're joined by Andrea McCabe, the former FBI Deputy Director, and Margaret Donovan, a former Federal Prosecutor and former Army JAG. Captain Donovan, did it make any sense to you that the Pentagon is sending military lawyers to Minneapolis? Why would that be their recourse?

MARGARET DONOVAN, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR AND FORMER JAG OFFICER: Yeah. So, you know, it makes sense in this context. The Department of Justice has been firing attorneys for not prosecuting cases when they don't find crimes. They have been firing attorneys for prosecuting cases when they had a lot of evidence of crime, for example, January 6th for the special counsel's attorneys.

So, the idea that Pam Bondi has a serious personnel shortage and manning problem, that is not surprising.

COOPER: And we just saw some federal prosecutors in the state quitting.

DONOVAN: Yes, in Minnesota.

COOPER: Right.

DONOVAN: And so, I think everybody in the DOJ right now has a line. And what you're seeing right now in Minneapolis is, for some people, they have reached that line. Now, to your question about, is it surprising that the Pentagon is sending 40 military attorneys here? It's not when you think about the shortage that the DOJ has in this position that it has put itself in. But it is unusual to send 40 military attorneys to a U.S. attorney's office.

You certainly see special assistance U.S. attorneys. You see JAGs detailed in that position here and there. I was one. But to send 40 at the same time to a U.S. attorney's office, that is highly unusual. And candidly, I don't think it's going to go the way the administration thinks it's going to go.

COOPER: Why?

DONOVAN: Because for one, JAG officers are very serious about their oath to the Constitution. They are both officers of the court and they are officers of the military. And so, I think that if they have a whiff that something is not right in what they are being asked to prosecute, I think that they will take very seriously the oath that they took.

But second, and I say this with the love of the JAG Corps and with the love for federal prosecutors and SAUSAs, it's not easy to just become a federal prosecutor on a Monday. And so, you're looking at possible appellate issues. You could get more no true bills if you send 40 people who don't know what they're doing into a U.S. attorney's office.

COOPER: I mean, the administration has had a record of sending people who don't know what they're doing into legal office.

(LAUGH)

DONOVAN: That's fair.

COOPER: But, Andrew, the government seems willing to use military resources on civilian criminal cases in Minnesota, but officials were quick to absolve the ICE officer who shot Renee Good of any wrongdoing. How do you square those things?

ANDREA MCCABE, FORMER FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Well, they can't be squared. They can't be squared at all. The fact that the Department of Justice, in the form of the deputy attorney general, has already issued what essentially amounts as a pardon to this officer by stating publicly that the matter will not even be investigated. And it's absolutely shocking.

As you know, Anderson, the standard for initiating an investigation is quite low. For a full investigation, you simply need an articulable basis to believe that a crime may have occurred. I think we can all agree that that basis exists in the form of numerous videos of this agent acting what can only be described as horrendously for a law enforcement officer, elevating a conflict, provoking a conflict with a private citizen who is unarmed and really poses no threat to him, at least initially.

So, it's just -- it's unconscionable that the Department of Justice has already basically issued this agent a bill of good health without even looking into it.

COOPER: Margaret, how significant do you think are these resignations that we mentioned of six federal prosecutors, including the acting U.S. attorney?

DONOVAN: I think it speaks volumes. So like I said, everybody has a line. And I have a lot of friends who are still in DOJ right now. And I think the approach that a lot of prosecutors are taking are, do what you can in your sort of sphere of influence within the bounds of the law, but understand that there will be a line. And one day in this administration, you may be asked to do something that you did not think is right and be ready to resign.

And I think that that's what we're seeing here. I mean, this is -- putting this in context, this is pretty extreme. You're asking federal prosecutors to look into the grieving wife of somebody who was just killed in broad daylight, practically before she could bury her, and for First Amendment violations that even in a normal context wouldn't amount to a crime.

So, I think that what you're seeing is those prosecutors found that line and that's the result.

COOPER: And Andrew, I mean, Minnesota authorities insist they're going to investigate last week's shooting even without federal cooperation. How thorough a job can local or state officials do? I mean, would ICE even make the officer in question available for questioning? It doesn't seem like it. MCCABE: Not at all. Not at all. So it's, you know, I applaud their desire to try to move forward with their responsibility as the state prosecutors.

[20:45:00]

There's clearly a compelling state interest here to investigate what might have been a homicide committed on the street in broad daylight. But effectively, without access to any of the evidence, without access to any of the witnesses, without access to any of the subjects, there's very little investigation that they can put together.

The idea of actually putting together enough of a case to even present it to a grand jury under those circumstances is really hard to imagine. So we'll have to see. They don't -- this is absolutely contrary to the way these matters are typically handled. I've never seen a situation like this in all my 21 years at the FBI, where the bureau would come in and basically shut down a state from doing their job.

COOPER: Yeah. Andrew McCabe, Margaret Donovan, thanks very much. Here's what President Trump said yesterday about the fatal Minneapolis ICE shooting of Renee Good in an interview with CBS News.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I would bet you that she, under normal circumstances, was a very solid, wonderful person. But her actions were pretty tough. I mean, I've seen it many ways in many different shapes and forms. Their job is being made very, very difficult. And when you look at that tape, it can be viewed two ways, I guess. But when you look at the way that car was pulled away, there are a couple of versions of that tape that are very, very bad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Meanwhile, a new CNN poll shows that a majority of Americans do not agree with the president's view of the shooting. 56 percent said that the ICE officer's use of force was inappropriate. Only 26 percent said it was appropriate.

Joining me now are CNN Political Commentators, Ana Navarro and Shermichael Singleton, who's also a Republican Strategist. Ana, do you think the White House is going to care much about the public opinion on this, or at least these polls?

ANA NAVARRO, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: They don't seem to in the short term, right? What they're doing is what they always do when they make a mistake and when they have a chance to do something right or make something right, which is double down. So in the midst of what's happening in Minnesota, I think most normal leaders would want to de-escalate the situation, tamp it down.

Instead, he has doubled down by sending in over a thousand more ICE agents, by now sending in these 40-plus JAG lawyers. And so, no, I don't think that for the short term, he cares one bit about what the polls are saying.

COOPER: Shermichael, I mean, given what happened in Minneapolis and what the reaction has been like locally and nationally, why do you think the White House insists on doubling down the surge of immigration enforcement officers to Minnesota? Is this just the plan for the country?

SHERMICHAEL SINGLETON, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: I think politically, from the president's perspective, it was the second most important issue to his campaign, one -- the first being the economy. Now, operationally, when you think about operational efficacy here, I would probably say work with state and local law enforcement because they're going to have a better idea where people are who are in the country illegally, number one.

Number two, they're more trained and used to working with American civilians who do have a right to follow and record. That is their right while making sure that those individuals don't impede with ICE's right to arrest people who are here illegally. And so, I think that's a part of the process of this, Anderson, that the administration needs to think through a little more clearly.

But I think as long as they figure that out, they can move forward without future incidents such as this occurring again ,while working with state and federal law enforcement under the president's directives.

COOPER: Ana, it's interesting though, because when you hear from administration officials, their line is still, we're going after the worst of the worst. These are rapists and murderers. And obviously, there are plenty of people who have done bad things who should be arrested and removed.

But, you just look at the images of kind of randomly grabbing people --

NAVARRO: Right.

COOPER: -- demanding documents from people who turn out to be American citizens, you know, chasing door dash drivers into people's homes. It doesn't seem like -- it seems like they're just trying to grab targets of opportunity. They're just trying to rack up numbers.

NAVARRO: Well, they're trying to meet a quota that was imposed on them by Stephen Miller in this administration, right, of the amount of people that they got to grab by the day. I think the American people are deeply affected by what they are seeing with their own eyes happening in the streets of America.

COOPER: I mean, it would be one thing though, if the administration said, you know what, yeah, we're -- anybody, you know, their view is anybody who crossed into the country without document, without going through the procedure, the legal procedure, is a criminal and therefore can be --

NAVARRO: Yeah, but that's not what they're saying. What they -- (CROSSTALK)

COOPER: But it would --

NAVARRO: I mean every time, they --

COOPER: -- be different if they just said, you know what, yeah, this is what you all voted for. We said we're going to arrest and deport everybody, mass deportations. We had signs at the convention. You voted for this. This is what we're doing. But they're not saying that.

NAVARRO: He kept saying he was going to go for the worst of the worst.

[20:50:00]

The truth of the matter is that the vast majority of people that have been detained and deported do not have violent criminal records. The thing is, though, that you could never reach the numbers that he was aspiring to and promising if you were only going to go against the heinous criminals. You just wouldn't. And we kept saying that and people I don't think understood it.

And that's why these videos that regular citizens are taking and amplifying is what is really, I think, cutting through the bull that the administration wants to feed the American people. Because we are seeing the door dash driver crying inside a woman's house. We are seeing the U.S. citizen, teenagers working at a Target being dragged out. We are seeing the pregnant woman dragged through the streets.

We are seeing the children being held hostage. We are seeing the sheer terror of decent immigrants, who some of them were here under color of law, some of them were here undocumented, but who are far from being the worst of the worst. And they are our neighbors. They are our friends. They are our relatives. This is not what America signed up for, and it is deeply un-American what we are seeing in the streets happening.

COOPER: Shermichael, I want to play you something that Joe Rogan recently said about ICE and what we're seeing from them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE ROGAN, HOST OF "THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE" PODCAST: You don't want militarized people in the streets just roaming around, snatching people up, many of which turn out to actually be U.S. citizens. They just don't have their papers on them. Are we really going to be the Gestapo? Where is your papers? Is that what we've come to?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: When you hear that, I'm wondering, I mean, do you think the White House should be concerned not only about his comments, but about images that people are seeing and what's happening?

SINGLETON: Well, politics is partially marketing, right? Perhaps you don't really care what Democrats think. They're not going to vote for Trump or Republicans in general. But you do care about those independents. You keep your eye on that. I looked at the polling that came out from CNN. I'm not nervous yet, but it is something to sort of be mindful of.

But again, Anderson, this goes back to the initial point that I was making about process improvements. And to what Joe Rogan stated, whether you agree with him or not, is there a more effective way to move forward with the president's agenda that millions of Americans voted for? Again, I think you can do that. Local and state law enforcement can help ICE accomplish their job.

COOPER: Shermichael Singleton, Ana Navarro, thanks so much.

Coming up next, Buddhist monks on a walk for peace, love and loving kindness.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[Foreign Language]

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: More on their journey with the goal of covering more than 2,300 miles on their way to Washington, ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:56:49]

COOPER: With violence in the streets of Tehran and here at home, we wanted to end tonight with a few steps toward peace. More than two months ago, a small group of Buddhist monks began a pilgrimage, a walk from Texas to Washington. They haven't gotten a lot of attention on national television, but online and on the road, they're bringing people together in ways we rarely see.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): When 20 monks left their Buddhist temple in Fort Worth, Texas, 81 days ago, there was little fanfare. They planned to walk to Washington, some 2,300 miles away. At first, few passersby knew who they were, this thin line of silent monks, accompanied by their dog, Aloka, picked up as a stray on an earlier walk in India.

But with each step and each day that passed, word began to spread. It was, they said, a pilgrimage, not about politics, but about peace, in their words, to raise awareness of loving kindness and compassion across America and the world.

In Houston, Texas, they prayed for police, giving them Buddhist blessing cords, a symbol the monks said of a shared prayer for the officers' safety, well-being, and endurance as they serve the community. Their temple began posting their procession online, often with music accompanying their march. That's when the crowds began to grow. Some who met the monks along their route were brought to tears. Others offered food and water and encouraged Aloka, who now has his own Facebook page with more than 600,000 followers. But the journey has not been easy.

Some of the monks walk barefoot. Just weeks in, their escort vehicle was hit by a truck, and one of the monks, Bhante Dam Phommasan's leg was broken and had to be amputated. He implored the others to continue, and now they say he walks with them in spirit. This man, Osbaldo Duran, donated a new escort vehicle so the monks could continue on.

OSBALDO DURAN, DONATED VEHICLE TO MONKS: When I saw that, I was like, no, they need some help. We've got to help them. They're walking for us.

COOPER (voice-over): Now cities offer them police escorts to ensure their safety, and more and more people want to walk with them. As they cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, site of an infamous standoff during the struggle for civil rights, they pause to pray and hundreds joined alongside them.

The monks begin their days at dawn and sometimes don't rest until night. This was 70 days into their journey in Arnoldsville, Georgia. They've crossed six states so far, and with each step and each stop, more are moved, and their message has spread.

This was the scene in Columbia, South Carolina, this week, one of their biggest crowds so far. We may not hear many people speak of compassion and kindness in politics or culture today, but for many, these monks are a sign of hope. Their steps may be silent, but it seems they're being heard loud and clear.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Seeing people from all walks of life and faiths come together has been deeply moving. There's something profoundly powerful in the simplicity of their act, monks walking for peace. Instead of worrying about the future, maybe the real question is, what are your plans? Because peace only happens when each of us decides to play our part. --