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The Lead with Jake Tapper
Violent Skirmishes Threaten Fragile Middle East Ceasefire; Impact of Ceasefire on Netanyahu's Political Future Unknown; CNN Obtains more Body Camera Video of Ronald Greene Kicked, Tased, Dragged by Officers in 2019; Health Care Workers, Drained From Pandemic, Leaving Their Jobs; CA Health Care Professional: "I Received Threats" After Announcing Mask Guidance, Social Distancing; Sen. Ted Cruz Tweets Russian Propaganda Video, Mocks U.S. Recruiting Ad For "A Woke, Emasculated Military"; Biden Holds News Conference With South Korean President. Aired 5-6p ET
Aired May 21, 2021 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[17:00:00]
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Right now, a fragile ceasefire remains between Israel and Hamas. The White House touting President Biden's quiet diplomatic efforts to help reach that ceasefire.
Let's get straight to the White House and CNN's Kaitlan Collins.
And Kaitlan, President Biden is attempting to shift the focus from the Middle East to East Asia today in the growing threat he sees from China. But obviously he he's still balancing this very fragile situation in the Middle East.
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And Jake, this is something that was brought to the forefront of his foreign policy agenda this week. It was not planned to be at the forefront. He had not made it a priority upon taking office or in the three months that followed. But of course, this is something that happens when you are in the presidency. And so, now he will face questions about, of course, what his tactic is going forward here, because what this has exposed is not just that it's a fragile ceasefire, as you noted, which the White House has said so far, that right now they are confident this is going to hold based on the conversations that they've had with the Israelis and with other parties involved here. Of course, the Egyptians also involved in the ceasefire brokering yesterday as well.
But, Jake, this also reveals this big shift in the Democratic Party or rift, really, that's exposed between the progressive members of President Biden's party and how they had called on him to not only criticize Netanyahu but also to call publicly for a ceasefire, two things that he never did during the course of that 11 days. And we're told that now that the ceasefire has been brokered, President Biden feels pretty confident about the strategy that he took. Even though he came under that pressure, not just from the international community, but also from his own party, he is feeling good about it.
But I do think it raises the questions of whether or not he now pushes this up higher as a priority, what that really looks like for them. Because I do think that what we saw was a change in how people in Washington are talking about this dynamic between Israel and Palestine, at least of course, within the Democratic Party that is.
TAPPER: All right, Kaitlan Collins at the White House for us, thank you so much.
Even with that ceasefire, violence is still erupting in the Middle East. Israeli border police are firing stun grenades and rubber bullets at Palestinians in the Jerusalem mosque compound after Friday prayers. The Palestinian Red Crescent reports 20 injuries, two people taken to the hospital.
CNN's Nic Robertson reports for us from Israel saying that despite the ceasefire tensions between Israel and the Palestinians are clearly still at a high.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLAMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Islam's third holiest site, a flashpoint again between Palestinians and Israeli police. The violence testing a fragile ceasefire between Hamas and the Israeli government, conflicting accounts. Police say protesters threw rocks and Molotov cocktails first. Palestinian say police attacked them with rubber coated bullets and stun grenades. As they celebrated the games of Hamas is 11-day conflict with Israel.
On Israel's beaches hit by Hamas rockets just days ago, Calm but no fanfare for their leaders and disappointment over the ceasefire agreement.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They think they have to go inside with the tanks with everything to finish one time and finish with the Hamas. Take it out from our Gaza.
ROBERTSON (on camera): So, what do you think about the ceasefire?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Shame.
ROBERTSON: Why?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because I think it's never going to end. It's never going to end. We have once in a while to tell them we're here. They can't do whatever they want. They can't just, you know, all the bombing and everything, we don't leave. We don't leave.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): For now. The ceasefire holding.
And Prime Minister Netanyahu defending his decision with his own political future in question.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (via translator): Just as I promise we harm most of Hamas capabilities far beyond what their commanders imagine, a huge crush that changed the rules of the game.
ROBERTSON: Israeli troops guns covered, artillery shells packed already lining up to leave the fields around Gaza. And inside Gaza, were ceasefire celebrations went late into the night frustrations to,
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (via translator): This truth is for everyone but us. This truth is for people who are comfortable, who are sitting in their homes who do not have murders, who do not have destruction.
ROBERTSON: More than 240 Palestinians dead, according to Hamas health officials. Tens of 1000s without homes according to the U.N. Still a victory according to Hamas leaders.
ISMAIL HANIYEH, POLITICAL LEADER OF HAMAS (via translator): Today we consider this battle is a quantum leap in the history of the conflict was the enemy.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
ROBERTSON: So, Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader, they're saying that they've taken a quantum leap forward. Prime Minister Netanyahu saying they've knock Hamas' back. Who is the real winner here, not clear?
[17:05:05]
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on his way. But the unresolved issue that remains unresolved after so many of these conflicts is the issue of land rights. And this ceasefire not touching that and not clear what Secretary of State Antony Blinken can do when he does get here, Jake.
TAPPER: Alright, Nic, thank you so much. Stay safe.
Former Middle East negotiator for the State Department, Aaron David Miller, joins us now.
Aaron, thanks for joining us.
Let's talk about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Before the conflict, he was in real political trouble. The opposition was looking to form a new government and oust him. He's also on trial for corruption charges. Now that this has happened, he's gone after Hamas, do you think his job is safer?
AARON DAVID MILLER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: You know, Jake, you can never underestimate the issue of contingency and politics. The change coalition literally, I was told, was this close to putting together a government, will they do (ph), maybe. And Hamas gave Mr. Netanyahu a huge gift on Monday with launching these rockets. Now the change coalition has been disbanded.
It's arguable Mr. Lapid's two more weeks to see if he can form a government. He probably can't. Then the mandate will return to the Knesset.
I suspect the most likely outcome, Jake, is not Mr. Netanyahu having a chance to form a government at fifth election, probably in October, and that allows Mr. Netanyahu become the caretaker Prime Minister that he is. And again, we just don't know what might happen between now and October that could, in essence, give him a better shot at forming a narrow right wing government, which is what he wants.
TAPPER: One of the things that the Biden White House was clear about, according to my sources, was that in addition to thinking that having a public spat with Netanyahu would be counterproductive, more likely to alienate him than continue to be able to influence him. That if the United States publicly went after him, that it would help Netanyahu domestically. He would be seen -- it would appeal to his domestic politics, he would be able to say, look, I'm protecting you from the Hamas rockets and also from American Democrats scolding. And they didn't want that either.
MILLER: Right. Well, you know, going after the United States or using the United States is a foil in order to strengthen your domestic position, I think it's -- it works more in theory than in practice. And I suspect, Mr. Biden, essentially, with a very pro-Israeli sensibility. You know, Obama is not the model for comparison here. It's Bill Clinton.
He and Biden our longtime policy, you know, being good on Israel means being good in American politics. They both have ideological affinities for the State of Israel. Joe Biden's tendency, I think, particularly in the face of Hamas rockets was to give the Prime Minister the benefit of the doubt, but the green light three or four days ago, change to a blinking yellow --
TAPPER: Yes.
MILLER: -- in response to pressure from his party and other matters. So, he applied not just ton in Mr. Netanyahu but vinegar. And I do think he gets some credit, I want to overestimate this for shortening a conflict that could have dragged on for another two weeks with all kinds of prospects for loss of life --
TAPPER: Yes.
MILLER: -- especially in the coming future.
TAPPER: And but I have to say the big question now, of course, is now what next. Assuming the ceasefire holds, what next? It seems very clear and has for many years now that the Palestinian people cannot continue to live in squalor. They cannot continue to live without basic rights, such as the right of self-determination, and that this conflict is never going to go away until they have a country and self- representation and full rights. Will Biden be willing to risk some skin in the game to try to bring that about?
MILLER: Well, some skin in the game is one thing. A major effort to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to create a situation when Israeli Prime Minister stands for the Knesset and a Palestinian President before the Palestinian Legislative Council and says, you know, we don't have peace yet but we tell each other and the world, our conflicts over. No more judicial claims to be furthered, no more irradiant (ph) on Jerusalem on borders and security and refugees were done.
Almost inconceivable, given the absence of leadership and the toxic politics on both sides, not to mention the Hamas problem, the Palestinian National Movement looks like Noah's Ark. They're literally are two of everything.
I find it almost impossible to imagine that kind of big play. I think Tony Blinken knows it. I think Jake Sullivan knows it. I think the President knows it. But there is room for some diplomacy.
The question is how much leverage is the Biden administration prepare to expand and how much time and resources because this is, I mean, you know, no one's going to plant a tree in your honor, politically. If you succeed here, you can end up wrangling with the Palestinians with the Israelis, with their supporters in the United States. Ask Jim Baker, ask Jimmy Carter, ask Henry Kissinger, is Joe Biden a guy who's challenged with the greatest task of national recovery of any American president since Franklin Roosevelt without his majorities in the House and Senate facing a highly questionable midterm a year from now, going to go after Arab Israeli peace? Hard to imagine.
[17:10:28]
TAPPER: Aaron David Miller, thanks so much for your thoughts. We appreciate it as always.
We are standing by for President Biden to begin speaking this hour. We're going to bring that to you live once it starts.
Also ahead, Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz seeming to side with Russia over the U.S. military in his latest attempt at trolling.
Plus, CNN has obtained more body camera video of Ronald Greene, a black man kicked and dragged by police in Louisiana. We'll show that to you next. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TAPPER: Just in on our national lead, CNN has obtained even more of the appalling body camera footage, now surfacing in the apparent killing of Ronald Greene. That's the black man beaten, kicked, tased and dragged by Louisiana State Police two years ago.
[17:15:00]
In one part of this new 30 plus minute video you can hear Greene moaning, facedown, handcuffed as police are shouting commands at him. A warning about this excerpt. Some viewers are going to find this video difficult to watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't you turn over.
RONALD GREENE, VICTIM: All right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't you turn over. Lay on your belly. Lay on your belly.
GREENE: Yes, sir. OK, OK, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE), you understand?
GREENE: Yes, sir.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: In a different part of the video, you can hear one trooper tell Greene, who's still handcuffed and on the ground, why they tried to pull him over and how that led to a chase.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're speeding a little bit on a red light.
GREENE: OK, sir. All right, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It wasn't a game (ph), do you understand that?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: Greene's mother says that in the hours after the crash, police told her that her son was in a high speed chase, his car ran into a tree and he died because of head injuries. But that is not what happened.
Even more proof, the autopsy reports seen and obtain at about an hour ago, it says Greene died of "Cocaine induced agitated delirium complicated by motor vehicle collision, physical struggle, inflicted head injury, and restraint." Inflicted not by the accident.
I want to bring in retired LAPD Police Sergeant Cheryl Dorsey along with Ron Johnson, who served as Captain of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Captain Johnson, I'm going to start with you. As a former supervisor, what do you make of how the Louisiana State Police have handled this?
CAPT. RON JOHNSON, (RET.) FORMER INCIDENT COMMANDER IN FERGUSON, MISSOURI: Not good at all. Not professional at all. Not being transparent. But definitely not the administrators. Yes, we're definitely focusing on officers on the scene. But those administrators, those leaders in that department have failed. That department failed that community and filled out to citizens across America.
TAPPER: Sergeant Dorsey, I'm just a citizen, a layman, I can't think of any ethical explanation for what we saw on this video or how the police have responded, can you?
CHERYL DORSEY, RETIRED LAPD POLICE SERGEANT: There is none. And listen, the administrators over there on the state troopers department know that the murder of Ronald Greene was problematic from the start. And I find it interesting that one of the officers involved was also involved in a solo car traffic collision. Now I'm not saying that he committed suicide, but I find it interesting that it was so close in proximity to that particular incident.
And it seems to me also that the coroner is complicit because they, in their report, speak to a traffic collision that we know didn't occur. And so now we get ready for them to dirty up Mr. Greene and talk about the cocaine that was in his system as if that were the real reason. He begged for the officers to show him some humanity. And they had none.
TAPPER: Captain Johnson, the Justice Department has launched a federal investigation into Greene's death. Is that the proper course of action do you think?
JOHNSON: That is the proper course of action. And this is one of those cases that the State Patrol should have had someone from the start come in and look into this matter. But where it is now has the best outcome that we can hope for at this point for the family and for the community.
TAPPER: Sergeant Dorsey, you were LAPD during the Rodney King days 30 years ago. That's when, of course, for the kids out there who don't remember, an amateur photographer captured police beating Rodney King. He hit him with a camcorder.
Now police know that they have body cameras on and their body cameras could record their actions. And yet we still these -- still see these cases. I mean, how do you -- how do you explain that? How do you rationalize that? Do they not think that their behavior is bad?
DORSEY: Well, I think what happens a lot of times is that officers get tunnel vision. And I know that this is a common practice having spent 20 years in patrol that at the end of a police pursuit, whether it's a vehicle or foot pursuit officers have a tendency to want to punish people for running. And we hear some of that in the words that are being spoken to Mr. Greene. You know, why did you run, it was just a little speeding. And so, now that you did, we're going to punish you.
And we see an officer places foot on his back after he's already in handcuffs. There's no reason for any additional use of force at that point, but for to punish him because he ran.
TAPPER: And Captain Johnson, help us understand just as civilians here what's going through the minds of police officers when they're in a situation like this. Not that you've ever done it but that you might have some insight into why they think they need to punish somebody for trying to run away from them. I mean, I think most people think it's kind of a small crime speeding, and he tried to get away. OK, that's not good. But certainly that doesn't mean that the person should be beaten and certainly not killed.
[17:20:22]
JOHNSON: But wearing a badge is a privilege, does not giving you this extreme power over those that we serve. And I think some officers see this as a power. And they do see that you didn't do what I said, and so I'm going to show you that I have power over you. And that is not what policing is. And that's not what policing should be. But that's definitely what we saw in this instance here. And you're right, it was just speeding, the officer says that. And so, I think people think that'd just because we put cameras on police, that is going to change. We have to have training, and other things have to go because the behavior that someone has, they'll forget about their camera, and we'll see their true behavior. And that's what we saw in this video.
TAPPER: You're right.
And Sergeant, I mean, Dorsey, that if passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act would require body cams for federal law enforcement, but there is not a national mandate for state and local police. Do you think there should be one?
DORSEY: Well, it doesn't matter. I mean, have a body camera or not, because the bottom line is there needs to be some kind of accountability. There needs to be a consequence for these officers who act in a way that's contrary to their training that's commensurate with what it is that they're doing.
And listen, this isn't the first time that we've seen an officer take a victory lap after they've put hands on somebody. As we saw this officer here where he celebrated, I beat the bleep, bleep, bleep out of this guy. We heard the same thing with Jacob Blake, when the officer shot him in the back, got him. So, this is inherent to what these officers do.
TAPPER: Sergeant Cheryl Dorsey and Captain Ron Johnson proof that there are lots of good officers out there. Thanks to both of you. We appreciate it.
Coming up next, we have brand new details about who is talking to the feds with Congressman Matt Gaetz under investigation. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:26:33]
TAPPER: We have some breaking news for you in our politics lead now. CNN has learned that federal prosecutors have secured a critical witness in their investigation into allegations of sex trafficking involving Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz. The critical witness, his ex-girlfriend, the unnamed woman, a former Capitol Hill staffer has been linked to Gaetz since 2017.
And CNN's Paula Reid joins me now with the breaking details.
Paula, tell us more.
PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Jake, this woman is seen as a critical witness because she was linked to the congressman in the summer of 2017. And that time period is really critical in the investigation into whether he had sex with an underage girl. Investigators also hope that she can help them understand the relevance of these hundreds of transactions they have obtained records of, including those that are allegedly payments for sex.
Now at this point, it's not clear whether she has a formal cooperation agreement. An attorney for the ex-girlfriend declined to comment as did a spokesman for the Justice Department.
But CNN has also learned that Gaetz's former close friend is told investigators that the lawmaker had sexual contact with a 17-year-old girl.
Now, earlier this week, that friend of Florida tax collector Joel Greenberg, pleaded guilty to six federal charges including sex trafficking involving a minor and he's cooperating with federal investigators in exchange for dozens of other accounts being dropped. And as part of this deal, he is required to cooperate fully and any other federal investigations, including the ongoing investigation into Congressman Gaetz looking at whether he has violated federal sex trafficking, prostitution or public corruption laws, and whether he had sex with a minor.
Now in his plea agreement, Greenberg admits that he had sex with the minor at least seven times and that he introduced her to other men who engaged in commercial sex acts with her, but those other men are not named.
Now Gaetz has repeatedly denied that he ever had sex with a minor or paid for sex. And Gaetz and his representatives have attacked Greenberg's credibility in recent days. Correctly pointing out the fact that Greenberg admitted in this plea agreement that he's previously falsely accused a political rival of having sex with a minor.
TAPPER: Yes, important to underline that Gaetz denies all of this. Paula, any idea when any charges could be filed, if at all?
REID: Well, Jake, that decision will ultimately fall to prosecutors in the Public Integrity section of the Justice Department. And that decision is expected to take some time. We know that they're still gathering evidence, and they will then have to assess everything they've gathered to decide whether they have enough for an indictment and to bring charges.
TAPPER: All right, Paula Reid, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
Coming up next, new fears about the exodus of public health officials who had the tough job of telling Americans to cancel plans and to stay away from loved ones. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:33:29]
TAPPER: In our health lead today, when the pandemic upended almost every aspect of life in the United States, people balked when parties and concerts got canceled. They were frustrated when they were told to stay away from friends and family. They were overwhelmed when parents were forced to help their kids do school from home. Some were furious when they were told to wear face coverings and a lot of that anger turned to blame, some of it to harassment, and some of it even into threats aimed at the very public health professionals tasked with saving lives and putting new rules in place to protect the public.
CNN Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen gets to the bottom of the healthcare industry's massive job exodus.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAMERON KAISER, PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICER, RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: Good afternoon. I'm Dr. Cameron Kaiser, public health officer for the county of Riverside.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Cameron Kaiser loved his work in Riverside County, California, a political appointment he held for nine years.
KAISER: Today, I signed orders, continuing social distancing, and face coverings in Riverside County.
COHEN (voice-over): When COVID-19 hit, he took action, implementing a mask mandate and social distancing orders that were more protective than the state's orders. And he helped with the federal quarantining of American citizens evacuated from Wuhan, China. And Kaiser canceled the lucrative Coachella Music Festival. But many people in Riverside County were not happy.
KAISER: They objected pretty much the entire gamut, masks, social distancing,
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are trampling on the Constitution by agreeing to extend Dr. Kaiser's recommendation.
[17:35:02]
COHEN (voice-over): He got very ugly very quickly.
KAISER: I received direct threats, I received some very ugly letters and I received some messages which I'm not even going to dignify by talking about them on the air.
COHEN (voice-over): Kaiser is not alone. Public health officials say during the pandemic, they've been harassed like never before just for doing their jobs.
LORI FREEMAN, CEO, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTY AND CITY HEALTH OFFICIALS: People felt, you know, in certain communities that their rights were being infringed upon by being asked to stay home and shelter in place or being asked to wear masks.
COHEN (voice-over): Since the pandemic began, more than 250 public health officials have left their posts, either fired, resigned or retired early, according to the National Association of County and City Health Officials. Lori Freeman, CEO of the association, calling it an exodus. FREEMAN: We tracked the reasons why people were leaving, and we largely found that they were due to just extensive pressure, elected official interference with public health measures. And really kind of efforts to diminish the authority of public health officials during the pandemic when their leadership is really needed most.
COHEN (voice-over): Kaiser says that's exactly what happened to him.
(on-camera): You went into public health to do good. Were you surprised by the bitterness, the acrimony here?
KAISER: Never really dealt with a situation where people simply told us to go jump in a lake when we had to make those necessary orders to protect society.
COHEN (voice-over): Within a month of Kaiser's mask mandate, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors rescinded his COVID-19 orders. After that, he says he was given fewer and fewer responsibilities. And two months ago, Kaiser was dismissed from his job, he says without explanation. Despite all this, Kaiser still wants to help his community.
KAISER: I'd like to stay in public health, but I know people who have just plain had it. And there are people who are doing good work and making solid contributions to the health of people in their communities. It really does break your heart to see a lot of good people chased out of the roles that they're in.
COHEN (voice-over): A loss of public health leadership at a critical time, that will be hard to replace.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COHEN: Now, we reached out to Riverside County, California to ask why Dr. Kaiser was let go, a spokesperson did not answer our question beyond saying that that was all the information they had, and thanking Dr. Kaiser for his service and pointing out that it was the county CEO that was responsible for the termination and that a new health officer had been appointed. Jake?
TAPPER: Elizabeth, these public health professionals, they're integral to our society. What if anything is being done to protect them?
COHEN: You know, they really are. So one big reason why these public health officials are leaving, as we just heard in the story is, some of them, they're just exhausted. I mean, this is an incredible amount of work, considering that the public health infrastructure is really -- it's been disintegrating for many, many years now. Now, the Biden administration says they're going to pump it with more money. And, Jake, that should help because more people will maybe mean more -- will maybe mean less exhaustion.
But another thing that could happen is that elected officials could support public health officers. They could say when a minority, when a small group at a county or a state says we don't like this mask mandate, or we don't like this role or that role, say OK, we hear you but support the person so that this public health officer doesn't have to hire security, which actually has happened. Now, some states have made it actually a crime to do something like spread a person's public health officers' home phone number, cell phone number around. They've actually made that a crime. Hopefully that could help.
TAPPER: Elizabeth, only 45 percent -- I'm sorry, 45 percent of Americans think the CDC is doing only a fair or poor job, according to the poll by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. So that's 55 percent have a favorable opinion. But still, that's a lot of people who have a very negative view of the CDC. Where is this distrust coming from?
COHEN: You know, I think some of this distress may be sort of a hangover from our holdover from the Trump administration. There was a lot of distress that built up during that. I mean, it was more than a year, right, when COVID was going on, or about a year when COVID was going on. And the Trump administration handled so many aspects of it so poorly, and so some of it may be a holdover from that. Some of it also might be that there's a feeling among some that the CDC could do a better job of communicating.
Some of these results, though, in this survey are partisan. And so when you see partisan results, that sometimes tells you that it's not necessarily how people feel about the facts, it's how people feel about whatever administration is in charge.
TAPPER: All right, Elizabeth Cohen, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
COHEN: Thank you.
TAPPER: We're standing by for President Biden to begin speaking in any moment. We're going to bring that to you live when it begins. Plus, from Cancun Ted to comrade (ph) Ted, the Senator being slammed for sharing a Russian propaganda video in order for the Senator to bash the U.S. military.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:44:28]
TAPPER: In our politics lead now, the firestorm touched off by a tweet from Senator Ted Cruz. For starters, the tweet included a Russian propaganda video. Cruz went on to use that video to mock a U.S. Army recruiting ad asking whether the country needs, quote, a woke emasculated military, unquote. CNN Pentagon Correspondent Oren Liebermann now takes a look at the furious blowback.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is pure testosterone packed Russian propaganda, a TikTok video
about the toughness of the Russian soldier shared by one Senator Ted Cruz on Twitter.
[17:45:09]
The video then compares the 2014 ad to a recent U.S. Army animated video about a female soldier raised by two mothers who join the army.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I also marched for equality.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): "Holy crap. Perhaps a woke, emasculated military is not the best idea", the Republican Senator from Texas wrote. Aside from promoting the Russian military, Cruz also appears to be disparaging Corporal Emma Malonelord, who graduated at the top of her high school class and joined the army out of college. Cruz, let's remember, has never served in the military. The backlash was swift.
COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Myself and a lot of veterans are very upset by this. I -- it is not the right thing to disparage our military.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): Senator Tammy Duckworth, a helicopter pilot and Iraq War veteran who lost parts of both legs when her chopper was hit by an RPG tweeted this, "Holy crap. Perhaps a U.S. Senator shouldn't suggest that the Russian military is better than the American military that protected him from an insurrection he helped foment." General Robert Abrams, the four-star commander of U.S. Forces South Korea through his support behind Corporal Malonelord. "I met this Corporal a few months ago during a routine unit visit," he wrote on Twitter. "Exceptionally sharp, professional, technical expert, highly respected by her peers, superiors and subordinates."
Under Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the Pentagon has celebrated its diversity and inclusion.
LLOYD AUSTIN, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Diversity throughout the force is a source of strength. So we can't afford to deprive ourselves of the talents and the voices of the full range of the nation that we defend.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): And if a female soldier who operates Patriot missiles isn't badass enough for Cruz, he could have chosen one of the many other army videos to promote the U.S. military. Instead, Cruz doubled down on his tweet.
SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: We're saying democratic politicians and these woke lefty bureaucrats and lefty media reporters trying to destroy the American military, trying to turn it in into, frankly, a bunch of pansies.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): It's not the first time Cruz has run into trouble with women in the military. In 2016, as he was mounting a failed presidential bid, Cruz scoffed at the idea of women in combat.
CRUZ: We had three different Republican candidates say, yes, it's a great idea to be drafting our daughters, to be drafting women into combat roles in the military. My reaction to that is, are they nuts?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIEBERMANN: Corporal Malonelord's parents released the statement just a short time ago saying they are incredibly proud of their daughter and her courageous decision to serve in the military. The reason she chose that path was so that she could help change the world. Jake, there about a half dozen of these videos, these animated recruiting videos from the army. They're labeled the calling about a soldier's decision to serve. It seems all of them have had the comments turned off. At least in the case of Corporal Malonelord, the army says that's because the comments violated the army social media policies and didn't uphold army values.
TAPPER: All right, Oren Liebermann at the Pentagon for us, thank you so much.
Also on our politics lead today, the White House is dropping its price tag on President Biden's massive infrastructure plan. This afternoon. negotiators presented Senate Republicans with a counter offer, the new price tag is $1.7 trillion down from the original two and a quarter trillion dollars. But the lead Republican in negotiations, Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia says it's still way too expensive, noting in a statement that the plan is, quote, well above the range of what can pass Congress with bipartisan support.
As we wait for President Biden's news conference, let's talk to our panel. And I want to start with Ted Cruz, who as we recall, has completely gone all in for Donald Trump despite Donald Trump publicly attacking his wife, her looks, her mental stability and publicly accusing his father of being part of the Kennedy assassination. That person, Ted Cruz, suggesting that the U.S. military is emasculated and pansies, any thoughts?
NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: You know, Ted Cruz is very thirsty for attention, whether it's from Donald Trump, folks on the internet, he is essentially become a Twitter troll at this point. You know, he's talking about other people being emasculated, the American military being emasculated, he, in some ways, is emasculating himself by running up behind Donald Trump in the way that he does after Donald Trump has disparaged his wife and accused his father of somehow being involved in the John F. Kennedy assassination.
You know, this is in some ways where the loudest voices of the Republican Party have ended up in the mold of Donald Trump in some ways. And it's just unfortunate and you saw Democrats obviously try to come back and point to the fact that he is being anti-military in embracing Russia which is --
TAPPER: Russian propaganda.
HENDERSON: Russian propaganda.
TAPPER: Putting a Russian propaganda. But you don't seem to be particularly impressed with the democratic or even Pentagon pushback.
[17:50:04]
ABBY PHILLIP, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I just think that for decades, Republicans have made their bread and butter that they are pro-military, that they are pro-American troops. And if a Democrat had said something like what Ted Cruz said, it would be everywhere. It would be all over ads, it would be the number one thing being talked about. And I don't necessarily see that same kind of effort. I mean, I think also there is, it's not just Ted Cruz, right? There is a sort of long history, whether it's Donald Trump or other Republicans disparaging the military when it's convenient for them.
And that's something that I think they should be called out for, not necessarily from a partisan perspective, but just in general. And I don't know, the Democrats have really made that, a huge issue as they tried to gain the upper hand. And it's a little bit perplexing, because it's right there in front of them.
TAPPER: Well, and also I mean, the soldier in question, Emma Malonelord, volunteered?
HENDERSON: Yes, I -- yes. I don't even -- I don't really even understand what his criticism. I mean, here is a brave young woman who has two moms, I don't know if that's the attack, does that make her -- I don't know. I don't think (INAUDIBLE).
PHILLIP: It's almost as if saying the most outrageous thing is the only objective of --
HENDERSON: No, I think that's right.
PHILLIP: -- this whole project. I mean, Ted Cruz tried to run for president on, you know, fiscal conservatism and all of that. Jazz, it didn't really get him anywhere.
TAPPER: We came in second.
PHILLIP: And so --
TAPPER: It can be gotten somewhere. It came in second.
PHILLIP: But obviously, he's taken a turn --
TAPPER: Right.
PHILLIP: -- realizing that this stuff, just sort of throwing chum in the water is the most effective way to get attention and it's working.
HENDERSON: Right.
PHILLIP: It is working --
TAPPER: How is it working? You think he's going to be the nominee? You think he's going to --
HENDERSON: No.
PHILLIP: I think he has stopped the attacks from Donald Trump, which is task number one. He's gotten attention from Trump's base, all of these folks, whether it's Ted Cruz, or, you know, Ron DeSantis, or others, they're trying to gain a foothold enough in the Trump base so that when they do decide to run, they have, you know, they've got street cred there. And I think that's what this is all about.
TAPPER: I think that's fair --
HENDERSON: I mean, that's (INAUDIBLE).
TAPPER: I think that's fair, but can I say -- I mean, Ron DeSantis will have a record he can run on, right? It's not he -- and he isn't, whatever you think of Ron DeSantis. And certainly he's picking fights in the culture wars and all that, especially with big tech, but he's a governor. He's not a troll.
HENDERSON: Yes.
TAPPER: And I see so many senator and it's bipartisan. But, I mean, it's a real issue with Republican senators. You really see it like Ted Cruz, like --
PHILLIP: Josh Hawley.
HENDERSON: It's sort of -- yes.
TAPPER: This is what they do. They think that their job is mean tweets.
HENDERSON: Yes, to own the lives, to get attention from whoever. You know, this is Ted Cruz wanting to be in the culture war. He did run as a fiscal conservative and he also ran as an evangelical, as well and, you know, this sort of tweet and some of his recent behavior, I think sort of calls into question how evangelical he is or how he's sort of hewing to Christian values. You know, I mean, his last time being in the headlines, I think, was he was on a plane going to Cancun during a very terrible natural disaster --
TAPPER: Yes.
HENDERSON: -- his home state.
TAPPER: So we're waiting for Joe Biden to come out and talk with the President of South Korea. While we do, I mean, let's just talk for a second about, Abby, about the fact that Biden is trying to negotiate what's going on in the Middle East, between Netanyahu and Hamas, while also negotiating the politics in his own party, where there increasingly are a lot of outspoken people who are more willing to be critical of Israel, and in some cases, people who are willing to be anti-Israel. I mean, in the cases of Rashida Tlaib, how do you think he's been doing in negotiating this terrain?
PHILLIP: You know, I -- all things considered as surprisingly well, when you saw him in Michigan, giving a shout out to Rashida Tlaib and talking about her grandmother and talking about it, this issue, not in political terms, but in personal terms, the window into how Joe Biden operates as a politician, where he basically puts the proverbial hand on the shoulder and says, I hear you, I understand you, I'm listening. And for a lot of people, that's enough to mollify them. And I feel like a lot of Democrats do genuinely believe that he's listening, even if they may be upset with the underlying policy.
The ceasefire, though, is important. It's a real practical thing that has happened. That helps him -- give him some breathing --
TAPPER: And a lot quicker than happened with Obama in 2014.
PHILLIP: Exactly. And we don't know where this is ultimately going to end up. But the Biden administration doesn't want to get sucked into a black hole in the Middle East. And the ceasefire allows them to get some breathing room, figure out their policy, but focus on the things that they really want to focus on, which is domestic politics, the economy and even this pivot to Asia that we're seeing here, Jake.
[17:55:00]
TAPPER: And can I just note something else about the politics of Israel in the Democratic Party? There has been a shift. It's not just the Rashida Tlaibs and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as you have people like Senator Menendez, very strong supporter of Israel being willing to very, very publicly critically -- criticize Netanyahu and the Israeli government.
Here's President Biden, let's listen in as he and the President of South Korea, President Moon Jae-in begin speaking at the White House.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Hello, everyone. Please, please be seated.
Today, I've been honored to welcome to the White House, President Moon and I got an opportunity to spend some private time with him as well as with our delegations. It's only the second person head of state, second head of state to visit in the White House since I've been president, and it's been a real joy. It's a reflection of how much we value the 70-year alliance with the Republic of Korea. And how essential we know the relationship is to the United States, the future of the Indo-Pacific region, and quite frankly, to the world.
Today has been particularly special because this afternoon in addition to our bilateral meetings, President Moon participated into the ceremony, right in this room that awarding the Medal of Honor to veteran of the Korean War. True American hero, Colonel Ralph Puckett Jr. And I want to thank you again, Mr. President, for joining us. It was special.
I don't know that there's ever been an award of a Medal of Honor with the head of state of the country where the award was won. It meant a great deal to me, and to the family and to our country.
And -- but today not only been an affirmation of our shared history of sacrifice that binds Republic Korea, and in north, excuse me, and the United States together, it's a commitment to expanding cooperation and shaping our shared future, in accordance with our democratic values that have made our nation strong and agile, and highly competitive in the 21st century economies. Republic Korea and United States are both nations built on innovation. And we must both meet the challenges facing us today, and look to what is possible for tomorrow.
Our partnership is grounded on our ironclad commitment to shared security. Our alliance has long been the linchpin of peace, security, prosperity, and the region growing more prominent, and us being together. I was grateful that our two nations were able to quickly conclude a new cost-sharing agreement for forces and Korea in March, which will benefit both our peoples and I thank again, the President for that agreement.
Today, we made important progress on a range of issues. We spoke about the shared approach to the Democratic People's Republic in Korea, and continuing threat of the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs. My team consulted closely with President Moon's team throughout the process of our DPRK review, and we both are deeply concerned about the situation. Our two nations also share a willingness to engage diplomatically with the DPRK to take pragmatic steps that will reduce tensions as we move toward our ultimate goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Today, I affirm to President Moon that the United States will proceed in close consultation with Republic of Korea, and our strategy and our approach. And to help drive all these efforts, I'm pleased to announce that Ambassador Sung Kim, career diplomat and with deep policy expertise will serve as U.S. Special Envoy for the DPRK. Ambassador Kim, you're here somewhere today, stand up, will you? Thank you for being (INAUDIBLE).
Thank you for taking that as an important role. We appreciate it very much. USRRK (ph) partnership also extends beyond the goals of the peninsula. The address issues of regional and global concern through stronger cooperation with partners in the region, including the ASEAN, the Quad, and trilateral cooperation with Japan. The multilateral cooperation is particularly important to coordinate and approach the situation that exists in Burma, as we work to pressure the hunter to restore democracy for the people of Burma.
