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Don Lemon Tonight

President Trump Dismisses Intel Assessment; Nevada Holds Its Caucus Tomorrow; Make or Break for Michael Bloomberg; Bernie Sanders Rips Michael Bloomberg's Debate Performance; Black Democratic Voters Weigh Their Options as Race Heats Up; President Trump is Annoyed that South Korean Film 'Parasite' Won Oscar for Best Picture. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired February 21, 2020 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: This is CNN Tonight. I'm Don Lemon.

We've got a busy hour coming up. And here our tonight's big headlines.

Vladimir Putin is trying to put his paws all over the 2020 election. Bernie Sanders saying, he has been told by U.S. intelligence that Russia's trying to help his presidential campaign. I'm going to talk to a top Sanders campaign official in just a few moments.

But President Trump is dismissing U.S. Intel's assessment of Russian interference claiming it's a disinformation campaign by the Democrats. And there is a report that his new acting intel chief is already beginning to clean house.

Also, state of the race, Nevada holds its caucuses tomorrow. It is a state with a much more diverse population than Iowa or New Hampshire we're going to see what the latest polls are saying about African- American voters. Should Joe Biden be worried?

Is Michael Bloomberg's last entry into the Democratic race a boon for Bernie Sanders? Is he splitting the moderate vote? We're going to talk about that straight ahead.

Plus, President Trump's -- President Trump movie critic, dismissing the South Korean film "Parasite" which won best picture and calling for more movies like "Gone with the Wind," a movie that glorified slavery. We're going to talk about that coming up.

But let's get to the Russia attack on our election. Joining me now CNN national security correspondent Vivian Salama, also Ryan Lizza, chief Washington correspondent for Politico, and David Priess, he is a former CIA officer and the author of the book "The President's Book of Secrets," which is based on interviews with all the living former presidents and intelligence community leaders.

Good evening to all of you. Thank you so much for joining us. Ryan, President Trump is blatantly disregarding an intelligence assessment about an attack on our democracy. How would any other commander in chief handle this?

RYAN LIZZA, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I think it's really clear any other commander in chief would be essentially on a war footing since 2016 knowing that one of our chief adversaries not just once meddled in the most important election in the country but continued to do it despite being found out, being warned and is going into another election doing the same.

Any other president would have made this one of the top priorities of their foreign policy and would make sure that the Russians understood that there was a -- there would be severe consequences, you know, let alone doing it once, but, you know, especially continuing to do so.

And we frankly just have not seen that kind of urgency from the president despite a lot of Republicans in his party who do take it seriously. We just haven't seen him frankly defending our democracy.

I don't know any other way to put it in the face of this. And instead he's spent the last few years dismissing the meddling and undercutting his intelligence community.

LEMON: David, by trying to keep this intelligence from Congress is Trump essentially helping the Russians?

DAVID PRIESS, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, LAWFARE INSTITUTE: Yes, it's not really clear what information is getting to Congress versus the president. The reports are out that maybe the president was upset that Congress was getting this assessment but he didn't.

It would be derelict of the intelligence community if they had not briefed the president through the president's daily brief or any other means on this same intelligence.

If, in fact, Congress is getting this information and the president isn't, it's because of their different attention span for intelligence on Russia. The president doesn't seem to want to hear the message.

And that's the very definition of politicization when you filter the information you're getting or encourage others to do so, so that you don't challenge your preconceived beliefs or have to take action. It's a very dangerous thing.

LEMON: Yes. Vivian, Robert Mueller's report included Russian e-mails like this one from February 16th where he said, quote, "Main idea. Use any opportunity to criticize Hillary -- I mean, Hillary Clinton and the rest, except Sanders and Trump. We support them."

I mean, Russia is using the same playbook as 2016 so why isn't the U.S. better prepared now?

VIVIAN SALAMA, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, a lot of it is that the technology is evolving, Don. And so, this is, one of the factors we saw laid out in the Mueller report, he really paved like a really good, you know, a pathway for understanding what the threat is.

[23:05:01]

But again, the technologies are getting more sophisticated and the targets are changing. You know, we're not just talking about a tax now on physical infrastructure like voter registration places and actual voting centers.

We're talking about even disinformation and information tactics. Things that we saw on Facebook and on Twitter. And so, it's actually, for -- on the one hand it's a government effort and of course the executive branch has to really support any effort that's done by the government.

You do see a lot of rhetoric coming from different agencies, certainly the intelligence agency has tried to move personnel into place so that they can better tackle this problem, but you have the president who's constantly been contradicting a lot of those efforts by casting doubt on those efforts.

And then you also have the element of the private sector buying into it too, where you need Twitter and Facebook and all of those other social media companies to also get on board and work with the government. And that's really been a very hefty lift.

And so, what we saw in 2016 is that we were very vulnerable and a lot of that has come to light. But whether or not we're prepared, most folks I talked to in the intel community and national security world say we are just not there yet.

LEMON: Yes. Ryan, even the former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, a huge Trump loyalist said this today. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW WHITAKER, FORMER U.S. ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL: I'm never going to deny that Russia tried to interfere in 2016. They tried to interfere in 2018. And they're trying to interfere in 2020.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Listen, but his boss, Trump, still calling this a hoax. Does it all comes down to his insecurity that this evidence suggests that his victory was somehow tainted, that it undermines his win?

LIZZA: I think it's a mix. First of all, it's kind of nuts that we have to give kudos towards former acting attorney general for just stating the most basic facts about this. But in the current environment, you know, that is -- that is a sort of -- you know, you deserve a pat on the back, I guess, if you served in the Trump administration and you're willing to defy Trump on something this obvious.

But I think it's a mix of two things with Trump. One is, as he's often said, he believes that the Russia intervention in 2016 is used to delegitimize his victory. At the same time there seems to be a wink and a nod to the fact that, well, what's the big deal? Right?

If -- if he's going to get a little assistance on the side through a social media campaign, or the other actions of these Russian players, then he'll sort of take it. I think that's what I see when I've watched him very carefully talk about this in the last few years is it's basically any weapon at hand. And if a foreign intervention happens to favor him, you know, so be it.

So far, Sanders, what we've seen from Sanders today is different, a very clear reaction against intervention. And, you know, let's hope that that's the way that that continues to be. Because if you're running for office there is a temptation to just sort of like throw your hands up and say, you know, what's the big deal? I'll take the -- I'll take the help.

LEMON: Yes, take --

(CROSSTALK)

LIZZA: Rather than, you know, keep assistance --

LEMON: But the question is, I want to ask Vivian this.

LIZZA: And that's a huge problem.

LEMON: Yes. But Vivian, I want to ask you. The question is, I mean, some folks are asking if -- you know, I think it's a good question. Should Sanders -- should the Sanders campaign have disclosed the information earlier, that, you know, that the intel community told them that Russia was trying to help them.

SALAMA: Well, on the one hand they were probably worried about political backlash in the same way that President Trump would actually worry that it would somehow delegitimize his own victories or any kind of advances that he would make, and especially with Senator Sanders being caught in such a contentious close race, and now, you know, we see that he's the front runner but a couple of days ago, a couple of weeks ago that, you know, that wasn't as clear.

And so, for the Sanders campaign to have come out it was really such a sensitive time to them that they just felt like they could lose everything.

LEMON: David, you were shaking your head.

PRIESS: Yes. I don't see the burden on the Sanders campaign to do anything. They were given an informational briefing. This was not part of the tradition that happens in a campaign year when the candidates have been selected and they receive institutionalized briefings.

This wasn't that. This was something that apparently according to the reporting, it was so dramatic they felt they had to inform the campaign even during this primary process. But it's not up to the Sanders campaign to assess this information, to update the American people. That is the job of the U.S. government to do.

[23:09:56]

So, if Sanders decided he wanted to come out and talk about it, you know, that's arguable. I think he probably shouldn't have said anything about this. It was for his own internal consumption.

But the U.S. government should be talking about this. The U.S. government should be taking action about Russian actions against any candidate for the U.S. president.

And we're missing the point, if we're arguing about how one particular candidate is responding to it. It's about the executive branch and the legislative branch responding to Russian information warfare.

LEMON: Thank you all. I appreciate your time.

LIZZA: Yes. Thanks, Don.

LEMON: We're going to talk more about what Bernie Sanders campaign is saying about what Russia's efforts are to help him. His campaign co- chair Nina Turner weighs in. There she is, she's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: So, let's talk about the state of the race. Democratic front runner Senator Bernie Sanders today addressing reports about Russian efforts to help his campaign. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[23:14:57]

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Here's the message. To Russia, stay out of American elections. And what they are doing, by the way, the ugly thing that they are doing, and I've seen some of their, you know, their tweets and stuff, is they try to divide us up. That's what they did in 2016 and that is the ugliest thing they're doing is they are trying to cause chaos. They are trying to cause hatred in America. Thanks very much.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And if this came out a month ago, how do you think it came out now if you had the briefing a month ago?

SANDERS: I'll let you guess about one day before the Iowa -- the Nevada caucus. Why do you think it came out? It was the Washington Post. Good friends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Now to discuss, Nina Turner. Nina Turner is the co-chair of Bernie Sanders' campaign. Nina, I know it's loud where you are. You're at a rally so I hope you can hear me. Hello. Can you hear me?

NINA TURNER, NATIONAL CO-CHAIR, SANDERS CAMPAIGN: I can, Don.

LEMON: OK, great. Listen, so we have known for years now that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to benefit Donald Trump. What is your reaction to the reporting now that they're trying to help Senator Sanders?

TURNER: Well, the senator was very clear, that clip that you played, was very clear that he thinks that Putin is an autocrat, he's a thug, and all he's trying to do is sow discord and division within the United States of America and that he is not going to stand for it.

As you noticed the senator's answer was a lot different than President Donald J. Trump who welcomes and worships at the feet of Putin. But Senator Bernie Sanders is having none of it.

LEMON: You heard reporters asking about, you know, how long ago it happened and we discussed it even in the segment before you about the Kremlin's efforts and that he was briefed a month ago. Should the campaign have said something sooner?

TURNER: Well, Don, it was classified. The senator came out when he was supposed to come out. And as your guest previously said this doesn't lay at the feet of Senator Bernie Sanders. It is the job of the federal government. It is the job of President Donald J. Trump who, again, worships at the feet of Putin and Russia, to really protect this country and to do the right thing when it comes to making sure that our elections are safe.

And so, it is kind of curious. I mean, we don't know this for sure but it is kind of curious that President Trump has been traveling all over this country, especially in places where the Democratic primary is come -- is happening, he was just here in Nevada and then all of a sudden the next day after he leaves this comes out.

LEMON: Well, to that --

(CROSSTALK)

TURNER: So, he should be questioned about this.

LEMON: OK.

TURNER: But Senator Sanders did the right thing.

LEMON: So, this is what your communications director, the Sanders communications director, Mike Casca tweeted. "If you think this leak wasn't designed to hurt Bernie, you're not paying attention. It's very clear Trump is nervous about facing him in the general election."

Does the campaign have any direct evidence to suggest that Trump directed the leak of this story?

TURNER: No direct evidence but it's certainly curious. So, let's ask the man that worships Mr. Putin every chance he gets, why would he do something like that to try to taint what is happening. And by extension, Russia continues to try to taint our elections.

Why the Republicans won't pass a bill to do something about this. We have an obligation to protect this country from all enemies, foreign and domestic, and that is especially true when it comes to our elections but President Trump wants none of that. So, this lays at his feet.

LEMON: Nina, can you clear something up for us. When the senator walked away from the reporter today when after the asking about the being briefed about Russia, he made a comment about his good friends at the Washington Post. What was that about? What did that mean? He said good friends.

TURNER: Well, certainly, the senator's probably referring to the fact that the Washington Post is, you know, has not necessarily been a fair arbiter to the senator.

LEMON: I'm sorry, say again, Nina.

TURNER: The senator was probably alluding to the fact that, you know, the Washington Post certainly has not been a fair arbiter to him. I mean, it does beg the question, why did this come out like this right before the caucus elections tomorrow?

LEMON: Let's move on because we know that the Russians love to weaponize social media. They love to use bots to spread disinformation and division.

Sanders has faced some tough questions about the behavior of his supporters online, the Bernie bros. He's answered that. Does -- you know, during the town hall. Does the campaign think that there could be some sort of a connection there possibly?

TURNER: Well, the senator has made reference to the fact that some of these people might be bots. I mean, people could be anonymous. We don't know if they're bots or real.

But again, talking about the supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders is a distraction, the fact that people want to continue to lay at the feet something that is different or unique about his supporters compared to anybody else's supporters.

[23:20:01]

But to get directly to what I think you're asking me, it could very well be bots trying to sow discord but we know that there are some real people who we can identify who take every opportunity that they can to try to malign the supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders. And in some ways, I think that is to distract from the real issues that Senator Sanders is fighting for in this country, which is Medicare for all, level the playing field for the work of the people of this nation, and bringing love and justice to bear.

LEMON: Well, it seems like you're at another big rally tonight. I can hear the senator behind you. Nina, thank you. I know it's tough to hear. We appreciate you joining us. Have a good weekend. Good luck with the --

(CROSSTALK)

TURNER: Thank you, Don, so much.

LEMON: -- caucus in Vegas this weekend. Thank you.

TURNER: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you.

Michael Bloomberg thinks that he is the one to take on Trump but is his entry into the race lifting up Bernie Sanders instead? We'll discuss that.

[23:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right, back with the state of the race, Michael Bloomberg now saying that women covered by three nondisclosure agreements who made complaints against him can be released from those NDAs if they so choose.

Joining me now, Sam Donaldson who supports Bloomberg. Sam, thank you. Good to see you.

SAM DONALDSON, FORMER ANCHOR & REPORTER, NBC NEWS: Good to see you, Don. And make the point, I'm an unpaid volunteer supporting Bloomberg.

LEMON: And unpaid volunteer to support Bloomberg. So, you made it clear, so thank you so much.

Listen, he reversed himself on those NDAs, now offering to release the women from them after refusing to do so during the debate. He said if they wish to. Do you think that's going to blunt this line of attack from Elizabeth Warren and others?

DONALDSON: I think he did the right thing. And I think it's the good thing. Now he says, the campaign says there were three women who directly accused Bloomberg himself of saying things, doing things that they found very inappropriate.

Now, there may be other NDAs, and he hasn't released them because they're not about him, they're about the general atmosphere of something in which he was not responsible. I think he did the right thing, Don.

LEMON: Listen, that was just one attack at what, you know, most people think was an -- and I think you will agree was a pretty disastrous debate performance. He was asked, you know, really predictable questions. On sexism, on stop and frisk --

DONALDSON: Yes.

LEMON: -- and, you know, on NDAs and whatever.

DONALDSON: yes.

LEMON: Why wasn't he better prepared, Sam?

DONALDSON: Well, this is a theory on my part, no one is -- he hasn't spoken to me and I haven't told him. But he's a guy who is not emotional. He's a technocrat. He gets things done. He looks at the data, he comes up with things that he thinks a solution and he does it.

For instance, he's apologized because he realizes he was wrong about stop and frisk. And it's a sincere apology but he hasn't done it emotionally. He hasn't made this feeling, you know. A lot of people want to be felt loved, not say I love you, and I can understand that.

But we're electing a president, not someone who's in a church pew, and not someone who is going to comfort us all the time but someone who gets it done and knows how to do it.

So, I think he's going to do well in the second debate because I think this time, he's going to brag on himself. For instance, he says to Bernie, I think it was, when Bernie says what the people that work for you. Now he could have said because it's true, I always paid them well and still do. And the people who worked even harder I promoted and gave more to. That's the truth.

And on stop and frisk, that's particularly galling to me because he made a mistake, I think he made a mistake, but he said I'm sorry about it. I got it all wrong. Now is he a racist? No. Look at the millions he's given to minority organizations, he began an institution an initiative to help young black men find jobs, years ago, not just when he's running for president.

Barack Obama thought so much of that that he used it as that template for the one he started good thing.

LEMON: Sam --

DONALDSON: And he's given money -- all right. I could go on and on. My point is, look at his record.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Yes. But let me, OK, OK, OK. But here's the thing. Listen, I'm not a politician and I'm not here to support Michael Bloomberg. But what I'm saying it was such easy answers. Stop and frisk.

I'm not here to litigate the past, I'm here because I want to help with the future. I'm sorry for that. What I did was wrong. And that's one of the reasons I'm running for president because I want to spend the rest of my life trying to make up for that wrong. Easy answer. The NDAs --

(CROSSTALK)

DONALDSON: That's a good answer.

LEMON: That's a really good answer.

DONALDSON: That's a good answer.

LEMON: The NDAs -- (CROSSTALK)

DONALDSON: That's a good answer but --

LEMON: Listen, this is something that is common in corporate America and that needs to be changed. And if I can be part of that change, I will certainly look into it. And if these women want to be released, we can certainly discuss it. That is an easy answer.

DONALDSON: That's a great answer.

LEMON: I don't understand --

(CROSSTALK)

DONALDSON: That's great answer. Don, that's a great answer, but he's already, in a sense, given that answer.

LEMON: Yes. But he didn't do it on the stage.

(CROSSTALK)

DONALDSON: Look at his record and what he's done.

LEMON: That's what I'm saying. He didn't give it on the stage.

DONALDSON: That's right. He didn't do it emotionally on the stage.

LEMON: Yes.

DONALDSON: Call Stacey Abrams when she was unfairly beaten from the governorship because of voter suppression and all the rest.

LEMON: Yes.

DONALDSON: She said I'm going to do something about it, guess who gave her $5 million to help her?

LEMON: Right.

DONALDSON: Michael Bloomberg.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: I understand that but what I'm saying is --

DONALDSON: Why doesn't he atone - why doesn't he atone for something when all of his life he's helped minorities and women?

LEMON: I understand that but what I'm saying is that you -- that the answers were easy and you coming on as a surrogate doesn't make up for the fact that he didn't do it on the stage. That's it.

Listen, this is how the front runner Bernie Sanders described Bloomberg's debate performance. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Were you surprised by how unprepared he seemed for some very basic, obvious questions at the debate in Nevada?

[23:30:04]

SANDERS: Yes, I was. I was. And, you know, if that's what happened in a democratic debate, you know, I think it's quite likely that Trump will chew him up and spit him out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Along with this line of questioning, do you think he's prepared for Trump?

SAM DONALDSON, FORMER ANCHOR AND REPORTER FOR ABC NEWS: More than prepared. I'll say this to Bernie. Yes, he didn't have a good night. You're right. But you just wait for the second debate. He'll be there. He'll be there before the next one. And Bernie, you just watch him, and you watch him answer you. I mean, when you tell him, you know, you're an arrogant billionaire, says this young woman, Elizabeth, you know.

What's he going to say? I'm not arrogant, I am a billionaire, and I'm giving away my money. Now, he should have said, to whom is he giving it, Stacey Abrams, to young black men, to women? All across the country, he's helped women in an organization that you may know about be their own bosses, buy into companies, and also minorities. He should have said that.

LEMON: Yes.

DONALDSON: He should have said, listen, you're telling me that I'm an arrogant man who doesn't do things right. Let me tell you what I've done and people can make up their mind.

LEMON: I got to go, Sam.

DONALDSON: And I think people should make up their mind about him, too.

LEMON: Yes.

DONALDSON: I'm not a shell. I'm not somebody -- oh, I'm going to blow smoke. I am telling you what I think about him and what I think about his past. Guys, make up your mind. And gals, you get in there, too.

LEMON: I'm out of time. Sam Donaldson, thank you, sir. I appreciate it.

(LAUGHTER)

DONALDSON: Don, thanks for having me on.

LEMON: Have a great weekend. I appreciate you being on. Hours away from the Nevada caucuses and new poll shows Sanders could be gaining ground on Biden with black voters. Is Biden's big lead with those voters at risk?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We're back now with more on the state of the race. Democrats know that black voters are key if they have any hope of winning back the White House in November. But with the vast majority of black Democrats yet to cast their votes this primary season and feel really divided, who has the momentum here?

Let's discuss now with a CNN political commentator. Mr. Van Jones is here. Lurie Favors is here as well. She is the executive director of the Center for Law and Social Justice. And Errol Louis is the host of the podcast "You Decide." I am so happy to have all of you here.

VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good to be here.

LEMON: Thank you so much. Van Jones, I'm going to start with you. I want to start with this new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. It is reporting that Bernie Sanders is gaining ground on Joe Biden with black primary voters. And it is worth noting that because there's an oversampling of the margin of error, it is usually high on this poll, OK?

But even accounting for that, I want to know what you think is behind the shift in support between Biden because Biden used to have a significant lead. Look at this poll, 31 and 29.

JONES: Well, look, I mean, Biden's theory of the case doesn't make a lot of sense anymore. He says, look, I'm Obama's guy and I can beat Trump, so stick with me. The problem is people liked Obama because -- black people liked Obama because Obama could get white votes.

LEMON: Right.

JONES: Biden can't get white votes and he wants black votes. We are not that dumb. And so we now realized you got a guy who can't get white votes, so people are now looking for other places to go. In the last election, 2016, black voted no Bernie Sanders. Had black folks known Bernie Sanders, he might have beaten Hillary Clinton.

Now, black folks know Bernie and you're starting to see us begin to move in Bernie's direction, in the Bloomberg's direction away from -- a judgment on Biden falling down the stairs.

LEMON: And they also saw in the last election or in 2008 that -- black folks saw that Obama could win. When he started winning --

JONES: Yes.

LEMON: -- they said, well, this man can win and then they got behind him. Errol, there's another poll. This is Winthrop University this week that shows Biden still out front among black voters. This is in South Carolina. But you say black voters aren't sentimental. They're focused on choosing whoever can beat Trump. Does Biden need to prove that he can win votes?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: He absolutely needs to prove it. In fact, he set himself up. He raised expectations by saying, pay no attention to my disastrous finish in New Hampshire and in Iowa. I'm going to make it all up when we get to a more diverse state. We are going to make it all up when we get to South Carolina.

Now, the problem is a lot of his voters are walking away. As Van suggests, when you see that you've got a candidate that you were interested in and supporting and telling the pollsters a few weeks ago you were going to back and you see that they're not performing very well, they're beaten up on the debate stage, they're not actually getting a lot of the votes, they're not in the lead, they haven't won a state yet, at some point it all starts to kind of fall apart.

And so he's got a lot on the line going into South Carolina. I haven't been on the ground there, so I can't say for sure, but if there is -- if there's going to be a ground swell, if there's going to be a comeback trail for Joe Biden, it's got to happen, it's got to happen right now.

LEMON: We're talking about South Carolina. But let's talk about Nevada because less than 24 hours away -- and it is the most diverse state that's going to vote, more diverse obviously than Iowa and New Hampshire so far. Could a clear Sanders win tomorrow shift this race even further?

LOUIS: Sure, sure. I mean, your question was about momentum. He's got all the momentum --

LEMON: Yes.

LOUIS: -- in his favor. Somebody like Joe Biden, somebody like Elizabeth Warren, they have to win a state at some point. They've got to show that they've got a case to make, that they can get to whatever the number is, 1,991 delegates. He's sort of steadily piling them up. We watched him do this from four years ago.

[23:40:00]

LOUIS: At some point, it starts to look like, you know, you got to ask yourself, especially this upcoming case in California, where he's getting 15 percent, he's getting eligibility for delegates, none of the other candidates seem to be arriving at that threshold just yet, where he could really kind of run away with it.

LEMON: Lurie, I've been watching you and reading your stuff and paying attention to it. You say it is important to have candidates that will analyze and work to fix issues that are important to the black community. Do you think Bernie Sanders or any of the other candidates are addressing this?

LURIE FAVORS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR LAW AND SOCIAL JUSTICE: I think you see that a lot as it pertains to a candidate like Elizabeth Warren, who not only is able to reference policies that are going to be equitable, but she has a racial justice analysis for how those policies have a direct impact on communities of African descent.

Bernie also has policies that could be seen as favouring communities that have been traditionally marginalized and traditionally ostracized from the power strip (ph). Those things, the ability to create a vision of what you're able to produce, about what you would able to -- what America would look like under your leadership is very important, particularly when what you're resting on, in the Biden case, is the past.

And so having a vision for the future, I think, is going to be fundamentally important for each of these candidates.

LEMON: (INAUDIBLE) so he's resting on his support, Lurie, of -- his black support.

FAVORS: Yes.

LEMON: You know, this is -- he is saying that this is my firewall.

FAVORS: Woe to those who rely on firewalls when you don't have a vision that might excite the populist.

LEMON: Van, let's talk about Michael Bloomberg because he has been surging in the polls. In CNN (ph) poll, he's in third right now. Are voters worried about winning in November, looking at Bloomberg's resources and his name ID and reluctantly saying, please, please beat Trump?

JONES: I think the move for Bloomberg is a post-hope move in the black community. I think we said, listen, we believe in Obama and Obama did great things but he didn't get the credit and we wound up with Donald Trump. The idea that you're going with somebody who has a wild card is hard, I think, for a lot of black voters. They say, look, you've got a little billionaire in the White House, let's get the big billionaire to take him out. That's basically where we're at.

LEMON: Yes. I have been watching you. You have some really strong feelings about Bloomberg, his record. Tell me what you think the public should know about him.

FAVORS: I think part of the reason you're seeing the polls surge in favor of Bloomberg is because a lot of black Americans don't know him and don't know the extent of his record and what actually happened under his leadership in the city of New York.

When you're talking about stop-and-frisk, we often talk about those numbers that half a million brown and black people were stopped every year. What we often missed is the fact that nine out of 10 of those stops did not result in a ticket, summon or arrest, which means that nine out of 10 times that you were stopping people, they were literally doing nothing wrong except existing in black and brown bodies.

When you're talking about how he fought against paid sick leave so that working families would not be able to access the benefits of being able to care for sick ones, when you're talking about the way in which he favored policies that really ushered in a wave of gentrification and centered the needs of developers over the needs of black and brown communities, what you see is a pattern of being willing to sacrifice the needs of those communities for the sake of your own personal and political gain.

I think once people become more familiar with that, they're going to have a whole lot more questions. He's going to have to start sitting in those tough spaces with black media, start having conversations that he may not be able to avoid, dollars and cents notwithstanding.

LEMON: I find it interesting. You said that if he is the candidate --

FAVORS: Well, because the reality is -- the reality is we have to be sophisticated voters. It's not just about having a presidential election and then being done. It is about having a presidential election, recognizing that presidents pick judges.

And when presidents pick judges and they install them for lifetime positions who are going to be able to interpret the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment, who are going to look at what an EPA Act and what a Green New Deal is going to be able to do to protect black and brown communities that traditionally suffered under environmental racism. When you have judges who are going to have the ability to essentially either bring us forward or take us back into Jim Crow, it matters.

LEMON: Isn't that the Trump voter's argument? Isn't that what -- isn't that the Trump verses? I care about the judges, I care about --

JONES: Sure. Listen, this is what I know. Jesus did not own a ballot.

FAVORS: There we go.

(LAUGHTER)

FAVORS: There we go.

JONES: Somebody actually on the ballot.

LEMON: I'm glad you said that because when conservatives talk about activist judges, right, and then they say, we want judges who are going to be activists for us or who are Christians who we believe -- isn't that the definition of an activist judge?

JONES: Listen, I think that the Supreme Court matters a ton.

LEMON: Yes.

JONES: I wake up every morning praying for Ruth Bader Ginsburg to keep on trucking (ph) --

FAVORS: Stay safe.

JONES: -- and stay safe and stay blessed. And so, look, there's a reality here. Yes, even the court has now become political. It shouldn't be that way, but it is. That is the reality.

LEMON: It should be a separation of church and state. Errol, just real quickly and I'm going to let you get back in. I want you to respond to what she said because you have covered New York politics for years.

LOUIS: Yes, including the entire three terms of the Bloomberg administration. He has a complicated relationship, both with black voters and with the issues that have come to the fore that concern a lot of black voters. His criminal justice past is very troubling and we're now starting to see exactly how bad it was.

[23:45:02]

LOUIS: On the other hand, he's got a pretty interesting plan that he's laid out for criminal justice reform. You know, if he wants to really sort of try and not bury the past but say, I've learned from this, and by the way, elections are about the future, do you want to walk into this future with me, he has an opportunity to make a case.

LEMON: Yes. Quickly, I will give you the last word.

JONES: This is the first time in my adult life, maybe my whole life, that both parties recognize the power of the black vote. And criminal justice reform has now become a bipartisan issue. Both parties are talking about it.

I'm very proud to say that when you think about what we've been through, that that pain and that suffering matters, I'm also wanting to give a shout out to Judith Negron, Crystal Munoz, Tynice Hall, David ania Hall, and David Safavian who got clemency, not rich, not powerful people. I hope the Trump administration keeps letting good folks out like that, and I hope that Democrats who have been on the wrong side, stay on the right side.

LEMON: Thank you very much. You guys -- I don't care if you come back because you're here all the time. I am so happy to have you here. Will you come back?

FAVORS: Absolutely. Thank you for having me.

LEMON: I appreciate your perspective. Thank you, Lurie. Thank you very much. On top of everything he is supposed to be focused on, this is what President Trump is complaining about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: How bad were the Academy Awards this year, did you see? And the winner is a movie from South Korea. What the hell was that all about?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And there's more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [23:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Now we know what's really bothering President Trump. This year's Oscars. Really. The president of the United States is complaining that "Parasite," a South Korean film won Best Picture.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: How bad were the Academy Awards this year, did you see? And the winner is a movie from South Korea. What the hell was that all about? We have enough problems with South Korea with trade. On top of it, they give them the best movie of the year? Was it good? I don't know. I am looking for like -- Let's get "Gone with the Wind." Can we get like "Gone with the Wind" back, please?

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: "Sunset Boulevard." So many great movies. The winner is from South Korea. I thought it was best foreign film, right?

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: Best foreign movie. No, did this ever happen before?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Let's discuss now. Clay Cane is here. He is a host on SiriusXM. CNN contributor Nichelle Turner, host of "Entertainment Tonight." Wow! OK, good evening to both of you. Nichelle, did President Trump attack "Parasite" solely because it's a non-English film that won Best Picture. What?

NICHELLE TURNER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: That's what he said.

(LAUGHTER)

TURNER: I mean, you know -- I don't know that we have to really read anything deep into it because --

LEMON: That's what he said.

TURNER: -- that is what he said. He said, I haven't seen it, but it's a movie South Korea, why did it win? So I think he did attack it solely because it's a South Korean foreign film which is a shame. I am a firm believer in in the phrase, when people show you who they are, believe them. So I believe what the man says.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Clay, the president wants to bring back "Gone with the Wind?" By the way, it is a movie from 1939 that glorified slavery and stereotyped African Americans. You know, I don't know nothing about (INAUDIBLE). What does this choice say to you?

CLAY CANE, SIRIUSXM HOST: It's one of the dog whistles, a blow horn. I mean, 1939, not a great year for black folks, a film that whitewashed slavery, not a great history point of view to look at. It's crazy. It's offensive.

One thing about "Parasite" that I find interesting is that the movie in many ways is about eating the rich. It is about the rich, you know, finally paying for what they do and how they are. So, I couldn't even see Trump sitting through that because he is somebody who might be considered, you know, a "parasite" to some people because he a rich powerful man that takes advantage of people.

LEMON: Yes.

CANE: That's kind of the commentary of the class warfare parasites. So it makes sense he wouldn't like it or sit through it.

LEMON: I am sure people are going to be critical --

TURNER: He didn't sit through it because he didn't see it.

CANE: Exactly.

LEMON: He didn't see it. Thank you.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Some people are going to be critical of the segment. Let us just educate you about this on the show because Hattie McDaniel, who became the first actor of color, by the way, to win an Oscar for her role in "Gone with the Wind," wasn't even allowed to attend the Oscars until a producer called in a special favor. Hattie was seated at a table in the back separated from the rest of the cast and crew --

TURNER: Yes.

LEMON: Is the president pandering to this base by bringing up this film because he knows that this is a sort of thing that will rile them up and then even to us just talking about it, they will call us some sort of race baiters or something, I don't know, what do you think?

TURNER: You know, a lot of times when the president starts ranting or rambling, I wonder, does he even know what he's saying? Does he know what is coming out of his mouth?

In this instance, I do think that he was being intentional in this situation because there isn't argument to be made about "Gone with the Wind" because it is OK to acknowledge that it is an important film in Hollywood landscape. It is important that Hattie McDaniel won the Oscar for that role. It's also OK to acknowledge how problematic the film is --

LEMON: Right.

TURNER: -- and how it makes a lot of black people feel some kind of way about it. So I think that he was very intentional in that.

[23:54:59]

TURNER: I think he tried to pull back a little bit to give himself a couch when he said, or "Sunset boulevard," how about that? But I do think that he knew what he was saying. I do think the crowd generally ate it up except for -- did you see the brother standing behind him? When he said "Gone with the Wind," that man stood up real quick and looked around.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Listen, I love to watch old movies like I'll watch on the phone with my mom on the weekends. We'll like have Turner classic movies on. We'll say, wow, I love that movie, but there are no people of color in this movie --

CANE: Yes, over and over.

LEMON: -- over and over.

CANE: -- like we are the black folks.

LEMON: Yes.

CANE: The way the crowd reacted when he said "Gone with the Wind" --

LEMON: Yes.

CANE: -- it was like he was at a sports game.

LEMON: Yes, or "Sunset Boulevard" which is about 1950s washed-up movie star.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Interesting.

CANE: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Thank you.

TURNER: Oh, Don.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Thank you both. I appreciate it. Have a great weekend, both of you. Thanks for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)