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Trump Lashes Out at Comey Over New Book; Trump Says North & South Korea Talks Looks Good; Trump Presidency Pushes More Women to Run for Office. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired April 22, 2018 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00] ANA CABRERA, CNN ANCHOR: -- parked and calmly got out with an AR-15 rifle and opened fire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHUCK CORDERO, WITNESSED SHOOTING: I dropped to the ground and was able to keep an eye on the shooter from under beneath my car. I was just fearful that he was going to come around my car and try and get to me, but as I watched him, he fired a few shots through the window. And then he stepped inside the restaurant and started opening fire inside the restaurant.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: The killer ran away from the scene. And he is still at large.

This is the man witnesses say did it, Travis Reinking, 29 years old. Police searched his home, did not find him, but they did find good reason to believe he is armed with at least two guns.

CNN's Dianne Gallagher is at that restaurant where four people were so senselessly shot dead this morning, four more are still fighting.

Dianne, we know that the FBI and the ATF are helping national police now search for this killer. What information are they working on?

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At this point right now they are working on any sort of interactions they've had with him in the past, Ana. Of course he is still on the loose, so they are actively searching this area, this neighborhood where he lived in the Nashville area. But it's not the first time that law enforcement has had any sort of interaction with him. Back in July of 2017, he was actually arrested by U.S. Secret Service when he tried to get on the White House grounds because he said he had a meeting with President Trump.

Obviously, trespassing there, he was charged with one count of unlawful entry. But it looks like he completed a diversion program so he was let go and was released. But authorities in his home state of Illinois, they determined, along with the FBI for interviewing, that they wanted to invoke his authorization of firearms. At that time, they confiscated four weapons, they turned them over to his father. Well, one of those weapons were the AR-15 that was used in this

shooting, police say, right here at the Waffle House behind me. They located another one of the weapons within his apartment. Two more unaccounted for right now. His father, we're told by authorities, did give the weapons back to his son.

Again, they are still looking for him, Ana. And police are sort of describing how they're going about that right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DON AARON, NASHVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT: He went to his apartment, put on a pair of pants and then went to a wood line behind the apartment. According to a witness, a shirtless man fitting Reinking's description was seen in the wood line. A police helicopter and several police dogs attempted to track Reinking. The dogs were tracking along the TVA power line -- the power grid until the dogs lost the track. But we think he has fled the immediate area on foot. At this point, we do not know where he is.

MARCUS WATSON, ATF SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: And I have directed all my resources available, including a K-9, our Crime intelligence Center to support and offer all resources available to us, to our partners to make sure that the suspect is found, found swiftly and he has his day in court.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GALLAGHER: And now, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, they have added him to their top 10 most wanted list. They are asking people again to treat him as if he's armed and dangerous. Call 911 if you see him. Authorities in his home county of Illinois also say they are on alert just in case at this point and again consider him armed and dangerous.

CABRERA: Dianne, I want to ask you about a man who was in that Waffle House who saw what was happening and decided to act. A lot of people are calling him a hero today. Tell us more about James Shaw Jr.

GALLAGHER: Yes, Ana, James Shaw, Jr. is trying to get rid of that hero title right now. He says, don't call me a hero, I don't feel like a hero, I was just trying to save my life. But look, this was an unarmed man who'd gone out with a friend that night. He wasn't even planning to go to this Waffle House. They've stopped by another one and it was too busy, so they came by to this one and they got here just after apparently the shooter had parked his car. He was still here in the parking lot when they got here. He ran into the bathroom.

I'm going to let James describe what happened in that struggle to get the gun away from him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES SHAW JUNIOR, DISARMED WAFFLE HOUSE SHOOTER: I was just really waiting for a moment, like, just a moment that he was going to give me. And he gave me that moment. He gave me that moment when he put the barrel -- the barrel of the gun was aimed down. And then I just had to kind of go forward and I went forward and ran through the door. And it worked out for me. So -- it worked out for me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GALLAGHER: Now he spoke with police, he went and got treated because he had burns on his hand from grabbing the barrel of that AR-15, as well as he was grazed by a bullet, some other injuries, and was released from the hospital, he went home, he changed clothes, went to church then came to talk to all of us.

James is getting some sleep right now, but, Ana, I do want to highlight the fact that four people lost their lives. There are two who are still in the hospital with gunshot wounds. All of the victims are in their 20s. Taurean Sanderlin, Joe Perez, Akilah DaSilva and there is a 21-year-old woman from Galveston, Tennessee.

[18:05:08] Authorities are still working on notifying her family that she passed away in the shooting. This town is on edge, they're scared and they're mourning right now.

CABRERA: You can understand why certainly and wow, what a hero, James Shaw.

Thank you, Dianne Gallagher. We appreciate that report.

Reminder to our viewers, if you know something, if you see this man, there is the tip line there right hand bottom of your screen that we'll keep up throughout this segment.

Let's get CNN law enforcement analyst Art Roderick in here now. He is also a former U.S. Marshal.

So, Art, this suspect, Travis Reinking, is now wanted for four murders. Was just added to the Tennessee's top 10 most wanted list, the FBI and ATF are assisting with the search for this suspect along with all the state police agencies. How do you find one man, especially when he's been on the run for more than 14 hours?

ART RODERICK, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, when you look at a particular case like this, this is very manpower intensive. You know, they do have a sighting of him in the wooded area, by the TVA power lines. I'm sure they have flooded that area, not only with manpower, K-9 power, but also aircraft. I think earlier during the press conference we did here a helicopter in the background.

It's getting on towards darkness now in that particular area. So it sounds to me like, you know, they have the Illinois police on alert where the father lives, where the family owns their business there in Illinois. So you have a lot of resources being staffed both in Illinois and in Tennessee.

If he stays off -- you know, stays off his cell phone, stays off his computer, if he's out in the woods, you know, there's a very good possibility that based on his mental health condition, not only from the arrest in July of 2017 at the White House, you know, and what occurred today with him being basically nude except for a jacket when he started the shooting spree, there's a possibility he could end up committing suicide.

CABRERA: Since he has been able to elude police so long, however.

RODERICK: Yes.

CABRERA: Would you worry someone might be helping him?

RODERICK: There's a very good possibility that that is the first thing law enforcement is going to look at, is that, you know, is he assisted in any way here? And they are going to go through his social media. They are going to contact family members and coworkers and find out what his mindset has been over the past couple of days to determine if anybody else is helping him.

You know, and also, we have to look at what kind of planning went into this particular crime spree. Did he make plans to get away? I think Mr. Shaw's actions clearly surprised him at that particular point in time. When you're in an active shooter situation, you have to run, hide, fight scenario that you have to look at.

And Mr. Shaw took the exact right actions by waiting until, you know, the individual ran out of ammunition and was in the process of possibly reloading or the weapon jammed and then Mr. Shaw was able to attack him and wrestle the weapon away or there could have been a lot more casualties at the Waffle House.

CABRERA: Police in Reinking's hometown in Illinois say they are on alert. Do fugitives on the run often return back home?

RODERICK: Yes. A lot of times they go to locations that they are familiar with, especially in intense situations like this. He could be very well watching the news and gathering all this information. We don't know at this particular point in time where he went after he hit those TVA power lines, but yes, a lot of times they will return to a location that they are familiar with. But the first thing law enforcement will do, well, get to those locations where they know that they have a spouse, family, friends, associates or coworkers that they're close with and immediately take a look at them right away.

CABRERA: Obviously it's going to be dark here in a couple of hours.

RODERICK: Yes.

CABRERA: And this search continues. How much does that ratchet up the urgency?

RODERICK: It does ratchet up the urgency. You know, it's very -- you don't want to be out there at night looking for an armed gunman. A lot of times the forward-looking infrared that they put on helicopters and on fixed-wing aircrafts will be the main point of getting out there. A lot of times the K-9s when they're tracking will need to take a rest and they'll bring other dogs in to continue that trail. But it sounds to me like from earlier press releases that they have lost the track along the power lines there. So now it's kind of kicked into a more standard investigative type case where they will start looking at family and friends and associates.

CABRERA: The guns, we know we had an AR-15 that was used in this incident.

RODERICK: Yes.

CABRERA: Investigators also seized a gun at his apartment, but there are still other guns unaccounted for.

RODERICK: Right.

CABRERA: A hunting rifle and a handgun. All of these weapons, these four guns, have been seized prior to this incident in 2017 during the Secret Service incident at the White House in which he showed up and he demanded to speak to the president and refused to back down and he was arrested.

[18:10:11] His case eventually dismissed after he went through some community service and some other training of sorts. Is there anything that could have been done or should have been done to prevent him from getting these guns back in his hands?

RODERICK: Well, it sounds like the license, the permit to purchase firearms was revoked, which is the correct thing to do. We always talk about in these particular shooting situations, one of the things that always pops up is a mental health issue. Now it's going to be interesting to find out what the family knew regarding his mental health. I have no idea why the father would have turned these weapons back over to his son.

We have to assume at this particular point in time since two weapons are not accounted for, that he has them in his possession and he's quite obviously ready to use them. So this is going to be interesting to see if Illinois can come up with any charges once they look at what the family's mindset was and what knowledge they had of the son's mental health issues.

CABRERA: Finally, Art, I know you mentioned the hero, James Shaw, and how he did the right thing.

RODERICK: Right.

CABRERA: If you were to look at it from a, you know, kind of self- defense perspective. But still, that takes a lot of courage. Any other thoughts about James Shaw, Jr. and how he handled the situation?

RODERICK: Yes. Absolute hero. He did what's supposed to be done and I hope people look at this scenario. Unfortunately, we have to start looking at these types of scenarios and find out what the best thing is to do to try to counteract them. And he did exactly what should have been done.

The man is a hero. He showed the courage to go ahead. And as an unarmed individual attack a person holding an AR-15. And he did the right thing. He waited -- he waited until the weapon was either ready to be reloaded or the weapon jammed. So he did exactly what should have been done.

CABRERA: There he is. We are looking at video.

RODERICK: Yes.

CABRERA: He has been given a hug there on that video to the Waffle House CEO who was at this press conference.

Art Roderick, great to have you with us. Thank you very much for walking us through what is happening in this ongoing search for a killer.

Four people dead, four people also injured. We'll be of course keeping a close eye on this breaking news. We will bring you updates as soon as we learn new information.

Also ahead this hour, Kellyanne Conway coming to the defense of her boss' attorney, Michael Cohen. What she said on CNN this morning is up next.

Plus, President Trump throwing shade at the Russia investigation again this weekend. I'll talk about it with Congressman Peter King, a Republican, live here in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:16:50] CABRERA: President Trump returning to Washington this hour ahead of a first official state dinner this week. Just two days away now the French president and his wife. The president and first lady Melania Trump are set to host Emmanuel Macron and his wife Tuesday at the White House.

The president's weekend dominated by a tweet storm on the investigation into his personal attorney Michael Cohen. Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president, weighed in today on Trump's staunch defense of Cohen. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLYANNE CONWAY, COUNSELOR TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: I'm telling you that the president's concern has been for Michael Cohen and the way he's been treated. And he said that again and again in tweets. And again and again with the cameras rolling with the media in the Cabinet room and elsewhere. And why is that? Because I see people go on TV constantly who don't know President Trump at all and say, he's loyal to no one but himself. That is completely not true. He stands up for people in his inner circle and people he knows when he thinks they are being treated unfairly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: The president this weekend also throwing shade at the Russia investigation with tweets very critical of his own attorney general, Jeff Sessions, deputy AG Rod Rosenstein and special counsel Robert Mueller. The White House aide today saying despite the president's harsh

Twitter digs, Trump has no intention of firing Mueller and Rosenstein right now at least. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARC SHORT, WHITE HOUSE LEGISLATION AFFAIRS DIRECTOR: When's he going to fire Rosenstein? When's he going to fire Mueller? We have the same conversation. As far as I know, the president has no intention of firing these individuals.

CHUCK TODD, CHUCK TODD, MODERATOR, "MEET THE PRESS": Right, but it's always as far as we know and the president -- he never says definitely no, no. Why not?

SHORT: It's the -- he has no intention.

TODD: Why doesn't he say definitively, it's not going to happen? This investigation is going to run its course, period, end of story. I'll never --

SHORT: Because you don't know how far up the investigation is going to veer. Right now he has no intention of firing them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Joining us now, New York Congressman Peter King, a Republican member of the House Select Intelligence Committee.

Congressman, thanks for being with us on this Sunday.

REP. PETER KING (R), SELECT INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: Thank you, Ana. Thank you.

CABRERA: Is the Mueller investigation safe?

KING: It's safe. Let me remind viewers, (INAUDIBLE) special counsel in the first place, I think the Russia investigation is baseless. The president has a right to fire Bob Mueller. But I don't think he should. The investigation should wind up relatively soon, but the president -- to me, the Constitution under the separation of power he certainly has the right to fire, but I don't think he should. It will be counterproductive and it will create too many questions out there after it's gone on for this long. But he has the right to do it but he shouldn't do it.

CABRERA: So I understand you don't believe that this should have even come to having a special investigation. But some of your Republican colleagues clearly disagree and they've actually introduced legislation to protect Special Counsel Bob Mueller. Would you support that legislation?

KING: Absolutely not. The president should have the right. The special counsel is under the executive. The president should be able to control the executive. If Congress wants to take action against the president, they have the right to do that. But just because they have concerns about President Trump, whether legitimate or not, you should not be cutting into a president's executive powers. And to me, if the president doesn't have the right to fire him, then you talk about no elected official having the power over special counsel who has too much power to begin with.

CABRERA: Does it bother you that the president is going after his attorney general and the deputy attorney general, both people who he appointed, both Republicans?

[18:20:10] KING: Yes, I have a very high regard for Jeff Sessions. I like Jeff Sessions. I think he's very professional who was caught in a very -- really tough position. I think it was sort of bad rap against him, just because he happened to speak to the Russian ambassador, which every member of Congress or the Senate has. But the president I think he'd be better advised not to be criticizing Jeff Sessions who was in a very, very tough position when he was appointed and he accepted appointment.

I don't think he realized he was going to get caught in the middle of this, even though he's done nothing wrong. He's entirely blameless. But he would have been a witness and so for that reason he had to recuse himself.

And as far as Rosenstein, I have problems with him. He's been very uncooperative with Congress, refusing to turn over documents, delaying and delaying and delaying. But again it serves no purpose to be firing these people because it will just raise more questions, we have the media and the president's opponents, the opportunity to keep this investigation going on even longer when it should have been ended a long time ago.

CABRERA: The president has been tweeting an awful lot this weekend about his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, and the idea of him potentially flipping. Of course he is under investigation in the Southern District of New York.

Why do you think the president is worried about Cohen flipping if he has nothing to hide?

KING: I don't think he's worried about him flipping. I think he's very concerned about Michael Cohen because he's a good friend of his, he's his lawyer. And I can tell you, as far as the Russia investigation, I have seen no evidence at all indicating anything that Michael Cohen has done wrong. He's been -- every fact that's been raised against him has been rebutted. So far as the Russia investigation, there's nothing there.

And I think if you have a friend and he's under pressure, it's only human nature to be reaching out to him and to be concerned about him. I think Michael Cohen becomes collateral damage of this. They're after the president and maybe trying to put pressure on Michael Cohen. But again, I think the president is more concerned about Michael Cohen here. I'm not aware of anything that Michael Cohen would, quote- unquote, "have on the president." Certainly there's nothing involving Russia from everything I have seen.

CABRERA: Is he acting like an innocent man?

KING: Who, the president?

CABRERA: Yes, the president.

KING: Sure, what's -- yes, why -- he is innocent. Why shouldn't he act like an innocent man? I mean, the media acts as if they're biased. And they're after the president. Certainly yours -- CNN certainly does. But the fact is, with all these 18 months of investigation on Russia, there's not one fact of collusion, but you'd never know that if you listen to the media.

CABRERA: We don't know if there's collusion. That's still under investigation. We don't know what Robert Mueller has as far as evidence --

KING: Well, it's --

(CROSSTALK)

CABRERA: But we do know that he has --

KING: Ana, Ana, Ana, hold on. Ana --

CABRERA: But he has --

KING: No, no, no, no.

CABRERA: He has indicted people. He has pressed charges. People have pleaded guilty. His investigation has bear fruit already but it's not over.

KING: Yes. OK. You are proving my point. After 18 months of investigation going after one man on Russian collusion, they have not found one instance of collusion. All those indictments you're talking about have nothing to do with the campaign, nothing to do with collusion with Russia. And that's the whole point. They are trying everything they can. They've got absolutely nothing on the president. Nothing at all. Not one fact.

CABRERA: Again, we don't know that because the conclusion hasn't been completed just yet. But I want to move on because I want to pivot to something else the president tweeted about this weekend. He floated this idea of a posthumous pardon for legendary boxer Jack Johnson, something I know you care about a lot.

KING: Right.

CABRERA: He is the first African-American heavyweight world champion. I'm wondering if you have talked to the president about this and why you feel he does deserve a pardon.

KING: Well, this goes back more than 10 years. John McCain and I first introduced this back I think 2006, 2007. Since then, Harry Reid was involved, Cory Booker has been involved. Jack Johnson was the first African-American heavyweight champion in

the world, which at that time was the most important sports personality in the world. He was charged, prosecuted and basically lost the championship on phony charges, the fact that he, under the Mann Act, because he had a white girlfriend, (INAUDIBLE) state lines, he went to jail three years for that. His career was ruined. He tried to make a comeback and he was knocked out.

His career was ruined because he was a black man. And John McCain and I both thought that here in 2008, especially, you have the first African-American president of the United States and the white man who -- was defeated by Barack Obama, both John and I passed the resolution calling on the president to give him a pardon, which he didn't do, which was really unfortunate.

Again, it's rectifying injustice. It's a way to bring the country together. And to say this is a stain on the country and we're taking it away by granting a pardon to Jack Johnson, he was tried improperly, it was a bad investigation, with false charges against him. And he was targeted because he was an African-American.

CABRERA: Have you spoken to President Trump about this?

[18:25:03] KING: No, I haven't. No, I haven't spoken to President Trump. Apparently he spoke to Sylvester Stallone, who I know obviously he's a big boxing fan, as I am. And Sylvester Stallone raised the issue with him.

CABRERA: Right.

KING: Because I know it's a very big issue with Stallone. And also the president is a big boxing fan. He used to promote fights, you see him in Atlantic City and Las Vegas. He's a very big boxing fan. So I can see why this would appeal to him.

CABRERA: But do you see any hypocrisy given how the president has gone after some of the most famous black athletes during his presidency, including Colin Kaepernick, for example, for protesting racial injustice?

KING: No, that's not true. Colin Kaepernick is not protesting racial injustice. He's saying that cops are targeting blacks. Nobody does more to protect African-Americans in this country than the police. So Colin Kaepernick is part of the war on cops and he's a disgrace. I fully support President Trump when he goes after Colin Kaepernick. We're not talking about racial injustice. We're talking about injustice, Kaepernick is using against --

(CROSSTALK)

CABRERA: Kaepernick, though, he's gone after LeBron James --

KING: There's no hypocrisy at all.

CABRERA: He's gone after Steph Curry, he's called SOBs to --

(CROSSTALK)

CABRERA: Regarding the athletes protesting the national anthem.

KING: You know -- well, you people are so biased. He also gone after Hillary Clinton, he's gone after Jeff Sessions, he's gone after Rod Rosenstein. President Trump is a non-discriminating attacker. He attacks everybody. That's part of his -- that goes in the bad of Donald Trump. Nobody is safe from his attacks.

CABRERA: All right. Congressman Peter King, good to have you with us. Thank you very much.

KING: Ana, thank you. Bye, now.

CABRERA: Coming up, fresh criticism today for fired FBI director James Comey. Why a Republican senator is now taking issue with the timing of Comey's tell-all book.

And first, "Before the Bell," here's CNN's chief business correspondent Christine Romans -- Christine.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Ana. Look for a flood of earnings this week. Corporate results are likely to dominate trading again. That's what happened last week. Solid earnings from big banks helped boost stocks. The S&P 500 rose Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before pulling back.

This Wednesday Facebook delivers its quarterly report card. We'll see how the company addresses the Cambridge Analytica fallout. Shares have regained some ground since the data privacy scandal broke, but they are still down about 10 percent.

President Trump could also send pharmaceutical stocks lower this week. He is scheduled to deliver a speech on Thursday outlining several proposals to bring drug prices down.

In New York, I'm Christine Romans.

[18:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANA CABRERA, CNN ANCHOR: The Trump White House under siege. There is the nearly constant public and television appearances of porn star Stormy Daniels' lawyer. One could argue Michael Avenatti is out- trumping Trump in his ability to gain media attention for Daniels' lawsuit against the President.

Well, then there is the new book from former FBI Director James Comey, "A Higher Loyalty," grabbing plenty of headlines and a flood of criticism. The latest attack coming from GOP Senator Susan Collins.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R), MAINE: Don't write a book in the middle of an investigation that's ongoing.

CHUCK TODD, MSNBC HOST: Do you think this is potentially disruptive to the Mueller probe?

COLLINS: That's what worries me. I cannot imagine why an FBI Director would seek to essentially cash in on a book when the investigation is very much alive. He should have waited to do his memoir.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: For some legal perspective, I want to bring in former U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, Michael Moore.

Michael, good to see you. From a legal perspective, is the timing of this book release appropriate?

MICHAEL MOORE, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE: You know, it's always hard to be prosecuting or investigating a case when you have witnesses, key witnesses especially, who make comments or statements outside of the investigation.

So the book gives some fodder for those who want to be critical and also might give some fodder for the President's team and for anybody who's defending the case or people charged in the investigation.

But, you know, the real issue to me -- and I wish we could get the same type of outrage from our members of Congress over the continued attack of the investigators in this case and the investigation itself.

The things that we're seeing come out of the White House against -- by the President, usually in the form of a tweet against Bob Mueller and members of his team, that undermines the investigation, too.

So here you have Jim Comey. He's been fired. He's now telling his story. It's clear because he -- we know that he got the memos into the hands of a friend, who then got them to the -- you know, to start the investigation or to be a part of the start of the investigation.

We know that he wants the story out. We know that he's interested in having it told and what he knows. So it's hard to have those extra statements, but at the same time, you can understand that he may not have a lot of confidence on the Congress of the United States right now to let the American people know what's going on.

CABRERA: The President has been on the offensive ever since the book tour began about a week ago.

MOORE: Right.

CABRERA: He has tweeted about Comey at least a dozen times since the start of that book tour. As a prosecutor, what do you make of how the President is handling this?

MOORE: You can see that the toll of the investigation is starting to weigh on the President, and I think it is fair to say that he is starting to look like he is cracking under the pressure. And I think that's because the noose is tightening around the administration and the people close to him.

We now know that he was particularly upset about his lawyer's office being raided. Remember, that was his fixer -- Cohen was his fixer.

[18:35:03] And I'll tell you, I think that cake is baked, and it's a matter of time before Cohen flips and tells what he knows. And that's because he knows those secrets. He knows the most about what's going on in the Trump administration.

And I've said all along, this is a case about money and following the money. And I think that's what the information will lead us to from the Cohen raid, from the search warrants there of the record.

So it looks to me like Trump, to clear this up -- and I would say this if he's watching tonight and he can tell me in a tweet if he is or not -- all this could be put to rest. Give us the tax returns. Let the people see the tax returns and let's see if there's a --

CABRERA: So you think that's going to be at the heart of one of these investigations?

MOORE: This is because of money. We're -- I think, at the end of the day, we're going to be talking about whether or not Russian money came into the Trump business organization or Russian money came into the Russian president or Russian came and has there been a quid pro quo.

So just give us the tax returns, and let's see what's there. That, to me, is not -- hiding those things is not the activity of a man who thinks he's done nothing wrong.

CABRERA: I want to ask you more about the President's legal strategy moving forward. We learned that he added Rudy Giuliani to his Russia probe legal team. Does adding somebody who knows the President so well and has a history with Bob Mueller move the needle on the Mueller investigation?

MOORE: You know, I have a lot of respect for any former U.S. attorneys, obviously. And I'm sure that he was a skilled prosecutor, but I think he may be out playing his game.

I've never known -- and I'd be happy to hear from Rudy -- whether or not he ever let the defense lawyer come into his office while he was U.S. attorney and say, hey, please quit this investigation. We'd just like for you to stop. I don't -- that's now how it works.

CABRERA: Yes.

MOORE: And if that's what he thinks he can do or that's what the President thinks he can do, you know, then I think they're not being realistic about it. The fact that he may have some relationship, those things obviously help, if he knows Mueller. I mean, that's just the kind of thing that is -- helps as a courtesy matter.

And where it helps, though, is because when you know the other lawyer, a lot of times, you then can have trust in what they say. I'm worried about whether or not that exists, given some things that

Giuliani has said during the campaign and things that he said subsequent to the President being elected. Whether or not the people in the Mueller team feel like that he actually has the credibility to be trusted when he's speaking on behalf of the President and the administration. And the campaign.

CABRERA: Michael Moore, good to have you with us. Thank you so much.

MOORE: Good to be with you. Thank you.

CABRERA: You have heard what James Comey had to say. Now, it's your turn to ask the questions.

Tune in Wednesday for the only live town hall with the former FBI Director. Anderson Cooper moderates at 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:42:09] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have a message on North Korea, sir?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Very good, very good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: It looks very good. That's the word from President Trump on his upcoming talks with North and South Korea. And this, of course, as he's boarding Air Force One, West Palm Beach, as he was getting ready to depart for Washington.

President Trump took issue, though, with some of the comments made by political pundits on the Sunday talk shows today, tweeting this -- funny how all of the pundits that couldn't come close to making a deal on North Korea are now all over the place telling me how to make a deal.

Let's discuss with CNN's White House Correspondent Boris Sanchez in West Palm Beach and CNN Global Affairs Analyst David Rohde.

So, Boris, I'll start with you. The President says it looks very good. How pivotal are these upcoming talks this week between North and South Korea set for Friday?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, according to President Trump, this summit with the North Korean leader may not even happen unless North Korea agrees to certain preconditions, Ana. And you can imagine that this meeting might set the table for that summit moving forward.

It's been speculated that it could happen as soon as June, so it's unclear exactly what preconditions the President wants. But he has kind of vacillated between being publicly encouraged that something is going to happen to sort of saying that he is not sure if it's actually going to take place.

He actually tweeted this out earlier today. He writes, quote, we are a long way from conclusion on North Korea. Maybe things will work out, and maybe they won't. Only time will tell, but the work I am doing should have been done a long time ago.

Of course, there are a number of questions that are still out there to be answered, namely where this summit might take place -- we know the White House is currently working out those logistical issues -- but also whether North Korea and the United States have the same definition of denuclearization.

Is Kim Jong-un really going to allow independent monitors to enter his nation and survey his nuclear facilities? And will that denuclearization be reversible? In other words, could Kim Jong-un theoretically flip a switch and from one day to the next, restart his nuclear program?

Again, questions that are still out there to be answered, but you can bet that the focus will be on what preconditions exactly the President wants North Korea to meet before he sits across the table with Kim Jong-un, Ana.

CABRERA: David, what do you make of the President's tweets and comments this weekend, specific to North Korea? He seems to be hedging his bets a little, maybe things will work, maybe they won't.

DAVID ROHDE, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I mean, I'll give him credit for sort of -- you know, he clearly wants some concessions from North Korea. But what are they?

A very simple one is there are three American citizens held right now in North Korea. All three of them should be released before the President of the United States meets with the leader of North Korea. That hasn't been said publicly so that concerns me.

And Boris is on the exact right issue. The key question is, will North Korea fully give up its nuclear weapons program? And he has to prepare for that. This is a very complex negotiation.

[18:45:07] Trump criticized the Iran nuclear deal for being this terrible thing full of loopholes. OK. Now is his chance. What deal will he strike with North Korea?

CABRERA: And here we have North Korea this weekend saying we're going to stop our testing with ballistic missiles. We're going to shut down one of our nuclear test sites. But they seem to imply that that's because the testing is complete.

Let me get to the French President's visit, as well, this week. It's going to be very busy for the President and the first lady as they host a state dinner for French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife on Tuesday. And then they have other events planned as well.

Boris, what do we know about what the Trumps have planned for this visit? SANCHEZ: Hey there, Ana. Yes, it is going to be the first official

state visit of the Trump presidency, so you can expect certainly a lot of pomp and circumstance. You remember how excited President Trump was when he visited France on Bastille Day, and they sort of rolled out the red carpet for him.

President Trump is expected to host a dinner with President Macron on Tuesday. Some of them we know the first lady has been long preparing for, planning out all kinds of gifts and activities for the French leader to take part in, along with his wife, Brigitte.

And one more thing we should point out, the French President is going to address a joint session of Congress. You can bet that that speech will be scrutinized, knowing that there's a bit of a history here between these two leaders in disagreements that they have about the role that the West should play in international relations, Ana.

CABRERA: David, this is going to be more than just a friendly visit, as Boris talked about the business at hand. And we also understand he's going to be talking about the U.S. trade tariffs.

We also have Angela Merkel who is coming to visit the White House this week. Both Macron and she are expected to address the Iran nuclear deal, which you mentioned. How do you see things playing out?

ROHDE: I don't think -- I think there will be lots of visuals and a nice, you know, dinner and this address to Congress. The Iran nuclear deal is the most important thing that Emmanuel Macron wants to sort of deliver for France.

He's actually struggling domestically. Trump is enormously unpopular in France. A French diplomat told a colleague of mine at the "New Yorker that this is a lose/lose visit for Macron. It's really about the nuclear deal with Iran.

Angela Merkel will push the same thing. And I don't think they'll succeed in this. They might -- Trump might make some offhand comments this week about how he'll, you know, consider staying with the deal.

There's a May 12th deadline for Trump to pull out or stay in the nuclear deal with Iran. I'm convinced he is going to pull out. His new Secretary of State nominee, Mike Pompeo, wants to pull out. His new national security adviser, Bolton, does.

So, again, this is incredibly high stakes diplomacy. Can he make a new nuclear deal with North Korea, and is he going to pull out of this deal with Iran? Iran is threatening to just accelerate its enrichment of uranium if the U.S. pulls out of this deal.

CABRERA: We'll have you back to talk more about that as the time comes. Thank you very much, Boris Sanchez and David Rohde. Good to have you guys.

Back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [18:52:23] CABRERA: President Trump's election and first term in office have had a polarizing effect on the nation.

Supporters say he's the best thing to happen to the White House. Critics see his presidency as a rallying point from which to actively push for change, and as Kyung Lah reports, is pushing more women to run for office than ever before.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CROWD: Not my president! Not my president!

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From marching to running.

DR. KIM SCHRIER, DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR CONGRESS, WASHINGTON: The march was the start. Marching is not enough, and so citizens just like me became activated.

LAH (voice-over): Dr. Kim Schrier, Washington state pediatrician, marched in 2017. By 2018, she quit her job. Now, she's a Democrat running for Congress.

LAH (on camera): How would you describe yourself?

SCHRIER: I am the citizen/pediatrician/activist mom with a fire in her belly.

LAH (voice-over): Washington Congressional District 8, an open congressional seat where mountains and agriculture meet high-tech towns dotting lakes.

SCHRIER: This is a country that innovates.

LAH (voice-over): Dr. Schrier, also a Type 1 diabetic, talking healthcare and kitchen table concerns to constituents over coffee.

SCHRIER: We're going to do it with our whole community.

LAH (voice-over): In voter gatherings, many here say the midterms didn't matter before.

LAH (on camera): Why now are women paying more attention in these midterms?

JENNIFER KIM, KIM SCHRIER SUPPORTER: I just felt like this is the time. I can't just sit back and not do anything.

LAH (on camera): Will women be the difference maker in 2018?

SCHRIER: I'm counting on it. Really having a misogynist-in-chief -- to have as our president a man who grabs women's bodies and has been disrespectful all the way through to women, that drives us.

LAH (voice-over): And it's driving a historic number of women to run for office, most of them Democrats. According to Rutgers University, more than 450 women are running for

Congress this year. A record-breaker. Many of them like Elissa Slotkin, first-time candidate.

ELISSA SLOTKIN, FORMER ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE FOR INTERNATIONAL SECURITY AFFAIRS: Michigan 8 is mid-Michigan. It's in the middle of the state in the middle of the country.

LAH (on camera): This is a district that Trump won by a lot. So what makes you think, as a political newcomer, that you can win here?

SLOTKIN: Yes. Well, first, it's just the energy that's in this system. Folks who voted for Donald Trump, folks who voted for the current congressman who are just fed up. I hear from people who are just sick of Washington not getting anything done.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: President Trump.

LAH (voice-over): For her, it was what Washington did do. The push to repeal ObamaCare in the House.

SLOTKIN: I saw my representative in the group there, beaming and proud and smiling from ear to ear that he had just voted to repeal health care without a replacement, without any plan. And something just broke for me.

[18:55:09] LAH (voice-over): Slotkin's mother had died of ovarian cancer, allowing her insurance to lapse, unable to afford it.

SLOTKIN: You just don't get to do this, no. So we decided to try and fire him.

What do you do? They have you over a barrel.

LAH (voice-over): The Democrat is a former CIA analyst. She deployed to Iraq then worked at the State Department.

Susan Ivick voted for the incumbent Republican congressmen in 2016.

LAH (on camera): Have you ever shown up for a political event before?

SUSAN IVICK, MICHIGAN VOTER: I have not. I'm disagreeing with a lot of things, so it's time to do something about it.

LAH (on camera): Is this the forgotten Midwest?

SLOTKIN: I certainly think that everyone in this town that I talk to, everyone in my district, feels completely unheard, underrepresented, and left out of the conversation in Washington. Absolutely.

LAH (voice-over): Kyung Lah, CNN, Holly, Michigan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Back to our breaking news, the latest on the manhunt. A gunman on the run in Tennessee. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)