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Laura Coates Live

Fears Of Shutdown Grow After Trump And Musk Sink Deal; CA Man Was In Touch With WI School Shooter; Trump's Border Czar Outlines Deportation Plan; Disney Cuts Transgender Storyline From New Series. Shooter. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired December 18, 2024 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:00]

CATHERINE RAMPELL, CNN ECONOMICS AND POLITICS COMMENTATOR: But on the other hand, like I really --

GAIL HUFF BROWN, FORMER REPUBLICAN U.S. CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE, NEW HAMPSHIRE: Censored? Why? It's not being censored --

RAMPELL: Well, they created it and they took it out.

HUFF BROWN: -- with that topic, with that issue.

RAMPELL: My point is like, what does Disney have to gain, right? From --

(CROSSTALK)

MONDAIRE JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: It's also in the context of a sports team, which is one of the more controversial aspects of --

RAMPELL: Also true.

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah.

JONES: -- trans life.

PHILLIP: Talk about the third rail here, but -- I mean, I think we're looking at the dollars and cents for a lot of these companies.

Everyone, thank you very much for joining us. And thank you for watching "NewsNight." "Laura Coates Live" starts right now.

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST: Breaking news tonight, Donald Trump and Elon Musk sink a spending deal that now puts America 48 hours away from a government shutdown. The question, of course, is there any way out of it?

Plus, the student and teacher killed in the Wisconsin school shooting have been identified, as police now say the shooter had not one, but two guns. The student whose locker was next to the shooter joins me to tell us all about the shooter. Tonight on "Laura Coates Live."

Tonight, Congress is scrambling to come up with a brand-new deal to keep the government open past this coming Friday. It seems like we've been here time and time again, haven't we? Except this time, it's different. That's because a bipartisan agreement that appeared to be a done deal just 24 hours ago is now sitting on the scrap heap. So, how did it get there?

Well, thanks to a full-on assault from President-elect Donald Trump, who's not even in the White House yet the word president-elect, right? And the man he is tasked to slash government spending with the DOGE, Elon Musk.

The momentum against the agreement started to grow once Musk began attacking it on X about, what, 19 hours ago? This is one of his first posts: A picture of the 1,547-page behemoth negotiated by House Speaker Mike Johnson. Musk's message? Ever seen a bigger piece of pork?

He went on to rail against the bill in a flurry of posts. Dozens and dozens of them, I mean. He urged Republicans to ditch the deal and wrote that any lawmaker who supports it should be voted out of Congress. Cue the GOP pylon.

Several Republicans posted their own opposition to the agreement. And then by late afternoon, Trump himself publicly weighed in. He released a statement, along with J.D. Vance, trashing the bill for what they call -- quote -- "Democrat giveaways" and demanding an increase to the debt limit before he's inaugurated a little more than 30 days from now. Well, Trump echoed Musk with his own threat, saying any Republican who doesn't address the debt limit before he takes office will be primaried.

Now, a short time after that, GOP leadership declared the funding plan was dead. So now, Congress has two days to come up with a solution. That means Speaker Johnson has to come up with something that Trump would be happy with. He's got to wrangle Republicans in open revolt, and he's got to make sure that he has enough votes to get it all through in 48 hours. A tall order?

Joining me now, T.W. Arrighi, vice president of Push Digital Group and former communications aide to Lindsey Graham and Mike Pompeo, Mychael Schnell, congressional reporter for "The Hill," And Ameshia Cross, Democratic strategist and former Obama campaign adviser. Good to have you all here.

Mychael, let me begin with you. You and I have talked about this impending deadline for quite some time. There was confidence that it would never get to the point of a shutdown. They had the principle. Now, it's the details to be ironed out. Now, that's all gone. Where did the opposition come from? Was it really all just Elon Musk?

MYCHAEL SCHNELL, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, THE HILL: Yeah, Laura, it's crazy how things can change in really just a matter of hours --

COATES: Uh-hmm.

SCHNELL: -- because, as you mentioned, just even yesterday, yesterday morning, it seemed like this funding deal was going to be on its way to becoming law, another shutdown averted, and lawmakers would be on their way to holiday recess.

But essentially what happened was the details of this spending plan that was negotiated by congressional negotiators, including Speaker Mike Johnson, became to come into more clear focus, and it became very clear very quickly that this was not a skinny, narrowly-tailored continuing resolution, but really a sprawling spending bill that included a lot of priorities that are unrelated to government funding.

That detail made a lot of Republicans pretty angry and frustrated, not just hardline Republicans but also some moderates. Even some committee chairs, folks, being frustrated that Democrats got a number of wins in this funding bill even though, of course, it's necessary to have that bipartisanship to have anything become law.

[23:05:03]

So, as this crop of opposition to the spending bill started to grow on Capitol Hill, we started to see it move into Trump world as well. And, as you mentioned earlier today, Elon Musk this morning, early this morning, coming out against the funding bill. That led to Vivek Ramaswamy. Then we saw Donald Trump, Jr. come out against the funding bill.

And before you know it, J.D. Vance and President-elect Trump themselves putting out a joint statement, really slamming this funding measure and proposing something completely different and more narrowly-tailored continuing resolution that also included an increase to the debt limit.

So, I just came here from Capitol Hill just a few moments ago where lawmakers were meeting in Speaker Johnson's office. Folks are really back at square one here and trying to figure out a way out of this box, as you mentioned, with that funding deadline just a few, you know, a couple hours away, Friday, at midnight.

COATES: Wow. I mean, just thinking about that, T.W., and what the course now needs to be. It's Wednesday, by the way, America. We're talking about this coming Friday, not like a prospective one in the future. As in Friday. Trump is now threatening, as you know, T.W., to primary Republicans who don't side with him. Speaker Johnson negotiated this bill. He has been a die-hard Trump ally. What's happening right now?

T.W. ARRIGHI, VICE PRESIDENT, PUSH DIGITAL GROUP: Yeah, well, first of all, I think it's notable he never dropped the speaker's name in any of his tweets and neither did Elon or Vivek.

But a few things can be true at once, right? Like a clear the decks bill is plausible. It's wise in many ways. And it has been discussed for weeks. There are issues with the debt ceiling, also legitimate. When you put a bill this size together, there are proposals written by junior staffers that get in there that are junk. There are probably tons of pork. There are tons of things that can be true all at once. But it underscores why people are so frustrated with Congress --

COATES: Hmm. ARRIGHI: -- and the way business is done. That's why congressional approval is in the teens. And yet, when we see Elon Musk get involved, people look at him as a guy who automated rocket landings, expanded internet access. So, to the American people, they don't see Elon Musk and Donald Trump as the bad guy in this situation, they see more of the same from Congress.

Now, it will be interesting to see how this all works out between Elon Musk and Trump world in the long term because we all know the cardinal sin often in Trump world is when you make the story about yourself, they don't always like that. So, we're going to see how this all plays out.

But I think it really -- this should have happened -- this debate over this bill should have happened a long time ago. And once again, we're up to the umpteenth minute. A bill that possibly is wise is now in turmoil at the last minute.

COATES: Well, Ameshia, we're back here again to the point that T.W. is raising, the frustration more broadly with this perennial, perpetual issue of waiting to the last minute. And Democrats, though -- Democrats say they have a deal and it has been done, so let's go. Are they realistic in what governing now is going to mean, particularly in a post-Trump world where he has won re-election?

AMESHIA CROSS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I think they absolutely are, being mindful that this was a process that Speaker Johnson had already gone through, and he had already co-signed. I think that what Democrats are doing now that's different than what they did in previous years, as you know, we've hit this funding cliff multiple times at this point, is that they are not willing to bail out the Republicans.

So, at the end of the day, if an agreement is not reached and the government does shut down, they are not willing to -- they are not willing to cast their votes to try to save it.

I think that, at this point, it is also Republicans will have to own it. Congressional Republicans will have to own the fallout. They will have to own things related to holiday travel. When it comes to the FAA, they will have to own things related to, you know, Social Security checks, SSI not getting to people. They will have to own military benefits. They will have to own all of these things that could hinge on falling apart should this not happen.

And I do think that it was an expansive C.R., and it was expansive because it answered a lot of the things that Americans want. Whether we're talking about expanded healthcare benefits, whether they were talking about issues with higher education, there were things in here that were helpful to the American public.

And Elon Musk has an outsized role in an administration that hasn't even started yet, even though he does not actually have a congressionally-approved role or a Senate-approved role. DOGE is a made-up entity. And at the end of the day, this is a guy who stands the most to gain from government contracts, mind you, an oligarch in and of himself, who funneled over $200 million into republican candidacies in the last election cycle. He is more than willing to hold Republicans hostage to get what he wants out of this because he holds the purse strings.

COATES: Well, I would be curious, especially if Congress is one who's supposed to hold those purse strings, Mychael, and how voters and the electorate more broadly, whether they will assign the ownership that Ameshia is speaking about if there are frustrations with Congress more broadly. I do wonder if voters are going to distinguish between who is in the majority and who's not when it comes down to shutting things down.

[23:10:02]

Like I said, this bill is more than 1,500 pages long. It came out, I think, last night, right, everyone?

SCHNELL: Yes.

COATES: And there's a lot more in it, as Ameshia explained, of course, than just the basics. But you also have things like pay raises for Congress. You've got money to protect Supreme Court justices. You've got a stadium site for the Washington commanders. The bill is expansive, as Ameshia has said. Is it too big? Is that part of the issue? If they were to streamline it more, could there be the potential to avoid that shutdown this Friday?

SCHNELL: Well, the answer to that question, Laura, really depends on who you ask, right? You hear from a lot of Democrats who are pretty happy with the spending deal. Because of the nature of these negotiations and bipartisanship, Democrats got a number of wins in that legislation. Full federal funding for the rebuilding of the Key Bridge, a number of some health provisions, right? They're celebrating some ideas there. So, they're okay with that.

But if you talk to some conservative Republicans, it depends, because A, on one hand, this is better than what it's called the sprawling omnibus, which is a whole of government legislation that is typically crammed in at the end of the year. That is a massive bill that folks get a little time to review and then have to vote on. So, this is absolutely smaller than an omnibus, but it's still sprawling. So, it depends on who you ask.

But again, this is sort of the nature of what happens when you have some of these must pass pieces of legislation. They give these lawmakers leverage to try to get their policy priorities in there, not to mention this is the last one of the 118th Congress. So, lawmakers are trying to get anything they can into that bill to let it ride to the White House in their last-ditch effort in the 118th Congress.

COATES: Well, you know who's asking questions, T.W.? Bernie Sanders. The senator is saying and asking this: Quote -- "Are Republicans beholden to the American people or President Musk? This is oligarchy at work." So, I wonder, first of all, what your reaction to that is. But did Republicans particularly know that when they elected Trump, we hear about the mandate, that they would possibly have to contend with the influence of Elon Musk?

He is an unelected person. We don't know if Donald Trump was responding to him or that he had his own initiation, these particular viewpoints. I suspect it's probably the latter, that Trump already had these beliefs. But there are a lot of people who are associating this outsized role that Musk has on what's happening in Congress. Is there a little bit of buyer's remorse or concern?

ARRIGHI: No, I think it is kind of rich that we talk about Elon Musk enriching himself when all he talks about is cutting things. Look, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have reputations of not suffering fools, of being ruthless in business. Congress, one of their biggest critiques, right, is they get nothing done, that they're inefficient, that they spend too much, that they tax too much.

And we want the American people to be mad at Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy for demanding that change. I don't know if you're going to find very, very many Americans who are sympathetic to that.

COATES: You know, I was talking about this very point you just raised, T.W., and I was questioning something very similar in the sense that on the one hand, it might be counterintuitive to voters to suggest that because they're billionaires, their endeavor to cut wasteful spending should be frowned upon.

But then there's other aspect that others have raised, and that is what would be beneficial to regulation cuts or otherwise. There is something about, you know, the resources that would be diminished that could be advantageous to them business-wise. That will have to be balanced, I'm sure, in the long run by how people view DOGE, which hasn't even begun yet.

But I want you to take a listen, T.W., to what Steve Bannon had to say today about Speaker Johnson. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE BANNON, FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF STRATEGIST: He's got to go. He's got to go. And people said President Trump supports him. Well, hey, President Trump supports him until he doesn't support him. If somebody got to show some leadership here, then hey, I'll take it. I'll take that one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: So, is it a matter of time before he doesn't support him any longer? Is there some writing on the wall, albeit maybe invisible, C.R. ink right now that Speaker Johnson might be in peril?

ARRIGHI: He's definitely in a worse position today than he was yesterday or the day before. There's no question about that. But as long as he has the backing of President Trump, he's going to remain the speaker of the House.

President Trump has acknowledged that Mike Johnson has an incredibly hard job. That's not lost on him. And they talk frequently. He talks with Elon or Vivek frequently. They knew this was somewhat coming around the corner. And it's, again, notable.

[23:15:00]

They never have mentioned him directly. Again, do I think he's weakened? Of course. I think it's too premature to state whether or not, you know, he has one foot out the door at this point. I personally think he has been doing a great job.

COATES: Well, we'll see if Bannon is right or if there is a movement towards Friday, everyone. Thank you so much for joining.

ARRIGHI: Thank you very much.

SCHNELL: Thanks, Laura.

COATES: Breaking news that's just in on the Madison, Wisconsin school shooting investigation. The Associated Press now reporting that a California man was in contact with the shooter and may have had a plan to carry out an attack on his own. That reporting is next. Plus, a student who had a locker next to the shooter standing by to tell me what she saw straight ahead.

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[23:20:00]

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COATES: Breaking news tonight, the Associated Press reporting the 15- year-old Madison, Wisconsin school shooter was in contact with a 20- year-old California man, who authorities say was planning an attack on a government building. Court documents allege the man had been messaging the Abundant Life student, saying he planned to arm himself with explosives and target a government building. The documents accuse him of plotting a mass shooting with the school shooter.

I want to bring in former FBI special agent Daniel Brunner. Daniel, how unusual is this type of coordination of a mass shooting planned in different states between people of these different ages?

DANIEL BRUNNER, FORMER SPECIAL AGENT, FBI: Well, I'm not too surprised about this. This doesn't shock me. Unfortunately, this could have been the next-door neighbor, obviously, with internet communications. They established their friendship over the -- online. They found similar likes. And I have a feeling that he was, you know, voice bolstering her thoughts, and he saw where she was going. He thought about it. He talked to her about it. He encouraged those dangerous thoughts.

So, I think it is going to be very interesting to see a report. Supposedly, he was, you know, messaging her. And the FBI agents that were interviewing him, he showed the messages to him. So, that's how they were able to get the court order to remove the guns from his house and remove all the dangerous weapons that were in his possession.

He hasn't been charged criminally yet. It's just a civil action right now. But I think with the investigation, there is an argument to be had that there was a conspiracy that he facilitated, and he assisted her in going down the pathway to violence. I could see definitely charges with him.

COATES: I'll be curious. We don't yet know who initiated the thoughts behind the planning, whether it was this person as being investigated or whether it was a school shooter. It's hard to tell right now. But I am curious about how investigators would have been able to put this together. Understandably, they would have had access to the devices that she maybe had on her person or at her home. Is that part of the clue that the electronic data trail?

BRUNNER: Absolutely. So, that would be one of the first places investigators would go to, is to what electronic devices were on her, on her body at the time of the attack, and then what they find at the home. They would see the laptop, they would get access via search warrants to see the communications, see the social media platforms that's utilize, and see the conversations that were preserved on her end. And with search warrants, with subpoenas, they were able to get the I.D., the user I.D.

Not to mention, I believe he was already reportedly reaching out on social media regarding this and putting out the supposed manifesto. Thus, it gave it a little bit easier for investigators to identify him, to locate him, and to interview him.

Now, Madison, Wisconsin is the lead investigation, so the FBI is assisting this. So, all their interview is all supporting the Madison investigation. But there is possibility that if he did facilitate, if he did assist her in going down this pathway to violence, interstate communications, wire communications, there could be federal charges on him.

COATES: And, of course, thinking about how one would access the data, this is a minor, we're talking about who was the school shooter, and living in a parent's home. They could have very well given consent even without search warrants and subpoenas to be able to access devices that they shared in their home. We'll have to wait and see what level of cooperation we're getting.

But about this A.P. reporting, a California judge has issued a restraining order against the man, again, not charges but a restraining order against the man, requiring him to turn in his guns, his ammunition within 48 hours. Now, what happens to him now in that interim knowing this restraining order has been issued and he must turn this in?

BRUNNER: Well, supposedly, according to reports and other news outlets, as soon as the restraining order was issued, there were approximately 15 police cars that showed up at his apartment. There were other people at the apartment complex who reportedly saw all these vehicles there, all this law enforcement. They were heavily- armed when they approached it, and they walked out with a box and a long black case. That long black case could be a long gun, which she utilized to -- you know, which she had, which she owned. So, that's what the investigation will determine. But it appears to me that all the weapons that were part of the restraining order have already been taken into custody.

[23:25:00]

COATES: And more news tonight. Speaking of guns, Daniel, the Madison Police Department revealing tonight, two guns were found at the scene of the school shooting, but only one was used. Now, we do not know if her parents owned the gun that was used in the shooting or who really did. Police say they are cooperating with the investigation as we try to learn more details about all of this. But what does this signify, the idea of there being two guns at this scene?

BRUNNER: Well, it signifies that there was more than an ample amount of gun at her disposal that she could get access to. Whether it be at the father, whether it be the mother, whether it be the home or friends, she had access to multiple guns.

And that's where it's going to be determined, that whoever is the ownership of those guns, the investigators will probably look at if there was negligence on their part in housing the gun, locking it up, keeping it away from those who are not authorized to have the guns such as an underaged 15-year-old girl.

So that would -- that could be in consideration by the investigators to determine the trace of the -- of the weapons, who own them, and if they negligently housed them and kept them at the home, giving her access and making her easily facilitated this attack.

COATES: Daniel Brunner, there are a lot of unanswered questions. We'll learn more. Thank you.

BRUNNER: Thank you.

COATES: And there's more breaking news tonight. The teacher and the student killed in the school shooting in Wisconsin have been identified. The medical examiner's office says the victims are 42- year-old Erin West and 14-year-old Rubi Vergara, a freshman at Abundant Life Christian School. An obituary about Rubi Vergara says she was an avid reader, loved art, singing, and playing keyboard in the family worship band.

I'm joined now by a family who is part of that school community, Lyndsay O'Connor and her daughter, Mackynzie, whose locker was actually next to the school shooter. Mackynzie, Lyndsay, thank you so much for joining us this evening. Mackynzie, I am just so sorry that you had to experience all of this. Can you tell me what happened on Monday? What do you remember?

MACKYNZIE: Yeah, it was really tragic. I don't -- it was just sort of a blur. But I came to school. I didn't see Samantha that day. But I just remember that I was in composition. And then we heard shots go off. And then everything just became really, really, really fast.

COATES: You said you hadn't seen Samantha that day. Your lockers were beside one another. What can you tell us about her?

MACKYNZIE: Well, yeah, our lockers were right next to each other. She -- I didn't really talk to her for the first month of school. And then I talked to her and it was just -- I don't know. I just -- I asked her name, and she told me, I'm Samantha. I've had conversations with her here and there because we were like right next to each other. And I just -- she always seemed lonely. But like -- she seemed like she liked being alone. So, yeah.

COATES: Did you ever imagine or did she give you the impression at any time that this could possibly happen?

MACKYNZIE: Well, I mean, she always seemed a little bit suspicious. At some point, just with things that she did. She always was drinking energy drinks and just like chugging energy shots next to my locker. And one time, I actually helped her clean out her locker because I was just trying to be a nice person to her and because I could tell she was lonely. But, yeah.

COATES: Did you ever see her with a friend group? I know you mentioned you thought that she was lonely. Was there anything in particular that gave you that impression?

MACKYNZIE: Well, she would always walk to class by herself. She never really had -- she'd sit alone at lunch. She didn't really have friends that were always with her. She just seemed like she was content with being alone, and she wasn't like making effort to go out of her way to make friends, I guess.

COATES: Lyndsay, just hearing that proximity of your daughter's locker to this girl's locker must have been something that was very scary for you, let alone, Lyndsay, when you heard about the shooter at your child's school. Can you just talk to me about, as a mom, what that felt like to you?

[23:30:02]

LYNDSAY O'CONNOR, MOTHER OF ABUNDANT LIFE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL STUDENT: So, I actually got a call from someone that was driving by. I didn't get -- it wasn't a text message like all the other parents got. I got someone firsthand driving by. And he said, you need to call and make sure your kids are safe. I've never seen more police vehicles outside anywhere in my life. And he must have figured out, whether he was driving by or not, like, there was an active shooter.

My son called me first from a random number, and he was just screaming my name, mom, mom. It was blood curdling. But the second thought that went through my head, like I was so happy to hear his voice, but my second thought was, is this the last time I'm going to hear his voice?

COATES: Hmm.

O'CONNOR: Because you just envision, like, is he just grabbing a phone and he could be, like, being held hostage or like just -- I had no idea. And then when I finally got him to start speaking, I said, are you safe? And he said, yeah, we're at the chapel. And then I said, can you see your sister? And he said, yes.

COATES: Oh, my God.

O'CONNOR: A little while later, she was able to reach out to me, and then I could actually stop like hyperventilating and crying. Um, but it wasn't until we got them that Mackynzie, we were at dinner, and she said -- Mackenzie was -- I mean, there's so much to process. And she said, I will have a little bit more space in my locker now. And I said, what? Like, I was very much caught off guard.

COATES: Uh-hmm.

O'CONNOR: But she said, the shooter was -- Samantha was right next to me.

COATES: Wow.

O'CONNOR: At that moment, just floods of emotion flew into me because what if she had taken a gun out of her locker and just started shooting right there? It's an open hallway with 12 through. But the high school and the elementary are all on that same floor. The middle school is downstairs. Like what if -- what -- like I don't want to play the what if game, but I'm so thankful, and I'm so thankful that Mackynzie decided to be kind to her because you don't know what her -- especially, you know, you don't know what was behind her motives and what she was looking to attain that day.

COATES: So, I mean, just to hear both of you describe what that must have been like, and I know that you'll continue to process this, and we're hearing, obviously, about the loss of life, Mackynzie, did you know the teacher, Erin West, or the student, Rubi Vergara, who were killed?

MACKYNZIE: Yes, I knew the teacher. I didn't know the student very well. I'd seen her in the hallways. But I knew the teacher very well. She was such a great person. I remember a few weeks prior to Monday, she was telling me in gym class where I was studying how she was so excited to see her daughters grow up and what they were going to be and do with their lives.

She brought something up about how -- just about how she like would do anything for anyone at our school because she loves everyone at our school. And it's just -- she was such a good person. And like I'd saw -- I'd seen her like two hours before the shooting. And, yeah, just looking back, I just wish I could have gone back and, you know, given her a hug.

COATES: My God. Just thinking about this is just so heartbreaking. And I thank both of you, Lindsay and Mackynzie, so much for sharing your experience. I think that it is just so difficult for people to hear, and we appreciate you telling us. Thank you both.

MACKYNZIE: Yeah.

O'CONNOR: Thank you. COATES: Still ahead, Donald Trump's border czar appearing on CNN tonight and laying out new details for his plan to carry out mass deportations on day one. The mayor of Denver, one of the city's poised to be a battleground for this immigration fight, live with me next to respond.

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[23:35:00]

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COATES: The incoming border czar, Tom Homan, telling CNN's Kaitlan Collins that he plans to follow through with President-elect Donald Trump's major campaign promise of mass deportations. But specifically, who and how many people are we talking about? Well, that seems to still be up for some kind of interpretation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM HOMAN, TRUMP'S PICK FOR "BORDER CZAR": I don't have a number. We want to arrest as many people as we can. They're in the country illegally. Again, based on prioritization. We want to arrest every criminal, every gang member that's here illegally, that's a public safety threat. And look, we've got millions of people here illegally. If you're here illegally, you're not off the table.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: I want to bring in Denver Mayor Mike Johnston. He has promised to resist Trump's immigration crackdown. Mayor Johnston, thank you so much for being here. Listen, all undocumented migrants have been put on notice. You're not off the table. That's Trump's immigration crackdown. What is your response?

MAYOR MIKE JOHNSTON, DENVER, COLORADO: Yeah, I think it depends exactly on what the focus is going to be. If we are talking about violent criminals, then we have committed that we would help and cooperate. We've cooperated with past administrations. We will with future administrations on deporting violent criminals.

[23:39:56]

But there are about -- you know, 70% of the undocumented folks in Denver today are working and about 30% of them are students in school. And so, if you're talking about folks that are currently on the job with work authorization, who are waiting for their court date, we don't think those are folks that need to be separated from their communities, when they're contributing at work and they're contributing in their school communities.

And so, it just for us depends on who the targets are. There is -- we have no tolerance for violent criminals in Denver, regardless of where they come from. We'll cooperate on that. We don't think anyone is asking for students to be pulled out of their fifth-grade social studies class and be handcuffed by members of the U.S. Military. COATES: I want to stick with students for a second because, you know, I -- this is something that I, that even my elementary school children, are thinking about as they're having conversations with friends and what's going on in the world.

JOHNSTON: Yeah.

COATES: Um, he was asked what would happen to U.S. born citizens if their parents were taken into custody. Here's what Homan said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOMAN: That child can stay, they can stay with a relative, they can stay with the other parent, or they can take them with them. We don't deport U.S. citizens. But they put themselves in the position. We didn't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: So, what is your plan if kids in your city find themselves going home to no one?

JOHNSTON: Yeah, we agree that we don't believe you can deport U.S. citizens. Children born in this country have legal residence and status. They're citizens. They can't be removed. We also don't think it's a good public policy decision to separate families. We think when you have mixed status families, what we ought to do is find a way for them to be able to play by the rules, get work authorization, stay and support their communities.

Again, if you want to focus on violent criminals, that's something that commonsense people can agree on. But if you're trying to separate families, pull kids out of classes, take people off the jobs where our business leaders want them, they're working, we don't think that helps the economy. We think that's illegal, it's immoral, and it's un- American. But if we want to focus on violent criminals, we'll be a part of that effort. But if we're going to focus on kids and families, we don't think America needs that.

COATES: But there's the collateral aspect of it. Has there been conversations with the school departments and, you know, school boards to come up with a plan if students are, in fact, impacted?

JOHNSTON: Well, we have talked to the school district about that. And as you know, previously, the policy has always been that immigration officials would not ever target schools or churches.

The Trump administration has talked about repealing both of those efforts so they could explicitly charge or arrive on school campuses against the principal's will, arrive at hospitals against the doctor's will, arrive at churches against the priest's or a pastor's will. And I think that is not what Americans expect. We do not believe that someone on the way from church to the job should be stopped or pulled over while they're trying to pick up their kids.

And so, we hope that doesn't come to pass. We think Americans will resist it in dramatic numbers because I think that's not what anyone believe they were supporting when they said people that are violent criminals shouldn't stay.

COATES: Well, Homan repeatedly said that they plan to target public safety and national security threats. But he has also warned that if other undocumented migrants are encountered in the process, that they'll be picked up.

And, in fact, CNN actually found that the Obama administration carried out a similar policy, deporting more people than Trump actually did, knowing that moniker of deporter-in-chief followed him. Homan signaled that this will be a years-long effort. What's that going to look like and what resources will it require from your city?

JOHNSTON: I think it's unimaginable to us what the scale and cost and invasive nature of that kind of effort would be for you to really try to round up 12 million undocumented residents, many of them who have been here for 10 or 20 years.

Laura, I was a school principal before I did this, and I had thousands of students who came through my school who came to this country without documents because their parents were persecuted by cartels in Mexico and mom saw her husband get murdered and picked their son up and drove him to Colorado to try to find solace and build a new life.

Those are kids who have been working, supporting our city. That particular individual got citizenship and joined the U.S. Army to give back to this country. I think those are not the folks that anyone in our community is worried about.

And so, I think what we'd rather see is a commonsense focus on violent criminals. But I think that kind of disruption would be so costly, so expensive, and so divisive for the country. I think none of us wants to see it.

COATES: Mayor Mike Johnston, thank you so much for joining us.

JOHNSTON: Thanks for having me.

COATES: Still ahead tonight, the newest controversy in America's culture wars. It's brought to you by Disney and their decision to remove a transgender storyline from a kids' sports series. Rachel Nichols and Pete Dominick live with me on that and more, next.

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[23:45:00]

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COATES: Well, Disney is cutting out a transgender storyline from a brand-new show. It's Pixar's first animated original series called "Win or Lose." The show revolves around a co-ed softball team, and one of the characters was going to be trans, voiced by a trans actor. Each member of the team was going to get their own featured episode. But here's where things got complicated. The characters episode with the storyline about gender identity has been pulled. Disney is saying in a statement -- quote -- "When it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline."

[23:49:57]

The actress voicing the character, Chanel Stewart, speaking to "Deadline," revealing -- quote -- "My character would now be a cis girl, a straight cis girl."

Lots to get to tonight. Let's bring in Rachel Nichols, she's an analyst for Fox Sports, and Pete Dominic, a comedian and host of "Stand Up with Pete Dominick" podcast. Good to see you both here. Pete, how do you feel about Disney's decision?

PETE DOMINICK, COMEDIAN, PODCAST HOST: It's awful. I mean, it's terrible. I did my college internship at Disney World, actually, in 1994. I used to be a big Disney fan. And they used to be, like, on the forefront, progressive, in terms of gay rights and welcoming benefits for gay employees and so on.

But the idea that -- I mean, let's not be let down by giant media companies or entertainment companies not being allies for marginalized communities but to their shareholders, which is exactly what Disney is doing, you know.

And the idea that they're giving this up to parents, I've been in the trenches and the school board fights over trans students. It is so horrible and ugly. And representation matters so much in our country, in our world. Always. And to have a trans person represented in this way would be progress. But they are not going for it, and that's sad.

COATES: Well Rachel, I mean, the show is a sports series, I understand it. In real life, there is a fierce debate, as Pete has talked about, over transgender athletes in particular. Is this decision by Disney a reflection of wanting to distance themselves from that topic in the zeitgeist?

RACHEL NICHOLS, FOX SPORTS ANALYST: I mean, look, Laura, there's a fierce debate because it makes good political hay. It's not really a large-scale issue or problem. That has kind of been the trick of all of this.

Yes, there have been a couple very high-profile cases, but recently, the head of the National College Athletic Association was testifying in front of the Senate, and he was asked, how many college athletes are there in the country? He said, a little over half a million. How many transgender college athletes do you know of? He said, less than 10. Half a million, less than 10.

So, what we are going to see in this animated series, and you can have your opinion about how this went down, we are going to see an animated kids series that doesn't address transgender children on sports teams because truly, largely, and again, with a couple high-profile exceptions, largely, this just isn't the issue that a lot of politicians would like to pretend that it is.

COATES: Let's talk about another issue, and everyone has been talking about this today. Olympic gold medalist soccer player Trinity Rodman criticizing her father, Dennis Rodman, on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast. Listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRINITY RODMAN, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: Even being young, it was like he partied all the time. He has his beach house in Newport or Huntington or whatever -- wherever. And it was like we tried to live with him. But he's having parties 24/7.

For me, emotionally, he has put me through like -- oh, my gosh. Like, even just him not talking to me for months and months and months, and then he randomly calls and he's, like, hey, like, I'm thinking of doing a T.V. show, reality T.V. show, you want to join? I'm just, like, whoa. So, like, that's the part where I have so much anger towards it. Like, why have I been so nice about someone who's so selfish?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: This woman is a phenomenal athlete, by the way. I've seen her live, and she is incredible. But are you surprised that she opened up this way, Rachel?

NICHOLS: I was actually pretty thrilled because publicly, what we've heard from her prior to this was sort of a couple nice Instagram posts about a dad that I know, from covering basketball, was an absentee father for her. He didn't pay child support for chunks of her childhood. She and her mother lived in a car at one point. She really struggled emotionally through having this relationship with an absentee, alcoholic, distant father. And she has publicly tried to put a good face on it.

And it was refreshing, frankly, to hear from her saying, look, it's not what it looks like. I was angry when he showed up at the game that you saw a photo of maybe a few years ago. I was crying on the field because he took away this big moment of mine by showing and making it about him.

So, I think for a lot of young girls, and especially we've got more and more children of professional athletes now in professional sports themselves, being open and honest about these relationships, it's important because it is what other people are going through, too.

COATES: Pete, how do you feel? You've got two beautiful girls, and I know you're very close to your daughters. How do you feel hearing about how she was affected?

DOMINICK: I was -- I saw that clip. And I'm a huge fan of Trinity and the women's soccer team since they won in 1999. She's one of the most exciting players in a generation. Watching her play soccer is awesome. She's an awesome role model.

And, you know, thinking about my primary role and has been for 20 years is being a present as good a dad as I can be. But, you know, I suppose if I had the opportunity to make friends with Kim Jong-un, one of the worst leaders in the world, which is what Dennis Rodman was busy doing instead of spending time with his daughter, maybe I'd take that.

It's sad. It's sad that any man out there doesn't take the opportunity to be present in his kid's life. We're never going to be perfect, but that's the best thing you can do.

And Trinity Rodman, you know, is a role model for other young women in sports for a lot of reasons. But none of us have perfect parents. And sometimes, they're not even present. And her mom was the main role model in her life and really strong.

[23:55:00]

She gives a lot of credit to her. But I really think that her coming out and saying this let other young girls and boys say, listen, even though my dad or mom wasn't around, I too can be a gold medalist.

COATES: You know, it's incredible to have this level of access to the personal life of people who you see in every day and you realize, of course, they're full human beings. The last question I have for both of you, Rachel, former NFL --

DOMINICK: That's how I feel about you, Laura.

COATES: Well, let's not argue about it. I agree.

(LAUGHTER)

Former Norfolk quarterback, though, Michael Vick, he's now going to be the head coach at his hometown school Norfolk State University. He, of course, has had quite the career following the criminal issues that he was facing for dogfighting. But this is a very special moment for him to return home, isn't it, Rachel?

NICHOLS: It's an amazing story. This is the NFL Comeback Player of the Year after he got out of prison. Certainly, he has made great strides on the field, but certainly off the field in terms of restitution for the things he has done wrong.

Not only is he going to be a fun coach, he certainly knows about football, he's going to be a great role model for these young men trying to make their way into becoming young adults and dealing with all the pressures of fame and stardom that we saw he handled, sometimes not the way you'd want him to, but the way that he learned from and now can pass on.

DOMINICK: Yeah.

COATES: I'm excited to watch him as a coach, frankly, and see what that is like. And shout out to Norfolk State for giving us yet another high-profile coach --

DOMINICK: Yeah.

COATES: -- and a Black one at that. Thank you, everyone. Thank you so much, Rachel Nichols. Pete Dominick, thank you so much. Thank you all for watching. "Anderson Cooper 360" is next.

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