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New Day

IRS Faces Deadline for Trump's Tax Returns; Sanders Denies Lying; Rain and Food Threat in U.S. This Week; Warriors Crush Clippers. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired April 22, 2019 - 06:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:33:45] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Another deadline for the IRS. They have until tomorrow to turn over the president's tax returns to House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal. Will they comply?

CNN's Lauren Fox is live on Capitol Hill with more.

How's it looking, Lauren?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: Well, that deadline is quickly approaching. It's tomorrow at 5:00 that the IRS has to hand over six years of the president's personal and business tax returns, Alisyn.

Now, we don't expect that they'll comply because Trump's associates have been very clear that they don't want Democrats to get their hands on the president's tax returns. And the president's personal lawyer has sent two letters to the Treasury Department demanding that they not comply with this request.

So what happens if they don't? Essentially Richard Neal has two options, the House of Representatives could just simply sue, arguing that the IRS is not complying with the law, or they could issue a subpoena on top of this request for the president's tax returns and then go to court. We have long expected that this would be an extended court battle, Alisyn.

But this all comes as Democrats launch investigations into the president's finances that are broader than just his tax returns. Last week, we have learned that the House Intelligence Committee and the House Financial Services Committee issued nine subpoenas to financial institutions looking for information about the president's business dealings. We also know that the House Oversight Committee issued a subpoena to the accounting firm Mazars (ph), essentially asking for the financial disclosure information that that accounting firm put together for the president.

[06:35:12] So, a lot to unpack here, but that deadline, of course, coming up again tomorrow at 5:00.

John.

JOHN AVLON, CNN ANCHOR: Lauren, fascinating stuff. Thank you. Up next, the White House press secretary, Sarah Sanders, denies lying, even though she admitted it to Mueller's investigators. But has she lost all credibility? We're going to discuss that with two people who know, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

AVLON: White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders denies lying despite admitted to lying. The redacted Mueller report revealed that Sanders had made misleading statements to the press about the firing of FBI Director James Comey. Sanders said countless rank and file agents had lost faith in Comey. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH SANDERS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The rank and file of the FBI had lost confidence in their director.

QUESTION: So what's your response to these rank and file FBI agents who disagree with your contention that they lost faith in -- in Director Comey?

SANDERS: Look, we've heard from countless members of the FBI that say very different things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:40:05] CAMEROTA: Well, they hadn't.

AVLON: Yes. It turns out Sanders told Mueller's team that she, quote, spoke in haste, a slip of the tongue, quote, not founded on anything.

But then here's how she tried to clean it up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH SANDERS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I said the slip of the tongue was in using the word countless.

I'm sorry that I wasn't a robot like the Democrat Party that went out for two and a half years and stated time and time again that there was definitely Russian collusion between the president and his campaign.

I said that it was in the heat of the moment, meaning it wasn't a scripted thing. It was something that I said. The big takeaway here is that the sentiment is 100 percent accurate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: No, it actually was wrong. The sentiment was wrong that there were countless people that she'd spoken to.

AVLON: Yes. So less than 100 percent.

CAMEROTA: Yes, like, zero.

AVLON: Just checking. OK. Good.

Joining us now is two CNN political commentators, Joe Lockhart, former Clinton White House press secretary, and Jen Psaki, former White House communications director under President Obama.

Jen, let me start with you, because, look, there's a line to walk here that all press secretaries do, and communications directors presumably, pushing the president's agenda and his version of events with not straying into outright lying.

Where is that line and do you think Sarah Sanders got the credibility to build it back?

JEN PSAKI, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You're right, John. And the fact is, the job is actually to be kind of the go-between the press and the president. And they are lacking a big half of that.

I think watching these clips again, what's very jarring to me is that she was reading from something when she was at the podium. So the fact that she is going out there and saying that this was spur of the moment or slip of the tongue, that's a lie too in all likelihood. And as somebody who served for eight years, I know Joe obviously probably feels the same way, you know, I -- I talked to and regularly engage with Democrats and Republicans who had had my job in the past and one of the thing we had in common was that, you know, you were honored no serve. And just watching her go through the last two years, even though I rooted for her in the beginning, I think she's really done a disservice to this job and just kind of the reputation for public service.

CAMEROTA: The Mueller team caught her in several lies to the public.

JOE LOCKHART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Sure.

CAMEROTA: That's just one of them.

But it's very interesting how once you're under oath, where there are actual possible punishments for lying to investigators, her tune changes.

LOCKHART: Yes.

CAMEROTA: And so here's what she told -- here's, in the Mueller report, what she told them about that instance where she said that there were countless FBI agents who felt that way.

She says, Sanders told this office that her reference to hearing from, quote, countless members of the FBI was a, quote, slip of the tongue. She also recalled that her statement in a separate press interview that rank and file FBI agents had lost confidence in Comey was a comment she made in the heat of the moment that was not founded on anything.

You know, Joe, there's always a question -- and some people think, are they so morally bankrupt that they don't know when they're lying anymore? No. When they're under oath, they know they're lying and have to admit, no, I made that one up out of whole cloth.

LOCKHART: Yes, no, that's what's striking about this. When she knew that a byline, she could go to jail, she could join let's say Paul Manafort in a jail cell, all of a sudden it became crystal clear to her that she needed to tell the truth.

And I agree with everything Jen said, that, you know, the press secretary's job is hard because you do have an obligation to the public to tell the truth. And as things are moving quickly in the white House and, you know, there are some bad actors in the White House, any White House, and there's multiple agendas, that's what makes it hard. It's not particularly hard if you just get up there and lie.

But I think what we haven't spent enough time on is, the actual lie she told. If you look at the lie she told, she knew that James Comey was being fired because of the Russia investigation. And she participated in this obstruction of justice to smear James Comey in order to slow down or stop this investigation. So, yes, she has no credibility, but I think there's a much bigger thing here, that she participated in the effort with President Trump in order to obstruct justice.

AVLON: And, to that end, another lie that was revealed by the Mueller report, Jen, was that -- that President Trump certainly, quote, certainly didn't dictate the statement on Air Force One regarding the Trump Tower meeting with Russians that his son put out.

Given all this and given the pattern, do you think Sarah Sanders should resign?

PSAKI: You know, I would say, as a general rule, that nobody should serve in that job or should be able -- allowed to serve in that job who has blatantly lied to the public and done so in kind of an angry and, you know, a way that's making fun of the job. But I don't know that she has actually that much power. I mean I think there's a lot of power the White House press corps actually has here. She rarely briefs. If the president has -- trusts her, he doesn't prepare her to provide information that is of interest to the public.

[06:45:00] So, no, I don't think she should continue to serve. I do think she should resign. But, ultimately, I think that the press has a power here in the White House to not take what she says and what she feeds to them as fact, and to really challenge it. And they have a responsibility to do that for the public, too.

CAMEROTA: Well, that is what they're doing.

PSAKI: Sure.

CAMEROTA: I mean obviously they're not taking what she says as fact.

But I think that it does -- it is helpful to have a reminder that taxpayers pay her salary --

AVLON: Yes. CAMEROTA: To lie to them.

PSAKI: That's --

AVLON: And that matters.

CAMEROTA: And so, you know, if you're not cool with that, it's just important to know that that's the deal, the business arrangement, that's happening right now.

AVLON: If you're not down with that?

CAMEROTA: If you're not, yes, down with it.

All right, now you --

PSAKI: You shouldn't be down with it.

CAMEROTA: You -- right. You went in the way back machine and what did you unearth?

AVLON: A big fan of the way back machine. We went to CNN's archives and pulled out a little viewed clip from 1994 from one Bill Barr. And Joe Lockhart, I want you to look at this because he seems to have a very different interpretation of executive power. And, of course, it's about a president that you served under, Bill Clinton.

Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL BARR (JANUARY 4, 1994): I think everyone can agree with the premise that there's certain cases that are so sensitive and serious that they shouldn't be treated as business as usual.

Something extra has to be done to assure the public that there's not going to be political fixing in the case.

Now, here's a case where -- where in order to develop it -- and these cases are difficult -- one has to blow through some roadblocks, maybe challenge privileges, maybe ask the president to come before a grand jury.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AVLON: Come before a grand jury.

LOCKHART: Wow.

AVLON: Insure there's no political fixing. What's your reaction?

LOCKHART: He was smarter as a younger guy, I guess.

Listen, I don't know Bill Barr, so I don't know that I believe all of the stories before his confirmation that he was some incredibly principled man and he was the guy for the job. What the last couple weeks have shown is, if anyone believed that, now

if they still believe it, they're just naive.

What he did was an incredible disservice to the country, and the way he did it. The way he withheld the report and then on three separate occasions told the American public, this is what the report says, so that everybody read it in that frame of mind. And the fact of the matter is, the report said just the opposite. And you can call it misleading, you can call it spinning. I call it lying. And that -- when you have the president of the United States, the press secretary, the attorney general all effortlessly lying, then something's got to change

CAMEROTA: Jen, Joe, thank you both very much.

PSAKI: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: All right, it's a new week and it brings a new threat of severe weather. Chad Myers has our forecast, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:51:44] CAMEROTA: All right, heavy rain and the potential for more flooding expected across the South and Central U.S.

CNN meteorologist Chad Myers has our forecast.

How's it looking, Chad?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Alisyn, still wet for the Northeast today. Very wet for the Midwest for the next couple of days. But we went from April to October, and for this week we're back to April again, all in one weekend.

This weather's brought to you by Boost nutritional drink. Be up for life.

So let's get to it.

Here comes the warmer air. Seventy-six in Cincinnati today, 78 in Chicago. Still cooler in the Northeast, where it will be raining for the next few hours, but that does go away for tomorrow. So really a fairly blank weather map for the next couple of days except down here in Texas. That's where the severe weather will be. There will be tornadoes. There will be hail. There will be lightning. There will be wind and all that.

Now, there's a cold front that's going to try to go through New York and New England for the next couple of days. But the good news is, every successive front is warmer than the cold front that came by before.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, there's your severe weather across parts of Texas. Temperatures stay very nice down there. Humidity and also the cold front there, though, will make some significant rain. Everywhere you see orange, that's four inches of rain or more. That can cause hill country flooding for sure. And, D.C., tomorrow, all the way to 82. Take that.

John.

AVLON: Hey, now.

All right, thank you very much.

Now, you've got to see this. A basketball coach's stunned reaction to a call made him a viral sensation and redefined the jaw drop. Details in the "Bleacher Report."

CAMEROTA: How many times do I feel like that every morning?

AVLON: Every morning. All the time. Both of us (ph).

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:57:28] AVLON: The Warriors taking a commanding 3-1 lead over the Clippers after a win on Sunday.

Andy Scholes has more with the "Bleacher Report."

Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John, you know, this game was pretty much a perfect example of why the Warriors are basically unbeatable. You know, Steph Curry goes one for nine from the three point range yesterday, didn't even matter because, you know, if Steph's having an off game, chances are Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson won't be. And Thompson breaking out of his slump in a big way in game four. He was red hot in the first half, scoring 27 points. He finished with 32. Warriors win 113-105. And Thompson saying after the game a dip in the Pacific helped him break out of his slump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KLAY THOMPSON, GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS GUARD: We went to the beach, played some volleyball. I'm like, you know, I'm just going to go jump in the ocean. I just know that will reset my mind. And it worked. So I don't know if I'm going to jump up north, because it's freezing, but something I'll definitely contemplate if I don't shoot the ball that well the rest of the year.

STEPH CURRY, GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS GUARD: It's that home cooking. I know the Pacific Ocean is undefeated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right, the Raptor and the Magic also playing game four of their series yesterday. And Toronto head coach Nick Nurse has just an awesome reaction to his team getting called for a three-second violation. Check out his face. And Nurse would hold that face, guys, for 11 seconds before eventually giving the official a piece of his mind. Guys, I couldn't tell you the last time, you know, I made a face like that and maybe it was red wedding on "Game of Thrones." But, I mean, that is just an awesome reaction to a call. AVLON: That's fantastic.

CAMEROTA: I really feel like that's my expression most morning.

SCHOLES: That you have to go through the day?

CAMEROTA: Yes.

AVLON: Yes, no, it's just -- it's the table setter. It's insane is the new normal 11 second jaw drop.

CAMEROTA: Thank you, Andy.

SCHOLES: All right, guys.

CAMEROTA: All right, thanks to our international viewers as well for watching. For you, CNN "TALK" is next.

For our U.S. viewers, we do have some breaking news on the bombings in Sri Lanka. NEW DAY continues right now.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

CAMEROTA: All right, good morning, everyone. Welcome to your NEW DAY. John Berman is off. John Avlon joins me.

Great to have you here, John.

So, we do begin with breaking news for you because Sri Lanka's government just announcing that they believe an international terrorist network is likely behind the Easter Sunday bombings on churches and hotels there. The death toll has soared to nearly 300 people and more than 500 people have been injured in these coordinated bombings on Easter Sunday. The blasts targeted Christians at Catholic Churches and tourists at luxury hotels. So a state of emergency is set to go into effect there today.

[07:00:00] AVLON: And government officials are admitting they knew about warning before the attacks. Now they're issuing an apology to the families of the victims.

END