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New Day Saturday
Stormy: Attention I'm Getting Is "A Double-Edged Sword"; U.S. Allies Upset Over Trump's Decision To Impose Tariffs; Three Dead After VA Home Hostage Standoff; NRA Sues Florida For Raising Minimum Age For Gun Purchase; Trump: North Korea Meeting Will Be Good For The World. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired March 10, 2018 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[08:00:18]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm actually one of the most successful adult movie directors in the business. I actually just re-negotiated and got a new contract.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is about the payoff, not the alleged affair.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lawyers don't do that. They don't do that with their own money.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did Mr. President Trump know about the negotiation of this agreement? Did he know about the payments? Did he sign the documents?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Face-to-face talks between President Trump and North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The president will not have the meeting without seeing concrete steps and concrete actions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The NRA is suing to block a new gun law signed by Florida Governor Rick Scott.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor Scott is trying to look like he's taking a step in the opposite direction of the NRA.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Panic at a mental health facility
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're scared. You're anxious.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Investigators say a person armed with a rifle shot at deputies before taking three hostages.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: It's 8:01 the time. Happy Saturday to you. We have a new interview with Stormy Daniels. She spoke with CNN last night amid all of the chaos that's going on in the saga involving (inaudible) as well.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And she is continuing her tour. Her lawyer is out now exposing a new e-mail that shows President Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, used his official Trump Organization e-mail account and signature while he was arranging that $130,000 payment to keep Daniels quiet about an alleged affair between her and Mr. Trump.
PAUL: She addressed the topic last night. Listen to this.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
STORMY DANIELS: I think it is pretty clear that with the new developments comes new interest.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Let's go to Nick Valencia in Fort Lauderdale. Nick, the music a bit tells us where you were last night for this interview. What else are you learning?
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we were here last night, Victor, to see Stormy Daniels' first performance since this week's lawsuit she filed against the president, the man she has accused of her alleged having an affair with. She performed in front of about 200 people last night and we were told that explicitly that we would not get a chance to talk to her, to not even think about asking her any questions.
But after her performance, she held a meet and greet, and it was then that she agreed to an audio only interview so long as we didn't talk about the litigation and I asked her about President Trump, something she didn't want to talk about. In fact, she said no comment. But she did talk about how this alleged affair with the president is affecting her career.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
DANIELS: Sort of in a double-edged sword where a lot of people are interested in booking me for dancing and stuff like that. So, I'm getting more dance bookings. I usually only dance once a month. Now I'm dancing three or four times a month, so that's been really great.
But because of that, it's sort of overshadowing a lot of the adult films that I'm supposed to be promoting and a lot of the mainstream projects that I was actively working on have been indefinitely put on hold.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
VALENCIA: Daniels went on to tell me that it is the insults and flat out lies of her being financially broke that really affected her the most. And this interview comes to us after about 24 hours after we've learned that Michael Cohen used his professional White House account to communicate with Daniels' attorneys over this non-disclosure agreement, a bungled attempt at keeping her silent after her alleged affair with the president.
Michael Cohen says that that is not blockbuster that he uses his professional e-mail for personal interactions all the time. However, Stormy Daniels' attorney has a different take on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL AVENATTI, STORMY DANIELS' ATTORNEY: If, in fact, the payment was being made personally by Attorney Cohen, he wouldn't need his office open in other to effectuate the payment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALENCIA: Now, Stormy's attorney says that this is further proof that he was not acting in a freelance role or an individual capacity but on behalf of the president. Cohen denies that saying that he did not violate any campaign finance reform laws or any campaign finance laws.
But this story, guys, shows no signs of going away anytime soon. Stormy Daniels for her part is expected to perform here again at the Solid Gold Room here in Florida later tonight -- guys.
BLACKWELL: All right. Nick Valencia. Michael Cohen admitting there that he used his trumporg.com e-mail address, not a White House address. He wasn't in the White House. Nick Valencia there for us in Fort Lauderdale, thank you so much.
And Stormy Daniels' attorney also says that it is unbelievable just not credible that the president's lawyer made this deal without the president knowing.
PAUL: Listen to what he said about the timeliness of all of this.
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[08:05:09] AVENATTI: This took a long time, the negotiation, the drafting, the communication, the routing of the payment. We're talking about hours and hours and hours. And what Mr. Cohen and the administration now expects the American public to believe is that he went off half-cocked on his own without any guidance or communication whatsoever with his client. None.
He just decided that he was going to do this. He was going to draft the document, he was going to negotiate it, and he was going draft the document with places for his client to sign.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: President Trump's attorney responded to those remarks saying this, "The use of my company e-mail to communicate with the bank and Ms. Clifford's former counsel proves absolutely nothing despite the less than convincing comments offered by Mr. Avenatti. I used this e-mail address for virtually everything as many people do.
(END VIDEO CLIP) PAUL: All righty. Shifting gears here to the growing trade warfare here, the president now saying that he is working on a way to get Australia exempt from his new controversial tariff plan.
BLACKWELL: Abby Phillip is at the White House with more. And Abby, Prime Minister Turnbull of Australia seems to think that this is already a done deal.
ABBY PHILLIP, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It was really a carefully and maybe cleverly worded tweet from Turnbull leading into the president's comments about Australia. The president has been really conducting some of this policy over social media talking individually country by country to different nations to talk about whether or not they should be exempted from these tariffs.
But this all started yesterday when President Trump announced that he had talked to Turnbull on the phone and that he acknowledged that the United States and Australia are close friends and allies and allies on security in particular.
And he said that the United States is working on very quickly on a security agreement, but Turnbull in his turn responded to the president overnight and said this, he said, "Great discussion today on security and trade. Australia/U.S. trade is fair and reciprocal and each of our nations has no closer ally.
Thank you for confirming new tariffs won't have to be imposed on Australian steel and aluminum. Good for jobs in Australia and the U.S." He is right in one respect that they don't have to be imposed on Australia, but unless the White House and this administration acts, they will be.
This has been a policy that has been controversial from the start. The president has lost a national economic adviser over it and Republicans are up in arms saying this is bad policy across the board and now we see that the president is actually exempting countries one by one.
He started with Mexico and Canada, now moving on to Australia, and there are other nations who are asking for exemptions including South Korea and Japan. Also, two close allies who say that these tariffs will hurt their economies and also the bilateral relationships that they have with the United States.
You know, this is a policy that has been called a Swiss-cheese type of tariffs. There are so many holes in it at this point, Christi and Victor, that it is hard to see exactly who this is going to be applying to and where this policy is going to go.
Yes, the president gets to say he has his tariffs, but obviously a lot of exemptions are being made in really big ways.
PAUL: All right. Abby Phillip, thank you so much. I want to bring in CNN contributor and national political reporter for the "Washington Examiner," Salena Zito. So, Salena, how does the president make the argument that he imposes tariffs on one country and not another? SALENA ZITO, CNN COMMENTATOR: I think it is pretty simple. You know, I mean, some of the main concerns with voters, period, whether it is midterms or presidential, is job creation and security. So, on one hand, he can say this helps free up job creation especially in an industrial Midwest.
You saw yesterday the Republic Steel saying that they are going to bring back 1,000 workers that have been idle since 2016. So, you have that on one hand. On the other hand, security is obviously very important to people.
And having a strong relationship with the countries that work together on national security would be sort of brought forth with letting a couple of these countries that have been our allies and our friends and held with us out of the -- you know, giving them exemptions. So, I think the voters can understand that and look at that and say that makes sense.
BLACKWELL: Salena, you live in Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District where there is this special election on Tuesday. There are several analysts who say that this was timed specifically for the voters there, members of President Trump's base.
[08:10:00] For the people who believe that this is going to help the steel industry, not as big an employer as telephone it was in the past, but steel country, do the details matter to them or did the president just do something?
ZITO: The president did something, and they see it as tangible benefits. And both candidates, and I need to stress this, both the Democrat and Republican support the tariffs. So, there is not a great big contrast. You have to understand with steel, a lot of it is nostalgia.
You know, I didn't grow up working in a steel mill. My parents' generation did. My children's generation did not either. But there is a cultural connection to the industry. When people go to a football game in Western Pennsylvania, they don't go to see the high tech-ers. They go to see the Steelers. It is a part of our culture.
So, what he did was a tangible benefit. It reached out and said look, I have your back. I'm making it easier on some level to make it easier for companies to open back up and rehire idle workers.
PAUL: So, talk to us about the consequences of this election coming up on Tuesday because President Trump will be there tonight in the Pittsburgh area trying to garner these votes, make sure that people vote Republican. But at the end of the day, Conor Lamb is very moderate.
ZITO: Yes.
PAUL: Is a win for Conor Lamb really a loss for Republicans in this district?
ZITO: No, it is not. Typically, you know, when we're discussing elections between especially in a special election, right, it is a study of contrasts. I'm for this and he is for that and everyone is looking to see what is persuadable on a national level. Outside of the life issue, these two are locked in on almost everything having the same position. It is like a Republican primary. Conor Lamb is young and charming, and Rick Saccone is not young.
BLACKWELL: That is a good way to put it.
ZITO: Actually, he and I are the same age, so I can say that. So, it is more of a contrast of personalities and Trump has not been mentioned at all. There was a steel rally yesterday for Conor Lamb and nobody mentioned Trump. It is really interesting.
And the other nuance that I think that is important to consider, this district doesn't even exist anymore. So, I'm really hesitant because the State Supreme Court, you know, threw out all of our districts and redrew them, so this district doesn't even exist anymore.
It is like a zombie district. So, I'm having a hard time saying everyone should learn a lot of lessons from here. What they should learn is Democrats will be really wise to run candidates who fit the district.
So, if you are progressive, you live in a progressive district, run that type of candidate. If you are a moderate district with a swing populous, run a moderate candidate. And that is how the Democrats take back the majority.
BLACKWELL: It's 50 state strategy.
ZITO: That is so smart.
BLACKWELL: Worked in 2006. Salena Zito, thanks so much for being with us.
The NRA is suing Florida over a new gun law raising the minimum age for purchase of a firearm from 18 to 21. We'll talk about that next.
PAUL: And actress, Jane Seymour, talks about something that's (inaudible) a lot of people, 67 years old, and she's posing for "Playboy."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What has come out of it, it has been so empowering is that young women 18, 20 years old and I just heard the other day from an 82-year-old, they are all going you go, girl. And I'm going OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: And this wild ride gets a Miami night club in some serious trouble. Why police are investigating this viral video.
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[08:18:35]
PAUL: Three women are dead after a hostage standoff at a veterans home in Yountville, California.
BLACKWELL: The shooter who was found dead had been suffering from PTSD and had been treated at that home. Let's bring in CNN Dan Simon. Dan, what else do we know?
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christi and Victor, investigators, of course, are trying to figure out what caused this decorated Army veteran to barricade himself with three hostages, murder them, and then apparently take his own life. This happening on the cam put of the nation's largest veterans home, specifically at the Pathway Home.
And this is a facility that helps veterans deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. We know that the gunman has been identified as 36- year-old Albert Wong from Sacramento. We know that he served in Afghanistan beginning in 2011, served for about a year, had a very clean military record, was awarded several medals.
And then obviously suffered some type of emotional breakdown, suffered PTSD, and he sought treatment here at the Pathway Home. We know that about two weeks ago, he had to leave this home. He was asked to leave. The circumstances surrounding his discharge, we do not know.
And why did he come back yesterday, why did he seemingly target these three victims? We know that the executive director along with two psychologists were killed. Investigators still trying to sort all this out -- Christi and Victor.
BLACKWELL: All right. Dan Simon for us there in Yountville, California. Dan, thank you.
PAUL: Thank you.
BLACKWELL: The NRA has filed a lawsuit challenging a new Florida law that raises the minimum age to buy a gun. Florida Governor Rick Scott signed the bill Friday. It is the first gun control legislation since the Parkland school massacre.
PAUL: The law raises the minimum age to purchase a firearm from 18 to 21 and NRA says that publishes lab abiding gun owners for someone else's criminal acts. The new law also allows some teachers to be armed.
CNN's national correspondent, Athena Jones, walks us through this.
ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there. Before signing this bill into law, Governor Scott praised the legislature. He also praised the students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, and the parents of the victims of that shooting in Parkland for their advocacy.
He also talked about the compromises that were necessary to get the legislation to his desk just three weeks after that horrible shooting. Take a listen.
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GOVERNOR RICK SCOTT (R), FLORIDA: There are things in this bill that I oppose. I've been pretty open about that. I still think law enforcement officers should be the ones to protect our schools. I've heard all the arguments for teachers to be armed and while this bill was significantly changed on this topic, I'm still not persuaded. I'm glad however that the plan in this bill is not mandatory.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JONES: And that provision to arm teachers is by far the most controversial provision in this bill, one the governor as you heard there has consistently opposed. He argues teachers should teach. He said that again on Friday.
In fact, the Florida Education Association, which represents some 140,000 teachers and school staff across the state of Florida had been urging the governor to use his line item veto power to veto the $67 million in this bill that was set aside for the program. He chose not to do that.
He said instead he wants to talk with the legislature to make sure that any of that $67 billion that doesn't get used can instead be redirected to increase law enforcement presence on school campuses.
The families of Parkland victims several of whom spoke to the press after the bill signing said that they see this as a good first step on the journey to making schools safer. And they urged states across the country to follow Florida's lead to harden schools, to increase security, to try to prevent another incident of mass violence. Back to you.
PAUL: Athena, thank you.
Big question this morning, will the meeting happen with North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un? President Trump says listen, it is being planned. But there is one thing the White House says could put a stop to it.
BLACKWELL: Plus, Martin Shkreli has been sentenced to seven years in prison. We'll tell you what he did when he heard that verdict.
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[08:27:19]
PAUL: President Trump says his meeting with Kim Jong-un is happening. Even though his press secretary said it would not happen without, quote, "concrete actions." Sarah Sanders said a promise to freeze nuclear tests is not enough.
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SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The understanding the message from the South Korean delegation is that they would denuclearize. We've accepted the invitation to talk based on them following through with concrete actions on the promises that they've made.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Well, after Sanders said that, the president tweeted that the deal with North Korea is very much in the making and will be if completed a very good one for the world. Time and place to be determined.
This meeting if it happened would be the latest installment in at back and forth that has gone on for more than 25 years. The U.S. and North Korea have virtually no diplomatic relationship before the 1990s. Since then, there had been several eras marks by talks and deals and breakdowns.
PAUL: Yes, the first Bush administration was marked by, quote, "limited engagement," trying unsuccessfully to get North Korea to comply with an international nuclear agreement. Then under President Clinton talks stalled when North Korea started developing weapons- grade plutonium. And then they restarted when former President Jimmy Carter visited, paving the way to North Korea promising to dismantle their nuclear reactors.
BLACKWELL: The U.S. and North Korea continued talks in 1996 and again in 2000 with a visit from Madeleine Albright. Then the George W. Bush era begins. North Korea is suspected of violating the 1994 deal by secretly enriching uranium. Another deal follows in 2005 when the North agrees to abandon its nuclear program, then they conduct their first nuclear test the very next year.
PAUL: And then under President Obama, North Korea conducted a second nuclear test. Former President Clinton visits Pyongyang to free two American journalists. After Kim Jong-un came into power in 2011, we've seen only two official negotiations. One of them was a 2011 deal from North Korea to freeze its nuclear weapons program in exchange for food.
BLACKWELL: That broke down when they tested a rocket the following year. The U.S. then announced a policy of strategic patience. You've heard about that. No more formal talks until the North commits to denuclearization. That continued until last year when the Trump administration shifted toward a policy of increased pressure and informal engagement.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The era of strategic patience with the North Korean regime has failed. Many years that it's failed and
[08:30:00] frankly, that patience is over.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: CNN presidential historian Douglas Brinkley with us now.
So good to have you here in Atlanta.
DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Thank you for hosting me.
PAUL: Good to have you here. So here's the thing. The president is saying this is on. With the exception obviously of Sarah Sanders says of these restrictions that have to be made. But we haven't heard from North Korea. I mean, he says it's on, but is North Korea saying, sure, we'll agree to this? We've heard nothing from them.
Historically, is there any evidence to tell you that North Korea will do what they have promised and that they will agree to this concrete action prior to meeting with the president?
BRINKLEY: Well, remember what Ronald Reagan used to say, trust but verify. That's what the United States is trying to do right now. Let's verify that the terms of agreement with North Korea are held.
Look, this is an unbelievably brutal dictatorial totalitarian are regime, North Korea. We can't trust them for anything. The question is, is it in their interests now to make a deal with the United States of some kind? Perhaps. But what would that deal look like?
I would not mind in my lifetime having the a united Korean peninsula, but it would have to be on the South Korean model. And North Korea doesn't want that because that loses the family, the dynasty. North Korea would lose all of their power. So I don't see where our two interests in the end are going to work long term, but for Donald Trump, if he could just get a short-term deal out of this, let's say a freeze and more for one year, let's say, that would help him particularly in the midterm elections coming up because his foreign policy has been all bully boy, name calling, rocket man.
And suddenly the bully gets a result of a freeze so people say see, Trump's foreign policy is working. That rough -- you know, way. And that's what he's aiming for right now, Donald Trump. Buy himself a year.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: So if candidate Trump railed against President Obama for coming to an agreement with the nuclear deal and not addressing the American prisoners who were in Iran. He now faces the potential of sitting down with Kim Jong-un while there are Americans imprisoned in North Korea.
Do you think that he can -- he can go and sit with Kim without having them come home first?
BRINKLEY: I don't think so. I think we're going to have to get the Americans released from North Korea or it's going to become a very large story. After all, not just Donald Trump but the Republican Party in general lambasted Barack Obama for doing the nuclear, you know, deal with Iran, for daring to do a thaw with Cuba and the human rights problems.
North Korea is the worst of them all. And if we can't get our Americans out of there before Donald Trump is willing to put the prestige of the United States in a summit meeting, usually a presidential summit is supposed to be with a big players of the world. By Trump just going for the summit, it elevates North Korea.
BLACKWELL: And it's usually step 10, 12, 14.
PAUL: Yes.
BRINKLEY: This should be done at the highest, in my opinion, by the secretary of State, this should be Rex Tillerson's diplomacy going on now.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
BRINKLEY: But Donald Trump sees it as a way to own the global limelight.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
BRINKLEY: And put himself in the front of things and he's -- I think will probably do whatever he can to make this meeting work.
PAUL: OK. Stormy Daniels.
BLACKWELL: Stormy Daniels, we had Ken Blackwell on who is a supporter of the president who says that, you know, the focus should be on policy. But the evangelical community which supported this president in the primary and in the general election, they now have this.
I want you to listen to a supporter of the president, this is Pastor Robert Jeffress and talking about this scandal.
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PASTOR ROBERT JEFFRESS, TRUMP SUPPORTER: Evangelicals know they're not compromising their beliefs in order to support this great president. And let's be clear, evangelicals still believe in the commandment, "thou shalt not have sex with a porn star." However, whether this president violated that commandment or not is totally irrelevant to our support of him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Porn stars aren't mentioned in the 10th Commandment, adultery is.
PAUL: Yes.
BLACKWELL: Since this alleged affair actually happened. What do you make of that, that evangelicals, at least Pastor Jeffress, is still sticking with the president through this?
BRINKLEY: It's very disappointing about our evangelical community. You would think that they would hold everybody to an equal standard. But the rules don't apply to Donald Trump. They have decided that he is their guy. And they don't care that, you know, whether he was a casino magnet, they don't care about the "Access Hollywood" tape, they don't care about the women charging him for sexual harassment, they don't care about being a porn star.
He has like an inoculation with the evangelical community. If they would start turning on Donald Trump, you would see his base shrink. You know, Donald Trump is holding that 35 percent, let's say.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
BRINKLEY: Maybe 40 percent. But if evangelicals would start saying we've had enough of an immoral president, you would see Trump's base start shrinking. It'd probably be the end of his possibility to get reelected.
[08:35:03] At all cost, he has to keep the evangelicals with him. He mentioned Billy Graham when he died.
PAUL: Yes.
BRINKLEY: Hundred times Donald Trump and praises Franklin Graham whenever he can. He constantly is signaling to the evangelicals, I may be a sinner, but I'm worth trying to stick with because I'm delivering on other things like being against "Roe versus Wade" ultimately.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
PAUL: All right. Douglas Brinkley, always appreciate your insight. Thank you for being here.
BRINKLEY: Thanks, guys.
PAUL: Absolutely.
BLACKWELL: OK. So you may remember the name Martin Shkreli? He's the hedge fund manager who jacked up the price of a life-saving drug back in 2015.
PAUL: Well, a federal court has sentenced him to seven years in prison for defrauding investors out of more than $10 million.
CNN correspondent Polo Sandoval joining us now with more details.
So, Polo, we're learning that it was emotional for him in court.
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, guys. You may know this guy as the so-called pharma bro from his days of jacking up the price of this life-saving HIV drug from $13.50 to $750 a pill. Important to point out that this federal fraud conviction certainly not related to that controversy. In August a Brooklyn jury convicted this 34-year-old man of securities fraud for mismanaging two investment funds and also lying to his investors.
Shkreli usually maintaining a smirk on his face during last year's proceedings. However yesterday that smile was replaced by tears as he pleaded with the judge asking for leniency. The once defiant defendant changing to an apologetic tone almost during his hearing yesterday telling the judge, quote, "I look back and I am embarrassed and I am ashamed he said."
Shkreli then goes on to say, quote, "There is no conspiracy to take down Martin Shkreli. I took down Martin Shkreli with my disgraceful and shameful actions." You'll recall that he had previously referred to these charges against him as bogus and even in his own words a witch hunt of epic proportions.
This really just the latest in what was a very eventful week here. This week a New York judge ordering him to forfeit about $7.5 million in assets including some unusual items here. A Wu-Tang clan album. He's also expected to give up a Picasso painting and also a second album by Lil Wayne. Six months of credit will be given to him as part of this seven-year sentence here. The defense wanted about a year. Prosecutors wanted about 15 years. So certainly an in-between here -- Victor and Christi.
PAUL: Yes. Split down the middle. Polo Sandoval, we appreciate it. Thank you.
BLACKWELL: All right. Still to come, it's a dead heat race in Pennsylvania special congressional election as President Trump heads there to stump for the GOP candidate, but will tonight's visit make any difference for the party's prospects? We'll talk about it.
PAUL: Also 67 years old, actress Jane Seymour opening up about posing for "Playboy." Why she says she's never felt better about herself and her body and what is her secret.
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[08:42:21] BLACKWELL: Tonight President Trump will hold a rally in Pennsylvania and ahead of Tuesday's special election in District 18. It is a district that President Trump won by 20 points in 2016. Voters have elected GOP candidates there for years. But now it's up for grabs. And Republicans are worried a loss would set a devastating precedent for the midterms.
Joining me now to discuss, Pennsylvania interim Democratic vice chair, Nancy Mills.
Nancy, good morning to you.
NANCY MILLS, PENNSYLVANIA INTERIM DEMOCRATIC VICE CHAIR: Good morning.
BLACKWELL: All right. So the president is on his way there. We said that he was -- he won by 20 points in 2016. The latest Monmouth poll has his approval over disapproval I think just above water, 51-47. Does the president's visit today make a difference for your opponent there, Mr. Saccone?
MILLS: I think it might be a little bit too little too late. Conor Lamb has traction and he has been very well received in Allegheny County, Washington County, Green County and Westmoreland County. He is a candidate for all four counties and he is perfect for this congressional district. BLACKWELL: He has certainly raised a lot of money in the most recent
FEC filing period, the full one before the election on Tuesday.
MILLS: Yes.
BLACKWELL: He pulled in about $3.3 million. Mr. Saccone pulled in about $700,000. But this is what the GOP party head there in Pennsylvania said about money and getting out the vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VAL DIGIORGIO, PENNSYLVANIA REPUBLICAN PARTY CHAIR: Conor Lamb is raising his money across the country through a platform called Act Blue. So his money is coming in from across the country. We're going to see advertising, though, that Republican Rick Saccone, we're going to outspend total what the Democrats will spend on the media.
But get-out-the-vote is not about money all the time. For us, it's about putting the volunteers on the street.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Can you turn that fundraising, that energy, into votes on Tuesday?
MILLS: Yes, absolutely. And Conor Lamb's fundraising was through Act Blue, but it was also through other donors. And he received money I think small donors, maybe $31 was our average donor. And he raised money from all over the country. But what we've done is we have boots on the ground. We've been working tirelessly since we nominated Conor and we've been working with all of our resistance groups and within our political party structure. So we have -- I think we can outmatch any Republican effort to put the boots on the ground.
BLACKWELL: You used the word resistance there. And Conor Lamb is a moderate Democrat.
MILLS: Yes.
BLACKWELL: He does not support a ban on assault.
MILLS: Yes, he is.
[08:45:02] BLACKWELL: He supported the tariffs that the president enacted this week. He intentionally is not critical of President Trump. How does moderate Conor Lamb fit into a Democratic Party that wants a resistance?
MILLS: Well, I think that, first of all, the people are voting for the candidate. This candidate suits the district extremely well and he was nominated by the four counties. So he was chosen and I think that he fits the district probably better than any candidate that I've seen in all the work that I've done in western Pennsylvania.
The people are voting for the man. There is no question he is honest, he is ethical. And I think it proves that whenever you bring the honesty to the race, I think that people resonate with that and we have people who disagree with him on some issues. But they feel that he represents them extremely well.
And I think that you are going to see somebody who is going to be able to work across party lines.
BLACKWELL: All right.
MILLS: He has promoted the idea of having new leadership in Washington. And I think that he sees. He has asked his opponent also, will you --
BLACKWELL: All right. Nancy -- Nancy we got -- I hate to jump in there.
MILLS: Sorry.
BLACKWELL: But we're coming up close on the clock here.
Nancy Mills, thanks so much for being with us this morning.
MILLS: Thank you.
BLACKWELL: All right.
MILLS: Thank you.
PAUL: Well, a near death experience changed her whole outlook on life. Why Jane Seymour says she's not afraid to die. She's living every day to the fullest. Our exclusive interview with her next.
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[08:50:47] PAUL: Well, actress Jane Seymour is making headlines right now for being the most mature woman of age to pose for "Playboy." 67 years old. Not everyone would have the courage to do this. And "Playboy" told her the article and pictures of her have eight billion, with a B, hits.
I spoke with her a few days ago and had to ask what I know a lot of us are thinking. How do you find the gumption to put yourself out there like this?
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JANE SEYMOUR, ACTRESS AND FOUNDER, OPEN HEARTS FOUNDATION: I wondered, you know, should I do "Playboy" or not? I mean, why would I want to do "Playboy"? But what's come out of it that has been so empowering is that young women, 18, 20 years old, and I just heard the other day from an 82-year-old, the end of society, they are all going you go, girl. And I'm going, OK.
This was an article about me and my career. And they showed me the type of photographs they wanted. And they said they weren't interested in me being naked. So I said fine. And then I just thought they've made the most beautiful classy, sensual, I mean, empowering -- I mean, gorgeous pictures.
PAUL: Give us two maybe three top tips of how you keep yourself in good enough shape to pose for "Playboy" at 67.
SEYMOUR: OK. First of all, I try to eat as healthy as possible and as you know, I grow my own organic vegetables in the back garden, have my own chickens. You know, it's hard boiled eggs in the morning and some green juice and then whatever else happens in the day.
I do everything in moderation. I don't do any Botox or Restylanes, I don't do any of that stuff. You know, this is my own face. I'm an actress, I believe in having a blank canvas. So I can create whatever character I'm going to play. And I need muscles to work. So I need to be able to frown and laugh and cry and all those things. And working out, I do Pilates, Gyrotonics with light weights and a bit of spinning.
PAUL: You said that you feel better than ever at 67. You feel sexier than ever. What do you attribute that to?
SEYMOUR: Well, I think, you know, when you're in your 20s, it's like, oh, my gosh, what is this all about? You know, I've got to try and make a career or whatever it is. You're 30, you're thinking I'm supposed to find someone to have a baby with or babies. 40, you're wondering what happened to the marriage in my case.
(LAUGHTER)
SEYMOUR: Maybe not others.
PAUL: In many. No, in many.
SEYMOUR: And then you try again and then 60 you're going what happened. And then at 67, I'm in a lovely relationship, you know, with a very equal person who respects me and loves what I do, and is supportive of what I do. And my kids are growing. I'm free. I'm able to be me. And I'm getting to play great roles, doing a lot of comedy which I love. And, you know, I'm not afraid of getting pregnant and I'm not afraid of dying, but I do want to fill the time in between with as much fun as possible.
PAUL (voice-over): That fun includes her show "Let's Get Physical" on Hop TV.
SEYMOUR: That was a great, great loss. Thank you, love.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, mom.
SEYMOUR: That's for wearing that shirt and for not returning my calls for three years. That is for losing your father. I'm so sorry, darling.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sorry, too, mom.
SEYMOUR: It flatters you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel like a rock star.
SEYMOUR: Well, actually I thought rock stars were skinny because of drugs?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Doughnuts are a drug.
SEYMOUR: Come, we need to see you.
PAUL: And Jane turns fun into something purposeful with her Open Hearts Foundation.
SEYMOUR: Many, many years ago, I had a near-death experience and I learned the most profound thing ever, which is that first of all it doesn't hurt when you die. That's kind of cool to know. But that I do know that you only take two things with you, which is the love you've shared and the difference you've made.
I love CNN Heroes. I mean, that's my favorite, favorite thing ever. And so what we're trying to do, and we are doing with Open Hearts is that we identify extraordinary people who have turned their lives around and found a way to pay it forward and help other people.
If you find a way to open your heart and reach out to help someone else, you have a purpose and that just brings joy and love into your life. And when you have that, I feel like you are like a beacon. You know, people are attracted to that. People want to be around people that are making good things happen. And also, you know, my mom and my dad used to say if you can feel comfortable in your own skin, if you feel that you can be of service and you can be helpful to other people, that will be the beauty that comes from within.
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[08:55:12] PAUL: She was so candid with me, too, about the Me Too movement because there was something that happened to her. It was really frightening for her early in her career. And it was something that almost prompted her to quit acting all together. We're going to talk about that at 10:00 a.m. right here on CNN.
BLACKWELL: A Miami nightclub is shut down for bringing a horse on to the dance floor. What police are investigating that could lead to criminal charges.
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BLACKWELL: So a Miami nightclub is under investigation for animal cruelty after someone rode a horse into the middle of the club.
PAUL: Look at this. The woman riding this white horse into the crowd. The horse appeared to stumble there. Bucks the woman off. And fortunately the horse was not hurt. This is my concern. Is the horse OK?
BLACKWELL: Yes.
PAUL: Miami Beach city officials have since revoked the nightclub's business license.
BLACKWELL: All right. Thanks for watching. We'll see you back here at 10:00. "SMERCONISH" starts now.
