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Congress Writes New Immigration Bill; Prank Call To President Get's All The Way To Air Force One; World Cup Excitement Continues; Lebron James Now a Free Agent; Shelters to Shutters-Hope for the Homeless. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired June 30, 2018 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Rescuers tried lowering ropes, nets, even duffel bags to try to get her out. She's also deaf which made things really difficult for them. Eventually, though, they were able to pull her out. They tempted her with sardines.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Food always works.

PAUL: Always, and she wasn't hurt, believe it or not.

Good Saturday morning to you. Protests, rallies, marches are all planned this morning. Hundreds of events across the country to demand an end to the Trump administration's immigration policies.

PAUL: Demonstrators are pushing for an end to family detentions and the reunification of the thousands of families who were separated. But the process on that front has been slow. As of yesterday, more than 2,000 kids are still in the government's care rather than with their parents.

BLACKWELL: Well, President Trump is trying to shift this conversation on Twitter this morning. You see a pair of tweets. The president trying to turn the debate into one about the validity of ICE.

Our team of reporters is covering the story from every angle. We start with CNN's Dianne Gallagher in McAllen, Texas. Diane, what are you expecting? What are you told will happen there today?

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, victor, you can really call this the center of it all. That's because just down the road from me in McAllen is the busiest processing center on the southern border.

I toured it a couple weeks ago. The pictures from this facility are some of the ones that have galvanized people across the nation of those children inside those cages with their parents, those mylar blankets around them.

Them not knowing when they are going to be separated until the point it happens. Now I can tell you that in terms of the actual protest here, it's likely going to be quite modest in comparison to what you see around the countries in larger cities. Part of that simply due to population but also in the time that we have spent in these border states and these border towns, we have seen weekly, if not daily protests outside processing centers, border patrol stations and the facilities that are keeping the children themselves.

People who are demanding not only the reunification but for them to speed up the reunification and asking the government to let them know what the original plan was to begin with. There's a lot of frustration in these communities here.

And they want to express that a little later today at about 3-1/2 hours, we should see them outside this particular Border Patrol station to let them know they are not happy with the way this is being handled nor the way that these families are being treated.

BLACKWELL: Diane Gallagher in McAllen, Texas, thank you.

PAUL: CNN correspondent, Polo Sandoval is in New York where protests are getting ready to start there. What are you seeing?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Christi, only a couple of hours here, the message from these organizers will be simple here. Something we've watched and heard for the last week in previous demonstrations and that is end this longstanding practice of separating families and the end of President Trump's zero-tolerance policy.

The same message I heard seven days ago when we saw the small but very passionate groups of protesters. Here today, this group will be coming together, various pro-immigrant groups and unions, meeting in Lower Manhattan, walking across the Brooklyn Bridge.

In Brooklyn, though, I have a long list of speakers where they will be addressing that particular message. Going back to what we saw a week ago, certainly saw just how passionate people are, Christi. So, it will be interesting to see what that main message will be today from the crowd as they come together in the big apple. Back to you.

PAUL: All righty. Polo Sandoval, we appreciate it. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Jessica Schneider joins us live from Washington where today's main protest is scheduled to start in just hours. What are the numbers you're hearing about potential support that this rally is going to get?

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're expecting thousands out here, Victor, and it will all be anchored right here at Lafayette Park. It will kick off at 11:00 a.m. This here it's really a symbolic spot. Lafayette Park just across the street, the north lawn of the White House there.

So, just across the street from the White House. Of course, the president himself not here in Washington this weekend. The president is up at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. But still the thousands who are expected here are expected to get that message to the president that they do not agree with his separation policy.

They do not agree with his immigration policy. So, all of this will kick off at 11:00 a.m. on this stage. We're expecting some of the featured speakers. We're expecting the actress, America Ferrera. Also, the "Hamilton" creator, Lynn Manuel Miranda.

So, they'll all gather here at Lafayette Park for that rally at 11:00 a.m. and then they'll take their protest to the streets. They will march up Pennsylvania Avenue headed toward the capitol building and then gather at the National Mall trying to get their message not only to the president but also directly to Congress as well --Victor and Christi.

[08:05:08] BLACKWELL: All right. Jessica, thank you.

PAUL: Now dozens of civil rights organizations are involved in the protests, including Amnesty International, the Anti-Defamation League, The Southern Poverty Law Center. Moveon.org is one of four lead partners sponsoring the events.

Our next guest, Anna Galland, is moveon.org's executive director of civic action. Thank you so much, Anna, for being with us. First and foremost, what did you see? What did you hear that prompted you to take this on?

ANNA GALLAND, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MOVEON.ORG CIVIC ACTION: Oh, goodness. Well, you know, my good friend who is one of the champions in Congress on this issue actually called me early on a Saturday morning less than two weeks ago -- exactly two weeks ago today and said what we are doing here? We need to be in the streets.

And I agreed with her and we spent the weekend scheming together along with our close friends from the National Domestic Workers Alliance (inaudible) as parents, as people, as women, we couldn't stand by and just allow this horror to happen.

So, we put out a call on Monday, less than two weeks ago, thinking maybe we might get a couple hundred protests around the country and we've been overwhelmed and so honored to see the response. There will be 750 rallies and protests and marches around the country today.

Not just in our biggest cities, although, yes, there, but also in places like Lubbock, Texas, and Wichita, Kansas, and there's a 700- person town in Minnesota called Lanesboro that has an event. They're meeting on the local ball field.

This is something different than we have seen in a long time. It is not left and right. It's right and wrong. People are standing up and saying families belong together. We need to end this horrific practice of separating children from their parents.

We need to end the internment camps for families being planned on military bases as we speak. And we need to end this zero-tolerance policy or zero humanity policy it might be better known. We can be better than this as a country and today I'm so inspired to see all the people who will come out to make this happen. PAUL: A lot of people are watching and thinking we need to secure our borders. Can you just give some clarity here? This is more a protest for human rights, for humanity than it is political. Would that be safe to say to some degree?

GALLAND: I think that if you asked someone on the street, is it a political question whether we should tear babies out of their mother's arms? They would say that's a moral question. And this moment is a moment of moral outrage.

We are calling for the end of family separation, for the reunification of the thousands of families which have been brutally separated. We know the long-lasting traumatic effects on children of being forcibly separated from their parents.

And indeed, we will hear today in Washington from a holocaust survivor who was separated from her parents in that era from a survivor of the Japanese-American internment camps, one of the darkest moments of our history. And others who have experienced that trauma and can speak to it firsthand. This is a moral moment.

PAUL: Those stories are the ones that really wake people up maybe, if they aren't quite sure what they think necessarily about a particular issue or they are able to see it in a different light.

With that said, because you've got 750 protests, and you were able to do this in two weeks, it tells -- it says a lot. It illustrates a lot about the support you have. What is your most realistic expectation of the impact that you expect will be had by the end of the day?

GALLAND: Yes, well, you know, look, any one protest, anyone knows that showing up on the streets doesn't change the policy in the here and now or doesn't pass the new law or elect a new candidate to office.

What it does do is it -- today, together, wearing white, people around the country are going to be wearing white when they show up. They'll be bringing water because it's hot in many parts of the country. They'll be bringing their sunscreen.

When we show up today, what people are doing is sending a resounding message to all of our decisionmakers, to our fellow Americans, to everyone that we are here. We are not going away. We're standing up together to say that families belong together and free. And we're making sure that this moment of horror in our country doesn't continue on our watch. Not in our name.

PAUL: Have you heard from any lawmakers?

GALLAND: We've had tremendous leadership from representatives like Jayapal (ph) and others. I'm hopeful that this is a moment where our elected officials will see the grassroots explosive energy around the country and meet the moment.

I should say, though, that the policy that is creating this crisis could be ended tomorrow by President Trump. It's a crisis that he created. He could undo it. We don't need the forceable separation of children and their families. We don't need endless and indefinite detention of families in internment camps.

We don't need to have the zero tolerance, so-called actually zero humanity policy at our border. He created these policies. He could end them tomorrow.

[08:10:09] Maybe from the golf course if he so chose. He could end those policies and end the horror and trauma he is inflicting on families in the United States, in 2018, right now.

PAUL: Anna Galland, we appreciate you being here today. Thank you very much. Take care today.

GALLAND: Thank you. See you on the streets.

BLACKWELL: We're getting new images of the deadly scene in Annapolis where a gunman shot and killed five people who worked for the "Capital Gazette." A video captured the moments when police raced to evacuate those workers from the building. Watch.

((BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hands up -- hands up!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To the right. To the right!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here, here, here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Put your hands up. Straight across that parking lot. Keep your hands in the air for me. Hands in the air.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Straight to this guy right there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This way.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Walk straight to me -- straight to me -- is anybody hurt?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Keep your hands up!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, no.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This way. This way!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: More new video now. This is of the suspected gunman, Jarrod Ramos, being carried away by police in handcuffs. Now Ramos appeared in court Friday. He's being held without bond. The judge cited his potential danger to the community. The widow of one of the victims, Rob Hiaasen spoke to CNN. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA HIAASEN, WIDOW OF SHOOTING VICTIM ROB HIAASEN: Rob Hiaasen was my best friend. He was that for a handful of others. He and I would like says you don't need a million friends, you just need really good ones. He was always there for people. A confidante when folks needed it and someone ready with the wry little joke at just the right time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Hundreds of people turned out last night for a massive candlelight vigil honoring the shooting victims. And this morning, today's front page of the "Capital Gazette" is here. The headline reads "Suspect swore oath to kill." And we'll talk more about this in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:16:34]

PAUL: Prices are on the president's mind this weekend. He just tweeted this, "I am asking that Saudi Arabia increase oil production maybe up to 2 million barrels. Price is too high. He has agreed."

The president said turmoil in Iran and Venezuela prompted the request. No comment yet this morning from the Saudis, but the price of crude spiked earlier this week on the news that the U.S. has asked its allies to cut oil imports from Iran by November.

BLACKWELL: President Obama appointed two Supreme Court justices in his two terms in office. Now with Anthony Kennedy's retirement, President Trump wants to get two before his first round of midterms.

This weekend, President Trump says he will -- or possibly will meet with potential Supreme Court picks. He plans to announce his choice in a little more than a week. On the list, five people with at least one woman. The president says they will not be asked about abortion or gay rights.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you looking for somebody who would overturn Roe v. Wade?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Well, you know, it's a great group of intellectual talent, but we really -- you know, they are generally conservative. I'm not going to ask that question, by the way. That's not a question I'll be asking. It is a group of highly talented, brilliant, mostly conservative judges -- because I won't be discussing that because I think it's inappropriate to discuss. So, I won't be discussing that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: All right. Joining me now to discuss, Carrie Severino, chief counsel and policy director at the Judicial Crisis Network. She also is a former clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas. Carrie, welcome to the show.

CARRIE SEVERINO, CHIEF COUNSEL AND POLICY DIRECTOR AT THE JUDICIAL CRISIS NETWORK: Great to be here.

BLACKWELL: All right. Good to have you. So, let's start here. The president says he will not ask potential picks about Roe. Essentially the president doesn't have to, right? The list from which he's working has already been vetted by conservative activists, the federalist society has weighed in. Are there any concerns based on the names and faces you're seeing about the pro-life bonafides of any of the potential picks?

SEVERINO: Well, I love this list. I think they have great legal credentials, but I actually don't know how many of them would rule in this case. And that's true even many of the Supreme Court justices.

We know their approach to the law and their judicial philosophy, which is look at the text of the law and take it very seriously. Look at the Constitution, honor that. Abide by that, but I think the president is exactly right.

You should not ask them how they'd rule in a specific case whether it's Roe v. Wade or any other. They need to have a philosophy where they are approaching each case fairly and not with prejudice.

BLACKWELL: You know, the president said in that snippet we played from Air Force One that he won't ask about LGBT rights. He won't ask about Roe. But I want to play a couple exchanges after he was elected. This was part of his CBS interview with Leslie Stalin, where he's asked about those two issues and his picks for the court. Watch and then we'll discuss.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you support marriage equality?

PRESIDENT TRUMP: It's irrelevant because it was already settled. It was settled in the Supreme Court. It's done.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, even if you appoint a judge --

PRESIDENT TRUMP: It's done. You have these cases have gone to the Supreme Court. They've been settled. I'm fine with that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you looking to appoint a justice who wants to overturn Roe v. Wade?

PRESIDENT TRUMP: Here's what's going to happen. I'm pro-life. The judges will be pro-life. They'll be --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What about overturning --

PRESIDENT TRUMP: There are a couple of things. They'll be pro-life. Having to do with abortion, if it ever were overturned, it would go back to the states. So, it would go back to the states --

[08:20:14] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some women won't be able to get an abortion.

PRESIDENT TRUMP: It will go back to the states -- they'll perhaps have to go to another state.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: OK. So, on the issue of Roe V. Wade, the president there has nuanced, some would say muddled answer. On same-sex marriage it's already been decided, it's settled law. First on same-sex marriage, are you satisfied with that answer from the president in the context of choosing potential next pick?

SEVERINO: The president is right. The case has been decided. And each of these judges is -- whoever the nominee is, he or she is going to be looking at each case on its merits and deciding it based on the law and text of the Constitution.

So, you know, I think it's very unlikely in today's world that we'll see that issue come back again so soon before the Supreme Court. This is mostly really scare mongering. What we are seeing is people going, oh, no, everything is going to change.

When you look at Justice Gorsuch last term, he voted most any of justice with Justice Kennedy and vice versa. What we've seen coming from this president so far is actually a justice that mirrors as closely as anyone on the court Justice Kennedy who he is replacing.

I predict this next nominee will be very much a Gorsuch 2.0, someone who is going to have a similar approach because that's what we've seen in the last one. Someone who, again, it's the same qualities of the experience they have, the fairness in the listening to both sides. That's something that characterizes all of the potential nominees on this list.

BLACKWELL: Why is the same-sex marriage decision, which just celebrated its third anniversary a couple days ago, settled law and Roe V. Wade is not potentially?

SEVERINO: You know, I'm not sure what the president was thinking when he decided to characterize those two differently but, obviously, as a constitutional matter, they stand in the same place. The same principles would apply to both cases.

BLACKWELL: All right. So, your group has a new ad out that tells people to contact their senators to tell them to stand with whomever the president announces next Monday. Who are you focused on here?

You focused on potentially those Republicans who we heard from Susan Collins, she said he's looking for someone who respects precedent on Roe v. Wade or you're looking for potentially those Trump state Democrats, Donnelly, Heitkamp, Manchin, who, you know, looking to November may have to consider voting for a second time now the president's nominee to the court?

SEVERINO: Well, I think as Senator Collins voted for Justice Gorsuch. I think what she's also said is we want someone, above all, who is going to be abiding by the constitution and laws. That's who you'll see out of this nominee.

In particular this year, it's important to look to those ten Democrats in red states that went for Trump and are up for re-election. They have to decide, am I going to vote for someone I can tell just by looking at the list, this will be someone qualified, experienced, talented and who has broad bipartisan appeal because they'll be a fair and even-handed judge?

Are they going to vote for that person or align themselves with the far extreme of their party to try to draw those votes? I don't think -- that may play well in California and Massachusetts. I'm not sure that plays as well in Indiana and Montana, West Virginia, Missouri, those kinds of places.

BLACKWELL: All right. Carrie Severino with the Judicial Crisis Network, thanks so much for being with us.

SEVERINO: Thanks.

PAUL: Well, another U.S. ambassador just quit the State Department reportedly over president Trump's policies and comments about European allies. James Melville Jr., the ambassador to Estonia, announced his resignation yesterday.

He's a career diplomat and is the third ambassador in the last year to exit the State Department early. Melville's resignation coming amid growing tensions between Europe and the Trump administration ahead of next month's NATO summit.

Melville's departure only adds to the current list of vacancies in the State Department. There are 60 open ambassadorships right now. The president has nominated people for 19 of those spots.

Still to come, massive protests are planned across the country today against President Trump's immigration policies. Congresswoman Jayapal is going to be rallying again today despite being arrested Thursday for unlawfully demonstrating. She's with us next.

And a comedian prank calls the White House and ends up talking to President Trump. And that's not even the craziest part of this story.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:29:21]

PAUL: So, glad to have you back with us. It's 29 minutes past the hour. I'm Christi Paul.

BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. Good morning to you. Hundreds of protests are planned across the country today against President Trump's immigration policies. Look at the map. This is where they're located.

Social justice groups are demanding that the administration end detention policies and all family separations and reunite families who were previously separated. The main event marches through the streets of D.C. and ends in front of the White House.

PAUL: So, lawmakers are among the thousands of people protesting the Trump administration's zero-tolerance immigration policy. Our next guest was one of 575 people arrested Thursday at the capitol for unlawfully demonstrating.

We have Washington State Representative Pramila Jayapal with us now. Congresswoman, thank you for being with us. I want to start with you, if I could, the president this morning is tweeting. And he slammed the Democratic push to abolish ICE. Here's what he said, quote "ICE you are doing a fantastic job of keeping us safe by irradiating the worst criminal elements, so brave. The radical left Dems want you out. Next it will be all police, zero chance. It will never happen."

So with that said, I want to clarify what your position is and what your hopes are. Do you want to abolish ICE?

REP. PRAMILLA JAYAPAL, (D) WASHINGTON: Well here's the thing. Right before ICE was established, which is a new agency; it's only been established in the last many years. There was enforcement of immigration laws. And after ICE is changed as an agency there will be enforcement of immigration laws.

What we have been saying is ICE has become a rogue agency. It has no accountability, no transparency. It takes the hundreds of millions of dollars that the federal government gives to ICE and it actually contracts out to private for profit contractors. Who have no accountability to the standards that are supposed to be maintained, to all of the conditions that we as Congress set.

So the position that we have been holding is we need a redo of where these enforcement functions lie. And we need to build into any new structure the ability for ICE as an agency or whatever the new agency is, to be accountable back to Congress. And I think that is very important because we need a humane agency and we need an agency that it actually going to utilize taxpayer dollars well instead of contracting out to for-profit private companies that literally are just about making money. But taxpayers could be paying a lot less for this.

PAUL: So where do you think enforcement needs to lie as you said in regards to keeping the boarder safe in a humane way.

JAYAPAL: Well the bill that we are in the process of drafting now actually sets up a commission and say's let's look at these alternatives for how we can get these functions done in a way that is humane. Because I think the American people have been outraged at finding out that this is how we're holding people and ICE has turned into a nasty formation (ph) force.

It is actually proving to be counterproductive for law enforcement, local law enforcement, in cities across the country, who are saying you know one of the key things that we need to do to keep communities safe is to actually build trust with all the members or our communities. And ICE is coming in to our communities and making our job difficult.

Police chiefs, law enforcement officials across the country have been continuing to say this. So we will create a commission that will actually look at the alternatives for how we want to do this. And with keeping in mind that we want it to be humane, we want it to be cost effective and we want it to be accountable and transparent, something that ICE simply is not today.

PAUL: So I know you're getting ready to get to the street again today in the protest. After your arrest on Thursday, I want to read to our viewer's one of your tweets in part. "June 30th we're putting ourselves in the street again." How do you anticipate it will be different today than it was on Thursday?

JAYAPAL: Well this has been a momentum building effort. You know, almost three weeks ago I went to the federal prison just south of Seattle where over 200 immigrants from the Texas border had transferred. And I heard the heartbreaking stories of mothers being separated from their children, in detention for over a month hadn't seen their children and I started telling these stories about whey they had left and who they were.

And heart braking about how they wept. Hadn't - didn't even know where their children were. That has transformed into outrage across the aisle. Republican, Democrat, Independent this is beyond politics as people have seen that the United States Government is putting children in cages and asylum seekers in prisons.

They realize that this is not who we are. So this protest, two weeks ago when I called the organizers and we together kind of formulated the idea of an opportunity for people to really come out into the streets, mass outrage. This is keeping it at the front of the agenda. It is letting the President know that he can pick up the phone today and end this zero tolerance, zero humanity policy that he implemented.

And it is making it clear that we as Americans, whatever our political beliefs, have certain rights and wrongs. That's what this is about. You don't put kids in cages. You don't separate breast feeding babies from their mothers. You don't put asylum seekers in prison.

And we're calling for an end to that today. And I think it is about the pressure, you know the continued pressure and the outrage that people are going to be channeling into the streets today and I'm inspired by every single American and every small town and big city that is coming out today to say this is not who we are. We need this policy changed immediately.

PAUL: I want to ask you about Maxine Waters. She has advocated for pressure as well. She got some push back based on the way she did it. How is the pressure you want to exert to see changes different from hers, if at all?

[08:35:00]

JAYAPAL: You know we have a long history of peaceful non-violent protests in this country. And you've seen it from everything from the Vietnam War until today. And I think that it is very important that we think about freedom of speech, freedom of protest, the ability for American's to say when they disagree with the government. That is what distinguishes America from other authoritarian totalitarian regimes.

And do this today, people coming out into the streets, wearing white for the suffragettes for peace, for the ability to reunify families and keep families together. That is the beauty of American democracy and it is essential to really putting our hands to so speak on the moral arc of the universe and bending it towards justice more quickly, to use the words of Dr Martin Luther King.

PAUL: Congresswoman Jayapal, thank you so much. Do take care out there to because it's going to be hot today.

JAYAPAL: It's going to be hot.

PAUL: It is.

JAYAPAL: Bring your sunscreen, bring your water and we'll see you in the streets.

PAUL: Thank you so much.

JAYAPAL: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: So this is a genuine security situation at 3,500 feet. President Trump makes a phone call from Air Force One to someone he thinks is a U.S. Senator. Turns out he's a comedian. How could this happen? A former member of the National Security Council who understands the security behind all this joins us next.

(COMMERICAL BREAK)

[08:40:00]

PAUL: Forty minutes past the hour right now. Look it started as a prank call for a comedian's podcast, took a little less than two hours for him to get a call back from Air Force One.

BLACKWELL: All right so here's the story comedian John Melendez pretended to be New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez and spoke to President Trump about immigration and the Supreme Court. Without the president realizing this was all a joke.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

JOHN MELENDEZ, COMEDIAN: I'm begging you. Are you going to go online or do you think you're going to march (ph) in service?

DONALD TRUMP, US PRESIDENT: Well I haven't looked - I mean I have a list of people. I have a big list of people Bob and we'll take a look at it. And we're going to make a decision. I'll probably make it over the next couple of weeks.

MELENDEZ: Because I promise you will have my vote. I will help you get - you don't come to, too conservative. You know what I'm saying.

TRUMP: Yes. Well we will talk to you about it.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: How did this happen? How did it make it all the way to the President? Here not is CNN National Security Analyst Samantha Vinograd. She served on the National Security Council under President Obama. Samantha welcome back.

Now obviously something that should be in this in this process to vet these calls, either was not there or did not work, because he got through to the President. Can you identify what that is, or tell us what the process is to make sure that the person on other line is indeed who they say they are?

SAMANTHA VINOGRAD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Victor this is frankly funnier than a "Saturday Night Live" episode, if the national security risks weren't so big. There are so many hoops that anyone goes through typically to get on the line with the President.

So for example I've been on Air Force One. You send staff with the President specifically for issues like this. So if a call comes into the White House, now obviously a call from a U.S. Senator typically doesn't go through the White House switchboard. It'll go through the White House Situation Room or the Chief of Staff's office.

But a call comes into the White House and then that call is typically routed to Air Force One and to a staff member with the President typically from the Chief of Staff's office, or the Office of Legislative Affairs, in this case who tries to vet who the call is coming from because keep in mind there are a lot of prank calls that come into the White House every day. But good staff work means that your checking to make sure that who's on the other end of the line is authentic, and also that the call is worth the President's time.

PAUL: I want to ask you about something else the President is tweeting about this morning and that is ICE. He said to the great and brave men and women of ICE, do not worry or lose your spirit. You are doing a fantastic job of keeping us safe by irradiating the worst criminal elements, so brave. The radical left Dems want you out. Next it will all police. Zero chance, it will never happen.

Now this is coming as ICE agents actually sent a letter to HHS Secretary. And in that letter they were advocating that this portion, this element of ICE is dismantled. Because it's essentially it sounds like their saying that it's distracting them from their jobs of transitional criminal organizations of getting them and getting and facilitating cross border crimes that are impacting our communities.

How significant is it Samantha? That you've got people in ICE advocating to dismantle a portion of it?

VINOGRAD: It's quite significant. But this is the President doing a distraction campaign again. He uses phrases like the worst criminal elements again to describe I think illegal immigrants. When we know, just as a matter of fact that immigrants do not represent a higher percentage of violent crime in the United States.

I would much rather see the President tweeting about things like gun violence, which killed another five people this week. That's what he should be focused on. And the fact of the matter is that any resources that ICE is devoting to separating children from their parents at the border, this child abuse that's being continued at our border, t hey are not spending on things that are actual threats to the United States like transnational criminal networks, or the things that are killing Americans when their coming across the border.

And so the President is focusing on the wrong enemy and I think that's exactly what the ICE staff was getting at in their letter.

[08:45:00]

BLACKWELL: The President is focusing, you say on the wrong enemy but there are several high-profile Democrats who are focusing on ICE as well saying thing like it needs to be re-imagined or reorganized. Do you have a view on that, on first the prioritizing of ICE now and its functions and if there should be some significant changes?

VINOGRAD: I think that there's always room for healthy debate on how various government agencies can do their jobs better. And ICE's mandate has -- was defined several years ago. Their responsibilities may have shifted and particularly in light of the crisis that we're having at the border. All of the government agencies that were part of this process to take children away from their parents should be looked at but at the end of the day, this was an executive Branch decision by the President of the United States to pursue a policy. Let's take of that issue right now, reunite these families and then review how these agencies could function better.

BLACKWELL: All right. Samantha Vinograd, always good to have you.

PAUL: Thank you Sam. And Coy Wire is here as well talking about soccer superstars everywhere you look apparently today.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: That's exactly right. Good morning Christi and Victor. Trending number one right now on bleacherreport.com it says get hyped for the world cup. The knockout stage is here and it's win or go home time for soccer's two greatest players Messi and Ronald, both in action today a preview coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:50:00]

PAUL: So the world's three biggest sports stars all in the headlines today.

BLACKWELL: And two of them are one step closer to going head to head.

WIRE: Amen.

BLACKWELL: Cory Wire is here. WIRE: Good morning to you. Soccer fans across the world praying that Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentina's Lionel Messi will face each other in this World Cup and if their teams win today, it's going to happen.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

UNKNOWN MALE: No one agrees on the best; everyone agrees on the two best.

(END VIDEO)

WIRE: Today it is win or go home time for two soccer living legends. Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi would face off in the quarterfinals next week if they win today. Messi's Argentina have been struggling, barely surviving the group stage with Messi having only scored one goal so far. They play France, a favorite to win it all, led by the rising star Paul Pogba. They're loaded with talent. The kickoff in that one is at 10 a.m. Eastern.

Now Ronaldo must take down Uruguay today. Hitting this trick shot during practice, standing behind the goal, bending it around the post and in, Ronaldo certainly looks ready. He and Portugal will have to get past Uruguay today. Unlike Messi though, Ronaldo started the World Cup off with a bang. He had a hat trick against Spain. There he is with the skies out, thighs out there. He is in the running for the Golden Boot which goes to the highest scorer in the World Cup. Uruguay, though, they won all three games in the group stage and are the only team that's not allowed a single goal in the tournament. Their star striker Luis Suarez looks to take a bite out of Portugal at 2:00 this afternoon.

Now to Lebron James opted out of his contract with the Cavs yesterday which means he will become a free agent with people freaking out about where Lebron is going to go in the next few days; he isn't stressing a bit. He's enjoying some lobster, some wine and quality time with his family in Anguilla, staying at a home that reportedly goes for $75,000 a week. They have a live band there giving them a private show, he's chilling. The odds makers say that the Lakers are the favorite to land Lebron with a return to Cleveland being the next highest odds according to Vegas so we shall see.

PAUL: So you're saying there's a chance.

WIRE: There's a chance for you, Ohio girl. You can do it. You can do it.

BLACKWELL: Can we just talk about this guys out, thighs out thing. Is it a thing?

PAUL: Coy made it a thing.

WIRE: It is now baby.

PAUL: And you know what? It's a term. Guys out -- skies out, thighs out. WIRE: In another couple hours, that will be me, baby. Let's go.

BLACKWELL: Too much. Coy, thanks so much.

WIRE: You're welcome.

BLACKWELL: All right. New surveillance video here, look at this.

PAUL: Oh my gosh.

BLACKWELL: Teenager loses his cool and drives that truck right into a Wal-Mart.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:55:00]

PAUL: I want to tell you about this non-profit program called Shelters to Shutters. They help homeless people become self-sufficient and it's this week's "Impact Your World."

(BEGIN VIDEO)

ODESSA MOORE, FORMERLY HOMELESS: I was going through a divorce or a separation with my husband. I had lost my job. I was evicted. I had to go to a shelter. I was sad. I was embarrassed. I didn't feel like I was good enough for my kids at that time.

CHRIS FINLAY, FOUNDER OF SHELTERS TO SHUTTERS: Over 70 percent of all homeless are what I call situational homeless; people that have simply had a catalyst in their life that's taken them from being working and productive to, unfortunately, finding themselves without a home.

MOORE: They actually transitioned me out of the shelter and into my own place.

FINLAY: The mission of Shelters to Shutters is taking somebody who is homeless, transitioning them to economic self-sufficiency.

MOORE: Now I'm an assistant manager for an apartment complex.

FINLAY: The job fairs have been tremendously successful. It's no better way than by putting people in front of hiring managers. When you see an opportunity to make an impact, I think we have an obligation.

MOORE: My kids tell me, mommy, I'm so proud of you. It just does something to me and it fires me up.

(END VIDEO)

PAUL: Good for them. All righty. Not so good for this guy. Teenager in Texas in trouble, he drove his truck into a Wal-Mart.

BLACKWELL: Yeah. PAUL: And you know the cameras were rolling. What does this say, 19-

year-old Caleb Wilson was fighting with his girlfriend as he walked out of the store and then that's what he allegedly did a few minutes later.

BLACKWELL: Now Wilson tried to speed away and he hit another car in that process. He was arrested shortly after. The crash caused a half million dollars in damage. The good news here, no one inside the store was hurt.

PAUL: That's some anger management that needs to be going on there.

BLACKWELL: Yeah. Come on, Caleb. All right, that's it for us. We'll see you back here at 10:00 Eastern for an hour of "Newsroom."

PAUL: Don't go anywhere though, "Smerconish" starts right here right now.