Transcripts For CSPAN2 Covering The Trump Administration 20180223

Unfiltered coverage of congress, the white house, the Supreme Court and Public Policy events in washington, d. C. And around the country. Cspan is brought to you by your cable or satellite provider. The National Governors association holds its winter meeting this weekend in the nations capital, the governor will be talking about opioid, crisis and then coming sunday in governors association, discussions on education, care for veterans and Economic Development, that starts at 9 45 a. M. Eastern, also live on cspan. Up next here on cspan2, a conversation with black women journalists covering the Trump Administration. George Washington University journalism professor Cheryl Thompson hosted the discussion, its about two hours. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, im sorry we are a few minutes late but im delighted that we are about to start, i would like to welcome all of you to the school of media and Public Affairs at the university of washington. How many students in the room . Awesome. Give yourselves a hand and welcome. [applause] im the director of smpa and im delighted for what will be a fascinating and very important conversation with people who are on the front lines of history and who make history because of what they do and of who they are it is our place here and some really privilege at smpa to host conversations like this that bring remarkable people who do remarkable things and sometimes very Difficult Conversations to this stage. Tonight what youll hear is as i said the front row seat on history and being a woman of color at this place its too rare and something that we need to think about other levels. I know your thoughts will be challenged by that. It is a pleasure and a privilege for me as well to introduce to you a very special student who is going to introduce professor thompson and bring out the panel. She is a junior, she is a journalism major, she has done remarkable things here at gw and beyond and happens to be president of association of gw journalists. Lauren hill in prime of her life i would like to say here at gw, shes the assistant editor of gw multicultural magazine. Intern in the African American newspaper and destined to go onto a really remarkable career and she is launching right here. So would you join me, please in welcoming lauren hill and have a very, very good evening. [cheers and applause] thank you, professor, good evening, my name is lauren hill and im the president of Gw Association journalist, this is the third major event in many years, this event is being streamed live and the aftercoa american facebook pages. I would first like to thank media of Public Affairs and black committee for allowing our organization to be part of series of programming in month of february. Our organization believes it is important to discuss the Trump Administration from the perspective of black women journalists, a group who has voices been suppressed but refuse to be silent. Tonights panel which will be introduced shortly, one of one of the best and recognizable journalists. I hope each of you leave here today with the challenges of being a woman of color and unique juncture in history. Its my pleasure to introduce the moderate tonight, professor cheryl w. Thompson. Has 21 years writing for the washington post. She has covered the justice department, immigration, dc police, Barack Obamas first term, spent more than a dozen years on projects and investigative team. She shared pulitzer price prize and won emmy from a interview with a prison man in chicago. She had a headliner award. She was part of the post team that did a yearlong series on police shoot, during 2016. She was named 2017 journalism educator of the year. Professor thompson has bachelors and masters degrees from the university of illinois, she is Vice President of the investigative report and editors board, the first African American to hold the position and serve on the board of investigative journalism. She is also a member of sorority. Without further due, professor thompson. [applause] wow, shouldnt yall be studying . [laughter] so come on out. This is our panel. [applause] april is being shy. [laughter] [cheers and applause] good evening. So Mia Henderson knows about political campaigns than most people. As senior political reporter in cnn and former colleague at the washington post, she is simply one of the best political reporters in the country. Thank you. Great to be here. [applause] i met yamich. I call her yamichi. She probably hates it. [laughter] nine years when she came to the post as intern fresh out of the other g school down the street. Georgetown. I was thrilled to be one of her mentors, sheafs fearless, feisty, traits that make her the amissouriing reporter she is today and she also i have to say she just took a new job with pbs. She gave up a job at the New York Times to go to pbs. I know. [laughter] and shes also a contributor to msnbc. [applause] whether its discussing tax reform or writing about rob porter, yall know rob porter . [laughter] i bet you didnt know him a couple of days ago. Former staff secretary who resigned about allegations of spousal abuse twice. Darlene, associated press, her home for last three decades. She was like did you have to . Actually three decades sounds better than 30 years. [laughter] neither one. [laughter] but covered First Lady Michelle Obama and covered white house since 2009. [applause] well, well. [laughter] whether its confronting Sarah Huckabee sanders over the president s treason comments or lashing out at a fellow journalist who clearly didnt know you or invoking her name at tend of a White House Press briefing, april ryan taking i saw the video. April ryan take nos prisoner. The baltimore native your honored the american urban radio in 1997 and was one of the First White House correspondents to talk to me when i joined the ranks of obama term. You probably dont remember that but pretend like you do. [laughter] all right, so welcome. [applause] so we want to have a frank discussion, a frank discussion about whats going on in the Trump Administration and how what its like as a woman of clever, april is giving me looks. Journalists including the White House Press core are under attacked from the unconventional administration, how do you deal with racially toted policies and statements . In other words, how do you keep your balance . April, you first. How do you keep your balance . Its not about me, its about the story and thats what we really aim to do, its about the story. That room has never been a room that reflects america, number one. And unfortunately it seems like when you look like me you stand out like a pink i elephant. I sit in the third row, they dont miss me, they choose to overlook at me but dont miss me. Covering the white house as africanamerican woman has been tough. Its a beat thats not kind to anyone but when you are not part of mainstream press, im not, im specialty media, specialty media is i have a certain niche, i talk or question primarily urban issues, black issues and but i also ask everything. But when you cover this administration and work on those issues, particularly in this Administration Im not perceived as their base, its tough. Its very tough and, you know, there are have have been attack, theres been retaliation for questions but its not about me, unfortunately, i have been in the news but its not about me, its about the story. And when you look at it as a story and not yourself, you can move on, you can keep going back every day. I havent done anything wrong. Im asking questions like anyone else would be a black, white, man, woman, protestant and catholic. Im requesting questions, 1600 pennsylvania avenue, the most magnificent place in the world. Thank you, april. I want to say im delighted to be here with all of these women who have i have known. Not that long. We are not that old. [laughter] excite b to be here. I will say this, and i dont cover the white house in the way the women do, im not in the briefings as they are, but i think for me, i see my role as reflecting how people feel and analyzing the president s words particularly in regards to race and i go back to interactions ive had with voters as they were assessing this candidate and some of the things that he would say and their real reactions, feeling, maybe you use words like racially undertones, some people use the phrase racist, if you look at the way the president talks about rake and deploys rake, i think race, i think its pretty clear that hes playing the race card. He does, you know, you hear criticisms about the left playing identity politics, right because they talk about black lives matter or they talk about the dreamers. Well, whats also true that President Trump plays white identity politics, its pretty evident if you look at data and polling in terms of how voters feel about race and sense of racial grievance and racial resentment, i think thats the way i deal with it, try to talk about the data, how he talks about race. You kind of put together the wave in which he talks about African Americans, for instance, calling for the firing of nfl, jamil hill, calling federica wilson empty barrel, john kelly making up a story about this black congresswoman. Yeah, i think thats the way i deal with it. In terms of how i feel personally about it, we got in this business to hold peoples feet to the fire to reflect the voices of the wide range of folks in the country and thats the way that i deal with it. I think for me, i ask myself pretty often why am i still a reporter and what im here to do and the question i would ask to a young boy that was killed in mississippi as a teenager and that sparked the Civil Rights Movement and i think of myself as Civil Rights Movement and no matter what beat im doing, crime to transportation and now at the white house, i think that the story of america is a story of race so when i think about the questions that im asking or the stories that im going to write, im thinking, what are we learning about our country and what are we learning about how the differences in race continue to color how peoples lives are in real ways. I dont believe in false equivalencies, i think you can be fair but you dont have to always be there was no false equivalency when segregation was bad. If i was writing in 1960s, there really wasnt wasnt something that was bad on both sides so i think as a reporter and im growing into that feeling like i could say, no, that was actually not okay, so im haitian american, when the president was talking about s hole countries and haitians and questioning what haitians have been doing for america, i was able to get on tv and say, well, thats wrong for you to say that haitians arent contributing and two, you should go to savannah, georgia because theres a monument that haitians contributed and help you free from your own people in the form of britain. So i think thats what i do to stay balanced in my mind. And i want to talk to your haitian question, your response a little later, darlene. Yeah, how do i keep it balance . One thing i would say that i exercise. [laughter] keep exercising, it helps, you know, sort of relieve the stress, its a stressful place. But as april said, its a hard place to cover whether youre white, black, male or female, its hard being a white house reporter. I have not experienced any kind of personal animus directed towards me because im a black woman and i have a different audience than april does. My audience is a lot broader than hers, one thing that i do try to keep in mind is that there is life outside of the white house after work, your interest and thatll take come of the sting out of whatever happened to you that day. Do you guys, you know, race has been race is such an issue in this administration. Do you remember another administration, former administration where race played a role even though Obama Administration raced and didnt come up as frequently as it does now . You know, race has touched every president in some way, shape or form but in the last 21 years that i have been in the white house, we started with ap, large contingent of reporters, the president bill clinton and he was dealing with africa, putting a focus on africa. He was putting a focus on healing the racial divide and talking about the heart. Then when you came to george w. Bush, he knew why his audience was not or disbase was not black. He regaled about im republican because of my father, because i was the governor of texas, because of, you know, the Death Penalty issue in texas and he just kept going on and on, but then when katrina hit and one of the issues is if he would have put a little more equity into or stayed into the black Community Like when he did africa or Different Things with africa. He didnt want to tout it because he thought the black population was not his base. If he would have done a little bit more in saying who he was, it would not have been so rough when katrina hit. So then you had and i thought those were two newsy president s and then we get this guy who has these ears and this name who really mesmorized republicans and democrats for one reason or another, everything about him it was just race. Race because he was a black man and the spotlight was on the black community because he would have a black man rising to the highest of heights and still such of a problem or so many ills in the black community, race touches from covering this white house over 21 years, race touches everything and its always on the table from what bill clinton told me years ago and subsequently all the other president s and with this president , race is definitely a factor. When you talk about Colin Kaepernick and change the narrative of why hes taking the knee and causing riff with players, causing a riff with players and the nfl and those who watch, when you talk about sons of what , you know, when you talk about s hole comments and we heard also from maggie who is a White Reporter that said that he said something to the effect if the nigerians come here, they wouldnt wanting to back to huts and all haitians have hiv and aids. Yeah, thats what maggie is reporting and shes a credible journalist. We heard from the campaign trail, make America Great again. Code words. In the last 21 years i have seen race play out in some of the best of ways and the worst of ways and the unfortunate thing you can legislate all you want but ultimately comes down to a heart issue and the president is the moral leader. He sets the tone. And i will say this, i think as someone who wasnt covering the white house when obama was in office and really covered more of the campaign of donald trump and the campaign of Bernie Sanders who i was out there on the bus for a year and a half, obama i think the narrative about obama was that america had reached this place where we were able to that a black man had gotten a big job and america was Getting Better and this great moment and black people everywhere were going to somehow improve logic and improve with obama, i think that was lost in that narrative, was how many people were angry to see a black man and a black family on their tv every day and how many people were mad at their own shortcomings because the economy wasnt working out for them. Theres the idea, oh, yeah people are mad at obama because of the economy and i mean that if youre someone who already has a decision not to like African Americans and you cant get a job and theres job numbers coming out every day, the economy is Getting Better and now you have to watch two black girls on tv wearing thousand dollar dresses, does something for you, to me its not just about prejudice anymore but lived experience looking at what you can do and america in a lot of ways has told straight white men that you have the privilege, that you are the one that will be able to do everything but thats obviously the case for everybody. Theres obviously straight white men who are struggling and have issues and so i think that wasnt as someone who wasnt a fullflesh reporter. I read more stories about how great obamas presidency was for america and not all the stories that people were starting up anti White Nationalist groups and being angry in living rooms because they didnt like black people. But there were stories. It was the tea party. Often times they would have signs, send obama back to kenya, you know, oneside sign about one sign about ugly daughters. You covered the tea party, some to have language about taking our country as if it had gone somewhere because of obama. [laughter] went to kenya. Yeah. I mean, i think the idea of politics and race, its always gone hand in hand and i think that the brilliance of obama in running for the white house was that he didnt make anyone feel guilty about race and racism. Vote for obama was in some way absolution for this great sin and stain of racism and this promise and the way he did that was his own soul moment when bill clinton goes and criticizes a Sister Soldier who is the black rapper and does that in a crowd at a Jesse Jackson conference and so theres this moment and so for obama he does that by going to black crowds and essentially saying, you have to do better, you have to pull up your pants, i mean, this whole idea of black respectility in politics, he does that and he signals to voters, particularly white voters that hes not going to coddle African Americans. Hes not going to be the president of black america and put a basketball hoop. That was first term obama. Yeah, he talked about race much more. He actually said the n word i think at a podcast at some point. In the garage. I think he said the phrase black lives matter but he was very careful in running in 2008 and 2012 and one of Hillary Clintons great weakens as candidate was she made people feel bad about race, i mean, she did sort of embrace the black lives matter movement. She talked about racism and people didnt like that. Well, has the Trump Presidency affected the conversation on race . , darlene. [laughter] while april is thinking about it, you want to respond . I would say that under the Trump Presidency the conversation about race is just more out there, its more prominent, again, we talked about him with the Football Players and kneeling during the national anthem, thats generated a lot of discussion and in some cases protests. The issue and comments that he made about haiti, african countries and lets also remember that one of the biggest proponents of the birtherism issue was donald trump and he helped drive that idea that obama was not born in america for many, many years and didnt give it up until recently. Yeah. Barely. Do you think its more difficult to cover race with more context because of it . You know, when we are covering, everyone on the stage does a great job in digging and resources and talking, but we have found, i believe, and they can say yea or nay to this, but i believe that we have to dig for more facts and stats to prove certain things are not correct because we have a president now who likes to go off feeling. No, dont laugh, its true. And then he set it is tone for other people to pontificate on cnn and any other network. Great network. [laughter] they say what they feel. And i am going to give you an example. We have not talked about charlottesville, charlottesville really exposed a lot. When the president had those teleprompters in his face, we were like, we can breathe. When he talked off of the top of his head, the world shook. It was ugly. You know, you had david duke, former grand dragon of the kkk saying, look now on twitter. David duke chimed in again during the state of the union when said americans are dreamers too. Yet, going back to charlottesville, six or seven times, correct, i know i was with him when he went to the military base at fort mcmyer and talking to the military, the president , because he was trying to get it right, he kept it was almost like an apology, an explanation tour, trying to explain what he was saying because both sides are good people. A girl died. A woman died. A white woom woman died. So race is exposed in sense. This is the president of the United States and then when you have people going on talking what they feel, well, particularly when it comes to the issue of immigrants, we have forgotten that we pretty much, the vast majority of us are not native of this land. Native americans are and we are telling people who can come and who can go and this is about this immigration issue is about the browning of this nation. Its about the browning of this nation. We are a nation that is now seeing the numbers of babies born who are majority minority, so this is about the browning of the nation. And when you have Something Like that, people are saying crazy things out of their mouths, oh, well, we want people who bring something to the table, im like wait a minute, talking about black and brown immigrants. I remember something in 2012 when they had immigration discussion during obama years. This has been going on for a long time. I said wait a minute, i read something from the center of American Progress that black immigrants are the most educated immigrants, everybody is quoting it. We have to go by fact and pull up stats because people you are racebaiting and youre lying because the president is so quick to tweet something, Say Something in the crowd and then celebrate the black Unemployment Rate when it just happens along the way, they are not targeting. We have really now be the reporters that we really are by digging and giving you could say what you want but stats and figures from credible organizations really back it up and show the truth. I think as a reporter i dont know if he would be having the conversations if Hillary Clinton was elected, i dont know if that means that we would have been like, okay, that was a crazy election and people said some crazy things but you know most people dont really think that way. At least 33 million or something that think that way, so what does that say about our country . I have talked to a lot of people whose personal lives whose personal lives are going to be harder because of some of the policies that donald trump is talking about. People who might lose health insurance, medicaid, im talking about a couple who might lose money that would have prepared their roof, who said, you know what, who said i rather have mexicans stopped at the border than my own roof fixed. I have talk today people that will lose medical care, im a woman in ohio who said, i dont like all the taxi drivers are black now in columbus, ohio. So theres a real thing that people are seeing America Brown and are realizing that even when even if their own personal safety or own personal wellbeing, they choose race over that. As a reporter im happy to see people having the right stories that dont just look like me because having the right stories about race as part of the white house beat, not just saying, okay, we have a race reporter and those people can handle those issues and the rest of the news room can go about like this isnt happening. I think that news rooms now have to cover race in every single beat and i think its made the profession better. Yeah. Well, race has become such an issue and i will ask straight out because im a journalist, is the president a racist . Oh, lord. [laughter] im not in a position to say that. [laughter] i wasnt going to call on you first. April. Go to april. [laughter] darlene. [laughter] all right. Okay, so so with going back to immigration thing around let me stop for a minute. It is a sad day when any reporter, black, white whatever has to ask the sitting u. S. President is he a racist, its a sad day. You did it on Martin Luther king day . I did. [laughter] it was a sad day. [laughter] i did. Look at the base i am a black woman and i know what dr. King did, i was torn that day, i had to ask him. He was right there. When you hear credible people from the hill, federal lawmakers saying he said this in this room, and the whole immigration debate kind of shifted because you dont know if you can work in under good conscious that this is really its going to work out this way, so i said, okay, i did it. I asked because the day before i had queried a couple of sources and i asked the ncaa, the nations oldest civilized organization, what is the definition of a racist and their definition was the intersections of racial prejudice in power. You said it, i didnt. [laughter] no, but im serious, now they are calling the nations oldest Civil Rights Organization is now calling the president of the United States a racist. You had congressman john lewis. Maxime watters. A lot of white people calling him that too. When you have a pattern that continues and then questions about issue of the confederacy. If you look at the data on this and polling, the quinnipiac poll a couple of weeks ago, this is shortly after the ahole comment and over 60 of the people respond today this question was do you think the president respects black people as much as he respects white people, 60 of the people said no, he doesnt respect black people as much as he respects white people and 17 of republicans which is almost 25 and that was a data point that was interesting that republicans also the question is, do people think thats a problem, right, maybe they think its fine that he doesnt respect black people as much he respects white people, but thats what the data shows. And sort of in terms of the country like what does it mean for the country, for citizen to think that a sitting u. S. President is racist. Democrats think that republicans this is different. The race card and that republicans have rake ill animus. This is a different level, i think. Nobody suggested george bush was racist. Other than kanye west. [laughter] i want to say this, i interviewed Donald Trumps exgirlfriend who is half black. Really . Wait a minute. Wait, wait. [laughter] im sorry. Can you go back . I interviewed i interviewed Donald Trumps exgirlfriend. Donald trump, jr. Or the president. He dated a girl who was half black and his friends were rappers so i asked her, do you think hes racist, he said, i dont know because he obviously dated me. I am i identified as a black woman, i am someone there was no question that he knew that her mother i want to say is black, theres no question how long ago was this and how long did it last . [laughter] this was before melania, right before melania. It was in between in between marla and melania. How long did it last . Okay, this is turning [laughter] [inaudible conversations] anyways, so i asked her, so why do you think he acts like this and she said, he likes to hang around black people were famous, he liked Russell Simmons and Jesse Jackson and was surprised that black people like tennis. Serena is playing and thats why all the people are showing up. Theres this idea i also asked Jesse Jackson, he gave Jesse Jackson Free Office Space in one of his towers and would go to the meetings where people are trying to make wall street more black and that was something that he did without cameras, Jesse Jackson was he wasnt trying to prove a point, he actually got there and said, how can i help you guys and he actually helped and put money behind it. This idea that hes Trump Organization put c on the application. You have somebody being sued by the federal government for writing color on application, who is calling for the Death Penalty for innocent black men who has not yet apologized for that. Also someone spending money to get more black people to work on wall street for not apparent reason and dating a halfblack woman. I think he probably has ideas about class, right . I think the first president that we had that opportunity talk much about upward mobility. He talks about coal miners and never says that a coal miners could own the coalmining company. Thats one of the most interesting things about him as well. He does he doesnt mind hanging out with African Americans who are wealthy, in some ways he might believe that the son of a coal miner will grow up to be a coal miner and the son of a millionaire can do anything. So i think theres some ideas he has about class as well that arent always brought to bear in terms of the way we talk about him. If you ask black republicans, some have fled to the hills but there are some who there are some who really will say, no, he really does think about race, he thinks hes better to African Americans than obama, ive heard him say that. Wait a minute. I late rlly herd people say literally people say that. This is a part of our conversations and actually our beat when you look at black republicans, you have the van vanguard. What are their names . Paris, omarosa whats the other girl, the sisters, you know who i am talking about . Diamond and silk. And darrell scott, the new crop of republican who is are not entrenched in politics probably voted for obama. I know what they are doing. [laughter] i also interviewed the guy who you pointed to and called my African American. Thats what i like to do. [laughter] and he also was someone who said, im disappointed in the way hes talked about charlottesville and disappointed the way he dealt with the justice department, you have the black republicans who go hand in hand with new age republicans because theres a whole crop of course, theres people who are holdovers from the white houses but republicans that are working in the white house like hope hicks and other people who would have never been able to get a job in the white house but republicans who pushed trump aside, they cant get jobs or blacklisted and other people from new york that the president feels comfortable with. The president said that this white house during the First Press Conference was a finetune machine. No, the cobwebs are flying out the machine. This is where its sad because this new crop of people who are coming and a lot of them are not have no grasp of governance still a year in and the ones who really do want to help are pushed out. It goes to what yamiche said. And then some that say, you know, no because this is not the best thing people are scare today deal with this president because he will tweet them, he will be nasty to them and hes a different breed, but the breed thats coming in understands this breed. Its a different political game now. Its a different white house, its a different way, even paul ryan had to acknowledge that the president s language, okay, guys, the president s language is different and how he approaches things. Theres the different in washington and covering this white house i really believe that the goal post has been moved and i dont know if it will ever come back because this is a change, this has been a shift. Can you imagine a president that doesnt tweet . Now before remember people dont want him to tweet. If he really wrote it. The one time you saw him at the computer typing a tweet, obama, social media doing it. [laughter] now its like obama is thats the point. The point is can we go back to obamastyle president. Hes not obama. [inaudible conversations] the next president says, sorry, my hands are handling twitter. There could be twitter fatigue. The next president is will shake the presidency. Obama didnt set sort of the tone for donald trump, donald trump has set the tone for donald trump. So this idea that donald trump is forever changing the presidency and will never go back, i think it gives him so much power. I think, you know, whoever and often times you have in politics that the person who comes after is sort of response and reaction and rejection let me explain why i say that, its because people after obama people were looking for a super star, they were looking for another rock star, you have Hillary Clinton or donald trump, okay. Didnt they get one . Excuse me . Didnt they get one . Yes. The keyword was change. Obama and donald trump were change but you didnt know what you wanted in the change. Its here and the problem is you have a president who is now scaring republicans and his own party who dont want to run for reelection. Youve got youve got people dealing in a different way than they have before. Youve got issues on the books that are just kind of but in some ways hes incredibly successful. Incredibly successful, the poll numbers are high among republicans who are the ones who decide in a primary. I dont know that they are going to be primary challenges as much as we focus on jeff flake and criticism of this president. 2018, i will see what happens in 2018. Also republican, if you look at policies, rolling back regulations, lower taxis. Abortion and guns, evangelicals love this. Thats crazy. White evangelicals, though. Yeah, yeah. You can punctuate, why did white women vote for trump . [applause] you have to punctuate it with race or youre wrong. White married women voted for him 51 and now with this stuff, piggybacking off of whats happening with rob porter, i found out it was true and they answered it, the white house the first day or the first week or something they defunded or eliminated the women Violence Office and look at whats happening now and women came out strongly for him, white women came out strongly for him. And still support him . I dont know. Lets check the polls. So i feel really happy that i was on the campaign trail for so long because it gave me a window into peoples minds and this voter said this thing to me and why donald trump is where he is right now, the voter said that he voted for obama in 2008 because he was the flashy new guy and then when 2015 came around he said the hot hand was in trump, hillary was kind of boring, you knew what you were going to get with hillary, with seem he was talking, hes a person who was entertaining to watch. I thought to myself, if thats where weve gotten to, apprentice, realitytv show society, i think we are, if thats the case, you will have to be popular, its not policies anymore. Donald trump understood tv. Understood that as a medium, new medium and then donald trump understands tv and comes through the screen in a way that Hillary Clinton didnt, in a way that obama understood the power of tv and the power of pop culture as well in a way that we hadnt seen before. But he understands the media in general, i mean, he reads the New York Times every day, even though he constantly calls them the failing New York Times but thats one of the primary sources. And, of course, the washington post. A paper that he used to read in new york city developing real estate deals and Atlantic City and so forth, so he knows what hes doing. Well, for you guys covering the white house, do you feel isolated in this or supported as a woman of color in this White House Press corp . [laughter] well, we have each other. [laughter] all four of you. Let me say this, i consider each one of these ladies on the stage, let me tell you, darlene and sonya used to be there, we had the sister girl moment, if ever something is going, we will text message. We look out for each other. And thats a good thing. And yamiche, im so glad shes at the white house now, we need more we need more of a Diverse Group of reporters at the white house. Yamiche, weve talked on occasion on Different Things and we have been there, and yamiche, we have done cbc and we have done craze crazy things together and its a friendship, nia, im going to Say Something, nia used to work at the white house and she didnt no, no, shes been climbing higher and higher and nia at one of the worst points of my life, stop shaking your head, girl, what are you doing, i said im all right, we had a conversation and it if werent for nia, well, i was influx at the time and nia made me see clearly and the clarity landed me at cnn, so that call from nia said its time, i was influx. And i hate this thing, im from baltimore and we talk about crabs in a barrel, if you dont know what that means, look it up, google it, but i dont like the mentality of we cant we all try to help each other in some kind of way because its so few of us and i dont like that going after one another and theres some people out there that are not in the understanding but its about helping one another and if we can and we help all people but we know its a unique situation to be in that white house, its a unique situation for African Americans to be in the white house and then African American women to be in government. You dont see many blacks going into politics, political journalism anymore. You dont see a lot of us. It means something when you have that sisterhood or the brotherhood that are coming together to be able to lift one another one, how are you doing, it could be something bad, they might snipe at you at the podium or going to lunch, its something about that camadarie. Black people covering national. Oh, yeah. I mean, its a very small group. And the irony is more covering this administration, maybe, than others . No, it was like 12, bill douglas. In the white house. Anne, ken strickland. It was 11. It was a lot of us, jeff blue. During the clinton years he was known as the first black president so all the newspapers we wanted to send black folks down there but, still, 11. Thats a record. Okay, some people say it was only three of us, its more but you have to on any given day when you watch the press briefing if the news organizations are doing it right, the front row could be entirely African American. Could be. If i go town the road, kristin from nbc, theres kevin cork from fox news. You. Cbs doesnt really have anyone. Then theres me. And then aisha, ashley. Aisha from reuters. Cnn. Somebody is keeping count . Abbie from cnn. Hes on the second row. Sorry. [laughter] and im on third. Flight the not this administration. [laughter] [laughter] we will see her outside of the white house grounds. Excuse me . [laughter] let me in. And i do have to add, this is a good segue into this april, this question is specifically for you, specifically, we are taught as journalists that we never i teach my students, we never become part of the story, girl [laughter] where shall i start . You brought up omarosa, i did not. You mentioned her name. Whatever. [laughter] okay. The ap is always right. [laughter] [inaudible conversations] okay. So in some ways it has worked in your favor. Has it . This is kind of the warped mentality. I can cut off your mic. [laughter] thats a good one. This is where i have a problem with it. People think, oh, they see you sitting at the desk at cnn or talking or here we are having a fellowship at the wonderful institution gw or writing books, shes a writer, guess what is behind that, i have Death Threats and im a divorced mother of two kids. Theres a reality for me and then, you know, when your childrens school, your kids are in school and something happens in the Briefing Room and goes viral, you know, and my kids my 15yearold is in Current Events class and she has to text me, mommy, are you okay, i say im great because she saw are you going to get the Congressional Black Caucus to have a meeting with me or whatever he said and then the shaking your head, the school reached out to both of my daughters to make sure they were okay and watched them. There is Collateral Damage behind this. So i take it for what it is, its a season, but, you know, i dont want to become the story. I havent done anything wrong. I have asked questions that anyone else would ask but because i asked about russia and then i got salad russian salad dressing and i wont eat russian salad dressing before the comment. Did you like it before . No, but i wont eat it now. The shaking the head thing [laughter] well, nia, its the truth. Anyway, okay, and then the thing with but all of this stems from a certain person who wanted to discredit me because the press is wrong, we are enemies, we are the Opposition Party and it started during the summer of 2016 and carried over into the white house and im writing about it and i dont want to get into it too much because its hard to talk about, but, yeah, you know, i was prepared for the time, i guess, but you are not going to knock me down and im going to say this and im going to share this with you and i did tell Hillary Clinton, you taught me a listen, she said, what, when people called you a name you didnt say anything and it stuck, you are not going to lie on me because i grew up and my aunt use today tell me sometimes mrs. Obama when they go low and you go high but sometimes [laughter] when a bully comes at you you have to hit him one good time to let them know im not the one. I had to do that. Im serious. [applause] going back to what i said, for 21 years i have been doing this. I stand on too many shoulders. I have been doing it for 21 years and someone tell a lie that i could sue for or continue to lie for, i could sue for, im a divorced mother of two kids. My whole thing is making sure my kids go to college and we have a roof over our heads. Im not word about all of that. Im now the target . Im not the target, not today. [applause] you mentioned russia, former you know i always look for a segue, thats the reporter in me. Former president george w. Bush was in a summit in abu dhabi and said its clear that russia meddled in the president ial election. At the end of the day when ron ert mueller is done with the investigation, do you think darlye, in that trump will be charged with a crime . I cant answer that question. Yeah, you can. [laughter] we dont know. Whats your best guess . 50 50. [laughter] could you be more vague . He doesnt act like a man thats innocent. Really . Why are you going to continue to try to cut off the fire people who are investigating if you have nothing to hide, it should be okay. He doesnt act like a man thats innocent or this administration. Take your pick. Im with darlyn, i have no idea. No one in washington knows. Robert mueller, theres been little bit of leaks, they are running a tight ship. Theres no way that i heard that he is leaning this way or that way, forget trump, any of the kids, kushner, there hasnt been one story that its about to happen right now and until it actually happens, its anyones guess. I think thats right. The that one of the things, what the demonstrated pretty clearly. The nunes memo for instance, theyre going to find a way to protect the president. Impeaching the president is incredibly hard. I think thats one of the things. I agree about the Robert Mueller thing. We have no idea. They shifted. They are not running for reelection. Its mccain and flake. Corker in the list will probably grow. You say they will stick with them but for how long . Their political lives are at stake. I think they will stick with them because i think Republican Voters will largely stick with him. We are in an air of tribalism, right . In some ways donald trump was right when he said he couldnt he could shoot so what on fifth avenue and he wouldnt lose any followers. They are very loyal to him. They like what is doing policy wise. The economy is doing well, despite what had a terrible day today, terrible week. By large i think if you look at polls, republicans are with this president. I also think we know what republicans might do because Robert Mueller in this republican smi become almost an enemy if you watch fox news, you talk to some republicans on the hill. They had started this Smear Campaign to say that is going to be leaning this but by that way because of his political beliefs. Even when they go back to the ben cardin versus new republican, they almost been like hes a republican not like its an oldschool republican who doesnt want to see trump be successful. As africanamerican female journalists what do you think is, whats the toughest part of covering this white house . Being a target. Why do you think you are a target . Im not the base. I mean the twitters that supports i mean, they dont understand that went back, theres tribalism or yamiche whoever said it, theres tribalism and i think if you look at stories people see it different ways people are lookit in a different way that i may be seeing it. I think people are not able to see it because of partisan politics. I was chastised for asking a question about did you support slavery or something. What general kelly said about the compromise about the confederacy in the civil war. It the compromise happen we wouldnt be on the stage. We would be slaves. And they were calling robert e. Lee honorable, honorable. Thats not long after charlottesville, not long after trying to attack frederica wilson. One thing that you will is targeting people. They do it very well. Im waiting to see, going back to omarosa, im going to see how there could to they came off the podium saying we fired her, you know. Theyre very good at targeting people. Its hard sometimes to do your job ready you can go home at the end of the day and say i did what i was supposed to, i did everything that a White Reporter would do or any other reporter would do. I can go to sleep peacefully and have an eight hour rest and get up and come back and do it again the next day. The targeting is hard. Hurt one of the hardest things, this is that specifically to be about woman. Its just sometimes trying to get answers to questions. Sometimes its very basic questions, is the president going somewhere . Trying to think of a recent example. That anything youre asking that is superduper complicated or top secret. For example, today we came in and there had been some reports on tv that yesterday they said he was, he submitted his resignation, they submitted it and he is going on during the transition. They came in and of lots of reports on television has said he was out immediately. We tried all day to get someone to say, well, is a god, has he left, has he worked his last t the white house . Nobody would say anything, until the breaking which was originally scheduled for 1 p. M. Then it got pushed to 2 30 p. M. We were all sitting out there waiting. Then i think it was after 2 30 p. M. Then notes else on the over speaker briefing at the push until 3 15. It didnt start until almost 4 00. With the question, i have a question remember that they do everyone for showing yesterday and he was walking with the two people, whenever someone resigns or is terminated their escorted out. Wonder if that was an escort out. I think that was just footag footage. He said he came into work today and basically hack to step up and left. I heard what they said but i saw the picture, to. I dont think theres any video of him today. Not that i know about. Yesterday i was wondering. Theres no video of him today. Would it be out of the realm of possibility that he was gone since last night . I know about spin, right . Basic question, like when speedy alternative facts. Do you guys get stories that, do you get stories that your white counterparts wouldnt because your women of color . Or is it the opposite . They dont give me stories. And they give me grief. I find from outside and i push some insight. I get my stuff from outside and just asked him on the inside. How did she find out about that . [laughing] ive got sources. Good sources, to. I think covering, i covered ferguson and the people let me in their homes in missouri i think me because im a black woman asking questions. I could tell them my brother someone whos an africanamerican man who said issues with the police. I can tell you ive been stopped by the police because some about i was it like that because my hair was too long and obstructing my brother scar. I think people tell you things for Different Reasons but also think that as reports of the most part you try to enjoy yourself to people for any reason. Ive been in those of white people who told me point blank i dont think black people like to work. They still giving my iced tea. I still didnt drink it but i have sat on the couch. [laughing] but the thing is if you are a human being, i found a human being to some of the new give it to you. But having cover politics differ only like two years, i think the people dont give you things are reasons, too. If uncovering the hill, upon a young white guy, is the Senators Office more like to give it information because of the frequent thing the same bar or in the same school, some not going to have Authority Connection any white women unless you pledged alpha. Thats a dirty word on campus, alpha anything. To me theres this Human Connection that you make with people that, so i think if youre a white one Walking Around agger from the same sort of a summit, i dont know, but the ideas like the connections that you make is why you get different stories. I dont know the story im not getting but the hill what the white house is majority white. I dont know if they look at me there like we are not going to tell to what our plans are for haiti as shes asian. They might look a summit us and say we think this person is going to it and because of this but it might think the opposite. They might want to link to something to ever because there like we give it to the black reporter and the other story, maybe make us look like we are extra concerned about this. Is that racist . Its not racist. Its about what they want to do and if you want to track for that moment. Its always strategically placed. For instance, when it was black History Month or when you are going, remember you had an interview with obama at some point when you speed i had a lot of interviews with obama. A lot of times is about outlets. Maybe they want something targeting, obama would go on black radio a lot when he was trying to sell, get people to sign up. Wait a minute. I have been actively, ive asked on twitter, asked Sarah Huckabee, i festival. I want an interview with this president. I want to talk at all the issues and race because i want to hear it and see it from him, what speedy do you tweak them directly . I did. He never responded. I did on the campaign trail. I did while he was president. I want an interview with them. This is not about race. This is about the president of the United States of america. And i want to be there when you get interview with him. It might be too many of us in the room at the time. As we now knows you are, your parents are haitian, your haitian underpants and hope you dont strangle me for saying this our physicians. They are doctors. Doctorates. Phds, educated. So how did you not let trumps derogatory comments about your country affect how you covered the issue . Its kind of an anecdote. I was switching jobs, leaving the near times and at the start pbs. I had a week off because i have two jobs. Immigrants work hard. [laughing] [applause] so i also work for msnbc and nbc news. I am taking the week off, im not going to do any hits, im in ohio visiting my fiance. He says of this comment. I get a call from a it was crank who says i cant believe you would say this about me, about us. After what he said about aids. Haitians have gone through a lot in this country. The aids rumor, a lot of people like why did patients at age . People wouldnt even let haitians give blood. Her kids are getting bullied in school. Those are my cousins, my am almost been told want to share a luncheon with you because i think you have aids. That happen to people related to me. Theres a deep history. People have lived experiences, they had to protest in the streets because the United States was saying that haitians with the reasons why aids existed in the United States. All that was happening and im unlike im off work, okay . Im not trying to does. My mother called and said you reporting them right . What are you doing . Im off this week and shes like, so . [laughing] im all right fight. So i started tweeting just like your zone and here come heres whats going on. I said i would call haitian ambassador and outsourced up with him because im haitian i just pick up on his come back to talk to. They been doing a lot. I got some actual news which is the haitian government that form as the United States to explain themselves. I started tweeting of because get i have no, i dont work kennywood. Im tweeting at my notes think this is what i heard. Rachel maddow calls and says can you come on . I come on and add i to take dep breaths because i speak quickly naturals like i was kind of slow myself down. I had to take, i was doing yoga in the studio because i wanted to make sure i was clear, precise that people didnt think i was just ranting. I had reporting that it wanted to people. I have stacks of us up and i wanted to tell people. I had facts my own parents and my mom who is to phds. I will fax a letter to give such as focus on that. Focus on what you want to tell people. You can get in haitian person to speak about her angry they are but for me it was like i do any good i feel im upset or in about to cry but something i try report those things. Every time it happens to be i feel like im at my best. Usually breaking stories are having stories on the front page because im so emotionally invested in something that to counterbalance her angry i am i reporting at fax to make people sit okay, this is why people are angry. One last come one final question and then i want to open it up to you guys. If you have a question, if you would please go to the center of the auditorium. Theres a microphone there. This is being recorded. We should of told you that up front. My final question for each of you is if you are writing a play or a musical about covering the Trump Administration, what would it be called . A hot mess. [laughing] i will say this, partly because this is a white us of the thrives on chaos and i think covering it sometimes you feel like a hot mess covering it. There are so many big and unexpected stories that happen. If you think about last week, i think would suffice we, the state of the region. Thats a very routine thing that happens and the widest goes on to work and go to different communities here that was a blitz, right . I think all of us have had to reorient the way which we covered this white house. I think in some ways weve made a hotness of our personal lives. I think it works for him in terms of his strategy. He likes it that way. He thrives on chaos. Hes a reality tv, and i think that in some ways is kind of the white house hes had pick on you that in some ways its been very effective in terms of getting the policies that he wants through congress. Maybe hes not as well read in terms of those policies but i think hes done well in terms of getting those through and doing what he wants to do. He certainly gets the media attention, and the ink. I was going to go with chaos but a think im going to go with america. Because my parents are from outside the country, where my dad still is, my mom was in miami. They watch International News a lot. We think this is all crazy that its very much americas story. Americas story is we have a lot of recently she is. Americas story is everybody probably know someone who is like donald trump or spoken like a trumpet and windows there mightve been simply it was super educated, and africanamerican got a great job and then the was a counterpart the navy didnt do the same thing that got the same job. Everyone has had that experience what you might have a coworker who can say crazy things all day and semithinks their great and they are cute, then you can have somebody who works hard that says very little and tries to just get it done. That person is seen as problematic or the moment they raise the voice their angry, critical. The idea that your father could use a lot of privilege and that america is built on this idea that we question whether not affirmative action is something that is good but we dont ever talk to the fact that georgetown and other places had, i face the place build the buildings. And your parents are people who are, your parents might occur to georgetown at a time were my mom was legally barred from going there. Some other color, i think it with the call, when you have, well, you have legacy and legacy seen as something, its normal because its like appearance. Its what you get when you go to an alma mater but affirmative action is this evil thing that hurts people. Americas great way to think about this presidency because reality tv, social media. Our country has changed it when not someone, where not interested in politically correct people at this point in our country. Darleen . I was going to go with never a dull moment but it just recently changed to a new title. My book would be called omg. [laughing] the story of Donald Trumps presidency or Something Like that would be the subtitle. Going with the second have because this goes back to a year ago in may. My colleagues and i were sitting at our booth in the white house and we were waiting for something to come from the press office. Finally it comes in the inbox, i opened the email, and i said oh my god, he just fired jim comey. And the year and what is a, a month in six weeks were into no, its just been filled with moments a lot of omg moments. And i think a lot of us thought in your queue, that year to mightve the gun a little differently, mightve been a little colmer or more stable it hasnt, it hasnt started that way. It could be omg never a dull moment. [laughing] april . Some unreal book thats coming out in september is called under fire dot dot dot. Isnt that a plug . It was. [laughing] money, anyway omg, was that just a plug . Yes. So okay, but if i had it to do for this moment, there are two words that come to mind. One, fake. And the other one is unamerican. Unamerican. Because unamerican, you know why we are supposed to be fake. Nothing fake of you. But when you go to unamerican that was a poignant moment in cincinnati when this president said that the people who stepped down and didnt clap were unamerican. We have seen this over the yeat every state of the union address, one party sits down when they dont like something while the other stanza. And i remember a time when there was one person from the opposite party, opposing party when president obama was in the well of the house said you lie, and no one said a word about treasonous or unamerican. They said a quorum. That was the word, decorum. So i guess im perceived as unpatriotic and unamerican. I think the press is because we are in the first minute of people havent read the constitution. So i think unamerican but its just the exact opposite. The book or the play would be to prove how american and patriotic we are because we love this country and we stand firm, cloaked in the first amendment, freedom of the press, yes. [applause] hello. Can you hear me . Thank you for coming under i really enjoyed. I guess my question is, sick america against other people dont like trump if he is impeached, send art and he to step down and mike pence was to become president im curious what you would know a pencil administration would look like . I think it would be effective and get things done and be way less, way quieter but the country probably change more. Less tweets. He understands our government works. I think his relationships are people would trust him when he says i need you to vote for this. I need you to defund planned parenthood. I need you to do these things. I think he would barely get those things that anyway trump cant. Theres a section of republicans that are like, going to stick by repetition on this guy and is going to rent next week is a i cant believe they defund planned parenthood. I didnt realize all the things they did. That senator soandso was so terrible when he told me to do this. It would be less dramatic but the Vice President is more conservative. So the country would continue to change and go down the more conservative path but just with less drama and chaos. I think he is an ideological center in knowledge of policy. Hes a conservative in the way that trump just isnt. I think it would be, i mean come in some ways ssa before trump is a standard issue republican in some ways but i think mike pence it would be even more. I think were getting way ahead of ourselves. Thank you. Good evening. Professor thompson as early if you feel supported by our colleagues and the White House Pool but in the moment when you actually come the news story, what do you end up doing when your editor or your producer or employer actually pulls you aside . Do they support you in this moment . Are all right, thank you fort question. They have never become part of the story. Let me say this. The great thing about it, i put up your nose, im a talker. Really . Breaking news. Anyway, one thing that has been great is that i talk to my bosses and ive always talked to my bosses. They have known from day one when things happen, and it wasnt like a shock. It was not a shock. So when they got a call from a a certain person who i shall not name basically say fired me and we had an altercation, in the white house, my boss said let me stop you right here. We know everything thats been going on from day one. If you are truly friends, you will go out and have drinks. That person said the boss doesnt want me to have drinks. My company has been 2000 behind me. They stand with me. They see, they watch the briefings. We talk constantly. They know whats going on. And they checked. Check. They know whats going on. He had been behind me, i mean, just, theyve given me so much support so im good. Take you for asking. Thank you. Thank you for the very wonderful and interesting conversation. One of the things i was when it is with the rise of the term fake news and alter the facts, in your daytoday reporting how often do you see the administration or President Trump himself kind of call reporting by people of color more often being fake news or less credible than reporting by white journalists . Furthermore, when you have to this disprove that approve that you reporting issues as credible, more than just digging through fax, what do you do to prove to reporting report is for credible when they question . The president has, if he calls the news media fake, we all take that. Yeah. But Sarah Huckabee sanders did say to me on twitter that i am fake news. And im like no. No, no, no. Weve had dinner. We talked. We tried to have a coming together. I become a together but an understanding of one another. There is a situation where they dont understand why ask things. Everything comes to the white house from war to peace and everything in between. And race is the in between and im allowed to ask. But you have a new way for people coming in who have won point of you who see things different. When i report, i think the onus is on the readers, the listener or the future really now because the lines of industry between fact and fiction to really take a look at what a person is saying. It i say this is such and such and such and such, give you got documentation i can give you the definition of the naacp. When i asked by questions now i try to preface them because people like to say you are fake. No. Because i i just told you why i asked the president is he a racist. Didnt i give you the . Okay. Today rob portman was talking about the president , he so incensed and upset about saddened. [laughing] saddened by this violence against women. So i asked if you so saddened about violence against women, why did he close down or defund the violence against women office and also shut down the women and girls office . So thats a real stuff and they could not deny it. The only way, i dont care if he thinks im not trust with whatever. But what i tell you, what i put out there is fact and you can look it up. Thats the only way, just keep doing that who what when where and why to make sure its factbased, not opinion. Im not giving you come up here were giving our opinion but on, when talk to you, im giving facts the ive seen i know. I dont think trump and his allies make a distinction in terms of fake news. I think fake news to his news that they dont like. Is generalizing. Not like a a black report or latino reported its just they dont like it, its fake news. Thank you all for being a tonight. It really means a lot. I want to know what is something that you wish you knew going into your profession now that you now know . Everything works out. I didnt miss of have a plan. I started in print. I was a late bloomer. I went to grad school for ended up going into journalism. And also be nice to everyone because a lot of the people we end up working with, we end up hiring or getting hired by. Or, on panels. Right. Meet them on the campaign trail. All of us go back to the 2008 with april covering obama. Its such a small knit community if youre a National Political reporter in the white house or the hill that those relationships are really important. Thank you. Hello, everybody. I wanted to thank you guys for coming to this panel. I had a question for each one of you guys. So like at the end of your career like when youre in retirement age, what is one thing not like that. What is one thing you want to be like remember but as a person and as a journalist . This is an obituary question. [laughing] pretty much. Or what dries drives you gu . I think mentoring, thats one of things i try to do with folks in the younger, particularly women, particularly lack people in the newsroom at cnn and other news and ive been in. I just think its important, weve got this next generation. We are not going to be individuals forever to be generous to folks who are coming up behind us. I didnt necessarily have a lot of mentors. Gwen ifill was one of them. The late great amazing gwen ifill. She was one of my mentors and someone, my role model and looked up to and wanted to be. I think thats what of the things for me, just bringing up, up the next generation and mentoring and pouring into folks are coming up behind you. I hope that people would say i told the truth and that i made a difference and that i really represented everyday people, concerns and challenges. I really hope that if i die, because thats good what its going to be, because i dont plan on retiring, hopefully not, i think thats what it is. I think that i hope i can be remembered as a civil rights journalist and that the bodywork i leave behind is not just like hodgepodge of all sorts of cool and interesting things i been able to do, that people can threat together the stories i wrote and people say she was a 2018 civil rights journalist. I think that id like to be remembered as someone who worked hard, tried to do my best everyday, put everything into whatever story i was working on at that moment. I think i would also like to be, at that time i would hope they would be some other women of color who would come behind me and work for the ap and get to cover the white house. Right now there is only been to, right, you and me . How long has the ap been around . Since 1846, right . Right. That another panel. April . Mentoring. Also exposing truth, putting fact out there, making sure that people really understood the truth about communities that were underserved. And also my heart and trying to cover these president s. I hope i get to cover five and six president s, who knows, but i wouldnt mind being considered the next helen thomas as far as longevity. No one can be helen. Then you get the front row. But i do know if i want the front row. But i also want the heart and the respect of both helen and gwen ifill. Those were some wonderful trailblazing women whose shoes can never be filled. Thank you, guys. Thank you. I just think you all are great and welcome. I would just like to ask you, i probably like a lot of the people have not paid as much attention to the news as i have since this election and this administration. Selfcare. [laughing] we need support, Therapy Group not to watch. But whether you like it or not the reality is that a lot of people are exposed to you and know you by names and would know you if they see an Grocery Stores because were so attuned to the news. You have in various ways become celebrities whether intentionally or not just because the criticism that is sometimes directed at you directly in your case from the white house, what, if anything, can you find that is positive about the coverage that you had to do in terms of how has it affected you as a journalist . What is a something positive you can take with in this entire experience . Everything i think. This this is a privilege and an opportunity to cover and administration, cover the country, to talk to people about how they feel about this, go into their homes. I am delighted to be in this role. I feel lucky to be covering this administration. There are not that many people, certainly not many black women, black people to get to sit in these chairs. I think its an honor and a privilege and the job that i have. Its let many people facetoface that are not just my mom who i can think of for watching me. [laughing] i try nothing but how many people are watching like pbs newshour or msnbc when im on because i might throw up. I just think my mother and think my mother wants me to slow down. My mom wants me to look decent today. [laughing] but i think, i didnt realize how many africanamericans frankly would walk up to me and say im so happy that you arent in the cbc, so happy for your pbs newshour job. Im so happy that you can be in my living room. One of the things when i was coming to be yes, what are you doing, and i thought to myself i started getting always enough like i get to see every day. Youll be in my hope i never thought about that because print journalist and you like people pick up the paper and on the tray. Its something but the people psalms that pbs stations reach thats different, that remind people, that i can do people with a whole haitian thing happened. Youre watching a haitian reporter working right now. Just the presence of being on tv affects the conversation and it helps people feel like theyre being represented in a way i never really thought about. Thank you. Last two questions. Im sorry, april, did you want to answer . Darling . The ap is quick. [laughing] quickly, i would just say piggyback off of what nia said. There is a saint is kind of a cliche but its a very true that we all have a frontrow seat to history every day. Literally every day when we go into the white house there something, some history is happening. There are very few people get to be there every day, and we are all privileged to be among that small group here at the other thing i would say some of the challenges that we are all facing terms of covering this administration i think is made us all kind of redouble our efforts to make sure our facts are straight, to do the best job we can. Because this climate right now is so hyper partisan, toxic. Theres all this talk about fake news and you do dont want to e anyone any ammunition to come at you. For a kid from baltimore who grew up in baltimore, still lives in the community, five generations removed from the last dose late in from the last slave on them of the site. It is a cover history. To have four american president will be by my name. This last one may call me another name. Its been a blessing. To be able to watch history and report on history. For people to know that when i come to you im telling you the truth, and understanding that maybe the race what i am being targeted it because im effective and they dont like that. Its been a blessing. You could never dream what the lord has for you. Thank you. [applause] yes. My name is julie adams and we can hear you. My name is julie adams, and i have a different perspective. I think that chaos is good because americans have been silent for too long. It has come in a way that individuals didnt expect. So my question to you, is that we have he was in power from old that we need to draw on and send the statement, how would you as the press, even the entertainment industry, how will you maximize on this experience . Let me say this to you and im glad you said that. I had a conversation, ive gone into somebodys house, too. Harry belafonte invited into his home. He said lets have dinner. I didnt have time. We had tea. This was between you drank that tea . Yes, i did. Yes, i did during his key. [laughing] this is right after the election. Ive been watching facebook, and when, love people like in the fetal position for months. That night you remember the moment when barack obama was made president. You remember the moment when donald j. Trump was named president. I went straight to twitter at that meeting i saw chris darden, a friend of mine, former prosecutor and o. J. Simpson tropic he said black republican said oh, they let that town clown have the keys to the white house. Chris, youre going to get into trouble. Then we hear bob johnson, and of the french who says we have to find common ground. So i called my former congressman name dropping through this whole thing. [laughing] then bill clinton had me over. [laughing] no, he did not. But im saying this, shes asking the people. I called ahead of the naacp. I want to recognize the former chair of the naacp. Stand up and raise your hand. She has taken over this panel. [applause] so anyway, and i was a name drop, yes. He said, i said i gave them office knitters and said whats going on with he said both men are right. We are at a crossroads. People are still into position weeks later. This was before the inauguration, after the election and people were still having fits. When i coup to new york and sit with Harry Belafonte he said what do we see . He was an activist. He marched with dr. King, laid on pallets in the homes of these mothers who fed, fed them to made us on the youre going out to march 1 selma and the Civil Rights Act and for the playwrights and all that kind of stuff. He said look, when i i was undr the tutelage of people like w. E. B. Du bois, he told me something that you said this is the greatest time ive ever dash but why would you say . Because when there is great pain, this is what w. E. B. Du bois told and come when this great pain first activism, radl activism that effectuate change. But the question is what is that activism . People will get up on twitter and do this. Im upset, take that. Like you are doing something. I just like you. People are not willing, im not saying, we might see the women out the day after, the next after inauguration to have seen, a year later, but im not seeing the groundswell that Harry Belafonte was talking about. When i talk to begin he was kind of upset about that because people talk about his views ean twitter but im not seeing people skip of those red bottomed on the streets. As as a reporter i am noticing that. I get where youre coming from i see what youre saying but if you really upset, and we would love, give us something to report on. We will report on it but im not seeing it to reporter i dont see people come to the white house. Remember how the you to come to the white house . Let me in, with a tin can, you know, scraping it up against the wrought iron fence. I dont see it in the park like it used to be. You can get a permit for you can. I also think its important to note that people greeted obamas president morsi with the cheers and elected as president. Its the same for Donald Trumps president morsi. What about the majority that are against him . You dont see that. When he talks about charleston, im not seeing it. Budget the protest the weekend the travel ban was put in place. That was a groundswell, all these people couldnt come into the country. You have people it at airports. But not the consistence. Thats what im talking about. You at the womens march. But its not consistent. They did it two years running. But continuously. Its not as persistent as the tea party for instance. That something about up as well. Harry belafonte said the resources are some of the public he said the republicans are funded by the Koch Brothers and different organizations and the nra and things of that nature, whereas the liberals have hard time finding speedy liberals i think not as much as speedy but it do think there was an organizing principle around the tea party in a way that that isnt necessarily that around progresses. Progresses, the diversity of their coalition sometimes makes organizing hard. Its essentially africanamericans, latinos, College Educated white people. And women. Those people feel differently about issues sometimes. Im talking may change. Think about it. The kids is set in at the waldorf counter, 17 and 18 years old and the change so dynamic. They started a lot of the ball rolling, part of the bargain in the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. King was in an early at 4 of black of black churches who support them at the time. Thats a fact. The tea party was a movement and the effect a change and its donald trump. I also think comes asked about as journalists i think this is a big moment. As someone who i which is a starting my career, i talked to a lot of my mentors and safe what would you do . I dont even try to think that much because its what city to be that important pbs and she is not there. They still have her office, they call it that. To me its like i just have to costly to myself that i talked to her before she died, she told i could do these jobs, she told i could do this. Im kind of in this place to run like okay, who do i have, who am going to talk to . Theres this feeling will have to step up as a journalist, and the person, the main person i was asking questions to is you but i find this of asking to other journalists because i am very new and i mistreat reporter. Im a reporter who until like you have to go i was a backpack sneakers, before all the time. I still do that never theres also the politics of it and try and wrap my head around how you look for policy to exclude was happening on the street is probably more poignant reporting right now because whats going on in a white house but its attempting to wrap your head around. We will have to go to the thank you you can the final question belongs to you. Thank you so much for coming. You are all obviously very established in your careers. So advice to a young media, especially journalists, you have to be aware of everything thats happening all the time in this field, and so how do you maintain your Mental Health throughout this . Do we . I dont know. How we maintain our Mental Health. Ill say for me, i have always, i was always had my mom is a a social worker so she was very good at balancing stress. People have stressed out in college when youre, just like very stressed out, and she was like you need to start watching grays anatomy. [laughing] i find it very stressful. It changed my life. [laughing] so for me its really about my mom has like the summers off because i want to hang out with my kids and want to go on trips with my children because i wanted you guys know you would most important thing to me. Theres this idea i was raised by someone who was very precise but how she set up her life. Im doing that never now. Im about to get married in three weeks and for me [applause] for me it made sense to want to make room in my life for a boy that had been like calling me for a year. It made sense to me to be, maybe i should go on a day. Maybe i should just see what this thing is about. I think youre to make room in your life for other things. You have to have, even if its very hard and disconnected because i get Donald Trumps tweets as text messages. The point is at some point even if its for 30 minutes or an hour, i met the gm or im running. I workout mainly because i want to get into my dress. [laughing] but i feel my time with netflix and other things. You have to give yourself an hour where you are just like chilling out. And i think of to learn to say no. That was a big thing when i started at cnn. Thats one of the things john king told me in my first week there. Basically learn how to say no, which is very hard at cnn because cnn is the kind of place, there was an incident when i was literally on satellite tv getting a call from cnn booking me for another hit in the next hour. That is the kind of pace and expectation that comes with these jobs because of this white house, because of were all of us would. Its just constant. Learn to say, learn that no is a complete sense to you dont have to say no because of this that and the third. What you said i need to learn that actually. Find things you like. Are you its grays anatomy which i find stressful. For me its i watch a lot of hdtv, fixerupper, joanne, house hunters. [laughing] darling, you do yoga. Well, i run and you can be texting and writing and reading your phone when youre running. I also do yoga and thats an hour without the phone. You cant again to texting and all that stuff when youre in a downward dog. [laughing] i second everything nia has said. You do have to carve out the pockets of time here and there, a couple weeks ago i took myself to the movies. What did you see . I was just tried rumor. I saw the post. [laughing] and you forgot that . I i could remember the other day that the state of the union was just last week. I once took a nap because id gone on a show alex six again. I was dead tired. I woke up and omarosa had been fired. [laughing] it happens. I didnt say a word. Used to be. For me selfcare is important. I have my kids but i need selfcare, too. I do a lot of driving and i drive to ours basically each way every day. I kind of like decompress, go home and i tried to watch mindless television. Something that i can get engrossed in that takes me with all of that. When im not on tv or whatever cnn. And they need to learn to say no. I try to go into some kind of mindless state because really, its bad when you wake up in the middle of the night to pick up yourself off her nightstand and see who is text messaged you, what you missed anything weve all been guilty of that. My day is 24 7 and it never stops. Ive got to learn and im doing this now. I am also now for my health and my wellbeing im doing Strength Training and doing the ropes and all that stuff. Im trying to get there. Enjoy my kids more, taking them out of town just going places and having fun. Miter has a hamilton workshop next weekend. Shes in hamilton workshop and we will do a of theater shows and that and just mindless come and join life be on this for those of you who are stuck on the tv. I love seeing in. Great network but how many of you are political, what is it, political junkie . Theres a thing called back away and then come back. Its really cost roller coaster. The roller coaster will always keep you, it will keep going but its okay to get off. When i get off i breathe so thats what i do. There have been stories, like i lost a friend i will never forget, michael who died at 32, the day i will caucus happen. I couldnt get a bit because i was crying so hard. Ive got reminders from the world that yes work is important and yet just got in his dream job at cnn. He was going to be an entertainment reporter. He was supposed to be moving to atlanta when he died. The idea is yes, work is important but you really want to savor the moment because you just dont know whats going to happen. You dont want, i was think id want to be an old woman sitting in my rocking chair, what shall thats what i turn into, think back and say i worked so hard to come i couldnt see my kids i am now divorced because i didnt even answer my husband phone calls have done because of so entrenched in work. Reporters dying of brain aneurysms, a local new york reporter did that and site she worked too hard. So really its not just like a fun thing to do. Its a like a life or death thing in my mind. But you can work hard but then carve out time for selfcare. Right. I i want to say like thank yu for that question. And thank you guys. You are amazing. [applause] i just want you to know there are bags weve got to get the bags. Wait, there are bags, and so because this is what we do and who we are, bam. [applause] [talking over each other] you were afraid of that . Because you are georgetown. I just want to say thank you guys again for coming, and thank you guys for coming out. Really appreciate it. [applause] now, my students, go study. You know im going to be off campus. Dont take advantage of it. And thank you guys again for coming out. Thank you. This is wonderful. Those of you who are going [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]. And we closed db in prime time with astronaut scott kelly on his voyages in space and his book endurance. The National Governors association holds its winter meeting in the nations capital. It will be live on cspan beginning tomorrow at 10 am eastern with governors talking about job creation, the Opioid Crisis and the future of agriculture and food availability. Coming up sunday at the National Governors association, discussions on education, care for veterans and Economic Development at 9 40 5 pm eastern on cspan. Join us saturday at 9 30 a. M. Eastern on American History tv on cspan3 at the American Civil War museum in Richmond Virginia for live coverage of the civil wars impact on americans. Figures include peter carmichael, director of Gettysburg College civil war institute, james robinson, author of the untold civil war. Jane schultz, author of women at the front and amy taylor, author of the divided family in civil war america. At 8 pm on lectures in history from the Georgetown University law enter, thomas west talks about his book the political theory of the american founding in the republican form of government based on consents, virtue is needed more than in any other form of government because in a republic, the people themselves the rulers. Sunday at 4pm on the real america, the 1956 , a city decides about the historic Supreme Court decision brown versus board of education. Delegates from all the high schools in st. Louis. All i know is at our school, some kids just dont like colored people. Some colored kids dont like white people either. What i think is its the individual that counts. When the Supreme Court ruled segregation was illegal, these children were ready. And at 6 pm on american artifacts we look at a selection of Clifford Berrymans popular political cartoons from the early 20th century. Clifford berryman continued to draw for the washington evening star for the next 42 years. His cartoons appeared almost daily, usually on pages of paper , prominently placed. We have placed and our illustrious career watch American History tv every weekend on cspan3. Monday on cspans landmark cases, we look at the Supreme Court case mcculloch v maryland, a case that solidified the federal governments ability to take action not explicitly mentioned in the constitution and restricted state action against the legitimate use of this power. Theres more on this case with the university of virginia law professor Sarah Peterson and mark doing that, university of arkansas law professor and author of mcculloch v maryland sharing a nation. Watch landmark cases at 9 am eastern on cspan, cspan. Org or listen on the free cspan radio. Order the companion book available for 8. 95 and handling