Transcripts For CNNW New Day Sunday 20180107

This was supposed to be the crucial weekend of meetings with the president and Top Republicans and going to huddle at camp david to set the goals for the 2018 agenda. The strategy session that was overshadow by the president s insistence that he is a stable genius and his attacks against this new tellall book. Only because i went to the best colleges or college. I went to i had a situation where i was a very excellent student and came out and made billions and billions of dollars and became one of the top business people. Went to television and for ten years, was a tremendous success, as you probably have heard. Ran for president one time and won. And this guy that doesnt know knee at all. By the way, he said he interviewed me for three hours in the white house and it didnt exist. Its his imagination. We will talk more about the president s response to that book. There is also this this morning. A key u. S. Ally is defending the president against claims he is unfit for office. British Prime Minister theresa may says she has no questions about President Trumps Mental Health. There were quite serious questions being raised in the states about his mental state. Do you think they are serious . As i say, when i deal with President Trump, what i see is somebody who is committed to ensuring that he is taking decisions in the best interests of the United States. Cnns jamie diamond is live for us in washington. Jeremy, there were quite the distractions yesterday. But we didnt get a lot of specifics, though, did get some sort of idea what the gops ideas and goals will be the next few months, yes . Reporter thats right. The president is spending his weekend huddling with Congressional Republican leaders and key members of his cabinet on top item on the agenda there is discussing the 2018 legislative agenda but they are also discussing everything from National Security threats, including the threat from north korea. But they offered only a few pieces of insight into that 2018 legislative agenda and the priorities that republicans hope to engage in this coming year. One of the items on the agenda that they mentioned was welfare reform. But they also made clear that bipartisanship is going to be crucial in this coming year. And that the top of that bipartisanship agenda, the first thing on that agenda at least is going to be immigration reform. Republicans and congress and democrats are looking to strike a deal to keep to create into legislation a program to protect those undocumented immigrants who are brought to the United States as children. The program formally known as daca, of course. Republicans, including the president , are looking for a lot of different items in exchange for creating that kind of a Permanent Program for those immigrants. The president laid out some of those demands yesterday. We want the wall. The wall is going to happen. Or we will not have daca. We want to get rid of migration very important and the lottery system and in addition we want money for funding. We need some Additional Border security. Reporter there is, of course, a march deadline before those provisions run out and the Trump Administration has privatelily made requests it seems for 33 billion dollars in Border Security funding, including 18 billion for the border wall that, of course, the president has long touted. While the president did escape to camp david this weekend from washington to huddle with republican leaders, he hasnt altogether escaped questions about his fitness for office. That discussion, of course, sparked this week by the new book fire and fury by Michael Wolf Wolf fnch wolff. The president saying yesterday he is a stable genius so that discussion is likely sure to continue. Jeremy diamond, thank you. We will continue it right now. Errol louis is with us and writer and editor of the washington examiner. Zaran and Brian Stelter is with us. Brian, the tweets came out from the president during our show yesterday and ive been thinking a lot about them. Tell me if im overstating this. Modern president s, phrases iconic in which the president s, i guess, compensate for shortcomings. I am not a crook. I did not have sexual relations with that woman. We dont need to name the president and people know who we are talking about. We heard from an american president via twitter yesterday, im a very stable genius. Did we have another one of those moments . Yes, we did, because we have never seen anything quite like this. 24 hours later, we can step back and say that has never happened before in american history, at least not in modern times to have a president come forward and say, no, i am not struggling with my capacity to handle this job. I am actually fit for the job. My Mental Health is in order. But i think youre on to something really important. The quotes from past president is like, i am not a crook. It does happen from time to time with president s and its just never happened in this way on the subject of Mental Health and stability. And make no mistake, that is the point of Michael Wolffs book. When the book excerpt came out a few days ago it was all about steve bannon and what bannon is saying and what bannon is saying is truly shocking. At the end of the book trump says trump has lost it, lost his stuff. The overarching point of the book is not about bannon but the president s fitness. I think the issue has come to the forefront in recent days. Wolff is not a psychiatrist saying President Trump has a problem. Wolff is saying the own aides are concerned about trumps fitness. That is why this creates a fury, so borrow the title of the book. We need more. Not just arm chair psychologist and psychiatrists, more reporting is needed to know exactly how trumps aides and colleagues feel about his status. Errol, let me come to you and talk about the busy month ahead for the president. They have to get through funding the program and daca and Infrastructure Structure is planned to come out this month as well and he is focused on this book and you remember back during the summer, there were those themed weeks . Made in america week. There was technology week. And inevitably, the president would veer off or distract it to some other area. January is more than just a theme. How does the white house keep the president on track . Well, they have got something that is required according to the constitution which is called the state of the Union Address to congress at the end of the month. That is where its all going to come together, i think. Thats where you really have to sort of see this Administration Try and get itself back on track. We are not talking just about the president. I think to a certain extent im only about halfway through the Michael Wolff book. As brian says, its a startling portrait of a man who seems to be believed by his assistants, by his aides to be not quite up to the job is one interesting and important question. The larger question for the public is whether or not this administration can work and you put your finger on it. Can they sort of march forward in a disciplined orderly strategic fashion to lay out their priorities for the country and rally the country around those priorities, or at least lead a debate about them . I think, by the way, we are not necessarily going to have the luxury of waiting until march to see the daca question really flushed out because there are some leaning democrats who have said they are going to tie resolution to that issue to the funding of the government. So we may see that showdown in the coming weeks. Even before the state of the Union Address. Lets talk about that with the president , yesterday, saying that he believes that there should be one piece of legislation, that fixes daca, but also ends chain migration and the visa lottery system and provides funding for the border wall all in one piece of legislation. Has the president now created a 100 win or 100 loss situation for himself and democrats . He is the great deal maker. He is the author asterisk of the art of the deal. If he doesnt get everything he has put on one side of the scale against daca here, does he go into the state of the union as a loser . Does he go into the state of the union impaired . If we know anything about the White House Trump is spinning it in his favor. What you know about the daca bill and the democrats is if he is able to get a deal with the democrats, hell be table to say he was successful in getting that deal done and getting Border Security funding and 18 billion for the border wall. Is there any time for democrats to bend on the border wall . There is an appetite for them. If they are not able to get a deal done, then the president , as well as Congressional Republicans, will be able to point them as obstructionists and hurt them in the midterm elections which could be the biggest wet blanket for them coming up in terms of driving down turnout. But, again, President Trump will be able to spin this in a way make him look like the good guy to his base no matter what. Errol, i dont see how the democrats can keep that energy that they are relying upon the resistance if they allow for the 18 billion or even a portion of that for the border wall in defense of the daca recipients. Is there some way they can say yes for the sake of the 800 here are undocumented not fall of their own brought here as children . We will allow construction to begin for the southern border wall . I cant quite imagine it and having talked with members of the democratic leadership, you never know what kind of pressure they might be under. Look. Make no mistake about it. Certainly where the democrats are concerned and to a great extent the republicans too, the real agenda here are the november elections, right . So everybody is looking at key districts. Everybody is polling questions about the border wall, about daca in those key districts. What people think in those 24 odd districts or what the strategists think the voters are going to be willing to tolerate or be seeking in november is really going to dictate a lot of the course of this conversation. I mean, these are not just abstract questions. This is life or death for the leadership of congress. Brian, let me come to you and more about the book. The report from jake tapper and Jeremy Diamond that soon after the first excerpts were released from fire and fury of Steve Bannons interviews, bannon was minutes from attacking the book and the author, Michael Wolff, and defending the the president and don jr. Here is reporting from statements. After the white house in that scathing statement went after steve bannon, that was pulled at the last minute. If they had just pulled their punches, the president potentially would not be in this position . This feud maybe would not have become nuclear and became so intense in the last few days that it seems hard to come back from. But i think one of the important points in the book, one of the overarching themes is that bannon viewed himself as bigger than trump, that the president was just an imperfect vehicle for trumpism and that this is a revolution that will continue long after President Trump. Now, bannon, he may have that tested now. Lets see how much power he really has in order to crown future candidates and help them get elected but that was bannons view this time last year he was the lord and President Trump was just the vehicle for him. I think the key part of the don jr. , the treason quote this book reminds us how many might be implicated in the russia probes and new reporting on that on almost a daily basis and the overarching biggest problem trump continues to have. We have to wrap it here, unfortunately. Thank you. Dont miss state of the union later this morning. Bombshell revelations in this book fire and fury. Jake tarp speaks to Stephen Miller on state of the union on 9 00 a. M. Eastern. Another big headline out of this weekends camp david retreat. The president is open to dialogue with north korea and that he always believes in talking. What happened to all of those angry words about fire and fury and not negotiating with little rocket man . More from cnns exclusive interview with secretary of state Rex Tillerson. He has ever questioned the president s stability . He is going to answer that. Then smash it into a tree. Your Insurance Company raises your rates. Maybe you shouldve done more research on them. For drivers with accident forgiveness, Liberty Mutual wont raise your rates due to your first accident. Switch and you could save 782 on home and auto insurance. Call for a free quote today. Liberty stands with you™. Liberty mutual insurance. If yor crohns symptoms are holding you back, and your Current Treatment hasnt worked well enough, it may be time for a change. Ask your doctor about entyvio, the only biologic developed and approved just for uc and crohns. Entyvio works at the site of inflammation in the gi tract and is clinically proven to help many patients achieve both symptom relief and remission. Infusion and serious allergic reactions can happen during or after treatment. Entyvio may increase risk of infection, which can be serious. Pml, a rare, serious, potentially fatal brain infection caused by a virus may be possible. This condition has not been reported with entyvio. Tell your doctor if you have an infection, experience frequent infections or have flulike symptoms or sores. Liver problems can occur with entyvio. If your uc or crohns treatment isnt working for you, ask your gastroenterologist about entyvio. Entyvio. Relief and remission within reach. Right now they are talking bulks. Its a start. A big start. If i werent involved they wouldnt be talking about olympics right now. They would be doing no talking or something much more serious. If something can happen and something can come out of those talks, that would be a great thing for all of humanity. That is President Trump speaking to reporters at camp david yesterday. He also said he is open to talking with north Korean Leader kim jongun. North korea has accepted south koreas offers to meet for talks and the first facetoface high level talk between the countries in more than two years. President trump said the talks would not be on the table if he had not taken what he calls a firm stance on north korea. The president has been sending mixed messages on north korea throughout the first year in office here, starting when he said that he would be open to meeting with kim jongun. That statement was back in may. I would absolutely, i would be honored to do it. If its under the again, under the right circumstances. Rocket man is on Suicide Mission for himself and for his regime. North korea best not make any more threats to the United States. They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. So then on october 1st, President Trump sent out a message via twitter. I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful secretary of state, he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with little rocket man. Cnn National Security analyst kelly is with us now. Kelly, thank you for being here. With that said, with the mixed messages we are seeing, when President Trump says he is open with talks with jim congress un, what does that diplomacy look like . You certainly do not start with President Trump and kim jongun. No. You most certainly dont. Well, the president is changing his tune and i think there is something going on here. Its a good sign, i think. Its a sign he is trying to get on the same page with our south korean ally to ensure there is not a gap between the United States and south korea on the diplomat im talking coming up next week. The two talks would be a win for kim jongun. I think this is a sign his National Security team is telling him its very important that he be supportive of this round of discussions. At the same time, i think we should keep our expectations pretty low when it comes to these talks. I think they will basically be just getting to know each other. They havent talked in over two years and discussing what might be possible in terms of improving the relationship or deescalating the situation. But i dont think we should be, you know, pinning our hopes that these talks are going to come up with something really substantive at this stage. I want to listen what mcmaster said just last month about north korea. There are ways to address this problem short of our [ inaudible ] but it is a race because its getting closer and closer. And there is is not much time left. What are the policy options now that there is some sort of understanding as to how north korea has been so expeditious with their Nuclear Program . I think the options are putting additional pressure on north korea. I think to the administrations credit, they have been doing a very good job on the pressure campaign, most recently with the latest u. S. Security council resolution. The other policy options include diplomacy. I think this next round of talks, its just between north korea and south korea but perhaps could lead down the road to u. S. And north korean discussions. Diplomacy is the key option here. Of course, the administration is trying to keep the military option on the table but i have to say, you know, i think we all know that war on the Korean Peninsula would be a devastating consequence so its not a very attractive option to the president , im sure. I understand you said the period after the olympics is the, quote, danger zone. What did you mean by that . I think after the olympics, depending how the discussions go next week, you could probably see kim jongun try to test again some some way, shape or form. U. S. Military exercises will start later in march probably. That will just heighten tensions. I expect, you know, the sort of cycle of diplomacy and provocation continue and see tense moments after the olympics. Kelly magsamen we appreciate your insight. Rex tillerson is talking about President Trumps Mental Fitness for office. Hear what he says and other things on that topics in the exclusive interview with cnn coming up. Staying well looks how music can be helped with therapy. Take it a allow it helped a teen deal with the death of her father seven years ago. Jordan was 11 years owed when her father died from lung cancer. I was very close to my dad. Coming home from school and not having him here was a very hard time in my life. Sometimes her feelings would come out in anger or frustration and i would ask her what is wrong but she couldnt tell me because she just couldnt put it into words. I knew music might be a way to help her. Music therapy is the use of music to attain therapeutic and rehabilitative goals. We find people are able to share things through music that they may not be able to share and talk therapy. So we may use things like lyric analysis, song writing, playing instruments, singing. We decided to write a song with all of the memories that i had of him. I got to put my own emotions into it. I remember feeling at home when you left me in your arms she got more confidence in herself. She definitely was able to trust other people and feel okay sharing her feelings. Today, shes a theater major. I would have never dreamed that for her. Smile dad. I take medication for high Blood Pressure and cholesterol. But they might not be enough to protect my heart. Adding bayer aspirin can further reduce the risk of another heart attack. Because my Second Chance matters. Be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. But when we brought our daughter home, that was it. Now i have nicoderm cq. The nicoderm cq patch with unique extended release Technology Helps prevent your urge to smoke all day. Its the best thing that ever happened to me. Every great why needs a great how. This is dave, his dog cooper, we sell socks. Why socks . We found out that socks are the number one most requested clothing item at homeless shelters. So for every pair we sell, we donate a pair to someone in need. But first we had to fix this. Socks shouldnt fall down. Fixed. Lack of arch support . Fixed. Socks shouldnt have an annoying seam. Fixed. The result . Socks so comfortable weve been able to sell and donate over two point five million pairs. Get an additional 20 off your first order at bombas. Com. So glad to have you with us here. Im christi paul. Im victor blackwell. President trump has said he is willing take to you take north Korean Leader kim jongun put with preconditions. In a Television Exclusive interview with cnn, secretary of state Rex Tillerson sat down with cnns elise lavat and special at length on u. S. Diplomacy with north korea. Reporter lets start with north korea at the north and south arranging talks for next week. North korea now coming to the table. Is that an opening, maybe, for talks with the u. S. Or Nuclear Talks . I think its too early to tell. We need to wait and see what the outcome of their talks are. President trump had a good call with president moon yesterday morning which i participated in and their intent is to talk about the olympics. Obviously, very important Upcoming Event for south korea and the potential participation of north korea in those olympics so our understanding is that is the content of the meetings. So i think a little early to draw any conclusions at this point. It could be a positive sign maybe that north korea wants to engage a little bit . We will see. We will see. Perhaps. I know some are speculating this may be their first effort to open a channel but as you know, we have had channels open to north korea to sometime and so they do know how to reach us when if and when they are ready to engage with us as well. Maybe youll be next . We will see. Reporter if you could explain a little bit about the u. S. Policy on north korea. I think the americans are a little bit confused. Do the North Koreans have to give up their Nuclear Program before committing to talks . Our policy is the complete verifyivable and denuclearication that is a common policy held by everyone in the region as well. The chinese have that as a stated policy and russia has it as a stated policy. So regionally, all of the countries in the neighboring area, as well as the International Community are well aligned on the policy. How we achieve the ultimate end point, the final full denuclearization, the verification of that and irreversibility will take some time. How we end the talks is yet to be determined but we need a signal from north korea they understand these talks must lead to that conclusion. The pathway of how you get there, that is the nature of the negotiation. There will be some give an take to achieve those objectives. So that is that objective has never changed. Reporter because you said its unrealistic for them to kind of sit down and say, we are ready to do it. It sounds like, you know, they have to show some willingness, but then, you know, the mechanics of that are we have to have a shared view that that is the reason we are talking. That is the purpose of these talks. And it is through those talks that north korea actually can chart the way for themselves of a more secure future and more prosperous future for their people as well. So very positive outcomes for these talks from north korea as there will be positive outcomes for the security of the entire region. That is the nature of the negotiations. Reporter do you think you know, a lot has been made about the president s tweet on the nuclear button. But, you know, now north korea is talking with south korea. Do you think that tough rhetoric has worked here . I think the rhetoric that north korea understands is while it is our objective and the president has been very clear to achieve a denuclearization through diplomatic efforts, those depthic efforts are backed by a Strong Military option, if necessary. That is not the first choice and the president has been clear that is not his first choice. But it is important that North Koreans, as well as other regional players, understand how high the stakes are in an effort to ensure our diplomatic efforts are fully supported. And i think to date, the diplomatic efforts have been supported very well in the International Community if you look at the three u. N. Security Council Resolutions on sanctions, the participation in those sanctions, and a number of countries going well beyond the security Council Resolutions and imposing unilateral actions on their own, both academic, as well as diplomatic. I think it is a recognition that the president has demonstrated to the world how high the stakes are. That is why we must achieve a diplomatic outcome but the North Koreans have to understand that and they have to understand that the penalties to them will continue and will only grow more severe in terms of sanctions, actions, and other actions until they do get on a pathway to achieve that objective that the entire world hopes to achieve. Reporter it sounds like this good cop bad cop, if you will. Hold out the prospects of talk but if talks dont work, military action might be the formula you and and the president will continue . Ill let you characterize it that way pep. Im not necessarily going to show all of our cards. Reporter lets go to iran. You said you want to support, quote, elements in the country that will lead to a peaceful transition of government. That sounds like regime change. Very little good has happened for the iranian people ever since this regime has taken power, they have suffered under economic sanctions. Because of this regime destabilizing activities in the region. At some point, people will decide this is not how they want to live any longer, but we always support a peaceful transition of power. We do not support violent transitions of power. But we do support peaceful transitions of power and we have seen those expressions in years past with the large demonstrations of the elections in 2009 and the demonstrations on the streets today. We are supportive of the iranian pim achievi people of achieving their aspirations for a greater freedom and believe they deserve it but up to the iranian people to support that transition. We support that. Reporter how do you help they facilitate that . When this go to street we listen why they are there and what are their concerns and where there are legitimate concerns and we agree their concerns are legitimate, we should support the expression of those and what we have done here at the state department and the white house through statements we have made is give their voice amification. We know the regime listens to the world and why we have been working diligently with others in the world including our European Partners to amplify these voices within the country to say to the regime, you must address these concerns of these people and you should address it by beginning a process of reform. Reporter how does that factor into your decision on sanctions . Do you support waving sanctions at this next certification . We look at the totality of irans actions and behaviors. So the decisions around waiving sanctions relative to the Nuclear Agreement and decisions to take in terms of imposing additional sanctions on iran related to the Nuclear Agreement, there is a broad array when you talk about sanctions. Reporter nonnuclear sanctions . I think some people get confused and its understandable. Irans support for the houthi and support for destabilization efforts in syria, the funding of militias, foreign fighters arming terrorist organizations in the region and lebanese, hezbollah has to be dealt with and our sanctions are targeted that iran destable activities within the region while still maintaining all of our efforts to ensure iran never acquires nuclear weapons. So there are sanctions regime is built around both of those efforts and what the president has done with his policies is he is now looked at iran in its totality and said iran has to be held to account in both of these areas. Reporter so it sounds like maybe even if you certify on the nuclear issue, more nonnuclear sanctions could be coming . They will be coming. There were nonnuclear sanctions announced yesterday by the Treasury Department in response to irans missile Ballistic Missile Development Programs which are in violation of earlier agreements. Reporter and more to come . In all likelihood unless iran alters its behavior and ths the objective of the sanctions is put enough pressure on the governments that they decide the price, the cost of what they are doing is too high. We have more of that interview with secretary tillerson. He will talk about the u. S. Relationship with russia next. O, that was it. Now i have nicoderm cq. The nicoderm cq patch with unique extended release Technology Helps prevent your urge to smoke all day. Its the best thing that ever happened to me. Every great why needs a great how. We have more of secretary of state Rex Tillersons interview now. Lets listen to his views on the u. S. Relationship with russia, as well as his own relationship with the president. Reporter lets talk about russia. You came in. The president wanted a better relationship. Its been a tough year. What do you see the flash points next year . Well, it has been a difficult year with russia. We clearly and ive said clearly, the president has stated clearly our two nations should have a more productive relationship. Today, its very strained for all of the reasons that i think the American People well understand. Having said that, we have maintained a constant engagement with russia, very active engagement. We have to be open and candid and frank with one another about what both of us and i think the Foreign Policy lavrov is committed to trying to improve this relationship as i am. These are difficult issues and we have made it clear that the keystone is really ukraine. We have found areas of cooperation in syria led to the near defeat of isis in syria. Reporter President Trump said this whole russia investigation has been kind of a drag on your Foreign Policy, that it hurts you with allies, that there is a lot of confusion. How has that impacted your dealings with the World Leaders in terms of this cloud, if you will . It has had no impact. Reporter really . Its had none and it never comes up in our conversations or in my dialogues with World Leaders elsewhere. The diagram. The domestic issues around russia involvement in our elections are not part of our dialogue elsewhere. I think the rest of the world recognizes it is a domestic issue. Its an important one. The russians, and we talk about it and we have said to them, look. Its a problem. Reporter do you think they are going to try to meddle in 2018 . I dont know. I hope they don. Reporter do you have evidence that have . We have none yet but we do know that russia has involved themselves in other elections in europe and elsewhere. So it is a message we convey to the russians. The way i convey it, i dont understand why you do this and i dont understand what you think youre getting for this because its not evident to me as to how is this benefiting you when its reporter chaos in the United States benefits them, right . It damages russia because wernwe are not making progress and they are not making progress with others. We try to stay focused on the really big issues between us which is syria and the situation there. The situation in ukraine and Eastern Europe and creating stability in Eastern Europe and recognize what russias concerns are and we have very important talks coming up on the start treaty and the inf treaty as well. Reporter what is with these rumors about you leaving . Houg are you planning to stay or are you planning to stick around for a while . We had a very successful, in my view, year in 2017 and pivoting our policy and helping our partners understand those policies. We are into implementation and execution against those policies. I think we are going to have a very productive 2018. Again, the state department get stronger every day and understanding what we are trying to do and i look forward to having a very, very successful 2018. Reporter for the whole year . I intend to be here for the whole year. Reporter has the president given you any indication you wont be around for a while . None. Reporter none shravwhat so . None. Reporter this new book describes the president. He leaves meetings with World Leaders because he is bored. Youre at the white house several times a week. Is that your experience . I think among all of the cabinet secretaries, i probably have spent more time with the president than perhaps secretary of defense mattis who spends a lot of time with him as well. I have never seen the president leave a meeting with a Foreign Policy. He is very engaged in these meetings and in our policy deliberations, and the meetings of the National Security council as i said a big challenge was pivoting policies in a different direction than they were placed when the president took office n north korea to the afghanistan, south asia policy to the defeat isis campaign. The president priorityized the threats early on and that is the sequence within which we have addressed those and in all of those deliberations, and these have not been easy deliberations. These are not easy decisions for a president to make. He has been very deliberative. He has listened to the arguments. He argues back as he should. He pushes back and in the end he makes the decision which we then implement. I would tell you on all of the major policy areas, the president has made the right decision on every one of those. How we got there involves a lot of debate and it should involve a lot of debate. Its a very its a very Healthy Exchange with the president and one which i think is important that we continue to have. Reporter everybody in this book, you know, questions his Mental Fitness. Have you ever questioned his Mental Fitness . And describe your relationship with him, because some people would think its, you know, through his tweets and stuff, its not a very good relationship. Ive never questioned his Mental Fitness. I have no reason to question his Mental Fitness. My relationship with him and it is a developing one and i remind people and i think its well known that he and i did not know one another before he asked me to serve at secretary of state, so we dont have a lot of history in past. So part of this is us coming to learn and understand one another you are also two different kinds of people. We have different management styles. How i process information and i have to learn how he takes information in and processes it and makes decisions. That is my responsibility. Im here to serve his presidency, so ive had to spend a lot of time understanding how to best communicate with him so i can serve his needs with information. I do think one of my roles is to always give him all sides of the issues, even when i know its not the side that he really wants to consider. I think its part of making good decisions is i know he at least has had visibility to all aspects of the decision he is about to make and that is my role as secretary is to provide him that full 360 visibility of what these decisions mean for our foreign affairs, with allies, with partners, and with adversaries. I think what comes out sometimes, what people see is they think that is conflict when its not. Its a normal process of verg the president look at all sides and then saying, i dont like that. And that is healthy. That is good. I mean, people should feel good about the way decisions are made because its not just one of giving in to what you think the president wants, rather, helping him see the full array of all the options and what the implications of those are and then he decides. He is the commander in chief, he is the president. He decides and we will implement his decisions. Reporter reflecting back, what have you learned about yourself and what might you do differently next year . You never stop growing as an individual. So in terms of what i would do different, im going to build on my ability to communicate with the president better, my ability to communicate with others better. As i said, its something i had to learn is what is effective with this president . He is not a typical of president s of the past. I think that is well recognized and also why the American People chose him. They were tired of what was being done in the past and they wanted something to change. Ive learned over the past year better how to deal with the president , to serve what i think he needs to know, so he can make good decisions. Ive learned a lot about the interagency process which was new to me and get better all the time as well. That is our role here at the state department. 200 sites to. Hotel you want at the lowest price. Grazi, gino find a price that fits. Tripadvisor. And i heard that my cousins so, wifes sisters husband was a lawyer, so i called him. But he never called me back if your cousins wifes sisters husband isnt a lawyer, call legalzoom and well connect you with an attorney. Legalzoom. Where life meets legal. Or a little internet machine . It makes you wonder shouldnt we get our phones and internet from the same company . Thats why Xfinity Mobile comes with your internet. You get up to 5 lines of talk and text at no extra cost. So all you pay for is data. See how much you can save. Choose by the gig or unlimited. Xfinity mobile. A new kind of network designed to save you money. Call, visit, or go to xfinitymobile. Com. Resolution 1 binge more. Join the uncarrier, and get four unlimited lines for only forty bucks each. Plus, netflix for the whole family. On us. So, they get their shows. Lets go, girl youre gonna love this bit and you get yours. Watch however you want. On your phone, tablet, or tv. For just forty bucks per line. With no extra charges. Lets rock this joint all on americas best unlimited network, tmobile. Awards airs tonight. Listen, its going to be a lot more than glitz and glam this year. Have launched this movement, its called times up. They want to combat Sexual Harassment and promote gender equality. In solt aired, many attendees are planning to wear black on the red carpet to call attention to the issue. Here with us to discuss, pop culture editor for the Washington Post. Zach, good morning to you. Good morning. So we want to talk about the me too movement in just a moment, but first, this is an award show, a big night for hollywood, movies and television. Leading contenders, list them off for us. The leading contender for best picture drama is the shape of water. A very charming movie about a cleaning woman who falls in love with a sea creature. I think it will win over the post, which is Stephen Spielbergs movie about the Washington Post publishing the pentagon papers in 1971. It also kind of reminds me of a couple of years ago when the revenant, another fairytale type move beat spotlight another movie about american journalism. The shape of water has the most nominations. All right. What about best actor . Well, best actor in a Motion Picture drama will be gary oldman, a lot of acclaim for his performance in darkest hour. In best Motion Picture drama actress, i think it will be three bill boards. She gives a very powerful performance as a mother whose child was killed and she sort of shames the police in her town into investigating. Its a very powerful performance. Ive noticed people who do a really good Winston Churchill or a really good truman k truman k youre lined up for an award. Can we talk tv . Yeah, tv. Well, i think in the best tv comedy, i think it will be the marvelous mrs. Mazel. A very charming comedy on amazon about a 1950s housewife who becomes a standup comic. In the last five years from girls to, brooklyn 99. I think it will be the handmaids tale, which is hulus acclaimed show. And then in best tv movie or limited series, i think it will be big little lies, the starstudded hbo show with Reese Witherspoon and nicole kidman. Hey, oprah winfrey, i understand is accepting the Lifetime Achievement award. Any expectations there about whats going to happen, what she might say. Its interesting. This is the slot last year meryl streep accepted it and she criticized President Trump and trump came back and called her overrated and it was a bit of a controversy. I think a lot of eyes will be on oprah to see what she says. She might talk about Sexual Misconduct in hollywood, she might talk about politics. Obviously there is wild speculation she might be a, you know, contender in the 2020 election against President Trump. So i think a lot of eyes will be on oprah. Yeah, she has poured gallons and gallons of water on that possibility of running for president. But lets stay on this issue of Sexual Harassment and the me too movement. We know that this is kind of the night typically where hollywood loosens up. A lot less stuffy traditionally than the oscars. There is a fine line to walk here for the host especially, and for some of the presenters, in trying to keep the evening light but respecting the mood and the issue of the day for hollywood. Yeah. I think seth meyers is actually a really interesting host for this moment. Hes obviously done topical human before. He worked on weekend update on snl. His late night talk show is very topical. Interestingly, seth meyers talked about how his wife is an attorney who prosecuted Sexual Assault cases and has a segment called jokes seth cant tell where he brings on two women writers to tell the jokes he cant tell. So i think hes very aware of the potential pitfalls and is a really good person to kind of account for them. There were no nominations for female filmmakers. Is that going to be something thats brought up . Does it exacerbate the industrys diversity problem . Whats the talk there about that. Well, i think its not a great look for hollywood this year, but i think there are two things. One is that, you know, this is obviously a question of representation and how, you know, there just arent as many women directing big movies as there are men. The second thing is, you know, the biggest snub in this cat zboer was i think lady bird. And, i think, you know, some people feel the perceptions movies like lady bird which is about a rebellious teenager in sacramento are not as weighty or directordriven and some people feel that perception needs to be countered. Again, were expecting to see a lot of black on the red carpet. As well as times up pins. Yeah, definitely. That refers to this initiate in hollywood to combat Sexual Misconduct. Thats tied to a Legal Defense fund that people can, you know, donate to. And, yes, many people will be wearing all black, both women and men. Men have said theyll be wearing all black tuxedos and shirt. You know, its controversial because some people feel that, you know, its a way for fashion to make a statement, but some people feel its more of an empty gesture and wont lead to substantive change. Well see what pans out. Sometimes you can only do what you can do in the moment. Zachary, good to have you here. Thank you. Thank you so much. Sure. Have fun tonight. Thank you so much for starting your morning with us. We always appreciate your company. Inside politics with niamalika henderson in for john king starts right after a break. Dad promised he would teach me how to surf on our trip. When you book a flight then add a hotel you can save. 3 waves later, i think it was the other way around. Everything you need to go. Expedia. But some of us make somethinge make sommuch more. Dinner. Mom would be proud. With blue apron, any night is a chance to see what cooking can do. The winter of 77. Uring i first met james in 5th grade. We got married after college. And had twin boys. But then one night, a truck didnt stop. But thanks to our forester, neither did our story. And thats why well always drive a subaru. Russia revelations. Theres been no collusion. Theres been no crime. Inside the report involving the president , the attorney general and what the special counsel found out. Plus they called me a great man last night. He obviously changed his tune pretty quick. From friend to foe. Bannons uncertain future after a bombshell book goes allin on trump and his fitness for office. A week into the new year, a