Transcripts For CNNW The Lead With Jake Tapper 20181015

Critics are saying, hey, not so fast. Plus, President Trump says hes not sure about man made Climate Change, despite the consensus of scientists. Maybe if the epa didnt keep getting rid of scientists, he would have a better idea of whats really going on. This is cnn breaking news. Welcome to the lead, im jake tapper. Breaking news in the world lead and disappearance of Washington Post journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. Two sources telling cnn the saudi government is preparing to admit that khashoggi was indeed killed in their custody after he entered the Saudi Arabian consulate in istanbul, turkey, almost two weeks ago and never came back out. This news coming just hours after President Trump said he believed the saudi kings denial of any knowledge of the disappearance. The king firmly denied any knowledge of it. He didnt really know. Cnn chief international correspondent, Clarissa Ward bringing us this story. Clarissa, am i to understand the saudis are planning to claim, this was, a. , rogue, and b. , a botched operation . Reporter thats exactly what were hearing from these two sources. They have conducted this internal investigation into what happened in the consulate, and they are preparing to acknowledge that Jamal Khashoggi was indeed killed in the consulate in, as you said, a kind of botched operation, an interrogation went wrong. The idea had been primarily to abduct him from turkey, presumably to take him back to the kingdom. And what im hearing from these sources is that this operation was not carried out according to the sources with the proper level of clearance and transparency. That apparently some kind of a nod to the idea that potentially the crown prince, the king himself, were not aware of this. That will be a little bit difficult for some people to believe. Of course, this is a vertical power structure, jake. The crown prince and the king know pretty much everything that goes on in the country. But these two sources saying to us that heads are going to roll, essentially. That disciplinary action will be taken against the people who killed khashoggi. That it was never the intention. More broadly speaking, though, one of our sources did caution that this is still kind of a work in motion. That saudis could potentially still change the narrative, but this very much seems to be gelling with what we heard from President Trump earlier when he himself talked about this idea of rogue killers, jake. Rogue killers. Saudi arabia not exactly known for free thinking freelancers. Clarissa ward, thank you so much. Secretary of state, mike pompeo, now en route to saudi arabia on President Trumps orders to meet with members of the saudi regime. This all comes as turkish investigators were for the first time today given access to the saudi consulate in istanbul where khashoggi was last scene. Alex marquardt joins me now. Who is secretary pompeo expected to meet with . Reporter all we know, he plans to meet with the saudi king, king salman. Both salman and his son, the crown prince, muhammad bin salman have denied any role in the killing of khashoggi. And if the saudis do put out that report you were just talking about, that this operation was carried out without clearance from the top, or rogue killers, as President Trump said earlier, that is the line that secretary pompeo can expect to get. As the world grows increasingly convinced that a hit team was sent from saudi arabia to murder and dismember Jamal Khashoggi, President Trump is hedging his bets. I just spoke with the king of saudi arabia, who denies any knowledge of what took place with regard to, as he said, his Saudi Arabian citizen. Reporter the latest example on a long list of the president siding with the accused, rather than the accuser. While sources tell cnn the saudis are ready to admit he was killed, there is still no official response from saudi arabia about what happened to khashoggi after entering the saudi consulate in istanbul two weeks ago. President trump floated a new theory of who could be behind it. It sounded to me like maybe these could have been rogue killers. Who knows . Were going to try getting to the bottom of it very soon. Reporter a highly unlikely explanation for an alleged murder inside a saudi government building. But it comes as trump and his soninlaw, jared kushner, have forged a close bond with the saudi king and his son, crown prince muhammad bin salman, or mbs. And as the white house works to secure 110 billion in arms sales to the kingdom. Theyre spending 110 billion on military equipment, and on things that create jobs. Like jobs and others for this country. Reporter also today, saudi arabia agreeing to allow turkish investigators inside the consulate. But before that could happen, cnn observed a team of cleaners entering the consulate with mops, buckets and other cleaning materials. Up on capitol hill, republicans and democrats are in lockstep, mulling sanctions and possible punishment for the saudis. The only two things that could have happened is, hes alive and somehow still in there, or hes dead and the saudis are the ones who did it. There is no other explanation for it. Reporter senator marco rubio, among others, disagreeing with treasury secretary, Steve Mnuchins decision to still attend an economic conference hosted by the crown prince in riyadh. I dont think he should go. I dont think any of our government officials should be going and pretending as its business as usual until we know exactly whats happened here. And jake, even if secretary mnuchin does end up going, it would be highly embarrassing for mbs to host that conference with some of the biggest names not attending. It reads like a whos who of the Business World. The ceos of job morgue chase, master card and uber, along with Media Companies like the New York Times and cnn. So it remains to be seen whether mbs mbs can convince the Business World he was not involved in this. Lets talk about this with my experts. You worked for the obama white house. What you know of saudi arabia, is it possible that there were rogue operators, 15 of them, that fly into turkey and integrates and whether its accident or not, kill this person . Is it possible that would happen without the king or the crown prince knowing about it . No. Highly unlikely. Highly unlikely that the king or the crown prince wouldnt know about the operation, highly unlikely that two planes would have flown in without them knowing about the operation. And remember, this all happened in the embassy. So its not as if it was happening in another country or a hotel or another location. You know, i think the saudis have not been the best not had the best record on human rights for decades, as you alluded to. That is certainly the case. Past president s or past administrations have done slightly more to hold them accountable, raise issues when they come up in meetings. But if this has always been a difficult issue in their relationship, given the militarytomilitary sales, this president has given license. They knew he wouldnt be vocally outspoken, whether it was rendition or obviously more than that. Let me ask a question. If it comes out that the saudis do do what cnn is reporting theyre preparing to do, acknowledge that they killed khashoggi, but they say its an accident and rogue operators, does President Trump then accept their explanation and move on . Or is he going to be forced by congress to do more . Listen, obviously, there was some talk last week of the magnitsky act being implemented and the president having to do that would be an investigation. And say were going to have sanctions against a country or not. And youve heard some on the hill say, look, sanctions forestalling these arms sales puts us at a hamstring further down the road, because then we cant hold back spare parts and further technical assistance, so we lose all leverage at that point. So it is a difficult tight rope to walk here. Look, its hard to believe, right, that all of this is kind of hard to believe. This gentleman walks in the front door, cctv everywhere. If the Saudi Intelligence Agency didnt know that, and they thought they were just going to eliminate this guy from the face of the earth with nobody knowing, theyre pretty hamhanded. So the narrative that he was killed during a you know, an intense interrogation situation, and nobody knew what to do, who knows thats the case. But that may be the theme were going to hear here. And they, you know, some highenlevel Intelligence Officer and the saudi kingdom is put forth as a scapegoat. And they kind of move forward. That may be the case. And the world may be forced to accept that, because theyre not going to find out the truth. The folks going in there, the turkish forensic scientists, are going to find very little by way of any evidence, is my guess. I think i want to get your reaction. President trump this morning floated the idea that maybe it was some rogue operators, the king denies it. Senator chris murphy, a democrat of connecticut, obviously very critical of President Trump, on the Foreign Relations committee tweeted in response, quote, been hearing the ridiculous rogue killers theory was where the saudis would go with this. Absolutely extraordinary. They were able to enlist the president of the United States as their pr agent to float it. Do you agree . Listen, this whole idea that this was an accident is bogus. Accidents dont require planning. We know that jamal went to the consulate. He was told to return at a certain date. When people go into interrogation, they usually dont bring bone saws to dispose of a body. That requires planning. This was all reported by the Washington Post, according to what turkish authorities told them. We also know that it is likely that he recorded this on his apple watch. We can know what happened. We can find out where he is. The fact that people are just attributing this to this rogue thing that went wrong. No. This is very discoverable, as it should be. But dont forget, its being put forward by the turks. Yeah. Who are sworn enemies of the saudis. Yeah. It is sure, sure. Two operators here you cant really rely on anything theyre saying, but we know he disappeared. Yes. Where is he . And they released to. The turks are also taking advantage of the moment. I want to get your response. The saudis are obviously, it looks like, going to deny responsibility. I want you to take a listen to what President Trump said he told the king this morning. I did say, this is very important. The world is watching. The world is talking. And this is very important to get to the bottom of it. And i think he understands that very well. Do you think he understands that very well, king salman . I dont know how much king salman understands at all. Mbs, lets say, the crown prince, do you think he understands whats going on . No, not at all. When you have the president saying the king told me they didnt do it, and i agree with him, well never know. Thats just you know, why dont the chinese just pick up the phone and call the president and deny anything hes ever accused them. Call in and say, i was one of the hackers. Its just this is hes not doing what he needs to do here. What does he need to do . What do you think President Trump needs to do . I think what a lot of members in congress are calling for him to do. Which was to which is to make it clear that we want to get to the bottom of it. Were not going to take their word for it. We want facts. And that were not going to take that this was some kind of accident. Are we ever going to get facts . You saw them sending in a cleaning crew two weeks after the date. Im sure there have been a few cleaning crews. Look, thanks to reporting, we know a lot. A lot of what happened here, and we can kind of put together what likely happened here. Will we get a report from the turks . Probably we wont. I think what President Trump has also been very clear about is that he doesnt really care about human rights issues. He cares about business relationships, he cares about selling military, you know, equipment to the saudis. What could he do . A lot of members of congress are calling for things like sanctions. They call for a lot, from both parties. We are very good at that in the United States. Rarely do we actually do anything. I doubt anything will actually happen. But President Trump could put a little more specifics to listen, i think its no it is one thing you know, the president dispatched the secretary of state this morning. On his way to saudi arabia right now. And before he lands, the saudis come up with a story and have a story. I assure you, when secretary of state pompeo lands and has to talk to somebody, he wasnt coming back with, and going to shrug his shoulders. The reality is, they want it to go away. President trump wants this to go away and continue the military relationship. The other reality is the president of the United States for over a year called the press enemies of the people. Im sure that wasnt lost on the king or the crown prince. Every stick around. Were going to keep talking about this. In addition, hes mocked her as pocahontas. What is President Trump saying today after senator Elizabeth Warren says she has genetic proof of a native american ancestry. Plus, what President Trump is now saying he knows more about nato than james mattis. The former commander of nato. Is another cabinet exit on the way . Stay with us. The sun comes up. The sun goes down. You did a million things for your family today. But speaking to pnc to help handle all your investments was a very important million and one. Pnc. Make today the day. Why didnat hilton. Com,r Family Vacation on a travel site . I get the price match guarantee. And i can choose from their 14 Different Hotel brands, so i get the right hotel for every member of my family. Like a doubletree for my cousins who love their warm chocolate chip cookies. A homewood suites for my uncle who likes a long stay. A hampton for my sister and her kids. Thats a lot of syrup. And the waldorf astoria Beverly Hills for me. But i thought your Family Vacation was in miami . It is. I hear theyre having a great time. Book at hilton. Com and get the hilton price match guarantee. 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The king firmly denied any knowledge of it. He didnt really know. Maybe i dont want to get into his mind, but it sounded to me like maybe this could have been rogue killers. Who knows . Its seemingly credit allows language weve heard from the president before. When someone he wants to get along with has been accused of something quite awful. Such as whether Vladimir Putin interfered in the 2016 election. I have great confidence in my intelligence people. But i will tell you that president putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today. Or whether his then staff secretary, rob porter, previously engaged in spousal abuse. He says hes innocent. And i think you have to remember that. He said very strongly yesterday that hes innocent. So youll have to talk to him about that. Or whether a Senate Candidate he endorsed once sexually assaulted teen girls. Let me just tell you, roy moore denies it. Thats all i can say. He denies it. And by the way, he totally denies. Or whether his Campaign Chair once engaged in financial crimes. Manafort has totally denied it. He denied it. And on and on. When it comes to the democrats by t definitelies by the saudis, marco rubio put it rather starkly. So the only two things that could have happened is, hes alive and somehow still in there, or hes dead and the saudis are the ones who did it. There is no other explanation for it. Because if there was video of him leaving, they would have shown it by now. Lets discuss with our experts. So President Trump, perhaps, is going to be given a hand where he came out and said it was rogue operators. And then the saudis perhaps actually put that forward, and the rest of the world says, thats really hard to believe. It is. But is it also disturbing to watch. Put the comments together this morning about rogue killers with Lesley Stahls question of trump about putin killing people the people in skripal. Isnt there a missing degree of empathy there . Like, were talking about people that have been murdered. And he doesnt care to express any sympathy for the families . We have that sound. Lets play that. This is President Trump when asked about russian president Vladimir Putin on 60 minutes by lesley stahl. Do you agree that Vladimir Putin is involved in assassinations, in poisonings . Probably, he is, yeah. Probably. I mean, i dont probably . Probably. But i rely on them. Its not in our country. Okay. So it does seem to be important to him whether it happens in the United States or not. The thing thats odd and disconcerting is that hes shrugging it off. There is a pattern here. And i think people should take notice of the speech he gave in saudi arabia when he went on his first trip abroad there. At the time, he was criticized because he broke with predecessors for not taking a stand on human rights. And he essentially went there at the ritzcarlton, where people were later imprisoned, and said, were not going to lecture you, tell you what to do or how to live. And everybody took notice on that. But i do think it is a part of his foreign policy. Hes going to turn a blind eye to this, as long as he can continue to advance his political and business goals. Thats the thread that runs through all of this. David, it does seem to be that he thinks we can win or we can be good and stand up for human rights. But we cant do both. I think its obviously a false choice. False narrative. You can do both. You can win at the same time. I think when the president talks about not in our country, right, i think what hes trying to get at, youre not going to be able to have 100 certainty, because our fbi, our police, or anybody, you cant get down to it. Were never going to know with any degree of certainty what happened in the consulate in saudi arabia. Were not going to know. Something bad happened. If the iphone tape comes out, well know. Theyre not going to ive listened to some intelligence experts. If we see the guy chopped up in body bags, well know. Youre not going to find that. Why not . Maybe jared can call his friend. Theres not going to be a degree of certainty. We know something very bad happened there. And, you know, exactly what happened and transpired, you wouldnt know unless it occurred here in the United States and our experts could tell you. Take a listen to lesley stahl asking President Trump about kim jongun and the fact that he said we fell in love. We fell in love. Take a listen. He presides over a cruel kingdom of repression, gulags, reports he had his half brother assassinated, slave labor, public executions. This is a guy you love . I dont know all these things. Im not a baby. I know these things. Why do you love that guy . Look look. Hmmm. I like i get along with him, okay . But you said love him. Okay. Thats just a figure of speech. No, its like an embrace. Well, let it be an embrace. Let it be whatever it is to get the job done. Let it be whatever it is to get the job done. He is saying, who cares what i say . Im trying to eliminate the north Korean Nuclear threat. We can put aside being disturbed about his love for a series of dictators, despots and horrible human beings. Kim jongun is manipulating him, president putin is manipulating him. They all want him to validate them. To the rest of the world. They want the United States to validate north koreas efforts, even though theyve really done nothing. President putin wants to return to the global community. President trump is helping him do that. That is what is so sad and pathetic about this. Is that he is being mnipulated everybody show the russians. They are the largest nato exercise going on now in norway. The u. S. Participated tip of the spear of this whole thing now. Im pretty sure the russians dont feel the u. S. Is welcoming them with open arms right now, as we speak. But the other thing is, what did he just say in all of that he wants results that stops any dictator, that makes any dictator anywhere in the world think twice about doing more of it . He said, i dont care what you say. Why do you think the saudis thought they could get away with this . Do you think thats why . Yeah. Because normally the president of the United States or at least the United States steps in and says enough, and no. And they actually start to do something about it. This president never has. This is what president push the rewind tape. Show me a president in a u. S. History that stood at 1600 pennsylvania avenue and condemned the saudis. Its an excellent point. Well silence. Crickets. Tell me when the saudis have murdered somebody in a turkish facility. Saudis have murdered people every day in riyadh. But not in nato country. I think the point joe is raising is really important. And my point is the saudis and others have been more on their heels in the past, because they knew there would be a movement to act by president s of the United States of both parties prior to President Trump. And this is the first time women are able to drive in saudi arabia. Restrictions being lifted. And women activists are thrown in prison. But this ruler is moving to the left as much as he can. Helping israel in the middle east. Mbs, youre defending mbs . Im saying, in terms of who has been out there, who has been okay. More pro western. Everyone stick around. Senator Elizabeth Warren says she has the dna proof to back up her claim of native american ancestry. Are we witnessing day one of the warren for president 2020 campaign . Stay with us. Psoriasis is not always easy. Its a longdistance run and you have the determination to keep going. Humira has a proven track record of being prescribed for over ten years. Its the 1 prescribed biologic by dermatologists. 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They also know you should get your annual checkup. It could save your life. Schedule a checkup with your doctor, know your four health numbers, and start taking control of your health today. Cigna. Together, all the way. Were back with our politics lead and the strongest indication yet that democratic senator Elizabeth Warren of massachusetts has her sights set on the white house. Amid criticisms from President Trump and others that she has misrepresented part of her biography, the massachusetts senator released this Campaign Style video and a dna test today, which she says proves she has native american ancestry. There is some skepticism already about what the results actually show, however. Cnns manu raju joins me now. Manu, President Trump essentially dared senator warren to take a dna test months ago. She did. How is President Trump responding . Jake, today President Trump flatley dismissed the dna test, while denying he even made a pledge to donate 1 million to a charity of her choosing if she took a dna test that proved she is native american. My Family History is my Family History. Reporter today senator Elizabeth Warren trying to put to rest questions about her native american ties. And silence President Trump in the process. Is the doctor in, please . Reporter the potential 2020 president ial candidate releasing a video, discussing her Family History. And a dna test saying there was strong evidence of her native american ancestry six to ten generations ago. Now, the president likes to call my mom a liar. What do the facts say . The facts suggest that you absolutely have a native american ancestry in your pedigree. Reporter for years, trump has consistently denigrated the massachusetts democrat, belittling her as pocahontas. They call her pocahontas. Pocahontas, remember that. Reporter and even challenging her to take a dna test. I will give you 1 million to your favorite charity, paid for by trump, if you take the test and it shows youre an indian. Reporter today warren responded in a series of tweets, directing him to please send the check to the National Indigenous womens resource center. Trump at first dismissing the dna test. Then denying he made a 1 million pledge. I didnt you better read it again. Reporter but the dna report also suggested that she may be just 1 1024th native american. Which says she should not have climbed minority status in the first place. The latest effort by warren to silence critics about her ethnicity that first began when she ran for the senate in 2012. Back then, it was revealed she noted a native american lineage early in her career as a law professor. And she struggled for answers. I believed my mother and my father and my aunts and my uncles. I never asked anybody for any documentation. I dont know any kid who did. Reporter last month, the boston globe reported ethnicity was not a factor in her employment as she ascended in her teaching career. My familys background had nothing to do with my being hired anywhere, ever. Reporter do you regret how you handled the situation or even checking that box initially . I was a first time candidate back in 2012, and frankly, just didnt even have this basic information. Reporter now, a warren aide tells me the reason why this information was released today has partly to do with the fact that the test results came back friday. This is all part of an effort to put out as much information as possible. Not just about her native american heritage, but also ten years of her tax returns and her personnel files from harvard, trying to give the public a clear glimpse of who she is as she weighs that 2020 run, jake. Manu raju, thank you so much. Lets talk about this with our experts. So the genetic analysis suggests her native american ancestry was eight generations back in her family tree. There are a lot of native americans and native american groups that are not fans of white people claiming ancestry, because of somebody eight generations back. And i think the question is, does this put this issue to rest so she can move on and tell the American People who she is, or does this bring it up and provide more fodder for the trumps of the world . Thats certainly her hope. It probably doesnt change trumps calculus. He still will call her pocahontas. Why would he change that one way or the other . I think the calculus for her, which is smart, she is going to run for president , clearly. She wants to clear the decks. She is going to do everything she can to do that. The boston globe story, this effort to get the dna testing out there and then she wants to move forward. Its sort of a weird time to do it, but maybe not. Because she is trying to do it at a busy time where there a lot of other news, a lot of other politics in the news. Do i think it will work entirely . That all depends on trumps calculus. Maybe david can tell us what he thinks will happen. What do you think of it . Like you said, the president is not going to let up on it. And i think if Elizabeth Warren doesnt qualify as an indian under, you know under the rules that govern america, you cant check it off on her applying for college or anything else, she should quitclaiming its part of her ancestry. Eight generations ago . The genealogy person said, well, its likely. Its not positive. Its likely that somebody eight generations ago. Its kind of a joke, the whole thing. She wants to move on so she can have a debate about the middle class and the working class and economic issues. You heard her talk to manu saying, look, i was a he said, do you regret ever saying it. And she said, without saying so much, she kind of said, yeah. I had just gotten involved in politics. She was talking about how she answered the question three years ago. Yeah. If she could have gone back and done it again, i bet she would have gone back and done it again. I think what hes trying to say here, now she can say, look, you saw the boston globe story, i do have a native american relative. You saw the other boston globe story, like it never helped me claiming that status. Never helped me in a career. This is all old news. Will it work . I dont know. Heres what im trying to figure out. Who is excited by the prospects of Elizabeth Warren running . All this essentially is soft rollouts . I saw the Washington Post story shes building up a huge staff. Shes all but saying, pick me, pick me. And i see no excitement about it. Shes trying to convince everyone, i can be the one to take on trump. And this shows her problem. She is sort of winning the argument but missing the point. In all of her answers, she says, well, yes, i am native american, but shes never explained how this impacted her professional life. She said it is family folklore. And thats the point that trump and a lot of republicans are making. Essentially heard it described as stolen privilege. And she doesnt seem to get that. And no dna test is going to solve it. And lets look at the cnn actually did a poll on the 2020 president ial election, and where the democrats are right now. Among democrats and democraticleaning independents, 33 are former Vice President joe biden to run. 13 behind bernie sanders. 9 for Camilla Harris of california. Warren in fourth place with 8 . Not top three. That number right now is not a bad number to be. Given the number of people that are running, being at 7, 8, 9 is actually being in a good position. I just think i would have done this a year or two ago. I dont think the timing because they didnt do it, she had to. Speaking of speaking of timing, jim messina, your former colleague at the white house, obamas 2012 campaign manager, he tweeted today, argue the substance all you want, but why 22 days before a crucial election where we must win the house and senate to save america, why did senator warren have to do her announcement now . Why cant democrats ever stay focused . It is weird timing. One thing i disagree with with jim messina, im not sure this is going to make a difference in a lot of swing districts in the country. Theyre being debated by issues about health care, economic issues. I dont know that people are paying attention to Elizabeth Warrens heritage. Jim must have missed the clinton comments earlier. Speaking of which, im glad you raised that. That was very helpful. Hillary clinton sat down for an interview to talk about sexism in politics. Guess what she was asked about. She was asked about her husband, former president , bill clinton, and his affair with a 22yearold intern at the time named Monica Lewinsky. Take a listen to that excerpt. In retrospect, do you think bill should have resigned in the wake of the Monica Lewinsky scandal . Absolutely not. It wasnt an abuse of power . No. No. There are people who look at the incidents. 90s and say a president of the United States cannot have a consensual relationship with an intern. The power imbalance is too great. Who was an adult. She was an adult. So is this im sorry, because the last year of me too has changed a lot of rules. I thought that we had moved to a place where a president of a United States or a company or fast food franchise cannot have an extra Marital Relationship with a 22yearold intern, because of the power imbalance. Am i wrong . Watching this interview, it made me think, i dont think the me too movement would have happened with a president Hillary Clinton. Because people always turn a blind eye to this, because they knew what bill did. When you talk about abuse of power, it wasnt just the age difference. It wasnt the fact she was an intern and he was a president , although that was a big part of it. Because bill clinton didnt come clean, Monica Lewinsky got hauled into a hotel in pentagon city, threatened with jail time. Her parents were threatened with jail time. Her life was ruined. It wasnt just the affair. It was her life that got ruined because of that abuse of power. So 22 days before the election, Hillary Clinton comes out and says that Monica Lewinsky that was not an abuse of power by my husband. Yeah. I wish she would have said something quite different, including just admitting it was abuse of power and then going to a myriad of other places she could have gone, including her life of service, how much time she has spent mentoring women. The fact that this has been heavily litigated publicly. Theres a lot of places she could have gone. I feel like she didnt she didnt expect that was coming, but she seemed confident in her answer, which was quite surprising. Including that the me too movement has changed things. Sure. For the better for this country. There are ways that she could have answered that question. I think she didnt handle it the way jen or i would have advised. Everyone stick around. On the heels of another tremendous natural disaster, the president says Climate Change will fix itself eventually. Stay with us. The day after chemo shouldnt mean going back to the doctor just for a shot. With Neulasta Onpro patients get their day back. To be with family, or just to sleep in. Strong chemo can put you at risk of serious infection. In a key study neulasta reduced the risk of infection from 17 to 1 , a 94 decrease. Neulasta onpro is designed to deliver neulasta the day after chemo and is used by most patients today. Neulasta is for certain Cancer Patients receiving strong chemotherapy. Do not take neulasta if youre allergic to it or Neupogen Filgrastim . An incomplete dose could increase infection risk. Ruptured spleen, sometimes fatal as well as serious lung problems, allergic reactions, kidney injuries and capillary leak syndrome have occurred. Report abdominal or shoulder tip pain, trouble breathing or allergic reactions to your doctor right away. In patients with sickle cell disorders, serious, sometimes fatal crises can occur. The most common side effect is bone and muscle ache. Ask your doctor about Neulasta Onpro. Pay no more than 5 per dose with copay card. Just days after United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley announced she was resigning, President Trump is now stirring speculation over whether another top official will be leaving soon. Defense secretary, james mattis, President Trump saying he thinks he knows more about nato than mattis. The man who once served as nato supreme allied commander for transformation. And President Trump revealed he doesnt trust everyone in his administration. Cnns jeff zeleny is at the white house. Jeff, the president said he thinks mattis is, quote, sort of a democrat. Mattis has always seemed to me to be pretty independent, and he did not have a particularly Good Relationship with president obama. Jake, that is an understatement. In fact, president obama dismissed general mattis six months early or so from leading central command. General mattis has served commanders in chiefs in both parties, republicans and democrats. President trump hailed him as a true generals general. That was then, though, when he joined the administration. Its clear now that admiration is waning. To see this personally, its very tough. Very, very tough. Total devastation. Reporter in florida today, President Trump getting a firsthand look at devastation from hurricane michael. From the ground everything okay . Youre doing all right . Reporter and from the air. Pledging the governments help in recovering from yet another massive storm to hit the u. S. But back at the white house, fallout from trumps interview with 60 minutes, his first as president , where he offered a less than glowing endorsement of defense secretary, james mattis. I think hes sort of a democrat, if you want to know the truth. But general mattis is a good guy. We get along very well. He may leave. At some point, everybody leaves. Reporter describing the retired fourstar general in political terms. A far cry from how he spoke of mattis two years ago. Your next secretary of defense, general mad dog mattis. Reporter since then, the two men have clashed privately, often about the role of the u. S. As a stabilizing force in the world. The president has blasted nato, while mattis, who once served as its supreme allied commander, has tried to explain how the alliance is critical to prevent world war iii. I think i know more about it than he does. And i know more about it from the standpoint of fairness. That i can tell you. Reporter the comments highlight a deep division on the National Security team, where secretary of state mike pompeo and National Security adviser, john bolton, now hold far more sway than the generals who first filled the cabinet. The president also bluntly saying he doesnt trust some of his advisers. I dont trust everybody in the white house. Ill be honest with you. Reporter as he signalled the potential for big changes in the second half of his first term. I think i have a great cabinet. There are some people im not happy with. Reporter he would not rule out shutting down the russia investigation led by special counsel, robert mueller. I dont pledge anything. But i will tell you, i have no intention of doing that. I think its a very unfair investigation. Because there was no collusion of any kind. Reporter three weeks before the midterm elections, the president is on a media blitz, insisting hes more comfortable and confident in the job than ever. Im president , and youre not. Reporter now, its that mindset, im president and youre not, that is one of many signs Officials Say hes increasingly comfortable and confident in his role, and hes taking less and less advice and relying less and less on those generals he brought in as his own team of advisers here as hes gearing up a potential shakeup after the midterm elections for a new team, potentially for the second half of his first term. Jake . Jeff zeleny at the white house, thanks so much. Mattis is one of three people that bob corker, the chairman of the senate Foreign Relations Committee Said separates our country from chaos, along with secretary of state tillerson, who is gone and chief of staff kelly whose influence is on the wane, i think its fair to say. What might mattis departure mean for the u. S. . If you look at how trump has hired and fired and replaced, he went from more of a not team of rivals, but people who probably would stand up to him that had some trust within. Ill take mattis, for example, specifically. Within the Career Foreign Service officers and the state department and the defense department, now he really wants people who are going to say yes to him and be more aligned with his thinking, if you look at pompeo and bolton and others. So what will his departure mean . Probably hell be replaced with another yes man who is going to be supporting what trumps determined agenda is before he has the consultations that a normal National Security process would pursue. What does that mean for the world . That a lot of these people will go and be seen as speaking on behalf of trump, but there will be fewer people kind of as a stopgap between him and kind of chaos . Chaos and crazy actions. You disagree with that. Look, i strongly disagree, obviously, by foggy bottom. Secretary tillerson was an unmitigated disaster, by anybodys account, from the diplomats at foggy bottom, from think tanks or anybody who reviewed his tenure. Mike pompeo is nothing but a breath of fresh air. I happen to know mike since 1982. Mike pushes back on this president pretty forcefully. So there are a lots of grownups up at the table. Ambassador bolton. You may not like ambassador boltons politics, may have cared for hrs better but the notion there is nobody at the switch here is completely qualities. Why talk publicly about this the way President Trump is doing, calling him a democrat, saying he knows more about nato in terms of fairness than general mattis. General mattis was a supreme allied commander of transformation for nato. Why say things like that publicly . Because its probably easier to bully someone into resigning than actually firing them outright. Listen, i dont think mattis is going to go, because ag attorney general Jeff Sessions hadnt gone. If you want to stay and fight for their job and dig in their heels and put up with a couple tweets, they will stay in those jobs. Otherwise donald trump has to force them to step down, and then go to the public and give reasons. I dont think President Trump really wants to go into the policy differences that he has with mattis at this point. And then does he want to go through a confirmation hearing about the policy differences that he had with someone else . So i think this is a mess and he just tries to pressure people into leaving, and thats not going to happen with this guy. So mattis said take a listen to this interview of lesley stahl trying to talk about mattis when mattis tried to explain to President Trump why nato was important. Is it true general mattis said to you, the reason for nato, and the reason for all these alliances is to prevent world war iii . No, its not true. Whats frankly, i like general mattis. I think i know more about than he does. He meant he knows more about the fairness part of it. But general mattis was supreme allied commander of transportation for nato. Do you think President Trump actually knows more about nato and fairness and anything else than mattis does . No, but i think part part of what is happening is, when he does things like this, it doesnt help the Republican Party or him pull women back into his into opening up to him. I mean, to think that youre asked a question about world war iii, and its like just flips it off, like theres nothing there, and he knows better than a general. There are a lot of people in the part of what people even like his policies, particularly republican women that you see out there, who have real doubts and actual fear and want to end the chaos. So when he talks like this, i think he just exacerbates a problem. All right. Everyone stick around. President trump says the climate will change itself back. Is that why hes dismissing more scientists from the epa . Stay with us. Dad oh, hey guys mom on speakerphone hi son on speakerphone dad, i scored two goals today dad oh, thats great vo getting to a comfortable retirement doesnt have to be an uncomfortable thought. See how lincoln can help you retire on your terms at lincolnfinancial. Com more on our politics lead now. Air slight change in the president s tone on Climate Change last night, saying he doesnt think Climate Change is a hoax. I think something is changing and it will change back again. I dont think its a hoax. I think theres probably a difference. But i dont know that its man made. I will say this. I dont want to give trillions and dritrillions of dollars. I dont want to lose millions and millions of jobs. I dont want to be put at a disadvantage. So its not a hoax, but the president still is not ready to acknowledge the Scientific Consensus that major industrialized powers need to take action to stop Climate Change. In fact, cnn has learned the Trump Administration continues to dismiss scientists at the epa. This time, reducing the number and scientific expertise of the air pollution review panel. Cnns rene marsh has the details on who is out at the epa. Reporter after the strongest hurricane in 50 years to hit the u. S. Ripped through florida, President Trump questioned scientists and their dire warnings about the impact of Climate Change. What about the scientists who say its worse than ever . You would have to show me the scientists. Because they have a very big political agenda. Reporter President Trumps call to, quote, show him the scientists is raising eyebrows, because his administration continues to dismiss panels of scientists from agencies like the epa, which advise on issues Like Public Health and Climate Change. Cnn has learned the epa replaced seven mostly academic scientists, five of them just this week on an air quality standards committee. The new members, many from local government, lack expertise in health science. Thats according to environmentalists. The epa also nixed two additional panels with more than 20 scientists. And im very concerned that scientists will not have a voice at the table. Reporter jack harkema, was one of the scientists dismissed. I dont have any political agenda. We are scientists who are independent. And are concerned about public health. Reporter the epa defends the changes, saying they are, quote, consistent with the Clean Air Act and the agencys mission. These changes come just days after the United Nations issued a report with a dire warning. The planet has just 12 years to avert Climate Change catastrophe, including food shortages, wildfires and massive flooding, which the Trump Administration is downplaying. I dont think we should panic. I dont think theres an imminent catastrophe coming. Well not only is the Trump Administration dismissing scientists and the president casting doubt on scientists research, trump also made several statements not backed up by science, including that Climate Change will reverse course, and that he doesnt know that Climate Change is manmade. Both statements, as you know, jake, are the exact opposite of what the majority of the Scientific Community has actually concluded. Rene, what are these scientists saying on why they were dismissed from the epa . Well, i spoke with one scientist today, and we spoke with a couple last week who have been dismissed from these panels, and they said, look, they spent their entire career advocating for stricter regulations as it relates to air pollution. They believe that somehow that might have something to do with it. Rene marsh, thank you so much. You can follow me on facebook and twitter at jake tapper. Tweet the show at the lead cnn. Our coverage on cnn continues right now. Happening now. Breaking news. Abduction gone wrong . Sources say the saudis are preparing to change their story and will acknowledge that Jamal Khashoggi was killed. And what the saudis will claim was an interrogation gone wrong. One theyll say was meant to result in his abduction. Still missing. President trump tours the florida disaster zone, saying the devastation is very tough to witness, as rescue teams comb through the rubble, searching for people still listed as missing. Defending dictators