Transcripts For WPVI Nightline 20170609

That is a big deal. Did we get the truth today . And what comes next . Ive seen the tweet about tapes. Lordy, i hope there are tapes. But first the nightline 5. How are your teeth whiter than mine . Your strips are slippy. Crest white strips stay in place. Professional effects lock in the whitening for a whiter smile. These arent going anywhere. Crest. Healthy, beautiful smiles for life. New bandaid brand skin flex bandages. It dries almost instantly. Better . Yeah. Good thing. Because stopping never crosses your mind. Bandaid brand. Stick with it. Number one in just 60 number one in just 60 seconds. Dear fellow citizen, hunting treasures with my daughter is wonderful. Because before im ready, shell be off to college. I want to help her pay her way there. Like i do for my son. Call 18669990148. As a leader in student lending, we have student loan options that others dont. If you have a question about student loans, ask me. Sincerely, michele wright, fellow mom and fellow citizen. Call 18669990148 to apply now. Good evening. Thank you for joining us. Today the white house declaring the president is no liar. After former fbi director james comey took center stage in a hearing that captivated the nation. And set the scene for the investigation that will likely plague the administration for months if not years to come. At the heart of the inquiry, a present found question. How extensive was the russian interference in our election . And did the president attempt to obstruct an investigation into their involvement . Heres abcs david wright. Reporter today in washington, a political spectacle. Raise your right hand reporter a rare Senate Committee hearing, in political circles mustsee tv. Please be seated. Reporter former fbi director james comey director comey, youre now under oath. Reporter for the First Time Since he was fired giving his views on the investigation he led into russian meddling in the november election. Were talking about a Foreign Government that using technical intrusion, lots of other methods, tried to shape the way we think, we vote, we act. That is a big deal. Reporter the question looming today, how did that investigation put him so much at odds with the Trump Administration that the president ended up firing him . The administration then chose to defame me, and more importantly, the fbi, by saying that the organization was in disarray. That it was poorly led. That the workforce had lost confidence in its leader. Those were lies. Plain and simple. Reporter comey made it clear that as he sees it, the president s goal was to derail the russia investigation, first by pressuring him my common sense, i could be wrong, but my common sense told me whats going on here is hes looking to get something in exchange for granting my request to stay in the job. Reporter and ultimately by firing him. Why do you believe you were fired . Because i dont know for sure, i believe the president in his word that i was fired because of the russia investigation. Something about the way i was conducting it. The president felt created pressure on him that he wanted to relieve. This was the super bowl of congressional hearings. I spoke to people who were lining up outside this Committee Room at 4 00 a. M. , the line so long it snaked through two separate senate buildings. Perhaps the biggest question today, was there obstruction of justice . Dan abrams, what do you think . Its still unclear. James comey did make one thing clear which is that he was directed, in his view, to end a portion of the investigation with regard to michael flynn. Reporter flynn is the nsa director trump ultimately fired after it was exposed that he lied about his conversations with the russian ambassador. Comey says the president privately asked him to go easy on flynn. I took it as a direction. This is the president of the United States with me alone saying, i hope this. I took it as, this is what hadnts me to do. I didnt obey that, but thats the way i took it. The president wanted to speak to him alone, which in and of itself is an extraordinary thing. That doesnt happen very often. And the reason from listening to jim comeys testimony, the reason was because the president understood what he was going to ask was something he wanted to keep secret. People keep things secret when they have guilty knowledge about it. Reporter comey made it clear today thats not how the fbi normally works. The statue of justice has a blindfold on, youre not supposed to be peeking out to see if your patron is please the about what youre doing. It should be about the facts and law. Reporter comey detailed his growing unease with the president , starting with their first oneonone meeting at trump tower during the transition. Afterwards comey wrote down his account of the meeting on his laptop. I was honestly concerned that he might lie about the nature of our meeting. And so i thought it really important to document it. Reporter comey says his interactions with the president got even more awkward from there. Hes become more famous than me. Youve seen the picture of me walking across the blue room. What the president whispered in my ear was i really look forward to working with you. Reporter yet almost a week later the president invited him for dinner at the white house. In an interview the president insisted comey invite him south. I think he ask the for the dinner. Did you in any way initiate that dinner . No he called me at my desk at lunchtime and asked me, was i free for dinner that night . Reporter it was at that dinner that comey claims trump asked for a pledge of loyalty. Comey says he deferred, promising the president honesty instead. It got very walk regard. I then said, youll always have honesty from me. He said, honest loyalty. I acceded to that as a way to end this awkwardness. Ive seen the tweet about tapes. Lordy, i hope there are tapes. Reporter comey insisted hes not worried tapes about contradict him. The president surely knows whether he taped me. If he did, my feelings arent hurt, release all the tapes, im good with it. You may disagree with certain things that he did. But the notion that hes making these stories up . I think thats going to be a tough sell. Reporter today President Trumps ears must have been burning. The president s legal team and his senior advisers were huddled in a private dining room, a small dining room near the oval office, watching the comey hearing unfold. The president was in there for part of the hearing watching as well. Reporter comey was still testifying when trump spoke at a religious conference in washington. The entrenched interests and failed bitter voices in washington will do everything in their power to try and stop us from this righteous cause to try to stop all of you. Reporter the president did not concede an inch. We know that the truth will prevail. Reporter but the president hasnt exactly made his case clear. First claiming he got rid of comey under the recommendation of the top brass at the Justice Department. Later admitting to lester holt there were other considerations too. Regardless of recommendation, i was going to fire comey. Knowing there was no good time to do it. And in fact, when i decided to just do it, i said to myself, i said, you know . This russia thing with trump and russia is a madeup story. Reporter pressed on the issue today, comey said he took the president at his word. But declined to say whether what the president did was illegal. Do you believe this will rise to obstruction of justice . I dont know. Thats bob mueller as job to sort that out. Reporter bob mueller, comeys predecessor as fbi director, the two men have known each other for years. Mueller now serving as special counsel to complete the russia investigation. Today comey admitted that after his firing, he leaked the content of his own memos in an effort to ensure the Justice Department would appoint a special counsel. I asked a friend of mine to share the content of the memo with a reporter. Didnt do it myself for a variety of reasons. I asked him to because i thought that might prompt the appointment of a special counsel. Ladies and gentlemen, im marc kasowitz, President Trumps personal lawyer. Reporter today the president s own lawyer took comey to task for leaking. We will leave it to the appropriate authorities to determine whether these leaks should be investigated along with all the others that are being investigated. Even suggested maybe comey could be prosecuted for that. A very aggressive response and pushback from the white house to jim comeys testimony. Reporter overall kasowitz seized on a few key moments of comeys testimony that he says vindicate his client. Mr. Comey has now finally confirmed publicly what he repeatedly told President Trump privately. That is, that the president was not under investigation as part of any probe into russian interference. Reporter comey did admit he reassured the president at least three separate times that he personally was not a target of the investigation. The president asked him to say so publicly. The specific ask was that you would tell the American People what you had already told him, what you had already told the leaders of congress, both democrat and republican, that he was not personally under investigation. Yes, sir. That he was asking you to do what you have done here today . Correct, yes, sir. Reporter comey said he thought it best not to do so because if circumstances changed there would be a duty to correct the record. Do you believe donald trump colluded with russia . Its a question i dont think i should answer. In an open setting. As i said, we when i left, we did not have an investigation focused on President Trump. But thats a question that will be answered by the investigation, i think. Reporter for his part, House Speaker paul ryan today suggested trumps clashes with comey likely resulted from naivete, not for nefarious reasons. The president s new at this. Hes new to government. He probably wasnt steeped in the longrunning protocols that establish the relationships between doj, fbi, and white houses. Reporter one party involved must be delighted at how this is all shaking out. I think that the russians are exactly thinking, this is mission accomplished. Beyond their sort of wildest expectations. Not only did they influence the election in the way that they intended, but they also have sort of sewn all of this disorder and chaos. Reporter the president may well have discovered that governing in washington isnt as straightforward as hosting the apprentice. Sidelining james comey wasnt so simple as just telling him youre fired. Im david wright for nightline in new york. And next, rose ann star Laura Metcalf back on broadway starring in a new chapter to one of the worlds most iconic plays. We cant stay here why . Terrible toilet paper ill never get clean way ahead of you, big daddy. Aww. avo charmin ultra strong. Its washclothlike texture helps clean better. Its four times stronger and you can use less. Beautiful view. Thanks to charmin. And you, honeybear. Awwwww. avo we all go. Why not enjoy the go with charmin . When i feel controlled by frequent, unpredictable abdominal pain or discomfort and diarrhea. 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She spoke to us about her new role on broadway, a revival of roseanne. Here again is abcs david wright. Heres where i live, right here. Reporter shes home again. Back on broadway. And up for a tony award this sunday. Actress Laurie Metcalfe, famous for creating comedic gold without even saying a word. If you cause a scandal, he wont be able to marry me, and there goes my future, gone. Then see this . Dot dot dot. Thats where i do my thing. Do you practice in front of the mirror . No. How does it work . No, i guess what i feel just comes out a lot in my face. I guess. Doing something was leaving reporter mess catcalf putti those skills to house . A dolls house part 2 on broadway, and in the upcoming revival of the roseanne show on abc. Is this the sink . Am i shrinking . Reporter she played sister jackie for nine seasons, winning three emmy awards. The politically charged series about a workingclass family is coming back next year. I wonder if theyre trump voters . I dont know. There might be one or two in the mix. Reporter the surprise announcement of the roseanne revival featured the cast reunited on that couch at this years season preview. The roseanne reboot is going to be huge. I hope we do it proud. And this thing, it doesnt get any better than to be doing a show on broadway. Reporter metcalf has been busy since roseanne ended its run. She played andys mom in the toy story movies. Andy, lets go, mollys already in her car seat. Reporter and sheldons mom on big bang theory. Go to your room im a grown man. Reporter but its in the theater that she feels most at home. He and i are still married, did you know . Reporter this is her fourth tony nomination. This is my comfort zone here. The film and tv is i feel a little selfconscious. Youve got three emmy awards already. Sunday, fingers crossed . So just a grammy and an oscar away . Well, i dont know. Thats not going to happen. Reporter the role of nora in a dolls house is one of the iconic roles in all of theater. I dont love you anymore. Reporter a dolls house is Henrik Ibsens most famous play, adapted for the screen many times. Youll get your ring back. Reporter a domestic tragedy about a woman who gradually realizes she can no longer bear to stay in her sham of a marriage. Goodbye. Shes an iconic feminist character. A victorianera woman who leaves her suffocating marriage and her three children. Yes. And walks out the door. Yes. Hold on im coming part 2 opens with a knock on the door. 15 years of complete silence from her, the family doesnt know what has become of her, you also dont know when she shows up what shes been doing to provide for herself. Reporter nora and lucas part 2 is financially independent and happily liberated. Shes made her own way in the world. Yes. And yet this decision came at huge cost. Yes. For her and everyone else. Yes, and she has to deal with that as she meets each character one by one in the show. Reporter 15 years of therapy packed into an hour and a half play. As she puts it, the play is like a round robin boxing match on marriage and motherhood. Then i come over here, yes, we want to be intimate with another person, to know that person. Why does there have to be a marriage to do that . Why does it have to be just with one person and for the rest of your life . It seems so sad. Standing right here. And we know that its sad. We know it. Youre right, it is like a boxing ring. It is, right . Yeah. We need the ding between scenes. You want me to fix this too . Is that what youre really saying . [ bleep ] you, nora. [ bleep ] you. Reporter the language, salty. The emotions, direct. The situation, entirely modern. Its fun to do a comedy. Ill call it a comedy. Its a dromedy, maybe. Theres a lot of comedy in it. A comagedy. Reporter the roseanne revival promises a similar rich vein to mine. Were going to go back to the same house where the connors lived and the same couch. The same couch still exists . Oh, im sure. Im sure. Reporter the world has changed a lot since 1997. But the comedy of that working class family in the heartland, timeless. Remember the dads dead scene . Hes passed away dad is gone dads dead ill tell you Something Interesting about that little clip there. It was written by norm macdonald. Really . Norm was a writer and he wrote that little monologue. Then she ends up saying hes fine. Hes fine, he sends his love. Reporter the show never shy of tackling the big issues of the day. That its time for me to, um, get some birth control. Reporter and in the trump era, the writers will have plenty of new opportunities and challenges. The series finale, there are some complications there. Theres complications. She kills off john goodman. Yes. And we were millionaires. Having won the lottery. And she outed you as being gay. And i dont know how any of thats going to be dealt with. No idea . I dont know. No, i dont. Roseanne will find a way. I cant wait to read the first one. Reporter im david wright for nightline in new york. And well be right back. Garfunkel instrumental is that good . Yeah its perfect. Bees bees go go go [ girl catching her breath } [ bees buzzing inside vehicle ] the allnew volkswagen atlas. With easyaccess 3rd row. Lifes as big as you make it. You know new pantene. R tangles the minute you wash it . The first shampoo with active prov nutrient blends fueling hair 100 stronger thats instantly smoother and tangle free. Because strong is beautiful. But youve never had em quite like this. At red lobsters lobster shrimp summerfest, the lobster and shrimp you love are teaming up in so many new ways. Like new coastal lobster and shrimp, with a lobster tail with butter and herbs, sweet, smoky bbq red shrimp, and shrimp crusted with. Get this. Cape cod kettle chips. 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After just being released from seven years in prison, transgender u. S. Army soldier Chelsea Manning speaking out at her first tv interview with my nightline coanchor juju chang. The exclusive breaks tomorrow on gma. Well have a nightline special edition with Chelsea Manning next week. Thank you for watching abc news. As always, were online at abcnews. Com and our Nightline Facebook page. Thanks for the company, america. Good night. I have no idea how much money ill be giving away today. It could be 50,000, it could be a million, but i can promise you that whatever happens, it wont be boring. So stay right there. Its time to play who wants to be a millionaire. [cheers and applause] [dramatic music] everybody, welcome to the show. Are you guys ready to play millionaire today . [cheers and applause] all right, todays contestant is newly engaged and expecting his first child. No doubt, there are a lot of bills coming his way. From cleveland, texas, please welcome jimmy perkins. [cheers and applause] how you doing, jimmy . Doing well, chris. How are you . Good to meet you. Thank you, sir. Doing great. First child on the way. Yes. How far along are we . To the point where im terrified. 13 weeks, 13 weeks. Yes, as you should be. Youll get over that in about 25 years. Excellent, excellent. Then it really gets easy. Yeah. Do we know what were having . Boy or girl . Hopefully, it just looks like its mother. Thats all i know. No boy or girl yet. Good answer. Very good answer. Well, no doubt, youre gonna have some bills to pay, and you already have to think about college. [inhales, chuckles] i dont wanna freak you out because im about to give you a million dollars. Dont worry about it. Excellent, excellent. Makes up for it. It only takes about 30 minutes, if you have some time. Let me tell you what youre up against. 14 questions. The money values growing from 500 all the way up to that 1 million. Yeah. [cheers and applause] every question we answer correctly moves you one step closer to that top prize