Newseum is the preeminent National Organization that explains, promotes and defends the five freedoms of the First Amendment and the right of free expression. We welcome over 800,000 visitors a year to our building with exhibits that explain the evolution of freedom. We invite people with very different philosophies to come together to discuss challenges to our fundamental liberties. At our newseum Education Program reaches over 7 million schoolchildren in the United States, and 150 countries across the world, and provides them with digital Course Material on freedom and democracy. We all know that there will inevitably be friction between an administration and journalists. However, perhaps at no point in living memory has there been more concern about freedom of the press in good part because of real or perceived conflict between the Trump Administration and the media. A recent Pew Research Center poll found that 83 of americans believe that current tensions have made the relationship
I would say yes. By the way, i would say i dont i cant answer that question because i dont think its going to happen. It might be happening. Joining us now, mike the schmidt, one of the times reporters on todays breaking news, jeremy bash, msnbc analyst and former chief of staff at the cia and the pentagon. At the table with us rick sting l, former under secretary of state for Public Diplomacy now an msnbc analyst. Jan palmieri former communications for the president obama white house. And john heilman is here, nbc news and msnbc National Affairs analyst. Mike schmidt, let me start with you and your brandnew story. Let me read you a piece that caught our attention here. The subpoena is the latest indication that the investigation which mr. Trumps lawyers once regularly assured him would be completed by now will drag on for at least several more months. Tell us more. Well, as we all remember at the end of last year, ty cobb, the attorney dealing with the white house, thanksgiving, chris
Fighting back. Im going to leave that capitalized o alone for now. A quick fact check fighting back if it included intent to halt the russia investigation, as detailed by rod rosenstein, it was always meant to include an investigation into other crimes uncovered while investigating the trump campaigns ties to russia. To date, that investigation has yielded 15 indictments, five guilty pleas, including pleas by michael flynn, the president s former National Security advisor. And rick gates, the number two on his president ial campaign. But the mess requiring triage today is giulianis contradictory and easily disproved responses around the president s alleged sexual relationship with porn star Stormy Daniels. Something one of giulianis aides told me he, quote, wasnt supposed to talk about at all. The president does acknowledge meeting Stormy Daniels, correct . Im not really involved in the daniels thing so i dont know. I mean, he denies that it happened. She has written a letter denying i
President and his legal team that trump would almost certainly be a target of that probe, if not for muellers apparent belief that a sitting president cannot be indicted. Those issues as well as questions of whether a president can be forced to comply with a subpoena could become the most significant matters on the Supreme Court docket during trumps presidency. Especially if trumps attorney Rudy Giuliani gets his way. If you think they will subpoena, there will be a constitutional fight . Well, there will be a constitutional fight. Well win it. What happens if for example, what happens if mueller decides he wants to take this all the way and subpoena the president of the United States . We go to the Supreme Court and we find out if he can. Never been decided. If confirmed in a process that begins tuesday, Brett Kavanagh would replace Justice Anthony kennedy who for years was known as the swing vote. Now kavanagh could shift the Supreme Court toward trump on cases against him and severa
yet in the same interview giuliani tried to make the case that trump had nothing to hide. mayor, if the president has done nothing wrong as you say again and again and he tells the truth he hasn t done anything wrong, george. and he tells the truth as you advised him to do, what is the danger in answering robert mueller s questions? ary they re trying to trap him. it s only a trap situation if he doesn t tell the truth. no, it isn t. it s only prosecutable if they have some built-up manipulated evidence to prove the president didn t tell the truth. how often has that happened? you believe the president is telling the truth. if you believe that, you have that conviction, you re his attorney. why don t you say go in, talk to robert mueller, tell the truth. because i wouldn t be an attorney if i did that, george. i d be living in an unreal fantasy world that everybody tells the truth. it s called the real world. joining us on set, jan palmieri.