Arpaio. In the next hour, a lot more people are here. More than 10,000 people have signed up on facebook to participate in the protest. The rally begins in about two hours. Right now, the police are doing a good job keeping both sides separate. The s. W. A. T. Is here with rifles. Gary, thank you very much. The mayor of phoenix opposed the president s visit. He is a democrat. In a recent oped, he accused the president of dousing racial tensions with gasoline and he fears he may be looking to light a match. I spoke to the mayor before we went on air. You called on the president not to come to phoenix. Im wondering what your concern was, is it just the possibility of the protest, certainly there are a lot of Trump Supporters there that want to see him tonight. I felt after the tragedy in charlottesville, which happened just a short time ago, the president failed moral leadership after
charlottesville. His failure to condemn the racism and the nazis there, to have a Campaign Rally here in phoenix, arizona so shortly thereafter, you put it together, it was such a dangerous combination that i thought the rally was not the correct thing to do here in phoenix. Are you concerned about what may happen tonight in terms of any conflict between protesters . Tefirst, we have just receiv word that Sarah Huckabee sanders indicated that the president will not pardon Sheriff Joe Arpaio tonight that. Is a great victory for so many people that have been asking the president not to do that. That would be such a volatile thing to do. And because of that, im much more confident that today is going to be calm and peaceful. In addition, were so lucky here in phoenix to have a great police chief, a great Phoenix Police department. Theyre working with federal and state authorities. Theyve got an incredibly complicated but good plan for
tonight. And i have the highest level of confidence that theyre doing Everything Possible to make sure were peaceful here in phoenix. You feel like if he has pardoned announced he was going to pardon Sheriff Arpaio In Phoenix tonight, that would have been potentially incendiary . There is no doubt about it. The Singular Purpose would have been to inflame passion to pardon sheriff arpaio, who internationally is a cartoon character. But here locally its possible. He terrorized the lives of so many latino residents. They couldnt go to school or work without fear of facing criminal sanctions for literally doing nothing. He faced a crime, a civil rights trial that he lost. And he was found to be in criminal contempt. So our sheriff has been criminally convicted. And for the president to do that at a Campaign Rally in front of 10,000 people would the only purpose would have been to
enflame passions. And yes, i was very concerned about what that might do on the streets of phoenix. Because the president has backed off because of the advocacy of so many leaders here in phoenix, i have a much higher level of confidence that the rally and all of the people expressing their First Amendment rights will do so in a peaceful environment in phoenix tonight. In front of an adoring crowd, the president often responds to the crowd and plays off the crowd, and weve also seen in the past Sarah Huckabee sanders saying one thing, the president doing something else. So it is still very possible tonight he will either speak about sheriff arpaio or announce that hes going to pardon him if that is what he intends to do. You are correct. He might do that. Theres nothing we can do about that, other than his Press Secretary indicated its not going to occur tonight in this politicized environment, so shortly after his failure of moral leadership, after the
tragedy in charlottesville. Yes, if he were to go against what his Press Secretary said today, it would be a very bad thing and a potentially very volatile thing here in phoenix. What about you know, slightly more conciliatory tone he took last night at the beginning of his address to the nation about afghanistan, seemingly addressing the aftermath of charlottesville, although he never mentioned the community by name. Were you impressed by that at all . No, i was not. And by the way, Speaker Paul Ryan was not impressed either. I saw his town hall which he also acknowledged that the president fell short after charlottesville. So these been bipartisan condemnation of the failure of moral leadership by this president after the tragedy of charlottesville, which obviously these White Supremacists openly marched. A young woman was tragically murdered by a neonazi, and the president should have been unequivocal thats not
a different tune. Hey, big guy come on in let me guess your weight win a prize sure, why not. 12 ounces sorry, mate. Four ounces. Ive been taking the stairs lately. You win, big guy. Sorry, scuse me oh, he looks so much more real on tv. Yeah. Over 75 years of savings and service. Get your rate quote today. We danced in a german dance group. I wore lederhosen. Man. When i first got on ancestry i was really surprised that i wasnt finding all of these germans in my tree. I decided to have my dna tested through ancestry dna. The big surprise was were not german at all. 52 of my dna comes from scotland and ireland. So, i traded in my lederhosen for a kilt. Ancestry has many paths to discovering your story. Get started for free at ancestry. Com. When heartburn hits fight back fast with tums chewy bites. Fast relief in every bite. Crunchy outside. Chewy inside. Tum tum tum tum tums chewy bites. Advil liquigels minis. Our first concentrated pill that rushes powerful relief. A small new size thats fast, cause its liquid. Woohoo youll ask, what pain . New advil liquigels minis. Looking at the protesters in phoenix, gathered outside where President Trump will speak tonight. When he does, the two republican senators from arizona will not be on hand, neither john mccain or jeff flake will be there. And now a new report in the New York Times reveals just how bad the president s feud is with another Top Republican senator, Majority LeaderMitch Mcconnell. Sources tell the New York Times that Senator Mcconnell is expressing uncertainty that President Trump can actually salvage his presidency. Cnns political analyst and new
york Times National reporter shares the byline and joins me now. Ummm, is mcconnell not sure that President Trump will serve his full term . What does it mean he may not be able to salvage his presidency . Hes expressing pessimism and frustration in a range of ways, anderson. But from the getgo of this story, it was clear that the Senate Leader is really telling people close to him, people who are supportive of his agenda in general and who he relies on to pass legislation and support the party on the national level, he no longer feels that President Trump can be counted on to be a dependable partner for him in governing or in politics either. That goes for the 2018 elections, potentially 2020, as well. The last time they talked is august 9 in a phone call that ended up in a Shouting Match. So its nearly two weeks ago was the last time they had any direct contact. Theres been staff contact, but
republicans are coming up on a number of really important Governing Deadlines in september. At this stage of things, you would expect to have direct conversation with the president. Really the most important man in congress, that is not happening. Based on your reporting, part of the Shouting Match was over the president s anger that Mitch McconnellWasnt Doing Enough to protect him from the Russian Investigation . Thats right. A couple of people briefed on the phone call said there was fuming about the health care issue, but really the great bulk of the call and most of the heat on the call was directed on that russia issue, the sense that this is Out Of Control and republicans dont have any back. I want to read you something, an amazing detail. It says in a series of tweets this month, President Trump criticized Mitch Mcconnell. So according to your sources,
the president believes the Senate Majority leader should be running interference on the russia investigation. He feels that republicans in congress ought to be not advancing what he views as investigations that are unfair and detrimental to his political interest. I think in some respects it reflects that the president is something of a political amateur. But its also just a sign of the depth of his defensiveness on this issue. When ever youve had republicans criticize him on russia or maybe theres something there, it gets the president upset and he expressed that directly to Senator Mcconnell. Its so interesting what is the president s strategy on this, to not only publicly go after Mitch Mcconnell in tweets and comments, but to have this personal animosity and Shouting Matches. One wonders is there a strategy here or just President Trump unable to control himself in certainly the sense on the
hill is that there is not this plan to get results from this congress. Republican senators and donors do feel whats happening at this point is the president is Holding Grudges against members of his own party who he feels have processed him and hes more focused on those grudges than on crafting ledge heytive resulegi results. Another piece says that she could only accompany him on Air Force One if she committed to voting for the health care bill. And she declined saying she hadnt seen the bill. We know there are hard feelings about the health care issue. I think the depth of those feelings is maybe a little more tense than is widely recognized. Certainly fromfolks around mcconnells operation, and he has through his behavior, made it harder to do anything else, like tax reform or even basic stuff like funding the
government. Incredible reporting. Thanks so much. Join joining us now is leon panetta and david gergen, who has worked for president s in both parties. Secretary panetta, how significant is it that mcconnell is questioning whether the president can salvage the mess hes made of his presidency . Well, its a very important statement that reflects a real breakdown between the president and the Majority Leader in the senate. Look, i know Mitch Mcconnell. He is a hes a pragmatist. Hes somebody who likes to get things done. He works at his job, and i think the fact that he fought very hard for the health care bill, lost it by one vote. To then have the president come after him and be critical of what he did, particularly a president who is all over the
place on health care, from repeal to covering everybody, and then use some of the strong arm tactics that you talked about that blew up. I just think its a reflection at this point in time that there is a real breakdown between the president of the United States and the leader of his party in the senate. And it doesnt bode well for getting anything done this fall on major issues. David, do you see a strategy here by President Trump to do this . Have you ever seen a relationship between a president and his partys leader in the senate thats more dysfunctional . I dont see any strat skri at a strategy at all. I see a temperament problem, how well suited donald trump is or not suited for working with the senate. Its so important to go back to the basics. The senate and the house are coequal form a coequal branch of government under the constitution. They are as powerful and to be as respected as the presidency itself. In fact, its article i is about the congress and article ii is about the president. The founders saw the congress more important. But to go beyond that, the Senate Members still think of themselves as belonging to a club. Each party has its own club. And for mcconnell, who is a proud man, this is insulting to be treated this way by the president , and it is driving him away from the president. Interestingly, that fascinating story in the New York Times says that the Business Leaders who deserted the president have now started to gravitate to mcconnell as the person they ought to work with. This could well turn out to believe, before its over, that
mcconnell and other republicans will say well just run this ourselves mr. President , well send you the bill and you sign it. We have to take a quick break. Well continue the conversation next and dig deeper into the implications of the Republican Party and the president at war. Our new president has not been in this line of work before. And i think had excessive expectations about how quickly things happen. Mitch, get to work and lets get it done. Opportunity sales event before it ends. Choose from the is turbo, es 350 or nx turbo for 299 a month for 36 months if you lease now. Experience amazing at your lexus dealer. Hey. What can you tell me about your new Social Security alerts . Oh well alert you if we find your Social Security number on any one of thousands of risky sites, so youll be in the know. Ooh. Sushi. Ugh. Being in the know is a good thing. Sign up online for free. Discover Social Security alerts. With pantene 3 minute miracle daily conditioner. S. A super concentrated prov formula makes hair stronger in just 3 minutes. So its smoother every day. Because strong is beautiful. Yet up 90 fall short in getting key nutrients from food alone. Lets do more. Add one a day mens complete with key nutrients we may need. Plus hearthealth support with b vitamins. One a day mens in gummies and tablets. Whats going on here . Um. Im babysitting. Thatll be 50 bucks. You said 30 dollars. Yeah, well it was 30 before my fees, like the dogsitting fee. And the rummage through your closet fee. Who is she, verizon . Are those my heels . Yeah yeah, were the same size. In shoes. With tmobile taxes and fees are already included, so you get four lines of unlimited for just 40 bucks each. And now get zero down on the hottest smart phone brands like samsung galaxy. More reasons why tmobile is americas best unlimited network. Knowing where you stand. Its never been easier. Except when it comes to your retirement plan. But at fidelity, were making Retirement Planning clearer. And it all starts with getting your Fidelity Retirement score. In 60 seconds, youll know where you stand. And together, well help you make decisions for your plan. To keep you on track. Time to think of your future its your retirement. Know where you stand. Attacked republican senators from arizona and the Majority Leader. How long can this go on before it blows up politically . I just want to remind you of some of the things the president has said publicly about Mitch Mcconnell. Im very disappointed in mitch. But honestly, repeal and replace of obamacare should have taken place. Mitch, get to work and lets get it done. They should have had this last one done. They lost by one vote. For a thing like that to happen is a disgrace. He should have known that he had a couple of votes that turned on him, and that should have been very easy to handle. Should he step down . If he doesnt get repeal and replace done and if he doesnt get taxes done, meaning cuts and reform, and if he doesnt get a very easy one to get done, infrastructure, if he doesnt get them done, then ask me that question. Secretary panetta, i asked this to david gergen before we went to break. Do you see a strategy here . Is it a way that the President Distancing himself from the failure over obamacare or is it just emotion . There is no strategy here. I think what youre seeing is a president who has very little experience in governing. Very little experience in politics. And hes taking the same kind of approach that he did when he was a developer in new york, in bullying other people, in criticizing them, and in trying to bully them into doing what he wants. And it worked for him, not only in the business world, it worked for him when he ran for election. And so he thinks all of this will work for him in governing the country. But its not. You cannot bully members of congress to somehow come your way. Youve got to deal with them. Youve got to respect them. Youve got to talk to them in equal terms. And if he doesnt learn that lesson, mark my word, he will not achieve any major legislation, certainly in this first year of his presidency. David gergen, i keep thinking about just the toxic environment the president seems to create all around him, whether its a relationship with Mitch Mcconnell right now, or people in white house, these competing camps that weve seen in the white house. For months now, the white house has been deny things