Transcripts For MSNBCW Andrea Mitchell Reports 20170221 : vi

MSNBCW Andrea Mitchell Reports February 21, 2017

Hes a legendary officer in the army. Hes never marched to the beat of the army drum so to speak. And the homefront, republican congressmembers getting an earful back home as they prepare to rollout their plan to repeal obamacare. How are you going to tell these families how theyre going to make it work on 35,000 a year . [ applause ] we need some dont repeal obamacare. Improve it, forgods sakes. [ cheers and applause ] good day, everyone. Im Andrea Mitchell in washington where this morning msnbcs craig melvin spoke exclusively to President Trump at the National Museum of africanamerican history and culture today. Hitting some big topics, including the president S Immigration ban, upcoming executive orders and the rash of antisemitic threats against Jewish Centers across america. Will you denounce antisemitism once and for all, just to clear up the confusion . I do all the time. I do all the time. I think its terrible, i think its horrible, whether its antisemitism or racism or anything you want to think about having to do with the divide, antisemitism is likewise just terrible and you dont know where its coming but i certainly hope they catch the people. I think you maybe have had it for longer than people think and maybe it get brought up a little bit more, but i will tell you that antisemitism is horrible, and its going to stop, and it has to stop. Youre denouncing it once and for all . Of course, i do it whenever a get a chance to do it. Craig joins me back from his exclusive interview and alongside Kristen Welker at the white house. Craig, this was fascinating because of the venue, this new museum, which has gotten so many important rave reviews taken has become a centerpiece of washington in its infancy really and here the president going and you interviewing him and talking about some of the most controversial issues of race, of immigrati immigration, and of ethnicity and religion. The president , one of the things that struck me andrea, was that he seemed genuinely moved by what he had seen at the museum ahead of our conversation. He spent about an hour Walking Around the museum, asking questions of the folks there, and really you know, his tone, if you will. Weve heard the president at times full of bluster. There was none of that today. Last question i want to talk to you about the violence at Jewish Centers across the country. You were talking with him, and in talking with him he seems much more reflective and he also said that he speaks out on these things whenever he can. We havent really heard him do that. No, no, we did not and we got roughly five minutes with him today so we didnt want to go down the rabbit hole of you know, mr. President you really didnt say this. So he said that he had been speaking out against antisemiti antisemitism. We have not necessarily been able to find those speeches, but today, and you have to wonder whether he was moved by his daughters tweet yesterday, we know ivanka spoke out yesterday after the cemetery in missouri was defaced, and also Hillary Clinton this morning. The president , as we know, is quite plugged in with regards to who is saying what about the news of the day, so you have to wonder whether he was moved to finally speak out in a definitive way about antisemitism by those two things. And also, Kristen Welker, the context of recent interviews when Benjamin Netanyahu was here, that issue did come up and again at the thursday news conference, kristen, that you were at, he was asked by an Orthodox Jewish reporter from a blog about antisemitism and the president seemed to take offense at the question, and hadnt really, you know, responded to th question two days in a row. Lets play a little bit of that sound. I want to get your reaction on the other side. There are people who are committing antisemitic acts or threatening to he said he was going to ask a very simple, easy question. Okay, sit down, i understand the rest of your question. So heres the story, folks. Number one, i am the least antisemitic person that youve ever seen in your entire life. Quiet, quiet, quiet. So kristen that was an awkward moment to say the least. The reporter was very upset afterwards because we been trying to from his perspective ask really a neutral or friendly question the way he framed it, just quoting that reporter. What do you think is going on here . Reporter i think theres a little bit of a reset happening, andrea. Part of what you heard today both in craigs interview with the president and then in the remarks that the president made afterwards from the podium, speaking from the museum, he was much more definitive in terms of denouncing antisemitism. As you point out in that initial exchange with the reporter last week at the press conference, he became defensive, he said im the least antisemitic person. Today was a very different message and a very different tone. He said i condemn antisemitism. I condemn these acts, this uptick in threats we have seen against Jewish Community centers. He was very clear about the fact that hes not going to tolerate that type of behavior. I do think that this is a white house that has acknowledged that they need to do a better job of reaching out to some minority communities, both in terms of the Jewish Community and then of course the africanamerican community. This visit came agast the backdrop of africanamerican history month, andrea, but also against the backdrop of that Awkward Exchange that he had with our colleague april ryan when she asked if he could set up a meeting with the cbc. Theyre trying to set a reset on the cultural avenues to try to sort of make up for what has been somewhat rocky relationship with these groups, andrea. And also Peter Alexander is reporting, which catalogued how reluctant he seemed to be to condemn these threats against Jewish Community centers around the country, and unprecedented number of threats to these schools and community centers, which really frightened the Jewish Community in all parts of the country. I want to ask you about the reset also on the immigration orders on the deportation orders that we are expecting today, and also the executive orders which are being rewritten to try to meet the standard, the constitutional standard of the court. First in terms of what we learned today, andrea, the department of Homeland Security putting out a set of guidelines to implement executive orders that the president signed several days ago. These guidelines effectively say that undocumented immigrants who are here can be deported. Youre seeing a tougher take in terms of deporting folks who are here. Its going to call for 10,000 more i. C. E. Agents and also calls for those who cross the border to be detained, as well as potentially prosecution for parents who pay smugglers to bring their kids across the border. What it doesnt do, andrea, it leaves in place the obama era daca executive action, which essentially allows safe haven for young people who are here, who are studying, who are trying to complete their education, but theres no doubt thathis is a marked shift in terms of how deportations are going to be carried out. Separately, we are waiting for the administration to release a new executive order, likely at the end of this week. That will be a new travel ban, if you will, andrea, and were still waiting for the final details of that to be hammered out as you rightfully point out the first version of that executive order got held up in the courts. Kristen welker and craig you asked the president about the droom dreamers, the young people covered under daca, if theyre going in college, military service could stay if they came with their parents many, many years ago and become eligible for citizenship down the road. That was the last question as he was walking off and he said today and he said in the past that weve got to figure that part out. Weve got to figure that part out. So precisely what that means remains to be seen as is the case with a number of other things he said today. Well, more of course of your exclusive interview coming up in the next hour which you will be anchoring right here so ill see you shortly and thanks for sharing. No, thanks for having me. Always good to see craig melvin right here, and this afternoon the president will chair his first formal National Security Council Meeting, sitting at the head of the table in the situation room along with his new National Security adviser general h. R. Mcmaster. The choice of general mcmaster is getting rave reviews from both sides of the aisle as he prepares to take on big challenges that i had National Security has to face, these challenges not only around the world but among competing Power Centers on the white house staff. Joining me is Washington Post National Political reporter robe costa and retired fourstar army general barry mccaffrey, an msnbc military analyst. First to you, general. Lets talk about general mcmaster what he brings to the table. The reviews are stunning from all quarters. And well deserved. This fellow has a very strong moral core. Hes also an intellectual. I anticipated downed line he would have been president of one of the great universities. Hes got a book out that will get studied for the next 100 years dereliction of duty which as a captain he excoriates the jcfs for their behavior during the veem namm era and finally an exceptionally aggressive, wellqualified battle commander, but one who also figured out Counter Insurgency along with Dave Petraeus and stand mccrystal in iraq. Hell be a real asset to the United States in this job. General, you said something last night to Brian Williams at 11 00 that caught my attention, when you said that your only quibble would be you would have preferred that he take off the uniform, and be a civilian leader of the nsc, that would give him more flexibility, not that its unprecedented, colin powell preceded had imin uniform but explain what you mean. Well, first of all, im sure hr mcmaster would prefer to stay in uniform, to stay in the armed forces but having said that, look, i faced a similar quandary going into the clinton administration, and they wanted me to stay in uniform, and in discussion with a lot of people i sorted out much better, it would give me much more leverage to be a civilian and not constrained by military culture, obedience, ucmj,t cetera. But having said that, look, h. R. Will do well in any capacity, and i might add, there have been a lot of speculation on tv, did he tell the president i demand to have my own staff. Military officers dont bring their team with them. They take the unit thats there, and provide good leadership. So i wouldnt expect hes going to get in there and bring in his coterie. Hell work with the people there and if they dont live up to his expectations hell replace them. Hang in, while we bring in bob costa. Bob, youve watched this president so well. What does it say about donald trump hes now bringing in someone whose hallmark has been independence and being able to tell truth to power . Thats not what we hear about donald trump, who vetoed Elliott Abrams for instance at the state department because he had written a column last may. Its a great question and ever since his days at New York Military Academy as a young man, President Trump has venerated generals and military figures so its not unusual for him to again turn to the military for top National Security adviser. Im told that within the white house its also about melding personalities and steve bannon, the chief strategist, reince priebus, the chief of staff, Jared Kushner in some ways is a shadow secretary of state seeing mcmaster a strategic thinker who would work well with them and doesnt have a particular ideological ew when i comes to world affairs, not known as a hard line hawk, and that helped him in the conversations at maralago was trump made his decision. You bring up the issue of steve bannon. Lot of people have talked about this parallel structure to the nsc, that bannon has created with his strategic group, not only being at the table but having a staff to channel ideas up to the president , maybe go around the nsc. How challenging is that bureaucratically . It has raised eyebrows within the white house and the administration, but those close to bannon say he wants to be part of Foreign Policy and National Security discussions. They acknowledge that but they also point to the fact that mattis is there, secretary of defense. You now have general mcmaster coming in as National Security adviser to steve bannon isnt the lone voice but his inclusion is real in these discussions and because of his controversial background, it makes some in the Republican Party and even privately in the white house a little bit uneasy. To general mccaffrey, the National Security adviser is supposed to be a team leader who brings different points of view to the table and then puts the information before the president. Is that what h. R. Mcmaster can do . Will he be first among equals, how does he react to general mattis, who was his superior . Well look first of all, the National Security staff are probably the most talented collection of people in this country. Its just phenomenal. The departments send over their best and brightest, they know what theyre doing, they require good leadership. Somebodys got to be mom or dad to bring them all together and h. R. Can do that. The other thing to remind ourselves is the president is the decisionmaker, not the National Security adviser, so the people that are most happy abt this appointment today is the secretary of defense, the secrety of state, treasury, justice, cia, et cetera, because im sure they will see in m mcmaster an objective, highly intelligent interlocotue to put objective decisions in a good way. That is what h. R. Is good at. Thanks to you, general mccaffrey and robert costa. Coming up next, Homeland Security issuing sweeping changes for enforcing immigration laws. Well talk to michelle liuhan grisham. Youre watching Andrea Mitchell reports on msnbc. While calf roping. Yep. Greatness deserves recognition. You got any trophies, cowboy . Uh, yea, well, uh. Well, theres this one. Best insurance mobile app . Yep, three years in a row. Well ill be does that thing just follow you around . Like a little puppy. 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Supreme court is hearing arguments today on whether mexican nationals parents can sue a u. S. Border agent who they say killed their 15yearold son along the border between el paso, texas, and juarez, mexico. This grainy cell phone video obtained by univision captured what happened. The agent in a white shirt and dark shorts detaining a second person while he fires his gun at the young boy, Sergio Hernandez. The border agent maintains he shot the teen in selfdefense. Joining me is nbcs justice correspondent pete williams. This grainy video only shows perhaps one side of the story but there is a 15yearold dead, he ran to the mexican side of the border. What are the legal issues . Simple one. The Border Patrol agent is on the u. S. Side of the border, Sergio Hernandez is on the mexican side. Does the constitution apply to the young man, outside the United States can his parents sue the Border Patrol agent for using Excessive Force and violating the constitution . The courts are decided on the question. There didnt seem to be four votes for the parents. Part of the problem where do you draw the line . If you win your case does this mean people whose families are subjected to drone attacks in iraq, how far outside the United States do you want this rule to apply . Some of the liberals said this was sort of a joint area administered by both the u. S. And mexico so it ought to apply there, there didnt seem to be five votes for that, only two. There could be two outcomes if the court is tied bad news for the parents, because they lost in the lower courts or the court could say we cant resolve this case, hold it until we get a ninth justice and then decide it. Is it clear whether the t

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