Mike chael flynns contacts and were there any people in Donald Trumps universe as a candidate who were in contact with entities in russia, russian agents, that kind of thing. It is significant but its also the standard way they would begin an investigation. The white house acknowledges it will preserve these types of records. I want to go to the white house. Kristen, what do we know about these memos, signed by the secretary of Homeland Security . Reporter halle, these are draft memos, not etched in stones. The white house saying these are among the choices under consideration but it shows that the white house is looking to get tough on immigration. They include hiring 10,000 agents and officers for custom
enforcement, expedite the removal of undocumented immigrants in the u. S. For two years or left. It would call for deputizing local Law Enforcement and then it would also potentially hold parents who pay smugglers to bring in their children accountable. They could face prosecution. This really represents a ramping up of trying to deport people who are here, particularly those who are here illegally and who have criminal records, the president really stressing that over the weekend when he held that campaignstyle rally in florida. As you know, this is going to be a flash point. It is immigrant Rights Groups weighing in, saying they are deeply concerned about some of these considerations. They think it will target people unfairly and tear apart families. These are two draft memos. We could see something in the
coming days. This is clearly one of the president s key campaign priorities. As we look at other action coming out of the white house, theres the controversial Executive Order youve been talking about. How different is it from the original Executive Order and any timing we had heard last week the president was talking like monday or tuesday, now it looks like this week. Any sense . Youre right. We were hearing it could happen as early as today or tomorrow. We anticipating well see something by the end. Week. Thats what the president has been signaling. Thats another big flash point what will be in this new Executive Order. Its going to be aimed at withstanding legal challenges because the First Executive order got tied up in the courts. In terms of what were expecting, a draft memo that was released by the associated press, nbc news hasnt confirmed that memo, indicates that it cast on the fact the two men are running late, its a sign of how much there is for them to discuss, about the support for nato, transatlantic relations. For mike pence, his job has been to meet with european and nato leaders and calm these fears that his boss actually intends to do some of the things that he said that he would do. The mission can nato has been to be both assure allies that america remains committed to this kr Critical Alliance but also to echo Donald Trumps message calling on Member States to do more on Defense Spending, to spend a larger share of their budgets towards the defense. He made the point that only a few countries do that at the moment, the United States spends a larger share of its Defense Budget than anyone else and they
want that to be more evenly distributed. He said this quite publicly, he said too much has happened in the past two months in your country, meaning in the United States, for us to pretend that everything is as it used to be. Our allies want to know that the stability will continue under donald trump. Mike pence has been unwavering in assuring that that will happen but i think the jury privately is still out, whether mike pence speaks with one voice with the president and basically the contradictions they sometimes see. It certainly doesnt help when donald trump raises the issue of sweden. It raises questions about how plugged in he is necessarily to the situations happening here in europe and whether mike pence is
going to be a Strong Influence once he returns back to home to washington. Hallie . Thank you. Lets talk to mark sanford, a member of the House Oversight committee. Lets start with what is happening abroad. The first thing the president of the eu council said after meeting with the Vice President was, quote, we all truly need it. Do you think our allies are more comfortable dealing with Vice President pence than with President Trump . Ill leave that for them to determine well, whats your take . Id be curious what you think about that. You know both men. Ill give this compliment to mike pence. Hes a very, very measured human beings. He measures his words. You dont hear a lot being thrown out there where he didnt have the facts to back up his
arguments. The u. S. Has said it will hold Russia Accountable. In your view, is that believable for these foreign leaders given the president s Vladimir Putin . This issue is growing within the congress. There is no worse specter than the idea that the russian government or affiliates would directly not only try and impact our election but that there could be collusion in that process. I think that this is something thats going to be much more fully vetted. Let me bring it back to issues here at home or domestic stuff, specifically the health care law. In an interview earlier this morning on a separate network, i believe you said the members of congress are on track to repeal Bla Obamacare within the next couple of months. Really . Is that something thats realistic given that theres not a replacement in that timeline . I could be wrong but we had four meetings on Health Care Al alone just this last week in the republican conference. If you have it linger on into the summer, i dont know how you get to tax reform. This is something that has to come mid spring if its going to happen at all. Why not flip it, deal with tax reform first and then deal with obamacare . Im not in leadership. If thats your suggestion for paul ryan, go for it. The schedule that has been laid out for quite some time for roughly the month that weve been back in congress has been that repeal and replace is going to come first and tax reform will follow. Let me ask you about you town
hall you held over the weekend. Lets call it a mixed crowd, both friendly and were some people hostile. Tons of people inside, packed house outside. Some happy, some booed, some jered. Do you feel like youre losing touch with your constituents . No. It was a spirited town hall meeting. But i think you learn more sometimes from folks who hold an opposing viewpoint as folks who hold the same viewpoint. It turned out to be a three and
a half hour long town hall meeting. It was lengthy and we got a lot of conversation what did you get out of it . I got it loud and clear this notion of preexisting conditions is incredibly important to pop. If i was to pick a single subject and what i thought was interesting, i said you guys have already won. I think baked into the came that will make its way into any plan is preexemption of preexisting conditions. I think you have to give the trump voters their credit. They are just exhausted, they want change in washington, they feel they havent been heard. He was a response to that. At times he thinks its about him. Its not about him. Its about that void in the political market and he was there to fill it. But the hyperbole and the way he wont back up facts, i think its troubling and a lot of me colleagues feel the same. Do you think more of your colleagues should do these town halls . Yes, i dont think theyre pleasant but theyre helpful. Thank you. Lets go to Vice President pence speaking live. This is great for the importance of the security of europe and demonstrates strong transatlantic commitment of the United States and we are very grateful for this commitment. He also stressed that as the u. S. Stood tall with europe that europe stood tall with the United States. Several hundred thousand canadian and european troops have served in afghanistan and more than a thousand have paid the ultimate price. The bond between the United States and nato between the United States and europe and the nato lines is very important today because we live in times of turmoil and instability and we need a Strong Alliance more than ever. And we are stronger when we stand together. During our meeting we discussed our progress in the fight
against terrorism. Nato continues to train Security Forces in afghanistan. We have started to train Security Officers in iraq and we support the u. S. Led coalition against isil but we agree on fair Burden Sharing in nato. This has been my top priority sense i took office. Europeans cannot ask the United States to commit to europes defense if they do not commit more themselves. And they are committing more. In 2016 after many years of cuts, we turned a corner. Defense spending increased in
europe and canada by 2. 8 or 10 billion. But we still have a Long Way To Go. All allies must speed up their efforts to spend 2 of gdp on defense. This will be an important point when allied leaders meet here in brussels in may. So mr. Vice president , thank you for our excellent discussion. We agree that nato is the most successful alliance in history because nato has been able to adapt and change when the world is changing. And we agree that we must continue to change to keep our people safe. U. S. Leadership remains indispensable so i really look forward to working with you and to welcoming President Trump in brussels in may. Thank you, mr. Secretarygeneral. It is a privilege to meet with
you today to bring greetings on behalf of President Donald Trump and to have the opportunity for a thorough and substantive discussion of the issues facing nato and our historic alliance. Its been a busy weekend for me, as i prepared to head back to the United States, im grateful. Im grateful to have had the opportunity to speak on saturday about our shared Security Issues at the Munich Security Conference and i appreciate your encouraging words about the message of the United States at that conference. I also was pleased to be able to hold a series of productive bilateral meetings with leaders from all across the world. I w it was also deeply moving for me and my family to return to daca, the very first Concentration Cam many and to be accompanied by a survivor by the name of abe
nora. I had first visited that camp in 1977. I wanted my daughter to see it. And we went there and walked through that historic memorial. Abe told me he arrived to daca as a 17yearold boy. He told me of the nightmarish existence that he experienced there but then he spoke words that resonate with our alliance, he said, and i quote Then The Americans came. Those words touched my heart and they speak volumes about the history and importance of the North Atlantic Alliance and of nato, and i thank you again for your hospitality. I was grateful to meet with the leadership of the European Union and i expressed the commitment of the United States to continue
our partnership with the eu. While we have our differences, i appreciated the cordial discussions we had. But on saturday i brought a message from President Trump. The message is the same one i bring to you today. It is my privilege here at the nato headquarters to express the strong sport of President Trump and the United States of america for nato and our transatlantic alliance. The United States has been a proud and faithful member of nato since 1949. The United States commitment to nato is clear. As we speak President Trump and our administration are developing plans to ensure that the Strongest Military in the world, in the United States, becomes stronger still. Let me assure you, mr. Secretary, in the United States were about the process
of strengthening our military and working with members of congress we intend to increase Military Funding to make it possible for us to provide for the common defense for the people of the United States but also meet the obligations we have with our Treaty Allies, including this historic treaty. America, therefore, i could say with confidence america will do our part but europes defense requires europes commitment as much as ours. At the wales summit in 2014, all 28 members of the Nato Alliance declared their attention to move towards a minimum security investment of 2 of their Gross Domestic Product on defense within a decade. As a candidate for office, President Trump actually called attention repeatedly to the fact that for too long, for too many, this burden has not been shared fairly among our nato allies and that must come to an end. At this moment the United States and only four other nato members
meet this basic standard. While we commend the few nations on track, the truth, is many others, including some of our largest allies, still lack a clear and credible path to meet this minimum goal. So let me say again what i said this last weekend in munich. The president of the United States and the American People expect our allies to keep their word and do more in our common offense. And the president expects Real Progress by the end of 2017. As secretary of Defense James Mattis said here in belgium a few days ago, if youre a nation that meets 2 , we need your help encouraging other nations to likewise. If you have a plan to get there, our alliance needs you to accelerate it. If you dont yet have a plan, these are my words, not his, get
one. It is time for actions, not words. And let me thank specifically the secretarygeneral for your o outspoken leadership on this issue. The world needs natos strength and leadership now more than ever before and we are grateful, mr. Secretarygeneral, that you join us, in calling for immediate and steady progress on all of our nato allies commitment to our common defense. The truth is the rise of adversaries new and old demands a strong response from this alliance. On the east nato has embarked by stationing four combat ready National Battalions in poland and the Baltic States. In the wake of of tth the effor redraw with regard to
ukraine, as i said before, our alliance will continue to hold Russia Accountable and demand they honor the minsk agreements begin big deescalating violence in ukraine. We urge both sides to abide by the ceasefire that began today and we pray for peace in ukraine. Be assured the United States as well as will continue to hold Russia Accountable, even as we search for new common ground, which President Trump firmly believes can be found. As i said in munich, though, natos continued leadership is also necessary in the fight against radical islamic terrorism. As a candidate a year ago, President Trump called on nato to evolved by expanding counterterrorism operations. Were encouraged to see nato is in the process of doing just
that. Its hard to speak of these issues in the abstract as i stand here in brussels. Now almost a year ago that three horrific Suicide Bombings occurred, 33 innocent victims, including four americans, hundreds more injured. I just want to assure the people of brussels and all the people of europe that your pain is our pain, your loss is our loss and its precisely why the president believes its essential that nato continue on this new path of evolving and expanding its mission to be more effective in counterterrorism. We work tirelessly with our nato allies to Securiprovide Securit our nation and yours. Our alliance needs to intensify efforts to cut o off Terrorist Funding and increase cyber
capabiliti capabilities. We must be, as i said before, we must be as dominant in the Digital World as we are in the physical world