hello, i'm wolf blitzer. it's 1:00 p.m. here in washington. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. donald trump now playing defense a little bit. responding to a series of rather unflattering articles of comments from world leaders. this morning, he was asked about british prime minister david cameron calling him stupid and wrong for proposing a ban on muslims. here's trump's response. >> i don't care. it doesn't matter. i mean, it's fine. >> if you're president and he's the british prime minister. >> it looks like we're not going to have a good relationship. i hope to have a good relationship but not willing to address the problem either. >> trump facing questions from friday's "washington post" article he pretended to be his

own representative back in the 1991. he denies the claim. there's a new york times article detailing his history with women for promoting them with business to allegedly belittling from the board room to backstage at beauty pageants. trump tweeted this response. the media's really on a witch hunt against me. false reporting and plenty of it. but we will prevail. going to talk on the third party run. former presidential contender mitt romney is behind efforts to recruit someone to run but no success so far. republican national committee chairman reince priebus tried to put an end to the speculation. >> it's a suicide mission. not just throwing out eight years of the white house but throwing out potentially generations in the supreme court. we could have up to three justices change over in the next eight years and this is a suicide mission. this is not right. >> and finally, there's the

presidential discussion. carson has been helping sort out the short list. he made waves when he said senator marco rubio, ted cruz, along with john kasich on the so called shortcut and said he wasn't being serious and said this to chris cuomo when asked if he was interested in being donald trump's running mate. >> this is something that is extremely undesirable to me. as is any government post, quite frankly. i believe that citizen statesmen can work from outside the government, and a capacity where they can contribute to the well being of the country. >> so are you done running for office? >> i have no intention of running for office. >> dr. carson also talked about the new york times article on trump's dealing with women and called it a hit piece. one of the women quoted in the article said she thinks the

"times" reporter lied to her and say they owe her an apology. we heard from the same reporters and here's all of that. >> i was never offended by anything that he had said. he was never anything more than a gentleman. a very, very good guy. we had good times together. we had, you know, he was very genuine. he was very gentlemanly. and if you were to read that article, you would think i felt otherwise and i don't think it's fair to me and to him, honestly. >> there's some key context of miss brewer lane went on to date donald trump for several months which is something we explain in the story but the big picture here is that we're talking about a pattern of behavior, the way donald trump interacts privately with women, the world knows how donald trump talks to women, about a woman, from a stage or a podium or twitter or the howard stern show. our goal was to pull back and say, how does he interact in the office with someone who he's

dating or trying to date? >> author also said they stand by their story in the new york times. our senior white house correspondent jim acosta is joining us. what is trump saying about all of this? >> as you might imagine, donald trump is crying foul and hitting back at "the new york times" that seized on his relationship with rowanne brewer lane as an example of his dealings with women and some of the sound you just played there and as you heard, she is now telling cnn and other news outlets her comments were misrepresented in the article and trump is now piling on. he sent out this tweet earlier today. we put it up on screen, with the coming forward today of the woman central to the failing new york times hit piece, we have exposed the article as a fraud. and wolf, knowing what we know about donald trump, this plays right into his attacks on the press out on the campaign trail. i've heard him countless time when he rails against the quote unquote dishonest immediamedia

likely see this as a way to bring him down. >> what do they say about dr. ben carson's about the vice presidential search? >> well, as you know, wolf, and you just mentioned this over the weekend. ben carson floated out some names considered as trump's vice president including sarah palin, which seems very unlikely, chris christie, marco rubio, john kasich and ted cruz. this morning, dr. carson said those were names he was just tossing out. but in talking to sources at the trump campaign today, i can tell you top advisors were telling me that carson was just guessing as to who is on trump's short list. he does not speak for the campaign, and corey lewandowski said mr. trump speaks for mr. trump. >> he certainly does. thank you for that. back to the trump interview on british television today. the presumptive republican nominee said he doesn't care about comments from prime minister david cameron who

criticized the proposed temporary ban on muslims calling it stupid and divisive. our diplomatic editor joining us live from london. trump was also asked about comments from the new mayor of london. sadiq khan. what's the latest on the back and forth, first of all, between trump and khan? >> reporter: well, what we've heard coming back from sadiq khan in the past is he feels donald trump is ignorant about muslims. what he said about banning muslims from the united states is shortsighted and wrong and this is what has drawn the reaction from donald trump. this is what donald trump said. >> well, one i wished him well. now, i don't care about him. it doesn't make difference. let's see how he does. let's see if he's a good mayor. >> are you offended? >> i am because he doesn't know me and never met me. i think they're very rude

statements and frankly, tell him i will remember those nasty statements. >> sadiq khan commented about what donald trump had to say this morning to the british public on this issue. he said, look, i don't want to get into a fistfight with this guy but he is wrong. he is ignorant about muslim issues. he is being divisive and dangerous and playing into the hands of the extremists by sort of creating this atmosphere of fear around the muslim community and he said, look, donald trump said i can come to the united states but what about my family? what about muslim businessmen? what about muslim families from britain who just want to go on holidays at disneyland and such? sadiq khan the mayor is not backing down from his position. interestingly, the prime minister's office today also didn't back down from what david cameron said, divisive, stupid, and wrong. they said he still holds those views and when the prime minister's office was asked,

well, how are you going to deal with this? would there be a phone call between two men? it's not planned. it's not ruled out. it's something to consider in the future. >> nic robertson. thank you. joining us, cnn political director. malia henderson and executive editor. all of these stories, do they have a long shelf life, if you will, or are people going to forget about "the washington post" story, the other day, the new york times story over the weekend, the interview now with the british television? >> i think, in the aggregate, they probably matter more than they do sort of as discreet stories. of course, you saw donald trump come out and bat away some of the things that were surfaced in the new york times story as is his way. he's very aggressive as he says at counterpunching. but i think they underscore part of the narrative that's developed so far about donald trump that you hear from some

republicans that he's erratic, he's not ready for prime time and hear about him being sexist and in the new york times article, i think that sort of underscores some of the criticisms. i think that's the problem. will people remember some of the comments from this new york times stories, particularly in november? probably not. but you'll certainly see democrats make this case around trump and women and sort of international relations and how they feel like he's unpredictable. >> the feud he's having with the new mayor of london, sadiq khan, muslim, of course, the british prime minister, david cameron, that's obviously a story, an important story but in terms of political impact here in the united states, how does that play? >> it probably doesn't have much impact on the race itself. and in fact, i would imagine for some of trump's core supporters, sort of em boldens them to sort of take it on the world stage, that whole telling it like it is thing that they've been attracted to do that globally is attractive to them as well but in terms of domestic politics, i

don't think they vote based on how world leaders are responding to a specific candidate. although i do think that to me, it's about the pieces of the republican establishment who continue to have reluctance to embrace trump, it's moments like this that speak to why they have been unable to do that because just as he is trying to bring more people on board and tell the party, this is going to be great, come with me, i brought all these people into the process, we are going to have a great victory here. then he gets into a distracting scuffle on the world stage and they think that distracts from the core mission of going after hillary clinton. there will continue to be a moment, as he continues to consolidate the party. these things bubble up and he has to readdress with exactly the folks he's trying to bring on board with all of these issues. >> republicans are still not on board the trump train. there's still this group out there hoping against hope to come up with a third party candidate. mitt romney is involved behind

the scenes, apparently, in trying to get someone to run against trump and hillary clinton for that matter. what about mitt romney? if he's so serious about this, why doesn't he just throw his hat in the ring? >> i think mitt romney has had his couple of runs in the white house. listen. i think that reince priebus is right. it's a suicide mission. there's no way a third party conservative is going to win. it will fracture the republican party. the only reason you would do it is to try to protect down ballot races. and say we're going to see the white house to hillary clinton for four years and try to come back and try to win it in 2020. that's all mitt romney is doing at this point but here's a problem with donald trump. to david's point as well, donald trump right now is continuing to do his own press. he's continuing to put out messages on twitter saying, oh, i don't care about the london mayor. i don't care about this. we talk about donald trump being presidential. this is not very presidential at this point to have himself putting out these messages but a

big city mayor. when's the last time bill de blasio was negotiating against david kcameron on anything? it's interesting that donald trump is in the situation and he is going to give pause and going to continue to stoke the fire about mitt romney or others trying to get a third party candidate but in the end, it's a suicide mission. >> much more to discuss. stand by, guys. ohio governor john kasich will join cnn's anderson cooper for an exclusive interview. it will be the first since dropping out of the republican race for the white house. ac 360. 8:00 p.m. eastern. president obama unleashing a new attack signaling he may be ready to get deeper into the complicated and controversial race for the white house. plus, hillary clinton telling voters there would definitely be a role for bill clinton in her white house if she wins in november. we asked her to clarify. we have an answer. stay with us.

sanders both out campaigning today. they're battling over 116 delegates in tomorrow's primaries. in oregon and kentucky. bernie sanders getting more encouragement today from donald trump. trump tweeting out this this morning. quote, bernie sanders is being treated very badly by the dems. the system is rigged against him. he should run as an independent. run, bernie, run. sanders saying he is in the race until tend but running as a democrat. hillary clinton telling voters that she'll lean on bill clinton for his help if elected president. >> my husband, who i'm going to put in charge of revitalizing the economy, because you know he knows how to do it. and especially in places like coal country and inner cities

and other parts of our country that have really been left out. >> hillary clinton was also asked about it again just a little while ago by cnn's dan merica. >> you said bill clinton would be in your cabinet? >> no. >> would not be in the cabinet. >> why are you laughing? >> she was thinking it was so crazy to put bill clinton in the candidate, so she just dismissed that but she knows that with her comments in coal country, that proved problematic in west virginia. she's campaigning in kentucky, which has been her similarly, economically, in pockets of it. bill clinton won twice in '92 and '96. she knows it's beneficial for her to mention and remind people about what he did for the economy when he was in office and she plans to use that.

later, nick meryl, the campaign spokesman said there's no formal role going forward. she means as an advisor. >> it's funny. you talk to people and every time i get into a cab and people want to talk about politics and if they're clinton fans, they talk about clinton, hillary clinton, they like her because she's experienced but mention bill clinton but say he's not necessarily a co-presidency but feel like bill clinton would be there helping, advising in formal roles. i think in some ways, there's a reality that people like the '90s. they like the 22 million jobs that bill clinton created during his two terms. i think that's why she's sort of name dropping her husband. >> he left office after two terms. a lot of us remember. his job approval number was very high in the upper 50s. 59% or along those lines which is impressive for a secretary president. >> no doubt. i mean, overall, for those eight years, it was high 50s and then

61%. his approval rating right now according to the latest bloomberg poll is somewhere around 55% to 56%. cnn had that roughly around there back in february. democrats like bill clinton and you know what? they know if they're voting for hillary clinton. it's a two for one deal. it's absolutely a two for one deal. he's great on the campaign trail. beloved by democrats. let's not pretend he doesn't have issues. the question is, can they get by those issues and if you're a democrat, sure. >> in this general election campaign, let's say she gets the democratic nomination. she doesn't yet but let's say she does. where's he most effective to get support for hillary clinton? >> i think he can try to speak to some of the voters that trump is appealing with white working class men. he's proven in his life to have a conversation with that group of voters that may be bringing some with the democrats back into the fold. that may be one place.

so you can imagine places like ohio and michigan, the upper midwest where donald trump is really going to target his path to 270 electoral votes. for hillary clinton and he'll probably be effective. for how much democrats like him, they're broadly across all parties and independents with the broad electorate pretty good. he's certainly seen in terms of favorable and unfavorable more likable than she is by the electorate more broadly a lot because he's an ex-president and not in the game anymore so he's a little bit above the fray but our colleague, david axelrod said he was the most effective surrogate for barack obama and he may not be as effective this time around because he's also personally invested. >> a lot remember al gore, a lot people think he made a major blunder by not leaving it more effective. >> that's right. he sort of put a wall between

himself and the bill clinton presidency thinking some of the scandals from the bill clinton presidency would taint him. he might have wanted to do something different. if you look at the way hillary clinton is using him in pennsylvania, he was there 13 times. i think in states like that, he can do her some good and with olders vo voters as well. overall, i think so. >> he's an amazing politician. you've got to admit it. >> back to 2012, what speech remembered? bill clinton. could you remember him doing that to hillary clinton, upstaging his wife? >> probably will. >> assuming she gets the nomination. not over with yet. weighing in on the presidential race, taking swipes at donald trump without mentioning his name. we have details. that's next.

it doesn't take a degree to figure out who president obama was talking about. the president took several swipes at donald trump. he ridiculed the plan for building a wall in mexico. >> the world is more interconnected than ever before and it's becoming more connected every day. building walls won't change that. in politics, and in life, ignorance is not a virtue. it's not cool to not know what

you're talking about. >> let's bring in our cnn political analyst. mari katherine ham, our senior writer for "the federalist" and the talk radio host, a donald trump supporter. john, i'll give you a chance to respond to the president's not so veiled attacks on donald trump. >> sure. well, you know he's arrived when you're called stupid. because that's the line of attack that democrats have been playing on republicans for years. dan coyle is stupid. george w. bush was stupid. gerald ford was stupid and i don't think it's ignorant. i think it's realism. because the world is in a dangerous place. it's not the world that the president learned about in world politics 101 at occidental college. if you're negotiating on behalf of the world's great super power, the united states, you have to make difficult decisions and do difficult things. so i think that this will, in a

strange way, play to donald trump's strengths because it will reinforce the fact that he is a realist and he is going to come in to the government as an outsider from the perspective of a businessman, not from a lifelong politician. >> angela, i will say donald trump is not shy about calling people stupid either. he's done that several time. crooked hillary, he likes to call her, but how is this going to play out after the convention? we saw saw is sort of modest compared to his role to energize the democratic base and make sure they vote for the nominee. hillary clinton. >> i think what's been amazing so far about this particular election, wolf, comparing donald trump's rise to president obama's rise, there's no way on earth that president obama would have been able to be this type of candidate. it's phenomenal to me because he's had to be a constitutional law professor and had to run circles around people on

national security, on so many things and yet donald trump doesn't have to know any of this. so he's right. he is an outside candidate, but i just wonder if this is really going to set in. i've been surprised so far to see how this has worked with the american electorate because i believe american voters are brilliant. so i'm just wondering when this is going to change over. and the other interesting thing is they say donald trump is going to become presidential and waiting anxiously for that day to occur. he's well on his way to get security briefings. we need to turn over a new leaf. >> after the convention, he formally gets a daily intelligence democratic nominee and get the daily intelligence briefing by the cia and that's coming up. mary katherine, i want to show you economic growth in the united states during the last four presidencies. you can see over there. ronald reagan and you can see george h.w. bush and barack obama and it was higher at one

point with reagan clearly. it dipped at the end of the first bush administration and went up during the bill clinton administration. it went really down at the very, very end of the george w. bush administration and collapsed right when president obama was taking office. he's brought it back. he's helped bring it back. if it's the economy, that's the major issue, how will that play going forward because trump and whoever the democratic nominee is? >> i think that's always a main part of the message. and especially now, and i think what the president recognized over the many years is that selling the economy as just a happy story is not the truth. there are people who are hurting out there and in some cases, stagnant wages and earnings taking a hit. donald trump tapped into that and said, the system is not working for all of us. and so i think that is the part that plays out in a bit that's

cultural with donald trump and a bit is economic. and i do want to say on the front with the commencement speech that president obama didn't just address donald trump's anti-intellectualism. he recognized on college campuses, there's an anti-intellectual scolding rutgers for not bringing condoleezza rice to speak. she's a former secretary of state. that's a form of anti-intellectual. they're shielding themselves from different viewpoints. >> let's talk about the picks and i want to get your thoughts. who would be the perfect pick for donald trump? >> i would go with bob gates or a general because in 1992, bill clinton changed the way vice presidents are picked. it used to be you wanted a balance. either regional balance or if you were a younger candidate, you wanted an older person that was on the ticket with you. in 1992, the world changed because bill clinton said, look, i'm going to pick a guy, i'm going to pick a candidate that's going to reinforce the product

i'm selling. a moderate democrat, young guys from the south and he picked al gore. i think donald trump should pick someone who's an outsider, yet maybe has a little bit of experience inside the government and that could be someone from the military where they aren't part of that washington capital establishment yet they are coming from the ranks of the government. so i think that would be a big help for him. >> bob gates over the weekend. didn't completely rule out the possibility that he didn't think it was likely that he would want to do it and pointed out he's 73 years old right now. i want you to listen. reince priebus speaking to hugh on his radio show asked about the vice presidential pick for trump. here's his thoughts. >> i kind of left those vp rumors go by the wayside and assume that the trump campaign understands that while he's an outsider and represents sort of the shake-up in washington, which you don't want to lose

because i think that is what people want out there across the country, you want someone who understands we've got to have a real seasoned veteran and i do agree with you. i think there has to be a degree of diversity on the ballot. whether it be diversity of gender or ethnic background, somehow or another, diversity is important. in some respect. >> what do you think? >> it sounds to me like he's saying there are so many gaps to fill. you could pick any number of people. >> would it be wise for him to pick a woman? >> i think that would probably be helpful to some extent. >> her name has been mentioned. >> i think it's worth a try to blunt some of the criticism on the front. the new york times stories and i think they continue to come. because donald trump, the truth is he wants to be donald trump all the time and to find somebody who's going to complement that is a trick and who maybe does know more about

policy would be the smartest thing. >> very quickly. perfect pick for hillary clinton? >> i think it has to be someone who speaks the same type of populism message as bernie sanders. the person who's doing that and getting donald trump. we'll see. >> thank you very much. coming up, very different story. we're following right now, isis. isis launching a series of deadly attacks as iraqi forces try to regain some territory. captured by the terror group. we're going live to the region. that's next. a heart attack doesn't care if you run everyday,

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from isis. follows a string of attacks that killed more than 115 people in just the past week. isis claimed responsibility for those terror attacks. one of the latest targets is a natural gas plant north of baghdad. iraqi officials say ten people were killed and two dozen others were injured. cnn senior international corresponde correspondent arwa damon. what is contributing to the latest isis surge of attacks inside iraq? >> reporter: wolf, over the last week or so, you had at least a hundred people killed. more, in fact, in a series of attacks that took place in the capital and around but what really focused on baghdad. there could be a couple of reasons for this. now the u.s. military will say that it is a by-product of isis coming under pressure in other parts of the country but could be because, remember, isis is an entity that can morph and adapt quickly. it could be isis trying to

perhaps change its tactics. by focusing more on the capital and focusing on vulnerable areas and key installations like that natural gas station. isis could be attempting to draw the iraqi security forces away from the various different front lines because at the end of the day, the iraqi government does have to ensure that while it is trying to drive isis out of key territory in the rest of the country, it cannot lose its grip. the security forces cannot lose their grip on baghdad. so that perhaps could be coming into play but it's also an indication of the sheer reality that despite the fact that isis is, yes, under pressure, and have lost some territory in iraq, there is that offensive you're mentioning in the key city of rutsba, a logistical isis supply route would then be cut off. it's still capable of carrying out attacks in the capital and also capable of carrying out complex sophisticated attacks,

wolf. >> arwa damon reporting for us. thank you. i want to talk about strategy in iraq. joining us is cnn military analyst, former army commanding general. thank you very much for joining us. some officials suggested the latest wave, more than 100 people killed, actually a sign of desperation on the part of isis. you buy that? >> i don't. it's partly they're trying to hit the iraqi government in many places. this plant they struck in taji was a pro pane plant. it's affecting the life of the normal iraqi and attacking shias in sodder city. it's the sectarian to divide the sunni and the shia. at the same time, preparing for an attack in syria and mosul.

isis is attempting to spread this out a little bit. let's pull the security forces back towards baghdad to continue operation in mosul. it's a very smart move on isis' part. >> in addition to air power, to where they've controlled for nearly two years. in addition, the u.s. air power, what other role will the u.s. play? because there are some 5,000 u.s. ground troops in iraq right now. >> it's got to be intelligence, wolf, and some resupply logistics. that's what is driving the operation. there was also massive tunnels found in and around moe zul sus. where the isis forces, that's critically important to the iraqi military. >> you think the iraqi military this year is going to be able to liberate mosul? because that was their publicly stated objective. >> it's very ambitious, wolf.

i don't believe it's going to happen this year. they may continue to try and tighten that noose around mosul, but in order to clear and secure that town, it's going to take a long time. >> it's been two years already. >> they're building up their force. isis has had defensive positions there. the iraqi government is feeding forces in and around mosul but they've got fights elsewhere. they're fighting in romadi and secure the area around baghdad. there are many areas they've got to provide forces and we haven't helped them recover from this contribution. >> the former prime minister. you think the relatively new prime minister is better? >> he's better and desperately trying to fix things but boy, he has real competition from the other shia myly silitia. they need a jefferson and adams but he's attempting to try to put it together.

>> malachi is a huge problem. >> mr. alabodi is trying to pull it together and mr. mallaki is trying to detract that. there's infighting in the baghdad government which is unfortunate. there's a military front and a civil front. and right now not doing well on either. >> another problem that's often mentioned is the iraqi military doesn't have the will to fight. >> i'm not sure i buy that. as they are -- >> they ran away as soon as isis terrorists came in, they abandoned u.s. weapons, armored personnel and simply ran away. >> they did that two years ago. what we see now is more of a nationalistic influence in the force. they have new leaders and this is what caused them for the most part to run away. poor leadership. no pay. non-support from the iraqi central government. they're starting to get those right now but truthfully, this

is a new army. this is an entirely new army and they've got a lot of growing pains to go through. >> thank you. we're going to continue to follow what's going on there in iraq but we're also going to take a look at what's going on in syria right now inside a town that isis has vowed to destroy. why the people there refuse to leave and what they're doing to fight back. our fred pleitgen with a close look at the syrian christian community. you do all this research on

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that can camp out in between our teeth, if we'll let it. use gum® brand. soft-picks®. proxabrush® cleaners. flossers and dental floss. gum® brand. in war torn syria, a kris yan community is rebillings, at least trying after being occupied by al qaeda fighters. residents fear for their lives after jihadist groups threatened to wipe them out. fred pleitgen has this exclusive report. >> reporter: jesus loves you no matter how you feel these children sing in syria's most famous christian town. it was occupied by islamic militants for six months, several townspeople are still missing. i want things to be better like they were before and for the kidnapped people to come back, this 7-year-old gabrielle la says. similar words from this 8-year-old. i want malula to be better and

more beautiful than it used to be, she says. shocking the reaction when i ask how many of them have had to flee their homes. islamist rebels led by al qaeda's wing in syria invaded in late 2013. this video but a group allegedly shows a suicide blast that took out the checkpoint to the village. the rebels kidnapped 12 nuns from a covenant. more than 12 months of intense battles to oust them. scars remain. this is the convent and shrine. a warning to the community. while some buildings have been restored, others are exactly like this, completely destroyed and mostly burned out. of course, many people who lived in this town ask themselves whether christianity still has a future here in syria. syria is home to one of the oldest christian communities in

the world. this is the last place where the arr aramaic that jesus spoke is still in use. this member of the city council shows me just some of the priceless items looted or destroyed. >> they stole it and then they fired the other. the new one, they fire it. >> they burned it? >> burn it. >> reporter: as we left, a christian song was playing on a loudspeaker system in the entire town. a sign of defiance from a christian community that hopes the children learning about their long heritage in syria will have a future in the land of their sen tancestors. >> fred is joining live from damascus. how serious is the threat against the christian communities remaining inside

syria? >> reporter: it certainly is very serious, wolf of. isis has essentially told the christians here in syria they have three options. convert to islam, leave syria or be killed. that's the three things on the table for them. you have other rebel groups in syria accusing the christians of siding with the syrian government but the fact of the matter is most christians aren't siding with any side. they simply want to be left alone and they do see the old status quo as the best chance for sur vooifl. we were in that ancient christian community, they're defiant but this is one of the last places in the world they speak the ancient aramaic of jesus christ. they taught the language of jesus christ that institute had to close because the head fled. so certainly the christian community here is already taking

some hits, feeling the heat, especially from islamist groups. right now they say they want to be defiant and not easy for this very ancient religion in the land, wolf. >> can they get out? we know that hundreds of thousands of christians whether this iraq, syria, they fled. what about those who remain right now? what are the prospects of them fleeing, if you will? >> reporter: well, you know, it's difficult. some of them certainly have already fled and some have fled their ancestral homeland like maaloula and some come here to damascus and some have fled the country. there are some organizations helping especially christians to get out of syria and get them to places line europe or like the u.s. but certainly it's difficult an you know if you look at the christian community here, wolf, they don't feel like they're guests in the land but they say they're an integral part of what makes syria what it is and so many of them don't want to leave at this point in time and certainly the prospects

are dimmer with every day of the conflict especially since it doesn't seem to be an end in sight. >> i think you are right. unfortunately. fred pleitgen from damascus, thanks so much, fred. a group of american heroes honored today by president obama at the white house. hear what he had to say about these medal of vapor recipients. introducing otezla, apremilast. otezla is not an injection, or a cream. it's a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. some people who took otezla saw 75% clearer skin after 4 months. and otezla's prescribing information has no requirement for routine lab monitoring. don't take otezla if you are allergic to any of its ingredients. otezla may increase the risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts, or if these feelings develop.

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president obama presiding over the me ca dal of valor ceremony today. >> not everyone will wear the medal that we give today. but every day so many of our public safety officers wear a badge of honor. the men and women who run toward

danger remind us with your courage and humility what the highest form of citizenship looks like. >> one of the medals presented posthumously to the grandmother of a philadelphia police officer robert wilson who was killed in the line of duty. the news continues next on cnn. wolf, thank you so much. great to be with you on this monday. i'm brooke baldwin. you are watching cnn. we begin today with donald trump blasting a front page story in "the new york times" calling the piece about how he treats women a fraud. the title of this piece "crossing the line." how donald trump behaved with women in private and now one of the woman who's profiled in the piece says that it's "the new york times" that crossed the line misleading her on how she would be portrayed. "the times" says the reporters