good morning, i'm carol costello, live at the republican national convention in cleveland, ohio. thank you for joining me this morning. the republic national convention kicks off in cleveland as the nation faces another senseless act of violence. police across the country are on edge, after three officers were killed and three others wound the in baton rouge, louisiana. the theme at the convention today here in cleveland, make america safe again. we are on the ground, in louisiana, in ohio, we're covering all the angles for you this morning. but let's start in baton rouge. that's where fredricka whitfield is this morning. hi, fred. >> reporter: good morning, to you, carol. this is very complicated here in baton rouge. the community still reeling, the police community along with the

citizens here, still feeling very pained about what happened yesterday. the local newspaper, the advocate, really says it all. this is how people feel. this was senseless. prominently displayed the three police officers killed, brad garafol, montrel jackson, their service with the baton rouge police community, one year to ten years. it was just yesterday morning, just down the street on this busy highway here, airline highway, where the suspect was seen carrying a long armed rifle. now we now, an ar-15, witnesses called in, police responded. six officers hit. three were killed. this community is trying to resume to some sort of normalcy here. we heard from baton rouge police yesterday, saying already, police had felt depleted over the last 12 to 14 days, after the police involved shooting of alton sterling. and now this.

you can hear the road behind me, people are trying to get back to some normalcy about a mile and a half away at the be-quick, that's where the shooting took plalg place. that's where boris sanchez is. boris, they're trying to resume to normalcy, but people are trying by there, figuring out how this happened, what led up to the events, and if we know anything more about the shooter. >> reporter: still, so many questions to be answered fredricka. it is interesting. you mentioned trying to return to anymonormalcy. our crew arrived in baton rouge a week ago to cover protests, and at the time, we were stationed where you are now. there were barricades outside. s.w.a.t. teams in full gear, ready for anything. and then as the week progressed, things seemed to kind of slow down and reach a more even keel. everything culminating with the funeral with alton sterling on

friday. a moment where you felt the city had turned the corner. and then obviously this happened yesterday. as you said, unfolding right behind me, at the be-quick convenience store and all the businesses around here. these police officers going after this gunman, even as he targeted them. >> fun fire. officer down. got a city officer down. >> reporter: three officers ambushed and gunned down in baton rouge sunday morning, with three officers wounded. at 8:40 a.m., officers spotting a man dressed in black, wearing a mask, and holding an ar-15 semi-automatic rifle near a convenience store. a law enforcement force says the killer, 29-year-old gal vin long, a former marine was intentionally trying to lure in police. two minutes later, gunshots rang

out. the killer, out gunning the officers at the scene. and the hail of bullets, three of them, lost their lives. 41-year-old matthew gerald, montrel jackson and 45-year-old brad garafo. they ended the ram pain by shooting the gunman. >> don't think this can't happen in your city. we never thought this could happen in baton rouge, but it has. >> reporter: the attack, ten days after five officers were killed in the dallas ambush by another former military veteran. 25-year-old micah johnson, gunning down officers protecting a peaceful protest, to the police killings of alton sterling and philando castile. >> we need prayers, we're mourning like dallas. my two-partners, i was in the hospital with them, i saw first hand the grief on their face as they were trying to talk to the families. this has got to stop.

>> reporter: law enforcement tells cnn that the baton rouge killer rented a home from his car in kansas city, stopping in dallas, where he shot this video on his cell phone before carrying out the attack. the five-year veteran was discharged as a sergeant and spent about six months in iraq. he tweeted about the dallas killer, calling him, quote, one of us. a youtube video urging viewers. >> you've got to fight back. >> tensions, high in baton rouge since alton sterling's death two weeks ago. sterling's aunt, pleading for peace. >> these people call families, they tell them their daddies and mama is not coming home no more. i know how they feel. because i got the same phone call. stop this killing. stop this killing. >> reporter: one of the slain baton rouge officers posted this plea on facebook, after the dallas ambush, quote, please don't late hate infect your heart, montrel jackson wrote. if you see me or want a hug or

want to say a prayer, i got you. president obama yet again, forced to address a mass killing. >> we need to temper our words and open our hearts, all of us. >> until we come together in this madness continues, we will surely perish as a people. >> reporter: and though the scene is clear here now, this investigation is still very much ongoing. we know officials were interviewing people until 1:00 a.m. this morning. no charges have been filed yet. no arrests have been made. it is very important to point out, fred, there is one sheriff's deputy in critical condition. nicholas tullier, we're told is fighting for his life today. >> all right, prayers being said for him and his family. boris, thank you so much. just down the street. i want to bring in louisiana congressman, garret graves. good to see you. >> good to see you. >> the community is very much in deep pain. you see it in different ways,

whether it is going to the convenient store and the long faces, i only arrived here yesterday. we saw a police officers who were hugging each other, embracing each other. i talked to an officer who had tears in his eyes what are you hearing from family members from the officers shrilain. >> what an awful tragedy this is, how disgusting it is. this does not represent our community. we have been through hurricane katrina, the nation's worst oil spill. we've been through floods. this is one of those communities that would give their shirt off their back and to see this type of reaction to the shooting, it just, it is not indicative of this community, and i think the fact that you saw someone come in from out of state to do this, these people wouldn't do this. >> it is a close-knit community. people feel like this is an assault on that kind of comfort

that they felt here. >> this is very close to home. look, this isn't just three deaths. this is three fathers, three husbands. three neighbors, three community members, three courageous law enforcement officers. this was an assault on our community. >> you were supposed to be on your way to cleveland for the republic national convention. you decided you need to stay here. what do you say to the community here, police community, the citizens here about what is next. >> look, shame on us if we do not thoroughly investigate this and extract every single lesson learned. yes, this happened in baton rouge yesterday. there is nothing that will stop this from happening in new york city, lincoln, los angeles, california, where ever. we're going to understand what happened over the last several days with the shooter, what has he been doing, who has he been talking to.

did he receive support. where did he get radicalized. we have to make sure we understand everything that happened and to try to prevent it from happening again. underlying things in the community that need to be addressed, and the alton sterling served as a catalyst. >> have you learned if he had any interaction with anyone here in baton rouge, whether he stayed here for a period of days before this happened, whether he sought any sort of refuge here? >> well, look, it appears from initial reports he did spend a number of days here. law enforcement tracked him from missouri to dallas, texas and then to baton rouge. they're trying to piece that together and it is important for them to let them do their investigation and see what type of evidence they're able to draw from their investigation. >> congressman, appreciate it. >> thank you. so carol, of course, the wound is very much open here. of course, people are praying for the family members of the three police officers that were

killed here. and members of the baton rouge police department as well as the sheriff's office, and of course, prayers are still being said for those who continue to fight for their lives in the hospital. carol. >> all right, fredricka whitfield, we'll get back to you. thank you so much. all of this, social media left by the gunman and a facebook post by one of the officers killed. with me to talk about this, former sheriff, bob reid. welcome, bob. >> thank you. >> one of the officers killed, he posted something on his facebook on july 8th. montrel jackson. this is what he said. i swear to god, i love this city, but i wonder if the city loves me. in uniform, i get nasty hateful looks. out of uniform, some consider me a threat. i've experienced so much in my short life, and these last three days have tested me to the core. of course, he was talking about what happened in dallas. he is an african-american man. so you can see that there is a

divide in this country. it is even being felt by police officers, who work everyday to save lives. >> they do. and you know, budget cuts throughout the nation has stopped the community policing initiative that really brought law enforcement officers back to the communities where we can walk the streets and we can talk to people and most police departments are no so understaffed, and after this, they're going to be even more understaffed when you're starting to double up cars, long times on call, call responses. >> but do you understand what this officer was trying to say? >> yes, yes. >> explain that to us. >> well, he is saying that, you know, part of being a policeman is being part of the community. wanting to be, you go into a store, you go into a grocery store and people greet you and say hello. and what he was experiencing, not only through what was happening in dallas, but what obviously what happened in baton rouge, he is experiencing the negative side to people. i mean, we get it.

if you're in this profession, you can't be thin-skinned, but at the end of the day, it is nice to be thanked, nice to have people look at you and smile, but when they're concerned about the relationship between policemen and the community, if that person is suspect of you, all of that niceness goes away. i can understand exactly what he is saying. >> so do you agree that there is a problem in some communities between police and the community? there is a lack of trust there? is that a true -- >> yes. it is a true statement. it is accurate. and i think it has gotten more over the years where i said where we no longer are involved inasmuch community policing as we should be. and that builds distrust that they're not out of the cars, they're not out there talking to the public. some police departments have more resources than others, and they have a good community policing program. it would be interesting to see, you know thoerks have a really

ramped up program and those that don't and the difference in the environment, the police environment. >> distrust is there and most americans are saying you know what, the police need protection now. how do we protect our police. we can send them out in dtandem but sometimes that doesn't work. what's the answer? you're not going to bridge the trust gap in a day or a month or a week, right. >> you're not. and look at the resources that we're going to be putting on small departments, nationwide. i can see it already here in the city of cleveland, where they were going to be patrolling with two officers and now they're doing two and three and four. granted, we have the luxury of having a lot of policemen here, so we can do that. but the policing initiative all through america is going to be tested over the next couple of months, where you know, all of these resources will have to be poured into, putting more officers on the street. and we are wr do they get the

resources when many are stretched thin. it takes money. >> thanks for stopping by. appreciate it. >> thank you. still to come in the "newsroom," today's them, make america safe again. the lineup full of celebs and melania. what you can expected to, next. the earth needed to find a new waytury, to keep up with the data from over 30 billion connected devices.

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which is why moments lost to headaches are moments gained with excedrin. [heartbeat] actors, lawmakers and melania trump, kicking off in cleveland, in less than four hours, they'll begin taking the strang stage. with me now, phil mattingly with a run down with what we can expect today. >> you mentioned melania, she'll be the headliner.

trump family, trying to give a fuller picture, it may seem bombastic, but the real focus of today is security. you're going to hear it in speaker after speak he. joni ernst, a military officer herself, when it comes to lieutenant michael flynn, top intelligence official, he'll be speaking as well. you look across the celebrities that will be there, all of them will be talking about security. whether or not that's in their bailiwick or not. one thing you need to note, as you look throughout the course of the convention, this is an area where trump aides feel like trump can make a move, not just internation internationally, but inside the country. they sense uneasiness, a populous that is distracted, unwilling to grasp maybe what is

being laid out and they feel like donald trump can take advantage of that. they're not hiding it any more, a law and order candidacy, back to 1968, richard nixon perhaps, openly comparing it to that right now. that's what you're going hear a lot of today and throughout the convention. >> all right, phil, thanks so much. so safety was a key talking point for donald trump last night. claiming he actually was on "60 minutes" last night. he was with mike pence, his new running mate and said the world is spinning out of control. listen. >> we need toughness. we need strength. obama is weak. hillary is weak. and part of it is that a big part of it, we need law and order. we need strong borders. our world is spinning out of control. our country is spinning out of country. that's what i think about, and i'll stop that. >> with me now is scottie nel hughes at wright alerts.com, and

ryan. welcome to both of you. ryan, i'll start with you. so you heard what mr. trump says. he says the world is spinning out of control. is that what americans need to hear at the moment? >> i mean, look, there is a lot of chaos right now, and people are on edge. they're on edge because of what is going on internationally and domestically. and he is trying to take advantage of that obviously. what i'll be looking for is does he get specific, right. a lot of the trump candidacy has been lacking in details, and i think is this is a big opportunity for the trump campaign to tell the american people specifically what he would do. what is his view of race relations in america. how would he, when he talks about law and order, what changes would he make to make the country safer. on foreign policy, when he is talking about isis. last night on "60 minutes" he was vague about boots on the

ground. what would his policy be to stamp out isis, how would be different from the obama administration. those are things, after a year of campaigning, a year of sort of symbolism and slogans, this is the opportunity for him to finally -- >> i did want to hear more detail, right, especially about how mr. trump used race relations in this country, because clearly we have a problem right now. president obama spoke about the police shootings in baton rouge, and donald trump said it was a weak speech, right. he tweeted that the president doesn't have a clue. he said our country is a divided crime scene, and it will only get worst. he went on fox news this morning, and he was responding to the cleveland police union head, saying that president obama had blood on his hands, and donald trump said that there was something strange about president obama's body language. i would like our viewers to listen to that. >> the president sometimes the words are okay, but you just

look at the body language. there is something going on. look, there is something going on. the words are not -- >> what does that mean, there is something going on? >> there is bad feeling, a lot of bad feeling about him. i see it too. there is a lot of bad feeling about him. we have a country that is -- >> you know -- >> we have a country that has not been like this since i can remember it. >> so there is something going on, scottie. what's going on? >> you have to look at it. look at the past. president obama teared up in an emotional speech when he talked about treyvon martin, some of the victims of police brutality. yet when it comes down to when he is talking, going goeagainste officers, it is straightforward, diplomatic speech. you don't see the same emotion. think that's what he is probably implying. we are a divided country right now. >> i just want to concentrate on what he said before we get into

other things. you say mr. trump wanted president obama to show more emotion when he talked about these dead police officers. >> you're sitting there and saying -- the thing is if, you notice can you name every police officer that has passed away in the past with two weeks because of this. we can name the victims in minnesota and now in baton rouge. we can name them. president obama constantly says those names but he doesn't say the names of the police officers over and over again. >> the police officers, the shootings just happened. >> he still gave a press conference on it. the shootings happened in baton rouge and he said the name over and again so people can remember. we need to remember, their memory, just as much, if not more. >> i'm just asking. is the idea what trump saying that the president doesn't have the same sympathies for the police officers who were shot as he does for the african-american whose were shot by the white police officers? >> that's a judgment up to

president obama. we need to seem -- >> it seemed like that is what he was suggesting. >> you talk about the emotion. we've seen him tear up. we've seen him cry at the deaths of what they consider to be police brutality. >> you were saying too the president doesn't care as much that police officers are being killed. >> i would never sit there and say that the president of the united states regardless of what party doesn't care. i think he cares about the law enforcement. he does not like the targeting going on. the divide, when he gives the press conferences. >> i think that's really unfair. you are accusing the president, it seems you're suggesting this is what trump is saying, because it is hard to decipher sometimes, you're cuesing the president of not caring as much. >> i said when you sit there and look at the presentation and talking about body language, there is a distinct difference between the two. there a tears in eyes, and a canned response the other way. it is not -- i'm not saying he is not. what his public perception is,

constantly saying the names of the victims on both sides, you don't hear it as much. you don't hear it in other -- >> i want to get ryan's take what do you think donald trump meant by the president's body language? >> look, i've been covering him long enough when he starts to go into that gray area and he starts to raise questions, but doesn't quite specifically say what he means. he means something. scottie i think is helping us here decipher it a little bit and it sounds like you're saying, someone who is an expert on trump too, is that he has less sympathies for dead police officers than the dead victims of the police officers. i think that -- i'm not a body language expert, but i don't think watching president obama's body language, that that's my take away from his various press conferences. >> that's the best part, carol. that's what mr. trump is good for. he is letting you make the decision. he is not telling you to think. >> to me, it is edging into conspiracy thinking. >> no, not at all.

you do see the president did meet with, you know, has brought in black lives matter, brought the leadership into it. >> he talks to law enforcement all the time. >> but you're looking at these groups that are not out there, they're condemning it, but only in a press release. >> what do think he should do? >> what would the president in your mind, what should the president do to -- i mean, to correct his body language? >> it is more than words right now. our law enforcement needs to feel like they're being backed up by the administration, whether it is by stopping this -- >> so had the president said the office officers' names. >> when he is on the phone with the folks in dallas immediately after the incident, right, he was in communication with the governor. >> and but he also, you know, he has -- he invited the son of baton rouge, he invited the son up to the white house. did he invite the whichildren o

the police officers as well, no. >> i would be very surprised -- >> we live at a pr type world. it needs be to across the board if he wants to restore this 31 police officers have been shot, up 94%. there is something going on in this country in 2016. >> i have to leave it there. thanks to both you of. still to come in the "newsroom," ohio gun owners can carry their guns, and one head wants to change that during the convention. the head of the union tells me why, next. big day? ah, the usual. moved some new cars. hauled a bunch of steel. kept the supermarket shelves stocked.

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and good morning, everyone. i'm carol costello, live in cleveland, ohio. look how beautiful the arena looks. all set for a party at the republic national convention. soon, this will be chalkfall of republicans. later tonight, melania trump will talk about her husband, who is a family man. it will be interesting to hear from that. looming large over the rnc, the three officers gunned down in baton rouge. 32-year-old montrel jackson, 41-year-old matthew gerald, and 45-year-old brat garafola, another officer still fighting for his life in the hospital this morning. police say the lawmen were shot by gavin law, who drove from kansas city, missouri. he attracted attention in baton rouge by walking along a highway while carrying an ar-15 rifle.

he opened fire, killing three officers and wounding three more before he was killed. the recent police involved shootings have federal and city officials keeping a close on security. the city's police union in ohio, calling on the ohio governor, john kasich to temporarily suspend the open carry law. the governor's response, ohio governors do not have the power to arbitrarily suspend constitutional rights or state laws as suggested. so let's get right to ryan young, at cleveland public square, where officials are bracing for protests today. there could be thousands and thousands of people there later this morning. ryan, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, and you think about all those protesters coming here to, you know, exercise their right. but you have to think about the officers, not only the once in baton rouge, but in dallas, who were protecting the protesters and ended up being shot you can understand why the officers are concerned about the open carry

law and people could show up and carry weapons. as you can see, the scene here. when you're in downtown cleveland, you see all kinds of barricades, this is where those protesters can show up and gather and make the mile walk to downtown cleveland. you see the officers blocking the route right now. there is a large machine, that's how they clear snow way back there, they're using that to block the roads. this is all part of the plan. they've spent some $40 million plus dollars to make sure everyone stays safe and the folks who have been planning this for months have been concerned about. we talked to one protester who said they wanted to be here to make sure her voice was heard. >> i'm here, she said give me your poor, your masses. we're here about talking with immigrants, and brickingbringin of love, which trump has not done. >> reporter: so you see officers

here to protect the protesters. no mace, but the idea the protesters could walk with pistols on their side. you can understand why officers who have seen what happened across the country would be worried about what they could encounter over the next 48 hours or so, as people are streaming into the city to exercise their right to protest. something that we'll all be watching, carol. >> all right, ryan young reporting live from cleveland square. donald trump, if elected, he and running mate will put an end to the recent violence. >> we are the law and order candidates. we're the law and order party. we're going to change things around. there is going to be respect again for law and order. >> but when it comes to the republican convention, one of my next guests wants action right now. his name is steven loomis. the largest police union, he is

the man calling on governor john kasich to temrarily suspend the state's open carry laws during the convention. i'm also joined by jim irvine, board president of the buckeye firearms association, calls the idea shocking and outrageous. welcome to both of you. steven, i'll start with you. >> yes. >> why do you think it is important that the open carry law be suspended during the convention? >> it is very important only during the convention. we're calling on governor kasich to issue declared emergency, given the events, the tragic events and the murders of police officers across the country right now. we have -- >> why would having -- why would seeing a protester with a gun slung over his shoulder, why would than dangerous for police? >> we don't know who that person is or their intention. it is an unfortunate stage in our history.

my grandmother could come in here with an ar-15 and there will be six police officers watching her, when they should be watching for other things, how to protect us and the people here. we're not trying to be unreasonable here. we're having for a three-day ban on the state law for the open carry. and that makes sense. it is irresponsible for anybody to come down here with an open carry. it is not outrageous. it is not any of the other things. >> so jim, why is that so outrageous? a three-day temporary ban to ohio's open carry law? just around the convention here. >> because if you can do it for the convention, we can do it for the cavs parade, we can do it when the indians win the world series, on the fourth of july. who sets the standards. we have a rule of law. what is outrageous -- >> you're saying it is on a whim. it comes after three police officers were gunned down. >> eight. >> if you count dallas. >> well, yeah, but look at

those. we need to be focusing not on the people who are open carrying a firearm who are visible who we can watch and see and monitor. we need to focus on the guy hiding in the parking garage picking off the copsment their lives are in danger this week. i'm in agreement on that. they've got a it you have job. we need to focus on the real threat. having the law enforcement officers calling for a suspension of the law isn't going to help the law-abiding. >> so steven, when jim says we should focus on the guys hiding in parking garages. >> how do we know the difference. again, reality, this is not an attack on the second amendment. we're constitutionalists, police officers are. we love and support and we defend with our lives, as was proven in dallas. jim knows very well i went down and testified, i was one of the only police unions to behalf on the ccw laws that we currently have in place here in ohio. so it has nothing to do with anything other than being common

sense. giving us a break. make our jobs a little easier for the three-day period of time. if that's unreasonable to anybody, then i don't really care. you know, i'm sorry. we don't want anybody getting hurt. >> jim, your thoughts? i mean, steven said, you know, it is common sense. help us out. give us a break. we just lost, you know, we just lost three of our brothers. >> and our hearts go out to them and their families. it is tragic what's going on in our country right now. and steve and i have known each other for probably 15 years. we do agree the vast majority of the time. i strongly disagree with him on this. agree it would make their jobs easier, but the purpose of law is not to make their jobs easier. it is to uphold the law. >> it is not easier. it is safer, jim. i'm not asking for safe -- i'm asking for -- >> 45 -- defend the case and all this stuff, it will be in philadelphia too. suspending the constitution is

not what this country is about. especially in inauguration for the presidential candidates for either party. we are a nation of laws. not of men. >> jim, let me ask you this question. do you -- would you ask people who have weapons not to bring them around the convention today? is that a good idea? >> look, the convention, the center is controlled by the secret service. there is no open carry, there is no firearms in there at all. we've been strong supporters of the secret service on ban on all weapons inside the arena. that's their prerogative. the secret service is -- >> would you bring your weapon to near the convention today? >> i absolutely, if i was coming, i would have it to get in and out. the secret service aren't protecting me there. i've got to get to my car to inside the lot. that's the dangerous area for the citizens. we have to be unprotected. that's where law enforcement can

protect us. >>o jim says he wouldn't feel safe. >> that'sridiculous. if you don't feel safe walking in cleveland with 3,000 uniformed police officers down here, then i feel sorry for you. >> steve -- >> the fact of the matter is, i'm a police officer, the city of cleveland -- >> look, i'm not recommending -- i don't want to -- >> i don't have my gun on right -- jim, i don't have my gun on right now, because three blocks away from where we sit, the secret service stopped me and put it in a lock box. the fact of the matter is, it is not just inside the convention. it is a seven block radius of in and around the convention. the hard zone, where guns are not put -- put an ar-15 on your back and try to come to the heart zone down here and see what happens when the secret service comes out. we're asking for common sense. to prevail in this, and not the politics and not your political agenda. and anything else that's going on here. i want everybody to be as safe as possible. i want them to go home and i want my administers to be as

safe as possible. this is a very, very trying time in the history of our country for law enforcement right now. so give us a break and give us a hand, and somebody come to some common sense and get rid of these open carries, just for a three-day period of time. come back august 1st, with 1,000 people with open carries and we'll welcome you with open arms. that's not what we're talking about here. >> i have to leave it there. steven, jim, i appreciate it. still to dom in the "newsroom," the biggest challenge, uniting the republican party, even as racial divisions deepen across the country. when heartburn comes creeping up on you. fight back with relief so smooth and fast. tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue. and neutralizes stomach acid at the source. tum-tum-tum-tum-tums smoothies, only from tums. dogs - sure can be messy. but with nexgard, their flea and tick killer doesn't have to be. nexgard, the vet's #1 choice for dogs, is a delicious, beef-flavored chew

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vander plat, executive president of the family leader. welcome. >> thank you. >> nice to have you here. so melania trump will speak tonight, bob. she'll talk about her husband and how he is a family man. how important will her message be to voters. >> very important. every time i've talked about donald, he has raved about melania. people i've visited with, gotten to know her, say she is one of the sweetest people they've ever met. i met her briefly in las vegas, i think is she a great asset for him. so i think this is one that he is going to want to put out front and center, to say here would be your potential first lady. >> i'm from northeast ohio, i wanted to ask you, when you think of the trumps, i mean, blue collar ohio, it is not usually attractive, you know. they're fralashy, beautiful, fr

new york. it is antithetical. >> i don't know that it is in that she is an immigrant from eastern europe, a few blocks from we're sitting, a lot of slvacss and polls, donald trump doesn't appeal to the rich it seems in the public who is gr h gravitating is the working class guy. out there on the construction site. i've heard it said before, he's not the billionaire with the sweater tied around his neck, you know, with white pants on, you know, ruling the minions so to speak, but he appeals to the blue collar guy and i think cleveland will come out, the rest of the nation, sees that, these are the people moving in his direction. >> at this time, the nation is

very much looking for someone who can unite us 'cause we're very divided now. some of the things donald trump has said in light of what happened in baton rouge disturbs some people because they're not unifying remarks. for example, this morning on "fox ab friends," donald trump was addressing something that the cleveland police union had said about how president obama had blood on his hands when it came to these police shootings or the shootings on police officers. i'd like you to listen to what donald trump said about president obama's body language. >> i watched the president, and sometimes the words are okay but you just look at the body language, there's something going on. look, there's something going on. and the words are not off be okay, by the way -- >> what does that mean there's something going on? >> there's just bad feeling. a lot of bad feeling about him. i see it too. a lot of bad feeling about him. we have a country that -- >> you know --

>> -- we have a country that has not been like this since i can remember it. >> since you're both christians, i'd like it to come from that christian perspective. bob, what do you suppose mr. trump meant by that? >> i'm not sure but what i can say is i think thursdaynight's going to be a key speech for donald trump because he has tapped into the emotion of the american people saying we want change. he is right. this country's never been like this. the american people want change. so thursday night, he has to cast his vision. now you can see me as president of the united states. as a trusted leader leading during this time of turmoil. >> is that something a president would say? >> that's something he needs to -- that's some bridge he needs to cross. it's going to be a key speech for him. every debate moving forward and things like this moving forward. he needs to show he's the leader. >> at some point -- let me ask you first, what do you think he meant? >> what i believe is there --

even with the body language comment, there's this reluctance for a firm rebuke of this anti-cop sentiment. if you don't have order, if you don't have someone that's going to police, then we don't have a society and there hasn't been a sharp firm rebuke from the white house to say we need to stop this. this is insanity we're on right now. it's because the incompetence is gasoline and we're throwing matches on it. the stats say the numbers have come down with respect to what's going on with this but when you see clip after clip of black folks, latino folks seemingly on the opposite side of the cops and you stir this up and to not have anything out of the white house but you invite groups like black lives matter in there, it endorses -- >> you're blaming black lives matter -- >> i don't know if i'm blaming them, but i'm saying the white

house needs to say something in that if black lives matter is stirring this, they need to be the ones to come out and say we categorically, you know, we are not for people shooting cops and this violence stirring our nation now. >> i think the president has come out -- >> he was speaking out against the violence but not necessarily the group. he said, wish i was as organized at your age as you guys are. >> so the answer is repudiate groups like black lives matter? >> what james is saying is correct. what this country wants is clarity. what is right and what is wrong. this is absolutely wrong about what's going on against the cops today and what trump is saying, i'm going to bring law and order when i get into the white house. >> what about unjustified shootings on african-americans? >> both of those things are wrong. that's where the clarity needs to come in. >> -- the clarity if both things are true? >> you can have clarity.

both things are absolutely wrong. you don't unleash unwarranted warfare against the cops trying to protect us and i think that's what trump is bringing, saying, i will bring clarity, we will have law and order in this country. >> i have to leave it there. pastor james, bob, thank you for stopping by. the next hour of "cnn newsroom" after a break. the earth needed to find a new waytury, to keep up with the data from over 30 billion connected devices. just 30 billion? a bold group of researchers and computer scientists in silicon valley, had a breakthrough they called... the machine. it changed computing forever. and it's been part of every new technology for the last 250 years. everything? everything! this year, hewlett packard enterprise will preview the machine and accelerate the future.

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we'll get back to our coverage from the republican national convention but we want to get to the situation in france now. this morning in nice, a moment of silence for the 84 victims of thursday's terror attack. thousands gathered, among them, the french prime minister who was greeted by a crowd -- a chorus of boos from the crowd. cnn's will ripley is live in nice with more for you, hi, will. >> hi, carol. this country is angry and demanding justice not only from the government but they're also furious with the attacker. see this pile of trash and rocks. people have been walking by spitting, showing the hatred they feel for the man, mohamed bouhlel, who took 84 lives and injured more than 200 others, 8 of 85 in the hospital, 18 doctors say on the verge of life and death. even in one of most beautiful sections of the french riviera.

faces here are somber. people were here for that moment of silence earlier, observed all across france. people are seeing these. carol, these are flowers and tributes to all of the people who died in every spot where somebody died, these spontaneous memorials. this country is still grieving as the third and final day of the national period of mourning continues. three suspects have been transferred to paris where anti-terror investigators are questioning them and we could learn about charges in the coming hours, carol. >> all right. will ripley live in nice, thank you. the next hour of "cnn newsroom" starts now. good morning, i'm carol costello, live at the republican national convention in cleveland, ohio. thanks so much for joining me. we are just hours away from the rt nc officially kicking off as the rnc faces another senseless act of violence. police on edge after three officers were killed and three others wounded in baton rouge,

louisiana. the theme of the convention today in cleveland, make america safe again. any minute now, we're expecting city official also to hold a news conference. there's plenty of anxiety. city officials keeping a close eye on security in light of the recent violence. i want to start in baton rouge, because baton rouge is reeling after the attacks on their officers. fredricka whitfield is there. good morning, fred. >> good morning, carol. they were next churs in this community and now they're gone. the headline of the local newspaper today, in a senseless act. they were taken out by a man with a kansas city, missouri, address. someone who was here with an ar-15, opening fire on these three police officers. there remain at least one officer that continues to be in critical condition in the hospital. let me tell you a little more about the three police officers who were killed who are featured right here on the paper.

brad garafola, he was 45 years old. 41-year-old matthew gerald, baton rouge police officer with the department, just a year after serving with the army and crew chief on a helicopter in iraq, and 32-year-old montrel jackson with the department a decade. he has a newborn baby at home who will never see him again. it was officer montrell jackson who had expressed worry, even disappointment, and seemed to express a realization that he f saying, just four days after the baton rouge resident, alton sterling, a black man, was killed by two police officers here in baton rouge, and jackson

saying on his facebook page, i love this city but i wonder if this city loves me. in uniform, i get nasty hateful looks and out of uniform some consider me a threat. i've experienced so much in my short life and these last three days have tested me to the core. when people you know begin to question your integrity, you realize they don't really know you at all. louisiana state police colonel mike edmundson wants to reassure the men and women in uniform. >> i try to make it as simple as possible. i just tell my supporters that they are safe with me. while they're doing their job, which we train them to do, which we go to great lengths throughout their career. we talk about scenarios that happen around the country and we put our people inside and say what would you do in that situation. we make sure we talk about communicating with then. they've got to know you support them. they have to know you have their best interest. they'll trust you. if they can believe in you and see you're doing the right thing, they will trust you.

>> and then we heard this tearful plea coming from the aunt of alton sterling, who's a father of five. he was killed at the hands of police two weeks ago here in baton rouge. there were lots of protests that followed. this is the aunt yesterday after learning of the news three officers were killed here. >> we don't call for no bloodshed. that's how this all started, with bloodshed. we don't want no more bloodshed. leave, go home, go wherever you come from. this is our house. you can't come in our house killing us. >> all right, that was the aunt of alton sterling. that family is feeling like this is an assault on them, reliving the feelings they felt two weeks ago and they still are trying to heal from that, this entire city. consider itself a very close knit community and many people

are trying to figure out what was the motivation of this gavin long. this was the gunman who, some believe, came directly from missouri by way of dallas and then here. our cnn senior investigative correspondent drew given has been looking into this shooter. what more are we learning about him, his motivation and what brought him here? >> it is certainly a confusing picture. we have a young man who grew up in kansas city, missouri, served in the marines honorably five years. got out, rank of sergeant. but then something seemed to change. he changed his actual name just last year to a name cosmos and he began posting on websites, black nationalist sites. a steam of what many consider to be hate-filled comments directly responding to many of the police shootings as of late. we know he left kansas city in a rental car. he posted in dallas that it's time to stop protesting. it's time to take action. it was almost like a call to

arms. yesterday morning on his birthday he posted a haunting message talking about how he would live after his body was gone it the police are making sure everybody knows, especially in baton rouge, this guy came from outside. he apparently came here because of the alton sterling case, had been in town for a while, talking with some people in the city. they're now investigating, seeing what he was all about to see if there was affiliation with any oer groups. which so far there doesn't seem to be. if there was any prior knowledge anybody might have had. and certainly if there was any aid given to this. now we know as a cop killer. i think as we've seen in many of these not only domestic shooting cases we've all been covering but also in some of the domestic terrorism cases we've been cover. it's not a lone wolf, it's a

lo loon wolf. there's an element of instability. >> what ties, if any, this man may have had with anyone here. whether as you say there was support, aid, whether there was contact of any sort. then there is also trying to understand this location. this is a major thoroughfare here. this highway, people traverse here, going to work, school, et cetera. gas stations, car dealers, you know, restaurants. and the location where this happened behind this quick stop near a beauty supply place, just an odd place, you know, for, you know, for someone to be just walking. what was behind, you know, his mind-set of walking around in that location? >> if you believe what the police chief has been saying, that this was an ambush, then the person who was trying to kill the police was trying to lure them in. we know that that stop is often used -- it's a quick stop convenance store, a coffee shop

for cops who go there either switching shifts or coming in and out of the police station. so the investigation may prove he picked that spot particularly because, number one, it's an area where the cops often go to coffee sunday morning and it's an area very close to this police station and it's an area also very close to where all the demonstrations of the alton sterling killing have been taking place so it all kind of combined in one spot that he apparently chose carefully. >> all right, drew griffin, thank you so much for that. of course we're continuing to look into developments here. we know there may be a press conference still scheduled for later on today, carol, when we get more information about that, we'll bring it to you. >> all right, fredricka whitfield and drew griffin, thanks so much. speaking of press conferences, we're expecting one to happen here in cleveland at any moment now. the cleveland mayor frank jackson and the police chief will talk about security for the republican national convention.

as you know, 2,500 officers are now protecting this very small area of cleveland. also they're keying the courts open in case people need to be adjudicated quickly. because they're expecting thousands of protesters. joining us to discuss this from washington is cedric walter, former president of the organization of black law enforcement executives. also the author of "the new guardians, policing the 21st century." with me in cleveland is bob reef, the former sheriff of cuyahoga county, ohio, and also a senior law enforcement analyst. welcome to both of you. let's start locally in cleveland because we're expecting that press conference at any moment. 2,500 police officers are here from all across the state, all across the nation. will it be enough? >> it will be. i mean, tensionings are high obviously. what happened in the last seven days. three police officers killed. we haven't seen that kind of

carnage in law enforcement since 9/11. so tensions are going to be high. at the same time, police live with tension every day. i think that they've trained over the last over a year with the secret service. the secret service has done 52 of these types of conventions and large-scale issues since 9/11. they've done 52 of them. they've been successful with them. with the secret service taking the lead, the sheriff's office, i think they're ready, and there's a few issues that need to be addressed. but i think they're -- >> we're going to get into exactly one issue in a second. >> i wanted to ask you, like, how far can protesters push police you think until police act? >> well, here's what's important. i don't think is very good that they pushed them period. i think what's really important

here is officers, and we've seen this demonstrated in protests across the country. they've developed a sense of tolerance, understanding, they're going to be provoked, but they're not going to allow that promvocation to take them off target. in order to have a peaceful process there in cleveland and people be able to exercise their first amendment right, which we all support, we're in a time now where those protesters i would ask to work close with police there in cleveland, really because of where we are, the state of where we are in this nation. but it's just not good to provoke a situation because we need all our resources, all of us as americans, both police and citizens out there, protesters, standing together at this particular moment. exercise your first amendment. officers are there pro tetect. let's let this be demonstrative at a time of crisis like this.

>> bob, let me ask you that question. because, you know, i hope protesters don't provoke police but there are bad apples, right, in every massive crowd. there's going to be thousands and thousands of protesters. so how will police handle that. like what kind of behavior will they accept and how, you know, help us understand that. >> you know, over the last year they have been trained in deescalation technique. they've been trained in trying to get voluntary compliance. they're not wearing -- they're not having helmets on. they're not having shields. they're trying to take a soft approach to the demonstrators. at the same time, i think they're ready if in fact, something gets out of control. that's why they've trained all these months. cedric said it well, i think over the years we've learned in law enforcement it's easier to take a soft approach first then

to look like you're tough and provoke an issue. >> isn't one of the problems with the soft approach that what happened in baton rouge because police have to be worried about that. there's an open carry law in the state of ohio. there could be people walking around with guns. so don't they have to worry about all of that too and they're not going to be wearing their full riot gear at all. >> certainly there's grave concern about that. here again, i think what's important in all of this is they're going to have eyes on those who may be out there, i can guarantee you, they're going to make sure they identify them without obstructing their constitutional rights. so yes, it is a delicate balance here. it does have some points of provocation that could lead to a situation, but i think the most important thing has been the training. there's nothing they're going to

confront out there over the next few days that they have not talked about, rehearsed for, prepared for. i had an opportunity yesterday to speak to chief williams there in cleveland, and he is very confident. he's a great leader. as he indicated to me for the last 18, 24 months, they have prepared. of course anything can happen but preparation is key to success. and i'm quite sure they're going to be quite successful. while at the same tie, very, very cautious as well. >> i hope so. bob, the head of the police union here in cleveland says ohio's open carry law should be suspended for three days until the convention is over. do you agree with that? >> i do. i just think it's just common sense. i don't think that's stepping on the constitution. i think it's just being reasonable. open carry. look at the resources that we now have to put on those individuals that do have long guns. the other day, we had one on the

square. we had four officers, four to five officers watching that one individual that had a rifle. that takes away from the whole environment. and if you have more than that, the possibility of a discharge, accidental discharge. and now we don't know who's shooting at who. it can really escalate. so i agree with them. >> standby. we're going to go live to a press conference. i believe the mayor is speaking now. let's listen. >> that issue was brought up and it was vetted and it was taken up the chain and eventually it was decided that as the governor stated, that he did not have the authority to do it. so that -- so then we went to if he doesn't have the authority to do it, then we begin to plan around what would we do if open carry occurred during the convention. so i'll answer any other

questions you have after the chief. chief. >> good morning. not a whole lot to catch you guys up on today. there is one impromptu march yesterday afternoon. it started at east 36th and euclid and ended right out here at east 9th and lakeside. peaceful. not too many issues. you probably saw officers escorting that march along with other uniformed officers. but that's about it for yesterday. again that ended peacefully. no real issues. of course the back and forth with the demonstrators and expressing their first amendment rights but that was about it. we also did have one minor arrest yesterday. a male was arrested for petty theft. a local male.

i guess he had an issue with the equipment that one of our state troopers was carrying. specifically his gas mask pouch on his leg. attempted to remove that pouch from the trooper's leg and he was arrested for petty theft. we think that arrested male may have some mental issues. that's it. i think we have two marches scheduled for today. i'm not quite sure. i'll look at that schedule. and then the speaker's platform started today also on public square. that's it. [ inaudible question ] >> well, the chief can tell you the latter part, but yesterday there was a small demonstration with open carry. i think two or three people only. and the police dealt with them. but in terms of whether it's

loaded or not, don't know. the answer is yes, they can have them loaded. [ inaudible ] >> -- plenty patrolling the neighborhood but -- one of the deadliest of the year. i'm various to know, were there more officers working in the neighborhoods over this past weekend? >> yes, there were. as i stated to another outlet a few days ago, you know, ush be issues and urban crime has cycles. sometimes we'll get a weekend with nothing at all happening and sometimes we'll get a weekend as violent as this past weekend. but we did have plenty of officers out. a matter of fact, one of the shootings we had near east 55th and euclid, we actually had a car on 55th. the shooting happened a block over in prospect.

the officers were actually right there in that area. actually heard the shots and called it themselves and responded with other cars to that shooting. >> to clarify, you were asked this a couple days ago, but the open carry, what is legal open carry and at what point does a person violate the law and officers can respond? >> well, the person violates the open carry ordinance when they brandish that weapon or threaten someone with that weapon. the ordinance requires a person to safely handle a weapon so you can't point it at people, you can't threat be peopen people w any type of threatening mannerisms. we make sure that open carry understand that rules, understand that state law, and if they violate that, they're subject to sanctions. >> the tragedy in baton rouge, a number of departments across the country have beefed up two-man

cars, et cetera. have you changed the way you're staffing this? >> our officers have been two-man cars since right after dallas, the tragedy in dallas. [ inaudible question ] >> i'll wait until -- [ cell phone ringing ] open carry is like the way i'm dressed today. your weapon out so it's visible. conceal carry is the weapons not visible. for conceal carry, you need a permit in this state. there's a class that you have to go through. there's a shooting class. there's a written class. you have to be certified by the county sheriff to get a conceal carry permit empty state of ohio. yes. >> other than two-man cars, does baton rouge -- [ inaudible question ] >> for the officers out in the neighborhoods, again, just like the tragedy in dallas, you know,

officers are more keen to things that are happening and our officers are told to be especially cautious during their tours. yeah, we also about a week before the convention tipped off. the tip line is a see something, say something tip line, so we encourage people. we encourage people to use that tip line if they see something suspicious out there in the neighborhoods. or even down here with the convention. [ inaudible question ] there have been no real threats either to the convention or the city or the division of police

itself. sir. >> tell us how you handled the protest march yesterday, how you handled things today? there did seem to be a large police presence. you had the bikes, people on foot. how many law enforcement people were there at that protest yesterday? what's the protocol? >> protocol is enough officers as we need to keep it safe. we want to make sure the demonstrators are safe walking through the city and streets of cleveland. we want to make sure we have enough officers to respond if things turn otherwise. so it's based on those commanders on the ground and what they think is necessary to ensure both of those things. >> -- police officers pulled back to the perimeter and did not go. have you seen any of that happening -- [ inaudible question ] >> we don't do that in cleveland. our officers take care of business. they're paid to protect and serve. they're paid to go in harm's

way. they make sure they're cautious and they make sure they do things properly. yes. >> yesterday's protest about 6:15 when the mounted unit came in behind the officers who were standing about shoulder to shoulder, it looked as though those protesters were going to breach that security checkpoint. is that what appeared to be happening? >> to be honest, didn't see the ends of the protest because i was on my way somewhere else. we had monitored up until the point it got down here to 9th and lakeside. our officers on the ground are supervised and command earncomm know when to bring in more officers, when to pull back. we constantly communicate with what we perceive to be the leaders ofmarchers and protests and we give them the dos and don'ts that will keep everybody safe. when things get either a little

bit out of hand or unsafe for the general public. if that happens, then we bring in additional resources. we try to make sure people stay within bounds. yes, sir. >> just to clarify on the open carry question about how it's vetted upward, was that, you know, you and the mayor ask for guidance on woern open carry should be suspended or did that come from -- >> no, the conversation started in the executive steering committee for the rnc which is headed by the secret service. as part of that committee's duties, we had to assemble and vet all of the operations plans from the airspace security plan, dignitary protection plan, all the way down to the mass demonstration plan, has to be vetted through the steering committee. part of the conversation was about the open carry law in ohio. we basically had conversations

amongst ourselves, the legal team assigned to that committee, and then there's a legal subcommittee that took up that question and took it to columbus and met with -- either met or talked to the legal staff in columbus. the determination was made the governor did not have the power to suspend that particular law. yes. >> there was a report of protesters breaking windows near 12th and euclid, maybe entering, exiting the building and some arrests were made. can you speak to that, if that was the case? >> what do you mean? >> whether there were -- >> right now or yesterday? >> yesterday -- >> no, we didn't have property destruction. we only had the one arrest yesterday. i thought you were telling me something that i didn't quite know about because this thing is ringing while i'm up here. okay. yes, sir.

>> what are the restrictions on what type of guns -- [ inaudible question ] >> the law has no restrictions. it states handguns and rifles. all right. anything else? [ inaudible question ] >> -- were wearing, and a lot of people were on social media saying it was riot gear. i believe those two are different but can you please explain? >> well, just so everybody's clear, the city of cleveland does not have riot gear. from our standpoint, there's no such thing as riot gear. there's personal protective equipment for off certains. it's not an offensive material or protection at all. it's defensive for the officers, to make sure they're protected. in the event that something is thrown at that officer. we don't use the term riot gear at all. it's personal protective

equipment. some of the bike officers have -- if you've ever seen motocross or bmc bike racing where those participants wear sleeves that kind of have padding, our officers do have that gear. some of the officers yesterday were in reserve, kind of doing some stuff at another location. they were called out to assist in that protest. they actually had some of that gear on when they were called out. yes. all right. >> -- to the city or -- [ inaudible question ] >> we've just had part of the gear we purchased for the rnc. all right. thank you. >> all right. you can see the mayor of cleveland and cleveland's police chief wrapping u a news conference. they were talking about security

at the republican national convention. they say all will be well. all will be well, it's been calm on the first day, we'll see what's to company. thanks to my guests. still to come, the gop focus on unity within the party this week, but what about unity within the ticket? where trump and pence have split on the issues? next. many sleep-aids have pain medicine

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youthat's why you drink ensure. sidelined. with 9 grams of protein and 26 vitamins and minerals. for the strength and energy to get back to doing... ...what you love. ensure. always be you. okay, as you well know, we've been covering the murder of three police officers in baton rouge, louisiana. one man responsible for that. we have some new information into the investigation. police have reviewed some tape from the area, although we're not exactly sure where that tape came from. let's head live to baton rouge. >> we're outside the police department about an hour and a

half from where that shooting took place outside a convenience store right on this road airline highway. we're learning right now from sources that have spoken to our cnn's nick valencia, that what is being said is they reviewed a tape, still unclear where this tape came from, and in the tape, and i'm quoting now, reviewing a tape of the incident, this was a meticulous planned approach towards police officers. you heard from our drew giriffi that a number of these officers were go to this quick stop/convenience store gas station, a place sometimes of gathering. we do know according to eyewitness accounts that this suspect, the gunman, 29-year-old gavin lawn, was seen as according to eyewitnesses carrying a long army weapon there in that location. people called dispatch and then police responded and shortly

thereafter their arrival, that's when we know shots were fired, taking down three police officers were who killed there, two of the baton rouge police department and one of the east baton rouge sheriff's department. six in all hit. one remains hospitalized. but this information now as people try to figure out what provoked this gunman, what brought him here from missouri, because that's his last address. we've since learned, through various sources, that he may have made his way from missouri. he may have been in the dallas area before making his way here to baton rouge. still unclear whether he's had contact with anyone here, whether he received any aid or support. that investigation is still ongoing. we expect a press conference later on today. just the latest, this videotape or tape that has been reviewed by authorities. and their conclusion is this a planned meticulous attack. more when we get it, carol. >> all right, fredricka whitfield, reporting live from

baton rouge, louisiana, thanks. of course, at the national convention, does it seem like it will be make america safe again. joining me now, cnn's bill mattingly. >> first and foremost, this is ground zero for republicans, chris christie, potential vice presidential pick until a couple of days ago, meeting with delegations all morning. paul ryan doing the same exact thing. the focus tonight will be melan speaking. the roster of speakers, whether they be officials, actors, former administration, will all be talking about national security issues. you have lieutenant general michael flynn, a former obama administration intelligence official. who who also in the running for

vice president. you have joni ernst. even the second tier people talking, people like actor scott baio and duck hunter willie robertson. they believe this is an area of weakness for democrats, an area when people across the country look at what's happened over the last couple of weeks, they're unsettled. you hear trump a lot talking about now that he's the law and order candidate. that sound familiar to you, might look back at nixon, who talked about a country plagued by unprecedented lawlessness. trump advisers now saying donald trump is looking at that speech as a model for his speech. things to keep an eye on all day today, carol. >> phil mattingly, thanks so much. so with unity on their minds, it's no secret donald trump and

his running mate mike pence are divided on certain issues like water boarding. i'll introduce my panel. jackie kucinich, the washington bureau chief of "the daily beast." andre bower, cnn political analyst and donald trump supporter and former lieutenant governor of south carolina. lonnie chen is also with me, a cnn political commentator and former mitt romney public policy director, and matthew tulley, columnist with the "indiana star." welcome to all of you. mike pence and donald trump's appearance on "60 minutes" last night, at times a little uncomfortable because they were not on the same page on a lot of issues. one of those issues was water boarding. before we dive in, i'd like viewers to listen to that. >> water boarding. mr. trump wants to bring back water boarding, and, quote, a hell of a lot more. are you comfortable with

bringing back water boarding? >> i don't think we should ever tell our enemy what our tactics are. >> what about that, what about he's publicly said that -- >> i don't think we should -- i think -- >> but are you okay with the idea of water boarding? >> ci inthink enhanced interrogation saved lives. >> you're okay with that? >> what i'm okay with is protecting the american people. >> so, jackie, does it matter if they're on the same page of such issues? >> i think mike pence is on the same page as water boarding as donald trump. he just says it differently. it's a stylistic thing. mike pence isn't going to be as bombastic as donald trump. i think that's one of the reasons he was picked. he's more careful. he's more steady in that regard. one of the reasons why his advisers thought pence was a good thing. >> when pence was a congressman, he voted for the iraq war, andre, and donald trump said,

oh, that's okay, everybody deserves a mistake in their lives. but when donald trump talks about hillary clinton's vote for the iraq war, it was a dreadful mistake. so how do voters kind of come to terms with that? >> well, think they look at a multitude of different actions. it's not just the iraq war and that one vote but what the follow up was after that, the actions that were taken, i think that's where a lot of his problems actually come from. did we leave troops there? did we put enough troops there? >> no, no, donald trump gets on hillary clinton for her vote for the iraq war, donald trump says he knew the war was a bad idea from the get-go, and he slams her all the time, but he didn't slam mike pence on that issue. >> well, these are two different individuals. they're not going to agree. the republican party is first and foremost -- >> it's okay he voted for the iraq war but not okay if a democrat did? >> i think it's a bigger issue than just the vote, the single

vote. this gets back to the vetting process. traditionally, these are the kind of differences we'd be talking about in the vetting process. we'd say, look, the candidates differ on this issue, this issue. if you look at the process through which governor pence was picked, a little bit different from prior cycles. i think that creates some tension. the rollout wasn't as smooth as it could have been because maybe they didn't perceive, hey, these are the important things we need to work on before we make our public announcement. >> matthew, you're from indianapolis, you know mike pence. a, is jackie right? does he believe in water boarding? does he think water boarding is an effective way to get information out of terrorists? and, b, does it matter that he voted for the iraq war and donald trump said, oh, that's -- i didn't really understand where that was going, did you? >> sure. well, water boarding didn't come up much these past four years when he was governor, i will admit. mike pence is making clear for

the next four months at least he is willing to say and do what he's told to say and do and he's going to brush aside disagreements with the presidential candidate and not hurt himself for future races perhaps by coming on record saying i support water boarding. he dodged the issue. saying this is a presidential candidate relationship where he does and says what he's told to do and say. >> okay. i want to talk a little bit about unifying the country now. because i would suspect that's going to be talked about during these three days in cleveland, right? so after what happened in baton rouge, the terrible killing of those three police officers, president came out and he called for unity. mr. trump tweeted that president obama doesn't have a clue, saying our country is a divided crime scene and it will only get worse.

what does he mean it will only get worse. i think we've continually seen these. we defended function for too long. quite frankly, we give them too many rights in this country. he said, hey, i'm going to be a law and order candidate. we'll see giuliani speaking this week. >> so what would giuliani do differently? >> what he did with new york, he has a history of taking a crime riddled city and turning it around. nobody would argue rudy giuliani has done one of the best jobs ever taking an mee ing aing an d turning it around. >> how would they vet people? >> they would -- >> the guy who shot the police officers in baton rouge was a u.s. marine. >> now we understand he had ties to radical islam. >> we don't understand that yet. we don't know anything about him yet.

>> as of watching this morning -- >> no, no, no. >> -- cnn actually tied him to that. >> no. >> unfortunately, this is the problem with the trump candidacy. usually at this point in the campaign, we've had fleshed out policy, a better sense of what the candidate will do as president. right now we have vague generalities. i think he has to fill some of those in as we go on. in order to defeat hillary clinton, the republican party and donald trump in particular are going to have to start to specify how is it the actions of the trump administration would be different from the actions of the administration taking on more of though tone. >> something he said on "fox & friends," talking about president obama's body language and hiding what he really means and, jackie, you'll address that after we listen. >> i watch the president. sometimes the words are okay, but you just look at the body language. is something going on. look, there's something going on -- >> what does that mean, there's something going on?

>> there's just bad feeling. a lot of bad feeling about him. i see it too. there's a lot of bad feeling about him. we have a country that -- >> you know -- >> we have a country that has not been like this since i can remember it. >> so, jackie, mr. trump says "there's something going on with president obama's body language." what do you think he means? >> we've heard trump go into these conspiracy theories. there's been some thought among republicans he's going to grow out of this, he's going to start act like a normal general election candidate. this is just an example, he's not ready to let go of some of these more, you know, like i don't even know, tin foil hat-type conspiracy theorys that are rampant on some parts of the right. >> part of the reason for the convention is to make voters think that mr. trump can be presidential, that he'll say presidential-type things, but then he says stuff like that on

"fox & friends." >> it's not what i would pick. i wish he would steer clear, you know. clearly when i supported donald trump, it wasn't everything i agree with. i don't agree with everything now. in the direction i wanted the country to go, he represented things i thought were most important. i wouldn't be talking about the president's body language, but i'm not the nominee for president of the united states. >> all right. hold on for just a second because i've just been handed some breaking news i want to pass along. it has to do with the freddie gray case in baltimore, maryland. there is another not guilty verdict for that officer charged in the death of freddie gray, baltimore lieutenant brian rice has been acquitted on charges of voluntary manslaughter for his part in the death of gray last year. rice is a supervisor and the highest ranking officer charged in the incident. help is the fourth of six officers charged in the case to go to trial. two of those officers were found not guilty and there was a mistrial for the third officer. so, again, this officer, found

not guilty on all counts. the state's attorney in baltimore -- i'm not sure, not a good track record so far. just minutes from now, hillary clinton will address the shooting in baton rouge. what she's expected to say next. they think that it's sad.

i think it's important for everyone to know that there is so much more to memory support than the stigmas you hearabout. that these residents still have lives and their lives still matter and that they are still living their lives. that they're not locked away and that they still have a lot to live for, you know, that they have people that care about them and they have people that love them and i love them, so (laughs). call now to find out how we can put our 30 years of understanding to work for your loved one today. won't replace the full value of your totaled new car. the guy says you picked the wrong insurance plan. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy, you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance.

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all right, i want to take you down south to cincinnati, ohio. hillary clinton will talk about the killing of the police officers in baton rouge when she speaks to the naacp at the top of the hour. donald trump was also invited to the group's annual convention but mr. trump declined. the theme for tonight's

republican national convention lineup "make america safe again." joining us to talk about how a president trump would achieve that goal is asa hutchinson. so mr. trump will introduce his wife tonight, and she'll talk about mr. trump. what do you suppose she'll say? >> i suspect she'll be on the personal side. introducing mr. trump in that context to america. i think that's what we want to see about, you know, who future first lady might be about, relationship, their history and we're excited about that. the introduction of the trump family is really a plus for the convention. >> it took you a while to support mr. trump. what changed your mind? >> well, you know, i've started out with mike huckabee, marco rubio, but in the end, you know, the voters said we want donald trump as our nominee. i'm a team player. but also we've got two choices

in november. without any question, donald trump, the team he puts together, is the right one to lead america. and so that's an easy decision in the end. i have expression that just because my quarterback was not chosen, i'm not going to stop blocking for the team. they're going to be blocking in november for donald trump to win. >> country's in a very divided state right now. tensions are very high. a lot of americans don't feel safe. they worry about police on the streets, right? protesters worry about african-americans and the way police are treating them. what should donald trump say at this convention to make americans feel that he can handle that problem, that he can unify the country, that he can understand where both sides are coming from? because as president of the united states, you have to do that. >> that's true. and he will express it in the right way. but let me just say first of all this is a time of unity in our country, support of law enforcement, you know, both sides of the political equation

have expressed sympathy, but also more significantly the support for law enforcement. and we've got to be concerned not just about the men and women in blue, we have to be concerned about that, but also what i'm worried about, too, is the response capability. are we going to be diminishing our police response capacity because of the change in tactics of those that might attack law enforcement? and so you worry about just simply carrying out the normal duties -- >> but what has mr. trump said about that that makes you think he's the guy that can solve that problem? >> well, one, he speaks very plainly. he supports law enforcement. without any question about that. and you also look at the framework of the republican party, we have historically been a law and order party that supports strong military but also our law enforcement and the rule of law in the united states. that's been our history. that's the framework in which

donald trump will govern. that's a framework that i feel comfortable. it's not a divisive context, it's a reality that we understand the importance of how we have to have an orderly society that respects law, teaches the next generation to respect the law. and i recognize there's mistakes that are always made, but we deal with each individual circumstance of a mistake and say we need better training here or there's consequences that have to be taken out here. but you don't start doing the broad sweep and saying law enforcement's bad because, in fact, they are good, they need our support. >> governor, thank you. i want to head out to miguel marquez, he has more on what just happened in baltimore, the clearing of another police officer. take it away, miguel. >> yes this is the third officer who has been acquitted in all charges in connection to the death of freddie gray. lieutenant rice, he was the

highest ranking officer on the scene that day that mr. gray was arrested, was injured in that van and then later died from his injuries. he was charged with several things but was found not guilty on voluntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment and misconduct in office charges. the prosecution earlier dropped one of the misconduct charges. the judge had dismissed a charge of involuntary manslaughter against officer brian rice. two other officers will face trial in the days ahead. and then officer william porter will face retrial, carol. >> all right, miguel marquez, reporting live from new york this morning about what went down in baltimore. thanks so much. thank you for joining me today. i'm carol costello. "that the hour" with berman and

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hello, everyone, i'm kate bolduan live in cleveland where just a short time from now the republican national convention is kicking off. we're getting word at about possibly a surprise appearance here tonight. >> i'm john berman live in baton rouge where a gunman unleashed a deadly attack on police officers. and we have breaking news. brand-new information about the ambush. and it is now being called an ambush. a source with knowledge of the investigation tells cnn a tape of the attack shows a meticulous planned approach towd