exclusive cnn reporting. the white house ask the fbi to push back on media reports about russia. up ahead here, why the feds denied that request. police now know what killed kim jong-un's half brother. it is a toxic nerve agent used in chemical warfare. private homes turning into safe houses. the growing underground network that's ready to help undocumented immigrants. it's all ahead here. welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world, i'm natalie allen. >> it's good to have you here. >> i'm george howell. this is cnn "newsroom."

it is 3:00 a.m. on the u.s. east coast, and in just a few hours' time the president of the united states, donald trump, will actually speak on stage at an annual gathering of political conservatives. it's called cpac. keep this in mind though. just last year he canceled at that event when some conservatives tried to derail his campaign for the white house. >> a difference a year makes. any hard feelings from mr. trump seem to have vanished in the wake of his upset victory in november. senior trump officials shared the stage on thursday reassuring the audience of their commitment to the conservative agenda. vice president mike pence even likened trump to ronald regan. >> i believe president trump has given voice to the aspirations and frustrations of the american people like no leader since reagan. i just knew our new president would reignite our cause and renew it in our own day, and he

did just that. >> but the trump administration continues to speak with multiple voices on critical issues sending mixed messages around the world. listen as the president talks about deportations and trade only to then be contradicted by homeland security secretary john kelly. let's listen. >> we're getting really bad dudes out of this country, and at a rate that nobody's ever seen before. and they're the bad ones. and it's a military operation. >> listen to this. no, repeat no use of military force in immigration operations, none. >> with mexico we have 70 billion in deficits, straight deficits, and it's understandable we're not going to let it happen. we can't let it happen. >> the relationship between the united states and mexico is among the most important in the world. it has helped create millions of jobs on both sides of the

border. >> seems to be some daylight between the president of the united states and many on his cabinet but just to play those sound bites back to back the viewer can see the discrepancy. >> absolutely. cnn has exclusive new reporting that the white house asked the fbi to knock down media reports about contacts during the presidential campaign between trump's associates and russians known to u.s. intelligence. >> jim sciutto and evan perez broke the story with shim money brown and manu raju. here's jim with more on what they learned. >> reporter: cnn has learned that the fbi rejected a recent white house request to publicly knock down media reports about communications during the 2016 presidential campaign between donald trump's associates and russians known to u.s. intelligence. multiple u.s. officials tell cnn the white house sought the help of the bureau and other agencies investigating the russia matter to say that the reports were wrong and that there had been no

contact, these officials said. you may recall that cnn and "the new york times" first reported on this just over a week ago, and so far the white house has not commented on the record. i should say that the fbi is still investigating these alleged communications. several members of the house and senate intelligence cumulative committees say congress is still investigating them as well. that investigation has gubegun. they're starting to collect records, documents and they will call witnesses. the communication is unusual because of decades old such requests, a violation of procedures that limit communications with the fbi on pending investigations. trump's measures went contrary to the measures that limit direct communications on pending investigations between the white house and the fbi. fbi director james comey

rejected the request according to the sources because the alleged communications are the subject of an ongoing investigation. jim sciutto, cnn, washington. >> senior u.s. officials were in mexico thursday. they found themselves having to answer for mr. trump's immigration policy. >> here's senior diplomatic correspondent michelle ichelle . >> reporter: the white house trying to smooth out the relationship between the u.s. and mexico. rex tillerson and john kelly's trip to mexico. >> translator: we do not agree on the different measures that were recently stated by the government of the united states that affect mexico. we are concerned about the increase in deportations. >> reporter: they tried to ensure their mexican counterparts about u.s. policy. >> let me be very, very clear, there will be no, repeat, no

mass deportations. all deportations will be according to our legal justice system, which is extensive and includes multiple appeals. >> reporter: insisting deportations will focus on criminals. >> there's no mistaking that the rule of law matters on both sides of our border. >> reporter: an acknowledgment that the u.s. also has work to do. >> we underscore the importance of stopping the illegal firearms and bulk cash that is originating in the united states and flowing into mexico. >> reporter: but today president trump painted a different picture. >> i said, it's going to be a tough trip because we have to be treated fairly by mexico. you see what's happening at the border. all of a sudden for the first time we're getting gang members out, we're getting drug lords out, we're getting really bad dudes out of this country and at a rate na nobody's ever seen before. >> reporter: donald trump

famously kicked off his campaign with remarks about mexico. >> they're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists. >> reporter: now the white house is trying to put the best face on things. >> i think the relationship with mexico is phenomenal right now. >> reporter: mexico is insisting they will not pay for a border wall which no one mentioned today and they can't be forced to accept depoor tees that are not mexican. >> translator: what would be most important would be the facts. >> reporter: one official saying the americans on this trip did a lot of listening forced to acknowledge that the relationship of the border is the responsibility of both sides as is accountability. michelle kosinski, cnn, the state department. >> for more on this story i'm joined now from london by brian claus. he's from the london school of economics. brian, good to have you with us this hour. the president of the united states will soon take the stage at cpac. the story right now is really

the person who spoke before him, steve bannon. let's listen here. >> he's laid out an agenda with those speeches and the promises he made and our job every day is just to execute on that. is to simply get a path to how those get executed and he's ma niekically focused on that. >> steve bannon making the point that he is menaiacly focused on that. he's categorized the media as the enemy party, which of course we are not. on stage speaking about this new world order and nationalism, economic nationalism. also this word of deconstructing various parts of government. your thoughts on what you heard there to the person who really has the ear of the president of the united states? >> well, steve bannon has a dystopian view of the word. he has a very anti-establishment view of the world. let's remember the story. the cpac keynote speaker which was one of steve bannon's

surrogates was only rescinded after he made comments concerning pedophilia. he used the slogan feminism is cancer. bannon ended up being the star. this is the real conundrum for the movement. this dark vision of the world is very different from the conservatives of ronald regan that praised free trade, for example, and had america leading as the city upon the hill. instead, we're much more looking like a dark vision and dystopian vision of american politics and the rest of the world. >> also, there's information that we're following from a senior white house official who tells cnn the president has assigned the department of homeland security working with the justice department to help build a legal case for the travel ban. that's obviously getting some push back from people in different agencies. is this a search for a solution without a problem?

>> well, they're going to try to find a way to have the travel ban that was blocked stand up to court scrutiny in the future. i assume they will do what they should have done in the first place which is run it by some people that have expertise in the law rather than ramming it through with steve bannon's approval, but i also think that the approach to ban people based on their nationality, especially seven countries with no history of terrorist attacks on united states soil is ultimately misguided. they have a very difficult case to make that there is a security imperative here and also they have a very difficult case to make that this is not related to the blanket muslim ban that donald trump supported in december of 2015 when he called for a total and complete shutdown of muslims entering the united states. >> one of this particular administration, unlike others that we've seen, this administration basically making the case to other agencies within the united states, we won. we're in charge, do what we say. >> elections have consequences

and policies change as a result of elections but democracy in yours. the things that i'm seeing that are really problematic are the attack on pillars of democracy like the media, the independent judiciary which donald trump called so-called justices and insinuated he would blame them when the terror attack happens, the violation of ethics rules. all of these things are anti-democratic, democratic with a small d. this is something that's deeply troubling where it's not just about the ebbs and flows of policy changes, it's something that's a real challenge and threat to american democracy. i hope that there will be more push back against it. >> the president gave an interview to reuters coming from the wide ranging conversation was on the topic of nuclear weapons. let's listen to the president of the united states speaking on the topic. >> it would be wonderful, a dream would be that no country would have nukes but if countries are going to have nukes, we're going to be at the

top of the pack. >> president has indicated before that -- he even indicated there it would be better to see a world without nukes but seemingly a mixed message that the united states will certainly stay on top in that category. >> it is, and it's troubling because we want the world where nuclear weapons are off the table in terms of their usage. the nuclear deterrence is something that's important to american foreign policy, but at the same time we want the president who cools down the global temperature rather than raising it. the talk about nuclear weapons both on the campaign and during the transition that he repeatedly questioned why can't we use these when briefed on national security matters is especially troubling especially when we've seen in recent days that kim jong-un out of north korea has used a nerve gas, there is a recklessness around the world that we need to really take care of and address without raising the global temperature

on them. >> brian claus, thank you for the insight. >> thanks for having me. voters across the u.s. want to meet with their elected officials and they have flooded some republican lawmakers to demand it. some protestors are holding empty chair town halls for the representatives who won't face them. here's ryan young from the state of iowa. >> do your jobs. >> you work for us. >> reporter: anger erupting at political town halls across the country. >> freedom clm. >> reporter: in covington, kentucky, this protester demanding senate majority leader mitch mcconnell hear them out. >> we're not protesting the election. we're protesting the right to work. we are protesting losing our health care. we are protesting rush schaab interference in the white house. we are protesting that to get in front of you we have to pay dollars. why won't you hold a town hall

with your constituents. we want to hear from you. we want to talk to you. >> yeah, was somebody else invited to speak? >> he came face to face with his constituents in this tiny courthouse filled to capacity. getting an earful on issues ranging from obamacare to immigration. >> jeopardize the quality of education and how is betsy devos a qualified candidate for your vote? >> a president gets elected and has to carry out the responsibility of which he was elected. that person ought to have the team that they need to get the job done. >> don't you believe she should be qualified? >> yes. >> yes. >> yes. >> well, then we would not have tillerson being secretary of state. >> in some cases angry voters

across the country holding empty chair town halls with lawmakers reluctant to show voicing the displeasure by putting missing congressmen notices on milk cartons. they're hiding marco rubio's face in where's waldo puzzles. >> i thought you weren't here. i saw the missing child posters all over town. are you going to host a town hall? i'm glad you're okay but are you going to host a town hall? we need to hear from you, senator. senator, we need to hear from you, your constituents. are you going to host a town hall? >> some lawmakers defending their absence citing concern for their safety. louie gall bert said the house sargeant of arms advised us after former congresswoman gabby giffords was shot that they stand the most chance of harm or being killed just as happened

there. giffords responded today saying i was shot on a saturday morning. by monday morning my offices were open to the public. to the politicians who have abandoned their civic obligations, i say this. have some courage. face your constituents. hold town halls. brian young, cnn, charles city, iowa. >> brian young, thank you. still ahead here on "cnn newsroom," some unsettling details on how the half brother of north korea's leader was murdered. stay with us. we'll have a live report coming up. plus, iraqi forces approach one of their biggest victories yet in the battle for mosul. why retaking a destroyed airport is still important to ousting isis. that's coming up here. you're watching "cnn newsroom." (mic thuds) uh, sorry. it's unlimited without compromising reliability, on the largest, most advanced 4g lte network in america.

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welcome back. we are learning some really troubling developments out of malaysia. investigators there say that the half brother of north korea's leader was killed, that he was poisoned with vx nerve agent. >> kim jong-nam was killed at kuala lumpur last week. at least two women are being detained in connection with the case. authorities are trying to track down four other suspects who may have ties to north korea and

have asked for interpol's help with that. alexander field is following this story. she joins us now live from kuala lumpur with more. alexander, what are you learning about this deadly chemical we're hearing about? >> reporter: yeah, this is the first time authorities here are saying they've determined that it was vx agent that was used to kill kim jong-nam. they said after an examination of his body it was found on his face and in his eyes. it's an incredibly lethal material. they say it's lethal in a liquid gel form and also in a vapor form. it is odorless and it can kill within minutes according to some experts. others say that you can feel an onset of symptoms within minutes or even up to 18 hours after exposure. we've all seen that tv video from inside kuala lumpur's airport where two women approach kim jong-nam. officials in malaysia say they were trained to put the agent on

his face and walk away with their hands up and not fet it on themselves. they've cast doubt saying it isn't possible in their opinion that they could have poisoned kim jong-nam and not infected themselves. there are some weapons analysts that say in the case of some chemical weapons you need to combine two chemicals in order to have the lethal combination. >> let's find out more about it now that malaysian officials do believe that vx nerve agent killed him. just what is it? how does it work? earlier i asked ian musgrave who is an expert in toxic nerve agents to explain that to us. >> vx is part of a group of nerve agents that work in a similar way. you probably have heard of sarin. sarin was used in the tokyo subway attack as a gas. >> but it's more deadly than sarin, is that right?

>> it's much more deadly than sarin. it requires as little as 10 milligrams is all you need to kill someone going through the skin and similar amounts required to breathe in. it's a bit hard to visualize 10 milligrams. it's around the amount of material that would cover the head of a pin. typically vx is an annoying liquid and it's quite often dissolved in other things. you wouldn't need very much to apply to the skin to cause -- to have enough absorbed to cause death. >> the people behind this, mr. musgrave, how dangerous was this to carry out? >> if i had appropriate safety

equipment, not too difficult. wearing appropriate safety equipment, have an applicator which would keep the material away, you should be able to relatively safely attack someone with it. >> now following the story in iraq, the military there, it is close to scoring a major victory in the fight for mosul. last strong hold of isis in iraq. they nearly have retaken the airport there. you see this image near the airport. that would be a strategic and symbolic victory as they prepare for the grueling push west. nina dos santos is following this. thanks for being with us. this is certainly a difficult -- it is a grueling fight, but now we do see a very important strategic victory. >> reporter: yes. significant victory here because obviously these forces, the

iraqi forces, have managed to capture their first foothold on the western side of the tigress river in the western part of iraq's second biggest city, mosul. it's not as though they didn't face resistance, but the real fear here is that isis may have retrenched into the more densely populated northern and western parts ever mosul. the battle will be far more entrenched in the weeks and months to come from here. what we know so far from the joint operations commanders is that the forces have managed to capture other strategic assets in the -- sorry, outside the airport in particular and military base where they have currently found large stashes of isis weaponry that they've managed to destroy. so far it seems the iraqi special forces there have been isis militant casualties. no word on how many fighters may have been caught up in that battle, but the key thing they're going to be trying to do from here is capture power

assets towards the north to try and secure certain infrastructure assets, as i said before. they head towards more densely populated parts of the city later. >> those where the isis militants have taken the past several years to build up their defenses in western mosul. nina dos santos live in istanbul, turkey, thank you so much. undocumented immigrants in the u.s. say they are living in fear, but a network of homeowners and churches coming to their rescue. we'll have that story just ahead here. plus, one of the most high profile transgender women who also happens to be republican sends a message to the president of the united states. 3:26 a.m. in atlanta, georgia. we are live across the united states and around the world at this hour. you're watching "cnn newsroom."

a warm welcome back to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. you are watching "cnn newsroom." it is good to have you with us. i'm george howell. >> i'm natalie allen. malaysian police say kim jong-nam was poisoned with vx nerve agent. the hacked brother of north korea's leader was killed at kuala lumpur airport last week. they have asked interpol to issue an alert for four other suspects. iraqi forces have retaken most of the mosul airport as they fight forces for the western part of the city. the airport has virtually been destroyed and three years under isis control, but it would be a strategic and symbolic victory for iraqi troops as they look to

push the terror group out of its last strong hold in iraq. donald trump says if the world has to have nuclear weapons the united states will be at, quote, the top of the pack. in an interview with reuters mr. trump says the u.s. has fallen behind on its nuclear weapon capacity and he won't let that stand. >> the question is is this a solution looking for a problem without a solution? the senior white house official telling cnn president trump has assigned the department of homeland security working with the justice department to help build a legal case for its temporary ban on individuals from seven countries. >> cnn's jake tapper and pamela brown broke the story. our amber walker and michael holmes spoke with jake earlier. here it is. >> jake tapper joining us with all the details. hi there, jake. how is president trump trying to build the case for the upcoming travel ban? >> hi. cnn has learned the white house

requested the department of homeland security to work on the travel ban. this country is somalia, sudan, yemen, libya, iran, iraq, syria. the two agencies, quote, are working on an intelligence report that will demonstrate that the security threat is substantial and that they all have been exporters of terrorism into the united states. the situation has gotten more dangerous in years and more broadly the refugee program has been an incubator for terrorism. this report was requested because they said there is no evidence that any alien has perpetrated a terror aist attac. some disagree with the trump white house position. sources telling cnn that the department of homeland security's in house intelligence agency, the office of intelligence and analysis called

ina has filed a report disagreeing with the view that blocking immigration from the seven countries strategically makes sense. some dhs officials say they don't believe this is the best indicator. a spokesman confirmed the report saying, quote, while the department of homeland security was asked to draft a comprehensive report on this issue, the document you're referencing was commentary from a single intelligence source versus an official robust agency with thorough interagency vetting. they said the ina report does not include data from other intelligence sources, it's incomplete, pointed internal discussion about the merits of various intelligence products and whether they have sufficient supporting data from the broader intelligence community.

the notion that the trump white house is trying to fit its policy instead of forming policy around the data. sources tell cnn's pamela brown there are those within the department of homeland security that have concerns that the department might be polite sized. the department called that accusation, quote, absurd and not factually accurate. according to the senior white house official, however, president trump and his team are determined to prove that the ninth circuit court argument is wrong as are those in the media and democrats who have made the same argument such as gerald nadler who appeared on cnn said this. >> the various people who have, in fact, committed terrorist attacks in this country from 9/11 onward, none of them came from the seven countries that are the subject of the president's executive order. >> reporter: a senior white house official told me that is using the most narrow definition of committing acts of terrorism that you can use, meaning that

definition of terrorist attacks means only where an innocent civilian was killed. that would not include the ohio state attack last november where the gentleman arriving to the u.s. aftu. sm u.s. in 2014 killed people. it does bolster his case for the ban using a broader definition which will include non-lethal and failed terrorist attacks as well as investigations and convictions attempting to join or supporter or list groups. michael and amber. >> that was jake tapper speaking but breaking down exactly what this means when it comes to figuring out those facts. well, the president's rhetoric is fueling real fear among undocumented immigrants. that's driving some to build an underground network of people seeking shelter. >> we're told it is a matter of

principle and faith. >> reporter: pounding, standing, laying the groundwork at this secret home in los angeles. how many families? >> it will be about three families that we can host here. >> reporter: the pastor walks us through one safe house for the undocumented running from immigration officers. an underground network. >> essentially what you're doing is you're trying to hide people, is that right? >> that's what we need to do. >> reporter: on the other side of l.a., another safe house in this man's home. we're not naming him or telling you where he lives because of what's at stake. >> it's hard as a jew not to think about what people did to open their homes and take risks to safeguard jews who were really vulnerable as well as those who didn't. we'd like to be the one that did. >> reporter: this is beyond sanctuary churches offering refuge for an undocumented

woman. they don't enter houses. >> i donald john trump do solemnly swear -- >> reporter: but faith leaders believe that will change under president trump. private homes fall under fourth amendment protection and need a warrant before authorities can enter. >> something sort of like this. >> reporter: the reverend said faith groups could hide 100 undocumented immigrants today and that number could soon be in the thousands. >> people will be moving into a place so that i.c.e. can't find them, so they can stay with their families, so they can be with their husbands, so they can avoid being detained and deported. >> reporter: the idea comes from leaders across all faiths in los angeles just days after the election pledging opposition to trump's immigration orders. >> we are not going to stop until we get to a place that god is calling us to. >> reporter: people who may not

agree with you but look at what you're doing and say, you're simply aiding and abetting the violation of laws. >> look, i'll speak for myself. i feel really convicted that i answer to god at the end of the day, like that's who i'm going to see when i die and i hope that, you know, we can live up to our -- i hope we can live up to who we are. >> reporter: the pastor is clear-eyed about the risk. >> we're trusting in god that he would help us be guided to make the right choice. >> i don't totally know exactly what the consequences are but i know what the moral consequences are for me if we don't act. this is a moment not to stand idly by. the u.s. justice department is walking back guidance from the previous obama administration discouraging the use of private prisons. the spokesperson says the move will give the bureau of prisons

flexibility where it houses inmates. >> the critics say private prisons have more problems with safety and security than public prisons. the attorney general says he's worried about prison overcrowding, which is why he ordered the change. >> reporter: over half of the most well-known transgender people in the u.s. who is also a republican has a message for president trump. >> at first katelyn jenner was quiet after the president changed federal guidance on which restrooms, which bathrooms transgender students can use in public schools but the olympian broke her silence thursday with a tweet and a video message. let's listen. >> i have a message for president trump from, well, one republican to another. this is a disaster and you can still fix it. you made a promise to protect the lgbtq community. call me. >> let's see if he does.

coming up here, the president speaks out against modern day slavery. what he says he'll do about human trafficking. plus, pope francis says that bad christians are hurting the church, even saying, well, they may not be christians at all. stay with us. sometimes you just know when you hit a home run.

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so for christians who do not live by christian values pope francis has fierce words for you. >> absolutely. at a homily in rome francis said christians who exploit others may as well call themselves atheists. our rome correspondent julia gallagher has more on that. >> reporter: the pope's remarks came during a reflection on a gospel passage in which jesus says not to cause scandal. and pope francis said one of the ways in which christians give scandal is by leading a double life, by being hypocritical. he gave the example of a business owner who goes to mass and says he's a good christian

but then doesn't pay his workers a just wage. and the pope says the problem with this is that other people see that behavior and say, well, if that's being a christian, then it's better to be an atheist, but the pope in these comments is not advocating athiesm over christianity. he's telling christians to be better christians to live out more coherently to believe and what they do so other people who see them will not think it is better to be an atheist. delia gallagher, cnn, rome. ♪ ♪ we've had a lot of news about donald trump this hour. now we have this. he's vowing to fight human trafficking. he met with activists along with his daughter ivanka on thursday. >> the president says that he is

prepared to bring, quote, the full force and weight of the government to combat the problem. let's listen. >> it's a very, very terrible problem. it's not talked about enough. people don't know enough about it, and we're going to talk about it and we're going to bring it out into the open and hopefully we're going to do a great deal to help prevent some of the horrific, really horrific crimes that are taking place. >> there's already help coming to one london elementary school where children learn to identify the five signs of human trafficking. activists hope one day it will help prevent a tragedy. >> our isa soares has this story in this installment of "the freedom project." >> i would love to see a world where you've got a whole generation growing that go, we know about modern day slavery.

the reason it's gotten so big is because nobody knew about it. >> reporter: former drummer phil knight sets up the education charity teaching children about modern day slavery after hearing the story of a 16-year-old student who had been sex trafficked all over the u.k. as a young girl. >> as we got deeper into it we realized i don't think there's anyone else going into primary schools teaching kids about this stuff because it's such a difficult subject matter. you find a school and talk to a school and say, can we come in? human trafficking. really? once we send them the stuff and they see how we work, they're fine. >> what happens if everything you make your slave do, what happens if i make you do that? >> school workshops are being run on modern slavery for 8 to 16-year-olds since 2013. >> in the u.k. alone we have educated over 13,000 children and that's going up and up and

up with the amount of students booking in because we've gotten a name in trust. >> you look quite strong. you're quite strong. okay. you're going to be my slave. >> reporter: trained actor lindsey mckay has been leading workshops for the past year. >> we start out with introducing who we are, establishing that we're in a safe environment. we then jump back in time just to see the knowledge children have already of the topic. has anybody heard of -- 20 years it took for him to get all the signatures he needed to ban slavery. >> the kids often get involved. they act in different scenarios that could lead to trafficking and how people are gotten into it. >> i have their passport. what does that mean now? >> they can't leave the country. >> or they can't leave me. >> from there we do our play on

slavery. these are the signs to keep you all nice and safe, also the people around you. >> reporter: lindsay believes she has firsthand experience of being groomed by a trafficker while studying in madrid. >> i lived in an all female flat and within the short month i lived there i had gifts given to me, i was told i needed to meet in spain, he would get angry if i didn't. he would come pick me up from the airport at night and would track my flights and things like that. he sent me messages telling me to go with him. i'm looking back at that and i realize how close i actually was and if i didn't have a supportive family, i probably may have fallen into it. >> the most important thing for me is she was able to take all of that knowledge and adapt it into her workshop without ever scaring the children because the biggest thing and my rule is it can never shock them.

they can never be scared. they can never be worried about what they've seen. >> i want to know what you thought about the workshop, whether you'd enjoyed it, whether you'd like something different, what was your feedback back? find ways that you can identify someone who's maybe in slavery because i think that's a very helpful thing. >> the presenter was like showing her expressions and she wasn't really shy. >> i just loved more about modern slavery and i understand. >> reporter: he and his team spread the anti-slavery message to children worldwide. >> i'm off to america to start building the u.s.a. can you build this? if you can do a workshop on a great flat screen in a great school in london, could you do the same workshop on the back of a truck in nigeria with no electricity? exactly.

it's all down to the magic of the presenter. >> neared of you had a way to change the world. i thought that would happen. isa soares, cnn. >> what a nice program. i do hope it spreads around the world. >> absolutely. and we'll be right back. today, unlimited gets the network it deserves. verizon. (mic thuds) uh, sorry. it's unlimited without compromising reliability, on the largest, most advanced 4g lte network in america.

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welcome back. so he is sometimes seen, he is rarely heard. talking about steve bannon, officially the white house chief strategist. >> some say he is actually the brains behind donald trump. jeanne moos introduces us to the man who people call president bannon. >> reporter: the man snl portrayed as the grim reaper wasn't so grimace he made a rare public appearance. >> i can run a little hot on occasions. >> reporter: you may never have heard his voice before. probably seen cartoons of him holding president trump on his lap whispering in the president's ear being the master puppeteer. steve bannon has an announcement, just a second, the strings are tangled.

>> that's how we ended up with president bannon and his dummy donny. >> reporter: day 33, donald trump still believes he is the president. there are impeach president bannon t-shirts and even a "new york times" editorial called him president? the late show showed bannon tucking in president trump. >> night, night. don't let the bed bugs bite. >> reporter: but in person the only thing bannon flicked was the press. >> the mainstream media don't get this because that is the opposition party. >> reporter: does the actual president mind all the talk of president bannon. >> maybe bannon's calling all the shots. >> if that wasn't true, then a certain cable news fan wouldn't have felt the need less than an hour later to tweet. >> i called my own shots. >> reporter: former obama adviser david axlerod compared bannon and reince priebus to a song and dance team as they got

touchy feeley. >> a very dear friend. >> reporter: perhaps to dispel rumors of turf battles. this was like bannon's coming out. >> you know, steve, you're a really likeable guy. >> reporter: get out a little more from under that mask snl puts you under. >> can i have my desk back? >> yes, of course, mr. president. i'll go sit at my desk. >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> we are not the opposition party, we are the free american press and we'll keep doing that job. thanks for being with us. "cnn newsroom." i'm george howell. >> and i'm natalie allen. "early start" is here in the u.s. for others around the world "cnn newsroom" continues with max foster in london. you're watching cnn. . . . .

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and the majority were rated as cleared or minimal at 12 weeks. be the you who talks to your dermatologist about stelara®. did the white house try to get the fbi to reject reports the trump campaign spoke with russia? did it violate procedures? cnn reporting and the white house response you don't want to miss. president trump getting ready to take the stage at cpac. his advisors setting the stage for him. we will show what you they said. and is the white house injecting politics to soothe its needs on the up coming travel sfwh? good morning. welcome to "early