that's not an easy decision to make. >> well, the congress is the only one that could pass legislation banning that, and that's why the state department is looking at some kind of executive order or restricting travel. >> we'll see what happens on that sad story, indeed. that's it for me. aaron burnett out front starts now. >> next, breaking news. special council bob mueller behind closed doors at this moment. plus, president trump speaks out about the death of an american held in north korea. he says he should have come home a long time. tonight obama firing back. and the first results from georgia's special congressional election moments away. it is a massive test for trump. he put his credibility on the line. will he score a victory or take a hit? good evening. special counsel bob mueller on

capitol hill behind closed doors with the leader of the house intelligence committee. and as the investigation picks up steam, the white house tonight is actually dismissing the very idea that russia meddled in the presidential election. here is sean spicer this afternoon. >> does president trump believe that the russian government interfered in the 2016 elections? >> i have not sat down and talked to him about that specific thing. >> that comes as we are counting down to this week's deadline for the white house to produce tapes of the president's conversations with jim comey. since trump first tweeted that tapes may exist, five weeks ago, the white house has continuously dodged questions of when we will know more about them. >> do tapes exist of your conversations with him? >> well, i'll tell you about that maybe some time in the near future. >> the president made clear. >> he'll let us know. >> i think the president is going to address that in the week ahead. >> the president will said he

will make an announcement on this. >> it is absurd. either there are no tapes or there are and he should have produced them already. where are they? i want to begin with the other breaking story this hour. polls have just closed a minute and a half ago in the special election between john os to have and republican karen handle in georgia. it is the most important election since the presidential contest, a referendum on trump himself. we are out front in georgia. and this is an election that matters in the white house and, frankly, around this country. >> reporter: it is why so many people are paying attention, erin, including president trump. both of these candidates are trying to make this is a local election, but there are so many eyes on district six here in georgia. as an indication about how people are feeling and what is a very red district. when you look back to november, it's pretty stunning because tom price, who ended up vacating this seat to be the health and human services secretary, and that's why they're having this

election, he won re-election for his house seat by 23 points. but donald trump only vested hillary clinton by a point and change. so this is where democrats have seen opportunity, in this 30-year-old documentary film maker who used to be a congressman staffer he's up against in a neck and neck race against karen handle, the former secretary of state here in georgia. the question is can you really extrapolate what this will mean on the national scale. there is so much money here. $50 million coming from the campaigns, coming from outside groups and talking to a lot of democrats and republicans, they say it is tough to say because that really does mess with the math when you're looking to see how you could make this apply to the mid determine elections. >> thank you very much. as i said results could come this hour. we're going to get the early results in just a few moments and bring them to you. a race being watched very closely by the president in this hour who has put his credibility

on the ryan in tweet after tweet. the special counsel bob mueller on capitol hill tonight. there to meet with the readers of the house intelligence committee about the russia probe. manu, you have been breaking details on this tonight. you are learning more about this meeting. and bob mueller going to capitol hill tonight. >> reporter: that's right. leaders of the house intelligence committee just wrapped up a meeting that lasted over an hour in a classified briefing room on the outside of the capital just moments after that including mike conway, the republican who is now leading this russia investigation said they are trying to set up a system where their investigation could move forward and would not conflict with what bob mueller is now doing. this comes as mueller is making a round of meetings on capitol hill, meeting with the leaders of the snalt intelligence committee last week and tomorrow. meeting with leaders of the senate judiciary committee, looking into the issue of fbi interference and questions about whether or not there was know obstruction by president trump

and the way he handled his firing of james comey. and the questions about his handling of the michael flynn investigation as well. so bob mueller now moving forward, making sure that the people on capitol hill do not conflict with his investigation in any way. one big reason why he's up here today. >> thank you very much. we're going to be joined by a member of the house intelligence committee to talk about that meeting that just wrapped up in a moment. the amazing here is as this investigation is heating up, at the white house today sean spicer refused to say whether the president of the united states believes that russia interfered with the election, which of course is an established fact by intelligence agencies in this country. jim acosta is out front at the white house. jim, you were there for what was a stunning moment. >> reporter: that's right. the cameras were on, but it was still pretty opaque on the question of russia. sean spicer could not ants whether the president believes russia interfered in the last presidential election.

and he said even though this is an issue crucial to the future of this presidency, he said he has not spoken to the president about what his belief is on this issue. here is how it went down. >> generally speaking, this conversation about russian interference in our elections, there is 16 intelligence agencies that say that they did. the former fbi director said that without a doubt the russians -- >> i understand. i have seen the reports. >> does the president share those views? >> i have not sat down and asked him about his specific reaction to them. though, i would be glad to touch base and get back to you. >> didn't he say it was fake news, sean? >> and he didn't want to answer our follow up question because of course the president has in fact on multiple occasions referred to the russia investigation as fake news. we should point out there are other nonanswers from sean spicer during the briefing today. he could not say whether the president has read the health care bill coming out of the senate right now that is being crafted in the senate right now.

yesterday he said he could not tell us whether or not the president beliefs in climate change and as you noted they are still not saying whether or not the president has recordings of his conversation in the white house as the question goes on, where are the tapes. >> thank you very much. and out front now jackie spear, member of the house intelligence committee. good to have you back. special counsel bob mueller just wrapping up a meeting coming on the early hours of thiseni even. are you able to tell us anything about it? >> i actually can't confirm it. but i can tell you that deconfliction is a key component of the house intelligence committee being able to move forward and not to in any way create difficulty toward the investigation that's being conducted by the special counsel. >> so let me ask you this because when you say deconfliction, that's what manu is talking about. they are trying to deconflict

the various investigations. do you think your investigation is interfering with mueller's work in any way? >> no. i actually do not. i mean, first of all, the special counsel is looking at criminal conduct and the standard is obviously much higher. we're not even looking at any kind of an action being taken civilly or criminally. what we're looking at is what we are going to do to first improve the security so russian hacking will never happen again and secondly to what extent there was any collusion between the trump campaign and the russians. >> do you think that whether the president obstructed justice in any way, including with the firing of jim comey, should be part of your investigation? >> i don't think we're at a point in our investigation that we could even venture there because we are really at the very beginning of the investigation. we have yet to interview our very first witness.

so until we interview the key witnesses, we're not going to be able to make that kind of an assessment. >> all right. so let me just ask you on that point. when you say at the very early stages, there are some that say come on. how can that be true? we've got multiple committees, from yours to the senate, judiciary, now bob mueller. how can it be at the beginning? >> because you have to coordinate with the majority and agree on who is going to be called to answer, who could be on the witness list. there are questions that are sent out that they have to respond to before we do the interviews because we want to have a foundation on which to ask questions. so it does take time. and, remember, you know, if you go back to the benghazi hearings that went on for two to three years and many, many interviews before they ever had the very first hearing. >> you heard sean spicer say he has not spoken to the president about whether the russians

hacked the election. do you believe sean spicer? >> i don't believe sean spicer and that's what makes this so problematic. we have the entire intelligence community saying with high confidence that, yes, the russians hacked. and the president has done a small response for every time he's asked the question and now sean spicer is for all intents and purposes saying i don't know. this is their effort to try and move away from what has been one of the greatest impacts on our democracy ever. imagine if we had russians working in the election department as spies throughout our country? would we just allow that to go on? and for all intents and purposes, that is exactly what happened. >> part of what we'll answer questions of course, would be whether the president of the united states has tapes of his conversations with jim comey, right? as he sintimated on twitter he may have.

your committee has put a deadline out, this week, this friday. you sate this friday put out any recordings you have. sean spicer was also asked about the tapes today, congresswoman, and here is what he said. >> the president has said he will make an announcement on this. i expect it this week. so when he's ready to make that announcement, we'll let you know. >> the president said soon, shortly. now it is this week. your deadline is this week. do you have any indication as to whether they are going to give you an answer? a hard and fast answer, here's the tapes or no. we completely misled the entire country about having tapes. will you get that answer friday? >> i think they're clearly signaling they will have the answer by friday. but this is very typical of the president. he said he was going to release his tax return all through his campaign, and then after he was elected he said, no, i'm not going to release my tax return. he always loves to create drama. and you either have tapes or you

don't have tapes. and you should be able to admit that to the american people. >> yes. >> i find his lack of trustworthiness really problematic. >> do you think he made the whole thing up when he raised the whole idea of tapes? >> i absolutely do. >> and now he's just strung everybody along for the drama of it. >> yes. we went from no drama obama to drama every ten seconds in this administration. it's really bringing our government to a halt because we can't do our work when we're constantly responding to the most recent tweet. >> thank you very much. i appreciate your time. >> thank you. >> out front next, the special council adding new lawyers to his team today, including one who has a specialty, flipping witnesses. who is the target? plus, president trump suggesting obama is to blame for the death of a young american held captive in north korea and now president obama firing back. breaking news about the

georgia sixth district race. ♪ buried just under the surface, the answer to it all. ♪ we want to need each other. ♪

i feel it every day. but at night, it's the last thing on my mind. for 10 years my tempur-pedic has adapted to my weight and shape, relieving pressure points from head to toe. so i sleep deeply but feel light. and wake up ready to perform. even with the weight of history on my shoulders. find your exclusive retailr at tempur-pedic.com my belly pain i could build a small city

with all the over-the-counter products i've used. enough! i've tried enough laxatives to cover the eastern seaboard. i've climbed a mount everest of fiber. probiotics? enough! (avo) if you've had enough, tell your doctor what you've tried and how long you've been at it. linzess works differently from laxatives. linzess treats adults with ibs with constipation or chronic constipation. it can help relieve your belly pain, and lets you have more frequent and complete bowel movements that are easier to pass. do not give linzess to children less than six, and it should not be given to children six to less than eighteen. it may harm them. don't take linzess if you have a bowel blockage. get immediate help if you develop unusual or severe stomach pain, especially with bloody or black stools. the most common side effect is diarrhea, sometimes severe. if it's severe stop taking linzess and call your doctor right away. other side effects include gas, stomach-area pain and swelling. talk to your doctor about managing your symptoms proactively with linzess. i was playing golf love golf....

i used to love golf. wait, what, what happened? i was having a good round, and then my friend, sheila, right as i was stepping into the tee box mentioned a tip a pro gave her. no. yep. did it help? it completely ruined my game. well, the truth is, that advice was never meant for you. i like you. you want to show me your swing? it's too soon. get advice that's right for you. investment management services from td ameritrade. heri think i might burst..... totally immersed weekenders. whatever kind of weekender you are, there's a hilton for you. book your weekend break direct with hilton.com and join the summer weekenders. new this hour, robert mueller is expanding his staff for the investigation into possible ties between the trump campaign and russia. there are now 13 lawyers who have been brought on to

mueller's investigation. the latest additions include an attorney with the solicitor general's office and also joining a man with a skill that could be crucial to the investigation. laura is out front. and this is andrew weissman, veteran federal prosecutor. why is he such a key player. >> he's not only brilliant. he's tenacious. he has investigated everything from even ron to tough cases against the mob. but sources say he has a particular knack for persuading witnesses to flip on each other and figuring out their pressure points. back in the even ron case, he charged the chief financial officer's wife in order to put pressure on her husband to testify and it worked. until recently, he led the justice department's criminal fraud unit. but this is someone who bob mueller trusts. the two worked together back at the fbi. so you could say this new team is something of a reunion.

>> thank you very much. obviously significant there with that addition. out front now, former assistant secretary for the department of homeland security and skoen senior congressional correspondent for the washington examiner. you heard laura's reporting. bob mueller expanding his staff. how significant is this? we're now up to 13 attorneys. >> i think it's significant just given the scope of expertise of mueller's team now. so it is not just a group of prosecutors. they have specialties in financial dealings and financial and banking networks and now with this hiring of weissman, the focus on the capacity of getting someone to turn on a network or a conspiracy. so the idea that seems to be floating out there now, that, oh, this has just become an obstruction of justice case and there is no underlying crime or they haven't found a smoking gun yet i think is ridiculous at this stage. this team would not be put together, would not be

investigating this much if it were just an obstruction case at this stage. >> david, you know, to that point, you know, you just heard one of the people joining is a veteran prosecutor with a specific ability to flip witnesses, get somebody to turn against everybody else. how big of a concern is this for the white house? >> well, look, i think any time you have a special counsel situation, a white house is going to be concerned. we have seen in the '90s with president clinton and the white water investigation, it starts over here and ends over there. and the same thing happened under george w. bush where they started looking for who leaked the name and the person who did the leaking was never fingered but somebody else took the fall for somebody else. so you have to be concerned and you have to deal with that. but, look, i talk to republicans on the hill a lot and i haven't found anybody to assail mueller's credibility or his character. if he's going to do a proper investigation that's going to be

credibility, he has to assemble a team to get it done. if he finds nothing, then people won't trust that result either. >> should people trust this? i simply point to newt gingrich coming out with a tweet, republicans are delusional if they think the special counsel is going to be fair. we checked those reports. three members at least of the legal team that mueller has assembled have given their political donations almost exclusively to democrats. is that an issue? is there bias? >> bob mueller has been appointed mostly by republicans and was extended by president obama. at least the lead has some republican credit. but i think it's pretty safe to say that mueller does not read newt gingrich's tweets. his head is down. he's focussed on what he can deliver and his obligation to deliver the truth. if you are on trump's team, what you want is a thorough investigation so that this will go away and the administration and the white house can actually focus on work.

>> so this comes as some democrats are now saying that the fired national security advisor, michael flynn, is cooperating. obviously, that's significant in many ways. but one of them could be that he, in exchange for his cooperation, is willing to, well, let's just say flip or turn or dish on somebody else. how big of a risk is flynn? >> well, look, flynn has been a problem for the president from the very beginning and i can't understand the president's loyalty to flynn because of that because most of the president's problems with the russia investigation which is a serious matter the president should want to get to the bottom of really stems from flynn, what he didn't tell the transition team or the administration and all of the things that we continue to find out about his foreign dealings. so clearly it is a concern. i think democrats should be careful about getting ahead of themselves because if they start to insinuate that more is going on, that they are actually able to prove, then this investigation is going to look more political than maybe it is and it's going to make it harder for republicans and for voters out in the country who are

skeptical and worried about it to actually believe that it is above board. >> so, you know, when david mentions the loyalty the president has for general flynn, he does. he's had it since the beginning and even after he fired him. here's a quick clip. >> michael flynn, general flynn is a wonderful man. a truly great general right here. i thank you. >> if flynn did something, is there any implication to the president because of that loyalty? and of course because of what the fbi director, jim comey, says the president asked, which was for him to drop the investigation into flynn. >> yeah. i think so, but picking up on what david said, i respect that point. i don't think democrats should read too much into any part of this. we don't know if this is going towards financial dealings or towards collusion because mueller may also be investigating data management in

the campaign, things implicating jared kushner. the fact that trump camps dropped flynn is interesting. it may have to do with trump's personality. and i think we are going to have to begin to discuss the potential that trump may try to -- or may pardon some of these characters. he's allowed to do anticipatory pardons. you wonder as this investigation continues what the president's move will be. nothing shocks me anymore and, so, that is i think maybe another shoe to drop. >> would that shock you, david, if he did that? >> no. i don't think anybody with this president shocks me. so much of the president's trouble is not so much what has happened but how he handles what has happened. he fired james comey. if he would have handled it differently, he might not have ended up in this mess. but that's what we've seen from the president over time. >> perhaps he would have ended

up under investigation himself, which of course we understand that he now is after he fired jim comey. thank you both. appreciate it. next the breaking news, new activity at a north korean nuclear test site. this comes as the president blames obama for the death of an american held by kim jong-un and obama firing back. and the results coming back from the georgia race. a major referendum on president trump. the first tally coming after this.

you doyou'll see whatet but in you're really made of. after five hours of spinning and one unfortunate ride on the gravitron, your grandkids spot a 6 foot banana that you need to win. in that moment, you'll be happy you partnered with a humana care manager and got your health back on track. because that banana isn't coming home with you until that bell sings. great things are ahead of you when your health is ready for them. at humana, we can help you with a personalized plan for your health for years to come.

roooooaaar!!! want our whole house to be filled with entertainment. easy boy! but we don't want annual contracts and hardware. you scoundrel! we just want to stream live tv. and we want it for 10 dollars a month. (batman:raspy) wow. i'd like that in my house. it's a very big house. yeah, mine too. look at us. just two bros with sick houses. high five. directv now. a big streaming deal for $10 a month. it's entertainment your way.

the future isn't silver suits anit's right now.s, think about it. we can push buttons and make cars appear out of thin air. find love anywhere. he's cute. and buy things from, well, everywhere.

how? because our phones have evolved. so isn't it time our networks did too? introducing america's largest, most reliable 4g lte combined with the most wifi hotspots. it's a new kind of network. xfinity mobile. breaking news. cnn has learned that u.s. spy satellites have detected new activity. officials say it is the only time that they have seen movement at the site in several weeks. obviously significant given the timing, a concern that north korea could carry out a test tomorrow. that would be a major step and it comes as president trump says the tragic death of otto, who was detained in north korea

could have been prevented. >> it is a total disgrace what happened to otto. that should never, ever be allowed to happen and frankly if he were brought home sooner, i think the result would have been a lot different. he should have brought home that same day. >> jim, pretty forceful language. he should have been brought home that same day. that was under the watch of barack obama. >> that's right. you heard the president criticize obama over obamacare and others, but this takes the icing as between president trump and president obama to a whole new level with the president at the white house today suggesting that former president obama was somehow to blame for the death of otto warmbier, but he also seems to be acknowledging that his own policy decision to get china involved in this may not have worked out. he put this tweet up. this came from the president

earlier this afternoon. while i greatly appreciate the efforts of president xi and china to help out with north korea, it has not help out. at least i know china tried. that is a direct reference to the president's attempt to get china and president xi involved to get north korea to restrain itself. that has not worked out. keep in mind, the president traded some leniency towards china for that kind of cooperation. remember during the campaign he promised to get tough on china in trade and so on. so the big question moving forward is does the president want to go down that road when it comes to getting tough on china on trade. that would be a very big development for the u.s. and china. but we should caution our viewers, we did reach out to officials early today who told us, erin, they don't know what the president was getting at in these tweets. so we'll be digging into this further. >> they along with so many others on so many tweets.

thank you so much. now the national security advisor and cnn military analyst, former member of the joint chiefs of staff, tony, let me start with you. the president said that otto should have brought home the day he was taken hostage. he says the results would have been different if he were brought home sooner. it certainly sounds like he is blaming president obama and they have come out with a pushback on this saying it was tireless efforts, that they freed ten hos t -- hostages? >> this is not a time to be pointing fingers at other americans. the fact of the matter is north korea is fully responsible for the death of otto warmbier and it also looks like they are preparing another nuclear test. so the president ought to be focussed on the fact we have three americans in north korea and particularly egregious for our own national security.

they continue to move forward in testing nuclear weapons and their missiles. that's where their focus should be, not on playing the blame game. >> president on's former national security spokesman came out with a force mall statement after president trump said this in which he said referred to the tireless efforts by the obama administration. he said those efforts resulted in the release of ten americans from north korean custody. ten americans. how can president trump come out and seem to blame president obama for otto warmbier himself when, by the way, two americans have been taken hostage since president trump has taken office, and neither one of them have been released. >> that's true, erin. and one of the big issues here is you have to be very careful where you lay blame in a situation like this because it can just as easily happen to any administration. the idea that an american could be taken hostage, especially by a regime like north korea is

something that has to be at the forefront of every president's minds and you have to be very careful of blame with something like this. it is important for them to realize also that we have to get these remaining three americans out before we do anything else. >> so the new satellite images that tony just referred to, activity we haven't seen in weeks at the underground nuclear testing site, how significant is this? >> that would be very significant, erin. the reason is it would basically be a slap in the face, not only to the united states, but also a slap in the face to china, the republican of korea, japan and even russia. it would basically be north korea's statement that they are going rogue and proud of it and they are going to stay rogue and do whatever they want to do regardless of the world opinion and anything else that could get in their way. >> tony, of course, the big question here is what will president trump do. we has to decide whether to retaliate to the death of otto

warmbier, now this possible nuclear test looming. the images of children in syria, president trump is said that what moved him to strike assad. tonight we have a moving speech from otto warmbier at his high school graduation. >> this is our season finale. this is the end of one great shoe but a new spin offs. we will always have this group here. we'll have the support of all these of people all around us. we'll have the knowledge we gained as a group and we'll have the rerun, the memories we have created to be played over and over again. >> otto warmbier is dead. he no longer has that to look forward to. it is an emotional thing to see. the president is emotional clearly about otto. could that prompt him to act militarily? >> it breaks your heart to hear this incredibly eloquent young

man whose life was cut short in the most horrific way. but you have to be clear eyed about this, and the president's obligation is not to respond emotionally as emotional as we all feel in the face of his death, but to respond very deliberately, to make sure we have all of the stakeholders around the table laying out a strategy. and we need to get the three americans still there out. but even more to deal with this increasingly great problem, which is their development of a nuclear weapon that could hit the united states. we have maybe a year or two left before they have that technology, and that would be in the hands of leader who acts at best impulsively and maybe even irrationally. what's critical is for the president to make sure we have a strategy in place to try to prevent this from happening. >> thank you both. i appreciate. out front next the breaking news, polls closing moments ago

in that record georgia house race. the first results are coming in. we're going to bring them to you. john king at the wall and more breaking news, the leaders of the house intelligence committee have release add statement on their meeting with bob mueller. tonight i have the details. we will bring you that next. having moderate to severe plaque psoriasis is not always easy. it's a long-distance run. and you have the determination to keep going. humira has a proven track record of being prescribed for nearly 10 years. humira works inside the body to target and help block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to symptoms. in clinical trials, most adults taking humira were clear or almost clear and many saw 75% and even 90% clearance in just four months. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal, infections and cancers,

including lymphoma have happened as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms, or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. join over 250,000 people who have chosen humira. ask about the #1 prescribed biologic by dermatologists. humira & go. when it comes to reducing the evsugar in your family's dietom. coke, dr. pepper, and pepsi hear you and we're working together to do just that. bringing you more great tasting beverages with less sugar or no sugar at all. smaller portion sizes,

clear calorie labels, and reminders to think balance. because we know mom wants what's best. more beverage choices, smaller portions, less sugar. balanceus.org hey dad, come meet the new guy. the new guy? what new guy? i hired some help. he really knows his wine. this is the new guy? hello, my name is watson. you know wine, huh? i know that you should check vineyard block 12. block 12? my analysis of satellite imagery shows it would benefit from decreased irrigation. i was wondering about that. easy boy. nice doggy. what do you think? not bad.

breaking news, we have new information on that meeting between special counsel bob mueller and the house intel leaders. tonight the heads of that committee have issued a statement and in it they say, quote, we had a productive meeting with special counsel mueller this afternoon to deconflict our concurrent investigations. i look forward to continuing our dialogue with him as both investigations progress. out front now, our political analyst and editor in chief of the daily beast, dana bash, mark preston, senior political analyst. dana, let me start with you. the significance here of course is the word deconflict. what does that mean? >> it means that we have multiple investigations going on. you have the special counsel investigation led by robert mueller, which came after what was already happening on capitol

hill. the house investigation and the senate investigation. deconflict basically means in layman's terms, not step all over each other. even though they're maybe talking to similar witnesses, looking at similar documentation, things like that, they do have very different missions. so when i say different missions, what robert mueller is ultimately looking at is whether or not there are any criminal charges that are going to be brought against anybody, whether any laws were broken that reached that level. what the house and senate, but particularly the house and those are the leaders he met with today, what they're charged with is getting the public information about the russian attempts to affect the u.s. election. >> right. >> so that's basically the discussion. >> it's interesting, john, when they use the word deconflict that it seems -- mueller has

gone over tonight at 5:30 this afternoon for an hour-long meeting. tomorrow it's judiciary. he is very much in a sense taking charge of all of this. >> yes. >> he is doing what and in what way? that is an investigation that is taking form and gathering momentum, it would seem. >> he's staffing up with very serious folks and what it seems to be doing is deconflict is the keyword of the statement and what it could mean is house, senate, don't worry about obstruction of justice. i got that. you focus on more narrow missions. we'll see what he says in the judiciary tomorrow. but it does seem to say, look, let's not both be pulling in the same direction. let's be complimentary, not ones duplicating work. >> what do you say to the fact this will be the third meeting in about 24 or 36 hours that he's had with these committees as we now have learned he's

hired more attorneys. he's got 13 in his fleet. >> i think it's critical right now that you are having these investigations work concurrently or on parallel tracks. could you imagine if the senate intelligence committee and the senate judiciary committee and the house intelligence committee was going to war with the independence counsel when it came to information and witnesses. >> right. they all want to talk to the same people. >> what congress's job is to figure out -- gather information to present and figure out if there is anything that is impeachable. if you go to the other side, what mueller is looking for, is there any indictments, has anyone done anything criminal. >> there is a history for -- history of congress and an independent counsel in that case bumping into each other, and that's iran contra.

it was different because it was a big large committee looking into it, but they gave oliver north immunity. and ultimately, that ended up really -- ended up really messing up the criminal probe into oliver north and it allowed him to get off because of the immunity that congress gave. so that is probably kind of a prime example of how and why these two entities would want to deconflict. >> of course proof that bob mueller knows what he's doing and he is not taking anything for granted or anything by chance. our breaking news coverage of this continues and the breaking news, first results of that crucial georgia special election that the president of united states has weighed in even multiple times today. john king with those first results next. somewhere along the great journey of self-discovery: a breakthrough. ♪ it's in our nature to need each other. ♪

when i feel controlled by frequent, unpredictable abdominal pain or discomfort and diarrhea. i tried lifestyle changes and over-the-counter treatments, but my symptoms keep coming back. it turns out i have irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea, or ibs-d. a condition that's really frustrating. that's why i talked to my doctor about viberzi... ...a different way to treat ibs-d. viberzi is a prescription medication you take every day that helps proactively manage both abdominal pain and diarrhea at the same time. so i can stay ahead of my symptoms. viberzi can cause new or worsening abdominal pain. do not take viberzi if you have no gallbladder, have pancreas or severe liver problems, problems with alcohol abuse, long-lasting or severe constipation, or a bowel or gallbladder blockage. pancreatitis may occur and can lead to hospitalization and death. if you are taking viberzi, you should not take medicines that cause constipation. the most common side effects of viberzi include constipation, nausea, and abdominal pain. stay ahead of ibs-d with viberzi.

will you be ready when the moment turns romantic? cialis for daily use treats ed and the urinary symptoms of bph. tell your doctor about your medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, or adempas® for pulmonary hypertension, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. to avoid long-term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have a sudden decrease or loss of hearing or vision, or an allergic reaction, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis. and get medical help right away. we, the device loving people want more

than just unlimited data. we want unlimited entertainment. so we can stream unlimited action. watch unlimited robots. watch unlimited romance. if you are into that. but we also want more like... unlimited hbo. can i stop dying now mark? no can't do mi amigo. it's unlimited. besides you are really good at it james. don't settle for any unlimited data plan. only the at&t unlimited plus plan comes with hbo included at no extra charge. sglrchlts breaking news right now, the first votes are coming in in that georgia special election. let me show them to you. republican karen handle is in the early lead. 51.4% of the vote. as you can see, though, only 26% reporting. that's just three counties, according to our john king. john os to han ossoff, 48.6. very early in the night.

but my understand ing is that this does include early voting, which was a crucial, crucial part of this election. >> very important part of this election. and early voting was much, much, much higher, we are told, now than it was even in the original election for what is now today, which is a run-off. and republicans who i have been talking to have been really trying to step up their game in early voting. historically, erin, republicans have tried to back off of early voting because they would argue that it cannibalized their own vote on election day, and that has changed in a big day. and this is a prime example. they had been working very hard to get the republican vote out early. so once we have more information about where these early votes are coming from, it will be a good indication as to how good the republicans had been at

early voting and that will be a indication >> when we look at that screen, it is still early in the night, only 26% reporting. but that puts karen handel in the lead in what is the most closely watched and heavily invested in congressional race in this country. >> that's right. $50 million has been spent in this congressional special election. democrats felt they would have an edge on rly voting coming in, because of the enthusiasm among the grassroots base, in a district that trump only won by just over 1%. this has been a prime knockoff. if ossoff is not cleaning up in early voting, that could be a sign for a tough night for democrats. >> let's just say, mark preston, the president of the united states has put it on the line. this is seen as a preferreferen his presidency.

he tweeted about this seven tim times. he said, vote today. this is a very traditional tweet. and then another one, slamming jon ossoff who wants to raise taxes. the president has a lot on the line tonight. >> he certainly does. those tweets are basically rifle shots at trump voters where he's trying to get the masses to vote, those people who supported him in november, that he thinks he can get off their couches to vote for karen handel. in many ways you have to give him some praise if you're a republican for investing himself in this race. >> a lot of people told him not to do it, and he's been doing it again and again against their advice. >> we saw barack obama do that quite frankly if you go to the past elections. trump is all in. the question is, is it fair to

say it's a referendum on his agenda? i don't think so. if you look at what's happened so far this year, republicans have already won two special elections, likely to win one in south carolina tonight. in the end, even if democrats win, republicans would have won three. however, messaging. if democrats win, that's going to be the big takeaway. how do they speak to voters? >> if the republican wins though, john avolon, all this concern about the president's approval rating, latest is 36%. that's abysmal. but if this closely watched race, the gop wins and the gop has been winning race after race, does it show these approval ratings are wrong or do not matter? >> karen handel's people has been concerned about the way her candidacy is so tied to trump. but even in a district -- this district has been drawn to be plus nine republican. that means it is 9 percentage

points more republican than the neutral district in america. so republicans have been set up to succeed in this district. >> even though trump only one by 1%. >> that's the point is that the fact that republicans are fighting so hard in a district they should win in a cake walk is itself significant. now, all this money and democratic enthusenthusiasm, th reality check. but it doesn't distract from the fact that republicans have a fight to hold on to this seat. >> thank you all. we're going to keep waiting here. 26% reporting right now, the lead to karen handel, the republican. next, more on donald trump elbowing his way into the world of jeanne moos. you're going to believe what she has for you tonight. i love getting more for less.

that's why this control enthusiast rents from national. where i can skip the counter... ...and choose any car in the aisle. on average, four out of every five rentals at national is a free upgrade. getting a full-size and paying for a mid-size? ♪ whoa, oh, whoa, whoa, lovin' every minute of it... ♪ as the boys from loverboy so eloquently noted... i'm lovin' every minute of it. go national. go like a pro.

i wish you were here. i miss home. ♪ ♪ for those who find a way. always unstoppable. you doyou'll see whatet but in you're really made of. after five hours of spinning and one unfortunate ride on the gravitron, your grandkids spot a 6 foot banana that you need to win. in that moment, you'll be happy you partnered with a humana care manager and got your health back on track. because that banana isn't coming home with you until that bell sings. great things are ahead of you when your health is ready for them. at humana, we can help you with a personalized plan

for your health for years to come.

track your pack. set a curfew, or two. make dinner-time device free. [ music stops ] [ music plays again ] a smarter way to wifi is awesome. introducing xfinity xfi. amazing speed, coverage and control. change the way you wifi. xfinity. the future of awesome. breaking news. the first results there on your screen coming in from georgia's special election. republican karen handel in the early lead. that is a 51.4% to 48.6%. that includes fulton county and the early vote.

we'll keep you updated as these votes come in moment by moment. in the meantime, here's jeanne moos. >> reporter: let's call it the push and preen, an unforgettable moment from the nato summit. >> who does that? >> reporter: as one headline put it, montenegro prime minister got between donald trump and camera. >> look at this guy, wow! >> reporter: but not everyone was laughing and cringing. >> and i'm thinking, oh, my god, this is one of the most embarrassing moments. they don't see it that way. >> reporter: they refers to a focus group of trump voters that frank lutz tested for cbs. look at what they do with their dials when shown the shove. >> hold it. >> reporter: the approval level shoots up. >> what the hell? >> because we love it. we're america. >> we're rude? >> no. we weren't rude. we're dominant. >> they've been rude for years, sucking us dry. >> we pay for this party.

after eight years, he's making america great again on the world stage. >> reporter: making america great sure grated on a lot of serves. you tiny, tiny little man, j.k. rowling tweeted at president trump. it was a shove that launched a thousand imitations. >> what a jerk. [ laughter ] i don't get out of the way. i've got to adjust the jacket. >> reporter: imitations by late night hosts and impersonators. >> excuse me, get out of the way. >> reporter: when push comes to shove, some trump voters didn't even consider it to be a shove or a push. >> i saw it as a maneuvering for position. >> reporter: which of these three is not a comedian? >> is he a president or a bridesmaid positioning to catch the bouquet? >> that's the kind of shoving that belongs in the buffet line at mar-a-lago.

>> he was just going to the front of the line where he belonged. >> reporter: to his voters, president trump is no chicken. >> you act like they just called your number at kfc. that's mine, the 12 piece. >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> anderson starts next. good evening. thanks for joining us. a lot happening tonight, not the least after which is happening as we speak. they are counting the votes in the atlanta area, and georgia is on a lot of people's minds tonight. georgia's sixth congressional district was held by tom price, who left to join the trump administration. it's been held by republicans, including newt gingrich, since 1979. georgia, as you know, is a red state. the race between republican karen handel and democrat jon ossoff could not have been closer going in, and has turned into the most expensive house race anywhere ever. right now, karen handel is leading by 2 1/2