and enjoyed by the community in the future. together, we're building a better california. hello. i'm wolf blitzer. it's 1:00 p.m. hee in washington. 8:00 p.m. in damascus. 1:00 a.m. start in manila. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. in a couple hours president trump hits the road for a 17-day vacation. heading to his golf club in bedminster, new jersey,ing while back here in washington the special counsel robert mueller clearly turning up the heat on his investigation into possible collusion with russia and the election. following the money trail looking into trump team's finances. our senior white house correspondent jim acosta joins us from the white house. we heard the president push back

on the grand jury news while in west virginia last night calling it sour grapes by democrats. what are you hearing from officials over there today? >> reporter: we were hoping to hear from the president today. he is not going to hold a news conference, at presidenti ins o before heading off or vacation. the president won't be doing that we're hearing from white house officials. i suppose he could surprise us and talk to cameras heading out on the south lawn and getting on marine one, but that unlikely. we'll see if that happens. you're right. at that political rally in west virginia, there was a distinctly different tone but didn't lash out at the media as he often does talking about the story. take a listen how the president described it last night. >> most people know there were no russians in our campaign. there never were. we didn't win because of russia. we won because of you.

they can't beat us at the voting booths. so they're trying to cheat you out of the future and the future that you want. they're trying to cheat you out of the leadership you want. >> reporter: and we heard the president say there last night there were no russians in his campaign. of course, wolf, we should point out members of his campaign did meet with the russians, including his own son, donald trump jr. we know that because the president's son, we know, released those e-mails notinging that he, paul manafort and jared kushner the president's son-in-law met with russians last year during the campaign and we should point out, wolf. we don't expect him to hold a news conference here today there is a possibility he could do that at bedminster, new jersey. obviously, he has the capability to do that. the would us is calling his a working vacation. i remember last year when we went to his golf courses in

scotland, held a rolling news conference with reporters taking us from hole to hole on the government course and answering questions along the way. who knows if we'll see that again but at the golf course the next couple of weeks. we'll see what happens. >> when he holds a press conference, we'll cover it. thanks, jim accost-iostaacosta. and joining us we have cnn politics reporter editor at large chris cillizza, harry bacon, for "538" laura coates, former federal prosecutor and cnn justice correspondent pamela brown. pamela, you and your team are doing excellent reporting on this intensified phase now of robert mueller's investigation looking into possible financial ties between trump, his associates and russians. what more can you tell us about where this investigation stands right now? >> to learn more about where it stands it's important to go from the beginning. one year ago from july, when the

fbi opened up this investigation, wolf. we earn willed, my team learned it began because investigators noticed curious contacts between trump campaign associates and russians and of course, a cyber hack at the dnc. where it began. fast forward a year later. now under the direction of robert mueller, special counsel, there is a focus on the finances of nome president trump but also his family members. also the trump organization as well. all of that is under scrutiny. we've learned investigators are going back, combing through shell companies. combing through the backgrounds of russian business associates connected to the 2013 miss universe pageant that, of course, president trump brought to moscow. also going through all the tennants in trump tower over the past several years. really, doing a deep dive on the financials and as we heard donald trump say in that interview with the "new york times," he believes anything having to do with his personal finances is crossing a line, but it's clear that that really is

the focus of the investigation, wolf. >> and, chris, an important interview on "new day" this morning. former whitewater were special counsel ken starr asked whether or not robert mueller is going beyond what his investigation is supposed to be focusing in on, and listen to this. >> to the extent that you're moving beyond collusion with russian operatives or russian interests or the russian government itself, and into that which doesn't seem to have a direct tie to russia, then these questions are, in fact, raised. i don't think that it is clear one way or the other, but i do think it is a, certainly a serious matter when a special counsel is accused, and i was accused of that, of exceeding his or her authority. that's a serious matter, because we do not want investigators and prosecutors out on a fishing expedition. >> and interesting, coming from ken starr. speaking about a fishing

expedition, because his investigations and went on for four years started with a land deal. the whitewater land deal and wound up investigating the monica lewinsky matter with then president bill clinton. >> yeah. ken starr, not winning self-awareness awards. you know? i don't think. i mean, that's an odd -- i mean, if you look up sort of -- for many democrats in the 1990s, ken starr, for many independents and many folks, overly aggressive independent prosecutor. someone who went beyond the bounds. you see ken starr. he's a definition of that. odd from him. look, i think this comes down to what you believe the definition of directly is. in rod rosenstein's order setting up the deputy attorney general, setting up bob mueller as special counsel says, give him free rein to pursue anything directly related to russia's meddling in the election. republicans define that narrowly. that just means the 2016

election? but as pam is reporting and pointing out, you know, there could potentially be a long tail here going back a decade. potenti potentially. maybe more. in terms of relationships built between that trump world and russia. so -- it's a hard thing. again, i think ken starr, frankly, is a flawed messenger to deliver the fishing expedition line, but one thing i would note, dana bash, our colleague, interviewed susan collins and lisa murkowski this week and asked about bob mueller and what was a red line and what wasn't. susan collins said, look. bob mueller should have the prerogative to follow the leads as he sees them. there's no an appetite in the senate, beyond the susan collins' of the senate, not an appetite to push bob mueller out and i think donald trump would run into real danger trying to do that. >> we'll have dana's interview with us, two republican senators. i want to be precise, laura.

here is the announcement, the statement that the acting attorney general at the time rod rosenstein issued on may 17th announcing robert mueller would be the special counsel and giving him these instructions to investigate any links and/or coordination between the russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of president donald trump and -- very significant -- chris alluded to it -- any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation. that seems to give him broad power. if you see something going on in your investigation that may be criminal, go ahead and investigate it. >> doesn't only seem that way, it precisely is that directive. the goal of that directive for robert mueller was not for him to be myopic in approach and focus only on the year 2016 and related to the campaign itself. it's to understand why there may have been a choice to choose donald trump. why russia was the country that

was involved perhaps. how there was expected collusion, if any, and what were the parametersut in place before the campaign to prepare for any possible collusion? and if he were to investigate things that happens, derived, even from the trump campaign or from donald trump jr. or donald trump himself, he has the ability to pursue has rabbit hole, even if it doesn't end in a charge or indictment. his direction is much wider. i had a chance to talk to him this morning. his argument is more nuanced. he came under a different law, different independent counsel, janet reno over seeing him in the monica lewinsky scandal. he sees himself as distinct in that. you must follow a force of influence in any way, shape or form. the real estate transactions, financial dealings may all give insight into the actual collusion, if there was any, in

a way testimony cannot. so, wolf, radio it night now a y is looking for financial documents. we'll soo where they lead when we have who was going to testify in front of that grand jury to give further insight. >> you want to add? >> i want to add, a part not to see a crime committed, to understand the russia influence campaign and how far back and blackmail. do the russians have any reason to believe they could have blackmailed over the president or any of his kids for that matter? >> harry, where is this headed? >> seems political. the only talk trump had about firing sessions -- excuse me, firing mueller. now you have a grand jury. talk about looking into his finances. things he doesn't want. seems to me ramped up, the ability for him to push out sessions or push out mueller is, going to be hard before. almost impock now. in fact, lindsey graham and thom

till tillis, two republican senators mutt out bills saying you can't fire the special counsel unless you go through us first. >> and hasn't been signed by the president. interesting you were at that news conference with attorney general jeff sessions announcing a stepped-up attack for the enormous amount of leaks and he said this. listen. >> one of the things we are doing is reviewing poses affecting media subpoenas. we respect the important role that the press plays, and we'll give them respect, were but it t unlimited. >> he and dan coats, director of national intelligence spoke on camera with their statements and then sessions had an off-camera exchange with reporters. >> and the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. >> yes. a provocative statement. we respect the important role

the press ways and will give them respect but it is not unlimited? >> noteworthy being there that jeff sessions left right after and no questions from reporters after making such a bold statement basically saying media subpoenas are not off limits, and i followed up with rod rosenstein dur after that and asked, longstanding doj policy has been not to prosecute reporters. are you willing to say doj will not prosecute reporters? he basically didn't rule it out. doesn't want to get into hypotheticals. a notable shift in the stance of the department of justice. >> and i was going to say. remember candidate trump? i mean, he made quite clear that he thought the libel laws were too strict. said he need to work on loosening the libel law. i'm with pam. i was -- stunned, i guess is the right word, about sessions essentially saying you don't get to do whatever you want, media. but it's not as though we didn't have any clue that this was coming.

donald trump -- we know donald trump's not a huge media fan and he has openly contemplated the possibility of doing some things that would restrict some media freedoms and this is not new. >> and you're a reporter. what's your reaction? >> very ominous. the idea basically, a lot of things that happened, people criticized come through leaks. flynn basically fired because of leaks. so this in some ways has the mirror at least of being a way for trump to silence critics. a worrisome thing. >> and the reason jeff sessions recused himself, "washington post" reported meetings he didn't disclose. donald trump thinks that's the rule of this entire special counsel. >> thanks to you all. a lot coming up. also coming up, two high-profile republican senators issuing a warning to president trump over the russia investigation. details ahead in a cnn exclusive interview. plus, president trump

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agreed to block president trump from filling any executive branch spots while they're gone. the move is called pro forma. essentially meaning that the u.s. senate will gavel into session every few days so it technically never goes into recess. democrats had already said they'd push for this fearing president trump might try to use the recess to fire the attorney general jeff sessions who has recused himself from the russia investigation. but it was actually republicans, repeat that, republican senator leeza murkowski of alaska who presided over the announcement. our chief political correspondent dana bash sat down for an exclusive interview with lisa murkowski and susan collins, another republican senator. a fascinating interview, dana. first i want to discuss what they told you about the special counsel investigation. >> the news was breaking here on cnn. our colleague, adam perez and pam brown, all reported this. i was sitting down and since senator collins sits on the

intelligence committee i asked about her thoughts, and here was her reaction. >> i believe that the special counsel has a very broad mandate, and he should follow the leads wherever they may be, and thus i do not think his investigation should be constrained beyond the mandate that he was given when he was -- >> and the president called that a red line? >> the president can't set red lines for bob mueller. >> well said. >> very strong statement from this republican. and lisa mur kokowski basically agrees? >> she said, "well said." amazing how sometimes two words and clear body language can say so much. >> yes. you spoke with them about their decisive votes that ended at least for now repeal and replace of obamacare together with john mccain that made it impossible for the president and the

republican leadership to go forward with that, at least for now. regrets? >> no. not at all. they really don't. look in so much of the country they are being here -- as heroes. the as people that stopped what many thought was a very bad piece of legislation from going through that would have deprived a lot of americans who need it most of health insurance, but there are a lot of people who think they are heretics. did the absolute wrong thing. promised for years and years they along with other republicans, repeal obamacare, this was their chance and went back on the promise. so i really wanted to get, wolf, from that kind of what was going on behind the scenes. remember, these two senators, these two women, were nos across the board from the beginning to start debate all the way until the end. listen to some of what they told me about what happened behind the scenes. >> i see myself as someone who

has an obligation to represent the people of maine, and sometimes that means casting uncomfortable votes. votes that will make my party uncomfortable, and even angry at me. i so remember when both lisa and i were talking with john mccain on the senate floor and he pointed to both of us, and he said, you two are right on this issue. >> he said, people might not appreciate what has happened right now as being a positive, maybe our colleagues are not going to be viewing this as a positive right now, but the -- the time will -- will prove that having a pause, having a time-out for us to do better is going to be good for the country. >> yeah. those are strong statements. no regrets. and actually, get off a plane. get back to their home states,

i'm told, that people start applauding? >> yeah. i mean, senator collins just out tore dinner in d.c. and could barely finish her dinner because people were coming up and wanted to take pictures and say thank you. funny, senator murkowski didn't say this on camera but during our time together, i'm not really that comfortable with that. that's not why i went into this at all. certainly getting it from the other side as well and i think you really cannot understate, wolf, how much pressure these two senators were under from the president on down. intense pressure. the president called senator murkowski and they had what she reported to me was a very direct it phone call. and murkowski even publicly or actually behind the scenes were ut in front of all her colleagues stood up at the white house at a meeting saying, mr. president, i'm not voting for the republican party. i'm voting for the people of alaska. senator collins chimed in, lisa, i was so proud of you at that moment. they sort of had each other to buck one another up as they got a lot of pressure to just go

with the party on this. >> and supposedly the interior secretary ryan zinke called senator murkowski saying, you know what? a lot of federal money goes to alaska. be careful. somebody, i'm paraphrasing. did she react? >> yes. she said they did have that conversation. she insisted to me she didn't take it as an actual threat. i will tell you in fact they tweeted a picture, their own beer summit a couple nights ago and made sure tout that out in public, they were all fine. the two served, former congressmen from alaska and know each other well. that phone call did happen and she said, he was the messenger making clear that the expectation at the white house was to vote yes, and she said, i just am 234not going to do it, the people of alaska. it's not right. >> thanks. excellent work. much more after the break. numbers are in. unemployment rate here in the united states falling to a 16-year low. the president says he's just getting started. we're going to break down the numbers, what they mean. we'll be right back.

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and a new culture built around customer service. it all adds up to our most reliable network ever. one that keeps you connected to what matters most. president trump is taking a victory lap today after a very strong jobs report for july. employers added 209,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 4.3%. a 16-year low here in the united states. following the report, the president tweeted this -- "excellent jobs numbers just released and i have only just begun. many job stifling regulations continue to fall. movement back to u.s." and former trump campaign

adviser, thanks for joining us. how much credit do you think the president deserves for these very positive numbers? >> how did i know you would ask me that question? first of all, it was a really positive report. also nice wage gains. jobbed created across the board. some increases in manufacturing. and mining, drilling. so, of course, i think the president deserves some ed considerate for this. there's no question the economy, the sense of kind of optimism out there increased dramatically after the election, and that continues. you know, this is an amazing american economy. i'm not making a political point here. the real heroes here are american businesses that have gotten really competitive. just contrast where we are today to ten years ago when american companies were, had debt up to their eyeballs. had over-extended themselves. now american companies are lean, efficient, productive. a lot of the best economies the world now are americans

companies. a tribute to our our businesses resuscitated themselv ed themse >> six months, the last six months of the obama administration, 1 million job also created. the argument you hear from democrats, this president inherited a very strong economy? >> you know, he inherited an economy that was okay, but it wasn't great. we had low growth. if the economy had been as strong as some of my democrat friends say it is i think hillary would be president today. the economy in the last year of obama grew 1.5%. not a good growth rate. it's gone up, last quarter, to 2.6%. still not the 3% trump wants us to get. he wants us to get to 4%. i would say this -- those investors listening to the show wondering -- remember, we also have a bull market in stocks right now. the thing that could, you know -- >> going on for years. remember, 2008, 2009, what was it? like 7,000, the dow jones. now it's closing above s 22,000

but during the seven, eight years of the obama administration it more than doubled itself. >> it did, and went up 700 points the day after the election. investors like the trump agenda. >> deregulating, cutting taxes. is that what they think? >> yes, and more of a pro-business attitude. the point i was going to make, if this economy will continue to grow, the republicans now have to get this tax cut done. you know, if they strike out on tax cuts like the way they have on obamacare, i think a lot of those gains in the stock market, you might see a sell-off. there's a warning flag to investors out there. republicans just have to get this done, and every employer i talk to say we're waiting for the tax cut. ready for it. is it coming? we'll see in the months ahead. >> when is it coming? >> hopefully by thanksgiving, but republicans -- >> do you think the votes are there in the house and senate? >> if you'd asked me three months ago i'd say absolutely

yes. right now, 50/50. we vote, only 52 republicans in the senate. democrats put out a statement last week, chuck schumer, they're not much interested in cutting rates. that enmoos it means likely a republican-only. >> numbers aren't very positive. >> they're numbers. hooray for america. >> thanks very much for coming on. >> thanks, wolf. coming up -- the israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu facing serious allegations of corruption and now one of his top staffers will testify against him. dramatic developments unfolding in jerusalem. we'll go there live, right after a quick break. ng eye gel with hyaluronic acid born to outperform the #1... prestige eye cream for better hydration. and your best look yet. olay eyes collection. ageless.

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israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu is now in the midst of a major political scandal. he's under investigation for bribery, fraud and breach of trust and things may have just gotten a whole lot worse. netanyahu's former chief of 1256 staff agreed to break states evidence. joining us live of from jerusalem, ian, these cases we're talking about what are they all about? >> reporter: well, there are two cases, wolf. the police have been investig e investigating them for months, but in a significant development yesterday evening, we learned that these cases involve bribery, fraud and breach of trust. prime minister netanyahu has been questioned and is a suspect in these cases. the first case is case 1000. and this deals with the prime minister receiving allegedly receiving gifts. the second case is case 2000,

and this peritarians to the prime minister trying to curry favor with a local newspaper, allegedly, and in return, would cut down on the circulation of that paper's main rival, wolf. >> what about the latest revelations involving the prime minister's former chief of staff? this could be a huge development. >> reporter: that's right. this happened today. we learned that a former chief of staff of the prime minister has turned state witness. he has pled guilty and has cut a deal with prosecutors in another case that doesn't relate to this, but in turn will provide evidence. he will provide any information pertaining to these two cases that the police are investiga investigati investigating. >> serious development indeed. so how it prime minister netanyahu responding? >> reporter: defiant, wolf. they've been saying this phrase, that there will be nothing, because there was nothing. something we've been hearing

time's after time. in a statement we also heard from a family spokesman who said, we flatly reject the false claims made against the prime minister. the campaign to replace this administration lies at its heart, but it's doomed to fail for the simple reason that there will be nothing, because there was nothing. again, hearing that phrase again. and then tonight, wolf, we heard from the prime minister. he posted a video on facebook. >> translator: i can't not refer to this week's affair. i don't refer to background noises and i continue to work for you. >> reporter: so, wolf, as this investigation continues, you can see that the prime minister remains resolute. >> and there's a lot of concern, i'm sure, among supporters right now, the israeli police and the prosecutors, they're there working on this, you point out, on this case now for several months. recently, by the way, the former

israeli prime minister olmert served time in prison. he is out. and another served time in prison recently released. authorities take these allegations clearly very, very seriously. ian lee reporting from jerusalem for us. thanks very much. we'll stay on top of this story. also coming up, a new development in syria. russia assumes a bigger role in fighting isis. could that be a sign that president bashar al assad is winning his country's civil war? cnn has the only western reporter inside damascus, and guess what? guess what? we're going there live. g, pins-s of diabetic nerve pain these feet... liked to style my dog as a kid... loved motherhood, rain or shine... and were pumped to open my own salon. but i couldn't bear my diabetic nerve pain any longer. so i talked to my doctor and she prescribed lyrica. nerve damage from diabetes causes diabetic nerve pain. lyrica is fda approved to treat this pain

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u.s./russia relations are "at a dangerous low" from the kremlin and president trump's assessment of the situation. a statement from russia's foreign ministry, we urge american colleagues to stop demonizing russia and its foreign policy. in response to vice president mike pence's announcement from a

few days ago. and sergey lavrov meet on the sidelines of an asian security summit. one issue the u.s. and russia seemingly agree on, at least for now, the fight against isis in syria. dynamics on the ground shifted with noticeable effects. we go to our senior international correspondent fred pleitgen live from damascus. the only western journalist in damascus right now. fred, russia has taken a new initiative in syria. how is that impacting the cooperation between u.s. and russian forces? >> reporter: well, it certainly seems to us, wolf, as though the u.s. and russia are in sync who is going to fight isis here in ceia'sthe syrian democratic forces in and around raqqah and the syrian military now increasingly fighting isis

around the southeast of syria. it was so interesting, wolf. i was able to ed to speak to senior members of the syrian military who told me firsthand they don't mind u.s. planes flying around in the air as long as they're fighting against isis and with the syrian army fully dedicated to fighting isis. at the moment their only and main priority. and the u.s. had influence, back forces fighting isis. russians have influence and that really has made a big difference on the battlefield. for instance, with the syrian military making massive gains against isis in the past weeks, wolf. >> fred, tell us a little more about the cease-fires in what are called the safe zones of syria. >> reporter: hmm. yeah. one of the things enabling the syrian military to make gains against isis. what the russians have done, brokered local cease-fires. a lot of that, wolf, frankly,

it's possible because a lot of rebel groups no longer believe the u.s. might come to their aid and with the end of that cia weapons practice as well. broken local cease-fires means syrian forces can dougo somewhe else, fight against isis and russians are responsible for this safe zones. opened up a new one just north of homs. the rebel groups of part of that al qaeda didn't bacqaeda-backed. russians taking on a big, big role and footprints are developed every day, wolf. >> fred pleitgen from damascus. thanks very much. this weekend the u.s. secretary of state rex tillerson heads to the philippines for a critical regional security summit. the issue of north korea's nuclear ambitions certainly front and center as secretary tillerson joins representatives from china, japan, russia, south korea at the summit.

let's stus this and more with retired john kirby. stokesman pentagon and state department and whith us, global afays elise labott. the foreign minister will also be there in manila at this summit. secretary tillerson said he hasn't ruled out the possibility of speaking to the u.s., addressing speaking directly with north korean officials. is that possible? there could be a conversation there? >> it's possible, but not likely, wolf. a meeting would have to be really prepared and certain points that secretary tillerson would want to address. i think what you're going to see at this meeting is absolutely the opposite. the u.s. looking to isolate the north korean foreign minister at this meeting and try to seek suspending north korea's membership in asean. i think what secretary tillerson said was very significant the other day. you have a lot of mixed messages coming from this administration about, you know, whether there should be military action.

whether there should be talking. secretary tillerson said point blank, he's ready to talk, if conditions are right. he just wants to see a sign from north korea that they're ready. >> let me play that clip. this is secretary tillerson widely seen ascending a message. >> he was. >> to north korea. listen to this. >> we're trying to convey to the north koreans, we are not your enemy. we're not your threat, but you are presenting an unacceptable threat to us. and we have to respond. and we hope that at some point they will begin to understand that, and that we would like to sit and have a dialogue with them about the future. >> significant words. like to sit and have a dialogue with them about the future. these summits, the sidelines, there are informal talks that do occ occur. and you've attended those kind of summits. so is that at all realistic that there could be a dialogue between north korea and the united states? >> well, wolf, i agree. i don't think that's going to happen here and i do think the

tea leaves show they'll look tore ways to isolate the north at this conference. there's lots of sideline and pull-aside discussions but i don't see one happening with north korea, and on tillerson's sound bite, also messaging china. messaging china. an audience for we need to find a way to diplomatically resolve this and we know that talks are a way forward and they're willing, at least i hope they are, to find new breakthroughs this the diplomacy end. >> i find it interesting that the north korean foreign minister was even invited to this security summit in the philippines are all these other world leaders are going to be attending. that in itself is significant. >> they're not technically a member of asean but that they were invited, yeah, we're not member of asean, and we were there at their invitation and we let them control who's coming and going and participating. it's not bad that pyongyang will be there and have to participate

in multilateral discussions about security and trade issues in the region. but i think, again, elise is right. we need to take a very sort of firm stance here. >> so even if the north korean foreign minister, elise, doesn't sit down and meet with tillerson or any other u.s. official, the north korean foreign minister could meet with a lot of people over there and make his points. >> he could, but what secretary tillerson is headed there to do is to make this point, we don't want you talking to north korea. we want to diplomatically isolate them. the question is, do they care? you know, you've seen kind of widespread international condemnation of north korea at the u.n., at other places. i think the only thing that really they care about is some kind of agreement with the united states, and they haven't even shown they're ready to talk, so i'm not really sure that that kind of talk makes a difference. >> the russians are going to be there, sergey lavrov, the foreign minister of russia will be in man ila. the secretary of state of the united states will be there.

i'm assuming they will have an interesting conversation. >> they'll have lots of things to discuss, not moe to mention fred's reporting out of syria. if what they're doing in syria can have positive developments, i think that's good. my experience has been that they have never really been serious about going after isis in syria. they really are about securing their own foothold and we haven't heard any talk about moving the political ball down the field in syria. so we'll see where it goes. >> all right. we got to leave it on that note. guys, thanks very much. much more news coming up. we'll be right back. these days families want to be connected 24/7.

that's why at comcast we're continuing to make our services more reliable than ever. like technology that can update itself. an advanced fiber-network infrustructure. new, more reliable equipment for your home. and a new culture built around customer service. it all adds up to our most reliable network ever. one that keeps you connected to what matters most. tonight on cnn, new information in the so-called fatal attraction case, former teacher carolyn warmus is still behind bars. cnn's keira phillips sat down

exclusively with the convicted killer. she's joining us now. your cnn special report airs later tonight but tell us about the new information you collected in doing all your reporting. >> well, you remember the movie "fating attraction." this was build as the real-life "fatingal attraction"d it's because carolyn warmis was a beautiful young schoolteacher having an affair with an older married man. his wife ends up dead and she goes on a trial for the murder. it's a hung jury but then just before the second trial, he lover, paul solomon, finds a bloody glove in his closet. sound familiar? a bloody glove. that helped acquit o.j. simpson as you remember. this bloody glove helped convict carolyn warmus but she and her lawyers say they can prove her innocence. >> do you believe that you can help overturn this conviction? >> i believe i can help carolyn get this conviction overturned.

>> what is it? is it a smoking gun? is it an instinct? >> you know, my father told me when i was a kid, they're going to come times in your life when you're going to have a little birdie chirping in your ear. he said, no matter what you do in life, always listen to that birdie. when i met carolyn, the birdie began to sing. >> warmus, who's from a wealthy michigan family, graduated with a master's degree from columbia university in 1987. she was living in the big apple and loving her first teaching job in the suburbs of new york. paul solomon, 17 years her senior, became her mentor, and she was captivated by his charm. how did he steal your heart? >> like puppy love, almost, but at the time, i thought, oh, this was real love. you know, this was real deep love. but he was intelligent.

i'm sort of intelligent. and i don't know, he was just, you know, paid a lot of attention to me. >> interesting stuff. so you got a sense to know this woman now a 20-odd years after her conviction, she's been in jail all these years. >> oh, yeah, for 25 years, practically her whole adult life and people said to me, this seems like the nice mom next door. she doesn't seem like someone who could pistol whip another woman and shoot the person nine times, and she has a chorus of defenders supporting her. there's this bloody glove, which is so interesting, the blood was never tested so she's on apapea, wanting that glove tested. also no weapon was ever found, now eye-witnesses, all based on circumstantial evidence, her conviction, so it's a pretty fascinating case to look at again 25 years later. she feels the media frenzy helped convict her because the movie "fatal attraction" was such a blockbuster, everybody was zoned into this case. >> yeah. well, we're looking forward to

it later tonight as usual, good work. and don't miss her special report, fatal attraction or fatal mistake, the carolyn warmus story. it airs later tonight 10:00 p.m. eastern on cnn. that's it for me. thanks for watching. the news continues right now on the news continues right now on cnn. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >> you're watching cnn on this friday afternoon, i'm brooke baldwin. thank you so much for being with me as president trump is about to head over for 17 days of r and r, he delivers arguably the biggest promise of his campaign while dealing with a new level of scrutiny by investigators. the jobs numbers are doing exactly what the president wants, but the russia investigation is crossing his red line. first to the jobs numbers. a july report did come out today and more than 1 million more jobs have entered the economy since he took office. unemployment has reached a 16-year low. however, cnn