'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. ready for a new chapter? talk to your rheumatologist about humira. this is humira at work. >> hello, i'm wolf blitzer. 9:00 p.m. in moscow and 2:30 a.m. saturday in pyongyang, north korea. wherever you are watching, thanks very much for joining us. an extraordinary moment that united nations representatives from the u.s. and north korea at the same room and table. it's the first time in a decade they addressed the counsel accusing the united states of ratcheting up saying his country is a responsible nuclear power. the secretary of state rex

tillerson immediately responding. >> they must be held accountable for its actions. in that regard, a notion that the source of tensions on the peninsula are the fault are no one party. there is but one party that has carried out illegal detonation of devices and there is but one party that continues to launch intercontinental ballistic missiles and is a violation of resolutions. they alone are responsible for the tensions and they alone must take responsibility for the tensions and they alone can solve these tensions. >> let's go to the senior diplomatic. this is extraordinary what's going on.

>> just the oddity of having sex tear tillerson at the un security counsel, so much anticipation of what each side would say. in the end, i think a lot of this was expected. big questions that we did get something of an answer to. first of all, what is rex tillerson talking about? does he mean based on his words and not just today, but over the past several days that the u.s. has no preconditions before sitting down and starting to talk to north korea? we suspected there are preconditions despite what tillerson said earlier this week. we found out that that is true. he had these prepared remarks which he would reiterate. there no precontinued in the same breath as talking about something of preconditions. he left and today the emphasis

was on there being a big precondition that north korea would need to stop the testing and have that silence before those talks could commence. that then is somewhat settled. the other big question is would there be any softening? would they start to see some of the same reality that the u.s. sees and the answer to that was a big no. they essentially blamed the u.s. for their continued nuclear advance wantment to defend themselves and said it's the u.s. that must be held accountability. that caused this tense back and forth. the secretary of state wanted to respond. north korea in this setting holds itself responsible and peace-loving. secretary of state tillerson said we heard these words before and we are not buying that. he emphasized the illegal nature of north korea.

what we heard from president trump and secretary tillerson this week, they are talking about this pressure campaign that continues, they want to keep building that, they are not purning china. secretary tillerson mentioned the slave-like conditions that exist. that funds north korea's nuclear program. the russia representative flatly denied that and called out tillerson for mentioning that. a little more tension between russia and the united states. >> very significant potentially and the president and both of them, president trump and putin spoke about north korea during their phone conversation yesterday. president trump clearly wanting the russians to do more. official, we will get back to

you. thanks very much. reporting for new york. let's bring in our global affairs analyst and formally 7ed as the deputy secretary of state under president obama. in and of itself, how significant is it from your perspective someone who dealt with north korea for a long time. they are there at the council and the u.s. secretary of state is as well. >> it signals that they may want to talk. that has both sides of the coin. they have done a good job in continuing to build pressure. the other side is diplomacy. we are prepared. that sends a good message to

china as well as north korea. as soon as he said that, the white house came out within 24-hours and undermined what he said. the problem now is that there is confusion. what he did today or does he want to undermine him? >> the north koreans sent someone to the security counsel and the fact that last week they invited an american in, the deputy secretary general at the united nations for political affairs. a former u.s. ambassador and retired diplomat to go to pyongyang and that reinforces the north coren invitation. >> that are may be because the pressure campaign is starting to bite. we are seeing evidence of that. we have to ton build it. you can do two things at once. that's continuing the pressure. you have to be objective with the pressure and not take down the regime, but to get them to

the table to talk meaningfully. >> you heard michelle kosinski say the secretary of state said there are no preconditions for talks nor will we accept preconditions from north korea or others. i don't know why he omitted saying that during his formal remarks. what does that say to you? >> he may have gotten a last minute message to drop it or the president can come in and undermine that passage of his text. who knows. the problem we had is we are not speaking on the north korea policy. there was a good cop, bad cop routi routine. we have seen more of a good cop routine. tillerson has been advancing a policy with diplomacy and the president takes it off the table. there may be others in the administration who don't believe there is a diplomatic way forward and believe we can't deter them from using their weapons that.

leads you down the path and if that were to happen, the pandora's box is open and we are headed for i big problem. >> a reporter asking the secretary of state about potentially differences with the president. >> does it remain a precondition for the united states and arguing president trump on the same page on whether and when to engage in talks? >> the president's ols on north korea is quite clear and there is no daylight between the president's policy and the pursuit of that policy and the president has been very clear that we are going to lead this pressure campaign and we are going to unite the international community and keep the pressure as much as we can and increase it where possible. most recently the president called president xi personally and asked him for china to cut the oil supplies off to north korea to increase this pressure. that is intended to lead to

diplomatic talks. the president has been clear we are going to be prepared should something go wrong. our military. they are putting a spotlight on the daylight and under cutting the efforts of diplomacy. you have to do both. they are doing a good job. now we need the diplomatic piece and that's what the president keeps under cutting. >> they squeeze the chinese to reduce the assistance and the trade in vital areas with north korea. he seems to give putin a pass doesn't increase the leverage to do more.

and many of these workers were in russia. they want them to crack down on them. how can they do a great job. >> she can't. impossible. the problem is even when the secretary is advancing the policy trying to rally other it is. it makes it hard for him to do his job. he is now working at the united nations. how significant was it that the

north korean regime invited someone from the united nations and specifically an american citizen to go to pyongyang? >> this was no mistake. we should test the proposition and call their bluff. the chinese if we make clear that we are prepared to talk. it also makes the problem north korea and they should ratchet up the pressure. >> there is more news we are following including a republican tax bill. the final language approved late

last night and do they have enough votes to get passed and get to the president's desk next week? president trump expressing anger at the fbi, calling the agency sad and disgraceful while promising to rebuild it. we will have details and a lot more when we come back. she's nationally recognized for her compassion and care. he spent decades fighting to give families a second chance. but to help others, they first had to protect themselves. i have afib. even for a nurse, it's complicated... and it puts me at higher risk of stroke. that would be devastating. i had to learn all i could

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>> president trump praising police after bashing the top law enforcement agency, the fbi. he spoke at a graduation ceremony for law enforcement in quant coe, virginia. before leaving the white house, he slammed what he called the disgraceful actions by the fbi. he criticized the role of the

russia investigation and his handling of the hillary clinton e-mail probe. >> what we have found and what they have found after looking at this really scam is they found tremendous whatever you want to call it. you will have to make up your own determination. but they found tremendous things on the other side. when you look at the hillary clinton investigation, it was -- i have been saying it for a long time. that was a rigged system, folks. that was a rigged system. when you look at what they did with respect to the hillary clinton investigation, it was rigged. >> let's go to the senior white house correspondent, there has been no evidence as he always said of collusion with russia between his campaign and the russians. do his comments help fuel what is seen as a right wing narrative that the investigation

right now, robert mueller's investigation is buying it. >> i think it certainly does. it also is an echo of what it being said on conserfative media about this mulure investigation. you have a lot of people in conserfative media pointing to the fbi agent who was reassigned. he is denigrating the president and came to light. the president was seizing on that when he was leaving the white house earlier this morning. but wolf, it's interesting to note the president was making the comments heading down to the fbi national academy down in quant coe at the ceremony. he praised a federal and local law enforement officials where the president said it's a shame what happened to the fbi and a lot of people are very angry about what's happening at the fbi. it appears the president is echoing what he is hearing in conservative media. at the same time another thing the president said on the south

lawn of the white house is we will see when it comes to whether he would pardon michael flynn who pled guilty a couple weeks ago in the russia investigation. we will see whether michael flynn might get partoned. i asked ty cobb about that and here's what he said to me. he is saying no, that is not under consideration at this point. he gave a brief statement if we put it up on screen and he said that is not being considered at the white house. of course that leaves open the possibility that it might be considered down the road and that's a contdiction when you have the white house lawyer saying that is not under consideration and the president of the united states as he was leaving the white house said we will see. no consideration being given. once again as the president is

calling this investigation a hoax and so on, there seems to be conflict signals as to how they are handling the legal defense. >> i have to go ba being to the third tweet by the president when he said the reputation of the fbi is in tatters. worst in history. those are his words. one of the in history. he promised to rebuild the agency. what does he mean? >> that is a huge question, wolf. what does the president of the united states mean when he said he wants to rebuild the fbi. when you talk to a lot of people in washington, republicans and democrats and we saw this in the rod rosen stein hearing earlier this week. they say the reputation and the standing of the fbi is just fine and you have the president of the united states who is under investigation by the justice department, his team is under investigation by the special counsel's office. yet he is there talking about

the fbi's reputation being in tatters and wanting to rebuild the fbi. i have to think people are inside the bureau taking the president's words as some kind of indication that he is putting pressure on the fbi. that if they don't bend to his feelings on all of this, there might be personnel changes over there. you say that the fbi will be rebuilt, i would imagine you are talking about a personnel change inside that bureau. one would have to think after talking to law enforcement officials for many years, people can read between the lines and see what the president is trying to say there? >> jim acosta, thanks very much. here's more of what president trump said on the fbi and the work in the russia investigation. >> everybody, not me, but everybody and the level of anger at what they have been witnessing with respect to the fbi is certainly very sad.

yes. >> the president said it's disgraceful. very, very disgraceful. amy stoddard is with us and carrie is with us. the former counsel. and gloria borger. i guess it's sort of extraordinary to hear a president as he is about to leave the white house to go speak at an fbi graduation ceremony and say these words about the fbi. >> and honestly what he is saying publicly today according to my reporting is what he is telling people privately. he hasn't trusted the fbi since comey. he didn't like comey very much. he clearly is listening to what's going on on capitol hill among republicans and believes they are right. that the fbi is tainted and biased against him.

the question is and i think there is an issue here for the president's attorneys who are cooperating fully with the special counsel and mueller as the former chief of the fbi. i think he may create more problems for his legal team at least political issues for them in a way if he continues to do this. >> while he was in quant coe speaking to the fbi, he was very praise worthy and complimentary to what the people are doing, but before leave leaving the white house, he said this. what they have done is very, very disgraceful and you have a lot of angry people who see it. it's a very sad thing to watch. i will tell you that. he was referring to the way the fbi engaged in the hillary clinton e-mail probe and presumably the russia probe that is ongoing right now. >> he was at the fbi academy,

but at the graduation for the national academy which is law enforcement officers. that's a community that received him warmly today and he makes positive remarks about law enforcement and state and local police. he made positive comments about ice and border patrol. the only law enforcement organization he continue to attack is the fbi. the fbi is the only investigating agency that is responsible for the russia probe. for a pro law enforcement president, it looks like the only reason he doesn't like that agency is because they have been involved in conducting the entire russia inquiry which is their job from an investigation. >> he is making it perfectly clear he wants to do some house cleaning and everyone is focusing on mueller, but the pressure with sarah sanders.

we are disappointed in the political leadership of the fbi. there is real pressure now for chris wray who is the head of the fbi to is the deputy director of the fbi. he was in his office and talking about an insurance policy and the e-mail. there is really something that republicans on the hill will have to focus on. they will have whatever moves they will have to fire and resort the fbi and the doj. >> the president is saying green light. continue to do this. continue to pressure this investigation. i think what the president may not know is that bob muler is just going to do his job, president. this is president trump's nominee. he is there and on a 10-year term and the other individual

that is the president has been attacking and the other employees, those were career fbi employees who are now under an internal inquiry. >> none of this makes a lot of sense if you look at it. we know that jail comey ruined his reputation by stepping out with the press conference about a case he was not supposed to talk about and pushed hillary clinton for the campaign. because he was so afraid of the forces and the pbi and new york that if hillary had won and they leaked, he would look like he helped her become president. he came out and did something that was unprecedented because there was so much anti-hillary sentiment. comey was fired by the trump administration because they mishandled the flint. once again saying, no evidence

between collusion between the trump campaign and the russians. listen to this. >> there is absolutely no solution. that has been proven. when you look at the committees, whether it's the senate or the house, my worst enemies walk out and say there is no collusion, but we will continue to look. it should have never been this way spending all these millions of dollars. even the democrats admit, there is no collusion. >> i interviewed the senator from the senate intelligence committee and ask him this. listen to this exchange. >> have you seen evidence of collusion between the trump campaign and russia? >> i think when you look at donald trump jr. and what is on the record, i think there was clearly an intent to collude. >> an intent to collude. all right. go ahead. >> i think that the investigations have to finish. this president believes that the fbi, the mueller investigation

is out to get him. they are out to get his campaign or his family and there is no there there. he tells that to everybody. i think that the congressional committees to be fair to him, dianne feinstein may have said it to you. there was no evidence of collusion that was maybe a while ago. they are continuing their investigations. what we haven't heard from the president is anything about how important it is to get to the bottom of the russians trying to influence american elections. period. that is something he is not talking about because it's all now about him. that's a problem i believe for national security. the president is not concerned about it. >> the intelligence analyst who come in and brief him and they don't want to talk about him because it irritates him to hear about the notion. >> here takes it all as personal

that they are trying to delegitimize his election. >> we will continue to assess what's going on. thanks very, very much. just ahead, six senators in question as republicans finalize their tax bill. no more changes. do they have the votes? we are going live to capitol hill. stay with us. nged everything. you switched to the capital one quicksilver card. and how do you feel? [sighs] like a burden's been lifted. those other cards made you sign up for bonus cash back. then they change categories on you every few months. then you had to keep signing up! you...deserve...better. now get out there and keep earning that 1.5% cash back on every purchase everywhere. thanks, doc. i'm not a doctor. what? [whispers] time to go. what's in your wallet? this ♪s electricity. this is a power plant.

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we that's why at xfinityic. we've been working hard to simplify your experiences with us. now with instant text and email updates you'll always be up to date. you can easily add premium channels so you don't miss your favorite show. and with just a single word, find all the answers you're looking for. because getting what you need should be simple, fast, and easy. download the xfinity my account app or go online today. today lawmakers get their first look at the final tax bill that republican negotiators at the house and senate have been crafting up to this point. a lot of the finer details that has certainly complicated the

possible vote count for republicans. in the vote in the senate, who are the names? the folks and the senators who need to be watching right now. they could have the biggest impact on whether or not this legislation passes or fails. >> the biggest two that everybody has been keeping an eye on is marco rubio and mike lee. the issue is the child tax credit. they are happy it was doubleed from 1,000 to 2,000, they want to expand the refundability piece. they have changes that were made. the big question is if it's enough. the big high wire act is the bill is done. it is sign and there will be no more changes for the house and senate to consider this. whatever they agree to, whatever was finalized needs to do the

trick and get the votes. you need to keep an eye on susan collins. they are feeling confident they will get there, but she sat on a fence and not stated her position one way or the other. jeff flake is looking at the bill and waiting for the final proposal before he says anything. bob corker was a no the first time around. his concerns have not been addressed in a meaningful manner, but i talked to several aides who say keep a close eye on him. majority leader mitch mcconnell has been working with him behind the scenes. clearly a bonus for leaders. you want to know why there is work on the fronts, two senators have been ill. john mccain and thad cochran. an open question as to whether they will come back. the spokesman said he is in washington, d.c. and will be back next week for a vote. john mccain is still unclear. he has been in walter reed medical center for brain cancer. a lot of open questions right now. no firm answer as to whether

they have the vote. senate republican leaders and the house feel like they are on the brink and feel like they can get there. >> thanks very much. closely watching it with you. the next few hours, the document and the actual legislation will be made public and we will have a chance to go through it. thanks very much. are other countries sending the worst of the worst to the united states. that's what president trump told graduates in quantico, virginia. they are breaking down his never ending criticism of the news mead yachlt t want to sound paranoid, but d'ya think our recent online sales success seems a little... strange? of edex ground business has been great. they're affordable and fast... maybe "too affordable and fast." what if... "people" aren't buying these books online, but "they" are buying them to protect their secrets?!?! hi bill.

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was supposed to be a wake reup call for our government?sh people all across the country lost their savings, their pensions and their jobs. i'm tom steyer and it turned out that the system that had benefited people like me who are well off, was, in fact, stacked against everyone else. it's why i left my investment firm and resolved to use my savings for the public good. but here we are nine years later and this president and the republican congress are making a bad situation even worse. they won't tell you that their so called "tax reform" plan is really for the wealthy and big corporations, while hurting the middle class. it blows up the deficit and that means fewer investments in education, health care and job creation. it's up to all of us to stand up to this president. not just for impeachable offenses, but also to demand a country where everyone has a real chance to succeed.

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speech before law enforcement grads to push immigration policies earlier today. he blamed a flawed immigration system here in the united states for the recent terror attacks in new york. he renewed his call to end the r lottery system to the immigrants. >> visa lottery. they have a lottery. you pick people. do you think the country has given us their best people? no. what kind of a system is that? they come in boyy a lottery. they put their worst people in a bin and in his hand is the worst of the worst. congratulations. you are going to the united states. what a system. a lottery system. >> back with us on the chief political correspondent. i thought it was unusual for him to all of a sudden bring up the

immigration issue before the grads at the fbi academy. >> very much so. at the end of the year, there is a lot of reflection on promises kept and promises not kept. i work on a periodic series talking to conservative grass roots leaders. most of the blame for things not getting done goes to congress. some of the things among the base, people who voted for donald trump for president is that he hasn't done enough on immigrati immigration. whether it's the wall or anything else. it's really tightening the screws on immigration. it's not surprising that any chance he gets, he says something like that. it is surprising to say that to the crowd he is talking to. >> what was also surprising, honoring all these men and women in law enforcement, he couldn't resist going after the news

media. listen to this. >> there is the fake news back there. look. fake news. no, actually some of them are fine people. about 30%. >> about 30% are fine people. what did you think of that? >> it was better at picking people out of a bin which was astonishing. every appearance for him is a stump speech opportunity. immigration is sensitive. steve bannon who will not be by this roy moore loss, he is basically telling trump, you give amnesty, you lose that base. this will be more difficult. he will be less cooperative than he sounded and he because we

know he has the "new york times" on speed dial, most of his base listens to this. he frequently speaks to the mainstream media and checks in and wants to do a background discussion with them. this is the routine thing and it makes the base happy. he is never going to give it up. >> it is his routine thing and it's unfortunate that we have become accustomed to him saying things like fake news. but we shouldn't. the first time after he was elected he continued with that and thinking what are dictators around the world looking for excuses to put the screws on the free press going to take from that? almost a year later, the answer is a green light. that's what they are taking from it. it's dangerous and it's irresponsible and it really, really not just hurts, it's not just about the press or the first amend am, but a pillar of

democracy that the people he was talking to at the fbi tried to upheld. that's the same kind of thing that we do. public corruption in many senses. you know what, i know he was trying to get a laugh. i get it, but it's not funny. it's not okay. he is the president of the united states. >> here undermines democracy and a free press by doing so. he has been doing it for a long time. we shouldn't be all that surprised. it is a very, very serious problem. just as it is when he goes after the fbi or the u.s. intelligence community or goes after the news media. these are basic pillars. >> the most astounding thing is to watch the republicans turn away from the opportunity to push back what he tries to undermine the institutions. they took an oath not to a president. when you talk to them privately, they moan and grown about what we are talking about. where were they when he said the

fbi was in tatters? did anyone stick up for them? jeff sessions doesn't. not one. occasionally they say we need a free press, but this systematic -- >> free journalism. i'm messing that up. once in a while. >> it's a rare occasion that they push back and say these norms, these institutions, this trust is a part of our special system and it can't survive without it. they have become silent on this. >> when he talks about fake news, he talks about the journalists who are there working hard and did it throughout the campaign and a year later he is doing it as president of the united states at the fbi academy in quantico, virginia. >> we can't get used to it. it's not okay. >> we shouldn't be surprised

though. >> thanks very, very much. more news we are following including a viral video about one of president trump's judicial nominees and why it is raising questions about their qualifications. ( ♪ ) when watching what you eat is causing a whole lot of food envy... ( ♪ ) try something delightfully doable with new marie callender's delights. introducing a new take on comfort food, like our baked turkey meatloaf in a roasted red pepper sauce, that's only 300 calories. because eating well calls for marie callender's delights. the world is not flat. you can't just pinch it, swipe it, or scroll it.

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raising serious new questions about president trump judicial nominees and up to the job. during a hearing up on capitol hill, one nominee, matthew spencer struggled to answer basic questions posed by republican senator john kennedy. listen to this. >> have you ever tried a jury trial? >> i have not.

>> civil? >> no. >> criminal? >> no. >> bench? >> no. >> state or federal court? >> i have not. >> have you ever taken a deposition by yourself? >> i believe, no. >> okay. have you ever argued a motion in state court? >> i have not. >> have you ever argued a motion in federal court? >> no. >> when is the last time you read the federal rules of evidence? >> the federal rules of evidence all the way through? well, comprehensively would have been in law school. >> do you know what a motion in limp knee is? >> i probably would not be able to give you a good definition. >> do you know what the obstruction document r obstruction doctrine is? >> i've heard tv but again. >> how about the pullman? you'll see that a lot in federal court. okay. >> pretty embarrassing. let's bring in our legal analyst

laura coats former federal prosecutor. so, just to be precise, matthew peterson, up for a seat on the u.s. district court here in washington d.c. it's pretty shocking basic questions like that if you want to be a federal judge. >> this is it a lifetime appointment for these positions and he might as well asked do you have any experience and he basically said no i have no experience in this area whatsoever. it's shocking and makes you nervous to think someone would be nominated, even considered qualified for that position, not knowing any of those things. some of the questions, wolf, going back to law school about an exception for some people, but these are things you should know about, federal rules of evidence, motions in limine, and general deposition experience. >> serves on the election commission, admits his background is not in litigation. how unusual it is for someone to

dominate a critical judge position, lifetime position that really has no experience in that area? >> it's quite odd. it's not odd that you have different attorneys from law, transactional attorneys, litigators, in a variety of fields. every attorney is deemed to be a generalist. so we have to know about every single thing. however, a federal judge has a unique position to really be overseeing litigation, wolf, it's a courtroom it's not transactional services. so it's odd to nominate for this. >> this isn't the first nominee had some problems for a federal judge position. one was narrowly confirmed despite receiving a rating of not qualified from the american bar association. two other nominees had to have their names withdrawn for various reasons. what does this say about the vetting process of nominees for

these critically important positions? >> what vetting? what vetting is taking place? you would assume someone would be vetted to see if they have qualifications even in the basics, criminal and other law. but to have more than one person be called disqualified by the aba, historically speaking i think bush over course of eight years maybe had seven people who had that rating. obama over the course of eight years had zero he nominated. that shows in both republican and democrat administrations, it is possible to vet and weed out people who would not be able to sustain. here we don't see that happening. >> i suppose this was a big story on your serious xm radio program as well. >> it was. >> thanks very much. surprising new statement by omarosa newman days after leaving her job. she says she regrets the white

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