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. good evening, we begin with word tonight special counsel robert mueller wants to question the president of the united states about the firings of fbi director james comey and national security adviser michael flynn. and the "washington post" is reporting that interview could come within weeks. that is the biggest development not the only one because mueller's investigation has already for the first time reached the president's cabinet. cnn has learned that attorney general jeff sessions was questioned for several hours last wednesday by the special counsel's office.

today at the white house, the president claimed he is not at all concerned about that development and that he didn't discuss wit sessions, who was at the white house yesterday. we also learned today that investigators spoke with comey last year. "the new york times" says comey was asked about memos he wrote about his interactions with the president. and there is more. the president today denying that current fbi director christopher wray threatened to resign under pressure from sessions to make staffing changes in the senior ranks of the bureau. we're going to have more on all of that during the hour ahead. the most potentially explosive development of course as "the washington post" is reporting, mueller wants to speak with the president himself in the coming weeks. what we don't know is what the president will do, if he'll cooperate. he certainly changed his tune when asked about it in the past. here is what he said back in june, a day after comey testified, when asked if he would be willing to give his version of events under oath. >> 100%. >> so if robert mueller wanted to speak with you about that? >> i would be glad to tell him exactly what i just told you. >> well, just two weeks ago he was asked again and said this.

>> we'll see what happens. i mean certainly i'll see what happens. but when they have no collusion, and nobody has found any collusion at any level, it seems unlikely that you'd even have an interview. >> it doesn't seem that unlikely given tonight's breaking news. pamela brown joins us now with more from the white house. pamela, why is mueller's team so interested in interviewing the president at this juncture in the investigation, do we know? >> the president is a key figure in the obstruction of justice probe, anderson, and that is certainly a signal that that probe is nearing its end. sources tell myself, my colleague gloria borger that robert mueller's deep has reached out to the president's lawyers asking to question him on a couple of areas under the obstruction of justice umbrella, the firing of james comey and the firing of michael flynn. investigators would want to talk to the president ideally for them. now whether the white house would allow that is a different story. but they would want to find out his state of mind, his intent. why did he fire james comey? what was the reason?

was it to obstruct the russia probe? as you'll remember, there was the reporting that the president allegedly asked james comey to drop the investigation into michael flynn. why was that? so this is all being worked out. they're in the process of it. sources tell us, though, anderson, that these discussions are still in the preliminary stages at this point. that don't expect anything very soon because there is a lot to be worked out still, anderson. >> is there any indication about how the interview would take place or if it will happen? >> so right now sources tell us that basically, what the lawyers would like is to sit down with mueller and first try to present a case to them to tell them why there is no case, essentially, on the obstruction of justice front. from there, i think there is more of a willingness to open the president up to perhaps written answers to questions as sources have been telling us. an in-person meeting would be sort of a last resort. but these are all things that are being worked out. and again, sources are telling us that this isn't something

that will likely happen in just the next couple weeks or few weeks because there is still a lot to work out. the terms are still being addressed. and what that might look like is still sort of an open question, anderson. >> all right, pamela brown, appreciate that joining me cnn chief legal analyst jeffrey toobin and former u.s. attorney preet bharara. so if this reporting is true and mueller's deep wants to brew the president in the coming weeks, what does that tell you about where the investigation is, or at least what would be the most important part of the investigation? >> this is not typical investigation because it involves the special counsel appointed and it involves the president of the united states. but in most investigations like, this and i'm guessing that jeff had the same experience, by the time you're getting to sort of the top level person, the most high profile person who is a potential target in the investigation, you probably have gathered as much evidence as you probably can from every other source. so you don't have to go back to that person a second time. >> you uwant to save the most important interview towards the end? >> i think so. in virtually every case that i'm aware of, that's how we did it when we investigated very high

level folks in organizations or government. you save that person for the end because you might not get a second chance. >> especially with the president. >> you definitely are not getting a second chance. >> right. >> it's going to be difficult enough to negotiate one interview with the president. so you don't want a month from now or a month afterwards come across some document that you want to ask him about that oh, by the way, i'd like another interview. you're never getting another interview. >> so does this mean the investigation at least into the comey firing or michael flynn is nearing an end? >> i do think so. i think this news, if it's accurate, and again, this is still just a leak it appears from the white house, and the white house has been pushing out the wishful thinking line that this investigation is almost over since last fall. but if they really are trying to interview the president in the next couple of weeks, that is very good news for the president. because it means they are starting to wrap up. >> what does it tell you that they seem, according to again to this leak that it's the focus is on the flynn and comey firing?

>> well, i have thought from the beginning that, you know, prosecutors don't like esoteric crimes. they don't like crimes that are difficult to define, difficult to prosecute. and collusion is not a federal crime. now, it is possible to shoehorn relationships between the trump campaign and russia into some sort of criminal statute. but it's difficult. obstruction of justice is a crime. and it is one that presidents have been investigated for. richard nixon, bill clinton, for quite some time. and when you have the president firing the fbi director who is investigating him, there is a lot of basis there. that's the heart of this investigation, at least i've always thought. >> and preet, the president's team is having the president answer questions and written answers. >> right. i don't know what that means, a hybrid situation that was reported on means. typically in case like this, for

it to be productive for the prosecution and afford, by the way, the target of the investigation an opportunity to explain himself, you want to be able to sit in a room like way are now, face-to-face, be able to ask follow-up questions, to be able to nail people down on the specifics of things. >> because a written question would be written by the attorneys? >> i suppose. look, sometimes defense lawyers will submit documents and say would you please consider this stuff. and we wouldn't throw it in the garbage. but it wasn't necessary and relevant to the investigation as actually having the person in in front of you. >> can you imagine any scenario where you as a prosecutor would say oh, well, we'll just give you written questions and answer. >> not only that. when they talk about being a hybrid, that makes even less sense to me. the lawyers want to say with respect to some subjects we're going to send you a memo. with respect to other subject, sure, we're going to make him available that doesn't make any sense to me. >> thing is no way. preet is right. >> just admit something.

>> you always when you're a prosecutor, you say to someone you're investigating, well, show me any evidence that you think i should say that suggests you're not guilty. and that's entirely appropriate. but if you want to question someone, you want to question them, and you don't want to give the lawyers a chance to craft answers, that donald trump might not even read, much less write. >> if the president refused to do this interview, he could be subpoenaed? >> absolutely. >> and probably would. >> absolutely. >> that's the leverage that mueller has here. >> and if it's responding to a subpoena, that's in front of a grand jury and the lawyers aren't present? >> correct. >> it would certainly be a court fight then. the president is in a unique constitutional position. he's not like any other witness. and remember, bill clinton gave grand jury testimony of a kind, but he did it by video, and he did it from the white house. president bush in the 9/11 commission, which is different,

it wasn't a criminal investigation. but he did just an informal interview with lots of people present in the white house, no transcript taken. that's certainly what the white house would prefer something like that. that's what the fight is going to be about. >> also, the reporting that jeff sessions has been interviewed by mueller, would that have even been possible if he hadn't recused himself? >> well, i would put it a different way. it shows the necessity of his having to have recused himself. this idea that the president has been angry about, that jeff sessions recused himself. the fact that he actually has been interviewed, showing himself to be a witness in the particular thing that donald trump said he should still have overseen, i think speaks volumes about how silly the position is that the president has had on this. >> and preet, what about this? one of the things that i find peculiar about this investigation, why isn't rod rosenstein recused? >> i have a theory on that. >> okay. >> so rod rosenstein has not recused himself in part because i haven't heard any democratic politicians clamoring for his head, clamoring for him to be

recused. and my theory on that based on something a little more than speculation is because rod rosenstein took it on the chin after he wrote that memo and appointed bob mueller to be the special counsel, he has gained a measure of trust on the part of people who might otherwise call for him to recuse himself. and i think people like the devil they know versus the devil that they don't know. and if rod rosenstein goes, the theory goes people are not as trustful that the next person to come in will allow the mueller investigation to proceed unfettered. that's my thought. >> well, i think you're right as a practical matter, that's right. but legally, if you're a witness, as rosenstein is, how can you be supervising the investigation? >> but someone has to complain. >> the idea that comey's already been interviewed, that seems logical? >> he's the key witness in this case. i'm sure they spent many, many hours with him. remember, he has all those notes of his interviews with the president that he was so freaked

out by these conversations with the president that he immediately wrote down what happened. he is no question that he would be interviewed at great, great length. >> and my guess is his recall will be very fine and specific. >> preet, jeff, thanks very much. >> thank you. coming up, there is more breaking news tonight. the "washington post" is now reporting that after the president fired james comey, he summoned the acting fbi director andrew mccabe to the white house and asked him who he voted for. the latest on that next. also ahead, the president and the porn star. after word broke about a reported payoff to stormy daniels for her alleged silence about her affair with the president, the first lady is no longer taking a scheduled trip with the president. we'll take a look at that and see if that's just a coincidence. galaxy s8 free. plus, unlimited family plans come with netflix included. so, you can watch all your netflix favorites

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well, there is more breaking news tonight. the "washington post" is now reporting that after the president fired james comey, he summoned the acting fbi director drue drau andrew mccabe, asked him who he voted for and vented anger over his wife's politics. joining me on the phone is reporter devon barrack. explain what happened? after comey was fired, andrew mccabe who was the acting fbi director, goes to the white house. what guess on? >> andrew mccabe is in the oval office, we're told. and essentially, it's a very touchy time for everyone's involved. andrew mccabe's boss has just been fired by the president.

and frankly, the president has long distrusted and disliked mccabe, dating back to the election. what happens we're told by multiple people is the president asked mccabe who he voted for, and mccabe basically ducks the question by saying i didn't vote in the last election. and the president offers, frankly, a critical commentary of mccabe's wife, who had run in 2015 in a democratic -- as a democrat in a virginia state election. >> and she had received campaign contributions from a political action committee controlled by the clintons, is that right? >> mostly. so she -- the root of donald trump's distrust of mccabe stems from the fact that mccabe's wife had run as a democrat and received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the political action committee of terry mcauliffe. mcauliffe is a close clinton ally.

>> right. your article also taublgs about how andrew mccabe talks about how mccabe felt about this interaction, about how other people within the fbi felt when they heard about it. >> right. this is pretty much unheard of to ask a civil servant or someone you're screening for a government job. it's one of the rules of government work is it's simply not done. and there have been all sorts of, you know, past instances where government officials have gotten in trouble for asking exactly this type of question. but, so, you know, there is a great deal of frustration as has been expressed to me within the fbi about the way trump talks not just about andy mccabe, but to andy mccabe. so there is that frustration there is also a sense i have to say within the fbi that this is just how trump thinks of mccabe. he is never going to like him, and he is always going to have an issue with him. >> and mccabe has been the focus of a number of president trump's

tweets? >> well, right. you saw -- we did a story back in december that mccabe was planning to retire in march, and almost immediately after that story posted, the president was tweeting angrily about mccabe. so it's clearly someone that -- we're told that trump often just in conversation in the white house criticizes mccabe, calls him a democrat, says he doesn't trust him, things like that. >> and has mccabe commented for this story at all? >> no. the fbi declined to comment. mccabe, as much as this stuff has been swirling around him and at him, he has actually tried to keep a fairly low profile. he's only got what's expected fob a couple more months on the job. >> deflynn barrett, thanks for reporting from "the washington post." with me is john dean along with philip mudd. phil, you used to work at the fbi. the news the president asked mccabe who he voted for, talked about his wife's political

beliefs and history, what do you make of that? >> this is personally painful. and let me confess up-front, i know andy mccabe personally. i've had dinner with him. i joined in 1985 that was president reagan. then we went to president bush, president clinton, then president bush again, his son, and president obama. i served under all of them. what are you supposed to do every time we change president? are you supposed to say i didn't vote for you and therefore i can't serve in president anymore? i served in the bush white house in 2001 for president bush 43. he was the president-elected by the american people. you serve him, hopefully loyally. i was nominated by president obama in 2009 for a senate confirmable job. i would have served him loyally had i gotten that job. in government, the position you take is i can vote for anybody i want after hours, but nine to five when you're working on the job, whoever the american people vote for, you serve him. it is not appropriate for the president of the united states or anybody else to ask a federal

official who they voted for. we voted private and we serve anybody the american people elect. that's it, anderson. >> have you ever been asked by a president or an elected official who you voted for? >> no. and in fact i served under robert mueller for four and a half years. i can't remember ever having a conversation at the table that involved politics. and i'm not talking about once a year. i'm talking about maybe with robert mueller 2,000 plus conversations. the issue you have when you're at the fbi or the cia is first, you to execute the rule of law. what is federal law say in terms of, for example, in the mueller investigation, whether there was inappropriate contact with the russians. at the cia your question is what does the president direct us to do overseas? it doesn't matter who you vote for, and it shouldn't matter. because if you have 30 years of service, or in my case 25 years in government, you're going to serve both republicans and democrats, and you're responsibility is to serve both of them loyally. this is not that complicated. >> john dean, does ate peer to

you that the president understands the firewall that is supposed to exist between the whus and the department of justice? because the loyalty, the suspicion, those were hallmarks frankly of watergate tire, that's exactly right, anderson. he doesn't understand it. in fact, what happened post watergate is that's when these norms were established because nixon was all over the fbi and the justice department. that was a part of his impeachment proceedings. the tapes of him talking to henry peterson, the head of the criminal division. his conversations with pat gray, the acting director. these were to be forbidden activity in the future. that was made very clear. so i don't think trump has a clue that these norms exist, and i think if he continues this activity, the next time democrats get control of congress and the white house, they're going to codify this and stop this kind of behavior. >> the president is the head of the executive branch. if he asks an fbi agent who

technically works for, who they voted for, would they feel obligated to answer? >> i wouldn't. >> sorry, this is for asha. >> okay. >> oh. it would be an incredibly uncomfortable question to answer because your vote is private, as philip has said. you know, anderson, what strikes me about this conversation is that it is evocative of the loyalty test that the president allegedly gave comey in his private dinner conversation. and it kind of goes to a sense that he believes that the people who are working there have to be politically on his side in order to be able to do their job. and i think it actually supports the version that comey has of that conversation, which you know he contests because he's essentially this is groundhog day. he had the same conversation in a different way with the new person who stepped into comey's

shoes. and i think it's very problematic in how he sees the role of the fbi in his administration. >> phil, it does sound a little bit like a loyalty test. >> it is. and if you look at where the president came from, you can understand that. do you support the trump enterprise business? do you want to support us in terms of growing the business whether it's selling golf courses or wine and water, which trump has done over time. but one of the complications when you transition from new york to washington, you're dealing with federal officials who are required to not only by law, but required by a sort of sense of loyalty and government to serve whoever the american people elect. if the american people choose to elect donald trump, hillary clinton, bill clinton, george bush, you're response to believe say if you give us an order that doesn't violate the law and that's ethical and moral we will execute that order. and you don't have to ask us who we voted for because we are loyal to you as the president.

he doesn't understand this. and at some point, after a year plus in, he should. it's not that complicated. >> john dean, the reporting that the president is going to be interviewed by robert mueller, perhaps even within the coming weeks -- negotiations are under way, according to the leaks. what does that tell you about where this investigation is? we talked to preet bharara and jeff toobin just before who said look, you don't interview somebody like the president of the united states unless you are at the end of it, because you're not going to get a second chance. >> i think that's correct. that's certainly the reading i had on reading those reports. he's drawing near the end. he's got all the basic information that he needs so he won't have to go back and try to get another interview. he knows what he wants to ask. trump doesn't know what he wants to ask. so it's also a difficult interview for trump and a troubling one. but it does signal that the investigation is coming to a head on this part of it. >> asha, i think the key phrase there is on this part of it.

the fact that according to, again, to these leaks, that the focus of this is going to be the flynn firing, the comey firing. that points to questions about a possible obstruction of justice as opposed to questions about collusion or conspiracy. >> right. so i would say two things. with the obstruction case, it's important to remember that the key piece of evidence that mueller needs to prove is corrupt intent on the part of the president in firing james comey. and so getting his testimony and his own words is really important because, you know, he is not a mind reader. so he has to get something from trump that goes to that. i do think that the obstruction investigation is severable from the russia investigation. so it doesn't necessarily mean that the threads in the russia investigation are over. the flynn conversation can actually touch on some of those things, but many of the other crimes that he may be looking

at, for example, financial crimes, crimes involving social media, you know, money doesn't lie. the money trail doesn't lie. digital trails don't lie. he doesn't necessarily need trump's interview to necessarily build a case on those fronts. >> phil, do you think -- do you agree with asha that there could be other prongs of this still, even if the president is going to be interviewed in a couple of weeks? >> i agree. let me give you a totally different perspective on this. this is not about obstruction, and it's not about russia. at this point in the investigation, the mueller team is looked at financial records, the e-mails and phone records of the people involved. they interviewed dozens, if not hundreds of witnesses. when you go into a conversation with jeff sessions to the president, you're not trying to pursue a charge of obstruction of justice or inappropriate cooperation with the russians. you have a picture, a timeline. and that's the simplest way to think of this. a timeline of what happened during the campaign and after. you go in and you know the answers already. mr. president, what happened

during the campaign? what happened after the campaign? why did flynn feel that it was required to lie about his conversations with the russians about sanctions? you want to ask about the facts. you're not trying to go down one rabbit hole or the other. you're just trying to determine whether everything you learned is factual or not. i think that's what we we got here. >> thanks to everybody. we're going to get our political panel's take on the breaking news next. more ahead. 's. ♪ a complete multivitamin specially formulated with key nutrients plus vitamin d for bone health support. your one a day is showing. directv has been rated number one in customer satisfaction over cable for 17 years running. but some people still like cable. just like some people like pre-shaken sodas. having their seat kicked on an airplane. being rammed by a shopping cart. sitting in gum. and walking into a glass door. but for everyone else, there's directv.

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two breaking stories we're following this hour. the white house reporting when they chatted the president asked him who he voted for. also we learned that special counsel robert mueller wants to question president trump about the firings of comey and national security adviser michael flynn. joining me now cnn senior political commentator david axelrod, and cnn chief political analyst gloria borger. david, i wonder. can you imagine any scenario under which any president should have asked an acting fbi director who he voted for? >> absolutely not, and particularly under these circumstances. but under no circumstances should a president do that.

you know, the irony of what's going on right now, anderson, is that the complaint about mccabe, who by all measures apparently is a very highly regarded career fbi person, is that he somehow is a political person because his wife ran for office. meanwhile, the president is trying to reach into the fbi. the attorney general reportedly tried to have mccabe fired, ordered the fbi director or strongly suggested that he fire mccabe, the new director. i mean, if anybody is politicizing the fbi, it's the president and his supporters. and that's really a throat the rule of law. it's a major deal here. >> gloria, the idea that the president doesn't understand what the norms are, i mean, does that fly? >> no, it doesn't. >> he is president of the united states. someone can brief him. >> no it doesn't fly. but it's also reminiscent of him

asking comey whether he would be loyal to him, you know. take the loyalty oath. and it's also why the president is suspicious of the so-called deep state, because people who work in government may not all be republicans and may not have voted for him. so i think with the president, it's either you're on my team or you're off my team. the notion that somebody can be a career civil servant, be dedicated to justice -- andrew mccabe is a long-serving public servant. the idea that politics could be put aside is sort of foreign, i think, to this president. and he doesn't understand the separation of powers. you know, these people work for the people of the united states. they're not donald trump's personal attorneys. >> right. david, whether it's jeff sessions or the fbi director or in this case the acting fbi

director, to gloria's point, it does feel as if the president believes that this is like h his -- an extension of his own power and that they're supposed to work for him. >> well, there is no question -- yes. well, there is no question. he was furious at sessions for recusing himself, which was entirely appropriate, the recusal was, because he thought he should be there to protect him there is always this sort of reference to the justice department as if it is an adjunct to him in his tweets and his comments. he often speaks about the fact that he could fire this person or that person. and he's also giving instruction to the attorney general, instruction to the fbi through his tweets. this is wholly new ground. and it does reflect his attitude, which is the justice department, the fbi, the entire criminal -- the entire justice system of the country is an adjunct of his political operation. >> and gloria, it does sort of

put a new light, the reporting, the other breaking story tonight that sessions putting pressure on the fbi director christopher wray to fire andrew mccabe. >> right. and don't forget, the president has been tweeting about andrew mccabe for the last six or seven months. and suddenly you have this story about sessions telling the fbi director to fire him. which shows you in an odd way that sessions may be listening to the president on this, which is also kind of frightening. and wray apparently, my reporting is today that wray objected strenuously to this and that the decision was made to kind of back off since mccabe is going to retire anyway. but you do have sessions listening to this presidential pressure, going to the fbi director and saying why don't you please do this. and that, again, i believe is

out of order. >> david? >> we should also point out that sessions participated in the firing of jim comey. >> right. >> he was part of that process which is undoubtedly someone of the subjects that he was talking with bob mueller about when the special counsel questioned him last week. >> it also, david, puts a lot of pressure on christopher wray to, you know, be seen as whether it's distancing himself or just showing himself to be independent. not only from the president, but independent as an example to everybody else in the fbi and the justice department. >> exactly. well, he is under enormous pressure. i feel for him. apparently threatened to resign under this pressure. it is very difficult to run that department, maintain your oath, do it with integrity, and keep the loyalty of people who have also taken an oath if they believe that you are a political functionary. and wray obviously understands that and is struggling to

fulfill that role. >> and that's why the pushback that he gave to sessions was probably very good for him internally at the department there in the fbi where morale is so low. and they had a director who said no, i'm not taking orders about this. i'm going to run my own shop. >> gloria, david, thanks very much. coming up, a new move by senate democratic leader chuck schummer in the battle over immigration. he withdraws the offer to president trump to fund the border wall. i get a reaction from the former president of mexico, vicente fox, who has made no secret at all about his feelings towards president trump. breathe freely fast with vicks sinex.

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breaking news tonight in the ongoing immigration debate. the leader of the senate democrats chuck schumer is saying his offer of last week to support funding for president trump's border wall is now off the table. that offer was part of the back and forth between president trump and senate democrats. schumer agrees to the mean and in exchange the trump administration would support restoration of the so-called dreamers program. now with action on dreamers postponed, at least until february 8th, an aide to schumer says the offer to fund the wall is dead. here with me to discuss all of this and much more is the former

president of mexico, vicente fox. he has a new book, "let's move beyond fear and false prophets." before we get to the book and who the false prophets are, i think i know, you have said president trump is never going to build that border wall. do you think he will? they've had prototypes up now. >> it depends on the americans and taxpayers because the money has to come from there. congress has stated the position in mexico. no way mexico would pay. the actual president, the same thing. and the three candidates running for the june election for president, same thing. so no way mexico would pay for the wall. it can be built if taxpayers in the united states want to afford, want to pay for that. i think for taxpayers would be much more convenient invest the money universities, in schools, in hospitals, in building jops,

creating jobs and other good alternatives. >> according to the homeland security department, the number of people crossing illegally into the united states is at a 46-year low. shouldn't president trump deserve some credit for that? >> no, because it's a trend that started two or three years ago in the case of mexico. the case of mexico has dropped down. >> people coming from central america? >> yes. maybe central america is reacting to trump's problems. you know, immigrants are very wise. they know where to go, when to go and what they're coming in for. it's making money that they need. >> you don't think that the tough rhetoric from the president about crack down, about sending people back, that that has had an impact? >> no. the stick doesn't work anymore. you have to convince people. and that we can do together. the united states and mexico, we could work on a program like we developed with president bush administration. just having some proposals.

the thing is economic. economic. when you can make ten times what you're making by jumping a wall or by learning how to swim, you take advantage of that opportunity. that gap has narrowed from 10 to 1 to 5 to 1 after 25 years of nafta. and i am absolutely convinced in the next 25 years we will go on a 1-1 like canada and the united states. we will forget about this problem. >> you and i have talked in the last year since the president has been elected. you've had some very strong words, tough words against the president. is there -- have you changed your view of him at all? >> no, not all. i'm deeply offended as well as 120 million mexicans. >> offended? >> offended. so we need an apology from him. we need him to stop speaking of mexico and mexicans. every day he comes back with the wall and mexico is going to pay for it. every day he comes back with the fences. so he has to change. he is the president of the united states. a president has to behave like

a president. >> it's interesting, though. his chief of staff, john kelly, in a meeting had said that some of the president's policies -- well, during the campaign, some of his rhetoric was uninformed. i certainly think you would agree with that. does it surprise you that kelly would say that? >> it surprises because for the first time he might be taking his own position and trying to advise trump that he has to change, that he has to show a presidential capacities. and i'm sure more and more people in the white house, more and more people on his team are ashamed of his behavior. they don't know what to do. and the best thing to do is to tell him face-to-face, like we do in business. you're wrong. why don't you change? >> obviously the comments he made about countries in africa, about haiti, using the language he did, do you think those were racist comments? >> absolutely, yes. absolutely, yes.

his subconscious. it's that he cannot change. it comes within his own self being. ad yes, it's absolutely racist and what he has said about mexico and mexicans, same thing. you cannot generalize race or a color or a nation. it's like that. it's individuals. i know there are criminals on the 35 million mexicans that are here in the states. some of them are criminals, and they have to be caught by justice in the united states. but saying all mexicans are that way is incredible. stupid. >> in your new book, let's move on. you say of the united states, "i can see your neighbors' house smoking and will soon be on fire. it's my moral obligation and duty to speak out." what do you mean the united states will soon be on fire? >> i mean things are getting worse and worse here.

and more divide. >> the economy certainly is doing well. >> yes, yes, but let's wait and see. when you decrease taxes, the resolve in the long-term. >> so you're talk about divisions within the united states? >> absolutely. this division, this divide that the united states is not taking positions, decisions, and coming up with public policies. i don't understand why congress submits has to bring trump something that he likes? congress are thoroughly independent and autonomous, and they can decide. i don't understand why they have to please trump. that's a big mistake to me. and that's weakening democracy. >> president fox, thank you very much. the new book is "let's move on: beyond fear and false prophets." coming up, news that first lady melania trump is not traveling with her husband to davos switzerland after saying she would. after hearing hush money from the candidate's attorney to porn

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first lady melania trump will not be accompanying her husband to the annual world economic forum in davos, switzerland tomorrow. the white house originally saying she would in fact attend. the change in plan comes amid the reporting about her husband, the president, and the alleged hush money payment his attorney paid to porn star stormy daniels before the election. in fact, mrs. trump hasn't made a public statement of any kind since january 12th, which is the day the "wall street journal" first reported the $130,000 payment to the porn star which was allegedly made during the 2016 election campaign. the liberal watchdog group common cause argues in an

official complaint the money amounts to a violation of campaign finance laws. cnn's kate bennett joins me now from washington with more. what are you hearing from the white house about the first lady's change in plans? >> reporter: this is interesting, anderson. i was originally told she was going to davos on the 15th, which is actually after the stormy daniels story broke but then in the past several days something has changed. they cited logistical and scheduling issues with the trip and pulled out last night saying she would no longer go. i was told she would go support her husband and watch him give his speech there at davos and perhaps do some things on her own. but scheduling and logistics have prevented it. however, the silence about what's been going on in the headlines leads people to draw their own conclusions plaps about what's happening behind closed doors. >> yesterday was actually the president and the first lady's wedding anniversary. >> reporter: that's correct. their 13th wedding anniversary. although you wouldn't know it. there was no sign of it on social media. we're used to maybe the obamas or even the bushes saying back and forth to each other happy anniversary.

there was nothing. no sign. i even called the white house and said was there a special dinner, did anyone go out-d they celebrate? and did not hear back from them. it's interesting, though. this is again a first lady that has used social media. as we remember, on saturday, the one-year anniversary of her husband's inauguration, she did tweet marking that occasion. but she did not use a photograph of herself with her husband. in fact, he was nowhere to be mentioned in this tweet. talking about her year of wonderful moments. nowhere did donald trump get a mention. and sort of this faceless, if you will, military escort. i think it speaks to perhaps some loneliness or some isolation. again, it's reading the tea leaves with her. she's one of the most mysterious and private first ladies of modern history. and i think though she's getting high marks for subliminal messaging, what she's not saying is perhaps more interesting than what she would be saying. >> kate bennett, appreciate the reporting. thank you. up next, deadly shooting at a kentucky high school. two students dead.

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getting under way this morning. authorities say a 15-year-old student opened fire in a crowded atrium as soon as he arrived at the school. he was arrested at the scene. investigators held a news conference tonight. cnn's nick valencia was there. he joins us with the latest. what have you learned, nick? >> reporter: hey there, anderson. a very somber news conference given just a short time ago by state and local officials here in this very small town of benton, kentucky. we know the 19 victims as a result of this shooting. 14 of them had gunshot wounds. five of them are still in the hospital tonight. local area hospitals battling for their lives. we also learned the identities of the two who were killed at the scene. 15-year-old preston cope is a male, 15-year-old bailey holt is the female victim who died at the scene here. very little information given so far about the shooter. we're still digging on that. >> what have you learned about the scene, what happened this morning? it sounds like as soon as he got there, he started. >> reporter: yeah, it was 7:57 when he entered this high school and started shooting according to police, in a common area.

we know according to eyewitnesses what they've been telling us all day it was a scene of utter chaos and panic. in some cases, hundreds of students running for their lives, jumping over fences, trying anything they could do to get away from the gunshots. i talked to a local business owner here who told me he saw the shocked look on these students' faces and that when the students' parents showed up it was even more panic. i talk about this being a small town. some of these first responders, anderson, they have kids that go to school here. in one case, one of the first troopers who responded to the scene thought that 15-year-old girl who died at the scene was his own daughter. this is a community, they say they don't worry about leaving their car keys while their cars are running. not the least something like this. something so tragic happening here. anderson? was he, i mean, apprehended some way? >> reporter: according to the kentucky state police, he was

apprehended without incident. we asked at the press conferences if there were any gunshots exchanged between officials and this shooter. they didn't give us much details on that, only to say he is believed to have used a pistol in this. and one of the outstanding questions, of course, is whether or not he's going to be charged as an adult. we know he's facing murder charges but according to state police, they're still consulting with state lawyers here as to whether or not they're going to charge him as a juvenile or as an adult. >> he's 15 years old. any comments from his family? >> reporter: we haven't heard from his family just yet. just so far the community here just really rattled by this all. it is worth mentioning about 20 years ago in west paducah, 20 miles from here or so, there was another school shooting in 1997. a lot of residents have been talking about that, reminded of that tragedy unfortunately today. >> just to reiterate, in terms of the status of those who were injured or wounded? >> reporter: yeah. five of them still in critical condition. we tried to get an update about one of the victims. we understand that it was a special needs child, one of them

that was shot earlier today. we tried to get a condition update on him, but the state officials here said they just didn't really want to get into the specifics to differentiate one victim from the other. everyone here, they say tonight, is suffering. anderson? >> unbelievable. nick valencia, appreciate it. thanks very much. that's it for us. thanks for watching "360." time to hand it over to chris cuomo for "cuomo prime time." chris? >> all right, anderson. thank you very much. there are two big breaking headlines in the russia investigation tonight. we're going to talk with the reporter at the center of the story. it is time to get after it, my friends. i'm chris cuomo. welcome to "prime time." ♪ a lot of developments in the russia investigation. there may be more news during the show. we will keep you informed. let's bring in the reporter who broke the news about mueller's effort to question the president. his name is josh dawsey, and he covers the white house for "the washington post." he's also a cnn political analyst. thank you very much. appreciate it. i want to talk to you about the headlines about what mueller wants.