visit vladimir putin in moscow at anytime convenient for the north korean strong man. >> so there you have it, russians saying president trump's strategy simply isn't working. >> fred, thank you. erin burnett "outfront" starts right now. breaking news, michael cohen moments ago wrapping up his third day of tchl estimony on capitol hill. ivanka and donald trump jr. could be next. plus another big public hearing announced, this one with felix say the every, t sater, what does he know about trump's plans to build a tower in moscow. and trump reportedly ordering officials to give jared kushner a security clearance despite concerns from intelligence officials. and he said he didn't do it. turns out it is not true. let's go "outfront."

i'm erin burnett. breaking news, michael cohen coming back. just wrapping up his third, supposed to be his last hearing before congress, but the committee says there is more to learn. he has much more to tell us. >> not much i can say other than it was very productive as i said i'm committed to telling the truth. and i will be back on march 6 to finish up. there is more to discuss. >> more to discuss next week. and even too, we are learning that cohen is not the only person who in his case was and still are in trump's inner circle who could be testifying before congress. >> there were names or records mentioned during the hearing. we'll figure out who we want to talk to and then we'll bring them in. >> would it be fair to say if any names came up multiple times

in that hear -- >> who were those names? we went through and during that explosive public hearing that we all saw yesterday, let's tell you those names. >> donald trump jr., ivanka trump, eric trump. jared kushner. keith davidson, allen weisselberg, ron leaieberman an matthew calamari. >> those are some of the people who know everything. and is this a new reality for president trump. for two years he had been protected by a republican controlled krocongress and now faces intense pressure. his best line of defense today was to say that michael cohen is a liar. when asked about cohen's testimony -- >> he called you a liar, a con man, a racist. what is your response to michael cohen? >> well, it is incorrect and he

lied a lot. >> so the president says cohen lied a lot and he is a liar. except when he isn't. >> he didn't lie about one thing. he said no collusion with the russian hoax. and i said i wonder why he didn't just lie about that too like he did about everything else. he lied about so many different things. >> he said i wonder why he didn't lie about that just like he did about everything else. so wait, donald trump is saying that michael cohen lied about everything else. everything but russian collusion, which means according to the president that cohen was lying when he said these things -- >> i don't believe mr. trump ever struck mrs. trump ever. >> is there a love child? >> there is not to the best of my knowledge. >> do you have any knowledge of president trump abusing any controlled substances? >> i'm not aware of that, no. >> do you have any knowledge of president trump being delinquent on any alimony or child i'm not

>> do you have any knowledge of president trump arranging any health care procedures for any women not in his family? >> i'm not aware, no. >> so when michael cohen defended the president, i guess he was lying then? manu raju is "outfront" live on capitol hill. there will be more testimony and this could be crucial before of all the names cohen mentioned yesterday, who else does the committee want to hear from, who can we expect to be going in? >> certainly members of the trump inner circle, his cfo, allen weisselberg. he is front and center evof at least two committees that want to speak with him. and also people part of the president's family. his son donald trump jr., his role and what he may have known about the hush money payments. his signature was on at least one of those payments that went to michael cohen. ivanka trump, her name was mentioned, what did she know about the trump tower moscow

project that is being investigated by the house intel against committee. what elijah cummings told me today is that at least five or six house committees plan to investigate all of the allegations that came out of yesterday's testimony. allegations of bank fraud, of insurance fraud, of sub borting perjury, of russian related matters all of which several committees plan to split up how to pursue this going forward. so certainly we will see some public testimony before the house intelligence committee with felix sater coming forward, but also we'll see other committees pushing forward to bring in people who are mentioned at yesterday's hearing. so while yesterday's hearing was very public, we could see others come forward in a very public setting as well. this investigation as democrats will say only just beginning. this is driving what democrats will plan do here in the weeks and months ahead. >> thank you. and i want to go out to a member of the house intelligence

committee, of course they interviewed michael cohen today. sean patrick maloney is joining me. i appreciate your time. what did you learn new from  michael cohen today? >> i'm not at liberty to discuss the specific testimony except to say that he is a very important witness. we appreciate very much that he came in and was so forthcoming. i thought he was very credible and he is a big piece of the puzzle here. and in the fullness of time, everything that he said before the committee will be out in the public and i think that that is as it should be. for now what i can tell you is that we're in the middle of this interview, it will continue next week. and it is very important and we appreciate very much how forth coming mr. cohen is being. >> i'll play again part of what mr. cohen said today. here he is. >> i'm committed to telling truth and i will be back on march 6 to finish up. there is more to discuss. >> i want to get to the truth part in amen mt moment, but firt

more do you need to get out of him? these were three really long days tlaand there still more th you need to learn? >> what we realize is that the closed door format with the opportunity to go a little more in-depth allows us to cover a bunch of subjects that didn't get sufficient attention yesterday. and again that transcripts will be released in the fullness of time. but the fact is that there are very serious questions with different aspects of this investigation that mr. cohen has very important testimony on. and we again appreciate -- >> could you share any of the topics that you think need more drilling down on? >> i appreciate the question, but as i said, i'm not at liberty to discuss what happened in executive sefgs excession ex tell you that the transcripts will be released eventually and mr. cohen is extremely credible and cooperative, there was not a single question that he did not answer and we appreciate that very much. and i think the answers to intimidate him or attack him are

incredibly inappropriate. and i think that he equipped himself very well. >> have you learned anything from him that moves you towards impeachment proceedings? >> i'm not going to comment on that specifically. i can tell you that we've learned a lot from him and a lot of things that i didn't learn from his testimony yesterday. so his appearance is very important and it is very much appreciated. >> so when you say he is credible and you are frustrated at people implying otherwise, of course two allies of the president in congress, jim jordan and mark meadow, they were aggressive in their questioning, they are asking the justice department to investigate michael cohen for perjury. they submitted a letter of things that they said were faufls. he says he doesnidn't seek a jo the white house when he did. and they include his denial of committing bank fraud which of course he has admitted to doing. he is going to prison in part

for that. do you believe cohen lied yesterday? >> no, i do not. and what is clear is that the republicans should be a lot more interested in the substance of what he was saying. remember, yesterday in open session mr. company men brought documentary evidence that the president of the united states was involved in a criminal conspiracy to obstruct -- disguise campaign finances that were improper. and while president. you think maybe that would be of concern to some folks. instead they spent their whole time attacking him. we know he has credibility problem, but i found him to be credible and forthcoming. and he brought evidence. and that evidence is important. >> and to that point when you ci say he brought evidence, you're not trusting him on things where he did not bring evidence, right? there is a check signed by donald j. trump. but you're not saying to trust him on other things?

>> it is important that his testimony be corroborated, but it is important that we keep an open mind and we care about the truth of what he is as certificating pnd and when he brings overwhelming evidence that the president of the united states actively engaged in a conspiracy to violate federal campaign finance laws, that he structured payments to disguise the reimbursement while he was president, that is serious and well assumed. in the russia area, we want the same corroboration and evidence. in the russia area, we want the same corroboration and evidence. >> so itsethe roger stone conve? >> that is just one piece of testimony. but this puz him is cozle is co together. >> all right. appreciate your time. thanks. and next we have breaking news. the "new york times" is reporting this hour that president trump ordered his chief staff to give jared

kushner a top security clearance. they did even though top intelligence officials and the white house top lawyer told him not to do it. okay. so not only did he go against his own intelligence officials yet again, he also went against this. is that lie some plus? plus felix sater will be testifying publicly before congress. what does he know about that all-important moscow tower. and republican congressman mark meado meadows, he claims there is not a racist bone in his body. so how does he explain this. >> we'll send him back home to ken gentlem kenya or wherever it is. ild a py and tomorrow. come with a goal.

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the "new york times" is reporting that president trump ordered officials to give his son-in-law and senior adviser jared kushner a top secret security clearance last year. now, keep in mind that he did this even though intelligence officials and top white house lawyer said that he shouldn't. it alarmed the then chief of staff john kelly so much that he wrote an internal memo and the memo was about how he had been, quote, ordered, this was the word he used, to give kushner the top skreet clearanecret cle.

and just to be clear, the president orders it according to john kelly going against his own intelligence officials and white house counsel. that is a problem. but on top of it, it appears that he lied about it. here he is just last month and his daughter echoing what he said just a couple weeks ago. >> did you tell john kelly or anyone else in the white house to overrule security officials? >> no, i don't think i have the authority to do that. i'm not sure i do. but i wouldn't do it. jared is a good -- i was never involved with his security. i know that he just from reading i know that there was issues back and forth about security for numerous people actually but i don't want to get involved in that stuff. >> the president had no involvement pertaining to my

clearance or my husband's clearance. >> okay. well, let's go now to one of the reporters who contributed to the story, matt rosenberg. kaitlan collins is also joining us and also a former fbi special act. it is pretty amazing. i know just from reading. and it appears from the reporting that you all are putting out not only did he know that john kelly felt that it was a,quote, order to give kushner the clearance. >> what we were told is that jared had numerous problems. they went back to the very beginning of the administration, finally last year the president said give him a security clear answer and john kelly understood to be an order. he wrote a memo about it at that time. in addition don mcgahn wrote a

memo outlining the issues. the president definitely have the loss to order somebody be given the clear nszance and the both got their clearclearances. >> the president is saying he was not involved at all. that is clearly false. john kelly interpreted to be an order. even if that word is a matter of interpretation, the president was not being honest when he said to you all when he was in the oval office with maggie a couple weeks ago when he said i was never involved with the security. i know just from reading. that is not true. >> you are on reportiour report contradicts that. there were numerous concerns raised about kushner's dealings with foreign businessmen who had ties to their own country's intelligence services, concerns about his judgment, whether he had the proper discretion to be trusted with american secrets, whether he had entanglements

overseas that would create situations in which he could potentially be compromised. >> and there has been reporting that there were at least four countries that felt that they could use jared kushner in some way. he updated his security clearance form and included 100 contacts with foreigners that he had not included. these are the issues among others that were with his security clearance. what do you make of this reporting from the "new york times"? >> well, erin, we were trained in the fbi to conduct security clearances and there are nine different areas that agents will ask about when they do this. it is character, associateses, reputation, loyalty, ability, finances, bias, alcohol and drugs. and anything that raises concerns in any of these areas could be a reason to delay your clearance. the two most common reasons to delay or deny a security clearance are either financial

issues or foreign influence. and these are the two things that jared pinged on. and the reason here is that, a, you don't onewant someone who h divided loyalties or are has leverage over you. so it is astonishing that these concerns were not heeded. i think it goes to how much this administration cares about the trustworthiness of the people holding this information and the ultimate arbiter is the person at the top. >> and you hear that he went against the recommendations, very clear recommendations, and had them to do it anyway. and then, you know, let me replay because i want everyone to hear the reporting is that there are these memos that kelly was ordered by the president to give the clearance to jared kushner and then this is just -- this was a year ago. and a few weeks ago the

president directly asked about it. let me play it. >> did jyou tell general kelly r anyone in the white house to -- >> no, i'm not sure that i have the authority. i'm not sure i do. but i wouldn't do it. jar receipt ed is a good -- i w involved with his security. just from reading i know that there was issues back and forth about security for nunlrous peop numerous people actually, but i don't want to get involved in stuff. >> the president had no involvement pertaining to my clearance or my husband's cleer clearance. >> so the reporting directly con are contradicts everything that they just said. did he think nobody would just look into it?

>> that is what is fascinating if the president was operating under that impression because jared kushner's security clearance as well as eye can have a trump's has been a subject of discussion since last spring when all of this came to the forefront because of the staff secretary who was accused of domestic abuse. he was having trouble securing clearance which is unusual for that job where you handle so much paper work and that's what put attention on jared kushner and ivanka trump's security clearances. at the time our reporting showed that they were actually blaming john kelly the chief of staff for the hold up in their security clearance s they thougt he had something against them, there were questions about whether or not they should be working in the west wing. and so interesting based on this reporting from the new york times that it was actually the president who ordered john kelly to be the one to authorize them to get the security clearance. so it raises a lot of he questions about in a role. and also i'd like to point out right now jared kushner is on a

tour through the middle east pitching his middle east peace plan right now to several countries. and now that is something that he only had being beingaccess t that information because of the security clear afternooearance . >> and there is also the issue that now people actively leaking things, these memos which the president no doubt thought would not get out, now these kinds of things are coming out. >> yeah, i think that what is important here is that look, at the end of the day, the president does have the authority to make this kind of decision. this is something that people should dr when they decide who becomes the president. if that person is not trustworthy, they may have person who are not trustworthy to get clearances. but the problem here is that he continues to demonstrate a lack of twrans parns ciransparency. if you are going to make a decision, at least be accountable for it. and the fact that these people

continue whether in the fbi or john kelly to have to document it tells you how beyond the pale they believe the decisions are. >> thank you all very much. if you don't think someone is trustworthy, consider whether you want them to be the person deciding on security clear answers. next, breaking news, the russian foreign businessman at the center of the trump tower moscow deal will be appearing before congress. what does he know. plus republican congressman mark meadows, he says there is not a racist bone in his body despite saying president obama should go back to kenya. we'll talk to someone who worked with him. does she agree. at fidelity, we help you prepare for the unexpected

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new this hour, adam schiff announcing that former trump business associate felix sater will testify publicly march 14th. now, he felix sater is a really important name. he was born in russia. played a key role in trying to make the moscow trump tower happen. and the project of course we have learned was being discussed all the way until the election despite what then candidate trump initially and publicly and repeatedly claiming which is

that he had nothing going on in russia. obviously that was not true. evan perez, former district attorney and also david gergen. how significant is it that mr. sater who had a key role in the moscow trump tower project, the plans, discussions there, will be of be testifying. >> it is very significant because he is at the center of this project that for many months we were told the president had abandoned, that candidate trump had abandoned, that it had been put aside while he ran for president and we found out that was not true. these were discussions we've learned were going on all the way through the election. so i think that it is very important that felix sater who is someone who obviously has mob ties, russian mob ties, going back to the 1990s, that is where he got in legal trouble

previously. and yet he still ended up being close enough to the president. had an office on the same floor as the president according to michael cohen's testimony yesterday. so there is a lot that felix sater can shed light on as a result of where he was. >> and so that point what evan just mentioned, felix sater was close, there is a lot of things that has proven to be true, but what he said about this office in trump tower that he had -- offer i'm sorry what michael cohen said, let me play the exchange yesterday that is about felix sater and his office in trump tower. >> isn't it true that because of mr. sater's relationship to the trump organization, that he had an office in the trump tower? >> and on the 26th floor. >> the 26th floor is important why? >> because it is mr. trump's floor. >> he had an office on the same floor as president trump? >> in fact his office when he

left became my office. >> and isn't it also true that convicted russian mobster sater even had business cards indicating that he was a senior adviser to donald trump as reported by the "washington post"? >> yes. >> did convicted russian mobster sater pay rent for his office? >> no, he did not. >> okay. >> kind of an interesting person to have around. i mean, to say the least, right? he is a logical person for congress to want to hear from. he may well already have met with prosecutors one would assume that if the mueller team is interested in trump tower moscow and we know they are, they talked about that in their sub mipgss s i mission submissions in michael cohen's case. and so trump surrounds himself with michael cohen who has done some very bad things.

and also with felix sater who has these convictions. >> do we have donald trump talking about felix sater? do we have it? okay. so you just heard what michael cohen said. right. that felix sater -- sorry, he got felix sater's office on trump's floor he had senior adviser to donald trump as his business card. he works on donald trump's floor. didn't pay rent for his office. so when donald trump is asked about felix sater, this was a few years ago, hireere's what h said. >> about how many times have you conversed with mr. sater? >> over the years? >> over the years. >> not many. if he were sitting in the room right now, i really wouldn't know what he looked like. >> this is chilling. chilling to think that russian

problem sister wou mobster would have an office on the same floor and i do think, you know, this is the first of a number of people we're going to see who will be testifying both in public or in private as a result of michael cohen's testimony. he has put a spotlight on people that congress will feel emboldened now to bring in and push hard. >> and it is chilling when you think about it, right, an officer on the same floor as the future president of the united states. a person with ties to the russian mob, a ties whose person said senior adviser to the president of the united states -- sorry, to donald trump who was not yet president. and when donald trump was asked about this guy, said i wouldn't know him if he walked in here. that is chilling to hear. >> yeah, it is and we have to remind people it is rare for us to see public testimony like this there someone of this -- someone who has this kind of

station frankly, this close to what became the president of the united states. and so i think that it will be very important to hear this partly because even if he has been part of the mueller investigation, we don't know how much of this will ever be made public from the mueller investigation. so this is why public system by -- that congress can order is very, very important for us to sort of get the story, for us to understand exactly what happened. because we may never hear this from mueller position. >> and these are clue shal cruc. and of course the president said discussions had ceased and michael cohen admitted that that was fall. continued up until the election. rudy giuliani admitted that. so trump tower moscow is important because what happened, who were they trying to sell things to and in exchange for what. let me play this from yesterday. >> did mr. trump tell you to offer vladimir putin a free

penthouse? >> no, ma'am. that was felix sater, a marketing stunt that he spoke about. >> so felix sater had suggested to you that mr. trump offer a pent democratic hou penthouse to mr. putin? >> yes, because it would drive up the price square foot. >> what is the significance to you? >> it looks like something part of quid pro quo. we don't know the full context of that offer, but while running for president, while taking positions on issues related to russia, while making statements about putin during the campaign, while changing the republican party platform, he assign simu s simultaneously is talking about offering a $50 million penthouse to vladimir putin in a building that could never be built in moscow without putin and the russian government's approval. to do business with russian businesses, you are doing business with the russian government and that is putin.

>> and trump knew that. final word david. >> and it would be the tallest building in all of europe if it were built? >> yes, i remember where they were saying that. >> th the larger picture is tha the mueller. >> reporter: will be damaging but not legally explosive, that tell not nail don jr. or the president. so i think from a democrat's point of view, there was a concern that if he came in with a relatively clean bill of health, there would be enormous pressure from the republicans to close down further investigation to congress. stockpiling on. i think cohen's testimony bolsters the democratic view that there are other things that are important that we need to know about our president. >> all right. thank you very much. next the republican congressman accused of racism in the michael cohen hearing now on the defense about these comments. >> we'll send him back home to

kenya or wherever it is. >> plus president trump's shocking comment about otto warmbier, the american student who died after being tortured and imprisoned in north korea. the president siding with kim. isn't what goes into your soup... just as important as what you get out of it? our broccoli cheddar is made with aged melted cheddar, simmered broccoli, and no artificial flavors. enjoy 100% clean soup today. panera. food as it should be. emreplenished,d, fortified.

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tonight republican congressman mark meadows says he is not a racist. this after meadows brought a

surprise guest to the michael cohen hearing yesterday, lynne patt patton. meadows used her as an example to refute cohen's allegations of trump racism. >> you make some very do da meani demeaning comments about the president that miss patton doesn't agree with. it has to do where your claim of racism. she says as a daughter of a man born in birmingham, alabama, that there is in way that she would work for an individual who was racist. >> okay. meadows is still dealing with the fallout today. and he is taking the issue head-on. >> anyone who knows me knows that there is not arr racial bo in my body. >> "outfront" now,

congresswoman, you they mark yo meadows. you have worked with him. he brought out lynne patton to say look here is an african-american woman, she worked for trump so trump can't be a racist. do you agree that there is a racial bone in his body? >> well, first of all, the exchange between mark meadows and representative tlaib, i thought the way that elijah cummings handled that was absolutely respectful, civil and just classy. i know both of them very well. they have a greated a miles per hour wrags for each other. and great respect for even 00 other. i also know mark meadows really well. and i call him like it is. i call out steve king and all these people who have done horrible things and mark meadows

is not one of them. he is the only one who stood up and said i want to help you with temporary protect difference status when the president was trying to do away with it especially with hey issues americans that i know could in the go back to their country. so you could see it was incredibly emotional and i know him very well. and i can tell you that i have m m had -- i've experienced nothing but a kind respectful human being who did not -- that respected me and admired me as a black woman. >> all right. so karen, obviously that is significant coming from her, she knows him. meadows yesterday when he was in this exchange with rashida tlaib which i'll play more in a moment, she's saying putting up a black woman saying here is a black woman so he can't be a ra repeal and repla racist, he got very emotional and he says he is not racist because he has family members of

color. here's what he said. >> my nieces and nephews are people of color. not many people know that. you know that, mr. chairman. and to indicate that i asked someone who is a personal friend of the trump family who has worked for him, who knows this particular swrid that sindividu is coming into be a prop, it is racist for her to suggest that i asked her to come in for that reason. >> what do you make of that logic? >> a kooump thicouple things. i certainly can understand from congressman meadows' perspective why he would not understand that for many of us, former congressman love may not be one of them, watching what he did felt very racist. it felt like a racist act. simply saying look, i had a black person who worked if me and by the way racism is not just black and white, i have a black person who works for me,

therefore i'm not racist when particularly we know that it was the practice of the trump organization, the real estate company, to mark a "c" on the applications of people of are color, of black people back in the day. that was their practice. so merely them putting up one person is not the way to dispel racism. now, i also thought that the comment frankly from mr. cohen was kind of a side show and it felt like pllanny davis had him throw it in there. but i'm a b biracial person and a descendant of slaves. i have white members in my family and they don't think of themselves as racist but they do

say things that sound like they are racist and i find myself saying you have to be careful what you're saying there because this is going to be perceived as racist. so when we talk about racism, what we have to understand is part of getting through these barriers, part of understanding each other is understanding the perspective of the person who is saying hey, that felt racist to me. that act felt racist. i hear congressman meadows was offended and upset. but the real way you move forward is to say i hear what you're saying. i don't agree with you, that is not what is in my heart, but let's have a conversation. >> the question is his response to this, and i played a moment ago when he said we'll send mr. obama home to kenya, that was obviously a few years ago and he admitted that he shouldn't have made those comments. he's apologized. but is the response to what he did yesterday, instead of saying there is not a racist bone in my body to say i didn't mean that to be that and i'm very upset

someone could have felt that way and i apologize -- i mean is there a a way that he could have handled it better instead of saying there is not a racist bone in my body? >> i don't think that way that handled it better instead of saying there is not a racist bone in my body? >> i don't think thatway that h handled it better instead of saying there is not a racist bone in my body? >> i don't think that to assume that this person was brought in as a prop i think that that is an injustice to a woman who decides to stand on her own to make to -- whether it is being an example of what is being said by representative meadows, i think that, you know, she got up there, she stood on her own and she is the one that decided with her own mind to stand there. >> but he offered high schoer a evidence -- >> let me finish. he shouldn't have -- i don't think that that was the place for that. as a matter of fact, i think that unfortunately being racist is not a crime. it is stupid.

you know, i look at -- that shouldn't have been the place for that. and to have to actually give any credit to cohen for bringing some of these things up, it wasn't the place for it. and i think that that is where mark made a mistake. he shouldn't have done that. but again, the best -- the way that i saw it handled by chairman elijah cummings and mark meadows to me was a great way to really give respect to the institution which is the house of the american people to say that, you know, we're going for squash this right now. so i think that was the best thing to handle it. >> i agree congressman cummings handled it perfectly because again the purpose of the hearing was completely on a different topic. and as i said, i don't think that mr. cohen should have raised that in his remarks. but again, having had it happen, i would hope that mr. meadows would be open to understanding

why certain people might see that racist. >> thank you both very much. next, president trump sides with kim jung-un over the death of otto warmbier. plus beto o'rourke plans to announce whether he will run in 2020 by tomorrow. that's next. i was there, just not always where i needed to be. is she alright? i hope so. so i talked to my doctor about humira. i learned humira is for people who still have symptoms of crohn's disease after trying other medications. and the majority of people on humira saw significant symptom relief and many achieved remission in as little as 4 weeks. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common,

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tonight president trump siding with kimberly. kim telling trump that he didn't know north korea was torturing an american student. >> i don't believe he knew about it. >> did he tell you that he did not -- did -- >> he felt badly about it. i did speak to him. he knew the case very well, but he knew it later, and some really bad things happened to otto, some really, really bad things. but he tells me, he tells me that he didn't know about it, and i will take him at his word. >> trump takes kim at his word, a murderous dictator who controls everything in north korea, including what happens to be the rare american imprisoned there. university of virginia student otto warmbier was in north korea. he was there on an organized tour. he spent 17 months in prison until kim made a deal with the trump administration, returning warmbier to the united states in a vegetative state.

warmbier then died. it is stunning for president trump to, quote, take him at his word and say he feels badly about it. even some of trump's closest allies taking issue with the president today. like the former u.n. secretary nikki haley. she said americans who know the cruelty that was placed on otto warmbier by the north korean regime. we will never forget otto. "outfront" now, john kasich, former republican governor of ohio, former 2016 presidential candidate. look, he is from ohio, and i know you've been in touch with his family, his parents. one can only imagine what they went through. >> imagine what the mom and dad are thinking today when they heard these words. i got a lot of phone calls from people in ohio saying can you even believe he did this. it's just completely inexcusable. and i remember when otto was first taken. i had conversations with mrs. warmbier. got bill richardson in the middle of it, trying to get

information. and they were so hopeful, so hopeful that this would be resolved, that the north koreans would come to their sense, and of course it wasn't. and then the president was -- i mean, this man, un, is a vicious dictator. i mean, he killed his -- >> half-brother. >> the story is his half-brother. he used an artillery gun to kill one person. you know, there is no limit to how mean, nasty and vicious he is. and to say i'm going to take him at his word is ridiculous. >> well, of course it's ridiculous. when you think about it, a lone american. there are not many americans there. >> no, of course. >> the associations going on. to think it's going on without ozone knowledge. >> there is a thousand there and therefore i lost track of him. he knows all of that. and when you have americans captured in a place like, that they become pawns. they become people who can be traded. we had one man there from dayton who was held for a while, and somehow he was released.

otto clearly, when they talk about his physical condition when he was there, they must have viciously tortured him. i don't even like to say that on television because i hope the family is not watching this. enough already of this. >> when the president says i take him at his word, he feels very badly about it. when i hear that, the immediate thing i hear is what the president said about another murderous dictator, who in this case directly authorized according to the cia chopping somebody up into pieces. >> how about putin? >> so let me play him. >> i have president putin. he just said it's not russia. i will say this. i don't see any reason why it would be. >> i hate the crime. i hate what's done. i hate the cover-up. and i will tell you this, the crown prince hates it more than i do. and they have vehemently denied it. >> you know, erin, i know that when you're in a negotiation, sometimes you want to try to build some kind of a bridge, but

to throw your principles out or the principles that affect another family directly or the khashoggis. >> an american family, right. >> yeah. >> that he ostensibly was trying to be sympathetic to. >> i'm going to throw that away in order to get something else. that's not the way you negotiate. that's not the way you do this. and when it comes to north korea, we can never forget their human rights violations. they are horrific over there. you think about north korea. you think about what's happened in china. i mean, america, why is it america matters so much? because we stand for human rights. we stand for freedom. and the fact is if we start moving and somehow just putting shade over the top of this, trying to cover something up, we lose the high ground. and the summit itself, by the way. some people are just happy he didn't make a deal because they're not sure what it would have been. but how do you go to negotiate with somebody like that without knowing what the closing of the deal was going to be? it hurts us. >> so you have a lot of ideas,

and, you know, today the republican national committee chairman rodney mcdaniel was asked about you, and the maryland governor, larry hogan, about whether either of you would challenge the president in 2020. here's what she said. >> they have the right to jump in and lose. that's fine. they'll lose horribly. i mean, the president has 93% approval in our party. have at it. go ahead, waste your money, waste your time, and go ahead and lose. >> well, first of all, all my options are on the table. i don't know. she must be worried about me to bring me up. listen, she is elected by 150 people. she's at the republican national committee. i think in some ways they're trying to stack the deck so that the president gets easily renominated. and i don't worry. i could care less, to tell you the truth. and when i look up at michigan, of course, they lost everything. maybe she should spend a little more time in michigan. look, i know her. she is fine. it doesn't bother me. >> thank you very much, governor. >> thank you. >> and i appreciate your time. >> yep. >> and speaking of 2020, beto

o'rourke announced he has made up his mind, and leyla santiago is "outfront." >> when will you make that announcement? >> soon. >> reporter: former congressman beto o'rourke says he's reached a decision about a run for the white house after setting a timeline during an interview with oprah winfrey. >> have you given yourself a deadline? i'm serious about that. have you given yourself? >> and the serious answer is really soon. it is really soon, before the end of this month. >> weeks later, with a big smile, he tells us -- >> i'm going to be making an announcement soon. i'm going to be making the same announcement to everyone at the same time. i'm going to want to do it the right way. so that's what we're going to do. >> last night he told me he was waiting to make the announcement to do it, quote, the right way. you know him. what does that mean? what is the right way for him to announce? >> well, i think that all his family would have to be there. >> reporter: his sister charlotte o'rourke tells us she is eagerly awaiting an

announcement, just like everybody else, and hasn't been an indication on when or where that could be. >> he said that it's important for him to make sure that his family is on board before he makes a decision. >> yes. >> you're telling me you are on board? >> i'm on board, absolutely. >> what about the rest of the family? >> i think honestly everybody's on board. for him to do what he wants. >> sources say o'rourke has already ruled out an attempt to challenge texas senator john cornyn. since his lost against ted cruz, o'rourke has visited kansas, new mexico, new york, wisconsin. >> we are making a stand for the truth. >> he has challenged president trump's rhetoric and counterprotest on his visit to el paso. >> we stand for america, and we stand against walls. >> and he's still e-mailing supporters, closing one of his latest messages, saying "courage makes victory possible." his actions have inspired his

supporters. >> beto for president 2020. >> reporter: michael reyes made these signs, hoping official signs could come soon. born and raised in el paso, he is a long-time o'rourke supporter. >> i think he would make el paso proud to have someone that ran for president or that became president from our town. >> reporter: in an already crowded field of democrats vying for the oval office, o'rourke could be the next to announce. >> au revoir, everybody. >> when and how he won't say. but those closest to him say he'll do it his own way. and, erin, i don't know if you took note of that smile he had when he was talking to me, but his sister certainly did. and she says that is the same smile he had when he decided to run for senate for the midterm election. she tells me she is still waiting to hear from him more specific. so much so that the family hadn't made any summer plans, waiting to hear what he has to

say. now a bit of news that we learned this afternoon. we understand that his aides have spoken with democratic operatives. we understand that in the last week, those conversations have shifted to talk about possible staffing for the eventual campaign, although no jobs have been offered according to a source familiar with the conversations. >> all right, layla, thank you very much. and thanks to all of you. anderson starts right now. good evening. thanks for joining us. it is not over for michael cohen on capitol hill, and now lawmakers want to talk with other people in the president's orbit as well. we'll have the lightest on all of that coming up. but we begin with breaking news about the president's son-in-law, jared kushner. "the new york times" is reporting that despite concerns by intelligence officials and the white house's top lawyer, the president ordered his chief of staff to grant jared kushner a top secret security clearance. it's something the president denied doing. it's something his daughter ivanka is on record of saying never happened. magg