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tv   Anderson Cooper 360  CNN  June 8, 2020 9:00pm-10:00pm PDT

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and >> the d.c. chapter of black lives matter has been critical of the district's large black lives matter mural near lafayette square saying, quote, there is a performative distraction from real policy changes. mayor bowser has consistently been on the wrong side of blm d.c. black lives matter d.c. this is to appease white liberals while ignoring our demands. black lives matter means defund the police. i'm wondering what your response is to that. good evening. tonight, two weeks since the >> well, what i would simply say killing of george floyd, is the worldwide national and d protestors continue to affiliate the streets peacefully demanding changes the way policing works right thing in reclaiming that in this country. and changes that go beyond policing. part of 16th street so people would have a safe, affirming changes to address systematic inequalities that have existed far too long. making all of us grapple with place to bring their grievances to the federal government. the question as the county sheriff in mr. floyd's hometown >> what do you hope comes out put it this weekend, quote, we are part of the problem. that sheriff joins us shortly. of -- of all that has happened, so does the mayor of washington, d.c., who is also being asked just in the last several days?
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and i mean, obviously, as you about the same questions about her police force. say, there is a lot of different joe biden has just weighed in as well on whether the police, as protestors, with a lot of different issues. some protestors demand, should and a lot of different meanings, be defunded or their forces even on some of the issues like defund police. as you said, there are different meanings, to different people. dismantled. you will hear from him shortly what do you see, in terms of on that as well. he met today with george floyd's police reform and other reforms, family. the president's called the family but has yet to meet with that are doable, you know, soon? them or address the kind of systematic issues being raised that -- that can at least be a by protestors. start. the president spent today meeting with law enforcement officials. he is clearly hoping to make a >> well, i think that what we campaign issue out of some of the protestors' calls for heard from the democrats this defunding police. morning, in terms of a nation agenda around police reform, is meantime, another incident getting attention. very important. another black man killed on we need to be attacking this issue from all levels. i do think, having patchworks of camera by police, as he uttered reform efforts around different states and cities and different the words i can't breathe. police departments is useful. his name was javier and killed north of austin, texas. the video is just now coming to but a national framework is even stronger. light. actor and civil rights activist samuel l jackson joins us as in reforming our well. we begin, though, with the final police department in 2002. public memorial for george floyd and for 18 years, we have been in houston, where he lived for many years. thousands coming to pay their professionalizing our force, last respects today. training our force, investing in
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a lot to talk about today as history continues to be written, good tools so that we're two weeks after mr. floyd's life building better partnerships with our community. was taken. we were the first police cnn's sara sidner is outside the church in houston right now. department, in the nation, to if you can just talk about fully equip our officers with what -- what you have seen there body-worn camera. all day and what's going to be happening into the night. we also, last year, issued a report on -- on our stops. >> there have been hundreds, if we've had independent police not thousands, of people who have come to this church to pay their respects to george floyd. i did, personally, pay my own. and wasn't expecting there to be complaint board for almost 20 an open casket but there was. years. these are the building blocks to everyone that came up got a few good community relationships. communities need good police, seconds to pray in front of the and police need communities that trust them. casket, in which george floyd's so this partnership, we have to continue to build on, each and body lays, waiting to be buried. every day. and, one after the other, people >> politically, i mean, clearly came up. some with tears in their eyes. the president is going to latch some with their children in toe. on to this defund the police all of them, believing that this is a moment in history, that notion as a political campaign. something that he believes will they need to be a part of. be -- will, you know, work in but more importantly, they need his favor, perhaps, in -- in the to be here to show the family presidential race. that they are with them. and that they feel sorrow for i'm wonder -- do you believe it what happened to george floyd. is damaging to -- to -- to the but everyone that we spoke to in
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movement? the crowd -- mothers and fathers and grandparents and uncles and aunts, all here, to recognize >> i think, as i can speak for what george floyd means to, public safety in washington, particularly, to the african-american community. d.c. they said that this, really, and i, for example, have they felt, was a turning point. submitted a budget to my council and they were here to make sure about three weeks ago. that the turning point actually where we make the investments in did happen. to show their solidarity with public safety that we need. that includes officers. the floyd family. but it also includes saying that there has to be a intervention. it also includes increases in funding in public education. change between the relationship with police officers and the black community. so i think that we have to, when something that they hope will we talk about what communities happen, after this. and believe will happen after need to be safe, which is what, this. we also heard from the governor, who was very, very strong, in i think this defund conversation saying the same thing. that this is a moment, that this is it's not just policing. is going to change america, as it's investments in the he put it. we also saw the police chief, here, from houston. safety net and the opportunity he made sure to go in and pay programs that make communities safe, too. so that has to be our focus. his respects. he was the first chief that we yes, we need good police. saw to publicly denounce the and, yes, we need the programs that uplift communities. officers who were involved. >> the white house press especially, officer chauvin, who secretary, earlier today, said was involved in putting his knee there were, quote, no regrets on how protestors were forcefully
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on george floyd's neck, and removed from lafayette square in pressing down for more than d.c. last week. seven minutes and 54 seconds, as i mean, considering all that we we counted in the video. and so there was a lot of saw on video, as it happened, and have seen subsequently, i outpouring, hoping that they can show their respects while, at mean, even the -- you know, the the same time, hoping to press for change in the relationship individual -- individual between police and the black community. aggression. when you hear the white house saying no regrets, what do you think? anderson. >> and, sara -- sara, the -- derek chauvin, the >> i think i've been shocked all ex-minneapolis police officer, week about how the federal he had a court hearing today. what happened? >> that's right. government behaved against bail was set for derek chauvin american citizens, who were peacefully protesting. we were shocked and outraged that they moved the united of $1.25 million. the judge said that bail, just states army to threaten like with the other officers who are charged, could be reduced to washington, d.c., into a million dollars, if the former submission. i was shocked to see unnamed and officer, derek chauvin, would agree to certain conditions, which included handing in all unidentified federal police in his firearms, not leaving the the nation's capital. state of minnesota, not all while we're talking about contacting the floyd family, not taking a job in security or police and community trust. so i think this white house has policing in any way, or any kind of -- of job that involves a lot to answer for, and i hope having to use weapons. these tough questions that -- and, if those things are agreed that they're made to answer. to, then his bail will be set lower, at a million dollars.
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>> mayor bowser, thank you so much. i really appreciate your time. but, at this point, it was his i know how busy you are. and i apologize. first court appearance. as you know, the justice system has a series of things that are going to happen and go forward. i think i prmispronounced your but you are seeing him in very name for some reason. had a long day. i apologize for that. stark difference. mayor bowser, appreciate your you saw him on that videotape as time. >> no worries. thank you. an officer, with his uniform on, and in full control. >> joe biden -- thanks so much. you take care. joe biden weighed in tonight on of a situation. this time, he was handcuffed and the question of defunding treated as any other suspect police. here is what he said to cbs's nora o'donnell. would be. it was quite a stark difference between what he looked like when >> no, i don't support defunding the police. we first saw him, and the world i support conditioning federal first saw him. aid to police, based on whether and what he looked like now. anderson. >> sara sidner. or not they meet certain, basic thanks. as we mentioned, president today made it clear where his standards of decency, sympathies lay. honorableness, and, in fact, are cnn's jim acosta joins us with able to demonstrate they can more on the president's meeting protect the community and with law enforcement officers. so what did the president say? everybody in the community. >> he also called this moment, and who exactly was he meeting with? >> he was meeting with a variety quote, one of those great of law enforcement officials inflexion points in american history in terms of civil from across the country, anderson. really, a small circle of law liberty, civil rights, and treating people with dignities. enforcement officials from the fraternal order of police and so african-american sheriff of hope county, north carolina. on. and he's largely sequestered the powerful indictment he leveled at law enforcement that inside his for tress right now. he, himself, is part of and the
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he is avoiding questions from six words he wants to hear reporters and taking a lot of officers say about taking political potshots. responsibility for their seizing on this desire expressed by some in these protests that shortcomings. zblfrmgts later, samuel l. jackson on how what he is seeing police departments in the today resonates with what he country should have some of lived through during the 1960s their resources diverted away from those agencies and toward civil rights movement. a movement he was involved with, programs that would lift up at-risk communities. including working as an usher at so-called defund the police the funeral of the reverend martin luther king jr. now, simparica trio simplifies protection. movement. the president was trying to make the case when he was talking to the press earlier today, by and large, 99% of police officers are good people, with just a few bad actors. and here's more of what he had to say. >> they're not going to be any disbanding of our police. our police have been letting us live in peace. we want to make sure we don't have any bad actors in there. and sometimes you'll see some horrible things, like we witnessed recently. but, 99 -- i say 99.9 but let's go with 99% of them are great, great people. >> two things to point out about that, anderson. the president saying that he believes 99% of police officers are -- are good people.
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that may well be the case but that is somewhat at odds with the feelings in the streets right now and the protests as video after video after video of police brutality surfaces, painting a very different picture of law enforcement in the u.s. today. and the president clinging to this idea of defunding police being a major theme inside the democratic party. we should note joe biden said earlier today through a spokesman, that he is not in favor of quote/unquote defunding the police. and, you know, anderson, even some of the president's own advisers are concerned he's not handling this very well. talked to a trump advisor earlier this evening, who conceded he has not handled this perfectly. anderson. >> is any thought, in the white house, being given to -- i mean, is the president going to speak at all about race relations in this country? about systematic racism? about any of the issues which are being raised by thousand dollars thousands and thousands and thousands and tens of
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thousands of people in the streets, day after day after day? >> it's a good question, anderson. they have been talking about this inside the president's political team. it is an open question as to whether or not he is going to deliver that kind of speech. the white house press secretary kayleigh mcenany at the briefing earlier today said the president's already touched on these things, already talked about these issues. that is indication he's perhaps not going to do this but there's no doubt, anderson. at this point, the president has left a lot unsaid, at this point, that he could say to the american people to try to bring this country together, in some way, shape, or form. obviously, he's not the great uniter. and -- in a lot of ways, the great divider. but he does seem to have an opportunity to try to, at least, talk to those -- those grand themes that presidents, prior to the trump administration, have tried to express to the american ticks and fleas? people. republican and democrat. see ya! heartworm disease? but at this point, anderson, he seems more interested in taking these political potshots than no way! simparica trio is the first chewable doing anything close to uniting that delivers all this protection. the country right now. >> of course. and simparica trio is demonstrated safe for puppies.
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i mean, first thing, couple it's simple: go with simparica trio. problems. one, if the president speaks extemporaneously on this, that this drug class has been associated would likely be a disaster because we have seen what he with neurologic adverse reactions, including seizures; use with caution in dogs does when he speaks extemporaneously. number two, i'm not clear that with a history of these disorders. the white house has anybody who protect him with all your heart. could write a speech for this simparica trio. president, on the topic of racism in america. i don't know that they have leading armies to battle?, anybody who could actually write that speech. was that your great-aunt, keeping armies alive? >> that's right. i mean, if you look at who would drafting the plans. be doing the writing of that taking the pictures. was it your family members? speech, it would be somebody like stephen miller, who -- who who flew. who fixed. has been one of his chief bomb who fought. throwers since the 2016 who rose to the occasion. campaign. and so you're missing a couple when the world needed them most. of components there. not only does he lack the (♪) speechwriters to put together a speech like that, anderson. find and honor your ancestors who servered in world war ii. as you just noted a few moments ago. the president, himself, does their stories live on at ancestry. not -- does not seem to be in the mood to deliver that kind of speech right now. and, you know, when you talk to -excuse me. his advisers, both inside and uh... outside the white house, they will acknowledge he is not good do you mind...being a mo-tour? at these oval office address. he's not good at one of those -what could be better than being a mo-tour? primetime addresses to the
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country. and so, there are a lot of la lalan land mines there for the the real question is... president if he decide to step into that kind of landscape. do you mind not being a mo-tour? i think, at this point, that is what's holding this white house back. >> it's also remarkable to hear -i do. for those who were born to ride, there's progressive. spokesperson kayleigh mcenany say he's already spoken about this. i mean, he speaks about the same things, day after day after day after day. i mean, how many times have we heard like witch hunt? you know, no collusion. you know, the perfect letter. memorial service was held in he speaks those things day -- he george floyd's hometown in sends the same tweets, day after raeford, north carolina. day, and he seems happy to talk saw a powerful tribute from the about that every single day. sheriff. told -- he had dreamed of being this certainly seems to be a conversation worth having more in law enneforcement since he w than once, and i don't knee he's 10 years old. ever had it, even then. he also addressed a common jim acosta, appreciate it. notion you hear a lot after each >> just one other quick -- terrible incident, such as this one. >> sorry, go ahead. namely, the vast majority of >> i was just going to make one police officers are good people. very quick point and that was it's only the 1 or 2% who tarnish the profession. kayleigh mcenany was more than willing to say the president the president said words to that still opposes kneeling for effect today. so did the attorney general. here's how sheriff peterkin professional athletes in the nfl and other sports. but yet, did not have a take framed it. >> i'm going to be honest with you guys. whether or not chokeholds should there is a lot of good police
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be banned inside police officers in this world. departments. and so they know what they want to say when it comes to those all over the world. hot-button cultural issues like we couldn't have done this today, if we didn't have it. but we can't afford to have 1 or kneeling at football games but 2% doing the mess that we're not so much how to reform police work around this country. >> let's be real. do you remember when he spoke in front of police officers, early on, in his administration? and he was telling them, you know, when -- when you put a doing right now. we walk around with all this suspect's -- you know, when you put him in the police vehicle, power, and there needs to be you know, you don't have to be some housecleaning. so gentle. i didn't say spring cleaning. like, bang their head. spring cleaning means you're yeah, don't be too careful and dusting and spraying. some of the officers behind him you need to take out the trash. laughed at that. you know, anyway. i don't care how much you march with the groups and get on your >> he would have to have an out knees and play with the children. it don't mean nothing, if you of body experience to deliver that kind of speech. can't say these six words: we >> the chemical in pepper balls isn't actually a chemical. told -- yeah. told fox news that defunding the police is dangerous and that are part of the problem! criminals in cities do more to >> and sheriff peterkin joins us oppress black communities than now. do police. sheriff, thank you so much for quoting him now, there is a lot being with us. more damage, a lot more killing, a lot more fear engineers on the when you say we are part of the problem, and that all officers streets from criminal elements need to acknowledge that.
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in choik chiicago, for example. and, frankly, i think probably, he also warned demonizing police everybody, probably needs to acknowledge that in this is dangerous, as is defunding society. i'm wondering what you mean, specifically for the police. because obviously, there's police which many protestors are calling on cities to do. controversy that comes with that over the week end, they added the line onto the end of sort of a statement. washington's giant black lives >> well, first of all, as i said matter inscription outside the white house. and on sunday as we mentioned at saturday, anderson, and thank you guys for having me on. the top of the program, city council in minneapolis voted to most of the officers out there are good officers. dismantle their police force and replace it with something as yet but we can't afford to have that 2% of people out there doing undecided. city council president telling what they're doing. but before we can make change, cnn though the idea of having no we have to make change in our police department is certainly not in the short-term. heart. we have to know that we're part joining us now, muriel bowser, of the problem. i've heard officers even say, mayor of district of columbia. mayor bowser,d the you know, what is going on? what do we need to do? what do they want? police? >> well, i think that a lot of i don't even like the word they. people have differentpolicing. how much do they want us to do? so that means that they're not accepting that we have part of this. you can't point the finger at the community. you can't point the finger at the black and brown community, and blame them when we are actually contributing to the problem that we have and the injustice that we having, we are actually contributing to it. so that's why i stuck with those
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six words. we are part of the problem. and before we can move forward, before the healing can start, we have to accept blame in this problem that we're facing today, anderson. >> so how does police reform take place? i mean, we have seen it in past decades, you know, the new york city police department, which i grew up with in the '70s, is a very different department than it is now. you know, they've -- they raised requirements for somebody to become a police officer. educational requirements. there's far more training. obviously, more reforms are -- are -- are likely. where do you see reforms happening? where -- what needs to happen now? >> well, first, let me tell you what don't need to happen. defunding is not the answer. now, i command everyone that's giving ideas and kmcoming up wi all kind of key things they think might work. but when you defund law pho
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enforcement, you are punishing all those good officers, who are risking their lives, like myself, who are willing to die to protect and serve their community. defunding is not the answer one thing i will say that will help reform. if i fire an officer in my office, and i've done it many times for excessive force, discrimination. and i fire him. he should not be allowed to go, the next county over, and get a job. you know, even when other departments call or -- or that officer signs a waiver, and we talk about what he's done and we showed 'em what they done. we even show video footage of the officer doing things. but why should he get a job? anderson, i've even went as far as taking the badges of officers, who i feel don't deserve to carry that badge, for doing things such as what we are seeing today. so we got to look at -- >> yeah. >> no, go ahead. i understand. >> no, no, i'm sorry. we have a delay so i'm sorry to
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interrupt. in -- in -- in -- in -- there's also been some protestors who have talked about and -- and people have looked at this issue. talked about the records of some officers are often hidden from public view. so if somebody is, you know, makes an allegation against an officer, there's no way to see if that has happened before, in that officer's career. is that something that needs to change? what are the issues surrounding that? >> if the law enforcement officials, like myself, chiefs and police, are not going to hold -- if they're not going to be transparent, if they're not going to have integrity, and hold to the morals and values of our oath, then there needs -- something needs to be passed all the way to washington, if we have to, to make this stuff available. i don't agree. we shouldn't even have to be having this conversation. we're supposed to do what's right. and we're not doing what's right, if we hiding and
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protecting officers, who don't need to be in this business. >> sheriff hubert peterkin, i appreciate your time tonight and i really appreciate you speaking -- speaking with us tonight. thank you very much. >> thank you, anderson. appreciate it. >> thanks. still to come tonight. breaking news on a newly released arrest video with the victim telling police officers, i can't breathe, when we return. ♪
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surprise me. just ask "what can i say" to find more of what you love with the xinity voice remote. world remember george floyd, we have got breaking news of an all too similar arrest video.
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this occurred more than a year ago, but the video revealed today. gae again, that suspect telling police he couldn't breathe and again that man dying shortly after. ed lavandera has that story for us. >> we warn you as we play this report, the video you are about to see is extremely troubling and difficult to watch. so with that warning, we should also say that this is an incident that happened a little more than a year ago. and the williamson docounty sheriff's department ruled the death as a justifiable homicide. the ambler family attorney says that is outrageous. on march 28th, 2019, williamson county sheriffs deputies are pursuing 40-year-old javier ambler just after 1:00 in the morning. according to sheriff's department incident report, amber failed to dim his headlates as he drove past a
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deputy. leading officers on a 22-minute pursuit that ended up in the city of austin. the incident report says ambler crashed his car five times during the pursuit. the video first obtained by kvue tv and the austin-american statesman. according to the documents obtained by cnn, ambler kpitded his car with his hands up. he was not intoxicated and unarmed. officers tried to handcuff ambler but say he resisted and pushed back on officers as he refused to follow the verbal commands. but the body camera footage captures ambler in distress. >> multiple times on the video, ambler is heard saying he can't breathe and that he is not resisting. >> stop resisting. stop resisting.
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>> several minutes into the arrest, officers realize ambler is unresponsive. >> sit up, bud. wake up. >> you can no longer hear him talking on the video. officers then unhandcuff ambler and can be heard administering cpr compressions until medical units arrive on the scene. >> and, ed -- investigation stands now? >> well, right now, we understand is that the -- there are multiple investigations, still, ongoing. we spoke with the district attorney in austin, texas, because that is where the pursuit ended. there, in travis county, just south of williamson county. the d.a. tells me tonight that they are in the process of trying to present this case to a grand jury for consideration of criminal charges. they were -- had hoped to do that in march. but because of the covid pandemic, they could not impanel
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a grand jury. they're hoping that that can be done by july, at some point. anderson, we have reached out to the williamson county sheriff's department, and have not heard back today. but, in documents filed with the state attorney's generals office, the williamson county sheriff's department said that officers with their office of professional standards found that, quote, after reviewing video evidence, ops concluded the primary and assisting deputies acted in accordance with the guidelines of the sheriff's department and used, quote, objective reasonableness on the level of force used in that incident. anderson. >> ed lavandera, appreciate it. joining me now, former missouri highway patrol captain who was applauded for the peaceful way he responded to the ferguson riots in missouri six years ago and the demonstrations there. kevin johnson, thanks so much for being with us. can you just walk us through -- it's very easy to look at something and form opinions about it. and there's obviously multiple
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moving parts to this. but can you walk us through what protocol is for officers trying to bring somebody into custody? who may be resisting but may be in distress as well? >> well, i think, initially, you use those tactics that you've been trained on to, when someone is resisting, it starts at a different level of compliance. you're asking him to put his arms behind his back. but, in watching this video, it's obvious at a certain point, he's in distress. he is not attempting to fight you. he is definitely in distress. he's telling you he can't breathe. and you can hear it in his voice. you can actually see it in his face. but you see him not taking any actions toward the officer. more so, trying to maybe clutch his own chest. i mean, he's trying to bring his arms in. but not in a aggressive way. and so i think we see this, and he's definitely in distress. this was tough to watch.
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i watched it, and it took me back to what we're seeing with mr. floyd. but he's definitely in distress. he tell -- heart condition so you have to take that into consideration. and, yes, police officers run across suspects who say -- say different things. but you have to assess things, based on the merit of that moment. >> i would imagine, you know, some officers watching this would say, well, people say, all the time, i can't breathe or you're hurting me. i -- i -- i don't know how one deals with that, in that moment. i mean, obviously, there -- there must be -- i mean, how do you deal with that? >> well, you have to assess -- you have to assess the situation. but, in this gentleman here, you can hear him grasping for air. so i think you have to assess the situation. if someone's grasping for air. and you can see the look on his face, that he is in distress. >> when -- when you hear --
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when -- when -- you know, police reform means a lot of different things, to a lot of different people. you hear some protestors talking about defund police. i'm wondering, when you think about that defund police idea, and also when you think about police reform, what -- what are reforms, you know, that can be made, short-term and eveni long-term? >> when i hear defunding police, i take that as let's just make sure we are looking at budgets and make sure they're being properly funded. that if there is things there that we can move around to another agency, then we need to look at that. but we may look at a department and say they're underfunded. we may say that they're exactly funded. but most people that are saying defund aren't saying get rid of the police. but, you know, school budgets. most governmental budgets. they're looked at to see if there's money that's there that should be moved around or if it should stay. and so i think that's proper. and i think for a police department, while we're trying to mend our ways with the community in this nation, that would be a way to do it to say,
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yes, look at us. and if we can help with our budget to make our communities and country better, why wouldn't we? so when we start talking about police reform, it's about training. we have to make sure that our training's correct. that we're giving everybody a seat at the table, and we're listening to the people that are in our communities. especially, in our african-american communities. giving them the answers. we need to listen to them and let them give us the solution that they see. and we need to start implementing those. >> ron johnson, i appreciate your time tonight. thank you very much. >> thank you very much, anderson. >> just ahead. george floyd is remembered, someone who attended the funeral of dr. martin luther king jr., and also marched in memphis, in 1968. samuel l. jackson will join us, talk about the outpouring of grief, as well as the protests, then and now. when we return.
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floyd's high school are gathered for a vigil at football field in houston where floyd once played. as protestors across the nation remember his life and hope to push for a legacy of police reforms that will honor george floyd's memory.
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our next guest, this evokes very personal memories. as a young man, samuel l. jackson fought for equal rights. he was even usher for the funeral of dr. martin luther king jr. we're thankful the actor and activist could join us this evening. mr. jackson, as someone who grew up in the segregated south. you were active in the civil rights movement. i mentioned you were be an usher at the reverend martin luther king jr.'s funeral. and did other work in the summer of '69. i am awondering, when you see people demonstrating in the streets right now, what do you think? >> i think it's -- it's amazing. i'm -- i'm energized, watching them do it. i wish i wasn't in this high-risk area of, you know, covid or i would be out there with them. joining in. if i had the -- the energy to be out there. but i love the way it looks. it's a very different view from
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the one i had in the, you know, '60s and '70s. the -- the faces are of all ethnicities. the youth and the energy feels the same and, in my mind, it feels like change is about to happen. you know, it's one of those kind of things where, you know, the birth of change or birth has labor, now we're starting the labor pains of this change that's about to happen. it's almost like the murders that took place that got all these young people into the streets was the water breaking on, okay, that's enough. the pressure. the water broke. now, we're in labor. so let's see what we can do. or what the result of this labor will be. >> it's so interesting because in '68, '69, the way you were involved in -- in the movement for justice, the movement for -- for equality, you know, there
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was an older generation of black-americans, who you, you know, at one point, even at moorhouse, i think the board of trustees, you took part in what was called a lock-in, which essentially is you locked them in a room because they weren't willing to listen to what you and others at the campus believered in. i'm just wondering, generationally, how you saw things then, how you see things now? you really believe change can happen? >> yes, i do. i know it's not going to be immediate. and that's one of the things that the young people who are out there will have to understand. the level of patience that it's going to take. that it will be a few years. but that's a result of identifying the people that have your like idea. that understand what everyone out there is asking for. what is the ask? and how to get those people in
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there. now, it's -- it seems like an old notion that we keep talking about voting and what that all means. but it takes time, it takes a minute, to understand what a revolutionary idea voting is. and what it means and how you get the right people in there to express what you want. so that you can get the right mayor, who hires the right da, who hires the right chief of police, who adheres to all the things that the people want. that's the -- the -- the difficulty of explaining patience to young people. >> do you think samuel l. jackson in the summer of 1969 hearing somebody talk about patience would have the same sort of way of seeing it as you see it now? >> no, i had the same burn it down right now, you know, let's blow the whole thing up and
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start over again. you know, there is a level of blowing up that needs to happen, always. so that's not an unreasonable thing to ask for in a specific revolutionary way, because that's though things work. there are institutions that need to be blown up that have not been blown up since the inception of captured people coming to this country. here i am almost 72 years old, and i hear the same things or look at the things that go on around me and say, well, that hasn't changed. the big change now is technology, the internet and all those other things. people have been mistreated by the law enforcement establishment of this country since they brought us here, and even more so when we were freed and they unleashed the petty rollers or people to keep black
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people in line in a specific sort of way, and those -- the use of that power has been excised against us more than it has the dominant culture of this country. and that's not an exaggeration or an untruth. it's just what has happened. and we witnessed it, we've been warned against it. the same things that people have to tell their kids about leaving home and being careful and hoping that their boys and girls come back home are the same things they told me when i was a child. things i learned when i was three and four years old, leaving home with my grandfather, how to look at the dominant culture, and not to engage them in a specific kind of way. because it was dangerous and possibly lethal for that to happen. understanding what the police were and what their jobs really were when they came into the
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community. even the black policemen that they had. i think we had two when i was growing up in chattanooga that most of the people that i knew that encountered them did not have pleasant encounters with them because it was their job to keep us in line in a specific way. that's always been the case. one of my favorite or the favorite saying i had when i was an young revolution was the h. brown stock market. "at a certain point, caution barks cowardice. no slaves should die a natural death." you have to understand that there are times when you're not being a coward. all you're doing is making sure you survive a specific situation and how it has to be done. it can be difficult. people don't give you that option a lot these days, when you see the videos of how police interact with people of color. you see that they don't give you
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that option a lot of times. >> i just want to be clear because i think maybe some people who read this interview in print will hear you say something should be blown up. i know what you mean, you're speaking metaphorically about the systematic change that needs to take place. not just in police, but in the education system and how people of color -- >> yeah, i'm not talking about planting a bomb somewhere and blowing up an institution. i'm talking about blowing up the rhetoric around a specific institution. and how it functions. making sure that everything changes in the way that particular thing is applied to everyone across the board. >> it's really fascinating talking to you. you not only have an extraordinary career now, but you've had an extraordinary life
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and a life of involvement. and i appreciate talking to you. thank you. >> thank you. thanks for having me. i hope everyone out there is being as safe as they can possibly be, and don't forget there is a pandemic even in the midst of all this, and thank you all that are paying attention, and now understand that black lives matter. we're not saying they matter more, we're just saying they matter. >> samuel l. jackson. up next, remember the president's claim he was only inspecting the white house bunker and wasn't taken to it, rushed to it by the secret service for his own safety? today his own attorney general did not sell that story. instead, he seems to have told the truth, actually. details next. because the tempur-breeze transfers heat... away from your body. so you feel cool... night after night. during the tempur-pedic summer of sleep, experience the mattress ranked number one in customer satisfaction by jd power.
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available 24/7 at tracfone.com here's what we want everyone to do.
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count all the hugs you haven't given. all the hands you haven't held. all the dinners you didn't share with friends. the trips you haven't taken. keep track of them. each one means one less person vulnerable, one less person exposed, and one step closer to a healthier community. so for now, keep your distance. but don't lose count. we'll have some catching up to do. tonight a fact check of the president from the president's own attorney general.
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today on fox news, attorney general barr said something that definitively put the lie to bed. we knew it was a lie when he said it. but now we know for sure. it's about what happened two fridays ago when numerous reports said the president and the first family had been taken to the white house bunker as a safety precaution. and there is nothing unreasonable about that. it's not a sign of weakness, yet the president when asked about it later simply could not admit that had ever happened. >> i went down during the day and i was there for a tiny -- little short period of time, it was much more for an inspection. there was no problem during the day. they said it would be a good time to go down and take a look, because maybe some time you're going to need it. >> yeah, it was a good time to take an inspection of the bunker. first time. yeah, sure, do that. today on fox news, attorney general barr put that absurdity to rest. saying, quote, things were so bad that the secret service recommended the president go down to the bunker. wow, he just said it.
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i like that the president lies about something and they don't get their lies straight. let's turn it over to chris for "cuomo prime time." you would think they'd coordinate the lies. well, i mean, i don't know. >> at this point, lie, deny and defy. those are the three rules of divide and concur, and that's what they do. they tell different stories, as long as it's appeasing to the people they want to appease. and it makes our job all the more important, and you just did it perfectly. that's what matters. you showed it for what it is. anderson, i for one thank you for that. i am chris cuomo. welcome to "prime time."
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