military parades. i'm always cautioned not to lose my temper. this may be as close as i come in this campaign. just a marker of how deeply president trump and i disagree about the role the president of the united states of america. you know, the august jobs report came out this morning. i'm grateful for everyone who found work again and found a glimmer of hope that brings them back from the edge. but there is real cause for concern, as well, the pace of the job gains in august was

slower than july, significantly slower than in may and june. more and more temporary layoffs, turning into permanent layoffs. 28 million people have filed for unemployment and after 6 months in the pandemic, we're less than halfway back to where we were with 11.5 million americans not getting their jobs back. we're still down 720,000 manufacturing jobs. in fact, donald trump may be the only president in modern history to leave office with fewer jobs than when he took office. i talk to a lot of real working people. ask them, they feel like they're being left behind. ask them, how do they feel about the economy coming back? you'll fine they don't feel it and that's why i'm here today to thank paul and his team for

hosting us at west end neighborhood house here in wilmington. paul, your continued tradition of doing god's work for this community is important. it's been around for more than 130 years. through pandemics, wars, depressions. west end has been here for generations of people. who are just looking for a chance, not a handout. just a fair shot at a good job, a safe place to live. and a better life to pass down to their kids. this is a special place for the biden family. my daughter was a caseworker here helping people aging out of foster care. when my son was the attorney general, beau came here to learn more about job training programs for those working toward a ged or certificate for a good paying job. when i was senator and vice president there were plenty of economists and me to talk about

every aspect of the economy but i always think about the people that walk through the doors here. working people. white, black, brown, latino. what are they doing? are they okay? i knew if they were okay they walk through these doors the economy was doing okay. if they weren't okay, we weren't. doing well. that's what we should be thinking about, this latest jobs report. but the report reinforces the worst fears and painful truths. the economic inequities that began before the downturn only worsened under this failed presidency. whether the crisis started we all hoped for a few months of a shutdown followed by a rapid turn around. no one thought they'd lose the job for good or see small businesses shut down en masse. but that kind of recovery requires leadership.

leadership we didn't have and still don't have and as a result economists are starting to call this recession a k-shaped recession which is a fancy phrase for what's wrong with everything about trump's presidency. the "k" means those at top see things go up. and those in the middle and below see things go down and get worse. it's no surprise because at root of this is the fact that trump has mismanaged the covid crisis and that's why it's a k-shaped pandemic. first, the president's chaotic mismanagement of the pandemic is still holding us back. compared to other major industrial countries in europe and asia, during the pandemic our unemployment rate is still more than double while other nations have only gone up by half. why? because the president has botched the covid response,

botched it badly. i've said from the beginning, we can't deal with an economic crisis until you beat the pandemic. you can't have an economic comeback when almost 1,000 americans die each day from covid. when the death toll was reached about 200,000, when more than 6 million americans have been infected, when million more worry about getting sick and dying as schools and businesses try to reopen. we all know it didn't have to be this bad. it didn't have to be this bad to begin with if the president just did his job. if he just took the virus serely early on in january and february as it spread around the globe. if he just took the steps we needed back in march and april for widespread testing and tracing, to control the virus. if he provided clear, national scientific based guidance to state and local authorities, if

he just set a good example like social distancing and wearing a mask. it is not too much to ask. that's almost like he doesn't care. doesn't affect him because it doesn't affect him or his class of friends. anyone with a big enough checkbook can get rapid test on demand. if you don't you might have to wait in line for hours and wait for weeks to get your result. if you can get them at all. you have the kind of job where you can work from a laptop at home remotely, risking getting covid is very small at work. this job report shows that 37 million people reported teleworking in august. but if you work in an assembly line or checkout counter or meat packing plant or drive a truck or deliver packages, you're at much greater risk and the job report shows that more than 27 million workers reported that

they couldn't work or lost hours because the employer had to close or lost business due to the pandemic. if you can hire a private tutor, or have a live-in child care, you can balance being a parent and remote schooling. if you can't, you have to do your job and be a teacher all at once. jill and i have held briefings on reopening schools safely two days ago asking questions as parents call and ask us, educators, as well, who feel like they're in an impossible situation. what are they supposed to do? with our children. when the president has made it so hard for schools to reopen safely. what's the alternative when it's devastating to them isolated from friends and support systems? i also said earlier this week to the shock of many, if you lost

more cops this year to covid than on patrol. just reminder how an already dangerous job, law enforcement, has gotten more dangerous because of trump's mismanagement. what may be just as shocking is many other jobs will also become dangerous due to covid. being a health care worker is now more dangerous than ever. we have lost hundreds of them this year because they weren't protected from covid on the job. being a meatpacker is more dangerous than ever. so many have died due to getting covid at work. work for waitresses and waiters and transit workers all have become more dangerous with so many dying of covid. ladies and gentlemen, no matter what he says or what he claims, you are not safer in donald trump's america. you are not safe in donald trump's america where people are

dying at a rate last seen when americans were fighting in world war 2. donald trump's malpractice in this pandemic made being a working american a life or death work. while there's a disproportionate impact on black, latino and asian americans, white working class is being hit hard, as well. opioid deaths are up in the pandemic. another crisis that trump continues to aural but ignore. in the meantime, trump and the trends have strong views about what the rest of america should do. quote, cut unemployment benefits to force people to go back to their jobs end of quote. defurnd social security and eliminate obamacare in the middle of a pandemic. reopen public schools without e

resources or guidance. reopen main street business without protection for workers so corporations can continue to soar. this is their plan? second and similarly, the economic pain remains unrelenting for millions of working people of every race and background aren't getting relief they need. meanwhile, some better than ever, this divergence of fortunes is unique to any recession in recent memory. and the painful truth is we just have a president who just doesn't see it. he doesn't feel it. he doesn't understand. he just doesn't care. he thinks if the stock market is up that everything's fine. if his wealthy friends and donors are doing well then everything is doing well. if corporations see their valuations rising then they must be hiring.

but the best economists know what i know. i have learned growing up in scranton and clairemont where folks aren't invested in the market, a measure of our economic success is the quality of life of the american people. and if your stock soars families teater on the brink and the president calls that success. what does that say about what he values? when you see the world in such a narrow prism, there's no wonder he doesn't see nearly 30 million americans on unemployment, 1 in 6 small businesses closed right now. he doesn't understand what life is like for people walking by their boarded up shops. educators afraid that doing their job, a job that they love,

will bring the virus home to the people they love. or a parent searching for health insurance now that the furlough has turned into a layoff. it's no wonder he duraoesn't se the single mom forced to wait in a three-hour food line so for the first time in her life so she can feed her family because she is part of the 1 in 6 households with children that don't have enough to eat. he wants us to believe that we're doing better, to keep it up and not notice that this remains the worst economic situation since the great depression. and our country faced the historic divergence on our way of life. which gets me to the third and final point. and what the american people really need to understand. all the pain and suffering stems from president trump's failure to lead. his sheer inability to bring

people together. he signs to sign executive orders, actions for photo-opes, but they're ill conceived and could do more harm than good. he says protecting renters from eviction, that's what he is doing, but he's not giving them any support to pay the rent when it comes due. millions of americans will only be left with the terrible choice between eviction and living in the streets or paying back rent they simply don't have. when there was an answer offered and rejected. he says he is continuing to provide enhanced unemployment insurance payments but he cut the amount that everyone on it will receive leaves them on the edge when it runs out in a few weeks or sooner. he should be doing his job of calling congressional leaders together immediately to get a deal and deliver real results for the american people. this is a first president of the

middle of a crisis has called congress into the oval office. if i were president that's what i would do and get it done like previous presidents. tens of millions struggling americans. student loan relief. small business support and aid to schools and state governments that are going bankrupt. as long as this pandemic persists no one, no one should have the water or power cut off baubz they can't afford to pay the bill. bottom line, mr. president, do your job. get off your golf course and out of the sand bunker. call the leaders together in the oval office. sit with them and make a deal. make a deal that delivers for working americans. and eases their anxiety and pain. in july, i laid out my build

back better plan for an economy that works for everyone. over the next three weeks i'll lay out the sharp contrast my plan has with the president's nonplans, asking the americans three basic questions. who can handle the pandemic? who can keep their promises? who cares about and will fight for working families? like the people here at west end, throughout this pandemic, they found their way to keep the center open safely and provide for critical services. no one here has been laid off. they adjusted the space for social distancing, they started a lending program to help local businesses, hair salons and other small businesses. they continue their child care services which is critical for so many working families. by pure courage, heart and grid, they never give up and they never give in. that's a pursuit of full promise

for america. that's the story of the people of this community and this country. that's who we are! give ordinary americans just half a chance and they never let the country down. they'll do extraordinary things. they'll never let us down. unlike the current president. and unlike the current president i won't let you down either. that's what this election is about. helping people unite. get together. move this country back in the direction that we can be. there's nothing beyond our capacity. nothing. if we just do it together. i thank you all and now take your questions. i guess -- you calling on people? i don't have a list so you go ahead and call. >> thank you. this morning in reference to that article in "the atlantic" in a call convened by your

campaign, khan said that the comments demonstrated that president trump's life is a testament to selfishness and that his soul is that of a coward. you have talked about this as a different view of how you see the job of president. but when you hear these remarks, suckers, losers, recoiling from amputees, what does it tell you about president trump's soul and the life he leads? >> i'm going to try to be measured in my response. if it's true, based on the other things he said i believe the article's true, i'd ask you all a rhetorical question. how do you feel? how would you feel if you had a kid in afghanistan right now? how would you feel if you lost a son, daughter, husband, wife? how would you feel?

for real. i know that's not your job to express that feeling but you know. you know in your heart. your know in your gut. it's deplorable. it's deplorable. i've said many times, i'll say again. these folks are the backbone of america. they're the heart, the soul, the grit. that's what patriotism is about. i probably -- i've just never been as disappointed in my whole career with a leader that i have worked with, president or otherwise, that if the article is true and it appears to be based on other things he said,

it is absolutely damnable. it is a disgrace. >> on a somewhat related topic, what would you say to the supporters of the qanon, people that believe in that conspiracy, what they think is true about america, that there's sex trafficking and conspiracy against the president trump and what would you say to president trump for not rejecting that conspiracy and the people who believe in it? >> i've been a big supporter of mental health. i recommend that people that believe it should perhaps take advantage of it in the affordable care act. bizarre. totally bizarre. and now have you guyed found that plane load of people in uniforms and weapons and flying around? you know? have you found them yet? is anybody -- by the way, i

respect conservative and liberal points of view in the press. anybody found that plane? what in god's name are we doing? look at how it makes us look around the world. it's mortifying. it's embarrassing and it's dangerous. it's dangerous. if the president doesn't know better, which i -- he has to know better, then my lord, we are in much more trouble than i ever thought we were. it's bizarre. and you know, this is a case where, you know, i've been surprised, pleased but surprised, with folks i have had political arguments with like the former governor of michigan coming out and endorsing me, all the republicans are endorsing me. that this can't go on.

i mean, this cannot go on. it's a deconstruction of a democratic system. they know it. so i just -- i'll conclude with what you heard many say many times before. the words of a president matter. even a lousy president. it gives encouragement to people who are spouting irrational views that no one has even close to ever presuming or showing ever existed. and it's done for a simple reason. from the very beginning he's understood the only way he can win, the first time and can win this time, is that he fundamentally divides the nation. puts the nation, divides us at

each other's throats. that's not who we are. that's not who we are. >> thank you, sir. >> thank you, mr. vice president. last night president trump mocked you for wearing a mask and said that this is a sign that you must have some, quote, big issues. he says this even though he knows that according to scientists and public health officials wearing masks saves lives. i wonder if you worry that this language from the president of the united states could deter some americans tuning in to him to not wear masks. >> well, i wear it because i'm a smart fellow. i listen to scientists. this is not a game.

life and death, life and death. reports that we're going to have maybe -- some reports 100,000 dead, as many as 100,000 dead more by the end of the year. i mean, i don't -- i don't get it. i mean, i just -- anyway. it's hard to respond to something so idiotic. >> okay. before my second question, quickly, have you been tested now for covid-19? >> yes, i have. >> how many times? >> i've been tested once with the deep test and i'm going to continue to be testing on a regular basis. >> next question. >> could i just ask quickly about attorney general barr saying on cnn this week that his assessment right now is that china poses the most aggressive threat to u.s. elections even more than iran or russia. do you believe him? is that also your understanding

based on the intelligence briefings that you have received? >> no, it is not consistent with the briefings i have received. he's a lousy enough attorney general but he's a really bad intelligence officer. >> it's not consistent because you believe -- >> because i believe what i've been told. and you all know it. i mean, look. it's -- you even have outfits like facebook taking -- hey, look. it is just -- there are a lot of countries around the world and i think would be happy to see our lo elections destabilize but the one working hardest, most consistently and never has let up is russia. again, it is unfair to say to you guys but ask yourself the rhetorical question. what is he so afraid of vladimir putin about?

i mean, what's the problem? i mean, nothing -- nothing. it's almo it's obsciwous. i just want to make it clear. i believe any country engages in any activity to delegitimatize our impact on american elections is a direct violation of our sovereignty and if i'm president of the united states there will be a response. >> next question. >> thank you. >> sir, it is a couple weeks now since you announced senator harris as your running mate and haven't seen him very much including yesterday in kenosha. why is that and what role do you

see her in -- >> she's on the road. she is out herself. just like when barack and co campaigned, we tried to cover as much territory as we could. she is an incredibly competent candidate, doing a great job. there will be times when we're together but there's a lot of territory to cover. i talk with her almost every day and i have great qufd in her. nothing about not campaigning together but being able to cover more territory. >> just as a second question, do you know when you will have another covid test? do you have anything planned? any future testing? >> everyone on the service detayld detail and people coming into the house with me are all tested so i just -- yes, sir. show up and putt my head back. you know? when they tell me. >> you don't know when it will be?

pardon me? next one? >> no. i imagine sometime this week. i just don't know. but it's a regular basis. >> thank you. >> thank you, sir. let me ask you about another thing the president said last night. he once again suggested to suppo supporters to consider voting twice in a state that can allow you to request an absentee ballot. fill that out and then go try voting again in person. state officials have said it's a felony in some cases. just curious what you make of it. >> it is. it is a felony. a felony here in the state of delaware. look. i mean, how many times does this president have to suggest things and say things where you all don't just write he's a fraud? not being -- not an opinion. he wanted to -- maybe we should

delay the election. maybe we should -- you know, write-in ballots are fraudulent. not a single bit of evidence. i think it's all designed to create so much chaos that no matter what the outcome of the election is that it's thrown up in the air. i think -- that must be his reason because he says and does things that no other president that i'm aware of in american history's ever done and we all go, well, there's another ridiculous, illegal, inappropriate thing he said but he says so many of them it doesn't matter. i mean, it is -- it is just -- it just undermines the legitimacy of our democratic process. and it's dangerous. >> you said today is the

angriest you have been as a presidential candidate? but you said you're trying to restrain yourself. there are a lot of people out there who are supporting you inclined to not vote for the president saying why isn't joe biden angrier about all of this? >> because presidents of the united states should be presidential. and should lead by example. as well as make clear exactly where they stand. getting down in the gutter like the president does, saying things that i'd be inclined if we were behind a barn somewhere, would be a different thing. but that's not the job of a president. the job of the president is to set an example. my anger is real because i must tell you. i carry and i deliberately didn't bring it with me today. delaware national guard had a

pin made up that's a gold star that was made up for my son beau who didn't die in the field. and i always carry it with me. and i didn't carry it today because -- i was worried that if i focused too much on it that i would engage in some of the kind of language that the president's used. but i just think it is sick. it is deplorable. it is so un-american. it is so unpatriotic. and then watching him this morning? while i was shaving and the tv on. talking about he never said anything like that. he honored john mccain. he's the reason why flags were

flown at half mast. wasn't that noble on him? he's the same guy that whether the ship went in the harbor he made sure the "uss mccain" was covered and couldn't see it. he's the same guy that denigrated john. he is the same guy who did a similar thing where he talked about george h.w. bush who was shot down in the pacific. i mean, but he just stands there. it's almost pathological. i've never said anything like that. no one's been better to the military. i -- i just got to focus on what has to be done, not what he did, what i do from here, what gets done from here. >> thank you, sir. >> thank you, mr. vice president. about voting, we know the president is attacking mail-in

voting and supporting that vote twice. are you concerned at all that this messaging may be working, that your supporters may give up on voting by mail because they're concerned that it may be rigged? >> yes, i am. that's why i try not to talk into it. there's two things he wanteds us to talk about. is the election legitimate? and the whole country's up in flames. everything's burning. law and order. because he doesn't want to talk about anything, anything at aural aboall about the job he hasn't done and it is a conundrum. there's a lot we could talk about in terms of the specifics of russia is doing and not doing. but when you do it just undermines what people think may be illegitimate. what i don't want to have happen, i don't want people

reaching the point to understand sometimes it is not worth voting. you know? it seems to me that one of the things that i keep trying to say to people is go to i will vote.com. figure out -- i will vote.com. and figure out where you can vote, how you can vote, what's available to you, where you can vote early. where you can vote in person. where it's going to be safe for you, et cetera. plan now. plan now. but the more chaos that is sown here is going to disincline people to show up. and in a sense every time i speak about it i feel like i'm playing in his game. is that -- not that you agree but does that make sense? i think that's all part of the deal. [ inaudible ]

>> thank you, mr. vice president. going back to the jobless report from this morning, you had acknowledged that less than half of the 22 million jobs that were lost in the spring because of the pandemic have been recovered. what do you think the 1.4 million added back in august says about just the general direction of the economy? >> i think any job added back is positive. i think it matters to the people who got that job back. you know? maybe you all were raised in households like i was where mom or dad was losing a job because of the economy, what's going on in your community, you could feel the tension, unease in the household. how it just everything. urge? worrying about whether you can provide for your family and along the way, also, look at the people who you have got, you

know, couple million people out there, close to, who are part time workers who still can't make it but are listed as employed. and a lot of them also are in the process of wondering whether or not. there are a lot of people lining up in food lines, they're the people many of them who lost their health care. their health care provided by the employer. they're the same people out there worrying if this president is able to win in court and wipe out the entire affordable care act and all the hundred million people with preexisting conditions won't be able to get insurance even if they had the mu money and it is just -- the anxiety is enormous, is enormous. look. again, i'm not being solicitous. among the brightest people i have dealt with my whole career have been the press.

not a joke. you all are extremely well educated, you're well read, have significant backgrounds. and the vast majority have tried to report the news, not just opinion. but i can't believe that you don't feel the same kind -- not democrat/republican. okay? you don't feel the same anxiety because you got a brother or sister, a mother, a father, a son or a daughter who's going through what you're not. what we're not. we have jobs. i don't have a job now but we have jobs. and so, it's a real concern. and i just think that this is moved beyond democrat, republican. i think it's moved to trying to

put this country back together again so we can move. >> thank you. >> one more question -- >> thank you, guys. thank you. >> one more -- >> can i ask -- >> mr. vice president -- >> take one from fox. you like to engage. >> i like to engage. >> if i may ask, president trump just announced that serbia and kosovo deal and president trump just announced an economic normalization deal between serbia and kosovo and part of that deal is kosovo and israel having diplomatic normalization. you have stated that you support a two-state solution in the middle east. would you support more muslim majority countries normalizing relations with israel even though it means that the palestinians lose leverage in the fight towards a two-state solution? >> first of all, i don't know what the deal is.

you're referring to. okay? what i have argued relative to serbia and kosovo is that kosovo should be an independent country. not a part of serbia. i have spent a lot of time there. and so i don't know how, i assume that would reinforce that independence but i don't know based on what's being said. i think normalization of relations among countries is a by and large and almost every instance a good thing to have a muslim majority country normalizing relations with israel in a generic sense seems positive to me but i have to know the detail of what's happening, what's going on, and i don't know that and it may, you may be right, that that would cause the palestinians to lose leverage in a decision on a

two-state solution. >> in general do you support more countries recognizing israel? >> i do. absolutely i do. i do. and i think that's the thing, recognizing israel as an independent jewish state is important. and but also i believe that israel has to be prepared to work toward a genuine two-state solution. thank you all very much. >> thank you, mr. vice president. >> that was democratic presidential nominee joe biden. i want to bring in my colleagues to discuss what we just saw. david chalian and dana bash and katherine rampel. dana, to you first. what were your takeaways from what appeared to be a very forceful joe biden in light of this "atlantic" story of what president trump said about troops who lost their lives or injured at war? >> he's pissed off and it was

very clear that he decided to change the beginning of a speech billed as a reaction to the monthly jobs numbers and talk from the heart about how he felt about the xherntds that the president allegedly made that the president is vehemently denying and joe biden doesn't believe him because they comport with other things that the president said out loud in front of a camera of john mccain, etd s et cetera. i'm not sure that the substance of what the president allegedly said and the pushback on it is going to change any votes but the way that joe biden responded is the kind of fight and the kind of fire that a lot of democrats have been waiting to see and hear from him, more of. not that he hasn't been doing it before but this was genuine,

this was anger, i'm ready to get in there and beat donald trump and that was what he was telegraphing and it helped that it was clearly very genuine because, brianna, as you know, he not only was a military father, he has spent so many years dealing with and getting to know so many members of the military not just as a two-perm vice president but foreign relations chair and senator from delaware. >> this was clearly pirersonal r him talking about his son beau and i think he said he wasn't a sucker and the friends that didn't make it back alive weren't losers in response to the remarks that the president made according to that article. david, what do you think? >> i don't think it's very hard for joe biden to take the moral high ground when the president of the united states is reportedly disparaging the american military but what joeshd did is just not take the moral high ground but asda that is saying with a real personal

passion he just ran with it in responding. back to this today. and as dana rightly noted, the president denied saying this but there are so many examples of the president on the record speaking in ways that make you question how he sees the service of those who serve that you don't just need this reporting in "the atlantic." i think this fills out a picture that donald trump has been painting himself over the last five years in the public political spotlight that he's been in. joe biden would have been sort of political malpractice to let the comments go by the wayside. when your opponent gives you this kind of opportunity you seize it and i will just note

this is at the end of a week where you will recall donald trump tried to use the republican national convention last week to change the entire conversation about this campaign, to move it from what had been months and months about a referendum on donald trump to a real choice election between donald trump and joe biden. where are we now at the end of the week after the convention? it is a referendum on donald trump. joe biden was asked about mail-in ballots, asked about the president of the united states ignoring sign tests and mocking mask wearing and he's asked about these comments of the commander in chief disparaging the american military, this action right back to being all about donald trump and a referendum on him which is not where he and the campaign wanted to be. >> i want to talk about the mask

moment and others that trump created this week that like you said just kind of served up the opportunities on a silver platter. >> you just said it. what you said is so important, that trump created. what you just said adding to what david just said is the key. didn't happen to donald trump. he created those moments. forgive me. >> that's right. katherine, the economic side of this, because that's what this was supposed to be about and yet, of course, these other issues are very pressing and need to be dealt with, as well. what was your takeaway? >> there's plenty of material to talk about unrelated to the economy but the economy is in fact a very vulnerable spot for president trump. it is the only issue on which so far he has bested his opponent joe biden throughout this campaign and most polls. hour, if you look at the numbers themselves it suggest two economies right now and this is what joes biden is talking abou.

there's white collar work from home families for whom recovered most if not all of the jobs lost earlier this year as a result of the pandemic and then the working class and the people whom trump is supposed to represent. he won the election in 2016 on a narrative that washington elites ignoring the struggles of the working class and meanwhile you have very high unemployment, you still have a lot of temporary layoffs converting into permanent layoffs and small businesses which obviously sustain many of those jobs never reopening. they're still closed and many of which will permanently stay closed and this is a fruitful line of attack for joe biden because people perceive this as trump's strength and certainly talks about himself as being the best -- what does he say?

the greatest jobs president in history and trump may be the first president since modern economic data began to leave office with fewer jobs than existed when he was inaugurated. biden has a wealth of material to raise if he wants to make a case to the american voter. >> and one of those things, dana, the mask issue, sort of defies belief? no. i'm not really in disbelief that the president did this. i wonder the logic and the gain politically and what did you think about joe biden's answer? >> you know, that was more cautious joe biden and felt like the notion of wearing a mask spoke for itself, a moment from joe biden so many times, i shouldn't go there but then he

goes there a little bit. this is if you kind of look at the idea of suburban voters, suburban women, women in general, the remaining potential swing voters, the mask issue could be a really, really big determinetive factor because they're living it in their every day lives, trying to get masks on the little kids, living it trying to figure out this is kind of the tip of the spear and goes down to schools and other real challenges that people are dealing with. the flip side, though, is the president is clearly speaking to very real, very vocal, very passionate anti-maskers who are out there who are natural trump voters and maybe even people who didn't vote in 2016 who they are mining, trying to find in key

places like pennsylvania and others who say, you know what? i'm so sick of people like joe biden telling me what to do. i won't wear a mask and listen to donald trump and go out and vote because of that and not impossible that's a real place to get votes for donald trump and that is part of it, aside from the fact he was just playing entertainer in chief. >> thank you all. appreciate your xherncomments. now a truly bombshell report from jeffrey goldberg at "the atlantic" of the president viewing the service members that laid down the lives for their country or injured in service. the report includes new details of president trump's 2018 visit to france to mark 100 years since world war i. goldberg cites four different souses on president trump's cancelation of a visit to the cemetery near paris where american marines were killed in world war i and buried there.

it is sacred ground for military members and marine in particular. goldberg writes on the morning of the scheduled visit trump said why should i go to the cemetery? it is filled with losers. same trip trump referred to the more than 1,800 marines lost as suckers for getting killed and according to goldberg trump asked aides who are the good guys in this war and didn't understand why the united states would intervene on the side of allies and goldberg said that trump was fix yatded on john mccain as a prisoner of war in vietnam. hoe writes that when mccain died in august of 2018 trump told the senior staff according to three sources with direct knowledge we're not going to support that loser's funeral and furious according to witnesses with flags at half staff. what the bleep are we doing that? he was an f'g loser according to

this report, that's what the president told the aides and goldberg talks about a moment in 2017 on memorial day visit arlington cemetery and standing bedy grave of john kelly's son killed in action in afghanistan, the atlantic reports that trump turned to kelly and said, i don't get it. what was in it trump has been, for the duration of his presidency, fixating on staging military parades. trump asked his staff not to include wounded veterans on grounds that spectators would feel uncomfortable around amputees. "nobody wants to see that" he said. and trump turned to aids and said that guy is smart. why did he join the military? here is goldberg talking to cnn

earlier about trump's cancelled visit to the cemetery. >> donald trump expressed directly to senior aids his lack of desire to go to the cemetery and not to risk 90 minutes in traffic. because he doesn't understand why one would go pay that level of respect to fallen american soldiers. he also expressed, directly, that fear rain, that was quite heavy at times, would mess with his hair. >> he's declaring it's fake. he spoke just moments ago. >> it's a fake story, written by a magazine, probably not going to be around much longer. but it was a totally fake story and that was confirmed by many people who were actually there. it was a terrible thing that somebody could say the kind of things, especially for me --

because i've done more for the military more than, almost, anybody and especially people that have given their lives in the military, to me they're heroes. it's hard to believe how they could do it. the level of bravery. and to me they are absolute heroes. >> trump also insisted in a flurry of tweets that, while he was never a fan of john mccain, he never called him a loser and approved his funeral without hesitation or complaint. cnn has not independently confirmed the reporting that atlanta has. the problem for the president here his comments about the war dead and injured are not out of character. and in denial about john mccain specifically. because me did call mccain a loser.

he did it twice, in a tweet and-he initially attacked him being a war hero. >> i supported him. he lost. he let us down. so, i never liked him as much after that because i don't like losers. but, but, frank, let me get to it. >> he's not a war hero? >> he's a war hero because he was captured. i like people that weren't captured, i hate to tell you. >> john mccain was son and grandson of decorated admirals but he stayed with his guys. whether you like him or not, he was a hero and- when he died, te president took two days and tremendous pressure on president trump and trump was upset that he didn't get praise for approving mccain's funeral. >> i gave him the kind of funeral that he wanted, which,

as president, i had to approve. i don't care about this. i didn't get thank you. that's okay. we sent him on the way but i wasn't a fan of john mccain's. >> it's not just john mccain the president has targeted. he has a history of attacking the military and their families. he also attacked a gold star family, the khans, who were critical of him. >> his wife, if you look at his wife, she was stand flg. she had nothing to say. maybe she wasn't allowed to have anything to say. you tell me. >> she was too heartbroken. their son, was killed by a suicide bomber in iraq in 2004 and he was posthumously awarded a purple heart and a bronze star. then the president smeared, mocked and eventually forced army lieutenant alexander

vindman for early retirement. vindman received the purple heart and still had shrapnel from an iud attack when he was testifying in the impeachment trial. >> i don't know, as he says, lieutenant colonel. i understand somebody had the misfortune of calling him mr. i understand now he wears his uniform. no, i don't know vindman at all. the person he reports to says horrible things, avoided the chain of command, leaked and did a lot of bad things. so, we sent him on his way to a much different location and the military can handle him any way they want. >> the condolence call to a green beret killed that caused a lot of controversy. when he spoke with david's widow, she said his tone made her cry and that the president seemed to be grasping for her

husband's name. >> the president said that he knew what he signed up for but it hurts anyways. and i was -- it made me cry because i was very angry at the tone of his voice and how he said it. he couldn't remember my husband's name. if my husband is out here fighting for our country and he risks his life for our country, why can't you remember his name? >> and this year, when iran struck an iraqi base where u.s. troops are housed, causing at least 34 american soldiers to sustain traumatic brain injuries, the president said this. >> you said repeatedly to americans that after iran retaliated, no americans were injured. we now know at least 11 u.s. services men were air lifted from iraq. can you explain the discrepancy? >> no, i heard that they had headaches and a couple of other things.

but i would say and i can report, it is not very serious. >> so, potential traumatic brain injuries serious? >> no, i don't consider them serious relative to other injuries i've seen. >> the president has also refused to condemn or mention to vladimir putin the reported russian bounties on troops in afghanistan, instead saying the intelligence wasn't big enough to reach his desk, which is not true. he was briefed on it. he just ignored it. i know some americans are going to dismiss this as fake news but they shouldn't. he's a well sourced and meticulous reporter by all accounts. the president has made his views on the military and their sacrificeinize credibly clear. he doesn't get it. he doesn't get why people say send me or how much they love their country that they're will took put it all on the line. i am a military spouse and i

don't know what it is to go to war. i don't know what it's like to risk it all, but like other military family members, i have a view to it that a vast majority of americans do not. and after this report came out last night, i was thinking about a story my husband told me about one of his friends, a friend who he would alternate on patrols with. and, to hear my husband tell it, was a total bad as. they were in afghanistan during a particularly hairy time in the war and on this day t was his friend who went out on the patrol and he was killed. because in war, it doesn't matter if you're squared away. death is often random. the ones that we have lost aren't losers. they're ordinary people who did an extraordinary thing. they answered the call and the one whose come back, they are

survivors and they're fighting for normal lives that many of us take for granted. they're dealing every day scars that you can see and scars that you cannot see. senator tammy duckworth knows full well the hardships of sacrificing. she's a purple heart recipient and partial use of her right arm where her helicopter was hit by an rpg. >> thank you for having me on and thank you for your comments just now. our military families also serve in a way many americans didn't understand. >> i didn't understand until i was sitting in that role, i will tell you that for sure and now i'm in awe of military families. i'm sure you saw this article very quickly last night where he called the war dead losers and military members suckers. and you've seen his denial. what's your reaction?

>> we all know this is exactly donald trump. this is who he is. people know the story is accurate because he's consistently said these things over the years and continues to act in a way where he likes to use the military for his own personal ego as if we were some sort of toy soldiers you could pull out and line up on your desk to play with. but he really doesn't understand the sacrifice and truly doesn't understand what it means to put something above yourself too, serve this nation and be willing to lay down one's life with this nation. because he does nothing that does not benefit don on tald tr bottom line. >> i have felt at times, i guess, inferior in the face of asking this question of people who sign up in the military, but having become closer to people in the military, i've realized actually, despite all the hero