nvp award. rocking and this was noteworthy for many. >> he is coming from the win in boston. >> patriots' big parade is today and we'll see you tomorrow. >> bill: thank you, guys, fox news alert. president trump's travel ban will have a court showdown. they'll ask an appeals court to immediately reinstate the order arguing that it puts our national security at risk by not doing so. a big day ahead as we say good morning in "america's newsroom." split broadcast today. i'm bill hemmer good morning from washington, d.c. and -- >> i'm melissa for shannon bream. the white house arguing the president is well within his rights to decide who can and who cannot enter the country. listen.

>> the law is very clear on this. the president has huge discretion to protect the safety of the american people. and our nation's institutions with respect to who can come into this country. >> bill: oral arguments begin later today. an official ruling could come any time after that. we'll get much more on where this is with kellyanne conway in a moment standing by at the white house right now. >> we'll start with john roberts and john, how is the white house laying out their case right now? >> good morning, melissa. a 15-page filing filed with the 9th circuit court of appeals late yesterday eight minutes before the deadline in which the department of justice on behalf of the white house says the president has the express statutory authority to suspend entry of any class of aliens to protect the national interest. now here is the relevant u.s. law that they're citing here.

it is 8uscs subsection 1182 paragraph if. whatever the president finds the entry of any aliens or class of aliens in the united states would be detrimental he may by proclamation and such a period he deems necessary suspend the aliens or opposed on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate. the suit that was filed by washington state and minnesota claims that legal permanent residents are being kept out of the country as a result of this executive order. the executive order excerpts so-called lprs. also according to the white house not targeted at any one single religion. there is a blanket pause on all refugees and when the refugee program starts back up again it will prioritize people of minority religions in countries that are being persecuted which could in some countries where muslims are the minority population, apply to muslims.

for example, say the weigers in china. it argues established state law has states have no standing to bring suits. a state lacks authority to sue as the representative of its citizens to protect them from the operation of federal law. basically, melissa, the white house is saying when it comes to immigration, the federal government has the first and last say here and the states can't say anything about it. >> wow. the trump administration is facing a barrage of action in court beyond just this case, right? >> i mean, if you took a look at the 9th circuit court of appeals or pacer, actually, yesterday to see what was being filed there, almost every 15 minutes another friend of the court brief was being filed. the attorneys general, democratic i should point out from 16 states, have joined in the fight as well as companies like apple, microsoft, google, uber, e-bay are lining up against the president as is

tesla and spacex headed by elan musk on the president's business advisory council. it was clear from his visit to macdill air force base yesterday, the personnel there was clearly with him. listen. >> we need strong programs so that people that love us and want to love our country and will end up loving our country are allowed in. not people that want to destroy us and destroy our country. [cheering and applause] >> a lot of appreciation for the president in tampa. one other point to make is judge james robart issuing his retaining order, nobody from the country had been arrested since nine 11 for plotting terrorism. a decision not likely until

tomorrow. >> a great month for lawyers and their ability to bill hours and hours. >> always a good month for lawyers. >> exactly. thank you. >> bill: a lot to get to now with kellyanne conway, senior counselor to president trump live from the north lawn. nice to see you this morning. i know you believe you will win this case later today but did you expect this backlash? >> perhaps. we're never surprised at the backlash but today is really could be a brief hearing actually because it is based on the tro. we think we will prevail on the merits ultimately but that's not what today's hearing is about. and i think that your coverage has been very fair and full in this regard reminding everybody the ruling is a very broad injunction that states don't str standing to sue. usually as an individual you have to show standing and you have to show harm. i remember that from law school many years ago, bill. it is also i think there hasn't been a great deal of coverage

of what the boston judge did. he came to a different conclusion. if people would read what he did i think they would see there is a split of opinion on this issue. i would also say a president has the latitude and authority but also the duty and the responsibility to keep its citizens safe. that's always been the intention of president trump here. something he promised to do on the campaign trail. one of the ways he put national security and terrorism at the top of the list in terms of issues that people cared about. it was always higher up on the list than it had been in previous election cycles. he beat a former secretary of state, former first lady on national security and terrorism because he was able to keep the focus on that. >> bill: understood there. also from yesterday there is a suggestion there has been a down playing of terror attacks in u.s. media. now, what is behind that, kellyanne? what's that all about? >> last night our press secretary and the white house released a list of incidents

that the president is saying doesn't get a great deal of coverage. frankly, we were looking at a report this morning actually from a left leaning group that showed the network coverage 333 minutes or so on donald trump during the republican primaries. in one network's case eight minutes on terrorism. we're trying to verify this report but it tells you the disproportion. we don't want it to become the new normal that we don't cover tris attacks or the threat of terrorism the way that people -- >> bill: i understand the point you're making. 78 terror attacks on a list that went out. some of them i had not heard about but there are others like paris and nice and orlando and san bernardino. they got a lot of coverage, kellyanne. i was in nice and orlando. what is to suggest they were not given ample coverage here? >> what the president is saying, though, is that the ones you are pointing out we had a high number of casualties

and got international coverage and wall-to-wall coverage as well they should have. they remind us that isis is not the jv team that is in retreat as president obama said. not our determined enemies, whatever the heck that means as hillary clinton referred to them. they were not called radical islamic terrorist. this president will. the rest of the list you're correct. some you hadn't been aware of and you are a news guy. it tells you we're becoming inaourd to some of these attacks that don't lead to mass casualties, thank god, but still don't get the attention. the point the president is making terrorism is real, isis is on the advance, they've promised -- at some point they promised to disguise themselves as refugees coming into the u.s. others have promised to continue to do their blood-letting on western soil. we had an attack in turkey very recently. so anybody who thinks that this is just an issue and a movement

of terrorists fading into the background is wrong and the president wants to shine a light on that. >> bill: we'll see what happens today in court. betsy devos, will she be confirmed today to be the next education secretary or not, kellyanne? >> we expect she will and maybe history will be made. a sitting vice president make the tie vote. if there is a 50/50 split he has a vote and she could be sworn in in the short order. we see what the democrats did to her. humiliate and embarrass some of these nominees cherry picking her record. this is a woman very committed to education in this country and recognizes as candidate trump said that having these federal standards, not really giving full attention and credit and legitimacy to alternatives like school choice, charters, homeschooling, along with public school education where that works. why in the world are these

students trapped in failing schools based on the zip code where they live? this is a very important issue to kids and their parents. we want parental and local control. they tried to embarrass her and symptomatic of what they're doing to judge gorsuch now. 10 or 12 democrats who voted to confirm him 10 years ago and now all of a sudden they have a problem with him. that's politics. 11 unconfirmed nominees. we expect she will be our secretary of education and excited about. the president gave her a shout-out on twitter today. >> bill: i'm pressed for time. two republican senators say they won't vote for her and she is on the margins and what brings in the vice president. is there a third republican senator who will vote no? yes or no on that? >> we expect that not to be the case at this moment. >> bill: the vote should take place sometime this afternoon. kellyanne conway from the north lawn of the white house. great to have you back here.

11 minutes past the hour now. >> the showdown continues on capitol hill at this hour. senate democrats holding an all-night floor session trying to stop education secretary nominee betsy devos from moving forward. but now a final vote is looming. >> bill: also president trump's homeland security chief john kelly is live on the hill an hour from now to talk about the travel ban and plans to build a wall on the mexican border. we are told to expect fireworks. the chairman of the house homeland security committee is michael mccaul. he is up next as president trump ramps up for tougher border security. >> we will defeat them. we will defeat radical islamic terrorism and we will not allow it to take root in our country. we aren't going to allow it.

>> melissa: a new terror attack to tell you about overseas, a homicide bomber killed at least 20 people in afghanistan. outside the supreme court in the capitol city of kabul. nearly 50 others injured. no immediate claim of responsibility for that attack but taliban insurgence have targeted the court and its workers in the past. >> bill: another alert in capitol hill behind me we await a hearing by testimony from the homeland security secretary john kelly. border security, immigration and certainly the president's travel ban certain to be hot

topics there. the chairman of that committee is mike mccaul. i talked to him earlier this morning about all of that. >> thank you, nice to see you in person here in washington, d.c. this travel ban, can you win on it? >> i think that's going to be the big issue. at the hearing today we have secretary kelly testifying for the first time before congress. he will be questioned on the executive order itself. i personally think as a policy matter it mirrors a lot of what we had done and pursued in the congress previously in terms of the visa security bill which laid out the seven countries that president obama signed into law to the syrian refugee ban that we had, the pause we had on the immigration program there. also a memo that giuliani and mccasey and i sent to candidate trump to back off the muslim ban. we thought it was

unconstitutional and look at higher vetting to high-threat areas to keep out the bad guys. >> bill: you said muslim ban. you specifically state in yours hearing today it is not a muslim ban. >> it is not. and they took the seven countries that we passed into law, president obama signed it into law under our security bill that came out of my committee to ramp up the visa vetting process and, you know, these are basically unstable countries. countries where isis is prevalent. and it could be expanded, of course, if needed. i think this is a sound policy. i think the question at the hearing will be what happened with the implementation here? and the messaging? i think there were some problems with the implementation of this executive order that will be addressed. i think general kelly addressed a lot of these by waiving

lawful permanent residents who were band initially. >> bill: that was an amendment that was made. a law based on risk, not religion. that's part of your message. >> bill: the threat from radical islamic terrorism is real. look what is happening in europe and the middle east. courts must act fast exclamation point. they've done two things. a border surge and pause in the immigration of refugees coming from overseas. if the question is national security, isn't that also a question of time? >> in other words, when he said act fast, how fast is that? >> it is a question of time. we've seen the terror threat go up, not down. these are countries we've seen the foreign fighters come out of. this is something that as every day goes by i think the danger to the american people rises exponentially. i think it's important and imperative courts act fast on this executive order. if there are fixes to be made i

think secretary kelly made the critical fix here and that was to not ban people with green cards from coming back into the country. he fixed that. the policy is very sound. i think it's more again the implementation and messaging of it. >> bill: how long have you known secretary kelly? >> for a very long time. >> bill: would you consider yourself close with him? >> i do. i have a lot of faith in him. i trust him. he is -- was the head of south com, latin america. he looked at trans national organizations and why the border surge is important as well. he also was a commander in iraq and dealt with al qaeda and isis up front. gave a tremendous speech, a moving speech on when two marines were killed and his son was killed as well. >> bill: quite a sacrifice.

the hearing begins in one hour. what do you think the viewer will learn from his testimony today? >> my hope -- and i've sat down with him in advance to educate the american people as what this executive order does, what it doesn't do. it is not a muslim ban, it is a higher vetting and high-threat country executive order is what it is to keep out dangerous terrorists into the united states. i'm hopeful that will happen. there will be a lot of drama at this hearing. we'll have protestors and, of course, the other side of the aisle, there will be a lot of fireworks. >> bill: we'll be hear to watch it. chairman mccaul in washington, thank you. >> melissa: meanwhile president trump versus "the new york times." the white house taking on the newspaper over a specific article. this time demanding an apology. howard kurtz is here with his take. senators up all night as

democrats work to turn at least one more republican to try to stop president trump's choice for education secretary. a razor thin vote is likely within hours. >> we're very confident that betsy devos will be the next secretary of education and my high honor to cast the tiebreaking vote on the floor of the senate next week. didn't i was from ethnically. so we sent that sample off to ancestry. my ancestry dna results are that i am 26% nigerian. i am just trying to learn as much as i can about my culture. i put the gele on my head and i looked into the mirror and i was trying not to cry. because it's a hat, but it's like the most important hat i've ever owned. discover the story only your dna can tell. order your kit now at ancestrydna.com.

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>> melissa: a fox news alert for you now with a vote expected around noon eastern today that will likely confirm president trump's education nominee betsy devos. senators are still at it after more than 20 hours. republicans voting unanimously last week to move the nomination forward when democrats tried to stop it. two republicans said they won't

vote for devos. democrats are using their remaining time to try and turn a third gop senator against a nominee they insist is not qualified. >> frankly, her answers at the hearings were embarrassing. not only for her, but for my republican colleagues on the committee. >> it's difficult to imagine a worse choice to head the department of education. >> devos's agenda means fewer teachers and resources and worse schools. >> melissa: not mincing words there. peter doocy is live on capitol hill. what are republicans doing to try to make sure devos gets confirmed. >> they'll have mike pence come up to the capitol around noon to preside over the confirmation vote to become the first ever tie-breaking vice president for a president's cabinet nominee and something also they're doing. last night there was a bed check vote.

a procedure the leadership used to basically make sure that all 50 yes voting republican senators are in town after the weekend because if there is even one straggler and they don't have all 50 plus pence, then devos definitely does not get confirmed as education secretary. now, right after the devos matter is done today there is going to be a procedural vote on senator jeff sessions to become the attorney general to set up his final confirmation vote tomorrow and after sessions price for hhs secretary and mnuchin for treasury secretary are next on deck. >> melissa: it seems only right we have the first overtime in the super bowl and the first vp coming in to vote in this. has the president's supreme court nominee been facing the same kind of resistance as his cabinet? >> he has not. yesterday the first democratic senator that judge gorsuch met with said he is open to eventually supporting the

president's nominee for the supreme court when the upper chamber votes and that senator was john tester from a red state where he is up tore reelection in montana. >> i would encourage all my senate -- fellow senators to meet with him, give him a fair shake. he deserves that. in the meantime, i'm going to be doing some more research on some of the decisions he has made. >> the other democratic senator gorsuch huddled with yesterday, dianne feinstein described him as smart and caring but did not plan to say how she will vote on him and at noon he will have a private one-on-one meeting with chuck schumer who not meet with gorsuch last week and keeps insisting if gorsuch is to join the supreme court he must gather 60 total votes in the senate. melissa. >> melissa: you get the sense

this is how the next four years are going to go, peter, thank you. >> bill: 28 past here in washington the media wasting little time in honing in on steve bannon's role inside the white house. the president's chief strategist and some are portraying him as the president behind the president. thoughts from karl rove today. also the fight over the fate of president trump's temporary travel ban. the federal appeals court gets underway hours from now but will a ruling there either way put an end to this legal battle? the white house talking about that. much more on america's newsroom this morning. >> they remind us that isis is not the jv team that's in retreat as president obama said. not our determined enemies, whatever the heck that means as hillary clinton referred to them in her convention speech in july. they would not call them radical islamic terrorists. this president will.

>> bill: we are awaiting a

hearing from testimony from president trump's homeland security chief john kelly. he will make his first appearance before congress since he was confirmed for the job. he is expected to face tough questions from lawmakers on the temporary travel ban, the administration's push to build a wall on the u.s./mexico border. president trump talking about border security with bill o'rielly about that very topic. >> we have to do something about the cartels. i talked to him about it. i think he is a very good man and we have a good relationship as you probably know. we'll have a wall and a border. we have to stop drugs from coming into our country. and if he can't handle it and maybe they can and maybe they can't, maybe he needs help, he seemed very willing to get help from us because he has got a problem and it is a real problem for us. >> bill: secretary kelly likely to face questions on the cost of the wall and how the

administration plans to pay for it. that's underway in 30 minutes. >> melissa: fox news alert as state and federal lawyers gear up for a fight over president trump's travel ban. the white house calls it vital to national security. a point kellyanne conway highlighted for us moments ago. >> terrorism is real, isis is on the advance. they promised -- at some point they promised to disguise themselves as refugees coming into the u.s. others have promised to continue to do their blood-letting on western soil. we have an attack in turkey very recently. so anybody who thinks that this is just an issue and a movement of terrorists fading into the background is just wrong. >> melissa: a former dnc communications director and spokesman for hillary clinton's 2008 presidential campaign. rich lowry the editor of national review and fox news contributors. mo, let me start with you. the president has the power to

exclude aliens if he believes they are a security risk. right? >> well, look, i think there are two issues here. one is the constitutionality of this and it's in the courts now. there are some real questions about how he went about doing it particularly the fact that this appears to be targeting a particular religion. and so the courts will sort that out. my other concern with this, however, the president says this is necessary to make us safer. and i think we are hearing from more and more military experts and homeland security experts saying it will have the exact opposite effect. that this could actually be used as a tool to portray the united states as at war with islam and therefore used as a recruiting tool that makes us even less safe. that should be a very real concern to people. >> melissa: rich, are we at war with radical islam? it is going to appear like we are. doesn't it already appear that

way? >> i didn't say radical. i said islam. >> this order targets seven war-torn or hostile countries. it doesn't target every muslim country in the world. and on the law it is clear as day, congress wrote into the federal immigration statute that the president, when he thinks there is tion fall security risk, can exclude whomever he wants. if the law prevails in this instance the 9th circuit will throw out this restraining order and restore the ban. you can make all sorts of policy criticism, that's fine. we shouldn't pretend it's illegal or unconstitutional, it's not. >> melissa: the fear a lot of americans have is that we have seen all over the world people posing as refugees who have come in and done acts of terror. a real threat. they said they were going to do it and they have done it. this is what the president wants to stop. how do you argue against that

point specifically? >> it's a legitimate concern. we all want to be safe. we all want to protect ourselves from terrorist activities whether they are domestic, whether they're home grown or whether they are foreign. we haven't seen this -- the widespread rush into the country that the president is portraying and we have a very significant vetting process. not a single one of the terrorist attacks that has happened on the u.s. soil in recent years would have been prevented by the ban of muslims in these seven countries. and so i think there is some real flaw >> melissa: i can't agree with you. it is not a ban of muslims in the seven countries. i can't let you sit there and say that. that's not what this is about. it's not a specific religion. >> the president did say that he was going to give special treatment to christians as opposed to muslims.

and so this is a real concern, i think, in the way it is going to be implemented if it goes through. >> but it's been true throughout our history and refugee policy you take at of people's religion and why we gave a preference to jews persecuted in the soviet union? it was not unconstitutional. no one would have suggested that. it was absurd. these are seven countries a lot of which have a serious isis or al qaeda problem that don't have central governments and a 90-day pause to establish better procedures to make sure we know the people who are coming are -- are who they say they are. there is no way again just if we're applying rationality and the law, that this should be blocked in the courts. >> melissa: can i ask, there is an argument there is a way to formulate the questions when you are doing intense vetting that, of course, if you ask someone are you coming here to promote terror and to pull off terror attacks, they will say no. there is a way to ask them

about their beliefs, about why they are coming, about their past, that reveals that they are coming for purposes of terror. and he says that doing that helps muslims because you help good muslims that are coming for good reasons, not to be tarnished by those coming who promote terror attacks. what do you think of that argument? >> i think that assumes that there isn't vetting that is being done now. again, these refugees have to wait two years to come into the country. they are being vetted by numerous agencies, both u.s. and international. so there is a vetting process in place right now. >> melissa: mo, it can't be that good. look at the san bernardino shooters. >> would not have been prevented by this ban. >> melissa: this was somebody who went out of the country and married someone to bring them back in ostensibly to perpetrate a terror attack. she had known ties to terror. you don't think better vetting would have stopped that?

>> would not have been prevented by the president's plan that he has put on the table. that his executive order would not have prevented a single one of the attacks that happened in this country. >> melissa: rich, does that mean it needs to be expanded the more countries? we're talking about pakistan and mo is making the point pakistan isn't on the list and making the point pakistan should be. >> i'm not sure you want to do this kind of temporary ban from countries like sawed saudi arabia or pakistan. they're doing the seven countries that were identified in the obama years by con gretion and the obama administration as being causes of special concern. >> melissa: a big issue. thanks to both of you for coming on to tackle it. we appreciate it, bill. >> bill: much to watch in the nation's capital. will the president get his new education secretary? that vote expected to be close. the president meeting now with a group of sheriffs. we'll see that play out in a

moment. "the new york times" is a target of president trump's twitter account in the past 24 hours. why the white house says the paper got its story wrong. we'll tell you about that next. >> that story is so riddled with inaccuracy. they owe the president an apology. blatant factual errors. the best simple veggie dish ever? heart healthy california walnuts. the best simple dinner ever? heart healthy california walnuts. great tasting, heart healthy california walnuts. so simple. get the recipes at walnuts.org.

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it instantly opens your nose up to 38% more than cold medicine alone. shut your mouth and say goodnight mouthbreathers. breathe right. batteries you can trust against the ear hair you can't. without them you're conducting business with an armpit on the side of your head. that's not just some battery. that's a duracell battery. that's a power you can trust. >> melissa: we're awaiting new video from the white house. president trump holding a listening session with a group of county sheriffs from across the country. the president expected to touch on immigration, sanctuary cities and protecting our nation's police officers. we're going to bring you that just as soon as we get it. >> you are rethinking your strategy. >> that story was so riddled

with inaccuracies and lies, they owe the president an apology for the way that thing has -- there were blatant factual errors. it's unacceptable to see that kind of so-called reporting. that is literally the epitome of -- >> bill: that was air force one flying back from florida yesterday. sean spicer taking on "the new york times" hitting back at the paper after its report of disarray inside the white house. that story talked about the roll-out of executive orders to the reaction on behalf of protestors. president trump meanwhile slamming the times on twitter. howard kurtz, fox news media analyst and host of media buzz. nice to see you. what is your sense of how much ammunition does the president want to spend on this warfare back and forth? >> if you look at his twitter account the answer would be a lot. he has stepped up the daily attacks on what he calls the failing "new york times," the paper's subscriptions are up

and cnn as fake news. leaving aside the merits of the story, we'll get back to it in a moment. the president has a lot on his plate with the temporary travel ban. he needs to figure out a replacement for obamacare and tax cuts and infrastructure on the hill. he is spending a lot of energy on these attacks. i don't know how much it helps him get -- >> bill: that's his m.o. not now but also in private life. for a lot of people perhaps they should not be surprised by this. >> he is a counter puncher. in the campaign he was trying to get himself elected. look. this is a portrait. mildly amusing, bill, that one of the details that sean spicer disputes is the idea the president is walking around in the white house at night in his bath robe and doesn't use a bath robe. now we have bath robe gate and steve bannon's role. a lot of publications have written about this and whether the president was briefed on

bannon backing part of the security council. when he calls the story fiction. sean spicer and steve bannon, chris christie and others were quoted on the record. not like the whole thing is made up. >> bill: president trump said this around 10:00 last night. the failing "new york times" was force evidence to apologize to its subscribers for the poor reporting it did on my election win and now they're worse. you heard spicer say that there is an apology owed the president. is that going to happen? >> i'm not holding my breath. the paper didn't actually apologize with election coverage but admitted it could have done a better job. "the new york times" uniquely gets under donald trump's skin, hometown paper, he wants its approval. he went to the paper after at the election and said it was a jewel. it is not glittering so well now in his view. i think here we have sort of the competing narratives of the press wants to paint trump as being isolated and lonely in the white house and watching too much tv and lashing out on

twitter. somewhat is calculated on his part to create a counter narrative and at the same time he does seem to bris will at reports. this is a pretty leaky white house. a lot of stuff comes out from people with conflicting agends. he doesn't like that. >> speaking with brit hume last night, based on his time at the white house, he was very surprised if any of that is true because it is so early on in the administration. if brit is right and the times is wrong it's a heck of a story. if the times is right you're precisely right, this is a leaky white house if it's true. >> even some white house officials say privately the roll-out, not the policy, but the roll-out of the temporary immigration ban was not handled well. it wasn't communicated well. a lot of confusion about it. so it's fair to report on that. but donald trump, as president, is showing that he is going to

hit back at the media. he has called the media the opposition party. but again, after a while i wonder if he does this constantly and spicer does this constantly, does it become background noise as opposed to picking your spots on stories that are really awful. >> bill: that would suggest it would gloss over the public. you may be right about that. >> another thing it does, it keeps these disputed stories alive for another news cycle or two, another day or two and so it's fine to punch back. instead of talking today about betsy devos or other issues that the white house is pushing, many of us because the media love to talk about themselves is talking about his latest attacks on the press. a tactic but maybe it's taking up too much oxygen. >> bill: my feeling is on inauguration day the speech was a lot about talking to the people who put him in office. and now i would also suggest the twitter feed is doing the

same thing, howard. >> it is a direct communication channel that gets around mainstream media and effective tool. what happened the next morning after the inauguration day. down playing the size of the crowd. these are issues that are important to donald trump but they can be distractions when you are a new president trying to take hold of levels of government. getting your people confirmed and at the same time he is fighting a multi-front war here, i think he feels that if he doesn't go at the press hard it could underminor discredit his presidency. we're a couple of weeks in. take a deep breath. >> bill: you phrase it as a multi-front war. >> he used the word war at the cia when he talks about the hostility he sees from the press. this is not hype on my part. maybe the war needs to be downgraded to a battle. >> bill: nice to see you in person. howard kurtz. >> melissa: homeland security chief john kelly on the hot seat. this is a live look.

the house homeland security committee set to grill kelly on the president's immigration order and plans to build a wall along the border with mexico. >> bill: we're waiting on that. live on the senate floor a contentious vote on betsy devos set to get underway. why that vote could make history today. s, so they can keep watch over operations below the sea, even from thousands of feet above. because safety is never being satisfied. and always working to be better.

sportsmanship here. classmates of a special needs basketball player calling her out on the floor for the game's final shot when this happened here. wow. place went nuts. that's lanie henderson. she plays for norman high in

oklahoma. lovely. here team was up by more than 20 points. the crowd was chanting in the final seconds of that game. coach put her in for the final shot and she nailed it straight to the cheerleader. i watched that the other day online and man, just a really great moment. it makes you smile. cool stuff. >> melissa: what a touching video. that's amazing. you saw the crowd was so huge and so much pressure on that girl. she goes out, she nails it. they go crazy. you hear about bullies on the school bus, it is so nice to see something beautiful like that with kids. it really is. >> bill: she has touched a lot of people, too, at that school. >> melissa: absolutely. up to one million people are expected to line the streets of boston this morning celebrating the new england patriots historic super bowl win. the team's victory parade kicking off an hour from now. molly is live in boston. i can imagine the fans are pouring in. >> absolutely. you can see behind me despite

the weather. nasty weather won't hurt us today. the fans are streaming in. these are just some of the fans here today. you are here to see the parade, of course. are you happy the patriots won? you hear a lot of that in patriots nation. a lot of signs here out in the crowd, too, going after roger goodell on the street. amazing win for the patriots. we've been out here talking to these fans all day young and hold. a lot of folks out of school today getting that done. i'll talk to some of those about that elation there. >> it's part of the last 48 hours or so. >> oh my god, boston coming together and the spirit is amazing and why i love pats nation. we're just so happy. >> i was listen, any football game you don't want to be like mark wahlberg and take the football and run home at halftime and think the game is

over. you have to stay to the bitter end. it's a hollywood ending, guys, you can't make this stuff up. >> the parade gets underway in an hour. duck boats coming down the main street cruising past going all the way to the end past boston common and ending at city hall. these are just some of the fans. [cheering and applause] >> oh my goodness. >> melissa: a lot of fun. sorry i'm not there. well, i don't know. bill, over to you. >> bill: unbelievable. doesn't get old for the patriots fans, does it now? we'll watch that parade today in boston. what a remarkable game the other night. in the meantime here in washington brand-new homeland security secretary john kelly only on the job a few days facing a big moment on the hill today. he will testify for the first time to the house homeland security committee and we could be in for a show, immigration, the wall, the president's travel ban, and more. that's the top of this hour.

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>> melissa: the new homeland security chief facing his first big test. testifying before congress and the president's travel ban faces a make or break day in court. welcome to a brand-new hour of "america's newsroom." i'm melissa francis for shannon brao*em today. >> bill: i'm bill hemmer live in washington, d.c. that hearing should get underway in a matter of moments. we can expect some fireworks. questions about the travel ban, its impact on national security as well as the border wall. stand by for all of that. chief intelligence correspondent catherine herridge outside the hearing room on capitol hill. what kind of questions with we expect? the travel order, let's start there. >> thank you, bill. we're expecting secretary kelly in the next few minutes here at the hearing room on the house side of the capitol. this is his first congressional testimony since he was confirmed in the job about 2 1/2 weeks ago. and when he spoke exclusively

to x news last week despite widespread media reports he learned about the order on cable news, he said that he was not caught offguard. >> as soon as i was confirmed on friday of a couple weeks ago, inauguration day, i knew that they were being developed. >> you weren't blind-sided by the order? >> not at all. i saw the initial couple of cuts on them on tuesday, maybe thursday. knew it was coming soon. >> the focus of the hearing today will be on that travel order and critics say that it really is having a negative impact on national security but supporters say it is about reducing the risk and not about finishing willing out muslims. >> what about the timeline for the border wall, the expense. i imagine it will come up, or both of them. >> we're expecting questions on the time frame for the border wall as well as where the money is going to come. when we traveled with secretary kelly down to the southwest border last week he set out an

ambitious timeline for the completion of the wall telling fox news he hopes to have it done within the next to years and he will start building, he hopes, in the next few months on the high priority areas like the rio grande valley where at least 600 illegal immigrants are picked up by border patrol agents after entering the united states every day and wants a surge in resources to the border. that's part of the plan because he wants to have the deportation timeline reduced from years to weeks. >> bill: catherine, thank you. she is there in the capitol building. >> melissa: a key court battle over the president's immigration action affecting national security just hours away. a three-judge appeals panel is set to hear oral arguments on whether to reinstate president trump's executive order on immigration and refugees. dan springer is live on the west coast. what are we expecting in this case today, dan? >> hi, melissa. the three judges are in

different locations out west. it will essentially be a phone conference call where each side will be given 30 minutes to make their case and answer any questions the judges have. that's longer than normal for an appeals court. two of the key legal points will be what exactly is the authority given to the president not only by the constitution but also congress over who they can let in the united states. the white house argues it has full authority and no state can interfere with the job of keeping america safe from foreigners who may want to do us harm. the other big issue is standing. the administration says the states of washington and minnesota, who joined the case, have not been injured by the travel ban so they can't sue to block it. the states argue when its companies are hurt by restricting the movement of employees, that affects the state economy. also they contend that public universities which are considered an extension of the state, are losing students and therefore tuition. >> students returning from overseas, employees in important companies being harmed by this and that the status quo was changed not by

any of these entities by by the president of the united states. >> those arguments are set for 3:00 p.m. pacific, 6:00 p.m. eastern. two of the three judges on the panel were appointed by a democratic presidents. one was nominated by carter in 1980. friedman was picked by president obama. clifton is a bush appointee. the losing party will have the opportunity to appeal to the same three judge panel or asking for an 11-judge panel or going straight to the supreme court. if that happens it is up to justice kennedy to issue a stay. it would take five justices to overturn what the lower court does later on today or this week. >> melissa: thank you. >> bill: last hour on "america's newsroom," talked to the counselor for the

president, kellyanne conway saying it is lawful and under his authority to act to protect the american people. >> the president has the latitude and authority but also the duty and the responsibility to keep its citizens safe. that's always the intention of president trump here, something he promised to do on the campaign trail. he beat a former secretary of state, former u.s. senator, former first lady on national security ain terrorism by and large because he kept the focus on that. >> bill: fox news will have the politics editor chris stirewalt here. we'll wait for oral arguments and see how long it takes and maybe an order later today, tomorrow or maybe it takes some time. the legal precedents that you are weighing now is what. >> basically it's like this. there is arguments being made that includes john kerry and

other democratic office holders pronouncing this is a bad policy. well, who cares, right? it doesn't matter because i'm sure they think whatever donald trump does is bad policy and it's not legal precedent. it is not legally consequential. this is from the tech companies arguments relating to people who hold green cards. the fight here is about how much power does the president have? can he take somebody who is a permanent resident of the united states that has a green card that has been through the process, can he deny them entry to the united states? that's why the tech companies are concerned. they aren't recruiting out of yemen now but interested in the question of how much authority does the president have? >> bill: how does the judge weigh if i'm an executive and i want access to my employees, how do i weigh that against the national security interests on behalf of the commander-in-chief. >> the president has very broad latitude when it comes to

protecting the country. he has the powers of a king limited in duration. if he declares there is a national security emergency, you are off to the races. but in this case ther question, is there an emergency? trump says there could be one and he threat ens that basically for this judge and for these judges that if somebody comes in that later is linked to an attack it will be blood on their hands. that's a heavy elbow for the chief magistrate to be thrown. >> bill: the president is meeting with a group of sheriffs at the white house and we'll see a tape play-out in a moment. he says he needs the court to go his way on the immigration order saying there is a lot of bad people about thinking coming into the u.s. that's his argument. >> execution matters, though. in this case, i think the verdict of history will come down if they would have executed this in a better fashion in a clearer and more -- i don't want to say competent but i guess that's

the word we come down to. competency counts. if they would have done it in a different way that wouldn't have led to the disruption they would be in a stronger place today. >> bill: the other topic on the hill. democrats worked all night trying to delay the vote on betsy devos to be the next education secretary. chuck schumer is on the floor right now and you can imagine he is probably going off right now. democrats do not like her and apparently two republican senators say they will vote no. what that means as the math we see it it's a 50/50 split. mike pence could be on the floor of the senate today to cast the deciding vote. >> there is no more constituency than government workers unions. teachers are the most important part of that. teachers unions hate her. chuck schumer could go out there and scream bloody murder because the democratic base

wants that and so that's what he has to do. but i would say this about mike pence, the frustration of the with the coverage that i'm seeing in a lot of places. not us because we're awesome. that i'm seeing in a lot of places how unprecedented it is that mike pence is going to cast the first tie-breaking vote to confirm a member of the cabinet. well duh, we didn't have the nuclear option until 2013. why are we acting like this is the most shocking thing? harry reid's option to lower the threshold to 51 votes is what made this possible. not about betsy devos. >> if that's the case you're saying betsy devos is not confirmed under the old rules. >> who knows? the falcons would be the winners if you said who was ahead for the most quarters. there are lots of ways to keep score. in this case the calculus was all remade. the nominees they picked and

all those things would be different with a 60-vote threshold. this is the 50-vote threshold. >> bill: i asked charles krauthammer about this. do you know how she could changed indication in america? >> if she does what she says and carries through on her promises that she has made, the direct challenge to the status quo in education is that we would break away from the concept, step-by-step, of geographically-determined education, which is the bull work of a lot of american neighborhoods. this is the first step in that direction into legitimate school choice. it changes our tax structures and all kinds of stuff. >> bill: it goes until noon eastern. empty compliments, nonsense. flummery. >> melissa: right now we are awaiting testimony from homeland security secretary john kelly on the hot seat today as the house panel zeros

in on border security. we'll have that live. >> bill: also in a moment we'll have a big hearing starting this hour on the state of the u.s. military. president trump assuring troops they'll have more resources soon. we'll tell you what he said about that, melissa. >> melissa: white house chief strategist chief bannon has been dubbed the great manipulator by "time" magazine portraying him as the man in the white house calling the shots. the president says it just ain't through. a similar thing happened with our next guest. karl rove joins us live. here sean spires. >> the president is the one who makes the decisions and calls the shots.

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>> bill: house speaker paul ryan talking about the efforts on obamacare and much more. want to drop in on that weekly news conference underway. >> we hope to get this done as fast as possible because families are counting on us. [inaudible question] >> sooner is better than later. but i don't know the answer to the size and scope of it because they haven't sent it to us yet. we've always long anticipated that we would get a supplemental from the administration on defense issues on national security issues and we expect that.

thank you very much. >> bill: so then there is paul ryan just wanted to drop in on that talking during the commercial about obamacare and putting the effort forward again. there will be hearings in coming days and weeks on that. we're also awaiting the arrival of mike pence on capitol hill. this will be historic. he could be the last moment tiebreaking vote for the confirmation for betsy devos for education secretary. also awaiting john kelly. the newly established homeland security secretary. mike mccaul the chairman of that committee is appearing before that congressional committee to talk about the temporary ban as well as the border wall with mexico and national security. here we go. we are off and running here in our nation's capital. 16 minutes past the hour now. >> melissa: president trump's chief strategist steve bannon facing fire from the life. democrats aim to make steve bannon into a scarier karl rove

claiming the breitbart news editor is the guy really in charge at the white house. getting president trump's attention the president very clear on twitter, though. i call my own shots, largely based on an accumulation of data and everyone knows it. some fake news media in order to marginalize, lies. but every president has had key advisors who are sometimes held up as puppet masters. back in 2006 president bush insisted that he was no figurehead when he defended defense secretary donald rumsfeld against six retired generals calling for his resignation. >> i listen to all voices. mine is the final decision. i hear the voice and i read the front page and i know the speculation. but i'm the decider and i decide what is best. what's best is for don rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense. >> melissa: as for former president obama, critics have referred to senior advisor valerie jarret as the shadow

president. karl rove is former white house deputy chief of staff to president george w. bush and a fox news editor. an even scarier karl rove. how does that make you feel? is it flattering? even scarier? >> the media get involved in a bunch of myths. back when i was the senior advisor to president bush i had a biography written by two texas left wing journalists entitled "bush's brain." that was about using me to attack him and many of these attacks on bannon have to do with attacking trump. so this is what the press sometimes does and particularly when the democrats announce that that's their strategy. i can't imagine a more worthless thing to do than for democrats to say we'll come out and attack bannon in order to make him a scarier karl rove and undermine trump. telegraph what you are doing and fine, go off and do that

but that ain't going to get to the center of the issue. >> melissa: it can work to a president's advantage. somebody to be the bad guy to take the heat and be the object of hate. in a lot of ways it's pretty smart. democrats now are very focused on bannon and what an awful person they think he is. they love to talk about that. so it can be good in that sense, right? >> i'm smiling because when there will be some particularly nasty piece bush would laugh and say better you than me. sometimes it's better for the people around the president to take the arrows. let's not kid ourselves. this is an effort to diminish the president and diminish the people around him. most of the time it fails unless there is something fundamentally flawed in that individual. bobby baker -- bobby baker who had been involved in a bunch of shady dealings and another aide to the president to lyndon johnson was found having an as

ig nation in a booth room near the white house. they tarnished president johnson because he was associated with them because they had done something not political and outside the norms. >> melissa: in some ways it seems it may be a tactic of this president in particular to put something out there to be a object of attack while he is off doing something else. not just steve bannon, but also the idea that we seem to sort of have the nonsense issue of the day. the dog chasing their tail in the media. today we're talking about this issue of under reported terror attacks. before that we're talking about crowd size. it seems like maybe in the same vein he sets something up as the left goes crazy over it. the media goes crazy and his folks say you are insane, what are you talking about? is that a possible strategy in your mind? >> it is, but a, you have to be careful not to overuse it and b, you have to be careful it

doesn't boomerang are you. the crowd size argument, i think it would have been better to have the attention on some of the other things he was doing like the obamacare executive order which was issued on friday and buried underneath all of this stuff. so it also, if you do this too much and you go over the top, it tends to undermine the credibility of the president and not necessarily the credibility of his opponents. so you have to be careful about doing it. i grant you it is sometimes done. i think we pay too much attention to how often it is done. this administration is doing it far more often than other administrations. >> melissa: that's for sure. thank you, sir. >> any time you want a scary guy on. [laughter] >> bill: you aren't scary. president trump meeting with a group of sheriffs at the white house, law and order is the order of the moment in that meeting. we await that. you know about a sanctuary city.

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>> bill: in new york state the assembly there passing a bill to make a sanctuary state. eric sean has details on what we know about this bill today. eric, good morning. >> you know you've heard of sanctuary cities but now there are moves to establish sanctuary states. and as you said new york state is the latest with the states assembly voting to make the empire state a haven for some undocumented immigrants. the lower house approved legislation that directs local law enforcement not to cooperate with federal authorities when dealing with

immigration status except in the cases of violent felonies, terrorism, wanted criminals with an outstanding warrant or someone who has already been deported. supporters say it is a way to protect the states' undocumented immigrants. >> there is a fear for anyone to deal with law enforcement these days if you're undocumented. we want to make sure and we've seen in many, many cases that many other cities and states throughout the country who are applying these practices has seen that crime has gone down significantly because of the participation between the communities. >> the bill goes to the state senate which is republican controlled. so bill it is believed it will not be approved to eventually become law. >> bill: thanks. i know you'll watch it. back in washington now. here we go. brand-new homeland security secretary john kelly testifying before committee. apparently moments ago he

talked about the immigration rules in america as being somewhat of a, quote, trojan horse for extremists, let's drop in. opening statements from john kelly. >> in securing the memorandum of understanding which will help facilitate the reauthorization we currently need. the threats and challenges have changed since congress created dhs some 15 years ago. we need to update the authorities to successfully complete our mission today. i look forward, sir, to answering your questions. >> i now recognize myself for questioning. we look forward to working with you on that authorization which is long overdo. let me say first i agree with the policy of the executive order. it is consistent with a memo i drafted with to then candidate trump with mayor giuliani and attorney general mukasey advocating a shift from a muslim ban that he was

campaigning on which we thought was unconstitutional, based on risk, not religion from high threat areas. it was consistent with the security bill signed by president obama and the safe act that passed the house with bipartisan veto-proof majority. my concern as you and i have talked is how it's implemented and the execution of this order. first, lawful permanent residents with green cards were denied. military advisors who risked their lives to help u.s. forces overseas, as you know, were denied and students were trapped overseas with visas. let me say i applaud you for quickly correcting what i consider to be errors by quickly granting the exception in waiver to green card holders

which went a long way to remedy, i think, this executive order. my other concern was a lack of coordination both within the executive branch and also with congressional leaders like myself. i applaud the president for trying to get things done quickly and that's what leadership is all about and he is fulfilling campaign promises. but as we move forward, what do you consider to be the lessons learned here from this executive order? >> mr. chairman, as we've talked -- i've talked to some members of this committee and certainly senators as well. the executive order was developed certainly before i ever -- began to be developed before i became the secretary of homeland security before my inauguration. we had some initial cuts on that. some changes were made. it was released, i think, as

you recall, the third one i'm talking about now was released on the -- late on a friday. we knew it would be released that day. the desire was to get it out. the thinking was to get it out quick so that potentially people that might be coming here to harm us would not take advantage of some period of time that they could jump on an airplane and get here or get here in other ways. so that was the thinking. in retrospect, i should have -- this is all on me, by the way, i should have delayed it just a bit so that i could talk to members of congress, particularly the leadership of committees like this, to prepare them for what was coming. although i think most people would agree that this has been a topic of president trump certainly during this campaign and during the transition process. and as we -- as the great men and women of the border protection people, as they

unfolded that or started to implement it, i should say, they get back to us with some suggestions about how we could alter it. we did that as i think the order was signed or released at 1800 on friday, 6:00 p.m., by -- before midnight we had made an adjustment. the next day made a couple of other adjustments to kind of fine-tune it. we did have to step back and kind of recaulk that -- in that first 24-hour period because of action by one of the federal courts that changed things a bit so we had to kind of step back. but for the most part, you know, again, i know it's -- it can be an inconvenience but what was done at the counter, so to speak and at the very many airports where people coming into the united states, everyone was treated humanely. i've read the reports of people standing for hours on end. didn't happen. that people were insulted. insults are in the eyes of the beholder.

the kind of men and women that i serve with do not insult people. they are very matter of fact and very business like. so -- but going forward, i would have certainly taken some time to inform the congress and certainly that is something i will certainly do in the future. >> we look forward to it. >> bill: it's all on me. i should have delayed, i should have notified members of congress. so many words john kelly there on the hill. general jack keane, fox news military analyst listening to this as well. general, i guess it's fine in hindsight if you were given a redo. this administration does not at this point. >> that is absolutely refreshing to hear general kelly. i mean, we haven't heard a cabinet secretary like that take full responsibility for an action that was taken. he is admitting.

he has never been in this position before. they put something out prematurely and not properly coordinated the way he wants it to be coordinated. he should have discussed it with members of congress to be sure and assuming responsibility for some of the early problems that executive order had. which we know they're real. >> bill: you call it refreshing. >> very refreshing. it has been like eight years. >> bill: centcom yesterday the president was there. what did you take away from his message in terms of the war and how he will execute it, general? >> well, what i think is happening to us and the pentagon, in fact, will have to make an adjustment here. because we have a new commander-in-chief who throughout his entire campaign and everything he has done since really wants to win and get results for the american people. and isis is clearly right at the top of his priorities. he wants to defeat isis and he wants to win.

he has a sense of urgency. he wants to go all in to do it. what the pentagon has been used to for eight years is the opposite. what we've been used to is ending participation in wars, not winning wars. what we've been used to is the minimal participation, half measures. we have made 12 troop adjustments in the war against isis in two plus years. 12. that's not going to happen with this commander-in-chief. he will ask them what does it take to win. tell me how much and tell me when i can win. >> bill: it sounds to me based on that answer it was a bit of culture shock there and perhaps to them. has it been or is this going back to a way that had been expected, let's say, eight years prior? >> they are used to winning and we are the best military in the world. and they want to work for a commander-in-chief that gives

them the kind of -- that kind of guidance so they can put together a comprehensive plan with options to win. we have never been able to do that with the previous president and commander-in-chief. they'll be able to do that here for the first time in a very long time. thank you, just want to go back in talking about the border wall and how long it will take and what the cost is. let's drop back in quickly. >> that's we are on the wall. we won't build it all in an afternoon. we'll build it in the places that the people that work that border say we need it right now. and there are places on that border i'm told we need it right now. >> i can't agree with you more and i'm glad you see that perspective. every sector is different, multi-layer defense fencing but also technologies, aviation assets. i think 100% visibility is what you want because if you can see the threats you can stop them. so i look forward to working with you on that very important task. i've been trying to get this done, sir, for the last six

terms in congress and i think now we finally have the political will to do it. so thank you. with that, the chair recognizes the ranking member. >> thank you, mr. chairman. >> bill: right there from secretary kelly. you were listening as well. when talking about the wall he says certain parts you need it and need it now. about a week ago he suggested it might take to years to get full construction. what is your thinking on where we are on that today? >> he is absolutely right about that and it has been a constant theme from anybody familiar with our border. we have parts of that border completely open. we've got obviously undocumented people coming across that border but even more significantly we've got huge nautical trafficking going on and they understand full well where the traffic points are that they can cross without making contact with the border patrol and the other thing that's happened is we've pulled our border patrol back in many

cases from actually being up on the border. so it's about a wall to be sure but i think the increased surveillance that is going to take place at the border and also the apprehension that is going to take place in some cases that has not been going on, a lot of changes are going to be made here. >> bill: general, thank you. jack keane, nice to see you in person again. back to new york now and melissa. >> melissa: breaking news out of the white house, right now president trump meeting with sheriffs from across the nation. we know he has made news on some of our biggest stories of the day, the immigration ban battle. sanctuary cities and much, much more. we'll bring all of that to you next.

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>> melissa: president trump speaking to u.s. service members yesterday at central command headquarters. we're learning more about the state of the armed services during a hearing right now on capitol hill. national security correspondent jennifer griffin is live from the pentagon with more on this one. good morning, jennifer. >> good morning. the hearing just got underway i'm told the navy will outline problems. the other services are ready to air their problems with more urgency a day after president trump vowed to rebuild the military. the officers representing each service are testifying in front of the powerful house armed services committee about the state of the military. the numbers are shocking. in the navy only 21% of early model f-18 jets can fly right now. back to you. >> melissa: wow, jennifer, a lot there. thank you for that, bill. >> bill: we've been waiting on

this and starting to get comments by president trump meeting with sheriffs at the white house. he talked about the immigration order, he talks about the court battles that will happen a bit later today. and he also talked about border security and working with law enforcement, mentioned the opioid epidemic and police/community relations. during this meeting he also, given the testimony of secretary kelly on the hill that's happening at the moment, he vows the build that wall soon in his words. so drop on in and here we go, president trump. >> how far are you willing to take your travel ban? >> we'll take it through the system. it is very important for the country. regardless of me or whoever succeeds at a later date. we have to have security in our country. we have to have the ability, when you take someplace like syria and you take all of the different people pouring -- if you remember, isis said we are going to infiltrate the united

states and other countries through the migration. and then we're not allowed to be tough on the people coming in? explain that one. we'll see what happens. we have a big court case. we're well-represented and we'll see what happens. >> the supreme court? >> hopefully it doesn't have. it's common sense. some things are law and i'm all in favor of that. some things are common sense. this is common sense. >> unreported or underreported, the phrase you use yesterday. if it's underreported why do you think the media is not reporting? >> i don't have to think, i have to know because i'm reported on possibly more than anybody in the world. i don't think you'll say anything about that. i happen to know how dishonest the media is. i happen to know that stories about me that should be good or bad. i don't mind a bad story if it's true. i don't like bad stories,

stories that should be a positive story when they make them totally negative. i understand the total dishonesty of the media better than anybody. i let people know it. the media is a very, very dishonest arm and we'll see what happens. not everybody. i have to say that. i always preface it by saying not everybody but there is pure outright dishonesty from the media. let's go into the -- (several people talking at once) >> bill: on the travel ban heard later today in san francisco, we'll take it through the system. suggesting that the president will take it as far as it is necessary to make it work. common sense, he called it. and then talked about isis talking about infiltrating other countries by way of immigration systems. the comment about dishonest media in washington, d.c. is getting a lot of attention. given that "new york times" story from yesterday and sean spicer's reaction on board air force one yesterday.

that's happening with the president now as the sheriff's meeting continues. to major events on the hill. secretary kelly, his first briefing, homeland security secretary before that committee talking about the wall. construction, cost, time, all of that now is wrapped up into this hearing. at the same time on the senate side we should see the vice president mike pence. and he made end up casting the deciding vote to get the secretary of education passed today. so we're watching betsy devos with mike pence and we're watching secretary kelly as well. a lot going on in the nation's capitol. quick break. back in a moment.

>> melissa: we have more for you now on the president's listening session with county

sheriffs. vice president pence there as well. let's listen in. >> president trump: as you know, we don't have an attorney general. we have jeff sessions, he will be hopefully here soon. i believe it's about a record for the length of time that they've delayed the cabinet. these are cabinet members that are phenomenal people and we haven't had representation and now we have excellent representation if dana and jeff will be with you shortly hopefully. we're having a hard time getting approvals. it is only a delay tactic. it is all politics. one person came up to me, a democratic senator came up to me the other day and said jeff sessions is a fantastic man. he is fabulous. he is a friend of mine. he is a great, great man and a great talent. we're lucky to have him. i said great, i guess that means you are voting for him. no, i won't be doing that. politics doesn't allow me to do that. i thought it was a disgrace.

if the press talks loud and hard enough i'll have to tell you who said to me. you don't want to hear who said that. >> who said that? [laughter] >> president trump: i'm shocked. i didn't think you would care. i will probably tell you anyway. so we'll be very tough on crime. we'll be very tough on the drugs pouring in. that's a big part of the crime. we'll be very strong at the border. we have no choice. we'll be building a wall. general kelly will be working with a lot of you and he is fantastic. he is one guy to get approved quickly along with general mattis. he is very outstanding. i very much appreciate that you are here today and sheriff, i really thank you for leading the effort. your reputation is fantastic and it is a great honor to know you. maybe we can go around. we'll let the press stay for a little while unless you would rather leave. would the press rather stay?

just so you understand. it's a new phenomena. you are on live television all over the world now. don't get nervous when you speak, okay? i don't think these things have ever taken place before. but you are on live television so if you don't want to say anything, you don't have to. if you do i think it's a good thing to say. we'll go around the room. >> mr. president thank you for having us here. i'm from chester county, pennsylvania and proud to say pennsylvania is the commonwealth who put you over the top. very proud of that. we don't stop bragging about that. i just want to thank you for during the campaign and since the campaign being such a strong, courageous supporter of law enforcement with the border patrol and the state level and counties and municipalities and with the elected sheriffs of the counties because we are the

sheriff, we are the people's representative and we are elected by the people. we greatly appreciate your strong and continued support. >> bill: always interesting to drop in here and see a new sheriff in town is what president trump said there. that will continue for some time. we'll bring you the highlights of that and the headlines as well. one of the big headlines about the common sense issue that president trump used that immigration ban argued in court later today, melissa. >> melissa: president trump -- no secret about his disdain. >> donald trump's main beef with the media, a two-way street for respect and honesty. he felt for quite some time a lot of people in the mainstream media for want of a better phrase are absolutely determined to bring him down.

and i think he has a point. i think some of them absolutely are. >> melissa: a spokeswoman to jeff sessions and former rnc spokeswoman. pablo manriquez, welcome to both of you. sarah, let me start with you. no matter how it got started, it does feel like now it is on. i mean, the media is set up to take down donald trump, most of it anyway. he is aiming right back. what do you make of that? >> it's true. all you need to do is look at twitter and it has turned into an east coast echo chamber for snark and jumping on anything they can find with this administration. even just last night the pictures of donald trump in bath robes took over my twitter feed with reporters, you know, losing their minds over whether he owned a bath robe or not. the american people voted for

change. they wanted something different in washington and the media just refuses to accept that at this point. >> melissa: pablo, at this point a lot of times it seems like he is good at making the media look like a dog chasing their tail. he drops a grenade into the middle of the day of whatever is going on and they go barking and chasing after it frantically and miss the real news that is going on. to me i wonder if that's the plan. >> well, i think that the american people now know this is a tremendously dishonest president so if what the media is chasing is facts, the media is just doing their job. now, we need to keep in mind that this is not one nation under trump. this is one nation under god. with a maneuvers this president is pulling today, he -- if jesus christ were alive today he would be detained at the airport and sent back to the middle east where there would be a despot waiting with a price on his head to murder christ and this is ultimately what we're facing right here is a media that --

>> melissa: sarah, i don't know how we got to the murder of christ in the middle of conversation. i need to dial this back a little bit. >> we're talking about honesty in the media. it was only a few short months ago that fox news was the fake news. >> melissa: you need to stand by for a second and let someone else speak. sarah, donald trump turned that on its head and coined the dishonest media as a phrase we hear over and over again. i heard kids saying it the other day. you know the dishonest media. i'm surprised he hasn't trademarked the phrase. more than any other president he turned it right back on the media. how effective is that? >> what we've seen for a long time throughout campaigns and politics here is that the media will make mistakes, sometimes issue corrections, sometimes not. when the president does, that when republicans do it in particular, we're never allowed the make mistakes and never allowed to misspeak. you've seen that this week. it's important to point out when we talk about the media it

doesn't mean everyone. you have someone like zito who has been very fair all along. >> melissa: we're out of time and i'm so sorry. love to have you back. that was a lot of fun, pablo. >> bill: more coming up later. mike pence will be on the hill. we're awaiting his arrival. will he cast the deciding vote? we're about to find out. stay tuned as we roll on here on "america's newsroom."

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notified members of congress. that hearing continues. you hear what jack king said about that. good to be with you, melissa. happening now starts right now. have a great day everybody. >> will take it from here. a fox news alert as a vice president mike pence is about to arrive on capitol hill. he will be ready to cast a tie-breaking vote to confirm betsy devos as secretary of education. the senate expected to vote on her nomination less than an hour republicans hold a 52-48 majority. this could be his first