and friends welcoming her first child olivia lee into the world right after midnight. >> 5 pound 8 ounces, 20 inches long. congratulations to everyone and this core use. >> bill: president donald trump said to make his first overseas trip. huge after a tumultuous week in the d.c. swamp. he says he is the subject of a political witch hunt. that all adds up to a big morning here inside of "america's newsroom" on a friday edition. slight broadcast today. i'm bill hemmer live in new york city. shannon, good morning to you. >> shannon: i'm shannon bream in washington hours from now president donald trump will begin his first overseas trip as commander-in-chief making stops in saudi arabia, the vatican, israel and others.

he is pushing back hard against his decision to fire director james comey. >> the entire thing has been a witch hunt. there is no collusion between certainly myself and my campaign. i hate to see anything that divides. i'm fine with whatever people want to do but we have to get back to running this country really, really well. >> bill: let's get to it on a friday morning. team fox coverage starts it off. benjamin hall live in riyadh, saudi arabia and chris stirewalt standing by. we start with kevin corke at the white house. >> even as the president prepares to travel abroad as you can well imagine we're following a number of major story lines at home. among them the continuing controversy of his firing of then f.b.i. director jim comey people wondering why he came to this decision and what happens now as the president tries to move forward with a replacement.

yesterday a joint news conference he was asked again by his decision to sack the f.b.i. director. comey critics say was out of line when he said there was no need to prosecute or further the investigation into secretary hillary clinton's private email server. you remember she kept thousands of classified documents on that unsecure home brewed server and she deleted or her staff did thousands of emails despite a congressional request to turn them over. >> director comey was very unpopular with most people. i actually thought when i made that decision -- and i also got a very, very strong recommendation, as you know, from the deputy attorney general, rod rosenstein, but when i made that decision i actually thought it would be a bipartisan decision. >> he thought it would be bipartisan but in this environment bipartisan doesn't seem to be working for this president and why he said this

special counsel was essentially a witch hunt. there was no special counsel for secretary clinton's circumstance but lawmakers here in washington who contend this will not become political. >> there isn't going to be a witch hunt. i will not partake in anything such as that. i'm in intel committee. we'll find out the facts and go where the intel and the facts take us to the truth. we have confidence in mueller. i think rosenstein is a very dedicated, tough professional. so let these people do their job and let's work with them. >> they'll be doing their job very quickly and hopefully efficiently saying to white house official earlier today how they felt about this whole process. they remain confident what they'll find is what they've been saying all along. there was no collusion between the trump campaign and russia. >> bill: a leading candidate might be emerging in the f.b.i. director hunt. when could we get an official

announcement? >> that's the 64,000 dollar question. i've heard everything from as soon as today to perhaps sometime next week. maybe the white house wanting the president to keep it in his hip pocket as a nice send-off as he prepares to come back home. the name you're hearing a great deal about is joe lieberman, the connecticut politician who was a vice presidential candidate for the democratic party and ran as an independent after being booted from the party during the primary process. the timing. the president said this yesterday. >> we're very close to a new f.b.i. director. >> i do want to throw one last thing at you, bill. a top aide on the democratic side today saying that there couldn't be a worse time to take the unprecedented step of handing the f.b.i. over to a politician. so this won't necessarily be an easy selection even if the president decides to go that

direction. >> bill: kevin corke setting the table at the white house. >> shannon: president's first stop will be in saudi arabia and the president looks to beef up the fight against isis. benjamin hall is live in riyadh. good morning, benjamin. >> good morning. you only need to look around the city of riyadh to realize what a big deal this is. u.s. flags across the city alongside saudi flags and billboard posters of president trump and the king. the saudis are rolling out the red carpet here and very honored he has picked this country to be the first stop in his first international trip. usually a president might pick somewhere like the u.k. or canada. president trump is coming to the heart of the middle east and will meet with the king and crown prince and 50 leaders

from 50 muslim countries expected to give a big speech on islam. we've spoken yesterday to the foreign min is tier and reiterated all this. the optimism and how happy they are he is coming. >> his worldview is wanting to restore america's role in the world. we support that. he wants to defeat isis, we support that and will work with him on that as we do right now. >> there is no secret under the obama administration relations between the u.s. and saudi were low. obama reached out with iran and stopped weapons deals. many people see this trip as a reset of the relationship. saudi arabia are the second major player in the bombing raids against isis in syria not to mention intelligence sharing and this pushback against iran that the saudi royalty and trump administration have been talking about. interesting to come here and

see how it progresses. general mcmaster coming out and saying trump would urge the countries of this region to push back and try and create a more tolerant version of islam. that's a big ask of president trump on this first trip. >> shannon: a heavy lift. benjamin hall, thank you so much. fox news will be all over the president's trip overseas. bret baier will be live from riyadh. >> bill: president trump stating clearly yesterday this about russia and his campaign. >> president trump: i can only tell you there was no collusion and everybody, even my enemies have said there is no collusion. so we want to get back and keep on the track that we're on because the track that we're on is record setting. >> bill: analysis now, chris stirewalt in washington good day to you. you watched it. how is he handling is

>> he should stop complaining but he understands the need to pivot. it has been impressed upon him at this point that there are good things in this for him in the appointment of a special counsel especially somebody as well respected as robert mueller. now the issue people can feel confident is in good hands, being capably directed, under an independent source. now the advantage of this, there are disadvantages for the administration but the huge advantage you were able to stop talking about it. if the president can listen to the voices around him saying that he'll be in a better position. >> bill: analyze the overseas trip. there could be opportunity here. do you see that? >> it is definitely an explicit repudiation of obama's policy for the middle east. it could not be a stronger rebuke, which is obama sought to rebalance the middle east between tehran and riyadh.

this is president trump saying no, we are back to the sunni, the gulf state, this side of the divide in a very big way. this is a big marker that he is laying down on this. and so, too, will he when he gets to jirs lem ---jerusalem. >> bill: f.b.i. director, do we get one today or not? >> the heat is off, do or don't. one of the advantages of having mueller is that now the president doesn't have so much pressure on him because there are civilian -- there are career law enforcement officials that are in charge at the f.b.i. that's being run. the concern was about the investigation into trump's campaign. that's being handled by a special counsel. what had been just a few days ago enormous pressure for trump on the pick to have a high-ranking, high visibility person. you don't have that anymore. now it could be a more conventional pick because

mueller takes that pressure off trump. >> bill: we'll talk about that in a minute. chris, thank you so much. a bit of a froggy down there. happy friday anyway. see you soon. >> shannon: i'll go check on imand let you know. we're awaiting the arrival of rod rosenstein on capitol hill to brief house members after he did the same for senators yesterday. there are concerns they'll be sidelined. >> a lot of people in that room who were shocked that when a special counsel has been appointed that congress has limitations on what we can do. >> shannon: are lawmakers going the have to play second fiddle after the special counsel? congressman brad wenstrup is there and we'll hear from him life. >> bill: more u.s. military strikes in syria. what the target was, keeping

the pressure up against assad and what it means as the president heads overseas, that's coming up, too. >> shannon: tragedy. new details about that driver of that car accused of plowing it right into a crowd of pedestrians. >> i saw the car crash and caught on fire. then i saw five to 10 new york police officers tackle and grab a guy. except for every ladies' night. only glad has forceflex to prevent rips, leaks, and punctures. so whatever you throw in the bag... stays in the bag. be happy, it's glad. introducing new depend silhouette briefs. featuring a comfortable sleek fit. as a dancer, i've learned you can't have any doubts. because looking good on stage is one thing. but real confidence comes from feeling good out there. get a free sample at depend.com.

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>> shannon: a bronx man allegedly mowed down 23 people with his car in time square. one woman, and 18-year-old tourist, was killed. the horror unfolding yesterday at noon. it plowed through three crowded city blocks before smashing into a steel barricade. the suspect is a 26-year-old bronx man with two duis. he tested negative for alcohol and may have had drugs in his system and he said he was hearing voices. this votto shows the suspect running from the wreck. a security guard tackled him later. he was attempting a so-called suicide by cop. >> we knew comey was going to be removed prior to him writing his memo. >> i'm not sure he addressed

that with a level of clarity. >> the president saying oh my gosh, i want to fire the guy. >> fieb director serves at the president's pleasure. if he not limited in terms of the rationale and my understanding that was one of the rationales but not the complete one. >> a conveyor belt. senators talking about the briefing they received from the deputy attorney general. we're awaiting the briefing for the full house this morning and that will happen in a matter of moments. a mixed reaction from senators. democrats saying rosenstein claimed he knew president trump was going to fire comey before he wrote the letter. congress wenstrup is about to enter a briefing this hour. thank you for your time here. before you go into the room tell us what is on your mind. what is your question. >> i think one of the things we want to hear is why the decisions were made that were made and i think they may have been very good decisions but at the same time we want to know what the course of action is

coming up. how far a reach this investigation from the f.b.i. is intending to go. those are some of the questions i have, bill. i would like to get some idea of the time frame we may be looking at as we in the house and senate continue our investigations. which as you know are a different type of investigation. >> bill: there was a mixed reaction yesterday. lindsey graham said something that got the attention of a lot of people. he mentioned the possibility of a criminal investigation when he said this just yesterday. >> now considered a criminal investigation. the ability of congress to call people who may be witnesses in an investigation done by mr. mueller will restrict what we can do. appointing a special counsel has created, i think, a dynamic for congress that will have to be very leery of crossing into mr. mueller's lane. >> bill: this started as an intelligence investigation. when he mentions criminal, where do you think this is now? >> special counsel is a

different type of investigation which can be on the side of criminal investigating whereas what we're doing in the house is fact finding and creating a report. i do agree with him from the standpoint we don't want to interfere with the f.b.i. investigation but i think there is a lot of positives. a lot of things being said. since this thing first started, bill, we've been talking about hearsay, unverified sources and leaks. hope i find to more today. we have to investigate so much here that there may be some criminal element to it. i don't really have a problem with what is taking place with the f.b.i. through the department of justice. >> bill: help us understand this. it appeared the most asked question yesterday was why write the memo? if it is true that comey was set for termination before the

memo was drafted. do you have an explanation if that's the case? >> i certainly don't have an explanation for it. we would like to see the memos and we would like to have conversations with the people involved, that's for sure. but as far as me having an explanation, i don't. but it's something else we have to pursue. >> bill: robert mueller is on the job. what do you think of that move? >> a good move overall. it separates things out a little bit and hopefully it will be a nonpartisan effort by him. in the house we're trying to have a nonpartisan effort with our investigations. hopefully the same over there. i think it's a move in that direction and let's consolidate what is taking place. keep in mind the f.b.i. was doing an investigation and now it may appear that the person leading the investigation now is part of the investigation. >> bill: try to catch ufp with that one, right? what confounds you about this at the moment based on

everything you've heard or based on everything you think you know. >> i think what i'm most confounded about, bill, is the very notion that we have not been getting all the facts. and we want to get to the facts and the truth. and right now like i said before, we're just getting arbitrary newspaper articles, hearsay and innuendo. i want to get to facts and get it behind us so the nation can move on in so many positive directions that we want to work on. >> bill: that could take time, right? would you agree? >> now doubt about it. in some ways having this under mr. mueller and the f.b.i. to take the lead on any criminal part is a plus for all of us so that we can work on what we need to do to run the country. >> bill: the republican from ohio about to go into that meeting and we'll have a microphone and camera outside to welcome folks like you. thank you, sir.

>> shannon: bill, with all this breaking news unfolding at home president trump is kicking off his first foreign trip. saudi arabia is rolling out the red carpet for our commander-in-chief. what the administration is hoping to accomplish there and beyond. president trump says he has been treated worse than any politician in history. his supporters say it's time to fight back. first here is sean hannity. >> these forces working to unseat president trump. they don't care about fixing the mess president obama left behind. they don't care because they're inside this corrupt washington they're the swamp.

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>> bill: want to get to this

right now. 9:24 in new york. multiple reports suggesting anthony wiener will plead guilty today part of a plea deal that includes a charge of transferring obscene material to a minor. this would bring an end to an investigation that started in january of last year when reports that wiener now in his 50s sent sexually explicit messages to an underage girl. he is married to huma abiden and this latest investigation that led to the discovery of clinton emails on his computer and the announcement just before the election last november from then director of the f.b.i. james comey. >> the purpose of this trip is really one of conveying a message that america is back. our role as a facilitator to address the daunting challenges

that exist in that part of the world. most particularly the challenge of global terrorism is one that is shared by all of us. >> shannon: secretary of state rex tillerson previewing president' trump trips. the president will first meet to saudi arabia and talk about the fight against terrorism. let's bring in dr. zuhdi jasser, welcome this morning, good to see you. this is a jam-packed schedule. one of the things i noticed that was interesting to me the president is going to give a speech on islam at the opening of a center that is aimed at countering extremism. what would you like to hear from him in that speech and what do you think would be helpful for those on the forefront? >> the obvious things we need to hear first is to reestablish some of the balance in the middle east. we have suffered from eight

years of iran, where we've allowed the shia extremists of iran and hezbollah to go unbalanced and it will be nice to reestablish some of that leadership especially militarily as he begins to build that coalition against isis. in the short term to destroy isis that the saudis need to help lead. having said that i hope to hear as a muslim reformer he speaks beyond the tyrannical regime. they're feeding the primarily cancer of -- i hope to hear him talk about universal human rights. they need to own up to what he called in his campaign islamic extremism. the islamism of saudi arabia is part of the main fuel that has been radicalizing the isis and al qaeda groups of syria and the west. i hope to see some truth to power spoken in addition to reestablishing some military allies.

>> shannon: doctor, that is a tough needle to thread. a lot of competing interests. a key ally. the president is also going the try to speak with a group of gulf leaders trying to get them to work together in a military pact and defense pact. it is a very, very heavy burden all of these things he will try to accomplish on his first trip. >> it is. but remember mr. trump as a campaigner and president fighting is establishment. he is in the belly of the beast in the islamic establishment globe lefor the sunni world. say we're not going to allow anarchy and -- the arab awakenings was about liberty. he hope in twitter he tweets to the prisoners in the cells of saudi arabia that tried to speak for freedom and liberty that have been surpressed because of laws and anti-semitism. all the things that are

pathology of islamic supremacy need to be addressed in the long term and we not just do it in the short term. there is no one better who has been a disruptor and anti-establishment than mr. trump to begin that. >> shannon: we know one of these events he is having is 50 leaders from different islamic nations. some are worried that there may be prime see given to sunnis and shias. how will he be received in his message? >> i think they are going to -- bottom line they want a reset. they want a restart with a new day, if you will, where america will renew its relationship with sunnis and begin to reestablish some of the values that we stand for. so i think in one way they are looking for a new start. in another way there will be some conflict. it won't be easy. we need to be leaders from the front, not the back. we need to tell them we hold

them accountable to universal values. they'll push back. it won't be wonderful friendly ally discussion. there will have to be strong talk about reform, universal human rights and holding the saudis, the jordanians and others accountable for human rights at home and the ideas that's radicalizing muslims in america and europe. >> shannon: a fascinating trip. thank you for joining us ahead of us, dr. jasser. >> bill: gaining a rare link to the outside world and guess where the link is coming from? what this could mean as the u.s. tries to ramp up pressure there and awaiting the arrival of the deputy attorney general on the hills and brief lawmakers behind closed doors. marsha blackburn will be inside that room but first she will talk to us live next.

>> bill: that storm system we talked p yesterday did damage. a massive storm fueling twisters and the national weather service reporting 20 tornadoes across several days including this one. you can hear the winds and see that funnel cloud. that's in oklahoma, a rural area. no reports of damage there. yet again here is more funnel clouds from oklahoma. storm chasers say there was substantial debris but no reports of damage or injury to human life. more chance of storms later today in oklahoma. we'll tell you where that system is headed. 9:34 now in new york. >> shannon: back in washington we're awaiting the arrival of rod rosenstein on capitol hill to brief house lawmakers behind closed doors on the firing of f.b.i. director james comey and

the ongoing russia investigation. comes a day after president trump flatly denied asking comey to back off the investigation into former national security advisor michael flynn. >> did you at any time urge former director james comey to close or back down the investigation into michael flynn. >> president trump: no. next question. >> shannon: joining me now congresswoman marsha blackburn. the president has been confident he would be proven innocent of all these allegations. do you think the appointment of a special counsel is a positive or negative for the white house? >> it's a positive for the american people. what you need to do is go back into this russia relationship decades and see what all they've been up to. they have never wished us well. and let's go in and look at the obama administration and those

ties and hillary clinton and the foundation, what was transpiring there as she was secretary of state? i think it's time to have that holistic look. this is what a special counsel will do as they oversee this. it is now on their plate. it probably will take two or three months to stand the office up but then they'll be ready to move forward. >> shannon: we took a look at special prosecutor investigations that took years and taken in directions that were never seen at the beginning. senator dianne feinstein, part of the briefing yesterday was asked on another network whether she so far has seen any evidence of collusion between the trump campaign and russia. here is what she said. >> so far you have not seen any evidence of collusion, is that right? >> well, evidence that would establish that there is collusion. there are all kinds of rumors

around. there are newspaper stories, that's not necessarily evidence. >> shannon: that is her answer and we continue to hearist from democrats and republicans. you get a briefing today from the deputy attorney general. >> clapper said there were no signs of collusion. what we want to know is what was behind this process that went into the facts that were in the memo and to the decision that was reached. and the american people are people of orderly process. so i'm looking forward to him just laying forth what he reviewed, when he reviewed it, how he reviewed it and what led him to make that decision. >> shannon: there has been talk on the hill about all the different tracks of these investigations, the house, the senate, the f.b.i., we have special counsel. and there is concern about folks stepping on each other. are you confident all of these investigations will be able to

go on independently and reach a conclusion the american people can feel confident in? >> i think having the special counsel is where you say that's now on their plate. there are other things that we need to be working on. we have healthcare reform, we have tax reform, we have an infrastructure bill, we have broadband expansion. all of these are on the american people's wish list for things that they want congress to address and we have a set of deliverables that have been given to us. it is our job to get those done. shannon, the house is hard at work. we've done over 200 bills already this year. and moved them out of the house to the senate. >> shannon: let me ask you about one that's been in the headlines, the house healthcare reform bill and now we're hearing that the cbo score will come in on it and there might be another vote and the senate is doing its own thing. what could you tell us about

that? do you think anybody's vote will flip based on that cbo score? >> i don't. i think matching up the reconciliation bill, that's what it is, a budget reconciliation bill that will move to the senate. it has to fit within the budget framework. cbo takes what we pass, they give a final determination working with the senate to be sure it fits the rules. if we have to tweak it we go back in and tweak it. it's as simple as that. >> shannon: we could be looking at another. stay tuned, everyone. congresswoman, good to see you. >> bill: thank you. that meetings starts in 20 minutes. overseas the u.s. launching new air strikes in syria. why did the pentagon take action this time? president trump set to meet with his budget director.

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>> shannon: deputy attorney general rod rosenstein will be back on capitol hill for a second day in a row a short time from now. briefing lawmakers what he told senators yesterday details about the ongoing russia investigation and the firing of f.b.i. director james comey. that meeting set to get underway in a few minutes. >> bill: in the meantime the u.s. launched new air strikes in syria. pentagon officials saying assad forces were hit after being deemed a threat to coalition forces on the ground as nikki haley is traveling to jordan and turkey today to review both nation's roles in trying to end

the syrian civil war. president trump visiting saudi arabia, israel, vatican and nato. john bolton former u.s. ambassador and senior fellow at the american enterprise institutes. in syria, what happened? >> clearly the syrian forces were warned not to come any closer to where american troops were based. this was a zone they had been notified about for whatever reason they didn't and we struck them. i think that's the signal you have to send. you don't mess with american forces without consequences. hopefully it won't happen again. i do not think it represents some fundamental change in trump administration policy with respect to the conflict in syria. i think it's limited to self-defense. >> >> bill: as we saw yesterday afternoon when the senators broke their briefing we'll hear what house lawmakers have.

a bit of a difference of opinions and some senators didn't think they learned much new yesterday. back with the ambassador. southeastern part of the country where jordan, syria and iraq come together. the u.s. is operating a zone of protection, you could call it, training those in syria to go after isis forces and that's where this operation is underway. you cannot take a chance that you get a vehicle that could be turned into a weapon or a bomb with u.s. forces in the middle of the desert. >> what looks like an innocent approach by a female driver turns out to be a suicide bomber. so having suffered from this in the past there is no doubt after giving appropriate warnings all agree that happened, we were entirely within our rights to protect americans to make that strike. >> bill: nikki haley is in turkey and in jordan.

what can she get done as the president travels in the same part of that world? >> i find it unusual she is out there while the president is traveling. she visited the syrian refugee camps in turkey and jordan and talk about the conflict. so that's part of her responsibilities at the u.n. the timing strikes me as a little strange. >> bill: now is not the time? >> i think you wait until after the president goes. maybe it was a previously scheduled trip, i don't know. >> bill: you have the president in saudi arabia and as i mentioned he will be in israel and then the vatican. what can he accomplish for the country, for that region on a trip as substantial as this? >> the stakes are very high. no question about it. going to saudi arabia as his first foreign stop i think is very significant. i think it's a signal to the sunni arab world that the obama administration is over. he will meet with the saudis. the other heads of state of the

oil producing monarchies. he will give a speech to sharply separate himself from the obama administration. people have already started to compare it with obama's cairo speech in 2009. here is a man who has been accused of being anti-muslim. trying to exclude all muslims being islamophobic to speak in the kingdom, guardian of the two most holy cities in islam a chance to talk about terrorism and the threat that radical islamic terrorism poses to the united states and the inhabitants of that part of the world as well. >> bill: diplomacy in its highest form. how did the saudis receive him? what would be your expectation? >> they'll receive him very enthusiastically. they're so delighted to see the back of barack obama and hopefully the end of the pro-iranian tilt of american foreign policy and why when the president in another very

symbolic geographical movement goes from saudi to israel he will be received very well in israel. >> bill: there is talk about a sunni/arab coalition. they talked about that in the past. is this the time to make it happen? >> i'm not sure i would be optimistic about it. looking beyond the conflict with isis and hopefully we're coming to the end of the caliphate there in what used to be syria and iraq you have to think about what the next conflict in the middle east will be. the iranian effort to create an axis of power through baghdad largely controlled by shia. hezbollah in lebanon, hamas in the gaza strip. iran's nuclear program continues. the arabs friendly to the united states want to know what we're going to help out and so do the israelis. >> bill: if you look at the complications at home and a nine-day trip, what is the effect of the headaches back at

home with foreign leaders to greet him. there were more than 30 foreign leaders that will be in riyadh alone. >> all of what has been happening in washington raises the stakes for trump. i think he needs to follow the advice he gave to the graduates at the coast guard academy. disregard the criticism, focus on the trip. don't worry about what is going on in washington ignore the questions about the special counsel. highlight the diplomacy he is doing. it will be true in all of his stops. be very true at the g7 meeting in italy. if he focuses on the job ahead as jim baker used to tell me, keep your eyes on the prize. and this is nine days of hard work. i think if he does keep his eyes on the prize the trip will be a success. >> bill: great stuff. john bolton, nice. we move forward back to washington and shannon.

>> shannon: bill, is it smooth sailing for north korea and russia? the two countries are embarking on a new venture and how it could affect already strained relations with the u.s. plus saving files affected by last week's massive cyberattack. what users have to do to save their information. try doctor recommended gaviscon. it quickly neutralizes stomach acid and helps keep acid down for hours. relieve heartburn with fast- acting, long-lasting gaviscon. and helps keep acid down for hours. nosy neighbor with a glad bag, full of trash. what happens next? nothing. only glad has febreze to neutralize odors for 5 days. guaranteed. even the most perceptive noses won't notice the trash. be happy. it's glad. we asked people to write down the things they love to do most on these balloons. travel with my daughter.

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>> bill: out of france we get the update. researchers say they've found a way to save windows files affected by the massive cyberattack. the ransomware attack encrypted data and demanding ran some payments. the infected users need to move fast. the solution only works if

systems haven't been rebooted. unprecedented attacks started a week ago and infected 230,000 computers in 150 countries around the world. >> shannon: are there signs of a growing relationship between russia and north korea? the new connection is moving forward despite calls from the u.s. to isolate north korea because of its nuclear bomb and missile tests. russia is one of the very few countries with any influence on the regime. we're live in milan with more on this interesting story. good morning, amy. >> yes, shannon, good morning. americans would like to see russia use its very significant influence over north korea to actually squeeze the country rather than facilitate trade and commerce. now, north korea was one of the soviet union's patron states

during the cold war and they often paid back debts with labor. today even russia has one of the biggest communities of north koreans and many of them -- many of these workers never even see their paychecks in russia. they're sent back by north korean bosses to pyongyang and that is providing a much-needed source of cash for kim jong-un as large sectors of his industries are being sanctioned as he carries on with missile tests with worrying frequency and end game is not clear. russian president vladimir putin has expressed his concerns over north korea's nuclear ambitions but the russian line is really not to box kim jong-un into a corner but talk to him and try to come up with a negotiated solution quite different from the u.s. position of isolating north korea to change behavior. meanwhile the new russian-owned ferry service set sale this week goes from a port in north

korea and russia's far east and carry 200 passengers, 1500 tons of cargo, a weekly service and it is largely pitched to chinese customers as a way to travel by sea to russia, a city to which china has very strong links and shannon, as we know, parallel to all of this, russia's stated intention, priority is this tilt to asia. its courting of trade deals with china in particular. finally important to point out that despite all of this there are also -- there are about 5,000 westerners, mostly well-heeled people who travel to north korea as curious tourists each year. just in the past week or so the united states issued a travel advisory say nobody except people with really essential needs and itinerary to travel through the rogue nation because 16 americans have been arrested and the tensions

ratchet up, shannon. >> shannon: risky proposition. >> bill: a closed door briefing on capitol hill. packed hour ahead. peter doocy and chris wallace next.

>> shannon: deputy attorney general rod rosenstein arriving on capitol hill. this time he will brief the entire house about the firing of f.b.i. director james comey. lawmakers filing into that meeting right now. welcome to a brand-new hour of "america's newsroom" i'm shannon bream in washington bill, to be a fly on the wall. >> bill: yes, there will be a few flies in a moment here. we'll talk to them out of that camera. bill hemmer live in new york city. today's closed door briefing getting underway at this moment. rod rosenstein a key decision to fire comey and hired a

special counsel. brad wenstrup says he wants the facts. >> a lot of things being said. since this first started we've been talking about hearsay and innuendo, unverified sources, leaks. i hope that i find out a little bit more today. do they intend to follow where the leaks came from? are the leaks real? >> bill: stand by on that. peter doocy is live on the hill. do we know much about what rosenstein will say today, peter? >> we have a pretty good idea based on what some senators were telling us. the doj will be looking into any possible criminal violations by anybody associated in the universe of the trump campaign with russian contacts and then -- that's just about it. we spoke just now, i did, to a republican member of congress on his way in. what do you think you'll talk about? he said we have no idea what

we'll hear. i'll check back in with you on the way out. congress -- there was the speaker of the house paul ryan behind us. he was in a hurry to get in. in specific for what the briefing will cover. when senators heard from the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein they didn't get a lot of specifics and he said he didn't want to interfere with what is now an independent investigation. >> bill: are lawmakers worried about the interference about the new independent investigation? what are they saying? >> there is some concern about one of the top republicans in the senate about the possibility of interfering with this new robert mueller led probe. >> one of the issues i raised with him is my concern that we have multiplicity of congressional committees investigating this same matter and how can we best coordinate

those activities with director mueller and the f.b.i. so that we don't inadvertently interfere or impede his investigation. >> we don't have any indication that any of these congressional investigations will slow down. the top democrat on the senate intel committee told me yesterday that they are really speeding things up right now and from warner's perspective there have been able to be congressional investigators doing their thing while a special prosecutor does their thing. he doesn't think it will be a problem. we'll hear from some of these lawmakers after they talk to the deputy attorney general who is in the building now hopefully within the next couple of minutes. >> bill: a busy two hours. peter doocy, on the hill there. >> shannon: a new op-ed from krauthammer suggesting the structure of our political system can't contain president

trump. trump's character hasn't changed since the campaign but others were keeping things within bounds. then came the past 10 days. chaos reins. no guardrails can hold. let's talk about it with chris wallace. good to see you in person, chris. >> good to have you back in washington >> shannon: the guardrails cannot hold? dire words? >> i don't necessarily agree with that. i agree there is chaos and this city has been dramatically shaken in the last week and i think the biggest -- the two biggest moments were the firing of comey, which i think came as a huge surprise to everyone and secondly the information again simply a report that comey had written a memo contemporaneous with a meeting with the president in which he said the president asked him to let go of the flynn investigation. whether that meets the legal definition of obstruction of justice i'll leave to others. it was concerning that the

president was somehow trying to interfere with the f.b.i. director's investigation. >> shannon: there has been much made of this special counsel that has been appointed. dr. krauthammer had something to say about that last night. good or bad for the white house. here is what he said. >> right now he needs to calm the craziness. i think he was helped by the appointment of the special counsel. even though in the long run it means the white house loses control of it. in the short run people say well, look, there is an investigation let's talk about healthcare, let's talk about tax reform. that will take care -- a way to deflect. >> shannon: they want to talk about a lot of other things. we keep seeing the pressers with the speaker of the house saying it's tax reform. the next big list. can they do that with all these other things continuing publy? >> absolutely. bill clinton was able to do that in 1998 with the ken starr investigation into lewinsky. can this president do it is very much in doubt.

yesterday first he tweeted that in a meeting with a number of us national news anchors, the lunch meeting at the white house he went on the record. i can tell you his staff was just shaking their heads saying he thought it was a witch hunt and dividing the country, the russians were laughing at us and he was asked about it at the joint press conference with the columbian president and did it again. politics 101 would say take advantage of this, even long term as a threat to you. take advantage of the an appointment of a special counsel. let's focus on the agenda. this president doesn't seem to be able to do that. in so many instances he is his own worst enemy. >> shannon: you know what everyone thinks about the special counsel here in d.c. they think no matter how this thing starts out somebody ends up getting indicted every time. it has to be a worry for the white house. >> absolutely. you have a guy like bob mueller, aggressive and while i'm sure he would say if there

is nobody guilty i'll be happy to say that. when you get a high-powered person like this as a special counsel to look into what's going on with russia, he will feel it's his job to find something. the other point, shannon, i don't have to tell you this, is it starts off as an investigation of russia in may of 2017. how far it is going to go both in terms of time -- i mean, with ken starr it went on for years. and went from a bad real estate deal whitewater in arkansas to monica lewinsky. this thing could start out here and could end up way over here. >> shannon: the language from the d. o.j. announcement said and related matters. that can -- >> it leads it wide open. >> shannon: i'll tell people you'll talk about on sunday. two exclusive. chris will talk with secretary of state rex tillerson from the president's trip in saudi arabia that kicks off today plus senator john mccain chair

of the armed services committee. he has had a lot to say this week. don't miss it at 2:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. eastern on fox news channel and check the local listings for the sunday morning air times as well. >> that sounds very good. >> bill: we'll be there. also this morning less than an hour from now president trump meets with the vice president and budget director before leaving on the overseas trip. the president's new budget will likely dominate this conversation. talk of tax reform is high on the agenda. we'll hear from the house speaker this week saying we're going for it. mike emanuel live is on the hill. where are we on the efforts to reform the tax code, mike? >> senate majority leader mitch mcconnell say they want to get it done to make america more competitive but didn't want to put a district timeline on it. the last time they tackled the massive tax code it took several years. they want to get it done by the end of this congress, by the end of next year.

i asked speaker paul ryan and he said the goal was to get it done this calendar year of 2017. >> we're going through the process of looking at what is the best way to reform the tax code and to lower tax rates for businesses and make the american tax system internationally competitive. right now it's one of the worst tax systems in the industrialized world. >> he says he thinks they're making good progress. >> bill: what are democrats saying about a fairer tax code. >> nancy pell oelsy said she would be in favor of a plan that lowers corporate rates and closes loopholes and create more jobs but she also mocked republicans for not being unified so far on a tax reform plan. >> we look forward to that discussion. so far what we've seen is something that adds $5 1/2 trillion to the deficit and gives tax breaks to the high-end and circle down has never worked. let's go to the table with something. they can't even come to

agreement among themselves. >> the first tax reform hearing in ways and means yesterday. they'll try to get it done. >> bill: mike emanuel on the hill. thank you, sir. >> shannon: two tiny fighter jets intercepting a u.s. aircraft and washington is not pleased. what the state department is doing now in response. >> bill: these tornadoes rocking the nation's heartland. new threats coming in today. we're live on the scene in oklahoma city for that monster, wow. >> shannon: yeah. two former f.b.i. directors with a longstanding professional relationship. one taking over an investigation once run by the other. could that relationship stand in the way of finding the truth? >> is the attorney general or senior officials at the department of just is opposes a specific investigation, can they halt that f.b.i. investigation? >> in theory, yes. >> has it happened?

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>> bill: earlier u.s. officials criticizing an encounter between a u.s. military plane and two jets from china. this happening wednesday over the east china sea over international airspace. the american plane was searching for signs of nuclear activity in north korea. u.s. officials calling the encounter with china unprofessional. they're now addressing the issue through diplomatic channels with beijing. we'll let you know how that

turns out from overseas. >> shannon: president trump yesterday insisting there was no collusion between the russians and his campaign. right now the house is being briefed by deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. many have questions about former f.b.i. director mueller can really be impartial in this russia investigation. the "wall street journal" calling it the mueller caveat. can he be objective when it comes to jim comey. good to see you this morning. former f.b.i. director mueller and former f.b.i. director james comey. not like they both shared one of the most important, exclusive titles that you would have in this country, they actually have been very close at points and so some have questions about that. >> when they actually have a discussion with some biographers in which comey called him a friend and mentor.

and look, i think the thing you also have to remember as well, too, is the department of justice and the federal prosecutors make up a kind of elite club. the f.b.i. a very strong culture. you have robert mueller having spent most of his professional career inside of those two clubs. he is now being asked, because as you mentioned just recently, not just to look at whether or not russia is interfering in this election but related matters. and that is clearly the question of the comey firing, the question of whether or not there have been leaks. a question of whether or not the f.b.i. might have even been involved in inappropriately unmasking american officials. can he really be objective about that? >> shannon: he has won praise from both sides of the aisle. the only hesitation they worry it will somehow overlap or cause complications with theron going investigations on the

hill. both democrats and republicans seem to embrace him somebody above reproach. you know his resume. impressive by any standard. they think it seems like they have confidence that he can do this. >> that's why he called it the caveat, right? who can question his integrity, honor, service to his country, a decorated marine. like all circumstances everyone says this is a guy who is a straight arrow. one of the things i pointed out is that in the medical profession they have guidelines that say if you're a doctor you shouldn't treat your friends or your relatives because you lose -- doesn't matter how good you are, how above board, you lose your objectivity. that's the only question. just having come out of this world can he look objectively at a guy that might be a friend. if anyone could do it it might be him. there are still questions. >> shannon: what he will be looking at, this can go all kinds of places. there has been a big firestorm this week over a memo that

allegedly the f.b.i. director wrote memorializing a conversation he had with the president which he said, you know, can you let this go, the thing with michael flynn. immediately we had people saying obstruction of justice and impeachment. i want to point out what the then f.b.i. director comey said when he was being questioned on may 3 on capitol hill about whether anybody has been trying to interfere. >> is the he attorney general or senior officials oppose a specific investigation, can they halt that f.b.i. investigation? >> in theory, yes. >> has it happened? >> not in my experience. because it would be a big deal to tell the f.b.i. to stop doing something that -- without appropriate purpose. we're oftentimes they give us opinions that we don't see a case there and you ought to stop investing resources in it. i'm talking about a situation where we were told to stop something for a political reason, that would be a very

big deal. it hasn't happened in my experience. >> shannon: we have the memo. how do we square these two statements. >> the present pond rans of evidence saying as much. you have andrew mccabe saying as much. as a member of the department of justice, if comey had encountered anyone obstructing an investigation, he is legally required to report that to superiors at the department of justice. if that still didn't get him joy, to resign in protest. this is just not something that you can kind of say well, i'm just going to let that one slip. he is legally required to do it. i think the way you look at this memo is someone close to comey is now concerned about making sure his reputation and sewing doubts about the president because we have had another story today as well saying how uncomfortable comey was dealing with the president.

these memos appear to have been mr. comey's insurance in case something like this ever happened and it happened. >> shannon: yes, we have numerous requests all over the hill to get a look at the memos. we'll see if we get a look at them as well. thanks for coming in. bill. >> bill: watching that camera back there to the hill in a moment. in the meantime america is back the message president trump wants to convey as he heads on his first trip overseas, big trip, too. why so many leaders are ready for reengagement. oliver north joins us for that. the white house under fire here at home. some argue it is time for the allies of the white house to fight back. >> it is time to fight back against the five powerful forces now aligning to destroy president donald trump. sitting back and doing nothing is no longer an option. you don't let anything keep you sidelined. that's why you drink ensure.

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>> shannon: two women and a 7-year-old boy were injured after falling from a ferris wheel. they fell 20 feet when their cart flipped upside down and tossed them onto the metal flooring there. one woman reportedly in critical condition. that accident happened 50 miles north of seattle last night. the ride has been shut down for investigation. >> you voted to drain the swamp and upend the power structure in washington, d.c. that has been failing you and the american people for decades. these forces that are working to unseat president trump don't care about fixing the gigantic mess that president obama left behind after eight years of incompetence and failure. they don't care because they are inside this corrupt washington they are the swamp.

>> bill: sean hannity urging trump supporters to fight the swamp making the case the swamp doesn't want to be drained. sean is making the case about a power struggle. what do you think, is the swamp winning 3 1/2 months in? >> yeah, i think that there are people in the media, for instance, who would like nothing better than to bring this president down. he is right about that. i think there is at least one cable channel, at least one, where they run negative news about donald trump all day long. he is right t that. democrats are obstructionists, he is right about that, too. and there are even crazies on the left who believe trump is as bad as hitler. he is right about that? what will you do about it? what do trump's most allies want to do about it? we don't repeal the first

amendment because donald trump thinks "the new york times" and others are in fair news. what will we do about the democrats? what will we do about the crazies who want impeachment? my point is that ranting goes only so far. and on cable tv it serves a purpose. it riles the base. but it doesn't get a lot accomplished. in this case it leaves out one little important fact. that trump isn't mother teresa and brings a lot of this heat on himself. >> bill: you could argue some of those cable circles are an echo chamber. time and again. now, pete hoekstra is a former congressman from michigan and republican. he laid out his case last night with martha about the agenda of the right versus the agenda of the left and how the two are colliding today. just give this a listen, bernie.

>> we have to fight the liberal media and the fake news that came out on monday from the "washington post". we have to be fighting for our agenda. when we're talking about immigration reform and talking about healthcare reform and when we're talking about tax reform, we are going to be winning on those issues. >> bill: maybe they win eventually but it is pretty obvious the point he is making. republicans believe the left is getting in the way of their agenda and do whatever it takes to stop it. >> that part is correct. the left is doing everything they can to obstruct this president, and i don't think they voted if he nominated neil gorsuch if he nominated hillary clinton to the supreme court they might have voted against him because donald trump is the one who nominated them. my advice to the democrats, stop it. stop the nonsense, stop these obstruction. stop the talk about impeachment. and to the president, have some

advice, too. stop the impulsive tweets. stop the misstatements. stop in a word the drama. a lot of americans want a strong, credible press and they want a strong, credible president. a lot of americans right now do not think we're getting either. >> bill: bernie, thank you. great to see you on a friday. we'll see what comes next. from the right and the left. bernie goldberg in asheville, north carolina today. 20 past the hours. when the house leaders come out we'll see them. >> shannon: late arrivals. might be getting started a little late. we've been watching as lawmakers have been filing in for the closed briefing with the deputy attorney general on the russia investigation as the furor over the firing of former f.b.i. comey continues. a fair and balanced debate with two of your favorite panelists coming up. plus this.

nasty spring storms barrel through parts of the plains and mother nature may not be done any time soon.

>> shannon: severe weather slamming three states in the plains. reports have been pouring in of large tornadoes in oklahoma, texas and kansas. a chance for more twisters and damaging winds and hail today. we're live from oklahoma city and we'll tell you more. >> shannon, as these storms ripped across this region yesterday here in oklahoma we saw a number of large and very violent tornadoes go across the state. at least six, maybe more than tornadoes that were actually wrapped that you don't see at the time but you see the damage they leave behind.

luckily the majority of these were areas -- twisters. it could have been much worse. you are talking about tornadoes like ef3 and 4 and wind speeds up to 200 miles per hour and heavy winds across this area and you had flooding and hail the size of tennis balls. this could have been much worse. they really feel like they dodged a bullet here. now they're looking forward to the rest of the day. there are still tens of thousands of people without power across oklahoma and they are looking at severe storms that will start moving in again in the next couple of hours. with that they think there could be potential tornadoes so they're asking for everyone to stay alert. shannon. >> shannon: all right, will karr. we'll keep an eye on that situation. thank you very much. >> bill: this is the story of the morning live at capitol hill right now watching the camera. deputy a.g. meeting with house

lawmakers behind closed doors updating them on all matters russia. how far will he go to answer their questions? the firing of the former f.b.i. director, james comey also expected to come up in this conversation. juan williams, fox news political analyst and mercedes schlapp and a fox news contributor on the friday. mercy, mercy me and juan in a million on. mercedes it was a mixed reaction from senators yesterday. how far can this go to clarify? start there. >> i think especially for the liberals they're feeling they want to see some transparency coming out of the conversation that they had with attorney -- deputy attorney general rosenstein. things have changed this week. once you have a special counsel appointed, it is really up to mueller to decide what is relevant and not relevant. for the senators you had a group of bipartisan senators saying how will this special

counsel, how is this going to impact our own investigation? so these are the questions that they are trying to raise. but rosenstein really at this point can't give them much information because of the fact that you have the special counsel in place that you'll see in a couple of months. mueller will take over this investigation and that's where the information -- >> bill: what's the purpose of all this? >> that's an interesting question. i think for many of these senators it's a lot about media political circus continues on where they would have liked to have had these public hearings with comey and continue to bring individuals from the trump administration in like a flynn. and so for them it's a little frustrating. but at the end the democrats actually should be pleased because that's what they wanted. they wanted a special counsel to be assigned. at this point i thought that rosenstein made the right move saying we have to get it out of the hands of -- it has become

such -- so much political tension between the democrats and the white house that they had to pull back and we need the special counsel to have something independent for the american people. >> bill: one point she said there about making democrats pleased or satisfied. are you? >> i think that the people wanted some degree of trust here. i think it had eroded to the point where the deputy attorney general rosenstein who is testifying as we watch the hallway felt that he had to act independent of the trump white house. he didn't inform them he was appointing this special counsel. he did so only as he was briefing reporters. so it was already accomplished at that point. the real purpose here is remember, the deputy attorney general testified yesterday to the senate that, in fact, president trump had informed him that he was going to fire the f.b.i. director jim comey before rosenstein wrote that memo that was then used to justify it. >> bill: why is that so

significant? >> it comes back to the trust issue, bill. what the house members, what the senate members want to know is what did the president do? was this connected to an effort to stop the russia probe? and i think that when you go forward in this. >> bill: are you making a leap too far here, juan? you are missing a lot of information to be suggesting that something was untoward. >> no it isn't. that's exactly what's on their mind. they are trying to figure out what the president was doing. remember, there have been various stories about what the president's motivation was. >> bill: a change in story isn't criminal. >> you are asking me what do these members want to know? they want to know what the president told mr. rosenstein at the time when he wrote the memo. he didn't say that yesterday before the senate. they want to know what powers mueller will have as a prosecutor and will the senate and house have the ability to get witnesses. >> rosenstein can't tell them. it would usurp and could

compromise the investigation. it will be mueller's job. he has brought authority to investigate, to ask the questions about the memo and everything else. so here is the deal, i want to say -- i do want to say that the memo -- rosenstein's memo was an important factor in president trump's final decision. he did intend to fire comey but it was taken into account once he received that rosenstein memo because there were factors in there that when you read it made it very clear based on rosenstein's viewpoint that comey was problematic and had become too much of a powerful player where he didn't go to loretta lynch or a career doj official to deal with the issue on the hillary clinton emails. >> bill: put it on pause. >> necessary to follow any and

all leads directly to the russian attempt to influence our election. that for me clearly unclassified -- that for me is the most important question there is will the special prosecutor have the ability to follow any and all leads. i was quite satisfied that that was answered with no hesitation that director mueller will have that ability. >> you understand it is a criminal investigation? >> i understand that it has always been a foreign intelligence investigation that included people looking for crimes both foreign and domestic. i don't think anything has changed on that. >> did you get guidance as who how congress needs to handle these probes. >> you can't get guidance from the executive branch on how congress. it will want to be kept fully briefed.

the executive branch will always try to limit that for fear it would contaminate potential criminal investigations or leaks. all the while sometimes leaks occur in the executive branch. i don't expect this to be any different. there is appropriate discovery and oversight. the speaker i'm comfortable will insist on that. there is also that normal tension that has to be respected. >> what was the general sense you got in the room from your democratic colleagues? are they upset or happy there is an outside investigation? >> i don't think anyone is happy that the russians have had the gal to attempt to influence our election and that they continue to be a smaller version of the evil empire i grew up with. i do believe that there was great consensus that going after the russians for interfering with our election is a nonpartisan or bipartisan issue. one that both sides need to get resolved before the next

election. not just as to what they did but how to prevent it. >> the meeting was originally called to talk about how it all went down the firing of james comey and mr. rosenstein's role in that. did he speak to his responsibility and his decision making process in the firing of mr. comey? >> i think he spoke to it by asserting that the record is a paper record with a chronological set of documents. what i will say -- i don't believe this is classified -- the scope again of director mueller includes any questions about referrals related to any misconduct, any interference and there were questions well outside the russian scope in there and repeatedly acting director said that he would feel that his job is to make sure others have the freedom to send it where it may be

including any judicial indiscretion. >> [inaudible question] >> i don't believe he indicated anyone directed him to but he wrote the memo. one thing having a decade of doing investigations has taught me is that it's suspicious when a lawyer doesn't write memos for the record? we've had investigations where they claim that didn't happen and it wasn't plausible. the fact is, one of the principles of law and particularly lawyers in all administrations is they write memos for the record. they write memos to codify what they believed happen even in day-to-day meetings. so the record is what it is and there is nothing unusual about a memo. again it's unusual when there is no memo of something like this. >> did he explain why he decided to finally appoint a special prosecutor? >> i think the press has a tendency to look -- no

disrespect to anybody -- at a timeline and say finally. the fact is on february 25th was the first time as far as i know anyone called for the recusal of the attorney general. i was the one that did it. and said in fact there were ultimately under the statute need to be a special prosecutor. that's what we have now. we have a process that goes through that determines certain things in order for the highest ranking person, the attorney general or if recused the next or if recused the next to make that determination. and when you look at eight weeks with discovery in order to determine it, that's not a very long period of time. i think in fairness the history is not -- is fairly void of anything much faster than the time between let's say february 25th when i a special prosecutor and today.

i always assume somebody next has a question. >> what do you think of the potential joe lieberman? >> i think it's great. i worked with joe when he was my counterpart between our two committees. has everyone here knows he is solid, he is probably a little bored in private life. he is a public servant. his experience and his independence, including independence at times from his own party, is pretty legendary. so i'm a joe lieberman fan and wouldn't look at a second candidate if the president had the confidence to appoint him. >> what do you make of the fact that the time frame on comey's firing has changed? the white house has hung in on rosenstein's memo but yesterday he knew before that comey was going to be fired. >> that's one of the questions came up in there in which the

deputy a.g. said let the record speak for itself. i think that's what we have to do. the timeline will be reviewable and, in fact, will be looked at that way. again, i for one thought that comey ill-served the american people when he tried to stretch beyond all reason the fourth amendment to hack into your iphones. so i have had a belief that he didn't respect the constitution, had become in love with the camera, which is normally for politicians, and that he began thinking that he was somehow larger than the f.b.i. director and effectively being the f.b.i. director and the department of justice. the department of justice is the f.b.i. director's boss. not the other way around. >> is mueller on a witch hunt. do you believe the president's view? >> i don't personally believe

in witches. the director's job is to go where the facts lead and he has a reputation. now, all special prosecutors turn over a lot more rocks than any body in the executive branch wants. the reason the kenneth starr statute expired was because of that tendency to turn over rocks even without being asked. but i don't think the american people or our president should be concerned. i think that this is somebody who has done a lot of investigations. and yes, he is going to find things beyond the scope that the narrowest interpretation of either republicans or democrats would want. but i think the american people deserve the scope to be as broad as necessary to regain confidence in our elected officials, in our appointed officials, in our elections. all of those -- you know, the deputy a.g. said it very well. his reason for doing this appointment is as much about

returning public confidence. he was asked about the details of criminality which some of you were asking and i think he answered it extremely well in a way that isn't part of the classified part of this briefing that the american people deserve public confidence, the statute was available to him to use to regain public confidence. for all the members of the press you are all about getting public confidence back. without an independent and trustworthy prosecutor to go where the facts lead and increase his scope if appropriate beyond just the four corners of the russian activity, then the american people aren't going to get their confidence back. that's what this is all about. it took a little while but a relatively short amount of while by washington standards. >> do you believe mueller will conduct a fair investigation? >> yes. the definition fair will not be

a republican or democratic definition and they won't like it and the president might be frustrated. this is about public confidence. this won't be a partisan activity even though partisans will complain one way or the other. but we need to have public confidence. the american people aren't republicans or democrats, they're the american people and they deserve the answers wherever that investigation leads. >> very quickly on an f.b.i. director. what characteristics does the president need the look for in a replacement for james comey. >> joe lieberman would work fine with me. they have to know how the system works and the confidence of the american people and without tenacity and energy to live out a 10-year term if possible. thank you. >> bill: there are a lot of information there from issa the republican from california. we're waiting to see peter doocy and see if others come to the microphone there.

mercedes and juan are still with me. paper record on the comey firing suggesting it would have been unusual if a lawyer didn't keep write memos or keep notes. we'll see more on that. the scope for robert mueller, he said there were questions that stretched outside of the russian scope. that could be a number of things, guys. that could be the leaks, the unmasking of the classified information that came from the administration earlier in this year. as for the timeline on comey it came up as well. apparently the deputy a.g. said let the record show what happened. mercedes, first up now we interrupted you before we went to daryl issa. what did you hear that is significant there? >> two points. one is the fact the americans want to be able to know this independent investigation will regain the public confidence again. secondly, i thought it was very interesting that congressman issa was highly critical of

comey. basically suggesting that -- saying clearly he did not respect the constitution, that comey had become too powerful and i think these are very clear arguments that he is making as to why comey had to be fired. i do believe that coming from what he also mentioned the house members were feeling the sense that picking mueller was the right pick and the fact that he will have broad authority to investigate. >> bill: i don't want to rip you off, juan. quickly what did you hear? >> i thought he confirmed what i was saying to you guys arguing about. the authority that mueller will have to go forward and that it will extend beyond even the probe into the russia interference in the election and go to any other kind of interference that took place and that he kept a record. although he wouldn't answer what the president told him before he wrote the memo he said let the record speak for itself.

>> the imagination runs wild. the scope could be enormous. we're awaiting more lawmakers. you'll see that after this break. radio: scorching heat today, stay cool out there! [ barks ] walter! stop suffering with hot ac. cool it yourself with a/c pro. in just 3 easy steps, enjoy the comfort of 2 times the cooling boosters from the #1 selling coldest air. nothing cools like a/c pro.

>> shannon: president trump setting on the diplomatic trip making stops in saudi arabia, israel, vatican, brussels and sicily. lieutenant colonel oliver north is a military analyst. we'll preview the trip. the president tweeted this morning getting ready for my big foreign trip. strongly protecting american interests. that's what i like to do. >> he does. this is a very important trip beginning in saudi arabia. a meeting of all the sunni monarchies that will be part of what they hope will be a new sunni opposition to what's

going on in isis and ultimately with iran. their number one agenda item in saudi arabia is iran. they see it as their principal threat and they want the backing of the united states. more than just the weapons delivered to saudi arabia. the trip to israel is going to be very interesting because he is going to get an earful from prime minister netanyahu who is walking a tight rope right now as to what the united states wants them to give up in a peace -- some kind of peace dialogue with the palestinians. and of course his own political internal dynamic. at the vatican my guess is he will get a real earful from pope francis. pope francis is a liberation theologian and push hard on your free enterprise capitalism and concerned about military force and the pope realizes if the christians in that part of the world will be protected

there are only two parties that can do it. the israelis and us. in brussels what you have is the nato people. he will push hard at nato and push hard for them to get actively engaged in the counter terrorism business and nato is looking at russian expansionism in the atlantic and the arctic and so they'll push back a little bit on how much they want to have to spend to make all this happen. >> shannon: a very busy trip. we'll all be watching closely. nine very jam-packed days and this weekend you'll be talking about something else as well. we want to let viewers know. please tune into war stories for the fascinating tales of animal warriors and world war ii battles. that's on the fox business network. colonel, thank you so much. >> bill: meeting is ongoing on the hill. what will lawmakers reveal about russia and how far this scope will run? that's next live.

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>> shannon: it is a busy one for you. on monday, important charity work for you. best wishes. >> bill: thank you very much. i'll catch you next week. have a great weekend, bye-bye everybody. >> jon: president trump about to take off on his first overseas trip as commander in chief after strongly denying, once again, any ties between his campaign and russian interference in the election. good friday morning to you, i'm jon scott. >> julie: i'm julie banderas and for jenna lee. deputy attorney general, rod rosenstein is back on capitol hill this morning for the second time in two days to brief house members behind closed doors.