>> rose: just ahead a critical week for president trump's foreign policy. the power struggle in the west wing, and actress freida pinto stars in a new miniseries about london radicals in the 1970s. it is called "guerrilla." >> this is a declaration of a state of waw. >> you don't struggle alone. power to the people. >> rose: we will have those stories and more on what happened and what might happen. >> rose: funding for "charlie rose" has been provided by the following: >> and by bloomberg, a provider of multimedia news and information services worldwide.

captioning sponsored by rose communications >> rose: and so you began how? >> understanding. >> rose: is it luck at all or is it something else? >> a conversation as opposed to ceremony. >> rose: what's the object lesson here? >> i just want to make records. >> rose: tell me the significance of the moment. this was the week president trump ordered an airstrike on a syrian airbase. republicans changed senate rules to confirm neil gorsuch to the supreme court. and the university of north carolina men's team, the university of south carolina's women's teams are the new n.c.a.a. basketball champions. here are the sights and sounds of the past seven days. fun of. >> funny thing about don rickles-- the news that he died didn't make people cry. it made them laugh. >> i'll tell you very truthfully, i'm not too crazy about you. >> i know that! >> president trump calling vladimir putin to offer his

condolences in the wake of a deadly subway bombing. >> a suspected chemical weapon attack in syria. >> rose: president trump retaliates against syria. >> i ordered a targeted military strike on the airfield in syria. >> we are witnessing history in the making. senate republicans have changedly the way the chamber confirms supreme court nominees from the 60-vote threshold to a simple majority. >> i leaked nothing to nobody and never have and never would. >> this is yet another attempt to distract attention from the russia probe. >> the country is safer with steve bannon floton the national security council. >> plumbers! ( cheers ). >> what a cheap way to get a response from a crowd. yeah? am i right, new york! ( cheers and applause ) >> i really love living in d.c. ♪ all you need is love >> we've been to five or six museums. we went to the monster truck show. >> the monster truck show? >> opening day, two of the best

words in sports ♪ play ball ♪ . >> all the way back! gone! walk huff off, george springer ♪ sweet caroline >> the north carolina tarheels are the champions of college basketball. >> march mad sentence officially over and cbs returns to your regularly scheduled trump madness, already in progress. >> rose: it has been a benchmark week in the trump presidency. the confirmation of his nominee to the supreme court, a key summit meeting with the president of china, and in a major policy shift thursday, president trump ordered a military strike on a government airbase in northern syria. 59 cruise missiles targeted syrian warplanes and facilities implicated in tuesday's deadly sarin gas attack on civilians. with me now is ian bremmer of

eurasia group. he recently returned from the region. welcome back to this program. >> thank you, charlie, glad to see you. >> rose: set out for me where you think this is. what did it accomplish and what are the risks? >> what it accomplished by far it's the most significant foreign policy move that's been louded both domestically and internationally for trump since he became president, right. the entire foreign policy establishment in the united states, man of dhfs "never trump--" republican and democrat-- now coming out full-support. also australia, new zealand, saudi arabia, israel, the u.k., canada-- these are folks who have all been unnerved to various degrees about the trump administration coming in, and they're now all together saying, "we glad he did this." so that's clearly a plus. >> rose: the possible exceptions are china, russia, syria-- and i'm not sure who else. and obviously, iran. >> year, that's basically it, russia being the big one because people expected and trump

expected he was going to be able to develop a better relationship with russia. that's clearly well off the table right now. and the potential for real confrontation between those two is significant. but tillerson is still going to moscow in a week, and the russians could have canceled that meeting. they chose not to. so, clearly, they're also being tempered in the way they want to respond to all of this. the question is what has he accomplished aside from getting support for this one-off act? in terms of the war in syria he's accomplished very little because this isn't going to change the way assad behaves or the russian or rawngz support for the syrian regime. >> rose: what would change the way he behaves? >> i mean, a threat to assad's well-being -- >> political surexpriefl physical health. >> yeah, and i mean, so you're either talking about a threat of a decapitation attack against syria and assad, which is something, given the territory he's taken and given his support from the russians and iranians, he feels quite confident that's not coming. or if he felt that the

diplomatic process, being led by the russians, suddenly really had the potential of throwing him under the bus, there's no reason to believe the russians are prepared to do that. >> rose: a lot of people have said that barack obama at every turn resisted doing this. i guess we'll now find out whether it was a correct decision by donald trump. >> yes, we will, but we won't find out for a while. >> rose: foreign affairs dominated president trump's schedule this week. it ended on thursday with an attack on a syrian airbase. also, he hosted meetings with president cece of e egypt, and a two-day summit with president xi jinping. it was an important first meeting with both men, with both look to find common ground on north korea and bilateral trade. tom donilon served as national

security adviser to president obama and played a key role in organizing past summits. >> for both sides, it's a very important meeting. it's clearly the most important diplomatic meeting that president trump will have had so far in his presidency, by war. i think on the chinese side, i think he'll want to have a successful meeting. he'll want to show himself being able to operate effectively on the international stage. >> rose: in meetings like this, between the two most powerful people in the world, do they ever meet alone or is it also alzheimer's necessaralso ns and notetakers there? >> in lots of relationships around the world that the president and the leader of the other country will meet one one, or maybe with just one other aide or a translator. that's unusual in the-- in the u.s.-chinese context for lots of different reasons, including the kind it's system that the chinese president represents. as you know, i negotiated the

sunny land summit in 2013 between president xi and president obama. as part of that summit, we did put in place a time for pure one-on-one conversation, and that did take place during the course. and it's an unusual thing to take place. i think it's important, but it did take place in the sunny land summit. and my understanding, charlie, is the trump administration is trying to have some one-on-one time. it's never truly one on one, because there will have to be translators. >> rose: you were talking about sunny land, out in california. palm beach is in florida. is it better to have meetings in those kinds of environments than it is in washington or beijing? >> i think so. i think you need to do both, but i think it is important. you know, charlie, what you can do if you don't have it in washington is you avoid a lot of the hyper-structural aspects of it, right, you know. it's not a formal state visit. it's not-- it doesn't have kind of all the formalities around that, that are associated with

the state visit. i do think you can get more time in conversation as opposed to ceremony. so i think it is-- i think it is different, and it is a good idea, frankly, to have it kind of outside the capitals with all the time you have to put in the formalities and ceremonial aspects of such a visit. so, yeah, i think it's good. >> rose: the unfolding events in syria have overshadowed a turbulent week in the nation's s capital. the senate has changed the very way it does business in order to confirm neil gorsuch to be the supreme court justice. in the process tmay have changed the very nature of the senate. joining me now from washington is my colleague al hunt of "bloomberg view." he conserved the congress for a number of years. explain to us what happened and

why it's far reaching. >> the senate basically changed the rules, their own rules oa majority vote, and said that they can confirm a supreme court nominee by a simple majority. and that could not be-- they did not have to invoke cloture against a filibuster. in the past, you had to get, up until 1975, i think it was, two-thirds of the senate if you wanted to break a filibuster, and since then, 60 votes. so the real-- the huge difference is for both future supreme court nominees but also for the senate. it means you can change the rules by a simple majority, and they can extend that to anything they want to now. >> rose: would the democrats have done the same thing? >> probably. ( laughs ). >> you know, charlie, i'll tell you why. this is a huge change, but on the other hand, it is simply a continuum. the senate, like all political institutions, has become far more polarized. this wouldn't have happened 40 years ago because you had liberal republicans, jake jafets

and charles percy and clifford case, and ed brooks, and conservative democrats. you don't have liberal republican senators, really. susan colins is a moderate. and you don't have conservative democratic senators. so the parties are polarized. and the old notion, washington was supposed to have told jefferson, that the senate would be the saucer that would cool the coffee or the tea, the passions that the house sent over. the senate is still not as polarized as the house, but that difference has diminished a great deal. >> rose: and the vote is pretty much along, in the supreme court justice and other big issues, party lines. >> it is. i think there were three democrats that voted for judge gorsuch. and michael bennett of colorado, justice gorsuch's home state, had, i think, the most sensible suggestion for his party. he said, "let's go to the republicans and say 'we won't filibuster if if if you'll get an agreement when the next one

comes up'-- which will probably be a bigger one-- 'if you won't do that by simple majoriti'" basically he was told, "i'm sorry, the base won't allow that. the dispoarnz grass-roots people will go wild. they're still furious about what mitch mcconnell did to merrick garland last time." that would have been a sensible solution but not politically possible. >> rose: how much cooperation is there between mitch mcconnell and chuck schumer. >> it's better than it was between mcconnell and reid and we've only, of course, had three months. i think the message here today if it really comes to crunch time-- we're going to hear a whole lot the next couple of weeks about bipartisan bills, bipartisan cooperation. they will get some. they won't shut down the government. but when it comes to a real crunch, i think there's now precedent that has been set. harry reid started it four years ago with appellate court judges.

mitch mcconnell continued it when he sat on merrick garland for 10 months so there are no limits on what they can change now. >> rose: as the other big stories played out this week behind the scenes at the white house, a power struggle among the president's advisers appeared to be coming to a head. with me now is mike allen. he is the cofounder of the news site axeias, and we're pleased to have him here. what's interesting to me is big week for president trump-- syria, china, questions about what's gog in congress, confirmation of a supreme court justice today. and yet, there's something else gog in the white house. that has huge influence. it is who has the president's ear and who does the president trust. that seems to be a competition

in the white house. >> charlie, you frame even the most tawdry arguments in the classiest way. that's a great way to look at it. and that's exactly what we're hearing. charlie, we talk to congressional leaders, and they're worried about health care, and they say, "these guys call us and they talk about each other." you have this contest for basically the president's wand width, and you have two very clear camps. steve bannon, who thinks of himself as the keeper of the trump flame that issues that got trump elected, the nationalist weighing the part that doesn't want to make deals, the part that wants to look more inward. and then on the other side, accumulating increasing power, influence jared kushner, ivanka trump, gary cohen, the president's economic adviser. one way it was framed for me, charlie, was confrontation

versus collaboration. and the collaboration wing is winning in part because the president doesn't like -- >> that's the jared kushner wing. >> yes. >> rose: sometimes called "the new yorker." >> and this is partly, charlie, because the president doesn't like the results he's been getting. >> rose: is it possible that the president will bring in new people? and if he does, who might it be? for any of these roles? >> yeah, so, i think the president, if you were to bring in new people, would be bring in somebody that he thinks of as a peer. some of the names that have been out there, people that might come in, kevin mccarthy, the number two house republican leader. the house majority leader is a republican of california. if you're a republican in california, you're probably not going to run statewide. he's someone the president has a very close relationship with. hhe was an early endorser in congress, and the president continues to talk to him a lot on his cell phone.

gary cohen, now the national economic adviser. eventually, there will be a new chief of staff. who know knows when that will come? he is somebody who would be consider forward that. and to washington, wayne barman, who has been involved in eight presidential campaigns, was an assistant secretary of commerce under president bush 41. david urban, the former chief of staff to the late senator arlen specter, got credit for an upset win for president trump in pennsylvania. he is also someone close cell phone pal with the president. so what we're seeing in all those are the president looking for people that he has a personal relationship with. when he might make a change or what change he's going to make, somebody said to me that he's definitely asking for advice. things are definitely moving around. will he pull the trigger? you don't know. but it's something the president is thinking about.

they're continuing to talk about it in mar-a-lago this weekend, after the xi summit, most of the senior staff, including nearly every person we mentioned is down at mar-a-lago, and they're going to have conversations about this and the agenda ahead ♪ still feel like your man >> rose: john mayer has won seven grammy awards over the course of his career, and along the way he has shared the stage with b.b. king, carlos santana, and eric clapton. he came to, that yo new york tk while on tour for his first album in four years. it was called "the search for everything." >> when i first came up with the rivot guitar i said this is new. i'm not interested that it's good or bad. i'm interested that it's new. this would have been my seventh record. and you're looking for ways to still innovate, like a magician in a warehouse.

going i've climbed out of the locked box, and i've gone under water. what's the next trick, you know? and i thought for having been thought of in the same sort of category as blue eyed soul for such a long time, that there was something unique about the robotic kind of cinco paigz, and then the lyric. it felt to me-- ever every oncea while as a soangwriter, you get a lyric and you know it's great-- the title "still feel like your man" and you immediately get worried that somebody else has done it ♪ still feel like your man still feel like your man ♪ still feel like your man still feel like your man i still feel like your man ♪ >> the thing that follows a great idea is intense fear that it has already been settled on. and you do a search on spotify

or wikipedia and you go, "still feel like your man." it's like a trademark search. not that you couldn't write a song with the same title-- i don't like it. and it comes open. >> rose: clear. >> clear. and then we go for it. >> rose: "you go for it" meaning you have a title. d the exphiewsk then you'll dog the lyrics. >> most of the time i get the best result when the exphiewsk lyrics happen at the same time. they both climb up either side of the hill. that's when it's really, really good. a lot of times i have music that's sitting in a bin. fewer times than most i have lyrics that are sitting in a bin. and every once in a while, you get the title that ha has chords and words and sounds dripping out of them. >> rose: right. >> this is this idea of being as absolutely beautiful as you can be. like, along, let whoever sort of intelligentia rock outlets and journalists say that it's light

or it's bland. i'm going to be as beautiful as i can be about being sad. >> rose: right. >> i do, and i've come to terms with this, you get to a certain age and you go, "this is what i do. i write love songs." so it's very tricky. i would love to be able to write-- put these songs out in a complete vacuum where people can think about these songs only in their own context. and hopefully if i've done a good enough job of writing i can. >can. q. you said once i want to leav. >> i'm a writer. i'm a writer more than anything else. nothing brings me more joy than writing. >> rose: freida pento made hir acting debut in 2008 in "slum dog millionaire." this year she is starring in the showtime miniseries "gurilla." it is a love story set against

the backdrop of london in the 1970s. >> she is one half of the revolutionary couple, jazz and marcus, who we follow through the entire series. and it's really about-- set in 1970s, the 1971 imgraiksath, which really impactaise lot of decisions and action which has consequences. but it's really about this relationship under pressure. >> rose: and idris plays kent. >> he plays kent mierk exlover. >> rose: who has come back to create trouble. it's about political activism in the 70 necessary london. >> in london, yes. it's based on facts even i was not aware of, something they thought when i first read the pilot episode, i wanted to verify the authenticity of all of it. so i would go on to google and type in, "1971 immigration act" and there is information but not as document as the civil rights music or black panther movement. >> rose: we have actors who come to this table all the time who say the best work they see-- the best script, the best text,

the best characters is on television. >> yeah, i have to admit that that's kind of true. this is my first-ever tv show. it didn't feel like i was filming a tv show. it felt like two really intense independent films i shot back to back, especially working with john ridley. >> rose: the screenwriter. >> and direct three of the six episodes as well. i now understood why actors love television. you get this extra time to go deeper into your characters, which sometimes it can be rush, run, rush, in a film. >> rose: she tells ken in episode one, "i have to be with someone who wants to do things," as to why she is no locker with him. >> uh-huh. i think she does not know how to be neutral or quiet in the face of injustice. and that, you know, as we go on with the episodes, we'll find out that her father -- >> who was in prison, was he not? >> a political prisoner in india. so she's really fighting for her right and her right to be in

england and work. >> rose: is she prepared for the life of a political radical? >> i don't think so. i think she in her mind she knows and she's determined to stand up for what she believes in. but as i was filming the series, i thought about it, and i go, "there's so much of this that she did not even foresee coming her way, but she baifl went ahead and did what sheemented to because she believed in it." much like-- not just jazz but even marcus and all the group of people that come together to form this underground cell, they're really operating out of-- really not knowing, playing each moment as it comes, and there are surprise along the way. and one of the things that john always said, in any revolution, any movement, there are action that people take because they believe at that point in time that is the right thing to do. and if you don't account for consequences, you're going to be majorly surprised. and i think that's what jazz and marcus find themselves in.

>> now here's a look at your weekend. neal diamond's 50th anniversary tour has dates in fresno, california, and salt lake city. ♪ sweet carolina >> the world ski and snowboard festival opens in whistler, canada. and michael caine, morgan freeman, and alan arkin are in theaters in the comedy "going in style." >> halt! >> what are you chasing me for? >> don't make me tase you. >> this is not an admission of guilt. i am just tired. ♪ don't stop >> and here's what's new for the week ahead. sunday is the final day of the masters golf tournament in augusta, georgia. monday is the day the 2017 pulitzer prize wrirnz announced. tuesday is the opening day of

the hong kong international film festival. wednesday is the day president trump meets with nato secretary-general at the white house. thursday is president thomas jefferson's birthday. friday is the opening day of the coachella valley music and arts festival in california. saturday is the day major league baseball celebrates jackie robinson day. >> rose: that's "charlie rose: the week" for this week. before we go, we wanted to note the death thursday of the comedian don rickles. he was 90. ricles was a special kind of comic, an equal-opportunity offender. and for over 50 years, his cutting humor poked fun at both the powerful and the paying customer. we leave you this evening with don rickles at the table. i'm charlie rose. we'll see you next time. >> everything i've ever said--

and that's a key thing-- i've believed in. in other words, i throw my shot on the stage in fun, and i make fun of people, i make fun of my life. what i do is exaggerate. that's all i do. they called me insulting. insulting, i wouldn't be headlining in las vegas and atlantic city and all over the world-- not the world, but the united states-- if i was somebody that was mean and terrible and rude. it's not that at all. and it's-- i never backed up-- in other words, when i throw my lines, i always say i believe in it. and i never looked back and said, "oh, maybe i shouldn't have said that." captioning sponsored by rose communications >> rose: funding for "charlie rose" has been provided by:

>> rose: welcome to the program. we begin this evening with tom friedman, columnist for the "new york times," and talk about syria china, russia and other foreign policy questions for president trump. >> i think it was important for the united states to use its power to send a signal that people use poison gas, as we were talking about the hundredth anniversary of world war i, at the that is just not on. it doesn't mean we can right every wrong or reverse every atrocity but when we have a chance to do this at a cost that's tolerable and a message that's loud, it's important. because you don't want a world where people think that's okay. >> rose: we continue with the same questions with ian bremmer, president of eurasia group.