today on "kqed newsroom" what does trump know about hush money paid to a porn action? we'll here from congressman adam shift. a rule by the court can disrupt the economy. plus the california gop conventions off this week with the focus on firing up voters and a potential endorsement. hello and weome to kqed newsroom. we begun with politics. this week president trump acknowledges a series of tweets that he repaid his lawyeror $130,000 payment made to storm m es. the tweets contradict an earlier

statement when trump stated he did not know about the payment. newest attorneys rudy giuliani reveal the source of the story on wednesday. congressman adam shift joins us fm burbank. nice to see you again. >> thanks. >> what is your reaction to the trump administration now saying tee u.s. prisoners held by north korea may soon be released? >> i don't think they should be talking about it until the deal sealed. i'd expect that in order for the president to sit don with gm jong-un e kim that meeting he's always wanted with the u.s. presint to sit on the same stage that at a minimum we'd get our hostages back. i don't think you should send out thep sident's lawyer giuliani to make this announcement when it's in the clear the dealad been struck and i don't think the president

should be suggesting it either. i think it undermines his own lever ranch. >> is there any reason to bem optimright now in terms of orth koreal strategy has released prisoners in the past and issue to t that violent threats andio confront are you optimistic there's a ignal here any long-term strategy but kip jong un? >> there's an opening. i think we need to test to see whether the north koreans are serious. you are right there's a history here followed by confrontation again. they're coming to the table, i think it's a great advance on what the president -- but no one should exct this is going to be easy or the north koreans are simply going to walk away from their nucle weapons and ballistic program. it's going to be a tough negotiation. they're going to seek to divide us from our allies and south

koreans and nap needs. the president's going to need to make sure there's no daylight between us. he has not been very good at that and he needs to realize things are going to get more difficult before this is done. we should give it a t llapse and teether the north koreans are serious. also wanted to getour thoughts on the stormy daniels situation as well? what's the reaction that president reimbursed his attorney to keep stormy daniels from going forward on a alleged relationship with stormy daniels? >> it shows where we are. our defense is you can't believe the president of the united states. when he said earlier he hadn't been aware of ts payment, he wasn't telling the truth. that's tur defense. t the not much of a defense. this is why they're trying toul walk gni back now, if the president was aware of this

president, did reimburse michael cohen. that payment, that loan of money as a company finance law, that means the president is now imhated in that. the more fundamental problemth 're not committed to telling the truth. >> let's se th no violation of law found here, are there ethical violations? >> there certainly are a lot of e violations. if michael cohen was making th payment to stormy daniels and it telling his client about thad put his legal license in jeopardy. if stormy daniels waed threat to get her to take the deal, that's a very different problem. and then of course there's the problem of the president's credibility. he's paying hush p money torn stars, he's not being truth about it, coming up with different explanations. all of this, i think detract from the standing othe

president of the united states. and indeed our standing around the world.wh mee the mueller investigation is proceeding. the nw york time released a list of four dozen questions that robert mueller, the special counsel would like to ask president trump. you're a former prosecutor yourself, what do you think mr. mueller is trying to determine questions?se >> so many questions dealt with obstruction of justice and collusion. there's some thing bob mueller feels there's work that need to be don on other issues. didte he to instruct the russian investigation by firing the person who was leing that investigation for the fbi, that about fbi director? dias heally tell the fbi director to drop the criminal case against michael synn? hat also an act of obstruction of justice? but the president's intent is really key and so many of the questions g to exactly that. >> let's talk about the head of

vironmental protection agency as well. scott pruitt facing of his practices. do you think he should resign? >> she should absolutely resign. he should have never been place.ted in the first he knows little about the environment. given all the misconduct in office, and it just keeps day.iplying every there are new problems, new alleges, new of propriety, the administration ought to get rid of him. i can think that this is the president deciding that firing him this would be another admissio ofguilt. they are quite far from gaining the swamp.th seem to be licensing the swamp and branding with big gol letters i think he's a real problem for the administration and also is f probl the rest of the

country. just this week california filed a lawsuit the -- to enforce auto standards. this is more than 30 lawsuits the state has filed against the trump administration. do you feel like they're making a deference, needs lawsuits? >> i do. thank goodness for our governor, the attorney general and just the degree that california has stepped in. the global leader of california is a climate for change. we need to fight these reversals and environmental policies. a higher fuel emission standards are part of the solution. 's employed for our state and the other states that are also suing the federal government and it's good for the planet.

>> but not everybody in california agree with whatehe sts doing. an increasing number of communitiesare now taking legal action or enacting resolutions, officially stating their opposition to the sanctuary laws. what are your thoughts to this backlash? >> i think what california did makes a lot of sense. basically says we're not going to turn our law enforcement into the arm of the bopatrol. yes, we'll work with immigration authorities when there areop who are here who are undocumented and who committed very seriouscr es. we're not going to simply become an arm of the president's regref immigration policies. that wasn't going to please everybody, even in a progressive state like california. so, you see some of these very conservative communitiessay, no, we're with trump on his progressive policies. that'ser not californians or americans are. i have to say, this is thest f president in my life time who

simply don't seem to understand that a big part of his job is to make us a more perfect union. this president is determined to divide us and that is so deeply destructive. >> all right. congressman adam shift joining us from burbank, thanyou for your time. this speak the supreme court issued a big victory for those who work in the so-called gig economy. the lawsuit was originated by cure your and a company calledd h max. in its ring the core said company must prove -- as independentct contras. the ruling could grant state orkers benefits such as rest breaks and over time pay. tojoining us now discuss this issue are silicon valley reporter sam hornet. you see any -- visit that

devaul and eduardo escobar w drives for uber, welcome to you all. professor duvall how big is this moment? >> it's huge. it shifts the burdens onrs emploto hire entities to prove the the workers are -->> it's a three-prontest? >> yeah shifted the test from this idea that whether or not th hiring entity controlled the worker and it said, okay, we're going to put the burden on the employer we're going to presume these people are employees and new mp yer, you prover to us that actually you have hired an independent contractor and the test is amazingly simple. so, moved away from the common law test and it says, you have to prove three things to us if you want us to believehat this worker is an independent contractor. you have to prove you do not control or direct this person at

l. you have trove this person is not a part of your eve day business. they're doing something different than what you do. andthat this person is sort of a customarily independent contractor work. and the second prong in particular is huge because you can imagi u withr. the question would be is uberdrivers doing s different than what ubis doing. >> so, eduardo you drivefu l-time for both uberand lyft. do you think of yourself as an independent contractor o employee? >> well i'd like to think i'm an independent contractor but we're being treating less than the

employees. that's not requiring them to contribute their fair share contribution to the worker-safety net and that's not fair, just of equitable. >> so , would you take legald action challenge your status as a contractor and try to get employee status? c >> ofrse. it em powerfulings us to unite and speak up for our rhts. >> and, sam how are the mpanies responding? >> well, since the againing all these companies have said that they're platforms. uberhas always said we're not in the platform we connect our drivers. i -- trying the service rep for themselves. >> i wonder if going back to your point, edwarfoabout driving

uber, why do you do that? do you enjoy the freedom? the work? >> well, i think there's this phony treaent that's being sold to the public that the drivers are abl a to ea living. i look at it as earning a surving and that where it's gone to. i started driving four years ago and sin then it's nose ived. so, i think there's some serious concerns hereha tha to be addressed regarding the drivers' rits. let's p the owners and responsibilities back on the tech rms because uber and lyft are bacally spear heading this abuse of the worker safety net. >> there's some who would argue that you have freedom and flexibility by doing this type of work. you sti get to decide when you work and how many hours a day you work. >> the freedom andflect is not true because you have to work when the demands there.

if the demand is early in the morning or later in he afternoon, late at night, so it's really not true. thais basically a spin job that's being done. >>in i it's also important to note this decision is not about all aspect of employee status, it's reay about minimal wage and the minimal working conditions. so, jus because someone is an employee under california law for minimu wage purpose dowse not make them an employee for otherpu poses. edward might still be an indpekt contractor under the national labor act. what the court did in its decision beautifully was to say, look, workers need to make enough money to feed their families and in this economy that's not happening. we're simplifying this test we're going to unsure for basic wedgerposes that people are macing a minimum wage. if they're working more than0 hours a week that they're getting overtime. >> i thought it was interest g,

e decision the opinion said this is mischaracterizization of workers a huge problem. it's costing tax payers billions of in loss taxes but mischaracterizing workers. >> the numbers of people who do thiskype of w is growing, right? because there are studies that show in the decade or so, that population has gwn to the point where it's 16% of the work force and the numbers will keep increasing. there are somereelancers out there who look at this situation and say, you know what, when you work for some of these companies, there's uber,yf tax rabbit, there's many of other companies out there. aside from yo point they get some level of flexibility and freedoms, so,sn't there a trade off? >>ub standard living conditions right, that's the

idea here. i don't think there's anythi about employment necessarily that necessitate lack of freblt and freedom. i'm an employee and have a very flexible work schedule. i think that's sort of the company line that needs to undermined. >> i think it's a false choice. would you like to be employed, have benefits, retirement and d a job that you love and have freedom, i think people would go for that. lot of lyft drivers i' entered for -- at the end of the day they're trying to make rent or -- >> survivor. >> yeah. >> so there's not a sustain ability factor being able tos aking to. that's a serious oblem. u see this basic switch, they promise you the american dream but the wkers are waking up to the american nightmare, that's the reality of driving. >> i've never met a driver who describes himse as an

entrepreneur. they may say, oh i'm independ bu not that i have my own business and building something for myself. >> the business side of this, converting contractor to employees couldost them money. it could cost business from 45% worker. is t risk is it could lead to smaller economy going out business. >> if you change the rule and the model and everyone now has to abide by this, en, yeah maybe venture capital in the cake a little more mof y. u want to start a company you got to start paying people better to begin with. it might change the model a little bit but if it's kind of across the board, it just might -- >> i think it's going to fair competition. >> meaning what? >> there needs to be certain requirements thaare basic minimums on par with the tax indusory and needse -- the

tax industry have the certain b requirementcause it's been tested and proven for many years for public safety, for the environment. there's a lot of concerns that are impactingsociety. these are adverse. so we need to address those now before it gets much worse. >> do you think companies like uber and lyftor example have gotten a free ride of not having to contribute to the social safety net tors work compensation, for example? >> absolutely. what they've been trying to do e is ement in different states with new market base workers' compensation model. in many ways they're just putting band aids on what is otherwise a hoific wound in the body of the working class. and this is agreat, great effort by the state of california to say, you ow there's some responsibility associated with being a big business and own up to those responsibilities.

pay your workers. >> and you're looking at privatization ofublic transportation. the target for them is not , taxiit's buses, bart systems. they're having to r service. that are being impacted. uber what do you think needs to change? if you feel this wit uber why are you working for them? >> i work with. i work with. i'm an advocate and we're lobbying to effect chang. that's why i've stade in the trenches. >> wald you like to see uber change? >> ur and lyft i'd like to see them contribute their fair share to the worker safety net. and not build their unsustainable business models on the cks of the drivers. >> could this provide another nudge for companies to automate faster? s i think theed automation is driven by technology change. i think if uber and lyft had

cars that would operate well and function they could go to that tomorrow. i would say the whole dis about what a company -- what kind of companies uber and lyft actually are, we're seeing all through technology copanies. at is facebook actually, is it a media company? what is airbnb? is a hotel company. i think it's getting all scrutiny. >> and what are the implications nationwide? could it extend beyond cafornia? >>absolutely. i think we'll start seeing a blue and red state divide. washington, colorado, new york, these are stating that like to california to see how they're going toredefine their laws. i would not be surprised at allx in the few years to see some of these shift in these states. >> you mentioned the -- whether someone's a contractor or an

employee. that's already in place in massachusetts. >> new jersey. right. >> thank you all for wonderful discussions. nice to have you all here. >> thank you. >> likewise. the california republican parties convention kicks off this week in san diego. delegates will decide to endorse or john cox to be the stats next governor. both candidates have spoken out living in cooperation with loca laforcement and agencies. they also support -- and vehicle registration fees.ma sa joins us via skype. anks for having me. >> let's start with the california race this weekend. this g the governor's race will decide will it be john cox or allen, what do you think?

>> as far asllen he has a lot of grass root reports iteems like the party leadership some sort of folks at the top are going to cox. we saw house majority leader kevin mccarthy endorse him just thursday. e've seen congressional rené me out and support. it's up to the delegates. i think it could be close and, you know, they could not endorse anyone. >> well,ox john c did pretty well in some recent polling. will that help his chances,nkdo you th >> it might. i think sometimes we forget that the par and the general elect rat can be general constituents. i think in this case, you're right they're both for repealing the gas tax, state law, both talking about taxes being too high and democrats leading some of the problems that california

has. they're different people. travis allen is a lot more ie with donald trump. cox is a businessman. he hasn't run before but in some ways he's the outsider being embracedy the insider. >> he was in a verttal tie with -- >> that's right, and allen's been pulling pretty well, another poll fromel u.c. be had -- we have a chance to getting into this november reason ofit a top two. they're not guaranteed a spot in yovember. i think that t really really want to see a gop candidate come out hiahead, ever one it is. >> on the congress fall front, democrats hoping to flip as many as half of th 14 congressional districts held by republicans in california. that would help them win back control of the house. how heated is that battle right

now? >> i think in the district people are probably starting to hear a lot more aboutit. tonight, friday night we're expecting representative walker to talk. nunes from the central valley. they're definitely going to be here. e thing is aconsideration is having again, a governor candidate in november would really help the rally folks and to come to tnd party come to the ballot. i think it's allort of tied together. >> only 25% of california voters are registered as a republican, so, aside from the candidates. which are the issues that are ikely to energize gop voters? >> you can see behind you part of our poster to repeal the gas x. i think that is a big part of their strategy. to get there on the ballot and really talk to voters about that tax and tie it to the overall leadership of democrats. there's a really wide range of

potential ballot members for november. rathink the candidates are going to be very important to them. and again,o have -- both congressional racesthup to e republican ticket -- governor's ticket, really talking about all of those issues is a big thing for them. >> it seems like they're getting a lot of national attention right? >>s tharight, i think democrats think it's ronic since lot of state legislatures are led byrublicans. they see this as a winning issue and as a way to raisean money awareness of their candidates. and repeal a tax they don't like. i think it is something that we are going to be hearing a about in the coming months. >> what about california sanctuary state policies. we're seeing a small but growing number of communities around the state that are opposing the

policy. hoimportant this issue to gop party leaders? >> wgl, al with the gas tax this is the other thing you hear talked about the most. it is a winner with more republican voters,8% of republican likely voters in a recent poll so they oppose thec sary a lot. more than half of overall voters say they support it. i think that's an intere gamble coming into the primary is a great way to rally the party. does that message pla in the myths of 10 million democrats. >> me people added their name to the list, all county in l ornia, past resolution against sanctuary policy. that is not begging the question among some critics. is this orchestrated by gop party leaders or a grass roots effort? >> we sign -- sort of training session where folks from the former rnc, republican national

committee. folks and some people who are very involved in anti-immigrants group areo offering of training for local officials and so that caused some blow backs.h i thinke's some things that are a bit of both. there is some coordination hehappening at national level and with the party. there's also a lot ofam anger ng grass roots republicans about it. >> marisa l reporting to us from the gop state con veng. thank you. >> thank you. >> that'll do it for us. you can mind more of our coverage at kqed newsroom. thanks for joining us.

robert: damage control. the white house is blindsided by one of the president's new lawyers. i'm robert costa. we examine the extraordinary legal battlepl on mul fronts from russia to money to ghngress. toon "washington week." >> the fund and the president repaid t >> former new york mayor and attorney rahm emanuel -- rudy guiliani dropped a bombshell and claimed the president reimbursed his attorney for a $130,000 payment todu an a film star to buy her silence. that statement about the 2016 campaign contradicted the president's own words on airforce one just last month. >> do you know about the $130,000 payment to stormy daniels? president trump: no, no. >> why do people -- es