he also shared his peers on the relationship between the president and the executives bridge. >> jeff mason, white house correspondent and president of the white house correspondents association. you have seen the end of one administration, the start of a new one. from your standpoint, what have been the biggest challenges? >> the correspondents association is the main interlocking before the -- between the press corps and white house. of take the role at the end the obama administration and started with the new trump administration. -- that adjustment, the news administration comes into the white house with new priority, with less experience in this case in dealing with the press. she talks about -- we accompanied to the press corps. there's significant tension, that's not a surprise. you also have developed a good working relationship with president trump's press team. that has led to some successes on behalf of the press corps. there was certainly some battles that i did not expect to fight. for example, the idea of the press moving out of the press room was floated at the beginning of t

let's talk about all things jeff mason.tell me more about the piece that he's talking about missing his previous life, life in a cocoon, missing driving. did you get the sense that he actually enjoys being president? >> yeah, i think he enjoys being president. >> i think? >> yeah. i didn't get the sense -- he was a little wistful but we asked him what do you miss about your old life. he was responding to that. he misses driving. he feels like he's in a cocoon. he was surprised at how little privacy he gets but he also seems to relish it. he was definitely in his element in the oval office ordering a beverage, offering us a coke. i wouldn't have said that he looked like he was unhappy to be there. >> what did you think of that? >> it was a fascinating comment because it sort of speaks to one of the truths of the presidency that you just can't know until you're in it, i think, that, you know, it is the most powerful position in the world and yet you have very little autonomy in your sort of personal life and movement and how

he shared his thoughts on the relationship between the press and the executive branch. >> jeff mason, white house correspondent. you have seen the end of one administration, the start of a new administration. what have been the biggest challenges? mr. mason: it is the main interlock or between the press corps in the white house. we serve in that role and started with the new trump administration. the biggest challenges have been that adjustment, a new administration comes in with new priorities and less experience. and newegg is good we have had to talk to them about the needs of the press corps. we have also developed a good working relationship with president trump's team. that has led to some successes. there were certainly battles i did not expect to fight. we had a discussion about that and we're still there. the pool is flying on air force one. >>

[laughter] i would like to thank jeff mason in the white house, i would say -- jeff mason and the whitese correspondents association for helping me. i would say it is an honor to be here but that would be an alternative fact, it is not. no one wanted to do this. so of course it lands in the hand of an immigrant, that is how it plays out. [applause] don rickles died so you would not ask him to do this. the only man with thick enough skin to take a joke like that. that is my only trump joke. i was told not to go after the administration, that is my only trump joke. believe me. [laughter] it is amazing to be among the greatest journalists in the world and yet when we all checked into the hilton we all got a usa today. [laughter] every time a "usa today" flies at my door they are saying hey you are not that smart, right? , usa today as what happens when the groupon section takes over the newspaper. [laughter] is this an article about global warming or $.50 off tires, either way the pictures are so pretty. [laughter] tonight is about defending the first amendment and the free press. i am hon

jeff mason? fairer burden sharing. couple of questions. jeff mason? i may. first, as your view of vladimir putin changed after what has happened in syria? and what is the united states prepared to do if he continues to sport assad? a separate question. have you made a deal after your chat last night with the president of china about china helping to rein in north korea, and is it one reason you've decided not to label beijing a currency manipulator. i'll be speaking to... yeah, you want to go ahead? secretary general, do you believe nato should continue to bolster its presence along the alliance eastern border and are you confident you have president trump and the united states support for that? i'll be speaking with rex tillerson in a little while, calling in. ithink speaking with rex tillerson in a little while, calling in. i think he had a very successful meeting in russia. we'll see, we'll see the end result, which will be in a long period of time perhaps. but the end result is what is most important, not just talk. i result is what is most import

this is jeff mason and he is sort of talking about -- he is talking about the comedian tonight. ff as i mentioned earlier is a reuters reporter who is also president of the white house correspondents dinner. they all sit on the dais together, the president is up there. good news, we're not going to do a commercial and go right in there to what we have been listening to. >> ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the series finale of the white house correspondents dinner. oh, man. my name is hassan manage, or as i will be known in a few weeks, number 820187. who would have thought with everything going on in the country right now that a muslim would be standing on this stage for the ninth year in a row, baby! we had eight years of barack obama, what is another year? i see you barry, what you doing right now, you jet skiing while the world burns up? that's cool. that's cool. for those of you who don't know me i am a correspondent on the daily show on comedy central. now i see some of you whispering to each other, what is the comedy central? it's basically an internship for netflix. i woul

jeff mason, the president of the correspondents association and with reuters. and on saturday, we will bring you live coverage of this year's white house correspondents dinner, with entertainment by the daily show correspondent and with college scholarships and awards. president trump will not be attending this year's inner, making him the first president to skip the event since ronald reagan in 1981, who was recovering after having been shot. c-span coverage starts saturday at 9:30 p.m. eastern. ♪

. >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome jeff mason. [applause] >> i hope you enjoyed your dinner. we are going to kick start the program now with a video. so you better sit down if you want to catch it. ♪ >> there is a lot to celebrate, because journalism is such an important part of the freedoms we continue to enjoy in this country, and many other countries wish they had the benefits we had because our founding fathers were so brilliant with the first amendment. >> thomas jefferson famously said he would have a press without a government than a government without the press. when the press conference the government, that means the system is working. >> when you don't acknowledge at fundamental role that the press plays and protect it -- that is the role of the press secretary, to protect the role against those that are fuming at whatever has been reported. if you don't protect that relationship, we are losing something fundamental to our democracy. ♪ >> i think one of the things this past election has taught us, journalists, if they follow the stories and facts, and don't worry ab

. >> jeff mason, white house correspondent for reuters and president of the white house correspondents association, you've seen the end of one administration, the start of a new administration. what have been the biggest challenges? mr. mason: the correspondents association is the main interlocutor between the press corps in the white house. we served that role at the end of the obama administration and started with the new trump administration. the biggest challenges have been that adjustment. a new administration comes in with new priorities, with less experience dealing with the press, and new ideas. we've had to talk to them about the needs of the press corps, and we've had some significant tensions. that is not a surprise. we also developed a working relationship with the press team. i think that has led to some successes. there were certainly some battles i didn't expect to fight. for example the idea of the press moving out of the press room was floated at the beginning of the trump administration. we had a discussion and we are still there. >> let me ask you about the briefings

jeff mason may impose a dress code. i don't know if they're going to be cool with jeff.ey, guys, thank you. i wish you both a good night tonight. >> thank you. >>> what are your thoughts? tweet me @smerconish or go to my facebook page. hit me with something, catherine. >> tweet, do you have anything positive to say about potus? anything positive at all without being sarcastic? >> lee, did you just listen to my commentary. i am getting hammered already in social media for being too complimentary to the president because in the five minute commentary i just delivered i'm giving the man credit for changing positions not being rigid and not being an i had log. i think that is total fairness. at the same time i'm noting his impulsivity, his war with the media, the tweet craze and all the other stuff so it's all there. >> still to come on the 99th day of the president's first 100 north korea launched another ballistic missile. one day after secretary of state rex tillerson told npr that the u.s. was open to direct negotiations with that rogue nation. senator chris coons is in

c-span recently spoke with jeff mason about the president's decision. he also shared his views on the relationship between the press and the executive branch. you have seen the end of one administration and the start of a new administration. from your standpoint, what have been the biggest challenges? >> they are the biggest interlocutor, and we started with the new trump administration. i think the biggest has been this adjustment. a new president comes into the white house with new priorities, and less experience, in this case, in dealing with the press, and new ideas. we have had significant tensions. that is not a surprise. but we also developed a good working relationship with president trump's press team, on behalf of the press corps. there were certainly some battles that i did not expect to find, like the press moved out of the press room that was floated at the beginning, but we had a discussion about that, and we are still there, and the pool is flying on air force one, and that is all good things. host: between the west wing and the white hou

and that's probably why he was here. >> jeff mason just spoke.e heads up the white house correspondents' association and he said look i wasn't looking for somebody who's going to roast the president trump in abstengsau, that's not fair. so everyone's going to be looking at him to do a bit of that, because that's typically what happens at these dinners but for the first time in 26 years the president isn't there h himself. >> it's easier to be sincere and not just do the roast jokes that typically don't mean anything. he's a deep comedian. when i first heard trump wasabout going to boo there and when i heard it was hassan, i was like that's perfect. because he is sincere. >> i don't know how much of our show you've had a chance to watch. >> i'm stealing kate's joke about trump being a vampire. that's mine. and john, are you not entertained, not -- >> i know. i went to the internet as soon as the segment was over. we've been talking about divisive nature. it was the speech the president gave. the most divisive a sitting president has ever given. he

jeff mason spoke last night at the dinner. here's a look.video] >> we cannot ignore the rhetoric that's been deployed by the president about who we are and what we do. freedom of the press a building block of our democracy. undermining that by seeking to delegitimatize journalists is containing dangerous to a healthy republic. holding leaders accountable is who we are. e are not fake news. we are not failing news organizations. and we are not the enemy of the american people. host: politico reminds us trump is the first president to miss the event in 1981 when ronald reagan was recovering from gunshot wounds following that assassination attempt. jimmy carter skipped the dinner twice in his four-year term and richard nixon passed it three times out of his six opportunities to return. also celebrities, the 2016 dinner, president obama's last featured actors will smith, connie britton, kerry washington, emma waltson, rachel mcadams, quarterback tony romo and model kendall jenner among others. trump himself attended the 2011 dinner where he was

. >> please welcome jeff mason. [applause] >> i hope you enjoyed your dinner. we are going to kick start the program now with a video. so you better sit down if you want to catch it. ♪ >> there is a lot to celebrate, because journalism is such an important part of the freedoms we continue to enjoy in this country, and many other countries wish they had the benefits we had because our founding fathers were so brilliant with the first amendment. >> thomas jefferson famously said he would have a press without a government than a government without the press. when the press conference the government, that means the system is working. >> when you don't acknowledge at fundamental role that the press plays and protect it -- that is the role of the press secretary, to protect the role against those that are fuming at whatever has been reported. if you don't protect that relationship, we are losing something fundamental to our democracy. ♪ >> i think one of the things this past election has taught us, journalists, if they follow the stories and facts, and don't worry ab

then in his opening address, the president of the white house correspondents association, jeff mason, called press access under president trump good and constructive. but he also sent this clear message. >> we cannot ignore the rhetoric that has in employed by the president about who we are and what we do. freedom of the press is a building block of our democracy. undermining that by seeking to delegitimize journalists is dangerous to a healthy republic. >> his comments earned a standing ovation. later, though, the tone turned much lighter. >> i would say it is an honor to be here, but that would be an alternative fact. it is not. no one wanted to do this. so of course, it lands in the hand of an immigrant. that's how it always goes down. >> daily show correspondent hassan minaj headlined the entertainment part of the event, getting a lot of laughs. for continued coverage of the president's first 100 days, head to our nbc bay area facebook page and twitter feed. we're asking how you would rate the president's first 100 days. >> protesters across the country took to the streets to crit

the white house bureau chief and jeff mason with reuters. jeff mason. set the scene.al office. what was the atmosphere? what did you perceive in the president's demeanor? >> it was a relaxed atmosphere. it was conducted by myself and my colleagues. we walked in the oval office. a couple of friends of his seated in front of the desk. he invited us to visit with them for a while. w sat down and visited with them for 10 or 15 or 20 minutes. they departed. we started the interview. he was confident. he was relaxed and he was straight forward. we had a couple of other people come in during the interview. vice president pence walked in. chief of staff reince priebus walked in. it was a casual element about it. >> jeff, beyond the atmosphere, what surprised you? what was the headline to you? >> there were a few headlines. the biggest news that came out of it were the comments on north korea and saying a possibility of a conflict with north korea. also him signaling the united states would be tearing up or terminating the free trade agreement with south korea and comments abo

. >> and jeff mason, the other thing that's interesting, of course, is that since he took offers presidentn faced with -- some of them have been almost like ambush visit, the king of jordan, the saudis, coming in to say, hey, let me tell you how the world looks from our point of view so thus you had the reversal on whether or not the u.s. embassy should be in tel aviv or jerusalem. this is a deal that a lot of people in congress don't like and obviously the trump administration doesn't like but it was a deal that was negotiated with many countries. >> for sure. it was negotiated with a lot of u.s. allies, all of whom have an interest in that deal continuing and all of whom would be upset if the united states were to pull out or would try to pull out. i think to piggyback on what susan says it's interesting to see if this is on the list of things he had a very strong position on during the campaign and then after coming into office, understanding a little bit more about foreign policy and understanding a little bit more about what allies need, what the united states needs, if he decides act

then in his opening address the president of the white house correspondent association jeff mason called press access under the president good and kruskt but in a clear message. >> we cannot ignore the rhetoric employed by the president about who we are and what we do. . the freedom of the press is a building block of our democracy. undermining that by seeking to dele getting mice journalist is dangerous. >> the comments from mason earned a standing oinnovation. later the tone did turn lighter. >> i would say it is an honor to be here but that would be an alternative fact. it is not no one wanted to do this. so of course it lands in the hands of an immigrant it's how it always does do down. >> massen minhaj he is muslim he headlined the internetment part he appears on the daily show kinlted coverage of the president's first 100 days head to the nbcbayarea.com website or facebook page or twitter feed. we're asking how you would rate the president's first 100 days in office. many people already weighed inspect. >> protestors across the country took the streets today to criticize the presid

jeff mason. and perry bacon jr. let me start with you, jeff.e the first president since 1981 not to go to the dinner. that was romd reagan. he had just been shot. so he had an excuse. you had a big interview with the president. did you get the sense talking to him that he regrets this decision in any way? >> i didn't get the sense that he regretted the decision. i certainly got the seps he was still thinking about it and thinking about the issue. he talked about potentially coming the following year. he was following it closely. was interested but he didn't say anything about regretting his decision not to come. >> this was an extraordinary move not simply that he decided not to come. but the fact that there was essentially a boycott by the entire white house. none of the white house staff. >> it was unprecedented that the rest of the white house staff was -- i think essentially not allowed to come. they were said that they did that in solidarity with the president. i know that there are plenty of white house staff and others if the administrat

[laughter] i would like to thank jeff mason in the white house, i would say it is an honor to be heret would be an alternative fact, it is not. no one wanted to do this. so of course it lands in the hand of an immigrant, that is how it plays out. [applause] don rickles died so you would not ask him to do this. the only man with thick enough skin to take a joke like that. that is my only trump joke. i was told not to go after the administration, that is my only trump joke. believe me. [laughter] it is amazing to be among the greatest journalists in the world and yet when we all checked into the hilton we all got a usa today. [laughter] every time a usa today flies at me, i say hey you are not that smart, right? usa today is what happens when the groupon section takes over the newspaper. [laughter] is this an article about global warming or $.50 off tires, either way the pictures are so pretty. [laughter] tonight is about defending the first amendment and the free press. i am honored to be here even though all of hollywood hold out, it is going to be like the red wedding in here. for th

here's the president of the association jeff mason with more about the dinner. >> jeff mason, white houserespondent for reuters and president of the whitest responders association. you seem to end of one administration, the start of a new administration. from your standpoint what has been the biggest challenges? >> the correspondents' association is the main interlocutor between the press corps and the white house. we served in a row at the end of the obama administration and then started with the new trump administration. i think the biggest challenges of been that adjustment, and you administration comes into the white house with new priorities, with less experience in this case in dealing with the press and new ideas. we've had to talk to them about the needs of the press corps and

this year's entertainer is senior correspondent for "the daily show" in a statement jeff mason said the whca takes note of his announcement on twitter that he does not plan to attend the dinner which has been and will continue to be a celebration of the first amendment and the important role played by an independent news media in a healthy republic. 9:9:9:9:9: eastern here on c-sp. >> c-span's "washington journal" live every day with news and policy issues. coming up saturday morning, u.s. news and world report managing editor will talk about president trump's first 100 days in office. then in our spotlight in magazine segment, editor-in-chief will discuss her recent piece examining key drivers of key health care costs. watch "washington journal" live on saturday morning at 7:00 eastern. squoin the discussion. >> this weekend on american history tv on c-span 3, saturday night at 8:00 eastern on lectures in history go, a professor on victorian culture in the last half of the 19th century. these are the values they are promoting, restrain yourself. be modest, don't brag and make yourself

jeff mason. >> thank you. thank you, mr. president. i would like to ask you about two topics if i may. first, has year review of vladimir putin changed since syria, and what are you prepared to do if he continues to support assad? and on a separate question, have you made a deal after your cat last night with the president of china about china helping to rainy and north korea, -- rein in north korea? and you would not label them a currency manipulator? secretary-general, you think nato should continue to bolster its presence along the alliance's eastern border, and to you feel confident you have support for that? donald trump: i will be speaking with rex tillerson in a little while, calling in. i think he had a successful discussion in russia. we will see, we will see the end result, which will not be long, but the end result is important, not just talk. based on everything i am hearing, things went bell, -- went well, maybe better than anticipated. it would be wonderful as we were discussing just a little while ago if nato and our cou

jeff mason. >> thank you. thank you, mr. president. i would like to ask you about two topics if i may. first, has your view of vladimir putin changed since syria, and what are you prepared to do if he continues to support assad? and on a separate question, have you made a deal after your cat -- chat last night with the president of china about china helping to rein in north korea? and you would not label them a currency manipulator? for the secretary-general, you think nato should continue to bolster its presence along the alliance's eastern border, and to you feel confident you have president trump in the united states support for that? donald trump: i will be speaking with rex tillerson in a little while, calling in. i think he had a successful meeting in russia. we will see, we will see the end result, which will not be long, but the end result is important, not just talk. based on everything i am hearing, things went well, maybe better than anticipated. it would be wonderful as we were discussing just a little while ago if nato and

joining me to discuss is jeff mason, president of the white house correspondents association. jeff. is it better in a sense for the republic, for the dinner to be president-free and sort of, you know, low-key on the celebrity side and not so much about journalists schmoozing with white house officials? >> i think the dinner tonight you'll see is about the first amendment and celebrating the good work of journalists, celebrating our scholarship winners and celebrating the award winners who will receive awards from bob woodwar and carl bernstein tonight. you know what, the president was invited. and i think it is good, actually, for a democracy and healthy republic to be able to see that the press can interact with the president of the united states, even when there is tension in that relationship, which also goes back decades to other presidencies. there is always going to be tension between the press and the president that it covers. but we will celebrate those values that i was just talking about tonight without the president, and what is most important to me is that we have

jeff mason is the white house correspondent for the reuters news agency.correspondents association. welcome. thank you for your time. you know there was an easement over steve bannon‘s original appointment. —— amazement. there were fears the council was being politicised. what do you make of this? it is very interesting that he has been taken off the national security council. you are absolutely right to say it was very controversial when his name was very controversial when his name was added at the very beginning of donald trump's administration to that body. it is important to describe to the view was that the national security council is the top national security and by the in the united states which advises the president on wars and conflicts and disasters and disease. and to have the chief political strategist in those meetings and to have weight on those meetings and to have weight on those councils, i mean, the fact he has now been taken off is a sign that probably the new national security advisers has gained quite a bit of ground and has victory

in a statement, jeff mason said the whca takes note of his announcement on twitter that he does not plan to the dinner which continues to be a celebration of the first amendment and the important role played by an independent news media. our live coverage tomorrow at 9:30 eastern. likely that a number of members and house. limb look at the u.s. capitol. both the house and senate in session for one reason today. to extend the government spending authority for one week. the current spending was set to run out at midnight tonight. negotiations continue for the remainder and likely to come up. follow the senate on c-span 2 and house live here on monday noon eastern for general speeches and 2:00 p.m. for legislative work. >> this weekend, book tv on span 2 features include "the evangelicals", talking about the movement in america. > it occurred to me it was impossible to understand the evangelical right without understanding its history. doctrines, t of the ideology, points of view make perfect sense in the context of the 19th september try. >> senator elizabeth warren on the current state of

fair point. >> jeff mason, remarkable interview by you and your colleagues at reuters. e. >> jeff, thanks. >>> congressional leaders expect to pass legislation to prevent a government shutdown before tonight's midnight deadline. the senate will pass a short-term funding bill so that a final agreement can be drafted and shared with members. it hit a roadblock yesterday after republicans threatened to vote no. gop leaders have delayed that health care vote in the absence of a funding deal, president trump fired off six tweets over the course of three minutes yesterday, blasting democrats and accusing them of trying to force a shutdown. spokesman for chuck schumer said they show a starting lack of awareness for where the negotiations actually are. and plenty of finger pointing over who exactly was responsible for delaying the funding bill. >> the reason this government funding bill is not ready is because democrats have been dragging their feet. i'm confident we'll be able to pass a short-term extension and i would be shocked that the democrats would want to create a govern

. >> jeff mason as president of the white house associations -- correspondents dinner. thank you. >> my pleasure. >> and life coverage of the white house correspondents' dinner begins saturday at 9:30 p.m. eastern time. spirit today in the capitol rotunda lawmakers mark the holocaust museum national days of remembrance. president donald trump delivered remarks during the ceremony. >> survivors of the holocaust, museum friends, distinguished guests, welcome to the ceremony and this magnificent rotunda. some ask why we remember the holocaust in this hall of democracy in the capital of the free world, or for that matter why is there a holocaust museum on a national mall? the answer lies in the fact that this great country was founded on an idea, one of the most consequential ideas in human history. that idea is represented in this adjusted space and engraved in one entrance to the museum where visitors encounter some of the most important words ever written about our national values. they begin, we hold these truths to be self evident. the declaration of independence was p

the association jeff mason said the dinner would have been different even if he had attended. the comedian of the dai hosted the event and went after the president and his decision not to attend >> i get why he didn't want to be roasted tonight, by the looks of him, he's been roasting nonstop for the past 70 years. no one wanted to do this, of course it lands in the hands of an immigrant. >>> the staff boycotted the dinner with on a solidarity, no president missed this to event 36 years. last time was when ronald reagan was not able to attend after recovering from a gunshot wound in 1981. >>> demonstrators were out in cities across the country yesterday marching to bring attention to climate change, the largest march was here in dc where crowds made their way down pennsylvania avenue. upset with trump over his roll-back of environmental protections proposed cuts is easing oil and gas regulations, caroline schiffly reports. >> reporter: agree and organized is a perfect description for the climate march, they're sing, blowing bubbles, chanting, people are indeed angry at preside

let's bring in jeff mason now. the president of the white house correspondent.s this more of a bluff by majority leader connell or a rules change could come back to bite each party. obviously the power can change every two or four years. it will go from one party into the majority in the is something that republicans have to keep in mind. that said i don't think he's bluffing i think that is something that he's absolutely serious about and i think he's very confident that he will end up on the supreme court. whether he has to use that nuclear option or not. we have chuck schumer asking me to the press today stayed listened let's sit down let's work together. let's avoid the nuclear option. how would that offer the perceived and received. i don't think it will be taken very seriously. i think the white house is very proud of this nominee. he follows through on his promise to nominate something from that list that he had identified as a candidate and they're not in the mood to go back and look for other people that were not on the list. the democrats are smarting

. >> jeff mason, white house correspondent for reuters and president of the white house correspondents association, you've seen the end of one

. >> please welcome jeff mason. [applause] >> i hope you enjoyed your dinner.

speaking of being exposed, jeff mason who's the head of the white house correspondents association from acknowledge that press access under president trump has actually been very good. they've talked more to reporters had more press conferences. so what ultimately are they complaining about? >> they're complaining about not having one of their own in the white house, and they're going to spend the next four to eight years making sure that they're as much of an obstructionist force in d.c. as the democratic party. here's the issue of course that sulfide these people have re rediscovered their commitment to the first amendment. you know, last night some of them were tweeting about a pin that was left on every chair or at every table that says "first amendment." and i would love to have been in that room only for one reason, which is to give these people a pop quiz and ask them if they actually know all five freedoms that are guaranteed by the first amendment, because they think it's all about their own protection, as opposed to the rights that are guaranteed to everyone else. where were t

jeff mason, the president of the correspondents association and with reuters. and on saturday, we will bring you live coverage of this year's white house correspondents dinner, with entertainment by the daily show correspondent and with college scholarships and awards. president trump will not be attending this year's inner, making him the first president to skip the event since ronald reagan in 1981, who was recovering after having been shot. c-span coverage starts saturday at 9:30 p.m. eastern. ♪ host: this week on "q&a," historian david mccullough, discussing his book, who we are and what we stand for. host: when did you get the idea to do this? mr. mcculloch: i was upset by the tone of the political andaign and the animosity the nastiness of some of it. and i thought, i have got to do to bring someelp balance back to remind people of who we are and how we got to be where we are and what we stand thought -- speaking up and down the land for 40 years or more, maybe there are some of those speeches, if we tested them off and put them together, speeches where i

. >> jeff mason was quoted as saying the president isn't here to defend himself. >> he went after the president hard. very hard. as hard as comedians have in the past when the president has been right there. david gergen, we will come back, before that we heard from carl bernstein and bob woodward about the importance of journalism. >> absolutely. i thought the comedian and woodward and bernstein were nice bookends. about how important it is in this country, first amendment, that you can stand up and challenge the country you have just come to. we don't think about that very much. i thought what was really important about carl and bob, i have known them a long time, i was in the white house -- >> when they were doing what they were doing. >> i must tell you, it taught me a lot about the first amendment, how they did things. bob and i went to school a long time ago together. we would sometimes talk and i can just tell you, as he did that reporting back then, we were always told in the white house these guys are lying. they are out the screw us. that was the line inside the white house.

bill, the president of the white house correspondents association jeff mason had some very pointed wards the president, not so much a roasting, but they certainly seem like serious word. let's listen together here. >> we cannot ignore the rhetoric that has been impleed employed by the president about who we are and what we do. freedom of the press is a building block of our democracy, under mining that by seeking to delegitimatize journalists is dangerous to healthy republic. it is our job to report on facts and to hold leaders accountable. that is who we are. we are not fake news. we are not failing news organizations. and we are not the enemy of the american people. >> you hear a lot of cheering there. bill, how much do you think maybe the people in that room needed to hear that last night? >> i think they have been hearing for a long time that they have a responsibility to actually step up more than they ever have before because they are being challenged like they never were before. an attempt to delegitimatize the press. i think a lot of people in that room called for bernstein to st

jeff mason. >> thank you. thank you, mr. president. i'd like to ask you about two topics, if i may. first, has your view of vladimir putin changed after what has happened in syria? what is the united states prepare to dos a he continues to support assad? on a separate question, have you made a deal after your chat last night with the president of china about china helping to reign in north korea? is that one reason you decided not to label beijing a currency manipulator? >> i'll be speaking to -- you want to go ahead? >> for the secretary general, do you believe nato should continue to bolster its presence along the alliance's eastern boreder? are you confident that you have the president and the united states' support for that? >> i'll be speaking in with rex tillerson in a little while. he had a very successful meeting in russia. we'll see the end result, which will be in a long period of time perhaps. but the end result is what is most important, not just talk. and i think that based on everything i'm hearing, things went well, maybe better than anticipated. it would be wonderful

house correspondence association dinner later tonight but in that interview with reuters he told jeff masonte house correspondent for reuters who is also president of the white house correspondents association that he does want to attend the dinner next year. >> here's hoping. i'm sure everyone would love to have him but also president trump does like to tell people in front of them what they want to hear. >> i'll be putting on my black tie and heading over to the dinner later tonight as i have been doing for many years. it's an important cause and we're bringing journalism students this year as our guests. stand by for president trump's 100 day rally. it's about to get underway. also starting soon the annual white house correspondence association dinner. the president as you know is skipping it launching new attacks on the news media instead. we're going to update you right after this. i love kiwis. i've always had that issue with the seeds getting under my denture. super poligrip free. it creates a seal of the dentures in my mouth. just a few dabs is clinically proven to seal out more foo

joining me, jeff mason, president of the white house correspondent's association and correspondent forharles blow, columnist for the "new york times" and matthew contenetti, weekly contributing editor for the weekly standard. are you starting to need a flak jacket? >> they have become contentious, there's no fact about that. the fact that it's getting so much attention, people are interested. the american public is interested in how the relationship with the press and white house continues. they're interested to see how sean answers the tough questions that he's getting from the white house press core. >> do you trust what he tells you now? >> i think it's important to listen carefully and to fact check this administration like we would for any administration. >> so they're no different from any other administration? >> i'm just not -- i'm not going to contrast. i'm going to say it's important to fact check and there's no -- there's no question that there are things that have come out of the mouths of administration officials and this administration including president trump that have

the president told reuters, and jeff mason, who will be on the "roundtable." he's the president of the white house correspondents' association. he told him on thursday he'll come to the dinner next year. i think there was a little bit of a -- regret in the white house about not showing up. i don't think it will hurt him or necessarily help him all that much. by the way, paula, you were not here. it would have been perhaps a little bit different. i didn't see hollywood celebrities at the dinner last night. >> you're a celebrity yourself, j.k. don't sell yourself short. >> yeah, look in the mirror, jon rning.ther headline this ing not to bring the room down here. one other headline. president trump has invited the president of the philippines. a man named rodrigo duterte. to the white house. he once called president obama, i'm quoting here, a son of a whore. this is after warm words from president trump. for authoritarian leaders in other places. if you take this all together, what do you think the strategy is here? >> well, certainly what the strategy isn't is

conversation, talking about what's happened with regard to nafta, north korea and we'll get into that with jeff mason who is one of the reporters interviewing him. he talks about how he misses driving. i have proof from facebook, this is what melania trump posted two years ago. ♪ i know. taylor swift. that's a whole other discussion. so he does drive or he has driven but doris, he says it's a security issue. we all know presidents can't drive. i think even president obama -- i think he's learning to drive now, is that right? >> no question. last summer when i interviewed him for "vanity fair" and i said what are you waiting for most when you get out of here, he said, i can't wait to drive a car in the open spaces and not having someone following me. he would go around his place and elude the secret service and go right to the edge of cliffs as if he was going to go over and he was feeling like, i've got freedom. lbj had this incredible amphibious car. he took me once and i didn't know it was going to slip into the car. he got so mad, he said, what's the matter with your harvard people, don't you have

. >> let's play that sound bite from last night, bob woodward and jeff mason talking about the responsibility and the rights of a free press. here's that clip from last night. >> mr. president, the media is not fake news. [ applause ] we are not failing news organizations, and we are not the enemy of the american people. >> and that much is obvious, but jason, does it mean the president's winning, that we've got some of the top journalists in the country standing up and saying we're not the enemies, that they're using his language and rhetoric? >> i think the media really played into this whole cultural divide that we're seeing and the fact that i think too many in the mainstream media just don't understand and can't digest what happened last fall with the election. i think too many in that room last night still fundamentally look at trump supporters as if they're a bunch of rubes and they can't understand -- >> not true in that -- >> hold on. let me finish up. you got to let me finish up. the president, i think, is absolutely right to criticize the media whose coverage of him so far is 89% o

. >> jeff mason as president of the white house correspondents' association and reporter for reuters, thank you. >> my pleasure. >> the dinner will also include the announcement of several journalism awards as well as college scholarships but by the association. president trump will not be attending the dinner. he will be holding a rally in pennsylvania. >> now fcc chair by talks about the future of internet regulation. freedom works and the small business partnership council hosted the event at the museum. >> good afternoon everyone. my name is adamant. adam. i'm the president of freedom works and what welcome everyone here. a lot of people are talking today about president trump's first 100 days. i would suggest that yes, the supreme court is a big deal but the things that chairman pai are working on right now potentially have the longest impact of anything coming out of this administration. that is definitely debatable. so i've been a freedom works fr 12 years. in 12 years ago when i started,, visit one of the first issues we worked on. and last year i was very nervous that we were

the president told reuters, and jeff mason, who will be on the "roundtable." and who was the president of the white house correspondents' association, he told him on thursday, he'll come to the dinner next year. so i think there was a little bit of a -- there was a little bit of regret in the white house about not showing up. i don't think it will hurt him or necessarily help him all that much. by the way, paula, you were not here. it would is have been perhaps different. i didn't see hollywood celebrities at the dinner last night. >> you're a celebrity yourself, j.k. don't sell yourself short. >> yeah, look in the mirror, jon karl. you'll see a celebrity looking right back at you. >> one other headline this morning. not to bring the room down here, but one other headline this morning, president trump has invited the president of the philippines, a man named rodrigo duterte, to the white house. this is after warm words from president trump. this comes after authoritarian places like russia, china, turkey and egypt. if you take this all together, what do you th

last night jeff mason also the head of the white house correspondent's association had this to say.. >> we are not fake news. [ applause ] we are not failing news organizations. and we are not the enemy of the american people. >> do you think, jeff, or anyone should even be dignifying these remarks by the president by defending the media? >> it's a hard situation to put yourself in. as a swrournlist there's always discomfort with becoming the story. donald trump has made us the story. he's made us a political argument in a way that arguably no president has in recent memory. so, yes, there has to be some push back. you've seen this from some organizations, more forcefully than others. but, i mean, donald trump, of course, understands both the power of his anti-media argument and his need to be in the press all the time and have relationships with the reporters he so often maligns. there is no president in recent memory who spends more time on the phone with reporters, more time in interviews with them. so this is an ironic case he's making. >> as you know the president wrote the hea