that he doesn't build...he leases brand trump... ing that there is 34,000 employees under the trump organisation so he's more than a brand. a lot of people rely on him for his livelihoods. ok, i never denied that. all right, that's fine. isn't he also more than a brand in that he stands for policies, very clear policies and he taps into the zeitgeist when he says, look, i'm not happy about globalisation. he said, in particular about globalisation injune last year, "it has made the financial elite who donate to politicians very wealthy but it's left millions of our workers with nothing but poverty and heartache". and you know, he's not the only political figure on the right that is tapping into huge levels of dissatisfaction around corporate globalisation. marine le pen is doing the same in france and the brexit campaign in the uk tapped into that same energy and he ran on this campaign to bring backjobs, to stand up for the working class. what he is doing in power is very, very different and that's why as you said in your introductio

amy: have you gotten a response from the ivanka trump brand? publisher of ivanka trump's book told abc news in a statement -- have they responded directly to your keys, and next was a about the conditions in this one plant in indonesia that makes ivanka trump brand gloats? >> that yet.. amy:'s oror anything else you would like to found about what you found out people in the plant feel? this is a nonunion plant? >> there are two small unions represented, but they are quite a small fraction of the total factory population. so they are less than 10% of the factory. factoriesany of the in indonesia, are there number that are going to this district of indonesia or the minimum wage , which does a the least, is extremely minimal, is even lower than other parts of indonesia? >> yeah. there are quite a few korean apparel groups in this region. and i think there are over 300 companies this year. it has become quite -- it is becoming a fairly predominant industrial zone. in terms of the factor as a whole, i would just say it is a very run-of-the-mill indon

i don't think trump knows where his personal identity and and his commercial brand begins. >> host: i love this light in the book, you can't disentangle trump, the man from trump the brand. those two entities, you say, merged a long time ago. every time he sets foot in one of his properties, a golf club, hotel, the white house press corps intel he's increasing his overall brand value which alas his company to sell more memberships, rentable rooms and increase fees. so yes, how could you possibly separate this man from the brand? >> guest: the particular challenge of trump is the interest politics not playing by the traditional roles of the game but by playing by the traditional roles of branding. the only rule of branding is stay to to your brand. -- stay true to your brand. in the 1990s many activists expose the copies like nike and disney were betraying the promise of the brand, which made was empowerment for girls, or a family friend and kid friendly ethos. because the products were being made under conditions that were abusive to young people in those factories. so they were vulne

the rules of branding are you have to stay true to your brand. trump'snd is impunity through wealth and living the dream. this is what he's been selling on "the apprentice" and "trump 101" really back to the deal. the more he gets away with, the more he's reenforcing h is brand. the other issue is he's vulnerable on these questions. you will not see that kind of probing investigation applied to these economic appointments or his economic policies on the whole. you won't hear it from the leadership of the democratic party or the experts or in of the news networks. so you know i don't think his base fully understands what he's done. the reenforcing of the russian narrative at the exclusion of everything else. sh >> sure. i think makes people voted for trump who identified with his brand and have his relationship with him, making them feel under attack. it is kind of like their team trump and team democrats who are attacking their team and they're protected against it and trump is reenforcing with the means he sent out pounding cnn and all of that. it is on

sean spicer says he's not in a position to say the private brands trump are private brands what they would do or ve that came up as well and we should point that out. that's the 800 poundel at that point in the room. >> ll most daily be talk about trump's war with the press. you know what, he's not the first. >> presidents before him fouingts are the fres. philip terzy from washington examiner is here to break it down us with phil good evening. >> thanks for joining us. righted to be here. >> this is not a big sur surprise. the president has played the press card and played quite a bit in his administration. and dispute with state that's nothing new. >> nothing new and in fact the whole apparatus of the white house press office and so on is very much very modern invention in the american president dncy and even when i was starting out in the mid 20th century as a journalist here in washington. there was no special room for reporters. i mean those are all modernen ovation which we tend to think now have been there as soon as the time of jefferson an monroe and it's n t >> sure there's

the only way you could hurt the trump rand is he is not as powerful as he seems to be. that hurts the brand identity. >> this word emoluments' that most of never heard of before. >> they think it is a moisturizer. [laughter] now there are lawsuits in court to say he is making money illegally from the presidency is it just foreign entities to take rooms as part of those ill-gotten gains? is there anything to that?. >> it may well be it is interesting timing with the release of the book the data book came amount the news came that the general had launched this lawsuit alleging a violation of the constitution on those grounds and 100 lawmakers filed a lawsuit to of their own because what the constitution says is the president cannot do this without the permission of congress so there already was a lawsuit by a d.c. restaurant and restaurant workers bet the significance of congress people that they should have been consulted. they have the most legitimacy of the party to make this challenge and we may well discover trump is not as immune as eating says he is and i would just also add that the e

on our products. >> reporter: the absence of trump brand items which in the past he hasn't hesitated to promote like at a trump golf club last year. >> i built a great, great company. >> you have the water. you have the stakes. you have the airline i control. >> reporter: his daughter and senior adviser asked for manufacturing of their products around the world where labor is cheaper. from the trump home collection is made in turkey. these trump clothes are made in china, vietnam and indonesia. the president was touting golf clubs in new jersey where he was v.i.p. at the women's tournament. he promoted the event. visits to his own properties raised ethical terms because they own and profit from the company. the ethics cheech resigned over this issue, which he tried to raise in november, but the president's lawyer shouted him down. >> one of the suggestions we hoped to communicate is even if you are not going to sell them, commit to staying away. >> reporter: since becoming president, he's made 36 visits to trump properties in florida and d.c. he hasn't st

selfing closed of disney in this period open-ended celebration florida to live inside your favor brand and trump did this with real-estate. he started off traditionally but quickly went into the stratosphere of these super brand and "the apprentice" was a breakthrough and that was less about building buildings but more about his brand and selling his name at very high prices to other developers who wanted to have that name of this side of their resort. like those other brands this was often at the expense of workers we heard about the terrible conditions and also also the clothing around the world. you have a guy who can make millions of dollars by allowing him to put his name on it then becomes president and it is impossible to separate out and as family businesses including me ivanka clothing line and a the president so the groups. >> i don't think they can and separate that i don't take he knows where his personal identity fence fad for partial brienz begins behalf you cannot disentangle the man from the brain and. they emerged a long time ago there gregos he increases his brand value that al

on our product because it means it's the best. >> reporter: but notably absent today, any trump branded items, which in the past he hasn't hesitated to promote, like at a onmpaign press conference at a trump golf club last year. >> i built a great, great company. you have the water. you have the steaks. you have the airline that i sold. >> reporter: in business mr. trump, as well as his daughter and senior adviser ivanka, have outsourced manufacturing of their products to countries around the world where labor is cheaper and there are fewer regulations. coems from the trump home collection, for example, are made in turkey. amese ivanka clothes are made in china, vietnam, and indonesia. s er the weekend the president was touting his golf club at bedminster, new jersey, where he ens v.i.p. at the u.s. women's open tournament. he sent out eight tweets in three days promoting the event. ersits to his own properties have raised ethical concerns itcause the president still owns monprofits from his companies. earlier this month the government ethics chief walker shaub told us he resigned partl

logo removed saying the business had fallen into an utter state of disrepair which tainted his brand. trump's treasure. >> we're looking for trump's thrown, we didn't find it yet. >> a liquidation sale is underway, and everything must go. there was plenty of his signature razzle dazzle. >> we found this on the 34rd floor. >> want a hot pink jacuzzi tub? you got it. chandeliers or baby grand piano? name your price. how about a luxury marble shower? this shopper was found testing the merchandise. >> they're giving a sample, i wanted to see how the shower was. >> an entire bedroom packth can be yours for $300. >> thinking of buying a piece of trump's treasure? get to atlantic city and get in line. the sale ends when the goods are gone. dana bash, cnn washington. >> still ahead, a look at tonight's debut of the '90s, brooke baldwin is in santa monica. we'll take you there live. who was there for you when you had amnesia? you know i can't remember that. stop this madness. if it's appreciation you want you should both get snapshot from progressive. it rewards good drivers with big discounts on car

when is that or is it affecting the trump brand at this point, we're six months in? question. to understand what ivanka trump's brand deals with, the clothing industry makes 97% of its clothes overseas, most of the stuff we wear and buy is made in other countries. it's -- the issue comes in how does the clothing brand deal with oversight of those factories and and inspect those factories and making the right choices to ensure the environments are being monitored. when it comes to how it contrasts with the white house and trump administration and now ivanka's statements, you know, there's a really clear juxtaposition between the buy american, hire american, america first agenda and the ivanka trump label that depends on the truth of the modern global economy and depends on low wage labor overseas and that has never made a huge stride in bringing a lot of that labor back to the u.s. >> this is an issue all manufacturers have right now, the question is this is a major initiative out of the white house and if someone will lead the charge to shift it, one would think it w

wondering whether you can tell us if "made in america" will include the trump organization or ivanka trump brand committing to stop manufacturing wares abroad. >> again? >> as part of made in america week, is the trump organization or ivanka trump's brand will make any kind of commitment to stop manufacturing gifts, clothes other wares abroad? >> there are a couple of things interesting about that question. first, what is really important, is the president's agenda. regulatory relief and tax relief. focus on trying to make sure that all companies can hire here, request expand here to manufacture here. that's something that he wants for every company, you see him talk about that extensively. with respect to his own companies, obviously it is inappropriate to discuss how anything would affect their own companies. but can i tell you in some cases there are certain supply chains or scaleability that may not be available in this country. i won't comment on specific products. but the overall arching goal of course, is to grow manufacturing. to grow investment here in the united states and to grow u.s.

she's part of a team of reporters that investigated the ivanka trump brand's manufacturing practices. thanks for joining us in. your story, you said the ivanka trump fashion line had retail sales of about $100 million last year. what does she make and where does she make them? >> the ivanka trump brand which the first daughter still owns but does not control on a day-to-day management makes clothes, handmaid shoes and an array of overseas factories, we found ease cleeksively in foreign factories. we traced her current line of products to five specific countries -- bangladesh, china, yaind, indonesia and vietnam. in 2013, some of her shoes were made in eat open. open -- ethiopia. the brand said they don't feel it's possible to bring the brand back to the united states on large-scale fashion. >> yang: we learned the trump product made in 12 different countries including bangladesh and china, how does this compare with the rest of the industry? >> the reality is the american apparel industry is very firmly grounded in globalization and overseas production. about 97% of the clothes and sh

on our product because it means it's the best. >> reporter: but notably absent today, any trump-branded items which in the past he hasn't hesitated to promote. like at a campaign press conference at a trump golf club last year. >> i built a great, great company. you have the water. you have the steaks. you have the airline tha >> reporter: in business, mr. trump as well as his daughter and senior adviser ivanka have outsourced manufacturing of their products to countries around the world where labor is cheaper and there are fewer regulations. items from the trump home collection, for example, are made in turkey. these ivanka trump clothes are made in china, vietnam, and indonesia. over the weekend, the president was touting his golf club in bed minister new jersey where he was vip. he sent out eight tweets in three days promoting the event. visits to his own properties have raised ethical concerns because the president still owns and profits from his companies. earlier this month, the government's ethics chief walter shaub told us he resigned partly over this very issue, which he tried

special counsel bob mueller is looking a lot of transactions that involved not president trump but developer brand name trump going back at least a decade or further. anything involving russian money apartments,rump certain individual developments soho the 2013 miss universe pageant in moscow. vonnie: anything that might have a monetary aspects to it. with russian. >> any kind of financial transactions involving russian oresting in or through around a trump property. vonnie: not just the president himself but also some associates including jared kushner and others. >> yes, wilbur ross and paul common fort -- manafort. members of trump circle are of interest. they are looking at transactions duringbank cypress wilbur ross was vice chairman there. trump told thent "new york times" yesterday that anything that was being investigated that went beyond campaign ties to the in hiss, anything personal business would be out of the range. a i would think, i looked that. i think what he's saying, anything beyond transactions with russia. based on what he was reported to have said yesterday, i don't think he'

briefing monday, a reporter asked press secretary sean spicer if "made in america" week will apply to trump brands manufactured internationally. >> i am wondering whether you can tell us if "made in america" week will include the trump organization or the ivanka trump brands? >> i'm sorry? >> as part of "made in america" week, if the truck organization or evocative's brand will make any cut of commitment to stop manufacturing gives," and other things abroad? >> there are a couple of things interesting about that question. first, the president question yes agenda -- the president's agenda are focused on trying to make sure all companies can hire here, expand here to manufacture here. that is something he wants for every company. with respect to his own , it is inappropriate to discuss how it would affect their own companies. i can tell you in some cases, there are certain supply chains or scalability that may not be available in this country. i'm not going to comment on specific products, but the overall arching goal is to grow manufacturing, grow investment in the u.s., and to grow u.s. workers he

special counsel bob mueller is looking at a lot of transactions that involve not president trump, but developer brandg back at least a decade or further. anything involving russian money going into trump apartments, certain individual developments , the 2013 miss universe pageant in moscow, as well as the sale of a luxury property in palm beach almost 10 years ago. >> the legal authority robert mueller has, given to him by the deputy acting attorney general, is very broad. the language is to the effect of, matters around the russia campaign collusion questions and any other matter. i think robert mueller has decided that these other matters are very much part of his purview. he was the fbi director for a long time. i would call him a prosecutors prosecutor -- a prosecutor's prosecutor. i don't think he is going to hesitate to bring down the hammer on donald trump, donald trump jr., anyone who might be caught up in the crosshairs of this. i think he views his business as to get to the bottom of this, wherever it leads. anchor: there is a staffing shakeup at the white house. white house press secretary

those factories so they were vulnerable on that front and have to be responsive so trump is a different kind of brand because the idea that trump has always sold is the idea of absolute power through wealth. was selling the promise that you can be. so it's not coming to any kind of mutually beneficial agreeme agreement. so he has an aspirational identity with him. they represent the attainment of the power they want and that is the power when it comes to holding trump accountable to his promise. if you catch him lying or cheating if you catch him being nasty, anything that might hurt a traditional politician and whose brand identity has more ethical aspirational component, trump isn't hurt by any of this because it confirmed his identity that gets away from it because he is so rich. this is a challenge. the only way you can hurt them is by proving he's not as powerful as he needs to be in the bothered and the strings are being pulled by putin. i don't think most americans heard of this before but it's being bandied on moisturizer. [laughter] now that there are lawsuits trying to say donald trump is m

ivanka trump's brand or donald trump's many ties to ties, fragrance, anything like that.e haven't seen movement to make it in the united states. reporters asked the white house, how do you square made in america week with what your family does with its products, the answer, we'll get back to you. >> interestingly enough? ed in a briefing they were asked, the white house asked specifically in light of this, is the white house going -- is the president and this daughter going to do to bring it back to the u.s.? they said, we'll get back to you. david, great to see you. appreciate it. >> thank you. >> we'll get back to you. we'll be back in a moment. ahh. where are mom and dad? 'saved money on motorcycle insurance with geico! goin' up the country. love mom and dad' i'm takin' a nap. dude, you just woke up! ♪ ♪ i'm goin' up the country, baby don't you wanna go? ♪ ♪ i'm goin' up the country, baby don't you wanna go? ♪ geico motorcycle, great rates for great rides. your insurance on time. tap one little bumper, and up go your rates. what good is having insurance if you get puni

and in terms of donald trump's overall brand, how popular he is right now, look, what do you see here? you see polarization. you see almost no support from democrats, but you still see in this poll here over 80% of republicans with. and look, the bottom line on trump is, you've got a couple polls coming out in the last few days. i've seen his approval rating, 38, 39, 40%, somewhere down there. down to 36 in another one. the thing that republicans in congress and elected republicans see when they look at numbers like that is, they say, we saw those same numbers in the campaign. when you asked last year, donald trump's support against hillary clinton, high 30s, low 40s, that was consistent. when you asked about his favorable score, he fell into the 20s sometimes during the campaign. so republicans look at these numbers now. and for any other president in history at this point, these would be catastrophic numbers, and you might start to see defections from the party. but i think a lot of republican-elected officials look at this support and they say, hey, i saw this show last year. i saw

but there were some questions about the trump brand and where some of their products are coming from. from ivanka trump's blouses, some are made in bangladesh to the president's shirts and ties, some are made in china, other places. so, the white house was defending that. wolf, i can tell you it was quite the sight as we are seeing pictures of the president climbing into that fire truck on the south lawn of the white house. he said at one point, where's the fire? i'll put it out. but it is the smoke from the russia investigation the white house is trying to get beyond. and the white house is also focusing on health care. so, the president this afternoon was explaining why the health care vote is not happening this week. of course, john mccain, republican of arizona, recovering from surgery he had over the weekend. now, john mccain has been one of the biggest skeptics and critics of this white house. but today the president said this about mccain. >> we hope john mccain gets better very soon because we miss him. he's a crusty voice in washington, plus we need his vote. [ laughter ] >>

why doesn't he have a chance to say every product with a trump brand on it will be made in america? doesn't he have an opportunity to say every trump hotel will be made with american steel instead -- his sons are very vocal. they're good at messaging. >> they're businessmen. >> this would be a great addition to the messaging he's getting out the last two weeks. why hasn't it happened? >> that would be great. i want to go to something morgan brought up. what the economic structure will look like in the future? especially for millennials. i love coal miners. i love the industries that made the middle class successful. i get nervous when i feel like there's political messaging in nostalgia, based in yesteryear. when we like it or not, we have to believe forward with the things you're working on. talk about what the messaging can be about what that looks like. >> see, i disagree with you. i think that donald trump's message -- it's important in the election. let's be honest. there's a whole forgotten part of america that finally felt like someone feels their pain. when you look at what h

kicks off "made in america" week, a week that requires us all to pay no attention on the label of trump brands and shirts and much more. the big question, of course, looming over this entire week, do the trumps plan to lead by example? >> we believe in two simple rules: buy american and hire american. >> it's a popular presidential promise that donald trump has given time and again to a naltin eager for more american jobs, especially those in factory towns decimated by trade deals and other forces. >> we're going to do everything in our power to make sure more products are stamped with those wonderful words, "made in the usa." >> reporter: but those wonderful words rarely seem to be printed on trump products. and as the president launches "made in america" week at the white house, the big question looms. will president trump and his family lead by example? here's how the white house responded to that question earlier today. >> there are certain supply chains or scaleability that may not be available in this country. i'm not going to comment on specific products, but i will tell that you the o

american taxpayers have been footing the bill for pricey trips to trump branded properties and trips benefiting the trump family business in canada, uraguay, mira lago, new york and many other places. president trump's failure to separate himself from his conflicts of interests shows special interest groups around the world that influence can be sold to the highest bidder. i'll give him an a because apparently he's excelling at selling out potential. job approval. president trump has finished first in one area and we all know he likes to be a winner. with a 36% approval rating, president trump is the first president to have that low of a six-month approval rating of any president in polls dating back 70 years. so from the american people, apparently that's an f. not an impressive first six months, mr. speaker. if this were a reality show, i think he would be hearing the famous "you're fired, mr. president," but outside of that six months, just this week, mr. speaker, donald trump embarrassed himself with inappropriate comments before the boy scouts and insulted transgender americans s

special counsel bob mueller is looking at a lot of transactions that involved not president trump, but developer brande trump going back at least a decade or further. anything involving russian money going into trump apartments, certain developments like trump soho, the 2013 miss universe pageant in moscow and the sale of a luxury property in palm beach almost 10 years ago. >> the legal authority that bob -- that robert mueller has that was given him by rod roden rosenstein has is very broad. the language says words to the effect of matters around the russian campaign collusion question and any other matter. i think robert mueller has decided these other matters are part of his purview. robert mueller was fbi director for a long time. i would call him a prosecutor's prosecutor. he will go to where it have to take him even if it is unpleasant. i don't think he will hesitate to bring down the hammer on donald trump, donald trump jr. -- any of the people caught up in the crosshairs of this. i think he views his mission to get to the bottom of this wherever it leads. that is what we know about robert muel

brand. or donald trump's own brand, will they make their stuff in america. >> i'm not aware of any of those announcements today. i asked this weekend and i said will it come with a commitment from the trump organization or the ivanka trump company to make more of an effort, but you a president whose own business thrived off of outsourcing and he has been proud of making them overseas. but the bigger picture is that this administration wants to institute more economic policy books, trade policies, and importantly tax reform, including the lower tax rate to incentivize more manufacturing. >> and for the companies to may less taxes. guys, thank you very much on this round robin, lightning round on this monday afternoon. thank you very much, guys. >> thank you katie. >> michael caputo testified on friday, he is a veteran of new york politics and used to work in russia. thank you for being here and thank you for coming on sunday night with megaen kelly with me yesterday to dive deeper into the trump campaign to figureout this meeting happened in the first place. in that interview i did with you,

. >> there are no american workers involved in any of the trump brand. it's absolutely official. doesn't trump think the american people are stupid and he's getting away with it. the made in america doesn't apply to you if your name is trump. dagen: think of -- >> do as i say, not what i do and he's getting away with it. dagen: he has golf course and facilities and a winery in virginia. he's in the white house and they are thinking about jobs, and job creation so far into his presidency has been rock solid. >> it hurts them with the clothes and the ties and ivanka. but if you open a couple factories it turns it all around. >> he's telling people get excited about being american. swieg realize and backing away from it. it's corny, but he is the captain of this team we call america. >> what did president trump say? you wouldn't have any of this if not for government. that's what people react to. they react to the emotion of that. they want to say, yeah, there is some hope. dagen: go buy boots made in america. i think they are all hypocrites. the panel returns later. but first a trum

you, sean, i'm wonder if you can tell us if the week will liquidity the donald trump or ivanka trump brands to -- >> i'm sorry, if the -- >> as part of made in america week if the trump organization or ivanka trump's brands will make any kind of commitment to stop manufacturing gifts, clothes and other wares abroad. >> there's a couple things that are interesting about that question, first i think what's important is the president's agenda, reg la court and tax relief are focused on trying to make sure that all companies can hire here, manufacture here, that's something he wants for every companies obviously it's inappropriate to discuss how anything would affect their own companies, but i can tell you in some cases there are certain supply changes or scalable that might not be available. i'm not going to comment on specific products, but i will tell you the overall arching goal is to, and to grow u.s. workers here. so that remains the overall objective. >> obviously it might be a sacrifice given certainly questioning about going rates, but wouldn't it be a way to show leadership? >> again,

good new there, the president has been criticiz ed over made in america week because many of the trump branded products that carry both his name and a ivanka's name were other sees. it can't find qualified americans to work as cooks, it was t wait ers and housekeepers. we know president trump loves golf but he's not the first president to join the presidency. coming up next. [ indistinct chatter ] [ intense music playing ] it's here, but it's going by fast. the opportunity of the year is back: the mercedes-benz summer event. get to your dealer today for incredible once-a-season offers, and start firing up those grilles. lease the gle350 for $579 a month at your local mercedes-benz dealer. mercedes-benz. the best or nothing. >> i call upon all nations to do everything they can to stop these terrorist killers. thank you. now watch this drive. how we know president trump is definitely not the first commander in chief to hit the golf course. since the game has become popul

the lpga should not be rewarding trump's bigoted brand and normalize his platform and policies that degrade women and divide our country." and in malta, lawmakers voted overwhelelmingly wednesdsday to legalize same-sex marriage throughout the mediterranean island nation. this is prprime ministerer joseh muscat. >> i think it is a historic vote. it shows our democracy and our .ociety is maturing where we can all say we are equal. amy: malta is a predominantly roman catholic country that has in recent years seen a rapid shift away from its conservative roots. until 2011, malta was just one of three nations where divorce was illegal. and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, dedemocracynow.org, the war and peace repoport. i'm amy goodman. nermeen: and i''m nermeen shaia. welcome to all of our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. we begin today's show in brazil, where former president luiz inacio lula da silva was convicted on corruption charges wednesday and sentenced to nine and a half years in prison. he will remain free on appeal. lula has b

so why aren't the trump brands being manufactured in the usa? but first, australia's foreign minister julie bishop was asked how she would respond if president trump had told her she was in such good shape and beautiful as he did when he met the french president's wife? her response rather blunt. >> i'd be taken aback, i think. it's a rather interesting comment to make. i wonder if she could say the same of you. mom, i have to tell you something. dad, one second i was driving and then the next... they just didn't stop and then... i'm really sorry. i wrecked the subaru. i wrecked it. you're ok. that's all that matters. (vo) a lifetime commitment to getting them home safely. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. what's going on? oh hey! ♪ that's it? yeah. ♪ everybody two seconds! ♪ "dear sebastian, after careful consideration of your application, it is with great pleasure that we offer our congratulations on your acceptance..." through the tuition assistance program, every day mcdonald's helps more people go to college. it's part of our commitm

i'm skeptical that this will happen, but, remember, donald trump's brand is sort of being tough. he billed himself as being someone tough that barack obama in his mind wouldn't be. >> are you saying you wouldn't be surpri be surprised if he brought up election meddling many. >> i would be surprised because with his brand, i see no evidence of trump being willing to to that even with vladimir putin's face on it. he's certainly the one voice within the republican party and among the elected officials to say, well, yeah, most things suggest it was him, but will not issue the strong condemnations we've heard from virtually every other republican other elected republican official. would he do it? sure. but given that he hasn't done it yet, i guess i would be sur praised. that's it. i'm surprised daily about things that donald trump says and does, so i wouldn't be surprised if he did take that approach. >> let me ask you, jill. would it be putin who may bring up the russian meddling? they were involved involving the obama administration. >> i think vladimir wouldn't want to bring it up

trump branded sessions as weak for failing to investigate hillary clinton. though shortly after the election, mr. trump himself told "60 minutes" it was unlikely he would support prosecuting the clintons. >> i don't want to hurt them. >> i am pleased to endorse donald trump. >> reporter: sessions was the first senator to endorse candidate trump, and at his swearing in this february, the president offered a glowing appraisal. >> he's a man of integrity, a man of principle, and a man of total, utter resolve. >> reporter: less than a month later... >> i have recused myself in the matters that deal with the trump campaign. >> reporter: that decision has kept sessions in the dog house, prd the president's anger has grown while the russia investigation has expanded. today, senate republicans defended their former colleague. majority leader mitch mcconnell. >> i think he made the right decision to recuse himself from the russia matter. >> reporter: utah's orrin hatch. >> jeff has been very loyal to the president and i think he deserves loyalty back. >> reporter: ric