now, they have not, according to kushner's representatives, they have not reached out to kushner to try to do an interview. we reached out to them on tuesday, as we were preparing this story, anderson, and one of the things they told us is that they have not heard from federal investigators. and they don't know whether there's any investigation that's targeting jared kushner. >> we should point out, kushner had met with the russian ambassador kislyak during the transition in trump tower. then there was a second meeting that he sent an aide of his to, he didn't actually go to the meeting with kislyak, but at kislyak's request, jared kushner did meet with a russian who heads up a bank, a russian who has connections with russian intelligence and the bank, i believe, was a bank that was under sanctions, is that correct? >> right, exactly. this is one of those state-owned banks, the russians state-owned banks. he did help set up or at least as a result of his meeting with kislyak, which by the way michael flynn was in. we know michael flynn is a big focus of this investigation. so because of

kushner and mr. kislyak, but also president trump's former national security adviser general michael flynn. we learned -- and we repted this last week about mr. flynn and his conversations after the election, which were centered on setting up a back channel that between president trump and president putin that would have circumvented u.s. national security agencies because neither side trusted them. we learned that mr. kushner was also part of those discussions. that was reported by "the washington post" first this evening. and as you pointed out, we've learned that mr. kushner is being looked at. those contacts between mr. kushner and mr. kislyak are being looked at by the fbi as part of their counterintelligence investigation. >> and jonathan, one of the issues facing jared kushner is why did you not disclose all of these contacts? and if the defense is -- i didn't disclose them because it was just an oversight, the more contacts he has, the more of these that pile up, the less credible the oversig

kushner and mr. kislyak, but also president trump's former national security adviser, general michael flynn. we learned -- and we reported this last week about mr. flynn and his conversations after the election which were centered on setting up a back channel that -- between president trump and president putin that would have circumvented u.s. national security agencies because neither side trusted them. we learned that mr. kushner was also part of those discussions. that was reported by "the washington post" first this evening. and as you pointed out, we've learned that mr. kushner is being looked at. those contacts between mr. kushner and mr. kislyak are being looked at by the fbi as part of their counterintelligence investigation. >> and jonathan, one of the issues facing jared kushner is why did you not disclose all of these contacts? and if the defense is, i didn't disclose them because it was just an oversight, the more contacts he has, the more of these that pile up, the less credible the over

it's all about jared kushner. the last 24 hours has been about jared kushner. >> i want to pick up and underscore what max said. we have two halves here. one-half, which we are talking about today is the sudden urgency of jared kushner to speak to the ruxs after the election or before but before the transition to get the secret channel. why did they want to do that? at the same time, this is max's reminder, we have in the past ten days new information. urgently, the russians want to electio election donald trump in 2016 and how much they did for his campaign. these two pieces always have to be seen together. well, i think you said earlier, is there an innocent explanation for why he would do this? maybe he wants to play junior henry kissinger and lost the plot. you have to remember the other piece and it's not consistent with that approach to the story. >> and, david, the -- again, i want to go to the idea, you have worked in the white house. you know what it's like to fill out disclosure forms of various kin kind

this is jared kushner going rogue. the only question that remains to me we are so close, to sound dramatic, we were close to the oval office. the question is why are these guys doing this? to protect themselves or to protect trump. i think we now have to ask that question of because there are too many people too close to trump who he is protecting who he is clearly trying to under mine or change the figures in this investigation, comey for example, and i just don't know what their motivation is, is it to protect themselves because of personal dealings or because of something bigger. we have to start asking that question now. we're at the oval office door. we're at the senior advisor to president trump. >> steve hall you're former cia russia expert, with this sort of alleged communication system with the russians through the russian embassy in washington involving a top advisor to the president-elect of the united states would that be unprecedented? >> well, wolf, there's so much about this particular turn that this sto

of the kushner's company. >> it is interesting that the russians seemed to contradict what jared kushnerween the campaign and foreign government. i am sure that'll be an issue that'll try to clarify. >> what exactly was discussed between kushner and the banker remains a mystery. though jared kushner offered to answer the senate intelligence committee questions about not only this meeting but another meeting he had with russian ambassado ambassado ambassadors kislyak. it was kislyak suggested that kushner meet with the russian banker. >> he did not mention either of these meetings maybe a topic of inquery. there is concerns that the russian bank havs have been und sanctions. when he met with him he was still ceo of the company. >> the meeting itself did not violate the u.s. sanctions but investigators would want to know what was said. >> i have a feel that it related to financial issues since it involved a russian bank. to his credit, he's willing to testify on that issue and i hope that the committee really thoroughly look at the reasons and why he's engaged in that conversation. seems t

kushner's lawyer tonight that jared kushner has not spoken with the fbi, at least not yet. joining us now from "the washington post" newsroom is one of four heavyweight reporter by-lines about jared kushner being a focus of the fbi investigation. thanks for making time for us, congratulations on this. >> thank you, and thanks for coming in on what probably should have been a day off. >> i hope you can't tell, other than the fact that i said it. part of the reason i wanted to talk to you is you were also by-lined in the really big story in "the post" on friday night that reported there was a person of interest in the trump-russia investigation who is working as a senior white house adviser. should we see your story tonight as essentially a part two? friday you said there was a person of interest, now you're naming the person. do they fit together that way? >> yes, definitely, the person we referred to last week is definitely jared kushner. we've done a lot more reporting to lock down that that person is jared kushner. we've also done more reporting to lock down at least one

i mean chris christie, who prosecuted kushner's dad, now offering them legal advice as jared kushner is now looking at fbi investigators knocking on his door. >> you know, you were mentioning how poised the young prince kushner looks. i got to tell you, he is a guy, given his father's experience, who i do not believe would prosper in prison. i think the hard yard would not be good for jared, and i think if the fbi is trying to lean into him, he's going to have a real contest of family loyalty versus not wanting to have several cell mates with him. >> well, that seems getting out of -- let me just say that seems getting out ahead of where the facts are. >> maybe a little. >> we should be clear about where the reporting says right now that he's a sort of figure of interest. he's not in the same category of people who are, quote, subjects in the investigation. but he is now someone who is going to have -- i mean the thing that i think i would find sort of terrifying, even if i were the most innocent person in the universe, and that may be the case of jared kushner, to have -- while i'm

this is jared kushner going rogue, right? i think the only question now that remains is that we are so close, not to sound dramatic, but i will be, we were close to the oval office and i think the question is, why are all these guys doing this? are they doing it to protect themselves? or to protect donald trump? i think that we now have to ask that question. because there are too many people, too close to trump who he is projecting, who is trying to undermine, or change the figures, and i just don't know what their motivation is, sit personal dealings or is it something bigger. we are at the oval office door, we are at the senior adviser to the -- to president trump. >> steve hall, you're a former cia russia expert, with this sort of alleged communication system, with the russians, through the russian embassy in washington, involving a top adviser to the president elect of the united states, would that be a. >> the short answer to your question is it would be unprecedented. i don't understand why it is that jared kushner, if

but as head of kushner companies.ts leaders met with numerous global financial executives as it developed a new strategy for the bank. it >> it's interesting it contradicts what jared kushner said when he said he was acting as a liaison between the campaign and foreign governments. so i'm sure that that will be an issue that we'll try to clarify. >> reporter: what exactly was discussed between kushner and the banker remains a mystery. though jared kushner has offered to answer the senate intelligence committee's questions about not only this meeting but another meeting he had with russian ambassador sergey kislyak that same month. it was kislyak who had suggested kushner meet with the russian banker. the fact that kushner didn't mention either of these meetings on his white house clearance forms may be a topic but he did rectify that. there's concern the russian bank has been under u.s. sanctions since july 2014. when kushner met with gorgov he was still ceo of kushner companies and the question remains was he looking

it slipped kushner's mind. when you have an accumulation of things that look problematic, that suggests more likelihood of a problem. and so my usual kind of belief that people are unorganized enough to be in a conspiracy -- i don't mean a legal conspiracy, i mean just kind of getting it together. i have to say my sense of worry and cynicism is kind of up here because of this accumulation of evidence. we're always told this meeting was nothing. it was no big deal. nothing of substance was discussed. it was just to say happy holidays, have a nice new year. none of that has turned out to be true. >> got some reinforcements here at the roundtable here. we've got ozzie pay ber a senior reporter with politico. michelle goldberg, evan sigfried, a republican strategist, author of gop gps. let's just pick up on what ruth marcus was just saying. she's saying you just got too many data points here for the explanation to also come back that it was this sloppiness. it was incompetence. it was, oh, we didn't know. what do y

i think the issue is jared kushner -- it isn't just jared kushner's relationship as a relative to the president, it's his approach to the job. the notion that kushner would be involved in the day-to-day, hand-to-hand combat in the war room based on his previous track record, for instance, being on a skiing vacation during the first round of health care stuff, is laughable. he has set up his own insulated little world with his own public relations person. our reporting on friday, maggie and i, found there was an operational staffer who was in the office across from jared's in the west wing. that person was kicked out so jared's pr person could be placed there. and the other thing about the friday story with the post, white house staffers were totally blindsided. jared kushner, we are told, told the president and a few other people around them the communications staff wasn't read in, ail, and here's the kicker, they were happy not to be involved. i talked to two or three people in the west wing over the past 24 hours, and they say, we feel that the revelations in the original jared stor

you've got jared kushner. we're showing all these incredible pictures of how close he was to this president. what value would he be to your investigation if he were to talk to y honestly? >> well, again, chris, i don't want to go into who our witnesses are. >> no. if he were to be a witness, what would he tell you? >> yeah. we just want to know if any witness was communicating with russia, was involved in the interference campaign that they were running, you know, had information about what the campaign's role was, and also, chris, if these are all just coincidences, the president is owed a clearing. so we would want to see that happen too. but if they're not coincidences, we want to make sure that anyone who worked with russia is held accountable. >> that's the only excuse he hasn't used yet. congressman, hold on. jay, let me ask you about -- explain the meetings so far because the congressman said he would like to know, under oath of course, what happened with mr. kushner when he met with the russians. tell

kushner's attorney has weighed in. cnn senior white house correspondent, jim acosta, is traveling with the president and joins us now from sicily. so what is jared kushner's attorney saying? >> well, anderson, it's just a brief staplejamie gorelick, the attorney for kushner. it says, mr. kushner previously veered to share with congress what he knows about these meetings. he will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry. so that's an indication they may no longer just be talking about congressional investigations, but the special counsel investigation being conducted by robert mueller, fbi and justice department inquiries, as well. we should point out that jared kushner and ivanka were on this foreign trip, we're here in sicily right now, the president will be attending the g-7 summit over the next couple of days. they jumped off of this trip yesterday. they went back after they met with the propoope there in rome. and the white house told us yesterday, you know, that was just part of the sche

kushner to avoid detection by the u.s. intelligence community.ne other thing that people are remarking about this story is that whoever leaked this story to the "washington post" was willing to disclose that the united states was monitoring the communications of the russian ambassador back to moscow. that's really unusual. and it's a damaging leak. there's no doubt about it. because that ability to intercept those communications will go away now. the russians know it exists. but whoever leaked it was so disturbed by the conduct that they were willing to allow that interception ability to go away, ari. >> you're saying something different than what some of our guests have focused on thus fare, that number one, intelligence sources are telling you the nature of the allegations in the "post" report is a game changer regarding kushner. number two, the actual sources and methods which we hear about i think from administrations in both parties, what is at risk with too much leaking, that the sources and methods here showing that line back to the kremli

and has noted it was though reportedly kushner's idea.mbassador kislyak reporting to his superiors, kushner made the proposal at a meeting at trump tower according to intercepts of russian communications reviewed by u.s. officials. kislyak said kushner suggested using russian diplomatic facilities in the u.s. for the communications. now to the second scoop which landed at 7:03 p.m.. the senate intelligence committee has asked president trump's political organization to gather and produce all russia-related documents, e-mails and phone records going back to his campaign's launch in june 2015, according to two people briefed on the request. the senate investigation is widening beyond individual aides to the campaign's paper trail. is that bad for trump that it widens to the larger campaign? and if you want to look at the politics that interplay with the oversight, why are senate republicans taking this position, and why now? joining us is congressman jim himes, a member of the house intelligence committee. thank you for joining me tonight.

why don't we ask jared kushner?ed kushner is the only official in the white house who never holds a press conference, never gives an interview, whose voice is never heard anywhere on a tape recording. just astonishing that it is taken for granted that of course jared kushner can't answer these questions. sure, he could. >> his lawyer, jeffrey, a former deputy attorney general for bill clinton, and she says he is willing to cooperate to answer questions from the senate intelligence committee once he's called. >> that's fine. for the senate intelligence committee. how about in the meantime? most white house officials don't wait for subpoenas to actually speak to the public. they work for the public. and they answer questions. there are legitimate questions about jared kushner. perhaps legitimate answers he could give. why doesn't he just give them? cnn would be happy to take them. i'm sure all of the other networks would as well. but the yied he idea he is some off limits all public scrutiny is incredible p. >> we wou

kushner in particular. that's really bad news for the white house because what they would have liked, right, is that the investigations stick with carter page, sort of dismiss carter page. jared kushner is at the front door of the oval office. he has security clearance. he's a senior adviser. we're close to the oval office now and that is disconcerting from anyone's perspective but has to be explained by the white house. they can no longer say it's just weird carter page or manafort who was fired. this is now in the white house. >> talking about this being close to the oval office in the white house i want to go back and take the viewers to january 15th. the then vice president-elect mike pence with chris wallace on fox news being asked about potential communications between anyone with the incoming administration and the kremlin. let's watch. >> was there any contract in anyway between trump or his associate and the kremlin. >> of course. why would there be any contacts with the kremlin. >> we knew that to

jared kushner, no way. however, is going to be for sure, well, he didn't really understand. yeah, well, then why isn't it on your disclosure form, and why in the world did you want a back channel to begin with? >> one thing i will say that's a characteristic of his dad and of donald trump and a lot of real estate people is a huge appetite for risk, which he took by getting behind this campaign and running it, and which his father took by spending $1.8 billion on an office building in manhattan. >> which is now leveraged to the hilt. >> yes, which is in trouble financially. >> yeah. >> chris -- >> i want you to follow up. >> if i can just make one other point. >> please. >> that there is not a hundredth of an inch of separation between donald trump, jared kushner, and mike flynn even after he was fired. so i think it's perfectly reasonable to then figure that donald trump was not the unwitting victim of this meeting that kushner and flynn had with ambassador kislyak. >> lizzie and david, many, many thanks. a

kushner's lawyer is saying in part that mr. kushner participated in thousands of calls in this time period and has no recollection of the calls as described. "the washington post" reporting the senate intelligence committee wants president trump's political organization to gather and produce all russia-related documents, e-mails and phone records going back to his campaign's launch in june of 2015. president trump on the final leg of his overseas trip this morning is defending his first budget plan amid backlash from both sides of the aisle. here's part of his weekly address. >> the big thing for me is economic growth, which is not possible without safety and security. that is why our budget reverses years of cuts to our military that have made us less safe in a more dangerous world. we're going to make sure the men and women on the front lines of freedom have the tools they need to keep us safe and totally secure. >> trump also tweeting this morning, many nato countries have agreed to step up payments considerably as they shou

. >> not just kushner.lynn top national security adviser, a man with enormous intelligence experience, the former defense intelligence agency. so he didn't come in from the real estate business. he came in from the intelligence community into this entire process. a lot of experience there. stand by, congressman. we have more to discuss. we will take a quick break. we'll be right back. ...positive role in what was going on in the world. there's a jacket that's reflective for visibility... ...a sleeping bag jacket, jackets that turn into tents. i usually do my fashion sketches on the computer. i love drawing on the screen. there's no lag time at all. it feels just like my markers. with fashion, you can dress people and help people. it's really cool to see your work come to life. mattress firmness? fortunately there's a bed where you both get what you want every night. enter sleep number and the semi-annual sale going on now. sleepiq technology tells you how well you slept and what adjustments you can make. sh

jared kushner has been played roles. and now he is the first person currently inside the trump white house to come under scrutiny. though, he's not believed to be a target of the russia investigation. president trump's son-in-law and most trusted advisor. >> he's very good at politics. >> now a focus of the fbi's investigation into russia's meddling in the 2016 election. officials tell cnn, the burrow is looking into a rang of topics with jared kushner. there is no indication kushner is currently a target of the probe and no allegation of wrongdoing. the trump campaign used to micro target voters in states that were critical to the president's victory. investigators are examining whether russian operatives were able to piggy bag on that effort with help from trump associates to help russia's own alleged operation, to push information online aimed at helping trump and hurting hillary clinton. kushner is also one of four trump associates and the only current white house staffer under scrutiny for having contact with sergei

kushner's attorney has said that mr. kushner's volunteered to share with congress what he knows about these meetings and he will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry. >> has the president discussed this though? >> i'm not getting into what the president did or did not discuss. your question assumes a lot of facts that aren't substantiated by anything but anonymous sources that are so far being leaked out. >> does he approve of that action? >> you're asking if he approves of an action that is not a confirmed action. that being said, i think secretary kelly and general mcmaster have both discussed that in general terms, back channels are an appropriate part of diplomacy. >> does the white house dispute that that happened? >> i'm not going to get into it. but your question presupposes facts that have not been confirmed. >> thank you, sean. the president retweeted this morning an article about that back channel that was based on an anonymous source that said that there was an effort to set up a

kushner.ner did, in fact, meet with the russian ambassador sergey kislyak. that was something not revealed at the time, but something house and senate investigators wanted to ask him about. and then as you mention, stephanie, kushner had a front-row seat to the handling by this white house of the jut any from the fbi and from the senate and house intelligence committees. and as we see, some of these inquiries start to look at how the white house handled the investigations. it's potentially going to draw in more and more top aides, kushner obviously in prime position as you suggested to weigh in on critical decisions related to the handling, including the dismissal of james comey. >> shane, i'd like you to react to this. i realize you're just learning this information now, but, you know, all along the administration, we had heard having jared and ivanka by president trump's side was a positive because they were a moderating force, a voice in the president's ear. it was very puzzling the way pre

the trump team on defense over kushner's role.merkel is warning that europe can't completely depend on the u.s. after summit talks with president trump that raised the anxiety levels of american allies. this as the president bills his trip a great success. >>> anti-muslim take. the president

kushner's lawyer is saying in part mr. kushner participated in thousands of calls in this time period.he has no recollection of the calls as described. "the washington post" reporting that the senate intelligence committee now wants president trump's political organization to gather and produce all russia-related documents, e-mails and phone records going all the way back to the to see campaign's launch in june of 2015. >>> president trump on the final leg of his trip this morning is defending his first budget plans amid backlash from both sides of the aisle. here is part of his weekly address. >> we need a government that spends on the right things, the safety, security, and well with being of our people and stops the waste and xwoos abusive taxpayer funds, whether in america or in global projects overseas. we will balance the budgets without making cuts in social security and medicare. we will achieve our goals by doing exactly what you do in your home, setting priorities, cutting the fat and growing new opportunities. >

manafort, and maybe jared kushner. we just haven't nailed that down. >> there's another aspect of your reporting not specifically reported to jared kushner. all right, matt, thank you very much. evan is coming back. in just a moment. we're going to report more on his russia reporting. >>> i want to get back to our other breaking news story because as votes are being counted in montana's special election to fill its open seat in the house, i want to bring in now the reporter who shocked the political world last night saying he had been body slammed by greg gianforte. it's ben jacobs of "the guardian." ben, thank you so much for joining us. we're glad you can join us tonight. we know you tried last night but you were being treated and also being interviewed by police. how are you doing? >> i'm as -- under the circumstances i'm doing okay. it's been a very bizarre 24 hours. this has not been anything i ever predicted or could ever imagine happening. it's been very surreal to be put into a story when i thought i was here t

kushner's attorney said kushner has no recollection of these meetings. joining me now nayyera haq, mr. nantz, former cia agent jack rice and former fbi double agent. wow, wow, and wow. i'm going to start with you, nayyera, how normal or typical would it be for son-in-law of the president of the united states or anyone in the administration to not only set up a back channel with foreign adversarial country but suggest doing so in that country's secure facility. >> it is so beyond the pale, it does start to boggle the mind and lead to why, why do all these actions, all these meetings in such quick order after the election f there was a goal to have a better relationship with russia, why not wait a few weeks and months. the idea this was happening during transition, without awareness of intel and diplomatic communities does point to something untoward happening. >> the fact the russian ambassador was taken aback by the suggestion by kushner they actually meet inside the russian facilities which the russians are monitoring and the u.s. cannot. it is bizarre,

but has jared kushner overstepped a mark?ll go deeper into the latest revelations involving russia. >>> plus we gee live o live to for reaction there about the news with jared kushner and his contacts with the ambassador. with type 2 diabetes a lower a1c is a lot about choices. but it can be hard sometimes, 'cause different sides of you struggle with which ones to make. well, what if you kept making good ones? then? you could love your numbers. discover once-daily invokana®, a pill used along with diet and exercise to significantly lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. it's proven to lower a1c better than januvia®. invokana® works around the clock by sending some sugar out of your body through the process of urination. it's not for lowering systolic blood pressure or weight loss, but it may help with both. invokana® may cause dehydration, which could make you feel dizzy or weak when you stand up, so be sure to drink enough water. important side effects to know may include kidney problems, genital yeast infections,

neither the white house nor kushner's attorney

let's ask about jared kushner.eporting that jared kushner is a focus of the investigation into alleged contacts or ties with the trump campaign and transition and russia. jared kushner is a senior adviser and the president's son-in-law. in charge of a lot of things. middle east peace, china talks, improved ties with mexico, criminal justice reform. what is your comfort level with a man now investigated with the fbi being in charge of all of these things. what does it say to you? >> in this country, you know you are innocent until prove inn gui guilty. we have a special prosecutor. we have an investigation on the house. one on the senate as well. we have fbi investigation. let it take its course. there is a bigger problem out here right now. these things -- let them take the course. when the facts come out, we will discuss that. the bigger issue is what the american people need a policy. a uniform policy that says what is an act of war defines that. what is an act of aggression. where is the red line for other count

does jared kushner have a role on that team?ared kushner is of course the president's key senior advisor on just about everything and he reportedly was one of the people who suggested that james comey be fired. so, there's a good chance that kushner is heavily involved in whatever efforts are underway inside the trump administration to push back on the russia probe. and now it appears that special counsel robert mueller is consolidating his role as leader of that investigation which could have an impact on just how the fbi scrutiny of jared kushner will play out. david from is still with me, and joining now is former assistant watergate special prosecutor jill wine banks. jill, i want to start with you on this question of whether or not jared kushner is a targeted person or merely a witness that the fbi would like to talk to in a benign manner. should jared kushner be involvement now in this probe? >> jared kushner should be concerned depending on what he knows and what he's done. and the terminology of whether he's a target, a

but it's important to point out we have not heard from kushner at all. he's not responded to questions about this report. >> so they're trying to deflect maybe not address directly this situation but is the white house doing anything to prepare to con front this storm of controversy that's going to greet the president on his return to washington? >> reporter: to a certain extent the white house has allowed things to happen to them instead of bluntly defending these attacks. they're establishing a war room inside the west wing that's going to be able to quickly respond to the some of the criticism that comes out as this russia investigation goes along. the president's children where getting involved again. the they've been meeting with teams from the white house, from the rnc and american priorities, which is a pac that supports the president. they're trying to get everybody on the same page so that there's a consistent message, not just about responding to these attacks about russia plus attempting to demonstrate the things that the they knefeel th presi

kushner had done would be looking at espionage. it is stunning. the oranther thing anybody who been in the usg knows the that intelligence committee monitors all of the calls of the russian ambassador you can't have a quiet, innocent conversation with a russian ambassador, and with any russian in government. again that's just disturbing that was not known or realized. >> that also speaks to the second part of the story, that is that they monitors kislyak expressing surprise along the lines of can you believe our good fortune. i've befriended this young man who is married to the president's daughter and is a future senior advisor. >> yeah in all his years in washington he never thought getting information could be so easy apparently but it does fit the pattern what we heard earlier in the year about how jared had met with the bank ceo, a sanctioned bank ceo, obviously he forgot to disclose that, as well, conveniently. throughout this campaign we know that jared had been the top advisor to in president, following each of the debates, the first perso

kushner would want a back channel communication and it's interesting that nobody from kushner's camp has denied the story, jacob. >> ken, break this down for me. help me understand. "the washington post" reported s kislyak was taken aback by the suggest that an american could or want to use russian communications here. why would he be taken aback by that? >> because these are spying adversaries, our two countries, right? and we are constantly trying to spy on them and they're trying to spy on us. we're very careful about our contacts with one another. he would know, for example, that the russian embassy in washington is closely monitored by the fbi so jared kushner can't just walk in there or even try to sneak in there without some extreme cloak and dagger maneuvers. so ambassador kislyak has probably never heard such a request from anybody, somebody who's going to be adjacent to the white house a few weeks from that point. he must have been stunned to hear that, jacob. >> not only adjacent to the white house, a senior administration official, ken. i want to talk to you about some ot

kushner's behalf. i really think peter made a good point in that president trump and kushner both have a real estate background and developers are known for just trying to skirt the law and get what they want done, accomplished no matter what. and just trying to avoid laws whenever possible. but that's just not how election law and the navigation of our foreign policy works when it comes to these tricky issues. and so, you know, from the get-go it really would have -- i feel like the trump administration would have found themselves in a much better place if they had surrounded themselves with attorneys who helped protect them from making, you know, if these are just innocent mistakes. but they're innocent -- even if they were innocent, they're mistakes that are going to be judged fairly harshly probably in the court of law if it does come to that. >> what we're really talking about is why, right, not in terms of what may happen, but i do do understand what you're saying there, elise. peter, build on wh

reuters is reporting kushner had several additional undisclosed contacts with kislyak but kushner's attorney says that he, quote, participated in thousands of calls in the time period. he has no recollection of the calls as described. the white house also pushed back calling the reports false and unverified claims. >> you're asking if he approves of an action that is not a confirmed action. that being said, i think secretary kelly and general mcmaster have both discussed in general terms back channels are an appropriate part of diplomacy. >> reporter: now the president's son-in-law is one of his most trusted advisers, but jared kushner has plenty of white house duties as well, including middle east peace and streamlining government and, wolf, a source familiar with kushner's role says that at this point he isn't giving up any part of that vast portfolio. >> he's there, and he's working. diane gallagher, thanks very, very much. >>> the white house tried to change the subject today touting the president's overseas trip and his agenda, but he can't escape the president's russia troubles. let's

head of kushner companies.bank said its leaders met with numerous global financial executives as it developed a new strategy for the bank. it's interesting the russians seem to contradict what jared kushner said, when he said he was acting as liaison between the campaign and foreign government. so i'm sure that will be an issue that we'll try and clarify. >> reporter: what exactly was discussed between kushner and the banker remains a mystery, though jared kushner offered to answer senate intelligence committee questions about not only this meeting but another meeting he had with russian ambassador sergei kislyak that same month. it was kislyak that suggested kushner meet with the russian banker. the fact that kushner didn't mention either of the meetings on his white house security clearance forms may also be a topic of inquiry, he did rectify that a day after the omissions. there's concern the russian bank has been under sanctions since july, 2014. when kuch ner met with gorkov, was still ceo of kushner compa

jared kushner. the fbi investigating contacts with russia. >> and president trump condemning leaks to the media in the group of tweets. can he defend the russian contacts with jared kushner. we have it all covered this morning. we begin with cnn's athena jones who is live in washington. good morning. >> good morning, david. the president is kicking off the week facing more negative headlines. angela merkel questioning the strength of europe's alliance with the u.s. tension from the first g7 summit following him home. trump's tepid support for nato, harsh words on trade and lack of commitment to the paris climate agreement put him at odds with the eu allies. angela merkel questioning his alliance with europe. the times we can rely on others is over. europeans must take our fate in our hands. president trump grading the trip a great success. he will decide on the paris agreement this week. trump targeting leakers in his white house. the latest bombshell leaks with trump's most trusted adviser. son-in-

jared kushner is under fbi scrutiny. cnn learning the election meddling is touching on multiple roles kushner played in both the trump campaign and during transition. also breaking, sources tell cnn that james comey knew a critical piece of russian information related to the hillary clinton e-mail probe was fake. we're told then fbi director feared the information would be leaked and undermine his investigation and that influenced his decision last summer to publicly declare that the clinton probe was over without consulting the attorney general. also tonight, as the russia probe intensifies, wall street journal is reporting that president is now actively considering major changes in the white house, including shaking up his senior team. mr. trump reportedly has been discussing the possible changes during his overseas trip that could include replacing sean spicer as press secretary and having his tweets vetted by his lawyers. and hillary clinton in her toughest attack on president trump since losing the election is publi

kushner's attorney said kushner has no recollection of these meetings. joining me now nayyera haq, mr. nantz, former cia agent jack rice and former fbi double agent. wow, wow, and wow. i'm going to start with you, nayyera, how normal or typical would it be for son-in-law of the president of the united states or anyone in the administration to not only set up a back channel with foreign adversarial country but suggest doing so in that country's secure facility. >> it is so beyond the pale, it does start to boggle the mind and lead to why, why do all these actions, all these meetings in such quick order after the election f there was a goal to have a better relationship with russia, why not wait a few weeks and months. the idea this was happening during transition, without awareness of intel and diplomatic communities does point to something untoward happening. >> the fact the russian ambassador was taken aback by the suggestion by kushner they actually meet inside the russian facilities which the russians are monitoring and the u.s. cannot. it is bizarre,

kushner did or didn't do, what the president did or didn't do.don't understand this infatuation with the russians. it just makes me scratch my head. first the president talks about nato as being obsolete, as if to appease the russians. we know the russians have been pushing for an end to the sanctions which are rightly imposed on them after the invasion of ukraine, the non-sense in ukraine and crimea invasion. but there seems to be some kind of infatuation with the russians. and what's really mind boggling is that when you know there are all kinds of accusations about ties between the trump campaign and russia, the russians should be the last person that anybody close to the president would want to set up a special channel of communication. >> final word on topic, do you think this is all sustainable? >> well, i think it's not sustainable. what else is going to come out? we keep hearing these things every single day. there's almost no end in sight. it certainly has to crip telepresident's ability to govern -- triple the president's ability to gov

kushner's lawyer releasing that statement on that report. "mr.kushner participated in thousands of calls in this time period. he has no recollection of those calls as described. but "the washington post" was not done. it says the senate intel committee now wants all russia-related documents, e-mails and phone records from trump's campaign, not just some of them. nbc's kristen welker has been traveling with the president. she joins me live from italy. two members of the president's team are facing questions about kushner on the record but off camera, at their insistence, we should note. what did they say? >> gary cohn and h.r. mcmaster holding that briefing. it was striking that we didn't hear from the president today during the press conference. typically, presidents hold press conferences when on a major foreign trip like this one. what did we hear from his top advisers? not a lot. they were peppered with questions but over and over again they dodged them. take a look at one exchange. >> this issue that you're talking to the general about is not

so the kushner knees news -- kushner news, which as vivian said, brings this much closer to the white house, broke last night after members had left town for the memorial day recess. so we haven't heard reaction specifically to that. but what the line is, from senator mcconnell, paul ryan and the rest, is that there are ongoing investigations. the senate intelligence committee being the primary one, also now the special prosecutor, and that's pretty much what they point to, when asked about kind of any area of this. they say we're investigating. the investigation will reach its conclusion. and mcconnell in particular, as you know, very disciplined, won't say anything else. it's, we're investigating, it will reach its conclusion. one other point i would make about all of this that i've heard from several lawmakers of both parties is that they do not hear about this issue in town halls from their voters when they go home. they don't hear about russia. they hear about health care. they hear about jobs. so they aren't getting pressure from constituents. even democrats, on this issue. >> b