and he said so in the interview today with lester. he said, i did it. i did it before he came in the room. i did it after. i'm the official cause. i'm the real cause of why it happened. he gave me some paperwork, but i directed him to give me that paperwork. so that doesn't square, as you said, with what sean spicer said the other day, it didn't square with what ms. sanders said the other day on the president's behalf. who is directed to put out these untruths if it's not the president? who has the power to say things that aren't true and have it directed through the white house? lester did a good job of getting the president to admit the obvious now. i think the other parts to this, the three times that comey, according to the president, told him he was not under investigation, well, it's very hard to unpack that interview he had, or those interviews, because they were in the context, unfortunately, of comey applying for renomination, if you will. so you don't know how accommodating he was and the language he used. but probably richard nixon wasn't und

lester? inquiry in connection with any other inquiry, lester? inquiry in connection with any other inquiry, lester? inquiry in connection with any other inquiry, lester?inquiry n connection with any other inquiry, lester? >> peter alexander with that developing news from the white house tonight. thank you. >>> now to tio race for an open congressional seat in montana. the hard-fought contest turned to blows when the republican candidate allegedly body slammed a reporter trying to question him. the republican election has drawn high profile national interest from president trump on down as democrats come within striking distance of a potential upset. tonight republican greg gianforte faces an assault charge as both parties try to measure the impact as voters going to the bolls. nbc's kasie hunt. >> reporter: a reporter's question answered with violence. >> just -- sick and tired of you guys. the last guy that came here, you did the same thing. get the hell out of here. get the hell out of here

no good layer would have let lester holt give this interview. many white house aides were against it. here is more of that nbc news exclusive. >> are you angry with mr. comey because of his russia investigation? >> i just want someone that is competent. i'm a big fan of the fbi. as far as i'm concerned, i want that thing to be absolutely done properly. >> let me ask you about your termination letter to mr. comey. you said i graeatly appreciate you informing me on three separate instances i was not under investigation. >> what you said about supporting the idea of investigation, the man who just said that tweeted very recently "it's a total hoax" a taxpayer charade. >> it was set up by the democrats, lester, and it was a way, an excuse for them for losing. there was no collusion. there is no collusion between me and my campaign and the russians. the other thing is the russians did not affect the vote. and everybody seems to think that. if russia or anyone else is trying to interfere with our elections, i think it is a horrible, and i want to get

lester? >> richard engel tonight, thank you. >>> as the investigation continues, we're learning more about the victims, many of them children. and stories of the survivors who witnessed the moment of terror up close. nbc's bill neely has their stories. >> reporter: after a concert they waited months for. >> oh my god! run! >> reporter: a horror they never expected. >> a flash and then a huge bang. >> reporter: tonight phil and kim are still reliving their nightmare, 20 feet from the suicide bomber waiting for their daughter and granddaughter. >> i was thinking my babies are in there. my babies are in there. >> i checked through every single person injured, dying and dead to make sure it wasn't my daughter and granddaughter and that's going to live with me forever. >> reporter: in kim's arms was an injured 14-year-old, fraya lewis. did you think she was going to die in your arms? >> yes, i did. >> yes. >> reporter: she survived. her 14-year-old friend nell jones did not. after charlotte campbe

it's the same question i put to lester holt.dent seems very proud of the relationships he's built on the foreign stage. on the world stage. and he says at one point the world used to laugh at us but they're not laughing now. does that seem ironic in the wake of the kind of weak he's had? >> certainly there's an element of irony there in terms of the way the world views american domestic politics. when president trump was talking to us on monday night, he was pointing to things like the fight against isis, again the steady parade of isis leaders and various countries whether it be iraq, syria or afghanistan taken off the battlefield in recent weeks as part of his stepped up efforts there. president trump said we'd hear some more about that in the coming weeks. also talked about things like his relationship with president xi of china or president el sisi of egypt. talking about bringing back the american aid worker who's over there. and there's a lot of nuance in all of those cases, obviously, but in the president's mind, those ar

lester? >> and i know that on capitol hill there has been a lot of talk about tapes the president may or may not have had, but how has this story hit capitol hill? >> reporter: almost instantly we're getting reaction from senators from both parties told by reporters about what is happening and you're hearing from them. i want you to listen to a little bit of that response. >> suggestion that he might have shared highly classified inappropriately with the russian foreign minister is deeply troubling. >> it's disturbing and let's find out what the details are and whether or not it happened. we just have an initial report so it's very difficult to comment until we get all the facts here. >> i don't know if it's accurate to be troubling. no idea. >> reporter: so to summarize, lester what we're hearing from the hill concern but also calls for more information about what is is really happening. the white house scrambling to provide the response. we're hearing from the secretary of state, as well an

lester? >> peter alexander, thank you. >>> and now to the other major headline we mentioned. late word that the investigation into russia's election meddling has now reached inside the west wing to look at a current white house official as a person of interest, though the name is not made public. we get more from nbc news justice correspondent pete williams. >> reporter: government sources familiar say the activities of a current white house official whose name was not revealed are now under investigation as the effort to examine russia's meddling in the presidential campaign reaches a new stage, news first reported by "the washington post". >> that's important because there is talk of former trump associates or advisers, but now we're told the investigation actually reaches into the white house. >> reporter: officials disclosed that subpoenas that have been issued for former national security adviser michael flynn, and one time trump campaign chairman paul manafort, looking into their financ

lester? >> peter alexander with that developing news. thank you. >>> now to the open senate seat in montana. the republican allegedly body slammed a reporter who was trying to question him. the election has drawn high profile national interest from president trump on down. as democrats come within striking distance of a potential upset. tonight republican greg gianforte faces an assault charge as both parties try to measure the impact on voters going to the polls. nbc's kasie hunt. >> reporter: a reporter's question answered with violence. >> just -- sick and tired of you guys. the last guy that came here, you did the same thing. get the hell out of here. get the hell out of here. >> reporter: montana republican con greggal candidate greg gianforte charged with misdemeanor assault after allegedly body slamming ben jacobs, a reporter for "the guardian" newspaper. this shake-up hours before polls opened on this election day. >> next thing i know i'm being slammed down to the ground, and congres

lester? >> hallie jackson starting us off at the white house tonight. thank you. >>> in the meantime, the white house is reeling from another revelation about fired national security advisor michael flynn. an explosive report that the trump team knew he was under investigation before he was given that powerful job at the white house. nbc's peter alexander has details. >> reporter: despite his short tenure as national security adviser, michael flynn still casting a long shadow over the trump white house. "the new york times" reporting flynn informed the chief lawyer don mcgahn weeks before he was under federal investigation for secretly working for a paid lobbyist for turkey during the campaign. the white house says the story is flat wrong. despite the warning, mr. trump named flynn to name the national security team granting him access to the deepest secrets before firing him three weeks later. sharing the transition team, vice president elect mike pence who to this day maintains he was unawa

your retook what i heard from lester holt's exclusive sber view. he admitted among other things, directly asked will james comey if he was under investigation and basically this came in the course of what was in affect job interview for comey. >> if if you have a sense of smell, this stinks. i actually asked james comey if president trump himself was under investigation, and director comey said, i can't answer that. so i don't know what was exchanged between the president and director comey. i will say that this is all the more reason we need an independent commission to get to the bottom of this and to make recommendations. and i can announce right now a second republican has signed on from michigan. so i'm seeking more republicans to work with us. i think a bipartisan path is the best way to find out just what happened with russia's interference. >> to be clear you need a byn bipartisan path. your leverage is limited here. how do you force this equation? how do you make this case beyond making on it television, to execute this case that there sho

lester? >> kelly cobielle, in london, thank you. >>> there is new fallout tonight from our exclusive interview with president trump who unleashed a morning tirade on twitter, to some looked more like a threat to the fbi director he just fired, telling james comey he better hope there are no tapes of the conversations and the white house is not confirming or denying that the president has a secret recording system. our white house correspondent kristen welker has details. >> reporter: president trump all smiles at this mother's day celebration with the first lady but this morning lashing out in a tweet storm seeming to unleash a warning to his recently fired fbi director. james comey better hope there are no tapes of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press. those striking comments come after mr. trump described a january 27th dinner with comey during an interview with lester. >> we had a very nice dinner and at that time he told me you're not under investigation. >> reporter: t

lester. >> thank you. still ahead, beating colon cancer.ow a few steps can raise survivor's chances of living longer, why they may want to go ahead and have that glass of wine with dinner tonight. >>> also, violence erupts in the nation's capitol, foreign leader's body guards attacking protestors. why they may not face any consequences for it. yet some cards limit where you earn bonus cash back to a few places. and then, change those places every few months. enough with that! with quicksilver from capital one you've always earned unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, everywhere. welcome to unlimited what's in your wallet? mmmm. mmmm. mmmm... ugh. nothing spoils a moment like heartburn. try new alka-seltzer ultra strength heartburn relief chews. it's fast, powerful relief with no chalky taste. [ sings high note ] ultra strength, new from alka-seltzer. enjoy the relief. what bad back?gels work so fast you'll ask what pulled hammy? make pain a distant memory nothing works faster stronger o

and later, the president attacked james comey today in his lester holt interview. but in the same interview, the president defended michael flynn. >> why that worries white house lawyers. that's coming up. call you? tom! name it tom! studies show that toms have the highest average earning potential over their professional lifetime. see? uh, it's a girl. congratulations! two of my girls are toms. i work for ally, finances are my thing. you know, i'm gonna go give birth real quick and then we'll talk, ok? nice baby. let's go. here comes tom #5! nothing, stops us from doing right by our customers. ally. do it right. whoo! look out. ally. do it right. can lead to sleepless nights making you feel helpless. take control of your sleep with unisom® sleeptabs. you fall asleep 33% faster and wake up recharged with all the benefits of a good night's rest. take control of your sleep with unisom®. i need the phone that's where i happen to be... to be the one that rings. i need not to be missed phone calls... to not be missed. i need seamless handoff... canyon software. from rec

lester? >> kristen welker at the white house tonight, thank you. >>> health care not the only issue on the president's agenda. he signed an executive order that waves into the delicate question. how government strikes the balance between church and state. nbc's peter alexander is here in manhattan where the president is tonight. hello, peter. >> reporter: lester, good evening. president trump returning to his hometown of new york city for the first time since taking office. earlier today as you noted, at the white house flanked by faith leaders, the president signed an executive order allowing religious leaders more political speech and allowing federal agencies to drop obamacare's mandate that religious groups provide contraceptive coverage in the health insurance plans. president trump announcing the first foreign trip with stops in saudi arabia, israel and a trip to the vatican where he will meet with the pope. critical of his proposed border wall, back here at the museum on the island of

first of all, lester is a pro, and he knows how to ask the question. but it's like he's talking him tiny a perjury problem because he made him directly make these claims. three conversations, two on the phone. he was basically voicing the words he says that comey used. >> the president will pivot to another position later on. >> it's hard to check. the only way you check this is have mr. comey come out and say whether or not he did, in fact, on three occasions give the president, twice by phone, once at dinner, the heads-up that he was not being investigated. now, you know, i know a little bit about this process. >> yeah, right. >> typically given that level of investigation, you're not going to go in and confirm or deny that. >> who wouldn't confirm or deny it? >> comey wouldn't. >> comey. >> but, again, let's take it back. remember how exorcised everybody got about a certain plane on a certain tarmac with the attorney general and the former president of the united states and what went on there. >> duh. >> hello? >> are you not in that same space here

lester? >> all right. kelly, thanks. >>> now back here in jerusalem. a beautiful historic city and a complicated and troubled land and tonight president trump is here calling for peace and getting a receptive ear as the face of a new american approach in the region. the president welcomed with full honors upon landing early today in tel aviv directly from saudi arabia. that flight was part of a history-making day that took the president to the heart of old jerusalem and a sacred site no sitting u.s. president has visited before. mr. trump also made news with off-handed remarks that immediately refocused to troubles he hoped to leave at home. chief white house correspondent hallie jackson has our report. here in israel, showered with praise by benjamin netanyahu, a striking contrast to form er president obama's welcome. and that wasn't the only difference. a moment of silence marking history at the western wall. donald trump the first sitting u.s. president to visit the holy site, along with h

i'm lester holt. for all of us on nbc news, thank you for watching and good night. who )s doing this. trt: 4 ==jess/take vo== award-winning. ed. >>> at this point we want to make sure that we can try and catch the person who is doing this. >>> right now at 6:00 we're following breaking news. investigators release new information as they zero in on an arsonist in the east bay. >>> the news as 6:00 starts right now. thanks for joining us jessica aguirre. >> raj mathai. when the sun goes down could the arsonist strike again? so far five cars torched across the east bay. tonight getting the first look at the person of interest in this case. at the top of the surveillance video you can make it out. you can see a man leaving the scene of one of these car fires. nbc bay area rick boone joins from us pleasant hill where we got an update. >> reporter: yeah they talked a lot about that tape, the viewers just kmekd out there. we're showing that to you. that person of interest they want to you look very closely.

i'm lester holt.you for watching and good night. >>> right now on "access hollywood," idol between kelly and ryan? separating fact from fiction. >>> dance mom star app by abby lee miller's fear heading to prison. >> that terrifies me. yes. >> then gigi's dad has all access to his

lester? >> all right, pete williams, thanks. >>> many inside the fbi were shocked by comey's firing including comey himself but nbc news learned his dismissal came so abruptly, many in the white house were caught by surprise. nbc news chief white house correspondent hallie jackson has the timeline of how it all went down. >> reporter: tonight, new details on the 24-hour scramble inside the white house, after the decision to dismiss james comey that stunned even insider. by 5:00 p.m. tuesday, an increasingly fed up president made up his mind to fire the fbi director. but by 5:40 when the news broke, some key aids hadn't heard about the firing. instead, they watched it flash across cable, growing angry, not about what the president did but how it was revealed. frustrated by the lack of strategy. by 6:00 the president called nine senators but not comey, who was in california. >> no matter how you fire someone, it's never an easy process and he -- so he felt like following protocol was the best t

and later, the president attacked james comey today in his lester holt interview. but in the same interview, the president defended michael flynn. >> why that worries white house lawyers. that's coming up. trust #1 doctor recommended dulcolax. use dulcolax tablets for gentle dependable relief. suppositories for relief in minutes. and dulcoease for comfortable relief of hard stools. dulcolax. designed for dependable relief. >>> director mccabe, you obviously have several decades of law enforcement experience. is it your experience that people who are innocent of wrongdoing typically need to be reassured that they're not the subject of an investigation? >> no, sir. so beautiful. what shall we call you? tom! name it tom! studies show that toms have the highest average earning potential over their professional lifetime. see? uh, it's a girl. congratulations! two of my girls are toms. i work for ally, finances are my thing. you know, i'm gonna go give birth real quick and then we'll talk, ok? nice baby. let's go. here comes tom #5! nothing, stops us from doing right by

lester? >> pete williams in washington, thank you. >>> turning now to the horror today at a car auction near boston as hundreds of bidders gathered inside the auction building hoping to get a deal one of the vehicles accelerated into the crowd, killing three people and injuring several others. nbc's stephanie gosk has witness accounts of the chaos inside. >> reporter: bystanders captured the horrific aftermath on their phones. >> oh, my god. >> reporter: the injured lying on the ground right next to the mangled jeep that hit them. >> we have multiple injuries, multiple injuries. >> reporter: the jeep plowed through a crowd of people. >> back up, back up. >> reporter: traveling so fast it rammed straight through a wall, killing three at the scene. >> all of the sudden just gave it gas. i don't know what happened. flew by me. instead of hitting the cars in front of him, went through the lane of people. >> reporter: it happened inside a massachusetts auto auction, packed with a crowd of hundreds

until they had sat down with lester holt, president trump had hunkered down. he wasn't making public appearances. we hadn't seen them rough because it's sitting for days. the white house said he's prepping for the meeting next week. it's people who work for the press office and the jar nneka. it's important to know that the information you're getting is accurate. >> let's get to the third question which i think is a tough one, the president said in his interview with lester holt, and we'll see it tonight on other have for him to do. he also reports some of the collateral information, we all know, upthat. r i that he wasn't under investigation. short of getting a statement from comey himself, how are we going to find out if that's true or not? >> get it from comey himself. the president would say, yeah, i'm not sure there's much more to it at that point. >> it occurred, what do you think, in two phone calls about whether this is discussed. you heard the white house say, in their view, they do not believe that is inappropriate. >> it certainly seems a strange co

for now, i'm lester holt.ryone. >>> an extraordinary interview between our colleague lester holt of nbc news and the president of the united states, donald trump. the first interview with the president since his firing of fbi director james comey. some of the highlights, mr. trump telling lester holt that director comey was a, quote, show boat and a grand stander, that the fbi has been in virtual turmoil that the president planned to fire director comey regardless of the recommendations that he got in those two letters, that director comey told the president that he was not under investigation and that director comey wanted to stay on as fbi director. tyler mathson and the "power lunch" lunch gang getting ready to come on the gang. what do you make of this extraordinary interview between our colleague lester holt and the president? this within the going to make questions go away, in fact, it's probably going to raise more questions as lester just concluded with nbc's hali jackson. the president's remarks here

he sat down with lester holt. we will bring you portions of that interview but start with the russia collusion probe the president called a charade and his answer suggests he's not even entirely sure there is one. >> is there an investigation under way, an fbi investigation, is that a charade. i don't know if it is an an fbi -- there's so many investigations, i don't know if it's an fbi investigation or if it's congress, the senate. >> james comey testified it was an fbi investigation. >> i think they're also helping the house and senate. you have fbi, house and senate and they have other investigations. >> the president is speaking with nbc's lester holt. no probably object it, the fbi is conducting an investigation. lester holt said director comey testified to it under oath before he was fired. no shortage of news from this interview a fascinating interview we will bring you throughout the program tonight. another headline the president exposing the white house story line about his firing of fbi director james c

i want to share more of what he said to lester, specifically about russia. because he continues to dismiss it in the face of so much opposition. take a listen. >> regardless of recommendation, i was going to fire comey, knowing there was no good to time to do it. and, in fact, when i decided to just do it i said to myself, i said, you know, this russia thing with trump and russia is a made-up story, an excuse by the democrats for having lost an election they should have won. >> it's an excuse. clint, i watched that testimony yesterday. you had the head of the nsa, mike pompeo, you had some of trump's guys up there, not necessarily democrats, how do you make sense of the president's comments here, trump and the russia thing? >> president trump has been briefed on this. he's been briefed in closed door setting, there is a public intel assessment that came out, everyone has testified to this. there is no question about it, except for president trump. he's the only one that still questions and says if this happened, if this happened. there is no evidence to say

so i'm okay with those discussions, lester.good thing, not a bad thing. >> back now with the -- one of the thing that was interesting, again, in the days -- the day that comey was fired, his people said this had nothing to do with russia. one of the things in the interview was the president was thinking about russia when he decided to fire russia. quote, when i decided to just do it, i said to myself, i said, you know, this russia thing with trump and russia is a made up story. it's an excuse for the democrats for having lost an election that they should have won. doesn't that contradict his saying it had nothing to do with russia? >> in ancient times it said all roads lead to rome. with donald trump, all roads lead to russia. you see it top of mind, you see it when he fires the guy leading the investigation against him. you see it when he defends his investments. his son in 2008 said russia maybes up a cross-section of our assets. we see a lot of money pouring in from russia. at least at one point -- >> he could have been talk

i'm sure it is a question that lester holt will pose to the question on this day. we know chuck grassley, the senator from iowa today, said they he and dianne feinstein had been briefs, and in simple summary said there is nothing they have learned that would contradict that assertion by the president. a point that white house aides quickly distributed, but the question that remains unresolved is were these contacts initiated by the fbi director, or were these questions posed first by president trump to his fbi, or now former, fbi director at the time james come jy. >> lester holt has been interviewing the president this hour and it will be on later on on msnbc, nbc nightly news, and the "today" program. the timing of the previously scheduled interview perfectly timed to get answers to a lot of questions coming up. kristin welker, you have been all over the hill, interviewed the vice president, and there is nervousness among a number of republicans, chairman burr not happy about the timing of the firing of james comey. others from republican leadership, despite what

you can see more of lester holt's interview. exclusive interview with the president from the white house on "nightly news." coming up, more white house claims. some poll numbers of how the public views snap chat and the firing. think again. this is the new new york. we are building new airports all across the state. new roads and bridges. new mass transit. new business friendly environment. new lower taxes. and new university partnerships to grow the businesses of tomorrow today. learn more at esd.ny.gov ykeep you sidelined.ng that's why you drink ensure. with 9 grams of protein and 26 vitamins and minerals. for the strength and energy to get back to doing... ...what you love. ensure. always be you. it's just a burst pipe, i co(laugh) it. no. with claim rateguard your rates won't go up just because of a claim. i totally could've - no! switching to allstate is worth it. the shlike a bald penguin. how do i look? [ laughing ] show me the billboard music awards. show me top artist. show me the top hot 100 artist. they give awards fo

i'm lester holt.f >>> right now on "access hollywood," william, kate, harry, and girlfriend are all set, and we are there for the final pippa's extravagant wedding. >>> secrets from the clubhouse are only the beginning. andy cohen's empire on the move. >>> then breaking down the

lester? >> all right. peter alexander, thanks. >>> in maryland tonight, the fbi is called in to assist in the investigation with a black student stabbed to death, a white student charged with his murder. a seemingly random act of violence. investigators are trying to determine whether it was a hate crime and whether it was the most violent episode of race related incidents on college campuses. here is nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: at the university of maryland, anguish and outrage at the stabbing death of 23-year-old richard collins, set to graduate tomorrow from nearby buoy state university and commissioned just last thursday as an army second lieutent. exclusively to nbc news. >> a parents' worst nightmare just reached my doorstep. >> reporter: police say collins was waiting for an uber ride with two friends when a stranger, 22-year-old student sean urbanski screamed at colins to move then allegedly stabbed him in the chest. his attorney says alcohol and drug abuse may have played a role. a visibly up

so i'm okay with those discussions, lester.nk it's a good thing, not a bad thing. >> nbc's kelly o'donnell is live in the white house briefing room. also with me, tim carney, the commentary editor for the washington examiner, and tamara keith, npr's white house correspondent. kelly, first to you. how is this firing of comey and the controversy over the interview with lester holt where the president said that he had had this dinner with the now fired director of the fbi -- how does that resonate inside the white house? >> well, they believe that the president was able to, in a more thoughtful, lengthy way describe some of the interactions, not the tweet length where sometimes he has a burst of a thought that can be hard to interpret. here you saw the president explain things. the white house has pushed back on any suggestion that the president's conversations with then director comey were in any way a conflict or applying of political pressure or things like that. others have said for the president to be dining with or speaking

>>> for of the interview between the president and our own lester holt. >>> and some foreign policy news you may not have heard, what he's saying about the troops in afghanistan and a pre-emptive strike in north korea. >> >> a lot of people are giving me high marks in terms of what i've done in terms of foreign policy. >> our team is here and ready to go. kristen welker at the white house, pete williams, thomas due bree, senior white house correspondent for bloomberg, margaret. and we've got to get to kristen welker first. the president seems to be tweet trolling, poking the finger in the eye of the reporters. there is one tweet in plr that morning that really carries some weight. it's about james comey. walk us through this. >> reporter: it amounts to a threat against james comey. let me read you what the president tweeted and then we'll do spns on the other side. he essentially tweeted this morning, james comey better hope there are no tapes of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press. that effectively a warning shot at the former fbi director after current and former fb

lester? >> hallie jackson, thank you. >>> the fallout from this news has been swift on capitol hill where some top republicans appear to be losing patience with the president. we get that from nbc's kristen welker. >> reporter: alarm bells on capitol hill tonight as members of the president's own party become increasingly critical of him, the senate's highest ranking republican unleashing this sharp rebuke. >> i think it would be helpful to have less drama emanating from the white house. >> reporter: privately republican aides on capitol hill tell nbc news the president's latest controversy is raising serious questions about his ability to govern, but publicly they're not yet breaking ranks. are you starting to lose confidence in president trump? >> no. >> reporter: republican senator bob corker, who campaigned with candidate donald trump, calling it a downward spiral. can you tell me what you meant by that? >> i think i was -- they obviously have some organizational issues that they need to

did he actually intend to try to shut down the investigation or saying he hoped it would end, lester. >> pete williams tonight, starting it off. thanks. we want to bring in now our political director of moderator of "meet the press," chuck todd, what do you make of all of this? >> this is a gut check moment now for congressional republicans. they've already been taking on a lot of water politically either having to defend or deflect actions by president trump. just today many republicans were not wanting to see any cameras running around capitol hill, not wanting to comment on the story you're about to report on next, this issue of the president sharing classified information for the russians. level. this becomes this -- introduces this idea of obstructi now congressional republicans even though it's their own party's president they will have no choice but to start issuing this becomes this -- introduces this idea of obstruction of justice. inclusive's a memo, >> now congressional congressional republicans even though it's their own party's president they will have no choice but to st

yesterday lester holt asked the president -- >> who believes that, first of all? >> nobody. >> who believes loyalty to the country. that is a lie, another lie by the white house. mika, i talked to people in the intel community yesterday including some of the top people at the fbi over the past two decades, they tell me in no uncertain terms in realtime james comey came back flummoxed, could not believe what the president had asked him to do. david ignatius, they said it was a flat-out lie, the president was delusional for even saying this and said james comey would have never asked for an extension on his term because he had a ten-year term and he knew he had nothing to worry about. >> joe, this is one of those situations where the worst case actually seems to be happening, as i wrote this morning in "the washington post." as we've learned that the original account that was given of the firing of comey was an obfuscation of what the president told us himself was his motivation, clearly going back months to get rid of months to get rid of comey and said specificall

lester? >> hallie jackson at the white house, thanks. comey's firing triggered criticism on both sides of the isle and reignited calls from dem democrats for an independent democrats for an independent democrats for an independent democrats for an independent m democrats for an independent special prosecutor to take over the investigation into possible collusion between the trump campaign and russians to influence the russian. we get more from nbc's kristen welker. >> reporter: amid mounting outrage on capitol hill tonight, some lawmakers are questioning the country's very foundation. do you see this as a constitutional crisis? >> absolutely. >> this is a stress test of the constitutional democracy. what we're living in right now. >> reporter: not just democrats. republicans are joining, richard burr chairs the senate intelligence committee. >> the timing and reasons for this decision made little sense to me and i haven't heard anything since last night to clarify it in any way. >> the timing

he said this to lester holt.ometimes with trump there's a whole lot going on, but if you can pull through the manure, you can find a pony. here's what he said to lester. >> that's quite the visual. >> that's from reagan. you know this russia thing with trump and russia is a madeup story. he actually revealed that when he fired him he was thinking about russia and the investigation and that's the one thing he shouldn't have discussed with the fbi director. >> how about asking three times whether he was under investigation. should he have done that either? i was just saying during the break when my kids used to ask me, am i in trouble, i would know they're in trouble. >> you covered them as a reporter. is it a staffing thing? is it an organization thing? is it too many people having the president's ear or not the power to say to the president, you know what, you shouldn't do this right now or we got to get our stories straight. >> one of the last pieces you said, the people who don't have the power, he's got these

in the president's interview with lester holt mr. trump discussed for the first time his decision to fire the fbi director revealing the true motivation behind his decision even contradicting his own vice president and closest staffers as he offered new details on his conversations with the former fbi chief. he also raised eyebrows when delving into the russia investigation. it began with a stinging and personal rebuke of the now ex-fbi chief. >> look, he's a showboat, a grandstander, the fbi has been in turmoil, you know that, i know that. everybody knows that. you take a look at the fbi a year ago, it was in virtual turmoil. less than a year ago. it hasn't recovered from that. >> monday you met with the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. did you ask for a recommendation? >> what i did is i was going to fire comey. my decision. it was not -- >> you made the decision before -- >> i was going to fire comey. there's no good time to do it by the way. >> in your letter you said i accepted their recommendation. you had already made t

. >>> let's turn now to president trump's revealinger lester holt. at the heart of it was the russia investigation. his contention comey told him three times that he was not under investigation. >> was it a phone call? did you meet face to face? >> i had a dinner with him. he wanted to have a dinner because he wanted to stay on. >> he asked -- >> that dinner was arranged. i think he asked for the dinner. and he wanted to stay on as the fbi head and i said, you know, consider t we'll see what happens, but we had a very nice dinner and at that time he told me you are not under investigation. >> we'll have more take aways from lester holt's interview with news 4's tracie potts in a minute. >>> four things we're learning about comey's firing. one current and one former fbi agent says he did not seek dinner. sources say it was requested by the white house and comey would er in that same interview the president said he had planned to fire comey all along. that contradicted previous explanations from the white house. meanwhile, on capitol hill acting fbi di

in an interview with lester holt, yesterday, the president insisted it was all him. it's not the only time the white house struggled to get its story straight. the administration's message can you say daily if not hourly. so who do the person people trust the president or his spokes people or neither? president trump says trust them all, just don't blame them if they get it wrong. he tweeted with lots of things happening, it is not possible for my surgates to stand at podium with perfect accuracy wmt more on this, let's bring in "hardball"'s roundtable. a senior writer with the wraug washington post and a senior congressman from tennessee harold ford and msnbc an lest. that's the question. do they have a credibility problem? do you trust everything the white house says whether it comes from the president or the pokes people? is there a point to those press briefings? >> i think they are trying very hard. the president's comments certainly don't inspire confidence, not only in his words or their words. if you are sean spicer or miss huckabee sanders, he basically said

lester? >> jacob rascon tonight, thank you. >>> still ahead, beating colon cancer, how a few simple steps can dramatically raise survivor's chances of living longer. why they may want to go ahead and have that glass of wine with dinner tonight. >>> violence erupts in the nation's capital. bodyguards attacking protesters, why they may not face any consequences for it. >>> we're back now with important news in the fight against cancer. when doctors tell colon cancer patients they can live longer by adopting healthier habits, fewer than 10% actually follow orders. a new groundbreaking study finds a few simple changes in lifestyle can be a lifesaver. here's dr. john torres. >> reporter: for the first time, a study shows how stage three colon cancer survivors can improve their odds dramatically if they follow a healthy lifestyle. >> i've been pretty religious about doing my exercises, it really makes a huge difference. >> nearly 1,000 colon cancer survivors were studied for seven years. those who

he said this to lester holt.trump there's a whole lot going on, but if you can pull through the manure, you can find a pony. here's what he said to lester. >> that's quite the visual. >> that's from reagan. you know this russia thing with trump and russia is a made up story. he actually revealed that when he fired him he was thinking about russia and the investigation and that's the one thing he shouldn't have discussed with the fbi director. >> how about asking three times whether he was under investigation. should he have done that either? i was just saying during the break when my kids used to ask me, am i in trouble, i would know they're in trouble. >> you've worked in a lot of white houses, you covered them as a reporter. is it a staffing thing? is it an organization thing? is it too many people having the president's ear or not the power to say to the president, you know what, you shouldn't do this right now or we got to get our stories straight. >> one of the last pieces you said, the people who don't have