mr. rosenstein: nothing personal. i would interview candidates who wanted to join the department of justice. i always ask them about their career goals to see if they are realistic. one time, someone said i want to be u.s. attorney just like you. and i said, that will never happen. bruce knew me. i had no idea what i was doing. i was just fortunate to be in the right place at the right time and to work with the right people who taught me how to go about exercising this responsibility. there's nothing special about me. >> you are a son, husband, dad, number two person running 100,000 plus government agencies. how do you manage stress? how do you find balance? >> i am not running the department. i'm helping. i have known most of the former attorneys general. couple have been colleagues of mine. i have talked to some of them. i remember talking to one of our former colleagues and said we are having a challenging issue. where did you leave the manual? there isn't one. i was talking to larry thompson the other day. he was

mr. rosenstein make notes of that conversation. after jim comey was asked by the president for his loyalty, comey was so disconcerted by that he made notes. i have no idea if rosenstein did but that's something mr. mueller will want to know right away. did mr. rosenstein or anyone in that meeting make contemporaneous notes. second, does this fit a pattern of attempt to obstruct justice. if you have a situation where you ask the fbi director for his loyalty, then fire him, he asks the assistant fbi director, who did you vote for, fires him. he asked mike rodgers, would they intervene? he asked several members of the house and senate. you're getting a body of evidence that the president is obsessed with russia and trying to stop the investigation. that's a real problem for the charges of obstruction of justice. the president is giving mueller a whole lot of proof. >> nice try, paul, but i think it will fall short at the end of the day. today's reporting by cnn on this, there are three people in the room according to the sources here.

rosenstein has also provided this information? >> well, i mean if you're asking if there's a potential conflict of interest, i mean there could be. i know that if i recall mrod rosenstein, of course i know because we were u.s. attorneys together, i think he cold congress when he was interviewed that if the would follow the ethics rules. for many sessir. sessions, he w these meetings, and he was required to recuse himself under rules of the department of justice. at the time when they had a strong ethics department, i'm sure mr. rosenstein was getting advice on that, i don't know where we are right now, i mean the facts of the case could turn to that, i'm not sure where we are now. i do recall, if i'm right, that he testified that mr. rosenstein said that he would follow those rules. >> jameal, listen to jim comey's public assessment, which we now know he has given to mueller, that's new tonight, about why he was fired. >> why do you believe you were fired? >> i guess i don't know for sure. i believe -- i take the president at his word that i was fired because of the russia investigation. it's my view that i was fired because of the russia investigation. i

mr. rosenstein is not doing that. many observers think mr. rosenstein would have to resign and somebody else assume his super supervisory staff to actually do that. >> rosenstein might have quit, too, not only don mcgahn which could have been what happened during watergate when this thing unfolded and the president backed off. andy sca mrkscarmucci said this matter since he never fired bob mueller. >> looking from the outside in, the president's actions have been giving a lot of reasons for that investigation to be happening. i've counted six top fbi and/or justice officials that the president has considered firing, or in the case of james comey, the fbi director, and sally yates, the top justice department official, actually fired. which to go back to david's point raises the question for the first six months of his presidency, did he genuinely believe that the fbi was out to get him politically, meaning to stop this from happening, or was he trying to cover something up? >> laura, the special counsel robert mueller presumably knew all of thi

mr. rosenstein -- >> reporter: rosenstein ignoring questions, asked whether the president has confidence in rosenstein, the white house deflecting. >> when the president no longer has confidence in someone, you'll know. >> reporter: fbi agents fear the mysterious memos already damaging the public's trust. >> what we're seeing here is politicization, weaponization of a classified memo that our own department of justice has said would be extraordinarily reckless to release. >> thanks to peter alexander for that report. >> another development that could hang over the president's speech, the sudden resignation of fbi deputy director andrew mccabe. the number two at the bureau surprising washington with his abrupt announcement after months of public attacks on him by the president. former fbi director james comey took to twitter overnight to laud mccabe saying, he stood tall when small people were trying to tear down an institution we all depend on. seemingly a veiled swipe at congressional republicans and president trump. and nbc news exclusively reports new details this morning about a phon

mr. rosenstein in a particular direction. that's rather transparently what's happening. >> besmirch his reputation. that's a perfect way to put it. i don't know if you heard adam schiff here, the top democrat on the house intelligence committee. here is what he told axios about rod rosenstein. >> what i'm more worried about at the moment is that he fires rod rosenstein. that he knows the blowback that would accompany firing special counsel so he fires rod rosenstein, puts in his own person, who then becomes bob mueller's boss who says you can't look into this or into that and you need to end your investigation here. >> if rod rosenstein goes -- do you think that's a valid worry, that he would fire him? >> the i think it's a highly valid worry, what we've been seeing in the press, report about his dissatisfaction with the deputy attorney general. in my experience the deputy attorney general is a stand-up guy. he makes mistakes sometimes, like we all do, but always acts in what is the best for the american people at heart. he c

mr. rosenstein. can't take any organization, particularly a law enforcement like the fbi, a law enforcement organization and say, you know what, they are beyond reproach. you cannot question them. there's only one organization in the world that's beyond reproach, and that's the fsb or the former kgb in russia. they're the ones who say, if you question us, we're going to arrest you. the fbi is not like that. we can't allow the fbi to become like that. >> so what do you say to your counterparts and supporters of donald trump that do compare the fbi to the kgb. i had somebody on my show the other day doing that very thing. folks on fox are doing that. they're calling them the secret police. what do you say to them in order to turn down the volume. >> yeah, i think that's nuts. i just do. i think that's nuts. the vast majority of the people in the fbi are dedicated public servants. and we want to potter shsupport. one of this unfortunate things has been this narrative that the house intel committee is tr

mr. rosenstein is a witness here. it raises reasonable questions about why rosenstein has not recused himself and whether or not he will need to moving forward. >> susan hennesy, stay with us. joining us is our cnn political analyst, and also a politico reporter. ron, staying on the russian investigation thread here, we are learning more that ties into the reporting from michael wolff's book about the conversations that happened on air force one between the president and others following the trump tower meeting. the president insisted the meeting in trump tower was simply about russian adoption policy, and that's what was discussed, period, period, and even though it was not certain that the times had incriminating e-mail chain, and in fact it was quite possible ivanka and jared and the lawyers knew about the times had the e-mail chain. what we know from the "new york times" reporting, mueller knows this and is examining this as a false statement. significance? >> all of the revelations in the book are in a separate ca

mr. rosenstein, your testimony today is you believe bob muler is a person of high integrity s. that right? >> yes. >> you're investigating president trump? >> he's indicted or pled out four former donald trump cam officials. one a national security adviser. he heads into 2018 with the fate of the presidency in his hands. >> just been told we have had cameras on us while we were having this conversation the whole time. thank you very much for joining us. >> good night. >>> from the cross roads of the world to the seat of power. >> fantastic 2018. we're off to a very great start as you know with the great tax cuts and getting rid of the individual mandate which was very, very unpopular as you know. >> president trump offering optimistic view heading into 2018 at a new year's eve black tie party at mar-a-lago. >> his nemesis threatening america. >>> then in colorado, a domestic violen c

mr. mueller is the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. he's the person who appointed mr. mueller. last year at a hearing i questioned him at length on this issue, and he was adamant that he would never give in to any white house pressure to remove mr. mueller. i think what happened here is the president had a bad idea. he talked with his counsel who explained to an angry and frustrated president why it was a bad idea and that was seven months ago and the white house counsel is still on the job and mr. mueller is still aggressively investigating and that's as it should be. >> sources tell cnn the president has been talking about firing deputy attorney general rod rosenstein because of this frustration. >> well, if that's true, that obviously would be a terrible mistake. we've seen what happened back in the nixon administration when president nixon on the saturday night massacre kept going down the line until he would find someone who would fire the special counsel, and that didn't end very well. >> beyond whether or not the president has technically obstructed justice, because that

mr. rosenstein, your testimony today is you believe bob muler is a person of high integrity s.hat right? >> yes. >> you're investigating president trump? >> he's indicted or pled out four former donald trump cam officials. one a national security adviser. he heads into 2018 with the fate of the presidency in his hands. >> just been told we have had cameras on us while we were having this conversation the whole time. thank you very much for joining us. >> good night. >>> definitely a dangerous individual, especially on the street. you wouldn't want to turn your back on him. >> stood over him. he shot him six times in the face. >> a gang banker squares off with his victim's family in court. >> i hope you rot in prison the rest of your life. >> and with another inmate in jail. a young woman is arrested for a crime reminiscent of the grinch. >> i took kids' christmas

mr. rosenstein is your testimony today that you believe bob mueller is a person of high integrity.that right? >> yes. >> and i think that bob mueller ended up at number one with us because he's already indicted or put out for former trump campaign officials one, a form other national security adviser and he heads into 2018 with the fate of the presidency in his hands. >> just been told we've had cameras on us while having this conversation the whole time. thanks very much for joining us. >> good night. >>> this sunday looking back at 2017 and ahead to 2018.

mr. rosenstein appears to be squarely in the sights. who in your party -- in your party -- is prepared to stop that if chris' theory is correct? >> well, i know a number of us are concerned. obviously, i don't think there was justification for the timing, certainly, of the comey firing, and i think the president has recognized the fallacy of that move given it got him this investigation going on right now with the special counsel. so i sure hope that there is going to be no firing of anybody else, and in terms of legislation, if there is a piece of legislation that is constitutional, that would ensure that he doesn't fire the deputy attorney general or somebody else, then i would consider it, but i haven't seen that legislation yet. >> do you think there are the votes to insulate, to make mueller trump-proof, in effect? >> i think the president does know. frankly, the fact it looks as if he started to do it in the summer and was rebuffed by his own legal counsel and others probably indicates if he wasn't going to do it then, he certainl

mr. rosenstein would be the first person that i would think if there's some movement in that direction, whetherhey go first. that gives us time to act if we need to. >> i'm joined again by amy and nathan gonzalez. amy, you first. tom tillis and chris coons sponsored a bill that would have allowed the special counsel to challenge his firing to a special panel bypassing the president all together. what do you think >> based on what we're hearing, based on the last few days i think these protections need to be in place. i think a lot of democrats are looking for that. i wouldn't be surprised if republicans kind of sought to put an end to this and say yes let's do this. i think there's a good likelihood of it happening. >> and, nathan, a separate bipartisan bill by senator cory booker and lindsey graham would require the attorney general to get approval to fire the special counsel from a three judge panel. is there a greater chance of that passing? >> well, any time you mention the word bipartisan i start to get skeptical. start with that. the conversation right now is what can congress do shield m

mr. rosenstein, they're taking shots at a republican administration. we republicans are now in charge of the executive branch and we control the justice department as we do all the departments -- >> so why are they doing that -- >> it's hard to make a case -- i don't know. it's hard to understand the rationale. are there bad apples? i'm sure there are. there are the two who sent out some text messages that were heavily charged. director mueller either replaced them or deplomoted them. director mueller has handled himself well and we have to assume that they are professionals. of course they have political opinions. everybody has political opinion. the question is will those political opinions obstruct their ability to be fair and thorough in an investigation? and i think the answer to that is no. of course they can do their jobs and separate their political opinions from their work. that's the case throughout the federal system. >> the latest polling is showing republicans are losing confidence in the fbi. today 49% of republicans give the fbi excellen

mr. rosenstein is your testimony today that you believe bob mueller is a person of high integrity. is that right? >> yes. >> and i think that bob mueller ended up at number one with us because he's already indicted or put out for former trump campaign officials one, a form other national security adviser and he heads into 2018 with the fate of the presidency in his hands. >> just been told we've had cameras on us while having this conversation the whole time. thanks very much for joining us. >> good night. >>> this sunday looking back at 2017 and ahead to 2018. president trump. did he keep his promises? >> i will be the greatest jobs president that god has ever created. >> the tax relief will be concentrated on the working and middle class. >> i will be president for all america. >> we'll look at promises made, promises kept and promises broken. plus, the 2018 political landscape. democrats aimed to take back congress. >> you can smell a wave coming. our republican friends better look out. >> but republicans hope to hang on to power. >> very optimistic about 2018. >> also, 2020. po

mr. rosenstein's authority to appoint a special counsel as well as the specific restrictions on the scopesuch appointments and so, joyce, they are looking for an injunction basically to stop the investigation from going in certain directions. what do you think of the legal prospects of this? >> to be polite i call the lawsuit an absolute and total loser. it's not going anyplace. not only does manafort likely not have standing to sue, the lawsuit itself is really pretty silly in light of rod rosenstein, the deputy attorney general's testimony last week that he stays in consultation with mueller, that mueller has maintained really strict compliance with the grant of authority given to him when he was appointed as special counsel and so once you have rosenstein saying that he is comfortable, that his assess systematic that mueller within the grant of authority, this lawsuit can't really go anywhere. when's a little bit curious about it is that it should have been filed if at all with substance as a motion to dismiss the criminal case but this was filed as a separate civil action. looks a lit

mr. rosenstein or any one individual. we are very analytical, very factual, not an emotional document, as we said, we don't accuse, we lay out the facts and he's not identified with any specificity at all. you know, if i could talk about mr. comey's remarks, because i think it kind of ties in here, it is important to note, he talks about small people who are trying to tear down the fbi. that's not what we're trying to do at all. the fbi is full of public servants, we recognize that. but we have to be able to hold some people accountable. if they have done something we think is inappropriate and wrong. that's all we're trying to do here. >> well, look, i don't know who he's talking about specifically when he talks about small people, do you think a small person would, you know, talk about andy mccabe and note that his wife was running an election, things that the president has done, directly criticizing the deputy director for something his wife did. >> it depends, is it relevant? that's the question. is it relevant. is it

mr. rosenstein is always been able to position his business in an appropriate way.o i think it is interesting that he's moving into this area and -- good for him. he certainly sees an opportunity. he'll be with scott wapner and friends at noon. >> geez, i'm on that show today. >> you'll be able to ask him when i come back to it as an opportunity or -- there arefy do you remember yfiduciary, pension fund, are you saying you're willing to accept a lesser return for a larger social return or is your fiduciary duty to find stocks and/or make investments that maximize your return -- >> what a great point. one of the ways to do this, have a tobacco restriction, i would say the safety of having anyone have a cell phone is good. now, just so you know, the prevailing wisdom in the mental health community, they have professors talking about -- the prevailing wisdom in this country is that the parents aren't playing a big enough role it is not the institutions and not the kids but it's the parents. i thought that was a very interesting lack of understanding about what the prev

mr. rosenstein is under right now as it regards bob mueller?ean, he is somebody who has something of an interesting track record of the department of justice, somebody who knew and interacted with jim comey and seems to be -- joe manchin was on "meet the press" this morning with my colleague chuck todd and essentially said, let's see what happens with that before we make any judgments about what to do about mueller. >> yeah. i mean, if i were rosenstein, i'd be the most frustrated person in washington, d.c. he kind of got set up as the fall guy for firing director comey. he was the one putting together the memos for justifications together. he then is the one who appoints the special counsel. he makes the best choice possible of any fbi director mueller is your best choice. now he's being twisted and turned to threaten to fire. the washington post story said the democrat from baltimore, he was appointed under bush. and so i think it's got to be very frustrating to feel this constant influence, this undue influence being pushed on the justice de

mr. rod rosenstein deputy ag met with john kelly and said it would be deleterious to the country to releasehe memo. they believe it contains classified info. they think it sets a bad precedent, was the argument they made to john kelly. in return, john kelly said about the president's predilection was to release a memo, there would be a national security process. we heard last night the president talking to jeff duncan as we ears walking out of the chambers saying 100% we're going to release it, even as the white house has been trying to argue the decision has not been officially made. it looks like we're leaning closer to releasing the mem be even though dodj officials say they disagree. >> "the daily beast" reported a conversation where devin nunes did not deny his staff had had contact with the white house in drafting the memo. a short time ago here on cnn press secretary sarah sanders didn't deny it either. listen. >> not that i know of. >> he wouldn't answer that question. >> i just don't know the answer. i don't know of anyone that he did, and i haven't had a chance -- >> he has worked

mr. rosenstein go to talk to the speaker, in my opinion, that's not a good sign. they may have reached some sort of agreement about production or testimony, but when they deliberately exclude the chairman of the committee who is asking the questions, guess what? there's a real problem and it speaks not only about the problem with doj and the fbi but that the speaker would do that to mr. nunes is not a confidence builder. maria: what's going to be done about this. jason chaffetz, now we know that the e-mail -- the staffer at the e-mail company that breached, what did they do, beach blit, did you lie, he lies under oath and admits i deleted all the emails and gets immunity. >> that part of the case is closed case and that's absolutely no reason why that should be turned in but they still haven't done it, have stay in. >> jason, you'll recall, and we've obviously had a relationship in the past with respect to looking at the matters, if it weren't for judicial watches, the republicans wouldn't know about the issue. maria: that's right. >> a fraud on the court, the sta

mr. mueller. the only person who has that authority is the deputy attorney general, rod rosenstein and he's the one who appointed mr. mueller in the first place. i asked him about that at a hearing last year and he was adamant that he would -- any white house pressure to fire mr. mueller. >> cordes: doesn't it sound like the president was trying to obstruct justice? >> i that i the president was frustrated and angry about the investigation and did he what he should have done, which was to talk to his lawyer in the white house and clearly white house counsel said, you can't do this, mr. president. very unwise for you to try to do so. and here it is seven months later the white house counsel still there and mr. mueller is proceeding with very aggressive and thorough investigation. >> cordes: there's a big difference between wanting to fire someone and actually going through with it. you have not wayed in yet on these two bipartisan bills that would essentially protect mr. mueller from an undue firing. does this latest news change your call can you husband? >> first of all i commend the two groups of

mr. trump's privately been venting about rod rosenstein, his deputy attorney general. the president's counsel on russia, ty cobb, calling that one of an onslaught of false stories, all setting up a historic moment with high stakes. >> it gives him a chance to make a case for his administration's achievements, particularly on tax reform, lay out a road map for the year ahead without having to talk about russia. >> reporter: before the president delivers the state of the union on tuesday, a big meeting here at the white house on monday. mr. trump will host diplomats with the u.n. security council, the fou kus -- focus, iran. it will be the second meeting of its kind since mr. trump took office. >>> in afghanistan today there was a deadly explosion in central kabul. a suicide bomber used an ambulance as a weapon. the attacker killed at least 95 people and injured more than 150. there are fears the death toll will rise. here's lucy kavanof with the latest. >> reporter: carnage on the streets of kabul, the chaotic aftermath of a suicide attack. the weapon, an ambulance pack

mr. trump privately was venting about rod rosenstein, his deputy attorney general. the president's counsel on russia, ty cobb, pulling that of the onslaught of false stories. all setting up for the historic moment with high stakes. >> you give someone a chance to make achievements particularly on tax reform, lay out a road map for the year ahead without having to talk about russia. >> nbc's kristen welker, thank you. let's bring in julia manchester, reporter for the hill. and the chief washington correspondent for bloomberg tv. great to have you here on a monday morning. >> great to be here. >> julia, we'll start with you. once again, mr. trump told reporters there's no collusion. do you think he would discredit the russian election come tuesday? >> i doubt it. the president tends to stay to the script. and he stayed to the script last friday when he was speaking at davos when he talked about economic improvement under his administration. so i think the president will probably be more likely to highlight the improvement in the economy as well as concerns about north

mr. trump had asked him to end the fbi's investigation into the former national security adviser michael t. flynn. after the president's request was disclosed, the deputy attorney general rod j. ros rosenstein appointed mr. mueller as special counsel to lead the russia investigation and examine whether the president obstructed justice. that brings us basically up to speed to today. we also have with us barbara mcquade. barbara, i'm interested in learning a little bit more about what exactly could be going on inside the special counsel's investigation. i mean, you are a former u.s. attorney. you have an idea about how these investigations work. it is remarkable how secretive this investigation has been, how little has leaked out. what is your take? >> well, that's the way it's supposed to work. it's supposed to be done in secret to protect the rights of the accused so that they are not, their reputations are not stained during the investigation, and to protect the integrity of the investigation. if one witness knows what another witness is saying, it might cause him to tailor lis testimony in a certain way. i give robert mueller and his team a lot of credit for keeping things quiet. but not

regulations rolls r only rosenstein can fire mueller and only if he finds the special counsel has committed misconduct. something he has repeatedly said he has not seen any sign of. but if mr. trump were to fire rosenstein, he could install a more accommodating replacement. someone willing to say that he or she had spotted a reason to justify removing the special counsel and shutting down his investigation. barbara mcquade is still with us and the panel is here. >>> you say it won't happen, but sally yates, we understood at the time to be because of the muslim ban, but coincidentally, i suppose, she had warned them about michael flynn. gone. comey asked to see to it to let flynn go. gone. sessions, a constant target of cyberattacks from the president and of his disgust and disdain for not staying and overseeing the investigation. rosenstein, someone whose loyalty he has questioned. someone who internally he described as a democrat. he's not a democrat. you know, maybe he'll become one after this. but what do you make of all this? >> the first thing you said was, you say it won't happen. i don't know, if anybody who says it won't happen -- >> the white house says it won't >

mr. trump considered in cushions with his advisers was dismissing the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein and elevating the number three official rachel brand overseeing mr. mueller. what do you think about the possibility how would that work if you would to remove rosenstein? >> you want me to answer that question. >> please, thanks. >> i think that would have similar political ramifications. rob rosen sign is a career respected deputy attorney general. he's been a u.s. attorney in both republican and democratic administrations. to remove him in that scenario without any just cause i think would cause a lot of alarm and panic. i don't know that it would be any better than firing robert mueller because it would suggest you're trying to elevate someone who obviously might be more sympathetic to your views in overseeing the investigation. so i think that too would be a disaster for president trump. >> swen, talk about the mood in the white house with respect to this investigation because we know the president's obsessed with it. he watches a channel that talks about these sort of conspiracy

mr. trump recently considered firing his deputy attorney general rod rosenstein.an who appointed the special counsel. lawmakers are divided on whether more protections are needed. >> it probably wouldn't hurt for us to pass one of those bills. >> i don't thing there is a need for the legislation to protect mr. mueller. >> nerve the trump presidency knows that firing him would be an issue. >> reporter: former "celebrity apprentice" winner and brish talk show host piece morgan. talking with the president. about tweeting. to the economy. >> a lot of the global economy is because of how well we're doing. >> reporter: one of the topic expected as he addresses congress and the american people on tuesday. focusing on infrastructure and immigration. the president planning to further outline his plan for those so called d.r.e.a.m.ers. and all of this as the president and the rnc is facing mounting pressure to address allegations of sexual misconduct against gop megadonor and fund-raiser steve wynn. he stepped down as the finance chair of the rnc on saturday. but questions

mr. trump considered in discussions with advisors was dismissing the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein and elevating the number three official to oversee mr. mueller. again, that is something the president would likely have had to do that very day or night if this order had been done. if he told him to fire mueller for no good reason. i don't know why they were considering pulling out rosenstein, the elevating brand in the first place but that is another option the president kicked around but didn't pull the trigger on. joining us is michael schmidt. the co-author of this very interesting new report. mr. schmidt, i wish you lots more sleep in your next life. >> thanks for having me. >> let me ask if i've correctly conveyed what is in your piece and if i've left out anything you think is important. >> yeah, i think that don mcgahn is a central figure in this, that the american public may not apprecia appreciate. don mcgahn was involved in lobbying not to recuse himself from the russia investigation. he was asked by the president in june to fire mueller. he's a central player in all thes

rosenstein appeared surprised by the president's comments. he responded somewhat awkwardly to the president's team request, saying, of course, we're all on your team, mr. president. at that hearing, before congressi congressional investigators in december, rosenstein was asked about loyalty pledges. here is what he had to say. >> is it ever appropriate for the president of the united states that an official take a loyalty pledge? >> nobody has asked me to take a loyalty pledge, other than oath of office. >> at that hearing, rosenstein also told lawmakers, quote, as long as you're following your oath of office, you can also be faithful to the administration of justice. the justice department declined to comment on this story. and the white house has not g gotten back to us with comment. >> pamela, your reporting shows the president was particularly focused on that december hearing. >> that's right. a source familiar with the matter tells me he was very focused. in fact, brianna, he brought up the upcoming meeting. trump went on as far as to suggest questions to members of congress that they could possibly ask rosenstein during that hearing. one line of

mr. trump has been privately venting about how he wants to remove rod rosenstein, the deputy attorney general overseas robert mueller he is leading the special counsel investigation. >>> another sexual assault investigation. steve wynn resigned as the finance hair chair of the republican national committee. it alleges widespread sexual misconduct by wirn. dozens accuse him of pressuring women into sex. wynn denies the accusations. beyond serving as finance chair for the rnc he donated millions to the republican party. president trump has called wynn a great friend. >>> serious questions remain after long-term michigan state university dr. larry nassar sent to prison. now the state's attorney general says he will get to the bottom how nassar was able to victimize so many women in his care. nearly 160. a full investigation has been launched with a special prosecutor to lead it. >> my department in this investigation will find out who knew what and when, who took action, who failed to take action, what did or did not happen, and what should have happened. >> nassar will serve at least 40 years i

the report says that rosenstein answered, well, of course we're all on your team, mr. president. and sources say he suggested those questions to the members of congress, specifically during the hearing of the house judiciary committee. ultimately rosenstein was asked this. >> is it ever proper that a director take a loyalty pledge. >> nobody's asked me to take a loyalty pledge other than the oath of office. >> tonight's news is clearly a new example of donald trump allegedly asking about the allegiances of top officials investigating him at a time he knew he was the subject of a criminal probe. don't get tired of these stories, the fact that they're repeating makes them worse, not a subject for fatigue. we can add to that other accounts from nbc news as well as "the washington post" about trump asking fbi director comey for a loyalty pledge. >> he asked specifically for loyalty in the context of asking me to stay. >> reports are saying that trump kept doing that, asking everyone who touched this investigation with loyalty. let's to the run down, comey aid jim baker, he's been reas

mr. trump's wishes to get rid of deputy attorney general he rob rosenstein. >> it sounds like there were multiple people at multiple levels who have been fired. >> i would say what i've said a hundred times before and continue to say, i'll sure a hundred times today that the white house has been fully cooperative and will continue to be fully cooperative. >> sarah sanders erers concede white house has put pressure on officials. >> it is so that you guys can focus on what americans care about. making sure everybody gets russia fever out of their system once and for all. that you're all reminded, there was no collusion. >> no obstruction of justice. nothing improper sense the president came into office since he's come into office. >> and they're convinced the russia probe has been politicized. the white house side stepping whether the memo should be released. >> to answer your full question. we want full transparency. >> the latest question comes as the president is about to deliver his first state of the union speech. >> what is the state of the union? >> i think it is incredible. you'll

mr. trump has been complaining about wanting to fire rod rosenstein as well. the "new york times" reports that the controversial memo spearheaded by house chair devin nunes sa nunes indicated that republicans may be moving to seize on rosenstein's role as they seek to undermine special counsel. now, chris, the president, all of these developments in the russia investigation come as the president faces a major deadline to use the russia sanctions power that congress overwhelmingly voted to good enough him last fall. chris? >> all right. kaitlan, everybody should be prepared. the "new day" team is coming to washington, d.c. we'll be live from the capitol tomorrow ahead of president trump's first state of the union address. cnn's primetime coverage begins at 5:00 p.m. eastern tomorrow. >>> all right. if there are so many concerns about whether the president will try to have special counsel fired, why won't some lawmakers take action in case to protect bob mueller? we'll discuss that next. ♪ taking care of business with print services done right. on time. guarante

mr. trump has been complaining about wanting to fire rod rosenstein as well. he oversees mueller in the investigation 37. the "new york times" reports that the controversial memo spearheaded by house chair devin nunes indicated that republicans may be moving to seize on rosenstein's role as they seek to undermine special counsel. now, questions over what the president's moments in the sun will be overshadowed by the russia investigation as the president is facing a major deadline today to use the russia sanctions power that congress overwhelmingly voted to give him last fall. chris and poppy? >> let's discuss. we have david gregory and john avlon. do you think that there is going to be any legislation to protect bob mueller? >> there should be. >> go, gentlemen, go. >> i don't see it right now. you see this division among house and senate leadership already. you heard kevin mccarthy saying there is not much appetite to do it in the house. and lindsey graham made clear it is his view it would be the end of the trump presidency were he to try to fire mueller say

rosenstein to fire robert mueller. congress has asked about this prospect several times. >> if you were ordered today to fire mr. mueller, what would you do? >> as i explained previously, i would follow the regulation. if there were good cause, i would act. if there were not good cause, i would not. >> you've seen no good cause. >> correct. before leaving for switzerland wednesday evening president trump told reporters he's eager to speak with mueller under oath. >> and the white house has not commented on the "times" report. >> ahead on "cbs thni we'll talk with senator cory booker, a member of the senate judiciary committee which is nvestigating russian campaign. >>> well, the president is pushing his america first policy at the world economic davos, switzerland. he describes his time at the conference as very successful. he addresses the session this morning. gavin ramjaun has the latest. good morning. >> good morning, anne-marie. all eyes are on president trump as he delivers his claims america is booming. his america first approach will soften the mood in davos. as president trump begins day two in davos, a

mr. trump considered in discusses was dismissing the deputy attorney general rod j rosenstein. trump has frequently taken shots and still be furious that attorney general jeff sessions recused himself and put rosenstein in charge of the russia investigation. we also know that republicans have been on a mission to discredit fbi and justice department officials who have played key roles in the trump, russia investigation particularly those who might be able to corroborate fired fbi director james comey's testimony that trump pressured him to end that investigation. just tonight, murray reports at foreign policy that trump quote pressed senior aids last june divise and carry out a campaign after learning specific officials were likely to be witnesses against him as part of special counsel robert mueller's investigation. y we don't know exactly what is in this memo but at "the daily beast" says it targets three people. a controversial republican memo alleging surveillance abuse specifically names fbi director andrew mccabe and rod rosenstein with and james comey and when it comes o

mr. trump has privately been venting about how he wants to remove rod rosenstein, the deputy attorney general overseas, robert mueller who is leading that russia special counsel investigation. a lot to unpack there. >>> 7:07 on your sunday morning. much more ahead on "today in the bay." coming up the nassar case has sent a shock wave throughout the gymnastics hopeful. report reve shark attacks on the >>> plus dangerous waters, what a new report reveals about shark attacks on the west coast. there's only one place where you can get... more adventure, more thrills, more magic, and more happy. and now you can stay steps away from the magic for less. save up to 25% on select rooms at a disneyland resort hotel. so now's the time to get more happy! >>> we were really excited to share this this morning. it is 7:09. this is a live look at san francisco all the way from communications hill in san jose. can you believe that? it's that clear outside. so, you know, it means that it is cool out there, but vianey arana says temperatures will be in the mid to upper 60s today and some sunshine spread across