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EARLY START

Canadian Prime Minister Calls Tariffs "Insulting"; Trump Lawyers Sent Letter To Robert Mueller; Kim Jong-un To Meet With Syrian President Assad; Study Shows Many Breast Cancer Patients Could Avoid Chemotherapy. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired June 4, 2018 - 05:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[05:31:21] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUSTIN TRUDEAU, PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA: The idea that we are somehow a national security threat to the United States is, quite frankly, insulting.

LARRY KUDLOW, DIRECTOR, U.S. NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: I think he's overreacting. I don't want to get in the middle of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: Unanimous concern and disappointments. Other G7 leaders waging a fierce campaign against the president's new tariffs. Even one prominent Senate Republican trying to slow the president down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI, ATTORNEY TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: You got everything you need. What do you need us for? Man up and make your decision.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: New claims this weekend from the president's legal team a subpoena is unnecessary, the president cannot obstruct justice, he can pardon himself, and his recollections keep changing. And, by the way, he dictated that misleading statement about the infamous Trump Tower meeting.

BRIGGS: Many women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer don't need chemotherapy. It's a groundbreaking study that could lead to big changes in treatment worldwide.

Welcome back, everybody, to EARLY START. Five thirty-two eastern time. I'm Dave Briggs.

ROMANS: I'm Christine Romans. It is Monday morning and a lot to get to this morning and let's begin with this.

The United States is isolated, the Canadians are insulted. The finance ministers of the world sixth-largest economy issue a rare rebuke. Unanimous concern and disappointment in President Trump's metal tariffs.

The U.S. hit the E.U., Mexico, and Canada with steel and aluminum tariffs, citing a national security threat which Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls offensive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUDEAU: The idea that the Canadian steel that's in military vehicles in the United States, the Canadian aluminum that makes your fighter jets is somehow now a threat? The idea that we are somehow a national security threat to the United States is, quite frankly, insulting and unacceptable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: And the U.S. hitting Mexico, Canada, and the E.U. with tariffs. But economic adviser Larry Kudlow says the tariffs are not an attack on Canada.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KUDLOW: And, Mr. Trudeau, I think he's overreacting. I don't want to get in the middle of that. As a fine friend and ally of the United States -- nobody denies that. But the point is we have to protect ourselves.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: The three U.S. allies plan to protect themselves. They want to retaliate with their own tariffs on everything from farm products to blue jeans. That could also raise prices for U.S. consumers and potentially risk jobs.

Congressional Republicans are fuming. Senator Bob Corker says they're working on a plan to push back on these tariffs.

At the same time, the Chinese -- they're furious, too, after the U.S. targeted $50 billion in Chinese goods. China warns those tariffs would kill any overall trade deal. The U.S. and China just wrapped up their latest round of trade talks this weekend.

But, trade adviser Peter Navarro says Trump's China policy is measured, thoughtful, and strategic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER NAVARRO, WHITE HOUSE TRADE ADVISER: We'd love to have a peaceful and friendly relationship with China but we also are standing firm on the idea --

MARIA BARTIROMO, HOST, FOX "SUNDAY MORNING FUTURES": Yes.

NAVARRO: -- and the president is the leader on this and he's known this for decades.

BARTIROMO: How far are you willing to go? (END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: He has, but the relationship with China structurally needs to change.

You know, Dave, he also says that specifically on China, it's about economic security of high-tech industries --

BRIGGS: Yes.

ROMANS: -- and the like. That's what they're really focusing on.

So we're going to get a list of tariff goods June 15th and June 30th. That's when some big export controls are going into -- in and the Chinese don't like it.

BRIGGS: OK. Let's discuss all this with Daniel Lippman, reporter and "POLITICO" -- author of the "POLITICO Playbook."

Good morning to you, once again, Daniel.

ROMANS: Good morning.

DANIEL LIPPMAN, REPORTER AND CO-AUTHOR, "POLITICO PLAYBOOK": Good morning.

BRIGGS: Everything economically is going well. The jobs numbers Friday, 18-year unemployment -- black unemployment, 5.9 percent. That's an all-time low.

[05:35:03] And here you have the context of all of our allies seemed to be united against us in these tariffs.

What's the feeling among Republican in Congress who were not anywhere on Sunday shows? Are they nervous about what the president's doing on tariffs? Could it undercut all the success the economy is seeing?

LIPPMAN: I would say they're frightened by the moves because remember, Treasury Sec. Steven Mnuchin said two weeks ago or so that the trade war was on hold. And then, he was quickly undercut by Peter Navarro and other protectionist advisers who said that Mnuchin misspoke.

And while the economy is doing very well now, it's not guaranteed that this is going to last forever. Economic cycles never do as you well know, Christine --

ROMANS: Sure.

LIPPMAN: -- since you cover the economy.

And so, when you basically put -- you know, you start slashing your tires a little bit with these tariffs, that has long-term repercussions and they aren't good because economists from around the spectrum, from Paul Krugman to Stephen Moore on the right --

ROMANS: Right.

LIPPMAN: -- they all agree that you should make it really tough for countries to trade with each other. It's just bizarre.

ROMANS: I'll tell you, the mood, though, inside the White House is that this is exactly the time to do. It's while the economy is humming -- while you've got really low unemployment. From a point of strength, really, here for the American economy, exactly the right time to do it. You don't it when you're weak, you do it when you're strong.

And also, Peter Navarro --

LIPPMAN: Sure.

ROMANS: -- and guys like that will tell you that the China situation has gone on for too long. Separate the two -- China and the E.U., Mexico, and Canada.

But, China, in particular -- they're trying to protect American industry, especially high-tech. And when you see those export controls go in in the end of June they're hoping that can be the beginning of like a real structural change.

It seems to me Daniel, that they're serious about this and the president's going to stick to his guns.

LIPPMAN: It looks like he is. This has been his longstanding hobby horse in terms of having these types of tariffs and having protectionism.

And I think what's interesting is that there was a split in reaction to the moves on China versus Canada, and Mexico, and European allies with China moves. It's very hard for a Senator or Congressman to say oh well, the China -- you know --

ROMANS: Yes.

LIPPMAN: -- China has been doing a great job.

So, Chuck Schumer -- he defended Trump. He applauded Trump --

ROMANS: Yes.

LIPPMAN: -- on the China moves. That's something Hillary Clinton might have done to some extent, as well.

ROMANS: I mean, liberal think tanks, for years, have said that China -- we were losing American jobs because of China trade policies. And so, now you have this -- some protectionists in the White House and liberal economists --

BRIGGS: Yes.

ROMANS: -- who are in agreement. BRIGGS: So you've got the G7 Friday and Saturday. You've got the Trump-Kim summit in Singapore eight days away. Massive implications on those two.

And the president seems to be distracted by the Russia investigation. Seven tweets over the weekend. He sends Rudy Giuliani out there to talk about it Sunday.

And then there's these -- this letter from Jay Sekulow and John Dowd to the special counsel that "The New York Times" obtained. And part of it, over the weekend, says that Trump actually did dictate that Don, Jr. statement.

Quote, "You have received all the notes, communications, and testimony indicating that the president dictated a short but accurate response to the New York Times article on behalf of his son, Donald Trump, Jr."

Well, here's what Giuliani said about that on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIULIANI: This is the reason you don't let the president testify. If, you know -- our recollection keeps changing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: "Our recollection keeps changing."

Is Rudy Giuliani helping the president's case right now?

LIPPMAN: Yes, that was probably the biggest sound bite from the Sunday shows. It's never good for a lawyer to say well, our client, he just keeps changing his story. You know, what can you do?

Rudy has been, since day one, causing problems for the president. But it's not clear that there are a ton of other lawyers who are lining up to say hey, I actually want to represent a guy whose story keeps changing.

For the first thing, most lawyers are against President Trump and even though the lawyers will take on murderers and rapists often to represent them as clients, you often get kind of not blackballed but basically the professional consequences of representing Trump. You may not want that.

And so, John Dowd and Jay Sekulow -- they will always be known for the next couple of years -- couple of decades as having represented the president, and it's just not an easy task.

ROMANS: Hey, Daniel, this morning in "The Washington Post" there is a piece by Patti Davis, the daughter of President Ronald Reagan, that's getting a little bit of attention that this president sort of adopted 'Make American Great' from him.

[05:40:10] LIPPMAN: Yes.

BRIGGS: Yes, the anniversary of Reagan's death is tomorrow --

ROMANS: That's right.

BRIGGS: -- and that's why she's writing this piece.

ROMANS: This is what she says in the opinion pages.

"He would be appalled and heartbroken at a Congress that refuses to stand up to a president who not only seems ignorant of the Constitution but who also attempts at every turn to dismantle and mock our system of checks and balances."

Ouch. But, it's interesting to me that even on this tariff thing so many congressional Republicans -- that the president who has sort of taken over the Republican Party still has trouble consolidating his support there.

LIPPMAN: Yes. President Trump has not been a Republican since he registered to vote a couple of decades ago. And so, if he thought that he could have won the Democratic nomination a couple of years ago and won as a Democratic he would have done that.

And so, his hijacking of the Republican Party was a case where he saw the party had some issues in terms of translating its ideas from conservative think tanks and magazines to -- kind of trickle down to the average voter and the average conservative Republican who was a little more in the working class.

And so, it's always been a struggle between kind of the country club Republicans who advocate for lower taxes for the rich and people who are the -- going to Tea Party rallies, for example. And so, Trump is an example of really speaking to that base. And so, the more conservative members of the party -- they are still saying they're Never Trumpers.

ROMANS: It was "The Wall Street Journal" last week and its editorial board said, right, that he thinks he is Ronald Reagan in terms of the economy, but he's more Herbert Hoover.

BRIGGS: Sure, but with his own party he's at 87 percent. There's a reason why congressional Republicans don't challenge him because he's the second-most popular president on record, according to Gallup, with his own party.

ROMANS: It's interesting.

BRIGGS: Daniel, thank you.

LIPPMAN: Thank you.

ROMANS: All right.

First lady Melania Trump set to attend a White House event honoring Gold Star families tonight. The reception closed to the media with Mrs. Trump's first official event in almost a month. On May 10th, the first couple, of course, greeted American prisoners

freed by North Korea at Joint Base Andrews. Four days later, the first lady underwent what her spokeswoman called a benign kidney procedure. She hasn't been seen in public since.

Officials say Mrs. Trump will not join the president for the G7 summit or the summit next week with North Korea leader Kim Jong Un.

BRIGGS: She did tweet last week she is feeling great and working hard on behalf of children and the American people."

Ahead, Apple expected to launch a new iPhone feature to address the problem it helped create that we suffer from right here on EARLY START -- iPhone addiction. We'll get a check on "CNN Money," next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:47:43] BRIGGS: With just eight days until President Trump meets with Kim Jong Un, North Korea says Kim plans to sit down with another world leader, Bashar al-Assad. North Korea's state news agency says the Syrian president is planning to visit Kim in North Korea.

Alexandra Field has more, live for us from Seoul.

Alex, what's the motivation here? Do we have any insight? And what's the context of this relationship?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We've seen a flurry of diplomatic relations from North Korea. Look, the administration in the U.S. may be optimistic that North Korea is ready to turn the page and perhaps move in a new direction, but they are showing that they are strengthening some old ties here.

There have been -- of course, the plans have been announced to have a summit with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin by the end of the year. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov went to Pyongyang last week. And now, news from North Korean state news that the first foreign leader will travel to Pyongyang -- the Syrian president, Bashar al- Assad.

Look, these are two countries that have had warm relations for decades now. Kim Jong Un's grandfather, the founder of North Korea, met with Assad's father back in the 70s when he was in power. Now, the younger Kim and the younger Assad will come face-to-face.

In the past, they have shared messages of congratulations and support. The latest form of support comes in the form of alleged evidence from a U.N. report that North Korea and Syria were cooperating on chemical weapons. That report released just last winter.

No date set yet for this sit-down but it's certainly been announced in the run-up to this summit with President Trump.

Also out of Pyongyang this morning, news of a military shakeup. Three top officials replaced -- younger men moved into these high-level jobs. We're told that they have served in sensitive and high-level positions before and that they've got some experience with foreign affairs.

Officials here in Seoul says it's unusual to swap out three at once but analysts say this could be a sign of how North Korea is preparing for the big sit-down just eight days away.

BRIGGS: Yes. And, Alex, this North Korea news report with a quote from Assad referencing Kim Jong Un's "outstanding political caliber and wide leadership of his Excellency, Kim Jong Un."

Alexandra Field live for us in Seoul. Thank you.

FIELD: High praise.

BRIGGS: High praise, indeed.

OK.

In Guatemala, the death toll rising to 25 in the eruption of the Fuego volcano. More than 1.7 million people have been impacted.

Local officials say the eruption has ended but there is still volcanic ash in the air in the 12-mile radius around the volcano, warning residents in this three towns to watch out for volcanic rocks and ash.

[05:50:11] ROMANS: Let's get a check on "CNN Money" this morning.

Global stocks higher today. A strong -- very strong U.S. jobs report overshadowing worries of a trade war between the U.S. and the rest of the world, including China, the E.U., Canada, and Mexico all embroiled here. A trade war could dent an otherwise solid U.S. economy.

The U.S. added 223,000 jobs in April. The jobless rate fell to an 18- year low -- 3.8 percent. That helped Wall Street close higher Friday.

Apple is expected to launch a new feature that fixes a problem Apple helped create, phone addiction. Apple's annual Developers Conference is today and CEO Tim Cook will announce Apple's latest software update.

The iPhones next operating system will include a tool that reduces the time spent on a smartphone, including a way to set limits for certain apps. Apple has long-promised such a feature. In January, two major shareholders asked Apple to study the impact of excessive smartphone use.

Han Solo still not a box office force.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALDEN EHRENREICH, ACTOR, HAN SOLO, "SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY": I'm going to be a pilot -- the best in the galaxy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: You could have best at the box office. Ticket sales for "SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY" dropped 65 percent in its second weekend. It's set to make less than $450 million worldwide.

Oh, I love the Wookiee.

BRIGGS: Yes.

ROMANS: That's a great haul for most movies but that's disappointing for "STAR WARS" because they're held to a higher standard. The last two raked in more than a billion dollars each.

It barely covers production and marketing costs. I think they can afford it.

BRIGGS: You know, it's hinting there's a schedule. You can see the next several years how the --

ROMANS: Yes.

BRIGGS: -- "STAR WARS" are laid out.

ROMANS: Keep asking them --

BRIGGS: I wonder if the anticipation's lowered a little bit.

All right. Ahead, four murders in three days in and around the Phoenix, Arizona area. At least three are linked, including a forensic psychiatrist in the JonBenet Ramsey case. More on this manhunt, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:56:30] ROMANS: A groundbreaking study finds some 70 percent of women with the most common form of early-stage breast cancer can safely skip chemo. Researchers used genetic testing on tumor samples to gauge a patient's risk. The results could spare thousands of women from toxic treatment.

It wouldn't benefit them. Instead, help them tailor treatment to different types of breast cancer. It's the most common cancer in women worldwide.

The study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

BRIGGS: Arizona police trying to track down a killer linked to at least three murders and they say a fourth homicide could be related.

Among the victims, famed forensic psychiatrist Steven Pitt. He was involved in several high-profile cases, including the killing of child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey in 1996. Pitt was found shot to death in Phoenix Thursday after witnesses reported a loud argument.

ROMANS: Also killed, 48-year-old Veleria Sharp and 49-year-old Laura Anderson, two paralegals at a Scottsdale law firm.

A fourth victim, 72-year-old Marshall Levine, was found dead in his office at a mental health counseling facility Saturday. It is not clear if his case is related to the other three deaths. There's a $21,000 reward for information that leads authorities to the killer.

BRIGGS: Delta Airlines investigating the death of a dog on a flight from Phoenix to Newark. It happened during a layover in Detroit. Officials say the 8-year-old Pomeranian named Alejandro was found dead in its carrier last Wednesday at an airport cargo facility.

At least four dogs have died this year while in the care of U.S. airlines.

Delta, in a statement, says it is conducting a thorough review of the situation to ensure this does not happen again.

ROMANS: An FBI agent could face charges for busting a move in a Denver bar and accidentally shooting someone.

Take a look at the off-duty agent getting -- I guess, getting his groove on early Saturday morning when he loses his gun from a waistband holster while doing a backflip -- that's right. The weapon fires when he scrambles to grab it, hitting a customer in the lower leg.

The agent has not been arrested or identified. The district attorney's office will determine whether charges will be filed.

BRIGGS: Killer moves, dude -- almost.

The Golden State Warriors beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 122-103 to take a 2-0 lead in the NBA finals.

Steph Curry, ridiculous -- an NBA Finals record, nine threes, finishing with 33 points to lead the defending champs.

The series now moves to Cleveland for game three Wednesday night.

There is no longer any such thing as a bad shot. It's all good when you're Curry. He's unbelievable.

ROMANS: Wow.

BRIGGS: Gosh.

ROMANS: All right. Thanks for joining us this Monday morning. I'm Christine Romans.

BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs. "NEW DAY" starts right now. We'll see you tomorrow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIULIANI: Pardoning himself would just be unthinkable. It would lead to an immediate impeachment.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If it were a Democratic president, and these facts were present, most people I know in Washington believe impeachment hearings would have begun already.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The president is above an investigation. He can fire anyone. He could shoot the FBI director.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It sounds like we have a king in the office.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This sounds like a dictator.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The president was not involved in the drafting of the statement.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They said the president had nothing to do with that statement and it turns out that's completely untrue.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're getting along. You see the relationship.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kim is still his own man and if he wants to meet with President Bashar al-Assad he will.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here, Kim's inviting a war criminal to North Korea. He's probably expecting Donald Trump to keep quiet because the president so badly wants the summit to go ahead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)