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Senator Rand Paul to Vote Against Trump's Emergency Declaration; March Across Edmund Pettus Bridge on "Bloody Sunday" Anniversary; Aired 4-5p ET

Aired March 3, 2019 - 16:00   ET

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


[16:00:45] AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks for joining me. I'm Amara Walker, in for Fredricka Whitfield.

Breaking news. Republican Senator Rand Paul now saying he will vote to block President Trump's emergency declaration. That now makes four members of the president's own party in the Senate vowing to go against Trump's move to fulfill his biggest campaign promise, building that wall along the southern border. And this means the resolution of disapproval will most likely make it to the president's desk where he has warned he will use his first presidential veto.

Let's check in with CNN's White House correspondent Boris Sanchez.

And hi there, Boris. Not really a huge surprise, but it is a blow to the president, isn't it?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It is. It's largely a symbolic move, but nevertheless, it is notable that these Republican lawmakers are splintering from the president. And this is something that we saw coming potentially because Republican lawmakers had warned the president both publicly and privately that there would be divisions within the party on his national emergency declaration.

Rand Paul, the senator from Kentucky, was giving a speech to some Republican supporters last night, and he made clear he did not want to give the president unconstitutional powers. He now joins three other Republican lawmakers in Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, and Tom Tillis that are voting to block the president's declaration.

I want to read to you some of what Paul told supporters yesterday in Bowling Green. He said, quote, "I can't vote to give the president the power to spend money that has not been appropriated by Congress. We may want more money for border security, but Congress did not authorize it. If we take away those checks and balances, it is a dangerous thing."

So Rand Paul essentially making the case that we've heard from other Republicans, that allowing President Trump to move forward with his national emergency declaration would set a precedent for a potential Democratic administration moving forward to do something similar.

The president, though, has been asked about this before. He said that if any measure of that kind reached his desk, he'd veto it. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Will I veto it? 100 percent. 100 percent. And I don't think it's about the veto. We have too many smart people that want border security. So I can't imagine if it would survive a veto but I will veto it, yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Again, it's largely a symbolic move, but there is a lot of weight behind this considering how much President Trump has pushed for funding for his border wall and how strongly he has fought to declare this national emergency. Keep in mind it wasn't that long ago that we learned that Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell came here to the White House to warn President Trump not to do this because of what we're seeing now. The president decided to move forward anyway.

To be clear, there's no indication yet as to exactly when the Senate may vote on this measure. The House passed it on Tuesday, and within the legal framework, the Senate then has 18 days to have a vote. So they still have about two weeks to go ahead and hold that vote -- Amara.

WALKER: Yes, this vote is coming, along with the lawsuits.

Boris Sanchez live for us at the White House. Thanks so much, Boris.

Well, 2020 hopefuls are on the ground in Selma, Alabama, to mark the anniversary of Bloody Sunday. Senators Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders, and Sherrod Brown are all joining others like Hillary Clinton and Reverend Jesse Jackson in marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

Fifty-four years ago this week peaceful protesters simply demanding the right for black people to vote were beaten and hosed by Alabama state troopers as they attempted to cross the bridge. March 7th, 1965, a day which became known as Bloody Sunday.

Today Sanders, Booker, and Clinton delivered messages of concern about the future of our democracy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is a time, my friends, when fundamental rights, civic virtue, freedom of the press, the rule of law, truth, facts, and reason are under assault.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's our turn to demand that we end all voter suppression in this country. I want to see automatic voter registration in every state in this country.

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am proud to be here to remember our history, but I worry now that we are at a point in our country where we see a moral vandalism that is attacking our ideals and beliefs and eroding the dream of our nation. (END VIDEO CLIP)

[16:05:15] WALKER: We begin with CNN political reporter Rebecca Buck on the 2020 hopefuls in Selma. And boy, were they issuing a stark warning about today and how it looks like even the accomplishments from 1965, they are in danger of -- well, they are under assault, as they're saying.

REBECCA BUCK, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. That's certainly the message that we are hearing at this march hear today that in some ways, this is so much a celebration of how far the country has come, but at the same time, a stark reminder of how far we have to go. And that's certainly the latter part is the message we have been hearing today from everyone from Hillary Clinton to Cory Booker, to Bernie Sanders, to Sherrod Brown, some of the people who have -- lawmakers who have been speaking here in Selma today.

Cory Booker speaking in the historic Brown Chapel where Martin Luther King Jr. gave sermons when he was here in Selma, Alabama, was saying from that same pulpit that the dream is in danger, that the dream of Martin Luther King is in danger of eroding in this era. And so the very clear message from leaders here today is that the struggle continues. That is, of course, what this march signifies, as much as the celebration of this day and what it means in terms of how far the country has come.

WALKER: You absolutely have to face the sobering reality even as we commemorate this historic day.

Rebecca Buck, stand by. Let's go to CNN's senior political reporter Nia-Malika Henderson. She is in Selma. Also joining me is Michael Eric Dyson, author of "What Truth Sounds Like."

Nia, let's start with you. And first up, I know you -- I want to start personal with you because, you know, you were mentioning last hour just, you know, also being there, what it means to you. And when you hear these messages, these concerns, stark warnings from the 2020 Democratic hopefuls that our democracy is under attack, that voting rights, we're not seeing equal voting rights today, how does that make you feel?

NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, I did talk personally about my own kind of memories of the Civil Rights Movement. Both of my parents involved in the Civil Rights Movement. They were in Chicago, part of King's sort of last campaign, right, the poor people's campaign in Chicago. Dr. King often said that places like Chicago and Boston were much more difficult and segregated in some instances than in the south in those later years.

My parents were in sort of those circles. And in watching, for instance, Cory Booker's announcement video, there's a little clip of my father in that video marching next to Martin Luther King. He was about 21 years old, he turned 21 really probably about three or four weeks before that clip was taken. So as a kid growing up, I would often be watching stuff about the Civil Rights Movement. My mom would say, oh, you might see your dad on these clips. And you

know, as a kid, you're sort of like rolling your eyes at your parents. But now as an adult, it often means so much to see my father. And I've got to say, I've never really been to Selma. And so as I'm driving up to the Edmund Pettus Bridge here, the site of a massacre, really, right, and you think about 54 years ago, what happened there and the people's lives are endangered during that instance, I got very choked up in seeing this scene.

Of course, there were marches after that, two marches after that, and a final successful one of which my father was a part of in March of 1965. But listen, you talk to people around this march today, I just bumped into a man who said he was 16 in 1965, part of this march and then migrated to Indiana because things were so bad in 1965. But the message here today, particularly from these Democratic candidates, is that there's still so much work to do in terms of expanding the ballot and in terms of ensuring civil rights and equality for all.

WALKER: Really appreciate you telling us that personal point of view, Nia-Malika.

And to you, Michael, I mean, what goes through your mind as you watch these powerful images as this is being re-enacted, Bloody Sunday, from 165?

MICHAEL ERIC DYSON, AUTHOR, "WHAT TRUTH SOUNDS LIKE": So is the price of American democracy. Black blood being shed, American democracy being restored. The redemption of the nation often comes through the prism, practice, and the protracted struggle of those on the ground whose feet are deeply entrenched in the mud, the muck, and mire of our civilization. And yet, from that mud, muck, and mire rises the great possibility of reclaiming the founding ideals of this nation.

[16:10:03] But they were sharply tested on that battleground. Selma is one of the great, if you will, battlegrounds for the soul of American democracy, and indeed for the soul of America's future. When those people were bloodied, when they were beat back, when the police people wielding batons and riding upon horses, showered them with invective and, you know, tremendous force, to beat them into the ground, but they sprung back up. They resurrected.

When they marched again against the bicuspids and incisors of police dogs ripping at their flesh. And these are police people, these are officials of the state. We tend to forget that segregation was a legal practice, even if immoral, of the American state. This is why the state bears such responsibility in redressing what has come to us historically. This is why reparation, this is why affirmative action, this is why racial redress is so necessary now because there's a long and invaliant history of, you know, America doing dastardly deeds to black people and to other citizens of this state.

And yet those people did not return violence for violence. They did not return hate for hate. What they did was show America its future. And it was multicultural. Reverend James Reed, the Unitarian minister, was murdered. Viola Liuzzo from my beloved Detroit, on the day after the march is ending squiring people back from Montgomery to Selma, and is murdered.

So this woman, this man, these people, Abraham Joshua Heschel, the great Jewish rabbi linking arms with Martin Luther King, Jr. This was a multiracial, multicultural affront against the vicious and invidious forces of racism in this country. And if we are to be successful in our own day and age, we must do the same.

When we hear a president amplifying the worst instincts of American racism, by demonizing Mexicans, and talking about people who are the other, when we see the otherizing of American citizens from the very bully pulpit that should be used to wield its authority to defend them, we must rise up again in these streets. That's what those people in Selma remind us of. That's what Cory Booker and Kamala Harris and others running for the presidency remind us of.

Those people who are there, Reverend Mark Thompson I saw out there, Sheila Jackson Lee, the congresswoman, with Reverend Jesse Jackson, and of course with Secretary Clinton, they are there joining arms, reminding us that the fight for democracy is not dead but alive, that the fight against voter suppression is real, the fight for returning the rights to the people is serious, and we must continue to do our part to make sure that that American pageantry is continued and that the story of American democracy does not end.

WALKER: It is so sad and so sobering to have this conversation, but it is one that is needed to remind America that we are backsliding to these dark times and to remember, as you were saying, the African- American blood that was shed on that bridge just to have rights that seem to be under assault today.

We're going to leave it there. We appreciate you joining us so much, Michael Eric Dyson, along with Nia-Malika Henderson, who's been there on the ground.

We're going to take a short break. Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:22:35] WALKER: Welcome back, everyone. Another big story we are following today, National Security Adviser John Bolton fiercely defending President Trump's decision to walk out of that meeting with Kim Jong-un. He insists that despite both men leaving without a deal, the second summit was not a failure, and the possibility of a third summit could be on the table depending on Kim Jong-un's next move. He also says the president laid out a clear offer and now they will wait and see.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BOLTON, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: I think it was unquestionably a success for the United States because the president protected, defended American interests. You know, the possibility was there for North Korea to make a big deal with us, to do complete denuclearization in exchange for the potential for a very bright economic future. The president wanted to make that big deal. He pushed very hard for it. The North Koreans were not willing to walk through the door that he

opened for them. So now we'll see what happens. If you can't get a good deal and the president offered North Korea the best deal it could possibly get, no deal is better than a bad deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Joining me now, Gordon Chang, author of "Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes on the World," and Douglas Brinkley, CNN's presidential historian.

Welcome to you both. President Trump just tweeted this. "The reason I do not want military drills with South Korea is to save hundreds of millions of dollars for the U.S. for which we are not reimbursed. That was my position long before I became president. Also, reducing tensions with North Korea at this time is a good thing."

All right. Gordon, first to you. Clearly yes, that will reduce tensions because North Korea sees these joint military deals as a precursor to an invasion. And he also got a second face-to-face meeting with the U.S. president. What is your reaction to the outcome or lack thereof of this summit and the fact that the U.S. is now ending these large-scale joint military exercises with Seoul?

GORDON CHANG, AUTHOR, "NUCLEAR SHOWDOWN: NORTH KOREA TAKES ON THE WORLD": Well, on the exercises, we got to remember that at this time, the North Koreans are involved in their winter training cycle, which is this massive exercise in order to prepare for an invasion of South Korea because this month the ground conditions are best for an invasion.

And you know, we need our large-scale military exercises to maintain our readiness. If we don't have readiness, we're inviting the North Koreans to think about invading the South. Now I don't think they would do that, but nonetheless, this is not a good move on the part of the president.

[16:20:01] We have a military which is expensive for a reason. You know, as for walking out of South -- of Hanoi, yes, that was the right thing to do in these particular circumstances because we're sending a message to the North Koreans, but we're also sending a message to China, that we're willing to walk out on trade negotiations if the Chinese are not talking to us in good faith. And so far I don't think the Chinese have been talking in good faith. So this was a very good thing for the United States.

WALKER: We do want to make clear, though, U.S. Defense officials did say that they believe they can achieve the necessary training needs in this matter when it's a smaller --

CHANG: That's not true.

WALKER: I just want to say what the other side is saying.

To you, Douglas Brinkley, I want you to listen to what John Bolton, the National Security adviser, had to say about the Otto Warmbier controversy when President Trump was saying, I take Kim Jong-un at his word when he says that he didn't know about how Otto Warmbier or the American student was being treated. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOLTON: Look, the president made it very clear he considers what happened to Otto Warmbier an act of brutality that's completely unacceptable to the American side. I've heard him before the summit itself, before the press conference talk about how deeply he cared about Otto Warmbier and his family.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Do you take Kim Jong-un at his word?

BOLTON: The president takes him at his word. That's what --

TAPPER: I know he does, but what about you?

BOLTON: My opinion doesn't matter. My opinion is that --

TAPPER: You're the National Security adviser to the president.

BOLTON: Right.

TAPPER: Your opinion matters quite a bit.

BOLTON: I am not the national security decision-maker. That's his view.

TAPPER: I don't know one expert on North Korea who thinks that anything could have happened to Otto Warmbier without Kim Jong-un knowing about it ahead of time. Do you disagree?

BOLTON: Good for them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: All right. Douglas, your reaction. I mean, his opinion does matter. He is a National Security adviser, meaning he advises the president.

DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, I think Bolton is embarrassed that Donald Trump grovels whenever he goes to North Korea. He's turned this into kind of a spectacle and a reality show, these summits. He doesn't get much out of them. It is great that Donald Trump is willing to talk with North Korea, but you don't want to be capitulating and, you know, giving in, confusing the world.

I mean, imagine what South Korea is thinking about. It's been such a roller coaster ride. First he's rocket man and now I'm in love with him. And then, you know, now we're not going to have our joint large- scale spring military exercises, but then we might. It's this schizophrenic foreign policy going on with North Korea.

The good news is we're averting war. The North Korea and the United States are talking. But I'm worried that Donald Trump is being hoodwinked by trusting anything to do with North Korea. WALKER: Very good point. And Gordon Chang, I mean, back to what the

president said. I mean, it was extraordinary to hear. Again a U.S. president say I take the North Korean brutal murderous dictator at his word when he says that he doesn't know exactly what happened to Otto Warmbier when he came back to the U.S. brain dead. And at CPAC, Trump was saying -- you know, he brought up the North Korea talks. He defended what he said about Otto Warmbier, saying look, there's a very, very delicate balance when it comes to nuclear negotiations.

Is it really a delicate balance? It doesn't seem like there was any balance. He just went one extreme direction and said, I believe Kim Jong-un.

CHANG: Well, you know, this whole notion of a delicate balance, this notion of trying to develop a friendship with the North Korean leader, you know, this is consistent American foreign policy over the course of administrations, Republicans and Democrats. And it's wrong because this notion of how you work with North Korea, you know, has failed administration after administration.

We ought to try something new. You know, they know they're very sensitive about human rights. When we don't raise human right, they think we're afraid of them. When they think we're afraid of them, they then press the advantage. So, you know, Kim Jong-un is in a regime that you cannot -- he cannot reciprocate gestures of friendship. It doesn't matter whether he likes Trump or not. He has to act according to the logic of that regime.

And we should start learning that because we're talking to the North Koreans. We should think. We should not be mirror imaging, which is exactly what we're doing right now with the North Koreans and have done so for a very long time.

WALKER: Quickly, two to you. First about North Korea before we go to Selma, because I know you were there yesterday, Douglas. But the question is what's next? There's talk from John Bolton about a third summit. Doesn't seem likely to me, but what would the point be of that if nothing came out of summit number two? And could the Trump administration, especially with John Bolton being the National Security adviser, a hawk who's not looking favorably at diplomacy with North Korea, could the Trump administration return to hardline tactics and rhetoric with North Korea?

BRINKLEY: I think Trump is obsessed with Barack Obama and the fact that Obama told him right before he became president was North Korea was the thorniest problem in the world. Donald Trump wants to solve the North Korea problem.

[16:25:05] Unfortunately he hasn't educated himself properly on what's occurred there since the Armistice of 1953. He doesn't really understand the nuances of the deal-making, dealing with a thuggish regime like North Korea. So he's constantly, I think, trying to get TV coverage, holding a big summit. And so I -- very likely, there will be a third summit, but the thought that this is going to be a denuclearized Korean peninsula in the next coming years while Trump's president seems very remote. WALKER: Yes. Douglas Brinkley, Gordon Chang, appreciate you both.

Just before we go, Douglas, I know you were in Selma yesterday. And I want to show you these live pictures. Really just powerful images of this re-enactment on Edmund Pettus Bridge. You were there. There was a bipartisan show of support for this 54th anniversary. Tell us more about it.

BRINKLEY: Well, John Lewis, the hero of the Civil Rights Movement, every year goes on pilgrimages. I was with him yesterday. It was at Edmund Pettus Bridge. It's called "Faith in Politics." And what was interesting is Lewis, in trying to reconcile our great divide, has Democrats and Republicans come to Selma. So there was another group yesterday on the bridge. And it was a little more faith based, a little more praying, a little more -- you know, a little less political theater than you're getting today.

But, you know, John Lewis is the one who has made Bloody Sunday, you know, what it is, this sort of -- Selma there on that bridge is hallowed American ground. It's like a battlefield that we need to treat with respect. And it's become the ground zero for the voting rights movement, and the National Parks Service runs a great museum. And every American should go to Selma. It's a trip back in time, but it's also relevant now because we need to register more people to vote.

WALKER: Yes. It is absolutely relevant now.

Douglas Brinkley and Gordon Chang, we appreciate you both. Thank you very much for the conversation.

We're going to take a short break. Back after this.

[16:30:01] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: The other big story we are following today, Democrats vowing to ramp up their investigations into President Trump. Today, the chair of the House Judiciary Committee says he will be requesting documents from some 60 people as Congress investigates the president for possible obstruction of justice, corruption, and abuse of power.

Some of those being targeted include top officials at Trump's businesses and several members of the president's family, including Donald Trump Jr.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think the president obstructed justice?

REP. JERRY NADLER (D), NEW YORK: Yes, I do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If that's...

NADLER: It's very clear the president obstructed justice. It's very clear 1100 times he referred to the Mueller investigation as a witch hunt. He tried to -- he fired -- he tried to protect Flynn from being investigated by the FBI. He fired Comey in order to stop the Russian thing, as he told NBC News. He's dangled -- he's intimidated witnesses in public.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Meantime, President Trump is claiming he is innocent, tweeting today I am an innocent man being persecuted by some very bad, conflicted, and corrupt people in a witch hunt that is illegal and should never have been allowed to start, and only because I won the election. With me now is Ron Brownstein, Senior Editor for The Atlantic and CNN Senior Political Analyst, and Margaret Talev.

She is a Senior White House Correspondent for Bloomberg News and a CNN Political Analyst. Thanks to you both for joining me. Ron, let's start with you. And just getting your reaction to Congressman Nadler, saying what you just heard there, saying Michael Cohen's testimony implicated the president in various crimes. He said it was clear that there was obstruction by the president.

Does this take the investigation to a whole new legal and political level for the president?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, look. I mean I think there are several things that emerged from what Congressman Nadler said. I mean first, obviously, Michael Cohen left a big trail of bread crumbs in terms of further investigation on a variety of matters, some of which he did not even specify. And it's no surprise that Democrats are going to be very aggressive in following up on all of the individuals that he kind of raised in his testimony.

Second, I -- it's noteworthy that Chairman Nadler talking about bringing so many individuals in for questioning. We could see a real divergence here between the Democrats' ability to bring in people from the private sector life of Donald Trump and the struggle they will face overcoming claims of executive privilege for the information they want from the White House itself.

And that seems to be heading directly toward court. And then the third thing I would say real quick, is that, you know, Congressman Nadler I think is balancing on a tight rope, because, you know, he's repeatedly has said that the president has committed offenses, and he talked about the hush money payments as well. What he has not gone to is whether those offenses justify impeachment, which is something I think Democrats are ambivalent about.

But it is worth noting that if he's saying the president obstructed justice that was a central plank in the impeachment of both Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton over the past 50 years.

WALKER: OK. So we'll see what happens next and where the political will is. Margaret, Congressman Nadler, he also said his committee plans to request documents as we're saying from dozens of people in the Trump administration and his family business. It seems Democrats are going to cross that red line the president warned about and look into his business dealings and much more. And I mean for President Trump, it's hey, welcome to Democratic oversight. [16:35:06] MARGARET TALEV, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I mean

that's true. And they've known for months that this or some version of this could be coming. You might want to know. I want to know what is the White House going to do, how they're going to respond. Thus far, they've been pretty silent about how they will actually react, kind of deferring, saying let's wait and see when this list arrives and we'll comment.

So how will they proceed? What will they agree to? What will they not agree to? And I think Ron is right that when you get to the number 60, you're talking about a lot of people, some inside government, many outside government, casting a pretty wide net. That's just Jerry Nadler's committee. That's judiciary. There's also the House Intelligence Committee. And we're waiting for a big one with Felix Sater in mid-March.

And so I think the president is kind of in it now. He's buckling up for a long, bumpy spring. So is his team. They've attempted to staff up in the counsel's office in terms of how they handle communications about this sort of stuff. But that Cohen hearing which took place while the president was in Vietnam, trying to deal with the Kim summit has left a lot of repercussions.

WALKER: Yeah. It sure was a remarkable split screen moment. Ron, I want to talk to you about the CPAC speech. We can't unpack all of it because there was so much the president hit on, you know, over two hours. But he did criticize the media. We've heard this line of attack where he said, look, I was just joking when I said this, but the media is now taking my comments too seriously.

And he was saying he was joking when he asked Russia to find Hillary Clinton's missing e-mails. But we want to show you some previous comments that seem to contradict those claims that he was being sarcastic or joking. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you tell a joke, if you're sarcastic, if you're having fun with the audience, if you're on live television with millions of people and 25,000 people in an arena, and if you say something like, Russia, please, if you can, get us Hillary Clinton's e-mails. Please, Russia, please. She gets subpoenaed and she gets rid of 33,000 e-mails.

That gives me a problem. Now, if Russia or China or any other country has those e-mails, I mean, to be honest with you, I would love to see them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: OK. So he said he's being honest there. I mean clearly, it doesn't sound like Trump was joking. And we should mention Cohen was testifying last week that, you know, he was saying that Trump knew ahead of time of this Wikileaks hack.

NADLER: Yes. Yeah, well, look. I mean this is not new for the president, to try to retroactively rewrite history. Of course, it's on tape. And he has often denied things that he has tweeted about, you know? And later -- can I just say that I think there were thousands of words in this speech, and it veered in all sorts of direction from kind of self-pity and aggrandizement and kind of a free association.

But I actually thought it gave you a pretty concentrated version of how he intends to run in 2020. And it really comes down to three words that he said at one point. I will protect you. You know he was talking specifically about the Second Amendment at that point. But what the president did in that speech is what he does so often, is that he tells his core supporters that they are under siege, which is another phrase that he used during the speech from an array of interests, from immigrants, from elites that are...

(CROSSTALK)

NADLER: And I will protect you. I will hold back the changes that you find threatening. And Democrats are kind of the embodiment of all of that. He called them radical, obviously, socialist, and so forth. And that kind of argument that he is in effect, as I said yesterday, a human wall against the changes that his supporters view as threatening, I think, is the core of his argument.

And it emerged amid all of the zigs and zags of that Fidel Castro- esque two-hour, you know, you know, disquisition yesterday. But I think it gave you a good preview of where he may be going in 2020.

WALKER: Yeah. You're right. Fear mongering seems to always work. And, you know, we've heard (Inaudible) I alone can protect you as well. Ron Brownstein, we appreciate it. Margaret Talev, thank you both for your time. All right, up next, Senator Sanders already on a campaign blitz, trying to secure his spot in the race for 2020.

[16:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: Welcome back. Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders is already on the campaign trail for his second run for the White House. Sanders holding rallies in Brooklyn yesterday, then Selma, Alabama this morning, and later this evening, he'll be in Chicago. And his supporters are hearing something new. They're hearing about his parents, his childhood, where he came from, and who he is. CNN's Ryan Nobles with more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For Bernie Sanders, there are many aspects to his 2020 campaign that are different, the most obvious change, a new human touch.

SEN. BERNIE Sanders (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I know where I came from.

NOBLES: But what remains is the feverent devotion to the progressive issues he cares about.

SANDERS: A government which works for all of us, not just the one percent.

NOBLES: A devotion now inspired by his upbringing, and on full display at his first rally in his boyhood home of Brooklyn.

SANDERS: My mother's dream was that some day our family would move out of that rent-controlled apartment to a home of our own. That dream was never fulfilled.

NOBLES: Sanders will continue that personal pitch in Chicago, where he graduated college and cut his teeth in political activism. But this morning, the remnants of the 2016 campaign were on full display. Sanders and his former opponent, Hillary Clinton, briefly crossed paths in Selma, Alabama, at a civil rights breakfast where she was being honored.

SANDERS: Let me congratulate Secretary Clinton on the award she is about to receive.

[16:45:00] NOBLES: Clinton, sharing a hug with Senator Cory Booker, another 2020 candidate, as Sanders spoke. Their short interaction stood in contrast to her warmly greeting others, a reminder that try as he might to move on, Sanders still needs to reconcile where he stands with Clinton and her powerful base of support.

SANDERS: She didn't reach out to working class people in the way I think she should have. There were states where she did not campaign as vigorously as she should have.

NOBLES: Some Clinton supporters still blame Bernie for bruising Clinton prior to the general election.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To this day, I still believe that he would have beaten Donald Trump.

NOBLES: And his fired up supporters believe any lingering issues between the Sanders camp and the Clinton camp are immaterial to the grand 2020 goal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can blame Bernie Sanders all you want, but we're still here.

NOBLES: But while Clinton did not win the election, she still received more votes than any candidate in history, and her base of support will be difficult to ignore. Several 2020 candidates have called on her for advice and in search of support, Sanders is not one of them.

SANDERS: Look. We have differences. She -- Hillary has played a very important role in modern American politics.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But you're not interested in any advice from her?

SANDERS: I think not.

NOBLES: But as he moves from insurgent to favorite, finding a way to bring the Clinton voter into the fold may be his most difficult challenge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBLES: And the fact that Bernie Sanders is going to start his campaign in cities like Brooklyn, here in Chicago, and that visit to Alabama this morning, really demonstrates how things are going to be different in 2020 than they were four years ago, Sanders attempting to expand his base by reaching out to African-American voters and specifically talking about his personal story. But make no mistake.

There will be a heavy influence on those early states. And Sanders is set to make his first trip to Iowa next week, holding three events in three different cities over three days, Amara?

WALKER: It is a clear change in strategy. We will see if it works. Ryan nobles, thank you very much. We're back in a moment.

[16:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: It is a family that has given America one senator, two governors, two first ladies, and two presidents. The all-new CNN original series the Bush Years, family, duty, power, takes us inside the iconic Bush family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would like to introduce you to my family. The fact is I would be nothing without them, our four sons, our daughter, my own Barbara Bush.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's hard to imagine any family that has been more significant to American politics.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can hear you. And (Inaudible) the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us too.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bush family, going back generations, believe in public service and helping their fellow man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People refer to the Bush family as a dynasty. That's what it is, and that's what it was.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am running for president of the United States. There's no turning back, and I intend to be the next president of the United States.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's my boy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: All right. Joining us now is CNN contributor Kate Anderson Brower. She's also the out author of First Women, the Grace and Power of America's Modern First Ladies. Kate, you know, when people think of the Bush family, they usually think of the men who were in office. But there are two first ladies in this dynasty. That would be Barbara Bush and Laura Bush. How did each of them approach their roles? KATE ANDERSON BROWER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I mean, Barbara Bush was

kind of this wonderful grandmotherly-like maternal character with a great sense of humor, would always joke about wearing fake pearls, and just kind of this biting wit. And Laura Bush was more formal, but they were both incredibly devoted to their husbands. They both went out and campaigned a lot for their husbands, and their approval ratings were the highest we've had of any modern first ladies.

They really took the job very seriously. And they tended to stay away from criticism of their husbands, and took on literacy as their issue, which is really interesting. So something that wasn't too controversial. But they're very powerful women, very important women in this family. And it's a fascinating documentary, because the legacy of this family is this American dynasty, really, even though they didn't like the term dynasty and still don't. They really are kind of the closest thing we have to royalty.

WALKER: Well, you know, first ladies we know both have public and private roles. And while neither Barbara nor Laura, I mean they didn't have young children in the White House, but they did have families still to care for.

BROWER: They did. And they were very protective of their children. I mean Barbara Bush, you know, was the silver fox, and she would do anything for her kids, and the same with Laura Bush. And there was kind of this wonderful camaraderie among former first ladies. And I think that Michelle Obama is part of that too.

And you could see it with Laura Bush and Barbara Bush, where Laura Bush, you know, she told me there hasn't been a first lady since Louisa Adams who was able to get advice from her mother-in-law about what it was like to live in the White House, which I think is an incredible thing in our history, that we had a woman who got to see her husband and her son become president.

WALKER: Can you imagine? Yeah, fascinating stuff, Kate Anderson Brower, appreciate you joining us. Thanks so much.

BROWER: Thank you.

WALKER: And you can watch the Bush Years, Family, Duty, Power, premiering tonight at 9:00 eastern only here on CNN. Well, this week, we reveal our first CNN Hero of 2019, but before we do, an update on last year's hero of the year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, the 2018 CNN Hero of the year is Dr. Ricardo Pun-Chong.

[16:54:58] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's been hailed a national hero. Ricardo plans to use his CNN prize money and viewer donations to build a new shelter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The kids inspire me everyday. Really, they are heroes. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Nominate someone you think should be a CNN Hero right now at CNNheroes.com. And that is our time, everyone. Thanks so much for joining us. I am Amara Walker in for Fredricka Whitfield. The news continues with Ana Cabrera after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANA CABRERA, CNN ANCHOR: You're live from the CNN Newsroom. I am Ana Cabrera in New York, great to have you with us. One of the most powerful members of Congress, the head of the House Judiciary Committee, said today he believes President Trump committed a federal crime.