0:00:01.201,0:00:02.001 The President:[br]Thank you very much. 0:00:07.040,0:00:10.542 I just wanted to begin[br]by mentioning that the 0:00:11.644,0:00:16.815 nominee for Secretary of[br]the Department of Labor 0:00:16.815,0:00:20.119 will be Mr. Alex Acosta. 0:00:20.120,0:00:22.455 He has a law degree from[br]Harvard Law School, 0:00:22.454,0:00:24.123 was a great student. 0:00:24.123,0:00:28.460 Former clerk for[br]Justice Samuel Alito. 0:00:28.460,0:00:32.198 And he has had a[br]tremendous career. 0:00:32.198,0:00:33.732 He's a member, and has[br]been a member, of the 0:00:34.267,0:00:37.303 National Labor Relations[br]Board, and has been 0:00:37.302,0:00:41.507 through Senate[br]confirmation three times, 0:00:41.508,0:00:44.411 confirmed -- did[br]very, very well. 0:00:44.411,0:00:49.314 And so Alex, I've[br]wished him the best. 0:00:49.314,0:00:50.048 We just spoke. 0:00:50.048,0:00:52.217 And he's going to be[br]-- I think he'll be a 0:00:52.218,0:00:54.854 tremendous[br]Secretary of Labor. 0:00:54.853,0:00:58.991 And also, as you probably[br]heard just a little while 0:00:58.991,0:01:03.629 ago, Mick Mulvaney, former[br]congressman, has just been 0:01:03.630,0:01:06.332 approved -- weeks late,[br]I have to say that. 0:01:06.331,0:01:08.500 Weeks, weeks late. 0:01:08.501,0:01:11.070 Office of Management[br]and Budget. 0:01:11.069,0:01:15.974 And he will be, I think,[br]a fantastic addition. 0:01:15.974,0:01:18.177 Paul Singer has just left. 0:01:18.177,0:01:21.548 As you know, Paul was very[br]much involved with the 0:01:21.548,0:01:26.085 anti-Trump, or, as they[br]say, "Never Trump." And 0:01:26.084,0:01:28.687 Paul just left and he's[br]given us his 0:01:28.688,0:01:30.189 total support. 0:01:30.189,0:01:31.724 And it's all about[br]unification. 0:01:31.724,0:01:34.828 We're unifying the party,[br]and hopefully we're going 0:01:34.828,0:01:37.496 to be able to[br]unify the country. 0:01:37.496,0:01:38.697 It's very important to me. 0:01:38.697,0:01:40.833 I've been talking about[br]that for a long time, but 0:01:40.834,0:01:43.302 it's very, very[br]important to me. 0:01:43.302,0:01:45.838 So I want to thank Paul[br]Singer for being here and 0:01:45.838,0:01:47.039 for coming up[br]to the office. 0:01:47.040,0:01:50.176 He was a very strong[br]opponent, and now he's a 0:01:50.176,0:01:52.245 very strong ally. 0:01:52.245,0:01:54.047 And I appreciate that. 0:01:54.046,0:01:55.747 I think I'll say a few[br]words, and then we'll take 0:01:55.748,0:01:56.649 some questions. 0:01:56.649,0:02:00.920 And I had this time --[br]we've been negotiating a 0:02:00.920,0:02:03.756 lot of different[br]transactions to save money 0:02:03.756,0:02:06.992 on contracts that were[br]terrible, including 0:02:06.992,0:02:09.262 airplane contracts that[br]were out of control and 0:02:09.262,0:02:10.697 late and terrible. 0:02:10.697,0:02:15.168 Just absolutely[br]catastrophic in terms of 0:02:15.168,0:02:15.968 what was happening. 0:02:15.968,0:02:18.704 And we've done some[br]really good work. 0:02:18.705,0:02:21.508 We're very proud of that. 0:02:21.508,0:02:24.177 And then right after that,[br]you prepare yourselves and 0:02:24.176,0:02:25.544 we'll do some questions[br]-- unless you 0:02:25.544,0:02:26.211 have no questions. 0:02:26.211,0:02:28.146 That's always[br]a possibility. 0:02:28.146,0:02:31.251 I'm here today to update[br]the American people on the 0:02:31.251,0:02:33.986 incredible progress that[br]has been made in the last 0:02:33.986,0:02:36.355 four weeks since[br]my inauguration. 0:02:36.355,0:02:38.557 We have made[br]incredible progress. 0:02:38.557,0:02:41.527 I don't think there's ever[br]been a President elected 0:02:41.527,0:02:43.962 who, in this short period[br]of time, has done 0:02:43.962,0:02:45.764 what we've done. 0:02:45.764,0:02:48.500 A new Rasmussen poll, in[br]fact -- because the people 0:02:48.501,0:02:52.205 get it; much of the[br]media doesn't get it. 0:02:52.205,0:02:53.740 They actually get it, but[br]they don't write it -- 0:02:53.740,0:02:54.474 let's put it that way. 0:02:54.473,0:02:57.911 But a new Rasmussen poll[br]just came out just a very 0:02:57.911,0:03:01.080 short while ago, and it[br]has our approval rating at 0:03:01.080,0:03:04.050 55 percent and going up. 0:03:04.050,0:03:06.653 The stock market has hit[br]record numbers, 0:03:06.652,0:03:08.086 as you know. 0:03:08.086,0:03:11.290 And there has been a[br]tremendous surge of 0:03:11.290,0:03:14.627 optimism in the business[br]world, which is -- to me 0:03:14.627,0:03:16.528 means something much[br]different than it used to. 0:03:16.528,0:03:18.163 It used to mean,[br]oh, that's good. 0:03:18.163,0:03:21.266 Now it means that's[br]good for jobs. 0:03:21.266,0:03:23.102 Very different. 0:03:23.102,0:03:25.572 Plants and factories are[br]already starting to move 0:03:25.572,0:03:27.873 back into the United[br]States and big league -- 0:03:27.873,0:03:30.576 Ford, General Motors,[br]so many of them. 0:03:30.576,0:03:32.544 I'm making this[br]presentation directly to 0:03:32.544,0:03:35.814 the American people with[br]the media present, which 0:03:35.814,0:03:39.419 is an honor to have you[br]this morning, because many 0:03:39.419,0:03:43.790 of our nation's reporters[br]and folks will not tell 0:03:43.789,0:03:47.492 you the truth and will not[br]treat the wonderful people 0:03:47.492,0:03:50.562 of our country with the[br]respect that they deserve. 0:03:50.562,0:03:52.798 And I hope going forward[br]we can be a little bit 0:03:52.799,0:03:55.034 different, and maybe get[br]along a little bit better, 0:03:55.033,0:03:56.134 if that's possible. 0:03:56.134,0:03:59.905 Maybe it's not, and[br]that's okay too. 0:03:59.906,0:04:02.408 Unfortunately, much of the[br]media in Washington, D.C., 0:04:02.407,0:04:05.544 along with New York, Los[br]Angeles, in particular, 0:04:05.544,0:04:09.581 speaks not for the people[br]but for the special 0:04:09.581,0:04:14.387 interests and for those[br]profiting off a very, very 0:04:14.387,0:04:17.624 obviously broken system. 0:04:17.624,0:04:21.927 The press has become so[br]dishonest that if we don't 0:04:21.927,0:04:25.898 talk about it, we are[br]doing a tremendous 0:04:25.898,0:04:27.634 disservice to the American[br]people -- 0:04:27.634,0:04:28.768 tremendous disservice. 0:04:28.767,0:04:31.403 We have to talk about it[br]to find out what's going 0:04:31.403,0:04:32.137 on, because the press 0:04:32.137,0:04:33.505 honestly is out of control. 0:04:33.505,0:04:37.042 The level of dishonesty[br]is out of control. 0:04:37.043,0:04:39.579 I ran for President to[br]represent the citizens 0:04:39.579,0:04:41.079 of our country. 0:04:41.079,0:04:44.651 I am here to change the[br]broken system so it serves 0:04:44.651,0:04:48.021 their families and[br]their communities well. 0:04:48.021,0:04:51.557 I am talking, and really[br]talking, on this very 0:04:51.557,0:04:54.761 entrenched power[br]structure, and what we're 0:04:54.761,0:04:58.898 doing is we're talking[br]about the power structure, 0:04:58.898,0:05:01.434 we're talking about[br]its entrenchment. 0:05:01.434,0:05:04.937 As a result, the media is[br]going through what they 0:05:04.937,0:05:08.574 have to go through to[br]oftentimes distort -- not 0:05:08.574,0:05:10.576 all the time -- and some[br]of the media is fantastic, 0:05:10.576,0:05:13.246 I have to say; they're[br]honest and fantastic. 0:05:13.245,0:05:16.716 But much of it is not[br]-- the distortion. 0:05:16.716,0:05:18.283 And we'll talk about it,[br]and you'll be able to ask 0:05:18.283,0:05:20.552 me questions about it. 0:05:20.552,0:05:22.422 But we're not going to let[br]it happen, because I'm 0:05:22.422,0:05:25.658 here again to take my[br]message straight 0:05:25.658,0:05:26.359 to the people. 0:05:26.358,0:05:28.894 As you know, our[br]administration inherited 0:05:28.894,0:05:32.097 many problems across[br]government and 0:05:32.098,0:05:34.467 across the economy. 0:05:34.466,0:05:39.471 To be honest, I inherited[br]a mess -- it's a mess -- 0:05:42.442,0:05:44.177 at home and abroad. 0:05:44.177,0:05:46.412 A mess. 0:05:46.411,0:05:48.914 Jobs are pouring[br]out of the country. 0:05:48.915,0:05:51.584 You see what's going on[br]with all of the companies 0:05:51.584,0:05:55.521 leaving our country, going[br]to Mexico and other places 0:05:55.521,0:05:57.256 -- low-pay, low-wages. 0:05:57.255,0:06:01.193 Mass instability overseas,[br]no matter where you look. 0:06:01.194,0:06:02.795 The Middle East,[br]a disaster. 0:06:02.795,0:06:05.598 North Korea -- we'll[br]take care of it, folks. 0:06:05.598,0:06:07.199 We're going to take[br]care of it all. 0:06:07.199,0:06:11.471 I just want to let you[br]know I inherited a mess. 0:06:11.471,0:06:13.572 Beginning on day one, our[br]administration went to 0:06:13.572,0:06:18.477 work to tackle[br]these challenges. 0:06:18.478,0:06:21.013 On foreign affairs, we've[br]already begun enormously 0:06:21.012,0:06:23.649 productive talks with many[br]foreign leaders -- much of 0:06:23.649,0:06:26.319 it you've covered --[br]to move forward toward 0:06:26.319,0:06:30.490 stability, security, and[br]peace in the most troubled 0:06:30.490,0:06:34.026 regions of the world,[br]which there are many. 0:06:34.026,0:06:35.895 We've had great[br]conversations with the 0:06:35.894,0:06:38.930 United Kingdom -- and[br]meetings -- Israel, 0:06:38.930,0:06:42.601 Mexico, Japan,[br]China, and Canada. 0:06:42.601,0:06:46.004 Really, really productive[br]conversations. 0:06:46.004,0:06:48.673 I would say far more[br]productive than you 0:06:48.673,0:06:50.742 would understand. 0:06:50.742,0:06:55.213 We've even developed a new[br]council with Canada to 0:06:55.213,0:06:58.117 promote women's business[br]leaders and entrepreneurs. 0:06:58.117,0:07:00.086 It's very important to[br]me, very important to my 0:07:00.086,0:07:02.121 daughter Ivanka. 0:07:02.120,0:07:05.024 I have directed our[br]defense community, headed 0:07:05.024,0:07:10.762 by our great general, now[br]Secretary Mattis -- he's 0:07:10.762,0:07:14.099 over there now, working[br]very hard -- to submit a 0:07:14.100,0:07:18.037 plan for the defeat[br]of ISIS, a group that 0:07:18.036,0:07:22.608 celebrates the murder and[br]torture of innocent people 0:07:22.608,0:07:24.310 in large sections[br]of the world. 0:07:24.310,0:07:26.179 It used to be a small[br]group, and now it's in 0:07:26.178,0:07:29.181 large sections[br]of the world. 0:07:29.182,0:07:32.084 They've spread[br]like cancer. 0:07:32.084,0:07:36.155 ISIS has spread[br]like cancer. 0:07:36.154,0:07:38.924 Another mess I inherited. 0:07:38.925,0:07:41.860 And we have imposed new[br]sanctions on the nation of 0:07:41.860,0:07:44.029 Iran, who's totally taken[br]advantage of our 0:07:44.029,0:07:46.798 previous administration. 0:07:46.798,0:07:49.467 And they're the world's[br]top sponsor of terrorism. 0:07:49.468,0:07:55.441 And we're not going to[br]stop until that problem is 0:07:55.440,0:07:56.641 properly solved. 0:07:56.641,0:07:58.343 And it's not[br]properly solved now. 0:07:58.343,0:08:00.146 It's one of the worst[br]agreements I've ever seen 0:08:00.146,0:08:02.314 drawn by anybody. 0:08:02.314,0:08:04.884 I've ordered plans to[br]begin for the massive 0:08:04.884,0:08:07.153 rebuilding of the[br]United States military. 0:08:07.153,0:08:10.689 I've had great support[br]from the Senate. 0:08:10.689,0:08:14.326 I've had great support[br]from Congress generally. 0:08:14.326,0:08:17.797 We've pursued this[br]rebuilding in the hopes 0:08:17.797,0:08:22.935 that we will never have[br]to use this military. 0:08:22.935,0:08:27.473 And I will tell you that[br]is my -- I would be so 0:08:28.040,0:08:30.810 happy if we never[br]had to use it. 0:08:30.810,0:08:34.779 But our country will never[br]have had a military like 0:08:34.779,0:08:40.385 the military we're about[br]to build and rebuild. 0:08:40.385,0:08:42.320 We have the greatest[br]people on Earth in our 0:08:42.321,0:08:45.358 military, but they don't[br]have the right equipment. 0:08:45.357,0:08:47.993 And their[br]equipment is old. 0:08:47.994,0:08:52.163 I used it, I talked[br]about it at every stop. 0:08:52.163,0:08:54.500 Depleted -- it's depleted. 0:08:54.500,0:08:57.102 It won't be[br]depleted for long. 0:08:57.102,0:08:59.437 And I think one of the[br]reasons I'm standing here 0:08:59.437,0:09:02.908 instead of other people is[br]that, frankly, I talked 0:09:02.908,0:09:04.710 about we have to have[br]a strong military. 0:09:04.710,0:09:08.514 We have to have strong[br]law enforcement also. 0:09:08.514,0:09:14.220 So we do not go abroad[br]in the search of war. 0:09:14.220,0:09:16.923 We really are searching[br]for peace, but it's peace 0:09:16.923,0:09:17.956 through strength. 0:09:17.956,0:09:21.326 At home, we have begun[br]the monumental task of 0:09:21.326,0:09:23.629 returning the government[br]back to the people on a 0:09:23.629,0:09:26.465 scale not seen in[br]many, many years. 0:09:26.465,0:09:30.235 In each of these actions,[br]I'm keeping my promises to 0:09:30.235,0:09:31.069 the American people. 0:09:31.070,0:09:32.271 These are campaign[br]promises. 0:09:32.270,0:09:33.872 Some people are so[br]surprised that we're 0:09:33.873,0:09:34.941 having strong borders. 0:09:34.941,0:09:37.343 Well, that's what I've[br]been talking about for a 0:09:37.342,0:09:38.677 year and a half[br]-- strong borders. 0:09:38.677,0:09:41.212 They're so surprised --[br]"oh, you're having strong 0:09:41.212,0:09:42.581 borders." Well, that's[br]what I've been talking 0:09:42.581,0:09:46.619 about to the press[br]and to everybody else. 0:09:46.619,0:09:51.223 One promise after another[br]after years of politicians 0:09:51.222,0:09:54.159 lying to you[br]to get elected. 0:09:54.159,0:09:55.860 They lie to the American[br]people in order 0:09:55.860,0:09:56.562 to get elected. 0:09:56.562,0:09:58.998 Some of the things I'm[br]doing probably aren't 0:09:58.998,0:10:01.600 popular, but they're[br]necessary for security and 0:10:01.600,0:10:03.134 for other reasons. 0:10:03.134,0:10:06.538 And then coming to[br]Washington and pursuing 0:10:06.538,0:10:09.140 their own interests, which[br]is more important to 0:10:09.140,0:10:11.610 many politicians. 0:10:11.610,0:10:14.113 I'm here following through[br]on what I pledged to do. 0:10:14.113,0:10:15.982 That's all I'm doing. 0:10:15.981,0:10:17.916 I put it out before[br]the American people. 0:10:17.917,0:10:22.655 Got 306 Electoral[br]College votes. 0:10:22.654,0:10:24.622 I wasn't supposed[br]to get 222. 0:10:24.623,0:10:27.626 They said there's no[br]way to get 222; 0:10:27.625,0:10:30.428 230 is impossible. 0:10:30.428,0:10:32.464 Two hundred and seventy,[br]which you need, 0:10:32.465,0:10:34.466 that was laughable. 0:10:34.466,0:10:38.737 We got 306 because people[br]came out and voted like 0:10:38.738,0:10:40.039 they've never seen before. 0:10:40.038,0:10:41.740 So that's the way it goes. 0:10:41.740,0:10:45.477 I guess it was the biggest[br]Electoral College win 0:10:45.477,0:10:48.713 since Ronald Reagan. 0:10:48.714,0:10:51.083 In other words, the media[br]is trying to attack our 0:10:51.082,0:10:54.419 administration because[br]they know we are following 0:10:54.419,0:10:58.690 through on pledges that[br]we made, and they're not 0:10:58.691,0:11:00.759 happy about it for[br]whatever reason. 0:11:00.759,0:11:04.963 But a lot of people[br]are happy about it. 0:11:04.964,0:11:08.534 In fact, I'll be in[br]Melbourne, Florida, five 0:11:08.533,0:11:12.004 o'clock on Saturday, and I[br]heard -- just heard that 0:11:12.004,0:11:16.408 the crowds are massive[br]that want to be there. 0:11:16.408,0:11:19.044 I turn on the TV, open[br]the newspapers, and I see 0:11:19.044,0:11:22.480 stories of chaos. Chaos! 0:11:22.480,0:11:25.985 Yet, it is the[br]exact opposite. 0:11:25.985,0:11:31.190 This administration is[br]running like a fine-tuned 0:11:31.190,0:11:34.794 machine, despite the[br]fact that I can't get my 0:11:34.793,0:11:36.761 Cabinet approved, and 0:11:36.761,0:11:38.496 they're outstanding people. 0:11:38.496,0:11:40.565 Like Senator Dan Coates[br]whose there -- one of the 0:11:40.566,0:11:43.235 most respected men of the[br]Senate -- 0:11:43.235,0:11:45.904 he can't get approved. 0:11:45.904,0:11:46.838 How do you not[br]approve him? 0:11:46.839,0:11:50.209 He's been a colleague,[br]highly respected -- 0:11:50.208,0:11:52.377 brilliant guy, great guy,[br]everybody knows it -- but 0:11:52.378,0:11:54.780 waiting for approval. 0:11:54.779,0:11:58.283 So we have a wonderful[br]group of people that's 0:11:58.283,0:12:02.855 working very hard,[br]that's being very much 0:12:02.855,0:12:07.026 misrepresented about, and[br]we can't let that happen. 0:12:07.025,0:12:11.896 So if the Democrats, who[br]have -- all you have to do 0:12:11.897,0:12:14.800 is look at where they are[br]right now -- the only 0:12:14.799,0:12:17.402 thing they can do is[br]delay, because they've 0:12:17.403,0:12:20.406 screwed things up[br]royally, believe me. 0:12:20.405,0:12:22.607 Let me list to you some of[br]the things that we've done 0:12:22.607,0:12:24.175 in just a short[br]period of time. 0:12:24.176,0:12:27.146 I just got here. 0:12:27.145,0:12:30.149 I got here with[br]no Cabinet. 0:12:30.149,0:12:33.085 Again, each of these[br]actions is a promise I 0:12:33.085,0:12:34.519 made to the[br]American people. 0:12:34.519,0:12:36.422 So we'll go over just some[br]of them, and we have a lot 0:12:36.422,0:12:41.127 happening next week and[br]in the weeks coming. 0:12:41.126,0:12:45.163 We've withdrawn from the[br]job-killing disaster known 0:12:45.163,0:12:46.731 as Trans-Pacific[br]Partnership. 0:12:46.731,0:12:48.299 We're going to make trade[br]deals, but we're going to 0:12:48.299,0:12:50.335 have one-on-one[br]deals -- bilateral. 0:12:50.336,0:12:53.605 We're going to have[br]one-on-one deals. 0:12:53.605,0:12:56.975 We've directed the[br]elimination of regulations 0:12:56.975,0:13:00.211 that undermine[br]manufacturing, and called 0:13:00.211,0:13:05.350 for expedited approval of[br]the permits needed for 0:13:05.350,0:13:10.089 America and American[br]infrastructure, and that 0:13:10.089,0:13:14.660 means plants, equipment,[br]roads, bridges, factories. 0:13:14.659,0:13:17.262 People take 10, 15, 20[br]years to get disapproved 0:13:17.263,0:13:17.930 for a factory. 0:13:17.929,0:13:21.699 They go in for a permit[br]-- it's many, many years. 0:13:21.700,0:13:23.969 And then at the end of the[br]process -- they spend tens 0:13:23.969,0:13:27.105 of millions of dollars on[br]nonsense -- and at the end 0:13:27.105,0:13:29.040 of the process,[br]they get rejected. 0:13:29.041,0:13:30.910 Now, they may be rejected[br]with me, but it's going to 0:13:30.909,0:13:32.076 be a quick rejection. 0:13:32.076,0:13:33.412 It's not going[br]to take years. 0:13:33.412,0:13:35.781 But mostly, it's going[br]to be an acceptance. 0:13:35.780,0:13:38.316 We want plants built, and[br]we want factories built, 0:13:38.317,0:13:40.719 and we want the jobs. 0:13:40.719,0:13:43.556 We don't want the jobs[br]going to other countries. 0:13:43.556,0:13:47.192 We've imposed a hiring[br]freeze on nonessential 0:13:47.192,0:13:48.994 federal workers. 0:13:48.994,0:13:53.699 We've imposed a temporary[br]moratorium on new federal 0:13:53.698,0:13:54.966 regulations. 0:13:54.966,0:13:57.836 We've issued a[br]game-changing new rule 0:13:57.836,0:14:01.039 that says for each one[br]new regulation, two old 0:14:01.039,0:14:02.807 regulations must[br]be eliminated. 0:14:02.807,0:14:05.510 Makes sense. 0:14:05.510,0:14:08.213 Nobody has ever seen[br]regulations like we have. 0:14:08.214,0:14:09.748 If you go to other[br]countries and you look at 0:14:09.748,0:14:11.951 industries they have, and[br]you say, let me see your 0:14:11.951,0:14:15.521 regulations, and they're[br]a fraction, just a tiny 0:14:15.520,0:14:17.488 fraction of what we have. 0:14:17.489,0:14:20.024 And I want regulations[br]because I want safety, I 0:14:20.024,0:14:23.394 want all environmental[br]situations to be taken 0:14:23.394,0:14:25.096 properly care of. 0:14:25.096,0:14:28.033 It's very important to me. 0:14:28.033,0:14:32.137 But you don't need four or[br]five or six regulations to 0:14:32.136,0:14:34.339 take care of[br]the same thing. 0:14:34.340,0:14:35.975 We've stood up for the[br]men and women of law 0:14:35.975,0:14:39.478 enforcement, directing[br]federal agencies to ensure 0:14:39.477,0:14:43.214 they are protected from[br]crimes of violence. 0:14:45.417,0:14:49.053 We've directed the[br]creation of a task force 0:14:49.053,0:14:54.092 for reducing violent crime[br]in America, including the 0:14:54.092,0:14:57.596 horrendous situation --[br]take a look at Chicago and 0:14:57.596,0:14:59.731 others -- taking place 0:14:59.731,0:15:04.102 right now in our inner cities. Horrible. 0:15:04.102,0:15:05.570 We've ordered the[br]Department of Homeland 0:15:05.571,0:15:08.072 Security and Justice to[br]coordinate on a plan to 0:15:08.072,0:15:10.975 destroy criminal cartels[br]coming into the United 0:15:10.975,0:15:14.078 States with drugs. 0:15:14.078,0:15:18.149 We're becoming a[br]drug-infested nation. 0:15:18.149,0:15:21.886 Drugs are becoming cheaper[br]than candy bars, and we're 0:15:21.886,0:15:24.289 not going to let it[br]happen any longer. 0:15:24.289,0:15:27.592 We've undertaken the[br]most substantial border 0:15:27.592,0:15:30.795 security measures in a[br]generation to keep our 0:15:30.796,0:15:34.333 nation and our tax dollars[br]safe, and are now in the 0:15:34.332,0:15:37.135 process of beginning to[br]build a promised wall on 0:15:37.135,0:15:37.935 the southern border. 0:15:37.936,0:15:43.175 Met with General, now[br]Secretary, Kelly yesterday 0:15:43.174,0:15:45.843 and we're starting[br]that process. 0:15:45.844,0:15:50.582 And the wall is going to[br]be a great wall, and it's 0:15:50.581,0:15:52.583 going to be a wall[br]negotiated by me. 0:15:52.583,0:15:55.820 The price is going to come[br]down, just like it has on 0:15:55.821,0:15:57.355 everything else I've[br]negotiated 0:15:57.355,0:15:59.258 for the government. 0:15:59.258,0:16:01.427 And we're going to[br]have a wall that works. 0:16:01.427,0:16:02.894 We're not going to have a[br]wall like they have now, 0:16:02.894,0:16:06.164 which is either[br]nonexistent or a joke. 0:16:06.164,0:16:08.733 We've ordered a crackdown[br]on sanctuary cities that 0:16:08.734,0:16:11.769 refuse to comply with[br]federal law and that 0:16:11.769,0:16:14.807 harbor criminal aliens,[br]and we've ordered an end 0:16:14.807,0:16:17.241 to the policy of catch and[br]release on the border. 0:16:17.241,0:16:22.313 No more release, no matter[br]who you are -- release. 0:16:22.313,0:16:24.783 We've begun a nationwide[br]effort to remove criminal 0:16:24.783,0:16:28.187 aliens, gang members, drug[br]dealers, and others who 0:16:28.187,0:16:31.456 pose a threat to[br]public safety. 0:16:31.456,0:16:34.393 We are saving American[br]lives every single day. 0:16:34.393,0:16:38.997 The court system has not[br]made it easy for us. 0:16:38.996,0:16:42.166 And we've even created a[br]new office in Homeland 0:16:42.167,0:16:46.839 Security dedicated to the[br]forgotten American victims 0:16:46.839,0:16:50.075 of illegal immigrant[br]violence, 0:16:50.075,0:16:51.643 of which there are many. 0:16:51.643,0:16:55.214 We've taken decisive[br]action to keep radical 0:16:55.214,0:16:58.817 Islamic terrorists[br]out of our country. 0:16:58.817,0:17:00.719 Though parts of[br]our necessary and 0:17:00.719,0:17:03.722 constitutional actions[br]were blocked by a judge's, 0:17:03.721,0:17:08.594 in my opinion, incorrect[br]and unsafe ruling, our 0:17:08.594,0:17:12.131 administration is working[br]night and day to keep you 0:17:12.131,0:17:17.536 safe -- including[br]reporters safe -- and is 0:17:17.536,0:17:20.638 vigorously defending[br]this lawful order. 0:17:20.637,0:17:22.940 I will not back down from[br]defending our country. 0:17:22.941,0:17:26.144 I got elected on[br]defense of our country. 0:17:26.144,0:17:28.046 And I keep my[br]campaign promises. 0:17:28.046,0:17:33.619 And our citizens will be[br]very happy when they see 0:17:33.618,0:17:34.285 the result. 0:17:34.286,0:17:35.053 They already are. 0:17:35.053,0:17:36.522 I can tell you that. 0:17:36.521,0:17:38.624 Extreme vetting will be[br]put in place, and it 0:17:38.624,0:17:40.491 already is in place[br]in many places. 0:17:40.491,0:17:42.894 In fact, we had to go[br]quicker than we thought 0:17:42.894,0:17:45.263 because of the bad[br]decision we received from 0:17:45.263,0:17:49.067 a circuit that has been[br]overturned 0:17:49.067,0:17:49.902 at a record number. 0:17:49.902,0:17:54.105 I've heard 80 percent -- I[br]find that hard to believe; 0:17:54.105,0:17:56.040 that's just a number I[br]heard -- that they're 0:17:56.040,0:17:57.809 overturned 80[br]percent of the time. 0:17:57.809,0:18:01.746 I think that circuit is in[br]chaos and that circuit is, 0:18:01.747,0:18:05.784 frankly, in turmoil. 0:18:05.784,0:18:10.189 But we are appealing that[br]and we are going further. 0:18:10.189,0:18:13.859 We're issuing a new[br]executive action next week 0:18:13.858,0:18:17.596 that will comprehensively[br]protect our country, so 0:18:17.596,0:18:20.231 we'll be going along the[br]one path and 0:18:20.231,0:18:21.333 hopefully winning that. 0:18:21.333,0:18:25.971 At the same time, we will[br]be issuing a new and very 0:18:25.971,0:18:30.342 comprehensive order to[br]protect our people, and 0:18:30.342,0:18:33.045 that will be done some[br]time next week, toward the 0:18:33.045,0:18:35.781 beginning or middle[br]at the latest part. 0:18:35.780,0:18:38.383 We've also taken steps to[br]begin construction of the 0:18:38.383,0:18:42.621 Keystone Pipeline and[br]Dakota Access Pipelines -- 0:18:42.621,0:18:46.391 thousands and thousands of[br]jobs -- and put new "Buy 0:18:46.391,0:18:49.061 American" measures in[br]place to require American 0:18:49.060,0:18:50.795 steel for American[br]pipelines. 0:18:50.796,0:18:53.731 In other words, they build[br]a pipeline in this country 0:18:53.731,0:18:57.368 and we use the powers of[br]government to make that 0:18:57.368,0:18:59.203 pipeline happen. 0:18:59.203,0:19:04.675 We want them to use[br]American steel. 0:19:04.675,0:19:07.245 And they're willing to[br]do that, but nobody ever 0:19:07.246,0:19:09.448 asked before I came along. 0:19:09.448,0:19:11.650 Even this order was drawn[br]and they didn't say that. 0:19:11.650,0:19:13.252 And I'm reading the order,[br]I'm saying, why aren't we 0:19:13.251,0:19:15.253 using American steel? 0:19:15.253,0:19:16.587 And they said,[br]that's a good idea. 0:19:16.587,0:19:19.057 We put it in. 0:19:19.057,0:19:22.059 To drain the swamp of[br]corruption in Washington, 0:19:22.059,0:19:25.530 D.C. I've started by[br]imposing a five-year 0:19:25.530,0:19:28.799 lobbying ban on White[br]House officials and a 0:19:28.799,0:19:33.739 lifetime ban on lobbying[br]for a foreign government. 0:19:33.739,0:19:34.840 We've begun preparing 0:19:34.839,0:19:38.644 to repeal and replace Obamacare. 0:19:38.644,0:19:41.179 Obamacare is a[br]disaster, folks. 0:19:41.179,0:19:42.714 It's a disaster. 0:19:42.713,0:19:46.484 You can say, oh, Obamacare[br]-- I mean, they fill up 0:19:46.484,0:19:50.988 our alleys with people[br]that you wonder how they 0:19:50.989,0:19:53.925 get there, but they're not[br]the Republican people that 0:19:53.925,0:19:56.662 our representatives[br]are representing. 0:19:56.662,0:19:59.530 So we've begun preparing[br]to repeal and replace 0:19:59.530,0:20:04.036 Obamacare and are deep in[br]the midst of negotiations 0:20:04.036,0:20:07.873 on a very historic tax[br]reform to bring 0:20:07.873,0:20:08.907 our jobs back. 0:20:08.906,0:20:10.274 We're bringing our jobs[br]back to this 0:20:10.275,0:20:11.043 country big league. 0:20:11.042,0:20:14.712 It's already happening,[br]but big league. 0:20:14.712,0:20:17.214 I've also worked to[br]install a Cabinet over the 0:20:17.214,0:20:21.218 delays and obstruction[br]of Senate Democrats. 0:20:21.219,0:20:24.523 You've seen what they've[br]done over the last long 0:20:24.522,0:20:25.856 number of years. 0:20:25.856,0:20:27.759 That will be one of the[br]great Cabinets ever 0:20:27.759,0:20:30.796 assembled in[br]American history. 0:20:30.796,0:20:33.798 You look at Rex Tillerson[br]-- he's out there 0:20:33.798,0:20:35.933 negotiating right now. 0:20:35.933,0:20:39.870 General Mattis I mentioned[br]before, General Kelly. 0:20:39.871,0:20:41.773 We have great,[br]great people. 0:20:41.772,0:20:43.074 Mick is with us now. 0:20:43.075,0:20:44.543 We have great people. 0:20:44.542,0:20:46.410 Among their[br]responsibilities will be 0:20:46.411,0:20:51.616 ending the bleeding of[br]jobs from our country and 0:20:51.616,0:20:56.922 negotiating fair trade[br]deals for our citizens. 0:20:56.922,0:21:01.927 Now, look, fair trade[br]-- not free -- fair. 0:21:01.926,0:21:04.328 If a country is taking[br]advantage of us, we're not 0:21:04.328,0:21:06.798 going to let that[br]happen anymore. 0:21:06.798,0:21:10.234 Every country takes[br]advantage of us, almost. 0:21:10.234,0:21:13.838 I may be able to find[br]a couple that don't. 0:21:13.838,0:21:16.375 But for the most part,[br]that would be a very tough 0:21:16.375,0:21:18.609 job for me to do. 0:21:18.609,0:21:20.511 Jobs have already[br]started to surge. 0:21:20.511,0:21:22.813 Since my election, Ford[br]announced it will abandon 0:21:22.814,0:21:26.151 its plans to build a new[br]factory in Mexico and will 0:21:26.151,0:21:29.421 instead invest $700[br]million in Michigan, 0:21:29.421,0:21:32.190 creating many, many jobs. 0:21:32.190,0:21:35.227 Fiat-Chrysler announced it[br]will invest $1 billion in 0:21:35.227,0:21:37.796 Ohio and Michigan,[br]creating 2,000 new 0:21:37.796,0:21:38.730 American jobs. 0:21:38.730,0:21:41.466 They were with[br]me a week ago. 0:21:41.465,0:21:42.433 You know -- you were here. 0:21:42.433,0:21:44.502 General Motors, likewise,[br]committed to invest 0:21:44.502,0:21:47.872 billions of dollars in its[br]American manufacturing 0:21:47.873,0:21:50.741 operation, keeping many[br]jobs here that 0:21:51.276,0:21:52.076 were going to leave. 0:21:52.844,0:21:54.246 And if I didn't get[br]elected, believe me, they 0:21:54.246,0:21:55.347 would have left. 0:21:55.346,0:21:57.915 And these jobs and these[br]things that I'm announcing 0:21:57.915,0:22:00.384 would never[br]have come here. 0:22:00.384,0:22:02.788 Intel just announced that[br]it will move ahead with a 0:22:02.788,0:22:06.625 new plant in Arizona that[br]probably was never going 0:22:06.625,0:22:08.226 to move ahead with. 0:22:08.226,0:22:09.327 And that will result in 0:22:09.326,0:22:12.564 at least 10,000 American jobs. 0:22:12.564,0:22:15.433 Walmart announced it will[br]create 10,000 jobs in the 0:22:15.433,0:22:17.836 United States just this[br]year because of our 0:22:17.836,0:22:21.573 various plans[br]and initiatives. 0:22:21.573,0:22:23.341 There will be[br]many, many more. 0:22:23.340,0:22:24.008 Many more. 0:22:24.009,0:22:26.243 These are a few[br]that we're naming. 0:22:26.243,0:22:29.480 Other countries have been[br]taking advantage of us for 0:22:29.480,0:22:33.451 decades -- decades and[br]decades and decades, folks. 0:22:33.451,0:22:36.288 And we're not going to[br]let that happen anymore. 0:22:36.288,0:22:38.022 Not going to[br]let it happen. 0:22:38.022,0:22:39.790 And one more thing. 0:22:39.790,0:22:43.595 I have kept my promise to[br]the American people by 0:22:43.595,0:22:46.131 nominating a justice of[br]the United States Supreme 0:22:46.131,0:22:52.070 Court, Judge Neil Gorsuch,[br]who is from my list of 20, 0:22:52.069,0:22:54.806 and who will be a true[br]defender of our laws and 0:22:54.806,0:22:58.910 our Constitution -- highly[br]respected, should get the 0:22:58.910,0:23:01.213 votes from the Democrats[br]-- you may not see that, 0:23:01.212,0:23:05.383 but he'll get there[br]one way or the other. 0:23:05.383,0:23:08.787 But he should get there[br]the old-fashioned way, and 0:23:08.787,0:23:11.323 he should get those votes. 0:23:11.323,0:23:13.225 This last month[br]has represented an 0:23:13.224,0:23:15.860 unprecedented degree of[br]action on behalf of the 0:23:15.861,0:23:18.663 great citizens[br]of our country. 0:23:18.663,0:23:20.932 Again, I say it --[br]there has never been a 0:23:20.932,0:23:24.635 presidency that's done[br]so much in such a short 0:23:24.635,0:23:27.004 period of time. 0:23:27.005,0:23:29.407 And we haven't even[br]started the big work that 0:23:29.406,0:23:32.309 starts early next week. 0:23:32.309,0:23:33.310 Some very big things are 0:23:33.310,0:23:36.914 going to be announced next week. 0:23:36.914,0:23:38.016 So we're just[br]getting started. 0:23:38.016,0:23:40.384 We will be giving a[br]speech, as I said, in 0:23:40.384,0:23:43.521 Melbourne, Florida,[br]at 5:00 p.m. 0:23:43.521,0:23:45.723 I hope to see you there. 0:23:45.723,0:23:48.759 And with that, I'd just[br]say, God bless America, 0:23:48.759,0:23:51.395 and let's take[br]some questions. 0:23:51.395,0:23:53.898 Mara. Mara, go ahead. 0:23:53.898,0:23:55.733 You were cut off pretty[br]violently at our 0:23:55.733,0:23:58.102 last news conference. 0:23:58.103,0:24:00.572 The Press: Did you[br]fire Mike Flynn? 0:24:00.571,0:24:03.007 The President: Mike Flynn[br]is a fine person, and I 0:24:03.008,0:24:05.977 asked for his resignation. 0:24:05.977,0:24:09.147 He respectfully gave it. 0:24:09.146,0:24:12.384 He is a man who -- there[br]was a certain amount of 0:24:12.384,0:24:14.486 information given to Vice[br]President Pence, who is 0:24:14.486,0:24:16.888 with us today. 0:24:16.887,0:24:19.191 And I was not happy with[br]the way that 0:24:19.191,0:24:21.425 information was given. 0:24:21.425,0:24:25.462 He didn't have to do that,[br]because what he did wasn't 0:24:25.462,0:24:27.665 wrong, what he did in[br]terms of the 0:24:27.665,0:24:30.335 information he saw. 0:24:30.335,0:24:33.371 What was wrong was the[br]way that other people, 0:24:33.371,0:24:37.242 including yourselves in[br]this room, were given that 0:24:37.241,0:24:39.845 information, because that[br]was classified information 0:24:39.845,0:24:40.979 that was given illegally. 0:24:40.979,0:24:43.448 That's the real problem. 0:24:43.448,0:24:46.218 And you can talk all you[br]want about Russia, which 0:24:46.218,0:24:50.555 was all a fake news,[br]fabricated deal to try and 0:24:50.555,0:24:52.624 make up for the loss of[br]the Democrats, and the 0:24:52.624,0:24:55.427 press plays right into it. 0:24:55.426,0:24:57.628 In fact, I saw a couple[br]of the people that were 0:24:57.628,0:24:59.830 supposedly involved with[br]all of this -- they know 0:24:59.830,0:25:00.764 nothing about it. 0:25:00.765,0:25:02.434 They weren't in Russia,[br]they never made a phone 0:25:02.433,0:25:05.302 call to Russia, they never[br]received a phone call. 0:25:05.303,0:25:06.638 It's all fake news. 0:25:06.637,0:25:08.673 It's all fake news. 0:25:08.673,0:25:11.977 The nice thing is I see it[br]starting to turn, where 0:25:11.977,0:25:15.413 people are now looking at[br]the illegal, Mara -- and I 0:25:15.413,0:25:20.518 think it's very important[br]-- the illegal giving out 0:25:20.518,0:25:24.588 classified information. 0:25:24.588,0:25:27.458 And let me just tell you,[br]it was given out, like, 0:25:27.459,0:25:28.826 so much. 0:25:28.826,0:25:30.394 I'll give you an example. 0:25:30.394,0:25:35.466 I called, as you[br]know, Mexico. 0:25:35.467,0:25:38.570 It was a very[br]confidential, classified 0:25:38.569,0:25:41.138 call, but I called Mexico. 0:25:41.138,0:25:43.474 And in calling Mexico, I[br]figured, oh, well, that's 0:25:43.474,0:25:44.909 -- I spoke to the[br]President of Mexico, 0:25:44.910,0:25:46.577 had a good call. 0:25:46.577,0:25:49.614 All of a sudden it's out[br]for the world to see. 0:25:49.614,0:25:50.715 It's supposed[br]to be secret. 0:25:50.714,0:25:53.684 It's supposed to be either[br]confidential or 0:25:53.684,0:25:55.119 classified in that case. 0:25:55.119,0:25:57.388 Same thing with Australia. 0:25:57.388,0:26:00.424 All of a sudden people are[br]finding out exactly 0:26:00.424,0:26:02.159 what took place. 0:26:02.160,0:26:04.596 The same thing happened[br]with respect to 0:26:04.596,0:26:07.499 General Flynn. 0:26:07.499,0:26:09.768 Everybody saw this, and[br]I'm saying -- the first 0:26:09.768,0:26:11.769 thing I thought of when[br]I heard about it is, how 0:26:11.769,0:26:13.504 does the press get this[br]information 0:26:13.505,0:26:14.673 that's classified? 0:26:14.673,0:26:15.507 How do they do it? 0:26:15.507,0:26:16.141 You know why? 0:26:16.141,0:26:18.143 Because it's an illegal[br]process, and the press 0:26:18.143,0:26:19.944 should be ashamed[br]of themselves. 0:26:19.944,0:26:22.547 But, more importantly, the[br]people that gave out the 0:26:22.547,0:26:24.481 information to the press[br]should be 0:26:24.481,0:26:26.317 ashamed of themselves. 0:26:26.317,0:26:27.285 Really ashamed. 0:26:27.285,0:26:28.153 Yes, go ahead. 0:26:28.153,0:26:29.621 The Press: Why did you[br]keep your Vice President 0:26:29.621,0:26:31.022 in the dark for[br]almost two weeks? 0:26:31.021,0:26:32.289 The President: Because[br]when I looked at the 0:26:32.289,0:26:34.491 information, I said,[br]I don't think he did 0:26:34.491,0:26:35.559 anything wrong. 0:26:35.559,0:26:37.061 If anything, he did[br]something right. 0:26:37.061,0:26:38.562 He was coming into[br]office, he looked at 0:26:38.563,0:26:40.532 the information. 0:26:40.531,0:26:43.268 He said, huh, that's[br]fine, that's what they're 0:26:43.268,0:26:44.134 supposed to do. 0:26:44.134,0:26:45.269 They're supposed to be --[br]and he didn't 0:26:45.269,0:26:46.304 just call Russia. 0:26:46.304,0:26:50.442 He called and spoke to,[br]both ways -- I think there 0:26:50.442,0:26:52.743 were 30-some-odd[br]countries. 0:26:52.743,0:26:53.778 He's doing the job. 0:26:53.778,0:26:55.713 You know, he was[br]just doing his job. 0:26:55.713,0:26:58.182 The thing is he didn't[br]tell our Vice President 0:26:58.182,0:27:02.686 properly, and then he[br]said he didn't remember. 0:27:02.686,0:27:06.156 So either way, it wasn't[br]very satisfactory to me. 0:27:06.156,0:27:10.728 And I have somebody that I[br]think will be outstanding 0:27:10.729,0:27:15.366 for the position, and that[br]also helps, I think, in 0:27:15.366,0:27:16.768 the making of my decision. 0:27:16.768,0:27:21.806 But he didn't tell the[br]Vice President of the 0:27:21.806,0:27:26.010 United States the facts,[br]and then he didn't 0:27:26.010,0:27:26.778 remember. 0:27:26.778,0:27:28.413 And that just wasn't[br]acceptable to me. 0:27:28.413,0:27:29.780 Yes. 0:27:29.780,0:27:31.081 The Press: President[br]Trump, since you brought 0:27:31.082,0:27:32.851 up Russia, I'm looking for[br]some clarification here. 0:27:32.851,0:27:35.920 During the campaign, did[br]anyone from your team 0:27:35.920,0:27:37.788 communicate with members[br]of the Russian government 0:27:37.788,0:27:39.691 or Russian intelligence? 0:27:39.691,0:27:41.058 And if so, what was[br]the nature of 0:27:41.058,0:27:42.460 those conversations? 0:27:42.460,0:27:44.095 The President: Well, the[br]failing New York Times 0:27:44.095,0:27:45.497 wrote a big, long[br]front-page 0:27:45.497,0:27:47.298 story yesterday. 0:27:47.298,0:27:52.202 And it was very much[br]discredited, as you know. 0:27:52.202,0:27:53.971 It was -- it's a joke. 0:27:53.971,0:27:55.874 And the people mentioned[br]in the story -- I notice 0:27:55.874,0:27:58.076 they were on television[br]today saying they never 0:27:58.076,0:27:59.477 even spoke to Russia. 0:27:59.477,0:28:01.246 They weren't even a part,[br]really -- I mean, they 0:28:01.246,0:28:04.382 were such a minor part --[br]I hadn't spoken to them. 0:28:04.382,0:28:06.284 I think the one person,[br]I don't think I've ever 0:28:06.284,0:28:07.152 spoken to him. 0:28:07.152,0:28:09.586 I don't think[br]I've ever met him. 0:28:09.586,0:28:11.855 And he actually said he[br]was a very low-level 0:28:11.855,0:28:13.424 member of, I think, a[br]committee for a short 0:28:13.424,0:28:15.527 period of time. 0:28:15.527,0:28:16.561 I don't think[br]I ever met him. 0:28:16.560,0:28:18.362 Now, it's possible that I[br]walked into a room and he 0:28:18.363,0:28:19.564 was sitting there, but I[br]don't think 0:28:19.564,0:28:20.532 I ever met him. 0:28:20.531,0:28:23.268 I didn't talk[br]to him, ever. 0:28:23.268,0:28:25.370 And he thought[br]it was a joke. 0:28:25.369,0:28:27.071 The other person said he[br]never spoke to Russia, 0:28:27.071,0:28:28.173 never received a call. 0:28:28.173,0:28:30.174 Look at his phone records,[br]et cetera, et cetera. 0:28:30.174,0:28:32.943 And the other person,[br]people knew that he'd 0:28:32.943,0:28:34.511 represented various[br]countries, but I don't 0:28:34.511,0:28:37.115 think he represented[br]Russia -- but knew that he 0:28:37.115,0:28:38.916 represented[br]various countries. 0:28:38.916,0:28:39.850 That's what he does. 0:28:39.851,0:28:41.786 I mean, people know that. 0:28:41.786,0:28:43.555 That's Mr. Manafort,[br]who's, by the way -- 0:28:43.555,0:28:45.355 who's, by the way,[br]a respected man. 0:28:45.355,0:28:46.790 He's a respected man. 0:28:46.790,0:28:50.260 But I think he represented[br]the Ukraine, or Ukraine 0:28:50.260,0:28:51.428 government, or somebody. 0:28:51.429,0:28:52.397 But everybody --[br]people knew that. 0:28:52.396,0:28:53.764 Everybody knew that. 0:28:53.765,0:28:56.301 So these people -- and[br]he said that he has 0:28:56.300,0:29:00.704 absolutely nothing to do[br]and never has with Russia. 0:29:00.704,0:29:01.872 And he said that[br]very forcefully. 0:29:01.873,0:29:02.807 I saw his statement. 0:29:02.807,0:29:03.908 He said it very[br]forcefully. 0:29:03.907,0:29:05.542 Most of the papers don't[br]print it because that's 0:29:05.542,0:29:07.478 not good for[br]their stories. 0:29:07.479,0:29:10.648 So the three people that[br]they talked about all 0:29:10.647,0:29:12.282 totally deny it. 0:29:12.282,0:29:14.618 And I can tell you,[br]speaking for myself, I own 0:29:14.618,0:29:17.221 nothing in Russia. 0:29:17.221,0:29:19.590 I have no loans in Russia. 0:29:19.590,0:29:22.659 I don't have any[br]deals in Russia. 0:29:22.660,0:29:25.864 President Putin called[br]me up very nicely to 0:29:25.864,0:29:28.799 congratulate me on the[br]win of the election. 0:29:28.799,0:29:31.769 He then called me up[br]extremely nicely to 0:29:31.769,0:29:33.872 congratulate me on the[br]inauguration, which 0:29:33.872,0:29:35.306 was terrific. 0:29:35.306,0:29:37.307 But so did many other[br]leaders -- almost all 0:29:37.307,0:29:39.877 other leaders from almost[br]all other countries. 0:29:39.877,0:29:41.980 So that's the extent. 0:29:41.980,0:29:43.480 Russia is fake news. 0:29:43.480,0:29:46.384 Russia -- this is fake[br]news put out by the media. 0:29:46.384,0:29:49.921 The real news is the fact[br]that people, probably from 0:29:49.921,0:29:52.390 the Obama administration[br]because they're there -- 0:29:52.390,0:29:54.259 because we have our new[br]people going in place 0:29:54.259,0:29:54.893 right now. 0:29:54.893,0:29:59.931 As you know, Mike Pompeo[br]is now taking control 0:29:59.931,0:30:02.933 of the CIA. 0:30:02.933,0:30:05.002 James Comey at FBI. 0:30:05.002,0:30:08.038 Dan Coats is waiting[br]to be approved. 0:30:08.038,0:30:09.907 I mean, he is a senator,[br]and a highly 0:30:09.907,0:30:11.842 respected one. 0:30:11.843,0:30:13.711 And he's still waiting[br]to be approved. 0:30:13.711,0:30:15.547 But our new people[br]are going in. 0:30:15.547,0:30:17.548 And just while you're at,[br]because you mentioned 0:30:17.548,0:30:21.685 this, Wall Street Journal[br]did a story today that was 0:30:21.685,0:30:24.254 almost as disgraceful as[br]the failing New Times's 0:30:24.255,0:30:26.758 story yesterday. 0:30:26.758,0:30:30.694 And it talked about --[br]you saw it, front page. 0:30:30.694,0:30:34.398 So, Director of National[br]Intelligence just put out 0:30:34.398,0:30:38.001 -- acting -- a statement:[br]"Any suggestion that the 0:30:38.001,0:30:40.704 United States intelligence[br]community" -- this was 0:30:40.704,0:30:44.041 just given to us -- "is[br]withholding information 0:30:44.041,0:30:47.811 and not providing the best[br]possible intelligence to 0:30:47.811,0:30:52.149 the President and his[br]national security team is 0:30:52.150,0:30:54.018 not true." 0:30:54.018,0:30:57.020 So they took this[br]front-page story out of 0:30:57.020,0:31:00.591 The Wall Street Journal --[br]top -- and they just wrote 0:31:00.592,0:31:02.393 the story is not true. 0:31:02.393,0:31:04.929 And I'll tell you[br]something, I'll be honest 0:31:04.929,0:31:06.730 -- because I sort of enjoy[br]this back and forth, and I 0:31:06.730,0:31:08.766 guess I have all my life,[br]but I've never seen more 0:31:08.766,0:31:10.468 dishonest media than,[br]frankly, the 0:31:10.468,0:31:11.702 political media. 0:31:11.702,0:31:13.805 I thought the financial[br]media was much better, 0:31:13.805,0:31:15.105 much more honest. 0:31:15.105,0:31:18.442 But I will say that I[br]never get phone calls from 0:31:18.442,0:31:20.912 the media. 0:31:20.912,0:31:22.212 How do they write a story[br]like that in The Wall 0:31:22.212,0:31:23.347 Street Journal[br]without asking me? 0:31:23.347,0:31:25.582 Or how do they write a[br]story in The New York 0:31:25.583,0:31:28.152 Times, put it[br]on front page? 0:31:28.152,0:31:30.221 That was like that story[br]they wrote about the women 0:31:30.221,0:31:32.323 and me -- front page. 0:31:32.323,0:31:34.525 Big massive story. 0:31:34.525,0:31:36.561 And it was nasty. 0:31:36.560,0:31:37.327 And then they called. 0:31:37.327,0:31:39.463 They said, "We[br]never said that. 0:31:39.463,0:31:42.567 We like Mr. Trump." They[br]called up my office -- we 0:31:42.567,0:31:46.136 like Mr. Trump; we[br]never said that. 0:31:46.136,0:31:49.139 And it was totally -- they[br]totally misrepresented 0:31:49.140,0:31:51.976 those very wonderful[br]women, I have to tell you 0:31:51.976,0:31:54.279 -- totally misrepresented. 0:31:54.278,0:31:56.446 I said, give us[br]a retraction. 0:31:56.446,0:31:58.582 They never gave[br]us a retraction. 0:31:58.583,0:32:01.219 And, frankly, I then[br]went on to other things. 0:32:01.219,0:32:08.058 Go ahead. 0:32:08.058,0:32:08.425 The Press: Mr.[br]President -- 0:32:08.425,0:32:09.159 The President: You okay? 0:32:09.160,0:32:10.327 The Press: I am. 0:32:10.327,0:32:11.362 Just wanted to[br]get untangled. 0:32:11.362,0:32:13.531 Very simply, you said[br]today that you had the 0:32:13.530,0:32:14.932 biggest electoral margins[br]since Ronald Reagan with 0:32:14.932,0:32:17.501 304 or 306[br]electoral votes. 0:32:17.501,0:32:20.370 In fact, President[br]Obama got 365 in 2008. 0:32:20.371,0:32:22.105 The President: Well, I'm[br]talking about Republican. Yes. 0:32:22.105,0:32:24.409 The Press: President[br]Obama, 332. 0:32:24.409,0:32:25.843 George H.W. Bush, 0:32:25.843,0:32:29.013 426 when he[br]won as President. 0:32:29.012,0:32:30.280 So why should[br]Americans trust -- 0:32:30.280,0:32:31.316 The President: Well, no,[br]I was told -- I was given 0:32:31.316,0:32:32.283 that information. 0:32:32.282,0:32:33.083 I don't know. 0:32:33.084,0:32:33.584 I was just given. 0:32:33.584,0:32:35.053 We had a very,[br]very big margin. 0:32:35.053,0:32:35.720 The Press: I guess my[br]question is, why should 0:32:35.720,0:32:38.489 Americans trust you when[br]you have accused the 0:32:38.489,0:32:40.057 information they receive[br]of being fake when you're 0:32:40.057,0:32:41.625 providing information[br]that's fake? 0:32:41.625,0:32:42.059 The President:[br]Well, I don't know. 0:32:42.059,0:32:43.661 I was given that[br]information. 0:32:43.661,0:32:45.028 I was given -- actually,[br]I've seen that 0:32:45.028,0:32:46.864 information around. 0:32:46.864,0:32:48.499 But it was a very[br]substantial victory. 0:32:48.499,0:32:50.500 Do you agree with that? 0:32:50.500,0:32:51.168 The Press: You're[br]the President. 0:32:51.169,0:32:51.703 The President:[br]Okay, thank you. 0:32:51.702,0:32:53.904 That's a good answer. Yes. 0:32:53.904,0:32:55.272 The Press: Mr. President,[br]thank you so much. 0:32:57.008,0:32:58.875 Can you tell us in[br]determining that 0:32:58.875,0:33:02.779 Lieutenant General Flynn[br]-- there was no wrongdoing 0:33:02.779,0:33:05.750 in your mind, what[br]evidence was weighed? 0:33:05.750,0:33:07.518 Did you have the[br]transcripts of these 0:33:07.518,0:33:10.288 telephone intercepts[br]with Russian officials, 0:33:10.288,0:33:12.356 particularly Ambassador[br]Kislyak, who he was 0:33:12.356,0:33:14.959 communicating with? 0:33:14.959,0:33:16.760 What evidence did you[br]weigh to determine there 0:33:17.260,0:33:18.363 was no wrong doing? 0:33:18.363,0:33:19.897 And further than that,[br]sir, you've said on a 0:33:20.498,0:33:21.766 couple of occasions this[br]morning that you were 0:33:22.299,0:33:23.334 going to aggressively[br]pursue the sources of 0:33:23.701,0:33:24.302 these leaks. 0:33:24.301,0:33:25.168 The President: We are. 0:33:25.169,0:33:26.104 The Press: Can we ask[br]what you're doing to do? 0:33:26.837,0:33:28.405 And also, we've heard[br]about a review of the 0:33:28.405,0:33:30.107 intelligence community[br]headed by 0:33:30.107,0:33:31.576 Stephen Feinberg. 0:33:31.576,0:33:32.276 What can you tell[br]us about that? 0:33:32.276,0:33:33.177 The President: Well, first[br]of all, about that, we now 0:33:34.112,0:33:35.012 have Dan Coats, hopefully[br]soon Mike Pompeo and James 0:33:38.249,0:33:40.284 Comey, and they're[br]in position. 0:33:41.184,0:33:43.488 So I hope that we'll be[br]able to straighten that 0:33:43.488,0:33:45.655 out without using[br]anybody else. 0:33:45.655,0:33:47.258 The gentleman you[br]mentioned is a very 0:33:47.258,0:33:49.093 talented man, very[br]successful man. 0:33:49.093,0:33:52.630 And he has offered his[br]services, and it's 0:33:52.630,0:33:53.464 something we may[br]take advantage of. 0:33:53.463,0:33:56.600 But I don't think we'll[br]need that at all because 0:33:56.601,0:33:59.036 of the fact that I think[br]that we're going to be 0:33:59.036,0:34:00.571 able to straighten it out[br]very easily on its own. 0:34:01.271,0:34:04.741 As far as the general is[br]concerned, when I first 0:34:05.175,0:34:08.346 heard about it, I said,[br]huh, that doesn't 0:34:08.780,0:34:09.447 sound wrong. 0:34:09.447,0:34:12.114 My counsel came -- Don[br]McGahn, White House 0:34:12.449,0:34:16.319 Counsel -- and he told me,[br]and I asked him, and he 0:34:17.288,0:34:19.123 can speak very[br]well for himself. 0:34:19.123,0:34:23.594 He said he doesn't think[br]anything is wrong. 0:34:24.228,0:34:26.496 He really didn't think[br]-- it was really what 0:34:27.097,0:34:28.065 happened after that, but[br]he didn't think anything 0:34:28.398,0:34:28.833 was done wrong. 0:34:28.833,0:34:30.001 I didn't either, because[br]I waited a period of time 0:34:30.300,0:34:31.469 and I started to[br]think about it. 0:34:31.469,0:34:33.271 I said, well, I don't see[br]-- to me, he was 0:34:33.271,0:34:34.472 doing the job. 0:34:34.472,0:34:37.375 The information was[br]provided by -- who I don't 0:34:37.375,0:34:41.277 know -- Sally Yates -- and[br]I was a little surprised 0:34:41.277,0:34:44.681 because I said, doesn't[br]sound like he did anything 0:34:44.681,0:34:46.716 wrong there. 0:34:46.717,0:34:49.853 But he did something wrong[br]with respect to the Vice 0:34:49.853,0:34:53.389 President, and I thought[br]that was not acceptable. 0:34:53.391,0:34:59.063 As far as the actual[br]making the call -- in 0:34:59.063,0:35:01.798 fact, I've watched various[br]programs and I've read 0:35:01.798,0:35:05.536 various articles where he[br]was just doing his job. 0:35:05.536,0:35:06.737 That was very normal. 0:35:06.737,0:35:08.572 At first, everybody got[br]excited because they 0:35:08.572,0:35:10.074 thought he did[br]something wrong. 0:35:10.074,0:35:12.643 After they thought about[br]it, it turned out he was 0:35:12.643,0:35:14.612 just doing his job. 0:35:14.612,0:35:17.315 So -- and I do -- and, by[br]the way, with all of that 0:35:17.315,0:35:19.450 being said, I do think[br]he's a fine man. 0:35:19.449,0:35:20.917 Yes, Jon. 0:35:20.918,0:35:22.553 The Press: On[br]the leaks, sir -- 0:35:22.552,0:35:23.788 The President: Go ahead,[br]finish off, then I'll get 0:35:23.788,0:35:24.989 you, Jon. 0:35:24.989,0:35:26.324 The Press: Sorry, what[br]will you do on the leaks? 0:35:26.324,0:35:27.458 You have said[br]twice today -- 0:35:27.458,0:35:28.291 The President: Yes, we're[br]looking at it very, 0:35:28.291,0:35:30.027 very seriously. 0:35:30.027,0:35:33.597 I've gone to all of the[br]folks in charge of the 0:35:33.597,0:35:37.668 various agencies, and[br]we're -- I've actually 0:35:37.668,0:35:39.903 called the Justice[br]Department to look 0:35:39.903,0:35:40.704 into the leaks. 0:35:40.704,0:35:42.706 Those are criminal leaks. 0:35:42.706,0:35:45.876 They're put out by people[br]either in agencies. 0:35:45.876,0:35:47.844 I think you'll see it[br]stopping because now we 0:35:47.844,0:35:48.445 have our people in. 0:35:48.445,0:35:50.581 You know, again, we don't[br]have our people in because 0:35:50.581,0:35:52.048 we can't get them[br]approved by the Senate. 0:35:52.048,0:35:55.887 We just had Jeff Sessions[br]approved in Justice, 0:35:55.887,0:35:57.321 as an example. 0:35:57.320,0:36:00.557 So we are looking into[br]that very seriously. 0:36:00.557,0:36:02.326 It's a criminal act. 0:36:02.326,0:36:04.762 You know what I say --[br]when I was called out on 0:36:04.762,0:36:06.530 Mexico, I was shocked. 0:36:06.530,0:36:07.898 Because all this[br]equipment, all this 0:36:07.898,0:36:09.400 incredible phone[br]equipment. 0:36:09.400,0:36:13.738 When I was called out on[br]Mexico, I was -- honestly, 0:36:13.737,0:36:15.505 I was really,[br]really surprised. 0:36:15.505,0:36:17.741 But I said, you know, it[br]doesn't make sense, 0:36:17.742,0:36:18.943 that won't happen. 0:36:18.943,0:36:21.078 But that wasn't that[br]important to call, 0:36:21.077,0:36:22.012 it was fine. 0:36:22.012,0:36:23.447 I could show it to the[br]world and he could show it 0:36:23.447,0:36:25.416 to the world -- the[br]President who is a very 0:36:25.416,0:36:26.784 fine man, by the way. 0:36:26.784,0:36:29.820 Same thing with Australia. 0:36:29.820,0:36:31.622 I said, that's terrible[br]that it was leaked but it 0:36:31.621,0:36:32.722 wasn't that important. 0:36:32.722,0:36:34.324 But then I said, what[br]happens when I'm dealing 0:36:34.324,0:36:37.294 with the problem[br]of North Korea? 0:36:37.295,0:36:39.997 What happens when I'm[br]dealing with the problems 0:36:39.996,0:36:41.531 in the Middle East? 0:36:41.532,0:36:43.401 Are you folks going to[br]be reporting all of that 0:36:43.400,0:36:47.070 very, very confidential[br]information -- very 0:36:47.070,0:36:49.639 important, very -- I mean,[br]at the highest level, are 0:36:49.639,0:36:51.741 you going to be reporting[br]about that too? 0:36:51.742,0:36:55.947 So I don't want classified[br]information getting out to 0:36:55.947,0:36:56.614 the public. 0:36:56.614,0:36:58.849 And in a way, that[br]was almost a test. 0:36:58.849,0:37:01.686 So I'm dealing[br]with Mexico. 0:37:01.686,0:37:04.689 I'm dealing[br]with Argentina. 0:37:04.688,0:37:06.656 We were dealing on this[br]case with Mike Flynn. 0:37:06.657,0:37:08.826 All this information gets[br]put into the Washington 0:37:08.826,0:37:13.396 Post and gets put into[br]the New York Times. 0:37:13.396,0:37:15.199 And I'm saying, what's[br]going to happen when I'm 0:37:15.199,0:37:16.032 dealing on the[br]Middle East? 0:37:16.032,0:37:18.335 What's going to happen[br]when I'm dealing with 0:37:18.335,0:37:22.305 really, really important[br]subjects like North Korea? 0:37:22.306,0:37:24.641 We've got to stop it. 0:37:24.641,0:37:25.942 That's why it's a[br]criminal penalty. 0:37:25.943,0:37:27.979 Yes, Jon. 0:37:27.978,0:37:29.179 The Press: Thank[br]you, Mr. President. 0:37:29.179,0:37:31.915 I just want to get you[br]to clarify just a very 0:37:31.916,0:37:34.518 important point. 0:37:34.518,0:37:36.153 Can you say definitively[br]that nobody on your 0:37:36.152,0:37:37.454 campaign had any contacts[br]with the Russians during 0:37:37.454,0:37:38.788 the campaign? 0:37:38.789,0:37:41.425 And, on the leaks, is it[br]fake news or are these 0:37:41.425,0:37:43.527 real leaks? 0:37:43.527,0:37:44.695 The President: Well,[br]the leaks are real. 0:37:44.695,0:37:45.997 You're the one that wrote 0:37:45.996,0:37:47.097 about them and reported them. 0:37:47.097,0:37:48.431 I mean, the[br]leaks are real. 0:37:48.431,0:37:50.333 You know what they[br]said -- you saw it. 0:37:50.333,0:37:52.102 And the leaks are[br]absolutely real. 0:37:52.103,0:37:54.572 The news is fake because[br]so much of 0:37:54.572,0:37:55.840 the news is fake. 0:37:55.840,0:37:58.608 So one thing that I felt[br]it was very important to 0:37:58.608,0:38:01.077 do -- and I hope we can[br]correct it, because there 0:38:01.077,0:38:02.679 is nobody I have more[br]respect for -- well, maybe 0:38:02.679,0:38:04.815 a little bit -- than reporters, 0:38:04.815,0:38:06.083 than good reporters. 0:38:06.083,0:38:08.586 It's very important to me, 0:38:08.585,0:38:10.086 and especially in this position. 0:38:10.086,0:38:11.489 It's very important. 0:38:11.489,0:38:13.324 I don't mind bad stories. 0:38:13.324,0:38:16.693 I can handle a bad story[br]better than anybody as 0:38:16.693,0:38:18.262 long as it's true. 0:38:18.262,0:38:20.530 And over a course of time,[br]I'll make mistakes and 0:38:20.530,0:38:23.266 you'll write badly and[br]I'm okay with that. 0:38:23.266,0:38:26.469 But I'm not okay[br]when it is fake. 0:38:26.469,0:38:30.040 I mean, I watch CNN --[br]it's so much anger and 0:38:30.041,0:38:33.044 hatred and just[br]the hatred. 0:38:33.043,0:38:35.545 I don't watch it anymore[br]because it's very good -- 0:38:35.545,0:38:36.480 he's saying no. 0:38:36.480,0:38:37.815 It's okay, Jim. 0:38:37.815,0:38:38.481 It's okay, Jim. 0:38:38.481,0:38:39.583 You'll have your chance. 0:38:39.583,0:38:41.619 But I watch others too. 0:38:41.619,0:38:43.721 You're not the only one,[br]so don't feel badly. 0:38:43.721,0:38:45.956 But I think it[br]should be straight. 0:38:45.956,0:38:47.324 I think it should be[br]-- I think it would be, 0:38:47.324,0:38:48.526 frankly, more interesting. 0:38:48.525,0:38:50.326 I know how good[br]everybody's ratings are 0:38:50.327,0:38:51.829 right now, but I think[br]that actually would be -- 0:38:51.829,0:38:55.700 I think that it would[br]actually be better. 0:38:55.699,0:38:57.600 People -- I mean, you have[br]a lower approval 0:38:57.601,0:38:58.602 rate than Congress. 0:38:58.601,0:39:00.304 I think that's right. 0:39:00.304,0:39:01.572 I don't know, Peter,[br]is that one right? 0:39:01.572,0:39:03.407 Because you know, I think[br]they have lower -- I 0:39:03.407,0:39:05.276 heard, lower[br]than Congress. 0:39:05.275,0:39:08.913 But honestly, the public[br]would appreciate it. 0:39:08.913,0:39:09.847 I'd appreciate it. 0:39:09.847,0:39:13.384 Again, I don't mind bad[br]stories when it's true. 0:39:13.384,0:39:16.454 But we have an[br]administration where the 0:39:16.454,0:39:19.323 Democrats are making[br]it very difficult. 0:39:19.322,0:39:21.625 I think we're setting a[br]record, or close to a 0:39:21.625,0:39:24.461 record in the time of[br]approval of a Cabinet. 0:39:24.461,0:39:25.730 I mean, the[br]numbers are crazy. 0:39:25.730,0:39:27.398 When I'm looking -- some[br]of them had them approved 0:39:27.398,0:39:28.298 immediately. 0:39:28.298,0:39:30.668 I'm going forever, and I[br]still have a lot of people 0:39:30.668,0:39:32.303 that we're waiting for. 0:39:32.302,0:39:34.672 And that's all they're[br]doing, is delaying. 0:39:34.672,0:39:36.639 And you look at Schumer[br]and the mess that he's got 0:39:36.639,0:39:39.743 over there, and they[br]have nothing going. 0:39:39.744,0:39:42.079 The only thing they[br]can do is delay. 0:39:42.079,0:39:45.249 And you know, I think[br]they'd be better served by 0:39:45.248,0:39:48.318 approving and making sure[br]that they're happy and 0:39:48.318,0:39:50.487 everybody is good. 0:39:50.487,0:39:52.623 And sometimes, I mean -- I[br]know President Obama lost 0:39:52.623,0:39:55.226 three or four, and you[br]lose them on the way. 0:39:55.226,0:39:55.960 And that's okay. 0:39:55.960,0:39:57.228 That's fine. 0:39:57.228,0:40:01.231 But I think they would be[br]much better served, Jon, 0:40:01.231,0:40:04.134 if they just went through[br]the process quickly. 0:40:04.135,0:40:06.771 This is pure[br]delay tactics. 0:40:06.771,0:40:09.039 And they say it, and[br]everybody understands it. 0:40:09.039,0:40:11.041 Yeah, go ahead, Jim. 0:40:11.041,0:40:11.742 The Press: The first[br]part of my 0:40:11.742,0:40:13.210 question on contacts. 0:40:13.210,0:40:14.778 Do you definitively[br]say that nobody -- 0:40:14.778,0:40:16.313 The President: Well, I had[br]nothing to do with it. 0:40:16.313,0:40:17.782 I have nothing to[br]do with Russia. 0:40:17.782,0:40:20.284 I told you, I have[br]no deals there. 0:40:20.284,0:40:20.985 I have no anything. 0:40:20.985,0:40:23.921 Now, when WikiLeaks, which[br]I had nothing to do with, 0:40:23.920,0:40:26.790 comes out and happens to[br]give -- they're not giving 0:40:26.791,0:40:28.526 classified information. 0:40:28.525,0:40:30.960 They're giving stuff --[br]what was said at an office 0:40:30.960,0:40:33.863 about Hillary cheating on[br]the debates -- which, by 0:40:33.864,0:40:35.632 the way, nobody mentions. 0:40:35.632,0:40:39.169 Nobody mentions that[br]Hillary received the 0:40:39.170,0:40:41.905 questions to the debates. 0:40:41.905,0:40:44.842 Can you imagine --[br]seriously, can you imagine 0:40:44.842,0:40:48.077 if I received[br]the questions? 0:40:48.077,0:40:52.550 It would be the[br]electric chair, okay? 0:40:52.550,0:40:55.085 "He should be put in[br]the electric chair." 0:40:55.085,0:40:57.588 You would even call for[br]the reinstitution of the 0:40:57.588,0:40:59.490 death penalty, okay? 0:40:59.489,0:41:00.824 Maybe not you, Jon. 0:41:00.824,0:41:02.058 Yes, we'll do[br]you next, Jim. 0:41:02.059,0:41:02.993 I'll do you next. Yes? 0:41:02.992,0:41:04.027 The Press: Thank[br]you, Mr. President. 0:41:04.027,0:41:05.562 I just want to clarify[br]one other thing. 0:41:05.563,0:41:06.230 The President: Sure. 0:41:06.230,0:41:08.498 The Press: Did you direct[br]Mike Flynn to discuss the 0:41:08.498,0:41:10.233 sanctions with the[br]Russian ambassador? 0:41:10.233,0:41:10.668 The President:[br]No, I didn't. 0:41:10.668,0:41:11.902 No, I didn't. 0:41:11.902,0:41:12.769 The Press: (Inaudible.)[br](Off mic.) 0:41:12.769,0:41:13.336 The President:[br]No, I didn't. 0:41:13.336,0:41:15.639 The Press: Did you fire[br]him because (inaudible) -- 0:41:15.639,0:41:16.907 The President: Excuse me[br]-- no, I fired him because 0:41:16.907,0:41:19.777 of what he said to Mike[br]Pence, very simple. 0:41:19.777,0:41:21.846 Mike was doing his job. 0:41:21.846,0:41:24.914 He was calling countries[br]and his counterparts. 0:41:24.914,0:41:26.683 So it certainly would have[br]been okay with 0:41:26.684,0:41:27.685 me if he did it. 0:41:27.684,0:41:29.253 I would have directed him[br]to do it if I thought he 0:41:29.253,0:41:30.588 wasn't doing it. 0:41:30.588,0:41:33.524 I didn't direct him but I[br]would have directed him 0:41:33.523,0:41:35.692 because that's his job. 0:41:35.693,0:41:38.028 And it came out that way[br]-- and, in all fairness, I 0:41:38.027,0:41:41.931 watched Dr. Charles[br]Krauthammer the other 0:41:41.931,0:41:46.870 night say he was[br]doing his job. 0:41:46.871,0:41:49.340 And I agreed with him. 0:41:49.340,0:41:50.608 And since then I've[br]watched many other 0:41:50.608,0:41:51.408 people say that. 0:41:51.407,0:41:53.376 No, I didn't direct him,[br]but I would have directed 0:41:53.376,0:41:56.112 him if he didn't[br]do it, okay? Jim. 0:41:56.112,0:41:57.380 The Press: Mr. President,[br]thank you very much. 0:41:57.380,0:41:58.882 And just for the record,[br]we don't hate you, 0:41:58.882,0:41:59.949 I don't hate you. 0:41:59.949,0:42:00.984 If you could[br]pass that along. 0:42:00.985,0:42:01.751 The President: Okay. 0:42:01.751,0:42:04.188 Well, ask Jeff Zucker how[br]he got his job, okay? 0:42:04.188,0:42:07.090 The Press: If I may[br]follow up on some of the 0:42:07.090,0:42:08.224 questions that have[br]taken place so far, sir. 0:42:08.224,0:42:09.793 The President:[br]Well, not too many. 0:42:09.793,0:42:11.195 We do have other people. 0:42:11.195,0:42:13.397 You do have other people,[br]and your ratings aren't as 0:42:13.396,0:42:15.231 good as some of the other[br]people that are waiting. 0:42:15.231,0:42:16.065 The Press: They're pretty[br]good right now, actually. 0:42:16.065,0:42:16.699 The President: Okay. 0:42:16.699,0:42:17.768 Go ahead, Jim. 0:42:17.768,0:42:20.371 The Press: If I may ask,[br]sir, you said earlier that 0:42:20.371,0:42:24.375 WikiLeaks was revealing[br]information about the 0:42:24.375,0:42:27.710 Hillary Clinton campaign[br]during the election cycle. 0:42:27.710,0:42:29.312 You welcomed that[br]at one point. 0:42:29.313,0:42:30.047 The President: I[br]was okay with it. 0:42:30.047,0:42:32.215 The Press: You said[br]you loved WikiLeaks. 0:42:32.215,0:42:34.918 At another campaign press[br]conference you called on 0:42:34.918,0:42:39.255 the Russians to find the[br]missing 30,000 emails. 0:42:39.255,0:42:40.391 I'm wondering,[br]sir, if you -- 0:42:40.391,0:42:41.291 The President: Well, she[br]was actually missing 0:42:41.291,0:42:44.027 33,000, and then that got[br]extended with a whole pile 0:42:44.027,0:42:44.794 after that, but[br]that's okay. 0:42:44.795,0:42:45.396 The Press: Maybe my[br]numbers are off a 0:42:45.396,0:42:45.930 little bit too. 0:42:45.929,0:42:46.963 The President: No, no, but[br]I did say 30,000, but it 0:42:46.963,0:42:47.764 was actually[br]higher than that. 0:42:47.764,0:42:49.098 The Press: If I may ask[br]you, sir, it sounds as 0:42:49.099,0:42:52.303 though you do not have[br]much credibility here when 0:42:52.302,0:42:55.239 it comes to leaking if[br]that is something that you 0:42:55.239,0:42:56.340 encouraged in[br]the campaign. 0:42:56.340,0:42:57.474 The President:[br]Okay, fair question. Ready? 0:42:57.474,0:42:58.509 The Press: So if I may ask[br]you that -- if I may ask a 0:42:58.509,0:42:59.175 follow-up -- 0:42:59.175,0:42:59.777 The President: No, no, but[br]are you -- let me do one 0:42:59.777,0:43:00.244 at a time. 0:43:00.244,0:43:01.010 Do you mind? 0:43:01.010,0:43:01.445 The Press: Yes, sir. 0:43:01.445,0:43:02.379 The President: All right. 0:43:02.378,0:43:05.081 So in one case you're[br]talking about highly 0:43:05.081,0:43:07.451 classified information. 0:43:07.451,0:43:10.753 In the other case you're[br]talking about John Podesta 0:43:10.753,0:43:11.554 saying bad things[br]about the boss. 0:43:11.554,0:43:14.590 I will say this: If John[br]Podesta said that about me 0:43:14.590,0:43:16.025 and he was working for me,[br]I would have fired him so 0:43:16.025,0:43:17.694 fast your head[br]would have spun. 0:43:17.695,0:43:19.663 He said terrible[br]things about her. 0:43:19.663,0:43:22.166 But it wasn't[br]classified information. 0:43:22.166,0:43:23.667 But in one case you're[br]talking about classified. 0:43:23.666,0:43:27.337 Regardless, if you look[br]at the RNC, we had a very 0:43:27.338,0:43:29.773 strong -- at my suggestion[br]-- and I give Reince great 0:43:29.773,0:43:33.510 credit for this -- at my[br]suggestion, because I know 0:43:33.510,0:43:36.413 something about this[br]world, I said I want a 0:43:36.413,0:43:39.983 very strong[br]defensive mechanism. 0:43:39.983,0:43:42.286 I don't want to be hacked. 0:43:42.286,0:43:45.121 And we did that, and you[br]have seen that they tried 0:43:45.121,0:43:47.123 to hack us and[br]they failed. 0:43:47.123,0:43:50.727 The DNC did not do that. 0:43:50.728,0:43:52.195 And if they did it, they[br]could not have 0:43:52.195,0:43:53.896 been hacked. 0:43:53.896,0:43:55.498 But they were hacked, and[br]terrible things came. 0:43:55.498,0:43:58.034 And the only thing that I[br]do think is unfair is some 0:43:58.034,0:44:00.536 of the things were so --[br]they were -- when I heard 0:44:00.536,0:44:02.239 some of those things, I[br]said -- I picked up the 0:44:02.239,0:44:03.639 papers the next morning, I[br]said, oh, this is going 0:44:03.639,0:44:04.775 to front page. 0:44:04.775,0:44:06.744 It wasn't even[br]in the papers. 0:44:06.744,0:44:10.581 Again, if I had that[br]happen to me, it would be 0:44:10.581,0:44:12.950 the biggest story in the[br]history of publishing or 0:44:12.949,0:44:14.550 the head of newspapers. 0:44:14.550,0:44:16.186 I would have been the[br]headline 0:44:16.186,0:44:17.688 in every newspaper. 0:44:17.688,0:44:19.490 I mean, think of it. 0:44:19.489,0:44:22.125 They gave her the[br]questions for the debate, 0:44:22.126,0:44:24.961 and she should have[br]reported herself. 0:44:24.961,0:44:27.764 Why didn't Hillary Clinton[br]announce that, "I'm sorry, 0:44:27.764,0:44:31.969 but I have been given the[br]questions to a debate or a 0:44:31.969,0:44:37.441 town hall, and I feel that[br]it's inappropriate, and I 0:44:37.440,0:44:41.010 want to turn in CNN for[br]not doing a good job"? 0:44:41.010,0:44:42.445 The Press: And if I may[br]follow up on that, just 0:44:42.445,0:44:44.148 something that Jonathan[br]Karl was asking you about 0:44:44.148,0:44:46.416 -- you said that the leaks[br]are real, but 0:44:46.416,0:44:47.583 the news is fake. 0:44:47.583,0:44:49.286 I guess I don't[br]understand. 0:44:49.286,0:44:50.788 It seems that there[br]is a disconnect there. 0:44:50.788,0:44:53.891 If the information coming[br]from those leaks is real, 0:44:53.891,0:44:55.291 then how can the[br]stories be fake? 0:44:55.291,0:44:56.293 The President: Well,[br]the reporting is fake. 0:44:56.293,0:44:57.327 Look, look -- 0:44:57.327,0:44:58.128 The Press: And if I may[br]ask -- I just want to ask 0:44:58.128,0:44:58.862 one other question. 0:44:58.862,0:44:59.762 The President: Jim,[br]you know what it is? 0:44:59.762,0:45:00.797 Here's the thing. 0:45:00.797,0:45:02.165 The public isn't -- they[br]read newspapers, they see 0:45:02.166,0:45:04.535 television, they watch. 0:45:04.534,0:45:07.670 They don't know if it's[br]true or false because 0:45:07.670,0:45:09.505 they're not involved. 0:45:09.505,0:45:10.139 I'm involved. 0:45:10.139,0:45:12.208 I've been involved with[br]this stuff all my life. 0:45:12.208,0:45:14.510 But I'm involved. 0:45:14.510,0:45:16.246 So I know when you're[br]telling the truth or when 0:45:16.246,0:45:17.614 you're not. 0:45:17.614,0:45:20.349 I just see many, many[br]untruthful things. 0:45:20.349,0:45:21.451 And I tell you[br]what else I see. 0:45:21.452,0:45:22.286 I see tone. 0:45:22.286,0:45:23.921 You know the word "tone." 0:45:23.920,0:45:27.390 The tone is such hatred. 0:45:27.391,0:45:29.226 I'm really not a bad[br]person, by the way. 0:45:29.226,0:45:31.829 No, but the tone is such[br]-- I do get good ratings, 0:45:31.829,0:45:33.097 you have to admit that. 0:45:33.097,0:45:36.934 The tone is such hatred. 0:45:36.934,0:45:39.870 I watched this morning a[br]couple of the networks, 0:45:39.869,0:45:42.705 and I have to say "Fox &[br]Friends" in the morning, 0:45:42.706,0:45:45.275 they're very[br]honorable people. 0:45:45.275,0:45:46.910 They're very -- not[br]because they're good, 0:45:46.909,0:45:50.346 because they hit me also[br]when I do something wrong. 0:45:50.347,0:45:53.650 But they have the most[br]honest morning show. 0:45:53.650,0:45:54.485 That's all I can say. 0:45:54.485,0:45:55.052 It's the most honest. 0:45:55.052,0:45:57.121 But the tone, Jim. 0:45:57.121,0:45:59.956 If you look -- the hatred. 0:45:59.956,0:46:01.257 I mean, sometimes --[br]sometimes somebody gets -- 0:46:01.257,0:46:02.358 The Press: (Off mic.) 0:46:02.358,0:46:04.061 The President: Well, you[br]look at your show that 0:46:04.061,0:46:07.164 goes on at 10 o'clock[br]in the evening. 0:46:07.164,0:46:08.699 You just take a[br]look at that show. 0:46:08.699,0:46:10.601 That is a constant hit. 0:46:10.601,0:46:14.271 The panel is almost always[br]exclusive anti-Trump. 0:46:14.271,0:46:16.173 The good news is he[br]doesn't have good ratings. 0:46:16.172,0:46:20.009 But the panel is almost[br]exclusive anti-Trump. 0:46:20.010,0:46:23.580 And the hatred and venom[br]coming from his mouth, the 0:46:23.579,0:46:27.150 hatred coming from other[br]people on your network. 0:46:27.150,0:46:28.684 Now, I will say this. 0:46:28.684,0:46:31.054 I watch it. 0:46:31.054,0:46:32.489 I see it. 0:46:32.489,0:46:35.057 I'm amazed by it. 0:46:35.057,0:46:36.893 And I just think you'd[br]be a lot better off -- I 0:46:36.893,0:46:37.894 honestly do. 0:46:37.894,0:46:39.163 The public gets[br]it, you know. 0:46:39.163,0:46:40.664 Look, when I go to[br]rallies, they turn around, 0:46:40.664,0:46:41.965 they start[br]screaming at CNN. 0:46:41.965,0:46:43.800 They want to throw[br]their placards at CNN. 0:46:43.800,0:46:49.539 I think you would do much[br]better by being different. 0:46:49.539,0:46:50.541 But you just take a look. 0:46:50.541,0:46:52.576 Take a look at some of[br]your shows in the morning 0:46:52.576,0:46:54.610 and the evening. 0:46:54.610,0:46:56.579 If a guest comes out and[br]says something positive 0:46:56.579,0:46:59.715 about me, it's brutal. 0:46:59.715,0:47:01.018 Now, they'll take[br]this news conference. 0:47:01.018,0:47:02.920 I'm actually having a[br]very good time, okay? 0:47:02.920,0:47:04.820 But they'll take this news[br]conference -- don't forget 0:47:04.820,0:47:06.222 that's the way I won. 0:47:06.222,0:47:07.623 Remember, I used to give[br]you a news conference 0:47:07.623,0:47:08.958 every time I made a[br]speech, which was like 0:47:08.958,0:47:10.059 every day. 0:47:10.059,0:47:10.960 The Press: (Off mic.) 0:47:10.960,0:47:12.028 The President: No,[br]that's how I won. 0:47:12.028,0:47:13.262 I won with news[br]conferences and 0:47:13.262,0:47:14.163 probably speeches. 0:47:14.164,0:47:16.233 I certainly didn't win by[br]people listening to you 0:47:16.233,0:47:17.768 people, that's for sure. 0:47:17.768,0:47:19.202 But I am having[br]a good time. 0:47:19.202,0:47:22.605 Tomorrow they will say,[br]Donald Trump rants and 0:47:22.606,0:47:23.840 raves at the press. 0:47:23.840,0:47:24.942 I'm not ranting[br]and raving. 0:47:24.942,0:47:26.909 I'm just telling you,[br]you're dishonest people. 0:47:26.909,0:47:29.346 But -- but I'm not[br]ranting and raving. 0:47:29.346,0:47:29.947 I love this. 0:47:29.947,0:47:31.882 I'm having a good[br]time doing it. 0:47:31.882,0:47:34.318 But tomorrow the headlines[br]are going to be: 0:47:34.318,0:47:37.287 Donald Trump Rants and Raves. 0:47:37.286,0:47:37.987 I'm not ranting[br]and raving. 0:47:37.987,0:47:38.688 The Press: If[br]I may just -- 0:47:38.688,0:47:39.155 The President: Go ahead. 0:47:39.155,0:47:39.989 The Press: One more[br]follow-up because -- 0:47:39.989,0:47:40.623 The President: Should I[br]let him have 0:47:40.623,0:47:41.357 a little bit more? 0:47:41.358,0:47:42.192 What do you think, Peter? 0:47:42.192,0:47:43.460 The Press: Just[br]because of this -- 0:47:43.460,0:47:44.293 The President: Peter,[br]should I have let him have 0:47:44.293,0:47:44.894 a little bit more? 0:47:44.894,0:47:45.262 Sit down. 0:47:45.262,0:47:46.129 Sit down. 0:47:46.128,0:47:47.063 The Press: Just because[br]of the attack -- 0:47:47.063,0:47:47.530 The President:[br]We'll get it. 0:47:47.530,0:47:48.864 The Press: Just because of[br]the attack of fake news 0:47:48.864,0:47:51.634 and attacking our network,[br]I just want to ask you, sir -- 0:47:51.635,0:47:52.603 The President: I'm[br]changing it from fake 0:47:52.603,0:47:53.503 news, though. 0:47:53.503,0:47:54.571 The Press: Doesn't[br]that undermine -- 0:47:54.570,0:47:55.538 The President:[br]Very fake news now. 0:47:55.539,0:47:57.708 (Laughter.) 0:47:57.708,0:47:59.343 The Press: But[br]aren't you -- 0:47:59.342,0:48:00.243 The President:[br]Yes, go ahead. 0:48:00.244,0:48:01.178 The Press: Real[br]news, Mr. President. 0:48:01.177,0:48:01.978 Real news. 0:48:01.978,0:48:03.413 The President: And you're[br]not related to our new -- 0:48:03.413,0:48:05.048 The Press: I am not[br]related, sir, no. 0:48:05.047,0:48:07.917 (Laughter.) I do like the[br]sound of Secretary Acosta, 0:48:07.918,0:48:08.518 I must say. 0:48:08.518,0:48:09.786 The President: I looked --[br]you know, I looked 0:48:09.786,0:48:11.088 at that name. 0:48:11.088,0:48:11.722 I said, wait a minute, is[br]there any relation there? 0:48:11.722,0:48:12.689 Alex Acosta. 0:48:12.688,0:48:13.856 The Press: I'm sure you[br]checked that out, sir. 0:48:13.856,0:48:14.523 The President:[br]No, I checked it. 0:48:14.523,0:48:15.659 I said -- they[br]said, no, sir. 0:48:15.659,0:48:17.394 I said, do me a favor, go[br]back and check 0:48:17.393,0:48:18.961 the family tree. 0:48:18.961,0:48:21.197 The Press: But aren't you[br]concerned, sir, that you 0:48:21.197,0:48:23.567 are undermining the[br]people's faith in the 0:48:23.567,0:48:26.269 First Amendment freedom of[br]the press, the press in 0:48:26.269,0:48:28.739 this country when you call[br]stories you don't like 0:48:28.739,0:48:29.940 "fake news"? 0:48:29.940,0:48:32.275 Why not just say it's[br]a story I don't like? 0:48:32.275,0:48:32.875 The President: I do that. 0:48:32.876,0:48:33.677 The Press: When you call[br]it fake news, you're 0:48:33.677,0:48:35.045 undermining confidence -- 0:48:35.045,0:48:35.746 The President:[br]No, I do that. 0:48:35.746,0:48:36.980 No, no, I do that. 0:48:36.980,0:48:37.880 The Press: -- in[br]our news media. 0:48:37.880,0:48:38.382 The President:[br]Here's the thing. 0:48:38.382,0:48:38.914 The Press: Isn't[br]that important? 0:48:38.914,0:48:39.715 The President: Okay, I[br]understand -- and you're 0:48:39.715,0:48:40.583 right about that[br]except this. 0:48:40.583,0:48:42.184 See, I know when I should[br]get good and when I should 0:48:42.184,0:48:43.387 get bad. 0:48:43.387,0:48:45.489 And sometimes I'll say,[br]wow, that's going to be a 0:48:45.489,0:48:47.990 great story, and[br]I'll get killed. 0:48:47.990,0:48:49.192 I know what's[br]good and bad. 0:48:49.192,0:48:50.327 I'd be a pretty good[br]reporter -- not 0:48:50.327,0:48:51.662 as good as you. 0:48:51.661,0:48:53.195 But I know what's good. 0:48:53.195,0:48:54.764 I know what's bad. 0:48:54.764,0:48:57.833 And when they change it[br]and make it really bad -- 0:48:57.833,0:48:59.268 something that[br]should be positive. 0:48:59.268,0:49:01.237 Sometimes something that[br]should be very positive, 0:49:01.237,0:49:02.938 they'll make okay. 0:49:02.938,0:49:04.473 They'll even[br]make it negative. 0:49:04.474,0:49:06.910 So I understand it[br]because I'm there. 0:49:06.909,0:49:07.844 I know what was said. 0:49:07.844,0:49:09.713 I know who is saying it. 0:49:09.713,0:49:10.647 I'm there. 0:49:10.646,0:49:11.614 So it's very[br]important to me. 0:49:11.614,0:49:14.450 Look, I want to see[br]an honest press. 0:49:14.451,0:49:17.186 When I started off today[br]by saying that it's so 0:49:17.186,0:49:19.389 important to the public[br]to get an honest press. 0:49:19.389,0:49:21.157 The press -- the public[br]doesn't believe you 0:49:21.157,0:49:23.293 people anymore. 0:49:23.293,0:49:24.260 Now, maybe I had something[br]to do with 0:49:24.260,0:49:25.594 that, I don't know. 0:49:25.594,0:49:26.529 But they don't[br]believe you. 0:49:26.530,0:49:31.668 If you were straight and[br]really told it like it is, 0:49:31.668,0:49:34.570 as Howard Cosell[br]used to say, right? 0:49:34.570,0:49:36.873 Of course, he had[br]some questions also. 0:49:36.873,0:49:39.675 But if you were straight,[br]I would be your biggest 0:49:39.675,0:49:42.144 booster, I would be your[br]biggest fan in the world 0:49:42.144,0:49:44.847 -- including bad[br]stories about me. 0:49:44.847,0:49:48.018 But if you go -- as an[br]example, you're CNN -- I 0:49:48.018,0:49:52.822 mean, it's story after[br]story after story is bad. 0:49:52.822,0:49:55.725 I won. I won. 0:49:55.726,0:49:56.960 And the other[br]thing: Chaos. 0:49:56.960,0:49:58.795 There's zero chaos. 0:49:58.795,0:50:02.199 We are running -- this[br]is a fine-tuned machine. 0:50:02.199,0:50:04.334 And Reince happens to[br]be doing a good job. 0:50:04.333,0:50:05.935 But half of his job is[br]putting out 0:50:05.936,0:50:08.204 lies by the press. 0:50:08.204,0:50:10.940 I said to him yesterday,[br]this whole Russia scam 0:50:10.940,0:50:13.576 that you guys are building[br]so that you don't talk 0:50:13.577,0:50:16.346 about the real subject,[br]which is illegal leaks. 0:50:16.346,0:50:20.583 But I watched him[br]yesterday working so hard 0:50:20.583,0:50:24.587 to try and get[br]that story proper. 0:50:24.588,0:50:26.790 And I'm saying, here's my[br]Chief of Staff, a really 0:50:26.789,0:50:30.059 good guy, did a[br]phenomenal job at RNC. 0:50:30.059,0:50:32.429 I mean, we won the[br]election, right? 0:50:32.429,0:50:34.131 We won the presidency. 0:50:34.130,0:50:35.364 We got some senators. 0:50:35.364,0:50:37.133 We got some -- all over[br]the country, you take a 0:50:37.134,0:50:38.835 look, he's done[br]a great job. 0:50:38.835,0:50:40.170 And I said to myself, you[br]know -- and I said to 0:50:40.170,0:50:41.738 somebody that was in the[br]room -- I said, you take a 0:50:41.737,0:50:43.906 look at Reince, he's[br]working so hard just 0:50:43.907,0:50:47.210 putting out fires[br]that are fake fires. 0:50:47.210,0:50:48.612 They're fake. 0:50:48.612,0:50:50.780 They're not true. 0:50:50.780,0:50:52.581 And isn't that a shame,[br]because he'd rather be 0:50:52.581,0:50:54.583 working on health care. 0:50:54.583,0:50:57.153 He'd rather be working[br]on tax reform, Jim. 0:50:57.153,0:50:58.288 I mean that. 0:50:58.288,0:50:59.789 I would be your biggest[br]fan in the world if you 0:50:59.789,0:51:00.757 treated me right. 0:51:00.757,0:51:02.826 I sort of understand[br]there's a certain bias, 0:51:02.826,0:51:06.596 maybe by Jeff or somebody[br]-- for whatever reason. 0:51:06.596,0:51:08.931 And I understand that. 0:51:08.931,0:51:11.267 But you've got to be at[br]least a little bit fair. 0:51:11.268,0:51:12.936 And that's why the public[br]sees it -- they see it. 0:51:12.936,0:51:15.005 They see it's not fair. 0:51:15.005,0:51:17.173 You take a look at some of[br]your shows and you see the 0:51:17.173,0:51:19.608 bias and the hatred. 0:51:19.608,0:51:21.043 And the public is smart. 0:51:21.043,0:51:22.445 They understand it. 0:51:22.445,0:51:25.347 Okay, yeah, go ahead. 0:51:25.347,0:51:26.550 The Press: We have no[br]doubt that your latest 0:51:26.550,0:51:27.951 story is (inaudible). 0:51:27.951,0:51:30.186 But for those who believe[br]that there is something to 0:51:30.186,0:51:33.255 it, is there anything that[br]you have learned over 0:51:33.255,0:51:35.826 these last few weeks that[br]you might be able to 0:51:35.826,0:51:38.494 reveal that might ease[br]their concerns that this 0:51:38.494,0:51:39.496 isn't fake news? 0:51:39.496,0:51:40.130 And secondly -- 0:51:40.130,0:51:41.231 The President: I think[br]they don't believe it. 0:51:41.231,0:51:42.399 I don't think[br]the public would. 0:51:42.398,0:51:43.933 That's why the Rasmussen[br]poll just has me through 0:51:43.934,0:51:45.302 the roof. 0:51:45.302,0:51:47.804 I don't think[br]they believe it. 0:51:47.804,0:51:49.773 Well, I guess one of the[br]reasons I'm here today is 0:51:49.773,0:51:52.275 to tell you the whole[br]Russian thing -- 0:51:52.275,0:51:53.343 that's a ruse. 0:51:53.342,0:51:54.677 That's a ruse. 0:51:54.677,0:51:58.714 And, by the way, it would[br]be great if we could get 0:51:58.715,0:52:00.983 along with Russia, just[br]so you understand that. 0:52:00.983,0:52:03.052 Now, tomorrow you'll say,[br]Donald Trump wants to get 0:52:03.052,0:52:05.688 along with Russia,[br]this is terrible. 0:52:05.688,0:52:07.123 It's not terrible[br]-- it's good. 0:52:07.123,0:52:10.393 We had Hillary Clinton[br]try and do a reset. 0:52:10.393,0:52:14.597 We had Hillary Clinton[br]give Russia 20 percent of 0:52:14.597,0:52:18.034 the uranium in[br]our country. 0:52:18.034,0:52:19.503 You know what[br]uranium is, right? 0:52:19.503,0:52:20.769 It's this thing called[br]nuclear weapons 0:52:20.769,0:52:21.871 and other things. 0:52:21.871,0:52:24.740 Like, lots of things[br]are done with uranium, 0:52:24.740,0:52:26.443 including some bad things. 0:52:26.443,0:52:29.880 Nobody talks about that. 0:52:29.880,0:52:31.314 I didn't do[br]anything for Russia. 0:52:31.313,0:52:33.349 I've done nothing[br]for Russia. 0:52:33.349,0:52:36.085 Hillary Clinton gave them[br]20 percent of our uranium. 0:52:36.085,0:52:37.987 Hillary Clinton did a[br]reset, remember, with the 0:52:37.987,0:52:40.556 stupid plastic button that[br]made us all look like a 0:52:40.556,0:52:41.625 bunch of jerks? 0:52:41.625,0:52:42.726 Here, take a look. 0:52:42.726,0:52:46.162 He looked at her like,[br]what the hell is she doing 0:52:46.161,0:52:49.031 with that cheap[br]plastic button? 0:52:49.032,0:52:51.034 Hillary Clinton --[br]that was a reset. Remember? 0:52:51.034,0:52:52.969 It said "reset." 0:52:52.969,0:52:54.838 Now, if I do that,[br]oh, I'm a bad guy. 0:52:54.838,0:52:56.973 If we could get along with[br]Russia, that's 0:52:56.972,0:52:58.041 a positive thing. 0:52:58.041,0:53:00.943 We have a very talented[br]man, Rex Tillerson, who is 0:53:00.943,0:53:03.512 going to be meeting[br]with them shortly. 0:53:03.512,0:53:06.215 And I told him, I said,[br]I know politically it's 0:53:06.215,0:53:07.717 probably not good for me. 0:53:07.717,0:53:10.186 Hey, the greatest thing[br]I could do is shoot 0:53:10.186,0:53:12.222 that ship that's 30 miles[br]offshore right out 0:53:12.222,0:53:13.456 of the water. 0:53:13.456,0:53:14.624 Everyone in this country[br]is going to say, oh, it's 0:53:14.623,0:53:17.126 so great. 0:53:17.126,0:53:18.929 That's not great. 0:53:18.929,0:53:20.030 That's not great. 0:53:20.030,0:53:21.798 I would love to be able[br]to get along with Russia. 0:53:21.797,0:53:25.334 Now, you've had a lot of[br]Presidents that haven't 0:53:25.335,0:53:26.536 taken that tact. 0:53:26.536,0:53:27.938 Look where we are now. 0:53:27.938,0:53:29.039 Look where we are now. 0:53:29.039,0:53:34.110 So, if I can -- now, I[br]love to negotiate things. 0:53:34.110,0:53:36.780 I do it really well and[br]all that stuff, but it's 0:53:36.780,0:53:39.482 possible I won't be able[br]to get along with Putin. 0:53:39.481,0:53:40.516 Maybe it is. 0:53:40.516,0:53:44.320 But I want to just tell[br]you, the false reporting 0:53:44.320,0:53:46.288 by the media, by you[br]people -- the false, 0:53:46.289,0:53:49.559 horrible, fake reporting[br]makes it much harder to 0:53:49.559,0:53:52.796 make a deal with Russia. 0:53:52.795,0:53:56.332 And probably Putin said,[br]you know -- he's sitting 0:53:56.333,0:53:59.402 behind his desk and he's[br]saying, you know, I see 0:53:59.402,0:54:01.438 what's going on in the[br]United States, I follow it 0:54:01.438,0:54:04.106 closely; it's got to be[br]impossible for President 0:54:04.106,0:54:07.677 Trump to ever get along[br]with Russia because of all 0:54:07.677,0:54:12.582 the pressure he's got[br]with this fake story. Okay? 0:54:12.581,0:54:14.083 And that's a shame. 0:54:14.083,0:54:15.684 Because if we could get[br]along with Russia -- and, 0:54:15.684,0:54:19.688 by the way, China and[br]Japan and everyone -- if 0:54:19.688,0:54:22.091 we could get along, it[br]would be a positive thing, 0:54:22.092,0:54:23.360 not a negative thing. 0:54:23.360,0:54:24.728 The Press: Tax reform -- 0:54:24.728,0:54:25.996 The Press: Mr.[br]President, since you -- 0:54:25.996,0:54:27.163 The President: Tax reform[br]is going to happen 0:54:27.163,0:54:28.231 fairly quickly. 0:54:28.231,0:54:30.200 We're doing Obamacare --[br]we're in final stages. 0:54:30.199,0:54:33.369 We should be submitting[br]the initial plan in March, 0:54:33.369,0:54:35.971 early March, I would say. 0:54:35.972,0:54:38.775 And we have to, as you[br]know, statutorily and for 0:54:38.775,0:54:41.077 reasons of budget,[br]we have to go first. 0:54:41.077,0:54:44.881 It's not like -- frankly,[br]the tax would be easier, 0:54:44.880,0:54:47.182 in my opinion, but for[br]statutory reasons and for 0:54:47.182,0:54:48.784 budgetary reasons, we have[br]to submit the 0:54:48.784,0:54:50.920 health care sooner. 0:54:50.920,0:54:53.722 So we'll be submitting[br]health care sometime in 0:54:53.722,0:54:54.590 early March, mid-March. 0:54:54.590,0:54:56.458 And after that, we're[br]going to come up -- and 0:54:56.458,0:54:58.527 we're doing very[br]well on tax reform. Yes. 0:54:58.527,0:54:59.962 The Press: Mr. President,[br]you mentioned Russia. 0:54:59.963,0:55:01.631 Let's talk about some[br]serious issues that have 0:55:01.630,0:55:03.500 come up in the last week[br]that you have had to deal 0:55:03.500,0:55:04.634 with as President of[br]the United States. 0:55:04.634,0:55:05.135 The President: Okay. 0:55:05.135,0:55:06.436 The Press: You mentioned[br]the vessel, the spy 0:55:06.436,0:55:07.704 vessel, off the coast[br]of the United States. 0:55:07.704,0:55:08.405 The President: Not good. 0:55:08.405,0:55:09.506 The Press: There was a[br]ballistic missile test 0:55:09.505,0:55:10.639 that many interpreted[br]as a violation -- 0:55:10.639,0:55:11.240 The President: Not good. 0:55:11.240,0:55:12.608 The Press: -- of the[br]agreement between 0:55:12.608,0:55:13.342 the two countries. 0:55:13.342,0:55:15.244 And a Russian[br]plane buzzed a 0:55:15.244,0:55:15.978 U.S. destroyer. 0:55:15.978,0:55:16.846 The President: Not good. 0:55:16.846,0:55:18.213 The Press: I listened to[br]you during the campaign -- 0:55:18.213,0:55:18.748 The President: Excuse me,[br]excuse me, 0:55:18.748,0:55:20.282 when did it happen? 0:55:20.282,0:55:24.688 It happened when -- if you[br]were Putin right now, you 0:55:24.688,0:55:27.791 would say, hey, we're back[br]to the old games with the 0:55:27.791,0:55:29.159 United States. 0:55:29.159,0:55:31.861 There's no way Trump can[br]ever do a deal with us 0:55:31.860,0:55:34.897 because the -- you have to[br]understand, if I was just 0:55:34.898,0:55:37.701 brutal on Russia right[br]now, just brutal, people 0:55:37.701,0:55:39.536 would say, you would say,[br]oh, isn't that wonderful. 0:55:39.536,0:55:41.237 But I know you[br]well enough. 0:55:41.237,0:55:43.773 Then you would say, oh,[br]he was too tough, he 0:55:43.773,0:55:44.541 shouldn't have done that. 0:55:44.541,0:55:45.709 Look, of all -- 0:55:45.708,0:55:46.375 The Press: I'm just[br]trying to find out your 0:55:46.376,0:55:47.210 orientation to those -- 0:55:47.210,0:55:47.677 The President:[br]Wait a minute. 0:55:47.677,0:55:48.044 Wait, wait. 0:55:48.043,0:55:48.478 Excuse me just one second. 0:55:48.478,0:55:49.045 The Press: I'm just trying[br]to find out what you're 0:55:49.045,0:55:50.180 doing to do about[br]them, Mr. President. 0:55:50.179,0:55:52.414 The President: All of[br]those things that you 0:55:52.414,0:55:53.382 mentioned are very recent,[br]because probably Putin 0:55:53.382,0:55:54.783 assumes that he's not[br]going to be able to make a 0:55:54.784,0:55:57.153 deal with me because it's[br]politically not popular 0:55:57.152,0:55:58.520 for me to make a deal. 0:55:58.521,0:56:00.923 So Hillary Clinton tries[br]to reset, it failed. 0:56:00.923,0:56:02.092 They all tried. 0:56:02.092,0:56:03.425 But I'm different[br]than those people. 0:56:03.425,0:56:03.960 Go ahead. 0:56:03.960,0:56:05.095 The Press: How are you[br]interpreting those moves? 0:56:05.094,0:56:06.495 And what do you intend[br]to do about them? 0:56:06.496,0:56:07.329 The President: Just[br]the way I said it. 0:56:07.329,0:56:08.431 The Press: Have you given[br]Rex Tillerson any advice 0:56:08.431,0:56:09.432 or counsel on how to deal? 0:56:09.431,0:56:10.065 The President: I have. 0:56:10.065,0:56:10.466 I have. 0:56:10.467,0:56:12.469 And I'm so beautifully[br]represented. 0:56:12.469,0:56:14.436 I'm so honored that the[br]Senate approved him. 0:56:14.436,0:56:16.306 He's going to[br]be fantastic. 0:56:16.306,0:56:19.008 Yes, I think that[br]I've already -- 0:56:19.007,0:56:19.875 The Press: Is Putin[br]testing you, do you 0:56:19.876,0:56:20.877 believe, sir? 0:56:20.876,0:56:21.945 The President: No,[br]I don't think so. 0:56:21.945,0:56:24.514 I think Putin probably[br]assumes that he can't make 0:56:24.514,0:56:26.316 a deal with me anymore[br]because politically it 0:56:26.315,0:56:29.551 would be unpopular for a[br]politician to make a deal. 0:56:29.552,0:56:31.019 I can't believe I'm saying[br]I'm a politician, but I 0:56:31.019,0:56:32.021 guess that's[br]what I am now. 0:56:32.021,0:56:34.891 Because, look, it would be[br]much easier for me to be 0:56:34.891,0:56:36.226 tough on Russia, but then[br]we're not going 0:56:36.226,0:56:36.760 to make a deal. 0:56:36.760,0:56:38.027 Now, I don't know that[br]we're going to 0:56:38.027,0:56:38.795 make a deal. 0:56:38.795,0:56:39.729 I don't know. 0:56:39.728,0:56:41.563 We might, we might not. 0:56:41.563,0:56:43.599 But it would be much[br]easier for me to be so 0:56:43.599,0:56:46.101 tough -- the tougher I am[br]on Russia, the better. 0:56:46.101,0:56:49.071 But you know what, I want[br]to do the right thing for 0:56:49.072,0:56:50.774 the American people. 0:56:50.773,0:56:52.808 And to be honest,[br]secondarily, I want to do 0:56:52.809,0:56:54.444 the right thing[br]for the world. 0:56:54.443,0:56:58.181 If Russia and the United[br]States actually got 0:56:58.181,0:57:02.251 together and got along --[br]and don't forget, we're a 0:57:02.251,0:57:05.121 very powerful nuclear[br]country and so are they. 0:57:05.121,0:57:06.689 There's no upside. 0:57:06.688,0:57:09.291 We're a very powerful[br]nuclear country 0:57:09.291,0:57:10.293 and so are they. 0:57:10.293,0:57:11.126 I've been briefed. 0:57:11.126,0:57:12.795 And I can tell you, one[br]thing about a briefing 0:57:12.795,0:57:15.798 that we're allowed to say[br]because anybody that ever 0:57:15.798,0:57:19.168 read the most basic book[br]can say it: Nuclear 0:57:19.168,0:57:22.471 holocaust would[br]be like no other. 0:57:22.472,0:57:24.440 They're a very powerful[br]nuclear country 0:57:24.440,0:57:25.742 and so are we. 0:57:25.742,0:57:28.244 If we have a good[br]relationship with Russia, 0:57:28.244,0:57:30.780 believe me, that's a good[br]thing, not a bad thing. 0:57:30.780,0:57:32.615 The Press: So when you say[br]they're not good, do you 0:57:32.614,0:57:33.482 mean that they are -- 0:57:33.483,0:57:34.417 The President: Who[br]did I say is not good? 0:57:34.416,0:57:35.918 The Press: No, when I read[br]off the three things that 0:57:35.918,0:57:36.885 have recently happened and[br]each one of them you said 0:57:36.885,0:57:37.519 they're not good. 0:57:37.519,0:57:38.021 The President: No, it's[br]not good, 0:57:38.021,0:57:38.488 but they happened. 0:57:38.487,0:57:39.254 The Press: But do they[br]damage the relationship? 0:57:39.255,0:57:40.690 Do they undermine this[br]country's ability to work 0:57:40.690,0:57:42.625 with Russia? 0:57:42.625,0:57:44.327 The President: They all[br]happened recently, and I 0:57:44.327,0:57:45.695 understand what they're[br]doing, because they're 0:57:45.695,0:57:46.996 doing the same thing. 0:57:46.996,0:57:49.532 Now, again, maybe I'm not[br]going to be able to do a 0:57:49.532,0:57:51.968 deal with Russia, but at[br]least I will have tried. 0:57:51.967,0:57:55.471 And if I don't, does[br]anybody really think that 0:57:55.471,0:57:58.974 Hillary Clinton would be[br]tougher on Russia than 0:57:58.974,0:57:59.875 Donald Trump? 0:57:59.876,0:58:03.179 Does anybody in this room[br]really believe that? Okay. 0:58:03.179,0:58:05.548 But I tell you one thing:[br]She tried to make a deal. 0:58:05.547,0:58:07.149 She had the reset. 0:58:07.150,0:58:09.285 She gave all the[br]valuable uranium away. 0:58:09.284,0:58:10.385 She did other things. 0:58:10.385,0:58:12.188 You know, they say[br]I'm close to Russia. 0:58:12.188,0:58:14.190 Hillary Clinton gave away[br]20 percent of the uranium 0:58:14.190,0:58:15.592 in the United States. 0:58:15.592,0:58:17.327 She's close to Russia. 0:58:17.327,0:58:19.662 I gave -- you know[br]what I gave to Russia? 0:58:19.661,0:58:20.429 You know what I gave? 0:58:20.429,0:58:21.196 Nothing. 0:58:21.197,0:58:22.332 The Press: Can we conclude[br]there will be no response 0:58:22.331,0:58:25.034 to these particular[br]provocations? 0:58:25.034,0:58:26.102 The President: I'm not[br]going to tell you anything 0:58:26.101,0:58:27.469 about what response I do. 0:58:27.469,0:58:28.971 I don't talk about[br]military response. 0:58:28.972,0:58:31.708 I don't say I'm going into[br]Mosul in four months. 0:58:31.708,0:58:34.543 "We are going to attack[br]Mosul in four months." 0:58:34.543,0:58:36.278 Then three months later:[br]"We are going to attack 0:58:36.278,0:58:38.981 Mosul in one month." "Next[br]week, we are going to 0:58:38.981,0:58:40.949 attack Mosul." In the[br]meantime, Mosul is very, 0:58:40.949,0:58:42.384 very difficult. 0:58:42.385,0:58:42.986 Do you know why? 0:58:42.985,0:58:47.489 Because I don't talk about[br]military, and I don't talk 0:58:47.489,0:58:48.590 about certain[br]other things. 0:58:48.590,0:58:49.893 You're going to be[br]surprised to hear that. 0:58:49.893,0:58:52.362 And, by the way, my whole[br]campaign, I'd say that. 0:58:52.362,0:58:53.463 So I don't have[br]to tell you -- 0:58:53.463,0:58:54.898 The Press: There[br]will be a response? 0:58:54.898,0:58:56.266 The President: I don't[br]want to be one of these 0:58:56.266,0:58:57.233 guys that say, "Yes,[br]here's what 0:58:57.233,0:58:58.635 we're going to do." 0:58:58.635,0:59:00.036 I don't have to do that. 0:59:00.036,0:59:00.836 The Press: There will be a[br]-- in other words, there 0:59:00.836,0:59:01.536 will be a response,[br]Mr. President? 0:59:01.536,0:59:01.971 The President: I don't[br]have to tell you what I'm 0:59:01.971,0:59:02.338 going to do in[br]North Korea. 0:59:02.338,0:59:03.006 Wait a minute. 0:59:03.005,0:59:04.440 I don't have to tell you[br]what I'm going to do in 0:59:04.440,0:59:07.043 North Korea. 0:59:07.043,0:59:09.112 And I don't have to tell[br]you what I'm going 0:59:09.112,0:59:11.914 to do with Iran. 0:59:11.914,0:59:12.782 You know why? 0:59:12.782,0:59:14.684 Because they[br]shouldn't know. 0:59:14.684,0:59:16.686 And eventually you guys[br]are going to get tired of 0:59:16.686,0:59:18.153 asking that question. 0:59:18.153,0:59:19.956 So when you ask me, what[br]am I going to do with the 0:59:19.956,0:59:23.425 ship -- the Russian ship,[br]as an example -- I'm not 0:59:23.425,0:59:24.760 going to tell you. 0:59:24.760,0:59:26.628 But hopefully, I won't[br]have to do anything. 0:59:26.628,0:59:27.963 But I'm not going[br]to tell you. Okay. 0:59:27.963,0:59:29.766 The Press: Thanks. 0:59:29.766,0:59:32.367 The Press: Can I just ask[br]you -- thank you very 0:59:32.367,0:59:35.070 much, Mr. President[br]-- the Trump -- 0:59:35.070,0:59:36.538 The President:[br]Where are you from? 0:59:36.539,0:59:37.507 The Press: BBC. 0:59:37.507,0:59:38.273 The President: Okay. 0:59:38.273,0:59:40.108 Here's another beauty. 0:59:40.108,0:59:41.877 The Press: That's[br]a good line. 0:59:41.878,0:59:43.346 Impartial, free, and fair. 0:59:43.346,0:59:45.081 The President: Yeah, sure. 0:59:45.081,0:59:45.581 The Press: Mr.[br]President -- 0:59:45.581,0:59:46.816 The President: Just[br]like CNN, right? 0:59:46.815,0:59:49.151 The Press: Mr. President,[br]on the travel ban -- we 0:59:49.152,0:59:50.153 could banter[br]back and forth. 0:59:50.152,0:59:53.388 On the travel ban, would[br]you accept that that was a 0:59:53.389,0:59:56.726 good example of the smooth[br]running of government, 0:59:56.726,0:59:57.293 that fine-tuned -- 0:59:57.293,0:59:57.626 The President: Yeah, I do. 0:59:57.626,0:59:57.927 I do. 0:59:57.927,0:59:58.260 And let me tell you[br]about the travel -- 0:59:58.260,0:59:59.128 The Press: Were there[br]any mistakes in that? 0:59:59.128,1:00:00.396 The President:[br]Wait, wait, wait. 1:00:00.396,1:00:00.964 I know who you are. 1:00:00.963,1:00:02.030 Just wait. 1:00:02.030,1:00:04.032 Let me tell you[br]about the travel ban. 1:00:04.032,1:00:08.570 We had a very smooth[br]rollout of the travel ban, 1:00:08.570,1:00:10.539 but we had a bad court. 1:00:10.539,1:00:11.541 We got a bad decision. 1:00:11.541,1:00:13.643 We had a court that's been[br]overturned -- again, maybe 1:00:13.643,1:00:15.978 wrong, but I think it's[br]80 percent of the time. 1:00:15.978,1:00:17.012 A lot. 1:00:17.012,1:00:18.280 We had a bad decision. 1:00:18.280,1:00:19.614 We're going to keep going[br]with that decision. 1:00:19.614,1:00:22.784 We're going to put in a[br]new executive order next 1:00:22.784,1:00:24.319 week sometime. 1:00:24.320,1:00:26.489 But we had a bad decision. 1:00:26.489,1:00:27.490 That's the only thing that[br]was wrong 1:00:27.489,1:00:28.290 with the travel ban. 1:00:28.291,1:00:31.394 You had Delta with a[br]massive problem with their 1:00:31.393,1:00:33.395 computer system[br]at the airports. 1:00:33.396,1:00:35.731 You had some people that[br]were put out there, 1:00:35.731,1:00:37.532 brought by very nice[br]buses, and they were put 1:00:37.532,1:00:39.668 out at various locations. 1:00:39.668,1:00:41.471 Despite that, the only[br]problem that we had is we 1:00:41.471,1:00:42.505 had a bad court. 1:00:42.505,1:00:45.775 We had a court that gave[br]us what I consider to be, 1:00:45.775,1:00:48.211 with great respect,[br]a very bad decision. 1:00:48.210,1:00:49.778 Very bad for the safety[br]and security 1:00:49.778,1:00:50.880 of our country. 1:00:50.880,1:00:52.382 The rollout was perfect. 1:00:52.382,1:00:55.585 Now, what I wanted to do[br]was do the exact same 1:00:55.585,1:00:57.686 executive order but said[br]one thing -- and I said 1:00:57.686,1:00:59.322 this to my people: Give[br]them a 1:00:59.322,1:01:01.157 one-month period of time. 1:01:01.157,1:01:04.727 But General Kelly, now[br]Secretary Kelly, said, if 1:01:04.726,1:01:08.964 you do that, all these[br]people will come in, in 1:01:08.965,1:01:10.400 the month -- the bad ones. 1:01:10.400,1:01:12.335 You do agree, there are[br]bad people out there, right? 1:01:12.335,1:01:14.237 They're not everybody[br]that's like you. 1:01:14.237,1:01:15.905 You have some bad[br]people out there. 1:01:15.905,1:01:19.776 So Kelly said,[br]you can't do that. 1:01:19.775,1:01:20.809 And he was right. 1:01:20.809,1:01:21.643 As soon as he said it, I[br]said, wow, 1:01:21.643,1:01:22.444 never thought of it. 1:01:22.445,1:01:23.446 I said, how[br]about one week? 1:01:23.445,1:01:24.646 He said, no good. 1:01:24.646,1:01:25.715 You got to do it[br]immediately, because if 1:01:25.715,1:01:27.517 you do it immediately,[br]they don't have 1:01:27.516,1:01:29.751 time to come in. 1:01:29.751,1:01:31.788 Now, nobody ever reports[br]that, but that's why we 1:01:31.788,1:01:32.989 did it quickly. 1:01:32.989,1:01:34.624 Now, if would have done it[br]a month, everything would 1:01:34.623,1:01:35.357 have been perfect. 1:01:35.358,1:01:39.095 The problems is we would[br]have wasted a lot of time, 1:01:39.094,1:01:40.228 and maybe a lot of lives,[br]because a lot of bad 1:01:40.228,1:01:42.397 people would have come[br]into our country. 1:01:42.398,1:01:44.666 Now, in the meantime,[br]we've vetting very, 1:01:44.666,1:01:48.403 very strongly. 1:01:48.403,1:01:49.704 Very, very strongly. 1:01:49.704,1:01:53.208 But we need help, and we[br]need help by getting that 1:01:53.208,1:01:54.176 executive order passed. 1:01:54.177,1:01:54.844 The Press: Just a[br]brief follow-up. 1:01:54.844,1:01:56.445 And if it's so urgent,[br]why not introduce -- 1:01:56.445,1:01:57.413 The President:[br]Yes, go ahead. 1:01:57.413,1:01:58.213 The Press: Thank you. 1:01:58.213,1:02:00.817 I just was hoping that we[br]could get a yes- or-no 1:02:00.817,1:02:01.751 answer on one of these[br]questions 1:02:01.751,1:02:03.286 involving Russia. 1:02:03.286,1:02:05.588 Can you say whether you[br]are aware that anyone who 1:02:05.588,1:02:06.789 advised your campaign[br]had contacts with Russia 1:02:06.789,1:02:10.293 during the course[br]of the election? 1:02:10.293,1:02:11.461 The President: Well, I[br]told you, General Flynn 1:02:11.460,1:02:12.594 obviously was dealing. 1:02:12.594,1:02:13.628 So that's one person. 1:02:13.628,1:02:15.397 But he was dealing -- as[br]he should have been -- 1:02:15.398,1:02:16.298 The Press: During[br]the election? 1:02:16.298,1:02:18.400 The President: No, no,[br]nobody that I know of. 1:02:18.400,1:02:19.534 The Press: So you're not[br]aware of any contacts 1:02:19.534,1:02:20.435 during the course[br]of the election? 1:02:20.436,1:02:21.571 The President: Look, look,[br]how many times do I have 1:02:21.570,1:02:22.804 to answer this question? 1:02:22.804,1:02:23.940 The Press: Can you just[br]say yes or no on it? 1:02:23.940,1:02:24.807 The President:[br]Russia is a ruse. 1:02:24.806,1:02:26.274 Yeah, I know you have to[br]get up and ask a question, 1:02:26.275,1:02:26.909 so important. 1:02:26.909,1:02:27.910 Russia is a ruse. 1:02:27.909,1:02:31.446 I have nothing to do with[br]Russia, haven't made a 1:02:31.447,1:02:33.883 phone call to[br]Russia in years. 1:02:33.882,1:02:35.417 Don't speak to[br]people from Russia. 1:02:35.418,1:02:36.786 Not that I wouldn't, I[br]just have 1:02:36.786,1:02:38.688 nobody to speak to. 1:02:38.688,1:02:39.956 I spoke to Putin twice. 1:02:39.956,1:02:41.858 He called me on the[br]election -- I told you 1:02:41.858,1:02:44.560 this -- and he called me[br]on the inauguration, and a 1:02:44.559,1:02:45.628 few days ago. 1:02:45.628,1:02:50.733 We had a very good talk,[br]especially the second one 1:02:50.733,1:02:53.336 -- lasted for a pretty[br]long period of time. 1:02:53.335,1:02:55.237 I'm sure you probably[br]get it because it was 1:02:55.237,1:02:57.139 classified, so I'm sure[br]everybody in this room 1:02:57.139,1:02:58.507 perhaps has it. 1:02:58.507,1:03:00.842 But we had a very,[br]very good talk. 1:03:00.842,1:03:02.478 I have nothing to[br]do with Russia. 1:03:02.478,1:03:04.746 To the best of my[br]knowledge, no person that 1:03:04.746,1:03:06.214 I deal with does. 1:03:06.215,1:03:07.884 Now, Manafort has[br]totally denied it. 1:03:07.884,1:03:08.818 He denied it. 1:03:08.818,1:03:11.020 Now, people knew that he[br]was a consultant over in 1:03:11.019,1:03:12.588 that part of the world[br]for a while, but 1:03:12.588,1:03:13.823 not for Russia. 1:03:13.822,1:03:15.590 I think he represented[br]Ukraine or people having 1:03:15.590,1:03:18.994 to do with Ukraine, or[br]people that -- whoever. 1:03:18.994,1:03:19.761 But people knew that. 1:03:19.762,1:03:20.930 Everybody knew that. 1:03:20.929,1:03:22.931 The Press: But in his[br]capacity as your campaign 1:03:22.931,1:03:25.167 manager, was he in touch[br]with Russian officials 1:03:25.168,1:03:26.135 during the election? 1:03:26.135,1:03:28.004 The President: I have --[br]you know what, he said no. 1:03:28.003,1:03:30.572 I can only tell you what[br]he -- now, he was replaced 1:03:30.572,1:03:31.973 long before the election. 1:03:31.974,1:03:33.309 You know that, right? 1:03:33.309,1:03:36.012 He was replaced long[br]before the election. 1:03:36.012,1:03:37.547 When all of this stuff[br]started coming out, it 1:03:37.547,1:03:38.947 came out during[br]the election. 1:03:38.947,1:03:41.951 But Paul Manafort, who's a[br]good man also, by the way 1:03:41.951,1:03:45.153 -- Paul Manafort was[br]replaced long before the 1:03:45.153,1:03:46.621 election took place. 1:03:46.621,1:03:48.056 He was only there for a[br]short period of time. 1:03:48.056,1:03:56.198 How much longer should[br]we stay here, folks? 1:03:56.199,1:03:58.701 Five more minutes,[br]is that okay? Five? 1:03:58.701,1:04:00.036 The Press: Mr. President,[br]on national security -- 1:04:00.036,1:04:01.403 The President: Wait, let's[br]see, who's -- I want to 1:04:01.403,1:04:03.139 find a friendly reporter. 1:04:03.139,1:04:07.043 Are you a friendly[br]reporter? 1:04:07.043,1:04:08.477 Watch how friendly he is. 1:04:08.476,1:04:10.545 Wait, wait -- watch[br]how friendly he is. 1:04:10.545,1:04:10.879 Go ahead. 1:04:10.880,1:04:13.715 Go ahead. 1:04:13.715,1:04:15.083 The Press: So, first[br]of all, my name is 1:04:15.083,1:04:16.985 (inaudible) from[br](inaudible) Magazine. 1:04:16.985,1:04:21.089 And (inaudible). 1:04:21.090,1:04:24.360 I haven't seen anybody in[br]my community accuse either 1:04:24.360,1:04:27.997 yourself or any of the --[br]anyone on your staff of 1:04:27.996,1:04:29.565 being anti-Semitic. 1:04:29.565,1:04:33.034 We have an understanding[br]of (inaudible). 1:04:33.034,1:04:33.568 The President: Thank you. 1:04:33.568,1:04:36.505 The Press: However, what[br]we are concerned about, 1:04:36.505,1:04:39.608 and what we haven't really[br]heard be addressed is an 1:04:39.608,1:04:42.143 uptick in anti-Semitism[br]and how the government is 1:04:42.143,1:04:43.712 planning to[br]take care of it. 1:04:43.713,1:04:48.251 There have been reports[br]out that 48 bomb threats 1:04:48.251,1:04:49.785 have been made against[br]Jewish centers all across 1:04:49.784,1:04:52.153 the country in the[br]last couple of weeks. 1:04:52.153,1:04:54.289 There are people who are[br]committing anti-Semitic 1:04:54.289,1:04:55.625 acts or threatening to -- 1:04:55.625,1:04:57.193 The President: You see, he[br]said he was going to ask a 1:04:57.193,1:04:59.762 very simple,[br]easy question. 1:04:59.762,1:05:00.796 And it's not. 1:05:00.795,1:05:01.596 It's not. 1:05:01.597,1:05:03.266 Not a simple question,[br]not a fair question. 1:05:03.266,1:05:04.333 Okay, sit down. 1:05:04.333,1:05:06.369 I understand the rest[br]of your question. 1:05:06.369,1:05:08.037 So here's the[br]story, folks. 1:05:08.036,1:05:13.408 Number one, I am the least[br]anti-Semitic person that 1:05:13.409,1:05:16.345 you've ever seen in[br]your entire life. 1:05:16.344,1:05:20.582 Number two, racism --[br]the least racist person. 1:05:20.583,1:05:22.851 In fact, we did very well[br]relative to other people 1:05:22.851,1:05:24.085 running as a Republican. 1:05:24.085,1:05:24.986 The Press: (Inaudible.) 1:05:24.987,1:05:26.422 The President:[br]Quiet, quiet, quiet. 1:05:26.422,1:05:28.391 See, he lied about -- he[br]was going to get up and 1:05:28.391,1:05:30.526 ask a very straight,[br]simple question. 1:05:30.525,1:05:33.962 So you know, welcome to[br]the world of the media. 1:05:33.963,1:05:38.234 But let me just tell you[br]something -- that I 1:05:38.233,1:05:40.101 hate the charge. 1:05:40.101,1:05:41.569 I find it repulsive. 1:05:41.570,1:05:43.639 I hate even the question[br]because people that know 1:05:43.639,1:05:45.974 me -- and you heard the[br]Prime Minister, you heard 1:05:45.974,1:05:51.212 Netanyahu yesterday --[br]did you hear him, Bibi? 1:05:51.213,1:05:54.083 He said, I've known Donald[br]Trump for a long time, and 1:05:54.083,1:05:56.885 then he said, forget it. 1:05:56.885,1:05:59.521 So you should take that,[br]instead of having to get 1:05:59.521,1:06:00.655 up and ask a very 1:06:00.655,1:06:01.423 insulting question like that. 1:06:01.423,1:06:03.224 Yeah, go ahead. 1:06:03.224,1:06:03.958 Go ahead. 1:06:03.958,1:06:05.393 The Press: Thank you. 1:06:05.393,1:06:06.561 I'm Lisa from the PBS -- 1:06:06.561,1:06:07.295 The President: See, it[br]just shows you about the 1:06:07.295,1:06:08.630 press, but that's[br]the way the press is. 1:06:08.630,1:06:10.398 The Press: Thank[br]you, Mr. President. 1:06:10.398,1:06:11.833 Lisa Desjardins from[br]the PBS Newshour. 1:06:11.833,1:06:12.867 The President: Good. 1:06:12.867,1:06:14.636 The Press: On national[br]security and immigration, 1:06:14.637,1:06:16.072 can you give us more[br]details on the executive 1:06:16.072,1:06:17.673 order you planned for[br]next week, even 1:06:17.672,1:06:19.375 its broad outlines? 1:06:19.375,1:06:20.976 Will it be focused on[br]specific countries? 1:06:20.976,1:06:22.010 The President: It's[br]a very fair question. 1:06:22.010,1:06:24.512 The Press: And in[br]addition, on the DACA 1:06:24.512,1:06:26.681 program for immigration,[br]what is your plan? 1:06:26.681,1:06:29.718 Do you plan to continue[br]that program or to end it? 1:06:29.719,1:06:31.287 The President: We're going[br]to show great heart. 1:06:31.286,1:06:34.155 DACA is a very, very[br]difficult subject for me, 1:06:34.155,1:06:34.989 I will tell you. 1:06:34.989,1:06:36.925 To me, it's one of the[br]most difficult subjects I 1:06:36.925,1:06:39.994 have, because you have[br]these incredible kids, in 1:06:39.994,1:06:41.663 many cases --[br]not in all cases. 1:06:41.664,1:06:44.066 In some of the cases[br]they're having DACA and 1:06:44.065,1:06:46.701 they're gang members and[br]they're drug dealers too. 1:06:46.702,1:06:50.406 But you have some[br]absolutely incredible kids 1:06:50.405,1:06:55.677 -- I would say mostly --[br]they were brought here in 1:06:55.677,1:06:57.813 such a way -- it's a[br]very, very tough subject. 1:06:57.813,1:07:00.182 We are going to deal[br]with DACA with heart. 1:07:00.181,1:07:01.616 I have to deal with a lot[br]of politicians, don't 1:07:01.617,1:07:03.552 forget, and I have to[br]convince them that what 1:07:03.552,1:07:07.490 I'm saying is right. 1:07:07.489,1:07:09.157 And I appreciate your[br]understanding on that. 1:07:09.157,1:07:13.395 But the DACA situation is[br]a very, very -- it's a 1:07:13.396,1:07:16.399 very difficult[br]thing for me. 1:07:16.398,1:07:17.766 Because, you know,[br]I love these kids. 1:07:17.766,1:07:18.900 I love kids. 1:07:18.900,1:07:21.603 I have kids and grandkids. 1:07:21.603,1:07:25.206 And I find it very, very[br]hard doing what the law 1:07:25.206,1:07:26.509 says exactly to do. 1:07:26.509,1:07:27.510 And you know,[br]the law is rough. 1:07:27.510,1:07:28.778 I'm not talking[br]about new laws. 1:07:28.777,1:07:32.180 I'm talking the existing[br]law is very rough. 1:07:32.181,1:07:33.715 It's very, very rough. 1:07:33.715,1:07:36.184 As far as the new order,[br]the new order is going to 1:07:36.184,1:07:40.121 be very much tailored to[br]what I consider to be a 1:07:40.121,1:07:43.192 very bad decision, but we[br]can tailor the order to 1:07:43.192,1:07:45.494 that decision and get just[br]about everything, in 1:07:45.494,1:07:47.329 some ways more. 1:07:47.329,1:07:49.798 But we're tailoring it[br]now to the decision. 1:07:49.798,1:07:51.266 We have some of the best[br]lawyers in the country 1:07:51.266,1:07:54.235 working on it. 1:07:54.235,1:07:56.739 And the new executive[br]order is being tailored to 1:07:56.739,1:08:01.577 the decision we got[br]down from the court. Okay? 1:08:01.577,1:08:07.750 The Press: Mr. President,[br]Melania Trump announced 1:08:07.750,1:08:09.585 the reopening of the White[br]House Visitors Office. 1:08:09.585,1:08:10.719 The President: Yes. 1:08:10.719,1:08:12.655 The Press: And she does a[br]lot of great work for the 1:08:12.655,1:08:13.622 country as well. 1:08:13.621,1:08:15.089 Can you tell us a little[br]bit about what First Lady 1:08:15.090,1:08:18.158 Melania Trump does[br]for the country? 1:08:18.158,1:08:19.993 And there is a unique[br]level of interest in your 1:08:19.993,1:08:22.064 administration, so by[br]opening the White House 1:08:22.064,1:08:25.234 Visitors Office, what[br]does that mean to you? 1:08:25.234,1:08:26.569 The President: Now,[br]that's what I call 1:08:26.569,1:08:28.636 a nice question. 1:08:28.636,1:08:29.904 That is very nice. 1:08:29.904,1:08:30.805 Who are you with? 1:08:30.805,1:08:31.906 The Press: (Inaudible.) 1:08:31.907,1:08:32.274 The President: Good. 1:08:32.274,1:08:34.676 I'm going to[br]start watching. 1:08:34.676,1:08:35.443 Thank you very much. 1:08:35.444,1:08:36.444 Melania is terrific. 1:08:36.444,1:08:37.377 She was here last night. 1:08:37.377,1:08:39.613 We had dinner with Senator[br]Rubio and his wife, who 1:08:39.613,1:08:41.149 is, by the way, lovely. 1:08:41.149,1:08:43.885 And we had a really good[br]discussion about Cuba 1:08:43.886,1:08:47.223 because we have very[br]similar views on Cuba. 1:08:47.221,1:08:49.890 And Cuba was very good to[br]me in the Florida election 1:08:49.890,1:08:52.260 as you know, the Cuban[br]people, Americans. 1:08:52.261,1:08:55.798 And I think that[br]Melania is going 1:08:55.796,1:08:56.465 to be outstanding. 1:08:56.465,1:08:57.698 That's right, she just[br]opened up the Visitors 1:08:57.698,1:08:58.666 Center -- in other words, 1:08:58.667,1:09:00.336 touring of the White House. 1:09:00.336,1:09:03.872 She, like others that[br]she's working with, feels 1:09:03.872,1:09:08.542 very, very strongly about[br]women's issues, women's 1:09:08.542,1:09:12.113 difficulties, very,[br]very strongly. 1:09:12.113,1:09:14.582 And she's a very,[br]very strong advocate. 1:09:14.582,1:09:16.216 I think she's a great[br]representative 1:09:16.216,1:09:17.653 for this country. 1:09:17.653,1:09:20.055 And a funny thing happens[br]because she gets so 1:09:20.055,1:09:22.057 unfairly maligned. 1:09:22.055,1:09:23.457 The things they say --[br]I've known her 1:09:23.457,1:09:24.393 for a long time. 1:09:24.393,1:09:26.095 She was a very[br]successful person. 1:09:26.095,1:09:28.596 She was a very[br]successful model. 1:09:28.595,1:09:30.899 She did really well. 1:09:30.899,1:09:34.167 She would go home at night[br]and didn't even want to go 1:09:34.167,1:09:36.171 out with people. 1:09:36.171,1:09:38.439 She was a very[br]private person. 1:09:38.439,1:09:41.175 She was always the highest[br]quality that 1:09:41.176,1:09:43.479 you'll ever find. 1:09:43.479,1:09:45.346 And the things they say --[br]and I've known her for a 1:09:45.345,1:09:49.018 long time -- the things[br]they say are so unfair. 1:09:49.018,1:09:51.520 And actually, she's been[br]apologized to, as you 1:09:51.520,1:09:53.154 know, by various media[br]because they said things 1:09:53.154,1:09:54.355 that were lies. 1:09:54.355,1:09:55.590 I'd just tell you this: I[br]think she's going to be a 1:09:55.591,1:09:57.426 fantastic First Lady. 1:09:57.426,1:09:59.662 She's going to be a[br]tremendous representative 1:09:59.662,1:10:01.864 of women and[br]of the people. 1:10:01.863,1:10:04.766 And helping her and[br]working with her will be 1:10:04.766,1:10:07.802 Ivanka, who is a fabulous[br]person and a fabulous, 1:10:07.802,1:10:10.939 fabulous woman. 1:10:10.939,1:10:12.173 And they're not[br]doing this for money. 1:10:12.173,1:10:15.411 They're not doing[br]this for pay. 1:10:15.411,1:10:16.211 They're doing this because[br]they feel it, 1:10:16.211,1:10:17.179 both of them. 1:10:17.179,1:10:19.381 And Melania goes back and[br]forth, and after Barron 1:10:19.381,1:10:22.251 finishes school -- because[br]it's hard to take a child 1:10:22.251,1:10:24.587 out of school with a few[br]months left -- she and 1:10:24.587,1:10:26.488 Barron will be moving[br]over to the White House. 1:10:26.488,1:10:26.989 Thank you. 1:10:26.988,1:10:28.323 That's a very[br]nice question. 1:10:28.323,1:10:31.893 Go ahead. 1:10:31.894,1:10:32.494 The Press: Mr. President. 1:10:32.493,1:10:33.362 The President: Yes. 1:10:33.362,1:10:34.329 Oh, this is going to be a[br]bad question 1:10:34.329,1:10:35.296 but that's okay. 1:10:35.296,1:10:35.897 The Press: No, it's[br]not going to be 1:10:35.898,1:10:36.465 a bad question. 1:10:36.465,1:10:37.533 The President: Good,[br]because I enjoy watching 1:10:37.533,1:10:38.300 you on television. 1:10:38.300,1:10:40.135 The Press: Well,[br]thank you so much. 1:10:40.135,1:10:43.271 Mr. President, I need to[br]find out from you -- you 1:10:43.271,1:10:46.841 said something as it[br]relates to inner cities. 1:10:46.841,1:10:48.042 That was one of your[br]platforms 1:10:48.042,1:10:49.877 during your campaign. 1:10:49.877,1:10:50.912 The President: Fix the[br]inner cities, yes. 1:10:50.912,1:10:52.213 The Press: Fixing[br]the inner cities. 1:10:52.213,1:10:55.184 What will be that fix and[br]your urban agenda, as well 1:10:55.184,1:10:58.820 as your HBCU executive[br]order that's coming out 1:10:58.820,1:11:00.189 this afternoon? 1:11:00.189,1:11:01.090 See, it wasn't[br]bad, was it? 1:11:01.090,1:11:01.990 The President: That was 1:11:01.990,1:11:03.458 very professional and very good. 1:11:03.458,1:11:04.393 The Press: I'm[br]very professional. 1:11:04.393,1:11:05.493 The President: We'll be[br]announcing the order in a 1:11:05.493,1:11:06.327 little while, and I'd[br]rather let the order 1:11:06.328,1:11:07.329 speak for itself. 1:11:07.328,1:11:09.965 But it will be something[br]I think that will be very 1:11:09.965,1:11:11.400 good for everybody[br]concerned. 1:11:11.399,1:11:12.835 But we'll talk to you[br]about that after we do the 1:11:12.835,1:11:14.269 announcement. 1:11:14.269,1:11:16.038 As far as the inner[br]cities, as you know, I was 1:11:16.037,1:11:17.705 very strong on the[br]inner cities 1:11:17.706,1:11:18.707 during the campaign. 1:11:18.707,1:11:20.843 I think it's probably[br]what got me a much higher 1:11:20.842,1:11:23.244 percentage of the African[br]American vote than a lot 1:11:23.244,1:11:25.146 of people thought[br]I was going to get. 1:11:25.146,1:11:27.682 We did much higher than[br]people thought I was going 1:11:27.682,1:11:29.952 to get and I was honored[br]by that, including the 1:11:29.952,1:11:32.721 Hispanic vote, which[br]was also much higher. 1:11:32.720,1:11:34.455 And, by the way, if I[br]might add, including the 1:11:34.456,1:11:36.958 women's vote, which was[br]much higher than people 1:11:36.958,1:11:38.726 thought I was[br]going to get. 1:11:38.726,1:11:41.997 So we are going to be[br]working very hard on the 1:11:41.997,1:11:43.865 inner cities having to do[br]with education, having to 1:11:43.865,1:11:46.001 do with crime. 1:11:46.001,1:11:49.471 We're going to try and fix[br]as quickly as possible -- 1:11:49.470,1:11:50.438 you know it takes[br]a long time. 1:11:50.439,1:11:52.641 It's taken 100 years or[br]more for some of these 1:11:52.640,1:11:56.577 places to evolve, and they[br]evolved many of 1:11:56.578,1:11:57.680 them very badly. 1:11:57.680,1:11:59.248 But we're going to be[br]working very hard on 1:11:59.247,1:12:01.817 health and health care;[br]very, very hard 1:12:01.817,1:12:03.819 on education. 1:12:03.819,1:12:06.488 And also, we're going to[br]working in a stringent 1:12:06.488,1:12:08.757 way, and a very[br]good way, on crime. 1:12:08.756,1:12:12.427 You go to some of these[br]inner city places, and 1:12:12.427,1:12:14.796 it's so sad when you[br]look at the crime. 1:12:14.796,1:12:16.631 You have people -- and[br]I've seen this, and I've 1:12:16.631,1:12:18.466 sort of witnessed it. 1:12:18.466,1:12:19.367 In fact, in two cases, I 1:12:19.368,1:12:21.570 have actually witnessed it. 1:12:21.569,1:12:24.405 They lock themselves into[br]apartments, petrified to 1:12:24.405,1:12:27.975 even leave, in the[br]middle of the day. 1:12:27.975,1:12:28.609 They're living in hell. 1:12:28.609,1:12:29.677 We can't let that happen. 1:12:29.677,1:12:31.713 So we're going to be[br]very, very strong. 1:12:31.713,1:12:35.917 It's a great question,[br]and it's a very difficult 1:12:35.917,1:12:38.820 situation, because it's[br]been many, many years. 1:12:38.820,1:12:40.088 It's been festering[br]for many, many years. 1:12:40.088,1:12:42.890 But we have places in this[br]country that we 1:12:42.890,1:12:43.925 have to fix. 1:12:43.926,1:12:47.196 We have to help African[br]American people that, for 1:12:47.195,1:12:49.064 the most part are stuck[br]there -- 1:12:49.064,1:12:51.600 Hispanic American people. 1:12:51.600,1:12:53.535 We have Hispanic American[br]people that are in the 1:12:53.534,1:12:56.604 inner cities, and[br]they're living in hell. 1:12:56.604,1:13:00.108 I mean, you look at the[br]numbers in Chicago. 1:13:00.109,1:13:01.376 There are two[br]Chicagos, as you know. 1:13:01.376,1:13:06.715 There's one Chicago that's[br]incredible, luxurious and 1:13:06.715,1:13:08.016 all, and safe. 1:13:08.015,1:13:13.020 There's another Chicago[br]that's worse than almost 1:13:13.020,1:13:16.090 any of the places in the[br]Middle East that we talk 1:13:16.091,1:13:18.127 about, and that you talk[br]about every night 1:13:18.127,1:13:19.161 on the newscasts. 1:13:19.161,1:13:21.130 So we're going to do a[br]lot of work on 1:13:21.130,1:13:21.764 the inner cities. 1:13:21.764,1:13:23.332 I have great people lined[br]up to help with 1:13:23.332,1:13:24.166 the inner cities. 1:13:24.166,1:13:25.266 The Press: Well, when you[br]say -- when you say the 1:13:25.266,1:13:27.536 inner cities, are you[br]going to include the CBC, 1:13:27.536,1:13:29.805 Mr. President, in your[br]conversations with your 1:13:29.805,1:13:32.240 urban agenda, your inner[br]city agenda, 1:13:32.240,1:13:33.274 as well as your -- 1:13:33.274,1:13:34.208 The President: Am I[br]going include who? 1:13:34.208,1:13:35.109 The Press: Are you[br]going to include the 1:13:35.109,1:13:37.145 Congressional Black Caucus[br]and the Congressional 1:13:37.145,1:13:37.912 Hispanic Caucus,[br]as well as -- 1:13:37.912,1:13:38.446 The President:[br]Well, I would. 1:13:38.447,1:13:39.114 I tell you what, do[br]you want to set 1:13:39.113,1:13:39.881 up the meeting? 1:13:39.881,1:13:40.748 Do you want to set[br]up the meeting? 1:13:40.748,1:13:41.783 The Press: No, no, no. 1:13:41.783,1:13:42.951 The President: Are[br]they friends of yours? 1:13:42.951,1:13:43.484 The Press: I'm[br]just a reporter. 1:13:43.484,1:13:44.619 The President: No, g[br]ahead, set up the meeting. 1:13:44.619,1:13:45.653 The Press: I know some of[br]them, but I'm sure they're 1:13:45.654,1:13:46.755 watching right now. 1:13:46.755,1:13:47.189 The President: Let's[br]go set up a meeting. 1:13:47.189,1:13:48.289 I would love to meet[br]with the Black Caucus. 1:13:48.289,1:13:49.024 I think it's great -- 1:13:49.024,1:13:50.325 the Congressional Black Caucus. 1:13:50.324,1:13:52.293 I think it's great. 1:13:52.293,1:13:54.930 I actually thought I had a[br]meeting with Congressman 1:13:54.930,1:14:01.570 Cummings, and he was all[br]excited, and then he said, 1:14:01.569,1:14:04.072 oh, I can't move, it might[br]be bad for me politically, 1:14:04.072,1:14:05.507 I can't have that meeting. 1:14:05.506,1:14:06.574 I was all set to[br]have the meeting. 1:14:06.574,1:14:08.210 You know, we called him[br]and called him, and he was 1:14:08.210,1:14:09.110 all set. 1:14:09.110,1:14:10.311 I spoke to him[br]on the phone. 1:14:10.311,1:14:11.445 Very nice guy. 1:14:11.445,1:14:12.514 The Press: I hear he[br]wanted that meeting with 1:14:12.514,1:14:13.015 you as well. 1:14:13.015,1:14:13.816 The President:[br]He wanted it. 1:14:13.815,1:14:15.416 But we called, called,[br]called, called -- they 1:14:15.417,1:14:17.920 can't make a[br]meeting with him. 1:14:17.920,1:14:19.788 Every day, I walked in, I[br]said, I would like to meet 1:14:19.787,1:14:20.588 with him. 1:14:20.588,1:14:22.490 Because I do want to[br]solve the problem. 1:14:22.490,1:14:24.525 But he probably was told[br]by Schumer or somebody 1:14:24.525,1:14:27.729 like that -- some other[br]lightweight -- he was 1:14:27.729,1:14:31.300 probably told -- he was[br]probably told, don't meet 1:14:31.300,1:14:34.235 with Trump, it's[br]bad politics. 1:14:34.235,1:14:35.903 And that's part of the[br]problem of this country. 1:14:35.904,1:14:37.172 Okay, one more. 1:14:37.171,1:14:38.439 Go ahead. 1:14:38.439,1:14:39.640 The Press: Yes,[br]Mr. President, two 1:14:39.640,1:14:40.074 questions -- 1:14:40.074,1:14:40.608 The President: No, no. 1:14:40.609,1:14:41.109 One question. 1:14:41.109,1:14:42.344 Two, we can't handle. 1:14:42.344,1:14:43.444 This room can't[br]handle two. 1:14:43.444,1:14:45.279 Go ahead, give me the[br]better of your two. 1:14:45.279,1:14:49.917 The Press: (Inaudible)[br]it's not about your 1:14:49.917,1:14:52.186 personality or[br]your beliefs. 1:14:52.186,1:14:54.555 We're talking about[br](inaudible) around the 1:14:54.555,1:14:57.658 country, some of it by[br]supporters in your name. 1:14:57.658,1:14:58.359 What do you -- 1:14:58.359,1:14:59.694 The President: And some of[br]it -- and can I be 1:14:59.694,1:15:00.695 honest with you? 1:15:00.695,1:15:02.564 And this has to do with[br]racism and horrible things 1:15:02.564,1:15:03.832 that are put up. 1:15:03.832,1:15:06.969 Some of it written[br]by our opponents. 1:15:06.969,1:15:07.703 You do know that. 1:15:07.703,1:15:09.805 Do you understand that? 1:15:09.805,1:15:10.739 You don't think anybody[br]would do a 1:15:10.738,1:15:12.039 thing like that. 1:15:12.039,1:15:14.976 Some of the signs you'll[br]see are not put up by the 1:15:14.976,1:15:17.311 people that love or like[br]Donald Trump, they're put 1:15:17.311,1:15:19.648 up by the other side,[br]and you think it's like 1:15:19.648,1:15:22.851 playing it straight. No. 1:15:22.850,1:15:24.652 But you have some of those[br]signs, and some of that 1:15:24.653,1:15:27.489 anger is caused[br]by the other side. 1:15:27.488,1:15:30.625 They'll do signs and[br]they'll do drawings that 1:15:30.626,1:15:32.994 are inappropriate. 1:15:32.994,1:15:34.328 It won't be my people. 1:15:34.328,1:15:36.465 It will be the people on[br]the other side to anger 1:15:36.465,1:15:38.367 people like you. 1:15:38.367,1:15:43.739 Okay. Go ahead. 1:15:43.738,1:15:44.238 The Press: You are[br]the President now. 1:15:44.238,1:15:45.206 What are you going[br]to do about it? 1:15:45.207,1:15:45.807 The President:[br]Who is that? 1:15:45.806,1:15:46.440 Where is that? 1:15:46.440,1:15:48.277 Oh, stand up. 1:15:48.277,1:15:49.043 You can -- 1:15:49.043,1:15:50.311 The Press: What are you[br]going to do about the 1:15:50.311,1:15:51.646 tensions that have[br]been discussed? 1:15:51.646,1:15:52.680 The President: Oh,[br]I'm working on it. 1:15:52.680,1:15:53.681 No, I'm working[br]on it very hard. 1:15:53.681,1:15:54.448 The Press: Are you[br]going to give a speech? 1:15:54.448,1:15:55.583 The President:[br]No, no, look. 1:15:55.583,1:15:56.885 Hey, just so you[br]understand, we had a 1:15:56.885,1:15:58.987 totally divided country[br]for eight years, and long 1:15:58.987,1:16:00.122 before that, in all 1:16:00.122,1:16:01.990 fairness to President Obama. 1:16:01.989,1:16:04.358 Long before President[br]Obama, we have had 1:16:04.359,1:16:05.427 a very divided. 1:16:05.426,1:16:07.662 I didn't come along and[br]divide this country. 1:16:07.662,1:16:10.932 This country was seriously[br]divided before I got here. 1:16:10.932,1:16:12.567 We're going to work[br]on it very hard. 1:16:12.567,1:16:14.168 One of the questions that[br]was asked -- I thought it 1:16:14.168,1:16:15.103 was a very good question[br]-- was about 1:16:15.103,1:16:15.904 the inner cities. 1:16:15.904,1:16:17.139 I mean, that's part of it. 1:16:17.139,1:16:19.274 But we're going to[br]work on education. 1:16:19.274,1:16:20.709 We're going to work on[br]lack -- you know, we're 1:16:20.708,1:16:21.777 going to stop -- we're[br]going to try and 1:16:21.777,1:16:22.577 stop the crime. 1:16:22.577,1:16:24.212 We have great law[br]enforcement officials. 1:16:24.212,1:16:26.114 We're going to try[br]and stop crime. 1:16:26.113,1:16:27.181 We're not going to try and[br]stop, we're going 1:16:27.181,1:16:28.849 to stop crime. 1:16:28.850,1:16:30.419 But it's very[br]important to me. 1:16:30.418,1:16:31.886 But this isn't Donald[br]Trump that 1:16:31.886,1:16:33.587 divided a nation. 1:16:33.587,1:16:36.858 We went eight years with[br]President Obama, and we 1:16:36.858,1:16:38.260 went many years before[br]President Obama. 1:16:38.260,1:16:43.230 We lived in a[br]divided nation. 1:16:43.230,1:16:46.033 And I am going to try -- I[br]will do everything within 1:16:46.033,1:16:48.402 my power to fix that. 1:16:48.403,1:16:49.838 I want to thank[br]everybody very much. 1:16:49.837,1:16:51.472 It's a great honor[br]to be with you. 1:16:51.472,1:16:52.740 Thank you. 1:16:52.740,1:16:53.809 Thank you very much. 1:16:53.809,1:16:57.079 (Applause.)