perspective now on the president calling an audible on syria. chief executive who seems to be making a habit making gut decisions. department and the pentagon during the obama administration. admir admiral kirby, it is not the first time that the president has had public difference on key national security issues. with close advisers and cabinet secretaries how do foreign leaders receive this information. >> it is confusing them. it is confusing the agency and international partners. the saudis are urging publicly he does not pull. international partners and friends don't have the luxury because they have to go by what the president said. much harder for allies and partners to want to come out our help. you commanded forces in iraq. and let's imagine you are a military in iraq. and you hear the president saying we are going to be coming out soon forces are still spilling blood on the battlefield. what does it do to military planning on the ground? >> i am going to reinforce what admir admiral kirby just said. what is going on in washington, and

challenges remain in syria. officials are at a loss for what the president meant. >>> and fox news host facing backlash from advertisers after a comment from a parkland survivor. laura ingraham is apologizing, but the student is not satisfied. welcome to "early start." i'm michelle kosinski. >> i'm dave briggs. looks like you might stab me with that pen. >> my security pen. >> it is 4:31 eastern time on good friday. we start with the russia investigation. a lower aide in the trump campaign, but rick gates could play a role helping with the special counsel investigation. how they pushed for gates help for the collusion case. >> the court filing this week claims gates was in contact with someone who was working with the russian intelligence agency. the investigation has been focused since the president took office. it appears collusion remains a focal point of the russia probe. more now from justice correspondent evan perez in washington. >> reporter: dave and michelle, the special counsel prosecutors told rick ga

in syria. the other thing we should point out, wolf, this confusing comment from the president comes at a critical time for the national security team at the white house. john bolton, as we know, is coming in as the national security adviser, and there are people sort of wondering and bracing for the impact of john bolton really coming on board there and putting his own people in place. the expectation is, according to one senior administration official i talked to earlier today, is that basically john bolton will have his own team, new people will be coming in and some of the current people who are there on staff will be moving out. and so all of that creating some confusion about what is actually going to happen with syria, this very important fight against isis that the president campaigned on quite a bit in the 2016 election, wolf. >> he certainly did. there were about 2,000 u.s. troops, jim, in syria right now, maybe another 5 to 10,000 in iraq. about 15,000 troops in afghanistan. are you

out of syria. >> reporter: yeah. i think it definitely would because one of the reasons it went in to syria in the first place was to say, look, russia is a real power broker in the region. russia supports its allies and will not let another one of its allies fall to the western powers, to the united states, except during its allies. of course russia has used its air force to bolster bashar al assad, the syrian president, and prevent him from being defeated, first of all. more than that, encourage him and allow him to take more and more territory back from rebels on the battlefield. and of course if the americans were to depart syria, effectively the anti-assad forces in that country would be left without a really strong and powerful ally. that would give free reign to assad's forces backed by the russians and crucially, of course, backed by the iranians, as well, who are also assisting bashar al assad on the ground in syria. so yes, in short, i think to answer your question, if the united states were to withdraw, th

was pulling out of syria soon. now senior administration official confirming the national security council meeting is set for this tuesday to discuss the administration's plans for battling isis in syria. is this an important development? >> yeah, it is. it's on brand for him when you go back to the 2016 campaign where he railed against sort of undo or extensive policy or military involvement particularly in the middle east. if we sort of back out, you know, prematurely of syria with the limited involvement that we have, it will essentially seed the ground to russia and iran who are sort of pull strings of the assad regime. so, you know, it will be interesting to see what comes out of some of the meetings in terms of what the long term u.s. strategy is going forward. and there are a lot of voices weighing in on both sides. >> of course, this national security council meeting will come with general mcmaster still the head of the national security agency before john bolton comes in which could mark a policy shift. it

he says said he thinks russia should deal with syria. i don't know what there is in the campaign or donald trump's presidency that would lead anyone to believe that what he is saying is actually what we need is an international force in syria, not the united states going it alone. >> none of this should surprise us because we've heard these positions for months and a couple of years going back. thanks very much for staying late with us on this good friday. >>> next, two views on the president's pick to run the v.a. his white house doctor, the one who had such a flattering assessment of his patient's health. later, breaking news in that deadly police shooting of alton sterling. an action now taken against two officers involved. run the massi veterans affairs, dr. ronny jackson is drawing widespread praise for his work as the white house physician. his choice with zero experiencing running big organizations, well, that's raising questions even among those who know him well in his current capacity. former white house ethics czar norm eisen

challenges remaining in syria. officials are at a loss for what the president meant. >>> and fox news host facing backlash from advertisers after a comment about a parkland srvivor. laura ingraham is apologizing, but the student is still not satisfied. >>> good morning. welcome to "early start." i'm dave briggs. >> i'm michelle kosinski. it is 3is 5:00 a.m. in the east. >>> he may have been a lower level aide in the campaign, but rick gates is looking at potential conclusion with the russians. details emerging how the special counsel's team pushed for gates help to make the collusion case. >> mueller's team claims he was in contact during the campaign with someone in the russian intelligence agency. the investigation has been focused since the president took office. it appears collusion remains a focal point of the russia probe. we get more from evan perez in washington. >> reporter: dave and michelle, the special counsel prosecutors told rick gates they did not need paul manafort. his former business partner and c

. >> so what happens if syria, in syria we should say, if the u.s. is no longer involved in the fight? it would that be a win for russia? >>> let's go to cnn's senior international correspondent matthew chance. he's seen this conflict up close, being embedded with russian forces in syria. matt, the implications for this battle without the u.s. there? >> reporter: well, from a russian point of view, that -- i think you're right, it would be a major geopolitical success for them. they, of course, back, moscow backs bashar al assad, the syrian president. they've made it clear they believe he's the rightful leader of syria. and they've used their considerable air power to -- to bomb the opposition parties, opposition groups, that have fought against bashar al assad including isis, but including other more moderate rebels, as well. and they've succeeded in not just bolstering him, preventing him from collapsing, but also from getting into re-established syrian government control across the country. if the united states were to pull out as president trump

policy syria. aides to the president are trying to determine what he meant when he said he wants to pull out of syria very soon. this from a president who brags that he doesn't like the telegraph his moves. president trump was laying low in mar-a-lago, playing golf, while washington in washington, senior administration officials are scratching their heads over this comment mr. trump made in ohio about syria. >> we're knocking the hell out of isis. we'll be coming out of syria very soon. let the other people take care of it now. very soon. >> as one senior official said, we're still trying to figure out what he meant. on the i am a day a mr. trump's speech, two coalition soldiers, one american, one british, were killed when their vehicle hit an i.e.d. the president's comments on syria are also dreer what he's insisted in the past. that he doesn't telegraph his moves. >> i have a substantial chance of winning. if i win, i don't want to broadcast. this is what obama does. we're going to leave rook a c

policy on syria. aides to the president are trying to determine what he meant when he said he wants to pull out of syria very soon. this president also said, in the past, he doesn't like to telegraph his moves. he may be doing just that on syria. president trump was laying low in mar-a-lago, playing golf while back in washington, senior administration officials are scratching their heads over this comment made in ohio about syria. >> we are knocking the hell out of isis. we'll be coming out of syria very soon. let the other people take care of it now. very soon. very soon, we are coming out. >> reporter: as one official put it, we are trying to figure out what he meant about syria. the president made the remark as fighting continues in syria, on the same day as the speech, two coalition soldiers, one american and one british on a counter isis operation in syria were killed when their vehicle hit an ied. the president's comments are contrary to what he's insisted in the past, he doesn't telegraph his m

troops about 10,000 of them in syria. then i think that is going to ruffle a lot of feathers within the defense military establishment, which i think will lose face in regard to the so-called fight aganls isis. >> we are guard to the united states and essentially standing by its word and its plans, what does this say to other world leaders, these contradictions, again, coming from the president of the united states? >> well, it destabilizes them. they probably got used to off the cuff comments and so on. this one may not be so much off the cuff. he said this in the past as well. but the thing is, the situation in syria is incredibly complicated. you have turkey involved there against kurdish fighters they claim are terrorists and some people they appear to be allying with are related in some way or another to isis. you have the united states with 2,000 troops there, also fighting against the regime and occasionally clashing with russian troops, thereby treading a fine line between a confrontation between the two most heav

the other mill yashs that syria has been working with have moved on to northern syria because the turks are up there. they used to be fighting isis. the u.s. feels isis is there. let others do t it's the russians and syrians who are taking back a lot of territory as well. it's still a southern country. it's still bash iral assad's country, like it or not. it's problematic. is isis still defeated? big question mark there. >> real world concerns if the u.s. yanks these troops out or what? >> absolutely. it is still very much tied to iraq next door. >> isis will drift back into iraq, cause trouble there. they would be able to eventually regroup. what does it mean to defeat isis? you can't kill your way out of terrorism. the u.s. has learned that the last 17 years if nothing else. it's going to be a major effort to try and basically dissolve the networks, dissolve the terrorist notes and keep them from regrouping. that's not something that's likely to happen very quickly. >> barbara, thank you. >>> just ahead, the roseanne reboot winning big in the ratings game. could the show's outspoken s

the idea of leaving syria, floated the idea at a rally. national security officials say if the u.s. is no longer in syria, it could create avoid that isis or another terror group could certainly fill or at the very least it could be a win for russia. this is being debated at a time when russia of course is testing new missiles and kicking out diplomats from nearly two dozen countries in an escalating international standoff. >> joining us now is tom nichols, professor of knanation security affairs. >> and also author of the campaign against established knowledge and riot matters. hello, sir, thank you so many for being with us. your assessment of what would happen if the u.s. did pull out of syria. would that be a significant win for russia? >> it's hard to tell because it is hard to tell exactly what the president meant by that and when and how he does it. but, yeah, if the russians get a free hand in syria, this would be the capstone to a process begun years ago under president obama that would continue under president trump to basically

this is the ugly reality on the ground in syria today. cynical accusations of bad faith from russia will not stop us from speaking out. and their blatantly false narratives will not stop us from telling the world about russia's central role in bombing the

is pulling out of syria and very soon. >> we are knocking the hell out of isis. we are coming out of syria very soon. let the other people take care of it now. very soon. very soon, we are coming out. >> like, very soon. a remark that caught white house aides, the defense department, the state department and most likely u.s. allies off guard. the pentagon, telling cnn they haven't heard additional details about the plan and "the wall street journal" reporting president trump directed the state department to freeze $200 million in recovery funds for syria. white house correspondent boris sanchez out front in west palm beach, florida for us. the president is at mar-a-lago and there are concerns growing about these comments in the war against isis. >> reporter: that's right, brianna. we are working to confirm whether the president's comments were part of his prepared remarks. keep in mind, this is a speech to a union in ohio about infrastructure. the president went off the cuff to talk about roseanne barr's sitcom, the second amendment, et cetera. we are not sure if

we'll be coming out of syria very soon. let the other people take care of it now. very soon. very soon, we're coming out. we're going to have 100% of the caliphate, as they call it, sometimes referred to as land. we're taking it all back quickly, quickly. but we're going to be coming out of there real soon. >> now a senior administration official tells cnn some of the president's aides were surprised

on thursday before a crowd of supporters the president made this surprise comment on syria. listen. >> we're knocking the hell out of isis. we'll be coming out of syria like very soon. let the other people take care of it now. very soon. very soon. we're coming out. >> ryan, that comment not only caught trump's own administration by surprise. defense officials warned that now is not the time to get out of syria, warning isis could reemerge if the u.s. leaves. there seems to be a disconnect between what president trump is saying and his own team's assessment. >> yeah, he's really gone back and forth about this idea of what the u.s. presence should be in that region, sometimes arguing that obama pulled out of iraq too soon and led to the creation of isis, other times arguing that we shouldn't have anything to do with syria or iraq. you know, when he gives these speeches, these big public speeches, they often are a sort of unfiltered version of what he's been telling other people around him in the white house, in the preceding days and weeks. so they're very important to watch

the death of aziz may be just another statistic in the slaughterhouse that is syria. not to his mother. he can't take the sounds of jets and bombs anymore. her wounds are inside her head. dr. mohammed is afrin's last psychiatrist. he says the rest fled. he can only give his patients half doses, supplies of medicine are running low. >> psychotic episodes and depression and anxiety and something suicidal to get rid of this war. some people try to injure themselves and kill themselves. >> reporter: further to the east, the kurds were key american and western allies in the fight against isis in syria. but here, alone in their hour of need, they're at the mercy of the turks and their syrian rebel fighters. "trump, macron, you're vampires who incited erdogan to attack us," this man says. "bombs and rockets don't discriminate between soldier and civilians. everyone is in the line of fire." enduring the pain of war, tormented by the agony of those they love. ben wedeman, cnn. >> for the very latest, let's bring in cnn's ian lee following the story live in istanbul, turkey. ia

will be leaving syria very soon. now white house officials are scrambling trying to figure out what he meant. >>> vladimir putin launches satan 2. russia test ag new intercontinental ballistic missile. >>> an explosive moment of the investigation, the biggest moment yet. robert mueller, the

also, we were warned about jihadis returning to america from syria. so what happened? we have the answer. then on the eve of the academy awards -- >> mom and dad, my black boyfriend will be coming up this weekend. >> is hollywood finally changing its ways? we will examine diversity in america's biggest soft power industry, the movies. but first, here's my take. amid the usual trump reality show in washington this week, it would be easy to miss what is happening in china. but it is huge and consequential. china is making the most significant change to its political system in 35 years. what impact will this have on china and the world? that's the question every policymaker, business executive, and investor should be asking. in 1982, the chinese communist party wrote its into its constitution that the president and vice president could serve no more than two consecutive terms. this made china unique. a dictatorship with term limits. in most authoritarian regimes, the ruler accumulates power, and over the years becomes more arrogant, corrupt, and unaccountable. this wasn't

military to exit syria. the question is, did he mean that, was it just talking smack out in the country as he faces supporters, and the question is, what might our allies in the region working in the region be thinking about that announcement? >> we don't know what he was thinking. i tend to think this was campaign rhetoric. he is in this kind of campaign mode when he goes out to the countryside and to tries to rally the base with all kinds of blustery statements and i tend to think that he got out in front of himself on this. the announcement search is a r certainly is a surprise to the military which is planning for a longer term deployment so we don't make the mistakes of the past and that is leave before the situation has been stabilized in a way that prohibits the eperrmergence of there. and the kurds who have been carrying a lot of water for us in this conflict, it might be a surprise to them and also to putin who of course would use the absence of american support for kurds and other allied groups to

we have major issues with turkey in syria. now is not the time to talk about pulling back when they're advancing. yes, this is very confusing. >> what about in terms of the 2,000 troops over there? what are real-life consequences for them, fo r the u.s. in terms of pulling out? >> if the turks believe we're not serious about remaining there and recontinuing the fight with isis, they will push further and further to the east which is what they're doing. erdogan said he's going all the way to the iraqi border and accountant plating going into iraq, kurdish area of iraq. he knows the united states is thinking about giving up the fight and let somebody else do it, one, i don't know who somebody else is. this plays right into erdogan's hands, and then you're playing into putn's hands. >> speaking of putin, i wanted to ask you quickly, too, on russia. they have now tested this new nuclear icbm, what do you make of that? >> this is very troubling. if you look at what the russians have done, say, over the past four, five years, they'v

russia failed to ensure syria destroyed its chemical weapons program. russia killed the joint investigative mechanism when it found assad liable for chemical attacks. russia used its veto to shield assad five times last year. it has also provided cover for syria in the hague at the prohibition of chemical weapons. the russians complained recently that we criticize them too much. if the russian government stopped using chemical weapons to assassinate its enemies and if the russian government stopped helping its syrian ally to use chemical weapons to kill syrian children and if russia cooperated with the organization for the prohibition of chemical weapons by turning overall information related to this nerve agent, we would stop talking about them. we take no pleasure in having to constantly criticize russia, but we need russia to stop giving us so many reasons to do so. russia must fully cooperate with the uk's investigation and come clean about its own chemical weapons program. russia is a permanent member of the security council. it is entrusted in the

presence in syria. >> we'll be coming out of syria very soon. >> reporter: before leaving for ohio, he bid forward well to hope hicks thursday. so far nobody is in line to take her place. cnn has learned that the president is being told by some advisers he doesn't need a communications director or chief of staff if general kelly departs. >> if general kelly does decide to leave or the president decides it's time for him to move on, i don't think there will be another chief of staff. >> reporter: and there is more troubling news about the president's cabinet today. epa administrator scott pruett is under scrutiny for his 24-hour security detail. according to a letter sheldon whitehouse obtained by cnn, the use extends to his personal home in tulsa, a trip to disany land and the rose bowl. it is like cabinet whack-a-mole. when one issue seems to be resolved, another one pops up. >> good metaphor. can the pick be confirmed by the senate? we look into that next. the day after chemo might mean a trip back to the doctor's office, just for a shot. but why go back there, when you can stay home

. >>> and a standoff looms in syria where pro-syrian forces are ramping up their troops. we have new information. we'll be right back. you built your home again. my dna showed that i'm native american, and connected me to cousins who taught me about our tribe. my name is joseph reece, and this is my ancestrydna story. now with 10 million new family connections made every day. order your kit at ancestrydna.com i'm trying to manage my a1c, then i learn type 2 diabetes puts me at greater risk for heart attack or stroke. can one medicine help treat both blood sugar and cardiovascular risk? i asked my doctor. she told me about non-insulin victoza®. victoza® is not only proven to lower a1c and blood sugar, but for people with type 2 diabetes treating their cardiovascular disease, victoza® is also approved to lower the risk of major cv events such as heart attack, stroke, or death. while not for weight loss, victoza® may help you lose some weight. (announcer) victoza® is not for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. do not take victoza® if you have a person

we'll be leaving syria soon. we flernld barbara starr that the pentagon said they've been given no guidance on coming out of syria. something he might have told them before announcing it publicly. >> i think this is a president giving a speech has nothing to do with foreign policy discovering there's an applause line the audience likes quite a bit discussing a region of the field where he's scored a big successful it is true that it has been dramatically rolled back since he took office. it is something voters really like hearing about. i also think that in that moment, sometimes policy statements are getting made up on the fly. and i think the difference between foreign and domestic policy in many ways, what the president says on the stump is more concretely the policy of the united states in foreign and domestic policy. >> wasn't there a previous president of a different story that this president criticized for withdrawing troops? >> probably a tweet for that. >> the concern with iraq baltimore the u.s. got out

in syria, a number of russian informal troops attacked an american base. we went back and killed quite a few. this was about a month ago. there hasn't been diplomacy and the russians on the back of that. that's a problem. they're attacking us in cyber, critical infrastructure. we haven't talked to them about it. that's a problem. as this gets worse, if there's a non-functional relationship between if two leaders and the only thing we have to go on is trump saying, hey, maybe i'll meet with putin. he said maybe i'll meet with kim jong-un, too. >> karoun, the thing that's missing from and other size strong show of retaliation are the words from the president himself. is that relevant? >> yes. it's definitely significant. it's significant that the united states and the trump administration decided to join with so many european nations to make this move. i think that's a real answer to the concerns that were out there about whether trump would be in lockstep with europe and nato when it comes to the matters of looking at what's coming from moscow. we have not

warns syria after reportings of more chemical attacks. why the u.s. defense chief says russia needs to be held accountable. stay with us. successful people have one thing in common. they read more. how do they find the time? with audible. audible has the world's largest selection of audiobooks. books like peak performance... and endurance. books that energize and inspire for just $14.95 a month. less than you'd pay for the hardcover. with audible, you get a credit-a-month good for any audiobook. if you don't like it, exchange it any time. no questions asked. you can also roll your credits to the next month if you don't use them. audible members use the free mobile app to listen anytime, anywhere. ...on the go... or in the car. the audible app automatically keeps your place, no bookmarks required. so you'll pick up right where you left off, even if you switch your phone... ...to your echo at home. get more books in your life. start a 30-day trial and your first audiobook is free. cancel anytime, and your books are yours to keep forever. listening, is t

. >>> we have breaking news to report out of northern syria. according to reuters news agency, rebel fighters from the turkish backed free syria army say had have regained afrin town. they say the flag has been raised and the up to snern is under control. >> this could be a major turning point in turkey's operation olive branch as it's called, the offensive launched back in january. they consider the ypg terrorists but they've been a key ally to the united states in the fight against isis. the afrin offensive isn't the only flash point in syria war. it's still hammering then clave of eastern gutta. >> hair strikes have not let up. they say this is fighting terrorists but there are reports of heavy civilian casualties. an exodus of people is trying to leave the area. the world food program says 16,000 have escaped in just the past few days. many are being housed in shelters across the capital. >>> back here to the united states, the united states legal team are now officially involved in the stormy daniels matter. they filed papers in federal co

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. >> i want to ask about syria. we got news from our chief white house correspondent. the administration official telling jim acosta that the u.s. is considering all action including military over syria's continued use of chemical weapons. what's your read on that? >> yeah. this is really an overnight crisis that's been months in the making. syria is the crisis in which adjectives lost the power to describe the hell on the ground. what you see now is, you know, moms and dads facing chemical attacks, barrel bombs, hospitals. an aide convoy that went in was stripped of medical supplies and food. the administration is watching these pictures and trying to figure out what it can do. it is fascinating. we have talked about the last administration also analyzing the horrors coming out of syria. >> what to do. >> and what it could actually do, right. the questions are what options are left and how willing is the administration to use them? >> the quote from the senior administration officially, it's fair to say we are considering a number of options including military. thank

. >>> some civilians are now being evacuated from syria's eastern ghouta but hundreds of thousands still remain trapped, including an american woman who's urging president trump to take action. >> i've been here for five years under siege, and i was quiet. i feared to say anything. but now i'm coming out because it's life or death. it's life or death for the people. my name is jeff sheldon, and i'm the founder of ugmonk. before shipstation it was crazy. it's great when you see a hundred orders come in, a hundred orders come in, but then you realize i've got a hundred orders i have to ship out. shipstation streamlined that wh the order data, the weights of , everything is seamlessly put into shipstation, so when we print the shipping ll everything's pretty much done. it's so much easier so now, we're ready, bring on t. shipstation. the number one ch of online sellers. go to shipstation.com/tv and get two months free. at the marine mammal center, the environment is everything. we want to do our very best for each and every animal, and we want to operate a sustainable facility. and pg&e has

they are supporting bashar al assad's attacks against civilians in syria. russian mercenaries moving against u.s. troops in syria. tuesday struck back at them. they are said to be reassembling in that area. what is the u.s. doing about all this? well, the pentagon is looking to build a new class of nuclear weapons it hope there's deter russian aggression. warning the u.s. missile defense and u.s. satellites are not optimized at this point for these new russian weapons. and essentially, there are no military orders at this point to fight back on any of what the russians are up to. there is calling a lot of consternation, calling russia an arsonist saying they are putting flames on the fire and there's a good deal of concern saying something needs to be done. what are the russians saying about tillerson's firing? >> yeah. it is safe to say the russians are not happy about the firing of tillerson. they were much tougher on russia than president trump was. that's been going on for a long time. in the past couple of days, you've had this case of the russian spy

and also to discuss ukraine and syria and north korea and various other things. so i think probably we'll be seeing president putin in the not-too-distant future. >> it follows a statement the white house put out congratulating the russian leader. john mccain, the chairman of the senate arms service committee, issued this statement. listen to this. an american president does not lead the free world by congratulating dictators on winning sham elections. and by doing so with vladimir putin, president trump insulted every russian citizen who was denied the right to vote in the free and fair election to determine their country's future, including the countless russian patriots who have risked so much to protest and resist putin's regime. very, very strong words from senator john mccain. jeff zeleny, our senior white house correspondent, is with us joining the panel as well. the president issued a relatively positive statement about putin and that deeply angered senator mccain. >> it certainly did. when you listen to the president's words there, it's so clear what he'

and the recent reporting about some question, syria, with chemical weapons, yes, they can move precursors, chemical components that are innocent. they will continue food because north korea will make money any way they can. >> general clapper, thank you for being here. we haven't heard a tweet from president trump on putin. we have a question about your brokerage fees. fees? what did you have in mind? i don't know. $4.95 per trade? uhhh and i was wondering if your brokerage offers some sort of guarantee? guarantee? where we can get our fees and commissions back if we're not happy. so can you offer me what schwab is offering? what's with all the questions? ask your broker if they're offering $4.95 online equity trades and a satisfaction guarantee. if you don't like their answer, ask again at schwab. mvo: with everything that is going on around us and in the nation, we need to work together. we need to do it more often to help people that need help. ♪ ♪ i'll stand by you. but prevagen helps your brain with an ingredient originally discovered... in jellyfish. in clinical trials, prevagen

in syria, cease fires and stabilizations which we now know have saved thousands of lives. there's more to be done in syria, particularly with respect to achieving the peace, stabilizing iraq and seeing a healthy government installed and more broadly the global campaign to defeat isis. much work remains to our work with china. how do we ensure prosperity of all of our peoples free of conflict between two very powerful nations? much work remains to respond to the troubling behavior and actions on the part of the russian government. russia must assess carefully how its actions are in the best interests of the russian people and of the world more broadly. continued on their current trajectory is likely to lead to greater isolation on their part, a situation that's not in anyone's interest. so to my colleagues in the state department and interagency much remains to be done to achieve our mission on behalf of the mile an hour people with allies and with partners. i close by thanking all for the privilege of serving besides you for the last 14 months. importantly to the 300 plus

the readout of the president did not mention syria. did he discuss the high civilian casualties as a result of efforts by the assad regime and the russian government on the ground in syria? >> it briefly came up. as you know we've had a number of public statements on our position there. that certainly has not changed. >> yesterday the prime minister noticed the pace of nafta talks and said that the president, president trump, is enthusiastic about getting a deal. is the president that enthusiast enthusiastic? >> the president is always enthusiastic about making a good deal but that would be the caveat to any conversation, that whatever deal he makes is good for americans and american workers and anything we do, that would have to be part of that conversation. >> there seems to be an end of april deadline. after that, the entire political process is going to get over the negotiations on nafta. anything possible be that quick within six weeks? >> i don't have any specific announcement at this time. we're continuing to have those negotiat

service member has been killed in syria after an ied attack yesterday. two members of the u.s.-led coalition in syria were also killed and five wounded. the u.s. maintains about 2,000 u.s. troops there in syria, mostly working with local allies fighting isis. >>> the president is back at mar-a-lago after a week spent almost entirely off camera, during the week expelling diplomats, the president tapping the white house physician to head the government's second largest departments, he's survived at least for now a deposition motion from the porn star who says they had an affair. cnn's abby phillip is in west palm beach. let's start with the fallout from this va overhaul. hats the latest there today? >> reporter: now that president trump has made a decision on who he wants to lead the va, questions on ronny jackson, a rear admiral in the navy. while he has experience as a physician, but almost none in the management sector. the va is one of the biggest federal bureaucracies out there, also one of the most troubled and one that requires someone with some kind of management experien

we don't know if he will follow through on syria. the most disturbing thing is that he is not telegraphing anything or discussing anything apparently with his own team. that can only lead to catastrophe down the line. >> let's talk about russia. russia stoked more tensions today with the launch of the satan 2 missile. it's capable of carrying a dozen or more nuclear warhead and can reach anywhere in the u.s. vladimir putin brags it's invincible. what message is he sending to the u.s.? >> clearly, he is menacing not just the u.s. but the world. he is feeling emboldened. in part, because i think the president has not been very tough on him to say the least. what was done this week in terms of expelling the diplomats was a real gesture on the part of the u.s. it was done in concert with the rest of the world, which was a tough move. this, in part, may have been a response from putin to that. ultimately, there are cards the president has like imposing sanctions that congress has authorized against the oligarchs close to putin, that would

it doesn't seem to be a message for syria, a fractured, war-torn country. many people knew it was an israeli strike, the air force here that carried out that strike. given that, it is who is the target audience. that, it seems clear, is iran. that was the early speculation, it was intended as a message to iran, israel is willing to carry out a strike if it feels an enemy is weaponizing. then the censorship wasl lifted and that became very clear. netanyahu said this say message for any enemy to try to develop a nuclear weapon. some other politicians have been much clearer saying this is directly a message to iran. if there's a second country this is intended for, that would probably be russia, strategic presence in the region, russia has strategic coordination over seara. this could very much be a message for vladimir putin that if israel feels the need to act, it will act. >> it follows, what, a week after prime minister netanyahu met with the president at the white house and a month before president trump has to decide to rip up the u.s. support for the ir

in syria and elsewhere. i just haven't seen where they good relationship, supposedly that the president had, has yielded benefits yet. he tweeted about all the ways american and russian interests might align. let me read this. i called president putin to congratulate him. the fake news media is crazed because they wanted flow excoriate him. they are wrong. getting i know what russia is a good thing. not a bad thing. they can help solve problems with north korea, syria, ukraine, isis, iran and even the coming arms race. bush tried to get along but didn't have the smarts. obama and clinton tried but didn't have the energy or chemistry. peace through strength. are those views reflected at the pentagon? the state department? >> no. i don't believe so. i do believe that we can get russia's help, where our interests align some of the interests he mentioned. but you have to go in clear eyed. you have to go in and recognize they are not a friend. they are an adversary. and those who try to mess in our elections, tha

that's according to the syria civil defense rescue group also known as the white pellets. doctors without borders says more than 1,000 civilians were killed in the first two weeks of the government assault that began february 18th. >>> the british home secretary says investigators are working with speed and enormous resources to find out who tried to assassinate a former russian spy and his daughter. police have identified more than 200 witnesses and gathered hundreds of pieces of evidence in the nerve agent attack. no announcement, though, on who was behind it. >>> china is warning the u.s. that a trade war will bring economic disaster for both countries. beijing is criticizing president trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum. china's congress minister says his country will not start a trade war, but it will defend its interests and its people. >>> the u.s. and chinese presidents are contemplating their political futures in different ways. president trump says his slogan for the 2020 presidential campaign will be keep america great. >>> chinese president xi jinping could n

in syria, an aid convoy was able to reach eastern goo you tahout friday. the convoy faced close range fighting but brought enough food to sustain 12,000 people for a month. >>> after a day of mixed signals, the planned meeting between president trump and kim jung-un is apparently on track. the white house press secretary had said that it wouldn't happen without concrete actions by north korea, but the white house later said that the invitation was accepted and that that stands. remember, it wasn't that long ago that mr. trump and kim jung-un were tossing threaten g ing insults back and forth. so why is president trump embracing diplomacy now? nic robertson reports. >> we will have no choice but to totally destroy north korea. >> reporter: at the altar of democracy, the u.n. general assembly -- >> rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. >> reporter: -- trump upends orthodoxy, laying into his enemy. kim jung-un punches right back. state media calls trump an old lunatic, a dotard. yet less than six months later, trump accepts kim's

troops will withdraw from syria soon. a defense official tells cnn that now is not the time to withdraw. the state department also says they were unaware of any plan to withdraw u.s. forces. >> an important discussion. >>> a twist in the high stakes media merger trial. one of the justice department's own witnesses may have helped the other side. the government is suing to block at&t's proposed merger with time warner, cnn's parent company. cnn politics media and business reporter hadas gold joins us. this witness seemed to undermine maybe the key point the government is trying to make. >> that's exactly right. one of the government's main arguments against this merger is we would give at&t unfair leverage when it came to content such as hbo, cnn, tnt and tbs. they're saying they could raise prices, even do blackouts or something like that. yesterday when the government called a comcast executive to the stand, it was surprising that on cross examination he pretty much undercut that argument. comcast is a big rival for att.

russia has influence in syria. we'll never have a peace deal in syria that's going to end that horrible war unless russia is at the table. trump is right about that. what he's deflecting is why he has not come up with a strategy to protect the united states from this form of hacking. and those are two completely separate issues. the fundamental deficiency is why he hasn't brought all the stakeholders together and say what are we going to do to make sure we never have an election interference like this again? >> hang on a second. i think there's a new tweet. is that what you were saying in my ear? here we go. they can help solve problems with north korea, syria, ukraine, isis, iran and even the coming arms race. bush tried to get along but didn't have the smarts, quotes. obama and clinton tried but didn't have the energy or chemistry. remember reset. peace through strength. energy, chemistry and smarts. >> some of that is just donald trump being donald trump. honestly. i think -- i don't want to say you discount it.

the president told supporters about his plans for the isis battleground. >> we'll be coming out of syria like very soon. let the other people take care of

the president went on to say they can help solve problems in north korea, syria, iran, bush tried to get along but didn't have the smarts. obama and clinton tried but didn't have the energy or chemistry. peace through strength. that is raising some more questions. the last hour i talked about this with former director of national intelligence james clapper. here's some of what he said. >> i think that this has been a mystery about why -- and i'm speaking of the president personally here -- why the singular almost aggressive indifference to the threat that putin represents, who is bent on undermining this country and undermining our very political fabric. what's required here, particularly with respect to this information warfare campaign that the russians are waging against us right now very aggressively is leadership, and that leadership can only come from the president. >> a lot to discuss with our panel. joining us is jackie cue sinnish, michael caputo, jennifer granholm, and paul begala. michael, yesterday, you were very -- i don't know if upset is the right word but concerned ab

. >>> and new this hour, what maybe major turning point in northern syria. >>> 5:00 a.m. on the u.s. east coast and live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, we welcome our viewers around the united states and all aur rond the world i'm george howell. >> and i'm natalie allen, "newsroom" starts right now. >> around the world, the former number two man at the fbi has been fired but like his boss who took detailed notes about his interactions with the u.s. president, we now know that andrew mccabe did the same. >> those memos are now in the hands of special counsel robert mueller whose investigating president trump. they say the main reason is to call mccabe's character into question if he's useds a witness. mueller's team has already interviewed mccabe. a source tells cnn that mccabe was asked about the firing of fbi director james comey. >> that's conversations and mccabe's notes could be used to corroborate comey's accounts with meetings with president trump. laura jared breaks it all down for us. >> not only did former fbi department director andrew mccabe keep notes

we just killed 200 russians, mercenaries in in syria with air power. i mean the relationship is as bad as it's ever been. and if vladimir putin wanted to have a positive relationship with donald trump so he tried to get him to become president, he really miscalculated. >> here's where i disagree with you. i do think the relationship between our countries has become much more adversarial. the relationship between donald trump and vladimir putin is quite strong. i see no evidence whatsoever that donald trump has taken one adversarial move against putin, and i have never seen putin say anything bad about donald trump. >> except for 200 dead russian mercenaries in syria. >> has donald trump ever spoke been that personally? has donald trump ever said a bad thing about putt cnn. >> you understand in state craft, vladimir putin knows exactly what donald trump did. he's not happy about it. >> i think vladimir putin is in control of this situation. i think he is man ip lating donald trump. >> oh, that is hilarious. >> one of the things that donald trump said a