Portland, Maine overrun with African migrants
Congolese asylum seekers inundate Maine after being sent from San Antonio, Texas.
This is a rush transcript from "The Ingraham Angle," June 11, 2019. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
LAURA INGRAHAM, HOST: All right. I'm Laura Ingraham, this is “The Ingraham Angle” from Washington. Tonight, what a show we have for you, so what's behind Jill Biden's sudden re-emergence after weeks of relative hiding. My “Angle” reveals all.
And would Biden be vulnerable with African-Americans versus Trump? Round two between Candace Owens and Cornel West ahead. Plus, Dersh (ph) and Saul Weissenberg are here on the breaking news surrounding potential testimony from Mueller, and why Democrats should be worried about that.
And last night, we were the only show to bring you details of African migrants being dumped into San Antonio, Texas. Tonight, an exclusive follow up on where they could be sent next. But first, age and rage in 2020, that's the focus of tonight's “Angle.”
All right, let's face it, Joe Biden is a primary candidate on the ropes. Now since May, his RealClearPolitics lead among Democrats has dropped by nearly 10 points. He's also nursing a dwindling lead in the all-important state of Iowa. A Des Moines Register/CNN poll has him down eight points in that state since December.
So, it's no surprise, is it that Biden's camp is scrambling to triage his reputation as his political star dims. And to assuage the Far Left of the party, Biden has flip-flopped on the federal funding of abortion and he's also embraced the Green New Deal.
And today, in a series of carefully controlled kind of smallish Iowa events, Biden attempted to take Trump on directly. He's going to be tough guy. But long before he delivered his remarks, Biden leaked his comments to the media, which provoked this reaction from the President.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT: Joe Biden is a dummy. I think he's the weakest mentally, and I like running against people that are weak mentally.
When a man has to mention my name 76 times in his speech, that means he's in trouble. Now, I have to tell you he's a different guy, he looks different than he used to, he acts different than he used to, he's even slower than he used to be.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Well, the well-being, the health of Biden of course has been a focus recently of many people in the public eye who watch these things, owing most likely to moments like these.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The country wasn't built by Wall Street bankers, CEOs, and hutch - and hedge fund managers.
Like today, the same is happening in big hostels - in big hospitals.
I think we have to - I think we have to rethink how we define what constitutes a successful economy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Well, in its column today, CNN's Chris Cillizza raps the President and this network for daring to question the former VP's health. Here's the quote, "even partisanship should have its limits. And one of those limits should be raising entirely unfounded questions about a Presidential candidate's health."
Entirely unfounded? Well, this is rich coming from CNN. Now, CNN was a network where for more than two years, whenever the President comes up, nearly every anchor seems to be auditioning for Dr. Sanjay Gupta's job.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON LEMON, HOST, CNN TONIGHT: Who is Donald Trump to question anybody else's mental fitness? Projecting much? He's unhinged, it's embarrassing.
JAMES CLAPPER, FORMER DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: I really question his ability to - his fitness to be in this office.
BRIAN STELTER, HOST, RELIABLE SOURCES: His actions have been described as unpresidential, as unhinged, and sometimes even crazy.
This brings me back to those questions that are tough to ask out loud on national television, is the President of the United States suffering from some sort of illness?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Now, I have always found these questions about Trump's mental acuity to be kind of self-defeating for Democrats. And here's my thinking, if Trump is supposedly not operating with both oars in the water, what does that say about the Democrats?
I mean they couldn't beat him in 2016, despite spending, what, double the money and having almost the entire media, the entire entertainment establishment, and Wall Street against Trump, and with Hillary. So what does that say about their abilities?
Over at The Daily Beast, that's a really moderate very objective group, well their hypocrisy was also on full display yesterday. With Biden in the race, they ran this piece, "In the news business, it is considered irresponsible to spread baseless potentially damaging rumors about public figures."
(LAUGHTER)
Really? Well, is Rod Serling standing in the wing somewhere? This is The Daily Beast from March of 2018. "How close is Donald Trump to a psychiatric breakdown?" Or how about this from October 2017? "These 27 top shrinks think Trump might be nuts."
Well, maybe the rules of the news business have changed since then. The fact is, if it's vibrancy, stamina and vitality, if that's part of this Presidential contest, wow well who's going to win that one? When you have a 76 year old running against a 73 year old, how could there not be considerations of stamina and how vigorous you are, you got a campaign to run and a country to run. I think these are legitimate questions. Back in October, even Biden understood this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is age a legitimate issue?
BIDEN: It is a legitimate issue, sure it is, and I think people are going to judge it. If I were to run, I think they are going to judge me on my vitality. Can I still run up the steps of Air Force Two, am I still in good shape, am I - do I have all my faculties, am I energetic? I think it's totally legitimate people ask those questions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Well, I agree with him, and if this is the measure, a lot of folks out there and people not even connected to politics just regular people say, well Biden is clearly in trouble. While he cautiously avoids the media and sticks to a very limited schedule, Trump on the other hand seems to have energy to burn.
According to The Washington Examiner, Biden has only held ten public events in five states since jumping into the race. That's less than half the events of his rivals. He missed two big Democratic events in California and Iowa over the weekend. And in fact, Biden's big outing before today's Iowa swing, well, was attending his granddaughter's graduation in DC.
I'm sure that was nice and a fun event, but you're running for President. Meanwhile, in the last week, Donald Trump attended a state dinner with the Queen of England, held working meetings, and held a press conference with Theresa May.
He hosted a dinner for Prince Charles, attended a D-Day commemoration in Portsmouth, England, flew to Ireland where he met with the Irish Prime Minister, flew to Normandy for the D-Day Remembrance, sat for an interview with yours truly, and held a bilateral meeting with French President Macron.
And then, he returned to the United States and on Monday, he attended an intel briefing and met - well, this was just fun, the Indy 500 champ. Today, he was off again to Iowa. I'm tired just reading that. All of this demonstrates that Trump is going to be formidable in 2020, and I think Biden knows it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I see all these polls they've given to me, they don't mean a thing right now. This is a marathon, this is a marathon, and the marathon is just beginning. But at the end of the day, if you can't cross the line in Iowa, you don't win the marathon. It's an important deal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: And it's a deal Biden may or may not be able to close, and that's THE ANGLE.
Joining me now with reaction is Bruce Levell who is the member of Trump's 2020 Advisory Board, and Luis Miranda, the former DNC Communications Director. All right, Luis, there's clearly not - I don't think a comparison between Biden and Trump on stamina. I just don't - I don't see it.
I was actually getting sleepy just listening to Biden. I mean it's the way he talks.
LUIS MIRANDA, FORMER DNC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: You know I've worked with him and I think—
INGRAHAM: I'm sorry I like him as a person, I really do, but for people to say that Trump is like lost a step, I mean what? I mean, the man has a schedule that most people 30 years younger than he is cannot keep up with. His staff half the time--
(CROSSTALK)
MIRANDA: That's true, I know a lot of people half his age who can't watch three, four hours of cable television every morning, I agree with you on that one. But I've worked with Joe Biden and I can tell you that he is someone who has more energy than most of his staff on any given day. He's impressive and he's also someone who doesn't just delegate everything out.
I've seen him make sure that things that are going to be pushed out are actually his words, are actually his work, are actually the types of things that he has values on.
INGRAHAM: When was the last time you worked with him?
MIRANDA: I worked with him during the White House, I was there for the first four years. So I have a lot of respect for him and I think--
INGRAHAM: That's a while ago though, that's 2008 to 2012.
MIRANDA: Since then, I think he's got the energy and the stamina for it.
INGRAHAM: All right.
MIRANDA: What I think is interesting though is to try to focus in on maybe a little bit of a stutter when this is something that he has also championed throughout his career, where he's talked about that as a young boy, he struggled with stuttering, he's worked to overcome at public speaking, has been the way that he's--
INGRAHAM: I don't think that was a stutter. I mean, a stutter but - some of the most brilliant people in the world have had speech impediment--
MIRANDA: Exactly.
INGRAHAM: --and have stuttered, so I don't - I mean that's not what we're talking about, we're talking about Joe Biden of five years ago and everyone changes. I mean we all change, you age, you change.
Some people are just better at aging than others, it's just a fact, and I don't think we know but what I was saying is the idea that people are complaining that the question is being raised, Bruce, when CNN, MSNBC, Morning Joe, they spend hours and hours examining Trump's every psychological profile from the armchair psychiatrist office they sit in.
BRUCE LEVELL, TRUMP 2020 ADVISORY BOARD: Brother Luis, I appreciate your optimism, but Uncle Joe is moving kind of slow at the junction man, I don't see it happening. You know it's interesting Laura, because you know I remember when you said you almost fell asleep, I started to run and get you a cup of coffee.
INGRAHAM: Thank you.
LEVELL: But the interesting thing was, during the campaign, I literally watched Corey Lewandowski during 2015, I watched the President run off the plane, sprint to the podium, Cory running - a younger guy, 25 years his junior, trying to chase him, and I've seen this repeatedly.
This man has unbelievable stamina, Luis, I'm serious. I mean--
MIRANDA: There's a lot of unhinged behavior also--
LEVELL: Well no, no--
(CROSSTALK)
LEVELL: The only unhinged behavior that I see is Biden coming in, is locking up black folk. He had the worst - he co-opted the worst crime bill that just totally--
(CROSSTALK)
INGRAHAM: --let us keep this really focused tonight, because I think the voters are going to look at age. I think it's just a lot of young people out there voting for the first time. I mean we're looking at all these--
LEVELL: There's no comparison.
INGRAHAM: --young voters in Iowa today saying, well it's legitimate, it's legitimate to ask the question. And by the way, it's not just Trump and Biden and their age, we got Bernie Sanders, let's not forget he's 77 and Elizabeth Warren is going to be 70 soon.
LEVELL: Yes.
INGRAHAM: So these aren't - I mean it sounds like this is just the two of them we're talking about. But let's play Biden and Trump back to back, and look, you can pick out any sound bite to make someone seems like - we're not trying to do that.
LEVELL: Right.
INGRAHAM: Look there's a difference in style and it'll be interesting to see how the Iowa voters perceive both. Let's watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: As we used to say in the business, my friend Donald Trump (LAUGHTER) President Trump is in Iowa today.
TRUMP: Biden Sleepy Joe group - (LAUGHTER) Sleepy Joe. He was someplace in Iowa today and he said my name so many times that people couldn't stand it anymore. No, don't keep saying it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Okay, those are just two moments. Biden's trying to make a joke because in the Senate, you say my dear friend from - and that's usually a kiss of death and they say my dear friend, that's kind of a funny line.
But Trump has this ability to be off-the-cuff and I'm sorry hilarious, he's just hilarious, and that's why people remember Sleepy Joe, Little Marco - sorry they just remember it. Can Joe Biden do that kind of thing as well as he used to do it great, has he changed Luis? Just honestly, has he changed in that program (ph)?
MIRANDA: I do think that Trump would be a better shock jock radio host.
INGRAHAM: Okay fine.
MIRANDA: But I will say this--
INGRAHAM: Okay former radio host--
(CROSSTALK)
MIRANDA: I think it's hilarious that he's criticizing Joe Biden for naming him when he talks about Joe Biden all the time and tweets about him and just can't help but mention him, because he's worried about the fact that Joe Biden represents a real threat.
Now look, I'm not here representing any specific candidate, but I can tell you that the reason that Joe Biden has come in with strength is because people see and recognize that he can defeat Donald--
INGRAHAM: He's going down in the polling--
MIRANDA: And the polling today showed it, but the polling--
(CROSSTALK)
INGRAHAM: Oh yes, well I have to head (ph) you now, Trump was down 30 points in a head-to-head--
LEVELL: He needs a monster drink bad, he needs a monster drink bad.
INGRAHAM: All right, and now Biden by the way is trying to copy Michael Avenatti's catchphrase, which of course was stolen from a bunch of other people. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: A guy named Langston Hughes, a - the poet who said, let America be America again. And then a guy who was a foreign policy writer said, let America be America again. Well you know what, we talked about the fact that Let's Make America Great Again. I'd settle for just let America be American again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: If you're watching that and think that Biden is snappy, I'm sorry.
LEVELL: I almost fell asleep, Laura, watching it.
INGRAHAM: I mean everyone has an off-night, I have off-night, not usually but - I felt that - now we all have off nights, but he was - this was a big event for him Luis, he is - the pacing, you got to pick it up.
MIRANDA: The part of the (inaudible) to consider is that, when you look at his whole speech, and I watched the whole speech before coming on the air tonight, and one of the things that you see is that he does have a folksy style that connects with people, that's authentic.
INGRAHAM: I like the folksy style.
MIRANDA: And I think when you get outside the Beltway, people appreciate that you can talk to them at their level, he can tell them stories, he can page them on the issues that they care about.
(CROSSTALK)
INGRAHAM: You got to keep people awake, you got to keep them awake.
MIRANDA: He's doing it in a way that he's talking above them, he's talking directly with them and engaging their--
LEVELL: You know why he's all over the radar, Luis, because he is so like - he don't know which direction to go because he's been there, what, 50 years and he can't be himself—
INGRAHAM: All right guys, got to go. All right, he slipped once, but we got to go. But panel, thank you so much tonight, great conversation as always with both gentlemen.
And as we mentioned in “The Angle,” this criticism of Biden's stamina, now I'm getting my words mixed up, see it happens to everyone, has received backlash for being over the line. Well, despite the fact that the President's mental fitness, as I pointed out, has been routinely questioned.
But are these fair or even legitimate questions? Well (ph) will even ask that question. Joining me now is Dr. Daniel Bober, who is a psychiatrist who has quite extensive experience treating geriatric patients. Doctor, we aren't asking you to diagnose anyone, Biden versus Trump, Trump versus Biden, but are voters right to be concerned about age or speech when examining Presidential candidates?
DR. DANIEL BOBER, PSYCHIATRIST: Laura, we've heard this before with Ronald Reagan, with John McCain. To me, this is a nonpartisan issue right, so we should be questioning our President's mental fitness and the stamina and vitality of them. I think if we're going to put a Commander-in-Chief in office, it's something we should think about.
Well, we do this with police officers, they get psychological testing and we check their stamina to make sure they're fit. So, if we can do it with officers of the law, we certainly can do it with the Commander-in-Chief.
INGRAHAM: Now there was one moment today, and again I have to stress, you can pick out moments from anybody's speeches where they seem a little slower, but to me I'm watching - I'm watching Biden now for 30 years and you change, Trump changed - I mean not everybody is the same, so you've got to be fair about that.
But there was a moment today from Joe Biden that seemed again a little uncharacteristically off for him. Let's watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I promise you, if I'm elected President, you're going to see the single most important thing that changes America, we're going to cure cancer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: We're going to cure cancer. Well that's - that was actually okay, I mean he's put himself in charge of the cancer project during the Obama years, we still haven't cured cancer. But I think he's - there he's trying to actually show vitality.
BOBER: Well I think Richard Nixon said the same thing, so I think this is - a lot of this is about political angling. If you're the old guy, then you have experience and you have wisdom. And if you're the young guy, you have youth, vitality and new ideas. So, it's all about your agenda and branding and the message that you're trying to send to the voters.
INGRAHAM: Yes, again, people have off nights, people have off moments, people hit it out of the park one night, and slow it down the next. I think Joe Biden is right about this. It is a long way to the Democratic convention and it's a long way to Election Day. Doctor, thanks so much.
BOBER: Absolutely.
INGRAHAM: And we'll have such an amazing reaction we had to - last time we did this segment just a few weeks ago, where these two individuals were on and I'm excited to have them back tonight. Candace Owens and Cornel West are here next, and why Biden might be vulnerable with African-American voters versus Trump. And Kristen Gillibrand's shocking comments about abortion and racism, stay there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
INGRAHAM: Now, many are saying that Joe Biden has a past that should threaten his prospect with black voters. But for some reason, his support among them is soaring. A brand new Quinnipiac poll revealing in a head-to- head match-up Biden leads Trump 85 percent to 12 percent among black voters.
Now, since Trump has been in office though, we have record low unemployment for African-Americans, he signed criminal reform bills, and has done a host of other things to benefit the African-American community.
But, what about Biden? Well, he opposed busing, botched the handling of Anita Hill's testimony about Clarence Thomas according to liberals, not according to me, but - and supported a crime bill that many minorities feel was way too harsh.
Well, that doesn't sound so good. Joining me now is Dr. Cornel West, Professor of Philosophy at Harvard, and Candace Owens, conservative commentator and founder of the Blexit movement.
Dr. West, should African-Americans maybe look twice about their support for Joe Biden, given some of these past issues?
DR. CORNEL WEST, PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY, HARVARD UNIVERSITY: Well, I think one that brother Biden is no dummy. He's got fine energy, but his big problem is that he is a dye-in-the-wool backward-looking neoliberal with little vision and even less courage. And so, in that sense, he represents a past, and I know he's got the Obama halo, but that is going to decline.
And I don't see Barack Obama, I don't see brother Barack breakdancing in support of Biden either. So, I think we really got to take a look at my brother, you got a look at - take a look at Bernie Sanders, vision, courage, consistency, and you'll see tomorrow the way in which the legacy of FDR, Martin Luther King, Jr., Albert Einstein, Helen Keller, all of those great--
INGRAHAM: Oh my God, anyone else?
WEST: --human being.
INGRAHAM: I mean, (inaudible) oh come on.
WEST: Oh yes, Norman Thomas.
INGRAHAM: Thomas Edison.
WEST: Michael Harrington, Barbara Ehrenreich, Talia Rabinowitz (ph), we can go on and on, yes indeed.
INGRAHAM: But I think Cornel makes an interesting point here, because we were just talking about vitality and age, and people age in different ways and so forth. But Bernie Sanders, who's 77 to me, and putting aside looks and all that, to me seems a lot younger than Joe Biden.
I mean, he's charging, he's like out there, I mean you can't help but watch Bernie Sanders when he's out there. Candace, it's an interesting point though, because Biden is way up over Trump among black voters. Does the Trump team need to sell their achievements better, what can they do to make up some of that difference, let's say Biden does get the nomination?
CANDACE OWENS, FOUNDER, BLEXIT MOVEMENT: You know, I definitely always think that you can communicate the points better and definitely this Administration can talk about what they're doing better, but I'm -- you're not going to find disagreement right now with me and Dr. West when it comes to Joe Biden. I think that his history and race has been absolutely abhorrent and Trump should hit hard on that.
We know exactly what he's done in the past. We know that he championed the crime bill of 1994; he really pushed that through. We also know that we see a lot of black Americans talking about the disparities in terms of sentencing when it comes to crack versus powder cocaine, and that was also championed by Joe Biden. This information isn't out enough and that's part of the problem, and we need to make sure the Trump Administration does get that information forward.
Now, of course, we always do have to disagree. Dr. West and I would disagree with you in terms of thinking that Joe Biden is a candidate that we should be going for. I mean, yes, he is a more enthusiastic character than Joe Biden, but he's talking about socialism and we know that that is something--
(CROSSTALK)
OWENS: That has, yes, Bernie. That has absolutely destroyed and decimated the black community socialist policies like in terms of the welfare. So, a little bit of agreement here, but mostly--
INGRAHAM: Yes, but Cornel, you think that, that Bernie Sanders is going to deliver what a better economy than Trump for African-Americans because I haven't heard that argument for Bernie. I've heard a lot about giveaways, but how is he going to raise the actual standard of living, the wage earning capacity of all Americans, including African-Americans, who have been disproportionately hit by open borders and the lowering of wages because of a huge influx of indigenous workers?
WEST: Oh, but no, my dear sister, you ask the workers at Walmart who are of all color, so we're talking about humanity, we're talking about Americans across race at this point. You ask the workers at Walmart whether they will be able to live a life of more decency under Sanders Administration as opposed to a Trump Administration, he was just there in Arkansas standing with the workers, McDonald workers too -- he stands with working people and poor people. That's his connection to Martin King; that's his connection to FDR; that's his connection to Fannie Lou Hamer.
And so, my dear sister Candace, I would argue that welfare again now was not socialist, it was an attempt to intervene given the failure of capitalism to provide jobs of a living wage for people.
OWENS: It was socialist. It was a socialist--
WEST: It was not socialistic at all.
OWENS: It was absolutely socialistic, you know that and you know that our community--
(CROSSTALK)
WEST: No my dear, that's not socialist.
OWENS: -- hundred years, doctor, doctor. Come on.
WEST: That's not socialist.
OWENS: One (ph) hundred years after slavery, the black community was doing better. We were going up, up, up. Then suddenly, they socialized our community via welfare policies and the black community started going down, down, down. And you're sitting here--
WEST: No.
OWENS: --supporting a candidate that is advocating for making that on a larger scale. He's saying we're not just going to do it to the black community, we're going to do it to every community in America. Well, you know his policies do not work; you know that socialism has led to more deaths than anything else in the last 100 years. 100 million deaths and you stand behind this man; you should not. You need to stand behind Trump.
OWENS: My dear sister.
WEST: Because he is getting--
(CROSSTALK)
WEST: The very fact--
OWENS: And making poor people richer are two different things.
INGRAHAM: All right. Let's get--
(CROSSTALK)
WEST: The very fact that you have been able to aspire and achieve the level that you have, based on the struggle of those who came before from W. E. B. Du Bois, from Ida B. Wells, the Frederick Douglass, they were not concerned with -isms, they were concerned with justice and fairness. Now, Du Bois was a socialist but he didn't -- he wasn't pro-welfare. So, you got to get your history right, my dear sister.
OWENS: Frederick Douglass? We are talking about Bernie Sanders. We don't have to talk about history; we are talking about President. We are talking about Bernie Sanders and what he's offering to the black community, which awful.
INGRAHAM: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
WEST: No, no, no. There was a Richard Smalls of South Carolina with Frederick Douglass called for public schools, he was called a socialist.
OWENS: We are talking about Bernie Sanders, doctor.
WEST: He was talking about fairness.
OWENS: Doctor, we are talking about Bernie Sanders.
WEST: Bernie Sanders is part of the legacy, Bernie Sanders is part of that legacy, sister Candace.
(CROSSTALK)
WEST: --get you to see. But it is not welfare, it has nothing to do with welfare, that's about fairness, jobs with a living wage, has to with workers control in some instance at the work place.
OWENS: Doctor, this is basic economics. Everything can't be free. You know that; I know that.
WEST: We got to quit spreading these lies. Quit spreading these lies about what socialism is.
OWENS: Yes, we do. I agree. Let's start tonight.
INGRAHAM: Cornel, okay, we are tight on time here. But I still say--
(CROSSTALK)
INGRAHAM: I still have to say, Cornel and Candace--
WEST: Yes.
INGRAHAM: --both have to go to the Oval Office and, Cornel, you have to just spend some time with Trump, with Candace, okay?
OWENS: I'll take you.
INGRAHAM: I'll just sit and have popcorn, and watch it. But I'm telling you, you have to spend some time with him, throw away your preconceived ideas. I'm telling you. You should do it.
WEST: No, I'm a jazz -- I'm a jazz man. I believe in improvisation and engaging with dialog with anybody.
INGRAHAM: Good.
WEST: I just want people to get the facts right and the truths right, and make sure we're concerned about poor and working people and not the -ism.
INGRAHAM: I agree, I agree.
(CROSSTALK)
WEST: It's not the -ism; it's not the -ism; it's not the -ism at this point.
INGRAHAM: All right. I have a time-- I have a commercialism problem here. I have a commercialism.
WEST: No, but I'm - according to sister Candace, Jesus would be a socialist. Was a Jesus a socialist?
(CROSSTALK)
OWENS: Brother West, Brother West, you know that what is going--
(CROSSTALK)
INGRAHAM: All right, guys, we got to go, got to go. Great conversation.
WEST: All right, all right. We have to spend more time.
INGRAHAM: We can do an hour together. And Cornell, I didn't mean to say Harvard that way. That's just Dartmouth, that's our inferiority complex. No, it isn't. We didn't even get to other topics. But thank you, both.
And ahead, Democrats on the Hill are levelling some pretty big threats at the Trump administration, Mueller, and the DOJ tonight, but are they actually accomplishing anything? Dershowitz and Wisenberg tell us what we need to know, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
INGRAHAM: This just in. Hours ago, Jerry Nadler now levelling threats and placing a timeline on Robert Mueller, the man he and the Democrats thought would bring President Trump down, saying a subpoena is coming before the end of the summer. Joining me now, Sol Wisenberg, former deputy independent counsel and a Fox News contributor, along with Alan Dershowitz, Harvard law professor emeritus and author of the introduction of the published version of the Mueller Report.
Alan, the Democrats are really pushing for Mueller's testimony. But isn't it possible that the GOP's case could actually be strengthened by his appearance?
ALAN DERSHOWITZ, HARVARD LAW PROFESSOR EMERITUS: It's possible. But there's no legal right to Mueller's testimony. There's no legal right to any of the Mueller Report. Indeed, even though I wrote the introduction to the Mueller Report, the Mueller Report never should have been written. There's no room under our Constitution for special counsels, special prosecutors, reports. Prosecutors have the right to say only one thing. We have concluded that there's no evidence sufficient to charge the president with Russian collusion or obstruction of justice, period. I'm taking no questions, I'm making no public report. I'm giving my findings to the attorney general. No prosecutor should ever go beyond that.
We all agreed with that when Comey went beyond that with Hillary Clinton. I don't understand the difference between the criticism of Comey for saying that Hillary Clinton engaged in extreme carelessness. Everybody criticized that. And then we want to know why Mueller didn't charge the president. It's the same thing. The whole enterprise of special counsel, special prosecutors is inconsistent with the Constitution. I hope we've seen the last of it.
INGRAHAM: Now, Sol, you were watching John Dean's show yesterday where he testifying on the Hill and purporting to draw a connection between the Watergate roadmap to impeachment and what Mueller's report represents. Your thoughts?
SOLOMON WISENBERG, FORMER DEPUTY INDEPENDENT COUNSEL: First of all, they're completely different, those two roadmaps. Jaworski and the grand jury was very careful not to make any arguments whatsoever, not to draw any conclusions. They just said here's -- on March 17th, 1973, President Nixon had a conversation with these two people. Then they listed the tape recordings and the grand jury testimony that the House could look at. Totally different than the Mueller report, which made a number of legal and factual conclusions. That's number one.
But number two, more importantly for the people that still believe that firing James Comey could ever be criminal obstruction of justice, the Watergate roadmap, which was all about obstruction of justice, that's what the grand jury indicted people for, never in any way mentions the firing of Archie Cox as obstruction of justice.
DERSHOWITZ: Absolutely right.
WISENBERG: And I've looked at just about every book on Watergate. I don't believe Jaworski's people ever even thought about indicting anyone under an obstruction theory for firing Cox.
DERSHOWITZ: There is a precedent that's much closer, and of course nobody talked about it yesterday, and that's George H. W. Bush pardoning Caspar Weinberger, pardoning the five people on the eve of their trial. The special prosecutor, in that case Lawrence Walsh, said that was designed to stop the investigation, and it did stop the investigation. Nobody ever suggested obstruction of justice against President Bush. That's the relevant precedent.
INGRAHAM: OK, let's get back to current day. Sheila Jackson Lee was speaking today, guys, on the civil contempt citations that are being floated around for Barr, et cetera. Let's watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE, D-TX: We will see what we'll do next. If the compliance continues, then we'll take the next action off the table. But everything still remains on the table until we know that they have fully complied with the information that we need.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Alan, is there any there there?
DERSHOWITZ: No, there's no there there.
INGRAHAM: This cat and mouse game with the White House Counsel's Office?
DERSHOWITZ: There's no there there. There's no legal obligation to provide the public or Congress with any of the information, certainly not information that is protected by grand jury secrecy that involves ongoing investigations. It violates the separation of powers for Congress to try to compel disclosure of information that the executive branch has the right to maintain secrecy over. Not forever, but while there are pending investigations, and until a judge clears the grand jury. What they're actually asking Barr to do is violate the law. And no court is going to compel an attorney general to violate the law.
INGRAHAM: Yes, Barr, I should have referred to DOJ, not White House Counsel. I was referencing McGahn, trying to get him to testify. But that's the case, is it not, Sol, again, this idea that no compliance has taken case when it seems like they've gone overboard. I would argue they gave up too much information to the executive branch during this process. Sol, close it out.
WISENBERG: Not only that, but think of the case of David Simas, worked for President Obama. He took the exact same position. He would not allow him to even come to Congress. It's a position taken by every president, Democrat and Republican, for the last five administrations.
INGRAHAM: All right, guys, thanks so much.
And last night we were the only show to bring you details of African migrants being dumped in San Antonio, Texas. And tonight, an exclusive follow up on where these Congolese families could be going next.
Plus, we expose the border politicians who are failing their citizens, and why it might present an opportunity for Trump in 2020. Stay there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
INGRAHAM: Last night, we were the only show in all of cable news to bring you the story of hundreds upon hundreds of Congolese immigrants being dropped off in San Antonio after crossing the border. But for many of them, that is not the final stop. San Antonio's assistant city manager, Dr. Colleen Bridger, revealed this to a local CBS station, quote, "The plan was 350 of them would travel from San Antonio to Portland," as in Portland, Maine. "When we reached out to Portland, Maine, they said please don't send us anymore. We're already stretched way beyond our capacity." Now, why would Portland be beyond their capacity? I want to go back to January of this year when Maine's new Governor Janet Mills gave her inaugural address.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GOV. JANET MILLS, D-ME: We welcome the voices of newcomers also to the public conversation. The young, the immigrants, people of different cultures, all are important members of the Maine family. From now on, yes, a sign will greet all of those arriving in our state, and it will say simply "Welcome Home."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Isn't that nice? In Portland alone, asylum seekers who are primarily from African countries make up 90 percent of the people living in the city run family and overflow shelters.
But back to today. When the San Antonio city manager's request to Portland was turned down, the response was jarring. Quote, "We're working with them," the migrants, "now to identify other cities throughout the United States where they can go and begin their asylum-seeking process." Where are these migrants going to be dropped next? That's anyone's guest. But the fact that two cities in two states, thousands of miles apart, are both at capacity should be alarming for all Americans.
We reached out to officials in Portland, Maine, and received the following response from a city counselor. "Portland is proud to be a welcoming city for all Americans and those seeking to become Americans. At the same time, no city of 67,000 people can possibly manage to entire nation's immigrant situation on its own." Wow.
We are going to continue to follow this story and others like it and bring you updates, since apparently no one else will.
Also tonight, “The Ingraham Angle” is exposing poor border leadership like in the state of New Mexico. We don't talk about New Mexico much, but we're going to do this tonight, where their citizens, by the way, deserve a heck of a lot better.
Yesterday, led by the Democratic Governor Michelle Grisham, the state of New Mexico and the city of Albuquerque sued the Trump administration over its asylum policies. The state wants to release asylum-seeking migrants into local communities and then claim reimbursement for humanitarian efforts to shelter them.
Joining me now is Andrea Moore, secretary of the Republican Party of New Mexico. All right, Andrea, what do you say about the situation in the state?
ANDREA MOORE, SECRETARY, REPUBLICAN PARTY OF NEW MEXICO: I think it's absolutely deplorable to use a term that we on the right have been given. We are counties, cities, and villages just absolutely at capacity, and the limited resources that they already are being stretched thin because they are being forced to house the illegal immigrants that are crossing our border.
INGRAHAM: Now, Andrea, you and I ran into each other on a plane and we just started talking about stuff. And I had no idea who you were. And we were just chatting. I don't think you knew who I was. We were just chatting. And you started telling me the story of New Mexico, which has become a pretty solidly Democrat state. I think the Trump administration thinks that they have a chance to flip that state back to the Republican Party. Given what has happened under Democratic leadership in state just on the issue of immigration, do you think this is possible?
MOORE: Oh, absolutely. With the continued failing policies of our governor, our state is primed to be flipped back to red and vote for Trump as well as all of our wonderful conservative Republicans up and down the ticket.
INGRAHAM: All right, Andrea, thank you so much. We'll be checking back with you soon.
And up next, the second installment of our series, "Were Voters Tricked?" We're going to expose the so-called Democrats who claimed they were moderate back in 2016 and 2018.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
INGRAHAM: Tonight we bring you our second installment of our series "Were Voters Tricked?" “The Ingraham Angle” has been investigating what those Democrats, you know the ones who ran in 2018 and the midterms as moderates, what they have been up to since being elected. Tonight's expose, Andy Kim of New Jersey's third Congressional district. Now, as a candidate, Mr. Kim stressed his bipartisan bona fides as campaign staple.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ANDY KIM, D-N.J.: I will always remember the first time I set foot in the White House situation. Politics was checked out the door. The stakes were high, but we listened, and worked together to save lives. That is exactly why I'm running for Congress, to put the lives of New Jersey families before politics. I will work with both parties.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: Now, after a narrow victory, he even said that he wasn't going to vote for Nancy Pelosi a speaker. And at the time, he noted that the country is looking for, quote, "a new generation of leaders on both sides of the aisle."
Well, despite that pledge, his first vote in Congress was to support Pelosi's speakership. Well, his reward? His preferred committee assignment on Armed Services. Pelosi's payoff? An avowed moderate voting with her over 95 percent of the time. Now, following that, Kim joined the leftwing caucus in Congress, the Progressive Caucus, a caucus committed to passing, for instance, the Green New Deal. Does that sound moderate to you?
His other legislative priorities -- saving the disastrous to Obamacare, of course, and also pushing for government mandated universal health care. Again, does that sound moderate to you? Now, when Ilhan Omar made insensitive remarks about 9/11, Mr. Kim chose not to critique her even though the terror attack was devastating for the state in which he serves. Now, instead he lashed out at President Trump are having a temerity to criticize Congressman Omar on Twitter.
On weed, Mr. Kim wants marijuana declassified a schedule one drug and could support full marijuana legalization in the future. On abortion, this so- called moderate refused to sign on to the Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. Of course, that would have required appropriate medical care to any child who survived a botched abortion.
So again, does any of what I described to you, those are all facts, does any of that sound moderate? As voters, it is great to be open to new ideas or even cross party lines to support certain candidates because of the issues and the policies he or she says that they will support. But it is also important to note if a fraud was perpetrated on you and to ask yourself if you want to be moderately fooled again.
Up next, a truly hilarious Last Bite.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
INGRAHAM: Oh, lucky you. It's time for the Last Bite.
In closing, we have a warning. Adults, do not try this at home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really, I'm stuck. I'm stuck!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
INGRAHAM: OK, that actually went on for more than five minutes. And she posted it on Facebook.
That is all the time we have tonight. Don't forget to check out my new podcast. More on the expose at the border and the new classes of immigrants coming in, where are they going to be dropped off next and Shannon Bream and the "Fox News @ Night" team, take it all from here. Shannon.
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