Lieberman says this is a time of ‘moral’ testing for the House, Omar should be condemned for ant-Semitism

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Lieberman says this is a time of ‘moral’ testing for the House, Omar should be condemned for ant-Semitism

Former Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman says all forms of bigotry should be condemned.

This is a rush transcript from "Your World," March 6, 2019. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

CHARLES PAYNE, ANCHOR: Apple, Visa, Home Depot, IBM, you name it, President Donald Trump is hosting. These are the CEOs of America's major companies. He's bringing them back. All the focus on bringing jobs back here home.

We expect his remarks. When we get them, we will bring them to you as soon as we do.

Now to Capitol Hill. House Democrats are clashing behind closed doors over a resolution condemning anti-Semitism. It was sparked by controversial remarks made by freshman Democrat Ilhan Omar.

Now House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer says there's no guarantee there will be a vote on that this week.

Welcome, everyone. I'm Charles Payne, in for Neil Cavuto. And this is "Your World."

Democrats scrambling to rewrite the language in that resolution after Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez came to aid of her embattled colleague. Now Democrats want any reference to Omar taken out of that resolution. Critics say the party is botching it big time.

Is former Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman one of them? Well, we're going to ask him.

But first to Peter Doocy. He is on Capitol Hill with more on these fast- moving developments -- Peter.

PETER DOOCY, CORRESPONDENT: Charles, Democrats were supposed to vote to condemn anti-Semitism today, but they didn't have the votes. And it's not clear that they will at any point for the rest of the week.

But this did all start with comments made by the freshman Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: Congresswoman Omar, it seems like there's some confusion among your colleagues. Are you anti-Semitic? Congresswoman, that's my only question. Just would you support the resolution condemning anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOOCY: She kept quiet, but some of her Democratic colleagues had a lot more to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, D-FLA: Because you have some members who either repeatedly or individually continue to use anti-Semitic tropes - - and I will give them the benefit of the doubt and say it's unknowing -- then apparently we do need to put a resolution the floor that educates people about how harmful and hurtful anti-Semitism is -- anti-Semitism is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOOCY: Some other Democrats are now reportedly trying to blame President Trump for a souring of the national discourse.

But the president tweeted this little while ago: "It is shameful that House Democrats won't take a stronger stand against anti-Semitism in their conference. Anti-Semitism has fueled atrocities throughout history. And it's inconceivable they will not act to condemn it."

And Republican Congressman Lee Zeldin can't wrap his head around the idea that Democratic leadership can't come up with enough votes to pass a resolution or even bring one to the floor condemning anti-Semitism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. LEE ZELDIN, R-N.Y.: This should not be that hard. It actually should be very easy for all of us to stand united bipartisan basis condemning anti-Semitism, naming names. And in my opinion, I think you really need to remove you Ilhan Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOOCY: So now Democrats are behind closed doors rewriting this resolution to condemn all kinds of prejudice, but it's unclear if what they come up with will have enough support to bring to a vote -- Charles.

PAYNE: Peter thank you very much here.

We're going to get reaction to all of this from former Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman. He is here in just a moment.

But first this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIRSTJEN NIELSEN, SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: Our capacity is already severely restrained, but these increases will overwhelm the system entirely. This is not a manufactured crisis. This is truly an emergency.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAYNE: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen with a dire warning for Congress today, in the aftermath of a new report showing more than 76,000 illegal immigrants crossing the southern border last month.

To Fox's Mike Emanuel on Capitol Hill with the latest -- Mike.

MIKE EMANUEL, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Charles, good afternoon to you.

Today, the homeland security secretary was put on the hot seat about a tough Trump administration immigration policy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were you aware that the zero tolerance policy would lead to minors being separated from their parents? Yes or no?

NIELSEN: As we increase the consequences for those who break the law, just as...

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have such limited time, Madam Secretary. I'm sure you can appreciate that.

(CROSSTALK)

NIELSEN: As a consequence for a parent going to jail, we in this country do not take the children to jail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EMANUEL: Then there were questions about President Trump's announcement of a national emergency at our southern border. A key Democrat asked to see some of the information Secretary Nielsen provided the president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE, D-TX: I think members of Congress are due classified information. And there's a question of confidentiality or privilege. I'm not sure which you're exerting here.

But I would offer that...

NIELSEN: It's not mine to exert.

JACKSON LEE: Right. So I would say that I would want the material that you had provided to the president of the United States to make his decision.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EMANUEL: There was also a Senate judiciary hearing today where lawmakers tried to drill down on some of these hot-button -- hot-button immigration issues with the commissioner of Customs and Border Protection.

Texas Senator Ted Cruz asked about abuse of children.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ, R-TX: If a child is in the custody of a human trafficker or a narcotics trafficker, how frequently are you encountering physical abuse or sexual abuse of those children in the custody of traffickers?

KEVIN MCALEENAN, CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION: It's, unfortunately, a very common occurrence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EMANUEL: Administration officials say that's part of the reason why the system needs to be changed in order to protect some of the most vulnerable being brought to this country -- Charles.

PAYNE: Mike, thank you very much.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell already conceding the president's national emergency measure will be voted down by the Senate, with a growing rift in the GOP over this issue.

I want to get reaction now from South Carolina Republican Senator Tim Scott.

Senator...

SEN. TIM SCOTT, R-S.C.: Charles.

PAYNE: ... first of all, it's great having you on. We appreciate it.

SCOTT: Thank you.

PAYNE: Do you support the president's national emergency plan?

SCOTT: One hundred percent.

Here is the closest thing to common sense you can find in Washington, D.C. Our nation's looking at a national emergency on the southern border. We have a chance to act, and we should support our president in acting.

The numbers are through the roof. Even though we just saw last month one of the highest increases in, frankly, even this fiscal year, five months into it, we are at a level of 2018 for all of FY-2018. So five months compared to 12 months, we're already at the same numbers. This is an emergency.

It's undeniable to anyone who's paying attention to our southern border.

PAYNE: It's interesting, Senator, because a lot of -- a lot of media outlets and some opponents of this were actually using fiscal '17 numbers, trying to ignore the jump that occurred last year.

But, to your point, this has become an even greater crisis. It's hard to deny that. And yet, in your own party, a lot of your colleagues have an issue with going this particular route. I guess they weighed the need to address this against their worries that maybe future presidents may abuse this same ability.

SCOTT: Charles, the Pandora's box is already open. Anyone who thinks that an inaction by this president will lead to an inaction by a Democrat president, they're living in an alternate universe.

There's no question in my mind that the Pandora's box has been opened as it relates to the use of emergency declarations for multiple uses. Here's what we do know. Congress, if we don't like the power that we have given the president, pull it back.

But, today, we know the president is acting within his powers. And he's acting within national interest. There is a crisis on the border. And if we want to do the best we can for families coming to our border, we're already working on ways for folks looking for asylum to do so in their own countries.

We can have a very compassionate approach and protect our sovereign borders.

PAYNE: And yet we have had four declared Republicans who say that they will vote against this.

SCOTT: Unfortunately.

PAYNE: The number was 10 yesterday of potentials who might. Then this morning, I read somewhere where maybe it's 15. We're lurching close to a 20 number that would overturn the president's veto.

SCOTT: Yes.

PAYNE: It would certainly be more than embarrassing.

When you have conversations with your fellow Republicans who are either on the fence or said they're going to vote against this, how do those conversations go?

SCOTT: Charles, the conversation is following one of two tranches.

One is whether or not the president has the power to declare this emergency, and should he? And the second one is, is there another equation that gets him the money he needs? Here's what we know. The president has the power, number one. Number two, I think there could be another scenario, but that scenario is being fought over.

I do not believe that there are 67 senators to override a presidential veto. I don't think that's going to happen. And I'm confident that it can't happen in the House.

So the entire conversation really is a nonstarter as it relates to our power to override the president's veto.

PAYNE: Sir, before I let you go, I want you to listen...

SCOTT: Sure, Charles.

PAYNE: ... to part of an exchange I had yesterday with the former ICE Director Tom Homan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS HOMAN, CONTRIBUTOR: ICE should be out there right now, nationwide operation, look for all these family members that have had their due process in court in front of a judge, have been ordered removed.

They need to execute those orders because, if those orders don't mean anything, there's no integrity in the system.

(CROSSTALK)

PAYNE: So, you are saying start to round people up?

HOMAN: For people who had due process, that's exactly what I'm saying.

The Democrats stood on the border saying, they have a right to claim asylum. They have a right to see a judge. I agree. But once you have seen the judge, at great taxpayer expense, billions of dollars spent on this process, if that final order saying you must go home, if that means nothing, if that is not executed, then there's no integrity in the entire system.

That's why they keep coming.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAYNE: No matter how to border issue is resolved, there's still the big problem of immigration, how do we deal with the folks who are here, how do we deal with the DACA kids.

Any chance that that could ever be addressed?

SCOTT: Well, I think, in order for us to address the issue, the larger issue of immigration, we have the first solve the problem at our southern border.

And then I think you will see willingness on the side of the administration, which we have seen in the last couple of years, that the president was willing to have a conversation about DACA, the visa system and a meritocracy.

So it seems to me that the president has a strong desire, as I do, to address the issues of our legal immigration system, to make sure that we have the work force of the future here in America.

PAYNE: Right.

SCOTT: But that has to happen after the prerequisite of dealing with our southern border is solved.

PAYNE: Senator Tim Scott, always an honor and a pleasure. Thank you very much.

SCOTT: Thank you, Charles. Have great day.

PAYNE: President Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen testifying on Capitol Hill earlier.

He said he would make a statement. If he speaks, we will bring that to you live.

Meanwhile,Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar refusing to answer questions about what critics are calling her anti-Semitic remarks.

You know who's talking? Former Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman. And he's here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAYNE: Democrats divided over a resolution condemning anti-Semitism, seen as a rebuke of Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's controversial comments.

Now, a meeting of House Democrats today behind closed doors reportedly turning contentious, as new members confronted House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other leaders, accusing them of rushing the resolution.

So what does former Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman think of all this?

He joins us now.

Sir, it's an honor to have you.

JOSEPH LIEBERMAN, I-CONN, FORMER SENATOR: Thank you, Charles. Good to be here.

PAYNE: This is really worrisome, because you have got some upstarts who have just come to Congress with chips on their shoulders. And it's all playing out in the public. And it's very ugly. What's your thoughts about all of this?

LIEBERMAN: First thing is that words matter.

And when people say words that are biased, bigoted and hurtful to another group of people, another group of Americans, they have to be condemned quickly. Or else it takes hold. And that not only -- I'm not only think about anti-Semitism.

I'm thinking about racism. I'm thinking about any kind of bigotry toward any religious group or any other group. So, I think it's a -- this is a time of testing for the House of Representatives.

And, if I may, it's really a moral test about how clearly they will speak out in this case against what Congresswoman Omar said, which was clearly anti-Semitic.

PAYNE: And she's only been there a short period. And this is not the first time this issue has come up.

LIEBERMAN: That's true.

PAYNE: So, Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, the leadership, it feels like every day that this is delayed, the more they tweet this, the more it evolves into somehow to -- to my mind, to water down to mitigate the damage that was done by this particular congresswoman, I think the more they fail your moral test.

LIEBERMAN: Well, that's why I think it's really important for the House to act and to act directly.

I mean, it sounds like the resolution that they're drafting now, which was originally against anti-Semitism, although clearly it was engendered by what Congresswoman Omar had said, is being broadened to be also statement against anti-Muslim bias.

Of course, we should make that statement. But I think the House could do better. And if it was up to me, I'd say, OK, put out a foundational resolution condemning all forms of bigotry, and particularly saying that if members of the House of Representatives, elected members of Congress, get involved in that kind of bigotry, they're going to be specifically condemned by their colleagues who won't tolerate it, and then to pass another resolution if they want specifically condemning, criticizing Congresswoman Omar for her anti-Semitic comments.

That's the best way to deter the next member of Congress of either party that says something that's racist or homophobic or anti any religious group.

PAYNE: It feels like, in Washington, D.C., that -- to borrow a boxing term, the Marquis, the Queensbury rules, no hitting behind the head.

LIEBERMAN: Right.

PAYNE: There's certain rules, certain laws of civility even in a brutal sport like that, that they vanished a long time ago.

But to watch them vanish within a political party, where you have the upstarts who are very vocal about their feelings, and they take to social media, and it's -- but nothing seems to be slowing -- slowing them down. And their resolve only, in fact, seems to grow greater and greater when there's pushback against them.

LIEBERMAN: Right.

So these statements that I take to be bigoted, or earlier ones made -- Congressman King, I know, said something that was -- I thought was racist. It's -- those things are not acceptable.

PAYNE: He was stripped of some committee seats, right?

LIEBERMAN: Yes, yes.

So, something specifically was done toward him. And, incidentally, Congresswoman Omar's statements clearly do not represent the thinking of most anybody else in office in the Democratic Party. But if they start to mumble in response to her specific and clear anti-Semitic statement, then the party itself is going to be held more broadly accountable for having similar feelings, which I know they don't.

So, again, I say this is a moment of testing, moral testing. Speak clearly about it. Make clear to the congresswoman that she went over the line, it's unacceptable. And you make clear to the next person who is thinking about expressing some other kind of bigotry that it's not going to be tolerated.

PAYNE: Yes.

And, just moments ago, Debbie Wasserman Schultz said it's anti-Semitic tropes. Again, it just doesn't -- they're not hitting back hard enough.

But I do want to ask you about the Democratic Party and the upcoming 2020 election.

LIEBERMAN: Yes.

PAYNE: Again, it feels like there's a sort of social justice movement, a sort of identity politics that's bubbling up, and it's going to probably play a major role in who's going to be the nominee for the party.

You have got a big pushback against some of the establishment folks. And it could get ugly. I mean, where do you see this going right now?

LIEBERMAN: Right.

So, in American politics, our two great parties say what they're about most clearly during the presidential nominating process. And that's what's happening now.

PAYNE: Really? Because the narrative, Senator, is that they go too far too to get the grassroots, and then they find a way back to the middle to win the general election.

LIEBERMAN: Right.

So, but the door is open to either -- in either party for every registered Republican or Democrat to come out and vote in the primaries. Too often, it is that small so-called core constituency that has disproportionate influence.

So, you asked me about the Democratic Party. This is going to be a contest for the identity of the party once again. And, look, I hope the party remains a center-left party, which it's been at its most successful.

If it goes over and becomes a far left party, I don't think it's going to be able to elect a president in 2020.

PAYNE: How do they avoid it? In other words, who's going to be the leader that either tells the far left, which is a juggernaut and has all the momentum, that at the very least wait, let's not try to have a complete coup right now, as we try to win this next election?

Who's the person that can do this? Because we can see Nancy Pelosi is having a really tough time dealing with these -- with this new movement.

LIEBERMAN: Yes.

I want to start with Speaker Pelosi, because what's interesting to point out -- and I was involved in trying to help some of the candidates -- is that the Democrats took back the House not because of the more left candidates, but because of the center -- centrist candidates who won in swing districts.

PAYNE: Right.

LIEBERMAN: So, that is what has got to happen in the presidential primary as well.

PAYNE: Senator, thank you very, very much.

LIEBERMAN: Thank you.

PAYNE: Folks, we want to go to the White House now.

Again, American CEOs meeting with President Trump and Ivanka Trump, a big, big job event.

First, let's go to Blake Burman, who is at the White House, to bring us up with the latest.

BLAKE BURMAN, CORRESPONDENT: Charles, I will keep this short.

PAYNE: President Trump speaking.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT: ... Ivanka, for your devotion to the America workers -- our great workers. And nobody has workers like we do. So I just want to thank you, honey, because -- great job. Really great job.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: She works very hard on this, I will say. And she's created a lot of happy families. Because you're going to be up to close to seven million people pretty soon that you are very responsible, along with many of the people at this table.

And I'm going to ask, I think, for you -- maybe before I even speak -- to go around the table, because this is such a distinguished group, and just introduce yourself. We have a few of the media back there, and just a small group.

You know, Tim, sometimes you have to see some of these groups. It's pretty amazing what they do. They break down the walls and the windows and everything else in order to get in. But we have great representative media back.

And I thought you should really take some of the credit for what you've done. And I'd maybe like to start with Tim Cook who has done such an incredible job at Apple.

He's become a friend of mine. And he's a friend because he does a great job. I mean, we want to get things done. Employs so many people. Brought a lot of money back into our country because of the new tax law, and he's spending that money very wisely. And just done an incredible job.

So, Tim, maybe you could just start. Please.

TIM COOK, CEO, APPLE: Sure.

Thank you, Mr. President. It's an honor to serve on this council. I've always thought that America is so special in so many ways, but at the heart of all of it is people. And that, to me, is what this group is about.

For -- our company, as you know, was founded by a college drop-out.

TRUMP: Right.

COOK: So we've never really thought that a college degree was the thing that you had to have to do well. We've always tried to expand our horizons.

And so that degree -- about half of our U.S. employment last year were people that did not have a four-year degree. And we're very proud of that, but we want to go further.

And so to that end, as we've looked at the -- sort of, the mismatch between the skills that are coming out of colleges and what the skills are that we believe we need in the future, and many other businesses do, we've identified coding as a very key one.

And we believe strongly that it should be a requirement in the United States for every kid to have coding before they graduate from K-12, and become somewhat proficient at it.

And so we've provided a -- we've done a curriculum now and provided it to all schools in the United States. Four thousand have picked it up. Now, we have a lot further to go because there's a lot more than 4,000 schools in America, but that is a start.

We've also done that with 80 community colleges. And we're really proud of that, particularly with the work that we're doing in Austin, and providing coding education there.

There's an enormous deficit in the number of jobs versus the number of candidates. And so we're -- we are proud to take part and to help to get this alignment much better between education and private sector. We realize that in something this large, it takes government, private sector, and education all kind of oaring in the same direction, and we're very proud to be a part of it.

TRUMP: Well, thank you, Tim. Great job you're doing.

COOK: Thank you. Thank you.

TRUMP: Thank you very much. Kim?

GOV. KIM REYNOLDS, R-IA: Well, I too want to echo my appreciation for having the opportunity to serve on this board. I'm excited about what's happening across this country. Iowa has the lowest unemployment rate the nation at 2.4 percent.

Our economy is growing. We've had four straight quarters of wage growth in Iowa. We are no different than other states. We have jobs looking for people.

So I'm anxious to work. And public-private partnership is the answer. That is how it's going to work. We have an initiative, Future Ready Iowa, that has a goal of having 70 percent of Iowans in the work force to have education or training beyond high school by the year 2025. And we're at about 58 percent right now, but set the goals high, right...

TRUMP: Right.

REYNOLDS: ... and work hard to get it.

And we're doing that through registered apprenticeship programs. And we just -- we'll be launching an initiative, Computer Science Is Elementary, that will launch six computer-science elementaries in the state that will target high-poverty, high-needs areas so we can help produce a capable, ready work force.

Most importantly, though -- and then I will pass it -- is to make sure that our students and that Iowans know that there are multiple paths to great careers and those careers exist in Iowa. Thank you.

TRUMP: Well, thank you. And, Kim, just had a great victory -- governor of Iowa. She just defeated somebody who spent unlimited money. It was unlimited. And it's called talent.

You've done a great job. Thank you very much, Kim. Great job.

VI LYLES, D-N.C., MAYOR OF MAYOR OF CHARLOTTE: Mr. President, thank you for the opportunity to be here today. I'm Vi Lyles, from the city of Charlotte.

And what I'd like to say is that we're a city where we want everyone to have the ability to participate in the economic opportunity. And we are the second largest banking center now in the country. That may be good or bad. But, nonetheless, when we look at that, we also have to weigh it against those that haven't had a chance.

And this opportunity, I think, will provide us pathways, innovations, collaborations to accomplish that, so that people left out can get in a great home, a place -- safe place to live, and a job that they can be proud of.

TRUMP: Thank you very much. And we have our big convention in your city, as you know.

LYLES: That's true. We're getting ready for it.

TRUMP: And you worked very hard. And a lot of people wanted it and you got it. So congratulations, and I will see you soon. Thank you.

SEAN MCGARVEY, PRESIDENT: Mr. President, Sean McGarvey with North America's Building Trades Unions. And I too want to thank you for the opportunity to work with terrific co-chairs and colleagues around this table on issues that are really important to the building trades.

And I want to let you know that we made a commitment to you last year of 250,000 new apprentices over the next five years, and 56,000 of those last year were registered with the Department of Labor. So we're following through on our commitment. Thank you.

TRUMP: Thank you very much.

JAY BOX, PRESIDENT, KENTUCKY COMMUNITY AND TECHNICAL COLLEGE SYSTEM: Mr. President, Jay Box from the great state -- the great commonwealth of Kentucky, representing 4.3 million people, and more particularly, representing the 16 comprehensive community colleges and our 73 campuses around the state.

And in Kentucky, we are committed to speeding the time to a degree and a credential because we know the work force needs us to turn out our workers faster.

And so, we like to say: Instead of a career pathway, a career freeway, with many on-ramps and exit ramps so that students can come into our institutions at any time and exit once they get a credential and right into the work force. And later on they can come right back in for further skill training.

TRUMP: Great job. Thank you very much.

Mr. BOX: Thank you.

TOM DONOHUE, PRESIDENT & CEO, CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: Mr. President, nice to see you. I'm very pleased to be here.

This project addresses itself to the two fundamental challenges we face in the business community and in our society. That is people without jobs and massive numbers of jobs without people. And I believe the work that will take place here immediately, just with people working with one another, will add to the solution of both of those challenges.

Thank you very much.

TRUMP: Thank you very much.

SCOTT SANDERS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES: Thank you Mr. President. Scott Sanders, National Association of State Workforce Agencies. It's been great to be around this table with employers, educators, and others. We've already started talking with Tom about how we can help across all the states -- help pull those together that are unemployed, under-skilled, and they're out of the work force -- and how do we get them back in and help fill those 7. 3 million jobs.

So, honored to be here. Thank you.

TRUMP: Thank you very much. Thank you.

SHEREE UTASH, PRESIDENT, WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY: Mr. President, Sheree Utash, President of Wichita State University Applied Sciences and Technology in Wichita, Kansas, The Air Capital of the World.

TRUMP: Right.

UTASH: And very happy to be here. Very honored to be serving on this. And wonderful that we have this issue to deal with and to find solutions for. So thank you for all your efforts towards that.

You know, we say, at our college, Hope has a face, and it's face of our students. And we know from education -- from higher education -- that we have to be innovative and disruptive in order to be in line and aligned with business and industry.

And so we're doing a lot of that and hope to continue to do that. And I can assure you, from the two-year sector, along with Dr. Bumphus, we're doing everything we can to create the work force for the future.

TRUMP: Thank you very much. Thank you.

MARIANNE WANAMAKER, UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE: Mr. President, I'm Marianne Wanamaker.

I'm a labor economist at the University of Tennessee. I think, really, the administration should be applauded for putting a spotlight on our -- using federal data to solve some of our biggest challenges. And this is one of those places where we really have a lot of assets at our disposal. I'm excited to help the board think through those issues.

TRUMP: Thank you very much.

WALTER BUMPHUS, PRESIDENT AND CEO, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY COLLEGES: Good afternoon, Mr. President. Good to see you again.

It was about a year ago, I think, when we were here with the Expanding Apprenticeships Task Force. And I join my colleague here in saying the administration should be applauded and commended for the focus and spotlight you put on this very, very important issue.

And I would be remiss, as I think all of my colleagues would agree, if we didn't also commend Ivanka and Secretary Ross for the leadership they provided too. I think there's going to be some outstanding work we're going to do together.

So again, thank you for your leadership, sir.

TRUMP: Thank you very much.

Governor?

GOV. ERIC HOLCOMB, R-IND.: Mr. President, let me pile on the praise for your administration's -- and the entire administration, for that matter -- just a laser focus on this topic. It is going to -- whether we like it around this table or not, it's going to define our nation. It's going to define our states, our organizations, our companies, and the legacy that we leave behind us when we get this right. And you are.

So I just want to express another debt of gratitude for trusting us. Last year, your administration, the Department of Labor, granted us a waiver that enabled us to cut our Workforce Council in the state of Indiana about in half. And it allowed us to operate at the speed of this table and the businesses that are around it. And that has made all the difference in the world.

So as you continue to trust us, the states, to own it and to prove it, we will show America what works and what doesn't. And that will take us to the next level. Thank you, sir.

TRUMP: That's great. Thank you, Eric. Great.

MARILLYN HEWSON, CEO, LOCKHEED MARTIN: Mr. President, Marillyn Hewson, Lockheed Martin. I just, again, wanted to tell you how honored I am to serve on this advisory board but also to commend you and your administration for your focus on getting American workers prepared for the future and advanced economy that we're in.

It's not just about today's mismatch and things we might work on today, but it's getting us prepared for continued economic growth. What you've done to enable us with tax reform, with regulatory reform has helped us to reinvest in our businesses, to reinvest in our work force. And we thank you for that and commend you for that. Thank you.

TRUMP: Thank you, Marillyn. How is the F-35 doing?

HEWSON: It's doing great, sir.

PAYNE: Folks, you have been watching President Trump and the advisory board, a mix of top-level CEOs and representatives from several states, all talking about working together, and to even help the economy more.

I want to go back to Blake Burman, who is at the White House, with more on this -- Blake.

BURMAN: Charles, what you have been watching here is the first gathering, as we continue to look at President Trump, the first gathering of the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board. This is about two dozen or so members, as you saw from their titles there, state and local government, but also some of the biggest CEOs in this country sitted -- seated, rather, directly to the right of President Trump.

The first person we heard speak, the Apple chief executive himself, Tim Cook. You just heard from Marillyn Hewson there of Lockheed Martin. Also today in the room there, the CEOs of Visa, Home Depot, IBM, for example.

What they are talking about right now is work force development. You heard some of the issues that they have been discussing, as we're watching the president speak with them now. But this group has been meeting for the last couple hours or so.

Data transparency is one thing. Essentially, if you're looking for a job, making sure that you have the best available data at your fingertips, as we just heard that economist talk about, also trying to modernize candidate recruitment.

This is a part of the work force development push and change that this administration has been a part of, led, as you can see, seated next to the president, by Ivanka Trump -- Charles.

PAYNE: Blake, thank you very much.

Let's go to former Wal-Mart CEO Bill Simon on this and other developments in our economy.

Bill, thanks for joining us.

BILL SIMON, FORMER WAL-MART CEO: Hi, Charles. How are you?

PAYNE: I'm good.

I don't know if you were listening at the beginning, when Tim Cook began to speak. I thought he was remarkable. He talked about college -- college degree not being the -- quote, unquote -- "the thing" that you have to have now in this country to do well, and that half of the folks they employed last year did not have a college degree.

I mean, this is like music to the ears of a lot of Americans out there. Are you sensing this same sort of shift as well?

SIMON: I am.

I also heard Tim say that he proposed that every K-12 student have some sort of coding experience. And I think that's terrific. I would still be in the 11th grade if that were the case. But let's just -- let's just move on from there.

(LAUGHTER)

SIMON: I think it's -- I think it's the right thing to do. That's what's needed in the economy today.

And college isn't -- that experience -- that traditional four-year college experience isn't right for everybody. And the economy now is in the shape where we can find ways to deliver that specialized training that is necessary to be really effective in the work force, maybe without a traditional four-year degree.

So, I really do applaud what he's saying.

PAYNE: Yes.

Apparently, also, the CEO of IBM is in the room. And she actually coined the term, new-collar, not blue-collar or white-collar, new-collar jobs. And I think the great thing, Bill, is we are seeing wages go up for the first time in more than a decade for low -- lower-skilled or nonsupervisory wage workers faster than supervisory workers.

And we're going to get data on Friday that may suggest that that continues. So this is something I think people had given up on.

SIMON: Yes, I think you're right.

And from a very early age, young people have experience with technology. And they're able to learn and do things that -- and learn in a completely different way than the traditional K-12 and four-year college degree.

And I think it's incumbent upon companies and educators to figure out a way to reach these -- reach these kids and reach the new -- the new generation and develop the new work force. So I applaud what they're doing today.

PAYNE: Yes, my 6-year-old granddaughter can do things with my cell phone. I have no clue how she does it, how she get to these places.

And she does it with relatively -- with relative ease.

Before I let you go, a lot of retailers are reporting earnings, much better than anyone anticipated. A lot of folks thought maybe the American consumer was tapped out. Maybe that's not the case.

Where are we right now with this economy and the U.S. consumer?

SIMON: The consumer is strong, very strong.

All the indicators remain in place. Gas prices are low. Wage growth is in place. We're seeing very low unemployment. Everything is right for the consumer. And you are seeing that in the results that are being delivered.

I know you have got a lot of politicians screaming doom and gloom. And I think they're doing that more for political reasons than economic reasons. But the economy is strong and the consumer is going to carry it, I think, through this year.

PAYNE: Bill, it's always a pleasure talking to you. Thank you very much.

SIMON: Thanks, Charles.

PAYNE: So, is Kim Jong-un back at it? New satellites photos suggesting that North Korea is rebuilding a launch site just days after President Donald Trump walked away from those nuclear talks.

So, how is the White House responding? We're on it.

And Michael Cohen says he will be making a statement before he leaves Capitol Hill today. And when he does, we will be there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAYNE: President Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen back on Capitol Hill for a fourth day of testimony, this time behind closed doors.

He's expected to make remarks when his testimony is over. And if he does, we're going to bring them to you live.

And now to Catherine Herridge, who is on Capitol Hill.

So, Catherine, I understand that Cohen turned over a number of large documents today. So what are you hearing?

CATHERINE HERRIDGE, CHIEF INTELLIGENCE CORRESPONDENT: OK.

So, Charles, what we were able to confirm through two separate sources is that Michael Cohen brought records with him today that show edits by the president's attorneys, and these are records that have to do with his congressional testimony about this 2016 Moscow Trump Tower real estate project.

One of our contacts reports, however, that the original date in the original draft by Cohen is January 2016. And that's important, because it undercuts claims that Cohen was directed by the president or his lawyers edited the congressional testimony to make that date January, when in fact the talks continued for months longer.

And the reason that matters is because special counsel Robert Mueller prosecuted Cohen over this particular lie to Congress. Remember, there was this key piece of testimony from the public hearing with Cohen last week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a pretty breathtaking claim. Which specific lawyers reviewed and edited your statement to Congress on the Moscow tower negotiations? And did they make any changes to your statement?

MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER ATTORNEY/FIXER FOR DONALD TRUMP: There were changes made, additions. Jay Sekulow, for one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HERRIDGE: So the other issue that they're drilling down on today, Charles, is this guy Felix Sater.

Felix Sater is important because he's a Russian-born business associate. He was part of the marketing team with Cohen for the 2016 Trump Tower project. And he's going to be up here on the Hill March 14 for public testimony on this particular issue.

But, again, what we learned through our reporting today is that Cohen brought records about his congressional testimony. But this key date, January 2016, was in Cohen's original draft, and that would indicate that, again, it was his idea or he initiated making a false statement to Congress on the timeline, Charles.

PAYNE: Catherine, that's a -- that's a bombshell. Thank you very much.

A member of the House Intel Committee, Republican Congressman Chris Stewart, joins us now.

So, Congressman, I hope, eventually, we get all of this information out. But this latest piece of information, again, Michael Cohen says he's an admitted liar, but it doesn't do his testimony, the public testimony, it doesn't help that at all, does it?

REP. CHRIS STEWART, R-UT: Well, not a lot.

And, of course, everything that Mr. Cohen says, you have to look through the prism of, is he telling us the truth? You have to look at other statements from other witnesses, other information that you do have.

And, as you know, I can't speak specifically about what we learned today. It was an executive session. It was classified, but I would make this point. And I think this is perhaps the most important thing I can say to you.

Do you think that, after 15 months of a Republican House investigation, 24 months of a Senate Intel investigation, the Mueller investigation going on something like two-plus years, hundreds of reporters desperately looking for information, do we really think that Mr. Cohen is going to come in and in day four of his testimony tell us something that changes the whole narrative on collusion or conspiracy or obstruction?

Because that just hasn't happened. But that can't be a surprise to people.

PAYNE: And yet your Democratic colleagues are prepared to go again with another major -- another major investigation, releasing 81 names that -- right now just requests for information.

STEWART: Yes.

PAYNE: Ultimately could be subpoenas for information.

I know America appears to be very fatigued with all of these things, particularly if the Mueller report comes up a dry well.

Do you -- do you have these conversations with the Democrats that you are - - that you are good -- that you have good relationships with, to understand, when will you start to see more perhaps legislation and not investigations on Capitol Hill?

STEWART: Well, I have had some of those conversations.

But their basis is -- their base just hates his president so much. They can't turn away from that. And they can't disappoint them.

But, look, they do -- at some point, they're going to have to legislate. They're going to have to do something other than this. And I think there's two other points. Number one is, you're right. People are not only tired of this. I think they're exhausted by it.

They have been hearing it for more than two years. And yet, at the end of the day, they say, for what? I mean, what have you -- what have you done for that, that we would be terribly troubled by?

And the second thing is this. Because they don't find evidence on obstruction or collusion or conspiracy, then they just blindly say, well, let's go look at finances then. Maybe we will find something about finances.

And a lot of people feel like I do. That's just fundamentally unfair. There's no accusation of a crime or wrongdoing. No one is accusing the president or his family of any financial crime. And yet they're indicating hundreds of subpoenas, hundreds of witnesses that I think they're potentially going to call.

And people ask, why? On what basis are you doing that?

PAYNE: Well, the president calls it presidential harassment.

And I do want to ask your thoughts on the investigation, once it's wrapped up, on whether or not -- to what degree the American public should be able to see that.

STEWART: Yes, you know, I may be a little bit of an outlier on this, but I have always said I hope every word of it is revealed to the American people.

I don't think -- I hope there's not a redacted sentence or paragraph, for two reasons. Number one is, this truly isn't national security. We're not talking about nuclear codes or sources and methods. We're really talking about a political process that went awry.

And the second thing is, if there's a single paragraph redacted, then these conspiracy theorists are going to say, see, it's -- the collusion is in there. Mr. Mueller didn't find evidence of collusion that he's telling us about, but it's hidden in these redacted sentences or these paragraphs.

And I think we should just tell the American people. Release it all. I don't think there's going to be anything there terribly embarrassing to the president. I think that things that are embarrassing, he will have to explain.

But I'm fairly confident there's no collusion or conspiracy. And I think we have to set that on the table and put it aside, so the American people don't spend the next two years, like with John F. Kennedy, wondering, well, what else is there that we don't know about?

PAYNE: Right.

Representative Stewart, thank you very much. Appreciate it.

STEWART: Thank you.

PAYNE: Want to go to RealClearPolitics' A.B. Stoddard on all the political fallout from all of this.

A.B., thanks for joining us.

Of course, the story has changed. It twists and turns almost every single day. Where are we right now with respect to the potential political fallout for this? And I ask you that because some of these recent poll numbers in the midst of all of this for President Trump have been going higher.

A.B. STODDARD, REALCLEARPOLITICS: Right. His approval rating is higher.

The number of Americans who want impeachment is not even close to majority. So a strong majority of Americans don't want to see any impeachment proceedings. But the number of Americans who believe that crimes might have committed -- been committed before office is high.

It's 45 percent in a Quinnipiac poll of belief that the president committed crimes while in office, which is pretty high. And the desire to see investigations is a majority. So this is a mixed result.

And I think the Democrats feel, after two years of no oversight of the -- over the administration, that they are going to go into areas that may not be revealed in the Mueller report, that, unlike the recommendation of Congressman Stewart, may not be revealed in full.

So that's why you see a continued effort to dismiss impeachment, but stick with oversight hearings.

PAYNE: By the same token, the Democrats spent a lot of time and effort to bolster the Mueller investigation. They praised Mueller, his career, his credentials, his integrity. They have made a lot of bets on this being -- that they would find that this was going to be the smoking gun.

And as it becomes -- maybe as the conventional wisdom shifts that perhaps it's going to be dry holes, particularly when it comes to collusion with Russia, what's the justification for going down all these other rabbit holes?

STODDARD: The justification is that Michael Cohen has revealed to us, through his SDNY investigation, which is not the Mueller probe, that the president was working on a Trump Tower Moscow project, with which he needed the permission and help and active involvement of the president of Russia, and that he was doing that during the campaign, lying about it to the American people, continued to lie about it, and that Vladimir Putin knew he was lying to us about it.

So, if he committed financial crimes as a businessman involving Russian money that would make him compromised or beholden to an adversarial government, that is actually -- that is a material finding, that they have to come up with something, or they're going to risk a boomerang.

But they are taking that risk because they believe that those questions are relevant.

PAYNE: In the meantime, at this very moment, President Trump's at the White House. He's conveying his advisory -- advisory committee.

You have got top folks talking about how to bring jobs back to this country. We have got a job report on Friday that probably gets you another 200,000 jobs created. So we have got these parallels.

The president's working toward the economy, rebuilding America, and the Democrats are solely focused on bringing the president down and going as far back as possible at the -- just, again, I'm having trouble trying to understand why they think ultimately that's a smart political move, when history also suggests, A.B. -- and you know being this better than anyone else -- that this sort of quasi-impeachment -- even though they won't say the I-word -- it's there anyway.

It doesn't necessarily help them.

STODDARD: Right.

Look, 81 subpoenas or list for inquiries is -- requests for inquiries -- excuse me -- is a lot. They didn't do 10 at a time. They went for dramatics, shock and awe. They are taking risk here that they might overreach and that the hearings become duds.

That's a risk they think they're willing to take. You know the House is controlled only by the Democrats, not the Senate, Charles. So all the things they pass are unlikely to make it to the Senate or the president's desk anyway. They are trying to pass a good governance bill that Mitch McConnell has no interest in.

And they passed background checks. So they're going to be doing both. And that's a risk, like I said, with...

PAYNE: A.B., let me interrupt you one second, because President Trump's making some comments on immigration. Let's take a listen.

STODDARD: OK.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

TRUMP: So we want to have the companies grow. And the only way they're going to grow is if we give them the workers.

And the only way we're going to have the workers is to do exactly what we're doing.

Thank you all very much. Appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you very much.

PAYNE: All right, A.B. is still with us?

A.B. Stoddard?

STODDARD: Yes.

PAYNE: We just got the tail end of that, of course, President Trump talking about the need for workers.

And even during the State of the Union, he talked about immigration, legal immigration. I -- it's unfortunate that so many people, particularly in the media, conflate illegal vs. legal immigration. Your thoughts on this border wall fight and ultimately maybe the ability of Capitol Hill to resolve this issue altogether?

STODDARD: Well, the president indicated in his State of the Union address, like you said, he was willing to increase the numbers considerably of legal immigration, and that he would like to see some kind of resolution on this front.

It's clear from the -- from the administration that they want the border security component to happen first. That's why he -- he shut the government down over it. And he doesn't -- he didn't like the amount that they settled on. So he's redirecting some funds.

And he's declared an emergency. That vote in the Senate next week will be tough. But the president will ultimately prevail. He will veto it. Some Republicans will join Democrats because they think it's a separation of powers, power-sharing issue, and that the Congress has the power of the purse, as you know.

PAYNE: Right. Yes.

STODDARD: And so he will go on at that point.

And we are waiting to see if he prevails in court. It's likely that he will, because the 1976 statue, Charles, is so broad, it likely permits him to do this.

PAYNE: Right.

STODDARD: And then we will have to see. Once he's declared the emergency and he gets this wall going, is there going to be time between the legislating calendar of 2019 and the campaign calendar of 2020 to actually come together on a big comprehensive deal?

That's looking really tough.

PAYNE: All right, A.B., thank you very, very much. Appreciate it.

STODDARD: Thank you.

PAYNE: Hey, folks, we have some news for you here.

A sheriff's office says that R. Kelly has been taken into custody over a hearing over unpaid child support.

Want go to Fox's Matt Finn with the very latest.

MATT FINN, CORRESPONDENT: Charles right now, R. Kelly's spokesperson is actually talking to the media behind me.

He just told us that R. Kelly came to court today expecting to leave. But he didn't come up with that $161,000 that he owed in child support, and so was he taken into custody, according to a spokesperson for the county.

And he will be transported back to the jail where he just spent three nights on those separate criminal charges. R. Kelly court documentation indicates that he owes in excess of $200,000 in child support.

And a judge ordered him to pay $161,000 by 10:00 this morning. Because this case is sealed, we do not know if he made any type of payment. The attorneys have not been talking to us. He spent at least an hour inside of the courtroom behind us.

It was closed to all press and anyone in the public. And apparently R. Kelly was taken into custody by deputies here, and he will be going back to jail -- Charles.

PAYNE: Matt Finn, thank you very much.

Folks, we will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAYNE: National Security Adviser John Bolton threatening to ramp up sanctions on North Korea after new satellite images appear to show the country rebuilding a missile launch site.

Fox News national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin with us with the details -- Jennifer.

JENNIFER GRIFFIN, NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Charles, experts say this North Korean launch pad had been dormant since August, following the first summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un.

President Trump just responded earlier to new reports of apparent activity at a North Korean ballistic missile launch pad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I would be very disappointed if that were happening. It's a very early report. We're the ones that put it out. But I would be very, very disappointed in Chairman Kim.

And I don't think I will be, but we will see what happens. We will take a look. It will ultimately get solved.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: New satellite images taken two days after the Vietnam summit failed show activity at a North Korea launch pardon, according to Washington think tanks.

Cranes and new construction appear at the launch site where North Korea has put satellites into space using technology similar to that needed for ballistic missiles. This North Korean launch pad had been dormant since August, following the first summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un.

North Korea has never launched an intercontinental ballistic missile or ICBM from this site. And experts say the activity happening at Sohae now, while unfortunate, only shows construction going on, not anything that would indicate test prep.

National Security Adviser John Bolton promised that -- promised that there could be more sanctions if Kim does not comply -- Charles.

PAYNE: Jennifer, thank you very, very much.

Well, that's it for me for today, folks, but make sure you join me tomorrow on the FOX Business Network for "Making Money" at 2:00 p.m.

"The Five" starts right now.

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