White House Briefing Conclusion; Russian Journalist Back From The "Dead"; Browder Released After Police Realized Arrest Warrant Invalid; President Trump Responds To Roseanne Barr's Firing; U.S. North Korea Diplomats Continue DMZ Talks
QUESTION: -- massive drop in their prices. Is there any more you can tell us on exactly when this is going to happen and how widespread this massive drop in prices will be?</s>SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: No, I can't give any other details at this point, but we do expect some specific policy pieces to come out on that soon. Kelly (ph)?</s>QUESTION: Has the president spoken to Roseanne Barr, who we know has been a longtime friend of his? And why did he choose to address the ABC apology instead of the underlying issue of concerns about a racist comment that she tweeted out?</s>SANDERS: I'm not aware of any conversations that have taken place. The president's simply calling out the media bias. No one's defending what she said. The president is the president of all Americans, and he's focused on doing what is best for our country, and you can see that in the actions that he's taken. You can see where he's focused on unemployment being at the lowest since 2000, opportunity investment zones to encourage investment in underserved communities, an opioid initiative to combat a crisis that impacts all Americans. And, today, the president signed legislation to give patients the right to try medication that could actually save their lives. And I'd point out that, while the president signed that legislation and actually addressed America, two networks chose not to cover it, and instead covered something totally different in palace (ph) intrigue -- a massive piece of legislation that had bipartisan support, that was life-changing, literally life-changing for millions of Americans -- two networks chose not to cover the president's remarks on that. He's simply pointing out the bias. The president's pointing to the hypocrisy in the media saying the -- the most horrible things about this president, and nobody addresses it. Where was Bob Iger's apology to the White House staff for Jemele Hill calling the president and anyone associated with him a white supremacist? To Christians around the world for Joy Behar calling Christianity a mental illness? Where was the apology for Kathy Griffin going on a profane rant against the president on The View after a photo showed her holding President Trump's decapitated head? And where was the apology from Bob Iger for ESPN hiring Keith Olbermann after his numerous expletive-laced tweets attacking the president as a Nazi and even expanding Olbermann's role after that attack against the president's family? This is a double standard that the president is speaking about. No one is defending her comments. They're inappropriate, but that's what -- the point that he was making.</s>QUESTION: Sarah...</s>SANDERS: Matthew (ph).</s>QUESTION: Thanks, Sarah. Does the White House have any evaluation of its own of the recently released study estimating that more than 4,600 people died in Puerto Rico as a result of Hurricane Maria? And, if that number is accurate, does this indicate the administration's response to the storm was inadequate?</s>SANDERS: Look, the president takes the situation in Puerto Rico extremely seriously, and the administration has been monitoring that from the beginning. We've been supportive of Governor Rossello's efforts to ensure full accounting and transparency, and those who have suffered from this tragedy deserve nothing less than that. The two Category 4 hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico were historic, and we've responded with the largest FEMA operation in history, and we're going to continue to work with the people of Puerto Rico and do everything we can to be helpful.</s>SANDERS: April? Sorry, one question today.</s>QUESTION: ... any concerns or fear any risk in pushing China on -- continuing to push China on these tariffs in trade, considering their relationship with North Korea ahead of talks and what the president has said about that second meeting between President Xi and Kim Jong-un?</s>SANDERS: The president continues to have a good relationship with President Xi. But what the president's concerned about is making sure he stops the unfair trade practices that China's engaged in for decades, stopping the intellectual property theft that China has been engaged in and making sure that we no longer allow China to play on a different playing field than the rest of us. He's not going to allow American workers to be taken advantage of. He's going to call that out and he's going to step up and make those changes. At the same time, we're continuing to work with China and continuing to have conversations when it comes to North Korea. And we hope that those will continue. John (ph).</s>QUESTION: Thank you, Sarah. Given the turbulent political situation in Italy right now, is the administration monitoring it, as well the devastating effect it appears to be having on the markets in southern Europe? And will the president consider strong intervention in that situation through the IMF, very much as the previous administration did with Greece two years ago?</s>SANDERS: Italy is one of our closest allies, and we look forward to continuing to work closely with the new government after it's formed. We recognize that Europe is composed of free nations, that, in the great tradition of Western democracy, are able to choose their own paths forward. I don't have anything about the United States' specific involvement, but certainly, we're continuing to monitor that and stay in very close touch with our allies. Jennifer (ph).</s>QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) the extension ends again soon. When do you think you'll have an announcement on what will happen next? And is there any chance that there will be another extension?</s>SANDERS: We'll certainly keep you posted as we get closer to that date. Mara (ph).</s>QUESTION: Yeah, can you just clarify the comments about Trey Gowdy? You said there's still cause for concern, meaning about the -- -- what the president says was a spy who infiltrated his campaign, or cause for concern in general about the FBI?</s>SANDERS: I think both. The president still has concerns about whether or not the FBI acted inappropriately, having people in his campaign.</s>SANDERS: And, certainly, the president has concerns about the overall conduct of the FBI when it comes to this process. Blake (ph).</s>QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) explain who was in the campaign? What is he referring to when he said they were in the campaign? What does that mean?</s>SANDERS: Again, I'm not going to get into those details. But the president certainly has expressed very publicly his concern, as has his outside counsel. Blake (ph).</s>QUESTION: Thank you. Something appeared to have happened on trade, because, last weekend, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said the trade war was on hold. Fast forward, a few days after that, there was the threat of tariffs, now, on auto imports. Fast forward, a few days after that, there's now going to be this $50 billion in tariffs. So what exactly happened from the trade war being on hold, to a week later, now, it appears the trade war...</s>SANDERS: He didn't say it was on hold indefinitely. And, look, the president ultimately makes the decisions on trade. And, when we does, we announce them. And that's exactly what's taken place in this process. Philip (ph).</s>QUESTION: Sarah, two things. First off, my young colleague here -- he has a very interesting question.</s>SANDERS: Welcome.</s>QUESTION: Second, I just wanted to know, how confident does the president feel that he's going to have an agreement on NAFTA before the summer?</s>SANDERS: Look, we're continuing to have those negotiations, and we'll keep you posted if the -- they get a deal finalized. And the young colleague in the back.</s>QUESTION: Well, thanks for the complement.</s>SANDERS: Hopefully -- hopefully these aren't as tough as Bring Your Kids to Work Day questions.</s>QUESTION: At my school, we -- we recently had a lockdown drill. One thing that -- that affects my and other students' mental health is the worry about the fact that we or our friends could get shot at school. Specifically, can you tell me what the administration has done and will do to prevent these senseless tragedies?</s>SANDERS: I think that, as a kid and certainly as a parent, there is nothing that could be more terrifying -- for a kid to go to school and not feel safe. So I'm sorry that you feel that way. This administration takes it seriously, and the School Safety Commission that the president convened is meeting this week, again, an (ph) official meeting, to discuss the best ways forward and how we can do every single thing within our power to protect kids in our schools and to make them feel safe and make their parents feel good about dropping them off. Eamon.</s>QUESTION: Sarah, you mentioned Bob Iger a moment ago, and asked where is his apology to the White House for criticism of the president in some of the instance (ph) that you cite. Has anyone at the White House been in touch with Bob Iger or anyone at ABC on those incidents in specific and the cancellation of the Roseanne program, specifically, as well?</s>SANDERS: I'm not aware of any specific or direct conversations. Andrew (ph).</s>QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) George McGuire (ph) (OFF-MIKE) organization. The pre- infinite shore team (ph) is subject to discussion -- the main subject of discussion in Singapore. Does that include the positioning of U.S. nuclear bombers and submarines that aren't (ph) necessarily on the peninsula, but cover the peninsula, as it were?</s>SANDERS: I'm not going to get into the details or negotiate that here. Certainly, our focus is going to be on total denuclearization of the peninsula and verifiable confirmation of that. Beyond that, I can't get into any details.</s>QUESTION: ... when you talk about that, you're talking about North Korea, though, not U.S. weapons systems.</s>SANDERS: Correct. Yeah.</s>SANDERS: And, last question, Sayer (ph).</s>QUESTION: Sarah, has the president received any classified briefing on the details that -- of the intelligence that were presented to Trey Gowdy? And, if he still believes that there's cause for concern, why doesn't he just declassify the documents?</s>SANDERS: The president receives a number of classified briefings, but I'm not going to get into those -- certainly not here, and not today.</s>QUESTION: Sarah, (</s>OFF-MIKE). SANDERS: Thanks so much, guys. And we look forward to seeing you guys here in a few minutes at the sports fitness day.</s>QUESTION: Sarah, where are the president's apologies for things that he's said over the years?</s>HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: The Press Secretary Sarah Sanders there today. She answered a few questions on North Korea. We will continue to shoot for June 12th in Singapore. She is essentially saying that the U.S. is ready if this summit can go ahead, but it will also be ready if it is delayed further. She was also asked about the Roseann Barr controversy after the actress tweeted some racist content on the social media platform after her show was canceled. She called out the media bias. She deflected to Trump administration achievements in her words that had not been covered. And then attacks again the media for not covering what they would like -- what they would like us to cover and listed people who she says had insulted the president without consequence, though, factually incorrect, mentioning Kathy Griffin, who, of course, was fired from her position and then now did not work in the United States in a sort of comedy show capacity since that picture of her holding that bloodied mask that looked like Donald Trump. So, there you have it. This is coming from the Press Secretary Sarah Sanders today and we'll continue to follow the very least on North Korea a little bit later in the program as well as the latest fallout from the Roseanne Barr show cancellation. But now to this in Ukraine, who needs spy novels when you have a real-life thriller like this? We begin with an absolutely stunning development that has shock the world. Today, we learned that a high-profile murder of a journalist was faked in order to prevent a real one, authorities in the Ukraine said. Just yesterday, Ukraine's prime minister accused Russia of assassinating a fierce Kremlin critic, journalist, Arkady Babchenko. You can see images there, mourners even laid flowers and (inaudible) as chilling details emerged about the murder. Authorities said he was shot three times in the back, found by his wife in a pool of blood. They said he died on the way to the hospital and even released a sketch of the suspected killer. So, you could imagine the utter shock today when Babchenko turned up on television very much well alive. He appeared at a news conference as Ukraine's Security Services admitted faking his death in order to foil what they called a Russian plot to kill him. Babchenko apologized for the rouse, but said he had no choice.</s>ARKADY BABCHENKO, RUSSIAN JOURNALIST (through translator): Firstly, I would like to apologize to what you've all had to go through because I've buried friends and colleagues many times, and I know it is a sickening vomiting feeling when you have to bury your colleagues, your story that they've forced you to experience all of this. But in another way, it was impossible. Also, I would like to apologize to my wife for the hell she has been through in these last few days. (Inaudible), I'm sorry, but there were no other options.</s>GORANI: Ukraine officials say they've now arrested the suspect in connection with the attempted assassination plot. Moscow calls the whole thing Russophobic lies. Let's get more now from Frederick Pleitgen live in Moscow. How did they explain the fact that in their view there was no other way to do this than to pull this type of stunt?</s>FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they really haven't said very much as to why exactly (inaudible) the success of what they call this operation depended on them doing it the way that they did, and they said that they have the suspect in custody thanks to that. Apparently, arrested only a couple hours before then Arkady Babchenko went in front of the press and revealed that he was in fact still alive. And one other interesting things about this, Hala, is that it wasn't only the Ukrainian Security Services, but it seems pretty much all levels of the Ukrainian government in some way, shape, or form were involved in this. Even the prime minister came out and blamed the Russians initially with a very angry tweet on his Facebook page saying that he believed that they were behind it. That is also one of the reasons why the Russians are so angry. So, a lot of twists and turns in this plot. Here is what happened.</s>PLEITGEN (voice-over): Outrage last night in Kiev, Ukraine. Officials saying prominent anti-Kremlin journalist, Arkady Babchenko, had been gunned down in front of his house. Ukraine's prime minister writing in a Facebook post, quote, "I am sure that Russian totalitarian machine did not forgive him his honesty and his fidelity to principal." Hours later, the twist, it was all staged, Babchenko alive. It was a special operation, he said as a result of which the man was detained today. He is in custody right now. Ukrainian Security Services safely discovered a plot ordered by Russia to kill Babchenko. To save him and catch the alleged assassin, they faked Bobcheko's killing.</s>BABCHENKO (through translator): People told me that it was already ordered on me and the money had already been transferred $40,000. Well, that's not a bad price for me.</s>PLEITGEN: Ukraine says a suspect in custody. The country's president calls it a brilliant operation by the Security Services.</s>BABCHENKO (through translator): I would like to apologize to my wife for the hell she has been through in these last two days. (inaudible), I'm sorry, but there were no other options.</s>PLEITGEN: This was the reaction from Arkady Babchenko's colleagues after he turned up alive on TV. Babchenko was critical of Russian actions in Ukraine and Syria, and left Russia in 2017 because of threats to his life. He wrote about his experience suffering what he called political harassment in Putin's Russia in an essay published by Britain's "Guardian" newspaper in 2017. Russian officials fuming after the Ukrainians revealed the staged assassination. "Kiev in the situation with the alleged attempts to kill Babchenko committed a stupid provocation against Russia and is now disgraced in the eyes of the world," a Russian lawmaker said. While Moscow was angry, Kiev is celebrating what they believe was a successful intelligence operation and that journalist, Arkady Babchenko is still alive.</s>PLEITGEN: And Hala, certainly, there is some criticism coming internationally as well. The committee to protect journalists has come out with a statement saying that the Ukrainian government now needs to explain why they believed there was no other option than faking the death of Arkady Babchenko to try and mitigate the situation -- Hala.</s>GORANI: All right. Fred Pleitgen, thanks very much. Let's talk more about this story. I'm joined by a high-profile critic of Vladimir Putin, who's had plenty of issues of his own with Russia, Bill Browder is the CEO of Hermitage Capital and author of "Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, And One Man's Fight for Justice. Thanks, Bill Browder for being with us. Reaction first to this stunt because frankly everybody's jaw dropped when we saw him walking to that news conference in Kiev.</s>BILL BROWDER, CEO, HERMITAGE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT: Well, I mean, when I heard the news last, no, not another one, not another person, anti-Putin person being killed. He and I were both at the same time anti-Putin conference in March. And so, when I heard that he was still alive, it was just like you a gift, a gift of life.</s>GORANI: So, you know him?</s>BROWDER: I don't know him well, but I know my reputation, and he is sitting on the same side of the barricade as I am when it comes to opposing Putin.</s>GORANI: The question now is, of course, will this in fact harm the cause of Putin and Kremlin critics who, if anything happens to them, or if they get in any kind of trouble, then the Kremlin and Putin supporters will say this is fake news.</s>BROWDER: Well, they are going to say that anyways, but the most important thing is that some people were trying to kill him genuinely. That the Ukrainian security services came up with this idea and they arrested some people that we going to kill him who didn't kill him. And so --</s>GORANI: But we don't have any details. We don't know how that -- I am not exactly sure I understand how that all unfolded or how that make sense?</s>BROWDER: I don't either, but the fact of the matter is that Arkady Babchenko is still alive, and that's the most important thing.</s>GORANI: So, you -- well, I mean, the Committee to Protect Journalists were saying, "If there was any other way, it would have been nice for us not to now be accused of staging fake news story.</s>BROWDER: The Committee for the Protection of Journalists should try to protect journalists, protected him, good for him.</s>GORANI: Yes. Now, let us talk about whether or not you believe he can be protected in the future because if Ukrainian authorities are saying they had to pull a stunt like this off in order to keep him safe, how can they keep him safe? They can't do this all the time.</s>BROWDER: Well, I would say that other than Russia being the most dangerous place for an anti-Putin critic, Ukraine is probably the second most dangerous place because the Russians are freely moving in and out of Ukraine. They are doing all sorts of stuff. Lots of people have been killed, who have been anti-Russian in Ukraine. It's probably not the smartest place for any anti-Putin person to be living life.</s>GORANI: So, it is possible for him to go somewhere else again from your perspective, perhaps he should consider it.</s>BROWDER: Yes, personally would not set foot in Ukraine because they'd grab me in a second.</s>GORANI: You had -- you are arrested today (inaudible). So, what I heard - - by the time I heard and checked, you'd already been released. But you were live tweeting the whole process from the back of a car, and then you photograph the arrest warrant. There you are in the back of a Spanish police vehicle. What happened?</s>BROWDER: Well, so every time -- my -- one of my main goals is to get the Magnitsky Acts, Russian sanctions against Russian human rights violators pass for different countries. Every time that I do that, Russia goes to Interpol and issues an arrest warrant for me. When Canada passed Magnitsky Act, the Russians did it last October, and when the U.K. passed the Magnitsky Act last week, guess what? The Russians go to Interpol again. I was in Madrid --</s>GORANI: But on what charges? I don't understand what they --</s>BROWDER: They've charge me with fraud, tax evasion, murder, whatever, whatever suits their fancy at that moment in time. And so today I was in Madrid. I was giving information to the Spanish prosecutor about money from the Magnitsky case that went to Spain. And this morning at 9:40 a.m., there was a knock on my door, in my hotel room and two policemen from the Spanish National Police showed up at the door and said are you Bill Browder? Let me see your identification. I handed him my I.D., and they said you are under arrest, come with us, sir. And they took me in the back of a police car.</s>GORANI: Did they tell you why?</s>BROWDER: They said an Interpol arrest warrant from Russia and then they put on their sirens, and I was the back of their car and him. And we ended up at the police station. I sat in the police station. I was finally allowed to call my lawyer. I was live tweeting until they took my phone away and then they got a message from Interpol saying, this was an illegitimate arrest warrant, release him.</s>GORANI: It is confusing because then Interpol tweeted there is no red notice and there has never been a red notice. There it is for Bill Browder. Mr. Browder is not wanted by Interpol channels.</s>BROWDER: So, this is total word game. So, there is no red notice. There is an Interpol diffusion notice.</s>GORANI: OK.</s>BROWDER: It's the same thing. So, I don't know what game -- this is like fake news and what game is Interpol trying to play. I was arrested this morning on an Interpol diffusion notice.</s>GORANI: Well, you are released thankfully, but you are saying this happens routinely.</s>BROWDER: This is the sixth time it's happened. Russia has abused Interpol six times and Interpol cannot get their act together and stop Russia.</s>GORANI: Bill Browder, thanks very much for joining us live on the program. They are reacting to this breaking -- to today's breaking news and also what happened to you in Spain. We appreciate it. Still to come tonight, after swift cancellation, now the fallout and the posturing from Roseanne Barr's racist tweet. President is among those weighing in. We'll tell you what he had to say. We'll be right back.