president trump at the white house conference. the performance has many asking what could come next? welcome to "early start." i'm alison kosik. >> i'm miguel marquez. it is friday, february 17th. 5:00 a.m. here on the east coast. >> this morning, everything at the white house is running smoothly. just ask president trump. in a bizarre news conference, the president lashed out in a stunning display of anger at the media and judges and at leakers and critics. he complained about inheriting a mess and insists reports of l k leaks and turmoil is false. insisting all is well in the west wing. mr. trump has to begin the search for the security advisor for the third time. bob harward said no to the job days after demanding michael

flynn's resignation. harward cited family commitments in turning down the job. >> and one said it was a question of charii clarity. he said he was reluctant because the white house seemed chaotic. the friend said harward called the job a "s" word sandwich. the white house official asked by cnn if there is another candidate for national security advis adviser. the reply not that i'm aware. the timing is not entirely a coincidence. it came hours after the president's rant of the conference which marked a total break from anything we have ever seen before. even capitol hill veterans were stunned. one texting john king saying he should do this with a therapist and not on live television. another republican lawmaker saying this is the new normal.

adding we are just trying to manage this. cnn's sara murray has more from the white house. >> reporter: good morning. donald trump capped off a very busy week with a press conference something very different from withhat we are u to seeing in the east room. he slammed the media for an hour and going after his former opponent hillary clinton as he assured the press and the american public. >> i turn on the tv and see stories of chaos. yet it is the exact opposite. this administration is running like a fine tuned machine. despite the fact that i can't get my cabinet approved. >> reporter: all of that and the president making news on russia. insisting he is not aware that any of his top campaign advisers were in contact with russian officials during the campaign.

that runs contrary to what we are hearing at cnn from sources who say there are former donald trump officials who were in constant contact with russian owe efficiencifficia officials. and donald trump hopes to have positive diplomatic relations with russia going forward. he heads to south carolina for a boeing event there before heading off to mar-a-lago for the weekend. back to you. >> sara, thanks. to help us understand what happened in the east room, if that is possible. we have tal kopan live in washington, d.c. and we have brian stelter. good morning. tal. there was news with the labor pick. russia stuff. the tax plan. obamacare. we actually had some news, yes?

>> yes. this press conference was to announce said labor pick alexander acosta. it was fascinating. we are used to when you think of the rollouts of cabinet officials, you think of the official standing in the wings and saying a few remarks. a lot of plat taugitudeplatitud. usual ritual. we heard his name at the top and almost didn't hear anything about him again for the hour as donald trump continued on. i got the sense watching him that he was really frustrated with how his message is getting out there. he almost told sean spicer let me do your job and defend my administration. you are right. there was news in there, but the way it all came together and the odd optics overshadowed the policy issues. >> brian, there were so many bizarre moments. one was a question from a jewish

reporter about anti-semitic issues. do we have sound? let's do to that and talk about it. >> i want to find a friendly reporter. are you a friendly reporter? watch how friendly. >> we are concerned about it. with what we have not addressed is the up tick in anti-semitic issues and how the government is planning to take care of it. there are people committing anti-semitic acts or threatened to. >> he said he would ask a simple question. it is not. not a simple question. not a fair question. i hate the charge. i find it repulsive. >> i mean, you look at what's going on here. i'm talking about president trump. he tied himself in knots. >> the guy did not call him a anti-semite. >> he is making the opposite

point. the generous point is the president did not understand or hear the thoughtful things the reporter was saying. he suggested the reporter was a liar. you could see how frustrated the reporter was in not getting the answer. we heard from the anti-defamation league and saying the president needs to have a fuller answer to the questions. we have seen telephone terrorism at the centers calling in bomb threats. the president is not aware of that. he should be aware of it. maybe the benefit of the awkward exchange he will get more information. >> this is not the first time this has been brought up. new york times writing an edi r editori editorial. the moment offered a perfect opportunity for a home run. mr. donald trump is not that politician. he lacks the principles and moral understanding that most americans want to see in their presidents. as is so often the case, he started with a focus on himself and skirted the issue. when will he learn.

>> i would say differently. he prefers to be campaigning rather than governing. that is something we have seen time and time again. we will see it tomorrow with a rally in florida. the new york post may be more powerful than the cover of the new york times. showing him as a circus master with the words wildest show on earth. that is what plmr. president is all about. >> a ringmaster suggests he is actually in control of something, tal. he seems to get in his way. he insists there is a crisis. he insists he inherited a mess. none of that stacks up with reality. is he going to get in his way and make his life more difficult with congress getting anything done there? >> you have to keep in mind audience. you know, one of our colleagues here said she was watching this

in middle pennsylvania. it was a different reaction than what you may be getting in the corridor. if you watch some other outlets' take on it, trump takes it to the media. not trump rants. there is a subjective question here. the big question for republican lawmakers is what they sense from the base. as long as donald trump continues to captaivate the republican base, lawmakers will not turn on him. they need him. they need his voters. they will try to implement his agenda the best they can. the second they start to sense weakness and they don't need him to main contintain voters and h bloodied up by the news cycle, they will push their agenda and push him to the side. he needs to keep that base on his side. he doesn't need to worry about the voter whose did not vote for him, but he needs to focus on

the base. >> the alternative, brian, the president predicted what the media would be talking about the next day. his rants. listen to what >> tomorrow they will say, donald trump rants and raves at the press. i'm not ranting. i'm just telling you. you are dishonest people. i'm not ranting. i'm having a good time. >> i think he is right. i think he was having a good time. >> he was enjoying it. i would be surprised if he doesn't do this more often now he has had one solo press conference. he was up there more than an hour. this is vintage trump. it is primary season trump. the post is calling it a rant this morning. you saw it with your own eyes. he was venting. he was ranting. he is consuming an enormous amounts of media about himself.

that may not be healthy for him or the country. i'm not sure how he can move away. as a businessman in new york, he would read the tabloids and watch television coverage. you can't expect a 70-year-old man to change. >> let's hope it starts soon. one of the president's big promises repealing and replacing obamacare. are republicans finally getting to it? (elated) woooooo!!! life looks great with tampax pearl. you get ultimate protection on your heaviest days and smooth removal for your lightest. tampax pearl power over periods. listerine® kills 99% of bad breath germs. this is 100% useful for a 100% fresh mouth. just ask listerine® users. the very people we studied in the study of bold. people who are statistically more likely to stand up to a bully. do a yoga handstand. and be in a magician's act. listerine® kills 99% of bad breath germs so you can feel 100% in life.

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♪ ♪ everyone deserves attention, whether you've saved a lot or just a little. at pnc investments, we believe you're more than just a number. so we provide personal financial advice for every retirement investor. welcome back. still no plan, but movement within the gop on the vow to repeal and replace obamacare. republicans meet privately to hear from officials leading that effort. still divisions are slowing down that process. as lawmakers head home for a week long recess where angry voters are expected to demand answers. cnn's phil mattingly has more from capitol hill. >> reporter: miguel, there is no question about it. republicans just haven't come together around repeal and

replace plan like they expected. they campaigned on this issue for multiple elections. over the course of the last few days, they have worked behind closed doors to get information out to members. some members want them to move quick quickly. here is what is important. members are now going home for recess where they are faced with town hall backlash. one liberal group attacking them on this issue specifically. this is why these meetings are so important. this is why speaker paul ryan laying out an actual timeline matters. >> obamacare and repealing obamacare is the reason we won the house in 2010. the big reason why we won in 2014. it is a big reason why we won the white house in 2016. we owe this to the conservatives around the country who elected us to repeal obamacare. >> reporter: there is no question about it. there is a long road ahead. the fact legislation will actually start moving the

process happening, that in and of itself will move the members. the reality is this. on policy, not just on politics and time there line, there are s on medicaid and what to do with the taxes applied to the affordable care act. they don't have straight answers. that will be with the necessi negotiations going forward. it say long pais a long path ah. when you talk to republican aides, they say that is a positive sign. alison and miguel. thank you, phil. the president has tweeted about obamacare saying despite the long delays by the democrats and finally approving dr. tom price, repeal and replacement of obamacare is moving fast. >> could he be watching "early start?" >> as fake news, who knows?

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vice president mike pence on the way to europe today where he is expected to offer reassurance as he meets with world leaders at the munich security conference. cnn's international diplomatic editor nic robertson is joining us from munich. how much of the visit for the

vice president, nic, is it reassurance to show allies the u.s. will stand by them after the president said that nato is obsolete? >> reporter: this is a lot of reassuranc reassurance. this is the main message mike pence will bring here and a message that explains the trans atlantic relationship from the united states perspective. when he arrives here, he will be first speaking with angela merkel. she has been criticized by president trump and criticized for policy on refugees and criticized, if you will, for trying to take business away from the united states. the germans and president trump always compared angela merkel to president putin of russia. the moment, you have europeans looking at what president trump said about nato and about the europe

european union. especially about the german chancellor. the reassurance that mike pence is important. the perspective is if we are seeing damage control and damage limitation coming from the administration at the white house. you had not just vice president pence coming, but here in an hour or so, secretary of defense james mattis arriving here. you have rex tillerson in another part of this, secretary of state, in another part of germany meeting with leaders. it is about reassuring the importance of the trans atlantic alliance and nato. the u.s. wants to keep the relationship with the europeans. not as drastically as what they are hear from donald trump. there will be concern here. the administration officials when they go back to washington, how will president trump take the messages they bring back? everyone will have seen the press conference last night. that leads to more concerns in europe about the nature of the

white house they are dealing with. this message that the vice president brings of reassurance is hugely important right now. >> cnn's nic robertson, thank you. the senate at this very moment is in session for a very rare overnight debate ahead of the scheduled vote on the nomination of scott pruitt to head the epa. there are not enough votes to block the confirmation. pruitt has criticized the agency he is poised to lead. the vote at 1:00 p.m. comes as an oklahoma judge ordered pruitt to release documents with the fossil fuel executives. pruitt has until tuesday to comply with the request, but he would be confirmed by then. the new york times reporting 800 epa employees signed a letter opposing the confirmation. president trump with a news conference the likes we have not

seen before. more from the surreal sight at the white house just ahead. ♪(music plays) ♪ heigh ho ♪ heigh ho ♪ heigh ho heigh ho it's off to work we go

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naturally beautiful results® i'm not ranting and raving. i'm telling you. you're dishonest people. this is fake news put out by the media. i inn hherited a mess. >> that was president trump with an extraordinary condemnation of virtually all of his critics that has people asking what could happen next? welcome back to "early start." i'm alison kosik. >> i'm miguel marquez. it is 29 minutes past the hour. this morning, everything has th white house is running smoothly. fine tuned machine as the president says in a bizarre extended news conference, the president lashed out in a stunning public display of anger. he complained about inheriting a

mess and turmoil is false. despite all is well in the west wing, he is on the search for the third national security advisor. this as bob harward turned down the job. >> harward cited financial and family issues to prevent the 24/7 commitment the job requires. a senior republican says central to the decision was quote a question of clarity regarding the lines of authority and more bluntly a friend of harward's says he was reluctant because the white house seems chaotic. a friend said he called the job an expletive sandwich. asked if there is another candidate, the response was not that i'm aware of. and the timing of the

decision is not coincidence al. it came hours after the news conference. capitol hill veterans were left a little stunned. one republican senator texting john king saying he should do that with a therapist and not on live television. and another saying this is the new normal. we are trying to manage this. and sara murray has more from the white house. >> reporter: good morning. donald trump capped off a very busy week with a press conference something very different from what we are used to seeing in the east room. he stretched on more more than an hour slamming the media and going after hillary clinton as he assured the press and american public there is no turmoil in the white house. >> i turn on the tv and see stories of chaos. yet it is the exact opposite.

this administration is running like a fan tuine tuned machine despite the fact i can't get the cabinet approved. >> reporter: and he is making news on russia. saying he is not aware of advisers in contact with russian officials during the campaign. that runs contrary to what we are hearing at cnn from sources who say there are former campaign officials who were in constant contact with russian officials throughout the campaign. in the press conference, president trump continued to speak glowingly about russia saying he hopes to have positive dip malomatic relations going forward. he will go to south carolina for an event at the boeing plant and then off to mar-a-lago for the weekend. sara, thank you. we need more help in understanding this. what happened in the east room yesterday? we have political reporter tal

kopan in washington. and we have brian stelter with us in the studio. good morning. legali let me start with you, tal. the president stepping out with the big news. announcing who his pick for labor secretary is. alexander acosta. he also made other news. first time we're hearing reaction on russia and general flynn and russian provocation. executive order on immigration expected to come next week. obamacare. we got a timeline. on tax reform. a lot of news there. >> there was. you know, it is remarkable. i was watching this unfold yesterday and he came out and very said my labor secretary pick is alexander acosta. and then moved on. we are used to seeing the rollouts mundane. they walk out with the nominee standing next to them and give platitudes and a speech.

the president came out and said this is my pick. and he went through a list of things on their own all headline worthy. the press conference continued from there. you are right. it was jam packed with news. it is almost hard to pick out what is the most important headline from the press conference because there was so much. >> our own jim acosta got more air time yesterday than alexander acosta. the question of russia came up time and again during the press conference. the president passed it off as fake news. not real. here's what he told one reporter who tried to get a yes or no answer out of him. >> you are not aware of contacts during the course? >> how many times do i have to answer this question? russia is a ruse. i haven't made a phone call to russia in years.

don't speak to people from russia. not that i won't. >> he is not going to answer that question directly. brian, he said it every way except he would not give a definitive no. >> useful effort by julie pace from ap with a yes or no question. circling around the issue. knowing it is important in the months to come to the extent of the investigations. the president giving some information, but not full account. it is important to note, this was his idea. he wanted the press conference. he asked his aides to do it. over the objections of some of the top advisers who wanted to steer him away from confrontation, mr. trump was determined to face the media. he is his own best press secretary. i'm sure sean spicer was watching. >> does it serve him well? does it get things done in d.c.? >> you have to separate out the

base. the loyal voters. the ones who didn't just vote for him, but voted for him with so much enthusiasm from rest of the voters who supported him reluctantly and the rest of the country did not support him. what will his approval ratings look like once we see him in this environment and campaign style rally this weekend. will that draw more support or further have him under water? >> and julie pace will be on "new day." t tal, it was a little awkward when he started rambling when he said what he would do with the russian spy ship off the east coast. listen to what he said. >> the greatest thing i could do is shoot that ship that's 30 miles offshore right out of the water. everyone would say oh, it is so

great. that's not great. that's not great. i would love to be able to get along with russia. now, you had a lot of presidents that haven't taken that tack. look where we are now. >> keep in mind. this is after secretary of state tillerson met with sergei lav v lavrov. >> it was at the same time. >> you are seeing almost a reaction. you also saw the president later say i'm not going to tell you what i'm going to do about the ship. >> i don't know what to make of that statement. you know, he's basically saying america would love it if he shot at a russian sub off the coast. to hear the president talking so cavalierly about an act of war and saying i'm not going to do it. and it is very hard to figure out what message he is trying to transm transmit. donald trump is not a trained politician. we are very used to politicians who know how to say things

without saying anything. it is a game of being vague. leaving options open. reading between the lines. he doesn't do that. he speaks whatever is in his head. you are seeing the american public. you are seeing the american military. you are seeing other nations. you are seeing lawmakers grappling with that. i don't think we have seen so many "s" words bleeped out on the morning show. people are trying to figure out how i interpret the statements. is he serious? is he not serious? it is a new way of doing business. people are confused about what they should make of comments like this. >> he is a disrupter. >> when shep said on fox news this is crazy. when jake tapper said this is unhinged. when scott peley comes on and talks about the exaggeration and bluster. that comes across as shocking andcross as a president

who is willing to break stuff and make it up as if it is new. we know one of the intended messages. his message and willingness to be spontaneous is what he is frustrated by. he has not been able to say as much in the past four weeks. to have it setting, it is getting back to vintage donald trump. >> this was a change election. people voted for a change. >> and perhaps concerning in this, the leaks and involvement of russia in the u.s. election and what they actually did. clearly the fact that mike flynn's phone call was leaked is a concern. rather than focus on the concerns of russia, he is making it about the leaks. >> he is trying to distract. it did not work. >> the republicans are taking that line. tal? >> they are to an extent. you heard republicans on capitol hill saying we should investigate the leaks.

not the other contents of the leaks. not entirely. you still have some lawmakers definitely out there saying we absolutely need to see the transcripts of the phone calls of mike flynn. we need to know what transpired. there are some withholding judgment. keep in mind, leaks have done a lot of good for the country in the past. watergate was a leak. i don't know anyone in washington who would say that is a bad thing that the public found out. this is an important function of the press. it will play out. >> it is friday. let's have a moment of levity. i want to show you what late night tv did after watching this news conference. watch this. >> he talked for an hour and 17 minutes, which is more than he spoken to melania all this year. the whole year. >> trump discussed the recent bombshell about his staff communicating with russia. he said he hadn't made a phone call to russia in years.

you can tell trump was lying. his tie grew another three inches. >> he's had them with world leaders. the twin podiums of the world leaders. this was him. by himself. evidently he didn't even bring his meds with him. it is hard to whale shark eyes t characterize the press conference. what did his friends say at fox news? >> all righty. >> very funny. what did fox news really say? >> wow! >> all righty then. >> so, brian, just in case the president wasn't watching, but he caught our montage, what do you think the president is thinking of late night tv? >> stephen colbert called it a stress conference. that is what it was. i think president trump felt that and the reporters. seth myers brought a paper

shredder on set. president trump is a gold mine for the late night. >> thank you, brian. tal, thank you. have a good weekend. the nba's all-star weekend getting under way down by the bayou. andy scholes has the latest in the bleacher report. if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me, and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a medication... ...this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain...

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as we mentioned before, almost lost in the news conference, the first thing the president said, alexander acosta is the nominee for secretary of labor. he is the dean of the florida international university law school. he led the justice division under two years under george w. bush. he was a national an attorney and served on the national labor

relations board. he would be tasked with prote protecting workers from discrimination and workplace safety and adding job opportunities. he would oversee the monthly job reports, something the president called a hoax. let's switch gears. jets darrelle revis faces four felony charges after an altercation over president weekeover the weekend. >> we have andy scholes with the latest. >> this stems from an altercation with revis and two men over the weekend in pittsburgh. police are charging revis with twof two felony counts of assault and felony robbery and conspiracy. police say a 22-year-old man approached revis and followed him and recorded him with a cell phone. revis took the man's phone and tried to delete the video and threw the phone in the road. then things turned physical with

the men knocked unconscious. revis' attorney says his client feared for his life and is the victim in all of this. out here in new orleans, it is quiet right now here on bourbon street. the party will get started later on for nba all-star weekend and mardi gras. things to look forward to with all star, the dunk contest and three-point contest tomorrow night. after the epic vshowdown, gordo is back this year. he has new dunks that never have been done before. as for the game on sunday, lebron james for the first time ever, is the oldest player in the all-star game at 32 years old. he is going to be anchoring the east team. on the west, kevin durant and russell westbrook. these two don't speak anymore. that should be fun to watch interact on the same team.

yesterday, i caught up with cavaliers star kyrie irving. he looks forward to this every year. >> it is a way to connect with the fans as much as possible. everybody does an incredible job reaching the community wherever all-star. new orleans is a big part. >> this is for the players. everything in the parties. this is the reason why we're here. the game, skill challenge, dunk contest. all of the things that make all-stars. >> and you can catch all of the all-star weekend action on tnt. the state farm all-star saturday night. then sunday, the coverage starts at 7:00. make sure to tune in to cnn saturday afternoon for all access at the nba all-star game special hosted by fredricka and

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welcome back. vice president mike pence on the way to europe to offer reassurance as he meets with leaders at the munich security conference. mixed signals on foreign policy keep coming from washington. we have international diplomatic

editor nic robertson live in munich. i take it they want a few moments with the vice president, nic? >> reporter: they do. they want to understand what is happening at white house. they watched the press conference last night. it leaves them with more questions over and above what they have been hearing and concerns over the past few weeks about nato and the european union. very important for vice president pence. he is meeting with the german chancellor angela merkel. he has been soft on merkel for refugees and the economy. this has caused her anxiety. she is running for re-election this year. that will be an important message. a sense in europe at the moment that perhaps vice president pence and secretary of state tillerson and secretary of defense mattis all here in europe this week on a damage

control damage limitation exercise. the message they have been bringing is reassurance and one the trans atlantic relationship with allies and partners in europe is strong. yes, there is new messaging from the president and that's what mike pence is here to bring. this concern from europe perhaps won't go away with these meetings because they want to see what happens when pence, mattis and tillerson get back to washington. what the president then says. a concern that this is still a somewhat, if you will, from a european perspective, chaotic and sham bbolic. >> we will see the reaction to the elections in germany. nic robertson, thank you. let's get a cheek ck on cnn money stream. the five-day record is over. the nasdaq and s&p fell. despite the president's comments

on tax reform at the conference yesterday. investors want to see action. that has futures ticking lower this morning. stocks in europe and asia are down as well. there is one trading day left in the first month of the trump presidency. the stocks need a huge gain to make it the biggest rally of all time. currently the record belongs to lyndon johnson. the s&p 500 jumped 6%. the second best gain belonged to jfk in 1961. trump is in third place with a 3.8% gain so far. you know what? he's happy about it. he tweeted stock market hits new high with longest winning streak in decades. great confidence and optimism before tax plan rollout. americans are taking on more debt. household debt jumped to $12.5 trillion at the end of last year. it is less than 1% below the

peak the economy hit before the great recession in 2008. that number looks alarming. there is more stability. evidence of fewer dlielinquency and bankruptcies. mortgages account for 2/3 of all outstanding debt. student loans up 10%. auto loans with the highest level on record since 2016. americans owe more on their cars than credit cards. if you are paying off debt, put more in savings. >> car industry has done well in the last few years. all right. thank you for joini utesining u. i'm alison kosik. >> i'm miguel marquez. "new day" starts now. >> the press is dishonest. the press is out of control. >> i want to find a friendly reporter. >> deflector in chief strikes

again. >> russia is -- >> information from the leaks real then how can the stories be fake? >> the reporting is fake. >> i didn't direct him. >> retired vice admiral bob harward taking a pass on the job. >> this administration is running like a fine tuned machine. >> while we're in this back and forth, the world is getting more dangerous. this is "new day" with chris cuomo and alisyn camerota. >> all right. welcome viewers in the united states and around the world. this is "new day." it is friday, february 17th. 6:00 here in new york. up first, president trump returned to the scorched earth politics that got him elected. taking fate in his hands. no spoke person. him, owe a podium and fire phone. an hour long conference that gave us a lot to discuss and

fact check. >> questions about russia continues although president trump tried to dismiss those as a ruse. this as we learned the choice to replace michael flynn >> let's begin our coverage live on capitol hill. >> good morning to you allison. this was a press conference originally meant for donald trump to announce his labor secretary pick but quickly evolved into bringing out vintage donald trump from the campaign trail. a white house aid tells cnn this is something the president was itching to do. amid all the headlines that the white house is in a state of chaos and it could all be a warm up act as trump hits the road tomorrow to host his first white house campaign style