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White House to Lay Out Immigration "Priorities" in 7-10 Days; Tropical Storm Jose Takes Turn, East Coast in Cone Zone. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired September 15, 2017 - 15:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[15:30:00] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: OK, we're back. I'm Brooke Baldwin. The White House says it will list its specific priorities on immigration in the next seven to ten days. Perhaps that would provide some clarity to some conservatives who label the President amnesty don. After worried that he and top Democratic leaders in Congress were close to reaching a deal on DACA. But imagine the confusion for the nearly 700,000 Dreamers currently enrolled in this program. My next guest actually left the administration over his disappointment with the President's repeal of DACA. He is Javier Palomarez. He was a member of the president's diversity coalition. He is the president and CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. So, Javier, welcome, sir.

JAVIER PALOMAREZ: QUIT TRUMP'S DIVERSITY COUNCIL OVER DOCKET DECISION: How are you, Brooke? Thank you for having me.

BALDWIN: Thanks, I'm all right. To you, President Trump seems to be warming to getting some kind of DACA deal done. Are you at all encouraged by his most recent comments?

PALOMAREZ: I'm very encouraged.

BALDWIN: You are encouraged. Tell me more.

PALOMAREZ: Listen, I am encouraged by our President reaching across the aisle to work with Democrats to find a workable and permanent solution. That's what our association wants from the president. I'm encouraged by his comments as recently as yesterday. Look at what he said. He said that these young people arrived here at a young age. He's correct and we agree. In fact, they all arrived here on average at the age of 6. He said that they are good and that they are educated. And he is correct. And we agree. In fact, some 65,000 of these young people graduate from high school every year, 10,000 graduate from college every year. In fact, to even be in the DACA program, you either have to be enrolled in school or graduated from school. And he went on and further and he said that they are, you know, employed, that they have jobs. Again, he is correct, again, we agree, there's a 91 percent employment rate amongst Dreamers. It's a better employment rate than native-born kids. So, see him moving in the right direction.

BALDWIN: I hear you on all of this. And I hear that you are totally encouraged. Since you are encouraged, do you think you would want to return to the diversity council? PALOMAREZ: You know, I want to focus on a solution. Let me tell you

where else I agree with the president.

BALDWIN: Well, hold on. You haven't answered my question, Javier. I'm going to hold you on that. The solution being, solution being would you go back to the council?

PALOMAREZ: You know, I can't answer that question right now, Brooke. I am always willing to help this administration or any administration work on those issues where we see that we can add value. If we believe we can add value and it for the betterment of the American people and American small business, I am 100 percent behind it and always be there.

BALDWIN: Do you think the president -- hang on, Javier, do you think if that were the case, do you think the president would have you back?

PALOMAREZ: You know, I don't want to get into that discussion right now. There's no way to tell what is in his mind as it relates to me. What I'm focused on is the fact that we agree generally in three basic areas. That an executive order is not the solution. At best, that's a temporary fix. Second, this is a legislative issue. This must be fixed by the Congress once and for all. That's where it needs to be fixed. And third, that immigration reform is an economic imperative for the continued well-being of our country. We agree in the three basic principles. And I agree on all the things he tweeted about as recently as yesterday. I'm very encouraged and we are ready to help in any way we can.

BALDWIN: What about, you know, we talked live yesterday on trying to understand, because the President talked a lot, which was wonderful to be able to hear him be so open with the press. And there were talks of, you know, no deal and the no deal. And then a half deal. And then definitely a deal, but not amnesty. I was left a little confused. Do you understand the deal that may be made?

PALOMAREZ: You know, I don't understand the puts and the takes of the deal. I want to be focused on the fact that we're beginning to see some agreement in the basic concepts of the Dreamer program. Again, he is now saying that he believes that they are good, that they are accomplished, that they have jobs, that they're educated, that they serve in the military. And we absolutely agree with that. If we can stay and we can focus in the areas where we agree, I think we can work on those areas, which are, I think, getting smaller and smaller every day where we don't agree.

But first, let's focus on the fact that we all want to do right by these 800,000-young people that are the living embodiment of the young people we want in this country. Again, a 91 percent employment rate. Better than native-born kids. None of them are eligible for welfare or government subsidies of any kind. These are good people. And I'm encouraged that the president is beginning to talk about the fact that they are actually valuable assets to the American people.

BALDWIN: Let me move you off DACA. I've got one more question for you, Javier, as it relates to the President. There are reports out today a couple months ago, that the President when he learned that Jeff Sessions would be recusing himself in this whole Russia investigation, he berated him very publicly with a lot of people around and called him an idiot. My question to you is, we have been talking about the President's temperament. You, sir, have been behind closed doors with the President, have you ever seen his temper flare like that?

PALOMAREZ: My interactions with the president personally have been actually very collaborative. He's been a gentleman with me. He's never tweeted about me. And, in fact, in the times that he has reached out, it has been, he has been a professional. I have to be honest. I have to be honest. So, I personally, personally have never witnessed that.

And I have to say, on behalf of his entire team, everybody that I have worked with at the White House, whether that is Secretary Purdue, Secretary Mnuchin, Secretary Perry, and Ivanka, every one of them has been more than willing to talk to us. Every one of them has been more than willing to reach out to us. So, I got to be honest with you, our interactions have been very positive. They've been very willing to listen to what we want to say to them. And again, I'm encouraged because the message seems to be getting through. At least according to the tweets that I saw yesterday from the President himself.

BALDWIN: Javier Palomarez, thank you so much for your time.

PALOMAREZ: Thank you for having me.

BALDWIN: Good luck.

By the way, speaking of the President, we are watching Joint Base Andrews there, live pictures. The President expected to speak there in the midst of this new threat from North Korea. We'll have that for you live.

And -- let's take a moment here on this Friday afternoon to honor this week's CNN hero. A South African woman nicknamed "Mama Rosie" after opening her home to care for more than 5,000 orphaned, sick and abandoned children.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROSIE MASHALE, CNN HERO: I have a big heart for children. And for people in this community. Our center now has become a center of hope.

[15:40:00] All the child who are placed here they say that, "I've got my house, I've got my home, there's a mother waiting for me."

The basic things that we're giving them it's the love.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: To see her lifesaving work, just go to CNNheroes.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: Even though the South is still reeling from two deadly hurricanes, the U.S. is now facing yet another threat. Tropical storm Jose is slowly turning toward the East Coast. The question is, will it actually make landfall in the U.S.? Will it turn into a hurricane? Allison Chinchar has the answers. Alison, dare I ask, where is Jose now?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That's right. The question about Jose is that's this has been a peculiar storm to start with. Right now, tropical storm Jose, wins about 70 miles per hour moving northwest at 9 miles per hour. It's done a little bit of a loop here over the past couple of days. But going forward, it is expected to veer east and due north. By the time we get to Wednesday morning, it looks to be about 225 miles due east of New York City.

[15:45:00] But you have to keep in mind, the margin of error of these tracks is also 225 miles. Which means that while it may not be a high chance, we also can't rule out potential for cities like New York or Boston, especially the Cape. Because the Cape sticks out pretty far east. In places like Nantucket could and of getting some impacts from Jose, even if doesn't necessarily make a direct landfall over the regions.

In the short-term, here's where the model guidance all has it going through Tuesday. This is where they are all pretty much in agreement. It's slightly after that where we start to see some of them take a more north, some of them take it due east. So again, this is where you have to keep in mind. You're talking seven days out and a lot can change. For the two main models that we often talk about, the American model, which is the red, and the blue model which is the European. Both have them clipping awfully close, if not directly over portions of eastern Massachusetts by the time we get to the middle portion of next week. Which again, means that at this point in time, we can't rule out impacts from that storm.

However, regardless of that, for Maine all the way down to, yes, even including Florida, rip currents are going to be a big threat. Those winds are going to push all of that water inland along the Atlantic coast. So, you are going to have that being potentially a big threat regardless of whether or not it actually makes landfall. And Brooke, that could be a concern for a lot of the folks, say, along the coastline of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida that are still trying to recover from Irma over the last couple of days. So again, the good news is that it will be short-term. Because the farther north it moves, it will lessen some of those impacts to places like South Carolina, Georgia as well as into Florida. But certainly, something we will keep a close eye on over the coming days.

BALDWIN: I know you will, Allison Chinchar, thank you for now. Meantime, just a reminder to all of you, live pictures from Maryland, Joint Base Andrews waiting for the President to speak there with his air fleet in the midst of this new threat from North Korea. We'll take it live as soon as we see POTUS. Stay with me.

[15:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: North Korea firing off yet another missile and a show of defiance while most of its citizens live in darkness, starving, struggling to survive. Tonight, CNN is airing an exclusive documentary. Correspondent Will Ripley gets unprecedented access into the mysterious and isolated country that is North Korea.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): I've reported from North Korea more than a dozen times over the last few years. Each time, we open the door a little more. And see this country and its people in unexpected ways. Just like this. Yes, even in North Korea, kids love video games. For these 14 and 15-year-olds, these are not just games. This is practice for real life. Most of these boys, and a lot of the girls, will spend their first years of adulthood serving in the Korean People's Army, just like their parents and grandparents before them.

(on camera): What do you like about this game?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD (through translator): Killing the enemy.

RIPLEY: Hitting the enemy. Who's the enemy?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD (through translator): Americans.

RIPLEY (voice-over): This hatred of Americans stems from the Korean war. North Korea contradicts Western historians, saying that America started the war that killed millions of civilians and divided the Korean Peninsula.

(on camera): Who do you want to fight?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD (through translator): To fight the sworn enemy, America.

RIPLEY: What do they teach you about Americans in school?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD (through translator): They forcibly invaded us, slaughtered our people, buried them. Buried them alive. Buried them alive and killed them.

RIPLEY: So, they teach you that the Americans are the enemy and you need to shoot them, to fight them?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD (through translator): Yes.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Here's where things get awkward.

(on camera): What if I told you that I'm an American. Do you want to shoot me, too?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD (through translator): Yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: CNN exclusive documentary "Secret State, inside North Korea" it airs tonight 10:00 eastern only here on CNN.

And again, any moment now in Maryland, we're waiting for this demonstration involving the air fleet there at Joint base Andrews. To begin with the President of the United States. Stand by. We'll take it live.

[15:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELISSA MCCARTHY, ACTOR, COMEDIAN: And our president will knot be de- turd. In his fight against radical moose lambs. Does anybody else have any questions?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, "Wall Street Journal," are you OK?

MCCARTHY: Come here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Oh, we love her. We miss her. That is Melissa McCarthy playing the now former White House spokesperson Sean Spicer on "Saturday Night Live," a performance that has now garnered her an Emmy Award. The actress received the award for outstanding guest actress in a comedy series.

Sean Spicer was just on "Jimmy Kimmel" the other night and joked about it when he was on.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL": Did the president -- he didn't think that was funny?

SEAN SPICER, FORMER WHITE HOUSE SPOKESPERSON: I don't think he thought it was worth it.

KIMMEL: Is he particularly annoyed by the fact that a woman was playing you?

SPICER: I really didn't ask a ton of questions. So, that may have been a contributing factor.

KIMMEL: What a no-win situation. They're making fun of me and you're mad at me for it.

SPICER: And she wins an Emmy.

KIMMEL: And then she won an Emmy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: "Saturday night live" is tied with the HBO's show "West World" for the most primetime Emmy nominations this year. The ceremony aired Sunday night at 8:00 with funnyman host, Stephen Colbert. In just a quick reminder to all of you, please, please tune in tonight

at 10:00 Eastern. "Secret State, inside North Korea, " Will Ripley, a fascinating exclusive access to all things North Korea. I'm Brooke Baldwin. It's been a day. Have a wonderful weekend. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts now.