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NEW DAY SATURDAY

Jury Selection Starts Next Week in Paul Manafort Trial; Mueller Seeks Immunity for Five Witnesses in Manafort Case; Israel, Hamas Reach Ceasefire Agreement After Major Gaza Escalation; Americans Atop Leaderboard at British Open; Manny Machado Makes Dodgers Debut; NYT: Cohen Secretly Recorded Conversations with Trump About Playmate Payment; Kremlin Praises Trump-Putin Meeting As White House Remains Silent; Moscow Puts Its Own Spin On Trump-Putin Meeting; Mom Loses Her Three Kids, Nine Family Members In Duck Boat Accident; Heart Doctor To Former President George H.W. Bush Fatally Shot On Bike. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired July 21, 2018 - 06:00   ET

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

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[06:00:20]

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. And welcome to the weekend here. After a week of -- that was spent trying to control the conversation on what happened in Helsinki, the White House is now starting the weekend, it seems, in damage control mode yet again. This time over a tape recording by President Trump's longtime fixer and former lawyer, Michael Cohen.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: So, on the tape, President Trump and Cohen are reportedly heard discussing a payment to a former "Playboy" model. Now, this was actually Candidate Trump. Now, the model claims she had a year-long affair with Trump.

Now the Trump team originally denied the affair and any knowledge of the payment. Now they're saying they didn't know about the payment before learning about it in this recorded conversation.

PAUL: At the same time, while State and Defense Department leaders are defending plans for a Putin summit sequel essentially in Washington, Moscow putting its own spin on what happened at that one- on-one meeting in Helsinki

BLACKWELL: CNN has teams of reporters covering the story around the world. CNN senior international correspondent, Sam Kiley is live in Moscow, and CNN White House reporter, Sarah Westwood is live in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey near the president's golf club.

Let's start with you, Sarah. Good morning.

SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN REPORTER: Good morning. Well, President Trump is back in the headlines for his dealings during the campaign. Michael Cohen, his longtime lawyer and fixer again making trouble for President Trump, thanks to a newly unearthed recording that is now in possession of the FBI. Now on this tape Cohen and Trump can be heard discussing the prospect of making a payment to Karen McDougal, that's the former "Playboy" model, who has alleged to have an affair with President Trump long before he took office.

Ultimately, McDougal signed a contract with American Media, Inc., AMI, that's the company that owns the "National Enquirer" and other publications and whose CEO is a personal friend of President Trump's.

Now Rudy Giuliani, President Trump's attorney, has downplayed that agreement between AMI and McDougal, describing it as nothing more than a nondisclosure agreement and saying that Trump and Cohen were simply discussing that deal on the brief tape.

Now this is obviously troublesome for the White House, not only because President Trump and his team have previously denied that President Trump had knowledge of that deal between McDougal and AMI, but because there are apparently other recordings that Cohen made of his former client, President Trump, that are in possession of the FBI.

And while Trump's team is trying to downplay the significance of those other recordings, it does raise questions about what else Cohen might have inadvertently provided to the FBI, as well as how much President Trump did know about the deal that ultimately silenced McDougal -- Victor and Christi.

BLACKWELL: All right. Sarah Westwood for us there in Berkeley Heights. Thanks so much.

PAUL: CNN senior international correspondent, Sam Kiley, is live for us in Moscow right now. So, Sam, good morning to you. Help us understand what the Russians are saying about this summit.

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Let's go back to the beginning, Christi, and look at how they characterized it coming out with Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, calling it magnificent and better than super.

Talk about a positive spin, that was a reaction that could be imagined had world peace permanently been declared, particularly coming from him, a normally fairly sour character, statesmanlike at his most effusive.

But then soon after that, the Russians tried to take control of the narrative as Washington started to question the very behavior and relationship between the two presidents suggesting that there had been unspecified really cooperation on broad security matters, notably in terms of terrorism, no great controversy there necessarily.

And then cyber, highly controversial idea given that it was cyber hacking that is alleged to have affected the American election and has affected other European political processes.

Then recently in the last 48 hours, there's been suggestions coming from the Russian side that a deal was in the making over Syria, the repatriation of Syrian refugees back into Syrian territory. Again, potentially setting up a friction inside Washington because, of course, the Washington position in terms of the administration is that there will be no repatriation into areas controlled by the Assad regime which, of course, is backed by Russia.

And then another suggestion the last 24 hours that there's been some kind of potential, Bloomberg's been reporting, an agreement to at least think about having a referendum in Eastern Ukraine.

Again, anathema completely to the United States officially and her allies with a suggestion that Donald Trump might be prepared to consider and keep it all quiet. That's been rejected by the White House, but it's all about the Russians controlling the narrative.

[06:05:13] Almost appearing to do the public relations on behalf of Donald Trump to suggest that something substantive was discussed. But all coming really from an entirely Russian perspective -- Christi.

PAUL: Makes you wonder if the White House is going to be forced to say something else, something otherwise. Sam Kiley, appreciate you being here. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Let's start there. Joining me now Errol Lewis, CNN political commentator and political anchor for Spectrum News, Michael Moore, former U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, and Rebecca Grant, CNN national security and military analyst. Welcome to you all.

Errol, let me start with you where Sam left off there. Russia is controlling the narrative here about the potential fruits of the summit in Helsinki when the president's team doesn't fully know what was discussed or agreed to.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. It is startling to hear the director of National Intelligence, Dan Coats, say he's not entirely clear what went on during those two hours, to not have been briefed, to not be aware of it.

Another wrinkle, by the way, Victor, is that U.S. intelligence agencies, if they're doing their job diligently, are going to try and hack and crack the secrets of the Russian side, and they may learn indirectly what they're saying internally in the kremlin about what went on in that meeting.

They'll end up hearing through Russia what their own commander-in- chief was talking about, putting, of course, the intelligence agencies in a very tricky situation. This is part of why the unorthodox style of the president which so many of his supporters like really has its downsides. It can create a lot of confusion and people working across purposes.

BLACKWELL: Rebecca, I read your notes to my producers. It seems like you think that the summit in Helsinki was a win for the president.

REBECCA GRANT, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY AND MILITARY ANALYST: I think it was important for Trump and Putin to meet. Here's my longtime concern with Russia -- their economy is the size of Canada's. Russia is on a slow downward spiral, 6,800 nuclear weapons. I'm in favor of Trump and Putin continuing to talk about nuclear arms and, honestly, we need their cooperation going forward with North Korea. So, I there are reasons for them to talk.

BLACKWELL: To talk again in the U.S., what do you think about this proposed summit in Washington in the fall?

GRANT: I am in favor of Putin coming to Washington. Remember, he visited Kennebunkport with the Bushes in 2007. Of course, that was before the things that what went on in Ukraine. He visited Versailles and France last year.

I like to see him come and talk because again, this is a long-term strategic problem. Russia is a borderline failed state. We have to find a way for our American security long term to deal with that potential threat. It's unpleasant dealing with Putin, but I'm in favor of Trump continuing to talk about Ukraine, Syria, and especially nuclear weapons.

BLACKWELL: Even in the midst of the midterm elections after more than two dozen Russians have been indicted in an interference campaign, an attack on the U.S., that the intelligence community says that Putin directed?

GRANT: We shouldn't expect Putin to back off. He's going to continue with the propaganda and interference like he does in so many countries. Homeland Security is helping us secure our elections.

Yes, I think the talks should go ahead. It's risky, but if Putin is showing signs that he's willing to talk about some of the long-term nuclear arms agreements, inf, space, missile defenses, and new start, I don't want to lose the opportunity.

Those negotiations take a long time. It took seven years to conclude the inf treaty. Let's get talks started and keep them going even if it's during the election cycle.

BLACKWELL: Willing to talk, but will he bring things to fruition? Let me come to you, Michael, sources tell CNN the president's legal team, that they are a bit concerned about the president as a sympathetic figure moving forward in the context of the Mueller investigation. He's calling it a witch hunt, a rigged investigation, after his performance in Helsinki. Justified?

MICHAEL MOORE, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY, MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA: I think so. This has not been a good week for the president. Any time you wrap up the week with a recording that you had a discussion with your lawyer where there's perhaps some type of improper activity now recorded on tape.

It's just another thing in the sort of avalanche of events that is happening to attack the credibility of the president and this administration. I think that's the fear the team has going forward.

You have sort of a sympathetic Trump who's there fawning over Putin in Helsinki, and now we're talking about what he may have known or done in the election and whether or not that played in, whether or not there was some outside influence there.

It's not been a good week. So, I think their concerns are justified. I mean, at some point, he's going to have to stand up. I disagree with Rebecca on this. Sometimes not having the nation's number-one enemy in Washington is not just a signal to that leader.

[06:10:12] But it's also a signal to our allies and friends that we take the threat seriously. And there are ways to have these talks at a lower level rather than bringing Putin to the palace, if you will.

BLACKWELL: Errol, let me bring that to you. Republicans and Democrats on the Hill have said that Putin will not be welcome there, he will not be welcome at the capitol. There will be no joint address to the House and Senate.

Will they go a step further? I mean, this is another iteration of, well, I wouldn't have said it the way the president would have said it. Will they take it a step further and more than saying he can't come to the Senate, House?

LOUIS: Yes, it's startling. We know that -- polls suggest that the Republican base likes what the president did in Helsinki. They're OK with that. To the extent that Congress reflects the wishes of their voters. They're going to feel the same way. And you've heard from a number of members that they are starting to step forward.

There was an RNC retreat just recently, and folks are stepping forward and saying they like what happened. That, you know, maybe it's not so bad. That the Russian president, I would call him a dictator, but the Russian dictator is welcome, and what -- and that we should have conversations with him.

The cross purposes are really startling. In this same week we have the Department of Defense saying $200 million will be allocated for Ukraine to fight off the Russian separatists, the pro-Russian separatists.

It's really remarkable that we can't get one story and stick to it about where this country stands with regard to the Russian dictator, his interference with our elections, global attacks on human rights. Very hard to imagine that we would have reached this point. I don't expect the congressional leadership to resolve it any time soon.

BLACKWELL: You brought up Ukraine, and Rebecca, you said it's a good thing that this be reintegrated into the world economy, and even welcomed back to the G7, making the g8. And of course, Russia was expelled after the illegal annexation of Crimea. What about the consequence for violating Ukraine's sovereignty? If you welcome them back, bygones are bygones, and you move out without consequence for that.

GRANT: Right. Back into the global economy long term is my point. I'm glad to see the lethal aid to Ukraine -- something that the Obama administration didn't do, that includes anti-tank weapons. We do a lot of nonlethal aid, and we have U.S. forces teaching combat lifesaving and things. Ukraine sovereignty is very important. Trump is all in favor of that. My point is long term, Russia's downward economic spiral is a threat to global stability and all the G7 have to think about what to do with Russia over time.

BLACKWELL: But don't you undermine the point that you cannot simply annex, steal part of a country after agreeing to its sovereignty in the 1994 agreement?

GRANT: I completely agree. Annexation of Ukraine, as Jim Mattis says was terrible and you know, the sanctions are very, very appropriate. But I think, you know, long term we see the shifting pieces on the chessboard, and Russia's potential economic instability could be a great threat over time especially given their nuclear weapons.

So, I want to see us continue to talk and for the G7 to think about, you know, what we have to do in the long term. Let's not make it easy on Putin. This is a mess of their own making. Let's not forget that that economic instability in Russia is a potential threat.

BLACKWELL: Michael, how does or how could the Mueller investigation impact the potential for this next meeting? I mean, let's remember what happened on Monday. The president of Russia who our intelligence community said directed this interference campaign, this attack on the U.S. democracy, more than two dozen Russians have been indicted in that investigation. Met with the president who is not the target of this investigation, the subject potentially of the investigation. One on one alone.

MOORE: Right.

BLACKWELL: Is there some way that the Mueller investigation could impact the ability for the president to have that meeting sometime in the fall?

MOORE: Well, there are a number of things happening right now. You've got the political side of it and the national security side, but you've also got the criminal case or investigation going on.

And there will be some move, my guess, is by the president's legal team to limit what he says, who he meets with, his availability. That could impact any discussion as it goes forward with Putin.

Now they're trying to make a decision I believe about whether or not the president will ultimately give some testimony or give an interview to the Mueller team. Those discussions that he's had with Putin, could that come up?

[06:15:09] Why don't we know what happened in the private meeting? If they have a second private meeting or if one is planned, I think that's sort of the cold water that might get put on plans for a second summit.

It's in play, but one side may be criminal, investigatory type of activity. The other is political, trying to balance those two is the problem they're in right now.

BLACKWELL: All right. Michael Moore, Errol Lewis, Rebecca Grant, thank you all.

PAUL: Still ahead, the trial is set to begin next week against President Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort. The charges he faces and what we can expect to hear.

BLACKWELL: Plus, a doctor in Houston shot and killed while riding his bike to work. Coming up, the message from his most prominent patient, former President George H.W. Bush.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Finally, I said, Lord, just let me die. Let me die.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: A mother reliving the moment she lost her three children in that deadly Duck boat accident in Missouri. The fateful decision that she says may have cost her children and their family their lives.

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[06:20:15]

BLACKWELL: This morning, all 17 victims in that Missouri Duck boat crash have been identified. A team from the NTSB says it could take a year to release a report on what happened.

PAUL: Last night the community held a memorial near Table Rock Lake near Branson for the victims. This morning, a woman who lost nine family members -- nine -- says the decision to try and beat an approaching storm may have cost her relatives their lives. Frances Lynne from affiliate, KOLR, has her story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANCES LYNN, KOLR REPORTER (voice-over): A Duck boat tour usually travels on land and water. Tia Coleman said she was told the tour will go on the water excursion first because of the incoming storm. She describes the captain taking over when they reached the lake.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Once he takes over, there's a big, huge wave -- choppy, everybody start getting like, hey, this is a little bit too much. Then it got really choppy, big swells of water started coming into the boat. Then a huge wave swept over. When the wave swept over, the last thing I heard my sister-in-law yell was "grab the baby."

LYNN: That's when the boat started sinking.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My head pushed up to the top of the water, and I lost control. I couldn't see anybody. I know it wasn't, but it felt like I struggled for -- it felt like I struggled for at least an hour. It was probably like 10 minutes. I remember I kept sinking, kept sinking.

LYNN: She was drowning and describes the water as being very cold.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I started floating. I was floating to the top. I felt the water temperature raise, to warm. As I felt the temperature raise, I jumped up and saw the big boat that sits out there. I don't know what kind of boat it is, huge, though.

LYNN: It was a rescue boat with people throwing life jackets into the water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I said, Jesus, please keep me, keep me so I can get to my children. Keep me, Lord. I was swimming as fast as I could. Then I couldn't reach -- I could not reach the life jackets.

LYNN: She had to swim to the rescue boat.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I swam to the boat, and I was holding on for my -- my legs and arms were heavy from trying. They were so heavy. It was so heavy.

LYNN: She was transferred to the Cox Health Hospital and is still in the process of recovering. Coleman told me about the 10 family members she was with, starting with her sister-in-law.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was there with her 13-year-old, her soon-to- be 3-year-old. I was there with my husband and our three children who were 9, 7, and 1. My in-laws were there, my mother-in-law and my father-in-law, and the uncle who lives with them.

LYNN: She also told me there were life jackets on board.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They told us, they're up here. This is where they are. They showed us where they were. They said, but don't worry about it, you won't need it. We said, OK. So, when the captain took over, I thought that at some point he would say "grab the jackets now." But we were told to stay seated.

And everybody stayed seated. Nobody -- nobody grabbed it -- when that boat is found, all though life jackets are going to be on there. Nobody took one off. You don't -- you weren't supposed to grab them unless you were in distress, which we were, but he told us don't, we don't need them. It was -- I don't know what to say. It was definitely, definitely life changing, life-altering event for me.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL: My gosh. It's life changing and altering, as she said. And I don't know how you get through that.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

PAUL: I hope she knows, I hope all of those people know that we are with them. Like we are behind them. I cannot imagine losing my children, imagine nine -- nine people in your family.

BLACKWELL: To have the composure to even tell the story hours later, that's one thing. Second, how do you start to heal when you go home?

PAUL: I don't know.

BLACKWELL: And three of your children are not there?

PAUL: I don't know. I have no idea. I hope she hears us, and we say we are behind you. And there is a whole community of people who are with you and thinking of you and praying for you. They will get to the bottom of this.

There is an investigation, remember, that's going to go on to figure out what happened. But doctors are certain that Coleman is going to make a full recovery. It is not clear, however, when she's going to be able to leave the hospital. We wish that family the very best.

BLACKWELL: Our thanks to Frances Lynn from KOLR for that story.

PAUL: Absolutely.

BLACKWELL: Police in Houston are looking for the person who shot and killed a cardiologist who treated former President George H.W. Bush as a patient.

PAUL: CNN correspondent, Polo Sandoval, is with us live from New York. So, Polo, good morning to you. We know this doctor, he was more than a physician to the former president. He was really prominent in the Houston medical community, yes?

[06:25:10] POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. But, Christi, a pillar in the medical community there in Texas. Highly respected by his colleagues. And somebody that many people respected in that community.

This morning, Houston police tasked with two things -- finding his killer and trying to establish a motive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL (voice-over): Police in Houston searching an area near the Texas Medical Center for a murder suspect after Cardiologist Mark Hausknecht was gunned down Friday while riding his bicycle to work. Police said the doctor was riding north when he passed the shooter, also on a bike, going in the other direction.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The suspect was on a bicycle, as well. Drove past, rode past the doctor, turned, and fired two shots. The doctor immediately went down.

SANDOVAL: A private ambulance passed by the scene, and EMTs stopped to help before the Houston Fire Department arrived.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've seen somebody flagging us down and said, you know, something's wrong. Then I drove up a little further and seen a gentleman sprawled out on the floor with blood all over him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We stopped, rendered aid to the best of our ability.

SANDOVAL: Authorities said investigators don't know if the shooting was targeted, random, or caused by road rage. A few people may have witnessed the attack. Police are looking at surveillance video.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Homicide investigators are interviewing people. Another good thing about our medical center as you know there is a lot of cameras. So, we are hoping that we can get some footage of this.

SANDOVAL: Dr. Hausknecht was a well-known cardiologist. One of his patients was former President George H.W. Bush. A spokesman issued a statement saying, "Mark was a fantastic cardiologist and a good man." President Bush said in a statement, "I will always be grateful for his exceptional compassionate care, his family is in our prayers."

The Houston Methodist Hospital spokesman also releasing a statement saying, "Not only was he revered by his patients, but Mark was highly regarded among his peers and colleagues. He was recently recognized as a super doctor."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: And the doctor described as a family man, had been practicing for 40 years, specializing in cardiovascular disease. In the meantime, investigators are now trying to track down the suspect. They don't have too much to go on right now, just that he was a male at the time wearing a jacket, also khakis, and a baseball cap.

However, the shooting did happen during what was considered rush hour there at the hospital complex. Investigators there in Houston certainly hoping that someone saw something, and they can help them in the investigation to track down this doctor's killer.

BLACKWELL: Pretty bizarre circumstances there. Polo Sandoval, thanks so much.

PAUL: Still to come, jury selection, do you believe, set to begin next week in the trial against President Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort. Reportedly prosecutors have 500 pieces of evidence against him.

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[06:32:00] CHRISTI PAUL, CO-HOST, NEW DAY SATURDAY: Always glad to have you with us, 32 minutes past the hour, I'm Christi Paul --

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CO-HOST, NEW DAY SATURDAY: I'm Victor Blackwell, happy Saturday to you. Jury selection begins next week in the first trial for the special counsel's Russia investigation.

Prosecutors will present the case against President Trump's former campaign Chairman Paul Manafort.

PAUL: Manafort faces numerous counts of money laundering and tax fraud related to his prior lobbying work for Ukraine's pro-Russian government. Cnn's Jessica Schneider has more on what the highly anticipated trial is going to look like.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Paul Manafort will soon emerge from his jail cell to face a judge and jury inside a Virginia courtroom.

PAUL MANAFORT, FORMER CAMPAIGN MANAGER FOR DONALD TRUMP: He's just won the primary process with a record number of votes.

SCHNEIDER: The man who served for five months as Donald Trump's campaign chairman now faces 25 criminal charges in two separate cases in Virginia and Washington D.C., amounting to a maximum of 305 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

Manafort lost his fight to move this week's trial away from Alexandria, Virginia, which is just across the Potomac from Washington to Roanoke, four hours outside the beltway. Manafort faces 18 counts of bank and tax fraud in Virginia where prosecutors from special counsel Robert Mueller's team have laid out nearly 500 pieces of evidence they plan to present.

They'll include pictures of Manafort's five homes spanning from Manhattan to Virginia and other photos documenting his once-lavish lifestyle filled with cars, high-end clothing, and even a watch and other items from the self-proclaimed most expensive store in the world, Bijan.

MANAFORT: Mr. Trump will be officially the nominee of the Republican Party, so we're excited about that.

SCHNEIDER: Just one month after that announcement and Donald Trump clinching the Republican nomination, Paul Manafort was forced out. He left the campaign in August, 2016, amid questions about his past lobbying work for the pro-Russian-Ukrainian government and the payments he received.

More than a year later in late October 2017, the special counsel's team indicted Manafort, charging him with hiding the money he made in Ukraine to avoid paying taxes, and then lying about his debt to secure new loans.

Manafort's lawyers have been fighting the charges for months on two fronts. In addition to the Virginia case, Manafort is charged with seven other counts in Washington D.C., including failing to register as a foreign agent.

[06:35:00] That trial is set to start in September. In June, the D.C. district judge revoked Manafort's $10 million bail which included house arrest and sent him to a jail two hours south of Washington.

The judge scolded Manafort after prosecutors said he contacted witnesses in his case and asked them to lie.

MANAFORT: I have no foreign clients now. I have no clients. I have one client -- Donald Trump. SCHNEIDER: The man who arguably ushered Donald Trump to the

Republican nomination is now more recognizable for his mugshot. The trial will be the first major spotlight for the special counsel's team that has already secured five guilty pleas including Manafort's former deputy Rick Gates and former National Security adviser Michael Flynn.

So far, special counsel Robert Mueller has brought 191 criminal charges against 32 people and three companies as part of his investigation into Russian meddling and other matters that arise from that investigation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL: Thanks to Jessica Schneider there for reporting that with us. Cnn legal analyst and Criminal Defense Attorney Page Pate with us now. Page, good to see you this morning, thanks for being here.

So we know special counsel Bob Mueller is seeking immunity for five witnesses who are going to testify against Manafort. What does that tell you about where this case is going?

PAGE PATE, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, Christi, it tells me that those are critical witnesses for the government, for the special counsel's office. It's somewhat unusual in federal criminal cases for a judge to grant a witness immunity.

Normally, that witness is testifying as part of the deal with the government or simply as a witness who's never charged. In this case, we have witnesses that have critical testimony, but they don't want to talk.

So in order to get them to talk and overcome their Fifth Amendment protections, the special counsel goes to the judge, and the judge gives them immunity. That means they can't be prosecuted, so they can no longer refuse to testify.

Now, we don't know who those witnesses are yet --

PAUL: Yes --

PATE: But I'm certain they have gone through that process, they're going to be critical witnesses for the government.

PAUL: We just heard a rundown of all of the evidence. You know, these -- some of the 500 pieces of evidence, anything stand out to you there?

PATE: Well, Christi, this is going to be a document-intensive case. I think it's very clear that Manafort at least had partial ownership of all of these accounts, and there's no question that money was being moved through these accounts and taxes were not being paid.

The only way you can defend a document case like this is to show that you didn't know what was going on, or you didn't know it was wrong. So the government's going to lay out all kinds of documents, over 400 exhibits, I have no idea what sort of defense Manafort's going to have to that.

PAUL: The thing is, this case started as a Russia investigation, right, into potential interference and meddling. He is being charged with money laundering, bank and tax fraud. It's not connected to, you know, the Russia collusion investigation.

They're saying that won't even come up here. However, is there any area where you can see this might actually circle back to President Trump? Can it be avoided altogether?

PATE: Well, it's possible, but I do think the judge is going to try to keep the jury focused on the evidence in this case. The documents, the money movement, the transfers, the failure to pay taxes, I think this judge is particularly sensitive to this not becoming a political case.

Manafort's lawyers tried to get it dismissed, basically saying the special counsel is now going after stuff that he doesn't have any authority to investigate, the judge denied that request. But I think based on that ruling, the judge is going to try to keep President Trump out of this courtroom. We'll just see what the witnesses have to say about that --

PAUL: All right. Two quick things, one, do you think it's going to be hard to see the jury? And two, will Manafort take the stand?

PATE: I don't think there's any doubt we're going to have people who show up for jury selection who obviously already know about the case. The key issue is can they keep an open mind?

So I think it's going to take at least a couple of days. Normally, jury selection in federal court especially in that court goes real quickly. This is going to take some time. As far as Manafort testifying, I don't see that happening. Again, it's a document case, and I think Manafort's best defense is to be patient and wait for a possible pardon from President Trump.

PAUL: All right, Page Pate, we appreciate it so much, thank you, sir.

PATE: Thank you.

PAUL: Absolutely.

BLACKWELL: Well, the violence at the border between Israel and Gaza, we were talking about that this morning, despite a shaky ceasefire, we've got new details.

[06:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Forty three minutes past the hour right now, and this morning we have new information that an Israeli tank fired at a Hamas military post in Gaza after a border fence was breached.

BLACKWELL: This is the first shot after a shaky ceasefire went into place between Israel and Gaza. And this week there's been an uptick in violence after an Israeli soldier was shot during protests along the fence separating Israel and Gaza. Cnn's Ian Lee is live from Gaza city. Ian, what are you seeing, what are you learning this morning?

IAN LEE, CNN: Hey, good morning Christi and Victor. You know, today, it is calmer than it was yesterday. Yesterday, when you would just talk to anyone, a war was on everyone's lips. People believed that this situation was going to spiral out of control especially after that Israeli soldier was killed by the sniper here in Gaza.

And then you had that wide-scale bombing campaign by Israel targeting dozens of Hamas, you know, infrastructure, you had weapons depots, you had command and control basically hitting a range of targets.

But then we heard from the UN Special Coordinator for Middle East Peace Nickolay Mladenov, he pleaded on Twitter saying that everyone in Gaza needs to step back from the brink, not next week, not tomorrow, right now.

[06:45:00] Those who want to provoke Palestinians and Israelis into another war must not succeed. And it did look like we were heading to another war. But behind the scenes, the Egyptians, the United Nations was working very hard to try to tamp down these tensions, to get everyone back talking and really to cease the hostilities.

Now, today there was that incident along the border where Israel says there was an infiltration by militants into Israel, Israel responded. So, you know, that is part of this ceasefire. We call it Gaza Calm because even though there are ceasefires, you do see it once in a while the sporadic violence.

And this situation is just continuing a trend that we've seen ever since March. Last weekend, we saw one of the largest upticks in violence where over 200 rockets and missiles were fired from Gaza into Israel.

Israel responded with the largest bombing campaign that the strip has seen since the 2014 war. So right now, the real challenge is going to be for Egypt, for the UN to see if they can come up with some sort of permanent ceasefire, a permanent truce so that this sort of cycle of violence doesn't continue whereas next weekend, I'm talking to you again about another round of hostilities between Gaza militants and Israel.

PAUL: All right, Ian Lee, we appreciate it so much, thank you. So listen to this, apparently, they call themselves the Frat House, and Coy has been taking a look at what exactly that means.

(LAUGHTER)

BLACKWELL: He's a grown man though, right, in the frat house?

PAUL: Yes --

BLACKWELL: OK, all right --

PAUL: Grown men, that is --

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS: Grown men, professional athletes competing against each other, but they're sharing steaks together, they're shacking up together at the British Open. We're going to show you who and what's going on, they're dominating the competition, that's coming up after the break.

[06:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Americans, they say littering -- I don't like to say littering all over the leaderboard at the British Open heading into the weekend.

PAUL: And you've got -- the prompter's not always our friend.

WIRE: We know --

PAUL: Everyday, not always there --

WIRE: I rely on prompter when it comes to sports. I need some guidance.

PAUL: Because apparently --

BLACKWELL: And we love you for it --

WIRE: Yes, well, as a former athlete, I wouldn't take offense to that --

BLACKWELL: The littering, OK --

WIRE: They're up there at the top of the leaderboard having some fun. This "BLEACHER REPORT" brought to you by Tums. But we're talking about the Frat House is what they're calling it. Seven Americans, they're staying together over in Scotland at the Open.

And since starting this tradition three years ago, the winner of the Open has come from that house twice. And entering the weekend, four of them have a legitimate shot at winning it again this year -- Zach Johnson, Kevin Kisner, they entered play this weekend, tied for the lead at six under par.

Johnson nailing this long-verted putt to claim his share of the lead. And Kisner having to save this bunker shot, that's not easy, but he's making it look easy, that put him in position for his share of the lead.

Now, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler shining two, just two shots back, but you would never see Aaron Rodgers, Steph Curry, Serena or any other star athlete sharing an Airbnb with opponents before a big competition, right? But these guys, this frat house, it appears to be working for them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN KISNER, GOLFER: Golf will probably be the tune, everybody will tell their horror stories and good stories and we'll laugh and eat a big, old meal, and sit around and watch something stupid on Netflix. Who knows tonight. ZACH JOHNSON, GOLFER: I was in a fraternity in college, but it kind

of feels like I'm going back to my alma mater and I'm the old guy going -- stepping into the current -- or the current frat house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Old school.

JOHNSON: Old school.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Tiger Woods made the cut, as well, at the Open for the first time since 2014. He's within striking distance there. Woods had an up and down day playing with a new putter, he made some great ones like this.

But then he also struggled some more manageable shots where he really could have staked his claim at a shot here pushing for the lead. Tiger missing the putt for birdie down on the 18th which would have put him under par even through two rounds, he is, Tiger is six shots back of the leader. He tees off at 8:15 this morning.

Now, Baseball superstar Manny Machado made is debut in blue and showed why he's one of the best in the game. The four-time all-star traded to Los Angeles earlier this week after spending six seasons in Baltimore, making one of Baseball's strongest lineups.

Even stronger, Machado hits a single in his very first bat as a Dodger, reaching base four times against the Brewers. He had two hits, two walks, and he's winning over fans in L.A. already. He chose to wear number 8 in honor of Kobe Bryant, he's a longtime Lakers fan, the Dodgers win 6-4.

They're calling it Mannywood already as far as Hollywood, so look out because Los Angeles, exciting times, right, with LeBron going there and now --

PAUL: Oh, my gosh, yes.

WIRE: I mean, this is going to be a good season and year for Los Angeles fans.

BLACKWELL: Can we get back to the frat house?

PAUL: Frat house?

WIRE: Yes!

PAUL: I knew it!

WIRE: We've pictures of just beef. Did you see the steak? I mean, I don't -- that's Fred Flintstone --

BLACKWELL: It is --

(LAUGHTER)

WIRE: Pictures of beef. I know, it's like 6:00 in the morning here, and we're already drooling, look at that steak.

PAUL: Look at that, that's the one that got me.

WIRE: Yes!

PAUL: And Zach Johnson --

(CROSSTALK)

Looks like the kind of guy that he's kind of -- aw-shucks.

WIRE: Yes, he's like 41 or 42 years old and he's hanging out with these younger guys. But you know they're loving this, throwing down on the grill, who doesn't like that?

BLACKWELL: Tiger not getting an invitation to the frat house?

WIRE: Right, he's not staying at the frat house. I was wondering the same thing, Victor, this morning.

BLACKWELL: Not staying that, all right.

WIRE: Would he go if he was invited, that's what I want to know.

BLACKWELL: Yes, that's a good question.

PAUL: That's a good question. And if you look at -- I heard him earlier in the week, he's just happy to be there.

BLACKWELL: Yes, that's --

PAUL: He's just happy to be there, yes, thank you, Coy --

BLACKWELL: Thank you Coy --

PAUL: You're welcome.

[06:55:00] BLACKWELL: All right, Moscow puts its own spin on what happened at that one-on-one meeting at Helsinki between President Trump and Vladimir Putin. Why aren't we here in the U.S. hearing more from the White House? The next hour of your NEW DAY is coming right up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Top of the hour now and it is good to be with you this Saturday. The White House is starting the weekend in damage-control mode. This is after learning about a tape recorded by President --