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President Trump Unveiling His New Message To Muslims Worldwide; University of Notre Dame Students Walked Out of Commencement Ceremony; Shocking Images Horrified Students at American University in Washington DC; First Lady Melania Trump Getting Rave Reviews from Saudi Press for Her Fashion Choices. Aired 7:00-8:00p ET

Aired May 21, 2017 - 19:00   ET

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


[19:00:00] ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: I'm Ana Cabrera in New York. Great to have you with us. We begin with President Trump debuting his new message to Muslims worldwide. The man who campaigned heavily on a proposed Muslim ban today asking Islamic leaders in the Middle East to unite with America in the global fight against terrorism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is not a battle between different faiths, different sects or different civilizations. This is a battle between barbaric criminals who seek to obliterate human life and decent people, all in the name of religion. People that want to protect life and want to protect their religion. This is a battle between good and evil.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Something you didn't hear in that speech, the phrase radical Islamic terrorism, which Trump used often as a candidate. But the President did have three other words on confronting extremism, drive them out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: A better future is only possible if your nations drive out the terrorists and drive out the extremists. Drive them out. Drive them out of your places of worship. Drive them out of your communities. Drive them out of your holy land. And drive them out of this earth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: I want to bring in CNN's international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson in the Saudi capital where the President made that speech. Also with us, our global affairs correspondent Elise Labott.

Nic, to you first. What are you learning about President Trump's decision not to use that phrase, radical Islamic terrorism?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, what he does seem to have done here is try to strike a line that was careful, that was carefully nuanced that wasn't going to upset his audience. He came in carrying so much baggage for what he said on the campaign trail ABOUT Muslims, but he came in with the expectations set high because the Saudis have said this is an opportunity. President Trump will be able to reset the relationship between the west and the Arab Muslim world. So expectations were high on both sides, if you will.

But rather than coming in and demanding that people do more to confront this issue. He said I'm not here to tell you what to do. This is about not how to live your life, this is about common values, having common ideals, a common objective, and through that, we can both have joint security. But he was very precise, if you will, in saying that, you know, you need to be honest. More needs to be done. You need to be honest when confronting this extremism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Of course, there is still much work to be done. That means honestly confronting the crisis of Islamic extremism and the Islamists and Islamic terror of all kinds. We must stop what they are doing to inspire because they do nothing to inspire but kill.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: So speaking afterwards, senior White House officials said actually, President Trump had been stronger rather in his message than what was anticipated, rather than toning down, he was being strong. Obviously, his base, they want his base of supporters to understand that this was a tough strong message. He wasn't backing down on what he said he would do -- Ana.

CABRERA: So the President is off to Israel tomorrow, Elise. I understand you just learned about what could be a major development. Tell us about it.

ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ana, as the President heads towards Israel, today was Jerusalem day, which is the Israeli celebration of its victory in the 1967 war in what they call the liberation of Jerusalem. And who was there? None other than the U.S. ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, who just took up his post.

Now, this is a controversial attendance by Ambassador Friedman. This is the first time any U.S. diplomat has ever attended these Jerusalem day celebrations where Benjamin Netanyahu is talking about Jerusalem being the unified capital under Israeli control that is not for negotiation.

This comes as President Trump is seeking to negotiate peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Jerusalem is a very sensitive, what they call a final status issue in that. And for Ambassador Friedman to be sitting at these celebrations in effect endorses the Israeli idea that Jerusalem could be that unified capital.

Now, with President Trump facing all this controversy about what he is going to do at the embassy, a very controversial move that's certainly going to anger the Arab states as President Trump gave this very what he thought positive message to them today.

CABRERA: Right. Elise Labott and Nic Robertson, our thanks to both of you for joining us.

President Trump is thousands of miles away, but again, back here at home in Washington, a cloud of the Russia investigation still hangs over the White House. The Senate intelligence committee wants to see the White House notes that reportedly led to bombshell reports in "The New York Times."

The report claimed during the President's meeting with Russian officials at the White House, President Trump referred to former FBI director James Comey as a quote "nut job," and said firing Comey eased great pressure on him.

Here was what Senator Marco Rubio, a member of the intelligence committee, had to say this morning on "STATE OF THE UNION."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[19:05:29] SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: Those responses are based on notes that I haven't seen and neither have you. I'm not denying that they are. I'm not admitting that they are. We don't know. And that's why we need to have an inquiry that looks at all of that. That's why I asked the White House to produce those notes to the intelligence committee so we could review it. And I thought that was important and continue to believe it's important for them to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Let's talk it over with California congressman Ted Lieu, a Democrat.

And congressman, thanks for being with us. I want to first put up a tweet of yours last night. I'm on the House Judiciary Committee. This is what I'm going to read this evening. We see a photo of impeachment removal research there.

So your committee is where the impeachment process would begin. Clearly, you are starting some research. But can you go as far as to say the impeachment process is officially under way?

REP. TED LIEU (D), CALIFORNIA: Thank you, Ana, for your question. CNN broke the story that the White House lawyers were looking at impeachment proceedings. I sit on the house Judiciary Committee. I thought it would be prudent for me to do the same thing. And that's because the last two weeks have been a turning point. We have seen the President commit what looks like obstruction of justice in real time.

CABRERA: Now, you would need at least four Republicans if I'm understanding it correctly, and all of the Democrats to prove the impeachment process out of your committee. Have any of your Republican colleagues signaled they're with you at this point?

LIEU: They have not. But this is a fast moving story. We know that two weeks ago, the President took an action of firing the FBI director. A few days later, he admitted on national TV that he did it because the Russian probe was on his mind. And then just last Friday, "The New York Times" reports an account that the White House does not dispute, which is the President did this to relieve great pressure on him. This is exactly what obstruction of justice looks like.

CABRERA: And yet, I spoke with respected constitutional lawyer Alan Dershowitz this weekend. He argues the opposite. He said there is no case of obstruction against Trump. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALAN DERSHOWITZ, CONSTITUTION LAW EXPERT: The President is the head of the executive branch. A unitary executive branch, constitutionally, he can control the branch. He could tell the director of the FBI, do not prosecute Flynn. He can say, prosecute so-and-so. There is no constitutional barrier to the President doing that. The President has a constitutional right, right now, to pardon Flynn, and to pardon everybody in the Russian investigation and say, there will be no more investigations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Congressman, Alan Dershowitz said he voted for Hillary Clinton. It is not like he has been a longtime Trump supporter or anything. So what's your response to what we just heard?

LIEU: Alan Dershowitz is wrong, and a smarter person, Lawrence Tribe, disagrees with him. And I disagree with Alan because Congress has a full right to review the actions. We get to decide what constitutes a high crime, and the President commits obstruction of justice, that could certainly fit what constitutes a high crime.

CABRERA: Remember, impeachment against Bill Clinton was a political disaster for Republicans back in the '90s. Clinton's poll numbers went sky high. A lot of Americans thought, you know, there was a possible GOP vendetta against him.

So Congressman, do you worry by going down this path of impeachment possibly and just the idea that we are discussing here, might it have a similar effect on your Democratic Party? The opposite of what you would hope?

LIEU: I think a better comparison would be Richard Nixon. The first article of impeachment for Richard Nixon was obstruction of justice. Impeding a federal investigation or obstructing it, is a serious felony. Anybody else that commits obstruction of justice would face up to five years of prison time. This is very different than what President Clinton may or may not have done. But we do need to let the investigations run its course so we can review the full facts.

CABRERA: Do you worry about, you know, overruling the will of the American people because this President was elected?

LIEU: Impeachment is one of the gravest decisions that Congress can make, other than declaring war. It should never be our first option. That's why we need to review all the facts, have full and fair deliberations and then make the decision based on the facts. CABRERA: Now, I want to ask you about the President's trip overseas.

This is his first trip abroad, a lot has been said about where he is choosing to take this trip in Saudi Arabia first. He will head to Israel tomorrow. I just want to get your take. How do you think he is doing so far in representing the United States?

[19:10:03] LIEU: I sit on the House foreign affairs committee. I'm an American. I want our President to represent us well. I want him to be strong. I want him to make us proud. And I'm not going to criticize the President for his foreign policy while he is on foreign soil.

CABRERA: Did he move the ball forward in a positive direction among the Arab community today in how he addressed terrorism?

LIEU: I think it's a good thing that he did not use the words radical Islamic terrorism in a Muslim country. I think the President when he comes back needs to explain why he wants to ban Muslims from entering the United States. But we will wait for the President to come back before we have that debate.

CABRERA: What would be your advice as he entered Israel and is working on the Palestinian and Israeli peace process?

LIEU: That he needs to be fair and impartial. And again, that he needs to represent U.S. interests first. And I hope the President does well.

CABRERA: What are those U.S. interests that he needs to represent there?

LIEU: That we need to insure the safety and security of the United States, of Israel, and we need to make sure that we can have a two- state solution and be on a path to going to a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.

CABRERA: All right, Congressman Ted Lieu, our thanks to you for joining us.

Coming up, more challenges for President Trump on the world stage. Differences with the Pope, with NATO allies, even some tensions with Israel developing.

Plus, the first lady's fashion choices getting a lot of attention in conservative Saudi Arabia. We will tell you why.

And the video going viral, a sea lion snatches a little girl from her family. We will show you what happens next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:15:47] CABRERA: President Trump's first official trip abroad really just began. Tomorrow, he departs Saudi Arabia for Israel. Then, he is there, he is in the West Bank. He will go to the Vatican City, then Belgium and back to Italy. He is going to be outside the country for an entire week. I want to get CNN contributor and former U.S. ambassador Norman Eisen

in here with us. Also, CNN political commentator and former White House political adviser Jeffrey Lord.

Norman, to you first. Tomorrow in Israel, the President will face people he made promises to during the campaign. Promises like this one. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We will move the American embassy to the eternal capital of the Jewish people, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Well, the President has since backed off that promise. How does this hurt the President's credibility in Israel?

NORMAN EISEN, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CZECH REPUBLIC: Ana, thanks for having me. And if the President can get away with facing the Saudi and other Muslim leadership from across the Middle East after his outrageous and inflammatory anti-Muslim statements in the campaign, he will be able to get away with the Israelis with not yet having moved the embassy to Jerusalem. The line that the White House gives on background is not yet. We are considering, delay, procrastinate. And it's early in the relationship for them to take him to task. So he will skate by this time.

CABRERA: Jeffrey, you know, promising to move the embassy was a pretty huge moment during the campaign. Why should the Israeli people believe the next promise he makes?

JEFFREY LORD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think he will do it at some point. I mean, he is a man of his word with these kinds of things. I mean, we need to pull back here and see what's going on. Here is a man who is going not to Canada, to the comforts of Canada or Mexico in our own North American continent, but his first foreign trip, he is punching right into the heart of the most difficult problem on this planet.

He is going -- he went straight to Riyadh, to Saudi Arabia. He goes from there to Jerusalem which is unprecedented. And then he will go to Rome. And we are talking the three major faiths here in the world. And he is going to have a very candid conversation with all of these folks, that they need to pull together. They need to help. We need to stop this insanity that's going on of people killing in the name of religion. I mean, this is barbaric. Absolutely barbaric.

CABRERA: I want to read you some of the headlines in advance of the President's visit to Israel. Haven't been the best. Got to say. Take a look at these. Analysis, six reasons Trump's visit appears to be jinxed. The Israeli right's love affair with Trump goes from ecstasy to agony. Jeffrey, what do you think these are about?

LORD: Well, I think that's normal human behavior. You know, as you know, I worked for President Reagan and I'm not a big Jimmy Carter fan. But let me say something for President Carter.

President Carter was an outsider, not unlike Donald Trump. And the one lasting contribution that I think he made in world peace and in the Middle East was bringing the Israelis and the Egyptians together. I was a young member of congressional staff in 1978 and 1979 when he was doing this. And I remember vividly the negative headlines that people thought this was simply not possible, as he brought Prime Minister Beggen (ph) and the President (INAUDIBLE) just more or less locked them up in Camp David until they got it done, but he did get it done.

You have to think outside the box and you have to be willing to take this kind of skepticism and criticism. It comes with the turf. And Donald Trump is somebody who thinks big and believes in never giving up, and he thinks outside of the box, so God bless him.

CABRERA: All right. I think everybody can agree, it would be great if he was able to accomplish what no other President before him has been able to do when it comes to that conflict in the region.

But meantime, he will also move on and he will meet with the Pope. There has been a little contentious back and forth between the two leading up to this. This is the moment Trump sort of bashed the Pope during the campaign. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: So the Mexican government fed the Pope a tremendous amount of stuff about Trump is not a good person. And the Pope just made a statement. Can you imagine? I got a call, as I'm walking up here, they said, Mr. Trump, the Pope made a statement about you. I said the Pope? What did the Pope say? I like the Pope. I mean, was it good or bad? Because if it's good, I like the Pope. If it's bad, I don't like the Pope. No, it's true.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[19:20:18] CABRERA: He had a little fun there, Norman. How do you see their meeting going?

EISEN: Well, I hope the Pope speaks about the thing that the President failed to speak about in Saudi Arabia today. Universal human rights, the dignity of all people, and I think the Pope will. The Pope is not afraid to tell the President. I was disappointed that he told the Saudis code words, we're not going to lecture you.

I hope the Pope will tell him, Mr. President, your divisiveness, your separation, your harmful rhetoric, is not consistent with the values that make us great as human beings. So I'm looking for a little bit of papal instruction for the President.

CABRERA: Jeffrey, was that a missed opportunity for the President today not to address human rights issues?

LORD: No, I don't think so. This is his first time on the world stage here. And I think the big opportunity that he took was to do something that President Obama was utterly unable to do. And that is to bring together these three faiths and bring an end to an Islamic terrorism. President Obama, for all the reasons that we know, more or less produced ISIS with his policies in Iraq.

CABRERA: Those are some pretty strong words. How so? Do you feel like President Obama produced ISIS?

LORD: He made it a point to get America as much as possible out of Iraq. That was one of his campaign promises.

CABRERA: ISIS emanated in Syria, though, in terms of getting the facts. It wasn't Iraq. It was Syria where ISIS came from.

LORD: OK. Well, clearly -- they are clearly all over the place in the Middle East. I mean, they want to have a caliphate. And President Obama view of all this was, you know, I'm not going to touch this. I'm not going to touch it.

I mean, one good thing I have to speak up for him that he did do is go after Osama bin Laden, which was initiated in the Bush administration, and God bless him for doing that. But he had a world view here that was basically Neville Chamberlain's. It was weakness and appeasement, and all that did was produce more war. So you have got to bring this to a close.

CABRERA: Remember, President Trump has -- was touting on the campaign trail that he didn't think we should have gone into Iraq to begin with.

LORD: Correct.

CABRERA: Norm, I see you shaking your head. I'll give you a chance to respond.

EISEN: What a bucket of nonsense, Jeffrey. ISIS was an off-shoot of Al-Qaeda. The president, President Obama fought them tooth and nail. We can agree or disagree about different strategies, but that's foolishness. And I think what we should be looking at instead is President Trump today, there was a downside to his embrace of the Sunni world. He inflamed the Shiites. He essentially took sides in the Sunni/Shia battle. He contributed to the sectarianism in the region, Ana. So that's troubling. I think we should deal with that reality, not Jeffrey's fantasies about President Obama.

LORD: So your answer, Norman, is that we should invade the Middle East again?

EISEN: No, Jeffrey. My answer is, it's false that President Obama was responsible for the creation of ISIS. My answer is that we need to look at what President Trump is doing today, and among the failures in Riyadh, there were pluses. It's not entirely negative, but among the two blatant failures was he had political capital to raise human rights. That's what makes us Americans. We speak up for free speech. He failed to do it.

Jeffrey, let me finish, please. He failed to do it. And that is a failure. And then, he took sectarian sides. He did not sufficiently remain balanced in the sectarian battles of the Middle East. Those are two substantial failures that I think we need to focus on more than these outlandish and false claims about Obama.

LORD: Norman, quickly, all I'm saying is we did it President Obama's way, it failed and the American people want to go a different way.

CABRERA: All right. Jeffrey Lord, Ambassador Norman Eisen, thank you both.

Coming up here in the NEWSROOM, Melania Trump in her international debut. A look at the first lady's agenda abroad and the advantage she may have over her predecessors.

And frightening moments for a family when their little girl is snatched by a sea lion.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:29:01] CABRERA: First lady Melania Trump is getting some rave reviews from the Saudi press for her fashion choices. The desert kingdom's major paper calling the first lady classy, conservative, and elegantly respectful.

I want to bring in CNN White House reporter and expert on all things first ladies, Kate Bennett.

Kate, thanks for being with us. The first lady, we saw in the photos and images. She chose not to wear a headscarf during this visit. Michelle Obama and Laura Bush also did not. Given that this is a country criticized for oppression of women, is she making a political or social statement through her style?

KATE BENNETT, WASHINGTON MAGAZINE: I mean, I really don't think so. It wouldn't be like what we know about Melania Trump so far for her to make some political statement or discuss policy. It's sort of not what she said she's going to do. It is not what we have seen her do so far.

I think like many modern women from other countries, she is not wearing a headscarf simply because she wasn't asked to and she is not required to. And that's exactly what the White House said when I asked them why she wasn't wearing it, you know. And other foreign leaders, female foreign leaders like Angela Merkel and Theresa May have on her recent visit had also not worn a headscarf. So it's not super unusual that she didn't do it. And I think it's certainly just a personal choice.

[19:30:13] CABRERA: And the first lady has not been one to want to call attention to herself. We know that so far on this trip, she has visited an elementary school. That was earlier today. She talked to sixth graders, some other elementary school students. She also visited a women's business service center there. What kind of role do you think she is carving for herself right now in foreign diplomacy based on what we have seen so far? BENNETT: You know, I think Melania Trump has a few things going for

her. One of them is there's sort of this inherent mystique about her. I called the Melania mystique. We don't know that much about her. She is for the most part been relatively, you know, private. She doesn't live in Washington or the White House full time. Her schedule isn't jam packed with events. She's only given a handful of public speeches.

So I think what she is really trying to do is sort of play a traditional role of a first lady, you know, go to things like schools and hospitals and celebrate cultural events. I don't think she is looking to rock the boat right now. And really, she has a very humanizing effect within this Trump administration of just being - she is coming across as warm, as calm, peaceful, put together. And there's something about her that makes us curious. And I think that's going to help her in the long run as she establishes a more robust schedule.

CABRERA: She is the only first lady born outside the U.S. She was raised in Slovenia, lived in France and Italy. Does that give her an advantage abroad? She definitely seems comfortable.

BENNETT: That's right. I mean, remember years and years ago when Jackie Kennedy spoke French when she was on French soil. I think there's a way that Melania Trump really could use her international background in that perspective. She should just be herself in that sense. And I'm sort of hoping as this trip moves on that she is able to do that.

I think there is a global interest in her. She is an immigrant. She did come from Slovenia, a communist country. She has, you know, worked her way through America, you know, ultimately ended up married and first lady. So I think there's a way that she can certainly use her diverse background to relate to people around the world and she should.

CABRERA: And she speaks five languages, including Italian. So maybe she will be able to use that when they head to Rome.

Kate Bennett, thank you very much.

BENNETT: Thank you.

CABRERA: Some frightening moments for some tourists in British Columbia. A young girl plucked from the pier, dragged underwater.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

CABRERA: More on the story here coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:36:46] CABRERA: Welcome back. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We have some shocking video to show you. A sea lion attracting attention from tourists at a wharf in Canada. And watch what happened to a little girl as she sat on the edge of the dock. Then this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's like, I'm bigger than you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My God.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My God. Oh, my God.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Yes. That would be my reaction, too. You saw what appears to be a family member diving in after her. The sea lion pulls this little girl in with her dress. Thankfully, nobody was hurt.

I spoke with the man who rubs this harbor where it happened. And he told us how he thinks it could have been avoided.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOB BAZIUK, GENERAL MANAGER, STEVESTON HARBOUR AUTHORITY (voice-over): I have never witnesses anything like that in all of my years working at the harbor, which is 27 years. But I can tell you that it's come close. And that is from people that disregard signs that think it's cute to come and feed a 1200-pound bull seal. And it's not surprising to me. And so with the media coverage on this, I'm thinking what a better way to get it through people's heads, don't feed wildlife. It's just not a good idea.

What surprised me when I watched the video as for many people that have watched it is the bull takes a snip at the little girl, and then they proceed to let her sit on the ball rail. So that is kind of not wise, in my opinion.

CABRERA: Do you think that the sea lion's behavior is a reflection of play or is it more aggressive?

BASZIUK: Hunger. It's hunger.

CABRERA: Hunger.

BASZIUK: The aggressive -- I don't know. I'm not a sea lion expert. But in this case, that's what they are doing. They are coming and they are looking for handouts from the public or if there's a fisherman that isn't wise enough to throw a byproduct off their boat. They are hungry. And that's all there is to it.

CABRERA: Are you planning to take any steps of prevention so it won't happen again?

BASZIUK: Well, I mean, we can plaster signs and whatever else, but it's the common sense of the public and the people that go down there not to do that. This movie is a poster child of what not to do when you are dealing with wild animals, be it lions or grizzly bears or cougars or whatever else. So that's all you can really do. The rest is up to the people that utilize the facility. You can't legislate stupidity, if I may.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Just unbelievable video. Thank goodness she is OK. And now we all have new awareness.

Quick break. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:43:50] CABRERA: Jarring and shocking images horrified students at American University in Washington earlier this month. Bananas hanging by strings in the shape of nooses with heinous messages targeting African-American students on campus there.

Now, the FBI is helping this campus. The police there, tracking down a suspect who was seen walking into the campus in the middle of the night.

CNN's Sara Sidner has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 21, Taylor Dumpson is an American first. The first black woman to be elected student government President at the American University in Washington, D.C.

TAYLOR DUMPSON, PRESIDENT, AU STUDENT GOVERNMENT: I fell to the floor and it was so emotional.

SIDNER: That euphoric feeling crushed just a day after she took office when these showed up on campus. Bananas hung with nooses, scrawled with the name of a gorilla and the letters of the historically black sorority Dumpson belongs to.

DUMPSON: First, as a student, I'm hurt. As a member of the organization, I'm appalled. But as the target of a hate crime, I'm numb.

SIDNER: The threats only grew. Suddenly, a known neo-Nazi group began targeting her online.

JONATHAN GREENBALT, CEO, ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: The guy behind it called for a choreographed campaign to intimidate and terrorize the head of the student body. We have seen white supremacists try to recruit on college campuses for years. But what's different today is that there has been a velocity and a volume of these efforts that we have really never seen before.

[19:45:22] SIDNER: The ADL blames groups like American Vanguard, Identity (INAUDIBLE) and American Renaissance for stirring racist sentiments on campus.

JARED TAYLOR, AMERICAN RENAISSANCE: First of all, I completely reject the term white supremacy. I simply want the opportunity for my people, people of European origin, to be left alone so that we can pursue our own destiny.

SIDNER: We met up with Jared Taylor, the head of American Renaissance.

Do you think recruitment is going well?

TAYLOR: Yes.

SIDNER: When it comes to young people.

TAYLOR: I'm constantly impressed by the number of young people who are completely wide awake on the subject of race, who are not bamboozled and intimidated by all this nonsense of diversity being our strength.

SIDNER: Taylor says he wants to live in an all-white world, separate from other races.

Are you racist?

TAYLOR: I'm not racist. Whatever racist means, it is a pejorative turn that means whatever you think is immoral or wrong. I reject that either.

SIDNER: But I think it's wrong that you think that someone like me is less intelligent just by my very nature of being black or brown.

TAYLOR: Come on. You are individual. You may be smarter than most white people on earth.

SIDNER: I know. But overall, you are saying that my race is less intelligence than yours.

TAYLOR: And my race is less intelligent than Asians. Is that hateful thing to say? It's where science leads me. And I have to follow the data. I have no choice.

SIDNER: It's junk science. Just not believable.

What Taylor seems to fear the most, the day people of color outnumber whites in America.

TAYLOR: If whites do nothing, they will be reduced to minority in which their culture is a side show and which they themselves will be considered a despise group who did everything bad that all of (INAUDIBLE).

SIDNER: So you have experienced what I have experienced or what people of my race have experienced.

TAYLOR: I doubt you have much personal experience with that.

SIDNER: You would be surprised.

But he says no one including the American University student should be targeted with violence or harassment. TAYLOR: I consider it very rude. I wouldn't condone that kind of

activity, but it's obviously not a crime.

SIDNER: As for Dumpson, now as President, she has a message to send. In her America, hate won't win.

DUMPSON: I think back to the Maya Angelou poem, you know, still I rise, you know. Just like dust, still I rise.

SIDNER: Sara Sidner, CNN, Washington, D.C.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Our thanks to Sara Sidner. Now President Trump spoke to the Muslim world today. But many remember his harsh rhetoric about what he terms radical Islam that in part fueled his run to the White House.

Coming up, W. Kamau Bell joins us live with an inside look at what it's like to be Muslim in small town America.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's not actually a Muslim community like in case the fact that there isn't peace in the Middle East is any indication, not all of us like each other.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[19:52:17] TRUMP: This is not a battle between different faith, different sects or different civilizations. This is a battle between barbaric criminals who seek to obliterate human life and decent people, all in the name of religion. People that want to protect life and want to protect their religion. This is a battle between good and evil.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: President Trump, the man who rode into office on a proposed Muslim ban and once declared Islam hates us, offering a new message to leaders of the Arab world and Saudi Arabia.

Now back in the U.S., W. Kamau Bell discovered many Muslims in America calling Michigan home, the town of Dearborn. Boast the largest mosque in North America and nearby (INAUDIBLE) is home to the first majority Muslim city council in America.

Here is a sneak peak on what Kamau discovered about life for those Muslims.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

W. KAMAU BELL, CNN HOST, UNITED SHADES OF AMERICA (voice-over): Tell my why Islam is weirder than Christianity again? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Muslims do have to face northeast, towards Mecca,

a daily reminder that we are all one. The point of the prayers is to keep that connection going, to give you a sample this is what we will be reciting tonight. That's the translation of it.

BELL: This is the translation. For a second I thought, oh, my God, I can read Arabic. It is working already.

Before a formal prayer there's a traditional cleanse, and you can tell I was committed because I don't just wet my afro for anybody.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: W. Kamau Bell is joining me now. I like the end of that clip there. It makes us all want more.

Before we talk about Muslims in America, let's talk just a little bit about the country that is home to Mecca. President Trump, his speech this morning in Saudi Arabia on Islam, you said you would be watching closely. What did you make of the President's speech today?

BELL: I mean, you know, a lot is being made about how he sounded more reasonable than he had sounded before, but think a pretty low bark compare to where he came from, you know. He said Islam hates us. And you know, we talk about the episode, the Muslim ban of the seven, six countries. So I think that like if anything he should have gone to apologize if he was trying to reset things. But he tried to sort of act like this is what he had been saying all along.

CABRERA: Do you think what he said today would resonate with the folks you spoke to in tonight's episode?

BELL: I mean, I think the folks that I spoke to in tonight's episode have a very long view in this whole thing. And as much as they have to focus on what the President is doing as far as the laws of this country and how it affects them and their people who live in these other countries, there's a sense of hope among the people that I was blown away by. Like, you know, you saw me in the scene at the mosque. And you know, I think that they are watching very closely. But I can't imagine they have a lot of trust in that speech or felt as good about it as many in the media seemed to feel about it.

[19:55:17] CABRERA: Well, many of the people worried or afraid given just the current climate in America when it comes to terrorism or the attitude toward some - of some people toward Muslims?

BELL: I mean I think that a lot of this is about like trying to -- again, they want to sort of change the narrative to where it should be at. Most at school, we would call it extremist terrorism affects people who are Muslim or Arabs. So they are thinking about it already. And I think that what they are trying to say is like I think the big thing on the episode is like there's not one version of Islam or one typical Muslim, it is the biggest religion in the world. I mean, there's a - I think they were trying to use like there is a diversity of opinion in the episode which should help us when we talk about Islam, we don't think of it as one thing, as one type of person with one type of belief in their religion.

CABRERA: Did they have any thoughts about what the solution is in terms of combatting extremism?

BELL: I mean I feel like if they interested, I would sort of start a service taking bus trips with people to Dearborn just you could say, whatever you think you are scared about, look at this sleepy suburb with the delicious food. Whatever you think is going to happen if you see women walking down the street in (INAUDIBLE) is not happening here. Just people trying to live their lives and get their part of the American dream. I feel like the CNN show is cancelled that's the service I would start if the people in Dearborn (INAUDIBLE) were into it because I feel it is about seeing people up close. And we shouldn't always have to do that. But I feel like we have to do that.

CABRERA: Well, you are bringing people there. I mean, that's what is so great about your show. You spent some time with millennial Muslims and you talked to them about how they remain true to their faith in the modern era. And so many other young people of other religions are falling away from their faiths right now. What keeps them motivated?

BELL: Yes, I mean I was really compelled by them because they didn't sound like they were changing the religion to fit them other than having an app on their phones that gave them the call to prayer, which is pretty cool. But they really believe in their religion on a very deep and fundamental level. At the same time if they walk past you in the street they look like any other millennial you will see. And I think that like in this time where people are searching for meaning, they feel they have that meaning in their religion. So it was pretty inspiring. I felt like I needed to go to church after I talk to them. I didn't, but I felt I should.

CABRERA: You just rated yourself up.

Thank you, W. Kamau Bell. We look forward to your episode tonight.

You can catch his brand new episode of "UNITED SHADES OF AMERICA" tonight at 10:00 p.m. eastern right here on CNN.

Well, the vice president getting an icy reception as he prepared to address students at the University Notre Dame. At the commencement ceremony today some graduates simply stood up for what they say is religious freedom for all. They walked out his commencement address.

CNN's Rosa Flores was there -- Rosa.

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ana, the students who stood up and walked out of their commencement ceremony said it best. They said that this is graduation day and they graduated from a catholic university. And on this campus they learned about religious freedom for all, not just for Christians but also for their Muslim brothers and sisters.

They also say that they learned about standing up for the marginalized, for the poor, for the LGBTQ community, and they say these teachings are straight from Pope Francis. And they don't believe that vice President Mike Pence represents those teachings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, we are all Notre Dame or none of us are. And if you are trying to silence and not listen to the preferences of one group and their families, then you're not listening to any of us. And that was a speech -- I guess that was what we wanted to say today to the administration, more so than anyone else, the administration. You need to listen to our peers. You need to listen to our peers families and concerns when you decide who to invite to our graduation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)\

FLORES: Some context is important here because about 3100 students received degrees and between 75 and 100 students stood up and walked out once vice president Mike Pence began to speak -- Ana.

CABRERA: Rosa Flores, our thanks to you.

Thanks for rolling into the 8:00 hour eastern here in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York.

We began this hour with President Trump unveiling his new message to Muslims worldwide. In his first speech abroad he urged Muslim nations to purge their communities of the quote "the foot soldiers of evil and for bad terrorists from taking sanctuary on their soil." The man who campaigned heavily on a proposed Muslim ban today asked Islamic leaders in the Middle East to unite with America in the global fight against terrorism.

Let's get out to CNN international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson in the Saudi capital where President Trump gave that speech today - Nic.