Press Briefing by Press Secretary Sarah Sanders and CEA Chairman Kevin Hassett
It's, frankly, I think, sad and pathetic that a gutless, anonymous source could receive so much attention from the media. And I think that the American people would be much better served if we actually spent some time talking about some of the really important things that are facing our country and the things that this administration is doing to help fix them.
Justin.
Q Has the President received the Kim Jong Un letter from the State Department? And if so, can you share any details about the content or tone, or if there were any commitments or requests from the North Korean leader?
MS. SANDERS: Yeah, the President has received the letter from Kim Jong Un. It was a very warm, very positive letter. We won't release the full letter unless the North Korean leader agrees that we should.
The primary purpose of the letter was to request and look to schedule another meeting with the President, which we are open to and are already in the process of coordinating that.
The recent parade in North Korea, for once, was not about their nuclear arsenal. The President has achieved tremendous success with his policies so far. And this letter was further evidence of progress in that relationship.
A number of things that have taken place: The remains have come back; the hostages have returned; there's been no testing of missiles or nuclear material; and of course, the historic summit between the two leaders. And this letter is just further indication of the progress that we hope to continue to make.
Q And is the expectation that that second meeting would be here in Washington? I know that's something that the President has talked about.
MS. SANDERS: We'll let you know when we have further details, but certainly something that we want to take place and we'll already continue to work on making that happen.
Weijia.
Q Sarah, to follow up on that, you mentioned the remains being returned, the hostages, the lack of testing, which were all happening when the President cited a lack of progress and cancelled Secretary Pompeo's trip.
So other than these really nice words from Kim and a parade, what signs of progress warrant this new optimism from President Trump?
MS. SANDERS: Again, certainly the most recent parade this weekend, one of the first times, I believe, that we - they have had parades similar where they weren't highlighting their nuclear arsenal. We consider that a sign of good faith. And again, the letter from Kim Jong Un to the President certainly showed a commitment to continuing conversations, continuing to work on the progress that they have had since their meeting just a few months ago. And also, a continued commitment to focus on denuclearization of the Peninsula.
Q And a separate question on Bob Woodward, because President Trump continues to call him a liar and says his book is completely a work of fiction. He's also mentioned libel laws quite a bit. Is President Trump considering filing a lawsuit against Woodward?
MS. SANDERS: I'll certainly keep you posted on that. But I think we've been extremely clear from the beginning. Many of the book's sources have already spoken out to refute. A couple of them: Chief of Staff John Kelly aggressively pushed back in this. General Mattis aggressively pushing back in the claims. John Dowd also pushing back against the things that are attributed to him. And a number of people have come out and said that Woodward never even reached out to corroborate statements that were attributed to them, which seems incredibly reckless for a book to make such outrageous claims, to not even take the time to get a 10-dollar fact-checker to call around and verify that some of these quotes were - happened. When no effort was made, it seems like a very careless and reckless way to write a book.
John.
Q Sarah, the President said that he was looking into whether or not to take action against the New York Times for publishing the anonymous op-ed. Does the President not think that that op-ed is protected by the First Amendment? Does he really think that the federal government should contemplate action against a newspaper for publishing an article?
MS. SANDERS: I think it's less about that part of it, and whether or not somebody was actively trying to undermine the executive branch of the government and a duly elected President of the United States. If they don't want to be part of that process, they shouldn't be here.
Q And if I could ask - he tweeted earlier - and it's been a while since we've had a chance to talk to you, so this goes back a little while - but he tweeted last week, suggesting that the Justice Department should not be investigating, should not be prosecuting those two Republican congressmen because it might hurt Republican chances in November. Is the President really trying to suggest or outright saying that the Justice Department shouldn't be investigating or prosecuting allies of the President if it might hurt his party's political chances? Or what was he saying?
MS. SANDERS: Certainly, the President thinks that no one is above the law. What he would like to see is a fair playing field; that there also be - there have been a number of concerns raised about individuals, both in the FBI and the Department of Justice, that have been ignored, and we'd like to see those looked at as well.
Steve.
Q But those two prosecutions, he doesn't want to go forward because they're his allies?
MS. SANDERS: I can't weigh in right now on an active investigation -
Q He did.
MS. SANDERS: - but I can tell you that the President doesn't think anyone is above the law. And we're simply stating that there should be cause for concern of a number of things that have happened, both in the Department of Justice and the FBI, that we'd like to see those looked at as well.
Q Back to North Korea, how soon would you like to have this second meeting?
MS. SANDERS: I don't have any specifics on the exact timing -
Q Before the end of the year? Or -
MS. SANDERS: - as these conversations for the second meeting are taking place now. And as we have more details, I'll certainly let you know.
Q And, secondly, could you just update us on where the Canada trade talks stand?
MS. SANDERS: We continue to have ongoing conversations with the Canadians, and are still hopeful that we'll come to an agreement with them.
Jeff.
Q Sarah, do you know if the President believes these denials that have been coming in from some of his top advisors? Or does he believe that it's someone from within? And does he believe that lie detector tests should be issued, as the Vice President volunteered to do on Sunday?
MS. SANDERS: No lie detectors are being used or talked about or looked at as a possibility. Frankly, the White House and the staff here are focused on doing our jobs, and trying to show up here every day and do what we can to help better the American people, not deal with cowards that refuse to put their names in an anonymous letter.
Q He tweeted something on Friday, after George Papadopoulos was sentenced. He said, "14 days for $28 MILLION - $2 MILLION a day, No Collusion." What was he talking about - the $28 million?
MS. SANDERS: I'd have to go back and check and look at that. I didn't see that.
Q Was he talking about the price tag of the Russia investigation? Because if so, that's highly inflated.
MS. SANDERS: Again, I'd have to check, Jeff. I'm not sure of that reference. Sorry.
Q Has he made a decision if he'll testify yet or not? If I could just follow with (inaudible).
MS. SANDERS: That's a question I'd refer you to outside counsel.
David.
Q The President is going to Pennsylvania tomorrow. What does he plan to say? And what does he hope to accomplish with this year's 9/11 address?
MS. SANDERS: Certainly the focus will be on remembering that horrific day and remembering the lives that were lost, and certainly honoring the individuals who were not only lost that day, but also put their lives of the line to help in that process. He'll be there, and the Vice President will be here in Washington, D.C. at the Pentagon.
David.
Q Sarah, thank you very much. I'm assuming you've read Bob Woodward's book. I know a lot of us have. Can we expect, other than repeating denials from General Mattis, General Kelly, John Dowd - can we expect the White House to give us a list of all the things in the book that are wrong and that qualify Woodward to be a liar?
MS. SANDERS: I think that would be a complete and utter waste of our time. So, no.
Q Okay, well - hold on a second. Because then that goes to this Quinnipiac poll that came out today that says 55 percent of Americans believe that the op-ed writer in the Times is right. And the President is getting a 60 percent negative rating on the honest and truthful - that 60 percent of Americans think he's a dishonest person.
So does the President think he can actually win a credibility battle with Bob Woodward, who's a - you know, an august member of the Press Corps, helped take Richard Nixon down, and is a legend. How can he win that credibility battle?
MS. SANDERS: Once again, I think I would certainly rather take the actual on-record account from people who are here - who have been working in this building, who have interacted with the President day in, day out, like General Mattis, like General Kelly, like myself - and not disgruntled former employees that refuse to put their name on things when they come out to attack the President.
I think that those are far more credible sources and certainly far more reliable voices within this administration, and that can accurately tell what's taken place in the building behind me.
Q Is the President still a credible voice?
MS. SANDERS: Absolutely.
Jon.
Q Thanks a lot, Sarah. You've said a lot, the President has said a lot, about the publication of this op-ed. You've called it, the President has called it, "a betrayal." You've called it an "act of disloyalty."
But the President, as has been mentioned quite a few times, even here in this briefing, has called on the Department of Justice to investigate the publication of this op-ed.
There is no violation of the criminal code that goes along with the publication of this op-ed, so I'm a little curious as to what it is that the President believes may have been violated in the law as it relates to the publication of this op-ed piece.
MS. SANDERS: Once again, we would consider someone who is actively trying to undermine the executive branch of our government inappropriate, and something certainly to cause concern, and they should take a look at it.
Q What's the criminal violation here?
MS. SANDERS: Once again, we're just saying that this gives a great level of concern, and they should look into it.
Q But, Sarah, that's not a violation of the law. Just being concerned is not a violation of law. I'm just looking to see -
MS. SANDERS: I'm not an attorney. It's the Department of Justice to make that determination, and we're asking them to look into it and make that determination. And they certainly are fully capable of doing that. But someone actively trying to undermine the duly elected President and the entire executive branch of government, that seems quite problematic to me and something that they should take a look at.
John.
Q Thank you, Sarah. Just to try to specify this a bit, is the White House treating the anonymous op-ed writer as a full-fledged breach-of-security matter? And is the FBI investigating both staff and their means of communications - cellphones, computers, and the like?
MS. SANDERS: I'm not aware of that level. That wouldn't be something I would be a part of. But certainly, as I just told your colleague, we think that there is a concern here and it should be looked into.
David.
Q One other question -
MS. SANDERS: Go ahead, John.
Q Did the - obviously, the whole world watched when Jair Bolsonaro, the front-running Brazilian presidential candidate, was stabbed last week. Has the President called or sent any statement to his family at all?
MS. SANDERS: I'm not aware that the President has, but I do believe members of the administration have reached out. And I'll work to get you the specifics of who that was.
David.
Q Sarah, what does the President make of all of this talk of the 25th Amendment and some of what he hears on media outlets regarding the word "crazy talk"? There's a lot of - it seems like there's a lot of talk about that on many of the mainstream media outlets.
MS. SANDERS: I think we would say that it's about as ridiculous as most of Bob Woodward's book. The fact that that's actually being honestly discussed is ridiculous. And, frankly, it's insulting to the nearly 62 million people that came out and overwhelmingly supported this President, voted for him, supported his agenda, and are watching and cheering on as he successfully implements that agenda every single day.
Saagar.
Q Thanks, Sarah. Can you give us a sense of what documents the President is considering for declassification sometime in the next two weeks? And when exactly can we expect them?
MS. SANDERS: When we have specifics on that, we'll let you know.
Q Can you give us a sense of what the documents are, though? What documents -
MS. SANDERS: I can't get into that right now. But when we have an announcement on it, I'll certainly let you know.
Steven.
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