[Jason Carroll, Cnn National Correspondent:] A surprising invitation, given Nieto's previous comments about Trump rejecting the Republican nominee's promise he'll make the Mexican government pay for a 1,000 mile border wall.
[Donald Trump , Presidential Nominee:] I will build a great, great wall on our Southern border, and I will have Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words.
[Unidentified Male:] Under in circumstances would Mexico pay for that wall. There is no way that Mexico can pay a wall like that.
[Carroll:] The Mexican president likening the billionaire's rhetoric to Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
[Unidentified Male:] Whoever speaks badly of Mexicans doesn't know Mexicans.
[Carroll:] Nieto saying, he extended the invitation to both presidential candidates tweeting, the reason behind Trump's visit is to, quote, "promote the interests of Mexicans worldwide and mainly to protect Mexicans wherever they might be." During a North American Summit with President Obama in July, Nieto promised a frank, open dialogue with whomever is elected.
[Trump:] Tomorrow night in Arizona, big speech on immigration.
[Carroll:] Trump is set to unveil his long awaited immigration plan, but details remain vague. The big question is whether Trump will soften his hardline position to use force deportation to remove an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants.
[Trump:] Eleven million people in this country that came in illegally. They will go out.
[Donald Trump, Jr., Son Of Donald Trump:] We have to have baby steps first.
[Carroll:] Well, Trump has not used the term baby steps in relation to his approach to immigration policy. So we'll have to see how that works out. Later, we will see what steps he will take. The Clinton camp, for their part, weighing in on Trump's meeting with Mexico's president, the campaign released a statement saying what ultimately matters is what Donald Trump says to voters in Arizona, not Mexico, and whether he remains committed to the splitting up of families and deportation of millions.
[Chris Cuomo, Cnn Anchor:] Jason, thank you very much. But this is significant move. And you're going to see it echoed now by the campaign, namely Donald Trump, Jr. coming on television defending his father's immigration policy against accusations that he's flip-flopped on his central campaign issue. Tough spot for the son who sat down with Anderson Cooper last night to drill down on specifics. Here's a taste.
[Anderson Cooper, Cnn Anchor:] Tomorrow your dad is giving a big speech on immigration. A, have you seen the speech? Do you know what it is? Have you talked to him about it? And if so, is there going to more clarity on exactly what his policy is?
[Donald Trump, Jr:] Yes. There's going to be more clarity. I've seen parts of it. You know, they're still finalizing aspects of it now and they're going to continue to lay out things, you know, in the coming weeks and months as that expands. You're going to see a lot more detail, but you're going to really see the fundamental principles that we have to do. And we have to secure our border. We have to start implementing an e-verify system. We have to let ICE do their job, enforce the existing laws on the books. I mean, some of these is a rocket times. I mean, these are laws that are there today. They've been on the books for years. They've been expanded. And these guys are basically told that they can't do that. So, you know, we have to have baby steps first. We have to let ICE do their jobs, and we have to do this for the benefit of the American people.
[Cooper:] Your dad was very clear during the primaries about his policy. It's obviously build a wall, have Mexico pay for it, go after the criminals, the 11 million undocumented immigrants who are here. They've got to go, good ones can come back. It will be done humanely. There will be a deportation force. He's used to be de-emphasizing that or at least focusing, trying to focus more on build wall, the e- verify, go after the criminals. And now we're hearing from someone from the campaign just the other day, well, on the 11 million, we'll figure that out down the road. Is there going to be more clarity on that tomorrow?
[Donald Trump, Jr:] Well, I think the 11 million is one thing, but when you take out, you know, again, the criminals, when you take out the people who have committed felonies and you send them back home, I mean, that's actually millions of people. That's a big portion of that group. And without doing that, everything else is irrelevant. I mean, you have to take those steps first.
[Cooper:] That was pretty much Jeb Bush's policy. That was pretty much, a lot of other Republicans' policies. Even your father have acknowledged that under Obama they've been deporting an awful lot of people. So, I guess what people has and you know this better than anyone, what has concerned particularly the Republicans just in the last week or so is some of your dad's statements about softening.
[Donald Trump, Jr:] Anderson, I was there. Because you're obviously referring to the Hannity thing. I was there with them. I did a segment, you know, for the next day, you know, five minutes after that. He wasn't softening on anything. He didn't change his stance on anything. What he did was and what he's done all along is he's speaking with the people. He's not lecturing them like most of the politicians you see. He's actually having a conversation. He basically surveyed the room and asked, hey, what are your thoughts on this? I want to take that because I want to take into account what the people say, unlike our opponents who basically will take into account only those who, you know, contribute millions and millions of dollars to her campaign. He's actually having a conversation with the people of this country, the hard working men and women who made this country great. He's giving them a voice. He asked an opinion. He didn't say, well, my policy is now changed. He didn't say that. Now, the media will run with it however they want. That's not what happened. And I was in the room.
[Cooper:] It did seem some viewers though who we talked to that, it seemed like he's polling the room, he's not quite sure, what his own policy is.
[Donald Trump, Jr:] You know, he was asking for an opinion. His policy has been the same for the last six, seven, eight months.
[Cooper:] They all got to go.
[Donald Trump, Jr:] That's been the same, correct. But again, you have to start with baby steps. You have to let ICE do their job. You have to eliminate the sanctuary cities. You have to get rid of the criminals, certainly first and foremost. You have to secure the border. These are common sense things, Anderson. These are things that every other country in the world has done. And those who haven't and those who have gotten lackadaisical about it, look at what's going on. And perhaps Europe is the best example of that right now.
[Alisyn Camerota, Cnn Anchor:] All right. So let's discuss Trump's surprise trip to Mexico and his big speech tonight with CNN politics executive editor Mark Preston, CNN political analyst and national political reporter for Real Clear Politics Rebecca Berg, and Latin American political analyst and radio host Ana Maria Salazar. Great to have all of you with us this morning. So Mark, how is this going to work today with this meeting between President Nieto and Donald Trump? Donald Trump who has called Mexican immigrants rapists and President Pena Nieto who has called Donald Trump, he has likened him to Hitler and Mussolini.
[Mark Preston, Cnn Politics Executive Editor:] Right. So, look, I think that we would expect there would be a lot of fireworks going into this meeting. However, I don't think that's going to happen. I mean, you have two men. They know what they need to do. You have a president of Mexico right now whose favorability rating is in the 20s. Somewhere right there. You have Donald Trump back here talking about this populist message about how he's going to force Mexico to build this wall. What I do think is going to happen is that you're going to have Donald Trump go to this meeting, get back on an airplane, fly to Arizona, talk about how well things went and how well he'll be able to work with Mexico, and I think you'll probably have the Mexican president say, we're still not going to pay for that wall.
[Cuomo:] Ana Maria Salazar, what's your take on what would motivate the Mexican president in a meeting like this and where he needs to be on the other side of it?
[Ana Maria Salazar, Latin American Political Analyst:] I don't think anybody understands what motivated the President to accept this meeting. I mean, literally everybody is in shock down here because this meeting is going to take place. And it's hard to foresee any results from this meeting that could benefit Pena Nieto or the Mexican people or Mexicans who are living in the United States or Mexican- Americans. It's very perplexing. It's very difficult to understand why he accepted the meeting. And this could have repercussions in Mexican politics. There are a lot of questions in regards to the sanity of this meeting taking place in Mexico by the Mexican president.
[Camerota:] Rebecca, let's remind everyone of what President Pena Nieto said about paying for the wall, which has been one of Donald Trump's main campaign promises, when the President of Mexico sat down with Fareed Zakaria. So, listen to this.
[Fareed Zakaria, Cnn Anchor:] Donald Trump's main policy proposal, the one he began his campaign with, is that he intends to build a wall between the United States and Mexico along the border, and he intends to get Mexico to pay for it.
[Enrique Pena Nieto, President Of Mexico:] There is a way to help Mexico pay the wall, but any decisions inside the United States is a decision of its government.
[Zakaria:] But under no circumstances would Mexico pay for that wall?
[Pena Nieto:] There is no way that Mexico can pay a wall like that.
[Camerota:] That's what he says, there's no way that they can pay for a wall like that. So Rebecca, what do you think is going to happen on that topic when these two men finally talk?
[Rebecca Berg, National Political Reporter, Real Clear Politics:] Well, I don't think, Alisyn, that we can expect any sort of down payment on the wall from this meeting today. But I think it will be an opportunity for both of these men, Donald Trump and the Mexican president to talk tough and represent their stances to each other and then be able to go back to their supporters and the Mexican president back to his countrymen and say, look, we made clear where we are on these issues, we stood our grounds and that would I guess be beneficial to both of them in the long run. But of course, as Mark said, this is important for Donald Trump because it gives him some context for his immigration speech later today. It gives him an opportunity to say, I've seen on the ground what's happening on the border, and now also met with the Mexican president and expressed my concerns and expressed what I want to do if elected. And that gives him sort of some credibility with this issue, whereas he doesn't have, as we know, foreign policy experience, like Hillary Clinton. This is one of the major concerns among voters when you look at public polling. And so any opportunity that he has, especially outside of the spotlight in terms of the American press. He's not bringing reporters with him on this trip. So it gives him a very safe space to say, look, I am bolstering my credibility on this issue.
[Cuomo:] It's absent and ugly incident with Pena Nieto. This is a home run for Donald Trump. Because it sets him up a statement. It has him doing something that a president would do. And there's almost no chance that he can't come out of it saying that he got his message across. So, that's all good. The downside is, going into this speech tonight, they haven't figured out how to finesse a change in their position. I'm no big fans of kids and campaigns. But Donald Trump, Jr. isn't a kid. He's 30-something years old. And there's a difference between confidence and competence. The idea that well, baby steps. He never said baby steps.
[Preston:] Right.
[Cuomo:] That idea that let ICE do its job. Who's keeping ICE from doing its job? You know, is that going to get past scrutiny, that kind of argument?
[Preston:] It certainly will with the supporters of Donald Trump. You're right. I mean, we're talking about very muddy waters right now.
[Cuomo:] But he is changing his position because he wants to move beyond the base. He wouldn't change it all if he's only worried about his base.
[Preston:] Because there's no way that he can win in November if he doesn't change his position and move beyond the base.
[Cuomo:] Right.
[Preston:] No question about that. But they really are muddying up the waters and making a confusion about where does Donald Trump stands on everything, whether it's deporting 11 million, whether it's getting the bad guys out of here which I think everybody wants to get out of here, about continuing on with policies that are already in place by Barack Obama. But to your point, who is stopping ICE from doing their job? I mean, there's nobody out there, stopping them from doing their job. So, it will but do I think for the supporters of Donald Trump, regardless of what his position is, and to your point softening, which I agree with absolutely, some would say evolving on the issue, his supporters are going to stay with him. I think that Republicans who are concerned about Donald Trump, about his stand on immigration, and certainly voters who don't like the way his rhetoric has been directed at his Hispanics are going to embrace this.
[Camerota:] Ana Maria, let's talk about the mystery as you've been alluding to, about the timing of this. And the motivation for this. Because President Pena Nieto invited Donald Trump and invited Hillary Clinton. So why wouldn't he wait until there was a U.S. president elect, until the American voters had decided on one of these people to then meet with them?
[Salazar:] That's why that's what's been the Mexican tradition. And the Mexican tradition has been not to show any preferences for any of the candidates who are seeking to be the next president of the United States. That's why it's astounding that he's meeting with Donald Trump the same week where the President Pena Nieto is supposed to present his version of the state of the Union in Mexico. It's kind of the State of the Nation Address. That's supposed to happen on Thursday. And he is being bombarded by a lot of questions in regards to ability to govern. So this meeting is probably taking place the worst week that could possibly be for the president in political terms. And of course, those who want to be potential candidates for the 2018 elections here in Mexico already tweeting and sending out messages and telling Donald Trump that he's not welcome. So it will be used against the President, against the President's party, and ultimately Donald Trump is despised in Mexico. And regardless whatever the outcome is of this meeting, it's perceived like all of you have said. The only one who can really benefit from this is Donald Trump. So, I'm not you know, to think that Donald Trump meeting with the Mexican president could potentially even benefit him with Hispanic or Latino voters in the United States, Mexican-American voters, is not going to go very far. So, I could almost bet that this meeting is going to be considered one of the historical mistakes of this president and that, yes, Donald Trump is going to use this means to somehow justify him being a bully or speaking strongly against the Mexican people, against the Mexican government. And three, and no one has really mentioned this, the Hillary Clinton campaign is probably pretty angry about this. And it is very unlikely that she would come and visit Mexico, especially after this meeting. And I would even say when she becomes president of the United States, it's very unlikely that she'll be that one of the first countries she'll be visiting will be Mexico. So, it could also have repercussions in relation in the MexicoU.S. bilateral relationship even after the elections.
[Camerota:] Ana Maria, such a fascinating perspective from you to talk about the ripple effect that today's meeting could have on everything. Thank you for all of that insight. Rebecca and Mark, stick around. We have more questions for you coming up in our 8:00 hour. We will talk to Trump's running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, in his first interview since this Mexico trip was announced.
[Cuomo:] We'll also get reaction from the former Mexican President Vicente Fox. Hear what they both have to say. That will be in the 8:00 hour.
[Camerota:] OK. Two big GOP establishment senators fighting off primary challengers and keeping their bids for re-election alive. Arizona Senator John McCain, a day after his 80th birthday, beating his 47-year-old opponent, who called him old and weak, by more than ten percentage points. McCain goes for a sixth term against Democratic Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick in November. And Florida Senator Marco Rubio cruising to a victory with the decisive win, nearly 72 percent of the vote against a millionaire who spent his own money trying to knock out Rubio. The one-time presidential candidate will now face off against Democratic Congressman Patrick Murphy. They're expected to run a tight race with Republican control of the Senate on the line.
[Cuomo:] All right. So now the FBI is set to make public its report that recommended no charges against Clinton over private e- mails. The question is, what will this do to the campaign? What could be in there? We'll give you a good hint. Next