[Victor Blackwell, Cnn Anchor:] Good Sunday morning to you. It is not a trick question. In fact, it's pretty straightforward. Will you support President Trump, the standard bearer for the party, in the 2020 election?
[Christi Paul, Cnn Anchor:] Another high-profile Republican is punting, so to speak, on endorsing the president for reelection. Mitt Romney tells, CNN, quote, "I will make that decision down the road." Joining dozens of House and Senate Republicans who appear reluctant to back a Trump re-election bid.
[Unidentified Male:] I haven't thought about that election. It could be a completely different world by 2020. It's a long way off.
[Unidentified Female:] I think it's far too early to make a judgment of that type.
[Unidentified Male:] Talk about what might happen in that time I think is premature. We have no idea who is going to run. Whether the president runs again or not I think is very questionable, candidly.
[Alisyn Camerota, Cnn Anchor:] Why wouldn't he?
[Unidentified Male:] I don't know. Why would he?
[Paul:] All righty. CNN White House reporter, Jeremy Diamond, is with us as well as CNN political analyst, Julian Zelizer, and commentary writer and editor at the "Washington Examiner," Siraj Hashmi. Thank you, Gentlemen, all for being here. Jeremy, want to start with you. So, the relationship between the president and Mitt Romney has been tumultuous. We understand that. Is it surprising however at this point that we haven't heard a solid position from Mitt Romney?
[Jeremy Diamond, Cnn White House Reporter:] He is following a long line of senators and Congressmen who are not ready to jump on to the Trump campaign 2020 re-election bid yet and telling of this president's current position, his approval ratings and situation in Washington. But Trump and Romney, in particular, of course, have a very tumultuous relationship and I think we have a clip of their longstanding feud.
[Donald Trump, President Of The United States Of America:] I don't think Mitt needs lots of money, but I'll certainly do whatever is necessary. We need somebody great as a president. I think he'll be a great president.
[Mitt Romney , Former Presidential Candidate:] Being in Donald Trump's magnificent hotel and having his endorsement is a delight.
[President Trump:] I have a lot of friends. No, I have a lot of friends. By the way, Mitt Romney is not one of them! Did he choke?
[Romney:] Here is what I know. Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud.
[President Trump:] The last election should have been won except Romney choked like a dog! He choked! He went I can't breathe! I can't breathe, he said!
[Romney:] I've had a wonderful evening with President-elect Trump. These discussions I've with him have been enlightening and interesting and engaging. I enjoyed them very much.
[Diamond:] So, clearly, these two men have had a very back and forth relationship, love-hate, love-hate. Right now, they are in the love phase where President Trump endorsed Mitt Romney for his Utah Senate bid. Despite that endorsement, though, Mitt Romney, yesterday, not clenching the 60 percent vote threshold required for him to get the Republican nomination in that state outright. He will face a primary challenge in June. A lot of state-based issues there as well, but it is notable that the president endorsed him and Mitt Romney not quite making the threshold although it is likely he will meet that threshold in June.
[Paul:] All righty. Thank you. Julian, let me ask you about that. What do you make of the fact that we have an endorsement from the president? I want to read it to you because he sent it out in a tweet. This isn't something that he went and rallied for Mitt Romney. But he did it on Twitter saying, "Mitt Romney announced he is running for the Senate from the wonderful state of Utah. He'll make great senator and worthy successor to Orrin Hatch and has my full support and endorsement." Mike Kennedy, the state representative there in Utah got 50.88 percent. Romney got 49.12 percent, which means again, June 26th, they are going to face off. What was it here, do you think? Was it President Trump's endorsement that didn't do the job or is there a fracture, a broader issue of a fracture in the Republican party, particularly in Utah?
[Julian Zelizer, Cnn Political Analyst:] Some of the politics is local and some of this has to do with Mitt Romney collecting signatures rather than just relying on the nomination process which angered some Utah activists. Some of this is the baggage that comes with President Trump in 2018. Mitt Romney is the quintessential candidate who has tried to play it from all sides. He was the never Trumper who then wanted to be secretary of state for President Trump and who is now receiving his endorsement. So, I think he is angered both the moderates in the state and they are numerous for associating himself with the president. He is also angered conservatives because he came out so strongly in parts of the campaign against Trump. He tried to have it all ways and so there is a lot of built-up resentment even though he still is very popular in the state. He is paying a political price for the president.
[Paul:] OK, so let me ask you, Siraj. Are President Trump and Mitt Romney, are they friends or not friends? At the end of the day, does it matter?
[Siraj Hashmi, Commentary Writer, "washington Examiner":] Well, for one, they are, at best, frenemies, which, of course, you know, everyone has been saying nowadays that, you know, Romney is more known for demonstrative speech against President Trump and called him a phony and a fraud. In the end, it really doesn't matter because Mitt Romney is the favorite to win that primary race and the general election in November. What is interesting, though, is that many Republicans, outside of Utah and some in Utah, believe that Romney is more known for that speech in March of 2016 in which he called President Trump a fraud and a phony. So, what is interesting is will that actually take him over the edge. I think he'll be OK, considering the fact he is so popular there and he has enough name recognition to overcome that type of whatever conservative lapse he kind of rebukes then Candidate Trump.
[Paul:] I need to get Julian here to a new issue this morning with Scott Pruitt of the EPA. Walter Schwab tweeted this out trying to make it as concise as possible. He said, "While Pruitt was state government, the "New York Times," says a lobbyist sold him a home for $100,000 less than she had paid for. Her telecom employer paid the difference. He then voted to let the employer raise its rates. At the EPA, he hired her and the banker who lent him the money. They also say a shell company was used for this transaction and that he failed to disclose his interest in the shell company when he filed a financial disclosure form that's required under the state's ethic program. So, here you go, you couple this with all of the issues he is already dealing with. I think we have a rundown here, D.C. housing arrangements, 247 security detail, first-class travel, office improvements that summit added up to $43,000 for a soundproof booth that the GAO says violated federal law. At the end of the day, he is doing President Trump's job, the job that the president wants him to do. Does that alone make him safe, Julian?
[Zelizer:] Well, it doesn't make him safe. I think this kind of story hurts in that it gives credibility to the idea that these weren't simply mistakes what is going on in Washington and this is a long pattern of how Pruitt lives his political life, right on the border of what is ethically correct and incorrect and sometimes going beyond it. It is true. What makes him safe isn't that he is working for the president. He is actually moving forward on one of the key issues for the president, which is going after all kinds of environmental regulations that have been put into place over the past few decades. So, it's balancing the scandal and the constant turmoil that Pruitt is causing this administration versus the fact that he is a partisan warrior on some of the issues that the president really cares about.
[Paul:] But here's the thing, Siraj, is there a political consequence for President Trump if there is not one for Pruitt?
[Hashmi:] Well, that is the thing. We are seeing the bounds and line drawn with Scott Pruitt and how it applies to President Trump concerning the ethics blurring of the lines. What is interesting, though, is Scott Pruitt, albeit all the regulations that he's undone in the EPA, for conservatives he is kind of undermining their cause. It's kind of like Kanye West announcing that he's, you know, coming out with a hot fire album in June, but then saying he's in support of president you know, a meeting with President Trump in December of 2016 and then supporting tweeting out his support of Candace Owens. In many ways he is doing himself a disservice and President Trump by not firing him is somewhat of an indictment on his administration and it's not looking good. But, again, we are probably not going to see probably not see a resignation any time soon.
[Paul:] All right. Jeremy Diamond, Julian Zelizer, Siraj Hashmi, sorry we ran out of time. Gentlemen, thank you so much.
[Blackwell:] All right. There's breaking news out of Tennessee. One person is dead. Several others are injured. This is after a shooting at a Waffle House in Antioch in the Nashville area. A naked gunman police say wearing only a green jacket is out there somewhere and believed to be armed with an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle. We have more details coming in by the minute from our affiliate reporter who is on the scene. We will get to those in a moment. All right. Now according to "The Washington Post" the White House is privately skeptical of North Korea's plan to halt their nuclear testing site in that facility. There's concern Pyongyang maybe making a play to the U.S. to help ease sanctions on Pyongyang. We have details on that.
[Paul:] Also, French President Macron heading to the U.S. this week for a state visit with President Trump. We are going to look at their relationship. It's been a little rocky ahead of this White House arrival.
[Blackwell:] Also, Starbucks is closing 8,000 stores nationwide on May 29th for racial bias training? But one expert says, these exercises have proven time and time again to be ineffective. He'll be with us in a moment.