[Unidentified Male:] Are you intending for this to play out as it is playing out? Are you intending for parents to be separated from their children? Are you intending to send a message?
[Kirstjen Nielsen, United States Secretary Of Homeland Security:] I find that offensive.
[Rosemary Church, Host, Cnn:] The Trump administration standing firm in its defense of the controversial practice of separating families at the American border. We will break down the issues and heated rhetoric ahead. Plus a trade war is heating up between the U.S. and China with more tariffs being added to the list from each country. And it might be the last chance to save elephants from extinction by ivory poachers. Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church, and this is CNN Newsroom. Well, the pressure is mounting on U.S. President Donald Trump to end his administration's policy of separating children from their parents at the border with Mexico. The White House is falsely blaming Democrats when, in fact, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the zero-tolerance policy back in April. Since then, at least 2,000 children have been taken to detention camps. CNN's Jeff Zeleny begins our coverage.
[Donald Trump, President Of The United States:] Just remember, a country without borders is not a country at all.
[Jeff Zeleny, Senior White House Correspondent, Cnn:] President Trump facing intense fire tonight over what kind of country the U.S. is becoming when it comes to immigration.
[Trump:] The United States will not be a migrant camp, and it will not be a refugee holding facility. It won't be.
[Zeleny:] These searing images of children separated from their parents at times behind chain-link fences have sparked withering criticism from across the political spectrum. The White House not backing down from its zero-tolerance policy of separating children from their parents when apprehended at the border. It's led to the removal of nearly 2,000 children in the last six weeks. The president vented on Twitter in a flurry of messages. He blasted immigration in Europe and the U.S., finally demanding change the laws.
[Trump:] And I'll say it very honestly, and I'll say it very straight.
[Zeleny:] To be clear, the president is doing neither. He's blaming Democrats rather than accepting responsibility for his administration's actions.
[Trump:] We cannot get them even to the negotiating table, and I say it's very strongly the Democrats' fault. They're obstruction. They're really obstructionist, and they are obstructing.
[Zeleny:] Yet no matter how many times he says it, it's just not true. While Democrats and Republicans have been at odds over broader immigration laws, it's incorrect to blame family separation on Democrats.
[Nielsen:] We have to do our job. We will not apologize for doing our job. We have sworn to do this job. This administration has a simple message. If you cross the border illegally, we will prosecute.
[Zeleny:] Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen defending the practice one day after she misleadingly said on Twitter, we do not have a policy of separating families at the border, period. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who first up veiled the zero tolerance policy two months ago, argued today it was a deterrent.
[Jeff Sessions, United States Attorney General:] Anyone that brought a child with them would be given effective immunity from prosecution and would not be prosecuted. Word got out about this loophole, and the results were predictable.
[Zeleny:] But CNN has learned the new hard-line policy has not slowed the pace of migrants trying to enter the country illegally. Since the prosecution initiative as it's called inside DHS began, there's been an uptick of people trying to cross the border. Outrage pouring in from Republicans and Democrats after these scenes filled television screens over father day weekend of children and parents being separately ware housed in a former Wal-Mart and other sites across Texas. Former first lady Laura Bush taking the rare step of weighing in on a policy debate, writing in the Washington Post, "This zero tolerance policy is cruel. It is immoral, and it breaks my heart. In 2018, can we not as a nation find a kinder, more compassionate and more moral answer to this current crisis? I, for one, believe we can." Michelle Obama re-tweeting those words, saying "Sometimes truth transcends party." The current first lady, Melania Trump, voicing concern but suggesting there's enough blame to go around. Her spokeswoman saying, "Mrs. Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform." Even loyal Trump allies like former communications director Anthony Scaramucci called for an urgent change, saying the controversy was damaging the president.
[Anthony Scaramucci, Former White House Communications Director:] He's a television star. He understands that this is not good for him. It's not good for the Congress if we want to win the midterm.
[Church:] CNN's Jeff Zeleny reporting there from the White House. The nonprofit investigative group ProPublica says they know what family separation at the U.S.Mexico border sounds like. They recorded disturbing audio at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility last week, and we should note CNN has not been able to verify the authenticity of that recording. And the upsetting images of children at the border inspired a California couple to help. Charlotte and Dave Wilner have raised more than $3 million and counting through Facebook. At one point the charity appeal was bringing in nearly $4,000 every minute. Amnesty International is among the many groups slamming the Trump administration policy on family separations. They released a statement on Monday saying this. "This is nothing short of torture. The severe mental suffering that officials have intentionally inflicted on these families for coercive purposes means that these acts meet the definitions of torture under both U.S. and international law." Joining me now to talk more about this controversial policy, our former South Carolina lieutenant governor and CNN contributor, Andre Bauer, and Mac Zilber, a Democratic political strategist and co- founder of Jacobson and Zilber Strategies. Good to have you both with us.
[Andre Bauer, Former South Carolina Lieutenant Governor:] Thank you.
[Church:] So, Andre, I do want to start with you. As a Republican, how does it make you feel when you listen to the heartbreaking audio recordings of children crying out for their parents or when you see the images of toddlers sobbing at the feet of their mothers as they watch them being cuffed at the border? Is that the policy you want your party to carry out? Is that the way to do it?
[Bauer:] It's not I hate to see a lot of things. Number one, this was carried on way before the current president is here.
[Church:] Let me just stop you there because that isn't the case. So we're not going to continually say that.
[Bauer:] That is the case.
[Church:] This is not the case. This is a zero tolerance policy that was announced by Jeff Sessions. Let's start from that point.
[Bauer:] But that's not the case. President Obama was locking people up in cages. That is a fact. That is not opinionated. And so when we try to divert this and make this a Donald Trump issue, it's not. These are law-breaking people who come into our country illegally. If I don't pay my taxes, guess what? I'm taken away from my loved ones because I get put in jail. We are a nation of laws. We have been for 241 years, and this is no different. And-
[Church:] It is the way that this Mac, I'm going to bring you in here because the problem that people have with this is not the fact yes, people don't want people coming illegally across the border. What people are objecting to, Democrats and Republicans, is the way this is being done. Mac, if you can pick up from there. This argument that this is the same thing that happened through the Bush era and through Obama era.
[Mac Zilber, Co-founder, Jacobson And Zilber Strategies:] Yes, it's just a fact that this zero-tolerance policy started two months ago. The idea that it happened in previous administrations is completely preposterous. The reality is that separating children from families is a policy that is so abhorrent and cruel that the Trump administration can't decide whether it wants to embrace it, which Stephen Miller and Jeff Sessions have done, deny it, which Secretary Nielsen has done, or blame it on the democrats, which is what Donald Trump is doing. The fact that one administration has three different positions on their own abhorrent policy just shows how much no one wants to be associated with this thing.
[Church:] And, Andre, former first lady Laura Bush says the policy of separation is cruel is immoral. She compared it to the Japanese- American internment camps of World War II. Senator John McCain and other Republicans are calling on President Trump to rescind the family separation policy, which Mr. Trump could do by just picking up the phone. So, Andre, are you worried that this could separate and split the party, that the people will say, we can't tolerate this. We're not going to treat human beings like this. It's unacceptable. The world is amazed as their watching this coming out of America.
[Bauer:] Well, again, it's a story that's driven with not whole truths. Not every family is broken up. Most of the families are broken up, they're people that can't really describe if these are their children or not, that there is some inconsistency when they're, in fact, interviewed. And so, they split them up because they in fact this is a great way to get people across the border that aren't their children. Drug dealers are now using this. There's a lot of abuses in the system. But make no mistake, this was passed during Bill Clinton. At some point in time, somebody has got to have some back bone to say because we can't just because we don't want to hurt anybody's feelings or make anybody mad. You've got to make sure that people coming into this country, what they are saying is true. A vetting system is healthy. Quite frankly, nobody should be coming into the country illegally. Look, my ancestors, my great-grandfather came over here, but he did it the right way. He came in. He took his time. He went through the channels that you had to do. Now we've got a party that just wants to let everybody in and cut all borders down. And now this-
[Church:] I don't think that's what's being suggested. Mac, if I could just bring you here to answer that. Andre was saying that you've got to vet these people. You know, we know at this point the 2,000 children have been separated from their family in the last four or six week or so. But how do you vet? How do you make sure that those children are not being brought in by people other than their parents?
[Zilber:] Right. Well there's two different pieces here, one is how do we vet, and how do we reform our immigration system, and there's a lot of good plans out there that involve people going through a process, paying back taxes, getting back in line. But regardless of all that, the reality is that right now we've got children being separated from their parents and being put in cages, and it's such an abhorrent policy that people like Donald Trump or, I'm sorry, Andre, you as well are denying the fact that it is a Trump administration policy because it's just so abhorrent to be associated with.
[Bauer:] There are pictures done under the last administration. Just a few short weeks ago when they thought they were pictures of the current administration, they let them out, and they were actually wrong. In fact, it was the former president. So, no, this is not just a Donald Trump policy. Bill Clinton actually [Technical Difficulty] this.
[Zilber:] Every administration has detention facilities. Not every administration has this zero-tolerance policy that has separated 2,000 children from their parents over the last two months.
[Church:] OK. Just be careful because as you're talking over each other, with the Skype, it's actually distorting audio. So let's just let's get back to a question here because President Trump blames the Democrats for the separation of children from their parents at the border. But it's his zero-tolerance policy that is forcing these separations. What he's hoping to achieve by doing this, apparently, is to force immigration legislation that he wants, and he wants funds for his border wall. Do you accept that, Andre?
[Bauer:] No. Number one, he's enforcing the law, and I know it's hard for some people to understand that. But we have laws, and that's why people so unbelievably want to get in this country, because we have become the land of milk and honey because we follow certain rules, guidelines that are established. And these folks, if you want to talk about a deplorable situation, to take your child at night over a border, through water, with people with guns, with drug traffickers, to take them into that situation, what kind of parent does that?
[Church:] A parent perhaps that's confronting some pretty awful circumstances. That's what would force people to leave, you know, a particular country where there are problems. Mac, you know, some people are calling this child abuse. Others suggest it is a humanitarian crisis. Is that what we're witnessing here in America?
[Zilber:] Yes, absolutely. I mean I would say this is a step above a humanitarian crisis. This rises to those rare moments in history where people have to just stand up and be counted. And the reality is that this is the second time in less than a year that undocumented children have been used as a political football to try to leverage policy concessions by this administration. And, you know, the administration can claim all it wants that this is something that was already in place, that this isn't being done for that purpose except for the fact that Stephen Miller essentially said just as much, that they were doing this because they wanted to create a deterrent at the border. They can't have their cake and eat it too, say that it's always been the policy and say that they're enacting it because they like what will happen when they enact it. It just doesn't add up and you can't square that circle. But the reality is that they have to pass policies to address this as soon as possible. And if they don't, then all the Republican senators that are saying they're going to address it are just full of hot air.
[Church:] All right. Andre, you got the first word. And Mac, you got the last. We'll have to leave it there. Unfortunately, we're out of time. Mac Zilber and Andre Bauer, thank you both of you for joining us and talking about a very controversial situation here in the United States. We'll see what happens going forward. Many thanks.
[Bauer:] Thank you.
[Zilber:] Thanks.
[Church:] And to another story we are following closely. U.S. President Donald Trump says he wants more tariffs on Chinese goods. He wants another $200 billion worth of Chinese goods to face tariffs. Both countries have just levied tariffs on $50 billion worth of goods sold by the other. The president believes the tariffs will push China to change its practices on acquiring U.S. intellectual property and technology. China's commerce ministry responded, saying "If the United States loses its senses and comes up with a new list, China will be forced to strike back hard and launch comprehensive measures that match the U.S. move in quantity and quality." Well, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un he's visiting China on Tuesday and Wednesday, and this comes one week after his first summit with the U.S. president. Our Matt Rivers is following the story from Beijing. He joins us now live. So, Matt, Kim Jong-un in Beijing on his third trip there in three months with the Singapore summit high on the agenda when he meets with Xi Jinping. Sp what all are they likely to talk about?
[Matt Rivers, Correspondent, Cnn:] Well, I mean, I think that is going to be first and foremost on the topic there is what was discussed between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un at that summit in Singapore. What was promised by the Americans? What was promised by the North Koreans? What didn't make it into that joint declaration? What's the definition of denuclearization in the eyes of Kim Jong-un, and also how do China's strategic interests play into all that? Can China convince Kim Jong-un to continue to push this line, for example, that the Americans should perhaps remove troops from the Korean peninsula? That's something that the North Koreans want. It's something the Chinese want as well. So that's certainly the kind of conversations that you can expect these two leaders to have. It's all typical, though, here in China to have a lot of secrecy surrounding any visit from a North Korean leader. The fact that we even found out that Kim Jong-un was coming here to Beijing before he left, typically what happens is the North Korean leader comes and once he leaves, then China confirms that that trip happened. So the fact that we found out that Kim Jong-un will be here in Beijing today and tomorrow is a break from protocol in China, and what several analysts though I've spoken to today have suggested is that's all part of this remarkable normalization in North Korean diplomacy over the last several months. It was less than three months ago, Rosemary, that Kim Jong-un came here to China, and that was his first ever foreign visit as leader of North Korea, his first time ever meeting another foreign leader in Xi Jinping. So the change over the last three months is really nothing short of remarkable.
[Church:] It really is extraordinary, isn't it? Matt, I do want to go back to these tariffs because of course as we've just reported, President Trump wants to apply more tariffs, $200 billion worth on Chinese goods. And of course now China, as we've reported too, is going to reply in kind. We appear to be in the midst of a trade war. Certainly that's what China thinks. America doesn't think that, though.
[Rivers:] Well, I mean I think it depends on who you ask. I think U.S. officials largely have steered clear of using that term. China's government has definitely not shied away from using that term. But in terms of how this actually really plays out moving forward, that's the big question because, yes, the Trump administration has said $200 billion more in tariffs could be coming. But what does that look like, when do they enact it. Don't forget the $50 billion in tariffs that were just made official, they were actually announced way back in March. So, it will several months for this to play out. And then assuming China doesn't back down, which we don't know what they are going to do, they'll put $200 billion of their own. However, we're not sure what they're going to tariff here, Rosemary, because don't forget America only sends about $130 billion worth of goods here to China each year. China is already going to put tariffs on $50 billion of that. So, there's not so many American exports left. So exactly how the valuation will play out in terms of how China is going to respond, it could be tariffs. It could be restricting market access. It could be kind of an informal kind of punishment such as taking Chinese tour groups and saying hey, don't go to America. There's a a lot of different ways this could play out. It's really fascinating. But yes, the trade war seems to be well, well on at this point.
[Church:] Yes. Very disturbing stuff for the markets across the globe. Everyone watching very closely to see where this goes. Matt Rivers, thanks as always. I appreciate it. Well, the U.S. and South Korea are calling off an annual military exercise that was scheduled for August. And this follows President Trump's pledge to end what he called war games during his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Last year more than 67,000 U.S. and South Korean troops took part in the drills, though President Trump called the exercises provocative, officials insist they are defensive. And our Alexandra Field is in Seoul, South Korea, with more on the repercussions of this move. And Alexandra, you know, we talked about this last hour. It was quite a surprise for both South Korea and Washington, indeed the world when President Trump first made this announcement at the summit last week. So, what's being said now in Seoul about the official announcement that these joint drills indeed have been called off?
[Alexandra Field, Correspondent, Cnn:] Yes, and there was a lot of objection certainly from the critics of the president, who say that this was a major concession to North Korea and that the U.S. didn't get enough for it. President Trump has vociferously defended this. He says the costs are high. He says that it's not a good idea to continue with these provocative war games as he put it at a time of good faith negotiation with North Korea. So, look, South Korean counterparts, they very well may have been caught off guard by this announcement. They said just about as much when they said that they needed to work to understand what exactly the president meant. But it seems that both sides have now come to an agreement at this point it means stopping the planning for the large- scale exercises that were set to happen this August. These are exercises that have been happening for more than 40 years on the peninsula. Every year we see two major sets of exercises, some in the spring, the others that would have been scheduled for August. These are of course a joint effort. They are defensive in nature and defense officials will tell you they are about maintaining peace and stability in the region. The president seems to think they're too provocative. Pentagon officials say that they've made no decisions other than to cancel these August exercises but that there will be a meeting of high level Pentagon officials later this week to decide what happens next. South Korean officials echoing that. And Rosemary, they are also saying that they had another set of military exercises separate from the joint exercises that are scheduled around the same time, and they've got to take a look at that and decide whether or not they move forward with those exercises, scale them down, or cancel them altogether. Everyone reacting really as quickly as they can to that announcement from the president.
[Church:] Right. And of course even though they've been called off for now, President Trump has made it clear, hasn't he, that these joint military exercises could start up at any time if North Korea fails to hold up its side of the deal. What might it take for that to happen? Do we know?
[Field:] The president put it fairly succinctly in one of his tweets saying if talks break down, the war games could be started up immediately as he put it. Of course these are exercises that take a lot of planning. You mentioned 17,500 troops participating last year. Also, participation from a number of different countries. About seven other countries besides the U.S. and South Korea it appears participated last year. So certainly there is a heavy amount of planning that goes into this. But it seems that the intention of the president here is to call off these exercises for now and he says if talks break down, that you could return to these kinds of exercises. The White House has made it clear that troops will continue to engage in readiness practices, but not these large-scale, very public drills that would have happened in August. That seems to be the consensus for now. Rosemary?
[Church:] All right. Bringing us the very latest from the Korean peninsula there in Seoul, South Korea, our Alexandra Field, where it is nearly 4.30 in the afternoon. Many thanks to you. We'll take a short break here. But still to come, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has got two weeks to reach a deal on immigration or face the possible collapse of her coalition government. Plus, elephants on the brink. Despite bans on the ivory trade, the slaughter continues. We will go undercover in search of some answers. Jubilation in England over three lions opening match in the World Cup. All the highlights coming your way next.