[Camerota:] President Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is trying to rewrite history about Russian interference in the 2016 election.
[Kushner:] Quite frankly, the whole thing is just a big distraction for the country. And you look at, you know, what Russia did, buying some Facebook ads to try to sow dissent and do it; and it's a terrible thing. But I think the investigations and all of the speculation that's happened for the last two years has had a much harsher impact on the democracy than a couple of Facebook ads.
[Camerota:] Let's bring in John Avlon, CNN senior political analyst; Alex Burns, national political correspondent for the "New York Times" and CNN political analyst; and M.J. Lee, CNN political correspondent. Alex, Jared Kushner is conveniently omitting some things about Russian interference. It was more than just buying a few Facebook ads. There were all sorts of secret meetings between Russians and Trump campaign people. He didn't mention that. I mean, the idea that he's reframing this as that that's how they tried to dance around the edges of the election. Here's what Robert Mueller says. "The Russian government interfered in the 2016 presidential election in sweeping and systematic fashion." So
[Berman:] And do you know what? And that's the second paragraph. I know that it's a 448-page report.
[Camerota:] I'm going to read the whole thing right now.
[Berman:] But that's page one, paragraph two. So Jared didn't have to get very far to get to that statement. That's right, yes.
[Camerota:] Does he What is it that, that he just said?
[Alex Burns, Cnn Political Analyst:] Look, and it's not just Facebook ads. It's not just even meetings with the Trump officials, right? This was aggressive hacking of Democratic campaigns, party committees, leaders in the party, and their humiliation by having that information released publicly. Look, this is one more episode in this multi-year effort by the president and his closest associates to essentially treat as trivial what was far from trivial in the 2016 campaign. And it's part of this I think it's something that happens, really, just on a visceral level with the president and members of his family and the closest people in on that campaign where they try to treat any discussion of what actually happened with Russia in that election as attack as an attack on President Trump's legitimacy. You don't have to see it that way. Right? It's entirely possible you hear a lot of serious Republicans talk about Russia as an important issue while totally supporting the president 1,000 percent. That's not what we hear from Jared Kushner.
[John Avlon, Cnn Senior Political Analyst:] They still don't get it. And it's willful ignorance. The president of Trumplandia, in that cozy little bubble where everything is about Donald Trump, can't see and I think speaks for the administration that the primary issue is that America was attacked by a foreign adversary. The elections were undercut. And so it's not about a couple of Facebook ads. And it's the first statement after the Mueller report details, in sweeping and detailed fashion, the extent to which they tried to meddle in their elections on Donald Trump's behalf, not simply sowing the seeds of discord. So it is it is it shows, really, contempt for the facts and a total willful unwillingness to get it. They're going to put their own interests ahead of the national interest.
[Berman:] It was interesting to hear. I mean, that wasn't no obstruction, no collusion. And that was none of this matters. Even if Russia did even if Russia did what Robert Mueller says that they did, I don't care. Yes, yes. Because you know what? Because we're in the West Wing, and you're not.
[Camerota:] I mean, M.J., I'm reminded of what one of the experts, one of the climate scientists said about Donald Trump and and his the people around him not believing in climate change. It doesn't matter if they don't believe in it. It doesn't matter if they don't believe that in Russian interference. It doesn't matter if they call it a hoax. It's still happening.
[M.j. Lee, Cnn Political Correspondent:] Well, and I think it just does a huge disservice to the country. And anyone who might be tuning in and may not necessarily be paying as close attention. Not everyone across the country has actually read the full report. They're not going to take the time to do that. So I think when you have someone in Jared Kushner's position who is a senior member of the administration going out there and saying things that are simply not true about the scope of the Russian meddling and the interference, especially when it comes to something that everyone understands, something like Facebook, right? When they hear someone like him, "It was just a couple of ads. That's what it was," there are going to there is going to be some segment of the population that actually believes that is what happened.
[Berman:] All right. We have breaking 2020 news.
[Camerota:] Oh, yes. Tell lay it on us.
[Berman:] In the sense that we now know that Joe Biden will enter the Democratic race officially tomorrow.
[Camerota:] Wait, what?
[Berman:] I know.
[Avlon:] Who?
[Berman:] No one knew this was going to happen. Let me put up on the screen the latest poll it came out just yesterday from Monmouth. And the reason this is interesting, among other things, is Joe Biden has been leading in every poll. So now the guy who is leading in national polls will be an actual candidate.
[Camerota:] He's actually getting into the race.
[Berman:] He's actually getting in. And Alex, who I noticed, by the way, you have a lovely beard. And no one's
[Burns:] This is my yes, this is my Joe Biden decision playoff beard.
[Camerota:] So you keep it if he gets in, and you were going to shave it if he didn't?
[Burns:] I thought it would be gone by the end of January.
[Berman:] I know. Well, look
[Avlon:] Does it become mutton chops if a certain decision goes that way?
[Berman:] At least one of us gets to have a beard, which is nice for you.
[Avlon:] Me, too, clearly.
[Berman:] So so talk to me about the rollout. It's the video and then not a whole lot else. There's a video tomorrow. There's expected to be a fundraiser in Philadelphia tomorrow, though that has not been 100 percent confirmed. And then, yes, a couple of quieter days. It's an unusual way to roll out a presidential campaign. It makes you wonder, will there actually be nothing between Friday and Monday; or, you know, will there even be something as casual as the vice president, former second lady, walk down the driveway and talk to the cameras or something like that? I'm purely speculating. You would think something. I mean, look, Beto O'Rourke didn't have anything on his schedule when he announced, and he ended up on a you know, on a countertop in Iowa.
[Burns:] Right. And look, I think we look at the polling numbers that you just that we just put up on the screen. And this is the moment where the idea of Joe Biden collides with the reality of Joe Biden. Right? That we know a lot of people, myself included, expected those numbers to dip over the last six months as other candidates got into the race and Democrats saw, look, you have all these options. His numbers have held up pretty well. And the question now is can Joe Biden's numbers survive Joe Biden, the reality of how he will perform as a candidate?
[Camerota:] This is going to be so interesting, John. It's just going to be so interesting to see how the dynamic changes when Joe Biden is in.
[Avlon:] Sure. There's always the danger your first day is your best day. That said, I've got to say, putting out the video announcement and then kicking a rally until, you know, two, three, four days later is not a sign of confidence. In politics, history shows very clearly your best defense is a good offense. And if you're trying not to lose, that's when you usually lose. And it seems to me that you have a video announcement, you follow it with a big rally. Union hall, that makes a lot more sense than traipsing off to a fundraiser and then laying low for a couple days.
[Berman:] It does seem this year what people are doing, though, is trying to get a couple bites of the apple, where they're trying to generate the buzz to make the official announcement, that maybe he gets a separate set of coverage when you have the official announcement. M.J., you were just up in New Hampshire for the marathon five town halls that CNN did, and it was fascinating. And one of the most interesting things to come of it was Senator Kamala Harris, who in the course of several questions, occasionally hedged on her answers and said, "Well, we need to study this." And one of the issues where she said, "We need to study it" on was Bernie Sanders coming out and saying that people in prison, felons in prison, including murderers, should have the right to vote. And Senator Harris, during the CNN town hall, said, "This is something we should study. I'm open to it." Well, within 24 hours she had a new, different answer. Listen.
[Sen. Kamala Harris , Presidential Candidate:] We, right now, have got a lot of work to do with the people in our country who have served their time and have been prohibited from voting. But, you know, do I think that people who commit murder, people who are terrorists should be deprived of their rights? Yes, I do. I'm a prosecutor. I believe that, in terms of there has to be serious consequence for the most extreme types of crimes.
[Berman:] That's a different answer.
[Lee:] It is. I think calling this even a clarification would be too generous. I mean, she has somehow managed to say two pretty different things in the course of just 24 hours, initially saying on our town hall stage she is open to this idea that Bernie Sanders said yes to, the idea that felons and the worst kinds of criminals being able to vote while they are in prison. That she's open to open to having a conversation about it. And now this clarification or whatever you want to call it is that, because she is a prosecutor, the value that she brings into this conversation is that, yes, I absolutely do believe that certain rights should be taken away for people like this. I mean, this is going to be a very long campaign for Kamala Harris if, after every sort of major stance that she takes that appears to be relatively new, she has to then the next day hedge it a little bit, or take it back or make a clarification.
[Camerota:] But I'm just curious. Why is that one a tough one? She is a former prosecutor. Generally, they're more a little bit more hardline than the Bernie Sanders of the world. Why is that one a tough one?
[Burns:] I think she has felt a lot of pressure in this race to not fully embrace her identity as a prosecutor. And I think we've seen over and over in presidential campaigns, certainly not just in this one, certainly not just with Senator Harris, that when you start trying to revise the way you have presented yourself your entire career, that your instincts can get a little bit off; and it can just get very personally uncomfortable.
[Lee:] And the other dynamic, of course, is that there are other candidates that she might feel like are taking positions that are more to the left of her. I mean, especially when you're in a situation where there are back-to-back town halls; and the candidate before you is Bernie Sanders, having taken this position. You have to think that that could be the kind of thing that gets in her head.
[Camerota:] Still, we should I think we should say that the numbers, the ratings for her portion of that town hall were, again, very high. She people are very interested in what she has to say and learning about her.
[Berman:] That's a good point. In her first town hall on CNN, blockbuster numbers.
[Camerota:] Right. Record-breaking.
[Berman:] People are watching what she says and listening very carefully. All right, guys. Thank you.
[Camerota:] Thank you all very much. We do have breaking news for you right now in the terror attacks in Sri Lanka. The new details that are fueling fears of more bombings, next.