Trump Possible Pull Out of Iran Nuclear Deal; Kanye West on Slavery
BROOKE BALDWIN: Breaking news, Iran is warning the United States that it will revert to it's - -</s>BALDWIN: - - previous ways if President Trump pulls out of this Iran Nuclear Deal. Moments ago a top Iranian official telling CNN's Christiane Amanpour that without the U.S. there will be no deal left. So let's go to CNN's Global Affairs Correspondent Elise Labott, revert to it's previous ways.</s>ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well Brooke that essentially means and I - - I spoke with - - with a group of reporters to the Iranian Foreign Minister last week and he was talking about pretty quickly restarting up Iran's nuclear program. And that means enrichment, that means all the other aspects of what the Iranians call a peaceful nuclear program. We know we've seen these documents from the Israelis in the last couple of days that they say shows that Iran actually was not working on a peaceful program. It was working on military program. But what I think the Foreign Minister means and what the Ambassador speaking to Christiane means is that Iran will start up it's nuclear program. And the Iranian Foreign Minister has spoke about more drastic measures so I think that's for a start.</s>BALDWIN: We'll wait for the reaction from Israel. Elise Labott thank you. Ahead on our other breaking story this afternoon, a huge legal shake up as President Trump ramps up his attacks on the Special Counsel. The President's White House lawyer out, a Clinton Impeachment lawyer in. What this means overall for the Mueller investigation.</s>BROOKE BALDWIN: Kanye West, Kanye West. He is at it again. Just days after voicing his support for President Trump and drawing the ire of fans and fellow artists. The rapper just threw himself into an even bigger controversy after he said this to TMZ about slavery.</s>KANYE WEST, RAPPER: I'm a black person, a black community but I'm not just that. I feel like one thing is people try to minimize me to artist, hip-hop, black community. Yes, I'm always going to represent that but I also represent the world. When you hear about slavery for 400 years, for 400 years? That sounds like a choice. Like you was there for 400 years and it's all of ya'll? You know like, it's like we're - - we're mentally imprisoned. Do you feel that I'm feeling - - do you feel that I'm being free and I'm thinking free?</s>VAN LATHAN, TMZ SENIOR PRODUCER: I actually don't think you're thinking anything. I think what you're doing right now is actually the absence of thought. And the reason why I feel like that is because Kanye, you're entitled to your opinion. You're entitled to believe whatever you want. But there is fact and real world, real life consequence behind everything that you just said. And while you are making music and being an artist and living the life that you've earned by being a genius, the rest of us in society have to deal with these threats to our lives. We have to deal with the marginalization that's come from the 400 years of slavery that you said for our people was a choice.</s>BALDWIN: That last voice there, Van Lathan, TMZ Senior Producer. Now Kanye West did tweet quote, "To make myself clear, of course, I know that slaves did not get shackled and put on a boat by free will." He goes on, "My point is for us to have stayed in that position even though the numbers were on our side means that we were mentally enslaved." My next guest is Maxine Crump. She is the President and CEO of Dialogue on Race, Louisiana. Her great-great grandfather was sold a slave or was a slave who was sold to Georgetown University. So Maxine, welcome back. You know, I really wanted to hear from you on - - on these comments. Contemptible yes, but for you the subject of slavery is personal. When you heard Kanye West what were you thinking?</s>MAXINE CRUMP, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF DIALOGUE ON RACE: Well my first thought that I was listening to someone who wasn't thinking and hadn't thought. And as far as it being personal for me about slavery, it's personal to a lot of African Americans who descended from slavery. That's part of America's population. Those who descended from slavery.</s>BALDWIN: But - - but - - but more than that.</s>CRUMP: Mostly my thought was that, I was listening to someone who wasn't thinking and hadn't thought much about it.</s>BALDWIN: Wasn't thinking, hadn't thought. Let me add to this. Kanye West also did an interview with Charlamagne, a host on a popular morning radio show called "The Breakfast Club". The interview actually happened a couple of weeks ago but the audio was just released and in this clip I want to play Kanye said he didn't like that Harriet Tubman was being put on the $20 bill. Listen.</s>KANYE WEST, RAPPER: Why you got to keep reminding us about slavery? Why don't you show us - - put Michael Jordan on the $20 bill.</s>CHARAMAGNE, RADIO HOST: But Harriet Tubman was a slave who rebelled though. Her and Nat Turner in a different frequency though. They kind were like you when you said you didn't feel like being controlled.</s>WEST: Yes. You know what. It's funny like, my boy Tremaine (ph) tweeted, you know, a picture of me and Virgil (ph) and he said Malcom X, Martin Luther King. And all these people got mad, it's like how can you compare them to that? Man, I know this is going to cause an uproar but certain - - certain icons is just too far in the past and not relatable.</s>BALDWIN: Not relatable he says. I mean, I - - I was reading some of your comments your - - you - - your - -</s>BALDWIN: - - your concerned right. You're concerned with Kanye and maybe other young people is just in how our history books are being written. How - - how young people in this country are being taught or not taught about parts of our history.</s>CRUMP: Yes. I don't want - - if I had a conversation with Kanye one on one, I wouldn't have a lot of say which is sort of how you're hearing my response now. Because if I'm talking to someone who's not thinking and I'm going to enter thoughts into a conversation with him, then we're not going to have a conversation on thought. And it sounds like he stands only in the immediate and for some reason does not want to deal with the past. But I'm sure if there was a long enough conversation we would find that he does have thoughts about the past, which may be why he doesn't want to deal with it. But - - but I do - - I am concerned that there would be people who would be influenced by his thinking and think, well maybe he has a point. That would be the part that concerns me. And if they believe he has a point, it would be someone - - because they haven't had that education K-12 education. If you think that 400 years of enslavement is treated as if people lived 400 years and stayed there 400 years, when there were generations of people who came through that system. And it was an American system and it was legal, a legal system. Never right, but legal. And that there were ways of keeping this construct that was beyond those individuals resources to do anything about it. They did everything they could. And what I would want is for everyone who's been through K-12 education and everyone involved with K-12 education at any level, administrators, those who write textbooks. Any level of education needs to be concerned about hearing that and realize that it - - not just because he said it but because he's a public and popular person who might influence the thinking of his fans. And obviously a lot of people like him, he's as famous as he is. That I should think that that's an - - an OK way to think, it's very flawed and very surfaced. That in K-12 we need to make sure that people who come through our educational system get a clearer understanding of slavery and of how it is still an evolution today. That we're still living with the consequences of and the results of that still needs work.</s>BALDWIN: I just wanted to end on your words. I wanted to hear from you. Yes Kanye West has influence. Yes, he's famous, but you as a descendent of slaves with such a powerful voice sitting here on national television, I wanted to hear from you. Maxine Crump, thank you so much for the time and for your opinion.</s>CRUMP: My pleasure.</s>BALDWIN: Appreciate it. Back to our other breaking news is the President threatens the Justice Department saying he could intervene. His White House lawyers quitting and a Clinton impeachment lawyer joining the team. We have those new details ahead. Also, two high profile Republicans undermining the GOP tax law and Obamacare repeal by saying they both hurt Americans. So how will the President respond?