CAMPAIGN, WHICH MAY MAKE CAMPAIGNING MORE HONEST GOING
FORWARD, THAT'S WHAT I HOPE COMES OUT OF THIS HONESTLY
REPUBLICAN SENATOR JEFF FLAKE OF ARIZONA SAYS HE HOPES HIS
REJECTION OF PRESIDENT TRUMP'S FALSEHOOD AND RECKLESS ATTACKS
WILL BE A TIPPING POINT. BUT FOR MOST MEMBERS OF HIS
PARTY IT WAS ANOTHER DAY. TRUMP TWEETED -- AND
IN INTERVIEWS, FLAKE AND BOB CORKER'S COLLEAGUES, ONCE HARSH
CRITICS OF TRUMP AGREED. >> THE PRESIDENT HAS HIS OWN WAY
OF COMMUNICATING. LOOK, IT'S WORKED.
HE'S GETTING THINGS DODGE.
-- DONE. HE'S PERFORMING.
HE'S NOT A COOKIE CUTTER. I THINK THE REPUBLICANS NEED A
LEADER WHO TAKES THE REIGNS, SO LONG AS HIS GOALS ARE THE SAME
AND THEY ARE. >> I TRY NOT TO MAKE IT ABOUT
PERSONALITIES OR, YOU KNOW, SOMEONEING SOMEONE HAS LESS
THAN A PERFECT CHARACTER THAN THEY DO.
THAT'S A LITTLE OF THE POT CALLING THE KETTLE BLACK AS WE
TEND TO THINK, OH, SOMEHOW, YOU KNOW, I'M SO PERFECT THAT I CAN
CRITICIZE ANOTHER PERSON'S CHARACTER.
ONE OF THE THINGS THE MEDIA MISSED ON ALL THIS THEY KEEP
SAYING SENATOR SO AND SO IS A CONSERVATIVE, WHY IS THERE SUCH
A DISAGREEMENT? BECAUSE WE MADE THIS ABOUT
PERSONALITY AND LESS ABOUT POLICY.
>> I THINK IT'S UNFORTUNATE -- THE NASTINESS THAT PERVADES
WASHINGTON RIGHT NOW AND THE POLITICAL BATTLES OF PERSONALITY
THAT CONSUME SEEMINGLY EVERY MINUTE OF THE MEDIA ATTENTION,
AND AN AWFUL LOT OF THE TIME AND ENERGY HERE IN THIS TOWN.
IT'S LIKE YOU'RE BACK IN JUNIOR HIGH.
I REALLY DON'T CARE WHO PASSED THE NOTE TO THE CUTE GIRL IN PIG
TAILS. WE GOT A JOB TO DO, DAM IT.
AND SO ALL OF THIS NONSENSE -- I GOT NOTHING TO SAY ON IT.
EVERYONE SHUT UP AND DO YOUR JOB.
>> SO JOE, I FEEL LIKE I'D RATHER HEAR FROM YOU, THE
REPUBLICAN TURNED INDEPENDENT, BECAUSE I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING
TO CARRY MUCH WAKE COMING FROM ME.
BUT I FEEL THERE IS SUCH A DISCONNECT HERE AT THE THREE
GENTLEMAN WE JUST HEARD FROM ARE PUTTING MASSIVE BLINDERS ON AND
DISREGARDING BEHAVIOR THAT DEFIES HUMANITY.
WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT BICKERING HERE, ARE WE?
>> WELL, WE ACTUALLY HEARD, WILLIE GEIST, TV'S WILLIE GEIST,
THE LAST GENTLEMAN WHO SPOKE TODAY DONALD TRUMP WOULD HAVE US
BELIEVE READING ABOUT HIS FATHER IN THE PAPERS RELEASED ON THE
JFK ASASS FAKES, IF YOU BELIEVE DONALD TRUMP, TED CRUZ' FATHER.
>> RIGHT. >> HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE
JFK ASSASSINATION. TED CRUZ' WIFE DERIDED BY DONALD
TRUMP AS BEING UP ATTRACTIVE. TED CRUZ INSULTED TIME AND TIME
AGAIN BY DONALD TRUMP AND HIM TRYING TO SORT OF PAINT
EVERYTHING WITH A BROAD BRUSH IS SAD.
FIRST OF ALL, YOU WONDER WHY HE DOESN'T FEEL THE NEED MORE TO
DEFEND HIS FAMILY. HOW HE DOES THAT, THAT'S UP FOR
TED CRUZ TO THINK ABOUT. JIM IMHOFF SAID THE PRESIDENT
HAS HIS ON WAY OF COMMUNICATING. YES, HE LIE, YES, HE SAYS HE'S
GOING TO STRIP LICENSES FROM NEWS OUTLETS WITH WHOM HE
DISAGREES, HE USES STALINIST PHRASES AND CALLS THE PRESS THE
ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE, CALLS OTHER PEOPLE THE ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE.
HE ACTUALLY QUESTIONS THE LEGITIMACY OF THE JUDICIAL
BRANCH AND SPECIFIC FEDERAL JUDICIAL JUDGES.
IF BARACK OBAMA HAD DONE ANY OF THESE THINGS, JIM IMHOFF WOULD
HAVE HELD EIGHT-YEAR HEARINGS ON IT.
SO. YES, HE DOES HAVE HIS OWN WAY OF
COMMUNICATING AND IMHOFF SAYS IT WORKS.
ACTUALLY NO, THE PRESIDENT HAS RECORD LOW APPROVAL RATINGS.
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY HAS ITS WIDEST SPLIT IN THE GENERIC
BALLOT THEY'VE EVER HAD WITH THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND CONGRESS'S
APPROVAL IS SITTING AT 14% AND ALMOST A RECORD LOW THERE.
WHAT HE SAYS SAID IS PATENTLY FALSE, JIM IMHOFF.
THERE IS NO REASON TO FOLLOW THIS GUY.
HE SE DESTROYING THE REPUBLICAN
PARTY. IF YOU JUST, AS I SAID BEFORE,
LOOK AT THE DATA. >> JIM IMHOFF, HE SAID, MAYBE WE
DO BETTER, HE'S TALKING ABOUT FLAKE AND CORKER.
MAYBE WE DO BETTER, THE PEOPLE THAT DON'T LIKE HIM, TALKING
ABOUT TRUMP, LEAVE AND REPLACE THEM.
THAT'S HIM SAYING FEW DON'T LIKE WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS DOING,
MAYBE YOU SHOULD FOLLOW JEFF FLAKE OUT THE DOOR?
>> THE STRIKING ASPECT. WE SHOWED THREE UNITED STATES
SENATOR, JIM IMHOFF, RAND PAUL AND CRUZ AND TED CRUZ.
THE STRIKING THING ABOUT THE THREE OF THEM IS THEY ARE SO
FILLED WITH FEAR, THE FEAR OF GETTING TWEETED AGAINST THE FEAR
OF THE NOISE, OF THE BANNON WING OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.
I MEAN IT'S AS IF THEY ARE IN A HOUSE THAT'S ON FIRE AND THEY
DON'T SENSE THAT THE FIRE IS EVENTUALLY GOING TO GET TO THE
ROOM THAT THEY'RE IN. KRISTEN, IN THE POLLING THAT
YOU'VE DONE WITH REGARD TO DONALD TRUMP, TO THE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES, AND HIS STATUS WITH THE ELDERLY PEOPLE,
WITH INDEPENDENTS, WITH WHOMEVER, DOES THE ISSUE OF
INCOMPETENCE EVER COME UP? BECAUSE THAT WOULD SEEM TO BE
HIS TRUE WEAKNESS IN THE LONG RUN, INCOMPETENCE THE FACT THAT
THEY CAN'T GET ANYTHING DONE WITH HIM AS PRESIDENT?
>> I THINK FOR VOTERS THAT ALREADY DIDN'T LIKE DONALD
TRUMP, THAT SORT OF BAKED INTO THE CAKE FOR THEM.
FOR VOTERS WHO DID VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP, AGAIN, YOU'VE SEEN
A HANDSFUL OF THEM BLEEDING AWAY, WHICH IS WHY HIS APPROVALS
USED TO BE NORTH OF 40% ARE SOUTH OF 40%, BUT AMONG
REPUBLICAN VOTERS AND THE TIMES OF VOTERS THAT SENIOR IMHOFF OR
CRUZ IS TALKING TO, THOSE COMMENTS THEY MADE ARE THE SORTS
OF THINGS I WILL HEAR IN FOCUS GROUPS FROM REPUBLICAN VOTERS,
THAT THEY JUST WANT TO SEE THINGS GET DONE.
>> THAT THEY GET THAT THE PRESIDENT TWEETS AND THEY DON'T
REALLY LIKE IT. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, I WANT TO SEE
THINGS GET DONE. IN THEIR PERSPECTIVE, THEY'RE
NOT, YOU DON'T REALLY HEAR PEOPLE SAY, WELL, THERE IS A
CO-EQUAL BRANCH OF GOVERNMENT. SENATORS HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO
SPEAK THEIR MIND. THEY WANT TO SEE THINGS GET
DONE. THEY VIEW IT AS A DISTRACTION,
THEY DON'T THINK THE AS FAR AS MAKING THESE COMMENTS ARE HAVING
ANY EVERYTHING ON CHANGING THE PRESIDENT'S BEHAVIOR SO WHAT'S
THE POINT OF IT? WHICH I THINK IS AN INTERESTING
ARCHITECT. RIGHT.
I BELIEVE IF YOU DISAGREE WITH THIS PRESIDENT.
SPEAK OUT BY ALL MEANS, I THINK IT'S ALSO VALID TO SAY IF YOU
SPEAK ON THE SENATE FLOOR AND GIVE A SPEECH THAT'S LOVE THEY
THE PRESIDENT DOESN'T CHANGE HIS BEHAVIOR F. YOU HAVEN'T CHANGED
THE MINDS OF THE PEOPLE IN YOU PARTY, EIGHT DISTRACTION?
I THINK IT'S A FAIR QUESTION. >> SO THE VULNERABILITY YOU
POINTED TO IT'S OKAY IF THINGS GET DONE.
WHAT IF THINGS DON'T GET DONE, HOW QUICKLY DOES THAT GO DOWN?
IS. >> Reporter: I THINK IF WE GET
TO THE ENDS OF THE YEAR, ObamaCare IS IN PLACE THE WALL
IS STILL FOUGHT BUILT, I DO THINK YOU WILL START TO SEE MORE
FOLKS GOING OKAY, OKAY, MAYBE IT'S NOT MOSTLY THE PRESIDENT'S
FAULT, BUT HE NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT IF HE WANT
TOSS