ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE YOU.
APPRECIATE IT.
>>> MEANTIME, MORE POLLS SHOWING
IMPEACHMENT SUPPORT IS WEAKER IN
THE KEY BATTLEGROUND STATES.
PRESIDENT TRUMP'S FORMER SENIOR
ADVISER STEVE BANNON THINKS THE
IMPEACHMENT PUSH WILL BACKFIRE
ON DEMOCRATS.
LISTEN.
>> I THINK ADAM SCHIFF DID THE
PRESIDENT A GREAT SERVICE THIS
WEEK BY HAVING THESE HEARINGS
AND LETTING PEOPLE SEE WHAT'S
GOING ON AND NOW YOU ARE SEEING
IN THESE 31 DISTRICTS MANY OF
THESE CONGRESSMEN HAVE TO GO
HOME AND DEFEND THIS.
IT WILL BE A TOUGH WEEK FOR
DEMOCRATS.
DAVID: TO FORMER WHITE HOUSE
DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF KARL ROVE.
GREAT TO SEE YOU.
DO YOU THINK STEVE BANNON IS
RIGHT?
>> I THINK THE DEMOCRATS HAVE
OVERPLAYED THEIR HAND AND I
THINK THEY ARE GOING TO FACE
RESISTANCE AMONG A KEY GROUP OF
SWING VOTERS WHO HAVE
APPARENTLY, EVEN IF THEY DON'T
LIKE THE PRESIDENT, THEY HAVE
YET TO BE CONVINCED THAT THERE'S
SOMETHING THAT WOULD CAUSE THEM
TO VOTE FOR THE CONGRESS TO VOTE
FOR HIS REMOVAL FROM OFFICE.
SO FAR, THE DEMOCRATS HAVE HAD
HIGH EXPECTATIONS AND
UNDERDELIVERED.
DAVID: THEY ALSO HAVE A VERY
IMPERFECT SPOKESPERSON IN THE
FORM OF ADAM SCHIFF, WHO A LOT
OF PEOPLE THINK HAS BEEN TRYING
TO SELL THE PUBLIC FALSE GOODS
FOR AWHILE.
FIRST HE SAID HE HAD HARD
EVIDENCE OF RUSSIAN COLLUSION,
THEN WE HAD MR. MUELLER COME OUT
AND SAY NOT SO, SO YOU HAVE THIS
IMPERFECT SALESMAN WHO IS TAKING
CENTER STAGE.
THAT COULDN'T HELP THEM.
>> NO, NOT AT ALL.
LOOK, I HAVE HAD A PERSONAL
EXPERIENCE WITH MR. SCHIFF AND
INVESTIGATIONS.
HE WAS INVESTIGATING, THE LEAD
FOR THE DEMOCRATS IN THE 2007
INVESTIGATION OF THE BUSH
ADMINISTRATION'S REMOVAL OF FIVE
U.S. ATTORNEYS.
SO I HAVE SPENT ROUGHLY TEN
HOURS ONE DAY BEING INTERROGATED
BY SCHIFF.
I WAS COMPLETELY UNIMPRESSED AND
IT WAS COMPLETELY PARTISAN AND
HE MADE A SERIES OF ALLEGATIONS
FOLLOWING THAT THAT TURNED OUT
TO BE SIMPLY, YOU KNOW, NOT --
ANY BASIS IN FACT WHATSOEVER AND
EVEN AN OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
INVESTIGATION OF THE MATTER CAME
TO AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT SET OF
CONCLUSIONS AND NO ACTIONS WERE
TAKEN.
BUT ACCORDING TO SCHIFF AT THE
END OF THIS TEN HOURS OF
TESTIMONY, BEHIND CLOSED DOORS,
UNDER OATH, ALL KINDS OF BAD
THINGS WERE GOING TO HAPPEN.
NONE OF IT CAME TO FRUITION.
THIS IS THE FUNDAMENTAL PROBLEM
FOR THE DEMOCRATS.
WHEN IMPEACHMENT HAS BEEN DONE
SUCCESSFULLY, THAT IS A BROAD
NATIONAL CONSENSUS HAS FORMED
BEHIND IT.
WE HAVE SEEN ONE IN THE LAST 50
YEARS IN THE RICHARD NIXON
IMPEACHMENT.
THE CHAIRMAN OF THE HOUSE
JUDICIARY COMMITTEE WAS SO
IMPARTIAL AND FAIR THAT AT THE
END OF THE PROCESS, ADVOCATES
FOR PRESIDENT NIXON APPLAUDED
HIS FAIRNESS.
YOU HAD A REPUBLICAN CHAIR -- A
REPUBLICAN LEAD COUNSEL, THE
PRESIDENT'S LAWYER WAS IN ALL OF
THE MEETINGS, THE PRESIDENT'S
LAWYER WAS ABLE TO SUGGEST
WITNESSES AND TO ASK QUESTIONS
AT THE END OF THE PRESENTATION
OF ANY EVIDENCE, THE PRESIDENT'S
LAWYER WAS ABLE TO FRAME IT FROM
THE PRESIDENT'S PERSPECTIVE.
NONE OF THAT HAPPENED IN THIS,
AND IT'S HARD ENOUGH EVEN WHEN
YOU DO THAT TO GET A BROAD
CONSENSUS.
THE REPUBLICANS IN THE CLINTON
IMPEACHMENT FOLLOWED THE EXACT
SAME PATTERN THAT DEMOCRAT PETER
RODINO HAD DONE IN THE NIXON
INVESTIGATION AND THEY WERE
STILL UNABLE TO FORM A CONSENSUS
THAT PRESIDENT CLINTON SHOULD BE
REMOVED FROM OFFICE.
DEMOCRATS ARE NOT DOING IT THE
WAY THEY HAVE DONE IT IN THE
PAST AND AS A RESULT, IT'S EVEN
LESS LIKELY TO PRODUCE A LARGE
NATIONAL CONSENSUS THAT
PRESIDENT TRUMP SHOULD BE
REMOVED FROM OFFICE.
THEY CAN'T PROVE THAT HE DID
SOMETHING THAT'S WORTHY OF BEING
IMPEACHED.
DAVID: TO YOUR POLITICAL POINT,
MANY PEOPLE POINT TO WILL HURD,
THE MODERATE REPUBLICAN, WHO HAS
NO REASON TO VOTE REFLEXIVELY
FOR DONALD TRUMP.
HE'S BEEN PRETTY STRAIGHT DOWN
THE LINE IN SUPPORT OR
OPPOSITION DEPENDING ON THE
ISSUE.
BUT HE'S SAYING THIS DOESN'T
RISE TO IMPEACHMENT SHOWS THAT
VIRTUALLY NO REPUBLICAN IS GOING
TO JOIN WITH DEMOCRATS ON THIS.
RIGHT?
>> WELL, YOU KNOW, THIS IS AN
INTERESTING THING TO ME, BECAUSE
IF YOU WATCH -- THE DEMOCRAT
RESPONSE TO ALL THIS IS NOT HEY,
MAYBE WE AREN'T PROVING OUR
CASE.
IT'S WHY AREN'T THE REPUBLICANS
COMING ACROSS AND SUPPORTING OUR
PERSPECTIVE.
THEY ARE BEING BACKED UP IN THE
MEDIA.
I WAS SHOCKED, ONE OF OUR CABLE
COMPETITORS THIS MORNING IN ONE
OF THEIR POLITICAL NEWSLETTERS,
IN TALKING ABOUT JOE BIDEN AND
HUNTER BIDEN, SAID THERE'S NO
EVIDENCE OF WRONGDOING BY THE
BIDENS.
THEY ARE BENDING OVER BACKWARDS,
THE MEDIA, TO SUPPORT THE
DEMOCRATIC NARRATIVE THAT WHAT
THE TEST IS HERE, IS WHY AREN'T
THE REPUBLICANS BREAKING FROM
TRUMP, NOT WHY AREN'T THE
DEMOCRATS MAKING A CASE TO
CONVINCE PEOPLE TO COME ACROSS
TO JOIN THEM AND THEY ARE ALSO
TREATING THE BIDENS AS IF THERE
WAS NO PROBLEM WITH HUNTER BIDEN
GOING ON THE BURISMA BOARD WHILE
THE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES, HIS FATHER, IS LECTURING
THE UKRAINIANS ABOUT HOW THEY
NEED TO STEP --
DAVID: BY THE WAY, THAT'S A
DIFFERENT STORY FROM THE STORY
WE WERE HEARING BACK IN 2015.
WHEN THE "NEW YORK TIMES"
ACTUALLY EDITORIALIZED THAT
HUNTER BIDEN HAD TO STEP DOWN
FROM THE BOARD OF BURISMA
BECAUSE THERE WAS TOO MUCH
CONFLICT OF INTEREST.
>> EXACTLY RIGHT.
THE "NEW YORK TIMES" BROKE THIS
STORY WITH A PIECE BY JAMES
RISON WHO IS CLEARLY NOT CENTER
RIGHT, IS CENTER LEFT, AND WAS
QUOTED, A WHOLE SERIES OF
ANTICORRUPTION EXPERTS INSIDE
UKRAINE SAYING DOESN'T THE OBAMA
ADMINISTRATION GET THE WEIRDNESS
OF HAVING HUNTER BIDEN ON THE
BOARD AND HIS FATHER LECTURING
US ABOUT ANTICORRUPTION, AS MUCH
AS WE SUPPORT THOSE EFFORTS.
DAVID: WE GOT TO GO.
AS THEY SAY IN POLITICS,
SOMETIMES IN JOURNALISM, NOT
HERE, THOUGH, DON'T LET FACTS
GET IN THE WAY OF A GOOD