ALL OF THE PRESIDENTS CHILDREN WILL BE THERE WITH THE EXCEPTION
OF HIS YOUNGEST SON BARRON.
SAVANNAH?
>> THANK YOU.
>>> WE ARE NOW JOINED BY SARAH
HUCKABEE SANDERS.
GOOD TO SEE YOU.
>> GOOD MORNING, GREAT TO BE
HERE.
THANKS FOR HAVING ME ON.
>> LETS TALK ABOUT THE STATE OF
THE UNION ADDRESS.
THE PRESIDENT IS COMING INTO HIS
FIRST STATE OF THE UNION WITH A
RIP ROARING ECONOMY, LOW
UNEMPLOYMENT.
THE WIND AT HIS BACK IN TERMS OF
THE ECONOMY.
AND YET, HIS OWN PERSONAL APPROVAL RATINGS ARE AT RECORD
LOWS.
LOWS.
DOES HE LOOK AT THIS AS AN
OPPORTUNITY TO KIND OF BUILD THAT BACK UP, TO TRY TO UNITE
THE COUNTRY.
THE COUNTRY. WHAT WILL HE SAY?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. LOOK, THE PRESIDENT WILL TALK
ABOUT A NUMBER OF THINGS
TONIGHT.
CERTAINLY THE ECONOMY WILL BE
FRONT AND CENTER. WE HAVE HAD A HISTORIC YEAR.
RECORD BREAKING MOMENTS
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
IN LARGE PART DUE TO THE
PRESIDENTS LEADERSHIP ON DEREGULATION.ADERSHIP ON
DEREGULATION.
AND A HUGE CAPSTONE AT THE END OF THE YEAR WITH THE TAX CUTSD
OF THE YEAR WITH THE TAX CUTS AND THE JOBS ACT WHICH WE HAVE
SEEN HAVE IMMEDIATE IMPACT WITH
SEVERAL HUNDRED COMPANIES
STEPPING FORWARD AND GIVING PAY
RAISES, BONUSES BECAUSE OF THAT
TAX CUT AND THAT TAX REFORM
PACKAGE.
YOURE GOING TO SEE A BIG FOCUS
ON NATIONAL SECURITY.
THIS HAS BEEN SOMETHING THAT THE
PRESIDENT HAS TALKED ABOUT FOR A
LONG TIME.
FOR THE FIRST TIME IN YEARS, WE
ARE SEEING MASSIVE IMPACTS ON ISIS AND THEYRE ON THE RUN AND
MAJOR PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE ON
THAT FRONT.
THAT FRONT.
THE PRESIDENT MADE THAT A BIG PART OF HIS ADMINISTRATION.IG
PART OF HIS ADMINISTRATION.
YOU WILL SEE A FOCUS ON THAT. IMMIGRATION, THE PRESIDENT LAID
OUT THE FRAMEWORK THAT IS A
BIPARTISAN DEAL THAT BRINGS BOTH
REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS TO THE
TABLE AND GIVES EVERYBODY
SOMETHING OF WHAT THEY WANTED
MOST.
MOST.
>> SO SARAH --
>> THE FIRST ATTEMPT WE HAVE TO
SEEN TO DELIVER ON THIS TOPIC
AND ON THIS ISSUE IN A REAL CHANCE TO MAKE SOME BIG REFORM
AND WERE EXCITED TO SEE THAT
TAKE PLACE.
TAKE PLACE. >> SO LOTS TO TALK ABOUT AT THE
STATE OF THE UNION AND BEHIND
THE SCENES AS WELL.
ANDREW McCABE ABRUPTLY RESIGNED
YESTERDAY EARLIER THAN EXPECTED.
THE PRESIDENT HAS MADE NO SECRET
OF THE FACT THAT HE DOES NOT
CARE FOR ANDREW McCABE.
YOU SAID THAT HE WASNT PART OF THE DECISION PROCESS.T PART OF
THE DECISION PROCESS. WAS HE HAPPY TO SEE ANDREW
McCABE GO?
McCABE GO? >> LOOK, I HAVENT ASKED HIM
SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THAT, BUT HE
CERTAINLY HAS VOICED SOME
FRUSTRATIONS WITH SOME OF THE
ACTIONS BY THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR,
BUT THE BIGGER ISSUE IS THE
PRESIDENT HAS FULL AND COMPLETE
CONFIDENCE IN FBI DIRECTOR WRAY
AND HE HAS LEFT THESE DECISIONS
TO HIM AND I WOULD REFER YOU TO
THEM FOR SPECIFICS.
RIGHT NOW, AND CERTAINLY TOP OF
MIND FOR THIS PRESIDENT ISNT
ABOUT DEPUTY DIRECTOR McCABE BUT
ABOUT THE STATE OF THE UNION,
ITS ABOUT BRINGING THE COUNTRY
TOGETHER, SETTING AN OPTIMISTIC
VISION TONIGHT AND YOU WILL SEE
THE PRESIDENTS HEART IN THIS
SPEECH.
SPEECH.
I THINK YOU WILL SEE THE PATRIOTSISM OF THIS COUNTRY.
AND I THINK IT WILL BE AN
INCREDIBLE AND POWERFUL NIGHT.
>> BACK TO THE RUSSIA
INVESTIGATION FOR A MOMENT
BECAUSE LETS GO BIG PICTURE.
HERES WHAT I DONT QUITE
UNDERSTAND.
THE PRESIDENT HAS SAID THERES
NO COLLUSION, THERES NOTHING
WRONG THERE, NOTHING TO SEE
HERE.
YET ONE BY ONE, HES GONE AFTER
EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS CONNECTED
TO THIS, WHETHER ITS HIS OWN
ATTORNEY GENERAL OR JAMES COMEY OR ANDREW McCABE EVEN SAYING HE
WOULD FIRE DIRECTOR MUELLER.
IF THERES NOTHING TO SEE HERE, WHY DOES HE GO AFTER ALL OF THE
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS
CONNECTED TO THE RUSSIA
INVESTIGATION?
INVESTIGATION?
DOESNT IT AT A MINIMUM LOOK
BAD?
>> LOOK, HE HASNT GONE AFTER THE SPECIAL COUNSEL, WE HAVE
VOLUNTEERED THOUSANDS UPON
THOUSANDS OF DOCUMENTS.
OVER 20 DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS
HAVE DONE INTERVIEWS.
WE HAVE BEEN TRANSPARENT AS
POSSIBLE --
>> BUT HES GONE AFTER EVERY
SINGLE PERSON AT THE TOP OF THIS
INVESTIGATION INCLUDING THE
ATTORNEY GENERAL HE APPOINTED SO
I GUESS THE QUESTION IS, IF
THERES NOTHING TO SEE HERE AND
HE WANTS TO COOPERATE, WHY DOES
HE CONTINUALLY GO AFTER PEOPLE
WHO ARE CONNECTED TO THE
INVESTIGATION AND JUST TRYING TO
DO THE INVESTIGATION?
DOESNT THAT MAKE IT LOOK LIKE
HE HAS SOMETHING TO HIDE?
>> FRANKLY, IF SOME OF THESE
INDIVIDUALS WERE JUST TRYING TO
DO THE INVESTIGATION, WHAT THEY
WOULD HAVE DONE IT AND IT WOULD
HAVE BEEN WRAPPED UP.
TIME AND TIME AGAIN, THE ONLY
THING THAT HAS COME OUT OF THESE
AND EVERY SINGLE TIME AFTER
INTERVIEWS, AFTER REVIEWING
RECORDS, THE ON THING THEY THAT
COME BACK TO IS NO, WE HAVENT
FOUND ANYTHING YET.
FRANKLY, I THINK THE PEOPLE THAT
ARE FRUSTRATED MOST ISNT THE
PRESIDENT, ITS THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE.
THEYRE SICK AND TIRED OF BEING INUNDATED WITH RUSSIAN FEVER.G
INUNDATED WITH RUSSIAN FEVER. THEYRE FOCUSED ON US MOVING
FORWARD AND THATS WHAT THE
PRESIDENT IS TRYING TO DO.
>> BUT ON THAT ISSUE --
>> WHAT WELL SEE HIM DO
TONIGHT.
TONIGHT.
>> HAD THE PRESIDENT HOT FIRED
DIRECTOR COMEY THERE WOULDNT BE
A SPECIAL COUNSEL AND AN
OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE
INVESTIGATION THAT CENTERS
AROUND HIM?
DIDNT HIS OWN ACTIONS BRING
THIS UPON HIMSELF?
>> LOOK, I THINK THE ACTIONS OF DIRECTOR COMEY AND CERTAINLY OF
DIRECTOR COMEY AND CERTAINLY EVERY DAY SINCE HIS FIRING WE
HAVE SEEN MORE AND MORE REASON
HE SHOULDNT HAVE BEEN THE HEAD
OF THE FBI.
ITS TURNED OUT THAT HE WAS LEAKING INFORMATION.HE WAS
LEAKING INFORMATION. I THINK THE PRESIDENT MADE THE
RIGHT DECISION.
RIGHT DECISION. AND FOR US TO GO BACK AND TRY TO
RECREATE HISTORY IS JUST SIMPLY
NOT POSSIBLE.
NOT POSSIBLE. AGAIN, I THINK THAT IT HAS BEEN
VERY CLEAR TIME AND TIME AGAIN
THERES ABSOLUTELY NO COLLUSION
WHATSOEVER WITH THE PRESIDENT OR
THIS ADMINISTRATION.
THIS ADMINISTRATION.
WERE READY TO MOVE ON. I KNOW THE COUNTRY IS READY TO
MOVE ON AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO
THE SPECIAL COUNSEL WRAPPING
THIS UP.
THIS UP.
SO WE CAN CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON ALL OF THE GREAT THINGS WE WERE
DOING.
DOING.
IMAGINE HOW MANY MORE GOOD THINGS FOR THE COUNTRY WE WOULD
HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS PAST
YEAR IF EVERYBODY HADNT BEEN SO
FOCUSED ON THIS RUSSIA --
>> THREES TRUE.
BUT I HAVE TO GO.
BUT YOU HAVE TO SAY THAT THE PRESS FOCUSES ON IT, BUT THATS
BECAUSE THE PRESIDENT IS FOCUSED
ON IT AND TWEETING ABOUT IT.
SEE YOU TONIGHT FOR THE STATE OF
THE UNION.