Trump open to son testifying in Russia inquiries, and other things reporters learned from his Air Force One visit
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(CNN)President
Donald Trump is open to his eldest son testifying before Congress to
address questions about Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
"If he wants to," Trump told reporters traveling on Air Force One Wednesday night when asked if he supported his son testifying.
Trump's
comment came as top Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill signaled
they would likely call on Donald Trump Jr. to testify after the younger
Trump disclosed emails showing he was eager to obtain incriminating
information on Hillary Clinton from someone described as a "Russian
government attorney."
The comment
was just one of several the President made Wednesday night on Air Force
One during an hour-long conversation with reporters traveling with him
to Paris.
The
President's stop by the press cabin was initially ruled off-the-record
-- a common practice spanning several administrations designed to give
reporters insight into the President's thinking -- but the White House
agreed Thursday afternoon to put excerpts of the comments on the record
after Trump said he wanted them to be publicized.
Here are some of the highlights of the excerpts of his gaggle with reporters aboard Air Force One:
1. Health care is tough ... tougher than Middle East peace?
"I'd
say the only thing more difficult than peace between Israel and the
Palestinians is health care. It's like this narrow road that about a
quarter of an inch wide," Trump said.
Even
as he signaled that "I think we're going to get something that's really
good," Trump lamented the tricky politics of wrangling 50 Senate
Republicans to back the bill to repeal and replace Obamacare making its
way through the Senate.
"You get a
couple here and you say, 'great,' and then you find out you just lost
four over here. Health care is tough," said the President, who is also
pushing a Middle East peace initiative.
2. Meeting(s) with Putin
Trump addressed still-lingering questions about his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G20.
But
his comments offered little more clarity on whether he accepted the
Russian president's denials of Russian government meddling in the 2016
presidential election, which the US intelligence community has ruled a
fact.
Putin and his foreign minister claimed that Trump accepted the denials.
On
Air Force One, Trump said: "I said to him, were you involved with the
meddling in the election? He said, absolutely not. I was not
involved. He was very strong on it. I then said to him again, in a
totally different way, were you involved with the meddling. He said, I
was not -- absolutely not."
Pressed again on whether he told Putin he believed him, Trump offered:
"I
asked him, were you involved? He said, very strongly -- said to him a
second time -- totally different -- were you involved? Because we can't
let that happen. And I mean, whether it's Russia or anybody else, we
can't let there be even a scintilla of doubt when it comes to an
election. I mean, I'm very strong on that," Trump said. "I said, look,
we can't -- we can't have -- now, he said absolutely not twice. What do
you do? End up in a fistfight with somebody, OK? Because then I brought
up Syria."
Trump also said he likely will invite Putin to the White House -- just not yet.
"I would say yes, yeah. At the right time. I don't think this is the right time, but the answer is yes I would," Trump said.
3. Border wall -- or, perhaps, fence?
The
border wall he has promised his supporters since the very first day of
his presidential campaign? It might be more of a fence.
Trump told reporters the wall he plans to build on the southern US border will need to be transparent -- literally.
"One
of the things with the wall is you need transparency. You have to be
able to see through it. In other words, if you can't see through that
wall -- so it could be a steel wall with openings, but you have to have
openings because you have to see what's on the other side of the wall,"
Trump said.
Trump also made clear that the idea he has floated of putting solar panels on the border wall was not a joke.
"No,
not joking, no. There is a chance that we can do a solar wall," Trump
said. "We have major companies looking at that. Look, there's no better
place for solar than the Mexico border -- the southern border. And there
is a very good chance we can do a solar wall, which would actually look
good. But there is a very good chance we could do a solar wall.
The
wall, Trump said, would only need to cover "700 to 900 miles," not the
full 2,000 mile-long border. Trump also signaled during the campaign
that natural barriers made it unnecessary for the border wall to cover
the full length of the US-Mexico border.
4. Steel tariffs?
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The first ladies leave a boat after a trip on the Seine River on July 13.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Tourists take pictures of Melania Trump as she visits the Notre Dame Cathedral on July 13.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
President Macron welcomes Trump before their meeting at the Elysee Palace.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Trump exits his car as he arrives for the meeting in Paris.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The Trumps and the Macrons tour Napoleon Bonaparte's tomb on July 13.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The Trumps and the Macrons attend a welcoming ceremony at Les Invalides, which houses Napoleon's tomb.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Macron greets Trump at Les Invalides.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Melania Trump visits with children at Paris' Necker Hospital on July 13.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
President Trump waves as he and his wife arrive at Paris' Orly Airport.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
President
Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One at Paris'
Orly Airport as they head back to the United States on Friday, July 14.
The Trumps attended the Bastille Day parade in Paris at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Macron
bids farewell to Trump following the Bastille Day military parade on
the Champs-Elysees in Paris. Macron has sought to act as Trump's bridge
to Europe, his advisers have said, as other leaders there have isolated
the United States on key issues.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The
Trumps join Macron and French first lady Brigitte Macron near the end
of the parade. France is celebrating the storming of the Bastille
military prison in 1789, a key date in the French Revolution. The
military display also commemorated the centennial of the US entry into
World War I.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The Macrons play host to the Trumps during the elaborate military display.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
A
crowd gathers outside a police cordon below the Eiffel Tower as the two
leaders and their wives attend a dinner at Le Jules Verne restaurant on
Thursday, July 13.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The couples dine at the Eiffel Tower restaurant on July 13.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Trump and Macron hold a news conference after meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris on July 13.
Hide Caption
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The leaders sit across a table at the Elysee Palace.
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The two men have been holding extended talks on security matters, including the civil war in Syria and counterterrorism efforts.
Hide Caption
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The first ladies leave a boat after a trip on the Seine River on July 13.
Hide Caption
10 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Tourists take pictures of Melania Trump as she visits the Notre Dame Cathedral on July 13.
Hide Caption
11 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
President Macron welcomes Trump before their meeting at the Elysee Palace.
Hide Caption
12 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Trump exits his car as he arrives for the meeting in Paris.
Hide Caption
13 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The Trumps and the Macrons tour Napoleon Bonaparte's tomb on July 13.
Hide Caption
14 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The Trumps and the Macrons attend a welcoming ceremony at Les Invalides, which houses Napoleon's tomb.
Hide Caption
15 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Macron greets Trump at Les Invalides.
Hide Caption
16 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Melania Trump visits with children at Paris' Necker Hospital on July 13.
Hide Caption
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Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
President Trump waves as he and his wife arrive at Paris' Orly Airport.
Hide Caption
18 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
President
Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One at Paris'
Orly Airport as they head back to the United States on Friday, July 14.
The Trumps attended the Bastille Day parade in Paris at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron.
Hide Caption
1 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Macron
bids farewell to Trump following the Bastille Day military parade on
the Champs-Elysees in Paris. Macron has sought to act as Trump's bridge
to Europe, his advisers have said, as other leaders there have isolated
the United States on key issues.
Hide Caption
2 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The
Trumps join Macron and French first lady Brigitte Macron near the end
of the parade. France is celebrating the storming of the Bastille
military prison in 1789, a key date in the French Revolution. The
military display also commemorated the centennial of the US entry into
World War I.
Hide Caption
3 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The Macrons play host to the Trumps during the elaborate military display.
Hide Caption
4 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
A
crowd gathers outside a police cordon below the Eiffel Tower as the two
leaders and their wives attend a dinner at Le Jules Verne restaurant on
Thursday, July 13.
Hide Caption
5 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The couples dine at the Eiffel Tower restaurant on July 13.
Hide Caption
6 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
Trump and Macron hold a news conference after meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris on July 13.
Hide Caption
7 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The leaders sit across a table at the Elysee Palace.
Hide Caption
8 of 18
Photos: Trump in Paris for Bastille Day celebrations
The two men have been holding extended talks on security matters, including the civil war in Syria and counterterrorism efforts.
Hide Caption
9 of 18
Trump confirmed that he is mulling tariffs on steel imports -- or perhaps quotas.
"Steel
is a big problem. Steel is -- I mean, they're dumping steel. Not only
China, but others. We're like a dumping ground, OK? They're dumping
steel and destroying our steel industry, they've been doing it for
decades, and I'm stopping it. It'll stop," Trump said.
"There are two ways," he added. "Quotas and tariffs. Maybe I'll do both."
The
comments come as Trump's Commerce Department has been leading an
investigation into whether the price of steel imports into the US pose a
risk to US national security by limiting domestic production.
5. Trade key as US looks to pressure China on North Korea
In
what could be perceived as a warning to China, Trump signaled that he
could use the US-China trading relationship as a lever to pressure China
into increasing its own pressure on North Korea.
"Somebody
said, what cards do you have? I said, very simple -- trade. We are
being absolutely devastated by bad trade deals. We have the worst of all
trade deals is with China," Trump said. "But the biggest strength we
have are these horrendous trade deals, like with China. That's our
strength. But we're going to fix them. But in terms of North Korea,
our strength is trade."
Trump also made clear he wants to "fix" the US' trade imbalance with China, which enjoys a trade surplus with the US.
6. Donald Trump Jr.
Trump
didn't just say he would be open to his son testifying on his meeting
with a Russian lawyer last summer, he also offered an extensive defense
of his son's actions.
Trump said
that the press has been unfairly critical of his son's meeting with a
Russian lawyer, whom the younger Trump believed to be a "Russian
government lawyer," according to the emails disclosed after The New York Times reported on the meeting.
"Don
is -- as many of you know Don -- he's a good boy. He's a good kid. And
he had a meeting, nothing happened with the meeting. It was a short
meeting, as he told me -- because I only heard about it two or three
days ago," Trump said.
"Honestly,
in a world of politics, most people are going to take that meeting. If
somebody called and said, 'Hey' -- and you're a Democrat -- and by the
way, they have taken them -- 'Hey, I have ... some information on Donald
Trump. You're running against Donald Trump. Can I see you?' I mean, how
many people are not going to take the meeting?" Trump said.
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