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Official Request Made to Hillary Clinton on E-Mail Server; Obama Sends YouTube Address to Iran; Boehner Plans Trip to Israel; Racism Declared in Loretta Lynch Confirmation. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired March 20, 2015 - 13:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:30:06] WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer, reporting from Washington.

We have some news that we're ready to break here on CNN regarding the controversy over Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server. The House committee has issued an official request to the former secretary.

Chris Frates, you've got the news to report. What have you learned?

CHRIS FRATES, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: I do, Wolf. What we've learned is that Trey Gowdy, the chairman of committee investigating Benghazi, has sent Hillary Clinton's lawyer a letter asking that that server be turned over to the independent inspector general for the State Department. I have the letter, and he says, "I'm asking Secretary Clinton to relinquish her server to a neutral, detached and independent third party such as the inspector general for the State Department, for review and an independent accounting of any records contained on the server."

So what they're trying to do here, Wolf, is make sure that what Hillary Clinton has turned over to the State Department -- remember she's turned over about 55,000 pages of e-mails to the State Department. They want somebody to look at that e-mail server where she did her official business and determine whether or not she's turned over everything that is official or whether she's held things back.

BLITZER: She's suggested there were, during those four years on that server, 62,000 e-mails. Half of them, about 31,000, have been handed over to the State Department. That translates into 55,000 actual pages, copies of what she says was official government-related business. The other half, she suggests, she deleted all of that. It may not be on the server any longer.

FRATES: She has suggested that, but I think what the Republicans want to see, they want to see what exactly is on that server. If she was doing government business on that server, somebody other than Hillary Clinton should be able to have a look at it.

And they have given her until April 3rd to respond to this request. Of course, Republicans like Chairman Gowdy have said for a week or so that she should do it. Now they're formally asking her to do it. And they're indicating if she doesn't do it, the full House of Representatives might take up this issue and that could include the House voting to subpoena that server. Because, remember, Chairman Gowdy can't as a committee chair subpoena the server. He can only get e-mails regarding Benghazi. So this could become a bigger issue, depending on how Secretary Clinton responds to the request.

BLITZER: I don't think he should hold his breath waiting for that server because she at that news conference that server will be private.

FRATES: That is correct.

BLITZER: It's not going to be made public.

Thanks for breaking the news, Chris Frates.

Still ahead, he invited the Israeli prime minister to Washington. Now House Speaker John Boehner is planning a trip to Jerusalem. Will his visit deepen the partisan divide when it comes to Israel?

Also coming up, crucial issues and critical end of the month deadline. The Iran nuclear talks are apparently on hold right now. An update on the progress and the sticking points is coming up next.

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[13:36:15] BLITZER: The nuclear talks with Iran went into recess today, but the clock is ticking toward a crucial end-of-the-month deadline. The Secretary of State John Kerry says they'll return to the negotiating table next week.

Meanwhile, President Obama and Iran's foreign minister took to social media to push for progress. The foreign minister tweeted, and I'm quoting, "It's high time for the U.S. and its allies to choose, pressure or agreement." And President Obama released a YouTube message to the Iranian people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The days and weeks ahead will be critical. Our negotiations have made progress but gaps remain. And there are people in both our countries and beyond who oppose a diplomatic resolution. My message to you, the people of Iran, is that together we have to speak up for the future we seek.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Joining us now for some perspective on these talks, the Middle East scholar, Vali Nasr. He's dean of the School of Advanced International Studies here in Washington at Johns Hopkins University.

Vali, thanks very much for coming in.

A video like this directly addressing the people of Iran by the president of the United States, he can post it on YouTube, they can put it out, but will people in Iran actually be able to see this?

VALI NASR, MIDDLE EAST SCHOLAR & DEAN, SCHOOL OF ADVANCED INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: I think a segment of them will and some of them will find a way to download it and share it as a file on cell phones and Smartphones and the like. I think people will see it and read reports of it by people who have seen it.

BLITZER: Let's say a lot of people in Iran actually get to hear the president of the United States say accept the deal, a good deal, forget about your nuclear weapons program. Iran can really gain economically, socially, internationally, if it makes a good deal.

NASR: I think it does help. Public diplomacy is important. The fact that he's sending this message on Iran's New Year, which is today, is important. But also there's always been a question as to how much is he engaged in this. How much does this have his support? I think something like this will convey to the Iranian people that the president wants this deal, a deal that's beneficial to the Iranian people, and that will put some pressure on the Iranian leaders.

BLITZER: In other words, if the president says it, as opposed to the secretary of state, it has a lot more clout in Iran. That's what you're saying

NASR: I think because the Iranian leaders have said all along said it's not clear whether the president will fully back this deal. And if, say, with the pressure that we saw from Prime Minister Netanyahu and Congress and sort of the pressure that exists on this deal, is he willing to stand up and defend it. So something like this message today gives them the sense that, yes, he's willing to come in support of this deal.

BLITZER: So there's a pause right now, but I assume in the coming days everyone will get back, the foreign minister, Secretary of State Kerry, they will go back to Switzerland and resume negotiations. They have a March 31st deadline for at least a framework. Deal or no deal?

NASR: I think they're very close. I think the biggest part of the disagreement is over Iran's insistence that the majority of sanctions should be lifted, something that's not easy to do. I think also both sides know that they have a tough job dealing with the hard liners or critiques or conservatives and, on this side, Republicans at home. Therefore, they're trying to get the best -- the best deal on the table that would make selling it at home easier. And that makes it very tricky.

BLITZER: Vali Nasr is the dean of the School of International Studies, the Johns Hopkins University. Full disclosure, I'm a graduate of that school.

Thanks very much for joining us.

NASR: Good to be with you.

[13:39:36] BLITZER: Just ahead, the Israeli prime minister walks back his comments opposing a Palestinian State. Will the reversal help repair the rift, serious rift with the Obama administration?

And claims from the U.S. Senate floor that racism is delaying a confirmation vote on a new U.S. attorney general. A senior Republican issues an angry response to that accusation.

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BLITZER: His invitation for the Israeli prime minister to address the U.S. Congress set off a firestorm. Now House Speaker John Boehner is planning his own trip to Jerusalem to meet with the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Israeli newspaper, "Haaretz" says the trip will be a victory celebration for the prime minister, a victory celebration that was actually planned, they say, before the Israeli election.

Let's bring in our CNN correspondent, Oren Liebermann, joining us from Jerusalem. Here in Washington, is Aaron Miller, a distinguished scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center, a former adviser to six secretaries of state on the Arab-Israeli peace process.

So, what do they say, Oren, in Jerusalem about this visit by the House speaker?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're hearing that it will be sometime in the next two weeks, probably later in the next two weeks. Speaker of the House John Boehner will come here. And it's very much Benjamin Netanyahu saying his strongest allies in Congress are the Republicans behind Speaker of the House John Boehner. Perhaps it's even one more shot between the back and forth we've seen between President Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu that effectively started when Boehner invited Netanyahu to speak before Congress.

BLITZER: Aaron, the relationship -- you've studied this U.S./Israeli relationship for a long time -- it's about as strained as I've ever seen it but give me your analysis.

AARON DAVID MILLER, DISTINGUISHED SCHOLAR, WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER: There's no question, both in personality and policies, this is the worst. It's been a non-stop soap opera between Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu for at least five years.

BLITZER: How do they fix it?

[13:44:57] MILLER: I'm not sure they can fix it. It's got to be managed for the next 20 months. The truth is I don't know where it goes. The administration can talk tough, but what are they going to do, sanction the Israelis? Support the Palestinian bid at the international criminal court? They may be less solicitous of defending Israeli positions abroad in an international forum. I can see them go. But they weren't moving on the Israeli-Palestinian issue, they'll have to figure out how to work with the Israelis, as hard as that's going to be.

BLITZER: Oren, what are they saying over there about the flip-flop from the prime minister? The day before the election, he says there won't be a Palestinian state on his watch. That was seen as a repudiation of the two-state solution. But yesterday, he says he never supported a one-state solution, he supports a two-state solution. What's the reaction over there to this apparent about-face?

LIEBERMANN: Well, his critics here have said that he's playing politics. He needed to get support from right-wing supporters. We saw him clearly move in that direction in the days before the election. And the culmination was him saying there will be no two- state solution, there will be no Palestinian state if Benjamin Netanyahu is the prime minister. Then just after the election, after he wins a pretty resounding victory, he does an about-face and says, I never said I don't support a two-state solution, I support a sustainable two-state solution. So his critics have said he's playing politics. Meanwhile the Palestinians have said, and we spoke with the chief Palestinian negotiator, he believes the pre-election comments that Netanyahu never supported a two-state solution and, as such, they'll keep pushing on the international forum, the Security Council at the U.N. and the International Criminal Court for international recognition instead of through negotiations.

BLITZER: It seems like White House officials agree with the chief Palestinian negotiator, Aaron, because the White House is saying publicly as a result of what the prime minister said just before the election, the U.S. is now going to reassess its entire relationship not only with Israel, the peace process and everything else. The word "re-assess" is a strong word.

MILLER: You remember the last time that happened, Wolf, in 1975. Kissinger summoned all our ambassadors back and called for a reassessment. He wanted Rabin to sign the second Sinai Disengagement Agreement. Kissinger admitted later it was political theater, but the truth is it worked. Here, I'm not so sure it's going to work because there's no agreement right now. They're not close. And the truth is, you know as well as I, there are productive fights with the Israelis that can actually accomplish things and unproductive ones. I'm afraid right now we are in the middle of an unproductive fight.

BLITZER: You think the U.S., the Obama administration, is really going to, for example, allow anti-Israeli resolutions to be passed by the U.N. Security Council, that that traditional U.S. veto won't happen?

MILLER: If they abstained on a U.N. resolution on settlements, would it stun me and shock me? No. Would they vote to recognize a state of Palestine? No. Would they support the Palestinian bid at the ICC on war crimes? No. But what they might do is support the U.N. Security Council resolution to lay out the elements of what constitutes a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict if they can't get one on the ground in 20 months. And let's be clear, they're not going to get one in the next 20 months.

BLITZER: You think they would also potentially be a reduction in U.S. economic and military assistance to Israel? A slowdown, for example, in military hardware, stuff like that?

MILLER: In my judgment, almost inconceivable. This administration has a tendency to talk tough. Very tough rhetoric. But when it comes to imposing actual costs and consequences, they're not very tough.

BLITZER: And one final question, Oren, to you over there in Jerusalem. Do Israelis, in general -- and you've been there for a while -- do they understand how strained the U.S./Israeli relationship has become over these past several weeks?

LIEBERMANN: I think many of them do. Those that are critical of that relationship and critical of Netanyahu's decisions generally fall on the left. Those who have faith that Netanyahu is strong enough to keep that relationship as it needs to be, they support Netanyahu in what he's done over the past few weeks, regardless of how strained it has gotten.

BLITZER: We'll see if the prime minister and the president, if they can get their act together and try to fix it. We'll see what happens, if that's possible.

Thanks very much, Oren Liebermann, Aaron Miller. Guys, appreciate it.

Still ahead, several lawmakers here in Washington are injecting race into the conversation as they wait for the confirmation vote on the attorney general nominee, Loretta Lynch.

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[13:53:05] BLITZER: Congressman Aaron Schock, who used TV's "Downton Abbey" for his office decor, is now under federal investigation. Sources in Washington familiar with the matter say FBI and federal prosecutors in Illinois are investigating whether Schock broke the law in accounting for campaign expenses. Schock recently announced he would resign after allegations he had improperly accounted for travel and other contributions from donors.

Several Democrats are declaring racism in the Senate's delayed vote of U.S. attorney general nominee, Loretta Lynch. President Obama tapped Lynch in November to replace Eric Holder. If approved, she would become the first African-American woman to serve as attorney general of the United States. She made it through committee but her vote to come up for full confirmation by the entire Senate has been delayed after a Senate vote. Republicans say they want it delayed until after a Senate vote on human sex trafficking. Democrats are holding up that vote after a provision was included limiting abortion funding.

But on the Senate floor Wednesday, Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois implied the vote delay was racially motivated, comments echoed by several other Democrats.

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SEN. DICK DURBIN, (R), ILLINOIS: Loretta Lynch, the first African- American woman nominated to be attorney general, is asked to sit in the back of the bus when it comes to the Senate calendar. That's unfair. It's unjust. It's beneath the decorum and dignity of the United States Senate.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BLITZER: Republican Senator John McCain quickly took to the Senate floor, angrily fired back at Durbin's comments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R), ARIZONA: What is beneath the decorum and dignity of the United States Senate, I would say to the Senator from Illinois, is for him to come to this floor and use that imagery and suggest that racist tactics are being employed to delay Ms. Lynch's confirmation vote. Such inflammatory rhetoric has no place in this body and serves no purpose other than to further divide us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[13:55:21] BLITZER: With us to discuss what's going on, our chief political analyst, Gloria Borger; and our correspondent, Athena Jones.

Did Dick Durbin reply to that bitter, angry reaction from John McCain saying don't bring up the issue of race, this has nothing to do with race?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He didn't reply. He didn't apologize, which is what Senator McCain wanted. I can tell you this race talk is not new. You have folks who for years even before the Lynch nomination, before the president nominated Lynch who believed on the Hill and off the Hill that race has something to do with the way that the other party, the Republican party, has treated President Obama, treated Eric Holder and is now treating Loretta Lynch. This isn't new but certainly it hasn't so far been helpful in moving the ball forward. All it's done is really ramp up the heat. I think this is a case of political tactics that have gone wrong and that are creating a real mess.

BLITZER: It is a real mess. This woman has been waiting a long time for confirmation after a very distinguished --

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: -- after a distinguished career as the U.S. attorney in New York.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: She's had a distinguished career. She got approved on the Senate Judiciary Committee on a bipartisan vote. There were three Republicans -- Athena was there -- who voted for her. She's widely well regarded. Today, Rudy Giuliani, who is no fan of President Obama, as you know, accused Obama of not loving his country, came out and said today that, "Loretta Lynch is not only an acceptable appointment but I find her to be an extraordinary appointment."

If they get this to the floor I think the odds are it would be close, right, that she would be confirmed.

JONES: She would be confirmed but Rudy Giuliani and others want the Senate to have a big vote confirming her. That doesn't look likely. She's not even scheduled for a vote. BLITZER: A lot of Republicans say they'll vote against her because

she supported President Obama's unilateral executive actions on immigration reform.

BORGER: Shocking, shocking, shocking. It's shocking that somebody who was nominated by the president of the United States would actually support the president. What did they expect she was going to do? Go before the Senate judiciary committee and say actually I think what the president did was illegal? I doubt it. They had to know that was what she was going to say. I think this parliamentary maneuvering is what the American public hates about the Congress. If you want to vote and oppose Loretta Lynch, go to the floor and tell the American public why you are opposing her whether it's because of immigration or something else. Go to the floor and have a debate. Push a button, vote. Let the American people decide whether they think you did the right thing or the wrong thing.

BLITZER: But most Republicans believe the president is in violation of the Constitution with that executive order, Athena. They say they don't want -- they have backing now of federal judge in Texas. It's now gone before a federal appeals court. It's being adjudicated even as we speak. They say this is a matter of principle. They believe the president is breaking the law by imposing these kinds of actions. And if she supports that, there's no way they can vote to confirm her.

JONES: But here's the deal. She would win confirmation if they went ahead and held the vote today. There are three Republicans who voted for her out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. There's another Republican, Susan Collins, who said that she is a supporter. There will be enough support to get her nomination through under the new rules where they just need a basic majority. The immigration issue is an issue that's been brought up, of course. You have even Rudy Giuliani saying, of course, the president is going to pick someone that's going to agree with him. You had Louis Freeh, the former FBI director, who was also on the call today, saying that the Senate can walk and chew gum at the same time. They can do two things at once. They can consider legislation on human trafficking bill that's part of the hold up and vote on her confirmation.

BORGER: It's ridiculous that you have to hold up one because of something else. These are games. It's games. This is the attorney general of the United States. You want to have one or not?

BLITZER: She needs 50 votes to be confirmed.

BORGER: She does.

BLITZER: Because the vice president, Joe Biden, would then break a tie. He's the Democrat. There are 46 Democrats, all of whom who will vote for her. She needs four Republicans.

BORGER: She's got them.

BLITZER: Three of whom voted in the Senate. Susan Collins would be the 50th. The question is, will there be a vote? And that's being delayed according to the Senate rules. Guys, thank you very much for all of that.

Finally, it's not something you see often in Washington, Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate actually agreeing on something and, in this case, they agreed on a deal to fix the reimbursement rate for doctors who treat Medicare patients. The deal was struck by House Speaker John Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a little bipartisan cooperation.

That's it for me. I'll be back at 5:00 eastern in "The Situation Room."

For our international viewers, "News Center" is next.

For our viewers in North American, "Newsroom" with Brooke Baldwin starts right now.

[14:00:13] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, there. I'm Brooke Baldwin.