pledge are the most teachers and a few students. why not eliminate the requirement to say the pledge in virginia schools? >> i like the pledge of allegiance. i think it's really important for us to remember that there are ideals that formed this nation. it's not a geography. it was a nation that was formed by an idea. and that's why i'm so focused on the fact that our history standards need to tell all of our history, the good and the bad, but also need to tell the full story of america, from its founding all the way through our funding documents, which are critical for us to understand. we were a nation that was founded by imperfect men. a nation in pursuit of a more perfect union. and it's getting better and better and better every year. now, this is a -- this is about, i think, recognizing that america is exceptional. we've had some terribly dark

moments, which is exceptional. you know, i have to say this moment of standing up for our constitution and our declaration of independence is something i don't think should be controversial. just recently, one of my appointments to the state school board stood up in a school board meeting and advocated that we should teach about our constitution and we should teach about our declaration of independence. and all of a sudden, there was an effort made by left liberal democrats to smear her and remove her, and they did just that recently. and that's -- she's with us here tonight. i want to thank you for your service. [ applause ] >> this shouldn't be controversial. we should embrace our history, all of it, the good and the bad. we should understand where we've come from. we should understand our founding documents. and, yes, we should say the

pledge of allegiance. >> so your commonwealth is a little bit whacky in the sense you term limit your governors after one term. they are only allowed to serve for one term. well, you can do it one consecutive term. so i do have to ask you, governor. you pulled off a surprise come-from-behind upset victory in a state, a commonwealth that a lot of people thought was pretty solidly blue. well, it's purple now. are you giving any thought to running for higher office such as president? >> well, first of all, thank you for that humbling question. you know, i just have to say that 40 years ago i was in virginia beach, and i was washing dishes and taking out trash at belvidere coffee shop. i had an extraordinary education and people took interest in my professional career and i

thought i was in my dream job when i had a chance to take over a firm that i worked at for 25 real clear view that virginia was heading in the wrong direction and maybe there was a different way to do this. maybe there was a way to bring people together around common sense, bring people around values that aren't that controversial. we just need to express them clearly to one another and get moving. and i have been so pleased by the fact that all the things we campaigned on we accomplished. i have a big job. i love my job. thank you for hiring me. thank you for letting me come to work every day and go to work for 8.7 million virginians. that's where my focus is right now. and i believe there was an enormous amount of work yet to do in virginia. we have a budget to negotiate. we have a lot of work still to do in education. every morning i wake up and i thank the lord for putting me there.

i ask him for help and then i go to work with a spring in my step. again, thank you for hiring me. >> yeah. >> until the end there, it sounded like a yes on the president thing. but you certainly haven't ruled it out is what i'm saying here. no? >> well, i have to say -- let's see, jake, i'm not writing a book. >> okay. so that's -- right. >> in fact, the book i'm hoping to write is the book we're talking about right now, the play book for education. that's the play book we should all write together that recognizes the most important thing that we are focused on, is the education of our children. you know, when our children gain the skills, gain the confidence, gain the capabilities to aspire set goals and dream and then go chase them, well, then we know we've been successful. we have a long way to go, but i am so proud of what we have done in our first year. all it does is raise the bar and want me to get more done faster in our second year, so we don't

lose a generation of kids and that virginia can return to what she once was which was a place where people came from all over the world to come to virginia for our schools, for our great k through 12, for our great universities. this is what we collectively aspire for, and i can't wait to work with all of you to bring that about. >> i want to thank the parents. i want to thank the teachers and faculty. mostly i want to thank the three brave students we have here. i want to thank governor glenn youngkin for joining us tonight. thank you very much. ♪ good evening, everyone. i'm alisyn camerota. you heard from cnn town hall audience thinks about the education system. one word that comes up lately is

"woke." the majority of americans think that term is a good thing. also, prosecutors in new york signaling that donald trump could be facing criminal charges over the hush money payment to stormy daniels according to "the new york times." but this is no slam dunk. so will we see a former president indicted for the first time in american history? and what would this mean for his presidential campaign? plus, new developments in the deadly kidnapping of four americans, two of them killed in mexico. why the cartel suspected of being behind this kidnapping, the so-called gulf cartel, has written a handwritten apology letterment also, what a woman who was traveling with those poor americans is saying tonight about what happened. plus, tennessee's governor is responding after posting some supportive comments and emojis on a young man's instagram photos. the posts and the emojis.

this is in a state passing laws to restrict lgbtq rights. we have a lot to talk about tonight. let me bring in our panel. we have former national security council director and republican strategist. guys, great to have you here. >> great to be here. okay. let's start with the news in mexico and what has been happening. it was fascinating that this cartel, this drug cartel in mexico, issued an apology via a handwritten letter. let me read a portion of it. they said, here it is and here is a picture of it. the gulf cartel apologizes to the relatives of the mexican citizen shot and killed and the affected american people and families. the group strongly condemns the events of last friday. for this reason, we decided to hand over those directly

involved and responsible for the act who acted against the rules under which the cartel operates. is this for real? >> it reminds me a little bit of how it is at my son's school when he does something wrong and he is required to write an apology note. i look at this just like any authoritarian leader that tries to throw their people under the bus where they were trying to say these were rogue elements. they had nothing to do with how we normally pursue policies. in fact, i heard the leader said they normally don't target civilians, which i am certain is untrue. i don't know what their goal is. they probably think they will get some sort of lenient response from mexican authorities in particular. >> and will they? is this etiquette, does it change something? >> it won't change anything. but i will say

it's been more than six years since the hush money was paid to stormy daniels to keep her from going public. today the former president could face charges. we're back with a former watergate prosecutor nick ackerman. people sneak in and out of this panel so quickly that i don't know who is sitting next to me sometimes. >> i did not sneak in. >> john started this today. >> okay, nick. great to have you here .

ultimately it sent that the trump organization paid tax on something, filed an income tax return that was false. >> okay. it is a free country. if i want to pay money to a porn star that i had an affair with, stick with me here, guys -- >> this is hypothetical, right? >> this is hypothetical. that i had an affair with out of my own business money, it is a free country. can't i do that? >> you can do that, but you can't lie about it on your taxes. you can't take it as a business deduction when you make it look as though the money was paid for

legal fees, which it was not. it was not paid for legal fees. it was paid to keep a person quiet before the 2016 election. that is not a reasonable business expense of the trump organization. >> okay, mr. legal stickler. i'm joshing because that's a misdemeanor, right? >> no, no. false tax return in new york state law, that's a felony. that's a felony. falsifying records is a misdemeanor. but it is not a misdemeanor if you are falsifying workers to commit a crime like falsifying a tax return. >> okay. go ahead, jeff. >> i don't know where to start. talking about a six-year-old stormy daniels mess that starts off with, you know, a porn star who then hired a man who is already behind bars who ran around the countryside basically saying that donald trump was al

capone and that america had a criminal syndicate attach itself to the executive branch of our government . i think from a legal perspective and the pseudo political perspective, it is certainly a wrong approach on the other side of donald trump. all it will do is he will probably go 30 points in the polls in the republican primary and mostly you will see some of those independents.

we're tired of this bread crumb approach. they will say, you know, i think that donald guy was right after all. >> the irony of all of this in retro spect, it appears if he wouldn't have needed to pay her off anyway, that she could have come out, she could have said he had an affair and his supporters would have said why? there is a whole list of things. that to me is the great irony. >> the people could have done something different. . he directed his accountant to do this. the whole thing was a plot from the beginning and they also did it with this other woman, the

former play mate. >> john, your thoughts? >> to pick up where joe left off, you wonder why this, why now? if you look at this as a strategy through the manhattan da's office and they changed after the election, they do the trump corporate case. they indict the company. weisselberg testifies. his lawyer testifies. what's revealed in that case is a pattern and practice of concealing what money was actually for, where it went, how people were paid and compensated, what the reasons for that was, so they have set the table for now something where it is not the corporation being charged. it is an individual donald trump if a brand jury elects to indict him. and that is a case where you are going to have some of the same witnesses talking about some of the same practices. while there is an issue of the taxes here, there is also this argument that, a, they couldn't

have done this a long time ago because the office of the legal counsel says you can't indict a sitting president while in office but, b, this money was paid to her to be quiet. >> so it is a campaign contribution. >> it is a campaign expense not being documented and in fact concealed. >> that's a crime. that's certainly a crime. >> will they prove that? >> i think they can. why else would they have paid the money to her? it wasn't a gift or a past payment. >> brilliant legal minds have said, it is not what you know, it is what you can prove. this affair is toxic and trashy. at the end of the day, is that the priority of the american people? >> yes. i have the answer for you. yes. >> the grand jury is thinking about something else and the cases are piling up. we'll see where they go. >> but this is the first of a number of cases that will be filed. georgia is next in line, if not before this particular case.

>> all right, gentlemen. you have completely disregarded my time here. i'm allowing you because it was a fascinating conversation. thank you all very much. okay. what does the term "woke" actually mean? new polling suggests that most americans see it as a positive thing. we'll explain next. let's get started. bill, where's your mask? i really tried sleeping with it, everybody. now i sleep with inspire. inspire? no mask? no hose? just sleep. learn more, and view important safety information at inspiresleep.com the first time your sales reached 100k was also the first time you hit this note... ( screams in joy) save 20% with the lowest transaction fees and keep more of what you make. with a partner that always puts you first. godaddy. tools and support for every small business first.

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the war over education and what you're taught in school is the subject of cnn's town hall tonight. glenn youngkin has his own strong opinions. >> they're teaching children that they're inherently biased or racist because of their race or their sex or their religion. they teach that a child is guilty for sins of the past because of their race or their religion or their sex. they teach that a child is oppressed or a victim because of their race, their religion or their sex. this is why it was so important for us to clearly define what was not going to be taught in schools and what was. he says this is a chance to make sure that we're not pitting our children against each other based on race, reloigion or sex >> we're back to our panel.

to feel guilty and feel like victims? obviously i'm saying that face facetiously, but that is a biproduct of some lessons. sometimes kids feel guilty. sometimes kids feel badly about the sins of their fathers. that does happen. that's real. but i have never seen an example of a teacher teaching a child to feel guilty. >> and i don't think an example has been shown, which is why this is so disappointing. there is value in teaching the good and the bad. it isn't to make people feel bad. it's so we don't repeat mistakes. this reminds me of what happened to colin kaepernick and how they rebranded his protest to make it the protest of the national anthem instead of a protest to promote justice.

this is nothing more than a shell game. it is frustrating for me as a journalist because i'm trying to use the language of the people, but the definitiony individuals him. >> what are we supposed to do when kids feel guilty? >> i mean, listen, there are kids who were spat on, who were killed, right? there were kids who were bussed for hours just to go to school. and then the governor was there in alabama. you can hear about that. it's okay because there were kids that lived through that. >> scott, your thoughts on all this? >> yeah. i think a lot of parents are concerned about it. i think there have been materials discovered in fairfax, virginia pushed by consultants hired by the school districts to push critical race theory and the concepts of equity and all this and the education. most of the parents want to know can my kid read, quite, understand math, understand the basic core curriculum stuff.

if you look at the test scores, they suck. they're terrible. kids have massive learning loss in all these areas. and it was worse for the poorest kids and the kids that have racially diverse backgrounds. and, yet, we have a group of people out there who seem to be more interested in social engineering in schools than they do in core curriculum. i think that's what youngkin and other republicans are responding to. it obviously worked in his campaign and it is working in his gterm. >> i guess it is how you define social engineering and everything that scott is talking about because, again, i would like to see an example of kids being taught to feel guilty. but i don't doubt that some kids feel guilty. that is a different situation. >> right. and these kids are kids. they're learning about a lot of these concepts, a lot of this history from the first time. when i listen to governor youngkin, what i keep coming back to is where is the space

for free speech and ideas and inquiry in the classroom? if they're taught about history and what governor youngkin said tonight about slavery being the cause of the civil war and kids ask about their own families, the legacy of their state, what is the teacher allowed to say because there is a history that kids and teenagers need to understand, that they're a part of as virginians. the governor has figured out to a way to harness the concerns parents have. can you imagine being in a classroom where the teacher is sort of thinking, okay, the kids is asking me a question about his or her ancestors in the state, and i'm not allowed to answer it because it might make the kid feel bad or it is somehow not allowed? it creates, especially for a party that cares a lot about free speech and ideas and open

dialogue, it sort of creates these limits and rules that get pretty complicated. >> yeah. look, i think we just have to go back to the main purpose of a school. the school is supposed to make sure your kids can read and they can add. if you go to baltimore where a portion of the students are black and brown, 70% of the students are reading at an elementary level. 75% of the students cannot do math at grade level. so it is a frustration for people that there is this increased desire to talk about all these other aspects of an education, which are important, but it is certainly not the priority. it is almost a distraction. yes, we should be able to tell the whole story of america, the complete story of america, the vi vilest, darkest stains on humanity that existed at the beginning and inception of this country. but that is different from people on the left pretending they are not trying to lecture

to people, they are not pretending that they are individuals in school districts saying you don't have to tell a parent if the child wants to transition, you don't have to tell the parent if their daughter has to make that decision of choosing an abortion, you don't have to tell the parent anything. that begins to feel to a lot of parents like you are trying to co-parent with them like they are just the night shift and you get the priority during the daytime. instead of dismissing that out of hand, we should confront that because what we don't confront head-on, the extreme is always more extreme. >> in addition to everything said, and i agree with most of it, the thing that frustrates me is the pollicization of our education system. and on one hand, you have political leaders and in particular the republican party that have used this to galvanize their base. they bring it up at every issue at every town hall at every event and every rally because they know it is a hot button

issue. you hear them using these words "woke." they don't know the definition of woke and they use it why? because they solicit a reaction from parents. and you have on one hand the way they have used these schools to further their political ambitions and it's gross. but on the other hand you do see the space has been created for parents to weigh in on issues sometimes that they don't know about. by the way, i'm a parent of young children. i obviously care about their curriculum. i care about what they're learning. but i also believe that educators know best and there have been systems in place and they are continuing to evolve and learn and like you said that transparency and history and all this is so great. i hate there is even a space for this in a political debate. >> i want to quickly get to this poll about "woke" because we talk about it a lot and as you said people don't know what it means. how would you define it? >> while i didn't know earlier,

i was not a doctor. i am a professor. it kills me. there is a clear definition. it is to be alert to racial discrimination and prejudice and to be aware of issues related to race and social justice. it is a clear definition. when you see republican leaders go out there and say, oh, we need to fight against this anti-woke ideology, blah, blah, blah. i sit there thinking, you don't know what this means. i never understood the term woke to be so negative. the opposite would mean to bury your head in the sand. that would be a negative. >> do you agree with that definition? >> i do. i think a lot that happens on the left and on the right is they mix up woke with being pc and they're very different things. >> let me read you this poll because we found it interesting. this was march 3rd and 5th. it is a usa today poll. in terms of what it means to be woke, 56% of respondents say to

be informed and be aware of social injustices. 39% say to be overly political correct and police other words. scott, do you find that interesting that people in general see it in the way that it was just defined, in its real terms? >> i mean, i don't know. i hope every democrat runs on this. i hope they read the poll and run as woke as they can get in the next election because i think it will go to the benefit of republicans and conservative candidates when you take your social culture viewpoints, as extreme as they be, and use that suppress basic common values and common sense. you want to run on that? by all means. i wish you well. >> on that generous note, scott, we will take a break. thank you very much for that opinion. meanwhile, you have to stick around for this story, everybody, because tennessee's lieutenant governor is raising some eyebrows over some instagram comments he made on photos of a scantily glad young

gay man. this, of course, is happening in the backdrop of his state, tennessee, pushing several bills targeting the lgbtq community. so we'll show you and discuss next.. subaru solterra electric suv. subaru's first all-electric, zero-emissions suv. (man) we've got some catching up to do. (woman) sure do. (vo) built to help you protect the environment as you explore it. love. it's what makes subaru, subaru.

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tennessee has several bills restricting l ggbtq rights. posting supportive comments on a scantily glad gay young man nic nicknamed tim. the clapping emoji and the fire emoji on another. he added multiple flame e jmoji on this one. he wrote, you can turn a rainy

day into rainbows and sunshine. he responded by saying, you are literally always so nice, king. we cropped that last photo, but the young man is clothed below that line and the panel is back with me. so, listen, this kid says that the lieutenant governor has been nothing but kind and supportive of him. and here is what the lieutenant governor, when he was asked point blank about this, he did not say, oh, somebody on my staff did that or i was hacked, here is what he said to reporters today about it. >> i try to encourage people on my posts and i try to support people that, you know, just because he's gay. i also have friends that are gay and i have friends and relatives that are gay. but i don't feel any animosity towards gay.

i think that's fairly clear. >> that's fairly clear, all right. it's messy. it's messy regardless of what the actual meanings are because of who he is, who the young man is and how it looks and he should know better. and that's just the end of it, really. i'm not getting into what he may or may not be dealing with. i'm not getting into what their relationship will be. but in a pure optics perspective, he should know that does not look appropriate. >> yeah. i'm not suggesting anything other than sometimes people in their personal relationships feel one way and it is interesting when they legislate in a different way or their state legislates in a different way. the lieutenant governor has a mixed record in terms of the lgbtq bills in his state. some he has voted for, some he hasn't, some he's spoken out against like there was a bill to ban, i think, gay couples from adopting. he didn't like that.

he spoke about against that. he has, i would say, a mixed record. but it is interesting because tennessee is leading the way on banning drag shows, et cetera, et cetera. >> he knows the political atmosphere that created legislation they have created. but we don't know what's in his heart or brain. there are republicans who are supporters of lgbtq rights. there are voices on the spectrum. but he is the leader of a party that has been leading the charge in tennessee making it one of the most anti-lgbtq states in terms of legislation that's been passedment and it just raises a lot of questions. i mean, as a gay man, i can tell you that people aren't posting photos like that in order to get, you know, hearts from the lieutenant governor. there is something kind of about that that raises questions about what he knows about what he's doing and sort of

his officers that he is uplifting a poster, you supported constituents, that is what he has said. he is not drawing,'s office and he are not drawing a distinction by the fact that he is a gay man, other than who is putting hearts on. >> you have to put fire emojis on his -- you can do it in other photos. photos where he is reading or in school, there are other ways of being supportive than this actually suggestive posts. >> something that acknowledges, also what these laws are doing to people in tennessee. there is none of that, it feels like it takes what it is a very serious moment in the lives of a lot of gable in tennessee and takes it into something that somehow we can laugh about from his point of view. >> i'll tell you what franklin's superstar, the young man who's doing this says, he has it with him. he has always been kind of an uplifting and i appreciate the support so i never read into it. i hope he realizes that taking away peoples ways of expressing themselves is evil and result

in suicidal thoughts to many in the state of tennessee. he can be kind to me, so you can be kind of many more people who are like me. your thoughts? >> that is the best summary of the issue. i think, look, we talked about it in the previous segment that extreme positions were not taken into account the concerns of other people leads to more extreme backlash. we have seen a rash of ex dream policies, some of them put forth by the republican party, but i would argue that it is a result of the fact that people are not taking some real things into consideration. there are people who have love and admiration in their hearts for the entire community gorgeous not comfortable with drag shows for children. i do not think that is a hateful position, and i think it's a news conversation that we should have. it's a nuanced conversation -- there are people who think that there are materials that should not be introduced to a classroom, two children at a certain age. i think the majority of people who all that position to not come from a place of hate. if we recognize that there will

always be more attention played two broken glass then -- i'm a man, then we should also recognize that there are going to be some people who are coming from a negative plays. but i think that dismissing the vast majority of americans who simply want to make sure that their thoughts and considerations are being taken care of, having that conversation is healthy for america rich large and it certainly is helpful for the lgbtq community and making sure that we do not have as many of these policies having to a negative impact on them. >> i want to say quickly, if i can, if this country had a problem with drug and children, what the is bugs bunny doing? seriously, what is bugs bunny do? >> respectfully i think that that makes light of a broader issue. >> he's doing drag, man. >> when you see children with dollars putting them in g strings that i think there are a lot of people clutching their pearls who are concerned about the fact that, as we said before, i want to know what is

going on with my child and i want to make sure that i have the autonomy to make the decision. >> where did that happen? >> that's not a drag, so is it? >> i have to say that when i saw the post that the little town in government was commenting on i would be more comfortable with my kids watching a drag show that seeing those posts. no offense to thin, your posts look lovely and you seem like a lovely man. but, my kids are young and i do not see why they need to see your naked derrière. i have to say, as a former governing official, we were trained over and over again on appropriate social media behavior and a lot of it is frankly common sense, but it has to do with not doing anything that could be misconstrued as dramatic or inappropriate, certainly not doing something that could invite scrutiny and that is what he is doing it and he is doing it unapologetically. >> i'm not sure they have that training. thank you all very much for that conversation, we will be right back. lping them achieve fifinancial freedom.

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