Eric Trump: Hillary never mentioned America's real problems
Republican nominee's son reacts to DNC speeches, responds to his father's critics on 'Sunday Morning Futures'
This is a rush transcript from "Sunday Morning Futures," July 31, 2016. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
MARIA BARTIROMO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: What is next in this wild presidential race after Donald Trump comes out swinging following Hillary Clinton's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention?
Hi, everybody. Welcome. I'm Maria Bartiromo. This is "Sunday Morning Futures."
Trump taking the weekend off from campaigning, but that is not stopping him from shaking things up in this election. Trump's son Eric Trump will join me in just a few moments.
Plus, Trump getting a lot of pushback for his comments about the parents of the Muslim American soldier killed in Iraq who spoke at the DNC. House Majority Whip Steve Scalise on whether it's hurting efforts to unify the Republican Party.
Also, will Hillary Clinton get a similar bump in the polls that Donald Trump saw after his convention speech? Pollster Frank Luntz is with is with his predictions as we look ahead right now on "Sunday Morning Futures."
(MUSIC)
BARTIROMO: Hillary Clinton formally accepting the Democratic nomination for president this past week. But many are saying Donald Trump may have stolen the spotlight. Since Clinton, President Obama, Vice President Biden and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg focused their speeches on attacking Trump.
Joining me now to react is Eric Trump. He's the executive vice president of development and acquisitions for the Trump Organization and the son of Donald Trump.
Good to see you, Eric.
ERIC TRUMP, SON OF DONALD TRUMP: Always great being with you.
BARTIROMO: Thank you so much for joining us.
What a week. A lot of attacks. A lot of vitriol against your father.
What is your reaction to what we heard?
TRUMP: First of all, they were all career politicians. I was laughing last night. I mean, it's career politicians after career politician, right? I mean, this is the problem in the country. It's people who have been in the same spot, who have tried the same things over and over.
I mean, if you look at Hillary, when she spoke a couple of nights ago, she didn't even mention the real problems, right? She never once mentioned ISIS. She didn't mention radical Islamic terrorism. You're having people going to clubs in Orlando, you're having people shoot up streets, you're having people in trucks in Nice mow down -- I mean, the attacks on -- couple days ago, you had a priest in France who's beheaded in his own church.
And she didn't even mention ISIS. She didn't mention the trade imbalance last month that we had that was $63 billion, $63 billion. The $19 trillion worth of national debt that we have.
I mean, these are the real problems that are plaguing this country. You know, not a single one was mention. Yet, you know, she just sat there and tried to demonize my father. It's just -- it's a really interesting tactic and I don't think it's going to work.
BARTIROMO: I was surprised that the issue did not come up. I did see a lot of conversation about that on social media. People were upset.
But they also want more specifics from Donald Trump. They want to know what your father's plan is.
Do you think we're going to get more substance and more specifics in terms of how to defeat ISIS from your side?
TRUMP: Yes, listen, there's no question about it. I think he spent a lot of time talking about it. I think -- first of all, the other side's not even willing to talk about it. You've got to start there. You've got to actually acknowledge the problem.
I think he has been pretty forceful with it. Starting with locking down our borders, starting by, you know, going in, actually doing real background checks on the people who are coming into this nation, telling the whole world he's not going to allow hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees that we can vet, you know, into this country.
And, you know, and then also giving the same parallel and going back to Germany and you see the problems that Germany's having, right, where they're letting, you know, millions of refugees into that country, and then you see all these problems that are popping up all over the place, which is really -- you know, almost why the country's in a state of anarchy lately because of this.
So, I actually think he has been pretty specific on some of the things he's going to do. We get a lot more specific as we reach November.
BARTIROMO: Let me ask about your father's response to a lot of this, because, obviously, he was a big topic of conversation this past week at the Democratic Convention. One of the reasons is the press conference he gave where he said, look, Russia, let's find those 30,000 e-mails that Hillary Clinton deleted.
You know, right after that, the other side pounced, basically saying that's irresponsible. That's dangerous to invite Russia to do perhaps even more hacking.
TRUMP: Isn't that amazing that they say that's irresponsible, that's dangerous, when all those 33,000 e-mails were supposed to be about yoga and the hair stylists and the personal --
BARTIROMO: But is it responsible to get -- to ask Russia out and out to come and hack America?
TRUMP: First of all, I think it was kind of tongue in cheek to what he said, and I think it was pretty sarcastic.
BARTIROMO: He said it was sarcastic.
TRUMP: Second of all, I think it's really interesting. The first time you've ever heard President Obama talk about cybersecurity, at least that I've heard President Obama talked about security was when the DNC gets hacked. Companies like ours, every single hotel company in the world, every major corporation, every single day, people from around the world, whether it'd be Russia, whether it'd be China, so many perpetrators, are breaking into companies trying to steal personal information.
BARTIROMO: Absolutely.
TRUMP: Trying to steal credit card information, right? Trying to steal trade secrets, intellectual property. It costs our nation trillions and trillions of dollars a year.
And, you know, the first time that President Obama talks about cybersecurity was when the DNC gets hacked. And quite frankly, he's totally embarrassed because so many of the things in the DNC e-mails were totally, totally, totally inappropriate.
I mean, one of those things Maria was about her own country, right? Let's go put fake job postings on Craigslist, pretending we're the Trump organization, soliciting, you know, young women who are very good looking, let's see if we can embarrass.
I mean, these are sick people. To think about that, these are sick people.
BARTIROMO: Well, that's the thing. I mean, is your father missing an opportunity to stay on message and stick to the issue? Because actually, the other side was very affected in turning this into a Russia story, but the actual story was that the Democrats basically -- Bernie never had a shot and they made it so difficult for Bernie Sanders and his supporters to have any ground. And yet, your father may have fallen for it.
TRUMP: Listen, I feel for Bernie. I know how hard this process is, having lived it for the last, you know, a year. I mean, it's the most grueling, hard process.
You know, say what you will, but Bernie believed. He's like my father in that way. They may be on opposite sides of the aisle, but Bernie believed.
And to go in there and you see Debbie Wasserman Schultz who had totally rigged it for Hillary. They've been best friends. You look at the relationship with Kaine and everything else to the DNC. It was totally rigged system. Bernie didn't have a shot.
BARTIROMO: I got to ask you about his comments on NATO, as well as an economy that really once again Friday, we saw a horrible GDP number. But in terms of NATO, people are wondering, you know, he said, look, all NATO countries have to pay their fair share. People are questioning the "or else".
Are we going to be dissolving our NATO relationship? What is he trying to say with regard to NATO?
TRUMP: I think he's been very clear. Of the 28 countries in NATO, only five pay their way. Five pay their way.
So, the U.S. taxpayer is paying a disproportional burden of NATO. In fact, the vast majority of NATO, right? So, I mean, we become the world's police force and our tax dollars pay for that.
At the same time, our national deficit is $19 trillion and climbing quickly. We have roads that are falling part, we have schools that are falling apart. I mean, you and I walked through La Guardia probably every single week, right? I mean, you'll have TSA screening machines and literally a tarp above them with a tube going into a bucket because our roofs are leaking and our major infrastructure in our biggest cities in this nation. It's a disgrace.
My father's whole point with NATO is everybody's got to pay. If they want that protection, you have to pay for that protection. I mean, you can't have a one-way straight where you have this allegiance of 28 people but only five of those countries are actually paying their way. That's just not fair.
BARTIROMO: On the economy, we know Donald Trump's tax plan includes a 15 percent corporate tax rate which obviously would be really positive for businesses who want a hire and put that money back to work. But the trade part of his economic plan is being questioned. Are we going to see increasing tariffs or tariffs on the countries that we have been enjoying free trade with? Isn't that going to make the economy which is growing at a snail's pace, doesn't that make things more difficult?
TRUMP: He wants to bring jobs back to this country, right? He wants to bring jobs back to this country. Now, some will argue, OK, well, a product might be 2 cents more, but the difference is people will be able to afford to buy them because they'll have jobs.
Between 2000 and 2015, I've talked about this point all the time, we've lost one-third of our manufacturing in this country. I mean, think about it, one-third of our jobs have left this country, manufacturing jobs have left this country. They've gone to China, they've gone to Mexico, they've gone to other places.
I mentioned earlier, right, we had a $63 billion trade imbalance last month. The month of June, we had $63 billion trade imbalance. We're getting ripped off by the entire world. I mean, our trade deficit with China is almost $500 billion.
BARTIROMO: Does that mean tariff -- I mean, if you're going to raise tariffs, if you're going to put new tariffs in place, doesn't that make products more expensive?
TRUMP: I don't think he wants to put new tariffs. I think he's willing to if he has to.
BARTIROMO: Eric, final question here, what moment in the sun you had. A lot of people, you know, really praised you and your brothers and sisters for really doing well for your father at the Republican National Convention. How was it for you getting up to that podium and speaking to tens of millions of people?
TRUMP: It was surreal. First of all, I build hotels for a living, right? I mean, this is -- you know, politics is obviously a new game for us. But it was amazing. To see the patriotism in that room, to see American flags, to see the people going crazy. It was a lot of fun.
And more importantly, to speak on behalf of somebody you love tremendously, and there's no one in the world who knows my father better than I do, and he would do an amazing job. I say this time and time again. He'll do such an amazing job. And so, if I can contribute in my small way to going out there and kind of reinforce the man he is and the father he's been, you know, it was an honor to be on that stage.
BARTIROMO: How did Hillary Clinton do?
TRUMP: Listen, I think -- I think she tried to demonize my father. I think her whole speech last night was trying to demonize my father and this kind of ironic, even her checkered past.
I mean, we don't need a third term of Obama. We don't need more national debt. We need more of the problems that we had and we don't need more public corruption.
We need somebody to go in and blow up Washington, D.C., and, you know, you need an outsider to do it. I mean, you really need somebody that stops the games within the Beltway, because it's -- you know, I've been exposed to it over the last 12 months like I never saw before when I was kind of, you know, not part of this process. It is disgusting.
I mean, honestly, our political system is just -- it's broken in ways that I never -- I could have never imagined.
BARTIROMO: It's pretty extraordinary. Eric Trump, great to see you.
TRUMP: Great being with you, Maria.
BARTIROMO: Thank you so much for joining us.
TRUMP: Always, great.
BARTIROMO: Eric Trump.
Hillary Clinton making a plea for unity at the convention meanwhile as she urged the Democrats to come together after a bruising primary season. Did it work? I will ask Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy, next.
You can follow me on Twitter. What do you want to hear from Dan Malloy?
@MariaBartiromo, @SundayFutures, let us know.
Stay with us. We're looking ahead right now on "Sunday Morning Futures."
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BARTIROMO: Welcome back.
Hillary Clinton basking in the glow of her historical moment at the Democratic National Convention this past week in Philadelphia. The nominee pushing for party unity while also turning her fire on her Republican opponent as she accepted that nomination.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Our country's motto is e pluribus unum, out of many, we are one.
Will we stay true to that motto?
Well, we heard Donald Trump's last week at his convention. He wants to divide us from the rest of the world and from each other.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARTIROMO: And joining me right now to talk about it is Clinton supporter, Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy. He's also chair of the Democratic Governors Association and the DNC platform committee.
Sir, good to have you on the program. Thanks so much for joining us.
GOV. DAN MALLOY, D-CONNECTICUT: It's good to be with you again.
BARTIROMO: So, you were -- had this starring role at the convention last week, but before we get to that, you come home to storm clouds of your own. A federal probe into campaign funds, the latest headache for you.
Did you misappropriate funds when you were running for reelection sir?
MALLOY: Well, first of all, it's an election examination of fundraising and expenditures. I'm quite confident that it will be resolved and we go forward from there.
BARTIROMO: So, did you use funds from state actors for your own campaign? That's the charge.
MALLOY: No, whatever was done was done legally. Whatever money was raised, was raised legally. And I'm sure that that's the outcome of the investigation.
BARTIROMO: Governor, when you were out there last week in Philadelphia trying to push forward party unity and then you get faced with this situation where all of these e-mails are dumped and Debbie Wasserman Schultz is pushed out, how do you balance it, how do you bring people together, knowing that those e-mails told a story that the whole thing was rigged and Bernie never had a shot?
MALLOY: They don't tell that story quite frankly. Everyone's entitled to have your own opinion, even if you work for an organization. And I think what you're talking about is people expressing their own opinion, but not the opinion of the organization.
And point of fact, in a number of those memos, the person was expressing their own point of view and saying the boss disagrees. The boss was Debbie Wasserman Schultz. That's who they were referring to.
You know, listen, I think that what the big question here is, is why would Donald Trump ask the foreign governments to spy on former secretary of state. Isn't this a little bit outside the boundaries of what is reasonable? This is a guy who tweets his way or wants to tweet his way to the presidency, but yet calls on other people to do illegal things to candidates for president, beyond the pale.
BARTIROMO: But it is a fair question. You just heard Eric Trump answer that. He said that with sarcasm. And he did -- wasn't actually asking Russians to hack America. But, look, put that aside --
MALLOY: Wait, wait. I got to stop you there.
(CROSSTALK)
BARTIROMO: -- because the content of the email, Governor, we know the contents of the e-mail. It basically said let's come up with a narrative that Bernie's an atheist and not Jewish. That will really play well. I mean, the contents of e-mails are the contents on the e-mails.
This is not about Russia. This is about the Democratic National Committee getting together with a strategy to make sure debates weren't watched closely, that Bernie didn't have the same opportunities that Hillary Clinton has had.
MALLOY: That was a long speech. So, let me just put it this way, I wonder if you've ever expressed your personal opinion in an e-mail to someone.
BARTIROMO: Of course.
MALLOY: Even though you're a newscaster and have to be neutral. I'm sure you have. That's what people do.
BARTIROMO: But I'm not running for president. I'm not running for president, Governor.
(CROSSTALK)
MALLOY: Eric was on your show -- what's that?
BARTIROMO: I'm not running for president. When you're talking about the highest office in the land, people just want to know that the game is straight, that this is all fair. That it's not rigged, but those e-mails showed us differently.
MALLOY: No, I don't think they did, quite frankly. And here, I give you a challenge.
BARTIROMO: OK.
MALLOY: Why doesn't Donald Trump release all of his e-mails for the last year, last two years, or last three years --
BARTIROMO: People are asking him to release a lot of stuff, for sure, including the tax returns. But let me ask you about policy, Governor, I really -- I think the American people at this point are tired of the name- calling and they want to hear about policy.
What do you believe is going to be Hillary Clinton's most important policy to move the needle on economic growth?
MALLOY: Listen, I think she's laid out a very aggressive platform, not the least of which is to invest in America, something that the Republicans in the Congress have not permitted to happen. You had a discussion with Eric about infrastructure.
BARTIROMO: Right.
MALLOY: She has laid out on infrastructure program. We've talked about corporate tax reform. We've talked about bringing back foreign profits.
(CROSSTALK)
BARTIROMO: But in doing so, she wants to raise taxes.
MALLOY: And done so in a level of detail that the Trump people quite frankly can't even wrap their minds around.
BARTIROMO: As a way to do it, as a way to pay for it, she wants to raise taxes on the highest earners, including small business. Isn't that one of the policies you've implemented and caused a complete outflow of people leaving Connecticut? Including large corporations like General Electric, Governor?
MALLOY: You've just said two things that don't go together. She wants to raise taxes on the richest Americans and small business. It's not true.
BARTIROMO: How is it not true, Governor? She's going to raise taxes to the highest earnings that hit small business.
MALLOY: There is no proposal to raise taxes on small business.
BARTIROMO: It's included -- you have small businesses that hit the level of income that the highest earners hit. That's the point. They're going to get hit just because she's raising taxes on the highest earners. Then they're not going to create jobs. That's the whole point.
MALLOY: Listen, you can't have it both ways. Are the Kochs small business? Is that what you're talking about?
BARTIROMO: I'm sorry?
MALLOY: I mean, are the Koch brothers small business? Is that what you're talking about? Because they might have companies --
BARTIROMO: I'm not talking about the Koch brothers. I'm talking about an Uber driver. I'm talking about the guy down the street that has a delicatessen. I'm talking about the small business companies in this country that are the job creators.
MALLOY: You're telling me you've seen a proposal from Democrats to raise taxes on Uber drivers.
BARTIROMO: Go to the website.
MALLOY: Where?
BARTIROMO: Go to the website. Go to Hillary's website. It's all there A to Z.
MALLOY: I'm on the website all the time. I think I'm on the website much more frequently than you are.
BARTIROMO: Governor, it's good to have you. Thank you so much for joining us this morning.
MALLOY: Thank you.
BARTIROMO: Governor Malloy.
Donald Trump facing backlash after he criticizes the Muslim American parents of U.S. soldier who was killed in Iraq. How Republican leaders are responding to calls that they should denounce their presidential nominee.
We'll take a look at that as we look ahead on "Sunday Morning Futures", next.
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BARTIROMO: Welcome back.
The father of a Muslim-American army captain whose son was killed in Iraq is imploring Republicans to take action against their presidential nominee. Khizr Khan denouncing Trump during last week's DNC, saying he, quote, "consistently smears" the character of Muslims and accusing Trump of making little sacrifice for our country.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the House Speaker Paul Ryan said the speaker has made clear many times that he rejects this idea and himself has talked about how Muslim Americans have made the ultimate sacrifice for this country.
Joining me right now for more on this is Republican Congressman Steve Scalise of Louisiana, who is also the House Majority Whip.
Congressman, good to see you.
REP. STEVE SCALISE, R-LA., HOUSE MAJORITY WHIP: Good morning, Maria. Good to be back with you.
BARTIROMO: Your reaction to this war of words.
SCALISE: Well, first, let me express my sympathies to the Khan family for their loss. You know, obviously any time one of our men and women in uniform pay that ultimate price, our hearts go out to them. These are heroes helping us in the war against terror.
So, I think we have nothing but the deepest sympathies and my prayers as well to the Khan family.
BARTIROMO: Yes.
And Donald Trump tweeted out, "Captain Khan, killed 12 years ago, was a hero, but this is about radical Islamic terror and the weakness of our leaders to eradicate it."
This is -- Trump is separating this situation from what he's trying to do with the borders. Can he do that?
SCALISE: Well, I think he's hit on something that most Americans are really concerned about. That is radical Islamic terrorism is not just a threat to other parts of the world. It's a threat to the United States. It has come here to our soil. And Hillary Clinton's policies when she was secretary of state helped create the formation of ISIS, not only the advancement of Russia moving through anywhere Eastern Europe. You look at Iran.
Hillary Clinton last week double down on this horrible deal with Iran that literally lets Iran have path way to a nuclear weapon. People understand what's at stake and Donald Trump's made it clear he's going to protect America, he's going to make America strong again, and it's got to happen, because our allies across the world are calling on us to step up, and Hillary Clinton had led policies that have made America weaker. We've got to reverse these policies.
BARTIROMO: And, of course, the platform of the Republicans has included a wall, a border wall. Is that enough to show the party and the American people, the independents out there, that the party is together and they're getting behind Donald Trump?
We were all at the Republican National Convention two weeks ago, it was obvious that there are certain people who will not get on board. The Bushes were not there. Ted Cruz would not endorse, the governor of Ohio.
SCALISE: Well, look, a lot of Bernie Sanders supporters were literally turning their back on Hillary Clinton as she was speaking, disgracefully, there were a lot of people in the room at the Democratic convention who wouldn't even applaud when they talked about our service men and women.
So, I think there's other issues there. I never heard Hillary Clinton denouncing that. But Donald Trump has said he's going to secure our borders. It's something that President Obama and Hillary Clinton haven't done.
In fact, Hillary Clinton wants to bring in thousands of Syrian refugees who ISIS has said their going to infiltrate. Everybody knows, including the FBI said they can't even vet these people coming into the United States.
We've got to secure our borders, strengthen our national security. And let's help our allies around the world. Stop hitting and attacking Israel and letting Iran get the pathway to a nuclear weapon. Donald Trump said he will reverse that bad deal. Hillary wants to support that horrible deal with Iran that lets them get a nuclear weapon. There's a huge contrast between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton on national security, which is going to be a top issue.
BARTIROMO: And you think that's resonating with independent voters.
You know, Ed Rollins has said on this program many times, this is the highest number of undecided and independents in this election than we've seen in decades. So, you've got Hillary supporters here, and Donald Trump supporters here and this enormous block in the middle of folks who have not made up their mind and who are independent.
How do the Republicans resonate with that audience?
SCALISE: Well, I think the positions that Donald Trump has on national security and job creation are going to be the two driving issues of this campaign. On both fronts, Donald Trump has the right policies and Hillary Clinton supports continuing in essence a third term of Barack Obama which -- look at Obama, 14 million more Americans have left the workforce, given up looking for work because the economy's so bad.
And Hillary Clinton talks about how great everything is. She talked about how great our foreign policy is, when everybody looks at what's going on around the world and realizes that America's walked way from a lot of our allies. They're calling on us to do more to help them in the war against terror.
And Hillary Clinton won't call it radical Islamic terrorism. When Muslim leaders around the world are saying these people are hijacking our religion, call it out for what it is, radical Islamic terrorism. She won't utter the word.
So, I think there's a huge contrast. And I think when you look at that first debate in September, it's going to be Super Bowl type numbers. I think everybody is going to be watching, and they're going to see a real contrast in vision and approach. And that's what's going to drive this election, is what are their plans to turn the economy around, to make America safe again.
Donald Trump has a clear different direction to strengthen America. Hillary Clinton wants this same failed path.
BARTIROMO: I agree. Everybody is going to be watching that debate closely.
Congressman, good to have you. Thanks so much for joining us this morning.
SCALISE: Great being back, Maria.
BARTIROMO: We'll see you soon. Congressman Steve Scalise joining us there.
The FBI director says he's confident ISIS will be defeated in the Middle East, but adds that this is could come with serious consequences here at home. Why he thinks Americans are in danger, as we look ahead this morning on "Sunday Morning Futures." We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BARTIROMO: Welcome back.
A new warning from the FBI director in the fight against ISIS. James Comey says defeating ISIS in its stronghold of Syria and Iraq will lead to more terrorism in Europe and the United States. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES COMEY, FBI DIRECTOR: Not all of the Islamic State's killers are going to die on the battle field. Hundreds and hundreds of them which the coalition succeeds, and I'm confident it will, in crushing the Islamic State, through the fingers of that crush are going to come hundreds of really dangerous people. They're going to flow out primarily towards Western Europe. But we might as well be right next door to Western Europe given the ease that people can travel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARTIROMO: Joining me right now is Dr. Sebastian Gorka. He's the Major General Matthew C. Horner distinguish chair of military theory at Marine Corps University. He's the author of "Defeating Jihad".
Dr. Gorka, good to see you. Thank you so much for joining us.
DR. SEBASTIAN GORKA, MARINE CORPS UNIVERSITY: Thank you. It's my pleasure.
BARTIROMO: What's your take on Jim Comey's commentary there? Yes, we crush them ultimately, but lots of people come out of that crush who are incredibly dangerous and who will continue their fight.
GORKA: Well, Maria, I'm not as confident as Director Comey that we're on the cusp of crushing ISIS. If you just look at the weakness of our local allies and the collapse of the Iraqi forces, I don't think that's imminent at all.
But his broader conclusion is absolutely correct. The more they lose territory in the region, the more likely they are to send people over here. I've just posted on my Twitter feed, thanks to Tom Joscelyn at the "Long War Journal", the latest issue of Dabiq, the ISIS English language magazine, has just been published. And it's entitled "Break the Cross." It has a photograph of an ISIS fighter on top of a Christian Church in the Middle East, taking down the cross on the church.
They have declared war on all of us. They've declared war on Christians everywhere. This is exactly what we should expect. ISIS has said already, they're going to put their people into the refugee streams. We know one of the Brussels attackers was on a false Syrian passport and he had won refugee status. This is the new war, Maria, and this is what we have to be prepared for.
BARTIROMO: It's really extraordinary, actually, Dr. Gorka. How do you think we are going to get through this? Is there a candidate who has the best plan here to defeat ISIS? What's your view?
GORKA: Look, that's a really tough question to answer strangely. On the one side with Hillary Clinton, we have somebody who says she's going to basically continue everything President Obama has done. She refused for the longest time until the Nice attack to even use the phrase radical Islam and then said something like radical jihadism, whatever that is.
But her tenure as president I think would be as bad if not worse than President Obama's because remember, she was secretary of state when we had the disastrous policies in Libya, when we had the catastrophe in Benghazi, we had the pullout of our troops in Iraq. So, no, I'm not confident she can save American lives.
And then, you asked me about Mr. Trump. I've met Mr. Trump. I've advised on national security issues last year. He clearly believes we are at war.
He wants to win. He has no time for political correctness.
But I have yet to see the details, at least the broad outline of what he wishes to do to defeat ISIS. So, that's not comforting either.
BARTIROMO: What about those that criticize the border wall who say we don't want to become so isolating?
GORKA: No, that goes against common sense. Why does anybody put a wall around anything? To protect it. Do you value America? Do you wish to have America be safe?
The wall is a necessity if you want to protect America and to stop things happening like the attacks we've seen lately. If you look at just common crime, it makes sense. Why do you build a wall ever? Because you want to protect the things that you value.
BARTIROMO: Right. Dr. Gorka, good to see you. Thanks so much for your insights.
GORKA: Thanks, Maria.
BARTIROMO: We appreciate it. Dr. Sebastian Gorka there.
Let's get a check in now on "Media Buzz" top of the hour. Howie Kurtz is standing by.
Howie, good morning to you.
HOWIE KURTZ, "MEDIABUZZ" HOST: Good morning, Maria.
We'll look at the mostly positive coverage of Hillary Clinton's convention when we were in Philadelphia. Contrast that with Donald Trump's convention in Cleveland.
Also, look at the way in which Donald Trump hijacked part of the media spotlight with that marathon press conference, and now, how the press has kind of elevated this Muslim father whose son tragically killed in Iraq, and the way in which he has drawn Donald Trump into a war of words. That and much more coming up on the show.
BARTIROMO: All right. We will see you in about 20 minutes, Howie. Thanks so much.
Up next, Donald Trump got a big boost in the polls after the Republican convention. SO, will Hillary Clinton get that kind of a post-convention bounce?
Frank Luntz is with me to talk about it, as we look ahead this morning on "Sunday Morning Futures". We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BARTIROMO: Welcome back.
Donald Trump enjoying a boost in the polls after the Republican convention.
Will Hillary Clinton get the same kind of bounce after the Democratic National Convention?
As it stands now, the latest Real Clear Politics average shows Clinton leading by about one point. What a tight race.
Let's bring it up right now with Frank Luntz. He is pollster and FOX News contributor.
And always great to see you, Frank. Thanks for joining us.
FRANK LUNTZ, POLLSTER AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Pleasure.
BARTIROMO: What do you think? What are you expecting after the Democratic National Convention for Hillary Clinton's numbers?
LUNTZ: I'm expecting her to go to roughly three or four-point lead which is exactly what existed before the Republican Convention. Both candidates will get smaller than average bounces. But you normally look at it in this point in the 21st century is a bounce of about 4 percent, 5 percent, 6 percent. Anything bigger and it's truly significant.
The other thing Maria is that I don't believe there's a significant number of undecided voters out there. In fact, I think it's only about 10 percent.
And the reason why, is that people will say to you, will say to a pollster, well, I'm undecided. How likely are you to vote for Hillary Clinton? Well, I'm not sure. Well, what about Donald Trump? No way.
So, they say they're undecided because they haven't made the absolute commitment to one candidate, but they've already dismissed the other. I think it's really only one out of ten voters that are truly undecided at this point.
BARTIROMO: I see. OK. So, not as many undecided.
What about independents, Frank?
LUNTZ: There's a greater degree because many Americans are rejecting the Republican and Democratic ideology.
BARTIROMO: They don't want to be labeled.
LUNTZ: Exactly. But that's part of this whole millennial thing, where they don't want to be grouped into some category. It's not that they aren't. They may still vote that way, they just don't want to be labeled that way.
BARTIROMO: Let me ask you about the issues that are important to people.
We know that national security and the economy keep coming up as the number one and number two issues for the American people. Do you think that is what is going to drive them? What will drive voters going into this election in November?
LUNTZ: Well, I'm going to challenge conventional wisdom again, because what will drive independents and what will drive those who are the remainder of the undecideds isn't issues. It's not policy. It's the attributes, the character traits of the candidates.
Do I trust them? Do they say what they mean and mean what they say? Are they going to be a consistent leader in times of crisis?
Those are the attributes. Look, if you're a Republican, you have an ideology. If you're a Democrat, you have a philosophy. But if you're an independent, you're looking at the character traits of the candidate. That's what's going to help you make that decision.
And, frankly, both Trump and Clinton helped themselves during their conventions by promoting who they are as people. Not just where they stand on the issues.
BARTIROMO: That's interesting. Yes, because it was largely about that at the Democratic National Convention, right? I mean, Bill Clinton talking about we met in 1971 and took us through their lives. Her daughter Chelsea doing the same thing, talking about what kind of a mother she has been.
And then on the Republican side, same thing. It's what we heard from all of Trump's children. Do you think that's going to resonate more than OK, here's what I'm going to do for you and here's why this economic policy will move the needle on your family's fortunes?
LUNTZ: So, I want to be candid through this entire election process. Donald Trump Jr. outperformed expectations more than any of the relatives.
BARTIROMO: I agree with you.
LUNTZ: You assume Chelsea Clinton is going to do well, because she's been doing this now since he was a child. This is something brand-new for Trump Jr. And there was this humility that the public responded so favorably to.
Now, let me do the converse. To my surprise, Bill Clinton did not perform as well. I'm going to be talking about this on "The O'Reilly Factor" tomorrow night. Clinton's presentation people thought was disingenuous and did not tell the whole story. Maria, if you're going to talk about the personality and the persona of the candidate, you have to be candid, you have to be open, and you're going to need to acknowledge the good and the bad, or the public's simply not going to believe you.
BARTIROMO: Yes. You did not see the kind of euphoria after Bill Clinton for sure. And, yes, you make a really good point, because people have their feelings about Hillary and Donald. And if you try to be somebody you're not, who they don't think that's who you are, they will react and they will reject.
LUNTZ: And there's a lesson to this, which is the strongest speech of them all was the Khan family. I know that Howie Kurtz in a moment is going to discuss that making him into a celebrity.
The fact is, his presentation was incredibly powerful and it caused undecided voters to pause and consider what he was saying.
BARTIROMO: Authentic. Yes.
LUNTZ: He's authentic and it's not a politician. This is where the Democrats made mistake, and the Republicans could have gone even further. It's real people that the American people want to hear from, not their elected officials.
BARTIROMO: Yes, I totally understand. Great to see you, Frank. Thanks so much.
LUNTZ: Thank you.
BARTIROMO: We'll see you soon, Frank Luntz.
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump turning their attention to the general election now. Will their conventions set new tones in their campaigns? Our political panel weighs in next.
We're looking ahead right now, "Sunday Morning Futures" continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BARTIROMO: Welcome back.
With the conventions now behind them, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are officially pivoting to the general election. Their first debate is expected in September, end of September. They're out on the campaign trail, making their case to the American people.
I want to bring in our panel right now, Ed Rollins, the former campaign manager for the Reagan Bush ticket in 1984, chief strategist for Great America PAC and a FOX News political analyst. Jessica Tarlov with us. She is a Democratic strategist and a strategist, and senior political analyst at Schoen Consulting. Steve Moore is with us, an economic adviser to Donald Trump and a distinguished visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation.
Good to see, everybody.
ED ROLLINS, FOX NEWS POLITICAL ANALYST: Thank you.
JESSICA TARLOV, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good morning.
Take us through what happens now, Ed Rollins.
ROLLINS: August is the hardest month of all, because it's a month in which there's no big items. The Olympics is a big distraction. A lot of people going to vacation. So, you go out and you campaign a lot, but you don't necessarily move numbers.
I think the key thing, as Luntz said, I think it's going to be a three or four-point race when Hillary gets the final bump, and then you'll slog it away. You'll have to make sure if you're Donald Trump, who's not going to run a conventional campaign, she is -- he's not. That she not basically damage him with a negative advertising while the rest, they're going to do the four-month while he is out doing rallies and tweets and what have you.
BARTIROMO: So the narratives are real important for these next two months. What's the Democratic narrative? What's most important that you think, Jess, is going to resonate with voters?
TARLOV: Well, I think the shift that they've made, where they acknowledge the progressivism of the party platform now and all that Obama has accomplished. But you saw both Hillary and Tim Kaine making the shift to say, we know things aren't perfect, and that was the first time that they've done that, where they said we've made dramatic gains, but we know that your ages haven't increased that much. We know we still have work to do.
So, I'm looking to see them in August going out there, to do kind of I feel your pain tour. But we have the answers and we are sane and we're competent. Those were the key words I took away from the convention on the Democrats.
BARTIROMO: Yes, certainly from Michael Bloomberg. He gave a great speech.
TARLOV: And the independence. Tim Kaine, he's so good for religious voters and independents. You know, very moderate out there. I know it disappointed the Bernie supporters.
BARTIROMO: Yes.
TARLOV: But I think he's a smart pick for this general.
BARTIROMO: This is a hard narrative to tell when you have the kind of numbers we saw on Friday, Steve Moore, like the GDP number.
STEVE MOORE, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: I agree with that. By the way, I think Michael Bloomberg was mostly jealous of Donald Trump.
But you're right. These numbers, I think they eclipse, for all the talk about those two conventions. This is the most important thing that's happened in the last couple of weeks politically, which is that we got this horrible economic number. The economy now for the last six to nine months is growing at 1 percent.
I look back at the last 50 years. The party in power does not get elected for the White House, when you got those. I mean you remember when you were working around Reagan against Jimmy Carter. I mean, it just killed Carter when those economic collapsed.
BARTIROMO: Really?
MOORE: So, I think it's really a difficult story and narrative for Hillary. She tried, you know, to thread that needle. And the other problem is, if you listen to that speech, what does she propose? Raise the minimum wage. More public works, shovel-ready projects, tax the rich.
That's exactly what Obama has done for the last eight years. So, there's nothing new here.
BARTIROMO: Listen, Dan Malloy just said to me, the governor of Connecticut, I don't know where you're getting that. He's not going to raise taxes on small business. But if you're raising taxes on the highest earners, connect the dots for us.
(CROSSTALK)
MOORE: And you know what's interesting? You're exactly right. Over half of them are small business owners or investors or operators. So, how are you going to get more jobs if you tax the businesses?
But the interesting thing about that interview with Dan Malloy, is he did raise taxes on the rich in Connecticut. In Connecticut, the economy is a disaster right now. And, in fact, they are losing jobs and they have big budget deficits.
BARTIROMO: That's why HIS poll numbers are where they are.
ROLLINS: And population. People are moving out of Connecticut.
BARTIROMO: That's exactly right. And even corporations like GE.
The critical thing is there that, both got out of their conventions what they wanted, the hard part for Hillary, who has a unified party, I admit. She's got to get some of the Bernie people back in the camp, but she is trying to sell the Obama message again when 70 percent to 80 percent of the country, depending on the polls, think the country is on the wrong direction. That's a very, very hard uphill swim.
Where Trump basically is coming in, give me the ball, I'll fix it. I'm LeBron James. Give me the ball. I'll win the championship for you.
BARTIROMO: Yes.
ROLLINS: And that's --
(CROSSTALK)
MOORE: Trump is so undisciplined. Now, if he would just stick to talking about terrorism --
BARTIROMO: Can he do it?
(CROSSTALK)
TARLOV: Well, he obviously can't. I mean, if you look at the attacks on the Khan's family and Khan's mother wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post that came out this morning where she essentially said, you know, I didn't need to say anything, America and everyone watching felt my pain. I knew what I had about the loss of my son, and about what Donald Trump is talking.
You know, calling General Allen a failed general, no one on the left stood up and said Michael Flynn is a failed general because he backs Donald Trump. And when you're running as the America, right, we're going to make America great again, and you're going out there and you're attacking our finest, which our military is. I think that's the major problem.
And where the Democrats are going to move here, is they are painting them as un-American. And Americans care about their pocketbooks, but they also care about our national pride and who we are as a nation.
ROLLINS: You can't paint him as un-American. I think the one that you came through is a very strong leader. In the contrast here, she is a good policy wonk. She obviously would carry out the Obama agenda, if that's what you want. But he's a strong change agent, and I think the country wants a change agent.
He basically has to not get distracted by these kinds of things we're talking about right here. He has to stay right on his message and his message is, I can fix ISIS by going after them heavily, I can fix the economy by doing some of the things I've talked about, and I can make the government work because I have never been there and I don't think it functions will and I'm going to change it.
MOORE: I live in Virginia, the battleground state, so I'm seeing all these TV ads. And Hillary's TV ad is, you know, I was there. I met with all of these foreign leaders.
BARTIROMO: That's the problem.
MOORE: I'm not sure it works, because people say, yeah, you created this problem.
BARTIROMO: Right.
Quick break, and then the one thing to watch in the week ahead from our panel, right here in "Sunday Morning Futures". Back in a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BARTIROMO: Back with the panel looking ahead.
What are you looking at, Steve?
MOORE: Later this week, we're going to come out with the Trump economic plan, the biggest tax cuts since Ronald Reagan. We'll take growth from 1 percent to 4 percent.
BARTIROMO: Wow.
Jessica?
TARLOV: I'm looking to see how well the Democrats continue to unify what's going to happen with all the Bernie Sanders supporters. Not the anarchists who are picking up trouble, but the Bernie people.
BARTIROMO: Ed Rollins?
ROLLINS: I'm going to look at the polls. Polls, a lot of polls coming out this week. She'll regain the momentum. She'll be three or four points ahead, as Luntz said, maybe a little bit more and then we move forward.
BARTIROMO: All right. Thanks so much to our panel. I'll see you next week on Fox.
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