{"id":2126,"date":"2017-10-29T11:36:18","date_gmt":"2017-10-29T15:36:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/press.nbcnews.com\/?p=2126"},"modified":"2017-10-29T11:36:18","modified_gmt":"2017-10-29T15:36:18","slug":"mtp-exclusive-portman-says-trump-is-too-defensive-on-russia-probe-on-mueller-let-him-get-to-the-bottom-of-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nbcuniversalnewsgroup.com\/nbcnews\/2017\/10\/29\/mtp-exclusive-portman-says-trump-is-too-defensive-on-russia-probe-on-mueller-let-him-get-to-the-bottom-of-it\/","title":{"rendered":"MTP EXCLUSIVE: PORTMAN SAYS TRUMP IS \u2018TOO DEFENSIVE\u2019 ON RUSSIA PROBE, ON MUELLER: \u2018LET HIM GET TO THE BOTTOM OF IT\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

SUNDAY EXCLUSIVE: McCaskill on Trump: \u201cAnxious to work with him \u2026 My job\u2019s not to fight him\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

NEW: Trump\u2019s Approval Ratings Drops to Lowest Level Yet in NBC News\/WSJ Poll\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

OCTOBER 29, 2017 \u2013 In an exclusive live interview, Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio)<\/strong> told \u201cMeet the Press\u201d moderator Chuck Todd that President Trump\u2019s comments on the Russia investigation this week were \u201ctoo defensive.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI hope Congress will encourage that the Senate Intelligence Committee \u2026 complete their work,\u201d said Portman. \u201cAnd that we support this investigation that the Department of Justice has now appointed this special prosecutor. Let’s let him get to the bottom of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also addressed the factions inside the Republican Party right now, telling Todd: \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s new,\u201d<\/a> as well as how the tax reform proposal will \u201cactually be reducing the deficit.\u201d Watch the full Portman interview.<\/a><\/p>\n

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.)<\/strong> also exclusively joined the broadcast, and she addressed what she has in common with the president: \u201cWe have enough in common that he signed a number of my bills into law already. \u2026 We certainly agree on infrastructure.\u201d She added: \u201cI am anxious to work with him on those things. \u2026 My job\u2019s not to fight him.\u201d The Missouri senator also discussed leadership within the Democratic Party: \u201cWe have so many people that are trying to position themselves to run for president I think it’s hard to say who is the leader.\u201d Watch the full interview.<\/a><\/p>\n

New NBC News\/Wall Street Journal poll numbers<\/strong> released this morning on the broadcast reveal that the president\u2019s job approval rating is at 38 percent, his lowest since taking office and down five points since September. Read more from the new poll.<\/a><\/p>\n

After President Trump declared the nation\u2019s opioid crisis a \u201chealth emergency\u201d earlier this week, Huntington, W.V. Fire Chief Jan Rader<\/strong> spoke with Todd about her daily battle against the epidemic: \u201c<\/strong>It’s been years since we had a day where we didn’t have an overdose.\u201d Rader\u2019s f<\/strong>ight is chronicled in \u201cHeroin(e),\u201d a Netflix original film and an official selection of The Meet the Press Film Festival in Collaboration with the American Film Institute<\/em> (AFI). Watch the interview.<\/a><\/p>\n

Republican strategist Al Cardenas<\/strong>, POLITICO\u2019s Eliana Johnson<\/strong>, MSNBC\u2019s Chris Matthews<\/strong> and The Cook Political Report\u2019s Amy Walter<\/strong> joined this morning\u2019s roundtable for analysis on the week in politics, including a discussion on the divide within the GOP. <\/a><\/p>\n

Read the full transcript of this morning\u2019s \u201cMeet the Press\u201d on <\/strong>MeetThePress.com<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

For more from moderator Chuck Todd throughout the week, sign up for the \u201cFirst Read\u201d newsletter,<\/a> and subscribe to the \u201c1947: The Meet The Press Podcast\u201d<\/a> for on-demand interviews.<\/p>\n

Tune in this coming Sunday, Nov. 5 for a special 70th anniversary edition of \u201cMeet the Press,\u201d the longest-running show in television history.<\/p>\n

MANDATORY CREDIT: NBC NEWS\u2019 \u201cMEET THE PRESS WITH CHUCK TODD\u201d \u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n