Eric welcomed presidential adviser Kellyanne Conway, who analyzed the prospects for the new House healthcare proposal. "The president is very confident," she said, "that he'll repeal and replace ObamaCare just as he promised. You're seeing Donald Trump the negotiator and great listener, and he's been receiving members of Congress and has been very open to listening to everyone's concerns. The vast majority of Americans want something more patient-centered and free-market than ObamaCare." Conway turned to the ongoing controversy that began when President Trump claimed Trump Tower had been wiretapped under President Obama's orders. "President Trump has asked for the House and Senate intelligence committees to add this to their investigations. That will be underway and we await the findings." She also weighed in on the administration's oft-contentious relationship with the media. "Donald Trump is his own best spokesperson, I've never seen a more brilliant and natural communicator. The media can be very tough on the president, and I hope our relationship with the press improves. We need to have a fair and free press, and we also need the president to be shown respect."

Republican Senator Rand Paul, a strident foe of the new Republican House health care proposal, joined Eric and outlined his opposition. "I've been saying that the House plan is 'ObamaCare Light,'" Paul said. "Paul Ryan says that the choices are 'binary,' meaning that you can take what he's offering or keep the status quo. But conservatives across the land do not like Paul Ryan's proposal because it keeps the subsidies, keeps the mandates, keeps the taxes and even has an insurance company bailout. We all agree on the repeal part but we do not agree on how to replace. Maybe we can coalesce around some plan that can replace ObamaCare, and Republicans have some great ideas on replacement."

Eric spoke with Democratic Congressman Brad Sherman about the preceding interviews with Rand Paul and Kellyanne Conway. "It sounds like Rand Paul wants to repeal and not replace," he observed. "He's saying Republicans can't agree on what to replace ObamaCare with, so that's actually repeal and repeal. ObamaCare is working quite well and the majority of Americans are getting their health insurance from their employers. Under all the Republican proposals, employers won't have to supply health coverage and many of them won't." Sherman turned President Trump's accusation against President Obama. "This wiretap charge comes out of thin air, it's part of the Trump approach of 'ready, shoot, aim!' He declares that Obama is 'sick' or 'bad' because Obama had Trump Tower bugged and then says there is absolutely no evidence."

The Trump administration has suggested that some people at high levels of government are actively undermining his presidency. Eric analyzed that notion with foreign policy observers Ric Grenell and David Tafuri. "The simple fact is that Donald Trump campaigned on a policy difference from the direction of where the government was going," Grenell stated, "and democracy demands that he must implement what he promised. Anyone who is trying to subvert Donald Trump's policy positions and is employed by the federal government is trying to subvert democracy. No one should be surprised that the government is liberal." But Tafuri ridiculed the notion that government bureaucrats are trying to damage the Trump presidency. "There are certainly holdovers from the Obama administration who may not agree with Donald Trump, but to suggest that there is some kind of 'deep state conspiracy' is pure paranoia. We shouldn't be talking about that because there is absolutely no evidence."

In a speech this week, President Clinton implied that Donald Trump and other politicians around the world are embracing a dangerous form of 'nationalism.' Eric invited reaction from columnist Kristen Soltis Anderson and former Clinton adviser Simon Rosenberg. "Prior to World War II," Rosenberg said, "there was a period of rising nationalism in Europe. All that Bill Clinton was saying is that the last time a lot of countries in the West were moving towards nationalism, it led to the biggest war in history and tens of millions of deaths." Anderson put Donald Trump's form of nationalism in a much more benign light. "If you are somebody who holds evangelical Christian beliefs, you are told that you are a relic of the past. If you work in a blue-collar job, you are told you need to get with the times. Donald Trump succeeded because he said you don't need to get with the times, the times need to get with you. Around the world people are frustrated with elites and that has led to leaders who sound like Donald Trump. If you live in France and see your country take in refugees, it can create anxiety."

Political reporters James Pindell and Erin McPike identified the biggest stories of the week gone by. "The biggest story was health care," McPike said, "and this rollout was a huge deal. It showed the fissure among Republicans over tax credits and Medicaid expansion, but we also saw the president trying to woo conservatives rather than just making demands." Pindell observed a stark difference in Donald Trump's tone and demeanor. "We have known him for decades as this loud and brash personality, but this week we saw a kinder and a quieter Donald Trump. He was very much on message throughout the week and he met privately with Republican senators. I think this was a very important moment in the Trump presidency."

Finally, Kellyanne Conway looked ahead to President Trump's upcoming meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. "These are two leaders who will get to know one another," she said, "and forge a positive relationship because we have many common interests around the globe. We're very excited that she's coming, these bilateral meetings are important." Eric pointed out that President Trump and Chancellor Merkel have starkly different policies when it comes to refugee settlement. "Angela Merkel allowed up to 1-million refugees into Germany and she may be having regrets about that." On a lighter note, Kellyanne Conway reacted to Saturday Night Live's weekly skewering of President Trump and his top aides. "If you work in this White House, you are of good humor and good nature. We all know how to laugh, we all know how to take a joke."