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Rescued Window Washers Reflect on Experience; Police and Officials Anticipating Violent Protest in Ferguson; Iguala Mayor and His Wife Imprisoned over Disappearance of Students; Republicans Show Their Indignation over Possible Executive Order on Immigration

Aired November 14, 2014 - 10:00   ET

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

BRIAN MCFAYDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mississippi State is the number- one ranked team in the nation but they're going into Tuscaloosa to face the fifth rank Crimson tide. Both teams are vying for a playoff spot. Mississippi State might be the top ranked team right now, but Alabama is favored to win by odds makers. And Carol, this is why the regular season in college football is so exciting. Huge weekend for a lot of teams around the country and I'm going to be with these guys for the next two days.

COSTELLO: Start cheering, it's cold. It will warm you up.

MCFAYDEN: Yeah, go dogs!

COSTELLO: Thanks, Brian, I appreciate it.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: That's what I wanted to hear.

Thanks so much, Brian. The next hour of CNN "NEWSROOM" starts now.

Happening now in the NEWSROOM, breaking overnight, immigration battle. President Obama promising to take executive action. Will the move spark a government shutdown? Then two window washers dangling at 68 stories above Manhattan waiting for rescue. In moments they speak live from one World Trade Center about those 90 heart-pounding minutes. And government spy planes scanning your cell phones. Sounds like a conspiracy theory, right? A paranoia? But a new report says it's all part of the Justice Department's hunt for criminals. Let's talk live in the CNN "NEWSROOM."

COSTELLO: Good morning, I'm Carol Costello, thanks so much for joining me. So, let's head to Manhattan right now, shall we? Because those window washers are now holding their news conference talking about those 90 heart-pounding moments they were trapped 68 stories above the ground. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He lives in New Jersey, he's originally from El Salvador, correct? And he is a father as well as a dedicated union member and he has been a window cleaner and a member of our union for 14 years. Juan Lopez, who lives in the Bronx, originally from Peru, is also a father and he's 33 years old and he has been a window cleaner for five years. So, (INAUDIBLE) is natural de Peru, de Salvador, and we live in New Jersey, and (speaking Spanish). Juan Lopez, (INAUDIBLE) in Bronx, natural de Peru. Trenty tres anos. (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right. I think they're going to speak English first and then they're going to speak Spanish so when they return to speaking English, of course, we'll bring you back down to that news conference so we can hear those window washer's harrowing tale. On to politics now, it may be setting up as a steel-caged death match of Washington politics. President Obama may be just days away from announcing a major overhaul of immigration law and he plans to bypass Congress and use executive authority to sign it into law.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I gave the House over a year to go ahead and at least give a vote to the Senate bill. They failed to do so and I indicated to Speaker Boehner several months ago that if, in fact, Congress failed to act, I would use all the lawful authority that I possess to try to make the system work better. And that's going to happen. That's going to happen before the end of the year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Republicans in Congress just weeks away from their most dominant majority in decades are ready to rumble. Their take no prisoner options up to and including another government shutdown. In the middle, millions of undocumented immigrants and an American public is fed up with the paralysis of brinksmanship and gridlock. CNN's Michelle Kosinski is at the White House. Good morning.

MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Carol, I like these kind of violent analogies you are using there. Well, Republicans have been using them, too. Remember, saying that the president is playing with matches and he's liable to get burned if he takes executive action. They were saying that it's like holding a red -- what am I saying? A red flag in front of a bull. Flag? Something like that. So all of these images have been out there. Setting this up, you're right, for I think what you called a steel death match, cage match between these two sides.

I'm getting so -- I'm getting all tongue tied, Carol.

COSTELLO: OK.

KOSINSKI: But I like your analogies. Anyway, what the president might do, there's been reporting out there. The White House isn't confirming this but then again, they're not denying it, either. So it sounds like this could be a viable option for the president, although the White House is saying that he hasn't fully decided on the option. That he's still reviewing what the Department of Homeland Security has presented and, in fact, that the full recommendation hasn't been reviewed by the president yet. So some of those things could be eliminating deportations for people who were brought to this country as children, possibly extending that to their parents. Extending it to parents of children who were born here in the U.S. And the president is likely to put a kind of time frame on it. It could be for people who have been here at least five years, possibly ten years.

But on the other side of things, it's also supposedly going to make other things clear such as deportations will continue for people who are convicted of crimes and could boost border security as well. So there will be a little bit of check-and-balance there. But, of course, Republicans are furious about even the possibility of this. And the timing is up in the air, too. I mean some say that, you know, the White House wouldn't necessarily want to put this out there before the continuing resolution is approved by the lame duck Congress to fund the government through next year. You know, it's a dangerous kind of balance there. Is this going to make Republicans then launch a government shutdown, Carol? All of these just possibilities at this point, of course.

COSTELLO: Yeah, and let me run those down. Michelle Kosinski reporting live from the White House. Thank you. So, here again are the options for Republicans, each one carrying its own risks. They can wait until January and use their new majority in Congress to chip away at the president's reforms. That's what Republican leaders want to do. Or the Republicans can flex their muscles and force a government shutdown until the president backs down. That's the course of action that some conservatives want. CNN's Dana Bash has some of the growing anger on Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fresh from being elected by fellow Republicans as the next Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell lashed out at President Obama for antagonizing the new GOP Congress by promising to change immigration laws by executive order.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, REPUBLICAN LEADER: We'd like for the president to recognize the reality that he has the government that he has, not the one that he wishes he had.

BASH: Brinksmanship is back. Even concerns about another government shutdown, McConnell insists that won't happen.

MCCONNELL: We won't be shutting the government down.

BASH: Still, CNN is told Republicans are engaged in private discussions across the capital to cut off funding in order to block implementation of any presidential executive order allowing some illegal immigrants to stay legally.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R) SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: We're going to fight the president tooth and nail if he continues down this path.

BASH: Arizona Republican Matt Salmon actually agrees with the president on immigration reform, but says executive action without Congress ...

REP. MATT SALMON (R) ARIZONA: It would be a poison pill.

BASH: He got some 50 Republican lawmakers to sign this letter urging their GOP leaders to retaliate against the president on immigration by chopping funding for immigration policies. So you want to use Congress's power of the purse to stop the president or at least take away what he's done on his executive order on immigration?

SALMON: That's really all we have. Either we can complain mightily and wring our hands or we can try to do something about it.

BASH: But GOP sources tell CNN some Republicans are reluctant since the last time they used government funding to stop an Obama policy it led to a government shutdown.

(on camera): But you know from last year when you used the power of the purse you risk a government shutdown. Are you willing to do that?

SALMON: No one is talking about a government shutdown.

BASH: As for Democrats.

REP. LUIS GUTIERREZ (D) ILLINOIS: What we want the president to do is to act big, act bold, and act broadly and act soon.

BASH: Most support the president going it alone, fed up that the Senate passed a bipartisan immigration bill last year and the GOP-led House never acted.

REP. STENY HOYER (D) MARYLAND: This is about doing what, from a humanitarian standpoint and moral standpoint, is right.

BASH: Dana Bash, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right, some breaking news to pass along now. These 43 college students who disappeared in southern Mexico, prosecutors now say the mayor of the town was the probable mastermind of a plot that had all of them killed. CNN's Rafael Romo joins us live with the latest. Good morning.

RAFAEL ROMO, SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Hi, Carol, good morning. We're talking about the Iguala Mayor Jose Luis Abarca. The Mexican media call him and his wife Maria Pineda the imperial couple because they say they ran the town of Iguala as their personal fiefdom. Well, the Guerrero State's - the attorney general's office has said that he has now been formally charged with six counts of aggravated homicide and also one count of attempted homicide. He has been in prison since November 7. He was also removed from his position on October 23 after a request by authorities that he be removed earlier in the month of October.

So as things stand now, he is in prison, his wife is in prison at well but the investigation into the disappearance of the 43 missing students in the state of Guerrero still continues without really any clues as to where they might have been. Three mass graves, Carol, have been unearthed here in Guerrero state and not a single one of them has given any results, and the DNA results, that would positively identify any of the 43 missing. Back to you.

COSTELLO: So sad. Rafael Romo, thanks so much. I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The grand jury hearing evidence of the Michael Brown shooting death has until January 7 to decide whether to indict Officer Darren Wilson, but expectations are high that decision could come at any time now. What happens after that has the entire community of Ferguson, Missouri, on edge. Some businesses have boarded up their windows just in case there's unrest like we saw last August. Local police have spent a great deal of time preparing for the potential community response to the grand jury's decision. They stress they want only to maintain the peace. Jeff Rorda is a business manager for the St. Louis police officer's association. He's also a Democratic state representative. Welcome, sir.

JEFF ROORDA, ST. LOUIS POLIE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION: Hi, Carol, how are you?

COSTELLO: I'm good, how are you doing? You know, the Browns' lawyers came out yesterday on our air and criticized Governor Nixon for focusing on protesters who might riot after the grand jury's decision and not the rights of peaceful protesters. Do they have a point?

ROORDA: No. If I hear the word "peaceful protesters" again I think I'm going to throw up. This was a violent protest. The entire aftermath of the shooting involved violent protests and I keep hearing this myth perpetuated that this is a peaceful protest. There were attempts to kill police officers every night in Ferguson after the shooting of Michael Brown and I expect far, far worse after the grand jury renders its decision.

COSTELLO: So, you don't believe any in the crowd were peaceful protesters?

ROORDA: Well, sure there were demonstrators there that had peaceful goals, but they were used as human shields by the very violent protesters who were there to foment chaos and injury and damage of property and ...

COSTELLO: Do you think those people came from outside of the community?

ROORDA: Yeah. That eighth or ninth night when law enforcement finally said "Enough's enough, we're going to go in the crowd and arrest the agitators." We arrested 78 people, only three of them were from Ferguson.

COSTELLO: So, you want the outsiders to remain outside the city of Ferguson. But for the people who want to protest peacefully, that's OK, right?

ROORDA: Sure it is. Sure it is. And we're there to protect them and to protect their rights, but, you know, it wouldn't be newsworthy if those were the only folks in the street. The violence that happened after dark every night was underreported and law enforcement had its hands tied by politicians that got in the way of us keeping that community safe.

COSTELLO: I think that what the Browns' attorneys wanted to hear from the governor, though, is to say you have a right to peacefully protest and we respect that right and since the governor didn't say that, they were upset.

ROORDA: Well, I mean it goes without saying. We don't have the ability to arrest people for peaceful protest, but when somebody fires a gun or throws a break from amidst the crowd, we should be able to say to the crowd "You've got to disperse and everybody that doesn't disperse needs to be arrested so they can get to the guy with the gun or the brick or the bottle or the Molotov cocktail.

COSTELLO: Are you in contact with Officer Wilson?

ROORDA: I've talked to him. I'm more in contact with his attorneys.

COSTELLO: And how is he doing?

ROORDA: He's -- I'll tell you, it was remarkable to me how well he's got his head screwed on through all this. It's a very difficult time. It's never easy for a police officer to take another life, even if they believe it's fully justified.

COSTELLO: Does he want to ...

ROORDA: And then to have this sort of -- go on, Carol.

COSTELLO: No, I was just curious. Does he wish to remain a police officer after going through all of this?

ROORDA: I don't know if the reality has hit him or not. It's going to be difficult for him to find a place in law enforcement after what he's been through.

COSTELLO: And what do you expect to happen when the grand jury decision comes down?

ROORDA: I expect incredibly violent protests or violent celebrations if Darren would be indicted, which I don't expect to be the outcome. I expect that there would be violent celebrations. After the Rodney King verdict, 53 people were killed, ten by police, the rest by violence in the crowd. We need to take aggressive steps to keep the people of Ferguson and even the protesters safe and I hope that politicians don't get in the way of that.

COSTELLO: Do you think the National Guard should be called out?

ROORDA: Yes. If I were the governor, I would - I would have the National Guard on standby, and they'd be there immediately.

COSTELLO: And you don't think pleas from the Brown family for peaceful protests are helping at all?

ROORDA: Well, I don't think they hurt. I mean if it's a peaceful protest the police can manage that just fine. If it's not they need to be able to take the action required to protect life and property?

COSTELLO: Jeff Roorda, thanks so much for being with me this morning. I appreciate it.

ROORDA: It's my pleasure, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thanks. The early snow just keeps coming. This is central Oregon where they got between four and ten inches of snow. More is on the way tomorrow. In Denver, they've been breaking cold records all week, but snow in Colorado also means it's time to break out the skis. Hey, you have to think positively. In Buffalo, the first snow of the season brought out the shovels and the plows, though. Let's bring in Indra Peterson. It's cold out there.

INDRA PETERSON, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You don't look happy right now, Carol.

COSTELLO: No. I'm not ready. I've got spoiled.

PETERSON: I mean it's fair - we're only getting maybe a dusting in the northeast as we go through the weekend. When you take a look at what everyone else has been seeing, let's look at some video. We actually have some video from Eerie, Pennsylvania, where they've already seen a foot of snow. Just - (INAUDIBLE) another three to six inches of the snow, and everyone is saying this is way too early. Yeah, it actually is. I mean they don't even typically see a foot of snow until the end of December in that region. So when you look at the map today and you actually see the flurries still hanging out around the Great Lakes and also towards New England, I don't think anyone is ready for this much snow this quickly. That is the concern. Take a look at this morning. Here's the high. You are talking about 40s towards New York City. Also 40s even on the West Coast, even a threat of icing early this morning so it's definitely been a rough ride. That cold air, it is here to stay. No one wants to hear this. You are talking about the cold air, not only going to the southeast today, but another round of this cold air coming in right behind it. So take a look at these temperatures. These are your highs, these are not your lows. This cool air, 15, 20, even some places 30 degrees below average for this time of year. It's staying for a little bit longer and here's the problem -- this is one dome of high pressure, this is a cool blast of air. Here comes the next system behind it, already in the Rockies producing that snow today. Look what happens by the time we go through Saturday, more snow showers expected and this is coming to the northeast but only like a flurry for us or so by Monday, Carol. I think you've got it. We've got it. We can do it together.

COSTELLO: Yes, we can, with many, many layers, Indra.

PETERSON: Yes. Probably.

COSTELLO: Indra, thanks so much. Still to come in the NEWSROOM, it didn't take long for the most

midterm Kumbaya to wear off on Capitol Hill. Right now, a ferocious fight is shaking out on Capitol Hill over immigration reform. We'll talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY FALLON: It's rumored that President Obama is planning to announce a new ten-part immigration plan before Thanksgiving. And you thought your family wouldn't have anything to argue about this year.

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

FALLON: Just in time. Just in time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Well, at least someone's laughing over the battle shaking out on Capitol Hill right now Jokes aside, Republican lawmakers are gearing up for a showdown as President Obama vows to take action on immigration reform. In just a matter of days, Mr. Obama could sign an executive order that would grant legal status to millions of undocumented immigrants here in the United States.

The executive order would, in part, grant legal status to undocumented parents of U.S. citizens, allow illegal immigrants who came to the United States as children to stay. But the executive order would also make it clear illegal immigrants with criminal backgrounds would be deported. Needless to say, the president's plan to bypass a newly elected Congress is not going over well with Republicans. In a recent interview with NewsMax, Representative Steve King said if the president's plan is forced on the country, "The Republic is dead." King also threatened impeachment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. STEVE KING (R) IOWA: We know there is the "I" word in the Constitution that none of us want to stay or act on, but, you know, I would have never have said that there will be no boots on the ground so in this context, everything is on the table because our republic is on the table, our constitutional republic is on the table. We cannot have a president of the United States that believes that he can make up the law as he goes.

COSTELLO: All right, let's talk about this. John Avlon is a CNN political analyst and editor-in-chief for "The Daily Beast." We're also joined by Larry Sabato, he is the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics. Welcome, gentleman.

JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: Good morning. I know it's not a pleasant topic this morning, right? Because we're talking about gridlock again. Because Larry, I thought voters sent a message they wanted gridlock to end and that's certainly not happening. It seems worse than ever. So, who's to blame?

LARRY SABATO, DIR., UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA'S CENTER FOR POLITICS: Well, let's start with the voters. They created more gridlock. And that's their constitutional right in that they wanted to send a message to President Obama, they did it, but by putting both houses of Congress in Republicans' hands and having a Democratic president that they've elected twice, they created the gridlock. Whether that was their intention or not. So, you know, the more things change, the more they remain the same. You know, we got rid of the old gridlock, welcome to more intense gridlock.

COSTELLO: John, do you agree it's the voters' fault?

AVLON: No, it's not. We've had divided government before, many times throughout our history and we've achieved great things. The division and dysfunction and polarization in Congress today is something different. It's because of the geographic and ideological polarization of the two parties. That said, you know, Mitch McConnell came into office and he did speak when he was elected Senate majority leader he spoke a lot about trying to have a reset with the president, about trying to find areas of common ground despite the deep differences. And while Steve King's comments about this being the end of the republic are typically asinine, this is not a smart way for the president to restart the relationship with the new congress. It clearly can poison the waters even more than they're already poisoned and while the White House and the president may say that this is simply looking for leverage, i.e., that if the Congress passes immigration reform the executive order would be off the table, it's a -- playing offense that is pretty unwise if you're looking to form a working relationship with the new Republican-run Congress.

COSTELLO: Well, and Larry, some do agree with John. They say the timing of this is bizarre, for example. Senator Angus King who caucuses with the Democrats said "I think it will create a backlash in the country that could actually set the cause back and inflame our politics in a way that I don't think will be conducive to solving the problem." So, Larry, why not wait?

SABATO: Well, the way the president looks at it -- and I'm not saying it was the right thing to do -- but he has signaled that he was going to do it for some time. Second, his party base wants him to do it. Remember, Hispanics are a big piece of the Democratic puzzle that can deliver the White House again to them in 2016 and thirdly and probably most importantly, I think the president and his White House staff probably understand that they're not going to be getting all that much cooperation over the next two years. This current happy talk means nothing. Or the happy talk that existed right after the election means nothing. And let's remember, Carol, this -- I'm sorry, I disagree with my friend John. The politicians are reflecting their party base, their voters. So the voters absolutely have something to do with this.

COSTELLO: OK, well, let's talk about this impeachment thing. So let's say the president issues this executive order, right? And Republicans in Congress can't come up with their own plan so that's why he says he's going to do that, could the president be impeached? Is what he's doing legal, John?

AVLON: I mean, this is a far cry from high crimes, misdemeanors or treason. I mean this is an extension in the fact of the executive order that was pushed through in the last lame duck regarding the Dreamers and expansion of that.