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U.S., Al Qaeda in Power Battle Over U.S. Ally; No Federal Charges Likely to Ferguson Cop; Soon: Patriots Head Coach to Speak

Aired January 22, 2015 - 09:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: NEWSROOM starts now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): Happening now in the NEWSROOM, the new front on terror.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the re-branding of a new militant group.

COSTELLO: An urgent, disturbing development. ISIS now active and recruiting in Yemen.

KIRK LIPPOLD, FORMER COMMANDER, USS COLE: But ultimately their aim is the United States.

COSTELLO: The U.S. embassy on alert. Our warships at the ready.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The legacy of Ferguson will be determined by what we do next.

COSTELLO: Also, ready to clear Officer Darren Wilson.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: The Justice Department has begun crafting recommendations that no charges be brought.

SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He's out of the woods when it comes to being charged either by the feds or by the state.

COSTELLO: How will Ferguson react this morning?

And laid off.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Ebay announced 2400 job cuts. That's about 7 percent of its work force. American Express is cutting 4,000 jobs.

COSTELLO: Major American companies cutting workers as the price of oil drops further. How long can the American worker hold on?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You get the sense that you're able to grip the ball better than the Colts last night?

COSTELLO: Also, deflate-gate. Did the Patriots cheat? BILL BELICHICK, HEAD COACH, NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS: I really don't know

what to say or know anything about what we're talking about here.

COSTELLO: Thursday morning quarterbacking as we hear from Bill Belichick this morning.

Let's talk. Live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

We begin this hour with the rampant spread of terrorism. World leaders scrambling to contain it.

Secretary of State John Kerry speaking later this morning. He's now in London leading a coalition of 20 nations uniting to combat ISIS. The terror group forging a new front in its war on the West. ISIS is gaining ground and recruiting new killers in Yemen as the critical U.S. ally spirals deeper into chaos.

Americans on edge in Yemen's capital. U.S. troops on alert. They're awaiting orders to evacuate the embassy and there's growing fear that time is running out.

The rise of ISIS is creating a power struggle of sorts in the region as al Qaeda and its loyalists control more territory and more recruits. In Yemen ISIS is challenging the dominance of the local branch, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

CNN's Brian Todd has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Disturbing new information tonight on the most dangerous terrorist groups taking advantage of the chaos in Yemen. CNN has learned ISIS is now active and recruiting inside Yemen. That's according to a Yemeni official who says ISIS militants engaged in a gun battle against rivals from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in the eastern provinces of Yemen last month.

KATHERINE ZIMMERMAN AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE: ISIS may be in Yemen to compete with the al Qaeda group there. Yemen is significant in Islam. It is a place where we've seen attacks against the United States. It also has been a major feeder for foreign fighters.

TODD: For years, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has dominated the terrorist foot holding Yemen. And the Yemeni official says, AQAP still out far outnumbers ISIS there with hundreds of fighters compared to dozens for ISIS.

A U.S. counterterrorism official tells CNN, AQAP's leadership and key technical experts remain committed to plotting against Western targets. In a new video a top AQAP leader renewed the group's call to launch

attacks.

LIPPOLD: I think the target as we initially saw is going to be the Europeans simply because of their ease to get on to the continent. But ultimately, their aim is the United States.

TODD: A U.S. official tells us American Intelligence is working intensively to track AQAP's their leaders. The most wanted, Nasser al-Wahishi, AQAP's founder. The man who approves targets and orders attacks. And Ibrahim al-Asiri, the group's master bomb maker who was behind the Christmas Day underwear bomb plot and the attempt to place bombs in printer cartridges. Both attacks targeted the United States. Both almost succeeded.

Asiri once placed a bomb inside the body of his own brother in an attempt to kill Saudi Arabia's Interior minister.

BRIAN FUHRMAN, TERRORISM ANALYST: And he detonated it in a meeting where he was, in theory, surrendering to the Saudi Prince. And so this was an assassination attempt. It failed. But it illustrates the lengths which somebody like Asiri will go to try to achieve their target.

TODD: Now officials and analysts worry AQAP and ISIS will compete inside Yemen to see who can strike America and its allies first and hardest.

ZIMMERMAN: It could lead an attack against the U.S. embassy in Sana'a which is vulnerable. And it could also direct its attention northward to Saudi Arabia.

TODD (on camera): The foothold ISIS has in Yemen is still small, according to the Yemeni official we spoke to. But ISIS is trying to lure recruits from AQAP, promising them that ISIS has more money to fund operations. We're told AQAP is struggling to raise money right now.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: The United States has a history with terror in Yemen. In 2000, 17 U.S. soldiers -- sailors, rather, were killed when suicide bombers rammed a small craft filled with explosives into a U.S. Navy ship. The Commander Kirk Lippold was at the helm that day. And he's with me now.

Thanks for being here, Commander.

LIPPOLD: Thank you, Carol. Great to be on the show.

COSTELLO: Great to have you here. This is how President Obama described the situation in Yemen just I think last year. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Taking out terrorists who threaten us while supporting partners on the front lines is one that we have successfully pursued in Yemen and Somalia for years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So was the president right then or have we just suffered a setback?

LIPPOLD: I think it's just a setback. We made tremendous progress in working with Yemen while in my opinion they're not exactly a reliable and a trustworthy partner in the war on terror, they are at least a government that is there that provided some stability in the capital and beyond. They've worked with us in counterterrorism efforts to try and track down and degrade and try and destroy Al Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula.

But clearly they've got some internal problems that are being exemplified by the Houthi rebels essentially taking over the government.

COSTELLO: Some people think it may be a good thing that the Houthi rebels have taken over because they hate al Qaeda, right, and they'll fight al Qaeda. There's only problem with that. The Houthi's slogan is God is great, death to America, death to Israel.

So should the United States tolerate any kind of negotiation with these Houthi rebels?

LIPPOLD: I think we should ensure that the government does what they need to do to survive without necessarily giving up too much. The Houthi rebels are Shia based. They're backed by Iran. So already right there you can see some of the regional factors that are coming into play. Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf nations that are principally Sunni, clearly Saudi Arabia is not going to want a Shia government based on its southern border that has a terrorist presence in it that is -- AQAP is a Sunni based terrorist organization.

They're not going to want that to be existing. They don't want a Shia government there. So they have a vested interest in -- while there have been conflicts with Yemen, they would like to see that government survive.

COSTELLO: So how might Saudi Arabia react?

LIPPOLD: I think Saudi is going to work to try and ensure that the government does, in fact, get stabilized. And while they may cede some power to the Houthi rebels, as they Yemeni government tries to create a new constitution, I think that ultimately they don't want a strong Yemen government down there. By the same token, they would like a government that cooperates with us and with them to destroy Al Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula because they do represent a threat ultimately to their government, to Europe and the United States.

COSTELLO: The U.S. embassy in Yemen still has not been evacuated. You told me yesterday that you think now is the time. So why aren't they moving to do that?

LIPPOLD: I think we saw a fundamental shift overnight when the Houthi rebels were willing to back off, withdraw some of their forces. The president agreed to some concessions regarding how they draft that new constitution, what powers they would give to the Houthis. But as has been pointed out this morning, while they backed off, nothing has changed.

I think the next 24 hours, and I hate to do that again because I know yesterday I said next 24 hours, but there has been a shift. Whether we see the government reassert itself in the next 24 hours will be telling. If they don't, I don't think we can continue to risk. The ships are off shore with USS Iwo Jim, USS Fort McHenry, the Marines are ready to go in and once again, better to insert themselves in a benign environment than to have to fight their way in, create another Benghazi situation unfortunately.

Let's get them in, get the embassy staff out, have them wait off shore on the ships. When the situation is stabilized, it's easy to reintroduce them back into the embassy. I know there's a bit of an optic involved in that in removing our forces, but nonetheless, American lives matter.

COSTELLO: Commander Lippold, thank you so much for being with me. I appreciate it.

LIPPOLD: Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the Justice Department unlikely to file federal charges against Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson. So where does the community go from here? We'll talk about that next.

Also, deflate-gate heats up. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick set to speak in just a few minutes. We're expecting him to talk at 9:30 Eastern as the league investigates whether his team deflated game balls. Hear it live when it happens, but I do want to hear from you.

If this is true, how should the Pats be punished? Tweet me @carolCNN or weigh in at facebook.com/carolCNN. I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Newly released video to show you. It was obtained by two New Jersey newspapers as part of an open records request. It provides new insight into a deadly police shooting there.

Now the encounter captured on dashcam video officers pulled over a blue Jaguar for running a stop sign late last month. But the exchange intensifies quickly after one of the officers said he sees a gun in the glove compartment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Show me your hands. Show me your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) hands. Show me your hands. Don't (EXPLETIVE DELETED) move. Don't you (EXPLETIVE DELETED) move. Don you (EXPLETIVE DELETED) move. Get him out of the car, Ross. We got a gun in his glove compartment. I'm going to shoot you. You're going to be (EXPLETIVE DELETED) dead, I'm telling you. You reach for something you're going to be (EXPLETIVE DELETED) dead, I'm telling you. I'm telling you. Keep your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) hands right there.

Hey, Jerome, you reach for something you're going to be (EXPLETIVE DELETED) dead. He's reaching. He's reaching. Show me your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) hands. No, you're not. No, you're not. No, you're not. Don't (EXPLETIVE DELETED) move.

Don't you (EXPLETIVE DELETED) move.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: 36-year-old Jeraime Reed who had a criminal record and had encountered one of the officers during a 2013 arrest was killed. Both officers are now on leave as the use of deadly force is investigated by county prosecutors.

In Ferguson, Missouri, where another deadly police shooting sparked protests from coast to coast, word is that federal charges against Darren Wilson are now unlikely. An official telling CNN the prosecutors will not recommend civil rights charges in the death of Michael Brown because there's not sufficient evidence to support those charges.

In his State of the state address Missouri's governor Jay Nixon talked about the way forward. Now pay close attention to which lines get the most applause from the legislature in Missouri.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. JAY NIXON (D), MISSOURI: And we must recruit, train and certify professional law enforcement that reflects the diversity of the community it serves.

(APPLAUSE)

The men and women of law enforcement protect and serve in difficult and dangerous circumstances. They put their lives on the line to protect our lives. We're proud of our law enforcement officers.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That got a sustained standing ovation.

Let's talk about all of this. CNN legal analyst Paul Callan joins us, and St. Louis Alderman Antonio French joins us.

Welcome to you both.

PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning.

ANTONIO FRENCH, ST. LOUIS CITY ALDERMAN: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Antonio, I actually want to start with you. What's your reaction to the governor's comments and the way the state legislature responded?

FRENCH: Yes, I appreciated the governor's comments. We have a balance to maintain here. We want a police force that reflects the community that they police. We want a community that has a relationship with the police force. That makes the police job even easier and makes them effective at fighting crime.

At the same time, though, we want to make sure that we don't have the kind of abuses that we've seen in the past and we want to have oversight to build the trust. So, it is a balance.

COSTELLO: Is that happening in Ferguson?

FRENCH: Well, it's not happening right now. We hope that the events of the last few months will spark a change, both politically and a systemic change the way we police in St. Louis City and St. Louis County. We're still waiting for that change to happen and frankly that's why the protests continue.

COSTELLO: Got you.

OK, now on to you, Paul. Eric Holder said that the bar is high for federal civil rights cases. So, is it a surprise that no civil rights violations will be levied against Officer Wilson?

CALLAN: It's not a surprise to me, having been involved -- and seeing the facts of this case so closely. I mean, the one thing that you had in the Ferguson case was Michael Brown was struggling with an armed police officer and the gun went off in the car. I've never seen an officer indicted in that scenario.

What I was surprised about was the aggressive stance that was taken initial by the Justice Department which hinted that something was being done improperly by the locals in the investigation, and that a federal grand jury would make everything right. They came in and did their own autopsy. They independently interviewed their own witnesses.

And they kind of created an expectation in the community that the Justice Department was going to save the day on a white horse. Now, we have a federal grand jury and they reach the same conclusion as the state grand jury -- no basis for criminal charges.

So, I think when you step back and look at it in perspective, it indicates to me that maybe the local grand jury handled it properly in the end because even the feds have to concede.

COSTELLO: Antonio, what's the reaction in Ferguson?

FRENCH: Well, I think it's disappointment on the part of a lot of people. Now, we do know that the bar is much higher for a civil rights case than was the case here locally. We also felt even back in August that the only way we were going to really see a trial, which I think is what the community needs, was through a special prosecutor, and that didn't happen.

And so, I think the community is disappointed, but we will not stop our fight for change both in St. Louis County and St. Louis City.

COSTELLO: And, Paul, is there any other recourse for the Brown family?

CALLAN: There certainly is. They can file a civil action in this case in federal court, where they can file a state civil action.

And just to give you an example, the O.J. Simpson case is probably the most famous case this was done. Simpson was acquitted on criminal charges and subsequently a jury found that he had, in fact, committed the murder.

So, there is a remedy available. Now whether they can get a lawyer to take the case and whether a local jury would find in their favor, that's an entirely different thing. It really depends on the available evidence.

COSTELLO: And there's still some sort of investigation into the Ferguson police department, correct?

CALLAN: That's a different thing. The Justice Department may look at the department and say there are racially discriminatory practices in place that have to be remedied and they can fine and issue injunctions, requiring a different way to run the department.

And I think we'll see that. We'll see reform coming out of this case in Ferguson, but I don't think we're going to see criminal convictions. I think it's a real uphill battle on the civil case for the family.

COSTELLO: So, Antonio, when all is said and done, will there be victories?

FRENCH: Will there be victories? I think victories are not going to involve, you know, Darren Wilson going to jail or a criminal case. But I do think we'll see victories in terms of change that happens, systemic change and hopefully we will rebuild that relationship between the community and the people that police our community. It will take time, but we're determined to do the hard work.

COSTELLO: Antonio French, Paul Callan, thanks to you both. Thanks to you both. I appreciate it.

CALLAN: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Checking some other top stories at 20 minutes past the hour.

City council members voting to tear down the Connecticut home where Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza once lived. Lanza shot and killed his mother inside this house before storming Sandy Hook Elementary school back in 2012. That's where he massacred more than two dozen people including 20 children. The city has not set a date for the demolition.

Officials are trying to figure out what sparked a massive fire at a New Jersey apartment complex. The blaze broke out yesterday afternoon and displaced hundreds of residents. Authorities say because of the time of day the majority of residents were not home. So far there have been no reports of injuries.

The Navy firing of the commanding officer at Guantanamo Bay amid allegations of an extramarital affair, saying Captain John Nettleton was relieved of his duties because of a loss of confidence. According to the "Associated Press", they became aware of the alleged affair after the woman's husband was found dead.

Filling up at the gas pump isn't emptying your wallet these days. Right now, the national average for a gallon of regular is around 2 bucks. That's the lowest price in six years.

But do not expect to see the same savings if you're flying despite low fuel prices, airfares remain sky high.

CNN's chief business correspondent Christine Romans is following that.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Carol, wow, this is something, right? You fill up your tank and you think that you're going to get big relief when you're driving your car.

So, shouldn't you get big relief when you're flying? No. Actually, it's the airlines that are getting all of the benefit here, Carol, when you look at who's winning here. Jet fuel costs down by 50 percent, airfare up 2 percent.

Airfare's actually rising, Carol. It's actually rising here and, why? Because you're still buying the tickets. Air travel is exploding basically. Air travel up last year 800 million miles flown., really remarkable here.

Passengers flew 800 million miles, 83 percent of seats filled. That is a record year. All of that lower gas prices going right into their bottom line.

Here's what the airlines tell us though. They do tell us that you are benefitting. You're benefitting if you're an investor. You're benefitting because they are buying more planes. You're benefitting because their workers got a raise so they gave some of the money back to their workers and they're making new investments and paying down debt. Investors, investors really, really benefitting. Those are among the best performing stocks.

COSTELLO: Ain't capitalism grand.

ROMANS: It is. But, look, not for flyers -- flyers feel like they really have gotten a raw deal on this. Wait a minute, where's my break? You're not going to get the break. You're going to get the break if you drive your car, not if you fly an airplane. COSTELLO: OK, lesson learned. Christine Romans, thanks so much.

Still to come on THE NEWSROOM, a dozen under inflated footballs siphoning attention away from the Patriots.

And in just a few minute, we will hear from the Patriots Bill Belichick.

Alina Machado is there.

ALINA MACHADO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: First, they had spy gate and now the New England Patriots are under pressure for under inflated football. I'll tell you more about the latest scandal to rock NFL football just days ahead of the Super Bowl.

(COMMECIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

Any minute now, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick will finally face the cameras as deflate-gate spirals out of control. Belichick's weekly news conference will be the first since the scandal broke. The NFL reportedly found the Patriots used under inflated footballs on offense during their AFC championship win over the Indianapolis Colts, 11 balls deflated by 2 pounds or more after inspection. You know what that means.

Now, there are reports the colts had problems with footballs used during their game in November against the Patriots. So, two games are now in contention here.

CNN's Andy Scholes shows us the process football goes through before the game.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS: A big question with deflate-gate is how are the Patriots able to use under inflated football while the Colts are not?

Let's take a look at ball procedures for an NFL. Every ball is made by Wilson and it's got Commissioner Roger Goodell's signature on it.

It's required to be 12.5 and 13.5 pounds per square inch and weigh 14 and 15 ounces. Each team brings 12 balls. 2:15 prior to kick off the referee tests each ball to make sure it meets league requirements.

To prevent teams from over inflating them, six balls shipped from Wilson directly to the stadium and opened by the referee before the game. They're labeled k balls and labeled exclusively k balls. The balls remain with the referees until before the game when they are delivered to the ball attendants on the sidelines.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: Thank you for that lesson, Andy Scholes. So, Alina Machado has more about Belichick's news conference. She's live outside of Boston.

Will you get much -- let's go to Boston now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MACHADO: Well, Carol, the big question now is will head coach Bill Belichick answer any questions about this scandal? So far all he has said is that the team is cooperating with the investigation.

Now, according to ESPN, the NFL has found that 11 of the 12 footballs that were used by the Patriots during the AFC championship game here on Sunday were under inflated. This could have provided the team with an unfair advantage because under inflated footballs are easier to grip, they're easier to throw, they're easier to catch especially during bad weather. You may remember Sunday's game was pretty rainy.

Now, right now, the NFL is trying to figure out exactly what happened and who may have been behind the incident. Now, the Patriots have been accused of cheating in the past. You may remember spy gate back in 2007. Back then, the Patriots had to give up their first round draft pick, they were fined and coach Belichick himself had to pay up $500,000 because the team was caught illegally videotaping coaching signals of an opposing team.

It's unclear right now what kind of penalties the team could face given this latest scandal. And it's also unclear if the NFL will be able to conclude its investigation before the Super Bowl -- Carol.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right. Alina Machado is inside the news conference. We'll be excited to hear what Bill Belichick has to say or has to mumble. T

There are some players who say deflate-gate is no big deal. Arizona quarterback Matt Weiner tweeted, "Every team tampers with footballs. Ask any QB in the league. This is ridiculous." Oh, my gosh.

Let's talk more about this. Joining me now, CNN's sports anchor, Rachel Nichols, CNN anchor and lifelong Patriots fan, John Berman. That's why he's putting all those snarky comments because he's sitting right behind me. And former NFL linebacker Coy Wire.

Good morning to all of you.