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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Spring Mosul Offensive; Obama: Muslim Nations Must Undercut Terror; Road Rage Arrest; Cold Snap Freezing Eastern U.S.

Aired February 20, 2015 - 04:00   ET

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: A surprising reveal from the Pentagon. Iraq's military planning to try to take back a key city in Iraq from ISIS this spring. So why are they telling us this so early?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: A shocking arrest in the deadly road rage case in Arizona. A 19-year-old suspect now accused of shooting his neighbor. The victim's husband expressing outrage saying his wife had tried to help her accused killer.

BERMAN: And this morning, 185 million Americans feeling the bitter, bitter cold. Freeze warnings issued across several states. New warnings about dangerous road conditions. This one is cold and ugly.

Good morning, everyone. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm John Berman.

ROMANS: And I'm Christine Romans. It is Friday -- Friday -- February 20th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East.

BERMAN: That was such a meek Friday.

ROMANS: I know, but I mean, it's cold. It was a meek cold Friday. But it is Friday.

New this morning, the Pentagon revealing plans to force ISIS out of Iraq's second largest city Mosul. U.S. military officials telling CNN some 20,000 to 25,000 Iraqi troops could be committed to retaking Mosul just months from now. This leads to the question whether any American troops could be involved.

Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr tracking that story for us -- Barbara.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, the Pentagon offering details about an upcoming military operation in Iraq. Iraqi forces now getting ready to try to retake Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, ISIS capturing it last year.

Now, the plan is for five Iraqi brigades, plus additional Iraqi forces, more than 20,000 troops to try to go to Mosul, perhaps as soon as early April or May. Pretty specific information. More than 20,000 troops. There were also Peshmerga forces who will try to cut off any ISIS escape routes north and west of Mosul.

The big question, of course, is what role will U.S. troops play besides the ongoing coalition air strikes?

Still on the table, not decided, no recommendation to President Obama, is whether there will be a small group of U.S. military advisers going to Mosul, functioning as target spotters, helping the Iraqi forces spot those ISIS targets on the ground. It's a populated area. The Iraqis may need help in figuring out exactly where ISIS is. Again, raising the specter in the minds of some that it will bring U.S. troops, perhaps, closer to a combat environment.

The Pentagon says it's revealing all of this information to show the commitment that Iraqi forces have to the battle -- John, Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Thanks to Barbara Starr for that.

President Obama continuing to walk a fine line in his summit on violent extremism. The president called on Islamic nations to work harder to undercut the root causes of terrorism. The president is pushing back against identifying terrorism -- his refusal to identify terrorism as Islamic.

Senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta has the latest from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, he didn't use the words Islamic terrorism or extremism, but President Obama called on Muslim and Arab nations to start doing a better job of pushing back on what he repeatedly called lies from al Qaeda and ISIS.

In a speech of his countering violent extremism summit to hundreds of world leaders at the State Department, the president said the U.S.-led coalition will continue pounding ISIS with air strikes. But he argued, the Islamic world must take aim at the underlying reasons for radicalism, from income inequality, to the lack of democratic freedoms. Of course, it should be noted, many of the countries where the problems exist also happen to be members of the president's coalition against ISIS.

Still, the president did prod those Muslim partners to develop a more effective counter-message to the terrorists who are now all over social media. Here's what the president had to say.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: None of us, I think, should be immune from criticism in terms of specific policies. But the notion that the West is at war with Islam is an ugly lie. And all of us, regardless of our faith, have a responsibility to reject it.

ACOSTA: Now, all critics have pounced on the president's refusal to use the term "Islamic terrorism" or variations of that phrase. And as soon as the president wrapped his remarks today, Arizona Republican Senator John McCain jumped in on Twitter, saying the notion that radical Islam is not at war with the West is an ugly lie -- using the president's words there.

The White House had hoped to make great strides this week in communicating an inclusive message to the Islamic world. But it's a message that had to battle against this debate over semantics that the president seemed determined to have -- John and Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: All right. Our thanks to Jim.

Breaking news this morning: two trains had collided north of Zurich in Switzerland. There are reports of many injuries, also carriages pushed off the train tracks. We're going to bring you more information as soon as it becomes available.

ROMANS: All right. This morning, pro-Russian rebels maintain control of the crucial rail hub of Debaltseve in Eastern Ukraine. The Ukrainian government calls the rebel's battle for the city is a breach of the cease-fire they agreed to just last week.

So, the question this morning is -- will the separatists put down their arms now they have Debaltseve? Or will they try to grab more territory?

For the very latest, let's bring in senior international correspondent Nick Paton Walsh, live for us from Donetsk, in Eastern Ukraine.

Nick, what are you seeing this morning?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is strangely quiet here in the rebel strong hold of Donetsk. Last night, that was not the case -- intense shelling heard in the night and the day as well. And that begged the question, really, once we saw the separatists now fully in control of Debaltseve. That's a town that is being frankly brutalized by the violence that's been swirling this two week encirclement by the separatists until they force the Ukrainian army now.

Now, the separatists have Debaltseve. Does that mean the violence stops? Well, it doesn't seem that was the case last night, both ingoing and outgoing rounds we heard here.

That violence is still raging. We are almost a week now potentially into the supposed cease-fire, a remarkable situation that we still have world leaders referring to this as a truce despite that violence. And also questions for the government in Kiev. They made a clear decision to leave hundred if not thousands of troops in Debaltseve during the Minsk agreements, knowing perhaps that they would eventually be surrounded by the separatists, the far superior military force, because Ukraine and NATO, it is backed by the Russian military and staffed equipped by them. That fight was lost by them, but we don't know how many troops were lost in that fight at this stage.

There are some preliminary figures coming out from the government. But suggestions from the rebels exaggerated. It has been a bloody period in the fight in Ukraine here. And they it happened during a supposed cease-fire.

Back to you.

ROMANS: During a supposed ceasefire. Nick Paton Walsh, thank you for that this morning from Donetsk, Ukraine.

BERMAN: Breaking overnight: the government of Venezuela has arrested the mayor of that country's capital Caracas. A Venezuelan military source confirms that intelligence agents arrested Mayor Antonio Ledezma and raided his office because of his alleged involvement in the coup against President Nicolas Maduro.

In a televised address, Maduro accused the U.S. of involvement in that alleged coup. But a spokesperson calls those claims baseless and false. This arrest comes on the one-year anniversary of anti- government demonstrations that really rocked that country, rocked Venezuela, leading to the arrests of the opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. Overnight, President Bill Clinton tweeted called for the release of Lopez and other political prisoners in Venezuela without delay.

ROMANS: Police in Las Vegas arrested a suspect in a road rage incidents that left a mother of four dead. Nineteen-year-old Erich Nowsch taken into custody after a brief standoff with police at his house. His house just one street away from the home of victim Tammy Meyers.

Meyers' husband Robert emotionally overcome during the standoff lashing out at the media for what he felt blaming his wife and son for escalating the confrontation with her accused killer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT MEYERS, HUSBAND OF VICTIM TAMMY MEYERS: Are you all happy? You made my wife look like an animal and my son. There's the animal a block away! Are you happy?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: After Nowsch's arrest, Robert Meyers spoke out, revealing that his wife knew the suspect from a local park. He said she had tried to help him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MEYERS: My wife spent countless hours at this park consoling this boy. He is probably watching this right now and I know he's got to feel bad because she was really good to him. She fed him. She gave him money. She told him to pull his pants up and to be a man.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Las Vegas police are looking for a second suspect this morning. They believe Nowsch was the shooter. BERMAN: FOX News Bill O'Reilly defending himself from what he is

calling his Brian Williams problem. Left-leaning "Mother Jones" is calling him less than honest reporting from Argentina for CBS during the 1982 Falklands war. He was in Argentina, he never actually made it to the Falkland islands. Few reporters ever did.

"Mother Jones" edited together its evidence posted it on its Web site and on YouTube. O'Reilly calls the article's author a liar and claims he never said he's actually in the Falkland. I encourage to read the story, read the accounts here, because there are statements where he said war zone and combat, things like that, never did say, as far as I can tell, he was in or on the Falkland islands, but it's an interesting read.

ROMANS: All right. Ten minutes past the hour.

The FDA issuing a warning about a deadly superbug. Health officials say improperly cleaned medical scopes inserted down the throat may be infecting patients with a deadly drug-resistant bacteria. Now, the warning comes after California hospital officials reported several people, including two who died, were infected with the superbug CRE which was linked to improperly sterilized scopes at UCLA Medical Center.

A federal advisory board is urging the government to tax sugary drinks and foods. A report published by the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee -- that's a flashy name -- recommends the consumers keep their added sugar intake to no more than 10 percent of their total daily calories.

The report also says that the caffeine and few cups of coffee could actually be good for you. That's why I feel so damn good.

ROMANS: And this last point, the committee also said they are backing off stricter limits of salt.

BERMAN: You with the bag of potato chips and two cups of coffee over here.

ROMANS: We are healthy. We are healthy.

BERMAN: Good times here on EARLY START.

ROMANS: All right. Time for an early start on your money.

European stocks mostly lower right now. Today is the E.U.'s deadline for the debt deal with Greece after weeks of negotiations falling apart.

U.S. futures really aren't moving very much yet. Rumors are flying this morning about the Apple car. Apple accused of poaching employees from a company that makes batteries for electric cars. And according to Bloomberg, Apple wants to start production of an electric vehicle by year 2020. It would compete with Tesla and electric vehicles in development by General Motors and others. Remember, Apple wasn't the first to make a digital music player, wasn't the first to make a smartphone, but Apple revolutionizes those products. Now, Apple could be attempting to do the same thing for electric cars.

Watch this space.

BERMAN: The unbearable cold weather hitting 30 states this morning creating dangerous conditions, icy roads. The police release this dash cam video showing, wow, just how dangerous it all is.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: We have record-breaking cold temperatures. Just freezing across 30 states right now from Wisconsin to Alabama. Freeze warnings even posted now in Florida.

We have some new pictures for you this morning of Niagara Falls. There it is right there. The water bubbling over, the icy telescopes. It is very cold there.

And that is where we find CNN's Ryan Young.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine and John, usually cold temperatures have tourists running in another direction. Here, people are running to see the natural beauty of Niagara Falls. Just take a look at this frozen palace. In fact, that's the American side.

As we trace along this here, you can see the solid blocks of ice. And many people have been asking if the water has stopped flowing. No, it hasn't. In fact, if you look over here on the Canadian side, you can see that constant flow of water. More than 20 million gallons rushes over the side. And that is causing people from all over to see the wonder of the world.

Now, this area hasn't had a day over freezing in quite some time. In fact, if you look here, you can see everything on the side is encased in ice. It is very cold here. It is very cold here. But it hasn't stopped people from showing up. In fact, we're seeing dozens of folks show up just to take pictures and selfies and enjoy this wonderful view as the colors keep changing -- Christine and John.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: You know, it's going to take until May for all that ice to melt, until May. Can you imagine how much ice that is? Also, let your faucet drip. That's my little money tip --

BERMAN: We had the drain freeze. It backed up and we had to pour boiling water and salt down it.

ROMANS: Let your faucet drip. BERMAN: Be careful.

ROMANS: Be careful. All right. Sixteen minutes past the hour, 17 minutes on the nose.

Disturbing dash cam video from Michigan. You can see an officer standing outside this car that slid off the highway. Suddenly another car from nowhere slams into his patrol car and disabled vehicle. What a mess. Somehow he narrowly avoids be crushed and thrown into a ditch. The officer taken to the hospital, he is thankfully expected to be OK.

BERMAN: Wow, amazing pictures.

All right. When will this all stop? It has to stop some time, right?

Let's bring meteorologist Derek Van Dam for an early look at the forecast -- Derek.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, John and Christine.

Obviously, the big weather story lately has been the frigid temperatures inundating the eastern half of the U.S., over 30 U.S. states currently below normal with regards to temperatures. There is no real end in sight. We have the Siberian Express responsible for all these shades of white, pink and purple. You can see how that continues to impact the Upper Midwest, all the way to the New England coast through the end of the month and into early March, believe it or not.

Roughly, 130 million people today under some wind-chill advisory, warning or deep freeze warning across Florida. That spreads all the way to Miami, believe it or not. These are temperatures as you head out the door this morning, well below where we should be this time of year. We are running 20 to 25 degrees Fahrenheit below average near New York, 20 degrees for your afternoon high, it should be about 43. That cold air sweeps across Atlanta, all the way to Orlando, and even into Jacksonville.

By the way, we are monitoring another storm that could bring a wintry mix of precipitation across the Tennessee River Valley, all the way to the mid-Atlantic states.

Back to you.

ROMANS: Derek, thanks.

It hasn't that been the story, we've been talking one storm and then saying -- by the way, there's another one behind it. That's been the story of the winter.

All right. Eighteen minutes past the hour.

The defense rests its case in the so-called "American Sniper" trial. As the psychiatrist reveals the accused killer believes his victims were, quote, "pig assassins". How will this testimony play out with the jury?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: The defense rests its case in the so-called "American Sniper" murder trial without putting Eddie Ray Routh on the stand. The final defense witness is a psychiatrist who said Routh showed signs of psychosis in the weeks before he killed Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield. Prosecutors planned to call their own medical experts as rebuttal witnesses today.

CNN's Ed Lavandera is following the trial for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine and John, the defense team has rested in the "American Sniper" trial. And Eddie Ray Routh will not testify.

The defense's last witness was their own medical expert -- a psychiatrist who spent six hours last year interviewing Eddie Ray Routh. In the interview, he says that Routh talked about pigs taking over the world. He felt that some of his coworkers at some point were cannibals. He also talked about how he thought Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield were half human, half pigs out to get him. The prosecution will take advantage of one thing that this expert witness said, and that is the statement from Routh that said as soon as I did it -- he was talking about killing Kyle and Littlefield -- I realized I had made a mistake.

Prosecutors are not done. They have two of their own medical experts that are expected to testify today. And then it will head to closing arguments which could come as early as next week -- Christine and John.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: All right. Ed Lavandera, thanks so much.

Some hopes realized and dashed for same-sex couples in Texas after a county clerk issued the first gay marriage license on the state on Thursday. The Texas Supreme Court stepped in and blocked any additional weddings from proceeding. A suit challenging the Texas ban on same sex marriage is pending before a federal appeals court. As for the couple that was able to marry, the Texas attorney general says he will seek to have their license invalidated.

ROMANS: Tragic news from Hollywood this morning. Thirty-year-old Harris Wittels, a writer and executive producer of the series "Parks and Recreation", has died. Police say the signs point to a possible overdose. They say drug paraphernalia was found in his home. He had spoken publicly about his two stints in rehab. Representatives for NBC Universal and for the program, the show, tell CNN they have no comment right now.

BERMAN: This guy was 30, right? Thirty-year-old kid. He was the guy who invented humble brag, too, you know, on Twitter, there's the thing there. So, this is -- the guy who had incredibly bright future, very, very funny. So, that's very sad.

All right. Will it be "Birdman" or "Boyhood" for best picture, or will "American Sniper" surge to the top? This year's Oscar race, it is the most competitive in years. It is going down to the wire.

CNN, and I got to tell you, we own the story. We're going to break all the news here. Sunday night, Don Lemon and Michaela Pereira will host the special "Hollywood's Biggest Night" live from the red carpet. That's at 6:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

ROMANS: Our top story. A plan to retake a key ISIS city is set for this spring, but why are they revealing its strategy now, months ahead of time? A live report ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)