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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Boys' Fishing Boat was Found Capsized; Obama to Address African Union; Trump Targets Obama; First Female NFL Coach Hired. Aired 5- 5:30a ET
Aired July 28, 2015 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: New overnight, the search for two missing teens off the Florida coast is growing in size and scope. The Navy is now involved, scouring an area the size of Indiana. We will hear from the parents of the missing boys.
The president wraps up an historic overseas trip, but what did he say that has him in some hot water? A live report just moments away.
And Republicans in the race for the White House. This is full contact campaigning. They have been going after each other and going after the president as well following the president's most pointed remarks yet about the Republican field. I'll tell you what they said coming up.
[05:00:00] Good morning, everyone. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm John Berman. It is Tuesday, July 28th, 5:00 a.m. in the East. Christine Romans is off today.
Developing this morning, the search for two 14-year-old boys from Jupiter, Florida, lost at sea has focused further north, about 60 miles off the coast of Jacksonville and enlarged to an area the size of Indiana.
Coast Guard officials say they have been searching for Perry Cohen and Austin Stephanos for 72 hours now, night and day. They're not giving up hope.
And neither are the boys' mothers who spoke last night to Anderson Cooper.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAMELA COHEN, MOTHER OF MISSING 14-YEAR-OLD PERRY COHEN: Both boys are very, very comfortable on the water. They are just as comfortable on a boat and on the water as they are on land. They are avid fishermen, they're avid swimmers, they are extremely athletic and very skilled and knowledgeable about being on the water which is one of the reasons why the search and rescue has maintained the force it has because there is such strong belief that they will be rescued and found very soon.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BERMAN: Let's get the latest on the search from CNN's Martin Savidge in Florida.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.
Of course, the families continue to be hopeful that those two teenagers will be found alive and well. But the Coast Guard actually says, you know, there is actually reason to have that hope. They say, one, they are aggressively searching but two, given the weather conditions in the Atlantic that they are seeing, it is possible a person in the water could survive for four to five days. This would be day four.
One troubling factor is, of course, that their boat was found upside down and they weren't with it. Now, we don't know how it got upside down or when it happened. The authorities say that they sent a rescue swimmer down to investigate.
One of the things he noted of the vessel, the engine cover of the outboard was off. Did that mean they had some kind of a mechanical breakdown of some sort? And then later that afternoon, Friday, we're talking some severe storms went by, which on land may not seem that bad, but when you're out in the water in a small boat, that could actually be very bad.
And then also, the finding of the boat itself. The coast guard says there is good and bad to that. The bad is the fact you did not find the two young men with it. The good is it gives them a specific area to search and by using drift and current models, they can extrapolate. The bad is, it is much harder to find a person in the water than it is to find a boat. But, again, back to where I started with, there is still reason for hope -- John.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BERMAN: All right. Martin Savidge for us in Florida.
Happening now, President Obama is in the final hours of the trip to Africa. A trip that is focused on the fight against terrorism and for human rights. President Obama is coming under fire for ignoring Ethiopia's own human rights issues during his time there. The president praised the country's government as democratically elected, even as his aides expressed concerns about the integrity of those elections.
This morning, the president becomes the first U.S. president ever to speak before the African Union.
CNN's Robyn Kriel joins us from Addis Ababa with the very latest.
Good morning, Robyn.
ROBYN KRIEL, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. And yes, the president's language has been noted by several well known
East African writers as being much more careful in dealing with the Ethiopian prime minister and issues of human rights. Then, he was saying in Kenya where he came out swinging against issues of corruption and gay rights and other controversial issues that he was outspoken about. However, picking his language carefully of human rights in this society, which is often criticized for its jailing of journalists, its winning 100 percent of the election that held about a month ago, and locking up a number of opposition leaders in the past.
President Obama, as you said, is due to address the Africa Union this afternoon. First sitting U.S. president expected to touch on issues such as terrorism, particularly here in East Africa, praising the efforts of countries such as Kenya and Uganda and Ethiopia for their roles in fighting as part of the A.U.'s force in Somalia, fighting Somalia insurgent group al Shabaab, calling it a role model that it could be used in the rest of the continent when dealing with similar issues.
He will, of course, also touch on the issues of South Sudan. Leaders met yesterday with President Obama where he spoke apparently very frankly, particularly to countries of Uganda and neighboring Sudan saying their actions are hindering and not helping the peace process stating the deal needs to be reached between the warring parties by the 17th of August. If that doesn't happen, strict actions will be taken as a result -- John.
BERMAN: All right. Robyn Kriel for us in Addis Ababa.
[05:05:0] The president again due to address the African Union later today.
President Obama took time in Ethiopia to slam two Republicans who want his job. With Donald Trump calling him a disaster and Mike Huckabee accusing him of marching the people of Israel to the oven door, the president fired back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The particular comments of Mr. Huckabee are I think part of just a general pattern that we have seen that is -- would be considered ridiculous if it weren't so sad.
When you get rhetoric like this, maybe it gets attention and maybe this is just an effort to push Mr. Trump out of the headlines. But it's not the kind of leadership that is needed for America right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Mike Huckabee, not backing down. The former Arkansas governor reissued the warning that the nuclear deal with Iran could lead to Israel's demise.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Three times I have been to Auschwitz. When I talked about the oven door, I have stood at that oven door. I know exactly what it looks like, 1.1 million people killed. For 6,000 years, Jews have been chased, and hunted and killed all over this earth. And when someone in the government says we're going to kill them, I think, by gosh, we better take that seriously.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: So, Donald Trump used the opportunity to continue to advance his views that the nuclear deal with Iran and the president are bad for America.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's probably the worst president in the history of our country. He's a very divisive person, which is why he brings this kind of stuff up. And he should have devoted more time to working on a good nuclear deal with Iran instead of what he's doing, because he is just a disaster for our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: This morning at 10:00 Eastern, Secretary of State John Kerry, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, and Energy Secretary Earnest Moniz will testify in front of the House Foreign Affairs Committee about the Iran nuclear agreement.
The House Select Committee on Benghazi has postponed hearing scheduled for Wednesday after the State Department tentatively agreed to turnover new documents. Those new documents include 5,000 pages of e- mails from Hillary Clinton's top staff during her time as secretary of state. The chairman of the Benghazi Committee warns that if the documents produced are anemic or underwhelming, his words, he will schedule a compliance hearing.
New developments in the death of Sandra Bland, the prosecutor in Prairie View, Texas, announced a panel of lawyers will be brought in to help his office investigate the case, which could go to a grand jury next month. Police say Bland hanged herself in her jail cell three days after she was arrested during a routine traffic stop.
A California teenager is in police custody this morning after a missing girl was found dead. Madyson Middleton was last spotted Sunday riding her scooter at her family Santa Cruz apartment building. Police found the 8-year-old's body was found inside the dumpster inside the complex. The 15-year-old suspect also lives there. He is being questioned by police.
In Medford, Massachusetts, a 30-year police veteran has been placed on leave for threatening to shoot a motorist in the head. That motorist identified as Michael happened to have a camera on his dashboard when off-duty Detective Stephen LeBert pulled him over Sunday night for driving the wrong way to a traffic circle. At first, Michael says he tried to back away because Detective LeBert was not in uniform.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DRIVER: Oh, I didn't know you were a cop.
COP: I'll blow a hole right through your (EXPLETIVE DELETED head. I'll put a hole right through your head. Pull over.
DRIVER: OK, OK, OK, OK.
COP: You're lucky I'm a cop because I'd be beating the (EXPLETIVE DELETE) out of you right now.
DRIVER: Geez.
COP: Give me your license.
DRIVER: I also want to let you know --
COP: Give me your license.
DRIVER: OK, I also want to let you know I have a dash camera.
It was definitely nerve wracking when someone is like, hey, I'm going to shoot you, digging for his gun, telling me he's going to shoot me. I'm like, that's a bit extreme, don't you think?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Medford's police chief calls the Detective LeBert's actions troubling.
A woman in West Virginia who killed her attacker in self defense may have inadvertently led police to a serial killer. Investigators now suspect Neal Falls may be connected to murders in several states. The woman who survived the attack in her home worked as an escort. She tells police she fought him off, grabbing his gun and firing the fatal shots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEATHER, ESCORT KILLED ATTACKER IN SELF-DEFENSE: When he strangled me, he just wouldn't let me get any air. And when he laid the gun down to get the rake out of my hands, I shot him. I knew he was there to kill me. I could tell he had already something, because he said that he was going to prison for a long time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Police say evidence found in Falls' car included a so-called kill kit which could link him to a string of murders in other states.
It is now official. The Boy Scouts of America has lifted its blanket ban on the openly gay adult scout leaders and employees. Reaction is pouring in and the changes sparking strong resistance from some quarters, especially Mormon officials.
The Church of Latter Day Saints, the largest single sponsor of Boy Scouts, says it may leave the organization.
[05:10:03] In a statement, the LDS church says it is deeply troubled by the policy changed, despite a compromise allowing religious based groups to set their own policies on the long divisive issue.
Chinese stocks struggled to recover this morning after a brutal fall in trading yesterday. It slid 8 1/2 percent yesterday. The Shanghai index did. It comes after a couple of weeks of relative calm. Government regulators tried to shore up the market.
Let's get the latest on the situation today. CNN's Andrew Stevens live in Hong Kong this morning.
Good morning, Andrew.
ANDREW STEVENS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.
Much calmer today. The market was down, but down 1.7 percent. If you look here at the market, you see the dogleg. That's the market continuing to fall.
But this set alarm bells off, biggest fall in about eight years or so. The question still bubbling a bit as to why the market fell steeply.
Interestingly, Chinese regulators coming out today, John, and saying, they are looking at malicious stock trading. They sort of pointing the finger at someone trying to deliberately short the market, push that market down. They also set up a hotline, would you believe, for anyone to report any suspicious activities.
But if you look at this, it looks more like the fact that if you take from the bottom of the market route a couple weeks ago. That line going through there, that was when the Chinese regulators stepped in and put a floor under the fall.
The market actually went up 16 percent until yesterday, Monday. A lot of people telling me what happened was that the regulators stepped back on Monday after the big rise over three weeks, they thought maybe the market is now stabilizing. We don't have to do so many stop measures to keep it up. So, they took their hands off the wheel, if you like, and the sellers moved back in.
So, what it's telling us is still massive volatility in this market. The floor hasn't been established. Expect more over the weeks to come, perhaps even the months to come, John.
BERMAN: All right. Andrew Stevens for us in Hong Kong.
Huge volatility, indeed. So, what's the impact on the U.S. market?
Alison Kosik here with that.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN MONEY CORRESPONDENT: It actually looked like it could be a pretty good day on Wall Street today. U.S. stock futures are higher, shaking off the turbulence in China. But that wasn't the case yesterday when we saw the Dow react to what
happened in China. The Dow fell 128 points. Stocks have actually dipped for five days in a row. The worst losing streak since January. Now, investors are worried about the health of the global economy and looming interest rate hike.
Today, the Fed reserve two-day meeting begins. The rate hike is coming, possibly as early as September. Low rates have been key to the bull markets long run.
We're also going to get a closer look at the health of corporate America with earnings from heavy hitters like Twitter, Ford, UPS and Pfizer. We're also keeping an eye on oil prices, following this morning. Crude oil is just above $47 a barrel right now, the lowest since March. That is in reaction to the China slowing growth and supply glut that continues to grow. But drivers are reaping rewards of this oil prices. Not so much for energy companies.
BERMAN: You look at how much it recovered from March. It is back down to that territory.
KOSIK: Exactly.
BERMAN: All right. Alison, thanks so much.
A serious burst of heat in the Northeast and it's going to get worst. Let's get to meteorologist Ivan Cabrera with more.
IVAN CABRERA, AMS METEOROLOGIST: John, the heat continues to build, and in fact, the humidity as well. So, we're talking about temperatures in the 90s. But it's going to feel like it's in the 100s.
Look a this, Little Rock, 108. Memphis, 108. It will be about 104 in Jackson. Birmingham, Atlanta pushing 100. You get the idea here.
But look at New York into the low 90s. That's the way it's going to feel this afternoon as the heat continues to build. Temperatures by Wednesday into the mid-90s. We go back the other direction which is what we want to go. The temperatures in the middle 80s for this time of year.
The nation's capital also into the low and mid 90s. with high temperatures. So, we are getting into August here and it is going to be hot, specifically for New York here. Over the next few days, temperatures extended heat wave into the 90s, dipping in the low 90s, but above average for this time of year. And that continues through the weekend. There will be no showers or thunderstorms to cool this off.
So, hang in there. It is going to be a long stretch of hot weather -- John.
BERMAN: All right. Thanks so much, Ivan.
NATO now in an extraordinary session discussing the battle against ISIS. We will bring you to those meetings, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: Just getting underway this morning, the meeting in the battle against ISIS. NATO Turkey to discuss the steps in the fight of ISIS among other security threats. The meeting taking place and the first time Turkey is taking the fight. At the top of the agenda, the establishment of the so-called safe zone inside Syria.
CNN's Jomana Karadsheh monitoring the talks for us.
Good morning, Jomana.
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.
We're not really expecting to see any sort of military action or military decisions to come out of this NATO meeting that was convened under Article 4 of the Washington treaty of NATO. This is called for when a member feels that their security is under they or territorial integrity is under threat. And in this case, we would expect Turkey to be discussing its recent moves and actions it is taking that we have seen over the past few days and also consulting with other NATO members.
And, really here, John, topping the list would also be the discussion of what Turkey is calling for, for some time. As you mentioned, those safe zones, that safe zone it wants to see established inside northern Syria along the Turkish border. There's that 60-mile stretch still controlled by ISIS that Turkey wants to see cleared of ISIS. They want to create the buffer zone to protect it from ISIS and from other militant groups, and at the same time also create an area where refugees fleeing Assad regime and ISIS can stay.
We know that the United States has been discussing this with Turkey and also expecting that to come up today in these NATO meetings. Of course, lots of questions, complexities about how this idea, this plan could be implemented and what ground troops would be there to protect this safe zone, knowing that we will have coalition aircraft most likely patrolling the skies for the safe zone. And also, how deep into northern Syria would it go.
We heard the Turkish prime minister speaking to our Christiane Amanpour about this. And also mentioning something we have heard Turkey reiterate over and over again over the years, saying that the reason we have seen ISIS become such a problem, the rise of this group, blaming it on the inaction by the international community when it comes to overthrowing the Assad regime, John, saying that this is the product of the Syrian crisis.
[05:20:17] BERMAN: All right. Jomana Karadsheh for us, monitoring these talks just getting underway, NATO discussing ISIS now at Turkey's request. Thanks so much, Jomana.
The NFL's Arizona Cardinals hire the first female coach in NFL history. Andy Scholes has the details, and the trade in baseball, in the bleacher report next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: With NFL training camp under way, the Arizona Cardinals are breaking new ground, hiring the first female coach in the league. Andy Scholes has more now in the bleacher report.
Good morning, Andy.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.
You know, in NBA, we just saw the Spurs Vicky Hanan become the first woman to coach an NBA summer league team and then go on to win the championship. And now, we're going to get see a female coach in the NFL. The Cardinals announcing Jen Welter has been to their staff as the training camp and pre-season coaching intern. She will be working with the linebackers.
Welter has been a trailblazer over the years. She was the first woman to play a non-kicking position on a men's pro team playing running back for the Texas revolution of the indoor football league. Welter later became the first female coach in the men's professional football league when she was hired to be an assistant coach with the team. Welter expressing her appreciation on Twitter, saying she is honored to be part of the team and gave special thanks to Arizona head coach Bruce Arians.
[05:25:04] All right. Happy 40th birthday, Alex Rodriguez. The Yankee slugger turning 40 last night. He celebrated in Texas in style by hitting his 24th home run of the season. A-Rod, just the fourth player ever, to hit a home run in the majors in his team and then turning 40 years old. Yankees beat the Rangers 6-2.
And we have a big trade happening overnight in Major League Baseball. According to multiple reports, the Colorado Rockies are sending all star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to the Toronto Blue Jays, in exchange for Jose Reyes. Blue Jays already has the number one offense in baseball, and right now, they trail the Yankees by seven games in the AL East.
All right. The U.S. Olympic committee is looking for a few good cities to bid for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games now that Boston has withdrawn. Boston had been the candidate, but pulled the plug on its bid Monday. Mayor Marty Walsh declined to sign the contract that would make Boston responsible for Olympic cost overruns. Runner up Los Angeles is expressing interest in taking Boston's place.
And, finally, the Houston Astros and Taylor Swift have agreed to move her October 13th concert at Minute Maid Park up to September 9th to avoid a possible conflict with an Astros post season game. Before the season, no one was worried about the October date because of how bad the Astros has been over the last few years. But if the season ended today, the Astros would get one of the AL's wild card spot.
John, as an Astros fan, I'm worried this will jinx the team. You know, oh, we've got to move the Taylor Swift concert because we're going to the post-season and the season is going to go down in flames. But this hoping that doesn't happen.
BERMAN: Imagine if the Astros are playing with a Taylor Swift jinx for history here. I have to say, I think this is a win-win. I hope the Astros get the playoffs and Taylor Swift. What could be better for that? You deserve it, Andy Scholes.
SCHOLES: We don't need any 86-year-old curses around Houston. I'll tell you that.
BERMAN: All right. Thanks so much, Andy. Appreciate it.
SCHOLES: All right.
BERMAN: All right. We have new information in the search for two teenage boys off the coast of Florida. The search grid growing. New developments next.
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