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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
GOP Forum Draws 14 Candidates; Democrats Block Vote on Planned Parenthood Defunding; Tent Collapses: 2 Killed, Dozens Injured; Mets Take NL East Lead, Dominate Marlins 12-1. Aired 5-5:30a ET
Aired August 04, 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: I wore a flannel shirt yesterday in the office in August, because know it's chilly.
[05:00:02] And I don't think it's a gender thing.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: OK. Well, they could raise it a degree, just a few degrees. I think they save money and everyone will be happier.
BERMAN: The metabolic rate.
ROMANS: This was a serious --
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: I know. This was a serious study. It was done by two guys.
BERMAN: All right. Fine.
EARLY START continues right now.
(MUSIC)
BERMAN: They were on a stage together, the Republican presidential candidates almost all of them. And we will know which ones will meet in the first presidential debate on Thursday. We will tell you if any broke away from the pack last night.
ROMANS: Democrats blocking a vote to defund Planned Parenthood. This controversy, though, is far from over this morning.
BERMAN: Breaking overnight: two killed and dozens hospitalized when a circus tent collapses. We will tell you what we are learning this morning. That's ahead.
ROMANS: There are a lot of kids injured in that incident.
BERMAN: Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START, everyone. I'm John Berman.
ROMANS: I'm Christine Romans. It's Tuesday, August 4th. It is 5:00 a.m. in the East. Happening today: the cutoff for polls that FOX News will use to decide who makes it into the first Republican presidential debate.
A new CNN poll of polls shows who is most likely to make it unto the stage in Cleveland on Thursday night. Consistently leading the pack are Donald Trump, he's got 22 percent, trailed by Jeb Bush at 13, and Scott Walker at 12. Behind them: Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee, Ben Carson, Rand Paul, and Marco Rubio. John Kasich and Chris Christie round up the top 10 though their places are less secure.
Bloomberg is set to release a poll today. That could shake things up at the bottom.
Overnight, voters across the country have their very first chance to see most of the Republican field together. This was not a debate, but one at a time, a candidate forum hosted by "The New Hampshire Union- Leader".
CNN's Athena Jones has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, guys.
This forum was the chance for you to hear directly from all of the candidates who wanted to participate. There was no cutoff, so any candidate who chose to show up could show up. This was all about focusing voters in the early voting states right here in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Iowa, aimed at those voters and airing on stations in those states.
Now, almost all of the candidates chose to come. There were three no shows. One of them was Donald Trump, who happens to be leading in recent national polls and also leading in the latest WMUR poll here in the state of New Hampshire. He skipped the forum last night.
You didn't hear the candidates really taking anytime blasting the Donald. Instead, they held their fire for Hillary Clinton.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm fluent in Clinton speak. You want me to translate that? When he says -- Bill says, "I didn't have sex with that woman", he did. When she says, "I'll tell you about Bill and the pipeline when I get to be president" means she won't. When she tells us, "Trust me, you've got all of the e-mails that you need", we haven't even scratched the surface. So, I understand this crowd and I can beat them.
JONES: So, there you have it. Some harsh words for Hillary Clinton from Senator Lindsey Graham.
Now, this, of course, was not a debate. It was a forum, where candidates were asked questions in one-on-one setting, over several minutes. But it still gave them a chance to practice delivering policy positions in a concise manner.
Now, Donald Trump has said he doesn't see how you can, quote, "artificially prepare for something like a debate". So, it doesn't sound like he is spending a lot of time rehearsing which should make Thursday evening all the more interesting.
Back to you, guys.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BERMAN: All right. Athena, thanks so much.
Three senators running for president, they had to appear at the forum by video. Rand Paul, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, they were in Washington for a vote on a bill to defund Planned Parenthood.
The measure failed to get the 60 votes needed to advance. Planned Parenthood has come under fire intense fire after an anti-abortion group released a series of secretly recorded videos. The group says the videos show Planned Parenthood profits from the sale of aborted fetuses for medical research, something that Planned Parenthood denies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: These recent videos show the atrocity of that and the level of depravity that we have sunk into as a nation. And we simply have to stop that. If people want to do it, let them take money out of their pocket, let them find other depraved individuals to help them.
MODERATOR: Should Planned Parenthood receive federal taxpayer funding?
CARLY FIORINA (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Absolutely not. This is about the character, the moral character of our nation. It's not about whether you're pro-choice or pro-life. This is taking care of people who need our care is part of the moral fiber of our nation as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards responded in a statement to the failed Senate vote in defunding and to conservatives' plans to try to attach defunding provisions to upcoming federal spending bills. She said, "While some extreme Republicans may continue to insist on shutting down the government in order to deny health care, including birth control to millions of women, that is a fight that the American people have zero appetite for and a fight these extremists will not win."
Hillary Clinton supports federal funding for Planned Parenthood. She put out a video while the vote was going on. She named the candidates by name and said that every woman in the United States has the right to make her own health decisions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[05:05:06] HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When they attack women's health, they attack America's health and it's wrong. And we're not going to let them get away with it. We're not going back. We're going to fight back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Hillary Clinton's chief Democratic rival at least right now, Senator Bernie Sanders blasted Republicans for trying to defund Planned Parenthood. He calls it a smear campaign and an attack on women's health.
ROMANS: Breaking news overnight. Two people killed when a circus tent collapsed during a severe storm in Lancaster, New Hampshire. At least 27 people other people were hospitalized. There were 100 people inside that tent watching the Walker Brothers circus when a powerful thunderstorm packing 60 mile an hour winds and one-inch hail blew through there.
This man's 4-year-old son badly injured by part of the tent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRANDON ISHAM, FATHER OF INJURED BOY: I believe it was a pole. It happened so fast. But a pole, and he took it to the upper side of his left eye, right to his forehead. Cut him open pretty good. All I saw was blood when I looked down (INAUDIBLE).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Two fatalities. Officials are not releasing the names of the two people killed. But officials described the victims as a young man and a young girl.
BERMAN: Troubling news this morning on the war against ISIS. Pentagon officials tell CNN that ISIS remains as strong as it was a year ago, citing a classified intelligence assessment. The official says Iraqi security forces and ISIS are in a stalemate. The good news, says the official, is that ISIS is no longer making rapid advances which the Pentagon considers progress.
ROMANS: A new Syrian force trained by the Pentagon has suffered its first battlefield fatality. U.S. officials believe the dead Syrian fighter was killed last Friday during a clash with the Nusra Front, an al Qaeda affiliate. That battle triggered the first U.S. airstrike in defense of the American-backed Syrian backed force. The Pentagon program to train Syrian rebels to fight ISIS has faced many challenges, with only 60 recruits making it on to the field so far.
BERMAN: Lobbyists, diplomats and administration officials will face off today over the Iran nuclear deal at a series of hearings and forums. Opponents feel it is a threat to Israel and a chance for Iran to export terror. Supporters say this is the last best hope for stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
A big diplomatic win for the White House. The deal won the backing of Gulf Arab States, some had previously expressed misgivings about potentially making Iran a stronger rival in the region. In Tehran, debate over the deal could be setting the stage for the
political comeback of a hardliner. Former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has launched a campaign ahead of parliamentary elections next year.
ROMANS: Time for an early start on your money this Tuesday morning. You got China stocks bouncing here. Shanghai's benchmark is up close to 4 percent. The Chinese government is trying to boost its market, a market that soared last year, crashed this spring. Stocks elsewhere mostly lower. U.S. stock futures are down as well.
Yesterday, the Dow fell 92 points. Energy stocks led the way. Oil prices hit the lowest level since March.
Delta and American Airlines, they will no longer allow certain big game trophies on their planes. That means no more shipping lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros or buffalo trophies as freight. This change is in response to outrage over Cecil the lion's illegal slaughter. Activists started a petition asking Delta to stop transporting animal trophies. That petition gathered 400,000 signatures quickly.
BERMAN: It's really interesting where sometimes these debates move. I never would have thought it would have gone to air freight.
ROMANS: It's a press release I did not expect to get from Delta Airlines saying it was going to stop this process. American Airlines as well.
All right. Stunning new video creating controversy this morning. Parents suing after this -- a school resource officer accused of handcuffing this child, this 8-year-old, misbehaving 8-year-old. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:12:14] BERMAN: This morning, there is outrage over a new video showing a child with ADHD being placed in handcuffs by a school resource officer in Kentucky.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't get to swing at me like that. You don't get to swing at me like that. You can do what we asked you to or you can suffer the consequences.
UNIDENTIFIED KID: It hurts!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sit down in the chair like I've asked you to.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: This was apparently one of two incidents involving two children.
Now, the ACLU is suing the Kenton County sheriff and the officer in the video on behalf of the mothers of the children. The suit acknowledges both have been disruptive in school. One boy tried to hit the officer, but says the force used by the officer with cuffs above the elbows was unnecessary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICKELL HOWARD, CHILDREN'S LAW CENTER: School resource officers are supposed to be there to protect our children and not harm them. We would like for them to change their policies and practices so this never happens to another child in elementary school again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: CNN is reaching out to the officer for comment. We have not been able to make contact just yet.
ROMANS: The child in third grade. ADHD, a diagnosis can cause impulsive behavior. One of the hallmarks of that learning disability. You know, special education teams in public schools in general do a very good job preventing something from getting to this level. That's obviously what the focus should be. What are the policies in the school to make sure if a child takes a swing at someone, how do you prevent that in the first place?
BERMAN: Before this happens, alarming video.
ROMANS: All right. Thirteen minutes past the hour.
The manhunt for the paroled bank robber who allegedly shot and killed a Memphis police officer, that manhunt is over. Thirty-nine-year-old Tremaine Wilbourn will be in court this morning. He surrendered to authorities late yesterday. Now, he is accused of gunning down Officer Sean Bolton during a traffic stop Saturday night. Bolton will be buried on Thursday. We get more from CNN's Nick Valencia.
BERMAN: Actually, we're not going to take that report. We're going to keep going here.
Darren Wilson, the former Ferguson, Missouri police officer, who shot and killed teenager Michael Brown, is speaking out. Wilson tells "The New Yorker" he is living in a house wired with surveillance cameras on a dead end street. He rarely goes out in public. He cannot find a job in law enforcement and he will not discuss the Michael Brown shooting because of pending legal issues.
But he did make some comments to the magazine about inner city families, and that's stirring anger among Brown's family. In a "New Yorker" article, Wilson says, quote, "They are so wrapped up in a different culture than -- what I'm trying to say is, the right culture, the better one to pick from, pre-gang culture where you are just running in the streets -- not worried about working in the morning, but worried about your immediate gratification.
[05:15:01] It is the same younger culture that is everywhere in the inner cities." The Brown family attorney claims those comments prove Darren Wilson is
a racist. Listen to his comments followed by a Darren Wilson's lawyer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY GRAY, BROWN FAMILY ATTORNEY: I find it really appalling that he would make that reference when he had a turbulent upbringing himself by his own admission. So, I guess that kind of hypocrisy really turns I think most readers off, and it just perpetuates the view of Darren Wilson as being self-serving in everything that he said and done since August the 9th.
NEIL J. BRUNTRAGER, DARREN WILSON'S ATTORNEY: Darren Wilson is no racist. I know him well. I think the article misrepresents who he is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Darren Wilson said he would like to rejoin the Ferguson police force to prove he has not been defeated.
ROMANS: The latest now on the death of Samuel DuBose, the 43-year-old Ohio man who was shot apparent killed during a traffic stop by a University of Cincinnati police officer. During that stop, Officer Ray Tensing asked DuBose about a bottle in the front seat labeled gin. DuBose can be heard telling the officer it was only air freshener. Tensing's initial report said DuBose, quote, "produced an alcohol bottle". Now, the lab reports are in. It was just air freshener in that bottle.
BERMAN: James Holmes is one step closer to a possible death sentence this morning. A Colorado jury rejecting defense claims that Holmes' mental illness should rule out capital punishment. Holmes killed 12 people, wounded 70 others when he opened fire inside an Aurora movie theater back in 2012. In the next phase of sentencing, family members of the victims will get to speak directly to the jurors.
ROAMNS: Comedian Amy Schumer is taking a stand against gun violence following the deadly movie theater shooting in Lafayette, Louisiana, at a showing of her film "Trainwreck", joining forces with her cousin -- her second cousin once removed, New York Senator Charles Schumer. They're now calling for a stronger background check system for gun buyers.
Amy Schumer clearly emotional, she would not speak the shooter's name.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMY SCHUMER, COMEDIAN: For me, the pain I share with so many other Americans on the issue of gun violence, it was made extra personal to me on Thursday, July 23rd. When -- I'm not even going to say his name. When this -- he sat down for my movie "Trainwreck" at the Grand Theatre in Lafayette, Louisiana. Two lives were tragically lost and others injured. And I thought about these victims each day since the tragedy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: The gunman killed 33-year-old Jillian Johnson and 21-year-old Mayci Breaux during a screening of Schumer's film "Trainwreck" before killing himself.
BERMAN: More than 13,000 people now evacuated and thousands of structures under threat as fire crews in California is struggling to contain this so-called Rocky wildfire. The flames 12 percent contained, 60,000 acres charred. No rain in the forecast to help firefighters. This is just the latest in the string of wildfires that have scorched more than 134,000 acres this year.
Officials say the fires are reaching epic levels.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FIRE OFFICIAL: The term that I'm using is "historic", and the reason I say that is there are firefighters that have 20, 25, 30 years on the job that have never seen fire behavior like we've seen the last couple of days.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Let's get the latest from CNN's Paul Vercammen in Colusa County, California.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine and John, the nemesis of firefighters here in Northern California: shifting winds. Winds at one point going one direction and flip-flapping back to the other direction. Late in the day, the Rocky Fire here in Colusa County actually jumped over Highway 20 and firefighters had a new pitch battle, had a new front on their hands.
Now, here on Highway 16, the eastern flank of the fire, firefighters had had it. Here's what they had to do. Fight fire with fire behind me. Behind me, very carefully set back fires. They use the mix of diesel fuel and gasoline to go ahead and light up much of the hillside. The idea being as you see, create as much burned out black space as possible so the fire has no chance to advance forward -- really a tough job for the firefighters as they face three things, extremely low humidity, you've got high heat in the afternoon and then those dastardly winds.
Back to you now, Christine and John.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right. Paul, thanks for that.
BERMAN: All right. Something very unusual happening in the world of sport. The New York Mets shockingly now are winning games, winning baseball games. What does this mean? Andy Scholes with the bleacher report next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:23:23] BERMAN: The father of the bat boy who died after being hit in the head is speaking out. And he says no one is to blame for this awful accident.
ROMANS: Just breaks your heart.
Andy Scholes, he's got more on this morning's bleacher report.
Hey, Andy.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good morning, guys.
Yes, this story just breaks your heart. Chad Carlile and members of the amateur baseball team in Liberal, Kansas, spoke with the media yesterday about how special 9-year-old Kaiser was to them. Kaiser died on Sunday, a day after he was struck in the head by a batter who was warming up in the on deck circle. Kaiser dad says he doesn't want the team to feel guilty about what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHAD CARLILE, KAISER'S FATHER: There's no kind of remorse or anger towards what happened.
BRADY COX, BEE JAYS 3RD BASEMAN: How much he touched me in the short amount of time I have known him. I can't imagine what the family's going through. You will always be in my heart. Kaiser will always hold a special place in my heart. I'll never step on the field again and not think of him.
CARLILE: I never knew how much he actually touched people until now and it makes me feel good as a father.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Because of the accident, the National Baseball Congress says it will not use bat boys and bat girls for the rest of the season.
Rangers and Astros are renewing their rivalry in Arlington last night. Adrian Beltre had himself quite a night. In this first three at bat, Beltre had a single, a double and a triple. So, all he needed was a home run in the fifth innings for the cycle. And sure enough, there it goes. Beltre is the first player since the 1930s to hit cycle in the first four at bats.
[05:25:00] He now has three cycles in his career which ties a major league record. Rangers beat the Astros, 12-9.
In the National League, the amazing Mets are in first place. Rookie sensation Michael Conforto got things started with a three-run shot in the second inning. That's his first career home run. Mets beat the Marlins, 12-1 for their fourth win in a row and they now have a one- game lead over the Nationals in the NL East.
All right. The only thing possibly hotter than the Mets right now is UFC megastar Ronda Rousey. She just dominated her last opponent in 34 seconds over the weekend. Now it is reported she will be starring in a movie about her life called "Mile 22." Guys, we just saw her in the movie "Entourage." She did pretty well in that.
And, you know, I love rags to riches story. This may be the best biopic since "8 Mile" back in the mid-2000s. Love that movie.
ROMANS: I love her game face. I put that game face on every morning when I come in to John Berman. I'm like, I'm going to channel a little bit of her and I'm just going to win this one.
SCHOLES: Christine, terrifying.
BERMAN: Christine Romans is the Ronda Rousey of early morning broadcasting.
Now, one of the most dominant athletes I've ever seen, what she's doing right now is absolutely unbelievable.
SCHOLES: Unbelievable, yes.
BERMAN: Thanks so much.
ROMANS: Thanks, Andy.
SCHOLES: All right.
BERMAN: Republicans running for president, they battle it out. Not quite like Ronda Rousey, on stage.
ROMANS: A little more subdued.
BERMAN: It's a little more. Days ahead of the first primary debate of the primary season. How did they do last night? We'll tell you, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: In just a matter of hours, we will know which Republican presidential candidates will face-off in the first debate of the season. Contenders giving a preview last night of what to expect, who pulled out of the pack, ahead.
