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Gunfire Erupts, Police Clash with Protesters in Ferguson; Texas Teen Shooting Video; Two Women Attack U.S. Consulate in Turkey; U.S. Lawmakers Go to Israel to Discuss Agreement; GOP Rivals Target Trump Amid Controversy. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired August 10, 2015 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00] CUOMO: Yes.

PEREIRA: Yes, everyone will.

CABRERA: Yes, everybody.

CUOMO: And more good news, there are four of us on this couch right now.

PEREIRA: Yes.

CUOMO: Ana is expecting. Congratulations to you and your husband.

PEREIRA: We're so excited.

CABRERA: Thank you.

CUOMO: Blessings ahead. Going to have the box set.

PEREIRA: Good luck with the baby.

CABRERA: I know.

CUOMO: Very nice.

PEREIRA: Congratulations.

CABRERA: Thank you so much.

CUOMO: Very good. Now you've got to think about number three. What. I said it.

(LAUGHTER)

PEREIRA: Let's get through this one.

CABRERA: One at a time. One at a time.

PEREIRA: All right. It's time for "NEWSROOM" with Pamela Brown, in for Carol Costello. We're going to be aunties.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: That is tough to follow, announcing Ana is pregnant. Wow. Congratulations, Ana. That's so exciting. CABRERA: We have at least some excuse for the growing belly over

here.

BROWN: There you go. You look great. So don't even worry about that.

All right. Guys, I'll take it from here.

And good morning, everyone. I'm Pamela Brown in for Carol Costello. Thanks so much for being here with us.

And we begin in Ferguson, Missouri, on this Monday. Heavy gunfire erupts in city streets forcing demonstrators to run for cover. This is what it looked like overnight as peaceful protests marking the shooting death of unarmed teen Michael Brown were replaced by chaos, anger, and a barrage of bullets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDRE ANDERSON, FERGUSON INTERIM POLICE CHIEF: We just want to be as patient as possible.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Message to those who are looting --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down.

SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Is that gunfire?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Take cover.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Here is what we know right now. At least four people are behind bars after multiple shootings during one of those incidents. Police say a man in his 20s used a stolen handgun to shoot at plainclothes officers. The alleged gunman now undergoing surgery and listed in critical condition.

Plus new video shows the aftermath of that shooting as police surround the suspect. And we want to warn you, the video you're about to see is graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up. It's a crime scene. Back up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Man, get him some help.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up. Back up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get him some help.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Give the man some help.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We see him breathing. The man -- you see he's still alive. He's still alive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. All right. We will get some help.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up. Back up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get him some help now. He's still alive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back it up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: All of this as Ferguson gears up for more protests later today.

I want to bring in CNN's Sara Sidner. She was on the ground when the gunfire broke out -- Sara.

SIDNER: Yes, Pam, I mean, it was quite extraordinary to listen to the amount of shots that went off. A barrage of shots, as we were listening to the new interim police chief and then suddenly you see his eyes shift and those shots start firing over and over and over again. And that was one of three shootings that we heard last night. At least three people have been hit by gunfire.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER (voice-over): Gunshots ring out on the streets of Ferguson on the one-year anniversary of Michael Brown's death. Erupting into chaos overnight when gunfire sent protesters and police running for cover.

Watch as this video captures another angle of the moment the shooting breaks out.

JON BELMAR, ST. LOUIS COUNTY POLICE CHIEF: The suspect engages them with gunfire. The plainclothes detectives returned fire from inside of the van.

SIDNER: St. Louis County Police say officers were involved in heavy gunfire in two shootings Sunday night. In one incident police say a suspect shot directly at plainclothes officers with a stolen 9 millimeter.

BELMAR: There were four officers who were in that van. All four fired at the suspect and the suspect fell there.

SIDNER: I captured some gunshots on camera as I interviewed Ferguson's interim police chief. This graphic video posted by Search for Swag on Twitter shows a man

who is shot while fleeing police. Police say he had fired at them. Police also say a stolen handgun was found on the scene.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, he's bleeding. Get him some help, man.

SIDNER: Angry protesters clashing with police.

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: Are we ready for what?

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Are we ready for what?

SIDNER: Hurling bottles and bricks at officers. Police deploying tear gas to disperse the crowds. Two businesses were damaged and looted. These images capture bullet holes in unmarked police cruisers caught in the crossfire.

The night of unrest following a day of peaceful vigils to remember Brown's death and the movement it started.

Demonstrators marched and observed 4 1/2 minutes of silence. One minute for every hour that Brown's body lay on the street after he was shot.

Brown's killing by a white officer sparked outrage and protest nationwide. Though the officers was later cleared by the grand jury and the Department of Justice investigation, anger bubbled over. Violence then mirroring violence now. One year later.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: For the St. Louis County Police have said very clear that they believe that what happened out there with the shooting were criminals responsible for that, not protesters.

[09:05:05] We do know that an officer was hurt not by gunfire but getting a brick or rock thrown at her face and she has some cuts to her face. There were also bullet holes in the windows of two undercover police vehicles. And we do know that the person who was shot by police is in unstable and critical condition -- Pam.

BROWN: Sara Sidner, thank you very much.

And let's talk about all of this with Jeff Roorda of the St. Louis Police Officers Association. He's also a former Missouri state representative.

Thank you so much for being here with us.

JEFF ROORDA, ST. LOUIS POLICE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION: Good morning. Glad to be here.

BROWN: First, what is your reaction to last night's unrest?

ROORDA: Well, disappointment, I mean, terrible disappointment but not surprised. This is what happens when you plan civil disobedience and you have a Justice Department that pressures and bullies local police departments from doing their job. This hands-off disengagement approach was never going to work. It was a disaster in Baltimore and it was a disaster last night.

BROWN: Well, hold on a second. What makes you say the Justice Department is pressuring them to practice restraint and not do their jobs? That seems like a pretty farfetched statement right there.

ROORDA: Well, now I never said not do their jobs or practice restraint. Practice restraint implies that the cops aren't restrained when they're on the front line. Having them stage a long distance from where the planned civil disobedience is dangerous. Not just for the folks who live around there but the folks involved in the protest.

BROWN: When you look back --

ROORDA: As we saw last night.

BROWN: And, Jeff, you look back a year ago, it's not a very different scene from what we saw last night. Has much really changed in a year?

ROORDA: Well, police tactics have changed drastically. We've seen police engage in very different tactics to try to adjust to the realities on the ground and the outcome doesn't change because you've got violent elements within the crowd that co-op what would otherwise be a peaceful protest. Dozens of people armed with guns. Valleys of shots fired well into the wee hours of the morning last night. Officers hit in the face with bricks, maced by people in the crowd. I mean, this is -- as Chief Belmar said last night an untenable situation.

BROWN: And let's talk about that because as you point out, multiple police officers were injured we know from Sara's report, too. Pepper- sprayed by protesters and another hit in the face with a brick. Do you think that this is a true measure of the mood in Ferguson right now?

ROORDA: Well, you know, it's a year later, but as you asked, I mean, how far have we come? What have these protests gotten us other than to put some more folks in harm's way? And, you know, I think a healthy dialogue is needed, not more violent protests.

BROWN: Quickly there have been a lot of incidents, controversial incidents since the Michael Brown shooting a year ago. Do you think that tensions with police have only escaladed over the past year?

ROORDA: They have, unfortunately. I think that the reality in the United States is that across this country thousands and thousands of police officers are involved in hundreds of thousands of interactions with citizens that are -- that go without incident, that have a good outcome, but more and more we're seeing incidents with deadly outcomes. Police officers killed by gunfire more than doubled since the Michael Brown incident.

Officers involved in fatal incidents with suspects returned violence against them sharply increased. We need to step away from the clashes that we have seen -- that we saw on the street last night and get back to having that conversation that moves this country forward.

BROWN: I think all sides could agree with that, that we need a healthy dialogue.

Jeff Roorda, thank you so much.

ROORDA: OK.

BROWN: And we're also learning more about what led up to that fatal shooting of an unarmed black teen at a Texas car dealership. That shooting that came almost one year to the day after the death of Michael Brown.

Take a look. This new video right here. It is edited and released by a surveillance company. It appears to show Christian Taylor breaking into a Texas car dealership. We see him getting out of his jeep right there at the dealership. He's jumping on the hood of a car apparently, and then breaking through the windshield. Moments later, he was shot and killed by a rookie cop.

CNN's Ed Lavandera is live in Arlington with the very latest on this story -- Ed.

[09:10:06] ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Arlington, Texas, police here say they continue to investigate the matter. As far as we know, the officers involved in the shooting have not been formally interviewed by investigators to determine whether or not this shooting was justified. And according to Arlington Police, a lot of things will center around the altercation police say took place just moments before the shooting took place.

The medical examiner in Tarrant County tells us that Christian Taylor, 19, was shot in the neck, abdomen, and chest multiple times. All of this happening just moments after that surveillance video you showed shows Christian Taylor acting erratically at 1:00 in the morning Friday morning just a few days ago, and then driving a jeep into the showroom floor of that dealership.

We're told that the officers do not have cameras on their body and that there were no video cameras inside of the building there. But police say there were some sort of altercation. They can't say if it was verbal or physical and that Brad Miller, the 49-year-old rookie police officer who was nearing the end of his training period shot four times. Police also say that the officer that was with him used his taser instead and not a firearm.

So a lot of questions surrounding that moment, that altercation. And they say a lot of this investigation will hinge on exactly what is shown happened during these moments to determine whether or not this shooting was justified -- Pamela.

BROWN: And we know that the FBI is now been asked to join the investigation.

Ed Lavandera, thank you so much. And still to come right here in NEWSROOM, the U.S. consulate in Turkey

issuing an emergency message to American citizens living there. We're going to tell you what that is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:16:00] BROWN: New this morning: we've e learned ten U.S. service- members and two American contractors were injured in last Friday's attack on a NATO coalition base in Afghanistan. That's according to a U.S. military official.

The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the nighttime attack which began with an explosion from a suspected suicide bomber and was followed by insurgents with small arms. The base known as Camp Integrity houses U.S. and coalition troops that train Afghan forces.

And we're following breaking news out of Istanbul. Police say two female terrorists launch an armed attack on the U.S. consulate there. And now, U.S. citizens living in the country are getting a warning. The shooting comes as the U.S. sent six fighter jets to Turkey to help fight the war on ISIS.

CNN's Barbara Starr was following both developments from the Pentagon -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Pam.

Just a short time ago, the State Department issued a caution warning, if you will, to U.S. citizens in Turkey to stay away from the U.S. consulate in Istanbul and to be careful when they are near large gatherings. The incident is still unfolding. According to Turkish authorities two women launched an attack at the

U.S. consulate in Istanbul. You remember the embassy itself is in Ankara. This is a consulate, but it's still a very significant U.S. facility. One of the women captured. They're still looking for the other woman. Both said by the Turks to have belonged to a left wing terrorist group.

And this does come as the U.S. has sent six F-16 war planes into Turkey. They are going to be based in southern Turkey prepared to conduct airstrikes into northern Syria, trying to shut down the last piece of that border where ISIS fighters have been crossing into Syria.

No indication at this point one way or the other about whether the two incidents are linked at all, but those F-16s very high profile getting a lot of attention -- Pamela.

BROWN: Absolutely. Barbara Starr, thank you so much.

And ahead of the scheduled vote in Congress next month, U.S. lawmakers from both parties are in Israel to discuss the nuclear deal with Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is firmly against the agreement, saying it poses a grave threat to Israel's security. Now, 22 Democrats and 36 Republicans from the House of Representatives will hear from Israeli officials directly. President Obama insists it's the best way to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. He spoke exclusively to Fareed Zakaria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's a complicated piece of business. And we're negotiating with a regime that chants "death to America" and doesn't have a high approval rating here in the United States, but the people who know most about the central challenge that we're trying to do, which is making sure that Iran does not get a nuclear weapon, they are overwhelmingly in favor of.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: CNN White House correspondent Michelle Kosinski has the very latest from Martha's Vineyard.

So, Michelle, how problematic are these meetings in Israel for the president? Is there a concern?

MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, we won't know until it's all over and we see whose opinion was swayed. But keep in mind for some of these lawmakers, they're mostly freshmen members of the house, they're not being public now with what they're opinion is on the deal. So whether or not Prime Minister Netanyahu influences them, we'll just have to wait to see. But it's hard to imagine him not having some effect on at least some of the members, given that he's possibly the world's most vocal opponent to the Iran deal at this point.

And we know that Steny Hoyer, a Democrat in the House, he's the House minority whip, he's leading this group there. They met with Netanyahu yesterday and he himself is undecided. What he's saying is that some of these members have already made up their minds, some haven't.

[09:20:02] But this isn't going to affect the long-term relationship between the U.S. and Israel.

But what the White House is expressing, still, is confidence. That they do still have the votes to sustain a presidential veto. So even if Congress did vote disapproval of the deal ultimately that the veto President Obama would surely issue would stand, basically.

And while the president isn't doing a lot of outreach right now while he's on Martha's Vineyard on vacation, or at least trying to be. Before he left on the trip, he did a number of interviews with various types of outlets. You heard the sound byte just on from the interview with Fareed Zakaria. But there's one coming out today with an outlet called Mike.com.

The White House is really pushing that, saying he is talking up about Iran and the deal and his views in that interview, as we've heard from him multiple times now over the past couple of weeks.

And keep in mind, he's not backing away, either, from the rather harsh criticism some might say of his opponents to the deal that we heard in that speech he gave last week at American University. In fact, he's explaining that stance and he's reinforcing it, Pam.

BROWN: All right. Michelle Kosinski, thank you so much.

And still to come right here in NEWSROOM: Donald Trump standing firm on his controversial comments about Megyn Kelly. Could it hurt the campaign?

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:36] BROWN: Well, despite a growing backlash from his fellow Republicans, Donald Trump is making no apologies for remark about FOX News host Megyn Kelly that critics say implied she was menstruating.

Trump telling CNN's Jake Tapper the uproar is a result of a misunderstanding. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (via telephone): No, I said blood was pouring from wherever because I wanted to finish off the sentence. I want to get off the whole thing and get back to the subject of jobs or whatever we were talking to about right after that.

So, I didn't even finish it because I didn't finish the thought. I was going to say nose and/or ears, because that's have a very common statement. Blood pouring out of somebody's nose, it's a statement showing anger. She had great anger when she was questioning me.

Only a deviant would say what I said was what they were referring to, because nobody can make that statement. You almost center to be sick to put that together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: And this morning, one of Trump's female supporters is speaking to CNN on his behalf while issuing a sharp criticism of Megyn Kelly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUSAN DELEMUS, "WOMEN FOR TRUMP" COALITION: That's an expression blood spurting out my eyes. You know, it's something that is common. I didn't think a thing of it. And, frankly, blood was spurting out of my eyes. I was pretty furious and upset for what the comments and the questions that Megyn had posed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Joining me now to discuss, Republican strategist Margaret Hoover, and editor in chief of "The Daily Beast", John Avlon.

OK. So, first to you, Margaret -- do you buy what Trump's excuse is?

MARGARET HOOVER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Excuse? I mean, it doesn't even matter. Nothing hurts the guy. It doesn't matter if he changes his story.

It doesn't matter -- I mean, as long as he doesn't apologize and keeps moving forward, he's going to continue leading in the polls for the foreseeable future, I think. So, I don't think if you buy it or not. I think the journalist asked a perfect fair question. Guess what? In presidential campaign --

BROWN: But do you think it's a fair question?

HOOVER: Of course.

BROWN: Because the argument is that she was sort of unfairly attacking him.

HOOVER: But this, again, plays directly to truly a red meat crowd. Journalists are always asking unfair questions.

Well, look, if you've been in the political arena for five minutes, you know journalists are going to ask hard questions, maybe unfair questions all the time.

BROWN: And if you're competing for a leader of the free world, you have to take it.

HOOVER: You have to take it.

BROWN: All right. So, John, to you now.

Rand Paul is someone who's been very outspoken. We heard him take aim at Trump during the debate. And he's continuing the attack in an op- ed today, writing in part, "We owe the American people substantive answers, not bluster and bombast. Maybe it's time for the GOP voters to tell Mr. Trump he's fired so we can find a serious candidate who will bring real change."

So, John, Paul is urging voters to dump Trump. But you heard what one of his supporter said. You heard what Margaret said.

Do you actually think this latest controversy will change anything?

JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, look, I think taking on Megyn Kelly is a risky bit. In the course of one weekend, you've got Donald Trump lashing out on Twitter and on air against everyone from Hillary Clinton, to Erick Erickson, to Carly Fiorina, to Megyn Kelly. I mean, who's left?

At some point, this is a presidential campaign of a petulant child who wants attention more than he wants to be actually leader of the free world.

So, Rand Paul is right. I do I think this is a challenge to the GOP. But at the same time, the GOP I think needs to do some soul-searching now about how it let a candidate like this dominate such a strong strain of conservative populism.

So, there's not only going to be a lot of soul searching on the part of the GOP but a challenge to voters to reward substance rather than this kind of attention seeking bluster which ultimately serves nothing, if they actually care about winning back the White House.

BROWN: And you mention Carly Fiorina. And she has also are in Trump's anger. She called his comments inappropriate. And, Trump, as he normally does, he fired back on Twitter saying, I just realized if you listen to Carly Fiorina for more than 10 minutes straight, you develop a massive headache. She has zero chance.

So, my question to you, Margaret, is he digging an even deeper hole for himself by going after Carly Fiorina, the only female GOP candidate?

HOOVER: No. I mean, nothing is digging a whole for Donald Trump.

I mean, what you see is that this is a gentleman with an incredibly thin skin. I mean, you -- it's hard to imagine that somebody can sustain politics in sort of the political arena if they can't take small and gentle jabs from their opponents.

What's also so interesting is the majority of the GOP field is getting traction when they hit back at Trump.