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Germany Enforces ID Checks Along Border; Suspect Arrested in Trooper's Fatal Shooting; Ad Contrasts 2016 Candidates, Ronald Reagan's Views On Immigration Examined. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired September 14, 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: The Aurora Police are investigating the threat, changing procedures. There have been several ambush attacks on officers nationwide. We cover them. I mean, officers often get hurt and killed in the line of duty. But this seems to be with specific intent.

PEREIRA: Right.

CAMEROTA: The people are stepping up. That's so great to see.

PEREIRA: Thanks for that.

CAMEROTA: All right. Time now for "NEWSROOM" with Carol Costello.

Good morning, Carol.

PEREIRA: Good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks so much. Have a great day.

NEWSROOM starts now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Happening now in the NEWSROOM, two days to a GOP showdown.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I'm a deal maker. I'll make great deals for this country. Ben can't do it.

DR. BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's ridiculous to think that the only thing that I can do is neurosurgery.

COSTELLO: But that's not the only clash we're expecting.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: This is it. The stage where all the magic is going to happen.

COSTELLO: Can't anyone topple Donald Trump?

Also, a state of emergency, as California wildfires rage out of control, overtaking whole towns.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I'm all right. Yes, everything is OK. COSTELLO: Thousands of people forced to flee.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I guess we're just lucky it's not our home.

COSTELLO: And this is all that's left behind.

Plus, it's back to work for that Kentucky clerk, Kim Davis.

KIM DAVIS, ROWAN COUNTY CLERK: For me, this would be an act of disobedience to my god.

COSTELLO: We're live in Rowan County. 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.

A show of defiance and a refusal to back down. Moments ago the embattled Kentucky clerk who spent six days in jail for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses because of her faith returned to work. Holding back tears, Kim Davis told the media she will not authorize licenses on her first day back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVIS: I don't want to have this conflict. I don't want to be in the spotlight. And I certainly don't want to be a whipping post. I am no hero. I'm just a person who's been transformed by the grace of God, who wants to work, be with my family. I just want to serve my neighbors quietly, without violating my conscience. And so this morning, I am forced to fashion a remedy that reconciles my conscience with Judge Benning's orders.

Effective immediately, and until an accommodation is provided by those with the authority to provide it, any marriage license issued by my office will not be issued or authorized by me. I want the whole world to know, be no mistake about it, that if my deputy clerks, who do not have my authorization or the authority, they don't have my authority to issue any license whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: However, Davis says she will not stand in the way of her deputies, as long as the marriage documents do not include her name.

Joining me now to discuss all of this, criminal defense attorney Paige Pate and CNN's Martin Savidge. He's in Moorhead, Kentucky, following the latest developments.

So, Martin, I hear some protesters behind you. Set the stage for us.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Carol. Well, as you saw, you had the statement that came, that was about 15 minutes before the doors opened here at the county clerk's office. And you heard, once again, it was a Kim Davis, speaking sometimes very emotionally, and clearly also from the heart, saying that her faith is going to dominate over her job. And that she cannot issue licenses, marriage licenses, to same-sex couples, that goes in defiance to what she believes.

The people right now gathered are people who believe just like she does, and they're very much in her corner and supporting her. But you also pointed out that that statement had a very interesting kind of loophole. And essentially, it is that she is not going to interfere with her deputies issuing the licenses. And remember, the whole time while she was in jail, five days, those licenses were being issued by her deputies.

So it implies that you've got this kind of truce that's been called. She'll stay in the office, she'll show up on the job, but she won't interfere, as the judge said she should not, but the licenses that are issued, she says, don't have any authority. The governor has already come out in Kentucky and said, no, they have every authority, whether her name is on them or not. So that's the way it's broken down right now -- Carol.

COSTELLO: OK.

(LAUGHTER)

So does this mean she will not go back to jail? And I pose that question to you, Paige Pate.

PAIGE PATE, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I don't think she's going to go to jail as long as the office continues to issue licenses. If she does not interfere and lets her deputy clerk do this, then I don't see that she's in violation of any court order. I think the key point is that licenses get issued and that's happening now, or at least we expect it to happen. And no matter what she writes on the license or her personal view about whether it's appropriate or whether it's even valid, I think, as long as those licenses get issued, the governor is willing to stand behind them. I think we're OK and she will not go to jail.

[09:05:04] COSTELLO: All right. Paige Pate and Martin Savidge, thanks to you both. I appreciate it.

Kim Davis might have just rocked the 2016 race. Same-sex marriage is just one topic expected to come up in two days at the CNN GOP debate. Candidates rubbing their knuckles and sharpening their elbows as the stage that will serve as the candidate's boxing ring is coming together. You see it there. Eleven Republicans will jockey for the spotlight in CNN's main event. With Donald Trump surging and many other candidates languishing.

Moderator, Jake Tapper, is predicting a testy atmosphere.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: This is it. The stage where all the magic is going to happen on Wednesday night at the Ronald Reagan Museum and Library. You can see and hear workers getting the stage ready. Normally, this floor doesn't even exist here. We're all getting prepared for what could be a momentous evening in presidential politics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Athena Jones joins us live from the site of the debate, the Reagan Presidential Library, in Simi Valley, California. Good morning.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. We're all counting down to the big night, two days away from here in Simi Valley. Meanwhile, a new national poll out today shows that Donald Trump is still in the lead, and he's posting his biggest numbers yet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRUMP: Winning in Iowa, winning in New Hampshire, winning every place.

CROWD: Let's go Trump. Let's go Trump.

JONES (voice-over): Donald Trump's lead, reaching new heights above the still-crowded GOP field. This morning, a new "Washington Post"- ABC News poll shows Trump with 33 percent. His highest number so far. Trump's closest competitor, Ben Carson, coming in 13 points behind.

TRUMP: People don't have energy. I don't think Ben has the energy.

JONES: Collectively, the two Washington outsiders hold more than 50 percent of the potential vote, both making their case on the Sunday shows.

TRUMP: I'll make great deals for this country. Ben can't do that.

CARSON: I have plenty of energy. It's ridiculous to think that the only thing that I can do is neurosurgery.

JONES: And Carly Fiorina hitting Trump. The back-and-forth heating up with the CNN GOP debate just two days away.

CARLY FIORINA (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald trump is an entertainer. And I think I am a leader. And what I do is talk to the American people about the issues they care about.

JONES: A new CNN-ORC poll revealing that issues like gun control, abortion and illegal immigration are more important to voters this election season than in 2012.

TRUMP: They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime.

JONES: Should he win the nomination, Trump's push to deport undocumented immigrations could come back to bite him in the general election, if he can't clinch the Latino vote.

The latest MSNBC-Telemundo-Marist poll says immigration is the second most important issue in deciding their vote. 70 percent of Latinos viewing Trump negatively.

RONALD REAGAN, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I've spoken to the shining city all my political life. Teaming with people of all kinds, living in harmony and peace.

JONES: This, as a pro-immigration reform group is now up with a new ad, hitting Republicans for their rhetoric on immigration.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I said we should end birthright citizenship.

JONES: The head of the Republican National Committee warning the contenders about their tone.

REINCE PRIEBUS, CHAIRMAN, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Each candidate is going to be accountable for their own words and own mouth, and so they should proceed with caution.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JONES: Proceed with caution. Interesting words of warning from the RNC chief there.

And guys, the stage is set. The podiums are up. The candidates are getting ready, and we're all looking forward to Wednesday night -- Carol.

COSTELLO: I am, too. Athena Jones, thanks so much. Athena Jones reporting live for us this morning.

Be sure to tune in Wednesday night for CNN's Republican debate. The main event with the top 11 candidates begins at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. And before that, we have the undercards, Pataki, Santorum, Jindal and Graham. They face off in the first round that starts at 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

Two massive wildfires in California have now turned deadly. The blazes, just 100 miles east and west of Sacramento, exploded in size over the weekend, giving thousands of people little time to flee their homes. Authorities say at least one person died in the flames. Charred cars, homes and businesses, hundreds of them turned to ash, images of the fire's aftermath make California look like a war zone.

More than 5,000 firefighters are on the lines, trying to save more towns from this same fate. Combined, the two blazes have more than 115,000 acres up in flames right now.

CNN's Dan Simon live on the scene with more for you. Good morning, Dan.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, we are in Middletown, California. This is one of the worst wildfires we have seen in recent memories. Half of this town is said to be lost. You can see this neighborhood, it's just in total ruins.

[09:10:02] You've got lots of twisted metal. And, you know, just Look back there. I mean, you really get a sense in terms of how hot this fire was. You've got 400 homes that have gone up in flames with this Valley Fire. And you got so many firefighters on the line, but really, there's so much they can -- only so much they can do, Carol, because this is what is called a fuel-driven fire.

This is what a four-year drought in California looks like. And they've warned us about this, they said it could happen, and here it is. You have a lot of people who have evacuated. Some people have gone to the Napa County fairgrounds, and that's where we caught up with one resident. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELISSA CARCHOLA, FEARS HOUSE BURNED DOWN: When I saw the flames in the back of the hill, I figured it was far away and we had nothing to worry about. Within 15 minutes, we were evacuating our home. I don't think there is anything left. There was a propane company right across the street from us, Amerigas. Not sure if they had anything in those tanks, but I'm sure that if they blew, our house is gone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON: Well, many thousands of residents have evacuated, and a lot of people just like that woman, wondering what's going on with their homes. They really don't know. It's going to take a lot of time to sort of sort things out.

At this point, Carol, this fire is zero percent contained. The good news is the fire is not spreading as rapidly as it once was. So hopefully firefighters will begin to being making a dent on this fire. But a lot of work to do and a lot of people displaced, Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Dan Simon reporting live from northern California. Thank you.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, record numbers of refugees flow into Europe as the migrant crisis worsens. And once again tragedy strikes on the sea. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:16:00] COSTELLO: Overwhelmed and desperate for a solution, the E.U. is meeting right now to figure out what to do about the worsening refugee crisis. Austria will now deploy more than 2,000 soldiers to assist police with humanitarian and -- humanitarian aid, rather, and security. This as neighboring Germany enforces ID checks to stem the flow of migrants. Over the weekend, 6,000 people arrived in Munich, forcing officials to turn the Olympic stadium into a shelter.

Now, it's important to remind you the refugees are running from war- torn places like Syria and Iraq to flee conditions like this. You'll only see these pictures on CNN. This is drone video. It shows the destruction in the Syrian town of Kobani after Kurdish forces took back the city from ISIS in May. You can see the devastation there.

Let's bring in our CNN senior international correspondent Ivan Watson. He's along the Greece-Macedonia border.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, we're at the Greek-Macedonian border. And as you can see here, this is part of the steady stream of migrants and refugees that are coming from Greece into Macedonia. And they're kind of staggered in groups, several dozen at a time.

Now, almost everybody you talk to has had an earlier leg of this voyage, a very dangerous one, which was done by sea, from the coast of Turkey, on rafts, on dinghies, barely sea-worthy boats, that are overcrowded, that they have to pay a lot of money to ride to get to Greek islands. There are dozens, scores of these boats leaving every day to Greek islands and that's where tragedies struck early, before dawn on Sunday morning, when one of these boats overturned. The Greek coast guard says the death toll from the accident, 34 of the passengers drowned. And among them, 15 were children, four of them were infants.

So, this is a risk that these thousands and thousands of people that are traveling each day across borders like this, this is a risk that almost all of them took at one of the first stages of their journey. You ask them where they want to go. Many of them say Germany. Some of them say Sweden. This country, Macedonia, is just basically a transit for them. They will pass through here, likely, within a matter of hours and try to get to the next country on their trail, which is Serbia -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Ivan Watson reporting live this morning. Thank you.

Checking other top stories for you this morning.

Joyce Mitchell, the prison worker who helped two killers escape last June says she was at a low point in her personal life and marriage when she was befriended by Richard Matt and David Sweat. She told NBC how the relationship began with simple baked goods.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, FROM NBC "TODAY SHOW")

JOYCE MITCHELL, HELPED MURDERERS ESCAPE: A few months before they decided to get out, they were asking me for things.

MATT LAUER, NBC "TODAY SHOW": So, what did you bring them?

MITCHELL: I would bring cookies, brownies, you know, stuff like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Mitchell says she was scared of getting caught when she began smuggling tools the men requested. But prison staff never checked her bags when she brought those tools into the prison.

In Arizona, police say three teenagers who admitted to shooting at cars and pedestrians with a slingshot are not connected with recent freeway shootings in Phoenix. The teenagers were charged with criminal damage and conspiracy. Authorities have been investigating at least 11 incidents of vehicles being hit by objects or other objects over a two-week period.

Just minutes ago, a manhunt ends and a suspect is in custody, charged with the overnight killing of a Kentucky state trooper. The trooper just eight months out of the academy, was gunned down at the end of a high-speed chase.

Jean Casarez is here with more.

Good morning.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, we were just able to confirm that the suspect is in custody after a man hunt all through the night. He was shot, and he is injured but he is alive.

Now, this all started last night when Kentucky state trooper, 31-year- old Cameron Ponder, effectuated a traffic stop along Interstate 24 in Kentucky, about 10:20 in the evening.

[09:20:13] The facts as we know them now, he got out of the car, he went up to the suspect vehicle. The suspect vehicle, we don't know how long, but it just took off. So, the trooper then got in his squad car and began a pursuit for about nine miles.

At that point, according to the information, the suspect car abruptly stopped. The officer then slammed into the back of the car a bit, and that is when the suspect allegedly began shooting through the windshield. Kentucky state trooper Cameron Ponder, who just graduated from the police academy this last January, January 2015, was shot multiple times. He was taken by ambulance, and he died about an hour later, Carol. At that point --

COSTELLO: And the picture we were looking at was the suspect, right?

CASAREZ: That was the suspect. And there's been a manhunt, but he was just caught. He is alive. The trooper obviously died within one hour. And so, at this point, he's shot and he's in custody. And our affiliate, KFYS, is saying it was about 7:30 this morning. It was an all-night manhunt. And Joseph Thomas Johnson Shanks, 25-year-old, obviously faces extremely serious charges.

COSTELLO: Jean Casarez, many thanks.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, as the Republican contenders prepare to face off at the Ronald Reagan Library, who is least like the beloved former president? The answer from Ronald Reagan's own son, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:53] COSTELLO: Two days until the big Republican debate. The stage is set, the candidates brushing up on their talking points. The Reagan Presidential Library quiet now, but in just a few hours, workers will still be assembling that stage.

It is no accident that the debate is taking place at the Reagan Library. Of course, President Reagan is the Republican's patron saint. Jeb Bush pulling a Superman movie move in Miami, to spotlight his close ties to the 40th president, showing this throwback t-shirt from his father's 1984 campaign with President Reagan.

We expect every candidate on that stage to invoke the name, Reagan -- a fact that does not escape the National Immigration Forum. It put out a new ad that contrasts how Reagan talked about immigrants and how the current field of Republicans talks about them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, NATL. IMMIGRATION FORUM ACTION FUND)

RONALD REAGAN, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I've spoken to the shining city all my political life. God-blessed and teeming with people of all kinds, living in harmony and peace.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They're bringing crime. They're rapists. If I'm elected, they're going to be out of there day one.

REPORTER: Do you think birthright citizenship should be ended?

GOV. SCOTT WALKER (R-WI), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Yes, absolutely.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've said we should end birthright citizenship.

TRUMP: I will build a great, great wall.

SUBTITLE: Ronald Reagan had a different vision for America.

REAGAN: In my mind, it was a tall, proud city, built on rocks, stronger than oceans. And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors. And the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. That's how I saw it. And see it still.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK. Let's talk about that ad and more with Ron Christie. He's a former special assistant to President George W. Bush, and Michael Warren is a staff writer to "The Weekly Standard".

Thanks to both of you. I appreciate you both being with me this morning.

MICHAEL WARREN, STAFF WRITER, THE WEEKLY STANDARD: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Good morning.

So, Michael, I can already hear some people say, well, President Reagan was talking about legal immigrants.

WARREN: Yes, that's right. You know, the big issue for a lot of conservatives on this immigration issue is that since the Reagan presidency, since the 1986 immigration bill that promised to secure the border, it promised a lot of things about keeping the southern border secure, in exchange for allowing those illegal immigrants amnesty, hasn't happened in those ensuing 26, 27 years. And so, that's where a lot of the anger is coming from, the conservative base. So, you know, Ronald Reagan in the speech just now talked about, you

know, high walls with open doors. And conservatives look now and say, there are no walls. And that's a problem. I think that's what a lot of candidates are speaking to nowadays. It's a different world than it was in the '80s.

COSTELLO: Well, on the other hand, Michael Reagan, President Reagan's son, says even if President Reagan were to object to the way we're dealing with immigrants at this moment in time, he was always a gentleman. Let's listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN HOST: -- on that stage Wednesday night?

MICHAEL REAGAN, PRESIDENT REAGAN'S SON: Donald Trump.

SMERCONISH: And why? I figured you were going to say that. I'm glad that you brought that forth because I've been following you on Twitter and I sense where you're coming from. But what makes him the least Reaganesque?

REAGAN: Reagan didn't attack the people around him. He didn't demean the people around him. You know, he brought everybody together. At the end, if Republicans don't bring everybody together, at the end of the day, we do not win elections.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, Ron, what he's saying is President Reagan was positive. He made us feel good about our country, not like it was like falling apart from the inside and, like, you know, we're on the road to ruin.

RON CHRISTIE, FORMER SPECIAL ASST. TO PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: That's exactly right, Carol. I mean, the shining city on the hill. He also had the Ronald Reagan 11th commandment, not to speak ill of fellow Republicans. If you look at some of these people in this field, Donald Trump who enjoys belittling Carly Fiorina, talking down to Jeb Bush, it's not presidential. That's not what we're looking for in a leader. We want someone who can say, here's my vision, here's how I would change the country, move the country forward, and not tear other people down. And I think Mr. Trump, unfortunately, is making the Republican Party look bad.

COSTELLO: So, Michael -- Michael Reagan said the person who most reminded him of President Reagan was Rick Perry, who, of course, as you know, has since dropped out of the race.