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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Georgia Executes First Woman in 70 Years; Kim Davis Says She Met the Pope; U.S. Pulls Spies from China; Taliban Repels Afghan Forces. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired September 30, 2015 - 04:00   ET

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


[04:00:16] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning, Georgia executes its first woman prisoner in 70 years. Why three last ditch Supreme Court appeals and even a plea from the pope couldn't save her.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: And more breaking news this morning: Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk once jailed for refusing marriage licenses to gay couples, says she met the pope.

ROMANS: Breaking overnight, the U.S. pulling its spies from China. Their identities at risk of being exposed after a hack attack. We are live.

Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.

KOSIK: Good morning. And I'm Alison Kosik.

It's Wednesday, September 30th. It's 4:00 a.m. in the East.

(INAUDIBLE) this morning with breaking news, just a few hours ago, the state of Georgia executed female death row inmate Kelly Gissendaner for orchestrating the 1977 murder of her husband. Her death by lethal injection followed three unsuccessful appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court and pleas for mercy from Gissendaner's children and from Pope Francis.

CNN's Martin Savidge has more from Atlanta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The effort to spare Kelly Gissendaner's life went well beyond the time when she should have been dead. Prison officials put the 47-year-old convicted murderer's execution on hold to let the legal process run its course.

MARCUS EASLEY, A RETIRED CHATTANOOGA POLICE OFFICER: She was very strong and she was very assured in whatever the process was going to be and she handled herself with poise that was just beyond belief.

SAVIDGE: But when the last court turned her down, time and hope ran out. Gissendaner's attorneys weren't the only once fighting on her behalf.

Her grown children begged a parole board to commute her life in prison.

KAYLA GISSENDANER, DAUGHTER: She is so supportive of me. I can talk to her about anything, any troubles I have or anything that not only celebrate. I know that she's my biggest cheerleader.

My brothers and I really want my mom to live. She is all that we have left.

SAVIDGE: Even the Vatican weighed in with a letter from the emissary of the pope, quote, "Please be assured of my prayers as you consider this request by Pope Francis for what I believe would be a just act of clemency," it read.

But others felt that her sentence for the 1977 murder of her husband was just. Doug Gissendaner's parents said in a statement, quote, "As the murderer, she's been given more rights and opportunity over the last 18 years than she ever afforded Doug, who, again, is the victim here. She had no mercy, gave him no rights, no choices, nor the opportunity to live his life."

Kelly Gissendaner planned her husband's murder but did not do it. The beating and stabbing death was committed by her boyfriend, Gregory Owen. In a separate trial, Owen actually got a lesser sentence of life with the possibility of parole.

The disparity between his sentence and hers was a point attorneys and death penalty opponents focused on as evidence of a flawed judicial system.

There was also Gissendaner's life after her conviction, in which she turned to her faith, studied theology and counseled fellow prisoners.

In a strange twist, two previous execution dates were postponed, once by a winter storm. Another the expert said the chemicals that made up her lethal injection looked cloudy.

With her execution, Gissendaner earns two very different distinctions, the first woman executed in Georgia in 70 years and the last woman on Georgia's death row.

Martin Savidge, CNN Center, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Thank for that, Martin.

Kentucky County clerk jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples met privately with the pope last week during his U.S. visit. That's what lawyers for Kim Davis are saying. They say she and her husband spent 20 minutes with Pope Francis at the Vatican embassy in Washington. David says in a statement, quote, "I was humbled to meet Pope Francis, he even asked me to pray for him. Pope Francis thanked me for my courage and told me to stay strong." Davis' lawyer Matt Staver says pictures were taken of the meeting and will be released at some point. CNN has reached out to the Vatican for comment.

The U.S. is pulling sides out of China worried this morning that their cover has been blown by that huge hack of government employee records. The U.S. believes Chinese hackers were behind the cyber attack on the Office of Personnel Management that exposed the personal data of 21.5 million federal workers.

For the latest, I want to bring in CNN's Saima Mohsin live for us from Beijing.

Saima, this was such an extensive hack of sensitive information of American federal officials, including the information of their friends and family who may have been -- who may have helped with security clearances, it's just very expansive.

[04:05:08] SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Christine, this goes far deeper than first feared last month when the hacker information was first released. Not just the 21.5 million government employees' data, 5.6 million fingerprints this puts them at risk of exposure. Now, the CIA and other U.S. agencies have told CNN that it hasn't affected their data, but it has affected their employees and they're taking no chances.

And when we talk about intelligence agencies, we're talking about the NSA, the CIA and the defense intelligence agency. Their people right now in China are going to have to be pulled out, according to U.S. official that spoke to CNN.

Now, I have contacted the U.S. embassy here in Beijing. They say they don't comment on matters relating to intelligence. And a short while ago, the ministry of foreign affairs briefing here in Beijing, we asked bout had this information that CNN has found and the ministry spokesman told CNN the Chinese government firmly opposes any form of hacking. China, of course, has always denied any state sponsored hacking, goes on.

China and the U.S. are two big Internet-using countries. We both face the same challenges and will gain mutual benefits in protecting cybersecurity. Well, of course, Christine was that deal with President Obama and President Xi last week.

But that only covers Internet hacking for intellectual property and trade secrets. That's commercial gain. It does not extend to cyber espionage, the national security. There is huge concern about the information now potentially in Chinese intelligence agency's hands -- Christine.

ROMANS: I think it's really important, Saima, to point out the apples and oranges of this debate as well. I mean, the U.S. has long said, look, countries spy on one another. That's what they do.

The difference here is Chinese have been very, very adept at taking that sort of national espionage, that government-to-government espionage to a new level. Stealing property from companies, using the edge they get from stolen either military secrets or business secrets to help its economy. Its economy that is -- you know, the government and the economy in China are all one, very different from the way of the U.S. here.

That's something that the U.S. officials have quietly pressed, we are talking a difference from regular espionage, regular espionage, to actually stealing secrets for the betterment of your -- you know, for the edge for your own country.

MOHSIN: Yes, absolutely. That's when President Obama wanted to draw the line.

Look, Christine, it's an open secret that everybody is looking at each other's secret. Cyber espionage is a new factor in traditional espionage, traditional spies, the spies that the U.S. is saying they're going to have to pull out now. The bodies on the ground versus the underworld or the new war zone which is the web.

The difference as you say is crucially that President Obama and the U.S. says, look, we know this goes on as far as intelligence gathering is concerned. One expert I spoke to last week at the Toronto Munk School said, look, the United States is the best in the world at intelligence gathering, so they can't really stop anyone from doing that themselves.

So, the Chinese could say, look, everybody is doing it. Why can't we?

The big concern was U.S. companies saying, hey, hang on, we are being innovative. We are coming up with this innovation and blue prints and Chinese hackers are coming in, stealing it, to give their companies huge gains, particularly state companies.

And as I say, the deal is only limited to that. So, this kind of hacking, potentially, could still go on. This is a major breach that could have impact for years to come, given the number of employees that are affected -- Christine.

ROMANS: Absolutely. All right. Thank you so much for that -- Saima Mohsin for us this morning.

KOSIK: The head of Planned Parenthood facing heated questioning from congressional Republican in an emotional Capitol Hill hearing that lasted almost five hours. Cecile Richards defending the organization against charges of lavish spending and questions raised by undercover videos from an anti-abortion group.

The latest now from CNN's Tom Foreman in Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Alison, hey, Christine.

The head of Planned Parenthood came to Capitol Hill with one clear message that she wanted to get across about these undercover videotapes that supposedly show her people selling fetal body parts. She wanted to say it is absolutely not true, no laws have been broken, and that she took great exception to the way these videotapes have been taken. In fact, she suggested that if there are any investigations, it should be about the filmmaker.

CECILE RICHARDS, PLANNED PARENTHOOD PRESIDENT: The latest smear campaign is based on efforts by our opponents to entrap our doctors and clinicians into breaking the law and, once again, our opponents failed.

[04:10:07] FOREMAN: Democrats rushed to her side, said this is protected behavior in these clinics. It should not be under attack this way.

Republicans completely the opposite. They essentially pushed the videotapes aside pretty soon and said this is about funding for your agency. They question how much money is being used for other women's health service, and if not enough, why not enough. How much is being used for lobbying, how much is being used for her salary, how much is being used for other perks for the agency.

They really went after the money in all of this, basically trying to suggest, look, whatever the purpose, if the money is not being used right, what right do you have to public money?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why do you need federal dollars, you are making a ton of dough?

RICHARDS: I don't get -- we don't make any profit off federal money. And if I could just have a moment to explain.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But you're using federal dollars --

RICHARDS: One-point-six million --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- you are displacing money that could go to the 13,000 health care clinics.

RICHARDS: But I do think it's really important that you understand that 60 percent of our patients are receiving either -- they're either Medicaid patients or Title X patients. Seventy-eight percent of our patients live at 150 percent of poverty or below, and for many of them, Planned Parenthood is the only family planning provider that will see them in their area.

FOREMAN: Bottom line is, this is a fight that both sides have been spoiling for for sometime and both sides are very, very passionate about it because they feel like they're speaking about basic human rights, and it is not going to die down as a fight any time soon -- Alison, Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Thanks for that, Tom Foreman.

Odds of a government shutdown over funding for Planned Parenthood now receiving at least in the near term, a stop gap funding bill is expected to get through Congress today shepherded by John Boehner, the House speaker, no longer worried about keeping his job now that he's decided to step down. Longer term negotiations are set to begin on the federal budget with Republican leaders calling for a two-year spending plan to avoid a budget fight during an election year.

But whether Speaker Boehner's replacement will be onboard with that plan, a plan that averts the government shutdown is an open question.

The front runner for the job, California Congressman Kevin McCarthy, defending the extended grilling on Planned Parenthood's president.

McCarthy telling CNN's Jake Tapper the hearing is a part of a larger plan much like earlier House hearings aimed against Hillary Clinton.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R), CALIFORNIA: When you look at the poll numbers of Hillary Clinton, they've dropped.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Right.

MCCARTHY: Unfavorables is pretty high, because people say they don't trust her. They don't trust her because of what they found about the server and everything else. Would you have ever found that out? Had you had not gathered the information for the Benghazi Select Committee?

So, if we want to able to show what this Planned Parenthood has done. We see a few videos. So, there's a real question. Have the select committee get all the information, all the hearings, so the public can see that, so you win the argument to win the vote.

TAPPER: Speaking of votes, do you have the votes? Will you be the next speaker and have you locked it up?

MCCARTHY: I feel very good about where I'm at.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: New this morning, the White House signaling a shift in its position on Syria's Assad regime. Secretary of State John Kerry indicating Russia's military buildup in Syria and its support of Assad could provide the U.S. with an opportunity. Kerry telling CNN's Elise Labott getting rid of Assad immediately is no longer viewed as a necessity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: For a period of time, all the coalition were saying he had to leave immediately. That was the original statement, way back when.

We have changed that over a period of time. We said, no, that's not going to work. We need to have an orderly transition, a managed transition so you don't have fear for the retribution, loss of life --

ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: A vacuum?

KERRY: You don't have a vacuum.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: Kerry called on Syria's leader to do off in the sunset. He insists without Assad in office, Russia, Iran, Syria and the U.S. could oversee a cease-fire and end the violence.

ROMANS: Fugitive Edward Snowden making his debut on Twitter and the former contractor who, of course, leaked the NSA's mass surveillance operation already have four times more followers than the agency he exposed, picking up nearly 300,000 followers in less than two hours.

Snowden living in asylum in Russia, taking a subtle jab at his former employer with his first tweet, "Can you hear me now?" No response from the NSA.

KOSIK: I will have to go follow him. I'm sure his feed will be quite interesting.

Donald Trump's tax plan and a new review that finds Trump's tax plan carry a hefty price tag. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:17:46] ROMANS: All right. The first reviews of Donald Trump's tax plan are in. The verdict: Donald Trump's tax proposal has a very big price tag. Trump proposes deep cuts to the income tax rate for people across the board, lowering the rate for just about everyone. Zero tax rate for those at the bottom and 25 percent tax rate for those at the top down from 39.6 percent. That means the very richest Americans would pay a lower tax rate, according to left-leaning Center for Tax Justice that would reduce revenue by $900 billion a year, that's $9 trillion over a decade.

The right-leaning Tax Foundation, it finds a similar estimate: $10 trillion in reduced revenue over the next 10 years.

The Trump campaign says those estimates are off. And with increased economic growth, the plan is revenue neutral. Donald Trump saying he can grow the economy 3 percent. That's his assumption, although, he says, if Donald Trump is president, you would have 5 or 6 percent economic growth.

Republican rivals waste no time dissecting and criticizing Donald Trump's plan that would slash taxes for most Americans, including the rich. Expect to hear more of what's wrong with the Trump plan today as the candidates campaign in early primary states, along with more about what's right with Trump's proposals from the front runner, himself.

We get more this morning from CNN's Sunlen Serfaty.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alison and Christine.

Well, Donald Trump is making the hard sell on his tax plan but still not revealing many details on all. He has not said how much it would cost or how he would pay for it without adding to the debt or deficit. Meanwhile, many of his Republican opponents while out on the campaign trail have pounced on this, really eager to draw some policy distinctions with the front runner.

SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think my tax plan is better. I get rid of all 70,000 pages of the tax code. I have one single rate, 14 1/2 percent for individuals, 14 1/2 percent for corporations.

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R-NJ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: All I caution people is to remember that anything that you propose as a presidential candidate, you have to be able to deliver on. We've had too many empty promises in this country over time.

SERFATY: Two separate tax foundations, one conservative, the other left leaning. Both came out with estimates this week saying the estimate that they found was the tax plan by Donald Trump will cost between $10 trillion and $12 trillion over the next decade.

[04:20:01] So, certainly many questions over his tax plan still remain -- Alison and Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: OK. Sunlen, thanks, for that.

And before they were would-be rivals in the 2016 presidential election, Bill Clinton says Donald Trump repeatedly saying Hillary Clinton's praises, telling him what a wonderful job she did for New York as a senator following 9/11.

Speaking to CNN's Erin Burnett, Clinton took his own veiled shot at Trump and the Donald-led Republican race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT: I think they believe that authenticity is created by making your campaign look as much like a reality TV show as possible. I really do. And so, they think that real voters have a limited bandwidth for policies and I think as the field winnows down, I hope it will get more serious, because the American people deserve some sense of what the heck you are going to do if you actually get the job because the day after you take the oath of office --

BURNETT: It's yours.

CLINTON: -- you can't level an insult or have a -- you're not in an episode of "Survivor".

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: Clinton also hinted, hmm, we may be seeing more of him on the campaign trail.

ROMANS: All right. Happening right now, Afghan forces trying to take back a town seized by the Taliban. We've got a progress report, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:25:04] ROMANS: The crisis in Afghanistan worsening by the hour. Afghan forces failing in their attempt to take back the city of Kunduz. Taliban fighters not only repealing the offensive but also advancing on the local airport. Thousands of civilians now fleeing that city.

CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson joins us now with more on sudden resurgence of the Taliban.

And, Nic, you rightly point out, this is the first major advance by Taliban, taking a city like this since 2001. Is the Afghan army -- are Afghan officials up to the task of keeping the Taliban at bay? It looks like they're having trouble at the moment.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Absolutely, they were having trouble here. They advance into the city yesterday. They say the Taliban were using people in the city at human shields, at the end of the day, they were forced to retreat. They said they retook the jail that the Taliban had captured, that they retake them to the police headquarters that the Taliban had captured, but they left them back at the airport.

Indeed, the Taliban saying they have the government forces around at the airport, the government saying it's having difficulty getting reinforcements into the city, because the road to the south, the highway that would bring those reinforcements in, that's cut by the Taliban. No surprise the Taliban are tactically smart in that way and they know exactly how the government would bring in reinforcements.

So, the government right now appears to be struggling. Airstrikes, the government says -- U.S. airstrikes the government of Afghanistan says are killing Taliban, they say over 100 Taliban killed so far. They say they killed the Taliban commander. The Taliban, themself, are saying, no, he's not dead. He will be making an audio message very soon.

It is very difficult to get to the hard realities and facts on the ground. But the U.N. is saying 6,000 people so far forced to flee their homes. Roads leading to and from the city are cut. They say that more than 100 people, so far, more than 100 civilians have been killed and injured and there have been summary executions of medical workers him people have been abducted.

So, the picture there right now is the Taliban still to have the city, the government is struggling to get reinforcements, struggling to retake it. Over time, they should be able to. But it's clearly not happening quickly.

ROMANS: All right, Nic Robertson, thank you for that for us this morning, live in London. We'll keep an eye on that. KOSIK: Breaking news this morning, three last ditch Supreme Court appeals and the pope can't save a Georgia woman from being executed. That's next.

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