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Carson Courts Evangelicals at Liberty University; Biker Gang Shootout; Hiring Veterans; Akron Plane Crash Kills Nine People. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired November 11, 2015 - 10:30   ET

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


[10:29:42] SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, it's expected about 12,000 students are going to be in attendance. This is called a convocation. This is what happens at Liberty University this evangelical college that these students are actually required to attend.

And what we saw this morning that was different because of the special security detail is that the students had to be here two hours prior to the event. We heard more than a couple of students grumbling about getting up a little bit earlier than usual to do that. But that was because they had to go through the mags, they had to get their bags checked.

This is the first day that Dr. Carson has this kind of protection and his aides say it's a mutual decision by his campaign and Secret Service to provide this because of previous threats. That's quite typical.

So Carol, this morning I did talk to one of his advisers, Armstrong Williams, about what are we going to expect today, how he felt about yesterday. He said Dr. Carson was very upbeat. He felt pleased about his debate performance and that quite honestly he felt relieved about it as well.

There are a couple of things that he's going to do today that is different. He's going to highlight something that happened last night, and that is his change in position when it comes to raising the minimum wage. You know, it was two weeks ago he said he was going to do it.

He was for it. Last night he said he was against it. Williams saying talking to his economic advisers, he felt that it was low- income students who would not benefit from that policy. He's going to give more details and explain what is behind his thinking behind that.

And of course, Carol, he is going to talk about his personal story. You can imagine at this college or this campus that that would really resonate, being very popular among white evangelicals.

Last night we saw a different demeanor that he took when it came to being challenged, his character, his stories about his past. Not kind of the fiery language, calling the media stupid or sick or pathetic but something a little bit more nuanced. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have no problem with being vetted. What I do have a problem with is being lied about and then putting that out there as truth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And Carol, Williams says that what we're going to do is see a Carson that is more like the guy that people really liked and saw before -- the one who was calm, who had a very controlled demeanor and who was really focused on his message.

He has since asked for an apology from those he felt lied about him. But his campaign says at this point, they are ready to move on. He's expected to get quite a friendly and enthusiastic reception here at this university -- Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Suzanne's going to get hoarse after this report. Suzanne Malveaux reporting live from Lynchburg -- thanks so much.

And just like Dr. Ben Carson, Ted Cruz is also making a strong push for the evangelical vote even bringing up the bible when he was talking about the tax code last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The current system isn't fair. Washington is fundamentally corrupt. There are more words in the IRS code than there are in the bible. And not a one of them is as good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: With me now, the director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center Andy Smith and Star Parker, she's the president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education. And we should also note that Dr. Ben Carson is on the advisory group of that group.

Welcome to both of you.

ANDY SMITH, UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE SURVEY CENTER: Good morning.

STAR PARKER, CENTER FOR URBAN RENEWAL AND EDUCATION: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Good morning. So Star, who do you think evangelicals like more, Ted Cruz or Ben Carson?

PARKER: Well, I think because of the showing last night, which was an amazing debate. Up until this point the debates have been like organizing kindergartners. And now we're getting to substance.

And so when you think about the evangelical vote, they understand that the moral compass of America needs to be placed in check. There's a challenge in our society. But when you start thinking about the deeper problems, Washington and politics is business a $4 trillion business with $18 trillion of debt.

So I would not be surprised if you start seeing the evangelical vote move from Ben Carson and especially from Donald Trump into the camp of Ted Cruz, perhaps even Marco Rubio. But people are now looking for the experience.

The debate is no longer going to be about outsider/insider but establishment and anti-establishment and who can fix this country.

COSTELLO: And you might be right because Ben Carson was asked a question about foreign policy last night, and here's how he answered it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA BARTIROMO, FOX BUSINESS NETWORK: Do you support the President's decision to now put 50 Special Ops Forces in Syria and leave 10,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan?

CARSON: Well, putting the Special Ops people in there is better than not having them there because they -- that's why they're called Special Ops. They're actually able to guide some of the other things that we're doing there.

And what we have to recognize is that Putin is trying to really spread his influence throughout the Middle East. This is going to be his base. And we have to oppose him there in an effective way. We also must recognize that it's a very complex place. You know, the Chinese are there as well as the Russians, and you have all kinds of factions there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Ok. So that was kind of a meandering answer. I had a Carson supporter on earlier, Andy, who said no, that wasn't a great answer, but Ben Carson is still learning.

[10:35:10] But nobody pushed -- you know the surprise to me is none of the other candidates pushed back on that answer. Did they not push back for a reason?

SMITH: I don't think any of the other candidates really want to hit Ben Carson right now, especially since the media have been doing that. And he's been fighting back I think fairly effectively certainly among the voters that he's aiming to get.

And I think your question about the candidate that social conservatives are going for, last night's debate was kind of interesting in that the three candidates that were most visibly going after social conservatives were on the undercard -- Mike Huckabee, Bobby Jindal and Rick Santorum.

So Cruz and Carson both talking to social conservatives but realizing that they're not just concerned about social issues, they're concerned about these other issue. But I think that the reason that Carson didn't get much pushback is also that first off on the question of what to do with ISIS is not something that very many people want to touch.

COSTELLO: Ok. So back to Carson for just a second, and I want to focus on him and evangelicals. So Star, Ross Douthit of "The New York Times", he's also a CNN contributor. He wrote a column about evangelical voters. He said Carson is running a more content-free campaign than Donald Trump. He's offering a collection of pieties and (inaudible) mostly his candidacy is just about the man himself. Unfortunately evangelical voters have a weakness for this kind of pitch from Pat Robertson in 1988 through think on policy figures like Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin and even Michele Bachmann. Is he right about that?

PARKER: Well, I think it's an unfair swipe because when you think about the folks that he's comparing, they had experience in government. Even Sarah Palin, as much as the left may hate her, was a governor.

So when you think about the evangelical voter, yes, first and foremost, they are concerned about the moral state of our country. But they understand also how this impacts our economic well-being and our foreign policy. And so that's a deeper question not just about their own family values and how we're going to preserve the interest of the country when it comes to family, but also about how we're going to portray America in the world.

And that's why this vote is now not at that second tier. It's not looking, again, at Huckabee and Santorum and even Jindal, as wonderful as these men are. You notice that the vote -- it's not showing up in the polls for them. It's going up to that next level to say let's go deeper into policy discussions.

COSTELLO: Right, ok. And so on that note, Andy, it will be interesting to hear what Ben Carson chooses to talk about at Liberty because I'm betting he'll talk about his back story, and he won't talk about policy in any deep kind of way.

SMITH: I think that he probably will. That's certainly the strength of his campaign, but I think as we go forward, he and all of the candidates are going to have to flesh out their policy proposals. Carson hasn't had to do that yet. I think we're going to see him do that more.

COSTELLO: All right. Andy smith, Star Parker --

PARKER: Well, he might start to change his mind more too as he did on minimum wage last night.

COSTELLO: All right. We'll have to leave it there. Star Parker, Andy Smith -- thank you so much.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, nine people dead, 18 wounded in a terrifying shootout between biker gangs and not one indictment until now. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:42:51] COSTELLO: More than 100 people are being indicted six months after a massive shootout at a biker gathering in Texas. This is the wild video from last May. Inside the Twin Peaks Restaurant in Waco as the gun battle erupted outside in the parking lot. When it was over, nine people were dead and 18 more were wounded. Dozens more indictments are expected, citing organized crime activity, aggravated assault and murder. CNN's Ed Lavandera has more from Waco. Good morning, Ed.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, these sweeping indictments, 106 people in all. And this is a very controversial decision by the district attorney here in Waco, Texas. Many of the bikers and defense attorneys that we've already spoken with over the last couple of hours lashing out at these sweeping indictments.

So a great deal of controversy surrounding them. 106 people indicted in all. Remember, there were 177 bikers arrested that day of the Twin Peaks shootout there back in May of this year and had been quite some time to get to this point. And a lot of criticism levied over the last couple months of why this process was taking so long.

But the district attorney here in Waco coming out late last night and announcing the news of these indictments. And he also says they're still not done.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL REYNA, MCLENNAN COUNTY, TEXAS: We're not done. We still have a lot of work to do. We will continue to do that. My office is dedicated, as is the team, to seeing that justice is done in all of these cases.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: So Carol, remember, there are still nearly 80 other cases that are still awaiting some sort of decision. So far nobody has been no billed, so those cases are all still pending. The grand jury will meet again next week. More of these indictments could be announced then. We'll continue to monitor that as well. But these are serious charges depending on the individual person's case, it could range anywhere from 5 to 99 years in prison -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Ed Lavandera reporting live from Waco, Texas this morning.

[10:44:52] Still to come in the NEWSROOM, many veterans struggle to fit in after they get home. Now a push to get one million vets jobs.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:49:28] COSTELLO: All right. As you can see, it's a beautiful morning at Arlington National Cemetery. Of course, it is Veterans Day, a day to commemorate the men and women who fought in the nation's wars. The U.S. Army Band, you can hear them in the background, they're playing the Prelude concert to today's ceremonies. The wreath-laying at the Tomb of the Unknowns takes place at the top of the hour.

When that happens, of course, we'll bring you back to Arlington National Cemetery live.

Unemployment among veterans is significantly higher than for civilians, and they often struggle to turn their military training into viable job skills. Well, now some big corporations are putting a premium on hiring veterans. CNN money correspondent Cristina Alesci is here with. that story. Good morning.

CRISTINA ALESCI, CNN MONEY CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

200 companies have come together and said they're going to hire one million veterans through a program called Veteran Jobs Mission. And these are some pretty big brands that have signed on -- Pepsico, Southwest Airlines, MGM Resorts, and JPMorgan, which is the biggest bank in the country. I spoke to the CEO about it, and he is committed to seeing this program happen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMIE DIMON, CEO, JPMORGAN: One of the admirals told me once we're great at bringing these kids in, teach them how to work, teach them how to use equipment and weapons. He said but when it's time for them to go, we just kick them out and let them go into the world and they're not completely prepared for this new world.

ALESCI: Even under the best circumstances, service men and women returning from war face huge challenges transitioning to civilian life. But as JPMorgan's CEO Jamie Dimon knows well, vets returning from Iraq and Afghanistan were walking into an economy in shambles.

DIMON: They bore an unbelievable price for the rest of us. And something like 200,000 are coming out of the system every year, and for a while they had very high unemployment rates.

ALESCI: In 2011 joblessness among the youngest bets was 15 percent higher than civilians in the same age group. That's when the private sector and the nation's biggest bank formed Veteran Jobs Mission.

DIMON: I think we all should do this. And there are 200 companies involved in this effort. It started at ten. JPMorgan was one of the founders. But one of the beautiful things is everyone's equal.

We want 1,000 companies, and we want a million jobs. It originally started with 100,000 jobs. We've now actually created 300,000. And we want to help get to the million.

ALESCI: Navy Veteran Jason Beeda (ph) joined JPMorgan as a private banker in 2009, and he helps the companies H.R. team recruit and mentor troops walking off the battlefield and into corporate America.

DIMON: The military does a great job of training their people. That's the purpose, to defend the country. But it is difficult to know really what your options are when you leave the military.

ALESCI: What's not in the manual that you would urge hiring managers to do when they interact with veterans, especially early on?

JAY SEMBIEDA (PH), RETIRED NAVAL AVIATOR: Early on is have patience. Realize, again, the type of stresses that these veterans have had when they were in service. And look beyond that and look at the underlying skills that they bring to the real intangibles that are going to make them a wonderful employee over time. They're going to come with an ethical background. They will have had leadership opportunities very early on in their career. They're going to be disciplined, and they're imminently trainable.

DIMON: The veterans are among the great citizens of America and as you know since 9/11, they've been bearing a tremendous burden for the rest of us. So we want to do our share to bring them back into society and give them jobs so this mission has been a wonderful thing for the company and for the veterans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALESCI: So you saw that chart that has a disparity between the civilians and the veterans. Now, this is still a problem among the youngest group of veterans, those between 24, 20 years old and 24 years old. The unemployment rate for them is still 15 percent -- Carol. That's way above the civilian counterparts in that same age group, 9.4 percent for them. So clearly still a lot of work to be done.

COSTELLO: So it's good for corporate America. 200 companies, you said.

ALESCI: Doing something good today.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. Cristina Alesci -- thanks so much.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the pictures are shocking. A plane crashes into an apartment building in Akron, Ohio. We have new details on why it happened next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:57:47] COSTELLO: The FAA is now investigating that Ohio jet crash that reportedly killed nine people. Dramatic flames from Akron -- the small plane, a company plane, slamming into an apartment building. CNN affiliate WEWS and WOIO reporting the pilot, co-pilot and seven passengers on board died.

CNN's Boris Sanchez has more. Good morning.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning -- Carol. Within the past hour the CEO of Executive Flight confirmed to a

CNN affiliate that all nine people on board were killed. We're still working to identify those that were on board. We know that at least seven were employees of Heb Enterprises. As you mentioned, Carol, the pilot and co-pilot also dead.

Heb Enterprises is a property management business based in Boca Raton, Florida. They put out a statement earlier today writing quote, "We are shocked and deeply saddened for the families, colleagues and friends of those who perished. Our first priority is to give our fullest support to the family members and loved ones of our coworkers."

We should also tell you that officials began excavating the site at about 8:30 this morning. This is an area of Akron that's just northeast of a corporate airport. We know that witnesses said it was a horrific scene. The plane simply falling out of the sky, taking down power lines with it.

You can tell from the video it's kind of gloomy out and cloudy. We know that the FAA and NTSB are probably going to be investigating that. We're expecting a press briefing at noon to hopefully get more information on what happened.

COSTELLO: All right. Boris Sanchez -- many thanks.

I want to take our viewers out to Arlington National Cemetery now. President Obama has arrived to lay the wreath at the Unknowns. Let's listen.

[10:59:57] JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone, I'm John Berman.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone, I'm Kate Bolduan.

We want to welcome our viewers here in the United States and around the world. An important show today for us and a very important day, a salute and a tribute to our nation's veterans for their service and for their sacrifice.

We're looking live right now at the official Veterans Day --

[10:29:42] SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, it's expected about 12,000 students are going to be in attendance. This is called a convocation. This is what happens at Liberty University this evangelical college that these students are actually required to attend.

And what we saw this mor>