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Michigan Governor Rick Snyder Faced the Media to Reveal Team of Experts and Defend His Administration; Donald Trump Will Not Attend Republican Debate at Fox News. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired January 27, 2016 - 15:30   ET

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


[15:30:00] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: And today he faced the media to reveal a team of experts and defend accusations against him and his administration.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RICK SNYDER (R), MICHIGAN: This is about working together to address this issue. Last week in my state of the state I gave history, I apologized. I talked about the background of all of this. This is about continuing to take action. Now is the time to act, to do things to help the people of Flint address the damage that's been done both in the short-term, the immediate term and the long term. And I'm committed to getting that done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: And Poppy Harlow, she is live in Michigan. She sat one on one, had a conversation with Governor Snyder. Her full interview airs tonight on "AC 360."

But give me a preview. What did he say?

POPPY HARLOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sure. I mean, look. This is a governor, Brooke, who is called this a terrible tragedy. He has apologized multiple times. He says this is a failure of his government. But at the same time in an interview last week he said that 100 children have lead poisoning here in Flint. What does that do to them? It lowers their IQ. It leads them to adverse behavior. It can lead them to criminality. It has multigenerational effects. Basically, bottom line, it is irreversible. So the big question I had when I sat down with him today, Brooke, is there even more kids now poisoned?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNYDER: And so that's the problem here is we know the ones that have higher levels to do appropriate follow up care. It is really, we need to establish the right medical protocols, the public health pieces, the educational process thing. To watch these kids for years that didn't have higher blood levels in terms of a blood test because they could be affected.

HARLOW: So you are saying there is 100 children as of now who have tested for these high levels of lead. SNYDER: Yes.

HARLOW: But because it's harder to test for it after an extended period of time there could be many more.

SNYDER: Many more, and we are assuming that.

HARLOW: You are assuming many more?

SNYDER: Yes.

HARLOW: So, say we are sitting back here in five years, will those lead pipes be replaced?

SNYDER: Well, I hope a lot of work has been done on this topic. It's too soon to tell because I can't tell you how many pipes and where they are. But as a proactive now, we should be working on it.

HARLOW: Wouldn't it be the safest thing, governor? I mean, given what they have been through?

SNYDER: It's the safest thing. It is a question of how to work through in the best fashion to make sure we are getting all the resources. Because I view this water system as critical.

HARLOW: What would stand in the way of them, other than money? What would stand in the way of replacing them?

SNYDER: Well, we have got statewide issue, too, in terms of lead pipes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARLOW: And here's the thing, Brooke. I mean, one of the young men I met on the street here in Flint said to me, bottom line, he and the people in government put money over people. They value money over us. And that is the sentiment among so many people here. You heard in that exchange he is not committing to replacing all the lead pipes. They are examining it right now. But every day that goes by that they are examining it, is more and more days that people can't drink their water here.

The doctor who discovered the lead here, Brooke, told me that it is going to take a $100 million commitment by this government to give the kids what they need, which is pre-k, universal edition health. Early childhood education. The health care, the nutrition that can at least help counter the effect of lead poisoning that you can never fully reverse.

BALDWIN: People have been furious for months and months and months. And I would be curious to see how he responds to, you know, calls for his resignation. We will have to tune in and watch tonight, Poppy Harlow your interview with the governor there in Michigan. "AC 360" tonight at 8:00 eastern here in CNN.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for that. Coming up next, they both have a background in business. They both

used their own money to finance their campaigns. We will talk to the governor in Florida, Rick Scott about Donald Trump's campaign and whether he is ready to endorse a candidate yet.

Plus, a rare sit-down Ted Cruz's wife Heidi Cruz who tells CNN just how much she has done to raise money for her husband's presidential run. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:38:13] BALDWIN: The headline today in the political sphere, Donald Trump versus FOX News. But his endorsements keep rolling in during these key final days before Iowa and the New Hampshire. But what about the crucial swing state of Florida? Its governor there, Rick Scott, has written about Trump saying and I quote "I don't think his ability to give the most interesting interviews or speeches is the only thing that has him leading in the polls. I think he is capturing the frustration of many Americans after seven years of President Obama's very intentional takeover of the U.S. economy.

Let me bring him in now, the governor of Florida, Rick Scott.

Governor Scott, thank you for joining us.

GOV. RICK SCOTT (R), FLORIDA: Brooke, it is great to be here. But you know, you need to come to Florida. The weather is better. You have to wear those heavy --.

BALDWIN: Would you tell my boss? Because they are sending me to Iowa tomorrow.

SCOTT: That's going to be cold.

BALDWIN: I appreciate that, thank you.

Let me just begin with, I know that you have said thus far, you know, you wanted to endorse anyone the fourth of primary in March. But in that piece I read, sounded like maybe you are supporting Donald Trump. Are you ready to endorse him live here with me?

SCOTT: Well, I might endorse before the primary. I'm undecided. I'm probably like most voters who are saying we want somebody who is going to create a market for jobs. We need more jobs. That's what I did in my race. It's the most important thing we can do. We have got a lot of great candidates. We have a lot from Florida. Jeb Bush, Mark Rubio, some governors I have work with, John Kasich and Chris Christie. We got a lot of people in the race. But I'm looking for a specific job plan that probably 12 million jobs over the next four years. That's what we need in this country.

BALDWIN: So who is the jobs guy?

SCOTT: Say that again.

BALDWIN: Who is the jobs guy? SCOTT: Well, I think it's early. I think, you know, there is a lot

of focus on foreign policy. So I'm like a lot of voters. I'm listening.

BALDWIN: You know, you say you know Donald Trump personally. Can you tell me something about him, something perhaps you admire about him that the rest of America may not know?

[15:40:05] SCOTT: You know, I have gotten to know his daughter Ivanka a little bit. She is a nice young lady. I have met his wife. Has as a nice family. And I love it when they spend time in Florida, spend all their money, I like all the tourists who come in Florida. But we have got a lot of good people in the race.

BALDWIN: On politics, the headline as I mentioned, Trump not showing up at that debate tomorrow night, the FOX debate in Iowa. You yourself had also threatened not show up for a debate. We pulled this out of the archives.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have been told that Governor Scott will not be participating in this debate. Now, let me explain what this is all about. Governor Cryst has asked to have a fan, a small fan, placed underneath his paid podium. The rules of the debate that I was shown by the Scott campaign say that there should be no fan. Somehow, there is a fan there, and for that reason, ladies and gentlemen, I am being told that Governor Scott --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Really?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Really?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will not join us for this debate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: All right. A little bit of drama in 2014. Here's the difference. You eventually -- you did show up. You did debate that night. Do you think Donald Trump, governor, should change his mind, show up on that debate stage tomorrow night in Iowa? What advice would you give him?

SCOTT: Sure. Well, in my case I showed up to the debate. We went on to have a big win that year a couple years ago. Here's the way I think about it. I think we, wish the national party wasn't as restrictive on their debates and the location and how many. But every candidate has to think for themselves. Everybody is different, whether it's debates or forums or town halls, everybody has to figure out for themselves how to get their message out. And every campaign has a different approach to doing it.

BALDWIN: Do you think he should show up last minute?

SCOTT: I think he can decide that for himself, you know. I figured out how to get my message out and it worked for me. BALDWIN: Tomorrow night, could, you know, finally be this moment you

mentioned, you know, two lawmakers from your state want to be president, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio. You will finally hear. This could be their opportunity. Trump is gone, really they step up in the spotlight and shine. How should they do that most effectively, governor?

SCOTT: I think where Jeb has done well in Florida is education. We are at 12-year high in high school graduation rates. He did a great job with that. And I think what Marco Rubio has done a good job is really top into the American public about why we should continue the embargo against the Castro brothers. I mean, they don't believe in political freedom. They are pressing their own people. So I think Marco is doing a great job with that.

BALDWIN: Florida governor Rick Scott, see you in Florida down the line, alright.

SCOTT: I look forward to seeing you in warm weather.

BALDWIN: All right. Thank you, sir.

Coming up next on the Democrat side here, senator Bernie Sanders had a one on one with President Obama today at the White House. What the senator said about the potential for an endorsement.

Plus, Donald Trump bails on the FOX News debate. So should the moderators ignore his role in the race all together? We'll talk to former CNN debate moderator Jake Tapper to get his opinion coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:47:39] BALDWIN: Five days out from the Iowa caucuses, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders says he believes he will win if voter turnout is high. CNN's latest poll of polls out today shows senator Sanders and Hillary Clinton locked in a virtual dead heat.

Today, Sanders met with President Obama at the White House. Days after the president heaped high praise on Hillary Clinton in an interview with politico. Still Sanders says he doesn't believe the president is taking sides and that he was not at the White House seeking an endorsement.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What the president has tried to do, what vice president Biden has tried to do, is to be as even handed as they can be. And I know there was some discussion the other day about a Politico interview where he was tipping the scale towards Secretary Clinton. I don't believe that at all. I think he and the vice president have tried to be fair and even handed in the process. And I expect they will continue to be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: CNN chief Washington correspondent, host of "the LEAD," host of the "STATE OF THE UNION," Jake Tapper, joining me now.

What do you think the president said to senator Sanders today?

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: He probably tried to reassure him that he didn't intend to sound as though he was pushing Hillary Clinton in that pod cast interview with (INAUDIBLE) of Politico. And that he -- I'm sure they talked about life on the campaign trail and the similarities between their canes campaigns and the differences. But I think more important perhaps, is what Sanders wants us to take away from it.

BALDWIN: What is that?

TAPPER: Not even us, but what wants Democratic voters in Iowa and New Hampshire to take away, which is there is no daylight between Sanders and Obama. It's not as though he is running against Obama. It's not as though he is anything other than proud against Obama. Because one of the things Hillary Clinton has been doing is hugging Obama as much as possible in debates and on the campaign trail and trying to paint Bernie Sanders as somebody who wants to undo Obamacare. As somebody who sought to primary challenge Obama in 2011-2012. And so Bernie Sanders wants to send a message that that's not what's going on. And he is very proud of the president. He wants to build on what the president did. Kind of the contrary message to what we are hearing from Hillary Clinton.

BALDWIN: OK. On the flip side, on the Republican side, and you are the one who moderated our first Republican debate at the Reagan library. And I'm curious, I mean, here, what 48 hours before FOX is to go on, the front-runner of the party will be a no-show so far. How would that change your tactics?

[15:50:09] TAPPER: I would have to cross off all the questions for Trump.

BALDWIN: You cross them all. You would delete them.

TAPPER: Right. But he's still the front-runner. He still a huge presence and he still saying things on the campaign trail that deserve discussion, one way or the other. I mean, when I did the undercard debate back in September with the four people who didn't make the main stage, I asked about Donald Trump because Donald Trump was the front- runner. And you know, like it or not, it's changing the conversation when he brings up topics, whether it is about ISIS or immigration. He is affecting all the other campaigns and media coverage. And so, you can't ignore it. You have to talk about it.

I mean, I do think that the Trump people have been really pointing out that that statement that the FOX News channel put out Tuesday night, which was pointed, shall we say, some might even say snarky, taking digs at Donald Trump, if I were part of the debate I would avoid that tone as much as possible. You want to be -- nobody is supposed to be who you're rooting for --

BALDWIN: You're supposed to be a journalist. TAPPER: Yes. You're not supposed to be rooting for or against

anybody. And nobody is supposed to be able to I get accused every day of being against and for every single person in this race.

BALDWIN: But that's always the biggest compliment because if you're getting hit from all sides, to me, that says you're doing your job.

TAPPER: Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn't. But I'll take the compliment. Thank you very much.

BALDWIN: Jake Tapper, see you at the top of the hour.

TAPPER: All right. Cool.

BALDWIN: Thank you very much.

Coming up next here, we are going to hear from Ted Cruz's wife who talks to CNN about her role in her husband's campaign. She talks about her first date with the Republican candidate and what she says he needed to know before they got serious. We'll talk to Dana Bash about that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:55:54] BALDWIN: In a revealing interview with the wife of Republican candidate Ted Cruz talks to CNN about everything from her intense fund-raising efforts for her husband's White House bid to fond memories of how the two met, and unexpected questions senator Cruz asked during their first date. Here you go.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Do you have any idea how much money you personally have raised?

HEIDI CRUZ, WIFE OF GOP PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE SEN. TED CRUZ: I don't know exactly how much money I have raised but I did make 600 calls the first quarter.

BASH: Six hundred calls?

CRUZ: But there's so many people who have made so many more calls for us. I just really have to use this opportunity to thank all of those.

BASH: But most of them are not married to the candidate.

CRUZ: Well, even more so. I should be doing even more, right?

BASH: OK. So let's talk about when you first met him. You were working on the George W. Bush campaign and so was he and I have heard you said it was love at first sight?

CRUZ: It was love at first sight. I remember me introduced to Ted. I'm looking, I'm thinking, of course, a first thought is what is the person -- what is your sense of them, how are they reacting to you, and Ted just seemed to be interesting. He was a good-looking guy. He greeted me with a smile. We started working together. And I found ted incredibly compelling, because he had this very unique combination of being the smartest person I had ever met, on substance, on explaining fundamentals, on articulating things, on writing them out, on getting it done. But he, also, was also the first guy to say hey, let's take a break. Go to a movie and let's have some fun. And it's very rare that you find someone who doesn't take themselves too seriously. He was a great (INAUDIBLE), really fun to be around.

BASH: I read that on your first date Ted Cruz asked you what's your 10-year plan, what's your 20-year plan? Boy, that sounds like a turn- on, how did you resist him?

(LAUGHTER)

CRUZ: Well, that's only a small part of Ted, is the planner that he is.

BASH: Is that true, did that happen?

CRUZ: It is true that that happened.

BASH: It sounds like a job interview.

CRUZ: Fortunately, I am more of a planner than he is much to his, (INAUDIBLE) these days. Ted is (INAUDIBLE). Ted wants to his likely all live on this earth for a limited period of time and Ted is going to make sure that he uses it to his fullest. And so he maps out what he's going to do.

BASH: Were you taken aback when he asked you that?

CRUZ: No, I'm probably a little more like that myself, unfortunately. So I was interested that he asked the question. Not many people engage in that question.

BASH: That's true.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: That is hilarious, Dana Bash. What is your 10-year plan? Yes, baby.

BASH: You get that all the time, right, Brooke Baldwin?

BALDWIN: Of course. I mean, it's an awesome interview, you get personal, which was appreciated. What was the biggest surprise with Heidi Cruz?

BASH: Well, let's just say that I have been trying to get this interview with her for about a year. So I think the biggest surprise is that I finally did. And the reason is because I think it was, you know, clear there and there were other parts where we talked, you know, more substance and more politics. But she is just to me one of the most fascinating characters in the 2016 race because, you know, Ted Cruz, for better or worse, has gotten this rap as being just like not a nice guy or likeable guy. And she was saying that's just not true. When he's out with other people, which I agree, I have watched that, but also don't you want to know who was married to him? I mean, I think anybody who is even the least bit interested in politics and watching him would be fascinated to know what kind of woman is married to him. And she is one impressive person, just in terms of her resume. She's a Harvard MBA. She was an executive and is at Goldman Sachs. She's on a leave of absence now. So I think, you know, just sitting down with her and having a conversation and the fact that she was very natural and comfortable was fascinating.

BALDWIN: Fifteen seconds, what did she say about Trump?

BASH: She was very much on message, just like her husband, saying that he's going after him on Goldman Sachs, on the loan there, on the fact that he was born in Canada for one reason and one reason only and that is because he's doing well in the polls.

BALDWIN: OK. By the way, she said yes because you're Dana Bash, CNN, that's why.

BASH: I wish.

BALDWIN: Dana Bash, thank you very much. I appreciate it.

And thank you all for being with me. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Now to Jake Tapper. "The LEAD" starts now.