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U.S. Markets Open; New Hampshire Primary; Trump Says Cruz Weak on Waterboarding; Order of Protection Filed Against Johnny Manziel. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired February 09, 2016 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: So all of these factors still brewing here. I'll say, Carol, it's not one brand new factor this morning. It's this -- this fear that has been spreading around the globe over and over again since the beginning of the year. The -- watching the closing bell there right at this minute.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, put the board -- put the board -- there it is.

ROMANS: There it is. So there are 30 stocks on the Dow Jonas Industrial average. As they each start to open up, you'll see this pop down here. The futures are down about 180 points, so you'll probably see triple digits quite quickly, Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, and you'll keep us posted.

ROMANS: I will.

COSTELLO: Even if it's bad news.

ROMANS: Yes.

COSTELLO: But make us feel really good about it.

ROMANS: Well, you're buying stocks cheaper now.

COSTELLO: That's true. That's one plus.

ROMANS: When stocks are for sale, that's when you buy them, right?

COSTELLO: Well, if you have the money.

ROMANS: True.

COSTELLO: Christine Romans, thanks so much.

All right, back to New Hampshire now, where a state election official says voter turnout is, quote, "steady" at polling places across the state. CNN's Chris Frates live at a polling station in Hudson, New Hampshire.

We've seen some of the candidates stop by polling places already. I bet they wish they could cast a vote, but, of course, they're going to have to wait to cast a ballot for themselves if their home states. Chris Frates, take it away.

CHRIS FRATES, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Carol. So I'm here in Hudson, New Hampshire, a very busying voting center where they expect 10,000 New Hampshire voters to come out today. There's been about 500 so far. Really steady. You can see behind me, lots of people coming in here to vote.

And I want to bring in a voter right now. Bill Yorkell. Come on in, Bill.

BILL YORKELL, HUDSON, NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTER: Good to be here.

FRATES: So this is Bill Yorkell. He's from Hudson. He's a registered independent. And, Bill, I want to talk to you a little bit. Who -- you're an independent.

YORKELL: Yes.

FRATES: So you could have voted in the Republican or the Democrat primary.

YORKELL: Yes, sir.

FRATES: Talk to me. What did you decide?

YORKELL: Well, I ended up -- I was really torn back and forth throughout the -- all the advertisements we received and so forth. And my wife and I came this morning and we ended up and I finally, as I walked through the door, I decided to vote Republican.

FRATES: And why Republican and not Democratic? What was -- what was the thought process? What swayed you?

YORKELL: Well, I was -- I just -- it was, you know, I wanted to go either way and so forth and I really wanted to -- my original thought was to vote Democratic and then I was going to vote for Bernie against Hillary and so forth because I think she's of the old school. But as I thought about it more and more and I got up to the -- the table, I decided to go Republican because I'm definitely Republican, very conservative, and I ended up voting for John Kasich.

FRATES: Wow, so you --- you went with Kasich. Was there other candidates that you were considering? Why Kasich over the large field that we saw here?

YORKELL: Yes. Well, yes, I was thinking about Ted Cruz and also Christie, basically because they've got something done and so forth. But I went with Kasich basically because, as I watched the news this morning, Kasich was the only one out who went up for Dixville Notch and we're originally from the north country, so that was the determining factor.

FRATES: So, John Kasich campaigned all around this state and he was the only candidate, as you say, to go up to Dixville Notch, which votes first here in New Hampshire. They start voting at 12:00 a.m.. And he made the case that that was going to be important to New Hampshire voters, that him coming around this state and really earning each vote. And when you heard that, it did, in fact, sway you? That was a -- that was a very persuasive argument for you then?

YORKELL: Well, it was. It was -- you know, we -- we're -- we're a small state but we -- we're really independent here. We really try to -- we really like to look people in the eye and see what -- exactly what they're made of.

FRATES: Now, had you ever considered the frontrunner here, Donald Trump?

YORKELL: Not really. Donald's a businessman. He's going to have a business after the election's over and I just didn't think he was the guy that could do it.

FRATES: All right, well, there you go, Carol. Bill Yorkell here with me in New Hampshire, just one of many voters coming out to vote today. Bill, thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate it.

YORKELL: Thank you so much. Have a good day.

FRATES: Back to you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Yes, Bill, thanks so much. Thanks to you, too, Chris Frates.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, a Trump supporters shouts a vulgar insult against Ted Cruz and then Donald Trump repeats it. What do Cruz backers have to say about it? We're talking to one, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:38:12] ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: All right, election day finally here in New Hampshire. Candidates making their final push and pitch to voters. We've been seeing them going to the polling stations already this morning. Our next gust knows all about what it takes to win big here. Judd Gregg is former senator and governor of New Hampshire. With me here in Manchester this morning, a supporter of Jeb Bush, joined by Stephen Duprey, member of the RNC and former chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party.

OK, great to have both of you with me.

STEPHEN DUPREY, MEMBER, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Thank you.

BURNETT: You know, I said, do you want to be senator, do you want to be governor? You said, call me Judd. So I do that at your -- at your request.

JUDD GREGG, FORMER NEW HAMPSHIRE GOVERNOR: Please.

BURNETT: But you think this is going to be record turnout. What is -- turnout usually is above 50 percent, but you think significantly better than that.

GREGG: Yes, I think we're headed towards 60 to 65 percent of the vote. That's pretty -- you know, I mean, New Hampshire people have been listening to this campaign for a long time. They're very engaged in it. Most people have actually gone to a town meeting or even met the candidates. So they want to express themselves. So you're going to see a big vote.

BURNETT: All right, so this morning we've been seeing the candidates, see them go to the various polling stations. We saw Chris Christie. We saw Jeb Bush. Jeb Bush talking about Donald Trump. Let me just play a quick clip of what he said a few moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And the disparaging of people because of their faith or because of their gender or because of their disabilities or because they're a POW, you know, it's just wrong. And he cannot hijack our party. Our party will not win if we're the reactionary party. We'll win if we embrace the Reagan-esque approach to this. People are hurting and I just feel like it's important to stand up to the guy. And I'm the only guy doing it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: You're saying that he has the best ground game, Jeb Bush --

DUPREY: Yes.

BURNETT: Of everyone in the state. Now we're hearing about John Kasich and his hundred town halls, 102, I believe, was the final count when all was said and done, but you do think Jeb Bush had the best ground game?

DUPREY: I do. I mean there -- none of the candidates have a bad ground game. They've all been working it hard for a long time. But it just seems to me that Jeb has the best, although I'm sure a lot of campaigns would argue with that. He's run a very good campaign here.

[09:40:03] BURNETT: And, Judd, what is it about what we just heard Jeb Bush say, talking about the disparaging -- Donald Trump disparaging individuals. Yesterday it was very personal between Jeb Bush and Donald Trump. I mean both of them were very personal and very nasty. What is it, do you think, that has enabled Donald Trump to resonate so much in this state? At least according to polls, he's been the frontrunner from the beginning.

GREGG: Well, first off, I thought yesterday Jeb was right on. I mean basically he said that Donald Trump was paying (ph) pretty -- his language was inappropriate. I mean and it was inappropriate for a presidential candidate and his attacks on John McCain and other veterans were inappropriate.

So what is resonating? Anger. Frustration. People are really frustrated with their government. They're concerned with their security. They're concerned about the threat of terrorism. They're concerned about their personal financial situation, their job. They're most concerned about what we're passing on to our -- to their children. A nation that is less prosperous potentially. And so they want something done about it. And Donald Trump has hit that cord very well, very effectively. And so that I think is one of the reasons why you're seeing him get a vote.

But you've got to remember, I don't think he's going to get more than 30 percent of the vote here. So 70 percent of the people aren't with him in the Republican Party. They're looking for a candidate. They haven't settled on one. I think New Hampshire will help sort of winnow the field, so to say. I think you're going to see Governor Bush and Governor Kasich exceed expectations here and then it's on to South Carolina. So, you know, as strong as Trump has been and as much attention as he's gotten, he's still not attracting a majority of Republicans.

BURNETT: Stephen, is there room, though, for multiple quote/unquote "establishment candidates" to come out of here, for a Kasich, for a Bush, for a Christie, for a Rubio, all to continue?

DUPREY: I think so. I mean New Hampshire is about winnowing people in, not out. We give those lesser known candidates, like a John Kasich or Chris Christie their shot. A Carly Fiorina. But I think it's going to be very tight. I think a number of these candidates will go on. We could find five candidates grouped within a percent or two of each other and four or five could say I'm virtually tied for second and move on.

And that's great. This process should go on. But I think Judd's right, Donald Trump really captured quick -- more quickly and better than any candidate the anger people feel with the government they don't think works or protects them or looks out for them.

BURNETT: Perhaps other than Bernie Sanders is the only other person who seems to have captured that.

DUPREY: I can't tell you the number of independents who say I'm thinking about voting for Bernie Sanders or Donald Trump, which I have a hard time getting my arms around but, the great thing --

GREGG: It's a hard -- hard to get as a -- it's hard to get your hands -- arms around Bernie being next door to him and knowing that he ran has a socialist in Vermont.

DUPREY: Yes.

GREGG: And is a socialist.

DUPREY: Yes.

GREGG: I mean, we're not a socialist country and this is not a socialist state. (INAUDIBLE) a fair state, actually. So it's very interesting. So clearly he's tapped into the anger, not the -- not the rationale of voters I think.

DUPREY: And I will say this, you know, the Clinton campaign says, well, he's a next door neighbor and issue -- we don't vote for Vermont people. We kind of think of them as the upside down state.

BURNETT: Everyone, I guess, has to look at a map if you don't understand what that joke is. You look at the shapes, right? DUPREY: Yes, exactly.

BURNETT: Thank you both very much.

GREGG: Thank you.

BURNETT: All right, Judd Gregg, Stephen Duprey, appreciate your time.

And still to come, Ted Cruz won Iowa. New Hampshire, though, a very different state. He's been coming in, in the top three here in the polls. What is going to happen here in these final hours as the votes come in? One of Ted Cruz's backers is going to be our guest right after this. We'll be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:48:01] COSTELLO: It truly is an election like no other. As New Hampshire voters brave the weather to vote, Donald Trump threw caution to the wind and used a word never used in American politics, at least publicly. The topic was torture, waterboarding, and how Senator Ted Cruz addressed the issue during the GOP debate. Listen as a woman in the crowd calls Senator Cruz an offensive term and then Trump repeats it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She just said a terrible thing. You know what she said?

Shout it out because I don't want to --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

TRUMP: OK. You're not allowed to say, and I never expect to hear that from you again. She said -- I never expect to hear that from you again. She said he's (EXPLETIVE DELETED). That's terrible. Terrible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So last hour, Trump defended his actions during an interview with MSNBC.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We were all just having fun. It was a great moment, I got a standing ovation, the place went wild. Somebody said mixed cheers. Let me tell you, the place went wild.

ANDREA MITCHELL, MSNBC HOST: No, I saw that.

TRUMP: Standing ovation. You know, you're talking about close to 5,000 people. Standing ovation, went totally wild. And all I was doing is repeating, because people couldn't hear it, so I was doing everybody a favor.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: There you have it.

Let's bring in Ted Cruz surrogate, Ken Cuccinelli. Welcome, Ken.

KEN CUCCINELLI, TED CRUZ SURROGATE: Good morning.

COSTELLO: I can't really believe we're talking about this on television but I will ask you. How is Senator Cruz responding to this?

CUCCINELLI: Sort of the headshake and grin. You know, this is the entertainer side of Donald Trump, maybe the rated R version. But nonetheless, this is entertainment not policy. Ted has advanced I think the best and most coherent foreign policy approach, criticizing regime change in Libya, arguing that we shouldn't do it again in Syria, that the overreach by some candidates in terms of no-fly zones is misplaced.

[09:50:05] What we should focus on is crushing ISIS.

I find it a little hard to believe that Donald Trump thinks that's being weak in any way, to use cleaner language, but I think that's a very measured approach that Americans will support, young and old alike. It's supportive of our military, rebuilding a military that we believe this president has undermined.

COSTELLO: Well, let me ask you this, because specifically what he was talking about, Donald Trump I mean, was waterboarding. And during the GOP debate, he said he supports tactics that are worse than waterboarding. What do you suppose Mr. Trump meant by that?

CUCCINELLI: You know, there are a lot of things that are worse than waterboarding, so I'm not real sure. I think you'd have to ask him. I think with waterboarding you're out on the outer edge of what I think most Americans and generally, I think, most candidates would think of as acceptable, including Senator Cruz. But he isn't focusing so much on a single tactic. I think Donald Trump likes to talk about waterboarding and worse, like killing people's mothers, because it sounds tougher. And I suppose it sounds tougher, but is that really how you want your president thinking and talking? And for most Americans, it's not. Ted Cruz has got a much more level-headed approach that is very tough on ISIS and rebuild our military.

COSTELLO: In fairness, Senator Cruz says he wants to make the sand glow and carpet-bomb some places in the Middle East.

CUCCINELLI: Sure, exactly, and targeting ISIS, and there is a place for the heavy application of force. And it's against terrorists we know are there. It isn't against terrorist families and their mothers. That's not a way to defeat terrorism; that's a way to grow terrorism.

COSTELLO: OK, I want to take our viewers just a second out to Bedford, New Hampshire, because Marco Rubio has appeared at a precinct, at a polling station. And as you can see, he's talking to voters there and also will shortly talk to the press. I would suspect then that Senator Cruz will soon do the same thing?

CUCCINELLI: Yes. We've obviously finished very strong in New Hampshire on the ground. Senator Cruz is well-known at this point for having the best grassroots campaign.

COSTELLO: Is Senator Cruz in New Hampshire this morning?

CUCCINELLI: You know, I know he was in today, but he's bouncing around so much, I can hardly keep up with him anymore. But they were following through into New Hampshire all the way to the opening of the polls, so I'm not sure where he is at this moment because he's getting around so very much. So I really can't tell you.

COSTELLO: I think he has a stop at 1:30 Eastern this afternoon. At least that's on my note here.

CUCCINELLI: Yes, I believe he's in the state for most of the day. I don't know how long he'll stay there, whether he'll stay until the votes count or what. But he's been burning it up, getting around, not only Iow and New Hampshire but other states all the way into March states as well.

COSTELLO: I'm just curious as far as where do you think that Senator Cruz will finish in New Hampshire? What would you guys consider a win?

CUCCINELLI: Well, you know, there's a big jumble going on there right now, and the polls were of course wrong in Iowa so I'm not real sure I want to speculate a whole lot, especially with voters now voting. What we're doing today is calling people who we understand to be favorable to Senator Cruz and making sure they turn out in a heavy weather day. Not that they're not used to that in New Hampshire, but we want to do everything we can to help people get to the polls today, which has been a real emphasis Senator Cruz has had all along. And you've heard him comment about that in New Hampshire h.

COSTELLO: All right, I have to leave it there. Ken Cuccinelli, thanks for stopping by.

CUCCINELLI: Good to be with you all.

COSTELLO: You're welcome.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, as voters head to the polls, Chris Christie hustles to drum up support. He's just minutes away from his next campaign stop meeting with campaign volunteers on this critical day. That's ahead as we follow all the candidate this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:58:11] COSTELLO: The ex-girlfriend of Johnny Manziel says the Brown's quarterback hit her so hard he ruptured her left eardrum. Now a Texas judge has ordered Manziel to stay away from her for two years.

Andy Scholes is here with more. Good morning. ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDNET: Yes, good morning, Carol. This was a -- the statements were part of an affidavit filed for an order of protection against the former Heisman Trophy-winner. Now in the papers, Colleen Crowley claims Manziel grabbed her by the hair and threw her in a car. He then hit her with an open hand for jumping out of that car moments before.

Now, all of this was part on an altercation. And during it, Crowley reportedly told a parking valet that she feared for her life.

According to TMZ Sports, Manziel denied the allegations. The Dallas police department announced last week that they're opening a criminal investigation against Manziel. In the meantime, the Browns released a statement last week saying Manziel's status would be addressed, quote, "when permitted by league rules." And what that means, Carol, is right now the Browns can't cut Manziel because of salary cap restrictions. The new league year for the NFL starts on March 9th, and on that day is when the Browns, would be the first time they would be available to release Johnny Football.

COSTELLO: Well, here's a couple of questions. We knew of Johnny Manziel's troubles beforehand, right? So why is this just now happening?

SCHOLES: Well, like I said, because of the salary cap restrictions, if they were to cut him now, they would end up on the hook for more --

COSTELLO: I mean the NFL as a whole, with their domestic violence push. Right?

SCHOLES: Well, the NFL is currently investigating as well what happened here. And if Johnny Manziel were to be signed by another team, surely he would fall under the new discipline policy and I'm guessing, Carol, he would be suspended for a game or two depending on what they find.

COSTELLO: OK. Andy Scholes.

SCHOLES: And that's if a team ever picks him back up.

COSTELLO: I know, I was just going to say, really? Some other team would sign him at this point?

[10:00:03]

I'm not sure.

SCHOLES: Yes, you never know.

COSTELLO: You're right about that. Andy Scholes, thanks so much.

The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts now.