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Sanders, Clinton Trade Blow in Testy Univision Debate; Sanders Court Latino Voters; Trump to Soften Tone in Tonight's GOP Debate; Barack Obama Welcomes Canada's Prime Minister. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired March 10, 2016 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:18] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me. Live from the University of Miami campus where the big GOP debate will be held later tonight.

Right now, though, back in Washington at the White House we're awaiting the arrival of the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. He's there for a full day of events and it's the first official visit by a Canadian prime minister in nearly two decades. Of course we'll keep an eye on this for you.

But we start with a rematch. Bernie Sanders springboards from his huge win in Michigan and boy, did he turn up the heat in Florida. Sanders and Hillary Clinton going toe-to-toe in a debate slug fest shown here on CNN. Both are now fighting for momentum and Hispanic votes ahead of Tuesday's all important primary in Florida and beyond. One small area of agreement, bashing GOP frontrunner Donald Trump. Each were asked, "Is Donald Trump a racist?"

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was the first one to call him out. I called him out when he was calling Mexicans rapists, when he was engaging in rhetoric they found deeply offensive. I said, "basta."

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think that the American people are never going to elect a president who insults Mexicans, who insults Muslims, who insults women, who insults African- Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: CNN's John Berman is here with more of the fiery showdown from last night.

Good morning.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR, "EARLY START": You know, it's interesting. We're here in sunny Florida, right, but it was Michigan casting a shadow over the events. It was the primary, the stunning upset victory from Bernie Sanders that really cast this in a whole new light. Hillary Clinton has been trying to pivot to the general election. She's not trying to pivot anymore.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANDERS: Madam Secretary, I will match my record against yours any day of the week.

BERMAN (voice-over): A new confidence from Bernie Sanders in this new campaign reality. After the huge Sanders upset in Michigan, this could go on for a while.

CLINTON: I've won some, I've lost some.

BERMAN: The debate in Florida the debate sponsored by Univision with sections in Spanish was full of questions on immigration and full of attempted contrasts.

CLINTON: In 2007 one of the first things you did was vote against Ted Kennedy's immigration reform.

SANDERS: I worked very hard in improving the guest worker provisions so that in 2013 people who were in the guest worker program in America would not be treated like slaves.

CLINTON: In 2006 Senator Sanders supported indefinite detention for people facing deportation and stood with the minutemen vigilantes.

SANDERS: What the secretary is doing tonight and has done very often is take large pieces of legislation and take pieces out of it.

BERMAN: Sanders continued to hit Clinton for what he called her ties to Wall Street.

SANDERS: There is a reason why Wall Street has provided $15 million just in the last reporting period to the secretary's super PAC.

CLINTON: I do have the toughest, most comprehensive plan to go after Wall Street.

SANDERS: Clearly the secretary's words to Wall Street have really intimidated them. And that is why they have given her $15 million in campaign contributions.

BERMAN: And Clinton continues to hit Sanders for being what she considers unrealistic.

CLINTON: Senator Sanders has talked about free college for everybody. He's talked about universal single-payer healthcare for everybody. And yet when you ask questions, as many of us have, and more importantly, independent experts, it is very hard to get answers. And a lot of the answers say that, you know, this is going to be much more expensive than anything Senator Sanders is admitting to.

My dad used to say, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

SANDERS: I think if the rest of the world can do it, we can.

BERMAN: Though most of the focus was on each other, there was some looking beyond to Donald Trump.

CLINTON: He's talking about a very tall wall. The most beautiful tall wall, better than the Great Wall of China. It's just fantasy.

BERMAN: And some looking within.

CLINTON: I am not a natural politician, in case you haven't noticed, like my husband or President Obama. So I have a view that I just have do the best I can.

BERMAN: There were few softballs. Clinton was flat-out asked if she would drop out of race if indicted because of her e-mails.

[09:05:01] CLINTON: For goodness, it is not going happen. I'm not even answering that question.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: So they were tough on each other and there were a lot of tough questions like that one right there. You have a sense that both candidates are settling into the positions that they could be taking for a long, long time because this campaign is not about to end. And we may not see them on a debate stage together for a while, if ever.

COSTELLO: We might see them in another town hall. I suspect we will.

BERMAN: Town hall. Yes. Debates are different.

COSTELLO: Exactly. John Berman, many thanks.

All right. So Bernie Sanders isn't just making his appeal to Hispanics voters on that debate stage. He's also doing it in this new five-minute documentary style ad which spotlights immigrant farm workers in Florida. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDERS: How many fields or factories are there? We have to ask ourselves who benefits from this exploitation. And to understand that it is not only the workers who suffer but every worker in America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right. That's five minutes long, right? Unusual. Here now to talk about that and more, John Avlon, editor-in-chief of the "Daily Beast," and Maeve Reston, CNN national political reporter.

Welcome to both of you. John, I'll start with you. That ad is five minutes long. It's a documentary style ad. That's unusual, isn't it?

JOHN AVLON, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, THE DAILY BEAST: It is unusual. And it is geared for the Univision audience. They are trying to go for deeper engagement because Bernie Sanders is facing a deficit when it comes to Latino voters. But he feels that his economic message could make inroads if it's presented the right way. And certainly the soaring background music is something all of us need but especially politicians like Bernie Sanders.

Part of that deficit, by the way, is that he's had a problem historically when it comes to -- certainly in Florida I think we may see this. When it comes to as sort of being cozy and sentimental about Castro and the Sandinistas in the 1980s. So that's a deficit he's got to overcome as well when it comes, at the very least, with the Cuban American population.

COSTELLO: Maeve, I think he's right because I was at a Rubio rally yesterday and a lot of -- yes, a lot of them were Cuban Americans and they do not like Fidel Castro.

MAEVE RESTON, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: Right. And that was a really strong moment for her in the debate last night when she was trying to kind of paint Sanders as this fringe candidate who's too far to the left. So it's a really interesting dynamic there.

And also the voters in the ad that we just saw, you know, Bernie Sanders' campaign is really also aiming for these states coming up ahead like Arizona as well. That ad will run there as well. And he's really trying to make inroads there.

COSTELLO: OK. So maybe he made some inroads yesterday and perhaps Hillary Clinton did as well, although she's doing well among Hispanic voters.

Because, John, both candidates broke from President Obama and promised the audience, largely Hispanic speaking people, that undocumented children will never, never be deported. Right? And remember, couple of summers ago all of those children pouring over the border from Mexico? We have pictures of that I think. You know, that really disturbed a lot of people. Those children were sent back. And some of them are being held at facilities right across the border until officials figure out what do with them.

But both candidates said children like these who pour over the border and are undocumented would never be deported. Is that a promise they can keep?

AVLON: Look, if it is in the context of legislation, it is comprehensive immigration legislation, that is going to be tough to keep because there is going to be some horse trading. Broadly what they both said last night particularly Hillary Clinton is in line with President Obama's policy. You want to prioritize the deportation of people with criminal records. What's different, as you said, is saying that undocumented children will be off limits. That is a shift.

I think it's a -- it's easy to frame as a compassionate shift. But it's, you know, I think, and therefore will be hard to paint as extreme but it's also going to be hard to keep if you try to get legislation through Congress.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. OK. Let's move on to Wall Street because, Maeve, I think one of the best moments for Bernie Sanders is when he talked about how much money Hillary Clinton was making in her speeches to Wall Street and he said, man, that must have been one great speech for her to make $250,000. It was a good moment.

RESTON: Right. Yes. A little bit of humor in there. You know, what's so interesting is that, you know, that's been his strength this entire campaign. Those results coming out of Michigan were so instructive of how he's been connecting with voters on issues like trade, on Wall Street, and we are rolling into these big states coming up like Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, where these same issues, you know, people feel like the economy is really rigged against them, are really going to matter and that's what he's got going for him right now and he's riding that Michigan momentum into it. It will be really fascinating how that plays out.

COSTELLO: And, John, I think Maeve is exactly right. I talked to some Bernie supporters outside of the university, outside of the debate hall last night and they were all about being anti-Wall Street, and anti-big bank, and they loved Bernie Sanders message on the economy and his love for everyone as they said.

[09:10:05] AVLON: Well, look, it is fascinating because particularly, you know, we've seen things that have been broadly sacred cows of American foreign policy like free trade that are now coming under real attack and questioning even on the Republican side of the aisle. But as Maeve just said and as you well know, the upcoming Super Tuesday states are deep in the heart of rustbelt union country and so it's going to be a real test for how they can connect with that element of the Democratic base while still keeping a core of their convictions that they've had in the past particularly on Hillary Clinton's side. She flipped on TPP but she's got to show that she's going to continue that commitment to the union community in the White House. It's a tough line to walk for her.

COSTELLO: All right. I have to leave it there. John Avlon, Maeve Reston, thanks both of you.

I want to bring our viewers to Washington, D.C. because there's some big things going on right now. The president and the first lady are now welcoming the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Of course we'll keep an eye on this but this is the first official visit of a Canadian prime minister in 19 years.

Justin Trudeau has captured the imagination of many here in this country because of his climate policies and also I must say because of -- oh, I'll just say it because of the way he looks. We'll keep you posted.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, Donald Trump says this race is over if he takes Florida and Ohio. And with just hours to go until the CNN debate, did the stakes just get higher for his rivals?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:15:46] COSTELLO: Hi, I'm Carol Costello live here in beautiful Miami, Florida. Donald Trump says clinching the GOP nomination is a done deal if he wins Florida and the State f Ohio. That bold statement coming just hours before tonight's CNN Republican debate, which will be held here at the University of Miami. It will be the last time the GOP rivals square off Tuesday's before winner-take-all contest.

During a one-on-one interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper, Mr. Trump said voters should expect a softer tone on the debate stage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think this is going to be much different. Now, I may be wrong, but I am now far and away the front-runner.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: You're be ready for anything?

TRUMP: I think it's going to be softer, but I'll be ready. I mean, you know, I think that Marco is going to be a different person. Marco has been, you know, mortally wounded. You know, question is, will Marco even be there? I hope he makes the right decision. I'm not going to make the decision for him. But Marco has been, you know, pretty, badly wounded. It will be interesting to see what happens

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It sure will. Let's bring in Sara Murray to talk more about this. So do you think it will be a softer tone in tonight's debate?

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Well he is predicting a softer tone. And you have to imagine that anything will be softer than the last debate, right? When we're talking about how rowdy it was and how vulgar it was. But Donald Trump has a way of saying he's going to take a softer tone, and he's going to say he's going to be above the fray, and then to do something completely different. And that's exactly what we saw at his campaign event last night. He started taking swipes at John Kasich. I think woe might have some sound of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: And we, as you know, we have Ohio, where you have an absentee governor. Absentee. And we're going to have -- no, we're going to have -- I think we're going to do great in Ohio. We'll do great, great, great in Ohio.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MURRAY: Kind of amazing to see Donald Trump attacking John Kasich now. He's sort of resisted that until that point, but I think it is a reflection of Kasich's rising poll numbers.

COSTELLO: That's right. Kasich's ahead in Ohio, right?

MURRAY: He's ahead. And so we might still see some heat on the debate stage even though Trump says he's going play nice.

COSTELLO: OK, so poor Marco Rubio. I was at a campaign rally for Marco Rubio in his home state and it was not well attended. And I asked people about, you know, him becoming the attack dog and they wouldn't say it but you could tell that this was something they didn't like.

MURRAY: Yes. You just -- it doesn't play as well on Marco Rubio as it does on Donald Trump. But even Donald Trump has acknowledged this. Maybe it's the double standard, but now even Rubio is coming out and saying he regrets that he has taken this harsh tone. Let's take a listen to what he said last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: In terms of things that have to do with personal stuff. Yes, at the end of the day, you know, it's not something I'm entirely proud of. My kids were embarrassed by it. And if I had to do it again I wouldn't.

This is a guy who's basically offended everyone for a year. I mean literally has mocked a disabled journalist, a female journalist., every minority group imaginable -- on a daily basis. I mean, you run -- it comes -- usedprofanity from the stage. That said, yes, I don't want to be that. If that's what it takes to become President of the United States, then I don't want to be president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MURRAY: And, Carol, I think this really sets the stage for tonight. Because it doesn't mean the candidates are going to suddenly get along, that they're not going to disagree, but I think candidates like Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are going to try to draw a contrast with Trump, saying that he is substance free, that he hasn't sort of elaborated on his policies.

COSTELLO: Wait, you mean they're going talk issues?

MURRAY: They might actually talk issues. But I think this is Rubio acknowledging that you can't really get down in the dirt like Trump has done and expect to come out clean on the other side.

COSTELLO: Unless you're Donald Trump.

MURRAY: Unless you're Donald Trump.

COSTELLO: Sara Murray, thanks for stopping by.

During Anderson Cooper's interview with Donald Trump, the GOP front runner who previously called for a ban on Muslims entering the United States took aim at the religion once again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Do you think Islam is at war with the west?

TRUIMP: I think Islam hates us. There is something -- there is something there that is a tremendous hatred there. There's a tremendous hatred. We have to get to the bottom of it. There's an unbelievable hatred of us.

COOPER: In Islam itself? TRUMP: You're going to have to figure that out. OK. You'll get another Pulitzer, right?

[09:20:01] But you're going to have to figure that out. But there's a tremendous hatred. And we have to be very vigilant. We have to be very careful. And we can't allow people coming into this country who have this hatred of the United States.

COOPER: I guess the question is ...

TRUMP: And of people that are not Muslim.

COOPER: I guess though the question is, is there a war between the west and radical Islam or between the west and Islam itself?

TRUMP: Well, it's radical but it's very hard to define. It's very hard to separate because you don't know who is who.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right so let's talk about that and more with Republican strategist and former spokesman for Governor Jeb Bush, Justin Sayfie. I'm also joined by Trump supporter Jeff DeWit. Welcome to both of you.

OK, so Jeff, I'll start with you. Why didn't Mr. Trump draw a clear distinction between the Muslim faith as a religion and radical Islamic terrorism?

JEFF DEWIT, TRUMP SUPPORTER: Well, there is -- you know, it is the radical Islamists that are the ones trying to kill us, that hate America and, you know, September 11, San Bernardino, all that, stems from radical Islam. And there is a distinction and it is important to make one. So I think that's, you know, I think everybody --

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Did Mr. Trump make one when he said there's hatred within Islam? Did he make that distinction and we all just misunderstood?

DEWIT: Well, as you said, hatred within Islam means a subset of the religion believes different things and is -- quite frankly wants to kill Americans. And so we have to defend ourselves. One of the main jobs of the government is to defend our citizens and that is a real and present threat and it must be dealt with.

COSTELLO: Justin, according to the Pew Research Center, there are 1.6 billion Muslims in the world who practice their faith. How do you think they took Donald Trump's comments?

JUSTIN SAYFIE, FORMER SPOKESMAN FOR GOV. JEB BUSH: Well, I think most Muslims and around the world are peace loving people. We have a number of Muslims here in the United States. Many serve in the military, United States military, defend and protect the United States. They probably didn't take those well, but at the same time, I think when Donald Trump was pressed, he did indicate that he thought it was radical Islamists that have the problem.

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: He actually told Anderson Cooper to try to figure out and he'd win a Pulitzer.

SAYFIE: Well, yes, but then after that, he said -- I think -- after that, when Anderson really pressed him a third time he said he thought it was radical. So I think that -- I'm sure Mr. Trump will have opportunity to clarify his comments later, but clearly that's something that most Republicans and most Americans don't agree with.

COSTELLO: OK, so next question. The former CIA director and four star general Michael Hayden has slammed Mr. Trump on his foreign policy ideas. I want you just to listen to another portion of Anderson's interview where Mr. Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: When you say increase the laws and do more than water boarding, what is that specifically?

TRUMP: I'll work it with the generals. I'll work wit the generals.

COOPER: I talked to General Michael Hayden.

TRUMP: For sure he says it's terrible that we talk that way. And, you know, what that's why he's been fighting this war for many years. OK.

COOPER: He is the Four-Star General --

TRUMP: I don't care, I don't care.

COOPER: Former CIA. Former Head of the NSA. He says your foreign policy ideas are frightening.

TRUMP: Oh, yeah, I know. Well, his -- he frightens me because we've been fighting ISIS for many years and this shouldn't have taken -- this should have been over with quickly. So that's the problem we have these people that they're frightened because I'm protecting the terrorists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So Jeff, is Mr. Trump saying Hayden doesn't know how to fight ISIS? Doesn't know what he's doing? What is he trying to say?

DEWIT: There is still not a clear line between what is torture -- if you're talking about the waterboarding and everything -- what is not torture and what is not torture. And it's apparent with other candidates. Ted Cruz in the debate in December said he would not allow torture in any form, and then early January clarified and said, well, waterboarding is not torture. And he went on to say anything short of the pain of removing an organ is not torture. So with Ted Cruz, you have either a flip-flop or a deep misunderstanding of that issue. So there's -- what really needs to happen is that Congress needs to sit down and get to work and address where do we draw the line and what is that? And what form should our government take to get the information to try to save American lives?

COSTELLO: OK, I'm going to have to interrupt the interview for a second because President Obama is now speaking at the White House. As you know, the prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, is visiting. For the first time in 20 years a prime minister from Canada is visiting so let's listen to some of President Obama's remarks.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATSE: -- Ottawa in February. In the snow.

So our friends from the Great White North gave me a very warm welcome. And Mr. Prime Minister, we hope to reciprocate some of that warmth today with your first official visit south of the border.

We're joined today by proud Canadian-Americans. We are family. And this is also a special day for the many Canadians who live and work here in America and who enrich our lives every day.

[09:25:06] We don't always realize it, but so often that neighbor, that coworker, that member of the White House staff, some of our favorite artists and performers, they're Canadian. They sneak up on you. Even as we remember what makes us unique, Americans and Canadians, we see ourselves in each other. We're guided by the same values, including our conviction that the blessings we cherish as free people are not gifts to be taken for granted but are precious freedoms that have to be defended anew by every generation.

Americans and Canadians, our brave men and women in uniform, have paid the price together across a century sacrifice -- from the poppy fields of Flanders to the rugged mountains of Afghanistan. As NATO allies we stand united against terrorism and for the rights of nations like Ukraine to determine their own destiny. As leaders at the United Nations, we stand up for peace and security and the human rights of all people.

Our shared values also guide us at home. I'm proud to be the first American president to stand with a Canadian prime minister and be able to say that, in both our nations, healthcare is not a privilege for a few but is now a right for all.

(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)

And as two vast and vibrant societies, we reaffirm that our diversity is our strength. Whether your family was among the first native people to live on this land or refugees we welcomed just yesterday. Whether you pray in a church or synagogue or temple or mosque. Where no matter who province or state you live in, you have the freedom to marry the person that you love.

(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)

Now, I don't want to gloss over the very real differences between Americans and Canadians. There are some things we will probably never agree on. Whose beer is better? Who's better at hockey?

(LAUGHTER)

Where's the Stanley Cup right now? I'm sorry, is it in my hometown with the Chicago Blackhawks? In case you were wondering, in case you Canadians were wondering, where is it? Ha ha ha.

And this visit is special for another reason. Nearly 40 years ago on another March morning, another president welcomed a Canadian prime minister here to the White House. That day Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau said the United States is Canada's best friend and all ally. And one of the reasons he said is we have a common outlook on the world. Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau carries on this work. As prime minister, your election and the first few months in office have brought a new energy and dynamism not only to Canada but the relationship between our nations. We have a common outlook on the world and I have to say I have never seen so many Americans so excited about the visit of a Canadian prime minister.

(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)

So with this visit, I believe that the United States and Canada can do even more together. Even more to promote the trade and economic partnerships that provide good jobs and opportunities for our people. Even more to ensure the security that so many Americans and Canadians count on so that they can live in safety and freedom. Even more to protect our countries and our community, especially in the arctic, from climate changed, just as we acted together at Paris to reach the most ambitious agreement in history to fight climate change.

(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)

And, guided by our values, we can do even more together to advance human development around the world. From saving a child from a preventable disease to giving a student in Africa electricity to study by, because as Americans and Canadians we believe in the inherent dignity of every human being.

[09:30:06] As always, our work as nations remains rooted in the friendship between our people, and we see that every day in communities along our shared border.