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Tod Palin Seriously Hurt; Florida Primary; Russia Pulls out of Syria; Voters in Illinois are Heading to the Polls Right Now. Aired 9:30-10a ET
Aired March 15, 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] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Make it home quickly, but she couldn't catch a plane out of Tampa right away, so she stopped to stump for Donald Trump, firing up his audience as only she can.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: What we don't have time for is all that petty, punk-ass (ph) little thuggery stuff that's been going on with these quote/unquote protesters who are doing nothing but wasting your time and trying to take away your First Amendment rights, your rights to assemble peacefully.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Stephanie Elam is covering all things Palin for us today.
Good morning.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
Yes, she had time to make that stop there in Tampa, but she did not continue on to stump for Trump as she was supposed to go to another place in Florida and then go to Ohio. She didn't do that because she had to get back to Alaska to be with her husband.
Now, Todd Palin had this accident Sunday night. We know that he's intensive care -- he's in intensive care. Sarah Palin herself putting up on FaceBook that he was undergoing surgery for all of those bones. And you mentioned some of them. Those fractured ribs included in some of this, broken ribs, shoulder blade, a clavicle broken, knee and leg injuries. So lots of injuries that he sustained there.
She mentioned it briefly in that Tampa stop. Here's what she had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: My husband was out snow machining and -- thank you guys for your prayers for my husband, who is recovering right now in ICU after a little wreck on a snow machine. So, thank you. A big wreck. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ELAM: Yes, I think big wreck would probably be the way to go here. Now, she also posted on FaceBook saying, quote, "knowing Todd, once he's cognizant, he'll probably ask docs to duct tape him up and he'll call it good. He's tough," end quote. And just one point of clarity here, Carol, because people keep going, what the heck is a snow machine. In Alaska, that's a snowmobile. That's what us contiguous folks would call it.
COSTELLO: I asked that myself this morning. Stephanie Elam, many thanks to you.
And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.
We're about two and a half hours into voting for Florida. For Senator Marco Rubio, today's primary is a make or break moment. Victory in his home state means surviving to see another day, while losing could mean the end of the road.
Let's bring in CNN's Kyung Lah. She's in Miami this morning.
Good morning.
KYUNG LAH, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
It is make or break time. The winner-take-all primary here in the state. And it is Marco Rubio where he needs to prove himself.
We're in the center of the county that he has got to win, Miami-Dade. What we have seen so far at this polling place, just two and a half hours into voting, it's been a bit slow but looks are deceiving because if you look at the early voting figures, the absentee figures that are still coming in, those votes being turned in by mail, well, this response here, the turnout here in this county has been high. It has been more than expected. So Rubio is expected to do quite well here in this county.
But then if you look at what's happening further north, that's where you get a bit of a different story. The counties up north are a bit more anti-establishment. Those counties did not turn out in 2012. They are turning out this time around in early voting. Those counties expected, Carol, to go to Trump.
Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Kyung Lah reporting live from Miami this morning. Thank you.
With me now, Florida's governor, Rick Scott.
Welcome, sir.
GOV. RICK SCOTT (R), FLORIDA: Good morning. The polls are open. It's an exciting day in Florida. Everyone's going out to vote. We've had a big increase in absentee and early voting. It's a -- it's a big day. And as you know, Florida decides the nation. How Florida goes, generally that's where the nation's going to go.
COSTELLO: Well, I think Ohio might argue with you there, but I know you're a Floridian, so I totally understand. Governor, have you cast your ballot yet?
SCOTT: I represent Florida. Absolutely, I did. I did absentee ballot. The -- I did that about a week -- a week ago. My wife did hers at the same time. So -- but it's -- it's an exciting day.
I just got off the phone with the secretary of state's office. We have no reports of fraud, no reports of irregularities. I'll be monitoring the race all day long. We're open till 7:00 p.m. tonight. And it's going to be an exciting day.
COSTELLO: OK. I just want to -- I just asked you if you cast your vote because you haven't endorsed anyone on the Republican side and I wondered why.
SCOTT: Go -- go back to 2010. I was a business person never having run for office again. I was the outsider. They had -- the Republican establishment had picked their candidate. They wanted me to get out of the race. They called on me from D.C. and around the state. I stayed in it. I relied on the voters. I'm doing the same thing this year. I'm going to wait and watch what the voters decide. I think the race is going to come down to who the voters believe about jobs.
COSTELLO: But wait a minute, sir, you just -- you just described -- you just described -- you just described Donald Trump. So did you cast your ballot for him?
[09:35:06] SCOTT: Well, if I'm -- if I'm -- if I'm not announcing my endorsement, I'm not going to announce how I voted. But I -- I trusted the voters in 2010. And I'm going to trust the voters this year. I think it's going to come down to, who do they believe is going to help our country get back to work.
COSTELLO: I'm just curious as to why you're not endorsing anyone this time around?
SCOTT: Carol, I went back -- go back to 2010. I watched this. I watched the establishment say they wanted to pick their candidate. I was not their candidate. I relied on voters. I really believe that's the right approach for me because of what -- because my background, I trust voters. They're going to make a good decision today. I do think it's going to be about jobs.
COSTELLO: Because you -- you don't want to influence voters then? Is that -- is that the reason, you don't want to influence the voters in your state to -- and you want them to vote for whoever they wish?
SCOTT: I trust them. I trusted them in 2010 and 2014. I was -- I've never been the establishment candidate. I guess I was when I ran for re-election to a certain extent. But I clearly wasn't in 2010 and I trusted voters. And that's what I'm going to do. It's going to be an exciting day. I think it's going to -- again, I think it's going to come down to jobs. We've added a million jobs in five years. It's still a big issue in our state. I know it's a bigger issue around the country.
COSTELLO: Uh-huh. You know that the polls show on the Republican side that Donald Trump is probably going to win Florida. He leads in most polls out there. And, of course, the anti-Trump people are really pushing back. In fact, they released an anti-Trump super PAC ad that's running on television today and I'd like you to listen to it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know it really doesn't matter what they write, as long as you've got a young and beautiful piece of (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That must be a pretty picture, you dropping to your knees.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her -- wherever.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Women, you have to treat them like (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So it's a series of women kind of saying things that Trump said about women in the past. Do you think the ad is effective?
SCOTT: I haven't seen -- Carol, I haven't seen that ad. I know that when I ran in 2010, I still think the issue is going to come down to who people believe is going to help people get to work. That's the biggest issue. I -- I grew up in a family -- I lived in public housing growing up. I grew up in a family that struggled for work.
COSTELLO: So -- so -- no, no, I get it.
SCOTT: That's the biggest issue.
COSTELLO: But you're saying that -- you're saying that the voters in Florida and in much of the country don't much care what Donald Trump says about women, they care more about their paychecks?
SCOTT: Oh, I think it's important, you know, how -- what you say about everybody. You know, when I ran, I tried to make sure I got every vote. I traveled the entire state.
COSTELLO: So if it's -- if -- I understand.
SCOTT: Go ahead, Carol, I'm sorry.
COSTELLO: If it's important -- if it's important what candidates say, do you think that this -- do you think this would hurt Donald Trump? Or do you think it's a waste of time?
SCOTT: Carol, I haven't -- I haven't seen that ad. I just still think, if you listen to -- if -- listen to people. I -- I'd probably shake hands with 200 to 500 people a day. It's jobs. COSTELLO: I'm sure you have heard some of the things that Donald Trump said about women. I'm sure you've heard some of the -- why don't you want to say anything about Donald Trump at all? I don't get it.
SCOTT: Well, I believe all the candidates ought to be respectful of everybody. I think they ought to talk about the issues that people care about. In our state it's jobs, education, keep people safe. That's what I would do if I was running. That's what I did when I ran in 2010 and 2014. But I'm not -- you know, I don't know why the candidates do what they do.
COSTELLO: OK, so if you think -- if you think that it's a politician's responsibility to keep everyone safe, then I'm going to ask you about the violence at Trump rallies. Do you think that's Trump's fault? Do you think he's been responsible with his rhetoric?
SCOTT: I had protesters in my -- some of my events both in 2010 and 2014. Everybody handles protesters differently. I was not at those events, so I couldn't tell you exactly how I would have done it.
COSTELLO: I'm sure you've seen those events on television unless you've been living in a cave, governor?
SCOTT: The approach that I take when people have protested me, I listen to them and I let them have their time. Everybody does it differently though. Everybody -- everybody handles protesters differently.
COSTELLO: Is Donald Trump doing it correctly?
SCOTT: But it's part of what's going on.
Well, that's how Donald Trump handles it. And he can respond to how he handles it. I know how I handle it in my -- when I -- when I'm at a rally --
COSTELLO: Is it right or wrong?
SCOTT: Well, he's got to decide -- you've got to -- you know, he's going to decide that and what's right for him. Every candidate's a little bit different.
COSTELLO: Gotcha.
OK, Governor Rick Scott, thank you so much for joining me this morning.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, Russia --
SCOTT: Have a good day.
COSTELLO: Thanks.
Russia is moving out of Syria. Why they're making the move and what it means for Syrian peace talks, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:43:45] COSTELLO: U.S. officials say any minute now Iran could launch a three stage rocket with a satellite on top of it. This follows several ballistic missile tests by Iran by -- by Iran, rather, last week. The launch could signal an advantage in Iran's long range missile technology and it means they could soon have missiles capable of hitting Israel. The U.S. says the test may be a violation of a U.N. resolution. Iran says it's allowed to conduct tests for national defense.
Russian forces now leaving Syria. The surprise withdraw comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin says their mission there has been accomplished. The move could be a game change for Syrian peace talks in Geneva. Matthew Chance has more on that. He's live for us now in Moscow.
Hi, Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.
It really was a shocker, wasn't it. Classic Putin. Unexpected. Totally unpredictable, his strategy. He announced at a meeting last night that this was essentially over. That they've achieved their main goals in Syria. And already the first Russian war planes that have been carrying out those air strikes in Syria have started to make their way back to their permanent bases inside Russia. State television here has been broadcasting images of crowds of people greeting the pilots, military band music playing as the pilots are given flowers.
[09:45:02] Russia casting this very much as victory, very much, as you say, as mission accomplished.
(BEGIN VIDETAPE)
CHANCE (voice-over): From the air and the sea, Russia's bombardment of Syria has been a game changer. This kind of overwhelming fire power reversing the military fortunes of the Kremlin's Arab ally, Bashar al-Assad. But now the Kremlin says it's achieved its goals, with the Russian president unexpectedly ordering a military withdraw.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA (via translator): I believe the goals set out to the Ministry of Defense and the armed forces has in large part been fulfilled. That is why I order the minister of defense to start the pull out of the main part of our military grouping from Syria.
CHANCE: The end of Russia's Syrian campaign is every bit as abrupt as its start. It was only at the end of September last year that Russian war planes began pounding rebel positions. The intervention effectively prevented an Assad defeat, but also sent a powerful message. Russia was a force to be reckoned with on the global stage once more.
CHANCE (on camera): This Russian campaign in Syria has been widely criticized for causing even more civilian casualties and pushing out even more refugees. But for the Kremlin, it's been immensely successfully. Not only has Russia saved an ally and preserved its interests in Syria, but it's also forced the warring parties and their backers to the negotiating table.
CHANCE (voice-over): The main focus now, says the Russian leader, is that fledgling peace process. With its ally bolstered, Russia will, he says, intensify its peacemaking efforts. But the Kremlin stopped short of announcing a complete draw down. Its powerful air and naval bases in Syria, it says, will remain. This may not be the last Syrians ever see of Russia's military resolve.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHANCE (on camera): And Carol, the Russians are not ruling out continuing their air strikes. A senior defense official telling "State Media" earlier on today that the campaign against what they call terrorist targets will continue.
Back to you.
COSTELLO: Wait a minute, terrorist targets? I heard nothing about ISIS. ISIS still occupies Raqqa, right? ISIS hasn't been chased out of anywhere because of the Russia air strikes, so why continue this charade by talking about terrorists?
CHANCE: Well, the Russians, of course, designate ISIS as terrorists. They will come under attack as they have been over the past several months. But of course the big criticism of Russia is it's been focusing its attacks not on ISIS, not on the Al-Nusra front, but on the opposition groups who have been fighting to overthrow Bashar al- Assad. They've had massive success against those groups.
And so, you know, Russia has drawn a line now under its campaign and is making way for these negotiations to bear some fruit. But obviously it's an imperfect victory, of course, that Vladimir Putin is declaring.
COSTELLO: Matthew Chance, reporting live from Moscow this morning.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, parts of Illinois see record-breaking early voting. Ryan Young live at a polling station in Chicago next.
RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, there was a lot of early voters here just yesterday. If you look behind me now, almost 75 people have come in so far to do the voting. We're here in Chicago live with the reporting of people casting their votes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:53:02] COSTELLO: Voters in Illinois are heading to the polls right now, and this year for the first time ever the state is allowing same day registration. At stake, 156 delegates for the Democrats, 69 for Republicans. Ryan Young live in Chicago where we've already seen record breaking early voting.
Hi, Ryan. YOUNG: Good morning, Carol. You know what? You talk about that
early voting, we were just here yesterday, and the line for early voting stretched all the way down the street here. And so far that has had an effect here on the voting today because early this morning we saw a little rush around 6:00 a.m. But since then, it's been steady but very slow. About 65 people here at this polling center on the north side of Chicago, but of course we stopped two voters for you just to ask them, hey, what brought you out? Obviously a lot of people were talking about voting, the process this year. What inspired you to come to vote and be here today?
ABBY KELLY, VOTER: There's a lot of different opinions out there right now, and I definitely want to be a part of voicing what I think is right. There's some things that have me worried.
YOUNG: And we talked about that. Who did you vote for and why did you feel comfortable voting for that person?
KELLY: Today I voted for Bernie Sanders. I think that there's an amazing discrepancy in what kind of Trump stands for, and I want to make sure that I voice my opinion.
YOUNG: And we talked about the idea that you actually were at that UIC event and saw some of the things that happened in Chicago over the last week. What made you come out and also do (ph) vote?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it -- very similarly, I was at the Trump event and it was fascinating and eye opening, to say the least. It was, like, definitely, I feel like his rhetoric inspires a lot of violence, and you know, I -- was actually the day before I went to the Trump event, I was at the weiner Circle where they did the foot long Trump weiner that was only 3 inches long, and I felt like I can't trust a man who calls that a foot long, so I'm voting for Bernie Sanders.
YOUNG: I got you, have to throw some comedy in there. Thank you guys so much. I appreciate it. Thank you for stopping.
So obviously, Carol, you see people are energized about this, especially in Chicago with the talk about everything that happened, so there you go. The comment, people talking about weiners, only in America. Love it.
[09:55:16] COSTELLO: You were talking fast after that, Ryan, you were. A little PG rated action here on NEWSROOM.
Ryan...
YOUNG: A little bit, yes.
COSTELLO: I'll let you go recover, Ryan. Thanks a lot.
YOUNG: Live TV.
COSTELLO: Right. Next hour after a break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)
COSTELLO (voice-over): Happening now in the NEWSROOM, Super Tuesday part three, and a critical clash in Ohio.
DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is a place I want to win. This is the place.
GOV. JOHN KASICH, (R-OH), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to win Ohio. I feel very good.
COSTELLO: Marco Rubio fighting for Florida.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO, (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to shock the country and we're going to do what needs to be done.
COSTELLO: Ted Cruz looking to add to his win.
