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New Day Sunday

Honoring Service Members on Memorial Day; Three Dead, Four Missing in Texas Flooding; Gorilla Shot Dead to Save Boy in Zoo Enclosure; NBA Player Killed Entering Wrong Apartment; Sanders Holds Two Rallies Today in California; Rubio: I Will Go to GOP Convention, Help Trump; Warriors Beat Thunder to Force Game 7. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired May 29, 2016 - 07:00   ET

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

("TAPS" PLAYING)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[07:00:34] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A 3-year-old child has fallen into the gorilla cage.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The gorilla took him into his habitat and the little boy started screaming again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just an unlucky situation where he broke into the wrong person's apartment.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm tired of a corrupt campaign finance system which allows billionaires --

BOB DOLE (R), FORMER U.S. SENATOR: This is a real phenomenon with Trump doing what he's done from scratch, but I don't applaud him for the insults.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: I want to be helpful. I don't want to be harmful because I don't want Hillary Clinton to be president.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome to Sunday. I hope it's been good to you so far. I'm Christi Paul.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Victor Blackwell. Always good to start the day with you.

PAUL: Yes. And we get ready for Memorial Day celebrations, of course. We do want to take a moment to remember the men and women who died while serving this country. There's a new documentary that looks at the service members who guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: The soldiers who keep watch over this memorial are called tomb guards, and they stay at their post year-round through the blistering heat of the summer and the frigid chill of the coldest winter months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: We'll speak to the film's producers. That's coming up later this hour.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

BLACKWELL: But, first, we do want to get you the breaking news of the morning. Days of drenching rain, giving way now to what is deadly flooding across parts of the Great Plains. Three people in Texas dead, four others in other states are missing, including a 10-year-old boy who was swept away by a river Saturday while fishing with his friends. Emergency rescue teams are set to continue the search for the little boy this morning, of course.

PAUL: We're also learning a number of high water rescues are ongoing in Bandera County, Texas, where some areas have gotten more than 10 inches of rain thus far.

Allison Chinchar is in the severe weather center.

Allison, so we know these rescues and searches are going on. What is the weather like for them as they try to find these people?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. So, the threat going forward now is actually going to be the flooding that takes place in your rivers, your creeks, streams like that. New rainfall isn't necessarily going to be the big threat.

Here's a look at the radar over the last 48 hours showing the rain that they got. But now we take a look specifically at one river that is just on the northwest side of Houston, the West Fork San Jacinto River. This is where we currently are in terms of it. As you can see, we hit a peek. Now, we're coming back down. But the river is actually to go back up due to more rain.

And the thing is, the record high is at the top. This whole red shaded area is considered flood stage. And they've been in it for a few days and they will likely stay in that flood stage for the next several days going forward. And unfortunately as we saw with the one boy, he was caught in one of the rushing streams. That could still happen going forward because the rivers are expected to rise.

Here's a look at the radar. Again, going forward, we still expect to have more rain in Texas. The heaviest hit areas have been Houston, stretching over towards, say, around the San Angelo area. And again, you can see, that area will get more rain yet today. Another area of concern is also in the tropics where we're taking a look at tropical storm Bonnie.

Now, again, looking at the floor, this is what we're dealing with is the tropical storm. But the problem is as those wind shifts in between the high and low pressure, it pushes a lot of the water into the coast notice around Hilton Head and Savannah, where the water is (INAUDIBLE) pushing it way from the coast. When you have that, you end up getting very dangerous rip currents.

PAUL: All right. Good to know.

Allison Chinchar, thank you for the update.

BLACKWELL: Also this morning, tropical storm Bonnie still headed for South Carolina. The good news is though, this storm is quickly loosing steam. Live pictures here of Myrtle Beach. The main concern now, the rip currents. Police in North Carolina tell us a swimmer there is swimming. Let's get right to Jennifer Gray, live in Charleston, South Carolina, for us.

How's the weather where you are?

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, Victor, we are getting off- and-on showers, the winds are gusty at times, but you're exactly right. Normally with these showers we talk about the flooding rains, storm surge, the winds, things like that is being the biggest concern.

[07:05:03] But I think with this particular storm, the impacts are going to be pretty low, and so the biggest concern will be those rip currents, people travel to this part of the country from all over and they're not familiar with rip currents, and so, when the weather starts to improve later this evening, they're going to want to go to beaches because they've been stuck inside for the past 36 hours and so, they'll want to get in the water, which is a bad idea, especially when you have a strong east wind, which is what we'll have, especially along the North Carolina coast as we go through the afternoon.

So, this storm is going to be pushing in shore as we go through the afternoon. Conditions should improve a little bit later today. In fact, you notice, the cruise ship behind me, it's actually scheduled to leave later this afternoon around 4:00 heading to the Bahamas. So, everything on schedule there.

So, you're right, Victor. The storm has have -- is having small impacts but those rip currents can be deadly.

BLACKWELL: Got to be safe out there.

Jennifer Gray for us in Charleston, thank you so much.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Engine 32, we're getting a second run to Cincinnati Zoo, and this is in the gorilla cage and a 3-year-old child has fallen into the gorilla cage.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

PAUL: Now, this started when a child was visiting the zoo yesterday and was able to slip away from his parents into that gorilla enclosure. The zoo's director says that's when the gorilla grabbed the boy and dragged him through the water. We get more now from WKRC.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) REPORTER: A 4-year-old boy climbed through a small opening and fell roughly 10 feet to the enclosure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a lot of panic. We heard some chaos.

REPORTER: This is older footage of the Gorilla. Harambe, a male, who just turned 17 years old yesterday according to the zoo's website, picked up the boy who was splashing in the moat. A family that witnessed it called it horrific. They asked us not to show their faces.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We knew he was being grabbed. The gorilla took the boy to his habitat and the little boy started screaming again and the gorilla dragged him back again.

REPORTER: The zoos dangerous animal response team weighed options to save the boy. Harambe weighed more than 400 pounds, he could have easily kill the small child. While the team was working to stop the threat, families nearby were wondering what was going on.

PATRICIA HARVEY, ZOO VISITOR: We love the zoo. It's very friendly. Everything is beautiful here. But when you see something like that and then you have the disappointment because what do you say to your grandchildren.

REPORTER: Medics say the incident lasted 10 to 15 minutes while the zoo workers removed two other gorillas, Harambe still had the grip on the boy.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was down there and witnessed him thrown in the air and gorilla climbed up a ladder with him.

REPORTER: Ultimately, the team shot and killed Harambe, the zoo says it had to be done to save the boy's life.

THANE MAYNARD, CINCINNATI ZOO DIRECTOR: It's a sad day all the way around. The right choice was made, it was a difficult choice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: All right. Our thanks to Angela Ingram (ph) there of CNN affiliate WKRC.

PAUL: We're getting word an NBA player died after entering a Dallas man's apartment. He was killed. Why his agent says this was all a tragic mix up. We have the story for you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:11:39] BLACKWEL: Family, friends and teammates are now mourning the loss of NBA player Bryce Dejean-Jones after he was shot inside a Dallas apartment. Police say Dejean-Jones was killed after he kicked open a man's bedroom door. But his agent says this was an accident. He went to the wrong apartment.

CNN's Ed Lavandera joins us now. Ed, help us understand this. We're told by the agent he thought this was his girlfriend's apartment, is that right?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. That's what the agent is telling us. That it was early in the morning, around 3:00 in the morning, where Bryce Dejean-Jones, a 23-year-old player for the New Orleans Pelicans, was coming into what his agent says he believed was his girlfriend's new apartment here near downtown Dallas.

Turns out, Dallas police say, that he was actually entering and had kicked the door into the apartment right below his girlfriend's apartment and that the resident in that apartment who hasn't been named yet called out to Dejean-Jones and then shot him and then Dejean-Jones stumbled back out into the breezeway outside of the apartment, collapsed to the ground. He later was taken to the hospital where he died from the wounds.

But his agent says, Victor, he was essentially at the wrong place at the wrong place. So, still many questions swirling around this. But you also know, it's not really clear at this point whether or not the resident in that apartment who shot Dejean-Jones will be charged. Remember, in Texas, as in many other states, there is a law it says essentially deadly force can be used when someone inside their home fears for their life.

So, that investigation will continue to play out here today in Dallas.

BLACKWELL: Some important details still unknown. We'll look for those.

Ed Lavandera, thanks so much.

PAUL: Well, Bob Dole, former presidential nominee and senator, has something to say about the presidential elections. He talks a lot about subjects and tells CNN for one Hillary Clinton he says has a tough task ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOLE: I think Hillary has a lot of baggage, and while she doesn't admit it, it's there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:17:12] PAUL: Seventeen minutes past the hour.

And in an interview with CNN, Bob Dole, former Republican presidential nominee and senator, had several things to say about this race that we've been watching.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Dole spoke out on presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump. What he thinks Trump to do to win the election in November, and why Hillary Clinton's path to the White House may be an uphill battle. Listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOLE (via telephone): One of my closest two or three friends is John McCain, and I'm going to try to get Trump to issue an apology. This young man at the time did everything that you would want a serviceman to do above and beyond the call of duty. That's the one area that I hope nominee Trump would do is start honing down his rhetoric. There's nothing wrong with apologizing to the governor of New Mexico or John McCain.

I can already see a sort of a shift in Trump's tone, and he needs to start talking like he's about to be president. The only way to turn people around is to, you know, meet with them and speak with them and lay out a plan that's attractive to them. Not always we're going to kick everybody out of the country.

He's called me twice. He called me last week, said he'd be calling me again this week. We just had a nice visit, a nice suggested maybe lower the rhetoric. I put a plug in for Newt Gingrich. I know Newt.

I watched -- Newt and I didn't always get along when we were in Congress, but I've watched Newt the past essentially months, and I believe he'd be a real asset. Hillary has a lot of baggage, and while she doesn't admit it, it's there.

She's in there a long time and people are looking for fresh faces. Bill Clinton would be a great asset, but he's had this health problem but doesn't look strong and robust like he has been. I don't think you can have a shared presidency, even though you trust your wife, and I assume she trusts him.

[07:20:00] You know, I believe Jeb is man of integrity and honesty. I just hope he keeps his word when he said he would support the nominee. I know Trump didn't make it very easy for him because of all the things he said about Jeb, but Jeb is bigger than that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: All right. There's a lot there. So let's unpack it and bring in Tharon Johnson, former south regional director for Obama 2012 and former advisor to Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. Also, Brian Robinson, former assistant chief of staff for communications for Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and a Marco Rubio supporter.

Gentlemen, welcome you do both.

THARON JOHNSON, FORMER SOUTH REGIONAL DIRECTOR, OBAMA 2012: Good to be here.

BRIAN ROBINSON, FORMER AIDE TO GEORGIA GOVERNOR NATHAN DEAL: Good morning.

BLACKWELL: Brian, I want to start with you. What is the potency 20 years after Dole left the Senate, lost that election in '96. What's the potency of Dole's advice here in this climate? ROBINSON: You know, I bet today in 2016, Dole's name ID nationally

has dropped precipitously from 20 years ago. Millennials have no idea whatsoever who he is, which is an issue that Clinton is going to face this as well, they have no memory of this guy whatsoever. Many people voting for Bernie Sanders today have no idea who these guys are. I mean, he sounded like (INAUDIBLE) doing the radio address there.

So, you can definitely see he's, you know, probably close to his 90s now. So I don't think that it's going to be a huge mover and shaker within Republican politics and how we're viewing it going forward.

JOHNSON: Well, you know, listen, Bob Dole is a war hero and he's a great American but I agree totally with Brian. I think if anything he's sort of dated, and a lot of these millennials that Brian has referenced, all you have to do is really ask their parents. These people benefitted from the Clinton years. I mean, we had a working middle class. We had a reduction in poverty. So, those are things that I think that Bob Dole really kind of missed.

And I disagree totally. I mean, I've seen Bill Clinton on the trail. He's vibrant. He's going city to city drawing big crowds. I think he's going to be a tremendous asset to Hillary Clinton.

BLACKWELL: Now, Clinton supporters look back at the '90s with nostalgia, 23 million jobs, as they claim, many advances economically. But Dole says that Americans are looking for a fresh face.

Is the Clinton campaign -- Clinton supporters make allowance for that?

JOHNSON: Well, I think Hillary Clinton is a fresh face, and she's an experienced face.

BLACKWELL: Twenty-five years in national politics.

JOHNSON: Well, here's the thing, this is her first time running for president.

ROBINSON: They think she's an outsider.

BLACKWELL: It's her second time running for president.

JOHNSON: Well, what I'm saying she's going to be the nominee. But my point is, is that I agree that American people are looking for stability and they're looking for experience, especially when you hear the rhetoric that's going on on the Republican side. And so, I think ultimately she's going to be history -- she's going to be able to make history by being the first woman nominee and ultimately I think she'd make history by being the first woman president.

BLACKWELL: But, Brian, let me ask you --

ROBINSON: There's nobody who's less than a fresh face than Hillary Clinton. FDR would be more of a fresh face.

BLACKWELL: If he says that Americans are looking for a fresh face, but in the same conversation suggests Newt Gingrich for the V.P. slot, reconcile those two for me.

ROBINSON: Right, it's the exact same issue. We have a ticket that would be two white guys in their 70s or around their 70s. And one thing that Gingrich does do is he would bring some policy heft and some intellectualism to a campaign that has been a cult of personality around one person.

Now, I've never known Newt Gingrich to be willing to play second fiddle to anyone. So, I think it would be a difficult fit for Newt, but I do think his people are pushing to get him on the ticket. I do think there's a lot of there. And one thing that we're looking at here in Georgia is many Democrats are looking at our state as a takeover opportunity to turn it purple, and if Newt is the V.P. candidate, Georgia is off the map. And so that would change the Democratic strategy somewhat.

BLACKWELL: OK.

JOHNSON: I agree. Newt Gingrich is a Georgia boy. We definitely love him here in Georgia. But I think he is totally opposite of what Trump has been proposing.

I mean, if you look at Newt Gingrich, he's sort of valued as the person who represented the conservative part of the party. Trump has been the exact opposite of that. And so, I think to Brian's point, that you're not going to see two strong-willed individuals get along on ticket. But ultimately to your point, if you're going to criticize Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton sort of being old, and not fresh faces, I mean, it doesn't get any older than Newt Gingrich.

So I think the Trump campaign is going to have to be very, very close attention to what they do with their V.P.

BLACKWELL: Does a Gingrich pick, though, if Donald Trump chooses him, change the calculation for the Clintons whoever she will pick.

JOHNSON: No. I think, listen, I think the vetting process has started with the Clintons. I mean, they're looking at some really, really good possible candidates, people like Secretary Castro. I mean, you've got people like Governor Deval Patrick, as being mentioned.

But the problem with Republican Party is this, to Brian's point, is that you'll have two white men at the top of their ticket that doesn't represent America. America is a country that's changing every single day. We're changing demographics. It's getting browner and browner every single day. So, that will play right into the hands of the Clinton campaign, which we know Democrats are very, very prepare and capable winning general elections, where the Republicans are known to fumble the ball when it comes to general election time.

ROBINSON: Look, here's where Newt is going to -- would be a great asset for Donald Trump, is you don't want a V.P. candidate who's not really savvy on the stuff.

[07:25:06] And when you're constantly barraged with how can you defend Donald Trump on this, how can you defend Donald Trump on that, Newt knows how to pivot back on the message and I think he might be also been asset on helping the Trump campaign get a message.

JOHNSON: Also Bob Dole today, he added his name to a long list of Republicans who refused to come out publicly and to endorse Donald Trump.

ROBINSON: Oh, come on. That's what he does.

BLACKWELL: He's endorsed him.

JOHNSON: I'm just saying it's a lot of this sort of dissension within the Republican Party. I think Newt Gingrich and Bob Dole doesn't help bring those people to the table that Trump has alienated with this comments and his rhetoric, because one of the things we pointed out is Bob Dole focused very heavily on the rhetoric and the decisiveness that is coming from the Trump campaign.

BLACKWELL: Will he have to apologize for some of the statements he's made, maybe not only to New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez but to John McCain? You know, he's a close friend of Bob Dole. Will he have to apologize? We're talking Memorial Day weekend. That's part of the reason we had the conversation with former Senator Dole.

ROBINSON: This is someone who has said he has never prayed to God for forgiveness because he never sinned. So, the idea that Trump think that he needs to apologize to anyone if he doesn't need to apologize to God is kind of where we are on this.

It would hurt his brand, too. The straight talking, tough talking, throwing punches, that's his brand. And to apologize to change his tone, to be more civil as former Senator Dole is saying would hurt the brand he has built and brand that has worked.

BLACKWELL: What do you glean from the series of these conversations? Senator Dole has said he's spoken twice. They'll speak again next week. And you've got this outsider who has railed against the party at least in the earlier to middle part of the primaries, now that he's wrapped up, he's reaching out to at least one party elder, all other Republican presidents and nominees say they're not going support him, so I guess he has this one.

ROBINSON: Well, he's got a lot of them coming on board, you know? Rubio has said he would support him. First, Ben Carson and --

BLACKWELL: But I was speaking specifically about Republican presidents and nominees. It's just Bob Dole.

ROBINSON: Oh, yes, yes. I think we can safely say that the Bushes are not going to come out and support Trump. I mean if anybody said the things that Trump said about the Bush family, about my family, it would go well beyond politics as far as how I reacted to it.

JOHNSON: But one of the weaknesses Trump has, he doesn't have a campaign structure. He's basically running out of money. He's trying now to now get together his structure. I think that's one of the things that Bushes brought to the table. Even Mitt Romney for a little bit of credit to him as well.

So, I think right now what you see to Trump is he's reaching out to former presidents, he's reaching out to senators and congressmen all across the country because he's going to need the infrastructure in order to be competitive in November.

BLACKWELL: All right. A lot to happen over the next couple of weeks and months. Tharon Johnson, Brian Robinson, thank you so much.

Christi, back to you.

PAUL: All righty. Thank you.

Bernie Sanders is vowing to fight to the very end. So, a lot of people are wondering why he's offering some thoughts as to who Hillary Clinton should pick as a running mate.

And former Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio fought a long hard battle with Donald Trump. Now he says he's ready to help the presumptive GOP nominee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUBIO: I don't want Hillary Clinton to be president. If there's something I can do to help that from happening and it's helpful to the cause, I'd most certainly be honored to be considered for that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:32:01] PAUL: Almost 32 minutes past the hour. Good morning to you. I'm Christi Paul.

BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. Thanks for joining us this Sunday morning.

PAUL: Uh-huh.

Listen, no rest this weekend for Senator Bernie Sanders. He's campaigning hard for the biggest prize left this primary season, California, of course. He holds two rallies today in the Golden State, focusing lately, it seems, on Donald Trump, including how Trump backed out on the Sanders debate challenge, of course.

But CNN politics reporter Eric Bradner joining us from Washington right now.

So, Eric, wondering what is the intention or the strategy here in targeting Trump rather than Hillary Clinton, knowing that those numbers in California have that race almost in a toss-up, it is close?

ERIC BRADNER, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Yes. It's interesting because Hillary Clinton is obviously the immediate challenge right now and yet Bernie Sanders is talking about Donald Trump. I think the prospect of a debate was -- with Trump was like this one

final opportunity to really command a ton of media attention and really get his message out in a big way. He sort of enjoyed the back and forth on that. He also knows that Trump is sort of a unifying enemy for Democrats, right? Liberals don't like Trump, criticizing Trump, showing he's strong against Trump is something Sanders thinks could help turn out votes in California but also helps his argument going into the Democratic Convention to super delegates that he is, in fact, the best positioned candidate to take on Donald Trump.

So, we know Bernie Sanders is fighting behind the scenes, working on DNC rules and appointments and that kind of thing. And his taking on Trump reflects the calculation that super delegates are going to be really tuned in to what's the best way the party can take on Trump in November.

PAUL: OK. So essentially you're saying it was a smart move for Trump to dismiss this -- this debate even though a lot of people came out and said but why did you say you'd do it and you're not doing it? Bernie is using that a lot. But at the end of the day, Trump is a smart business guy. He knows that would have given Bernie an awful lot of eyes and ears.

BRADNER: Right, right. Trump frankly wants to crib a lot of Bernie Sanders rhetoric and use it against Hillary Clinton in November, and that's not a big shocker. Trump has said so on the campaign trail. He admits that Bernie Sanders makes a lot of good points that he plans to use against Hillary Clinton. So it would have been quite surprising to see Trump put himself in position to be sort of having to argue with this guy who he's saying he kind of agrees with on at least his criticism of Hillary Clinton.

PAUL: Well, this is interesting. Bernie Sanders is talking so much about Trump, but this morning on "Meet the Press," he is warning Hillary Clinton that her pick for running mate is going to be critical for winning over his supporters. Let's listen here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That means having a candidate who can excite working families, excite young people, bring them into the political process, create a large voter turnout.

[07:35:05] And when we do that, we're going to win the election.

So, I would hope if I'm not the nominee that the vice-presidential candidate will not be from Wall Street, will be somebody who has a history of standing up and fighting for working families.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Now, in his defense, he was asked the question, but a lot of people might look at that and they if you're vowing to be in this through the convention and through the long haul, why would you give advice on something like this? BRADNER: Right.

PAUL: Do people look at this and think, is it some sort of a concession?

BRADNER: Sure. It's a great question. It does reflect that Bernie Sander is thinking long term, right? He understands that he's behind in the delegate count and it seems like, based on that answer, he's looking for ways to carry his influence forward.

Those points he was hitting, that's his core message, right? He's encouraging Hillary Clinton to find a vice-presidential nominee who will carry Bernie Sanders' core message forward. Now, perhaps, that won't be Sanders in attacking Trump, not only is that a sound short- term strategy but it also sort of gives him a role long time to argue, you know, think what you will of Hillary Clinton, but we all dislike Donald Trump.

But it shows he's trying to find a way to get his policy positions into the Democratic ticket.

PAUL: Mm-hmm. All right. Eric Bradner, always appreciate seeing you. Thank you.

BRADNER: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Former presidential candidate Marco Rubio says he might have run for re-election for the Senate if his close friend, Florida's lieutenant governor had not entered the race in an interview with "STATE OF THE UNION" host, Jake Tapper. Rubio also spoke about Donald Trump -- Jake.

TAPPER: Victor and Christi, just a few weeks ago, former presidential candidate Marco Rubio was still unsure whether or not he would even attend the Republican National Convention in Cleveland this July. He earned 177 during the primaries earlier this year and he still holds them until he officially releases them. In an exclusive interview with "STATE OF THE UNION", he tells me his plans for Cleveland and the convention.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: When you last spoke, you said you were not yet sure what you were doing, if you were even attending the Republican Convention in Cleveland. Have you made a decision?

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: Yes. My sense is I'm going to the convention.

TAPPER: You are?

RUBIO: And I'll -- I don't know that I have a role in the convention, but I have a lot of people going there that were supporters of --

TAPPER: But if Donald Trump asked you to speak on his behalf, you would do so? RUBIO: Certainly, yes. I want to be helpful. I don't want to be

harmful. I don't want Hillary Clinton to be president.

Look, my policy differences with Donald Trump, I spent 11 months talking about them. So I think they're well understood. I don't want Hillary Clinton to be president. Is there something I can do to help that from happening and it's helpful to the cause, I'd most certainly be honored to be considered for that?

TAPPER: Are you planning on releasing your delegates?

RUBIO: Yes. In fact, basically technically I have already because Donald is going to have the majority number. At a point, it would be irrelevant. So, if we haven't done so already, we will.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Rubio obviously mincing no words with me about his support for Trump despite some misgivings on some policy and politics and the candidates temperament. But he will certainly stand with his party this fall, perhaps with an eye on his own future within the GOP -- Victor and Christi.

BLACKWELL: All right. Catch Jake Tapper's full interview with Marco Rubio this morning at 9:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.

Well, the defending NBA champs in a must-win situation for the second straight game. Rashan Ali has more for us.

RASHAN ALI, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: The Warriors had to have a huge game from their superstars to keep their championship dreams alive. How about a record-setting performance?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:42:02] PAUL: Oh, those Warriors stealing Oklahoma City's thunder.

(LAUGHTER)

ALI: Not good for them.

BLACKWELL: Rashan Ali here with a huge, huge matchup.

ALI: Yes, it was. Oklahoma City had the depending champs on the ropes, jumping out to a 3-1 games lead at one point in the series, but the team that set the regular season record with 73 wins is not going down without a fight.

The Warriors were down by eight points in the fourth quarter, then staged a huge comeback. Klay Thompson notched a game-high 41 points, including a playoff record 11 three-pointers, and the 108-101 win.

Now, after the game, Thompson said he could have even set the bar higher.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) KLAY THOMPSON, WARRIORS GUARD: I could have had 13 because I missed some wide open looks early, but I have no idea what the record was. I didn't know I had 11 threes. I was just trying to be aggressive, whether or not I was getting it in the rim or getting a good from beyond the perimeter. And it feels good getting on to record, but it feels much better if we close them out on Monday and play with the same toughness and resiliency we did tonight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALI: The series is now tied at three games apiece. Game seven is tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m. on our sister channel TNT. The winner of that game will face LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals. It's going to be --

PAUL: You want to say epic. She was this close to saying epic.

ALI: I'm saying wonderful. It's going to be great. It's going to be great.

BLACKWELL: All right. Rashan Ali, thanks so much.

PAUL: Thanks, ma'am.

ALI: My pleasure.

PAUL: You know, they're called the old guard, those who stand and keep watch over the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery.

BLACKWELL: We'll talk to two former guards who made a documentary chronicling the intense training those sentinels go through.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:47:18] BLACKWELL: Well, it's Memorial Day weekend when we honor the men and women who sacrificed their lives and service of the country. And at Arlington National Cemetery, there is, of course, the Tomb of the Unknowns, in honor for those who died but could not be identified.

PAUL: Now, a new documentary chronicles the lives and the training of the sentinels who guard that tomb every single day, no matter the weather.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're part of something bigger than yourself. You don't realize. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a very unique organization, and the only place in the Army you'll ever get to do that.

NARRATOR: The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is guarded 24 hour as day, 365 days a year by the soldiers of the Third United States Infantry Regiment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Third Infantry Regiment, what their main mission is, is doing funerals here at Arlington National Cemetery.

NARRATOR: Every year, visitors from all over the world come to pay homage to this sacred shrine, which houses the remains of three members of the United States military who sacrificed everything, including their identities, to protect America and the freedom it represents.

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PAUL: So, we are joined by the film's producer, Ethan Morse, and director Neal Schrodetzki.

Gentlemen, thank you so much for your service. Thanks for being with us this morning.

I understand you both were tomb guards. So, with that said, what called you to say I want to make a movie about this.

ETHAN MORSE, U.S. ARMY VETERAN: Well, you know, the Society of the Honor Guard is very small and it's actually only 643 badge holders are in existence. The latest is still waiting. Sergeant Ruth Hanks (ph) is about to become soldier 643.

So, the society asked us to film kind of a documentary -- but a five- minute short for my sergeant who was killed in Afghanistan (INAUDIBLE), Badge number 528. And with the society's help and then the army's backing, that kind of led to the feature of my documentary.

BLACKWELL: Ethan, we understand that your last walk as a tomb guard is featured in this film. Give us an idea of what it's like to watch that final walk.

MORSE: I cry every time. It's hard to go back there, after 18 months, 365 days a year, 24-hour days. You're out there at night. Of course, guests and visitors only come for the 12 hours that the cemetery is open. We're there for the 24 hours.

And when you do your last walk, you realize that millions of people have come here to honor their fallen heroes of our onto the plaza and for the last time will I be able to walk unto the plaza, and for the last time, will I be honor our nation's fallen?

[07:50:08] And that was in 2006 when I did my last walk. From there, Neal and I had the idea, going to film school and creating this project, in 2012 is when we started with our faithful backing from our Kickstarters. It's been a long road to honor the unknowns.

PAUL: Neal, when we watch some of this, there are moments you're out there, guarding, walking, it's very peaceful, it's very quiet, it's very reverent. What is on your mind in those hours that you stand there?

NEAL SCHRODETZKI, U.S. ARMY VETERAN: One of the most unique times out there is when there is nobody out there to watch you at your post and that's really where a lot of the peace and the calm comes from and realizing what your duty is and you're essentially the unknown's companion and reflecting sort of on really what these guys gave and we kind of over a little bit of that in the movie and talk about just this serene environment that the tomb guards embrace every day and remember our fallen heroes.

BLACKWELL: Neal, do you go back off-duty to the tomb?

SCHRODETZKI: Yes, absolutely. Been there a couple of times to get pickup shots and since the original filming of the film and just it's just hard to go there but it's something we have to do.

PAUL: It's hard why?

SCHRODETZKI: Just difficult because of how much time and effort and the connection that we had while we were there.

MORSE: Victor and Christie, Neal, with him being the director and the editor, we have 700 hours of footage from the training, from the guarding and he's edited that down literally. Editing, I'm sure if anybody's watching who is an editor it takes so long. He's been there quietly editing, sifting through the footage.

It's kind of like you've always living there, remembering the whole time, and it's really something special that Neal was able to make from that.

PAUL: Well, Neal, we know that former members of the old guard are going to be hosting screenings of this film. Do you feel pressure to live up to hopefully what they are going to remember and that it will honor the same thoughts that they have about their duty? What do you hope they're going to get from it I guess?

SCHRODETZKI: We really do. We had a screening in San Francisco, the Marines Memorial Association, Marines (INAUDIBLE) in San Francisco and they gave us great feedback. (INAUDIBLE)

We're hoping that this opens the eyes of the younger generation. The older generation does have a connection to World War I, World War II, North Korea, Vietnam. The younger generation seems, there's a disconnect. So, we're hoping it's fast paced and also informative enough to bring this knowledge to them.

BLACKWELL: Well, thank you so much for producing this film, for sharing this time with us this morning. Again, thank you for your service.

PAUL: Service.

BLACKWELL: Ethan Morse and Neal Schrodetzki, again, we're looking forward to seeing it when we can. It opens on Memorial Day.

Gentlemen, thanks so much.

SCHRODETZKI: Thanks.

MORSE: Thank you so much.

PAUL: Sure.

And as the nation pauses this weekend to honor those that we have lost, fighting for this country the commander in chief offers his own thoughts on the meaning of Memorial Day. President Obama in his own words, next.

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[07:56:52] PAUL: You know, we were just talking to Ethan and Neal, two sentinels who made that documentary, that movie. And what struck me he said those moments when we're out there on our own, we realize we are that One Unknown Tomb, we are his only companion. That struck me.

BLACKWELL: Through their minds, thinking about this person who they don't know and has been unknown for decades.

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and in his weekly address, President Obama remembered all of those who have died serving the United States.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Right now, there are American troops serving in harm's way and standing sentry around the world. They are veterans who served honorably in times of war and peace, and often came home bearing the invisible and visible wounds of war.

They may not speak the loudest about their patriotism. They let their actions do that and the right time to think of these men and women and thank them for their service and sacrifice is every day of the year.

Memorial Day which will observe Monday is different. It's the day we remember those who never made it home, those who never had the chance to take off the uniform and be honored as a veteran.

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PAUL: And while we do certainly remember those who died, we remember those of you who are serving and the families who waited at home with that difficult task, as you do serve.

Thank you so much for your service and for spending some time with us this morning.

BLACKWELL: "INSIDE POLITICS WITH JOHN KING" starts right now.