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Presidential Race; Ryan Endorses Trump. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired June 03, 2016 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:15] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there. I'm Brooke Baldwin. You're watching CNN on this Friday afternoon. Thanks for being with me.

One day after Hillary Clinton went after Donald Trump, labeling him as dangerous for America and unfit to be president, Secretary Clinton is on the attack once more against the presumptive Republican nominee. She just tweeted a link to her campaign page which features a litany of Trump's own words outlining what she calls his, and I'm quoting, "ignorant, incoherent and outrageous comments on everything from the economy to ISIS." Right now I can tell you that Secretary Clinton is in California, Culver City there, live pictures, as she is about to stand before that podium and speak to a crowd of women in the run-up, of course, to the state's all-important primary next Tuesday.

Meantime, Trump is also in California getting ready to hold another rally there after firing back at Hillary Clinton over her scathing criticism of him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESUMPTIVE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE: The only reason she's behaving like this, and the only reason she's been dragged so far left, believe me, is she doesn't want to go to jail over the e- mails, OK? Believe me.

Folks, honestly, she's guilty as hell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Trump also tweeting this today. Quoting, "crooked Hillary's teleprompter speech yesterday, she made up things that I said or believe but have no basis in fact. Not honest!" That is what prompted Clinton's fact-checking page.

So, let's go to CNN political director David Chalian, with me now from Washington.

David Chalian, let's talk about, you know -

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hi, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Good to see you. Let's talk about the, you know, Trump's counterpunching both, you

know, in the wake of this speech yesterday, as we took that live, and then, of course, last night. How do you measure the counter punch as far as oomph, specifics, policy versus character?

CHALIAN: So, I thought it was an interesting, although not terribly surprising, approach from Donald Trump, because as he has said, right, he is a counterpuncher. And if he's attacked, he's going to counterpunch. And that's what he did. He, as you just played there in the clip, he went after her e-mail scandal. He - he questioned the legality of what she did there and whether or not there's something criminal, as you know. There is an FBI, sort of inquiry into the e- mail system. And so we'll see that play out.

But that - he decided to do what Hillary Clinton was doing, which was to create a negative character frame around Hillary Clinton, to define her for his supporters and for those voters that are starting to tune in to this general election match-up, as, you know, as he calls her crooked or as a crook, if you will.

And so what he did not do, I thought was really interesting. He didn't take on her point by point attack on him. You know, he chose not to sort of reassert certain foreign policy tenets and explain to voters why she's wrong that he is dangerous or erratic or however she described him yesterday. He, instead, just decided to do his own character frame on her. And so I think you sort of got a window into what these next five months are going to look like. They're each trying to build these negative narrative and character frames through which they want to prosecute all their arguments from now to November.

BALDWIN: On that, I mean do you see that, as what we saw on that speech, the beginning of this narrative? And not only that, actually let me ask you about - we just - we just heard that First Lady Michelle Obama, she was just giving a commencement speech at the city college here in New York and she, too, criticized Mr. Trump without saying his name.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY: We don't give in to our fears. We don't build up walls to keep people out because we know that our greatness has always depended on contributions from people who were born elsewhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: I mean, walls. Listen, that could have been metaphorical for a lot of things, although when you're thinking of this political cycle, you think walls, you think what Mr. Trump has talked about with regard to Mexico.

CHALIAN: Yes.

BALDWIN: How did you hear that?

CHALIAN: Yes, those were pretty deliberate - BALDWIN: Yes.

CHALIAN: Deliberately chosen words. There's no doubt about that. And, listen, it's part of this one-two punch we've seen from the Obama team and the Clinton team this week. President Obama earlier in Elkhart, Indiana, was drawing contrasts with Donald Trump, and with the Republican Party overall. He did it in his town hall. Hillary Clinton gave that speech yesterday on the same day that President Obama was giving the commencement address at the Air Force Academy, also drawing these contrasts, and now the first lady is joining in. So I think what you're seeing here, as the Democratic nomination contest is coming to an end, and the primaries are wrapping up, you're starting to see the Obama White House join forces, rhetorical forces, in a way with the Clinton campaign.

BALDWIN: David Chalian, thank you so much for that off the top.

CHALIAN: My pleasure.

BALDWIN: Now, Donald Trump is also not letting up on the judge overseeing that fraud lawsuit against his now defunct Trump University. Mr. Trump tells "The Wall Street Journal" that Judge Gonzalo Curiel has a quote, "inherent conflict of interest." Trump has previously ripped the judge, making some controversial comments about his heritage more than once.

[14:05:18] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESUMPTIVE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE: But I have a judge who is a hater of Donald Trump. A hater. He's a hater. His name is Gonzalo Curiel.

The judge who happens to be, we believe, Mexican. Which is great. I think that's fine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So let me bring in Sam Clovis. He's the national co-chairman and policy advisor for the Trump campaign.

Sam Clovis, welcome back. Nice to see you.

SAM CLOVIS, NATIONAL CO-CHAIRMAN AND POLICY ADVISER, TRUMP CAMPAIGN: Thanks, Brooke.

BALDWIN: So, first up, got to ask you about the news. We know, you know, not even 24 hours ago -

CLOVIS: Right.

BLITZER: House Speaker Paul Ryan endorsed Mr. Trump, which was huge, huge for your campaign. But at the same time, it was just on the radio today, you know, and I think he was asked about Mr. Trump's comments on Judge Curiel and he said that he completely disagrees with him, being Donald Trump, said the comments he made the other day just was out of left field. I completely disagree with the thinking behind that. Your response?

CLOVIS: Well, again, I think it's the litigation of the Trump University issue is a separate issue. It's not associated with the campaign. And it's not an area that I deal with. And so I'll leave that to -

BALDWIN: But he says it on the campaign trail. That's why I'm asking you.

CLOVIS: Well, I'll leave it to Mr. Trump and - to deal with that because that's a part that he is dealing with and it's not something that I've been asked to look at and so I'm not going to comment on it.

BALDWIN: But what about Paul Ryan's comments?

CLOVIS: Well, I think Speaker Ryan is in a - in a very difficult position here because I think that he - he is probably torn between what he - what I think he thinks in his heart and what I think he - is probably going on in his head. And I think that a lot of these issues come down to the fact that he is looking at someone who is transforming the Republican Party and, frankly, is transforming the electoral map of the United States. And I think Speaker Ryan is having a difficult time getting his head around what the aftermath of this campaign is going to be and what that's going to mean for the Republican Party and for the country. And I think there are certainly some issues that Speaker Ryan would like to see remain the same. But I will tell you, and I will address this to Speaker Ryan, they are not going to remain the same because they're - they've been changed forever already.

BALDWIN: What do you mean exactly?

CLOVIS: Well, I think what we're seeing is, we're seeing people drawn back into the political process that have been abandoned by both parties, certainly by the establishment of both parties. We've had people who have hijacked particular terms and notions about what the Republican Party is about. And I think what we're really looking at here is we're seeing a resurgence of a populous movement in this country, a modern populous movement.

BALDWIN: OK.

CLOVIS: Not the traditional populous movement we may have talked about 50, 60 years ago, but about the very much modernized version of it and I think this is really going to change things in this country.

BALDWIN: Well, Sam, with regard to Speaker Ryan's head or heart, and I can't pretend to know what either of them is, you know, thinking or believing -

CLOVIS: Right.

BALDWIN: But I imagine you would like to have Speaker Ryan out on the trail, you know, stumping for Mr. Trump. I mean, can you tell me, have talks begun to have him to do so? CLOVIS: Well, I think they speak quite often and I think that this is

really what the - what Speaker Ryan is really looking for is support for a legislative agenda for the next Congress to come in here. He's got a very difficult task. He's got a - he's got a difficult caucus. His own caucus to deal with, plus having to deal with the Democrats and they'll have a -

BALDWIN: I get it. He's got a lot on his plate.

CLOVIS: Yes, he does.

BALDWIN: But you would like to have him out and about for your guy.

CLOVIS: Oh, I think he'll be out there. I think he's going to be out there supporting us and I think you're going to see a lot of Republicans -

BALDWIN: Soon?

CLOVIS: Well, I would say - yes. I would say as soon as the convention is over and we're the official nominee of the party, you're going to see a huge flood of Republican elected representatives out there on the trail with us.

BALDWIN: OK. Let me ask you, Sam, about Hillary Clinton.

CLOVIS: Right.

BALDWIN: You know, we watched her speech yesterday in San Diego. She, you know, wasted no time trying to eviscerate Donald Trump. His character, his temperament, his honor at every twist and turn, foreign policy, you know, you name it. And then when you look at what Mr. Trump both tweeted during the speech, after the speech, last night, you know, he took a moment to really try to take her on and not looking presidential. Hey, she doesn't even know how to read a teleprompter. But do you see it at all as a missed opportunity for not, you know, taking her to task, line by line by line, on policy, on specifics?

CLOVIS: I think that's exactly what you would expect, what the media would expect, and I think that what the people inside the beltway would expect. But this is -

BALDWIN: But he's a self-proclaimed counterpuncher.

CLOVIS: Sorry, Brooke. Sorry. This is not - you asked me to answer the question. I'm going to answer the question. That speech was given to help her shore up her opportunity in California and to win. She's in a tight race with Bernie Sanders out there. That speech was for an audience inside the beltway in Washington, D.C. It was not for the general population. It was not for the general voters at all.

[14:10:07] BALDWIN: You don't think that speech was for the general election and her lining herself up to take on Donald Trump?

CLOVIS: I - I think she has got some serious work to do shoring up her own base. She has been dragged so far left by Bernie Sanders. She's going to have to figure out a way to navigate back to the center if she has any hope of being elected in this - in this race.

BALDWIN: In terms of Republicans and other endorsements, I mean, here you have Susana Martinez, governor of New Mexico, primary there also next Tuesday. I know you all want her endorsement. You know, she's the president of the Republican Governor's Association, female, Latina. You want her, right? But at the same time, Donald Trump has criticized her. Let me just remind our viewers what he has said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Since 2000, the number of people on food stamps in New Mexico has tripled. We have to get your governor to get going. She's got to do a better job, OK?

Hey! Maybe I'll run for governor of New Mexico. I'll get this place going.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MAJORITY LEADER: I think that the attacks that he's routinely engaged in, for example going after Susana Martinez, the Republican governor of New Mexico, the chairman of the Republican Governor's Association, I think was a big mistake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So the headline, you know this, but just to tell everyone else, you know, he's walking that back. He wants her endorsement ahead of the primary next Tuesday.

CLOVIS: Sure he does.

BALDWIN: Sure he does. So, is this an example of him maybe not really thinking before speaking and now he's pulling it back?

CLOVIS: I think that the - a lot of times what we're seeing here is that he has been critical of both Republicans and Democrats. And I think a lot of it has to do with the management and how people are performing their duties. And what he's really saying is, we need to energize the country. We need to get things focused. We need to do a better job across the board.

BALDWIN: But you don't energize the country by criticizing the governor of New Mexico.

CLOVIS: No. Well, you may not, but the - I think that what we have done out here is we've taken the opportunity to highlight the fact that there are things wrong in this country and they need to be fixed and we need everybody pulling on the rope at the same time. And if you're - if you're going to sit back and you're going to sit on your laurels or you're going to sit there and hope nobody notices, that's not going to happen because when we come to Washington, D.C., in January, and Donald Trump assumes the presidency of the United States, the whole country, and certainly the government, will be on notice that things are going to change.

BALDWIN: OK. Sam Clovis, thank you so much for your time.

CLOVIS: You bet.

BALDWIN: National co-chair and policy adviser for the Trump campaign.

Thank you, sir.

And just a heads up to all of you. Jake Tapper will speak with both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton this afternoon on "The Lead." That all begins right after me, 4:00 Eastern, here on CNN.

Just ahead, for the very first time, one of Trump's lawyers involved in Trump University will speak out about the allegations of fraud. She will join me live during the show.

Also ahead, Democrats secretly plotting an exit strategy for Bernie Sanders. Only problem is, they're doing it without Senator Sanders. We will hear our reporting on those plans.

And a father - have you seen this video - lunges at his daughter's killer inside the courtroom after the convicted serial killer apparently smiled and smirked at him. That father joins me live ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:17:40] BALDWIN: And we're back. You're watching CNN on this Friday. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Thanks for being with me.

I mentioned this a moment ago, now we have the sound for you. We're getting some news just into CNN here. Just a day after endorsing Donald Trump, House Speaker Paul Ryan is, in a sense, condemning him on some specific comments. But before I play that for you from him on the radio, just a reminder of what specifically Speaker Ryan is calling out. Trump is claiming that the judge in his Trump University fraud trial is inherently biased because he's Mexican, as he points out, and Trump promised to build a border wall. Worth noting here, the judge was born in Indiana. So, today, here is Speaker Ryan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PAUL RYAN (R), HOUSE SPEAKER (voice-over): Look, the comment about the judge the other day, just was out of left field for my mind. I - it's reasoning I don't relate to. I completely disagree with the thinking behind that. And so he clearly says and does things I don't agree with. And - and I've had to speak up on time to time when that has occurred and I'll continue to do that if that's necessary. I hope it's not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Wit me now, Cathy Lynn Taylor, a Trump supporter and Republican strategist, a former director for international finance policy with the National Security Council, and author of "Red is the New Black: How Women Can Fashion a More Powerful America." Also with us, Lisa Boothe, Republican strategist, contributor at "The Washington Examiner," president of High Noon Strategies. So, ladies, nice to have both of you on.

CATHY TAYLOR, GOP STRATEGIST: Thank you.

LISA BOOTH: Quick the intro.

BALDWIN: I know. It was, like, this and this and this and (INAUDIBLE).

Anyway -

TAYLOR: Hardly.

BALDWIN: So, Kathy, to you, just on the Paul Ryan comments. I was just talking to Sam Clovis with the campaign, but here is someone who, pop, you know, endorses Trump as actually timing wise Hillary Clinton was speaking yesterday on national security, the big endorsement happens, and now all of a sudden he's condemning, you know, Trump's comments on this judge. What do you make of that?

TAYLOR: This is par for the course, I think, for Trump supporters. I mean Newt Gingrich has been very vocal about his support for Trump, but has said, look, on certain things, he needs to dial that back or walk that back. With Paul Ryan, I think it's really the newlywed period. He and Trump were dating. They were getting to know each other. Ryan had to make sure that if this didn't work out at some point he could say, look, I took time to try to get him on board with the true Republican policies. They got married with the endorsement and now they're in their (INAUDIBLE) period and they're not going to always agree.

BALDWIN: OK, so then let's stay with your analogy. I think a lot of America thought that they would date a few more times before he said he wanted to put a ring on it.

[14:20:00] TAYLOR: Probably should have.

BALDWIN: I mean, though, seriously, though, when you read a couple of different op-eds and especially in "The Washington Post" this morning, not really into the idea of this happening at all.

LISA BOOTHE, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, and we don't know what conversations took place behind closed doors.

BALDWIN: Apparently they've been - they've been talking a lot of talk, I mean, according to Sam Clovis.

BOOTHE: They've been talking - they've been talking a lot and we don't know what concessions were made and what sort of discussion happened with that. I mean, look, I think Speaker Ryan's - his main priority is this House agenda that he wants to move forward. He wants to look at poverty reform. He wants to look at national security. He wants to look at health care. He has made that very clear. He even made that clear in his op-ed that he wrote for his hometown paper, which was his endorsement of Donald Trump saying, look, I support him because the alternative is really bad with Hillary Clinton, but I am focused at moving the Republican agenda forward. BALDWIN: But what kind of position is he in? Because, again, I go back

to Sam Clovis and I'm thinking about the Trump campaign and he talked about, you know, maybe what he's thinking in his heart versus his head and how he hasn't been able to fully, his words, kind of wrap his head around what this would look like in, you know, post-November. And so I just wanted to talk about how maybe this is tough for Paul Ryan, who still, as he mentioned, had issues with, you know, principles a couple of days ago.

TAYLOR: Absolutely. I think it is going to be tough for him and I think it's going to be tough - a tough road ahead because Trump's Achilles heel is just emotions, right? He gets very, very heated and then he thinks about it, gets some advice and he kind of walks it back a little bit. And he's been able to do that unlike any political candidate we've ever seen because Americans don't really think of him as a political candidate. They think of him as maybe a more successful version of themselves and therefore it's OK. At some point that could become problematic. And so Paul Ryan is trying to say, look, if you can commit to some core Republican principles, we're going to try to guide you and support you.

BALDWIN: Isn't that a problem - just - just, you know, critics, especially even Hillary Clinton yesterday, saying he was incoherent. On your point on being emotional, saying one thing, talking to some people and walking it back, is that OK?

TAYLOR: Well, she's the pot calling the kettle black a little bit.

BOOTHE: Well, and to that point, I mean, and, look, you're seeing the divide on the Democratic side as well, right? I mean with Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. Bernie Sanders supports a lot of policies that are in complete odds and contradiction to what Hillary Clinton believes. So she's going to be in a similar situation. Once the Democratic Convention is over and they have their nominee -

BALDWIN: That's a whole other conversation.

BOOTHE: Well, I know, but - but - but it's important because they are similar parallels in the sense that Hillary Clinton is also going to have to bridge that divide, bring those individuals over.

BALDWIN: Sure, party unity.

BOOTHE: Yes. But, I mean, you're right, there are - there are clear ideological differences between Speaker Ryan and Donald Trump. And Donald Trump saying, particularly on the issue like trade, he's looking at exit polling and saying, look, majorities of Republicans and Democrats believe with what I'm saying about trade, but then you look at Paul Ryan's budgets that he's introduced and he wants to see an entitlement reform and that is something that Donald trump has said that he's not willing to budge on. So there are those ideological differences.

BALDWIN: What about, though, just back to this judge, Judge Curiel in California? How is it fair, Cathy, for Donald Trump to go after somebody who legally cannot comment on a case, this judge, cannot fight back and defend himself, yet he - yet Donald Trump continues to criticize. Just triple down last night.

TAYLOR: Right, I mean, triple down, right? It's like the double down's out the window and let's go even further.

It's not fair and it's not right and I think -

BALDWIN: It isn't fair.

TAYLOR: No, and I - I don't think just because you're Republican you have to say it's fair to support Donald Trump. We get better as a party when we're honest with each other and we can message better and better. And, you know, this is like, you know, Trump needs to call a plumber. This is like the drippy faucet - leaky faucet that like won't turn off, right, because this is going to keep going on at least through the fall and he's going to have to -

BALDWIN: On Trump University?

TAYLOR: On Trump University. You know, because there's -

BALDWIN: I mean Hillary Clinton's going to make sure it does.

TAYLOR: Well, look, there's a number of issues, not to get too far into it now in the interest of time, but you have, you know, potential violations from a state perspective. Were they certified to do this kind of training? Were they allowed to be this type of organization in the state? And then you have the issue of, were they fraudulently going - fraudulently going towards (INAUDIBLE) - (INAUDIBLE) selling, excuse me.

BALDWIN: I've got - quickly.

BOOTHE: I think that Donald Trump's actually missing an opportunity here, but what he should be hitting on is the fact that the judge was nominated by President Obama. He's released documents and then resealed the documents claiming it was a mistake. That is what - if I was him, that is what I would focus on. And his legal team should take the proper recourse to try to get a different judge if they believe -

BALDWIN: But he didn't set (ph) to do that prior to Trump's comments?

BOOTHE: I'm sorry?

BALDWIN: He did do that. He did decide to unseal them prior to Trump's comments of calling him a Mexican.

BOOTHE: Right, and then he resealed them and said it was - that he mistakenly released some documents. If I was him, I would focus on those issues being of concern and following the proper recourse to try to get another judge, if they believe that he is indeed biased.

BALDWIN: That's a -

BOOTHE: I think he's missing the opportunity that he could potentially (INAUDIBLE) live with.

BALDWIN: That's a perfect question. I have council - Trump's - one of the Trump's attorneys. So I'm going to ask him that (INAUDIBLE).

BOOTHE: Perfect question. Yes. I'll let them handle the legal.

BALDWIN: Thank you, ladies, very much.

TAYLOR: Thank you, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Thank you very much.

BOOTHE: Thanks, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Cathy Taylor and Lisa Boothe.

TAYLOR: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Coming up next, in the wake of the tragic death of that gorilla Harambe after a three-year-old little boy fell into his enclosure, my next guest is the human companion of one of the most famous of Hamabe's species, a gorilla named Cocoa. Hear why she says she refuses to watch that video.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:29:18] BALDWIN: Bottom of the hour. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

We're now waiting for a decision from an Ohio prosecutor on whether or not he will actually file criminal charges after that three-year-old little boy slipped into that gorilla enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo last weekend. Zookeepers, they shot and killed that gorilla to save the three-year-old. Police have wrapped up their investigation. And while some blame has been passed around all week as to who should be held responsible, the story has also sparked a national conversation about endangered wildlife, including overwhelming compassion for Harambe and the special endangered gorilla species as a whole. Perhaps no other gorilla is more famous for evoking that sort of compassion than Cocoa, also a western lowland gorilla, who has learned more than 1,000 words in American sign language.

[14:30:07] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who is that?

(INAUDIBLE).

OK. That is you. Gorilla.