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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Clinton Inches Closer To Nomination Winning Puerto Rico Primary; GOP Leaders Urging Trump To Tone Down Attacks On Trump Univ. Judge; Remembering Boxing Legend Muhammad Ali; Iraqi Forces Advance On Fallujah; U.S. & China Meet To Talk Money. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired June 06, 2016 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:00] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hillary Clinton with a big new primary win overnight, but Bernie Sanders -- he still vows to take his fight all the way to the convention. Tomorrow, the big final Super Tuesday election, but will those votes matter?
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump doubling down on his attack on a judge he says is unfair -- a judge unfair because of his Mexican heritage. Trump expanding his theory now to Muslims and facing wrath from Republican leadership.
Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.
BERMAN: I'm John Berman. Thirty minutes past the hour this morning. Breaking overnight, Hillary Clinton inching closure to the Democratic nomination. She won the Puerto Rico primary. She won it big, picking up a lot of delegates there. What does that mean? Well, it means tomorrow night could be interesting.
The final Super Tuesday, six states voting -- California the biggest one. When you include superdelegates, who tell CNN they are supporting Clinton, she is now just an estimated 29 delegates shy of the threshold to clinch. And even though she is all but certain to blow past the number tomorrow night, again, including superdelegates, then she could blow past the number quite early tomorrow night.
Bernie Sanders is still projecting a contested convention no matter what. His only chance to win now hinges on flipping superdelegates. Can he do that? Let's get more from CNN's senior Washington correspondent Jeff Zeleny in California.
(BEGIN AUDIOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, a final full day of campaigning today for Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders here in California, making one last push for those 475 delegates at stake in Tuesday's primary.
Hillary Clinton making the case again and again about one her rivals, but it's Donald Trump. She's talking over and over about he's not qualified to be president. She's barely mentioning Bernie Sanders on the campaign trail. She had a closing rally in Sacramento on Sunday night. This was her final message to voters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I want to finish strong here in California. It means the world to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: And Bernie Sanders making the case to his supporters here in California, as well, telling them that they can still change the direction of this Democratic race for the presidency. But with Puerto Rico in the bag now there are only six more states to vote on Tuesday, followed by the District of Columbia next week, then this race is over.
Bernie Sanders trying to keep this argument alive that he will need superdelegates to pull them over to his side. Increasingly, that is an uphill battle but this is what he told voters last night in San Diego.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Any objective analyst of the current campaign understands that the energy and the grassroots activism in this campaign is with us, not Hillary Clinton.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: The outcome of this Democratic presidential nomination does not hinge on California but a Clinton win here in California would certainly cool the argument Bernie Sanders is trying to make that he can still take this to the convention. That's why all eyes today still on California as both campaigns, both candidates fight here until the end for those 475 delegates at stake -- John and Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right, Jeff Zeleny. Thanks, Jeff. Republican leaders and big money donors are becoming very nervous about Donald Trump's attacks on the judge in the Trump University civil case. House and Senate Republicans have publicly criticized Trump for claiming the judge, Gonzalo Curiel, is biased because of his Mexican heritage.
The party needs to win over Latino voters in November and its leaders are urging Trump to soften his tone. But as CNN's Jake Tapper tells us, Trump doesn't seem willing to do that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: The presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, is still campaigning hard here in California ahead of the Tuesday primary. With no major Republican candidate still in the race and enough pledged delegates to secure the nomination at the Cleveland convention next month, he is rallying the party as the GOP establishment is still lining up behind him. But, that doesn't mean he's toning it down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TAPPER: I want to ask you about comments you made about the judge in the Trump University case.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Sure, sure.
TAPPER: You said that you thought it was a conflict ofinterest that he was the judge because he's of Mexican heritage, even though he's from Indiana.
TRUMP: OK, yes, yes.
TAPPER: Hillary Clinton said that that is a racist attack on a federal judge.
TRUMP: Oh yes, she's so wonderful, you know. I mean, here's a woman that should be put in jail for what she did with her Emails and she's commenting. I'll tell you what it has to do. I have had ruling after ruling after ruling that's been bad rulings, OK? I've been treated very unfairly. Beforehand, we had another judge. If that judge was still there this case would have been over two years ago.
Let me just tell you. I have had horrible rulings. I have been treated very unfairly by this judge. Now, this judge is of Mexican heritage. I'm building a wall, OK? I'm building a wall. I am going to do very well with the Hispanics -- the Mexicans.
TAPPER: So no Mexican judge could ever be involved in a case that involves you?
TRUMP: Well, no. He's a member of a society where, you know, very pro-Mexico and that's fine. It's all fine, but I think he should --
TAPPER: You're calling into question his heritage.
TRUMP: I think he should recuse himself.
TAPPER: Because he's Latino?
[05:35:00] TRUMP: And then you also say does he know the lawyer on the other side? I mean, does he know the lawyer of -- a lot of people say yes. I don't know.
TAPPER: I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about --
TRUMP: That's another problem.
TAPPER: But you're invoking his race when talking about whether or not he can do his job.
TRUMP: Jake, I'm building a wall, OK? I'm building a wall. I'm trying to keep business out of Mexico. Mexico's fine. There's nothing --
TAPPER: But, he's an American.
TRUMP: -- and that's looking -- he's of Mexican heritage and he's very proud of it, as I am where I come from.
TAPPER: But, he's an American. Is it not when Hillary Clinton says this is a racist attack, and you reject that? If you are saying he can't do his job because of his race, is that not the definition of racism?
TRUMP: I don't think so at all.
TAPPER: No?
TRUMP: No. He's proud of his heritage. I respect him for that.
TAPPER: But you're saying he can't do his job because of that.
TRUMP: Look, he's proud of his heritage, OK? I'm building a wall.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: Now, Trump is ready to take the fight to Hillary Clinton who could secure enough delegates on Tuesday to become the Democrat's nominee next month at the convention in Philadelphia if you include the superdelegates. That's a big if, of course. Clinton told me this week that she is happy to compare her record with Donald Trump's.
(END AUDIOTAPE)
BERMAN: All right, our thanks to Jake Tapper. Great interview with Donald Trump over the weekend. Hope you heard the whole thing. Certainly worth the watch and listen. Let's go live to Washington now and bring in CNN politics reporter Eugene Scott. Eugene, you just heard Donald Trump talking to Jake about American judge Gonzalo Curiel, who was of Mexican heritage.
But wait, there's more, because Donald Trump now not just saying that someone whose parents were born in Mexico can't be a fair judge -- now apparently suggesting that maybe a Muslim judge wouldn't be fair to him either -- listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN DICKERSON, HOST, "FACE THE NATION": For a Muslim judge would you also feel like they wouldn't be able to treat you fairly because of that policy of yours?
TRUMP: It's possible, yes. Yes, that would be possible, absolutely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Yes, so Donald Trump not exactly backing down from what now has become a very controversial position that's earned him a lot of criticism from within his own party.
EUGENE SCOTT, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Yes, I'm not surprised that he's not backing down from that statement, in part, because we don't know him to back down often from statements that people have found questionable. But also, many of his supporters agree. Many of his supporters do believe that being a Muslim could affect a judge's bias and ruling against someone like Donald Trump.
It's just fascinating, though, because that issue doesn't seem to come up when talking about Christians. And many people are supporting Donald Trump on the right because they believe and hope that he will appoint or nominate judges who are Christian. So the inconsistency there has concerned some people both on the right and the left.
ROMANS: And then this morning the Democrats dropped this video, apparently seizing on this controversy, quoting Republicans. So, it's a Democratic video quoting Republican's response to Donald Trump on this issue -- listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, CHIEF ANCHOR, "ABC NEWS": He says that when he questions whether the judge can be fair because of his Mexican heritage, that is not racist. Do you agree?
SEN. BOB CORKER, (R-TN): Look, I don't condone the comments.
REP. PAUL RYAN (R-WI), HOUSE SPEAKER: I completely disagree with that thinking behind that.
ANA NAVARRO, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I'm livid about it, and if this is his strategy to win over Hispanics, he's got a hell of a wake- up call coming to him come November.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Is party leadership going to be able to rein Donald Trump in on this? It's not really surprising that he would sort of double down and expand it to religion from race, but at some point this could hurt him.
SCOTT: Yes, very much so. I mean, it is hurting him already. Yes, he is the presumptive Republican nominee but there are people on the right who are not supporting Donald Trump because he has said things that they have been concerned about.
What's interesting about that video, we see that it all features people who would be considered closer to the establishment, if not in the establishment, than not, and those aren't the people who got Donald Trump to where he is right now.
And so, whether or not this will concern the voters and people who are already behind him in terms of making them -- encouraging him to look at things differently, that remains to be seen. But, we will, I'm sure, hear way more about this as the week continues.
BERMAN: What you do see in that video is the Democrats rejoicing in the discomfort within the Republican Party -- the discomfort -- the awkwardness -- the awkward position now faced by a lot of the Republican leadership, including Paul Ryan, who just last week endorsed Donald Trump only to have this judge thing come up and bite him the day after. On the subject of discomfort, there is some in the Democratic Party as well. The final Super Tuesday is tomorrow. Hillary Clinton, when you include superdelegates, all but certain to go over the top in terms of the amount that she needs to clinch the nomination and become the presumptive nominee going forward.
Bill Clinton facing hecklers who were supporting Bernie Sanders over the weekend. He seemed to let his frustration bubble over a bit -- listen.
[05:40:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT: I don't want to pick a fight but if I was them I'd be screaming too because if you figure this out, they're toast for election day. So, have a good time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: You hear it with a smile but when he calls Bernie Sanders supporters toast and tells them to have a good time, he needs to also be bringing the party together after Tuesday, as well. But the argument that Bernie Sanders supporters are making is this. Look, Hillary Clinton can't win without the superdelegates. We can still flip the superdelegates until July. If they try to do that -- if they keep this going for another five, six weeks, that could be awkward.
SCOTT: Yes -- no, very much so. We see the former president displaying a level of confidence that Bernie Sanders and his supporters don't believe he should be. There really still is time. Bernie Sanders would have you believe to see significant changes regarding superdelegates.
Granted, this would be unprecedented. We have not seen something like this happen before but it could happen. And it seems like the former president is suggesting that that's not even possible. And so I'm not really surprised that hecklers do believe that they still have enough time and energy to encourage voters and superdelegates to look differently -- to look away.
ROMANS: All right, Eugene Scott, nice to see you this Monday morning. Thanks for getting up early for us. Thanks, Eugene.
SCOTT: Thanks.
ROMANS: All right, time for an early start on your money. Income and equality, one of the biggest money issues of our generation. And Switzerland votes down a proposal to give guaranteed income to its residents, something that many economists are looking at now as a potential solution to income and quality.
OK, so 77 percent of Swiss voters voted against this measure. This is what it would have done. It would have bumped up pay for lower income workers to $2,500 a month. So, guaranteed income of $2,500 a month. The program would replace all of the current welfare programs there and welfare payments.
The government there said it would cost about $25 billion U.S. dollars. It would have come from higher taxes or spending cuts. That's something opponents say would have hurt the economy, but supporters arguing this. It's a simpler way to help your economy and combat income and equality because there's a guaranteed minimum income every month and people have the power to spend that money the way they want.
Finland is considering scrapping it welfare programs and giving residents there up to $10,000 a year. There's also a study in Oakland, California that will launch soon, testing the same strategy. Basically John, giving people a minimum amount of money every month, telling them this is your guaranteed income.
On the left, people say it's social justice, right? On the right, people say get the government out of my life with all of these different inefficient welfare programs, and just guarantee a minimum income to help the income and equality problem.
BERMAN: Interesting to see how theseexperiments play out --
ROMANS: They are experiments.
BERMAN: -- in smaller laboratories.
ROMANS: And Switzerland said no.
BERMAN: All right. The world, this morning, mourning the loss of Muhammed Ali. We have some new information bout the week ahead. The week of memorials and celebrations. Stay with us.
[05:43:20]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:47:30] BERMAN: Muhammed Ali is home. His body's been transported to his native Louisville, Kentucky. Memorial services already taking place there and a huge celebration of his life is planned for Friday. CNN's Martin Savidge has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Morning John, morning Christine. Muhammad Ali has finally come back home and the efforts to memorialize his life are fully underway. There was, last night, an interfaith service that was organized by the Islamic community. There are other services that are being talked about today.
But, of course, the big events are for the latter part of the week. Thursday is set aside primarily for the family of Muhammad Ali, but Friday -- that is the day when the world can celebrate his life. And, in fact, Louisville, Kentucky has put out the welcome mat for the entire world to come because they know that their hometown son is one who has been shared by so many people in so many other places. It will begin at 9:00 in the morning with a motorcade -- a procession that will actually wind through the streets of Louisville, sometimes on highways, sometimes on side streets and that's designed to allow as many people as possible to bid their final farewell.
Two o'clock, though, there is going to be an interfaith service. Among those who will eulogize, former president Bill Clinton will be on hand. About 20,000 may be able to squeeze into that facility. It is going to be quite remarkable.
These plans have been years in the making and we're told that it's just not from the family and not just from the city, but also one of those who helped make the plans was Muhammad Ali himself -- John and Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right, Martin, thank you for that.
Motions are expected to be heard today in the case of a Baltimore police officer who faces the most serious charges in the death of Freddie Gray. Prosecutors say officer Caesar Goodson was negligent when he failed to buckle the 25-year-old Gray into a seat belt and failed to call for medical attention. Gray died from a spine injury suffered in the back of the police transport vehicle. Officer Goodson faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
The parents of the 3-year-old boy who fell into the gorilla enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo will find out later this morning from prosecutors if they will face criminal charges. Zoo officials shot and killed Harambe, the gorilla. They said they feared for the life of the child. When the gorilla exhibit reopens tomorrow it will feature a new higher barrier.
ROMANS: All right, the treasury secretary, Jack Lew -- he is in China this morning. Will his presence be enough to smooth over economic relations between the world's two biggest economies? We get an EARLY START on your money next.
[05:50:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:54:10] BERMAN: Iraqi forces backed by U.S. airstrikes are advancing on Fallujah this morning. They have now secured a large area along the southern edge of the city and are poised to move into the heart of the town where ISIS fighters are entrenched. But tens of thousands of civilians remain caught in the crossfire right now and there are reports that many who have tried to escape have been killed.
CNN senior international correspondent Ben Wedeman reporting live from Baghdad. And Ben, you've been talking with people who've been trying to exist inside that city.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and John, when you meet their children they have that distant look of kids who have seen things that really kids should never see. They talk about ISIS going house to house looking for people, basically rounding them up to go serve as human shields in the heart of Fallujah.
[05:55:00] Those who refused or even just questioned the orders, apparently shot on the spot. Now, we spoke to people who did manage to leave. They are now in a displaced person camp outside of Baghdad. They say that some of them -- for instance, four families of 32 people hid out for three days in the marshes drinking dirty water, eating dates, before they were finally able to get behind the frontlines of the Iraqi Army and to move on.
But even the ones who get to Baghdad, they're living in these dusty, dirty, very disorganized camps. They have no idea when they're going to go. Many of them -- the families have been separated because Iraqi intelligence is holding many of the men and the teenage boys because of fear they could be ISIS members or sympathizers.
There have been cases when people were fleeing from the Fallujah area, and as they were approaching the Iraqi lines there were ISIS members among them who blew themselves up. We were in one area where just a day before one ISIS militant had blown himself up and killed three children and wounded several of the civilians who were fleeing.
So, whether you're stuck there or trying to leave, or actually even got out, John, it's a really difficult existence.
BERMAN: Difficult, but important to remind people, Ben, that this is going on, so thank you for your reporting. Thanks, Ben.
ROMANS: All right, 56 minutes past the hour. Let's get an EARLY START on your money. We've had the weekend to absorb that horrible jobs report, so how are stock markets taking it this morning? Dow futures are inching higher. So are stock markets in Europe. Shares in Asia finishing mixed overnight. Oil trading above $49 a barrel.
Treasurer Secretary Jack Lew is in China today for annual econ talks. Let's just say the agenda is jam-packed. Relations between the countries are tense. China's economy is slowing, and China, of course, is a frequent target on the U.S. presidential trail.
The two sides will likely talk steel. China has been accused of flooding the global market with cheap steel and the Treasury Department has been pushing back on that. Then there are questions about China manipulating its currency and a growing feeling among U.S. companies that China is an unwelcoming place to do business.
All right, I don't need to tell you gas prices are rising. This morning, you may be paying the highest gas prices of the year. The national average for a gallon of regular, $2.36 overnight. Now, that's the highest price of 2016. It's up 14 cents over the past month, but it's still below what drivers were paying this time last year.
So what's behind the rise? Well, crude oil is the biggest factor. It has nearly doubled in price after crashing in February. Plus, the summer blend of gas is always more expensive and there are more drivers on the road, which means more demand for gas. Analysts don't see $3 gas anytime soon but prices will likely follow the price of oil, so you're warned.
BERMAN: You don't need to tell us but you tell us just because you feel you owe it to us, and that's what's so great about Christine Romans.
ROMANS: I owe it to you. I owe you, in particular.
BERMAN: All right, Hillary Clinton -- she picks up a new primary win overnight, now less than 30 delegates from clinching the nomination when you include superdelegates. "NEW DAY" picks all this up, plus some new Donald Trump news, starting now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
H. CLINTON: Tuesday, I will have decisively won the popular vote.
SANDERS: The energy is with us, not Hillary Clinton.
H. CLINTON: I'm going to do everything I can to unify the Democratic Party and I expect Sen. Sanders to do the same.
SANDERS: The Democratic convention will be contested.
TRUMP: I've been treated very unfairly by this judge. This judge is of Mexican heritage. I'm building a wall, OK?
NEWT GINGRICH: This is one of the worst mistakes Trump has made.
RYAN: I completely disagree with that thinking behind that.
TRUMP: We would be so much better off if Gadhafi were in charge. You do a surgical shot and you take them out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every minute, discoveries that alter a child's future. This is a world that Zika brings and it is only the beginning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo and Alisyn Camerota.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, welcome to your NEW DAY. It is Monday, June 6th, 6:00 in the east. Alisyn missed the last bus from Atlantic City, so Brooke Baldwin is here.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Surprise.
CUOMO: Thank you very much -- double duty.
BALDWIN: You got it.
CUOMO: Very cool of you to be here.
BALDWIN: You got it. CUOMO: Up first, Hillary Clinton on the verge of history. (Foreign language) in Puerto Rico. Her primary win in Puerto Rico putting her just 29 delegates from clinching the Democratic nomination. Clinton is expected to become the first woman to become a presidential nominee in U.S. history tomorrow, afterthe final six states vote.
But, rival Bernie Sanders is not ready to give up, opening a new line of attack and pushing for a contested convention.
BALDWIN: (Foreign language).
CUOMO: Gracias.
BALDWIN: (Foreign language). Meantime on the Republican side, Donald Trump facing heat from party leaders over his attacks on a judge's Mexican heritage. Could he cost Republicans the Latino vote in November and is he doing irreparable harm to the party? We will pose all those questions and more to a panel of Latino voters who were good enough to be up and at 'em with us on Monday morning. So we'll get to them.
