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Gay Nightclub Targeted in Orlando Terror Attack; Trump and Clinton at Odds Over Orlando Terror; New Details in Orlando Attack; Fact-Checking Trump's Fiery Speech on Orlando Shooting; Orlando Openly Gay Mayor Talks Shooting, LGBTQ. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired June 14, 2016 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:36] AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone, and thank you for joining us. I'm Amara Walker in Los Angeles.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Vause live in Orlando. Welcome to our continuing coverage of the shooting rampage here in Orlando.
Thousands of people gathered for a candlelight vigil at a local performing arts center a short time ago. All 49 people killed in Sunday's attack have now been identified. 53 others were wounded when the gunman opened fire at a gay nightclub.
Investigators are piecing together the gunman's background. In an interview with the "Orlando Sentinel," four regulars at that club say they saw the gunman there on a number of times before Sunday's shooting. And his ex-wife, she spoke with Erin Burnett about his past.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SITORA YUSIFY, ORLANDO SHOOTER'S FORMER WIFE: When we had gotten married, he confessed to me about his past that was recent at that time and that he very much enjoyed going to clubs and the nightlife and there was a lot of pictures of him. So you know, I feel like it's a side of him or a part of him that he lived but probably didn't want everybody to know about.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Do you think he was gay?
YUSIFY: I don't know. He never personally or, you know, physically made any indication while we were together on that. But he did feel very strongly about homosexuality.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: And according to the "Los Angeles Times," there are reports the gunman also used a gay dating app.
Reporter Molly Hennessey Frisk spoke with a man who says he came into contact with the shooter using that app.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOLLY HENNESSEY FRISK, REPORTER: So I spoke with Kevin, who said that he had been chatting with a man who he believes was the shooter for months or about a year off and on. He said the man had contacted him looking for clubs to go out to. He contacted him on a dating app, a dating and chat app called -- a gay dating app and was looking for places to hang out. But they hadn't met in person until the night of the shooting.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Jessica Schneider following these developments, she joins me now live.
So, Jessica, what else do we know about the gunman's visit to this nightclub? Was he there scouting it out or was it something else?
JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's exactly the question for investigators, John. They're looking into this and all of these accounts that he had been at this club multiple times before and figuring out what exactly he was doing there. But interestingly, you heard about those four people who have told the "Orlando Sentinel" that they saw Omar Mateen there several times.
In addition, Chris Callen is a performer at the Pulse nightclub and earlier tonight he told CNN's Anderson Cooper that he had seen Omar Mateen on several occasions at the club. This man, Chris Callen, told Anderson Cooper that he introduced himself to Mateen, that Mateen was very friendly, and that Mateen had actually seemed very comfortable at the club and had been there several times.
So that of course is a line of inquiry that investigators will look into the significance perhaps of all these prior visits at Pulse -- John.
VAUSE: And Jessica, there's also been some new information coming from what is essentially Mateen's electronic social media footprint.
SCHNEIDER: Right. This investigation is still expansive and ongoing. And one thing that they're focusing in on are the electronics of Omar Mateen.
Now in particular we've learned that investigators have tracked some of the cell phone data from his phone and what they found is that in the hours before this attack, in the early morning hours of Sunday, on Saturday Omar Mateen was actually tracked by his cell phone to a place called Disney Springs. It used to be called downtown Disney. It's in the Walt Disney World resort. It's actually an area with dining and shopping and entertainment.
Investigators say that he was there. They do believe that he was alone. But it was just a mere few hours before this attack.
[01:05:04] So these clues will help form the timeline as investigators begin to look into these things.
In terms of other electronics that they're looking into, they're also looking into a search history, and they found on his electronic devices the search history shows that he did search ISIS propaganda. He saw ISIS videos of beheadings. And he also looked into videos by the cleric Anwar al-Awlaki. And he was an American imam who had gone to Yemen and had been killed by a drone strike in 2011. In fact, FBI Director James Comey said on Monday that the gunman had been at least partially radicalized over the Internet -- John.
VAUSE: Jessica, thank you. Jessica Schneider there live with the very latest.
And we are getting a harrowing look inside what happened in the Pulse nightclub in Orlando from texts as well as social media. The timeline includes messages from the nightclub and the people trapped inside.
Randi Kaye has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The online warning came in the form of a message posted on Facebook by Pulse nightclub. "Everyone, get out and keep running." But that was too late for some.
Inside one of the club's bathrooms a heartbreaking conversation had started to unfold. 30-year-old Eddie Justice was trapped and desperately texting his mother. 2:06 a.m., "Mommy, I love you. In club they shooting." Eddie's mother Mina Justice messages back. "You OK?" 2:07 a.m. Eddie responds, "Trapped in bathroom, Pulse downtown, call police." One minute later, three terrifying words. "I'm going to die."
His mother calls 911. Then more text messages. "He's coming," Eddie texts. Then again, "I'm going to die." She asked her son if anyone was hurt. Eddie, "Lots. Yes." He texted back at 2:42 a.m. then, "Still here in the bathroom, he has us. They need to come get us." At 2:49 a.m., "Hurry, he's in the bathroom with us." She asked, "Is the man in the bathroom with you?" His last response came at 2:50 a.m., "He's a terror." Then "Yes." Eddie Justice died in the nightclub bathroom.
While Eddie was texting for help, another man, Brandon Wolf, was tweeting. 2:17 a.m., "OMG, shooting at Pulse, we hid in the bathroom and we can't find our friends." He later tweeted he made a run for the door. Neither of his two friends survived.
The calls for help kept coming. This woman who didn't want to be identified got text messages from her daughter and two nieces, who were inside the club. Her daughter had been shot in the arm.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please come and get us. Please come and get us now. They're shooting.
KAYE: 25-year-old Amanda Alvear was Snapchating when the gunfire started. A friend captured Alvear's Snapchat video and posted it on Facebook. What you're about to hear in the background is the gunman's rapid fire.
Amanda did not survive.
Jeff Rodriguez texted his brother while the shooter was still firing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "I got shot. I'm bleeding out. I think I'm dying. I love you, guys. Tell mom, dad, I want to say I love them."
KAYE: His brother's fate remains unclear. Even the shootout between the suspect and police was posted on Facebook.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my god. They're all shooting back and forth.
KAYE: The poster, Anthony Torres, wrote online, "People are screaming that people are dead," adding, "Crazy." At 5:53 a.m. Orlando Police tweeted confirmation the attack was over. "Pulse shooting. The shooter inside the club is dead."
Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: I'm here now with Giovanni Nieves, who lost five friends in the shooting in that club.
And Giovanni, we were just watching Randi's report there, which had the events that happened inside the club that night. That must have been difficult to watch.
GIOVANNI NIEVES, FRIEND OF SHOOTING VICTIMS: It's hard. It's hard. After, you know, going through everything and trying to keep yourself together, to be able to see images like that. It's really difficult because it puts you in that situation.
VAUSE: Because you were meant to go that night.
NIEVES: I was supposed to go that night, yes. I had a previous engagement. It got out early. We decided, well, why don't we go to the club? It's still open. And about halfway here I told my friend, listen, I'm tired. It's been a long week. I think I'm just going to go home.
VAUSE: With the friends that you were meant to go with, were they the ones who --
NIEVES: No. No. No.
VAUSE: They were other friends.
NIEVES: They were other friends, yes.
VAUSE: And they were shot, and how did you find out?
NIEVES: I found out the next morning.
[01:10:01] My phone was bombarded with notifications and text messages, are you OK, where are you, please report yourself. When I finally picked up my phone, and started looking through everything that was going on, I realized that the shooting had happened, and my friends were reported as missing. They didn't know where they were. So right then and there my heart just sank. What does one say? Please, God, let them be OK.
VAUSE: What have you been doing since you found out about your friends being killed and now how are you dealing with all of this?
NIEVES: I'm trying to keep myself together. It's always -- it's always been my main priority now. I haven't had time to let it sink in really. I took flowers to the vigil earlier today. I went to the vigil that was at the performing arts center.
VAUSE: Has that helped? I'm sorry, I don't mean to interrupt. But the outpouring of support. Candlelight vigils here but all around the world. Has it helped?
NIEVES: It has helped because it does go to show that we as a community do become one. As a community we've only really had each other. We really haven't had the support from other communities like we have within ourselves and even throughout time if you really see it. We always cling to each other for help, and we become -- we come together. So it feels really good to see Australia, California, London --
VAUSE: And Paris.
NIEVES: Paris come together and say Orlando, we are with you in this. And it just shows.
VAUSE: Do you worry that people will move on and forget about the suffering that happened here? Maybe not this community but elsewhere, especially around the United States.
NIEVES: You know, I said earlier today that this is -- this is Orlando's 9/11.
VAUSE: Yes.
NIEVES: New York had their 9/11. This is our rendition of 9/11.
VAUSE: Yes.
NIEVES: And we will never forget. It's part of what I've been doing all day. I've got friends that can't make it to Orlando that they're in other cities, in Kissimmee and Miami, and they're mourning and grieving. So I've taken it upon myself to put flowers at the memorial and be their representative saying, I'm here for you and I'm going to mourn with you.
VAUSE: One last question just very quickly. A lot of reports now that the gunman, Omar Mateen, had actually been at that club on a number of occasions. Had you ever seen him there? Do you -- would you recognize him?
NIEVES: You know, to really think back I don't ever recall seeing him there.
VAUSE: Right.
NIEVES: I mean, remember, Pulse had numerous different nights.
VAUSE: Yes.
NIEVES: So whenever I would perform at Pulse it would always be Mondays or Saturdays.
VAUSE: Sure.
NIEVES: During the week there were other events.
VAUSE: OK. Giovanni, thank you so much for sharing.
NIEVES: Thank you so much.
VAUSE: We'll take a short break now. When we come back, terror has been a big talking point out on the campaign trail in the race for the White House. Donald Trump is blasting Hillary Clinton, accusing her of endangering the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: When it comes to radical Islamic terrorism, ignorance is not bliss. It's deadly. Totally deadly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(HEADLINES)
[01:17:07] VAUSE: You're watching CNN's special coverage of the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history. I'm John Vause live in Orlando.
WALKER: And I'm Amara Walker in Los Angeles.
Of course the Orlando massacre is bringing terrorism to the forefront of the U.S. presidential race. On Monday both presumptive nominees, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, weighed in on the shooting, reflecting major differences on the issue.
Here's Jeff Zeleny.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRUMP: Thank you for joining me today.
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In dueling speeches.
TRUMP: When I'm elected, I will suspend immigration --
ZELENY: From critical battleground states.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: As president, I will make identifying and stopping lone wolves a top priority. ZELENY: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton offering a stark night and
day view of the world in the wake of the Orlando rampage.
Presidential campaigns are job interviews. And Americans are getting a side-by-side look in real time of the choice facing them in November. She didn't mention his name.
CLINTON: The attack in Orlando makes it even more clear, we cannot contain this threat. We must defeat it.
ZELENY: He couldn't stop saying hers.
TRUMP: Yet Hillary Clinton for months and despite so many attacks, repeatedly refused to even say the words "radical Islam" until I challenged her yesterday.
ZELENY: But hours earlier, on CNN's "NEW DAY," Clinton signaling she wouldn't be backed into the corner.
CLINTON: Whether you call it radical jihadism, radical Islamism, I think they mean the same thing. I'm happy to say either.
ZELENY: Semantics aside, she said it was wrong to taint an entire religion. Their differing leadership styles and tone on full display.
Today on FOX News, Trump suggesting something nefarious about President Obama's background.
TRUMP: We're led by a man that either is not tough, not smart, or he's got something else in mind.
ZELENY: Offering a full-throated defense of his proposed ban on Muslims, Trump overlooking the fact the killer was born in New York.
TRUMP: The killer, whose name I will not use, or ever say, was born in Afghan -- of Afghan parents who immigrated to the United States.
ZELENY: Such rhetoric Clinton argues fueling only more hate.
CLINTON: It plays right into the terrorist's hands.
ZELENY: On guns, their views even more polar. Trump inaccurately saying Clinton wants to ban guns.
TRUMP: Her plan is to disarm law-abiding Americans, abolishing the Second Amendment, and leaving only the bad guys and terrorists with guns.
ZELENY: In fact, the plan she outlined in Ohio pertaining only to assault weapons, which polls show a majority of Americans agree with.
CLINTON: I believe weapons of war have no place on our streets.
ZELENY (on camera): Both candidates canceled campaign rallies and fundraisers at least for a day on a day that was intended to essentially kick off this fall campaign. Donald Trump had planned to deliver a speech going after the Clintons' financing.
[01:20:02] Hillary Clinton had hoped to be campaigning this week with President Obama. But the Orlando massacre has changed the political landscape and set this conversation for the next five months to come.
Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Cleveland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALKER: And joining me now is James Lacy, the author of "Taxifornia" and a Trump supporter and Democratic strategist Matthew Littman.
Gentlemen, thanks to you both for being here.
MATTHEW LITTMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Thank you.
WALKER: As you saw there in Jeff Zeleny's piece, Trump and Clinton having starkly, you know, contrasting reactions to the massacre in Orlando.
I want to start with you, Matt.
LITTMAN: Sure.
WALKER: You know, Trump again justifying banning Muslims trying to enter the United States. But you know, a lot of critics saying that this plays into ISIS' hands. This is ISIS' propaganda message. The West is at war with Islam and we're hearing that message on the campaign trail as well.
LITTMAN: A couple of things. First, I just have to say John's doing some great reporting down in Orlando for you guys. Second of all, you know --
JAMES LACY, AUTHOR, "TAXIFORNIA": I agree.
(LAUGHTER)
WALKER: All right.
LITTMAN: Good start. Should we stop now?
WALKER: One thing to agree on.
LITTMAN: In terms of Donald Trump speaking today he had the chance to really elevate himself in the last couple of days and he hasn't. And I think the Republican Party was hoping that as the campaign went along Trump would moderate the way he speaks and moderate his views a little bit. Clearly not happening. Today he spoke with a teleprompter and still was off the rails. So it's clearly not happening.
You have the Republicans comparing him to Hitler and Mussolini the other day. At Mitt Romney's conference. And you had one of the prominent Republicans saying today that he's very frightened because next month or in the next few weeks Trump is going to be giving a national security briefing, which is kind of unbelievable. I think a lot of people, this has gone very far already.
But Trump's plans are, you know, crazy and all over the map. And unfortunately, we have to take them seriously because he's the Republican nominee. That's the sad situation we're in.
WALKER: James, I want to ask you about -- you know, we saw that in the piece done by Jeff Zeleny where on FOX News Trump was essentially accusing President Obama of sympathizing with radicalized Muslims. He was saying that there's something going on, there's a reason why President Obama won't use the words radical Islamic terrorism. What does Trump think is going on with President Obama and extremists?
LACY: Well, you know, Trump has had a positive impact on this election in a number of ways. One of the most important ways he has is in getting Hillary Clinton to recognize and use the words "radical Islamic terrorism." She'd never used them before. And you know, this is a great transition for Hillary Clinton. On one of your competing networks last December Hillary Clinton wouldn't answer the question to George Stephanopoulos about whether or not America was at war with ISIS.
WALKER: I'm asking about President Obama, though. Why --
LACY: And I'm answering your question by saying that this administration is like an ostrich with its head in the ground about the threat of Islamic terrorism domestically and the threat of Islamic terrorism coming through immigration.
Donald Trump has changed through his campaign the entire rhetoric as far as the administration is concerned. We have a weak administration as far as America's national security is concerned. And when you see all of these terrible events that have happened across the world, 300 people killed in Paris, all the people that were killed in Boston, the 49 souls that we lost most recently. It has its root in -- the problem of political correctness and not addressing the real issue.
WALKER: But I --
LACY: The real issue is radical Islamic terrorism.
WALKER: And the question I have --
LACY: Which the Democrats don't want to talk about.
WALKER: Right. And, James, the question right now is I'm trying to get to the bottom of what Trump was trying to say when he said that there's something going on when it comes to President Obama refusing to use the words "radical Islamic terrorism." We know that in the past Trump has suggested, you know, Obama --
(CROSSTALK)
LACY: Yes, I think it's fairies dancing on a pinhead. You know, we ought to put substance above form. I think that it's inappropriate to, you know, be concerned about whether or not Trump is saying that the guy was born in Afghanistan or whatever. You know, the reality is that we have people who are unemployed and underemployed. We had the worst jobs report in the history of the nation for over the last five years.
The American economy is almost in shambles, and Donald Trump wants to do something about it. And I think that because he is politically incorrect, he's a cultural icon, the media sometimes get it wrong -- gets it wrong about him. You know, he's more like talking to your neighbor than he is about talking to some automatic robot, you know, like Jeb Bush was when he was addressing --
(CROSSTALK)
WALKER: But it is important to tell the truth as well. Not --
LACY: Well, what's untruthful about what Trump had to say? It was simply --
WALKER: Trump -- well, he said several untruths today, right? During his speech. Number one, he said that the shooter was from Afghanistan.
LACY: No. Not untruths.
WALKER: He also said that Clinton wants --
LACY: An untruth is --
WALKER: That's a lie again. That's a lie.
LACY: Is a lie.
WALKER: That's a lie. Absolutely.
LACY: It's not a lie. An untruth is a lie. What Donald Trump is doing is he's changing the entire rhetoric as far as this campaign is concerned and I think you ought to give him a little slack.
[01:25:02] WALKER: Then let's talk about gun control because, you know, James, you mentioned this last hour that nobody on a terror watch list should ever be able to get a gun. Is that correct? Because you're calling for total --
(CROSSTALK)
LACY: No, what I said is that under this Obama administration somebody who is on a terror watch list and on a no-fly list was able to kill 49 people and get off the list.
WALKER: So the law should be changed for stricter gun control?
LACY: The issue is getting on and off the list. That's the issue. Because you can't -- you know, you realize that a white supremacist killed 300 people in Oklahoma City in the early 1990s with fertilizer and diesel fuel. He didn't have any automatic weapons. The Tsarnaev brothers killed --
LITTMAN: Let's get back to --
LACY: -- fourteen people in Boston.
LITTMAN: OK.
LACY: And maimed 250 people, right?
LITTMAN: We've had a lot of shootings in the United States. You know, we've had a lot of shootings --
(CROSSTALK)
WALKER: Yes. Let's come back --
LITTMAN: We've had a lot of shootings in the United States over time. The United States has more guns than we have people. The United States -- there are more killings in the United States than any other country. Obviously not a coincidence.
(CROSSTALK)
LITTMAN: If you're a hateful person --
LACY: The problem is radical Islamic terrorism.
LITTMAN: Usually when somebody goes on a rant like this they yell babooey at the end and run out of the studio screaming. So I'm just glad you're still sitting here. In the United States we have a big problem with gun control. We -- most Americans favor doing something with assault weapons. We haven't been able to do it as a country. It's a really tragic situation. We have shootings constantly. We -- you know, you go to Colorado, Virginia Tech, Newtown --
LACY: And who's president? For seven years. And who had a Democratic Congress for two years --
LITTMAN: OK. I'm not sure what that has -- I'm not sure what the relevance is.
(CROSSTALK)
LACY: We have incompetent leadership.
LITTMAN: The issue is -- OK. The issue is --
WALKER: But this is about access to guns, you're saying.
LITTMAN: Well, a lot of this is about access to guns. People in this country can get guns way too easily. This person went into a store and bought a weapon, the AR-15, that's been used in a lot of these mass killings. These types of weapons weren't used in the past and now they've been used over and over again. It's really a tragic situation.
Let me just go back on Trump's language. Obviously it's having a big effect in this country in the political system. It's really -- you know, Hillary's running I think a very smart campaign. We see today in California that Donald Trump in the poll today is down 30 points in California. He's got 31 percent support. And the amazing thing about that is --
LACY: That's not right.
LITTMAN: 39 percent of the people are supporting Donald Trump in California. That's amazing.
LACY: That's completely wrong.
WALKER: Well, we're going to have to leave it there, gentlemen.
LITTMAN: OK. Thank you.
WALKER: Because obviously the question around the world, you know, is about gun control in the U.S. Every time they look up on the news and there's a mass shooting --
LITTMAN: Very frightening.
WALKER: -- typically in the United States.
LITTMAN: That's right.
WALKER: You know, I think what's shocking to a lot of people is the shooter was someone who was investigated by the FBI.
LITTMAN: Right.
WALKER: Not once but twice and had been on federal terror watch lists before and yet he was still able to, you know, gain access to control --
LACY: And he was taken off of the list. That's the problem.
WALKER: To have a gun.
LACY: You have Democrats that care more about the rights --
LITTMAN: Has nothing to do with Democrats. The FBI took him off the list. It has nothing to do with Democrats.
WALKER: All right. A lively discussion as always.
LITTMAN: Thank you.
WALKER: Matthew Littman and James Lacy, good to have both of you on.
LITTMAN: Thanks. OK. Thank you.
WALKER: Thanks for both of your perspectives.
All right. We're going to take a short break here. When we come back, investigators are now talking to the gunman's wife. What she's telling them her husband did in the days just before the horrifying attack.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:31:45] WALKER: You are watching CNN's special coverage of the worst terror attack in the United States since 9/11. I'm Amara Walker, in Los Angeles.
VAUSE: And I'm John Vause, live in Orlando.
We're learning new details about the slaughter at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. Federal law enforcement officials tell CNN the gunman's wife is helping them put together a timeline of his activities before the shooting rampage. They're also combing through his electronic devices. An official says the shooter searched online for ISIS beheading videos.
And U.S. President Barack Obama says it appears the gunman was motivated by extremist propaganda he found on the web.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It does appear that at the last minute he announced allegiance to ISIL. But there's no evidence so far that he was, in fact, directed. As far as we can tell right now, this is certainly an example of the kind of homegrown extremism that all of us have been so concerned about for a very long time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Joining us once again for more on this, CNN law enforcement analyst, Cedric Alexander. He's the public safety director for DeKalb County in Georgia.
Cedric, I want to go back into the gunman's past here because we learned today, according to the security company he worked for, he passed a background check and apparently an in-depth psychiatric evaluation. But yet, he then snapped somehow. Put these two things together.
CEDRIC ALEXANDER, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, it's interesting. But you know, considering the fact he's a U.S.-born citizen, we can track him in this country from the time he was born up until the time he attended school, finished school. But in terms of the psychological testing, that's pretty significant. Very important. Because it would be interesting to know, number one, who did the psychological evaluation, how intense and how in depth was it, was it something that was just very cursory or whether it was something that really went into his personality style. Look for pathology. I mean, severe pathology and those kinds of things. My initial thought was me being trained as a psychologist, probably not. It was probably something that was pretty simplistic.
VAUSE: He was also trained before working at the security company. He was trained at a law enforcement academy. Spent about a month learning how to use weapons, which I guess, in some ways, explains why he was so efficient in killing so many people.
ALEXANDER: Well, certainly we know I believe he had some training back in St. Lucie County here in Florida where he trained at a local academy there. From what I understand, he eventually was put out or released or whatever the case, but at some point he did receive some formal firearms training and he may have enhanced that training by doing some further training off site. You know, himself. But clearly, anytime that you have an automatic weapon, such as an AK- style weapon or semi-automatic weapon, it really doesn't require a whole lot of training.
VAUSE: Just explain to me, the AR-15, which is described as a semi- automatic weapon, but essentially it can fire a lot of rounds very, very quickly.
ALEXANDER: Well, generally, we're talking about a 30-round clip. And even if it's on single fire, you just pull the trigger, it will continue to fire.
VAUSE: But you can do rapid fire?
ALEXANDER: Well, usually, you cannot.
VAUSE: You have to modify it.
[01:35:12] ALEXANDER: Yeah. It has to be a modified piece of weaponry. That's either used by the military or by police. Now, there are some who can illegally make that modification, but you don't see that very often.
VAUSE: And we should say that law enforcement officials say there's no indication that the AR was, in fact, modified.
Finally, we know that his wife is cooperating with investigators here. Do you expect they'll learn much from her?
ALEXANDER: I think so. As much information as they can glean from her would be critically important.
VAUSE: What kind of stuff.
ALEXANDER: Well, what's his history, what's been his personality, any change in his mood, in his personality? Who has been his associates over the period of time that she has been involved, married to him? So a lot of information concerning him personally is going to be critically important.
(CROSSTALK)
ALEXANDER: Could be. I think what we're going to see is the FBI and local authorities continue their investigation. That, too, will reveal itself over time.
VAUSE: OK. Cedric Alexander, thank you for being with us. We appreciate your insights. Thank you, sir.
ALEXANDER: Thank you.
VAUSE: We'll fake a short break here. When we come back, Donald Trump delivers a fiery speech on the Orlando terror attack, but some of his angry comments showed little regard for the truth. We'll fact- check the Republican presumptive nominee.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. You're watching CNN's special coverage of the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history. I'm John Vause, live in Orlando.
WALKER: And I'm Amara Walker, in Los Angeles.
As we've mentioned, both U.S. presumptive presidential nominees addressed the Orlando massacre in speeches Monday. But Donald Trump's comments were filled with inflammatory rhetoric.
Our Dana Bash checks the facts.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[01:40:09] DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Thank you for joining me.
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump's 34-minute speech was brimming with the kind of nativist rhetoric that helped him win the GOP nomination.
TRUMP: They're pouring in, and we don't know what we're doing.
BASH: But as he doubled down on the solution to Americans' fear of attacks at home, limiting immigration into the U.S., Trump made lots of claims, some true, some not true. In the category of not true, this:
TRUMP: The killer, whose name I will not use or ever say, was born in Afghan of Afghan parents who immigrated to the United States.
BASH: Hs parents did emigrate from Afghanistan, but the killer himself was born in New York, which is why U.S. officials are calling it an act of homegrown terrorism. Still, regardless of the Orlando killer being American, the thrust of Trump's response to the attack is focused on concerns about immigrants. He drilled down on Hillary Clinton's plan to let Syrian refugees into the U.S.
TRUMP: A 500 percent increase in Syrian refugees coming into our country. Tell me, tell me, how stupid is that? This could be a better, bigger, more horrible version than the legendary Trojan horse ever was.
BASH: That stat, that Clinton's refugee proposal would be a 500 percent increase over President Obama's plan, is true. To be specific, Obama's plan allows for 10,000 refugees. Clinton's is 65,000. That would actually be a 550 percent increase, about what Trump claims. But he also argues there's no vetting.
TRUMP: Having learned nothing from these attacks, she now plans to massively increase admissions without a screening plan.
BASH: The reality is refugees now go through months of processing and paperwork before being admitted into the U.S. So that is false. Then there's the question of how many Syrian refugees are coming in now.
TRUMP: We have to stop the tremendous flow of Syrian refugees into the United States.
BASH: On CNN's "New Day" Trump was more specific.
TRUMP (voice-over): We have, by the way, thousands and thousands of people pouring into our country right now who have the same kind of hate and probably even more than he has.
BASH: On the numbers, what Trump said is true. According to the State Department, 3,887 Syrian refugees have been admitted to the U.S. since last October, more than 2,000 of them in the last month alone, though that's far fewer so far than the 10,000 President Obama said he'd allow.
And on the issue of guns:
TRUMP (on camera): Her plan is to disarm law-abiding Americans, abolishing the Second Amendment, and leaving only the bad guys and terrorists with guns. No good. Not going to happen, folks. Not going to happen.
BASH: Trump repeated his claim that Hillary Clinton wants to do away with America's right to bear arms. But that is false. Clinton does want to restrict access to guns but not abolish the Second Amendment.
HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: If the FBI is watching you for suspected terrorist links, you shouldn't be able to just go buy a gun with no questions asked.
(CHEERING)
BASH (on camera): Beyond those specific statements, for Muslims in America, Trump's overall tone was no doubt alarming. Even as he said some American Muslim communities are great and called for a partnership, he also said they know what's going on, they know that he was bad, despite offering no evidence any of the killer's fellow American Muslims knew about his intentions.
Dana Bash, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALKER: Let's talk more about this. Joining me now is Hassan Shibly, the chief executive director of the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
It's good to have you here in the studio. Thanks for joining us.
I want to first get your reaction to some of the rhetoric we've been hearing from the presidential candidates, namely Donald Trump, who is doubling down on his proposal to ban Muslims from entering the country. And a lot of critics saying he's painting Muslims with a broad brush.
HASSAN SHIBLY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FLORIDA CHAPTER, COUNCIL ON AMERICAN-ISLAMIC RELATIONS: He's offending the U.S. Constitution. He's offending the Bill of Rights. He's offending the very principles of liberty and justice and diversity that make America one of the best places in the world to live. It's because of freedom of religion and liberty which Trump is undermining. He's playing right into the hands of extremists, right into the hands of terrorists. Our enemies can never destroy us. We can only destroy ourselves if we allow fear and hate to turn us against each other and undermine the principles of liberty and justice that make America so great. I think he's dangerous for this country, quite frankly.
WALKER: You and your staff with CAIR were in Orlando. You were there yesterday meeting with victims' families.
SHIBLY: Correct. Correct.
WALKER: Why was it important for you to be there? And what was the response from them?
SHIBLY: Well, we at CAIR Florida have built one of the strongest and most active civil rights organizations in the states. We represent any victim of discrimination, harassment or hate crimes regardless of their race, religion, ethnicity or sexual orientation. So of course the minute we heard about what happened we sent our staff there and we've been working day and night to provide assistance. We brought over counselors. We brought over chaplains. It's very important because we have to stand in solidarity. An attack on any one of us is an attack on all of us. 50 of our fellow Floridians, our neighbors were killed in cold blood.
[01:45:32] WALKER: What was their response? What are they saying?
SHIBLY: They were extremely touched. They were appreciative. We were hugging. We were crying together. It showed an overwhelming sense of solidarity and strength, that we will not allow our enemies to defeat us by dividing us and turning us against each other. We will not play into their hands.
WALKER: I would imagine there's a lot of concern amongst leaders like you and within the Muslim community of backlash every time we see a terror attack and there is a Muslim or someone who uses Islam, the name of Islam in carrying out these attacks. I would imagine there's a big concern about a heightened Islamophobia in this country. Are you experiencing that?
SHIBLY: Our biggest concern always, of course, for the victims. After that unfortunately we did notice that, since last year, in Florida in particular, there's been a 500 percent increase in anti- Muslim hate crimes.
(CROSSTALK)
SHIBLY: And that's reflective of the hundreds in percentage of increase of anti-Muslim hate crimes happening nationwide. We can't allow violence to lead to further violence. Only today, we heard of another mosque being attacked in Florida. My office is investigating that as well. We need the cycle of violence and hate to stop. It's not good for our country. We're all Americans. We can't allow enemies abroad to divide us here at home and turn us against each other. That's what they want. We can't play into their hands.
WALKER: Hassan, there are also questions about the motive of this gunman in the Orlando massacre, questions about whether or not he was gay. There have been reports that he frequented this nightclub, that the "L.A. Times" also reporting he was on a gay dating app. I just wanted to ask you about homosexuality and Islam and how incompatible they are. And do you think there needs to be more tolerance in the religion for the LGBTQ community?
SHIBLY: The Koran is very clear. Whoever kills a soul, it is as if he kills all humanity. There is absolutely no room for attacking anybody because you disagree with what they do in the privacy of their home or in their lifestyle. That is un-Islamic. What he did was a crime against humanity. It was a crime against God. And he will have to answer to God for that horrific crime that he did against our nation and against us as Americans. There's absolutely no room. We stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ community, with the Christian community, with the Jewish community, with all Americans against anybody who wants to enact violence or hate or divide us as a people.
WALKER: Good to get your perspective and thank you so much for taking the time. Hassan Shibly, the chief executive director of CAIR Florida. Appreciate it.
SHIBLY: Thank you.
WALKER: We're going to take a short break. When we come back, a look at how communities across the U.S. are paying tribute to the victims of Sunday's shooting.
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(WEATHER REPORT)
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[01:52:00] VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. Across the United States there has been an outpouring of support and a strong show of solidarity for the victims of the Orlando massacre. In Los Angeles, hundreds gathered for a candlelight vigil and a rally outside city hall on Monday evening. They held out the letters which spelled "Orlando." And the names of the victims were read aloud. In New York, state governor, Andrew Cuomo, and New York City mayor, Bill de Blasio, joined leaders of the LGBT community for a vigil. And here in Orlando, a sea of glowing candles as hundreds gathered to remember the victims who were killed and wounded. One of many vigils across the city on Monday.
Patty Sheehan is Orlando's first openly gay commissioner. She joins us.
Patty, thank you for speaking with us and take the time.
First things first. All the dead have now been identified. Families are being notified. How are people coping with this?
PATTY SHEEHAN, CITY COMMISSIONER, ORLANDO, FLORIDA: Yeah. Well, I just came back from a huge rally down at Orlando Performing Arts Center. It was a really amazing time to bring the community together. I was frankly reluctant at first to do it because I was afraid of putting more people in peril and stretching thin law enforcement resources. But it was actually really, really wonderful. There were people from the Muslim community, people all over -- from all different walks of life. And it was just really affirming. There was a candlelight vigil. And I have to tell you, they were ringing a bell for every victim. And it was stunning.
VAUSE: Very moving.
SHEEHAN: It was very moving. And how long it took to ring that bell for every victim.
VAUSE: 49.
SHEEHAN: Yes.
VAUSE: Do you have any idea why the gunman, Mateen, would target the Pulse nightclub? Because we're now hearing from police sources that investigators are looking into the fact he may have been at this club on a number of different occasions before the shooting.
SHEEHAN: This is -- I'm just -- I'm incredulous. Although they do say a lot of times that people who have internal homophobia tend to act out against other gay people.
VAUSE: I guess that is one theory out there. This is a man struggling with his own sexuality possibly.
SHEEHAN: Yeah.
VAUSE: Clearly, what happened here, it's unprecedented. But for the gay community violence, it happens all too frequently.
SHEEHAN: You know, we have been -- we've lost -- aids decimated our community. We had a lot of death and lost people and had great suffering because of that. We've been victims of hate crimes. We've been the victims of discrimination. We have had to overcome a lot in this community. And I think because of that we have a resilience and a strength that a lot of communities don't have. When we get together that's why we can put together fabulous shows and things like, that and fabulous music because it's kind of our way of coping.
VAUSE: But you are going to need that strength in the coming days. SHEEHAN: We do need that strength, absolutely.
VAUSE: One other issue, especially in states like Florida, there are laws on the books, anti-LGBT laws, which are on the books, and they continue to be passed, at least attempted to be passed. Florida never got through the transgender bathroom laws but the legislature tried. Is it about time that the lawmakers, after what happened here, maybe think about the discrimination that --
(CROSSTALK)
[01:55:15] SHEEHAN: I asked them to hold them accountable. I said, hey, if you want to come here and talk about violence against the gay community and say it's really not a gay thing, yes, it is a gay thing. If you going to do hate crimes enhancements for crimes against my community? Are you going to do things to protect my community? Are you going to protect for public accommodation and employment and housing at the state level like we do in Orlando? What are you going to do to help my community after this? And you know --
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: What do they say?
SHEEHAN: So far, well, you know, we love the gays. Yeah, right. No, you know what, you need to show that. You need to put your money where your mouth is. If you're going to come here and stand in front of the cameras and talk about how you want to support the community, do it. It's not that difficult. It's not that difficult to do the right thing.
VAUSE: Patty Sheehan, good to speak with you. Thank you.
SHEEHAN: Certainly.
VAUSE: And you're watching CNN's special coverage. I'm John Vause, in Orlando.
WALKER: And I'm Amara Walker, in Los Angeles.
John and I will be back with much more after this.
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