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US House of Representatives Back in Session; July 4th Recess Begins After Votes; Brexit Vote Underway; Trump Attacking Clinton in Latest Speech. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired June 23, 2016 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[03:00:00] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN NEWSROOM SHOW HOST: Hello and welcome to CNN breaking news. I'm Rosemary Church at CNN center bringing you all the day's top stories beginning with some dramatic developments on Capitol Hill in Washington.
The U.S. House is back in session, but they are not going to vote on a gun control bill even though democrats have been staging a sit-in to push for that vote for almost 16 hours now.
Instead, lawmakers are voting on other unrelated bills. Republicans plan to leave for the July 4th recess after all the votes are finished. Democrats say they will still come in next week and continue the sit-in though the House won't be in session.
I want to turn now to CNN's Eric Bradner in Washington. So, Eric, it's just after three in the morning. And as we said, this sit-in has been going on for nearly 16 hours. What's been happening on the House chamber floor? Bring us up to date on that, just how long this might last as well, and what they hope to achieve and what they can achieve?
ERIC BRADNER, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Right. So, democrats are in hour 16 of this sit-in, this protest. And they're demanding votes on gun control measures that just aren't going to happen. They're not going to get those votes.
Right now what we're seeing on the House floor is republicans maneuvering to adjourn, to leave town for almost two weeks without voting on those gun control measures. They're trying to basically clear the deck in these early morning hours.
They're going to vote on a Zika funding bill, basically be able to say after that we've taken care of what we need to achieve and we can leave town. So, republicans are maneuvering to deny democrats the vote that they then have been sitting in protesting for.
Democrats, meanwhile, are trying to figure out what they will do next, how they can keep the spotlight without the House actually in session and voting on legislation for them to basically interrupt and commandeer proceedings here.
So, that's what's going on the House floor right now. And we'll learn more about whether republicans will be able to sort of end this sit-in and what democrats will do next here in the coming hours as the House votes.
CHURCH: And, Eric, of course it's worth pointing out that during this standoff emotions have been intense, even confrontations reported.
BRADNER: Right.
CHURCH: And some democrats are threatening to stay in the chamber all night long. That seems to have already happened pretty much.
BRADNER: That's right.
CHURCH: What have you witnessed so far?
BRADNER: Sure. So, we've seen some clashes between republicans and democrats. Representative Louie Gohmert of Texas at one point confronted democrats of shouting that rather than talking about gun control they should be denouncing radical Islam and figuring out how to deal with that.
That led to a clash with some democrats and got a bit angry and bit heated for a moment. We've also seen republicans sort of directing Capitol police to usher out pro-gun control protestors who are in the House gallery and making much more noise than they're typically allowed, while the democrats have been advocating and keeping those people here.
So it's quite a chaotic scene here at the Capitol. It's much more raucous than typical in the Capitol, but it looks like this series of votes that we're in the middle of right now could sort of bring this to an end or at least move it to a new phase where democrats rather than having pillows and blankets.
And staying on the House floor all night will have to sort of recalibrate their strategy and figure out what to do for the rest of the morning and for the day tomorrow with republicans gone, and the lights potentially turned off in the House chamber.
CHURCH: Indeed. And certainly compelling images coming out there via Periscope. Talking with Eric Bradner in Washington. And, Eric, we'll talk to you again at half hour.
BRADNER: Thank you.
CHURCH: Bye-bye.
Well, House democrat John Lewis is leading that sit-in which started Wednesday morning. Lewis is a Civil Rights icon in the 1960s. He lead sit-ins demanding an end to segregation. Lewis said this sit-in reminded him of his early days advocating for Civil Rights for African-Americans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN LEWIS, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: Deadly, mass shootings are becoming more and more frequent. Mr. Speaker, this is a fight. It is not an opinion. We must remove the blinders. The time for silence and patience is long gone. We are calling on the leadership of the House to bring common sense gun control legislation to the House floor.
[22:04:59] Give us a vote! Let us vote! We came here to do our job. We came here to work. American people demanding action. Do we have the real courage? Do we have real courage to make at least a down payment on ending gun violence in America?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: As this plays out, the top republican, Paul Ryan, is not caving in. Here is what he told our Wolf Blitzer earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL RYAN, U.S. SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: This is nothing more than a publicity stunt, that's point number one. Point number two is this bill was already defeated in the United States Senate. Number three, we are not going to take away a citizen's due process rights, we're not going to take away a citizen's constitutional rights without due process. That was already defeated in the Senate and this is not a way to try and bring up legislation.
Now let's focus on the issue at hand here, terrorism, and let's find out what we need to do to prevent future terrorist attacks. And if a person is on a terror watch list and they go try to buy a gun, we have procedures in place to deal with that. We want to make sure that those procedures are done correctly and that's something we should be able to do in a calm and cool manner without these sort of dilatory publicity stunt tactics to try and bring a bill that already died over in the Senate to the House floor.
WOLF BLITZER, THE SITUATION ROOM SHOW HOST: John Lewis and these other democrats on the floor was really not televised by C-SPAN cameras controlled by because you called for a recess which shuts off those cameras.
Some are suggesting you are trying to censor this protest. Are you?
RYAN: No. Look, this is the way the rules work in the House and they have ever since we had a TV. We had a similar protest when we were in the minority in 2008. Not only did the cameras not go on, they turned the lights off on us. This is what you do when you to a recess and subject to the call of the chair. These are the House rules and they've been in this way for years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Voting is underway in the U.K. on the question of membership in the European Union. The polls opened about an hour ago and will stay open until 10 p.m. local time.
A record 46.5 million people registered to vote on this question. Nearly 84 percent of the electorate is in England, the rest are in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Gibraltar.
Well, Nima Elbagir joins us now live from a polling station in North London. So, Nima, it is 8 o'clock in the morning where you are. And as we mentioned, the polls have been open for about an hour now. It's a critical vote. Explain to us what's at stake here.
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, in essence it is about whether the U.K. continues to be a part of the European Union, but really it is also a vote on modern Britain, on Britain's place in the world. And this is a vote that has dominated the political discourse in this country for the last decade and a half.
In fact, since Britain voted to join the European Union in 1973, there has been hard rending and so much internal strife within the conservative party and beyond across the two major opposition parties about whether Britain is better within Europe.
And finally, a day that many had thought would never come, the decision will be taken by the British electorate and those who have residency in the U.K., not from the European Union though. Others from around the world who have residency in the U.K. get to decide Britain's political future and Britain's place in the world.
And this has been a very emotional lead up to this campaign. This really has even -- and even if you compare it with actual democratic process, the actual elections to vote in new government. Even by those standards this has been a very fraught debate and now for a lot of people this day couldn't come soon enough.
A record number of voters registered. But whether that's going to result in a record turnout, whether doesn't exactly seem to be playing along, Rosemary, but we're expecting to see numbers pick up throughout the day.
CHURCH: All right. Nima Elbagir there in North London, just after 8 o'clock in the morning. As we mentioned we'll keep a very close eye on this. Many thanks to you.
And of course CNN anchors and correspondents will be covering developments from London and across the U.K. throughout the day. We'll have interviews and reactions from around the world as the votes come in. And you'll also find extensive coverage online at cnn.com/referendum.
Donald Trump is on the offensive attacking Hillary Clinton during his latest speech. Despite his tough talk, Trump didn't touch some of his more controversial talking points, and that may be exactly what republican leaders have been waiting for.
[03:10:07] Here is CNN's Jim Acosta.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hillary Clinton, and as you know, she, most people know, she's a world class liar.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: With his new team and teleprompters in place, Donald Trump stayed on script. He unleashed his most focused and unrelenting attack to date on Hillary Clinton that had even skeptics in this party cheering, not cringing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Hillary Clinton may be the most corrupt person ever to seek the presidency of the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Call it operation pivot as the presumptive GOP nominee made his first real attempt at defining the general election for voters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Her campaign slogan is, I'm with her. You know what my response is to that, I'm with you, the American people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: It's no secret why Trump's assault focused so much on Clinton's character. Just look at the numbers, a new CNN/ORC poll finds more people trust Trump than Clinton. Though Americans believe that former Secretary of State will make a better commander-in-chief. So, Trump tried to chip away at her foreign policy credentials.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Her decisions spread death, destruction and terrorism everywhere she touched.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: But in doing so, Trump made statements that were simply not true. Like his claim that he opposed the Iraq war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I was among the earliest to criticize the rush to war, and, yes, even before that war ever started.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Even though it's been pointed out repeatedly he's on tape voicing support for the 2003 invasion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you for invading Iraq?
TRUMP: Yes, I guess so. You know, I wish it was -- I wish the first time it was done correctly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: And trump also blamed Clinton for the American deaths at Benghazi.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Among the victims of our late ambassador, Chris Stevens, I mean, she, what she did with him was absolutely horrible. He was left helpless to die as Hillary Clinton soundly slept in her bed. That's right, when the phone rang, as per the commercial, at 3 o'clock in the morning, Hillary Clinton was sleeping.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: That's also wrong. The siege of Benghazi happened at night in Libya but back in the U.S. it was still in the afternoon when Clinton was awake. And there were other whoppers.
Trump said he started his real estate business with a small loan, that was $1 million from his father. And Trump claim Clinton wants to abolish the Second Amendment, but fact checkers have noted that's just not true. Trump accused Clinton of doing some fabricating of her own.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Just look at her pathetic e-mail server statements or her phony landing in Bosnia where she said she was under attack and the attack turned out to be young girls handing her flowers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Trump drilled down on that theme accusing that Clinton of profiting off their ties to the rich and powerful.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: They totally own her, and that will never, ever change, including if she ever became president, God help us.
MICHAEL CAPUTO, FORMER TRUMP AIDE: I thought Trump's speech today were a sure sign that the changes he made on Monday are moving this campaign in the right direction. He's on message.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Former Trump aide, Michael Caputo who resigned from the campaign this week after celebrated the firing of campaign manager Corey Lewandowski on Twitter says "Trump is positioning himself to win."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAPUTO: I know people are skeptical about whether or not he can stay on message, whether or not he can stay moving in the right direction after his pivot. And I think Mr. Trump is completely up to the task.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Trump's speech is certainly receiving positive reviews inside the GOP. But one Trump source told me there's no way Trump would have won the nomination with scripted speeches, translation, to keep his base fired up for the election. Trump will have to lose the teleprompters from time to time to give the crowds what they want.
Jim Acosta, CNN, New York.
CHURCH: And Clinton used her own speech Wednesday to respond to Trump's attacks saying they're personal and a smoke screen.
Our Jeff Zeleny has more.
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Hillary Clinton is striking back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, (D) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's going after me personally because he has no answers on the substance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: Hours after Donald Trump's searing attack, Clinton offering a pointed rebuttal. She calls Trump unfit to lead the U.S. economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: He has no real strategy for creating jobs, just a string of empty promises, and maybe we shouldn't expect something better from someone whose most famous words are, you're fired.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: For a second straight day, Clinton hammering Trump hard not ignoring him as so many of his GOP rivals did.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: Donald hates it when anyone points out how hollow his sales pitch really is. And I guess my speech yesterday must have gotten under his skin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[03:15:02] ZELENY: A discussion that was never high minded seems to be sinking by the day. As the race boils down to a he said/she said kind of campaign. Trump raising questions about her faith in a private meeting with religious leaders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We don't know anything about Hillary in terms of religion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: Prompting this response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: As we Methodists like to say... (APPLAUSE)
Do all the good you can to all the people you can in all the ways you can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: And Clinton offering a rare reply to Trump's attacks on her family's foundation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: The Clinton Foundation helps poor people around the world get access to life savings AIDS medicine. Donald Trump uses poor around the world to produce his line of suits and ties
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: Amid the crossfire Clinton is bringing in the calvary inviting Elizabeth Warren to join her on the campaign trail next week in Cincinnati. It's Clinton's third trip to Ohio in two weeks but it's her debut with Warren.
CNN has learned she's among the handful of democrats being eyed for vice president. Despite Warren's popularity as a liberal fire brand, democrats aren't sold on the idea.
A new CNN/ORC poll shows just 34 percent say Warren should be on the ticket, 54 percent say they would rather see someone else. Bernie Sanders won't be on the ticket. And while he hasn't officially dropped out of the race or endorse her, he conceded reality today in this interview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BERNIE SANDERS, (D) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It doesn't appear that I'm going to be the nominee.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: Visiting Capitol Hill this morning, she praised sanders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: We are going to win this election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: And told House democrats the party must come together. Behind closed doors CNN learned she reminded them of this moment from the 2008 convention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: I move Senator Barack Obama of Illinois be selected by this convention by acclimation as the nominee of the Democratic Party for President of the United States.
(CROWD CHEERING)
ZELENY: She's hopeful Sanders will do the same for her next month in Philadelphia.
CHURCH: Jeff Zeleny reporting there.
And voters that can't stomach the thought of a Clinton or Trump presidency have a third option. Details on the Libertarian Party's presidential nominee, coming up.
And after a short break, we will take you back to Capitol Hill in Washington where democrats are staging a sit-in demanding action on gun control.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes. This is your road to Rio update.
And Rio getting some much needed cash. The Brazilian government approving an $850 million bailout for the Olympic City. Funds will be used to back pay police officers and beef up security ahead of the games.
[02:20:08] Money isn't the only help Brazil is getting. It will also get security help from a super high definition Israeli satellite. The EROS B will be available experimentally for four months to monitor Brazilian air space and help identify threats.
The defense minister says the satellite area will cover all host cities.
Security isn't Rio's only concern of course. A number of athletes foregoing the games because of the Zika virus. Top golfer, Rory McIlroy, is the latest athlete to pull out of the competition even though authority say the Zika risk is low. McIlroy said he realizes that his family's health comes before anything else.
Finally, authorities had to shoot and kill a jaguar that had been part of the Olympic torch relay. The torch was visiting a local zoo when the animal escaped from its cage shortly after the ceremony. The jaguar was unphased by a tranquilizer dart and was shot with a pistol to protect a soldier nearby.
That is your road to Rio update. I'm Michael Holmes.
CHURCH: And a warm welcome back to all. We want to update you on our breaking news this hour.
The U.S. House has just adjourned after a vote, but it wasn't on a gun control bill. Democrats have been staging a sit-in to push for that vote, and now the U.S. House Speaker says republicans plan to leave for their recess. Paul Ryan is causing the sit-in a publicity stunt. And says democrats
do not have an end game strategy. The democrats are still sitting in and say they will keep it up.
You can see these live pictures even though the House won't be in session.
Joining me now to talk more about U.S. politics and the race for the White House is Jonathan Swan, national political reporter for The Hill. Thank you so much for being with us.
Of course, there's a lot to talk about today, so let's start with the democrats staging a sit-in on the House floor in an effort to force a gun vote. It's a dramatic political tactic. What impact is this likely to have, do you think? And how long can these democrats sustain this form of action?
JONATHAN SWAN, THE HILL NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: It is a stunning sight. You have about 40 democrats sitting on the floor of the House of Representatives to protest inaction by the republican leadership.
They want a bill that bans people on the terrorism no-fly list from buying guns. This is obviously in the wake of the Orlando massacre, and it's being led by a Civil Rights icon, John Lewis, a representative from Georgia.
That gives it a more heroic image. He's -- I don't know if your viewers are familiar with John Lewis, but he is an icon in America. He was a key figure marching alongside Martin Luther King, and him, the sight of him on the House floor was incredibly stirring for many democrats and Barack Obama praised it.
There's no sight so far that this going to be broken. And it's a standoff the republicans don't want to give in because this could become a new tactic every time one side doesn't get what they want; they just sit on the floor. You can imagine it just sort of devolving into almost like a preschool situation. But this is certainly an issue that is felt very deeply in the democratic caucus. And I don't think they're going to give up on this.
CHURCH: All right. We'll watch very closely to see if they force the hand of republicans. I want to move now to Donald Trump's attack on Hillary Clinton in response, of course, to her questioning his business prowess and economic policies the day before.
Some of Trump's comments, it has to be said, don't pass the fact check test. But did he score any points in his attack?
SWAN: What he's tried to do is actually unprecedented for a republican candidate, which wouldn't surprise your viewers who follow on Donald Trump that he's doing something unprecedented.
But in many ways, this was a speech that attacked Hillary Clinton from the left. It was really an argument against globalization and against deals with special interests. So, Donald Trump, the billionaire, who lives in Trump Tower in New
York and has all the hotels with his name on it is trying to portray Hillary Clinton as the corrupt plutocrat in this race and himself as the man of the people. It's very unclear whether this will work. Certainly both very unpopular, both deeply distrusted.
But that was the whole point of his speech. If you do a word check through his speech the word you'd find most used in his speech is the word rigged.
[03:25:05] And Donald Trump's argument effectively is that Hillary Clinton is part of this cobol in Washington where they all do deals in back rooms and that he is the outsider to clean it all up.
CHURCH: And what about Clinton's response to Trump calling his comments outlandish lies, and conspiracy theories. Will that be sufficient to counter what Trump said about her and of course her record as Secretary of State?
SWAN: This is -- this is the most interesting election to cover because it really is who is the least worst option. If you look at the public polling, look, if you look at it so far you have to say that, yes, Hillary Clinton is succeeding because she is less unpopular than Donald Trump.
She -- her unfavorables are a bit lower but, you know, the day-to-day combat, it's very hard to gauge because Donald Trump is so far off the pace of Clinton and his campaign is imploding at the moment at such a rapid rate that it's very hard to sort of score points in the way that you traditionally would in a presidential campaign.
CHURCH: I guess we're yet to see which of the two candidates won this round of attacks. We'll look out for opinion polls. Jonathan Swan, a pleasure to talk to you. Thank you so much.
SWAN: You, too. Thank you.
CHURCH: Civilians are escaping the Iraqi City of Fallujah are finding little food, water and shelter. Humanitarian groups are overwhelmed and the battle to liberate Fallujah from ISIS is not over yet.
Also when we return, you will hear from a third party candidate in the race for the White House. Why he thinks the two-party system is a dinosaur. That's next.
[03:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: And a warm welcome back to our viewers here in the United States, and of course all around the world. This is CNN breaking news. I'm Rosemary Church. And it is early morning in Washington.
The U.S. House of Representatives just adjourned without voting on a gun control bill. Looking at these live pictures via Periscope.
Democrats took over the House chamber on Wednesday demanding that vote, and they're still there although their republican counterparts have taken off for the July 4th recess.
Now the democrats say they will keep sitting in and they won't give up the fight for gun control legislation.
So, let's go back to CNN's Eric Bradner now in Washington. Eric, it's just after 3, it's actually just 3.30 in the morning right now. The sit-in is in the 16th hour. But even though democrats plan to come back next week, the House won't be in session. So what exactly has been achieved here?
BRADNER: Right. So, democrats did not get the vote they were looking for on gun control. They did draw a lot of attention, get a lot of social media buzz and draw a huge audience on the video streaming app Periscope, but they did not force republicans' hand on actual legislation.
What republicans just did is they adjourned the House until July 5th. So, there will be no votes, no legislative proceedings for this democratic sit-in to actually interrupt. That means democrats have to sort of recalibrate now, decide what they're going to do.
They've lost the opportunity to have the kind of audience they would have by grinding actual House floor proceedings to a halt. So, do they continue throughout the rest of the morning and into Thursday and try and have a presence on the House floor all of next week even though the House is on session? That's what democrats are talking about on the House floor right now.
There's a contingency of several dozen that stuck around, they're huddled up, they're talking about what's next and what will be looking for in the coming minutes and hours is what's next for the democrats. Now the republicans have sort of pulled the rug out from under the sit-in, what's the next move?
CHURCH: Yes. Indeed. And, Eric, we know, of course, that there were some confrontations between democrats and republicans. How bad did it get? And with the optics of this, the confrontations and of course this sit-in, who wins over the voters? The democrats or republicans?
BRADNER: Right. Well, the democrats are certainly declaring victory, but this is a situation where beauty is obviously in the eye of the beholder. We definitely saw some clashes.
Representative Louie Gohmert, a republican from Texas angrily confronted some democrats on the floor. He said that they should be talking about radical Islam, not gun control. That angered some democrats and it got a bit heated for a while.
CHURCH: All right. Eric, I just want to interrupt you. I'm sorry about this. But I do want to go to John Lewis. We want to take this live. He is about to speak. Certainly that's what we're expecting any minute. He's about to turn to -- let's wait then.
We'll keep this picture going, Eric. Let's go back to you and bring you in. So, it is now 3.33 in the morning. What can we expect to hear from John Lewis as he speaks any minute? BRADNER: Right. So, we're expecting democrats to sort of lay out what
they've gotten from this, what they've demonstrated, and that is, that no matter what they will try, republicans are not going to give them the votes on these gun control measures that they're seeking.
We're talking about banning suspected terrorists from being able to purchase firearms, and we're also talking about expanded background checks. That's what democrats are calling for here.
And if they don't get votes on those to sort of use in November's election to really play out the differences between the parties on gun control, then they will be able to point to the sit-in and say, look, we tried everything. We see this as a -- sort of an issue that's affecting all kinds of Americans.
They've been pointing to the LGBT aspect of this after the shooting in Orlando in a gay nightclub and really drawing attention to that. And so, they'll have this sort of unprecedented or at least very unusual protest to point to and say, look, we tried everything. Hand us control of the House and these are the measures that you now know we will be pushing if democrats win the majority in November.
CHURCH: And, Eric, of course they do have -- a lot of the public do want to see some form of gun control. That's the problem, isn't it, trying to find the balance there what is required?
[03:35:05] We even heard through the night that some republicans were saying they want to see some form as well. They've got their own bill, some of them. They can't agree on what the democrats want to hear. Is there a sense of inevitability here that something will happen? Something will get passed at some point?
BRADNER: Well, there really is not to be honest with you. A lot of these measures have come up before in the wake of mass shootings previously and they've failed. They've been voted down in the House and the Senate. There's always talk of compromise, always some republicans willing to work with democratic groups.
In fact, this year we saw Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, a republican negotiating with a group led by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg trying to find common ground but it fell apart at the last minute.
There is just not a lot of common ground. Both parties said they want to do something. But democrats want to go quite a bit further than republicans. So, this is sort of an episode that we've seen several times now. Each time there's a mass shooting the democrats make this push for gun control but republicans view it as fringing upon Second Amendment constitutional rights and say it would be elsewhere on combatting terrorism...
(CROSSTALK)
CHURCH: All right, Eric. We're going to listen in now as we wait to hear John Lewis talk. STENY HOYER, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: The House did not adjourn without a
message being delivered, a very powerful message to the American People, that there's been too much carnage in America, that there is an epidemic of gun violence in America and that we need to pass legislation to make America and Americans safer.
Behind me is a giant, a giant in the history of our country making the case for a more just and safer society, John Lewis. John Lewis led this effort joined by two extraordinary members, David Cicilline, the former mayor of Providence, Rhode Island and Senator Clark, Congresswoman Clark.
These three individuals galvanized our caucus and galvanized the attention of the American public on two bills that are supported by 90 percent of the American people.
John Garamendi got on the floor and invited our republican colleagues to come to the well to debate why they could not support these two simple bills. One, if you've been adjudged a terrorist and are not allowed to fly on airplanes because of safety, why would we have you buy a gun?
Eighty five to 90 percent of Americans think that makes sense, and the other was to make sure that there were no loopholes in our gun check legislation so that everybody would be vetted and that we would give time to vet properly, and if we had done so, neither Roof nor Orlando may have had those guns.
I want to yield now to John Lewis who will then yield to his two colleagues. Paul Ryan talks about bottom up. This was not bottom up because none of these folks are bottom, but this came from members animated by the concerns and demands of their constituency and of the constituents in our country.
We will be back. We will come back into session July 5th. The republicans have left in the dead of night with business unfinished, not just these two bills but Puerto Rico will be unable to pay its debts just a few days from now. Flint, Michigan, still suffers from iron-laced water.
[03:40:01] Going home without finishing our business. I want to yield now to that iconic figure who has been such a giant in America's history on behalf of justice and equality in our country. John Lewis of Georgia.
JOHN LEWIS, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Hoyer, for your leadership, for your vision helping to call us all together. These two unbelievable young members who have taught me so much, and I've learned so much from the two of you, so come closer. We're like a family. We all live in the same House, the American House.
Today, we've come a distance, we made some progress. We crossed one bridge but we have other bridges to cross. We're not giving up the fight. The fight is an ongoing fight. We will not be happy. We will not be satisfied. We will not be pleased until we do something in a major way, make a major down payment on ending gun violence in America.
We lost too many of our young children, our babies, too many of our mothers and fathers our brothers and sisters, and we will continue to fight. More than 50 years ago, I crossed a bridge, not just one time, but it took us three times to make it all the way from Selma to Montgomery.
We have other bridges to cross, and when we come back in July we'll start all over again. But the American people they want us to act, they want us to do something, and we promise to them that we will act. So, let me yield now. Congresswoman Clark.
KATHERINE CLARK, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you...
CHURCH: All right. Listening there to John Lewis saying we will not be pleased until we do something on guns in a major way. We heard earlier from Steny Hoyer, a U.S. House democrat. He said, House democrats say despite no gun vote being taken on this day, a powerful message has been delivered.
He said, we will be back July 5th. This despite the optics there of republicans leaving during the night, going home leaving unfinished business not just on gun control, but on the other issues like the Flint situation and others.
But we will continue to follow this story and be back with you in just a moment. Stay with us.
[03:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back. All right. We want to update you on the breaking news this hour.
Democrats refusing to leave after the U.S. House was adjourned. They have staged to sit-in for more than 16 hours pushing for a vote on gun control. The House speaker did not allow that vote.
Let's go back and listen. We heard from Steny Hoyer, a U.S. democrat, and also this man leading the sit-in, John Lewis. Let's listen to more of what these U.S. democrats are saying.
JOSEPH CROWLEY, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: The people are seeing the democratic caucus stand up and fight, not just due to regular routine. It's a new day in Washington. It's a new day to fight as well. We're not going to sit back and do nothing anymore and take nothing as an answer.
They're shutting the doors already. So, there as we're speaking they're shutting the doors. They're ending business as usual, so to speak, but it's no longer business as usual here in Washington. We demand that these bills be taken up. We demand that we take them up as soon as possible and if our republican colleagues continue this, they will answer to the American people.
And the American people are ready to respond and answer as well. But once again, I want to thank John Larson, still on the floor. I don't know if he'll be able to come out here between now and the end. But he's done a great job tonight.
HOYER: Thank you. I want to thank all of these members for the extraordinary effort that they have made. I want to mention one thing more that should not be missed tonight.
In many ways this fight on the floor, the request for these two bills is about the public safety. There was another bill that passed this night, not the gun bills that would have made people safer but a bill that does not adequately or effectively deal with the Zika crisis, another public health cris that confronts our country.
The republicans brought to the floor a partisan bill reported out of conference committee with only republican signatories, reported out in an extraordinary short period of time, 137 page conference report that nobody had the time to read and digest and are sending it to a Senate that will not pass it.
So, not only do we leave Washington this night having failed to pass gun legislation which would make our people safer, but we've also failed to pass effectively a bill which would start protecting them from the Zika crisis that confronts them.
So, on both fronts, our republicans who lead this House, who have the control of this House have failed to serve the American people. How sad. Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's your expectation now while some democrats try to stay?
HOYER: We're going to have a meeting tomorrow at 10 o'clock, but I think that what John Lewis has said is correct. We've crossed one bridge. We've energized our caucus. We've energized the American people. You see the people filling the galleries today and this fight it will continue.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But has there been any discussion about though, with the sergeant at arms, with the speaker's office, and this is what we want to do. We all know what the general rules here but has that discussion been made between your advocates and then the powers that be?
[03:50:01] HOYER: I haven't had any further discussions. We intend to keep up this fight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's the expectation? Mr. Crowley said you expect them (Inaudible). Do you mean to really expect that or everything this is going to...
HOYER: They're not going to shut down this building from the House of Representatives' members. Period.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will your members stay on the floor though...
(CROSSTALK) HOYER: Well, let me tell you, I think there are going to be some
people who will continue to want to make their points tomorrow. We're going to discuss this. But again, let me repeat what John Lewis just said. We crossed a bridge. We've raised consciousness. We've made a fight. The fight is not over. We will continue to make the fight.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does it look like a sit-in is going to continue? Are you going to stage the next round of this? Or you're going to take the fight that will look like this?
HOYER: Well, you can bet your sweet life when the House goes back into session this fight will be continued.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
LEWIS: We could use many different tactics or techniques. We have not explored all of the necessary ingredients in keeping with the philosophy in a discipline and in balance.
HOYER: We will not be silent.
LEWIS: We will not be silent.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But this action is basically over for now, isn't it?
HOYER: The republicans shut down the people's House. The republicans are leaving town after working here after approximately six hours this week with unfinished business of the American people.
The American people should not be happy about that. I don't think they will be happy about that and the fight will continue. Thank you very much.
CHURCH: All right. Listening there to U.S. democrats very much pushing the optics that we're all seeing here on the United States and all around the world. The sense that republicans are leaving, going home with unfinished business. Nothing done as far as gun control and nothing done, too, as far as protecting people from the Zika virus.
We're going to take a very short break. Back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Hello, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes. This is your road to Rio update.
And Rio getting some much needed cash. The Brazilian government approving an $850 million bailout for the Olympic City. Funds will be used to back pay police officers and beef up security ahead of the games.
Money isn't the only help Brazil is getting. It will also get security help from a super high definition Israeli satellite. The EROS B will be available experimentally for four months to monitor Brazilian air space and help identify threats. The defense minister says the satellite area will cover all host
cities.
Security isn't Rio's only concern of course. A number of athletes foregoing the games because of the Zika virus. Top golfer, Rory McIlroy, is the latest athlete to pull out of the competition even though authority say the Zika risk is low. McIlroy said he realizes that his family's health comes before anything else.
Finally, authorities had to shoot and kill a jaguar that had been part of the Olympic torch relay. The torch was visiting a local zoo when the animal escaped from its cage shortly after the ceremony. The jaguar was unphased by a tranquilizer dart and was shot with a pistol to protect the soldier nearby.
That is your road to Rio update. I'm Michael Holmes.
[03:55:01] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back. It is almost four o'clock in the morning in Washington, and the House of Representatives just adjourned without voting on a gun control bill.
Democrats took over the House chamber on Wednesday demanding that vote. The democrats say the fight will be continued when the House returns July 5th.
Another big story we are following for you this hour. Britain are going to the polls to vote on whether the U.K. should stay in the European Union.
A record 46.5 million people registered to vote in the referendum. Polls are open until 10 p.m. local time. And British Prime Minister David Cameron has just cast his ballot in the U.K. referendum.
Thanks so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. The news continues right here.
[04:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
