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Cruz Faces Delegate Rage For Not Endorsing Trump; Tonight: Ivanka, Donald Trump Speak at Convention. Aired 3:30-4p ET
Aired July 21, 2016 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[15:31:47] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. We're in Cleveland. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Thanks for being with me. Day four at the RNC.
A defiant Ted Cruz standing firm by his refusal to endorse the man of the week here, Donald Trump, to be the next president of the United States. Even amid boos from the convention floor last evening, and pushback today from a number of his Texas constituents, Senator Cruz says he just cannot bring himself to support Mr. Trump after he criticized both his wife and his father.
Some Texas delegates, they're split over his decision.
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GERALDINE SAM, TEXAS REPUBLICAN DELEGATE: Whatever was said about his wife, whatever was said about his father, you know, that's a personal thing. But you have to get over some of that thing. I'm not trying to belittle it. I'm saying, hey, it doesn't help. I'm just saying that we're here today to support and unite the Republican Party and what he did was to tell tear the Republican Party down and it's not going to work.
DIANNE WILLIAMS, TEXAS REPUBLICAN DELEGATE: My personal opinion is, Donald Trump has a lot of work to do. There are a lot of us that are upset at just not what he did to Ted, what he did to many people, he needs to come in and promise us he's going to be the president we were hoping for, that he will stand by the Constitution, that he will preserve our values, that he will do the right thing and shut up his ugly mouth and quit saying nasty things about people.
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BALDWIN: With that, let me bring in Michael Smerconish, CNN political commentator and host of CNN's "SMERCONISH."
You were saying with what Ted Cruz did last night, it was great for Trump.
MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think so.
BALDWIN: Why? SMERCONISH: I think that it made Donald Trump a more sympathetic individual, at least in this arena. When the week began -- you and I talked about there -- remember that 4:00 p.m.-ish blowback on Monday when there was a rules challenge and a little bit of activity on the floor and you started to say, wow, how much of this is a Cruz delegation, how much of this is a Cruz convention, and how much is Trump?
And what a difference 48 hours made because by last night, this place was on the side of Donald Trump. I think the sentiment was he's our nominee for better or worse, put it behind us, get together, and this is sour rapes on Cruz's part for standing -- you know, what's it akin? It's akin to you coming in to my house as an invited guest, you know I have a white rug, you get the cabernet and you pour -- there you go -- and you pour it all over the floor.
That's how I think it went over last night. And don't --
BALDWIN: Write a speech ahead of time, invited him to come --
SMERCONISH: I think Trump loves this! I had Bob Costa from "The Washington Post" on my radio show today. He was standing near Trump at the moment he walked into the hall and he said almost these are not his words but almost like a gladiator, he was fixing his French cuffs. When he heard that Cruz was getting booed, it was like, yes, now I'm going in there.
BALDWIN: Yes. So, I'm looking at you and also thinking Philly.
You are a Philly guy so I want to pivot and talk Dems because we're in that sort of magic window when we will find out who Hillary Clinton selects as her, you know, V.P. Names floated out, Kaine, Vilsack.
Let me throw out Cory Booker at you that he's still, and I'm quoting, very much in the mix of consideration. You have that. You have this tweet from Senator Booker today with Hillary Clinton and him hugging.
[15:35:07] And then this morning, he was in Cleveland with Senator Al Franken. He was sort of this attack dog.
Listen to what he said.
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SEN. CORY BOOKER (D), NEW JERSEY: What really got me here was the level and intensity of the hate and cruelty that I've seen on the floor and coming out of speakers. This chant of "lock someone up," take away their liberty, throw them in prison, that's why we had a revolution in this country against those ideas. But what's worse is that's on the spectrum of things that's been spewed in this convention. That's one of the least offensive.
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BALDWIN: So, all of this from Cory Booker today. What's up? SMERCONISH: I get the pieces of the puzzle but maybe he's playing us
a little bit. I mean really look carefully at the tweet. That's a wonderful tweet for him to be sending, does it necessarily -- it is not like playing it backwards and saying call this day. I just don't see it the same way that you see it. I think he's probably taking advantage a little bit of the opportunity to garner some spotlight.
I'm sure he's on the short list. My hunch is that it's probably going to be Kaine and it's not going to be Vilsack and it's not going to be Cory Booker.
BALDWIN: In the era of the outsider, she'll go to Tim Kaine.
SMERCONISH: I don't think she perceives the need to throw the long ball at this stage. I think they're nervous about Donald Trump keeping a very close eye on the way this is unfolding, but not -- you know, slow and steady wins the race for her and I think that Kaine is the safe pick.
BALDWIN: Is Philly ready for it, my friend?
SMERCONISH: OK. Is Philly ready for us?
BALDWIN: Yes.
SMERCONISH: One of us needs to put in our luggage Donald J. Trump, because we need him next week. This has been too much fun. It's been raucous. Entertaining. But whether it's been good for the country, we can debate.
But we will miss him in Philadelphia. But something tells me he will not be quiet next week.
BALDWIN: Something tells me you are correct, sir. You are correct.
We'll see you in your home town. Thank you very much.
SMERCONISH: You got it.
BALDWIN: Michael Smerconish, don't miss him Saturday mornings, 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern. Thank you.
Next, let's talk about Mr. Trump's adult children, Don Jr. comes to his dad's defense after Ted Cruz tries to steal the show.
Plus, Ivanka Trump opens up to CNN about what kind of father Donald Trump is. Hours before she introduces her father to the nation.
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IVANKA TRUMP, DAUGHTER OF DONALD TRUMP: He wasn't long on diaper changing and things like that, but, you know, he -- I think maybe he was a little bit more traditional in that regard. But he was very accessible and very available. I never questioned that my siblings and I were his top priority.
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[15:42:30] BALDWIN: Let's talk about Donald Trump's children because they are playing a major, major role in his campaign and here at the convention. They have been a driving force on the stage here at the Q, defending him, personalizing him as the party delegates and beam millions of eyeballs who are watching. His eldest son, Don Jr., took to the stage to talk about his father.
And CNN's Erin Burnett talked to him today asking him to respond to Ted Cruz's controversial remarks to the boos and the Texas lawmaker's refusal to endorse his father.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP JR., DONALD TRUMP'S SON: Ted Cruz does what's good for Ted Cruz. Ted Cruz isn't thinking about those things. Ted Cruz is thinking about, you know what? If Hillary Clinton gets this, I can run again in four years as opposed to waiting for eight when my father would finish up his second term.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: It seems to be deeply personal for him, right? And there was a time --
TRUMP: I think Ted will conveniently make anything look optically to try to sell a point. I mean, again, I think if there is one thing I've learned throughout this process, is that there's not a lot of people that are truly genuine. It is all still politics. He is a pure politician.
He tries to play the anti-establishment guy, and yet guess what? During his initial stage, he wanted to work with the Bush campaign. He wanted to do this. The problem is no one likes him. He's so unlikable.
It's why so -- literally. You know, no fans, no friends. And he only became antiestablishment when he couldn't be a part of the establishment because he couldn't get in there because no one wanted to be with him.
BURNETT: Did you even want the endorsement at this point?
TRUMP: I don't care. We don't need it. We got it de facto from the people that matter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: David Chalian, CNN's political director with me now. I thought Mike Pence said it best on the kids, that you can't fake good kids.
I mean, aren't all of these -- Don Jr., Eric, Tiffany, Ivanka, I mean they are all his best assets.
(CROSSTALK) BALDWIN: They totally are.
DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Without a doubt. We'll get the star of the stars tonight with Ivanka. They are his best assets, his best advocates.
And they don't try -- I don't get the sense that they try to paint a false picture of him. I think they're pretty authentic in the way they talk about their dad, which is the best kind of want, right? Because they won't try to paint him as like at home hanging on the couch, playing board games. They're like he worked and everything for him, but always stopped to make time for us, brought us into work.
You get a real sense of what the relationship is. And I just -- but not only that, they've grown into pretty practiced political advocates as well that can like take on opponents and what --
BALDWIN: So, do you think their stories and presence on stage has sort of shot through or do you think it's been overshadowed by some of the surprises, the good, the bad and the really not so great?
[15:45:09] CHALIAN: I mean, I think so far it is the highlight of the week, are the children. Think that they have broken through. I mean lots of people have tuned in.
You have to remember, people at home don't watch this stuff the way we watch this stuff, right? We're waiting for every mistake or controversy or thing, and then we draw the news out of it. People at home are sitting down and -- by the millions and just watching and getting more information. So, I do think they break through in that way.
Clearly, the news media conversation which has an impact obviously is not for one night yet has it been what the Trump campaign had hoped and designed the convention to be. So, there have been these unforced errors all week long that have thrown off this -- our conversation. But that doesn't mean that people don't still tune in and see Tiffany or Eric and Don Jr. and formed impressions are.
BALDWIN: The star of the star of the children, Ivanka. She teased up her father. She introduces her dad. I'm curious in a first family pass or would it even be possible to have an adult -- a child of Donald Trump serve in a Trump administration in some capacity?
CHALIAN: You remember that John Kennedy put his brother in as attorney general. I don't think we're in that place anymore. I think there would be --
BALDWIN: You don't think so.
CHALIAN: I have a hard time imaging --
BALDWIN: People want Ivanka, for example. People love Ivanka Trump!
CHALIAN: They do. They do. That doesn't mean that she can't take on a portfolio and be a senior advisor. I just don't know that she'll have a cabinet secretary position. But I could fully envision, just like she does with the company, the Trump Organization, be a real senior advisor to Donald Trump and whether that's a scenes and she takes a policy portfolio almost first lady style, right? And is able to take a piece of the policy portfolio like Michelle Obama did with veterans families and those who serve in the armed forces and their families, I could imagine Ivanka doing something like that and being an advisor to her dad.
BALDWIN: OK. OK. You're excited about tonight.
CHALIAN: I can't wait.
BALDWIN: David Chalian, thank you very much.
Coming up here, rock band Third Eye Blind not totally feeling the love here, at least within this area of Cleveland.
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BALDWIN: You will hear the politically infused statements that riled up the crowd here days ago in Cleveland. We'll talk to the front man, Stephan Jenkins, live next.
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[15:52:06] BALDWIN: All right, you know these guys. Third Eye Blind performing a benefit show here in Cleveland this week and the RNC is also in town. Let's be clear, this was not an RNC event.
Frontman Stephan Jenkins suspected convention goers, though, could possibly be in the crowd. He decided to clarify his own political views and that's when this happened.
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STEPHAN JENKINS, LEAD SINGER, THIRD EYE BLIND: You can boo all you want but I'm the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) artist up here. This is a song about acceptance and tolerance and a friend who jumped off a bridge because he was being bullied because he was gay. And the RNG has still lacked to this very day the ability to incorporate LGBT Americans like my cousins into the American fabric. Raise your hands if you believe in science.
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BALDWIN: All right. Let me bring him in, Stephan Jenkins is joining me here. By the way, the band has a new album out called "Dopamine".
So, Stephan, nice to have you on. I mean, we just saw some of your comments to the crowd. I know you won't say Trump's name, but you took the gig, this charity gig this week. Why was it so important to relay that message to the crowd?
JENKINS: Where you left out the part if I said raise your hand if you believe in science, and half the crowd booed. So, I think --
BALDWIN: Really --
JENKINS: So I think the two things that I said were both one was a question, and the other was a fact. And the fact that I stated was that LGBT Americans are not still enfranchised in the RNC platform. And because I'm an artist, and not a song and dance man, I have to be playing in an environment that like makes sense. So I think I didn't want to get painted by the RNC brush and that's why I brought it up.
But what blows my mind, seriously blows my mind is that it is always about a back and forth in everything that is going on in this convention. It's really hard to get down to the policy underneath it. I was talking about a policy that they still have conversion therapy, they still have wanting to -- like amend the Constitution on marriage, and that is in a convention without one single mention of global climate change.
And in this entire event, there has not been one mention of climate change. The only thing that is in it that has to do with science is repealing the EPA. These are actual, like underlying policy bits. I think maybe this is like an act of evil genius where if they just keep it chaotic enough, no one will focus on the fact that there is either no policy, or there's really bad policy like -- things like let's not support our NATO allies.
[15:55:14] That was the news the other day, or like Ted Cruz --
BALDWIN: It was in the news today, and trust me, Stephan, we have been talking about it a lot. We also had a whole conversation, I had a very outspoken Republican who feels very strongly about LBGT rights saying this platform is nowhere near where it should be here in 2016.
So I'm listening to all of your points, but when you talk about the crowd, tell me -- tell me quickly I understand you were passed a note by a woman in the crowd who was a Republican, and what did she -- what was her -- what was her message?
JENKINS: She was very sweet, she said, I agree with what you said and we're not all bad, and she had amazing penmanship.
And, you know, that's the thing it's like, we have like Republican family members. We've got a guy in our -- most of our crew are, you know, Hillary voters or Bernie voters supporting Hillary. We have one guy voting for Trump. We love him, we think he's -- we don't understand it, but we love him, you know?
BALDWIN: I know you grew up in a Republican household, are you trying to talk your parents out of voting for Trump or are they staunch supporters?
JENKINS: No, no, no, they're not voting for him, dad is a lefty liberal, mom is a Republican. So, we sort of get both angles. Yes. BALDWIN: All right, Stephan Jenkins, I appreciate it. Thank you for taking the time.
For all of you Third Eye Blind fans, catch them tonight in Stanford tonight and the summer festival's Lollapalooza, Outside Land.
Stephan Jenkins, thank you so much. And perhaps we'll see you in Philly.
Thank you. Safe travels.
And I'm Brooke Baldwin here in Cleveland. Thanks for being with me. Special coverage continues here. RNC day number four just after this quick break.
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