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Colin Powell Unhappy Being Pointed to in Hillary Clinton Email Scandal; Would-be Suicide Bomber Thwarted, only 12-14 years old; Wedding in Turkey Bombed; Louisiana Surveys Damage, Anticipates Presidential Visit; Glass-Bottom Bridge in China Boasts to be World's Longest. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired August 22, 2016 - 10:30   ET

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

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[10:32:01] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR": And good morning, I'm Carol Costello. Thanks so much for joining me. Former U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell, is speaking publicly for the very first time about Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server, and he is not happy.

According to the New York Times, Clinton told the FBI that Powell urged her to use a private email account while in office. But now Powell is hitting back, telling People Magazine that, "Her people have been trying to pin it on me." CNN Correspondent, Suzanne Malveaux, is live in Washington with more on this. Good morning.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, good morning, Carol. It takes a lot for Colin Powell to come out publicly these days. He's been enjoying a quiet retirement, so you've got to suspect this whole thing has rubbed him the wrong way.

So I covered this story last week when the New York Times first reported Hillary Clinton's conversation with FBI investigators. It did reveal that, in fact, they had a conversation, he recommended using a private email for State Department business.

Now his spokesperson told me, yes, Powell did write Clinton an email memo describing his use of his personal AOL account, his email account, for unclassified messages. And how it vastly improved communications within the State Department.

But unlike Clinton, Powell used a secure desk computer to manage classified information. He did not have a private server at his home. Nor did he use outside contractors to set the whole thing up.

Well now Powell is trying to signal to the Clinton camp to stop invoking his name in the email controversy. According to People Magazine, he says that, "the truth is, she was using the private email server for a year before I sent her a memo telling her what I did."

Well this morning, Donald Trump wasted no time using Powell's pushback to his advantage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She lied about the email, she lied about Colin Powell -- I saw that, he was not happy. And it's -- the whole thing is a scam with them. Everything is a scam. Like Grifters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So Carol, I noticed you had Joe Conason on your show the last hour. The author of the upcoming book about the Clintons. In which he writes about this dinner party that Madeleine Albright threw, in which Powell publicly gives Hillary Clinton advice to use a private email account.

And while Powell says he doesn't recall the advice that he gave during this dinner, there is something that Conason writes in his book that can help clear this thing up. He did not mention this earlier. He writes that Powell's suggestion confirmed a decision that Clinton had made months earlier, to keep her personal account and use it for most messages. So Carol, just wrap your head around this, it is possible that everyone is telling some form of the truth here.

COSTELLO: Oh that's so political, isn't it? It's just ...

MALVEAUX: I have to say, I mean, you've got to parse it. You've got to like, really pay attention. Because it benefits people in different ways.

COSTELLO: Yes, you're right about that. Suzanne Malveaux, thanks so much. You explained that so well and I do appreciate it. Thank you so much. So let's talk more about this. With me now is Simone Sanders, Democratic Strategist and former National Press Secretary for Bernie 2016. And John Avlon, CNN Political Analyst and Editor in Chief of The Daily Beast.

So John, what do you make of this?

JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST, EDITOR IN CHIEF, "THE DAILY BEAST": Look, I mean, I think this has been a serious nother hit on -- for the Clinton campaign. Because it resuscitates the questions about the emails -- which are damaging because they go to still underlying questions about her honesty and trustworthiness. And invoking Colin Powell makes a lot of sense. Especially to the extent that he is a talismanic figure among independent voters in particular.

He is somebody who is seen as broadly and widely trusted in a time when most politicians aren't. And when he pushes back publicly, that can really hurt. That said, as Suzanne just mentioned, I mean, this may be a giant political version of Rashomon. Where everyone's telling their own truth and there aren't as many smoking guns as partisans might like them to appear. But it's not a good day in the news cycle for the Clinton campaign when this mess is resuscitated. And it's all from self-inflicted wounds ...

COSTELLO: Well, and that's true Simone, Colin Powell does not speak publicly about much these days. So it's big when he does. SIMONE SANDERS, FORMER PRESS SECRETARY, BERNIE 2016: Well look,

Carol, I think what we have to remember is that Secretary Clinton has taken responsibility for her emails. She has taken responsibility for the use of her emails. And while none of us here know the nature of the conversation between Secretary Clinton and Secretary Powell, what we do know is that Secretary Clinton has taken responsibility, she's apologized for it over and over again.

I think what we should be looking at is the fact that, the fact that this question of emails -- and what was said from Secretary Clinton to the FBI came out in the New York Times on Friday -- is due to partisan leaks thanks to GOP members from the notes from the FBI. So like the Clinton campaign has said, I also think that the notes from Secretary Clinton's interview with the FBI should be released to the public.

As opposed to these partisan leaks that leak out. We don't know the context of the questioning to Secretary Clinton. There is no transcript from the FBI meeting, but there are these infamous notes that I think should be released to the public. But furthermore I ...

COSTELLO: But like, whether their leaks are drip-drip (ph) or not, Colin Powell said her people -- and he's talking about Clinton's people -- have been "trying to pin it on me." And that seems to have upset him.

SANDERS: But Carol, you know what Colin Powell also said? But it doesn't bother me, and I'm free and I'm fine. Again, Secretary Clinton has repeatedly taken responsibility for her emails. She has not tried to pin it on anybody. Again, this is a result of the GOP, all the Republicans have to talk about are emails. Because they don't have any new news (ph) ...

COSTELLO: Yeah, but John, can -- you can imagine the Trump campaign using Colin Powell's quote in a campaign ad, right?

AVLON: Of course. I mean look, this is gift wrapped for them. I mean the Trump campaign doesn't have a ton of credibility to spare, but Colin Powell does. So again, there's no way that continued conversation, especially from an angry and irritated Colin Powell, is a good day for the Clinton campaign, full stop.

[10:37:52]

SANDERS: Well, but ...

COSTELLO: So what should, what should Hillary Clinton do, Simone?

SANDERS: So Carol, again, you know I have full confidence that the Clinton campaign is going to continue to talk about the issues. Because that's what the American people care about. And I believe that's what this election is about.

COSTELLO: But they do ...

SANDERS: She had ...

COSTELLO: ... care about classified information and how it was handled.

SANDERS: But Carol, I want to know, the email question has been asked and answered, asked and answered, asked and answered again. Every time the GOP brings up the emails, I think they are expecting the Clinton campaign to have a brand new answer. Or to trip them up in some way, shape, or form. Or to trip up the Democratic Party as a whole.

They're not. Again, Secretary Clinton has apologized for the emails. She said if she could do it again she would not have used a private server. And she's taken responsibility. She sat for a three hour ...

COSTELLO: So we ...

SANDERS: Wait -- she sat for a three hour interview with the FBI from notes that have been turned over ...

COSTELLO: No, no, I get that ...

SANDERS: Yeah, so ...

COSTELLO: She also sat down with a Fox News reporter ...

SANDERS: Asked and answered.

COSTELLO: ... and botched the answer to that email question. So John, is it time that Hillary Clinton came out and gave another interview to someone and answered questions fully and freely?

AVLON: I mean, is it time for her to do a press conference? It's past time. I mean you know, look, I mean, with regard to the server, she keeps apologizing and then the issue gets resuscitated. And you can debate why and from whose nefarious purposes this may be. But the reality is it's not good for the Clintons to keep having this -- people reminded by this because it is a black mark on her campaign.

But is it time for her to have a press conference? Absolutely, it is past time. It's fine to do one-on-ones and quick gaggles, but a formal press conference for a person leading in the polls to be the next president is overdue. It is -- it should be as mandatory as any other thing we expect from presidential candidates at this point.

COSTELLO: Oh, so that's ...

SANDERS: I want to note that I'm not saying it's a good, it's a good thing. I mean, clearly nobody wants to keep talking about these emails. But what I am saying and suggesting, and I think -- if people get out of the beltway and get out in the streets and the communities across the country and talk to the people -- that Americans, while yes, they don't like this conversation about the emails, they really want to talk about the issues.

People in communities across the country, they want to be talking about health care. They want to be talking about education. They want to talk about jobs. They want to talk about criminal justice reform. They want to talk about climate change. And I think those are the issues that people care about. These are the issues that are going to bring people to the polls. Emails isn't bringing anybody to the polls.

COSTELLO: All right I have to leave it there. Simone Sanders, John Avlon, thanks to both of you. Coming up in the Newsroom, an emotional reunion. Their wedding was interrupted by a deadly explosion in Turkey. Now the couple visits the scene of the crime.

[10:40:20]

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COSTELLO: Police in Iraq have captured a 15-year old who they say was about to bomb a mosque at Kirkuk. This video shows the teen being taken away by security guards with what appears to be a suicide vest on his body. A local government official telling CNN the boy was a member of the Cubs of Caliphate, children trained and brainwashed by ISIS.

Another young bomber striking in Turkey, 54 people now confirmed dead following an explosion at a wedding. At least 22 of them are children under the age of 14. And police believe the attacker was just a boy, himself, only 12 to 14 years old. The attack hit a mostly Kurdish, working-class neighborhood in Turkey. It's among the deadliest attacks the country has seen this year.

For more on all of this, let's get to CNN Senior International Correspondent, Ben Wedeman. Hi, Ben.

[10:45:26]

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, hi Carol. This was a horrific bombing that took place at the end of a street party. It was a wedding for a young couple. And the entire neighborhood had showed up, women, children, everybody. And according to people we spoke to in the neighborhood, there were as many as 500 people in the street when it happened.

Now as you mentioned, Turkish authorities are saying that they believe the bomber was -- they didn't say it's a girl or a boy -- but somebody between the ages of 12 and 14. They found pieces of the suicide vest in the area. And as you mentioned, it would appear that perhaps he was one of these so called Cubs of the Caliphate. Similar to that young, would-be suicide bomber in Kirkuk in Iraq.

And of course this is not the first time this kind of thing has happened. In Iraq earlier this year, outside of Baghdad, a similar attack. A young boy went to a very crowded football game full of children in just a local neighborhood, blew himself up killing dozens.

Now the Turkish authorities do believe that it was the work of ISIS. Why? Because they would -- this attack was targeting a high-profile, high-casualty event where there would be the kind of horror that has become characteristic of ISIS attacks here in this country.

Now Turkey is dealing with another threat coming from the so-called PKK. That's the Kurdish workers party. But by and large, the PKK focuses on the police and the military. ISIS almost always -- as it did on the 28th of June when it struck Istanbul International Airport -- goes for civilians, goes for maximum impact.

COSTELLO: Ben Wedeman reporting live from Turkey this morning. Coming up in the Newsroom, first it's Florida, now other gulf states are at risk when it comes to Zika.

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[10:51:30]

COSTELLO: Hillary Clinton now says she will visit Louisiana when "the presence of a political campaign won't disrupt recovery efforts there. Clinton's campaign releasing a statement in the last hour saying the best way to help is to make sure people have the resources they need. In the meantime, President Obama will make a stop at the flood-ravaged state tomorrow.

Already the losses there are staggering. 13 people have died, just over 100,000 have applied for federal help to rebuild their homes and their lives. Polo Sandoval live in Gonzales, Louisiana with more. Good morning.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey Carol, good morning to you. I want to show you the scenes that await President Obama when he arrives on the ground, just in over 24 hours. You can see in this neighborhood, in Gonzales -- we're about 25 miles Southeast of Baton Rouge. You can see, not only people's damaged belongings, but also sheetrock, wood, really what made up many of the interior of these homes is also -- is sitting on people's front lawns.

That's because, if you look at the houses, they look relatively undamaged. But when you actually walk inside, many of these homes have already been gutted from inside as they try to keep the mold from growing. And as they begin the very long, very costly process of repairs and rebuilding. And sure, the pictures here tell much of the story.

But also the numbers here. Some of the new ones that I just received from the state a few months ago, now suggesting that at least 3,000 people woke up in nearby shelters today. That number obviously suggests that there are plenty of families that are still displaced, still with no place to go.

Also, about $55 million -- in what's called Housing Assistance -- have already been approved. About half of that has already been distributed but you talk to the people here, Carol -- especially ahead of the Commander in Chief's visit. They will tell you that they believe that's still not enough. They want to make sure the President gets the message. That the road to recover is -- recovery, is not just going to be a very long and painful one, but it's also going to be a very costly one, as the majority of the people did not have flood insurance.

COSTELLO: All right, Polo Sandoval reporting live from Louisiana this morning. Thank you. One of the nation's top public health experts warns the Zika outbreak could spread beyond Florida to other U.S. gulf coast states. Doctor Anthony Fauci with the National Institutes of Health says he would not be surprised to see new cases of the mosquito-borne virus in Texas, or particularly Louisiana where it will be difficult to get rid of standing water following catastrophic flooding.

Last week the CDC expanded its travel warning for pregnant women after five new cases of Zika were confirmed in a Miami Beach area. Still to come in the Newsroom, a Florida toddler, alive and well after being trapped underneath a capsized boat for an hour. Her amazing story next.

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[10:58:24]

COSTELLO: This news just in to CNN, thousands of new Clinton documents under scrutiny. Will they be released before election day? Much more on that at the

top of the hour. But first, some other headlines for you this morning.

Cleveland area police are considering charges against a 74-year old driver after she plowed her car into a packed dance floor at an outdoor concert for seniors. They say the woman confused the brake pedal with the gas pedal as she was leaving. Nine people were injured, two of them seriously. All of the victims are said to be in their 60s or 70s.

What's four feet long and 66 million years old? A massive T-Rex skull found in Montana. That's the skull packed in plaster. It's new home will be at the Burke Museum in Seattle. There are only 15 of such skulls known to exist in the world.

An incredible rescue after a boat capsizes in a -- on a Florida lake. Fellow boaters pulled two adults and a small child to safety. But another toddler was nowhere to be found. Police jumped into the lake. They searched for an hour before finally finding the 23-month old in an air pocket underneath the boat. They say the outcome could've been very different if the child had not been wearing a life vest. Truly amazing.

Feel your stomach flip as you walk across this bridge. The highest and longest glass-bottomed bridge in the world is not open at a national park in Central China. It spans between two canyons. It's nearly 1,000 feet -- I don't even think I could do that. In fact I know I couldn't do that. Wow.

Thank you so much for joining me today, I'm Carol Costello. "AT THIS HOUR" with Berman and Bolduan starts now.