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Colin Powell Responds to Clinton E-mail Controversy; Comparing Trump, Clinton Attack Ads; Obama to Visit Flood-Ravaged Louisiana After Trump Criticism. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired August 22, 2016 - 13:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:33:01] BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Colin Powell says do not blame him. He's pushing back on reports stemming from the Hillary Clinton e-mail controversy. And according to "The New York Times, Clinton told FBI investigators that Powell suggested she use a private e-mail server when she was secretary of state, but Powell tells "People" magazine, quote, "Her people are trying to pin it on me. The truth is she was using the private e-mail server for a year before I sent her a memo telling her what I did."

Let's bring back our panel. We have CNN political analyst, Rebecca Berg, of RealClearPolitics; "Washington Post" reporter, Abby Phillip; and David Catanese, of "USA News & World Report."

First, this is not what the Clinton campaign wants to be talking about, number one. But I've always looked all along at the different things the past secretaries of state did and what Hillary Clinton, and I've not been able to find an example of someone doing exactly what Hillary Clinton did. There are differences, right?

ABBY PHILLIP, REPORTER, WASHINGTON POST: I think one of the reasons Colin Powell is annoyed by this, is he, that he had was a private e- mail address that was held on a commercial server. She had private server in the basement of her home that was completely separate from everything. She did no business on any State Department accounts whatsoever. He also says that he warned her not to conduct any classified activities on this e-mail server, and clearly that did not happen.

KEILAR: Let's flash back to the timing, which is when Colin Powell was secretary of state compared to when Hillary Clinton was, these are light years of difference between how often people used e-mail and how essential it is and when Hillary Clinton where -- I mean, it's an essential tool at this point in time. When Colin Powell was doing it, I think the fax machine was huge then. The bottom line is we're talking about this. It just keeps going and going for the Clintons.

DAVID CATANESE, SENIOR POLITICS WRITER, U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT: And the other problem is, what was the screen on this. It was Hillary Clinton and her lawyers. They were the ones that determined what was going to be public and what was going to be withheld. In the original explanation, she said this was me talking about yoga. Now we're finding there's hundreds, maybe even more in this new 15,000 batch, that weren't about private yoga class and talking about Chelsea and her baby. This is about high level stuff. Doug Band, a former advisor, very close to the former President Clinton, e-mailing Huma Abedin, Hillary Clinton's top advisor, about access for foreign dignitaries.

(CROSSTALK)

[13:35:40] KEILAR: Specifically, the crown prince of Bahrain. And what you pick up from the e-mails is asking, through a Clinton Foundation channel, because Doug Band, very affiliated with the Clinton Foundation, asking for the crown prince, it's very important to us, he says, to have a meeting with Hillary Clinton, after it appears the crown prince has gone through official channels and has come up empty on this.

The meeting then appears to be set up, although guidance that we seem to be getting from people supporting Hillary Clinton, oh, this was through official channels. It doesn't look like -- it just stinks a little bit.

REBECCA BERG, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It does. That's exactly the problem for them. Even if they can say convincingly that in the end there wasn't a conflict of interest, we did go through official channels, the perception that most voters are going to get from this is that people were working their connections to get access to Clinton in the State Department. That's the problem that we're also seeing now with the Clinton Foundation and what influence it might have played in the State Department with Hillary Clinton now as a candidate for president. This is why Hillary Clinton has decided that she would not continue to operate the Clinton Foundation if elected president because of the perception of a conflict of interest.

KEILAR: You bring up an interesting point, David, which is the, they said all the e-mails were released and this brings that into question. I have to read a statement from Brian Fallon, Hillary Clinton's national press secretary. He said, quote, "Hillary Clinton provided the State Department with work related e-mails. We're not sure what additional materials the Justice Department may have located. But if the State Department determines any of them could be work related, then obviously we support those documents being released publicly as well."

CATANESE: How is that true? How is that statement true, given what Judicial Watch has uncovered today? They have never been completely transparent about that. That statement is most likely untrue, given what is revealed today and probably will be revealed over the next couple of days.

KEILAR: David, Abby, Rebecca, thank you so much. You've been so generous with your time today. I really appreciate it.

Coming up, Ad wars. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are on the attack on the air waves. We'll compare their messages, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [13:42:13] KEILAR: Last week, Donald Trump finally got on board with his first major campaign ad of the general election. Today, Hillary Clinton released a new one of her own. Both seem to have a similar theme. Here is a little of the ads, starting with Donald Trump's.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: In Hillary Clinton's America, the system stays rigged against Americans. Syrian refugees flood in. Illegal immigrants convicted of committing crimes get to stay, collecting Social Security benefits, skipping the line.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: In times of crisis, America depends on steady leadership.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Knock the crap out of him, would you? Seriously.

ANNOUNCER: Clear thinking.

TRUMP: I know more about ISIS than the generals do.

ANNOUNCER: And calm judgment.

TRUMP: You can tell them to go (EXPLETIVE DELETED) themselves.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: I do have to say, he didn't actually say the "F" word. The bleep makes it sound like he did. I wanted to put that out there. He just mouthed it.

Joining me now to talk about this, from New York, about these new political ad wars is CNN senior media correspondent, Brian Stelter, also the host of CNN's "Reliable Sources"; and here we me in Washington is CNN political director, David Chalian.

You see those ads, Brian, and I wonder, I guess I wonder what both you have think about this. If I'm a voter, I almost don't want to get out of bed in the morning. These are so dark.

(CROSSTALK)

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT & CNN HOST, RELIABLE SOURCES: I want to thank the voters of Florida and Ohio and Pennsylvania for putting up with this. Most of us in the country aren't seeing these every single commercial break the way those in swing states are. We have to warn them, it's only going to get worse before it gets better.

KEILAR: That's right.

We travel to battleground states, David. We live in Washington, D.C., so we're not getting bombarded. One of the big educational things for us is when we do go back to the hotel and we just watch to see these ads, and you really do get a sense of why people, how people are being bombarded.

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Which is why it was so troubling for the Trump campaign to be uncontested on the airways throughout this summer period. Once the general election began, think about that. At home, at night, the families in Ohio and Florida were only getting one side. It's just now that the Trump side is starting to engage and message back. If you're looking for a Reagan-esque morning in America, hopeful message, thus far, it's not coming. That will no doubt impact the mood of the electorate heading into the fall campaign stretch.

KEILAR: Whoever wins or loses here, David, do you imagine sort of people waking up on November 9th and whatever the result is, they're still this almost sort of dread?

CHALIAN: We've got a long way to go. We'll see.

But if this is the tone and tenor to dominate through November 8th, I'm sure you'll find a lot of people who are turned off by it. Before we think that means people don't show up to vote, we have to remember people love to bemoan negative advertising, and it's proven effective. Every time you say in a past, it's a clear warning you should know what you're talking about this cycle. Because --

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[13:45:18]CHALIAN: So I acknowledge that. But I do think one of the things to watch is, does television advertising have the impact it's always had?

KEILAR: To that point, Brian, are these going to work, do you think?

STELTER: This is the ultimate test. For political scientists, this year is a dream. We get this perfect study about whether television advertising has the effect in this digital media age that it always seems to have had in the past. Yes, people can buy ads on Facebook and campaigns can buy ads on Twitter. TV is still where it happens. Because Donald Trump is so badly unmatched, this is quite an experiment.

It's almost as if Donald Trump has bought one house on the block but the Clinton campaign has bought the entire neighborhood. That's the scale here of what we're talking about. $5 million spent by the Trump campaign. Already $70 million dollar spent by the Clinton campaign with $80 million more in reservations. It's a grand experiment in how important TV advertising still is.

KEILAR: If the election were today, David, we know what the outcome would be, but there's still a lot of time. If you get to November 9th, and Donald Trump has lost, and people start Monday morning quarterbacking about what the big issue is, is it, man, why didn't he get on ads sooner? Is that something that will be there in the top few reasons? CHALIAN: It will be one of the reasons. But, again, you're asking me

a question to look forward. I think the larger question would be, did Donald Trump do everything he could to broaden his appeal to a large swath of the American voting public or did he stick with the strategy that was more geared towards the Republican primary. That seems to be a central challenge.

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: Just on his message. So the message being --

(CROSSTALK)

CHALIAN: Right. But, listen, we're going to look, is he going to put real money at the levels? Is he going to be parity with what Brian was talking about for this fall campaign, or is he going to take the campaign strategy and advertise far less than his opponents did, but he was still able to emerge victorious? Does that kind of formula -- just like the message formula from the primary, may not work for the general, so, too, may his television ad formula from the primary not work for the general.

KEILAR: Could be rewriting the rules. We will see.

David Chalian, thank you so much.

Brian Stelter, thank you as well.

STELTER: Thanks.

KEILAR: Coming up, President Obama prepares to visit flood-ravaged Louisiana. Now new details on when Hillary Clinton plans to visit the state and who she wants to talk to when she gets there.

Stay with us.

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[13:50:] KEILAR: President Obama will visit Louisiana tomorrow to see firsthand the catastrophic flooding that has wrecked the southern part of the state. Moments ago, White House press secretary, Josh Earnest, talked about this disaster and the president's response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I can tell you what the president has been focused on is the response on the ground and the people whose lives in Louisiana have been turned upside down by this terrible flooding event. And the response that you've seen from the federal government has been effective. And the president and the other members of his team that have operational responsibilities have been effective.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Hillary Clinton has not visited yet but she released a statement saying, in part, "The best way to help people from Louisiana affected by the floods is to make sure they have the resources they need today. I am committed to visiting communities affected by these floods at a time when the presence of a political campaign will not disrupt the response."

All of this comes after Donald Trump's trip to Louisiana on Friday. Trump and other Republicans have criticized President Obama for not cutting short his vacation in Martha's Vineyard to visit the state.

We have CNN national correspondent, Polo Sandoval, joining us live from Gonzales, Louisiana.

Polo, give us a sense of what we can expect when the president arrives.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we are told, Brianna, that President Obama will in fact tour these affected areas but when you talk to the people in these communities, they tell me they hope the commander in chief will at least get a good representation of what the situation looks like -- looking like. Neighborhoods like this, where people's belongings and building material is stacked high on their front lawns. You won't just find it here, Brianna. If you look down the street you will see front yard after front yard where people's materials and belongings are now stacked high. This stuff is too damaged or destroyed so as a result they're simply waiting for this debris to get cleared out before the construction begins.

You mention these numbers, too. At least 60,000 homes affected in the area. Many homes did not have insurance. Some of these families -- if they had flood insurance, which is only a small percentage -- they are having to rebuild from the inside out. They're literally gutting the inside of their home, furniture, appliances, sheetrock, you name it, then they have to turn these houses into homes again. And that's something that will take a while. Even for the people who have insurance, replacing what was in the homes will likely be out of pocket unless they had insurance to cover that -- Brianna?

KEILAR: It's staggering how few people have any sort of safety net to deal with the damage. I mean, we're seeing it behind you there, Polo.

I was talking to Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu, who said it's important for people -- former Senator -- it's important for people to visit because it reminds people what's going on and they donate money. That's the most important thing. But you've been talking to a lot of people about what they need there. What are residents telling you as you get a sense of where they are with all of this?

SANDOVAL: Well, cleaning supplies is something they need. They need to go in the homes and spray down the wood studs that make up their walls. They want to prevent mold from growing. So, yes, cleaning supplies, like brooms, Clorox, things of that nature. We've seen strangers dropping off those kinds of things. Then food and water is also something badly needed. One National Guardsman last week told me the need for those things is just as great as what we saw during Hurricane Katrina over a year ago. So people are coming together, Brianna. We have seen the worst that Mother Nature had to deal and now we are seeing the best from humanity.

[13:55:27] KEILAR: We do see some of the best which is important. 106,000 households have registered with FEMA. It will be a long load ahead.

Polo Sandoval in Gonzales, Louisiana, thank you very much.

To see how you can help residents there, long on to CNN.com/impact.

That is it for me. I'll be back at 5:00 eastern on "The Situation Room."

For our international viewers, "Amanpour" is next.

For our viewers in North America, NEWSROOM with Brooke Baldwin starts right after this.

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[14:00:11] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, there. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Thank you for being with me on this Monday.