Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

FBI Releases Notes; Trump Roundtable with African-American Leaders; Trump Visits Detroit. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired September 02, 2016 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:23] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Here we go. Top of the hour. I'm Brooke Baldwin. Happy Friday. Thanks for being with me this afternoon.

We've got two stories we're watching really closely for you right now. First up, think about this, millions in the path of Tropical Storm Hermine as it's barreling up the East Coast. I know a lot of you, Labor Day plans, you're keeping a close eye on this, as are we. We'll get you to that in just a moment.

Also any moment now, just a heads up, Donald Trump is holding a roundtable with African-American leaders in Philadelphia, as he's getting criticism on his words about race, police. So we're looking out for that.

But first to this, some breaking news in the Hillary Clinton e-mail investigation. CNN has obtained the report that the FBI had sent to the Department of Justice recommending no charges be brought against Hillary Clinton. From this report, we expect to be able to learn why Clinton wasn't charged in connection with the use of her private e- mail server as secretary of state. And we can also talk about the FBI's notes on the answers that Hillary Clinton gave. You remember this meeting in July only lasted about three and a half hours.

So let's go to Evan Perez. He and his justice team have been tasked with flipping through all these many, many pages. And so, first of all, it's the notes, Evan? Can you be specific about what you're looking through and what you've learned so far?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Brooke, these were the FBI agent's notes that summarized essentially what Hillary Clinton said in answer to questions from the FBI during that interview over the Fourth of July weekend. And what you come away from is, she doesn't recall a whole lot of things. She's asked repeatedly about the procedures that she was told about and handling of classified information, and sensitive government information, and repeatedly she says that she could not recall being told or instructed how to handle these very sensitive documents, these very sensitive pieces of information. And why she set up the personal server, she said it was for convenience, as she has said publicly.

She also says that it was definitely not to avoid the Freedom of Information Act or the Federal Records Act. There's a lot in here in which we see the FBI asking her about specific e-mails, Brooke. And we see a little bit about why this entire controversy came about, right? There's discussion repeatedly in these e-mails about the CIA drone program, which is a covert program, should never be discussed on any unclassified e-mail systems. And this has been a long-term battle, fight, inside the government between the CIA and the State Department. The CIA doesn't really want the State Department really weighing in on how it carries out these strikes.

So what you see here is a repeated discussion with the FBI, Secretary Clinton answering questions about these particular e-mails. And there's one in particular, around 2011, 2012, Christmas time, when a lot of state officials are away for Christmas holidays and they are discussing a planned drone strike by the CIA. This is the e-mail that, frankly, has caused more trouble for her than anything else. And they proceed to discuss it. It turns out the drone strike is never carried out. The FBI director has said that nobody died as a result of these discussions. But it is a serious violation of the way you're supposed to handle these types of matters.

I'll tell you the other thing that - one thing you might get away - come away from here is this repeated discussion about hackers and whether or not there was any evidence that people got in to the private server. I can tell you the FBI decided to look through everything it could and could not find any proof that the hackers got in.

BALDWIN: OK.

PEREZ: But, it said that it could not definitively say that it did not happen.

Brooke.

BALDWIN: Oh, wow. OK. OK. Two notes there. I know you're going to continue flip through - flipping through that. Evan Perez, thank you so much for now on that.

PEREZ: Sure.

BALDWIN: Let's get to the bigger picture now on how the Clinton e-mail report will impact the race for the White House and the debate news today and so much more. With me now, we have Democratic strategist Krystal Ball, who is supporting Hillary Clinton, Republican strategist Cathy Taylor, a Trump supporter. Also with me, CNN political commentator Lanhee Chen, who was the public policy director for Mitt Romney.

So, welcome to everyone.

And I'm going to get to my - my ladies in pink here in just a second on the debate news today.

But, Lanhee, just quickly, just to put a button on this as we're still, you know, going through all these - the notes from the FBI here on Hillary Clinton and her testimony. But bottom line, you know, again, no charges being brought against her. But what are we, like, 68, 67 days away and it's still -- we're talking about it.

LANHEE CHEN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. And, Brooke, that's really the big problem for the Clinton campaign is that this has become this sort of drip, drip, drip narrative and every day there seems to be some new piece of news. And I think they would much rather not be talking about this. They'd rather be on message talking about whatever their campaign is focused on. So this is not good for the Clinton campaign.

[14:05:14] It also reminds people that the Clintons operate by a different set of rules than everybody else. And that always bothers people. I think that's been her biggest weakness in this election cycle is being perceived as being untrustworthy and out of touch.

BALDWIN: OK. Let me move on.

Krystal, first to you. We heard about these debate moderators today. And if we have their faces, we'll toss them up on the screen. But, you know, when you look specifically at Donald Trump -

KRYSTAL BALL, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Yes.

BALDWIN: You know, he's kind of made it his - his thing to - to fight with the media, to throw the media under the bus.

BALL: Yes.

BALDWIN: What will he be like on the stage given this cast of phenomenal journalists?

BALL: Oh, my gosh. It is a cast of phenomenal journalists. They are all certainly up to the task.

BALDWIN: Yes.

BALL: And I think this is what makes it really hard to prepare for a debate with Donald Trump is, you have no idea what -

BALDWIN: Unpredictable.

BALL: I mean he will have no idea what he's going to do when he shows up there, frankly. I think he's such a gut player and just do what he wants to do.

But, you know, one of the challenges for the moderators here is, Donald Trump is a guy who Politifact has rated 70 percent of his statements false, mostly false or pants on fire. So it's going to be hard for them to fact check him in real time, which I think is really important, without also appearing like they're biased. But that's going to be an important service because he comes out with all these statements that range from, you know, totally ridiculous to sort of shades of truth, and it's important to keep him honest, which is something the moderators and Hillary Clinton obviously will have to do.

BALDWIN: As a Trump supporter - BALL: It's going to be fun.

BALDWIN: It will be fun. September 26th, if that's not already set in your - your DVR, or watching it live. I mean respond to that as a Trump supporter but also how -

CATHY LYNN TAYLOR, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Look, I'll respond to it as a conservative -

BALDWIN: OK.

TAYLOR: Because I haven't backed a specific candidate, but I am a -

BALDWIN: Oh.

TAYLOR: I am a loyal conservative. And let me respond to it that way.

BALDWIN: OK.

TAYLOR: Which is, first off, Hillary Clinton is hardly the torchbearer of honesty and ethics when we talk about having their facts straight. We've seen that all day long every day, to Lanhee's dip, dip - drip, drip, drip of the e-mails.

But when you look at the moderators, it's an excellent cast of journalists for sure without a doubt. But if you're a conservative, if you're a Republican, wherever you fall in that spectrum that's right of Hillary, then you have to look at some of the connections. You know, Martha Raddatz did have Obama attend her wedding. You have Anderson, who did have ties to the Clinton Foundation, Clinton Global Initiative. So if you're a Republican, you're looking at that cast of characters and saying, hmm, that might be a little bit more tilted towards this mainstream media, for whatever that term is worth. And that's just something to keep in mind.

I think as far as Trump goes, we've seen a pretty big change in Trump over the last couple of weeks since Kellyanne Conway has come in, Steve Bannon. You've seen much more use of the Teleprompter, much more prepared remarks. He certainly did seem presidential in Mexico and his remarks after were wildly heralded really by both sides as being substantive.

BALDWIN: I see you smiling.

TAYLOR: In fact, one of the most substantive speeches that any candidate has given throughout this campaign for sure and much more detailed than Hillary Clinton's camp -

BALL: I mean what's - what's really funny to me is the continued -

TAYLOR: Well, let me just finish - than her remarks on immigration have been. So, you know, you have to look at the path and we'll see if this path continues.

BALL: Yes, what's really funny to me is this continued assertion, oh, Donald Trump looked presidential in Mexico. I mean that is such a low bar that we're impressed that this man, who could be the next president of the United States -

TAYLOR: What's the alternative, (INAUDIBLE) for president (ph)?

BALL: Could stand at a podium and not yell or insult or say something offensive for 10 minutes.

BALDWIN: But if a piece of this - but a piece of this is -

BALL: I mean but that's - that's where the bar has been set for him.

BALDWIN: That the expectations are low, that could, Lanhee, let me just bring you in, just because you're not here, I want to hear from you as well, Lanhee. I mean if the bar is lower, the expectations are lower, couldn't that - that would behoove Mr. Trump.

CHEN: Yes, look, debates are a lot about setting up expectations, right? So you're going to hear both sides talking about how brilliant the other side's candidate is as a debater. They're going to say, look, Donald Trump's got a lot of expertise on TV. Hillary Clinton's done like 186 debates. So, you know, both sides are going to be trying to set expectations. I think that that's just part of the game.

The focus on the moderators in my mind is misplaced because, at the end of the day, they've picked the people who are going to moderate these debates. You've got to operate within that context. Just focus on the substance. So I think for the Trump campaign, the important thing that they do now is that they get it straight on what the Clinton record is and that they're ready for that debate going in. And for Clinton, she's got to avoid appearing aloof and disconnected from reality. That's got to be the focus, not the moderators.

BALDWIN: OK. Let's move away from the debates, again September 26th and excited to see Anderson doing one of those.

Money, money, money. $143 million last month, Hillary Clinton. That's a record, Krystal. It's a record. So that's huge. The money is high. But when you look at her unfavorability numbers, which, obviously, the Clinton campaign doesn't like us pointing out, but they're low.

BALL: Right.

BALDWIN: And now I think the last check I saw, right on par with Trump's. Why?

BALL: Well, I think that part of the problem here is that people are very disgusted with Washington and they see her as someone who's been there for a long time. And so there's an instinct to always think the worst of her. And, of course, that's exacerbated by the fact that Republicans keep attacking her over everything they possibly can.

[14:10:06] BALDWIN: But she's also - she's also wrapping her arms around the notion of, you know, the third term Obama and if you're saying that's being lumped in with Washington -

BALL: Right. And his favorability ratings actually are quite good right now. BALDWIN: Are awesome.

BALL: But she's seen as, you know, part of the system and people don't like the system. So, frankly, if Republicans had a better candidate this year, they might be in a strong position to beat her. But when people look at things like her e-mail practices, they don't like it. She's apologized for it. They see it as sort of like a cold sore. Not something you want. They look at Donald Trump, who's got white nationalism and cozying up to Russia and seems to be completely oblivious and ignorant about the world and they say that guy's Ebola.

So the fact that her favorability ratings are low, yes, but she's still significantly up in the polls. And this money means that she's going to continue to be able to communicate the message she wants about the positive vision for the country and about what a danger to the republic Donald Trump really is.

BALDWIN: It's funny you bring up Russia. Actually let me just bring - go ahead and bring this up now. I don't know if you've seen the Vladimir Putin's comments. He was talking a little bit about the DNC hack and he, of course, was saying that's not at all us, not Russia, as many fingers have been pointing in his direction.

But he also weighed in on the presidential election. This is - I'm quoting Putin. "They are both using shock tactics, just each in their own way," being both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. "I don't think they're setting the best example," so says Vladimir Putin. Said they're both "being short-sided and playing the anti-Russian card."

I mean, Cathy, did you ever think you'd be seeing Vladimir Putin slamming the candidates?

TAYLOR: He has enough to worry about at home.

BALDWIN: What's going on?

TAYLOR: That's going to be my strategic advice to him. You focus on home.

Look, Krystal's right, that these are two of the most unfavorable candidates we've ever had in a presidential campaign in the history of this country for sure. But at the same time, they're neck and neck right now, and that's pretty amazing when you look at the money raised going back to your point--

BALL: No, she's significantly ahead in that (INAUDIBLE).

BALDWIN: It depends (ph) on the neck and neck you're talking about.

TAYLOR: No, she's not, actually. They're within a point or two of each other if you look at the national polls.

BALL: In terms of the Real Clear Politics overview of polls.

TAYLOR: If you look at the key state polls. And so rather than calling them bad disease names, let's look at the facts. We're going to have one of these two people as the leader of the free nation. Which one are we going to choose? And when you look at the money raised and the money spent on the Clinton side, vis-a-vis the Trump side, and yet the fact that they're still so close, it raises questions about the message he has and how it's reverberating with the people. What will happen on the day of the vote? Who knows, because the polls have been here and the outcomes have been here so far. But it is impossible to say that she is ahead at this point.

BALL: That's not what the polls say.

CHEN: Yes, you know, Brooke, I think that -

BALDWIN: Yes. Quickly, quickly, Lanhee, and then we've got to go.

TAYLOR: I point - a point or two (INAUDIBLE) is not ahead (ph).

CHEN: I was going to say, Brooke, I mean I think - I think the big challenge is here that they both have high negatives. One of them is going to have to win this. And what we would worry about for Clinton is if the trustworthiness continues to be an issue for her, she is going to have a really tough time closing the deal at the end of the day, I think.

BALDWIN: All right, Lanhee, Cathy and Krystal, thank you all.

BALL: Thanks, Brooke.

CHEN: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Happy Labor Day weekend.

TAYLOR: You too.

BALDWIN: We'll be here Monday. Tune in.

Coming up next as we talk more politics and what Trump is up to this weekend, we'll talk live to that bishop in Detroit who will be interviewing Mr. Trump tomorrow. And if you're looking at "The New York Times" lately, their reporting is that Trump's campaign has scripted his answers for him. How does the pastor feel about that? Does he know that? We'll talk to him live.

Also ahead, Michele Bachmann says if Hillary Clinton wins the White House, she says this is America's last election. Hear why.

And he is the former Stanford swimmer convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman. Today he walks free after serving three months behind bars. We'll take you to the protests.

You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:17:48] BALDWIN: Welcome back. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin. You know, Donald Trump, he's doing something today. Something that

some of his critics have said he should have done long before now if he's serious about reaching out to black voters. Right now he is in Philadelphia meeting with African-American community leaders at a public charter school.

But not everyone is welcoming Mr. Trump with open arms here. Local reports indicate activists with the Black Lives Matter movement plan to protest just outside that meeting.

So let's go to Sara Murray. She's just outside Trump Tower here today in New York. And so as far as Philadelphia goes, Sara, let's start with the roundtable. Tell me about the meeting.

SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, this is part of what the Trump campaign, what his advisors have really touted as an effort to win over minority voters. Of course we know Donald Trump's poll numbers with Hispanic voters, with African-American voters are not very high. So today he is going to Philadelphia. We're expecting him to meet with just over a dozen religious leaders, community leaders, members of the business community. He's actually doing this at a charter school. So it will be interesting to see if they focus on education, if they focus on other issues.

But, Brooke, you're absolutely right, that one area of backlash for Donald Trump, as he tries to do this, is there's a belief among some that he's just now doing this in the - you know, less than 90 days until the election. That if you really want to make inroads with minority communities, that's something you need to begin earlier. And we have seen the Republican National Committee, for instance, in the wake of 2012, they really tried to expand the way they do Hispanic outreach. And I think there has been some frustration in trying to work with this Republican nominee and to see that this is an issue he's really only taken up with less than three months until Election Day, Brooke.

BALDWIN: We're going to stay on that issue right now. Sara Murray, thank you.

You know, tomorrow, Mr. Trump travels to Detroit, heads to a black church. He is scheduled to do a sit-down interview, a taped sit-down interview, and then attend services at Greater Faith Ministries. So joining me now by phone is the pastor of that church. He is Bishop Wayne Jackson. He is also the president and the CEO of the Impact Network. This is the only African-American founded and operated national Christian TV network. It reaches 50 million homes, according to its website.

[14:20:00] So, Bishop Jackson, I know you are a busy man. Thank you for taking the time today.

BISHOP WAYNE JACKSON, INTERVIEWS DONALD TRUMP TONIGHT IN DETROIT (via telephone): Well, Brooke, thank you for having me on.

And certainly it's been very, very, very busy around here with the Secret Service and all the things that are going on. I mean they - they have taken over and it's just - something that we've never experienced before.

But, again, I want to make - I want to get the facts straight because there's been a lot of things going on out there. A lot of -

BALDWIN: Let's do that. Let's do that. Let's talk in facts. That's how we roll here at CNN.

JACKSON: Yes.

BALDWIN: So let's begin with this. We know that you are sitting down with Mr. Trump tomorrow. And as I know you would do on occasion for anyone running for president, just to be clear, you submitted, bishop, you submitted the questions that you have from Mr. Trump to his campaign ahead of time. Yes?

JACKSON: Yes. And I had an interview with "The New York Times" on Tuesday and I've been very, you know, open to the press because I feel that, you know, honesty is the best way and I don't go - I don't work any other way because I always (INAUDIBLE) integrity. But, anyway, she asked the question, have you submitted your questions to the Trump campaign. I said, yes. She said, well, why did you do it? I said because it - it didn't appear to be anything bad because I have done things down through the years, and, for instance, I've given even invocations for events. The vice president, Biden, was here a couple years ago and I was called to do the invocation and they wanted to know before, you know, what I was going to say. So I had to send my prayer, written down prayer, to the White House to get it cleared.

BALDWIN: Sure.

JACKSON: So it wasn't anything that was underhanded. Mr. Trump, neither his campaign, has tried to change what I was going to say or what -- whatever. It's just something that we just thought was - he getting prepped for the interview.

BALDWIN: Sure. I understand. And I - you know, I'm all for transparency as well. And I think the part that people are raising their eyebrows at, as you mentioned "The New York Times." So someone leaked - this isn't about your questions necessarily. This is about these leaked answers that apparently the Trump campaign, in talking to some folks, some black Republicans, you know, really preparing to answer your questions. The fact that they, according to "The Times," are scripted. Have you heard about this? What's your response to that?

JACKSON: Well, yes, I heard about a "New York Times" reporter did, you know, tell me that that was coming out, but I didn't see any problems with it because, again, this is not something that's unusual. It's done all the time. It has been, a person's going to be interviewed, you at least need to know, you know, what kind of questions are going to come before you.

And let's say, for instance, that people had prepped him. We will still have on the record what he committed to. And that's what I want people to understand, that, you know, whatever he committed to - and my questions were very, very strong. You know, my questions were, you know, what are we going to do about unarmed black males being shot? You know, we stand by our police agencies. We love police. All black African-Americans, all African-Americans that's law abiding, we are not afraid of the police. We encourage them. We pray for them. But we have questionable shootings. When you see people laying on - lying on the ground -

BALDWIN: But you can understand, bishop - no, these are all - they're great questions, but you can understand how some, you know, critics are coming forward. I mean especially, as a man of faith, right, you speak from your heart. And, you know, critics are coming forward and thinking, if you're sit in front of someone who wants to be the next commander in chief, should he not be speaking from his heart as well instead of having word for word scripted answers. I'm just telling you what some folks are wondering.

JACKSON: Well, Brooke, we fixed that. I have new questions. And some of these questions -

BALDWIN: You do have new questions?

JACKSON: Hmm?

BALDWIN: You do have new questions?

JACKSON: I have new questions, yes. And nobody has seen these questions but me, my secretary and a couple of people who were - who were close to me. And some of these questions came from prominent black ministers around the country. And I mean they're over, you know, thousands and thousands of people. And so these questions are not being seen by anyone. And Mr. Trump, neither did his - first of all, I have never spoken to Mr. Trump. I have never met Mr. Trump. I don't know Mr. Trump only by what I see on television. When his camp reached out to me two months ago to sit down and interview him, because he wants to come into the black community to share what his policies will be. If we don't sit down and dialogue, then we don't know. You just can't get up and say, well, you know, what the "h" you have to lose. We - you know, need to - we need promises that's going to be real. And you only can make it happen when you sit down and have a dialogue with someone, a communication with someone. And I'm encouraging him. This is not the end of the matter. I'm encouraging him to go to people like great men we have in our country, like Mark Moreelle (ph). Mark Moreelle, I mean, at the Urban League. You have Mr. Brooks (ph), who's over at the NAACP. You have Al Sharpton. And you have Ben Chafetz (ph). We have - you have black colleges. I'm encouraging him to sit down with these individuals so if he is going to be the president -

[14:25:24] BALDWIN: You are? But you want to - well, let me - let me ask you - let me just jump in because you're naming all these people and I think one of the

questions is, in addition to the sit-down with you, will he be attending services? Will he be addressing members of your congregation, bishop?

JACKSON: He - this is the way it's going to be. This is what's been decided on by me. I'm the pastor, and his executive staff. That we will do an interview in the morning. That interview would not be touched by Trump's camp or anybody associated with him. BALDWIN: So they wouldn't have any - any fingerprint on the edit?

JACKSON: No.

BALDWIN: They wouldn't greenlight the fil edit.

JACKSON: Uh-huh. I wouldn't do it. Brooke, I wouldn't do it because I feel like it's unfair.

BALDWIN: Yes, sir.

JACKSON: So, see, I am a Democrat - I'm a Democrat by register. Oh, if you go in my office, you know what you will see? You will see a picture of Obama. You'll see a picture of Mr. Clinton, Al Gore, all Democrats. And I'm not - I'm not - I'm not a sellout or trying to be something that I'm not. We want answers. We're tired. If it's Democrat or if it's Republicans, we need help and we need somebody that's going to be in that office that's not going to give us more broken promises. I don't care who it is. So let's get it on - on the record. We got so many people tell - that tell us, hey, it's going to be better or whatever. We need to know. (INAUDIBLE) -

BALDWIN: So, Bishop - and I appreciate that. But will he - beyond, you know, sitting down with you and having an open dialogue, will he be addressing your congregation and is he -

JACKSON: No, he's not going to address my -

BALDWIN: No, he's not?

JACKSON: If you poll -

BALDWIN: Will he be sitting in the service?

JACKSON: Now let me just say -

BALDWIN: Will he be sitting in the service, bishop?

JACKSON: Yes, he's sitting in the service. And then he -

BALDWIN: How - how do you think the congregation is going to receive him?

JACKSON: Well, we - we'll talk love in our congregation. If you are somebody - let me back up. If Jesus was the president of great faith ministries, would he tell us to keep away homosexuals? Would he tell us to keep away drug addicts? Would he tell to us keep away those who have no money? Would he tell us not to let Donald Trump in the church? No.

BALDWIN: No.

JACKSON: Jesus welcomed all of us. And I'll tell you how he's going to be received. I teach my people, love is the way and the course to go. And if I could be a broker of love to help bring this racial - or be a component, should I say, of love - and that's where I'm coming from, the position of love. I'm not coming from the position that, oh, you called me a racist. You're a racist and you this and that. No, that's not going to work. And Mr. Trump will get an embrace from people because that's the way the congregation has been taught. They've been taught love your neighbor as yourself.

BALDWIN: Bishop Jackson, you got a big day ahead of you, sir. I appreciate you taking the time with me. Let's have a chat again on Monday if you're - if you're around. I'll be here. I'd love to see how this goes. Good luck, sir. I appreciate it.

JACKSON: OK, Brooke, give me one - one promise. Tell me you're going to pray for me and I'll feel better.

BALDWIN: Done, bishop. Done.

JACKSON: OK, thank you. Thank you.

BALDWIN: Bishop Jackson, all my best. Thank you so much. My goodness.

Coming up next -

JACKSON: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Thank you.

Coming up next, millions in the path of Tropical Storm Hermine as it's barreling up the East Coast. We will take you live to where it's hitting and look at where it's going next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)