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Clinton and Surrogates hit the Trail on Labor Day; Remains Found of Missing Minnesota Boy; North Korea Fires Ballistic Missiles; Hermine Turns Father East. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired September 05, 2016 - 09:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:33:41] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Labor Day is the official start of the heavy duty campaigning for the presidential candidates. I know, we've been talking about this race for a long time, but now it really takes off in earnest.

Hillary Clinton has a very busy day. You see her new campaign plane there. She's using a bigger plane right now to accommodate the press. The press will be traveling in the back of that plane, along with the candidate. And then later today, as that plane arrives -- it's in West Chester right now at the airport there, but when it flies on to Cleveland, it will land and Hillary Clinton will give a sit-down interview with ABC's David Muir. The first such interview she's given since July 31st.

You see Joe Biden there. he's already in Cleveland. He's speaking to a labor rally there and then he's going to participate in a parade. And then later on, Bill Clinton will participate in a Labor Day picnic parade. That will happen in Cincinnati. And he'll be with members of the AFL-CIO. You see that parade is already underway.

Of course perhaps the most anticipated thing for Democrats at least is Bernie Sanders. He will begin campaigning for Hillary Clinton at a breakfast in New Hampshire. Joining me now is Simone Sanders, who's a Democratic strategist and the former national press secretary for Bernie 2016.

Hi, Simone.

SYMONE SANDERS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Hey, Carol, how are you?

COSTELLO: I'm great. Welcome back. So how will it -- how will it feel to have your candidate campaigning for Hillary Clinton?

[09:35:04] SANDERS: It feels good. You know, Carol, we're stronger together. So I think the senator is really excited to get back out there on the campaign trail. We love New Hampshire. I know he enjoys New Hampshire. And I think he's going to do great at the breakfast this morning and of course at this really great rally that he's going to have this afternoon at the high school out there in New Hampshire.

COSTELLO: You know, it was a rough primary for Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. Bernie Sanders accused Clinton of being in the pocket of Wall Street. He accused her of supporting disastrous trade deals, et cetera, et cetera. So when his supporters listen to him today, I mean, won't a little piece of them say, wow, this is kind of hypocritical?

SANDERS: I don't so, Carol. You know what, primary battles are about folks picking their sides, putting their best argument out there, debating on the issues and then somebody has to come out victorious. Secretary Clinton came out victorious. She is our Democratic nominee and I think the next president of the United States. So I think what folks will hear from Senator Sanders today is that, yes, I challenged Secretary Clinton in the primary. We had a hard-fought battle, but you know what, I believe and I know, because I just ran against her, I believe she is the best person that can carry the water on the issues that the political revolution was all about. She's the best person on health care. She's the best person on minimum wage.

COSTELLO: But -- but -- but -- but -- but here's --

SANDERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: But here's the thing. Like some of the same issues that Bernie Sanders was hitting hard during the primary are still issues for Mrs. Clinton today, right? She has major league trust issues. She's raising lots and lots of campaign cash and a lot of that cash is coming from Wall Street. So how does Bernie Sanders say that's OK now?

SANDERS: Well, you know, I think what Bernie -- I don't -- I don't think that's what he's going to say. I think what you're going to hear from Senator Sanders is that for him this has always been about the issues and he endorsed Secretary Clinton because he needs the political revolution to roll on. We all do. And the only way that's going to happen is if we have a candidate that is going to be an advocate for working families, a candidate that's going to be an advocate for education, for health care in this country. Someone that we can trust with the nuclear codes and Secretary Clinton is a million times better --

COSTELLO: Right, but even Bernie Sanders said over the weekend -- even Bernie Sanders said, and I have the sound bite right here, Bernie Sanders said over the weekend, you know what, Mrs. Clinton should divorce herself from the Clinton Foundation and she should do it right now instead of waiting. He also said that the libertarian candidate, Mr. Johnson, should be on that debate stage with Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump. Let's listen to that and then w'll talk about it.

SANDERS: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think Gary Johnson should be in the debates?

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), VERMONT: I think they have, you know, generally speaking, my view is that if people reach a certain level, you can debate about what that level is, I think it's, what, is it 15 percent they should be in the debates. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think that's fair? So you think that mark --

that level, that 15 percent is a fair metric?

SANDERS: It's probably too high.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think it should be lower than that?

SANDERS: Probably should be lower than that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So should Gary Johnson be on the debate stage with Clinton and Trump?

SANDERS: Well, again, I think Senator Sanders, he wasn't talking specifically about Gary Johnson. He was speaking in general. And, in general, yes, I think if you reach a certain threshold, I think you should be on the debate stage.

But let's remember that Bernie Sanders didn't run as a third party candidate in this race. He ran as a Democrat because he knows that a Democratic candidate is the best chance for us to keep the White House come this fall. So he's not support -- and he's supporting Secretary Clinton because of those same reasons. So, you know, again, I think the threshold is there. We've got the rules. We'll see if Gary Johnson or anybody else makes the cut, but --

COSTELLO: Well, actually --

SANDERS: Go ahead.

COSTELLO: Another surprising thing is "The Richmond Times Dispatch," it's editorial -- what am I looking at here? Is this -- oh, this is in Detroit. This is Bill Clinton in Detroit. And I -- he's probably in that car heading down the parade route. So I just -- he was just waiving to the crowd. I just wanted to alert because big doings for the candidates surrogates today.

OK, going back to "The Richmond Times Dispatch" editorial board. They actually endorsed Gary Johnson. And this is despite the fact that Clinton's running mate is from Virginia, Tim Kaine. The paper said, quote, "much of the country is distressed by the presidential candidates offered by the two conventional political parties and for good reason. Neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton meet the fundamental moral and professional standards we have every right to expect of an American president. We found Gary Johnson to be knowledgeable but unscripted, reasonable and good humored and in all respects optimistic realistically presidential." So might Gary Johnson shock the country and become a real contender?

SANDERS: You know what, Carol, I -- I don't think so. And let me tell you why. I know that there are lots of people out there, millennials like myself. You know, I'm a Democrat and I'm supporting our Democratic nominee. But I do know there are lots of people out there that would like a viable third-party option. Currently, there is not a viable third party option. We live in a two-party system. Maybe down the road we can talk about a viable third party option, but we're not there yet. And so with the -- with the current political climate that we have, we have to operate in this system and we have to pick the best candidate that is going to be able to walk in there on day one, in January, and lead and govern. And that's what this race is about.

[09:40:12] So while there might be some great things about Gary Johnson and other folks, in terms of governing, in terms of who is going to go in there and carry the water on the issues, who's going to get criminal justice reform done, who's going to take health care to the next level, education, police accountability issues, that's Secretary Clinton. I think that's what we're going to hearing on the debate stage. That's what you're going to hear from surrogates all across the country, Clinton surrogates today, and that's what you'll definitely hear from Bernie Sanders.

COSTELLO: Symone Sanders, thanks so much for being with me this morning.

SANDERS: Thank you.

COSTELLO: You're welcome.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, a family receives devastating news decades after the abduction of their little boy. That's next.

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COSTELLO: A heartbreaking end to a 27-year-old mystery. Minnesota authorities confirming they found Jacob Wetterling's remains. Jacob was only 11 years old when he was abducted by a masked man back in 1989. His mother telling CNN at the time, "our hearts are broken." Jacob's case garnered worldwide attention and was featured on CNN's "The Hunt" with John Walsh.

[09:45:17] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This guy wearing a mask came out and they could see his handgun. This guy told him to get off their bikes and lay down in the ditch or else he would shoot. He asked them one by one what their age was. After that, he had Trevor (ph) and Aaron, one by one, run off into the nearby woods.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Oh. CNN's Polo Sandoval has more for you.

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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For nearly three decades the Wetterling family held on to hope, and so did their neighbors in this small central Minnesota community. Many of them leaving their porch lights on at night hoping that Jacob would find his way home safely. Well now their worst fears becoming a reality as investigators found the remains of Jacob Wetterling. Now, many people in that community of St. Joseph are looking back on that night, back in October of 1989 when parenting changed forever.

ANNIE SPARROW ROGERS, FORMER RESIDENT: Every day things that we took for granted, allowing them to ride their bikes to the park, go to a park reserve, I think it just touched America in a way that there is no such place as a safe haven anymore. We just have to be vigilant.

SANDOVAL: As for the investigation, we know that Daniel Heinrich, who's reportedly gave the FBI information that led investigators to Jacob's body, according to CNN affiliate WCCO, and also "The Minneapolis Star Tribune." We also dug up court records and found that Heinrich has actually been incustody for nearly a year as part of an ongoing federal child pornography case. He has been questioned in this case, but he has not been officially named a suspect in the Wetterling murder. All of that could change, though, next week as investigators are expected to release new information.

And now the Wetterling family is really focusing more on their son, on his legacy and also on his memory. We do know that after his abduction there was a creation of a federal sex offender registry, and that is something that is still in place today.

Polo Sandoval, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, North Korea fires three ballistic missiles into Japan's defense zone without warning. We'll talk about that, next.

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[09:51:57] COSTELLO: The tensions rising on the Korean peninsula. North Korea launching three mid-range ballistic missiles overnight. That's according to the South Korean military. All of this as China, North Korea's only real ally, plays host to the G-20 Summit. CNN's Paula Hancocks has more for you.

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PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): South Korea's military says that the three missiles fired by North Korea on Monday are believed to have flown around 1,000 kilometers and they say that they assume that they were Rodong mid-range missiles. The joint chiefs in staff here in South Korea also say that they were fired into Japan's air defense identification zone, which is certainly a concern for Tokyo. As they say, there was no prior navigational warning for this launch.

Now, that's a point that's also been picked up by a senior U.S. administration official telling CNN that this launch is reckless, as there could have been a threat posed to civil aviation or also to maritime commerce in the region. Japan's minister of defense has called for a heightened state of vigilance.

Now, as for the timing, Seoul assumes that Pyongyang is reacting to the G-20 meeting in China. Earlier this Monday, the presidents of China, North Korea's main ally, and South Korea met to discuss the issue of North Korea's nuclear missile program. But President Xi Jinping, once again, took the opportunity to reiterate he does not want the third (ph) U.S. missile defense system to be stationed in South Korea. Seoul and Washington insists that it's necessary for protection, but Beijing is concerned that it could, in fact, be able to track its own military movements and it certainly doesn't want more U.S. military hardware on its doorstep.

One other possible reason for today's launch from North Korea could be the upcoming anniversary of Foundation Day. That is on Friday. And it's the day of -- that North Korea was created. Either way, Pyongyang is being widely condemned. South Korea, once again, saying that the use of this ballistic missile technology by Pyongyang is violating directly a number of United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, Hermine changes its path and heads east, but storm warnings and dangerous rip currents still threaten millions.

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[09:58:33] COSTELLO: As Hermine continues to churn a few hundred miles off the coast of Long Island, nearly 7 million people are still under tropical storm warnings with beachgoers in the northeast facing high surf and dangerous riptides.

Brynn Gingras live in Montauk, New York, with more.

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Carol, good morning.

Well, when they say stay off the beach, they really mean it here in Montauk. They actually put up these barricades recently to keep people off the beach. And lifeguards posted where the surf isn't quite yet touching yet, making sure that even people who want to take pictures don't come too close to the water. That's how powerful this surf, these rip currents are. And that's one of the major concerns we're seeing with Hermine at this point.

Look at those waves, though. We've heard about some people who actually tried to take pictures, take selfies in the water, if you can believe that, and got caught and had to be taken out a little bit further down from this beach. So it's quite dangerous.

And as we're approaching high tide at this point, maybe a few hours away, the concern is that water is going to kind of push up through here and do some maybe localized flooding. Not too serious, but that's certainly the concern that officials are keeping an eye on at this point.

Overall, though, Hermine is trending north, so that's a good sign. No rain. That's a really good sign. A lot of people enjoying the fact that they can just look at these beautiful waves as the storm sort of rolls out of here, Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Brynn Gingras reporting live from Montauk, New York, this morning. Thank you.

The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts now.

[10:00:04] And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton hard at work on Labor Day. Both candidates now shifting into high gear as they zero in on key battleground states like Ohio.