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Evangelical Voters are Split on Trump; Iraqi Forces Gain the Last Village Needed to Surround Mosul; FBI is Investigating Emails on Weiner's Laptop. Aired 10:30-11a ET.

Aired November 01, 2016 - 10:30   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Jesus Morales is never Trump. He and his wife plan to vote for Evan McMullin, the republican running as an independent. He is on the ballot in 11 states, but not North Carolina, so they will have to write him in as their vote.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't vote for someone who has been so ignorant in his behavior toward women and toward handicapped people, especially.

SCHNEIDER: And you are handicapped?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I am legally blind and it's insulting to me that he can make fun of the handicapped community and no one has called him out on it.

RACHEL MILLER, EVANGELICAL: I personally plan to vote reluctantly and, like, for Trump, not that I in any way would want to, like, endorse him. I would for soon in(ph).

SCHNEIDER: So it's been a hard decision for you?

MILLER: Oh, absolutely.

SCHNEIDER (voice over): Rachel Miller is 22 years old, a millennial, and a prime target for the Not Who We Are PAC, a super PAC devoted to defeating Donald Trump, releasing this music video ad featuring popular Christian musician, William Matthews.

UNKNOWN MALE: Donald Trump is dangerous.

SCHNEIDER (voice over): Radio host, Steve Noble, voted early for Trump. It's a pick he struggled with.

STEVE NOBLE, EVANGELICAL RADIO HOST: I've got to do what I can to stop Hillary. So I'm not endorsing Donald Trump. I'm not a big Donald Trump fan. I'm a pragmatist who's also a Christian.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHNEIDER: Now Steve Noble did cast his ballot on Friday for Donald Trump. He tells me he didn't feel good about it, but nevertheless he is advising his radio listeners to cast their ballots for Donald Trump, who he sees as the lesser of two evils. Now in the latest CNN poll that was conducted between October 20th and October 23rd, White evangelicals are, in fact, breaking for Donald Trump; 72 percent for Trump, 21 percent for Hillary Clinton. But of course, it is a fight to the finish in these final few days for those 15 electoral votes right here in North Carolina. Carol?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN HOST: All right, Jessica Schneider, reporting live from Raleigh, North Carolina this morning. So let's talk some more about this. With me now is Foster Friess. He's the founder of Friess Associates and a supporter of Christian causes.

FOSTER FRIESS, FOUNDER OF FRIESS ASSOCIATES: Carol, it's always a delight to be with you. Thanks for having me.

COSTELLO: It's always great to have you here. You are a Christian and you're also a Trump supporter. What do you say to people who are conflicted about Donald Trump?

FRIESS: Well, I don't think they should be conflicted if they're really embracing their Christian values. One of the greatest gifts Jesus gave us was forgiveness. And I think it's - a lot of Christians are very turned off by the fact that Hillary Clinton is complaining about the terrible image that this video presents to America. She's the one who pulled the video up. And she's spending millions of dollars to show it again and again and again.

COSTELLO: You mean the Access Hollywood video?

FRIESS: Yes, yes, if that isn't the ultimate hypocrisy.

COSTELLO: NBC pulled the video up, not Hillary Clinton.

FRIESS: Well, anyway, she's running a lot of money to show it again and again. But I think the important thing is the women I know.

COSTELLO: But shouldn't Donald Trump (--)

FRIESS: They look at this as (--)

COSTELLO: Wait a minute, Foster, because I just want to ask you about this.

FRIESS: OK.

COSTELLO: Shouldn't Donald Trump be held accountable for what he said on that Access Hollywood tape when he was joking around with Billy Bush?

FRIESS: Well, absolutely, absolutely, he's not to be defended, and I'm not certainly going to excuse him. But the whole idea of forgiveness is kind of core to the whole Christian belief system, and I think that's why Christians are excited about how he came up and said, "You know, in the heat of the campaign, I've said things I shouldn't and I really regret it and I particularly regret it has caused personal pains." He's apologized for it. And if we don't forgive him, what value is our Christian faith if we don't forgive someone who is - who is seeking to move forward. And I think the women that I talk to are more concerned about their healthcare for their kids. Can you - I was just in London, Carol, and you cannot believe the tragedy of the National Healthcare System is having over there. I just read, they have 10,000 people who had to wait six weeks for diagnostic tests. They had 29,000 people who had to wait four hours in a journey(ph) when they go to the emergency room. And I believe that's what we have to think about is the policies, because all this news - that would be old news in about six months.

COSTELLO: Well, going back to this tape for just a second, because one state, one religious state, that Access Hollywood tape really does bother them, and that would be Utah. In fact, a third party candidate is doing very well there. So it does matter in Utah. So what do you say to people in Utah who can't vote for Donald Trump because of the things that he himself has said?

FRIESS: Well, I think they should go back to the Bible and read how Saul of Tarsus was cutting off people's heads and then became the greatest salesmen for Jesus, all the nice things he wanted to do. He probably won all the awards to - incentive awards(ph) to Hawaii. And I think you can look at David, who is another guy who sent Bathsheba's husband off to war hoping that he'd be killed, yet he became a great man of God. So I think the whole message of Christianity here is evidenced in Donald Trump's progress, where you look at where he was ten years ago and where he is today; we have to be excited about that. And the whole Christian message is, when a guy screws up you don't put your foot on his throat and throw him on the human junk pile, you give him a hand down and help him get out of the pit he dug for himself. That's what Christianity is all about. And that's (--) [10:35:16]

COSTELLO: But, some young Christians also have a problem with Donald Trump. And I'm specifically talking about students at Liberty University. Liberty University's president, Jerry Falwell, Jr., came out in support of Donald Trump and he talked about that on Aaron Burnett's show, and then a group of Christian students who attend Liberty University wrote this, and I'm going to read it to you. "As Liberty students, we've watched as the leader of our school loudly and proudly advocated for a man many of us felt compelled to oppose. Trump's flagrant dishonesty, consistent misogyny, and boastful unrepentance made many of us feel the need to publically express disagreement of President Falwell's endorsement." So these students - these students say that Donald Trump hasn't apologized strongly enough and that's why they can't forgive him, because he's not sorry, really sorry, about any of these things.

FRIESS: Well, Carol, I think these are young kids and wisdom doesn't come - wisdom will come to these kids.

COSTELLO: These are voters.

FRIESS: I have a friend

COSTELLO: These are voters.

FRIESS: Right, but I have a friend who is the sixth of six boys. He's the youngest of six boys, and he says, "Until two of my brothers went to college, I didn't even know chickens had another part other than a neck." So you have to give these young people a little time to mature in the Christian faith to know about forgiveness. And look what Donald Trump has achieved in terms of all the women he hires. There's no company I think you can find that hires more women at higher levels. And then look at the contrast in terms of his honesty.

COSTELLO: Have you exposed his business records so you're able to determine that?

FRIESS: Well, I've - look, I spent time with Donald Trump, Jr., and with Eric, and with Eric's wife, Laura. These are the most beautiful, wonderful people that you'd want to have a relatives or neighbors. And I think to see - you judge the fruit sometimes by looking at the tree, and Donald Trump did something right when you look at how his kids are such wonderful people that would serve our country well. And I believe that's what we have to look at. You know, let's think of the issue of the global Jihad movement. People are having their heads cut off. People are being dumped into cages and drowned to death, and Hillary Clinton in the debate says, "I'm (--)

COSTELLO: Well, I'm glad you brought that up. I am glad you brought that up, because we have yet to hear Donald Trump's plan for defeating ISIS. Do you know what it is?

FRIESS: Well, I wonder did anybody know what McArthur's plan to go into Inchon? Did Eisenhower put on a press release, "I think we're going to hit Normandy at four o'clock and such." Of course you don't divulge that.

COSTELLO: So it's okay for Donald Trump to keep his plans secret, all secret? No divulgence of anything?

FRIESS: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: No part of the plans?

FRIESS: I mean, but look at what Hillary Clinton said. Hillary Clinton said, "I'm for arming the Kurds and I'm for a no-fly zone." She's in power, why don't we have a no-fly zone? Why don't we have the arms Kurd(ph)? I went to (--)

COSTELLO: Because she's not in charge of how the military - she's not as secretary of state. President Obama has the ultimate decision in that.

FRIESS: OK. I have a little point to disagree slightly. I said to the guy named Brett McGurk whose responsible for the Iraq policy in the state department, "Is the small mean(ph) with the Israel - with the ambassador to Iraq from America and with President Barzani?" And basically, he said, "We have to be careful about arming the Kurds. Our state department policy," - our state department policy - "is we have to be careful not to give them too much aggressive fire power for they'll secede and our friends in Baghdad, the Shiites and controller(ph) would be very unhappy with us."

COSTELLO: So you're saying that (--)

FRIESS: So if it's clearly a state department policy (--)

COSTELLO: But is Donald Trump against arming the Kurds then? Do you know?

FRIESS: No, my heavens. He knows they should be our surrogate boots on the ground. I've been trying to champion for three years. When I went to Camp Black Tiger, which is the Peshmerga camp on ISIS front lines, they told me the simplest thing. They don't have night goggles and the bad guys are throwing grenades in the bunkers at night and they can't see them coming. They push ISIS on there(ph), they don't have the technology to debug the booby traps that ISIS sets up. So right now, I heard yesterday from my contacts there that the coalition is doing much better and they're providing much better arms, but they still have so many things that we could provide them. I asked Ed Royce who is in a position to provide a field hospital. You know, they don't even have a field hospital. They have to take their people way into Erbil, or whatever. So I think our treatment of the Kurds has not been appropriate. But the most important thing, Carol, is the point that Hillary Clinton says she's for arming the Kurds. I talked to Van Jones, Geraldo Rivera(ph), they're all in favor of arming the Kurds. Well why doesn't it happen?

COSTELLO: Well at least you know part of her plan. That's all I'm saying. That's all I'm saying is that I think that many voters want to know how exactly Donald Trump is going to defeat ISIS and he has yet to tell us. But I have to leave it there. And I do appreciate your being - I do appreciate your being on my show. I do appreciate it, Foster Friess, thank you so much. [10:40:09]

FRIESS: OK, Carol, OK. Come see us in Jackson Hole. Bye bye.

COSTELLO: I will. Thank you so much. It's all been leading up to this: Election day in America. We'll have every race and every result. Stay with CNN until the last vote is cast. Coming up in THE NEWSROOM: Iraqi forces have cleared their last village just outside Mosul. Their next step? Inside the city itself.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [10:44:56]

COSTELLO: An Iraqi flag is now flying on a TV tower just outside of Mosul. Next stop, finally, will be inside the city itself. Iraqi troops have now cleared off the last village they had to clear before breaking into Mosul. In the meantime, the Turkish military says it's moving tanks and bulldozers toward its border with Iraq. It says it wants to be prepared for anything that might happen. CNN correspondent Michael Holmes is in Erbil, Iraq with more. Hi, Michael.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. Yes, Iraqi forces approaching the eastern outskirts of Mosul from a number of directions, three main directions. But the most significant battle, as you pointed out there, a place called Gugjali. Now this is literally the last population center before you're at the doorstep of Mosul. That operation went on all day. It wasn't easy going either. There were a number of factors, ISIS snipers. There were even remote- controlled car bombs that were used against the Iraqi forces as they went through a number of IEDs as well. They ended up encircling the town. They are now clearing it of those devices and the last pockets of resistance. And, as you pointed out, a flag placed on a TV tower there, literally within sight of Mosul.

One complicating factor and perhaps a portent of things to come inside Mosul itself, Gugjali has 25,000 civilians inside, and so the Iraqi forces having to be cognizant of that. They ask people to stay indoors. And part of the clearing of Gugjali now is going through those 25,000 residents to weed out any ISIS fighters who may perhaps have tried to blend in with that local population. Screening of all these civilians has to happen everywhere they go.

You mentioned those Turkish movements. They are significant. Turkey's got a few irons in the fire. They're dealing with Kurds inside their own borders, the PKK, but they're also worried about Shia-led paramilitaries who are now in the fight to the west of Mosul, heading toward a very significant place called Telapa(ph), a hot bed of ISIS support, but also home to thousands of ethnic Turkmen who have historical and cultural ties with Turkey. Turkey has said if the Shia-led paramilitaries go into Telapa(ph), they won't stand for it. So potentially, then you've got another conflict brewing on the edges of the fight for Mosul itself. It is, as it has always been, a very complex battlefield. Carol.

COSTELLO: Michael Holmes, reporting live from inside Iraq this morning, thank you. Still to come in THE NEWSROOM: Hillary Clinton's camp thinks the new FBI probe into her email server is a double standard. Actually, it's not into her email server. It's into the laptop of Anthony Weiner and Huma Abedin's email, but there's the thing. Her team wants the FBI director to talk about Trump's alleged Russian ties too. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [10:50:]

COSTELLO: Hillary Clinton's campaign is ripping into FBI chief, James Comey, this morning, hinting there's a double standard at play.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBBY MOOK, CLINTON CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Well, he was also asked repeatedly under oath in hearings whether he was investigating connections between Donald Trump and Russia. He refused to answer that question, yet he is absolutely, no problem whatsoever, coming out and talking about investigations against Hillary Clinton. It's a total breach of protocol. We didn't cause this problem. James Comey opened this door and we're just asking for him to make this right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Right now, FBI officials are cataloguing 650,000 emails discovered on the laptop of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin's estranged husband, Anthony Weiner. Officials say the investigation is unlikely to be wrapped up before election day. So let's talk about this. With me now is Kenneth Springer, a former FBI special agent. Welcome, sir. KENNETH SPRINGER, FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT, CORPORATE RESOLUTIONS, INC.:

Good morning.

COSTELLO: OK, so let's just start with the double standard. Is there a double standard at play here with what James Comey has decided to share with congress?

SPRINGER: I think it's somewhat unprecedented, because there's DOJ protocol that the government does not influence elections. So if your question is, why did he come out and respond last Friday about this, I think that's due to the fact that when he appeared before congress in July, he said if he comes up with any substantive information he'll get back to congress.

COSTELLO: So he put himself in a box and he couldn't get out of the box and now it just looks bad for him all around, or is it OK?

SPRINGER: Well, I think he did what he told congress he would do. And then, you know, congress obviously made it public and now everyone's making assumptions.

COSTELLO: OK, let's talk about the 650,000 emails on Anthony Weiner's laptop. That seems like an awful lot of emails. Where did they come from? Did they come from his deleted file or do we know?

SPRINGER: I don't know if we know enough about that yet, but as you probably know, even if something is double deleted, it's still there. And what the FBI is - are experts at is imaging computers, recovering deleted files. And what they do is when they image it, it's essentially making copies of it and preserving the original for court evidence. And then once - they work off the copies, and then what they're going to do is use sophisticated software, or in the old days we used to call it search terms, to try to narrow down what emails may be of interest to them.

COSTELLO: So there might be duplicates within the 650,000 emails and then emails they'll just automatically throw out because they have nothing to do with anything?

SPRINGER: Exactly, so you could put in some key search terms. You can also ask it to take out any duplicates. You know, they may look for the term "classified," maybe "secret." It could be, for instance, "Benghazi," and they can narrow it down. And they could - the FBI has the manpower. You know, they've got the technology, and, more than anything, the methodology to investigate large-scale investigations (INAUDIBLE).

COSTELLO: OK, so we're seven days out. So is it possible that they'll have narrowed down these 650,000 emails into a nice tidy pile that they can maybe say something about then? Because we don't know what they have to do with, if anything, Hillary Clinton or Benghazi or anything. [10:55:02]

SPRINGER: We have no idea yet. And I don't think the FBI is going to make a statement before that; no matter even if they find a treasure trove of information, there's no smoking gun in this. And I think what they're going to want to do is even if they find information, they're going to want to talk to witnesses. They're going to want to show that there was intent or knowledge. They're not going to go - they want to be thorough.

COSTELLO: So this is going to bleed over into after the election and...

SPRINGER: I believe so. It could go on for a long time. And once they - you know, the experts, what they're really good at is interviewing people. And you never know when you talk to people where the chips may fall. Some may cooperate, some may disgruntled parties may assist them; either way, they may say there's no case there or there clearly is.

COSTELLO: Well, we'll all be waiting. Kenneth Springer, thanks so much for coming in, I appreciate it. Thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello. "AT THIS HOUR" with Berman and Bolduan after a break.

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