Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Obama and Trump Call for Unity This Thanksgiving; Trump Names Two Women for Cabinet; Report: Trump Skips Most Daily Intel Briefings; Jill Stein Raises Over $2M for Election Recount; Millions Line NYC Street to Watch Parade. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired November 24, 2016 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: I'll be back on at 2:00 if anyone's still watching T.V. today. Happy Thanksgiving, Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I'll be watching, Brooke between the football game and stuff.

BALDWIN: Thank you.

COSTELLO: OK. Happy Thanksgiving. NEWSROOM starts now.

And good morning, I'm Carol Costello in New York. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Millions of people are lining the streets for an up close view of the holiday tradition, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. And tens of millions will be watching online and on television. But amid all the fun and pageantry of this beloved event, there is a serious backdrop. The NYPD is ramping up security. One new measure this year, police have sealed off the parade route to guard against a rogue vehicle. They're blocking intersections with heavy sand trucks.

In the meantime, the President-elect Donald Trump is spending the holiday at his Palm Beach estate one day after nominating two women for his cabinet, one of those selections drawing heavy criticism this morning.

But we begin with a new report that's raising eyebrows over the President-elect. "The Washington Post" reporting today that Trump has mostly shunned the daily intelligence briefings, only twice setting about the time to learn about global developments and security concerns.

CNN's Jason Carroll is at Trump's Palm Beach estate, Mar-a-Lago, with more. Hi, Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to you, Carol. That "Washington Post" article basically saying, as you said, that Donald Trump, the President-elect, has only received two security briefings. That's versus Mike Pence who has basically been receiving briefings nearly every single day since becoming Vice President-elect. The article also pointing out, though, that, Carol, this is not unprecedented. That even though other presidents have taken more security briefings, at this point, than Donald Trump, that it is, again, not unprecedented. Moving forward, the Trump transition team has named two more people to

his cabinet, two women, Betsy DeVos as Education Secretary. Also, Nikki Haley, as U.N. Ambassador. All this as Donald Trump released a Thanksgiving message saying it's time for the country to put the election behind us and time for the country to come together and heal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are very blessed to call this nation our home, and that's what America is. It is our home. It's where we raise our families, care for our loved ones, look out for our neighbors, and live out our dreams. It's my prayer that on this Thanksgiving, we begin to heal our divisions and move forward as one country, strengthened by shared purpose and very, very common resolve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CARROLL: So the next in all of these is when we might hear another announcement, the transition team basically saying not expecting to hear anything from the Trump team today. This is going to be a down day for the President-elect and his family, a chance for them to spend some time together on Thanksgiving.

Although in terms of announcements, perhaps we'll hear something soon, perhaps tomorrow, from Ben Carson. He, as you know, that he's up for HUD Secretary. He has basically said last night that an offer is on the table. So we should expect to hear something, perhaps tomorrow. If not tomorrow, perhaps over the weekend. Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Jason Carroll reporting live from Florida this morning. So let's talk about that and more. With me now, Lynn Sweet, the Washington bureau chief of "The Chicago Sun-Times;" David Swerdlick, CNN political commentator and the assistant editor for "The Washington Post;" and Alice Stewart, CNN political commentator and Republican strategist. Welcome to all of you. And thank you so much for being here on Thanksgiving.

ALICE STEWART, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Happy Thanksgiving.

DAVID SWERDLICK, ASSISTANT EDITOR, THE WASHINGTON POST: Happy Thanksgiving.

LYNN SWEET, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, THE CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Hi, Carol.

COSTELLO: Happy Thanksgiving. I'm so glad you're here. So not only did Donald Trump issue a statement calling for unity on this holiday, but so did President Obama. The two men appearing to be on the same page. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We've just finished a long and bruising political campaign. Emotions are raw and tensions just don't heal overnight. It doesn't go quickly, unfortunately. But we have before us the chance now to make history together, to bring real change to Washington, real safety to our cities, and real prosperity to our communities.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As a country, we've just emerged from a noisy, passionate, and sometimes divisive campaign season. Thanksgiving reminds us that no matter our differences, we're still one people, part of something bigger than ourselves. We are communities that move forward together. We're neighbors. We look out for one another.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, Alice, nice. Right? But you know, the Green Party candidate Jill Stein has raised millions of dollars to force a recount in some states across the nation. Is unity on the horizon in the short term?

STEWART: Well, let's certainly hope so. Of course, as folks gather around the Thanksgiving table, there'll be some serious discussions about this as much as people say they don't want to talk politics. But, look, we have Donald Trump calling for unity. Barack Obama calling for unity. It's time for this nation to come together.

[09:05:00] Donald Trump has made it quite clear he wants to be the President for all of America, not just those who voted for him. We had 125 million people come out and cast their ballots. He wants to serve them, and the 300 million people across this country. And now, there's no better time than now to call for unity.

As for the calls for a recount, I don't think that that's going to go anywhere. I think that the concerns that have been raised are not valid. I think we're going to see that the three states that they have been discussing that may have had some problems with the election process, I think they're going to see that everything was free and fair. And we'll move forward and see Donald Trump sworn in in January.

COSTELLO: OK. So continuing on the unity front --

SWERDLICK: Yes.

COSTELLO: -- Lynn, because, Donald Trump, he wants to appoint two women to his cabinet. So will that quell the fears that some women have that Mr. Trump is a misogynist?

SWEET: No, not even close because you, of course, expect some women to be appointed to the Cabinet. This isn't like a favor to anyone. And by the way, I think that Betsy DeVos as Education Secretary is going to be in for a bruising confirmation battle because of all the opponents that are most organized in Washington. It's the teachers' union throughout the country. And it only takes one Democratic senator to put a hold on it.

So I'm all for giving Trump time to make his appointments and before we pass judgment in any diversity issues, see the whole picture on this. But what he said in that video, about how he treated women in the "Access Hollywood" video, what he women who came forward talking about his treatment of them, that's part of his record. And as he becomes President, you just can't pretend that didn't happen.

COSTELLO: But it is obvious to me that he is reaching out. Right? Ben Carson is a minority. He wants to put him in a very important position, you know, the leader of HUD, the Housing and Urban Development department. And again, these two women, Nikki Haley from South Carolina.

SWERDLICK: Right.

COSTELLO: She's the daughter of immigrants.

SWERDLICK: Yes, Carol. I mean, I think it's an encouraging sign that after nominating or appointing several White men to several top cabinet positions, he has expanded in terms of diversity with a woman of color, Governor Haley, Dr. Carson, African-American prominent Republican.

That being said, though, I think diversity of ideas is also important to a new leader especially one like President-elect Trump who's not a public policy guy, right? He's an outsider. He is more of a big idea guy, and so he could probably use some different points of view in there. And I think he's -- to a certain extent, he's got that.

And then the other thing is that, just because you have diverse picks -- I'm thinking of Dr. Carson in particular -- it doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to reassure a diverse America that President Trump is on your side. I agree with Alice that, you know, President- elect Trump's Thanksgiving statement was a good one. But he could do some more reassuring on the unity front at this point.

STEWART: I think he's going a long way in terms of having diversity of ideas. He's building a team of rivals. I mean, Nikki Haley couldn't have been more critical of Donald Trump throughout the campaign. And the consideration for Mitt Romney, I think, also goes to show he is reaching out to the best of the best as opposed to seeking an eye for an eye for past grievances and trying to settle scores.

So I think Nikki Haley will be great, given her experience in South Carolina and her economic development trips she's done abroad. She has some foreign policy experience in terms of dealing with foreign leaders. And I think DeVos will be great. Clearly, Trump is a supporter of school choice. That is a big issue for her, and she will continue that. So he's bringing in a lot of people that are like minded but also will bring in some new ideas. And so we will see a diversity.

COSTELLO: OK. I want to talk about these intelligence briefings. And I'm going to throw this question to you, David --

SWERDLICK: Sure.

COSTELLO: - because "The Washington Post" reported this yesterday. So Mr. Trump's been offered intelligence briefings.

SWERDLICK: Right. COSTELLO: He's only attended to. He skipped some of them. Some are

calling into question whether that's a good idea.

SWERDLICK: Right. So it's a great scoop by my colleagues, Greg Miller and Adam Entous, just to let the public know exactly what the President-elect is doing. I don't think it's a problem yet that he's only gone to a couple of these briefings over the last two or three weeks since he was elected. If we get past Inauguration Day and he still hasn't fully invested in this, then I think that is a little more cause for concern, a little more cause for scrutiny.

The report also says that Vice President-elect Mike Pence is taking all of his briefings, which is great. He's a former member of Congress and a sitting governor. But the American people didn't elect Mike Pence to run foreign policy. They elected Donald Trump. He's not a policy guy. Again, he should be ramping up a little bit more.

COSTELLO: So, Lynn, what do you make of that?

SWEET: Well, I make it that Donald Trump is curiously uninterested in taking advantage of intelligence briefings that are designed to be digestible for the person who is getting the briefing. And I don't think comparables count here. You know, then Senator Obama was a voracious consumer of intelligence. But to have two is too little. I don't know what the right number is. Two is just too little when you are starting from no background in this, and when it seems that you're changing your mind.

[09:10:18] We know from that "New York Times" interview that now, Donald Trump has different views on waterboarding because he talked to some -- you know, because he talked to a General who gave him another perspective. Well, you just can't make policy -- or maybe -- let me put it as a question. Will Donald Trump be making policy based on the last person he talked to, or to actually study an issue and hear all the voices before making the decision?

COSTELLO: Well, here's the other thing, some say he'll have to be really ready on Day One because there are active engagements overseas. I mean, look at what's happening in Syria right now. Like, children are dying. The Syrian government is targeting hospitals.

STEWART: Right.

COSTELLO: America has to figure out how -- I mean it is involved already, right, because we do have intelligence officers on the ground, but how much more will we be involved and who will make these decisions and how long will it take a President Trump.

STEWART: I think we don't need to read too much into the fact that he's not getting these briefings every day at this juncture. Clearly, his top priority is filling top positions, building a strong national security team. I think having Jeff Sessions in there and Pompeo and Mike Flynn and possibly Mattis, that is a strong national security team. And he is seeking the top notch people and talent for national security --

COSTELLO: So he's going to leave it to them, you're saying?

STEWART: No, but I feel also confident that he's got Mike Pence in there receiving the daily briefings. But I think, to Lynn's point about waterboarding, I think the fact that he is open to the possibility that his ideas on national security may need some new information, and seeing now that there might not be value in enhanced interrogation techniques, I think he's going to take the input from all the experts and make a sound, solid judgment when information is put before him.

COSTELLO: All right. I have to leave it there. Alice Stewart, David Swerdlick, Lynn Sweet, thanks to all of you.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, it ain't over until it's over. And if Green Party candidate Jill Stein gets her way, get ready for a recount.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:16:19] COSTELLO: As Donald Trump proceeds with cabinet picks Hillary Clinton leads in the popular vote by nearly 2 million votes, and now, there's growing calls for a recount on the part of some liberals.

Green Party nominee Jill Stein has raised more than $2 million in order to pay for a recount in three key Rust Belt states, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Stein's campaign says, quote, "Over the last 48 to 72 hours, reports have come in from experts, cyber experts who are reporting to us trouble news about security breaches even results across the country."

Stein received about 1 percent of the vote in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania but all three states played a key role until Clinton's downfall.

So let's talk about this with our panel. Yes, they've reed to stay, Lynn Sweet, David Swerdlick and Alice Stewart are back.

So, Lynn, why is Jill Stein doing this?

SWEET: Well, maybe she could collect money that she could use to keep her political career going when there's no recount to pay for it.

Now, let's remember that Michigan, Jill Stein's 30,000 votes might have made the difference between Hillary Clinton's winning or not. Because it was that close in Michigan. So, so the effort that Jill Stein is trying to lead now seems a little interesting in that if she's interested in Donald Trump not being president. She had a chance. She didn't use it during the campaign, to -- to encourage people to vote for Hillary Clinton since she had no chance of winning the White House.

So, I take it now as a long shot. The thing that is important, these states have deadlines when you file for recounts. It takes a lot of legal work to get together and there's only a few days left. COSTELLO: Yes, not very much time. Let's focus on Michigan because

you're right it's an interesting statement. Michigan has not been called by the way. Trump leads Clinton by 10,704 votes because I looked on the secretary of state's website this morning.

Michigan's secretary of state said those numbers will be certified on November 28th. There's no mention of fraud on that website. So -- there's no concrete evidence of hacking. I still don't understand what Jill Stein is hopping to find.

SWERDLICK: Yes, there's reports but there's not conclusive easily identifiable evidence and Lynn is right. Look, in Michigan, it was very close. Some of the support Jill Stein got could have made the difference in that state. Maybe the support Stein and Gary Johnson got in some of these Rust Belt states could have made a difference.

But bigger picture of 100,000 more Clinton voters spread over five key states would have flipped this election. So, yes, if there's evidence let's look into it, absolutely. Candidates should exercise their rights. But this is a bigger picture issue about this is how elections go. It doesn't matter who won the popular vote. Donald Trump as far as we know won the election based on the Electoral College.

STEWART: And --

COSTELLO: But I do hear some liberals saying oh, my God, what if they do a recount and like a miracle happens and Hillary Clinton is the winner? I do hear lots of liberals say that, Alice.

STEWART: Look, I can assure you. I was deputy secretary of state in Arkansas and every secretary of state across the country takes great pride in executing free and fair elections and making sure there are no glitches. If there was a problem with the machines, the secretary of state would be the first one to look into it. They want to make sure that their elections are free and fair and there's not any kind of asterisk by their state.

And the fact that they have looked back at the results and haven't found anything, I think goes to show that, look, I think things are going to be certified soon and Donald Trump will be sworn in. That being said, if there is like to your point, if there is true evidence of something's gone wrong, yes, we should absolutely investigate.

[09:20:01] But that would have been determined by now I think.

COSTELLO: And, Lynn, just so many stories on pre-election about the nonexistence of voter fraud in this country.

SWEET: Yeah.

COSTELLO: And, you know, the Democrats were crying oh, there's no voter fraud, and, Donald Trump was crying at the time, oh, there is voter fraud, all these stories that there's virtually none and now, Dems -- it's just weird. SWEET: Well, it is a statistical anomaly scientists are saying that

gave another life to this, Carol, and maybe that's when we talked about the rigged system, I don't think people were talking about this particular type of rigging. I'm not even saying it's rigging.

But what's interesting is that if people think that there is a problem, there is a redress but it a week ago. And I -- I think this whole searing election experience may leave people just with less trust in the system period. With questions about why for the second time in the lifetime of a lot of peopled the per with the popular vote is not president. I obviously know we all know how the system works in the Electoral College.

But when it happens twice in a person's in 16 years it does raise questions - an electorate now that's fragile because of, as both President Obama and president-elect Trump said in their Thanksgiving messages after this very tough election season.

COSTELLO: I think Lynn -- I think Lynn has something David right? Because they're still counting the votes, right, and now Hillary Clinton leads by 2 million. She might go over 2 million votes in the popular vote and people will look with that and say, what's up with that?

SWERDLICK: A lot of that run-up is in California which is a solidly blue state. Again, to be clear, if credible evidence comes forward that there's been some cyber Russian hacking, some cyber tampering, I guess would be the word, that should be looked into. Let's not sweep any of this under the rug.

But, big picture, if this is a case where we have buyers remorse as a nation a few weeks late because Clinton upon the popular vote but Donald Trump won the Electoral College vote -- yes, I would be the first one to say the Electoral College has outlived its usefulness, but those were the rules at the start of the game and Donald Trump won by those rules.

STEWART: And both candidates or all four candidates played by those rules. And keep in mind the 2 million mark she will probably surpass that, without a doubt. But we don't need to be looking at 2 million. We need to remind ourselves 270. The number of Electoral College votes that Donald Trump needed and got and won, he's going to be sworn.

COSTELLO: That's the way we do it in the United States of America, right? OK.

SWEET: Two seventy.

COSTELLO: Two seventy, right.

And I will let all of you get to your Thanksgiving day dinner. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

SWERDLICK: Thanks, Carol. You too.

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Happy Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving, Lynn. Bye, Lynn.

SWEET: I have to make like a mushrooms now.

COSTELLO: Oh, my you have to get busy now. Really busy now. Thank you, Lynn.

A quick programming note to tell you later this morning, Jill Stein will talk to CNN at 11:00 a.m. Eastern with Berman and Bolduan.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, it's a Thanksgiving Day tradition for millions of Americans. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade now under way. As we wade into the middle of all those people, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:27:44] SARA GANIM, CNN CORRESONDENT: Hello, everyone. Welcome back. Hello everyone, welcome back.

Happy Thanksgiving morning. We're here outside of the Macy's Day Parade. The start of the Macy's Day parade.

I'm Sara Ganim.

America's Thanksgiving morning tradition just kicked off here, near Central Park in New York City. The Macy's Day parade.

You can see the traditional floats, the balloons. You can see Pikachu off in the distance. A thrilled crowd celebrating their Thanksgiving morning.

Some fun facts. This is a parade that actually made New York City the second biggest consumer of helium, because of these balloons. Of course, the crowd here, absolutely thrilled.

How excited are you guys?

What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Elsa (ph).

GANIM: Elsa, how long has -- how far did you travel to be here this morning?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Cleveland.

GANIM: You came from Cleveland?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Yeah.

GANIM: How far was that? Were you in an airplane or a car?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Car.

GANIM: In the car, what's your favorite balloon that you've seen here so far today?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Maybe Charlie Brown.

GANIM: So, Charlie Brown the blockhead himself he kicked off after hiatus. A brown new balloon Charlie Brown debuted at the start of the parade. Of course this route almost two miles long. Starts around here, and goes all the way to Macy's herald square, flagship store. You've got more than million people out her along this route. Here to see this parade. The floats, the balloons, the bands, the marching bands. The dancers, the performers. Exciting day.

And people are able to be out here and also he 50 million people who are able to watch it on TV. How you guys doing? Happy Thanksgiving.

CROWD: Happy Thanksgiving.

GANIM: Where did you guys come from?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: (INAUDIBLE)

GANIM: That's a far away place. How long did it take you to get here?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Huh?

GANIM: You can see the smiling faces not just of the kids but the adults, too, because a parade, a morning where everyone gets to be kid.