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Police: Fake News Brought Armed Man To Pizzeria; Dakota Access Pipeline To Be Rerouted; Trump Announced Ben Carson For HUD Secretary

Aired December 05, 2016 - 12:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:31:40] BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Now we know fake news equals real bullets because a bogus news story prompted a man with an assault rifle to enter a pizza shop in Washington, D.C. yesterday and fire his weapon. Thankfully, no one was hurt. The suspect was arrested outside of the restaurant. We've learned that his name is Edgar Maddison Welch and that he's 28-years-old. He told police he had come to investigate an online conspiracy theory called Pizzagate. Sharif Silmi was at the restaurant with his wife and his three young children and just short time ago, he told us what he saw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHARIF SILMI, WITNESS: I was actually playing ping-pong with my wife at the time. And the suspect walked in. He walked behind me. We -- I assumed he was a security guard, you know, several people seen him with the gun and were obviously, you know, starting to kind of move around and shake things up. And so an employee came and grabbed me and let me know that this was indeed somebody that wasn't supposed to be there and was a gunman and obviously my first reaction was get my family out and, you know, get my kids out and my wife did the same and thankfully we're out of there, the staff there did amazing job getting everyone out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: CNN Senior Washington Correspondent Joe Johns joins me now along with CNN Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter, host of "Reliable Sources". So we have to do some explaining through all of these. But Joe I just want you to start by telling us what we know about the suspect at this point and time?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you mentioned there Brianna, this 28-years-old, his named is Edgar Maddison Welch, he's from Salisbury, North Carolina, walked into the restaurant over the weekend. Had a rifle in this hand. The rifle apparently went off. The police showed up. The people around here scattered and when they took him into custody apparently they found a couple other weapons in his possession.

Took him down to the police station, asking him a few questions and he said he was here essentially to reinvestigate Pizzagate. He's expected to show up sometime this afternoon in D.C. Superior Court for his first court appearance. He was initially charged with armed, dangerous weapon. So we're going see if that charge changes in any way and talk to the lawyers in a little while, Brianna.

KEILAR: OK. So he's investigating Pizzagate. For the uninitiated on this fake news story, what is Pizzagate?

JOHNS: This is something that really started picking up steam around the end of October just before the election. And then into November, it really picked up steam. Apparently started with the Wikileaks release of stolen e-mails from John Podesta, the campaign chairman for Hillary Clinton and apparently they got a hold of the information, massaged it, put a lot of lies in there, and turned it into this amazing story, all untrue about Hillary Clinton, John Podesta somehow being involved in a child sex ring that emanated apparently outside of -- or inside this restaurant.

[12:35:02] So they took pictures. They took other information and created a whole false story around this restaurant, Hillary Clinton and John Podesta.

KEILAR: So, Brian Stelter, how did that proliferate? I mean Joe's describing the lengths at which the perpetrators of this fake story went to. They took -- we've heard from the owner of this place, they took photos from his associates Instagram accounts of children, right? Just innocent photos that you would post of like your kids on Instagram and sort of put it along with this false narrative about a child sex ring operating out of a -- kind of a random pizza parlor.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN HOST, RELIABLE SOURCES: Right. I think it almost like a snowball. This is a snowball effect. They start at the top of the hill with a couple false details. And then as it rolls down the hill, it picks up steam, picks up speed, gets more attention, they add new more false information which keeps people interested in the story. And we say, story because this is a fake news story. It's completely unhinged. It's more than a fake news story, Brianna. It's a full- fledged conspiracy theory. This was one of many anti-Clinton conspiracy theories in the weeks and days leading up to Election Day.

And this one is continued to progress and evolve, things are rolled down that snowball hill even after Election Day which may be why this man decided to drive from North Carolina to Washington in order to investigate it himself. It is a real-life example of the consequences of the internet echo chamber. You know, the same computer, the same laptop, the same to the phone that gives us instant access to the truth also allows us to wall ourselves off and only hear fictions. And that's what seems to happen in cases like this.

KEILAR: Yes. Maybe the computer and some suspension of disbelief is allowing that as well. All right. Brian Stelter.

STELTER: Exactly.

KEILAR: Joe Johns, thank you so much for explaining this, both of you. Moments ago the White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest reacted to what we were just talking about before we were speaking with Joe and Brian. His latest tweets from president-elect Donald Trump on China and also Donald Trump's recent call with Taiwan's president. Let's listen to what Josh Earnest said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I can confirm that U.S. officials including senior officials of the National Security Council have been in touch with their Chinese counterparts to reiterate our country's continued commitment to a one China policy. This is a policy that is based on three joint U.S.-China communiques that were negotiated by different U.S. presidents and different parties and of course by the Taiwan Relations Act. This is a policy that's been in place for yearly 40 years and it has been focused on promoting and preserving peace and stability in the strait.

This has -- the adherence to and commitment to this policy has advanced the ability of the United States to make progress in our relationship with China. And of course, has benefited the people of Taiwan. Taiwan after all is the ninth largest trading partner of the United States and they certainly benefit from peace and stability in the strait and pursuit of and commitment to that peace and stability advances U.S. interests. If the president-elect's team has a different aim, I'll leave it to them to describe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Stability enhances U.S. interests, that is the word from White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest.

And up next, a big win for Native Americans fighting to stop a pipeline project, but what happens once President Obama leaves office here in the coming weeks?

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[12:42:02] KEILAR: For months standing Rock Sioux Tribe members and supporters have fought against the Dakota access pipe line an energy project they say could be hazardous and damage the water supply near the reservation. Now, they're celebrating a victory as the army corp of engineers who's announced they will look for an alternate route for the pipe line to cross under Lake Oahe in North Dakota. But the victory under the Obama administration may not hold come January under President-elect Trump. Sara Sidner, joining me now from near Cannonball North Dakota. So this is a victory, but potentially a short-lived on, Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, best way to put it, but that has not meant anything to the people here. First, they were in absolute celebration mode, now, and they're now ready for a fight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Drum beats, cheers and tears. The sound of victory for the standing Rock Sioux and thousands of others gathered to stop the Dakota access pipeline. This massive humanity living off the grid joined by thousands of military veterans helped exert so much political and legal pressure as effectively force the pipeline to be re-routed.

ARVOL LOOKING HORSE, KEEPER OF WHITE BUFFALO CALF PIPE: The people will have said that. Now, this is a, either we make it or break it. And I guess we made it.

SIDNER: The pipeline was almost to the river when it was halted by the army corps of engineers, so they could take another look at its path. Sunday, they decided it was a no-go. For months the Sioux nation had been demanding the project be scrapped, they were convinced the pipeline carrying crude oil underneath the Missouri river would one day leak, poisoning the drinking water of millions down river.

DALLAS GOLDTOOTH, CAMP TRIBAL HEADSMAN: This is too much of a risk to be drinking water, to the thousands of people at the Standing Rock Sioux Nation. Too much risk for the sacred sites all along that route in this area and too much risk for us as a planet.

SIDNER: The pipeline's planned route did not go through Indian reservation land, but the tribe argued the water is part of treaty land and therefore they too must, agree on its path.

So you were offered $5 million and some land by both the landowners and the Dakota Access Pipeline?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

SIDNER: And your response to that was?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't want the land, we don't want money.

SIDNER: Instead they wanted to protect the water. North Dakota's governor says the pipeline was 95 percent complete. The company was waiting on that final permit. It's not getting it. It seemed to be a blessing to the Standing Rock Sioux.

CHASE IRON EYES, STANDING ROCK SIOUX TRIBESMAN: What we see has never been seen before in the written history of our people. We have never known a time when non-native American allies from around the country, around the world, have come here in the dead of winter to stand with us, to stand together to call for a new day.

[12:44:57] SIDNER: But then, energy partners responded saying, this is simply a political move by the Obama administration that won't stop the pipeline from going under the river. They contend the latest decision changes nothing. They have every legal right to continue. And with that, the celebrations could be short-lived.

EYES: If President-elect Trump could override what just happened today on January 20th and grant that easement, then we're in for a world of hurt. Nothing has changed for us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: And nothing has changed as far as the numbers of people who are here partly because of that. There are now at least 10,000 people who have come into this camp. Thousands of them are U.S. military veterans. Brianna.

KEILAR: And Sara what is the expectation with the outgoing Obama administration? What would happen with President-elect Trump and if he were to reverse this decision?

SIDNER: You know, if, as indicated, he may support this pipeline, he at one point had money invested in this pipeline company, energy transfer partners, if he indeed supports the pipeline, he could ask for another study and ask for it to be reversed, that could happen. That's a very real possibility to the folks that are with the pipeline who want to continue, and the thousands of people here braving these difficult temperatures. Brianna.

KEILAR: All right. Sara Sidner for us in North Dakota, thank you.

And up next, back to politics and the comings and the goings over there at Trump Tower. One transition team meeting to assure to raise some eyebrows.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:50:34] KEILAR: This just in. Weeks after voters went to the polls. North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory has finally conceded his race. McCrory had been battling Democratic State Attorney General Roy Cooper. He refused to concede saying the race was too close to call.

Let's get back down to presidential politics. President-elect Donald Trump has added another nominee to his cabinet. Ben Carson telegraphed that he might have a role in the new administration. Now we know he's being nominated for secretary of Housing and Urban Development. I want to bring in Scott Bolden. He is the former chairman of the Washington, D.C. Democratic Party. We also have Matt Schlapp, the former political director for President George W. Bush.

OK. I want to know what you both think about Ben Carson, because this is -- HUD certainly is part of that social safety net, especially when you're talking about poor Americans, and we've heard rhetoric from Ben Carson where he says that some of these safety net parts of it breed dependency. So with that in mind is there anything that you think is going to really structurally change with him being in charge?

SCOTT BOLDEN, FORMER CHAIRMAN, WASHINGTON D.C. DEMOCRATIC PARTY: Well, I think Donald Trump will want it to and I think he will want it to, also. He's a good diversity pick, but unlike when he was being considered for the Secretary of Health and Human Services has absolutely no experience. And what he doesn't know he doesn't know. Others will be making those decisions. But I do think it's an important pick, because poor people, whether it's rural or urban America are going to need some changes. There'll be conservative changes, jobs, job training, entrepreneurship and self-independence and self-help. We'll see, but that electorate will be important, because that electorate was a big part of getting Donald Trump elected.

KEILAR: Do you think he has no experience, Matt? MATT SCHLAPP, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: I know. Here's what I think. Look, the Republicans, we're the small government party. So, all of our rhetoric is always going to be about shrinking the size of government, shrinking taxes, getting people off these government programs. That's going with all Republicans. For Ben Carson, I think he understands because he grew up in these desperate circumstances that people need to find a way out when trapped in poverty and then what we've seen in the last eight years with president Obama's time, is this poverty statistics have actually gotten worse. I actually think he's the right guy for it. It needs a lot of innovation. It is a very tough job. I've worked with HUD secretaries in the part. This is not an easy job.

KEILAR: Why is that not experience? Having some firsthand knowledge of growing up in the circumstances of people that your department is supposed to be assisting?

BOLDEN: It's far more complicated and then by the way, poverty statistics went down 3 or 4 percentage points under the Obama administration. Those are facts. Those are from the government statistics. But ...

KEILAR: Why do you say that's not true?

SCHLAPP: Because it's not true. Every statistic that you look at on poverty actually got worse over the course of President Obama. It's true at the end of the Bush administration as well.

KEILAR: OK, I'm going to fact check that. I'm going to put it out on Twitter.

BOLDEN: Please do.

KEILAR: OK, if we came for that.

BOLDEN: Please do. But just having knowledge or being in a poor circumstances is simply isn't enough. The problem on HUD housing and urban development is really complex issues. It's tax issues, it's working with developers, it's increasing housing and opportunities, not only in urban America but in the surrounding areas. They also give tax breaks to very wealthy developers to develop affordable income housing and can really be the big stick in enforcing that as opposed to justification which we're seeing in urban America now.

KEILAR: Let's talk about confirmation. We have a couple of minutes left here. I want to see what you guys think about this. The confirmation process now with the nuclear option, that Democrats exercised, Republicans are at liberty to only have a simple majority on a lot of these confirmations. General Mattis for defense secretary needs a waiver. That is a different thing. So what is that going to look like? Are you expecting?

SCHLAPP: Yes, so the last time this waiver was overridden was when George Marshall was brought in to the administration after serving so ably in the military.

BOLDEN: Long time ago.

SCHLAPP: But General Flynn, who's the incoming National Security Adviser, would have also needed a waiver.

KEILAR: Doesn't need to be come from.

SCHLAPP: Doesn't need it not for now, but it's interesting, he was kind of pushed out of the Obama administration. General Mattis was forced to retire early from the Obama administration. He will need the waiver, which he's going to need a super majority in the senate to get and then he will just a simple majority ...

KEILAR: Will he get it?

BOLDEN: I believe so.

KEILAR: Do you think he's going to get it? But Democrats can delay this. What do you think? Do they want him?

BOLDEN: I think they can. I think there's a reason why this rule is in place. They want civilians running the defense department and being over our military. That's an important concept and think you're going to see even some Republicans who are going to have real tough questions for whether they're going to vote for the waiver or not.

[12:55:01] SCHLAPP: But he is a civilian.

KEILAR: But a number of different -- but a number of that were OK, with Mattis, and they are certainly less OK with a number of other Trump nominees. Why not save the fight for those?

BOLDEN: Maybe. Maybe, but his appointments for the military and the defense have been far more qualified than for the other positions so far.

SCHLAPP: Oh, these appointments are great. I'm telling you. I don't see a confirmation problem yet.

KEILAR: All right. We'll see.

BOLDEN: It's easy to say with the Republicans in control.

SCHLAPP: Oh, that's true.

KEILAR: It could be interesting either way. Even if there's no quote/unquote problems. All right, Scott Bolden, Matt Schlapp, thank you both so much.

BOLDEN: Thank you.

SCHLAPP: Thanks Brianna.

KEILAR: We do appreciate it. And thank you for watching "Newsroom." "Wolf" starts after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [13:0:01] WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHR: Hello. I'm Wolf Blitzer. It's 1:00 p.m. here in Washington. 7:00 p.m. in Berlin. 8:00 p.m. in Aleppo Syria wherever you're watching from around the world thanks very much for joining us. We Start from with the new member of the President- elect Donald Trump's proposed cabinet, Dr. Ben Carson, he's been pick ...