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Trump Admin Issues New Iran Sanctions; Trump Meets with Economic Advisory Council; All Eyes on Lady Gaga's Halftime Show; Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired February 03, 2017 - 10:30   ET

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


[10:30:01] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I guess all morning long. Earlier this morning. What d you think the reaction will be to these imposed sanctions?

CLARISSA WARD, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they have been trading tweets. This seems to be the new means of doing diplomacy in the digital age. We had heard something of a more conciliatory tone from Iran's Foreign minister. He was essentially stressing repeatedly that the missiles that were tested were only being used for defensive purposes.

Yesterday we had heard some stronger, more sort of bombastic rhetoric coming from an adviser to the supreme leader who has said that President Trump shouldn't, quote, "make a toy of himself," with his, quote, "breathless ranting." He had also said that General Flynn was an inexperienced individual. So clearly the Iranians are taking a tough tone. They have also said repeatedly that they will continue to test these missiles.

And while we are now learning some more details about the sanctions that are being enforced, we have known pretty much all day, and speculation really began last night, that these sanctions were being implemented. So it's fair to say that the Iranians saw this coming, and certainly it doesn't appear to have changed any of the rhetoric that we have heard from them.

Again, important to emphasize, as you just heard from Jeff Zeleny, Carol, that this testing of this missile was not in contravention of the agreement of the Iran nuclear deal. And so far, even though we're seeing a ratcheting up of the rhetoric, even though we're seeing these sanctions being announced, we are not seeing anyone yet coming forward and saying, you know what, we're actually going to scrap the Iran deal, we're going to take a hatchet to it, even though President Donald Trump was repeatedly forcefully critical of the deal on the campaign trail, so far it appears the administration is stopping short of really saying that the future of that deal could be in jeopardy, Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Clarissa, you stay right there. I want to bring in Aaron David Miller, CNN global affairs analyst, and Colonel Cedric Leighton, he's a CNN military analyst.

So, Aaron, these sanctions, these newly imposed sanctions on Iran, is Iran quaking in its boots? AARON DAVID MILLER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I doubt it. I mean,

the sanctions are wise and warranted and they're also, frankly, the safest and most judicious course of action at this stage. If the administration wants to -- and paradoxically, of course, they represent tremendous continuity with the previous administration. But I think they're the wisest course of action. I don't think -- they can't possibly be effective. I mean, sanctioning 25 entities related to ballistic missile technologies and individuals is not going to put a major dent in Iran's determined effort to continue its development of ballistic missile technologies.

The question really becomes, what's the next Iranian move? I mean, I think the last time they tested, and I'm not sure about this, Cedric may know, was I think in March. So the question is, they don't have to test tomorrow or next week. But I suspect for internal Iranian politics, to send a profound signal to this administration, that they're not going to be bluffed or backed down. They will test again. Then the question becomes what's the next step on the part of the Trump administration.

COSTELLO: OK. So, Colonel, you've heard what Michael Flynn said, Trump's national security adviser. He says the administration is putting Iran on notice. So what might be the next step if Iran goes ahead and test fires another missile?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, then I think, Carol, they're going to have to ratchet up sanctions. I agree with Aaron that there are no other ways, you know, to really get Iran's attention short of military force. And I don't think even with the pronouncements that you saw from General Flynn and from President Trump, I don't think they are really willing to put our forces into a situation where they would be directly confronting the Iranians. Sometimes these things would be unavoidable such as in the Persian Gulf. But I think what they're really looking at is trying to do something in an non-military way, at least at first. And I think that you would see if further ratcheting up of sanctions, if we did go that way.

COSTELLO: Is Clarissa Ward still with us?

WARD: I am, Carol.

COSTELLO: Good, Clarissa. I just am curious because you've been covering the Iranian side of these things. So is it likely in your mind that Iran will go ahead and test fire another missile just to show the United States that it isn't afraid?

WARD: Well, I think you have to understand that we all have to appreciate that Iran is not just acting for its sort of global audience. It has to take into account its domestic audience. You know, we have seen some pretty strident moves from President Donald Trump as he's taken office, putting Iran on that kind of travel ban list. And so I do think that Iranian leaders are probably concerned that they do need to show their own people that they're not going to be pushed around by the U.S., that they are going to stand strong. [10:35:05] They will make the argument again and again, Carol, that

this missile is for defensive purposes, that it is not in contravention of the agreement of the Iran nuclear --

COSTELLO: Clarissa, I'll have to interrupt you. We've just got this tape turned around of Donald Trump. He's meeting with his economic advisory council. One CEO who was a member of that council is missing. The CEO of Uber, who backed out of this meeting because of Mr. Trump's immigration ban. Let's listen.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now that I think, maybe one minute. And he said I would like to put together a group of world class leaders and that's what he's done. So good job, Steve. A couple of things happened this morning. 227,000 jobs, great spirit in the country right now. So we're very happy about that. I think that it's going to continue big league. We're bringing back jobs. We're bringing down your taxes. We're getting rid of regulations. I think it's going to be some really very exciting times ahead. We're doing and we're going to be coming up with a tax bill very soon, a health care bill even sooner. And it's really working.

Toby from the Cleveland Clinic has been helping us with a lot with the veterans. I appreciate that, Toby. You've been amazing tonight, and all of our friends, we really appreciate it.

One of the things that I heard this morning in watching the news was that amazingly, it's never happened before that politics has become a much bigger subject than the Super Bowl. This is usually Super Bowl territory. Now they're saying that the politics is more interesting to people. So that's good.

I see we have Larry here. Where is Larry? Larry did a great job for me, managed a lot of my money, and I have to tell you, you got me great returns, Larry.

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: And then they go crazy when we use very smart people that make money. Why don't you get other people to run the economy? I said, no, we have to get the right people. And the people that voted for me understand that. And that's what they want. So when I campaigned for office, I promised the American people that I'd ask for our country's best and brightest. And we have that. Wilbur is representing us as secretary. I tell you, you're going to be so great secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross. And -- in fact Carl Icahn called up, he goes, I hear you got Wilbur. Everybody calls him Wilbur. I've never heard him called -- look, we just know him as Wilbur, right?

We have the great Jack Welch. The legendary Jack Welch. We appreciate it. We're looking forward in a little while, in the upcoming few moments, to discuss all of the things that you think we can do to bring back our jobs, to get taxes even lower than we're going to be cutting them. We have a great plan but I want to have your input on the plan in particular. And to do what we have to do in terms of regulation. We have some of the bankers here. There's nobody better to tell me about Dodd-Frank than Jamie. So you're going to tell me about it. But we expect to be cutting a lot out of Dodd- Frank because frankly I have so many people, friends of mine, that had nice businesses, they can't borrow, they just can't any money because the banks just won't let them borrow because of the rules and regulations in Dodd-Frank. So we'll be talking about that in terms of the banking industry.

And with that, I just want to introduce somebody I've known for a long time. He's done a fantastic job. And we're thinking of having these meetings. I think we'll start making it monthly basis, and go to a quarterly basis, because monthly basis does sound like a lot. But we really want your input. We have the biggest, the brightest in the world, in this country, in this case. We also have a manufacturing group which is worldwide, where we have, as you know, great companies represented. But these are the biggest and the best minds in this country. And I really appreciate you being here and I want to thank Steve.

And Steve, maybe you'll say a few words.

STEPHEN SCHWARZMAN, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, BLACKSTONE GROUP: Sure. Well, I'd like to just start out and thank everybody for being here. The purpose of this group isn't for general discussion, which is OK, but the real purpose is to get things done, to advise the government as to areas where we can do things a lot better, for the country, for all Americans, and de-bottleneck some things.

We have a full agenda, unlike a lot of other meetings that happen of this general type. We're going to cover some of the immigration things. We're going to cover regulatory relief. We're going to cover tax and trade, women in the workplace, infrastructure, and education. And each of those areas, we'll get suggestions, ways to make things happen, happen faster to improve the country.

[10:40:12] And anybody can say anything else they want. But it's really important that we mobilize the nongovernmental sector and also important that we do it on a bipartisan basis. Apparently a first in Washington or a modern Washington. And everybody on the group was selected because they're terrific, because they have the main expertise, because they want the country to do better. And we had no criteria.

And as it works out, we have all kinds of -- people from different backgrounds and different political persuasions. And if we can make things work right, that's the way the country is supposed to work. And so it's a big sacrifice for the people who are here to spend the time. Everybody is busy. That's America. So to put those things aside, to focus on this, not just for meetings, but there's prep work that goes into any successful meeting, means these people who have attended and taken their time, care about the country. And so that's the spirit in which we are approaching things. I want to thank everybody on the committee. You're terrific.

TRUMP: Thank you. We're going to go around the room. But before we do that, I just want to say that so many people called, friends of mine in big business. And they wanted to be on the committee. And I called Steve, I say, Steve, can we get so and so? No. We got enough. I said, what do you mean no? This is big business, massive business. You know, public -- and every once in a while I call Steve, how about this one? No, he's a corporate raider, these people don't want to be sitting with corporate raiders.

We have five raiders who wanted to come on. But he's been very, very selective. And we'll be putting a couple more on this. He's been very, very selective. I thought we might go around the room. Larry and I met last week, we had a fantastic meeting on the auto industry. We had Ford there, we had a lot of companies, we had some great companies. Fiat Chrysler, Sergio. And I will tell you, I learned a lot about the automobile business. I thought I knew a lot. But they are being so stymied, so restricted with regulation, and so many other reasons. And they're pouring back into the country already. And if you look at Mark, who was telling us what they're doing with Ford, and Bill Ford, too.

A lot of jobs are going to be coming back into Ohio and Michigan and Pennsylvania and all of the places that really have been hurt so badly. So maybe we could start with Mary, we'll just go around the room real fast so that everybody -- pretty much everybody knows each other. But it's be nice to see. Mary?

MARY BARRA, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, GENERAL MOTORS: Mary Barra, Chairman and CEO of General Motors.

DOUG MCMILLON, PRESIDENT AND CEO, WAL-MART STORES: Doug McMillon with Wal-Mart.

LARRY FINK, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, BLACKROCK: Larry Fink, BlackRock.

RICH LESSER, PRESIDENT AND CEO, BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP: Rich Lesser, Boston Consulting Group.

JIM MCNERNEY, FORMER PRESIDENT AND CEO, BOEING: Jim McNerney, the old Boeing guy.

(LAUGHTER)

KEVIN WARSH, STANFORD UNIVERSITY: Kevin Warsh, Stanford University.

ELON MUSK, CEO, TESLA AND SPACEX: Elon Musk, Tesla and SpaceX.

TOBY COSGROVE, PRESIDENT AND CEO, CLEVELAND CLINIC: Toby Cosgrove, Cleveland.

JAMIE DIMON, CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT, CEO, JPMORGAN CHASE: Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase.

DANIEL YERGIN, VICE CHAIRMAN, IHS MARKET: Dan Yergin, IHS Market.

JACK WELCH, FORMER CHAIRMAN AND CEO, GENERAL ELECTRIC: Jack Welch, (INAUDIBLE).

(LAUGHTER)

MARK WEINBERGER, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, EY: Mark Weinberger -- someday, maybe I hope. But, EY.

ADEBAYO OGUNLESI, CHAIRMAN AND MANAGING PARTNER, GLOBAL INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERS: Adebayo Ogunlesi, Global Infrastructure Partners.

GINNI ROMETTY, CHAIRWOMAN, PRESIDENT, AND CEO, IBM: Ginni Rometty, IBM.

INDRA NOOYI, CHAIRWOMAN AND CEO, PEPSICO: Indra Nooyi, PepsiCo.

SCHWARZMAN: Steve Schwarzman from Blackstone.

TRUMP: OK. Thank you very much. Thank you, folks. Thank you, press.

COSTELLO: All right. We're going to jump away. This was President Trump meeting with his Economic Advisory Council.

I want to bring in Christine Romans who knows everything about the business world. So -- Jeff Zeleny is also here and he's going to give us the White House perspective. So, Mr. Trump sitting around this table, I did notice he didn't mention the Uber CEO which did not attend the meeting. But the meeting did seem very cordial. And people are very excited to create more jobs, Jeff.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Sure of course. And now this meeting is happening in the state ding room. It's actually under way right now. That was just the very beginning of the meeting, the introductions and things. But I think interestingly the president talking about the job number, first and foremost. This unemployment rate he is inheriting. This will be the bench line, the beginning marker for his administration.

And he's often talked about how he does not believe this number. When he was campaigning, he said that, you know, there are many, many more unemployed Americans, but now this is a number that he will accept. And you of course saw him accepting that and being happy with that.

But also, Stephen Schwarzman there, the CEO of Blackstone, he was talking about what, you know, the topics that will come in this. And interesting, he said immigration.

And Carol, that is something that these CEOs want to talk to the president about.

[10:45:04] That's one of the reasons that this meeting is closed to the press now, it's off-camera. I'm told they want to have a frank discussion. The Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly is in that meeting, he was there to -- I'm told to reassure some of these business leaders that, you know, this order he signed last week is not onerous and they are open to changing some parts of the visa program. So certainly that was a very positive opening. But I do think the president will get some straight talk from these CEOs about the immigration order, Carol.

COSTELLO: That's why the Uber CEO pulled out, right, Christine?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

COSTELLO: Because, you know, his customer -- there was a big backlash, right? His customers --

ROMANS: Hashtag DeleteUber.

COSTELLO: That's right.

ROMANS: There were people, right, who were saying look, they didn't like how close it appeared he was and his company was for a couple of different reasons to this travel ban. You know, there are CEOs, though, who say that they are going to tell the president that they don't like the travel ban, they don't like his immigration policies, and they'd like to show him why. There's a tightrope that they're walking, quite frankly, because they also want to be -- a seat at the table on tax reform and the likes and they don't want to be on the wrong end of a tweet from this president.

I'd like to go back to the jobs number because I think this is very important. He called the Labor Department statistics on jobs a hoax, he's called them a phony, he's called them a fake, a fraud. Now he seems to be accepting them. They were good. He seems to be accepting them.

COSTELLO: We should read the quote for people in case they missed that. So you go ahead and do that.

ROMANS: This is what he said. He said a couple of things happened this morning. 227,000 jobs, great spirit in the country right now. So we're very happy about that. In the past he has seen numbers like that and said, oh, that's fake, that's fake, meant to make Barack Obama look good. Now he seems to be accepting it. I think that it's going to continue big league. We're bringing back jobs, we're bringing down your taxes, we're getting rid of regulations, et cetera, et cetera. He has promised 25 million new jobs, that would make him the biggest job creator president in history. So he needs this chance to be good.

COSTELLO: Can we put this in historical perspective? So we have what, a 4.8 percent unemployment, right?

ROMANS: Yes. Nearing full employment.

COSTELLO: OK. So when exactly was it lower than that?

ROMANS: We've had a little bit lower than that before in --

COSTELLO: Has it ever been 3 percent or 2 percent?

ROMANS: The unemployment rate? No. No. But he's talking about job creation. 25 million jobs. If you look at job creation, so Barack Obama, net new jobs, President Obama, about 11 million. You look at the biggest job creator ever was Bill Clinton, more than 20 million there, and there were a lot of jobs also under Ronald Reagan. So those were sort of the big post-war job creators. But he says he's going to have 25 million jobs. So it seems as though

he's accepting these numbers at least as a baseline for now. There's no conspiracy in the numbers when they belong to him.

COSTELLO: Jeff, just on the final thought on the Homeland Security secretary meeting with these business leaders and Mister or the Trump administration -- you know, is willing to kind of like tweak this executive order on this refugee travel ban. How far are they willing to go, you think?

ZELENY: Well, they're not willing to change the -- you know, the intent necessarily but on like for green card holders, for one specific examples, there was so much confusion last week and because of the rollout of this, initially green card holders were going to be admitted on a case-by-case basis, that is not happening now. The secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly made that adjustment. So he was brought in, I'm told, to reassure these corporate leaders.

But one other note about the jobs reports that you guys have been saying. The Democratic National Committee just put out a statement, I think it's the shortest statement I've ever seen here in Washington. It says two words. It says, "Thanks, Obama," on the jobs report number -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. And on that note, we'll head to a break. I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:52:58] COSTELLO: All eyes will be on Lady Gaga during the Super Bowl halftime show. But will her political views take center stage?

Coy Wire has more in this morning's "Bleacher Report." Hi, Coy.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. 115 million people watched the Super Bowl last year. And Lady Gaga is known for taking stands against bullying. She's for equality. And she asked if she'll use that big stage to make a political statement. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LADY GAGA, SUPER BOWL HALFTIME PERFORMER: The only statements that I'll be making during the halftime show are the ones that I have been consistently making throughout my career. I believe in a passion for inclusion. When you're watching football, you're watching guys crash into each other, you're watching some real strategizing happening. It's a pretty intense situation. And I didn't want the halftime show to take a dip. So it's going to be a good time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Now Gaga did not give any clues when asked about rumors that she'll perform from the rooftop of NRG Stadium. But she did say she will not wear a suit made of meat as she once did at an awards show. And she will have tight clothing on. So there will be no wardrobe malfunctions like Janet Jackson had at the Super Bowl here in 2004. It's going to be a show.

Speaking of show, "KICKOFF IN HOUSTON." A CNN "Bleacher Report" special air Saturday 2:30 p.m. Eastern on both CNN and CNN International. Super Bowl MVP Hines Ward and I will join John Berman to get you ready for Sunday's big game.

Carol, as the nation celebrates the Super Bowl, everyone at CNN is celebrating you. It's your last day and you're team wants you their MVP, to know just how much you are loved, Carol. Take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand by. Five, four, three.

COSTELLO: I'm Carol Costello. Wow, we have a great audience. Ohio still undecided because of the question over provisional ballots.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Remember your roots, Carol, if you're watching right now. Your roots right here in "THE SITUATION ROOM," where you always are welcome back.

[10:55:04] COSTELLO: How will history remember Pope John Paul II? Making its way across the Gulf of Mexico, Katrina is expected to be a category 3 or 4 storm when it makes landfall again on Monday.

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: We're all going to miss you at CNN, and how lucky HLN is, and particularly your husband to have you back home in L.A.

COSTELLO: We'll remembering the life and legacy of Michael Jackson, the king of pop, dead at the age of 50. What brought Lehman Brothers down?

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Your voice will be missed. And I'm very glad you're going to be on HLN. And I look forward to seeing you when I go to L.A. This is another great reason to go to L.A. And in fact, why are we all living here? Why don't we all move to L.A.? You're very smart.

COSTELLO: The Louisiana National Guard has been out in force trying to put up barriers to stop an oily flow of water if it happens from washing the shore.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to miss you here on the CNN side. So don't be a stranger.

COSTELLO: In the wake of Japan's earthquake and devastating tsunami thousands are missing.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: I will miss seeing your face every morning on CNN. But I understand. Your husband is kind of hot. And is kind of smart, and you should go be with him.

COSTELLO: And breaking news, al Qaeda has released a statement confirming the death of its founder, Osama bin Laden.

WIRE: You're off to new horizons, HLN, where we also do sports and we have puppies.

COSTELLO: Everybody? Boston strong.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you for being so wonderful to me from day one, for welcoming me, for being gracious and kind, and just all around incredible.

COSTELLO: Now to the investigation into what happened aboard Flight 370.

ROMANS: Carol Costello. Great reporter. Great interviewer. Great person. Carol, bon voyage.

COSTELLO: Just want to get another big cheer from the crowd. Hey, excited for Pope Francis? Yehey.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, HLN HOST: I cannot wait to have you here in the Golden State. And look, I'm not the only one who is excited about it. Apparently these Yahoos are, too.

COSTELLO: Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are neck and neck.

TIMOTHY LAW SNYDER, CAROL COSTELLO'S HUSBAND: Hi, Carol. Hi, members of Carol's team. I just want you to know how much I love you and how eager I am for you to actually live here in the house. I hope we can get along. We might need a dog. But thanks to everybody who is with you now for, as you know, and as you often tell me, for making your show such a success.

COSTELLO: Thank you for joining me live. I'm Carol Costello, "BERMAN AND BOLDUAN" are next. And thanks to all of you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: I don't know. They just want me to talk and I can't. Oh, my gosh. I mean, what can I say? Again, I just want to thank all of you for watching me on so many mornings, through so many things. And I don't think I can go on. But thank you so much. And I will miss you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone, I'm Kate Bolduan. We are following breaking news right now. The Trump administration slapping new sanctions on Iran, punishment for its missile test over the weekend, despite being put on notice, those are the words coming from President Trump. Iran has said it will not be deterred and will continue with its ballistic missile testing.

This is the latest in what really seems to be an avalanche of sorts on the foreign policy coming from the Trump administration, some noting these moves surprisingly similar to those made by the Obama administration before them. More on all that in a moment. But here, also happening here at home,

the White House is pressing ahead with its promises to unravel Obama era policy. Next hour President Trump is set to sign new -- another executive order rolling back certain financial --

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