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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Establishment Democrats Get A Wake-Up Call In New York; Federal Judge Orders Migrant Families Reunited; Supreme Court Upholds Trump Travel Ban 3.0. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired June 27, 2018 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:05] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D), NEW YORK CONGRESSIONAL NOMINEE: I cannot put this into words.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: An election stunner in New York. A 10-term incumbent sent home by an upstart Democratic socialist. Democratic leadership now scrambling for a way forward.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Hours after the president's travel ban was upheld, a new legal battle brewing on immigration. A federal judge says all families separated at the southern border have to be reunited and fast.
BRIGGS: The FBI agent at the center of the president's conspiracy theory will finally face lawmakers today. Peter Strzok behind closed doors with the House Judiciary Committee.
Welcome back to EARLY START, everybody, on a busy news Wednesday. I'm Dave Briggs.
ROMANS: Good morning, everyone, I'm Christine Romans. Thirty minutes past the hour. Let's get to it.
It is the biggest upset of the political season so far. Ten-term incumbent Democrat Joe Crowley ousted in New York's 14th district primary by Democratic socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The 28- year-old Latino trouncing Crowley in her first political campaign.
Congressman Crowley is the fourth-ranked Democrat in the House leadership. Two Democratic lawmakers said tonight the upset significantly alters the competition for the speaker's gavel if Democrats take the House.
Ocasio-Cortez ran defiantly to Crowley's left with demands for universal health care, a federal jobs guarantee, and abolishing ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement).
Crowley leaned hard on his record as a veteran liberal, but Ocasio- Cortez was not deterred.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) OCASIO-CORTEZ (D), NEW YORK CONGRESSIONAL NOMINEE: It's surreal. I did not see these numbers until I walked in right now. I saw these numbers on television with you, so I'm still processing a lot of this.
Working-class Americans want a clear champion and there is nothing radical about moral clarity in 2018.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Ocasio-Cortez is now likely to be the youngest woman ever elected to the House. Crowley outraised her 10 to one and hadn't faced a primary opponent in 14 years.
Crowley was gracious though in defeat, saying he will keep his word and back Ocasio-Cortez in the general election.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JOE CROWLEY (D), NEW YORK: We have a great opportunity this fall in November to win back the House, and although I maybe -- I maybe sacrificed a little morally in that cause, I'm committed to that end.
(Rep. Crowley playing guitar and singing "Born to Run.")
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: After the loss, Crowley picked up the guitar and played Springsteen's "Born to Run," dedicating it to Alexandria Ocasio- Cortez.
ROMANS: Wow, all right.
President Trump clearly paying attention to the race, tweeting overnight, "Wow! Big Trump hater Congressman Joe Crowley, who many expected was going to take Nancy Pelosi's place, just lost his primary election. That is a big one that nobody saw coming (sic). Perhaps he should have been nicer and more respectful to his president."
Joining us this morning, "CNN POLITICS" senior writer and analyst Harry Enten. And in Washington, "CNN POLITICS" digital director Zach Wolf.
BERMAN: Killing them all.
ROMAN: Yes. You know, Harry has fact-checked that tweet for me. I think the one thing that's true in there is that nobody saw this one coming.
HARRY ENTEN, SENIOR WRITER AND ANALYST, "CNN POLITICS": No one saw it coming but the idea that a Democratic socialist thereby defeating a Democratic incumbent somehow signals that the Democratic incumbent should have been nicer to the President of the United States, I don't quite see it.
BRIGGS: But the point is nobody did see this coming.
ROMANS: Right.
BRIGGS: I'm on the DCCC Website. Democrats did not see this coming.
What does it mean for the national party today?
ENTEN: I think it means that a lot of them are looking around saying hey, wait a minute, let me make sure that my primary challenger doesn't get the room to run to my left.
ROMANS: Yes.
ENTEN: I think that's number one.
I think number two, it's the year of the woman. This is another woman winning a major party nomination.
Number three, young people, very, very big.
And number four, the Democratic Party is becoming more diverse and Joe Crowley represented a district that was majority-minority and he was a white man. And this is another indication that perhaps the Democratic Party, or at least the voters, want a more diverse Congress represented.
ROMANS: Zach, weigh in there for me because is this a bellwether for the rest of the country or is this a candidate -- a 10-term veteran who got lazy? He didn't even come to the --
BRIGGS: He sent a stand-in to a recent debate.
ROMANS: -- to the debate last week.
ZACHARY WOLF, DIGITAL DIRECTOR, "CNN POLITICS": It could be either but I tell you, every single Democrat who still has a primary in this country is going to be taking special note of this election.
And the one person it really could be a bellwether for is Nancy Pelosi, kind of the figurehead of the party but she certainly represents the old guard here. And I think this kind of victory for an upstart candidate is certainly going to just enable Democrats to be even more critical. She's going to be under such scrutiny now without any kind of succession plan in place for Democrats.
[05:35:02] BRIGGS: Yes. Many, Harry, thought Crowley could be the replacement as the speaker, depending on how the midterms went.
Republicans want to make Nancy Pelosi the face of the party, if not Maxine Waters. Is it still the Bernie Sanders party and did we get an indication of that last night in New York and in Maryland?
ENTEN: Well, it's certainly Ben Jealous who won the gubernatorial nomination for the Democrats. Maryland was backed by Bernie Sanders.
But let's take a step back, right? I mean, Hillary Clinton still defeated Bernie Sanders in the 2016 primary.
BRIGGS: Yes.
ENTEN: Most of the people who have won so far this season are not necessarily people on the left. It's been women who've been dominating. And so that's just one thing I want to keep emphasizing. If there's one common thread throughout it's women winning these major Democratic primaries.
And to me, if you can combine being pretty far left with a woman being on -- being a minority, that's a winning combination.
ROMANS: But can they be Trump, Zach, and that's the -- and that's the big issue because the president has done so well with the working- class voters, right, who may be conservative on some -- on some other issues. I mean, if they go too far to the left do they hurt themselves in 2020?
WOLF: Yes. I think probably they need to focus on 2018 first. We're going to be having the 2020 conversation for a couple of years but as we sort of tee that up with 2018, it will be interesting to see how many end roads we can make. How many more times are you going to hear Democratic socialists uttered as defeating Democrats and are people going to start to look to that sort of that other party for leadership?
BRIGGS: Let's also talk about President Trump's good night. McMaster down --
ROMANS: Yes.
BRIGGS: -- in South Carolina in the primary for governor. A Mitt Romney win, depending on what you made of that. Michael Grimm, the ex-con, he loses.
Overall, a pretty good read for the president? A pretty good night?
ENTEN: I would say so. It's probably one of the better primary nights he's had so far this season, especially in Staten Island in New York's 11th district. Michael Grimm led in the one public poll there.
Donald Trump went in and endorsed the incumbent, Dan Donovan. And a lot of people if you spoke with actually thought Michael Grimm had a real shot and he ends up losing by about 30 points. So to me, it's a clear indication that the president's endorsement made a difference there.
BRIGGS: Yes.
ROMANS: Romney, last night -- Zach, weigh in on that for us. We talked to -- let's listen to what Dana Bash -- Dana Bash talked to Mitt Romney earlier this week and asked him what kind of -- what kind of politician is he going to be in the party of Trump. This is what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: When you go to the Senate, which Mitt Romney is going to go? The one that called Donald Trump a fake and a phony or the one who talked to him about being secretary of state?
MITT ROMNEY (R), UTAH SENATE NOMINEE: I believe I've made it pretty clear that I'll stand with President Trump if the policies he's proposing are good for the state of Utah, for other states, for the nation.
On the other hand, if he were to say something that is divisive, insignificant -- something which were racist or anti-woman or anti- immigrant, then I feel a moral responsibility to speak out. So I'll speak my mind.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Zach, it's going to be fascinating to see what -- how that's going to play out for him in Washington.
WOLF: I mean, the other way to look at what he just said there is that he's not really going to stand with President Trump. He's going to stand with him if he agrees with the policy.
And remember, they haven't agreed on a lot of stuff so you can imagine Mitt Romney will arrive in Washington and have this sort of strange elder statesman status without having been in Washington or being really a part of the establishment here.
He represented Massachusetts, he's lived in California, and now he's going to come in from Utah. He's just got a different kind of history behind him and he's never really been of the part of the country that Trump really speaks to.
ROMANS: Hey, Zach, real quickly, how do you think this president's attacks on Harley Davidson is going to play to his base? I mean, he is going after an American company that is trying to make some really tough business decisions, essentially to save itself from what they call bad Trump trade policies.
WOLF: Yes, and closing a -- closing a plant in Nebraska, I believe. They are having to consolidate and to deal with sort of the realities of Trump's policies now which is leading them to outsource to go to foreign markets which is the one thing he said wasn't going to happen under his watch.
Are his followers going to -- going to see that and process it? I'm not sure there's evidence that they will. It seems more likely that they will find excuses for him, I think, is what we find.
ROMANS: That plant you're talking about is Kansas City, actually, and they're consolidating their production out of there and moving it to Thailand because the president pulled out of TPP, which is a whole -- I mean, the president pulling out of TPP --
WOLF: Right.
ROMANS: -- meant that they have to go make their bikes -- BRIGGS: Yes.
ROMANS: -- there.
BRIGGS: Well, this is one of those moments that's totally counter to conservative principles and Mitt Romney, theoretically, would speak out against --
[05:40:00] ROMANS: Yes.
BRIGGS: -- so we shall see.
Harry Enten and Zach Wolf, thank you both.
ROMANS: Nice to see you guys.
BRIGGS: Appreciate it.
WOLF: Thanks.
BRIGGS: All right.
Breaking overnight, a federal judge orders the reunification of families separated at the U.S.-Mexico border. San Diego federal judge Dana Sabraw ordered federal officials to stop detaining parents apart from their children unless the parent is unfit.
The judge required the government to reunify parents with children under five within two weeks and ordered parents reunify with children five and older within 30 days.
ROMANS: The judge's order says, in part, "The unfortunate reality is that under the present system, migrant children are not accounted for with the same efficiency and accuracy as property. Certainly, that cannot satisfy the requirements of due process."
Health Sec. Alex Azar says only six kids -- six children have been reunited with parents since the president's executive order last week to stop separations.
BRIGGS: At the moment, confusion still reigns as authorities try to reunite more than 2,000 families. Multiple agencies including the Departments of Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, and Justice share responsibility. But so far, no single agency has stepped up to say it is leading the way.
ROMANS: The first lady Melania Trump has announced she will pay a second visit to immigration facilities sometime this week. A spokeswoman says Mrs. Trump is moved by what she is hearing and quote "wants to continue to check in on the children."
BRIGGS: All right.
Coming up, a ruling that could embolden the president's hardline stance on immigration. His travel ban upheld by the Supreme Court. But the justice who provided the swing vote with some words of caution for the president.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:46:15] BRIGGS: All eyes on Capitol Hill today. Senior FBI agent Peter Strzok set to speak with lawmakers behind closed doors this morning. Sources tell CNN he will appear voluntarily before the House Judiciary Committee.
Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte lifted a subpoena, one he opposed even though Strzok had already said he was willing to testify.
President Trump and conservative backers have made Strzok and former FBI lawyer Lisa Page the heart of their claim the Bureau and the Justice Department are biased against the president.
ROMANS: Strzok was removed from the Mueller investigation after it was found he and Page exchanged private texts disparaging candidate Trump. In one of those texts, Strzok said, "We'll stop Trump from becoming president."
Tomorrow, the committee hears from FBI Director Chris Wray and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. They'll be questioned about the watchdog report on the probe of Hillary Clinton's e-mails.
BRIGGS: Vindication for President Trump. The third version of his travel ban, a version he once called watered down, now upheld by the Supreme Court.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a great victory for our constitution. We have to be tough, and we have to be safe, and we have to be secure.
At a minimum, we have to make sure that we vet people coming into the country. We know who's coming in and we know where they're coming from. We just have to know who's coming here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: The 5-4 ruling gives the president broad powers to restrict travel in the name of national security. And the majority essentially disregarded his campaign statements calling for a Muslim ban.
ROMANS: The high court's swing vote, Justice Anthony Kennedy, sided with the majority but sent a message to the president in a concurring opinion, saying this.
"The very fact that an official may have broad discretion -- discretion free from judicial scrutiny -- makes it all the more imperative for him or her to adhere to the Constitution and to its meaning and its promise."
Many waiting to see if Justice Kennedy will retire, giving President Trump a chance to replace him with an ideological conservative. BRIGGS: The high court ruling also a big win for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. In 2016, he blocked the nomination of President Obama's Supreme Court pick Merrick Garland. That paved the way for President Trump to nominate Justice Neil Gorsuch, who voted to uphold the travel ban.
Steve Bannon, a strong advocate for the travel ban when he was White House chief strategist, tells Axios the decision is "a big deal for the president's psyche, bolstering his certainty that his instincts are right and the haters are wrong."
The travel ban restricts entry from seven countries, including North Korea.
BRIGGS: And no communications director, no political strategist. He is feeling it right now as the president.
Iowa Republican Congressman Steve King, a hardliner on immigration, tells CNN he didn't realize he retweeted a message from a self- described Nazi sympathizer. But he is refusing to delete the tweet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. STEVE KING (R), IOWA: I have no idea who he is. I don't know why we're giving him a world-famous name now into the news. I'm not obligated to do a full background check on anybody.
I'm not deleting that because then you all pile on me and say King had to apologize, he was wrong. He knows he's guilty.
I'm not. I don't feel guilty one bit. I'm human.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: King, on "CUOMO PRIME TIME," says he shared the message because it had a screenshot of a "Brietbart" article.
He espouses some of the most extreme views on immigration of any House Republican. He has a history of inflammatory comments comparing transgender troops to castrated slaves and calling immigration a slow- motion holocaust.
ROMANS: Let's get a check on "CNN Money" this morning.
Trade fears once again hitting markets right now. Global stocks and U.S. futures lower at this moment.
But, Wall Street got a little bit of a break yesterday. U.S. stocks rebounded with energy stocks.
They rose, along with oil prices. U.S. crude jumped above $70 a barrel for the first time since May. The U.S. is demanding countries cut Iran oil imports by November.
[05:50:01] Global supply is tight. Even with major oil-producing companies boosting production it may not be enough to make up the shortfall.
President Trump threatening Harley Davidson with higher taxes as the company plans to ship some production overseas. Harley wants to avoid steep new tariffs from the E.U. That's its second-largest market. Tariffs there will make its bikes more expensive.
Remember, those tariffs are in response to the president's steel and aluminum tariffs.
The president tweeted that Harleys "should never be built in another country," claiming "they will be taxed like never before."
No one really knows what these taxes Trump is talking about -- these special new taxes on an American company or why it would have to pay.
Harley will continue to make bikes for American customers in the U.S.
Trump has long-championed Harley Davidson as a model of American manufacturing. Here's what he said about tariffs -- his tariffs causing them to move.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Harley Davidson is using that as an excuse and I don't like that because I've been very good to Harley Davidson.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: It prompted another scathing editorial from the paper of record for business. "The Wall Street Journal" editorial board calling Trump's actions misguided revenge.
Quote, "One might expect that Mr. Trump's supposedly savvier about business realities would understand how corporations have to make tough choices to survive bad policies. Mr. Trump should rage against the man in the mirror who is the reason for Harley's choices."
ROMANS: All right. How much money can a free game make? For the popular game Fortnite, $318 million a month.
BRIGGS: A month.
ROMANS: That's how revenue it made in May.
Unlike other hit games, Fortnite doesn't cost $60. Instead, the free game relies on in-game purchases to make money and players are buying. A study found 69 percent of players spent money on things like customizing their Avatar, spending an average $85 each.
BRIGGS: The same survey said players are spending an average of 10 hours a week on Fortnite. My son well north of that.
What about you folks? Let us know on Twitter @davebriggstv.
Are your kids --
ROMANS: Yes.
BRIGGS: -- swept up in this?
ROMANS: Yes, they really are.
BRIGGS: It was supposed to be slowing down.
ROMANS: No, it's not.
BRIGGS: Those numbers indicate otherwise.
ROMANS: I can attest it's not.
All right. The president took his shots. Now, late-night hosts take theirs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIMMY FALLON, HOST, NBC "THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JIMMY FALLON": We still on for lunch?
STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, CBS "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": Yes, where do you want to eat?
FALLON: Red Hen?
COLBERT: Red Hen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: More on the late-night team effort, right?
BRIGGS: Too bad it's closed.
ROMANS: Right, right. They're not actually going to eat there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:56:49] ROMANS: White House press secretary Sarah Sanders will receive temporary secret service protection. The news just days after Sanders was asked to leave a Virginia restaurant because she worked for President Trump, a move that amplified a national conversation on civility.
Sources say it is not known how long she will have the protective detail.
BRIGGS: In Kansas, search and rescue efforts underway after a tornado hit the city of Eureka last night. At least five people were injured, one in critical condition.
Trees uprooted, buildings destroyed, power lines toppled. Thousands of customers are without electricity. The governor has declared a state of emergency.
ROMANS: Remember this from the president Monday in South Carolina? (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Jimmy Fallon calls me up. He looks like a lost soul. Jimmy, be a man.
The guy on CBS is -- what a low-life. But there's no talent. He's not -- they're not like talented people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: That was the president bashing America's late-night hosts. Last night they teamed up and responded.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FALLON: Hey, low-life.
COLBERT: Hey, lost soul. What are you up to?
FALLON: Nothing.
COLBERT: Be a man.
FALLON: I'll try. What are you up to?
COLBERT: Oh, I'm busy having no talent.
FALLON: Did you see Trump's rally last night?
COLBERT: Nope.
FALLON: Me either. I heard he said some pretty bad stuff about us.
COLBERT: Really? That doesn't sound like him.
FALLON: I heard he said we're all no-talent, low-life, lost souls.
COLBERT: Well, that's not right. That's Conan. Hold on, I'll get him.
CONAN O'BRIEN, HOST, TBS "CONAN": Oh, hey guys, what's up?
FALLON: We were just talking about what President Trump said last night.
O'BRIEN: President who?
COLBERT: Trump.
FALLON: Donald Trump.
O'BRIEN: The real estate guy who sells steaks? He's president?
FALLON: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Wow. How's he doing? COLBERT: Not so good.
O'BRIEN: Oh. Well, guys, give him time, OK? And remember, please be civil. If we're not careful this thing could start to get ugly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: And it has. Low-life Colbert and lost soul Fallon said they're going to meet up for dinner at the Red Hen which, by the way, remains closed after asking Sarah Sanders to leave and may remain closed --
ROMANS: That's right.
BRIGGS: -- until July 5th --
ROMANS: That's right.
BRIGGS: -- according to reports.
ROMANS: Watch this space. All right.
BRIGGS: Yes.
ROMANS: Thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans.
BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs. "NEW DAY" starts right now. We'll see you tomorrow.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. It's Wednesday, June 27th, 6:00 here in New York.
Alisyn is off. Erica Hill joins me. John Avlon here, as well.
And we do have breaking news this morning. Overnight, oh my, a genuine political shocker. Democrats, call your office.
A stunning primary upset of one of the most powerful Democrats in Washington, Congressman Joe Crowley, the fourth-ranking House Democratic and most importantly, once seen as a possible House speaker should the Democrats take over -- he was beaten and beaten badly in his New York City district.
The upset winner, first-time candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, just 28 years old and supported by the Democratic Socialists of America. She ran far to the left in this race.
So what does that tell us about where the energy is in the Democratic Party? What does it mean about the party's chances in November?
This is one of those rare moments that causes a party to pause, look inward, and figure out what it is and where it's going.
There were other big results overnight.
