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Mueller Focus on Roger Stone Growing with New Moves; Police Chief Apologizes After Son Arrested in Sikh Attack; Spike Lee Film Opens a Year After Deadly Charlottesville Unrest. Aired 3:30-4p ET
Aired August 10, 2018 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: The investigative walls are appearing to be closing in on longtime Trump friend and adviser Roger Stone. Special counsel Robert Mueller has his sights set on Stone's inner circle and now one of the witnesses is actually defying Mueller and refusing to appear, refusing to show up for his grand jury testimony that was set for set for today. He is Andrew Miller. He's a Stone associate who tried to fight Mueller's subpoena by arguing that Mueller's appointment was unconstitutional. But that judge handed down a 93- page opinion indicating that Mueller's appointment is valid. Miller and his lawyer are now gearing up for another round of the legal battles hoping to appeal the grand jury order once again.
All of this happening as Robert Mueller just subpoenaed the man who Stone said was the WikiLeaks back channel. And as another close Stone friend, the woman known as the Manhattan madam is taking the stand before the grand jury in the investigation. So, they're back, Asha Rangappa, CNN's Legal and National Security Analyst and Former FBI Special Agent. And Paul Callan, our CNN legal analyst. And so, I should also point out that Roger Stone is saying he has nothing to worry about, these people tell the truth to the grand jury. But beginning with you, Asha, the walls are closing in on him.
ASHA RANGAPPA, CNN LEGAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: The walls are closing in and the stakes are higher. If we look at this recent indictment that Mueller filed against those 12 GRU officers, there's a part of that indictment which identifies an individual with whom Guccifer 2.0 -- this is the Russian intelligence hacker -- was in touch with an individual who had regular contact with senior members of the campaign. And we also know that Stone himself has boasted or posted in 2016 that he had communications with WikiLeaks which is also implicated in that indictment.
So, when Mueller talks to these associates, and as he's closing in, if it turns out that Roger Stone was, in fact, onboard with the object of the conspiracy that those GRU officers were trying to achieve and did anything to help them, he, too, can be implicated there.
[15:35:04] And perhaps his associates if they were a part of that as well.
BALDWIN: I mean, on the implication note, Paul, what does it say when all of your aides or people in your inner circle are being subpoenaed, like, if you're Roger Stone, are you feeling a little nervous?
PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, anybody who's subpoenaed to appear before a federal grand jury should be very nervous.
BALDWIN: So far, Roger Stone, nobody's called him. I'm saying should he be nervous?
CALLAN: He should be nervous because they're coming after him. And I'm telling you, he's going to wind up in front of the grand jury. I mean, he's such a bizarre guy, Roger Stone. You know, he has a tattoo of Richard Nixon on his back. It's a huge tattoo on his back. And he's been doing dirty tricks for Republican candidates for ages. And he brags about it. He's never been secretive about it. So, the fact that he would wind up as a major player in this investigation doesn't surprise me in the least. And the fact that maybe he was used as an intermediary is something they're certainly looking at.
Now, Stone is saying that he got maybe some of his information from this Credico who's been subpoenaed who was a comedian and radio talk show host. So, it's getting more and more interesting with more and more bizarre characters.
BALDWIN: Let me play a little bit of, he was on TV, Roger Stone, on with Anderson earlier this week. Here's a clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROGER STONE, LONGTIME TRUMP ASSOCIATE: I've not been contacted by the special counsel's office. I made it abundantly clear that there's no circumstances under which I would testify against the President. I would not rule out cooperating if they think I could be helpful in some area. But beyond that, I have not spoken to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: So, I guess he likes tattoos and hats. But seriously, the pressure is on. Do you think that he's sitting -- do you think he may change his mind to either of you? Or is he just, like, hoping and praying for a pardon?
CALLAN: Well -- go ahead, Asha.
BALDWIN: If it comes to that.
RANGAPPA: Well, leaving the pardon aside. I don't think he has any control over what Mueller is going to do. Mueller is going to keep going. And if he has evidence that's going to lead him to Stone, then Stone is going to find himself in a precarious position. And, you know, this whole thing I'm not going to testify against -- I mean, if he has information, and if he, himself, has been involved in crimes, he's going to face some tough choices just like Rick Gates and Papadopoulos and Flynn and the other parade of campaign associates that we've seen so far.
CALLAN: But, you know, Brooke, you have to listen carefully to Roger Stone's words. He said I'm not going to testify against the President. He didn't say I'm not going to testify. So, he may mean, yes, I'll appear before the grand jury, but whatever question they ask me, I'm not going to say anything bad about the President. That's how he probably will handle it later. Because, frankly, if he refuses a grand jury subpoena, and doesn't assert the 5th amendment, which, by the way, he could, if he had criminal exposure, then he'll be held in contempt of court if he doesn't testify. So, and he'll go to jail for the remainder of the grand jury. So, and he'll see what kind of costumes and hats they wear there. Yes.
BALDWIN: Not pretty.
CALLAN: Lot of people have tattoos there.
BALDWIN: I hear that. I don't know that for sure. Paul and Asha, thank you so much for all things Roger Stone.
Coming up next here, this stunning turn of events in a violent and hateful attack on a 71-year-old Sikh man. The police chief's son arrested in the case and now that police chief has written an emotional letter of apology. We'll read part of it. His own words, next.
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BALDWIN: Embarrassed and disgusted, that is how a northern California police chief describes his reaction after learning one of the teenagers caught on security video brutally beating an elderly Sikh man was his own 18-year-old son. Union City police chief, Darryl McAllister, poured out his feelings about his son's alleged involvement in this attack in a statement on the department's Facebook page. I just want to read to you some of what this father wrote.
Quote, words can barely describe how embarrassed, dejected and hurt my wife, daughters and I feel right now. Violence and hatred is not what we have taught our children. Intolerance for others is not even in our vocabulary let alone our values. Crime has never been an element of our household, our values nor the character to which we hold ourselves. Despite having the desire any parent would have in wanting to protect their child, my oath is and always will be to the law and my vow of integrity guides me through this horrendous difficulty.
He goes on to say, my son began to lose his way a couple of years ago. While he was a juvenile, running away and getting involved in a bad crowd. He pretty much divorced his friends and family, associating with people none of us knew. He got into trouble for some theft- related crimes and ended up spending several months in juvenile hall. As an adult, he was again arrested for a theft-related incident and ended up spending another three months in adult jail as a result. Since being released, he has been wayward and has not returned to our family home for several months.
[15:45:00] The chief's son, Tyrone McAllister and a second teenager face charges of attempted robbery, elder abuse and assault with a deadly weapon. The chief and his wife helped locate their son, so he could be arrested. Coming up next, we'll continue our conversation on race in America
with actor Toper Grace. He plays David Duke, the grand wizard of the KKK, in this new Spike Lee film out today called "BlacKkKlansmen." Hear what happened when the real David Duke called this castmate this past week.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[15:50:00] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Ron Stallworth calling.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who am I speaking with? This is David Duke.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. That David Duke?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God, last time I checked. What can I do you for?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, since you asked, I hate blacks. I hate Jews, Mexicans and Irish, Italians and Chinese, but my mouth to God's ears, I really hate those black rats. And anyone else really that doesn't have pure white Aryan blood running through their veins.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe I am talking to a true white America.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God bless white America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: That was a scene from director Spike Lee's new film, "BlacKkKlansman." It is out today. Purposely released, Spike Lee says, one year after Charlottesville's deadly race riot. And the movie chronicles a true story of a black Colorado Springs police officer who successfully infiltrated the KKK. That officer would go on to strike up a relationship with the Klan grand wizard, David Duke. So, joining me now the man who portrays Duke in the film, actor Topher Grace. Topher, a pleasure, and congratulations on this film.
TOPHER GRACE, ACTOR: Well thank you. Thanks for having me.
BALDWIN: You have been acting for quite a while. A lot of roles. But the grand wizard of the KKK. Did it take you a minute to say yes? And once you did say yes, tell me why.
GRACE: Well, I asked to do it. So, it wasn't like someone asked me. I kind of hunted down the script. I wanted to read the new Spike Lee movie. And then when I read it, I thought I think I have a take on David Duke. And when I called up my agents and said I want to play David Duke, there was a long silence on the other end of the phone.
BALDWIN: Really.
GRACE: They said you have to go read for Spike. It's not like anything you've done before. And I was happy to go read for him.
BALDWIN: And so, in researching the role, I read that you watched a lot of Phil Donahue. I mean, you -- read his book. Watch speeches.
GRACE: No. It was -- this is like the best day of your life. Spike Lee calls you and says I want you to be my guy in the new Spike Lee joint. And then at the end of that day you go, wait a second, this is about to be the worst month of my life. I had to read his autobiography which is called, "My Awakening." Kind of hard to get, which is a good thing. I don't recommend it. It's just terrible. It's kind of like his Mein Kampf.
I watched a lot of film interviews from the '70s. I listened to his radio show a lot to kind of get his voice down. And most helpful things there were a few episodes of Donahue he did in the early 80s and that help me pinpoint really what is so evil about him. I mean, there's many things but in terms of my performance, the audience hated him. I mean, Donahue was having him on as the grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan and he was kind of good with the audience. That's what makes this man so evil is that he kind of rebranded racism at that time and made it more palatable to more people.
BALDWIN: Wow. Wow. So, all the while you're shooting this film, you know, you have a -- first child with your wife. Congratulations to you on that. But you're running lines, lines full of hate speech and your wife is like, honey --
GRACE: Yes, she's like let's be careful what your child's first word is going to be here. She was really understanding, my wife. It wasn't just that I was rehearsing lines around her, which she quickly made me like go to the den and do. But it was more about how just absolute depressing it was to spend that much time in someone's head who's so full of hate.
BALDWIN: And I was watching all these interviews with the real Ron Stallworth who was sitting with Spike for an interview. And Ron was saying that he actually got a call from the real David Duke, you know, ahead of the film's release.
GRACE: This is like five nights ago.
BALDWIN: David Duke says to Ron, essentially, hey, I'm worried about how I may be portrayed in this film. Did Ron tell you about that?
GRACE: He did. I mean, I was like, sequel! It's like kind of a same thing that happened years ago. David has denied since his book came out in 2006, since Ron's book came out in 2006 that it ever happened. So, this was kind of an admission on his part that it did happen. And I think also an admission he doesn't know how Hollywood works because, you know, there's no changing it now.
BALDWIN: Now, it's in the can. It's coming out today. And last question, Topher, you know, this film is all about racism in the '70s and I was reading from you, from your research with David Duke, some of the lines used. Right America first, make America great again. Right? This was decades ago. And then this film ends with the present day and the gut-wrenching scene of Charlottesville a year ago. And I'm just curious what you think this will stir up in audiences as they leave the theater.
GRACE: Well, Yes. When I -- especially in this episodes of Donahue, he used the words America first and make America great again a lot. And watching that from 2017, I don't know how many people watching episodes of Donahue now, but it really stood out to me. And I realized why a film like this and all films like this are so important. If you don't study your history, you know, they say you can be condemned to repeat it. So, I think what Spike is doing is just so, so important.
BALDWIN: Topher Grace, thank you so much.
Still ahead, tens of thousands of people under mandatory evacuation orders as wildfires rage in California. One man trying to save his house with just a garden hose.
[15:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BALDWIN: This week CNN hero is Neal Bermas. Neil trains at risk young adults for a career in Vietnam culinary industry. And if you are visiting you can try it for yourself.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We show the guests how to make the rice noodle.
VOICE OF NEAL BERMAS, FOUNDER OF STREETS INTERNATIONAL: Yes, Yes, Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please show the guests how to make the rice noodles.
BERMAS: Yes, yes, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I helped this guest how to say in Vietnamese.
BERMAS: They're practicing their English and they're developing their confidence and their tableside with the guests. And they're tasting and having fun. And it's just very, very uplifting experience.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Thanks for being with me. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper is starts right now.
