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Kavanaugh Accusations: Senate Panel Schedules Confirmation Vote; World Leader Laugh at Trump; Bill Cosby Gets 3 to 10 Years in Prison; Birthday Bungee Jump; Tiger Puts Himself on Mt. Rushmore of Golf. Aired 5-5:30a ET
Aired September 26, 2018 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news overnight, four people with sworn declarations Christine Blasey Ford told them about the alleged sex assault by Brett Kavanaugh in recent years. A Senate vote on the nomination is set for Friday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[05:00:04] DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Didn't expect that reaction, but that's okay.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: The world literally laughs as the president claims extraordinary progress at the United Nations. Today he chairs a city council meeting with Iran the major focus.
BRIGGS: dad is waking up behind bars. Bill Cosby gets three to ten years for sex assault.
ROMANS: Happy birthday, Will Smith. About the big 5-0. How did he want to celebrate? To face his fear with a bungee jump over the Grand Canyon.
BRIGGS: That man does nothing small. All big Willie style.
ROMANS: Look at that.
All right. Good morning, and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.
It's the bounce-back that I think would like --
BRIGGS: Not the jumping out of the helicopter?
ROMANS: That part, too.
BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs. Wednesday, September 26th, 5:00 a.m. in the east.
The president set to hold just his fourth formal news conference tonight, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, when he wraps up meetings at the U.N. But we start with breaking news this morning. "USA Today" reporting
attorneys for Christine Blasey Ford have provided the Senate with signed declarations from four people who said she told them in recent years about Brett Kavanaugh's alleged sexual assault from decades ago. One declaration is from her husband whose knowledge was already reported. Three new people are coming forward with information saying Ford total them about the alleged incident between 2013 and 2017. No eyewitness accounts, but they speak to knowledge of the incident before those accusations were made public.
ROMANS: One of these accounts says Ford was especially angry at the light sentence for Brock Turner, remember him? The Stanford swimmer that got a six-month term for a sexual assault on an unconscious 22- year-old. Now, Ford is said to have told her friend at the time -- they were watching their kids on a playground -- that she was bothered by the light sentence. That she had been assaulted earlier by someone who is now a federal judge in D.C. Later, she named Kavanaugh in an e-mail sent after Anthony Kennedy retired.
BRIGGS: Now, just over 24 hours to the Senate hearing that could seal Kavanaugh's fate, the vote on his nomination is set before Ford has even been heard. The judiciary committee setting the vote for Friday morning now at 9:30.
ROMANS: The judiciary chairman, Chuck Grassley, saying the vote could be delayed, but Dianne Feinstein saying, quote, first Republicans demanded Dr. Blasey Ford testify immediately. Now Republicans don't even need to hear her before moving ahead with the vote.
BRIGGS: Committee Republicans announcing that an Arizona sex crimes prosecutor, Rachel Mitchell, will be on hand to ask at least some questions for their side.
At least one critical GOP vote appears to be wavering a bit. Alaska Senator Murkowski telling "The New York Times" it's not about whether or not Judge Kavanaugh's qualified. It's about whether or not a woman who has been a victim at some point in her life is to be believed.
And Murkowski later added this --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Should there be a full FBI investigation into the allegations of Kavanaugh's past?
SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI (R), ALASKA: Well --
REPORTER: You have --
MURKOWSKI: It would sure clear up all the questions, wouldn't it?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: It would sure clear up all the questions.
Murkowski also wants the Judiciary Committee to hear from a second Kavanaugh accuser, Debbie Ramirez.
Around the time Murkowski said that on Tuesday, the president forcefully rejected Ramirez's allegations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Now a new charge comes up, and she said, well, it might not be him, there were gaps. She said she was totally inebriated. She was all messed up and she doesn't know it was him, but it might have been him. Oh, gee, let's not make him a Supreme Court judge because of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: One senior Republican Senate aide says those comments were not helpful. A source says Republicans have tried to tread incredibly lightly to keep moderate GOP senators on board.
The president wasn't exactly playing along later when he fired off his tweets: Democrats are playing a high-level con game. Pray for Brett Kavanaugh and his family.
BRIGGS: President Trump returns to the U.N. for a series of meetings with world leaders. Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, Shinzo Abe of Japan, and Britain's Theresa May. The president will also chair a Security Council meeting focused on Iran. On Tuesday, he addressed the U.N. for the second time as president. The president repeatedly in the past claimed that under previous administration, the world laughed at the United States.
Well, yesterday, it happened right to the president's face.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country.
America's -- so true.
(LAUGHTER)
[05:05:04] Didn't expect that reaction, but that's okay.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Mr. Trump went on to push his America-first agenda, stressing U.S. sovereignty and insisting the global migration crisis can be solved by making all other countries great again. But the president's main focus on Iran, accusing the regime of sowing chaos, death, and destruction, and he urged other countries to join the U.S. by putting economic pressure on Iran.
Afterward, the national security adviser, John Bolton, said this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN BOLTON, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The murderous regime and its supporters will face significant consequences if they do not change their behavior. Let my message today be very clear -- we are watching, and we will come after you. If you harm our citizens, if you continue to lie, cheat, and deceive -- yes, there, indeed, be hell to pay.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Iran immediately lashed back at the U.S. Here's what President Hassan Rouhani told the U.N.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HASSAN ROUHANI, PRESIDENT OF IRAN (through translator): It is unfortunate that we are witnessing rumors in the world who think they can secure their interests better or at least in the short term ride public sentiments and gain public support through the extremist nationalism and racism and through xenophobic tendencies resembling a Nazi disposition.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: CNN's Fred Pleitgen has reported extensively from Iran. He joins us live with the latest.
Fred, good morning.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Dave.
Certainly some sparks flying there at the United Nations between the U.S. and Iran. If it was the president's intention to try and weaken Hassan Rouhani certainly looking at reactions that we're seeing from Iran yesterday and today seems as though the opposite is the case. After President Trump's speech, Iranian social media absolutely exploding with criticism of President Trump, accusing him of being rude and impolite. Also, of course, voicing support for Iran's president Hassan Rouhani.
Just a couple of minutes ago, I actually took a look at some newspaper headlines in Iran. One of the things they talk mostly about is the fact that President Trump got laughed at at the United Nations when he was doing that speech.
Now, we have to keep in mind that all this comes at a time when President Hassan Rouhani of Iran is actually embattled at home. The economy is not doing well, with some big trouble with the hard-liners in Iran. It seems as though the criticism he is getting from President Trump is uniting those factions more than anything else.
Both the supreme leader and Rouhani said right now, a meeting with President Trump is absolutely off the table. They say it would be nothing more than a photo opportunity. Certainly, we've seen the sparks fly once at the United Nations. And we might see more of that later today, Dave.
BRIGGS: We'll hear from President Trump at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Fred Pleitgen live for us -- thanks.
ROMANS: House Republicans are planning to subpoena the Justice Department for memos written by former Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. Those memos said to document explosive comments by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein last year. Sources say Rosenstein suggested secretly recording conversations with the president, maybe joking, maybe not, discussed invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Mr. Trump from office. Again, maybe it was a joke, maybe not.
BRIGGS: Rosenstein, who oversees the special counsel's Russia investigation, has denied the allegations. He went to the White House Monday expecting to be fired, but that did not happen. Rosenstein is set to meet with the president at the White House on
Thursday. Two officials say it would be a mistake to assume he'll be fired at least for now. The controversy fueling calls from conservative Republicans for Rosenstein to testify before Congress this week.
ROMANS: Bill Cosby sentenced to three to ten years in prison for drugging and sexual assaulting Andrea Constand at his home 14 years ago. The disgraced comedian and actor escorted from the courthouse in handcuffs with his bail revoked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN STEELE, MONTGOMERY COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: He used his acting skills and endearing TV personality to win over his victims and then keep them silent about what he did to them. So, now, finally, Bill Cosby has been unmasked, and we have seen the real man as he's headed off to prison.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Cosby also ordered to pay a $25,000 fine and the prosecution's expenses as part of his sentence. His lawyers filed an appeal. Cosby's wife Camille was not in the courtroom Tuesday. Her husband's spokesman calling the trial the most racist and sexist in the history of the United States.
ROMANS: Operations this morning are back to normal at Delta Airlines after it was forced to issue a ground stop on all flights for at least an hour. Delta blaming a technology issue. It's always a technology issue. Flights already in the air were not disrupted.
Some air travelers taking to social media to air their frustration. Others offering up compliments to the flight crew. One man thanking the gate agents for bringing donuts to the passengers as they waited on the tarmac.
BRIGGS: All right. Ahead, could the affects of climate change make some national parks disappear? An alarming study says that may be the case.
ROMANS: And two women are the new voice of Thursday night football.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Imagine a North American trade pact without Canada. It looks more likely by the day. The deadline for NAFTA negotiations is this weekend.
And President Trump's top trade official warns Canada time is running out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT LIGHTHIZER, U.S. TRADE REPRESENTATIVE: I think Canada would like to be in the agreement. I think the U.S. would like them to be in the agreement. But there's still a fair amount of distance between us.
[05:15:02] There are, you know, very large issues. I think Canada wants a deal, and I know we want to do. We'll see whether it happens. We're sort of running out of time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: This is a rare public comment from the U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, noting there is still some distance between the U.S. and Canada on key issues like how to settle trade disputes and U.S. access to Canada's dairy market. The White House is pushing Canada to agree to a framework set between the U.S. and Mexico by September 30th.
That allows the current Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto to sign the deal while he's still in office. But Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau does not want to accept the U.S. Mexico deal as is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: My focus on this throughout has been simply not escalating, not opining, not weighing in. My job is very simple -- it's to defend Canada's interests.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: If Ottawa doesn't agree by this weekend, Lighthizer insists the administration will move forward anyway with or without Canada. That will likely anger U.S. businesses and farmers, both industries rely on duty-free trade with Canada. And this U.S.-Mexico agreement, by the way, faces a test of its own in Congress. Congress must approve that deal anyway.
BRIGGS: All right. An alarming study finds climate change is ravaging our national parks. Scientists from U.C. Berkeley and the University of Wisconsin found by the year 2100 California's Joshua Tree National Park could lose 90 percent of its namesake trees. The risk of wildfires in Yellowstone could increase tenfold, transforming the park into essentially scarred grasslands.
ROMANS: Ice sheets in the North are expected to melt and flow into the sea, eventually making the Glacier National Park's name obsolete. Researchers observed data between 1895 and 2010, they concluded temperatures in national parks rose twice as much, and participation plunged compared to other parts of the country. That's because parks are often in places sensitive to climate change.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four, three, two, one --
(CHEERS)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Speaking of national parks, that's actor Will Smith bungee jumping out of a helicopter into a grand canyon to celebrate his 50th birthday. The jump was live streamed Tuesday on Smith's YouTube channel. He described the experience as going from terror to pure bliss. Smith says he made the 1,000-foot leap as way to overcome a long held fear and to raise awareness for education donations by the Global Citizens Group.
Well done.
ROMANS: Looks fun.
BRIGGS: Yes, he just goes all out no matter what the occasion. And Carlton there from "Fresh Prince" there to celebrate.
ROMANS: My kids watch him on "America's Funniest Home Videos." They love that guy.
BRIGGS: OK, so it's more than "Fresh Prince." All right. Fair enough.
Tiger Woods with his first win in five years. Where does he rank himself in the pantheon of great all-time golfers? Andy Scholes has the answer in the "Bleacher Report."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:22:31] ROMANS: All right. NFL history about to be made in the broadcast booth. Hannah Storm and Andrea Kremer will be the first all-female broadcast team when they call Thursday night's match-up between the Minnesota Vikings and L.A. Rams. The two veteran broadcasters and journalists will be behind the mic for 11 Thursday night games this season, as part of the Amazon Prime video NFL package.
That is cool, Dave.
BRIGGS: You and me, we'll be sleeping. We hope the rest of you can stream.
Meanwhile, baseball's post-season gets started in less than a week. On the American league side, the matchups set.
Andy Scholes, I cannot wait for the post-season. Good morning, my friend.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Dave.
You know, this is shaping up to be one of the best post-seasons in some time. You got the Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers, Cubs, all likely going to be battling for that World Series crown. They're going to have to knock off the defending champs if they want to win it all. The magic number for the Astros to win the ALS was two. They beat the Blue Jays.
When the Mariners won in a walk-off over the A's in the 11th inning, that sealed the division for the Stros. The team was watching from their hotel in Toronto and they all started to celebrate once the Mariners won. The Astros the first defending champs to win 100 games the next season in 29 years.
Houston going to take on Cleveland in the division series. The Red Sox await the winner of the wild card match-up between the Yankees and the A's. That game is one week from today.
The National League, meanwhile, still has four spots up for grabs. The Atlanta Braves the only team to clinch a spot in the post season.
All right. LeBron James hitting the practice floor with his Lakers teammates for the first time yesterday. After practice, he was asked how he plans on winning over all the Kobe fans in L.A.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEBRON JAMES, NBA PLAYER: Listen, I signed a four-year deal. I'm here, so -- I mean, I know what I bring to the table and the floor.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Check out the shoes LeBron will reportedly wear in the season opener. People quickly pointing out those are Cavs' colors, not Lakers. Interesting choice.
All right. Fresh off his first win in five years, Tiger Woods back on the course yesterday gearing up for the Ryder Cup in Paris, France. In an interview with the PGA, Tiger was asked to give his Mt. Rushmore of golf.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIGER WOODS, PRO GOLFER: Probably Snead, Jones, Nicklaus, me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[05:25:02] SCHOLES: Sam Snead, Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus , and me.
Dave, you know, no one would dispute putting Tiger on the Mt. Rushmore of golf, but it just kind of odd to hear him say it. BRIGGS: People were offended by this. If he didn't say "me," I'd be
offended.
SCHOLES: I like it.
BRIGGS: Three more wins, he's the all-time wins leader. So, yes, Tiger might be on the top of that mountain by the time it's said and done.
Scholes, don't sleep on my Colorado Rockies. You mentioned a lot of baseball teams there. They are currently in the post season.
SCHOLES: They're in it.
BRIGGS: All right, buddy. Good to see you.
Romans, over to you.
ROMANS: All right. Good stuff, guys.
Breaking overnight, signed statements from four people who say Christine Blasey Ford told them in recent years about her allegations that Brett Kavanaugh assaulted her. Does this force the Senate to delay Friday's committee vote on the nomination?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Breaking overnight, four people with sworn declarations Christine Blasey Ford told them about the alleged sex assault by Brett Kavanaugh in recent years. A Senate vote on the Supreme Court nomination is set for Friday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Didn't expect that reaction, but that's okay.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: The world literally laughs as the president claims extraordinary progress at the United Nations. He chairs a Security Council meeting today with Iran, a major focus.
