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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
First Lady Calls For Firing of Deputy National Security Adviser Mira Ricardel; New California Wildfire In San Bernardino As Death Toll Rises; Arrests Made In Murder Of Ohio Family Of Eight; Ceasefire Halts Gaza Violence. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired November 14, 2018 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:30:24] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELANIA TRUMP, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: I give him my honest advice and honest opinions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: A top national security official preparing to be fired after the first lady makes an unprecedented statement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Everybody wants to work in this White House. We are a hot country. This is a hot White House.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump looking to replace at least two other top officials. Who else is on the chopping block?
BRIGGS: A new wildfire sparking in Southern California overnight and spreading quickly. The death toll rising to 50 people statewide.
ROMANS: And an Air Force jet crashes in Texas overnight, killing one pilot and sending another to the hospital. We have the very latest on the crash and the investigation.
Welcome back to EARLY START this Wednesday morning. I'm Christine Romans.
BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs. Good morning, everybody.
Two thirty-one out there in California. Scott McLean reporting from California where millions are under red flag warnings and thousands have lost their homes.
But we start in D.C. An imminent shake-up at the White House in a stunning unprecedented move by Melania Trump, the first lady, calling for the removal of deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel. And, CNN learned President Trump has told people he is prepared to fire her.
Ricardel clashed with the East Wing staff during Mrs. Trump's recent trip to Africa.
Listen to what she told "ABC NEWS" during that trip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM LLAMAS, ABC WEEKEND ANCHOR, "WORLD NEWS TONIGHT": Has he had people that you didn't trust working for him?
M. TRUMP, FIRST LADY FOR THE UNITED STATES: Yes.
LLAMAS: Did you let him know?
M. TRUMP: I let him know.
LLAMAS: And what did he do?
M. TRUMP: Well, some people, they don't work there anymore.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Sources tell us Ricardo has also butted heads with Defense Sec. Jim Mattis and chief of staff John Kelly in recent weeks.
So far, no official word from the White House on her status.
More now from senior White House correspondent Pamela Brown.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAMELA BROWN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: A stunning string of events here at the White House surrounding deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel.
Earlier today, Melania Trump, the first lady, issued a statement and here's what the statement said. "It is the position of the office of the first lady that Ricardel no longer deserves the honor of serving in the White House."
This statement came out around the same time that Ricardel was at the White House attending a ceremony with President Trump. So immediately, White House officials began scrambling in the West Wing. They were caught off guard, according to our sources, that this statement was even going to be released.
Now, there had been an ongoing feud behind the scenes between staffers for the first lady and Mira Ricardel surrounding a trip to Africa. There was a dispute over a plane seat and other issues. But the fact that this has spilled out into public view is pretty extraordinary.
Now, in terms of her future, that's still unclear. A source telling my colleague Jeff Zeleny that the president has made the decision to fire her. Yet, throughout the day she was still in her office, according to White House officials who couldn't give a clear answer on what her future holds.
Now, we have reached out to Ricardel and she has not responded for comment.
But all of this raises the question of what will be next for John Bolton, the national security adviser who brought Ricardel on board to the NSC.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRIGGS: Pamela, thanks.
Several other senior White House members could be unemployed in the next few days or the next few hours, even. Sources tell CNN virtually no one feels completely secure, with the exception of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner.
The president is expected to ask for the resignation of Homeland Security Sec. Kirstjen Nielsen soon.
CNN has also learned he's also discussing potential replacements for chief of staff John Kelly despite announcing Kelly would remain on the job until 2020.
In fact, the vice president's chief of staff Nick Ayers has told at least two friends he is in the running for Kelly's position. Ayers has grown close to the president and key members of the administration, including, once again, the president's daughter and son-in-law.
ROMANS: All right, let's go live to Washington now and bring in "CNN POLITICS" digital director Zachary Wolf.
Zach, good morning -- Wednesday. How are you?
ZACHARY WOLF, DIGITAL DIRECTOR, CNN POLITICS: Good morning -- great.
ROMANS: Do you feel relatively secure in your job, Zach? Can I just ask you that this morning because it sounds like at the White House, in Washington, there's not a lot of job security?
BRIGGS: I never --
WOLF: I don't know. You put me on the spot there.
ROMANS: I don't mean to laugh about it because at the end -- after a midterm election, especially where the -- you know, when you've lost a lot of seats --
BRIGGS: Sure, it could be 40-plus.
ROMANS: -- is -- feeling secure in Washington is never a guarantee and at the White House, in particular here. But tell me about this Melania Trump staff announcement and how just
unusual that is and how that takes that post-midterm job insecurity to a whole new level.
[05:35:03] WOLF: Well, it seems like pretty much everybody at the White House works under the assumption that they could be gone at any day or they could spend six months, a year expecting to be fired, a la Jeff Sessions, and just kind of go on their job. It's clearly a strange work environment.
And add to that what I really don't understand about this Melania Trump story is that if there is one person on earth who you would think would be able to get somebody fired at the White House without making a big deal out of it --
BRIGGS: Yes.
WOLF: -- it would be Melania Trump.
She can just talk to him at dinner, assuming they're having dinner or talking to each other. She can just say to the president -- hey, Donald -- she can call him Donald -- would you please fire this person.
BRIGGS: Right.
WOLF: It doesn't make any sense why she, of all people, would have to issue a press release in order to get somebody fired and still not have that person fired, apparently, by the end of the day. That's incredible.
BRIGGS: It begs a lot of questions there. I mean, without getting into separate bedrooms or what-not -- yes, why would you issue a public statement?
Nancy Reagan famously feuded with President Reagan's staff -- Don Regan, the chief of staff -- but you never saw public statements from her or from any of the first ladies in recent past that were very influential in terms of staffing, but we'll see.
How important is it -- and we just mentioned the names Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump several times in these first few stories. How influential are they in things moving forward in this White House?
WOLF: Well, you said it already. I think they're probably the only two people who do have really good job security at the White House. Ivanka's last name is Trump and that was kind of the concern with them coming in is that they play at a different level, I think, than other staffers.
But clearly, it seems like they're having the desire to have more influence over staffing decisions as they -- as they rub up against people.
ROMANS: I mean, yesterday in "The New York Times," Maggie Haberman, who is a contributor here, wrote this. "President Trump is moving toward major shuffles of his cabinet and
his West Wing staff, as members of the Trump family are working to leave a mark on personnel decision after a bruising midterm election cycle, several people familiar with the discussions said on Tuesday."
Make their mark on personnel decisions -- you make a really good point, Zach. What about on policy?
WOLF: Yes. So, both Ivanka and Jared were supposed to have this sort of moderating influence on Trump -- Ivanka, in particular. There was talk during the Paris climate deal that maybe she would moderate Trump on that or during several other things.
But their influence on policy has been, I guess, a little less overt. You haven't noticed it quite as much as Trump has sort of retreated into his nationalist corner. That's not really the policy angle of Jared and Ivanka who -- you know, Steve Bannon, I think it was, who called them the Democrats in the White House.
So a sort of resurgence of them and one wonders if that would have any effect at all on Trump's policy which has gone in a completely different direction.
BRIGGS: I want to get to the Florida recount which is ongoing -- Thursday deadline. And the president is weighing in, and Marco Rubio is weighing in. And, of course, Gov. Scott, the Senate candidate is weighing in.
But, Rubio's tweet really raised a few eyebrows. I love sports analogies -- guilty of them just about every day here. But here's Rubio's.
"Imagine if NFL team was trailing 24-22 but in final seconds hits a 3- point kick to win. Then after game, lawyers for losing team get a judge to order rules changed so that last-second field goals are only one point."
Zach, what do you make of that sports analogy and why, when Florida is going to go Gov. Scott's way in all likelihood -- why the president, why Rubio, why Scott undermining faith in our institutions and our elections?
WOLF: And that's exactly what they're doing. If you're crying fraud for an election that you're winning -- as Trump also did with the 2016 election which he won when he said there were millions of illegal votes -- it sort of makes you wonder what the end -- what do you accomplish by doing that, especially when you're -- when you're going to win it? It doesn't really make a lot of sense.
You know, tortured sports analogies are one thing but this is -- it's not a game. This is American democracy.
Imagine your vote not counting because of a technicality -- because of a bunch of Republican and Democratic lawyers. That's probably more concerning, I think, than the poor folks who are -- who are watching this drag on longer than they would like. BRIGGS: Yes. He is a football fan but I think a wide right on that attempt.
Zach Wolf, thank you, my friend.
ROMANS: Thanks, Zach.
BRIGGS: Good to see you.
WOLF: Thanks.
BRIGGS: All right.
Some breaking news this morning with 50 lives already lost in the California wildfires, the threat appears to be widening at this hour. Forty-eight of those fatalities have occurred in Northern California where six more victims of the Camp Fire were found on Tuesday.
Officials now compiling a list of the missing. They're reluctant, though, to estimate how many people that might be.
[05:40:00] ROMANS: And in Southern California, a brand new wildfire burning now east of Los Angeles County in San Bernardino County. They're calling this one the Sierra Fire and it's approximately 20 acres right now with high, dry winds fanning those flames. No evacuations ordered yet.
The death toll from the Woolsey Fire stands at two, with more than 400 structures destroyed and 57,000 considered to be in danger.
The Department of Health and Human Services declaring a public health emergency in California.
CNN's Scott McLean has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Dave, Christine, there are thousands of firefighters on the front lines trying to stop this fire from spreading, but for many people here in Malibu it really doesn't get very much worse.
Case in point, we are standing on what once was the family home of Thomas Hirsch. He grew up here. His parents actually still lived here.
And when we think of Malibu we often think of the rich and famous. That is not the case, though, for this family. His parents bought the house in 1965 for just $39,000.
And they're 94 and 97 years old and so they've accumulated a lifetime worth of things. And so today, Thomas was searching through this area try to find anything of value that he could salvage and he managed to find a sterling silverware set that had just been melted into a blob. He actually just found it right over here.
Now, despite the destruction and despite his parent's age, he says that they want to rebuild.
THOMAS HIRSCH, PARENT'S HOUSE BURNED IN WOOLSEY FIRE: We're survivors and we'll rebuild. We'll come back take whatever insurance money they had, clean it up, and rebuild it and make it nicer than it was before. I told my dad this and he says, no, you can't make it any nicer than it was.
MCLEAN: The big concern now is with the wind. Red flag conditions have been extended now until Wednesday evening. That means that conditions are prime for flames to spread quickly or fires to start.
As for any rain in the forecast, well, that might be in two weeks, maybe. So whenever firefighters are able to finally stamp out this fire it will be with no help from Mother Nature -- Dave, Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right, Scott, in Malibu. Thank you for that.
Eye-popping deficit numbers from the Treasury Department. The U.S. government is spending so much more than it takes in. The budget deficit topped $100 billion last month.
Here are the numbers.
The deficit up almost 60 percent from the same month last year. Government spending growing twice as fast as revenue. More spending on Medicare, defense, interest payments.
At the same time, those big corporate tax cuts mean less money is coming in, adding to the pile of debt the Trump administration inherited from the Obama years. The national debt -- for anyone who cares in Washington, which is no one -- now tops $21 trillion -- $21 trillion.
BRIGGS: For anyone who cares. I thought the president was going to pay down the deficit in eight years. Are we on track there?
ROMANS: The national debt -- he said he could cut the national debt -- get rid of it in eight years.
BRIGGS: Get rid of it in eight years.
ROMANS: He said it on the campaign trail. I mean, that was obviously hyperbole because that is impossible.
BRIGGS: Oh, yes. He hammered President Obama for the growing deficits.
OK, a cold case cracked in Ohio. Who police arrested in the killing of eight family members.
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[05:47:14] ROMANS: All right. A husband and wife and their two adult sons charged with murdering a family of eight in Ohio in 2016. The eight victims ranging in age from 16 to 44 were found shot to death at four crime scenes in the small town of Piketon.
At one scene, police found a 4-day-old baby lying next to his murdered mother. That child and two others survived the killings.
Police say four members of the Wagner family carefully studied the habits and routines of their victims for months before committing the massacre. The motive appears to involve custody of a child.
BRIGGS: CNN has filed a lawsuit against President Trump and several of his key aides seeking the immediate restoration of chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta's access to the White House.
The lawsuit in response to the suspension of Acosta's press pass last week. The suit alleges that Acosta and CNN had their First and Fifth Amendment rights violated by the ban.
A judge has given the White House an 11:00 a.m. deadline this morning to file responses to the suit. A hearing scheduled for 3:30 this afternoon.
ROMANS: All right, let's get a check on "CNN Business" this morning.
Global stock markets are mostly lower as oil prices fall here. In Asia, the Nikkei closed up a little bit. Shanghai and Hong Kong fell. And, European markets opened lower here -- one percent losses, essentially, for the major European averages.
On Wall Street, futures are down following Tuesday's close. The Dow stumbled in another turbulent day. The S&P 500 dipped a bit. But, you know, the Nasdaq essentially unchanged here.
Apple, though, lost another one percent on iPhone demand concerns.
And, U.S. oil prices fell seven percent to a 1-year low. It was crude's worst day since September 2015, but that could be good for you if it means lower gas prices ahead.
To Amazon now. Fourteen months, 238 bids, 20 finalists, and in the end, Amazon chose to split its new HQ2 into two locations and will be rewarded richly for it. Eye-popping incentives for Amazon, including a helipad at its planned New York location -- in a new location in New York and Virginia.
The final deal revealed on Tuesday shows New York and Virginia provided total incentives upwards of $2.8 billion. "The Wall Street Journal" tallies it all up at about $5.5 billion.
The combined offer from New York State and New York City does not require approval by any local or state legislative body. The incentives offered for Amazon's Long Island campus total about $1.5 billion if the company hires 25,000 people. The bulk of Virginia's tax incentives come in the form of a cash grant of $22,000 for each job added over the next 12 years. Amazon will also get $23 million from local authorities based on an expected increase in hotel taxes.
[05:50:01] Still trying to tally up all of the incentives offered but clearly, Amazon's play here takes state and local tax incentives to a whole new level.
All right, have you ever heard of Juuling? You may have never seen it, you may not do it, but there's a good chance your kids are.
Under intense pressure to keep the electronic cigarettes out of the hands of kids, the CEO of the company Juul says it will scale back on social media and stop most retail sales of flavor products.
In a statement, Juul's CEO says, "Our intent was never to have youth use Juul."
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in September, announced it would investigate major e-cigarette makers and review their sales and marketing practices.
Juul said it will stop selling most flavored Juul pods in convenience stores and vaping shops and will restrict flavor sales to adults 21 and older on its Web site.
BRIGGS: Never intended youth -- mango, cool cucumber, and creme brulee-flavored --
ROMANS: Kids don't -- kids think it's --
BRIGGS: It's hard to buy.
ROMANS: -- like candy. Like it's not safe. And they get a rush from the nicotine. How much nicotine did you say?
BRIGGS: One cartridge contains as much as a pack to two packs of cigarettes of nicotine. Parents --
ROMANS: U.S. --
BRIGGS: -- this should matter to you.
ROMANS: Any middle school teacher will tell you this is a problem.
BRIGGS: Yes.
Ahead, a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants bringing an end to the most intense round of fighting between the two sides in four years. We're live in Israel, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:55:53] BRIGGS: Silence overnight in the skies over Gaza. A ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants bringing an end to the most intense round of fighting between the two sides since the 2014 war. Militants fired 400 rockets into Israel between Monday and Tuesday, with Israeli airstrikes hitting over 100 targets in Gaza.
Let's go live to Israel and bring in Oren Liebermann. Oren, what's the latest there?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Dave, it was 6:00 p.m. yesterday when the ceasefire was announced from Gaza, the joint operations room -- sort of the headquarters for Palestinian militant factions -- saying Egypt had brokered an end to the hostilities between Israel and Gaza, bringing to an end 24 hours of the most volatile violent fighting we've seen since the end of the 2014 war.
Israel hasn't commented on the ceasefire. They've only said, in the past, that quiet will be met with quiet. But since that announcement the skies above Gaza have been quiet -- the fighting has stopped.
Looking here on the street behind me life has returned to normal. And we know from our teams in Gaza there was a collective sigh of relief and a return to the daily routine.
That is after 24 hours of the worst fighting we've seen since the end of the 2014 war. Seven killed in Gaza, one killed in Israel. That, for now, appears to be behind us.
But the story may not be over yet. Israel's defense minister may be about to resign at a press conference in just a few minutes.
BRIGGS: Wow -- all right. Oren Liebermann live for us in Israel this morning. Thank you.
ROMANS: All right. Late-night hosts are taking on Melania Trump as word surfaces she is involved in a new round of White House firings. Here's your "Late-Night Laughs."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN COLBERT, CBS HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": Once again, Trump wants to fire somebody. But in a refreshing change of pace, it's not Donald because today we found out that in a stunning move, first lady Melania Trump is calling for the firing of deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel.
I assume Melania is doing it with her traditional goodbye gift, a jacket that says "You don't really work here anymore, do you?"
JIMMY KIMMEL, ABC HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!": Apparently, Mira Ricardel and members of Melania's camp had an argument over the seating arrangements on a flight from Africa. According to the story, Ricardel wanted Melania to sit in the middle section of the plane and Melania wanted to jump out of it. And --
JAMES CORDEN, CBS HOST, "THE LATE LATE SHOW WITH JAMES CORDEN": Donald Trump's chief of staff John Kelly may soon be fired because of repeated clashes with Melania Trump. It's gotten so bad -- yes, it's gotten so bad that either John Kelly or Melania will have to leave the White House.
It's true. Melania told Trump point black -- she said it's either him or me. Please let it be me, please let it be me, please let it be me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: If I had a dollar for every headline --
BRIGGS: I know.
ROMANS: -- John Kelly is soon going to leave, I would be a very rich woman.
BRIGGS: He's a survivor, no question about that.
ROMANS: All right, thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans.
BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs. "NEW DAY" starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
D. TRUMP: A lot of administrations make changes after midterms. I'm very, very happy with this cabinet.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is, actually, a lot of turmoil in the White House.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first lady was looking for a public shaming.
JAMES MATTIS, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I don't comment on other people's staffing issues.
BRIGGS: A new wildfire sparking in Southern California overnight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This fire is not even out and it has already set records.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've been here my entire life and I've never seen anything like it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's just going to be more devastation to come.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Alisyn Camerota and John Berman.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. This is NEW DAY. It is Wednesday, November 14th, 6:00 here in New York.
President Trump is reportedly moving towards a major shake-up in his cabinet and West Wing. This, after a stunning and unprecedented public rebuke of a top official by first lady Melania Trump. She is calling for the deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel to be fired after Ricardel reportedly clashed with Mrs. Trump's staff on that trip to Africa. The first lady's office releasing a statement saying that Ricardel quote "no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House."
An official tells CNN that President Trump does intend to fire Ricardel and it appears she is not the only one headed for the exit.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: In fact, CNN has been told that the only West Wing staffers who should feel secure in their jobs are Jared and Ivanka.
