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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Trump Storms Out of Meeting with Democrats, Calls It a Waste of Time; Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein Stepping Down; Federal Workers Prepare for No Payday; Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired January 10, 2019 - 04:30   ET

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

[04:30:03] DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump heads to the U.S.-Mexico border today. But is it more than just a photo-op?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), MINORITY LEADER: Unfortunately the president just got up and walked out.

MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Democratic leaders are unwilling to even negotiate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: That was fast. The president walking out of a meeting with Democratic leaders. He called it a waste of time. What House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that set him off.

BRIGGS: Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein planning his exit. What does this mean about how soon the special counsel investigation could wrap up?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: Mute R. Kelly. Mute R. Kelly. Mute R. Kelly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Increasing backlash for Grammy Award-winning singer R. Kelly. The overnight statement from Lady Gaga taking a stand for his alleged victims.

Welcome back to EARLY START, everybody. Good morning. I'm Christine Romans.

BRIGGS: Good morning. I'm Dave Briggs. 4:30 on a Thursday. Day 20 of the government shutdown.

We start with the president who boards Air Force One this morning bound for the border city of McAllen, Texas, as the federal government shutdown enters its 20th day. He is traveling even though according to the "New York Times" he said during an off-the-record meeting with network anchors Tuesday the border visit is, quote, "not going to change a damn thing, but I'm still going to do it."

ROMANS: In that same spirit yesterday the president walked out of his third meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. Afterward he tweeted that the meeting to end the partial shutdown was a, quote, "total waste of time."

Here's how Senator Schumer recalled the sit-down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHUMER: He asked Speaker Pelosi, will you agree to my wall? She said no. And he just got up and said, then we have nothing to discuss and he just walked out. Again, we saw a temper tantrum. He said you -- if I open up the government, you won't do what I want. That is cruel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Vice President Mike Pence and congressional Republicans remember things a little differently.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PENCE: The president walked into the room and passed out candy. I don't recall him ever raising his voice or slamming his hand.

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), MINORITY LEADER: The president then turned to the speaker and politely asked her, OK, Nancy, if we open the government up, in 30 days could we have border security? She raised her hand and said, "No, not at all." The president calming said, "I guess you're still not wanting to deal with the problem."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: More now from White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Dave and Christine, that meeting between President Trump and congressional leaders ended with the president storming out after Democrats said they would not budge on their refusal to give him any more money for his border wall funding.

It started out on a chummy note, sources told us, with the president passing out candy to several of those people in the room. But things took a turn when the president and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi started going back and forth on what the White House wants for this and what the Democrats say they are not willing to give up. And it ended with the president essentially telling them goodbye and leaving the room.

Now the Democrats say that the president was just throwing a temper tantrum but Republicans are disagreeing with that. But the bottom line of what this all comes down to is that was the third meeting that the president has had with congressional leaders in the Situation Room since this whole shutdown got started, yet we are still no closer to resolving these talks. Now, of course, on Friday, that's the first day that those federal

government workers are not going to be receiving their paychecks. And then on Saturday, this turns into the longest continuous U.S. shutdown that we've ever seen in this country. So certainly both sides are going to start feeling the pressure to come up with some kind of resolve.

However, we're told by sources inside the White House that right now there's no other meeting set up between the president and Nancy Pelosi who are arguably the two people that ended this shutdown is going to come down to.

Now in that off-the-record lunch with news anchors the other day, President Trump, according to "The New York Times," told them he did not believe that his prime time address or his trip to the border, which he's taking today, was going to change any opinions about where they are on whether or not it's worth shutting the government down over building the president's long-promised border wall.

Now he's going to make that trip today. We'll have to see what he says. But right now, we are still very much in the middle of this government shutdown -- Dave and Christine.

BRIGGS: Kaitlan Collins, thank you.

Republican senators are planning to make an offer on immigration that they hope Democrats can't refuse. Source tell CNN the deal would include the $5.7 billion President Trump is demanding for his border wall in exchange for several Democratic initiatives including protections for Dreamers. Republican senators met privately last night in Senator Lindsey Graham's office with White House adviser Jared Kushner. After the meeting Graham sounded optimistic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: I'm somewhat hopeful that maybe there is a way to get what the president wants in a fashion that would do the least amount of damage to the country as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Kushner told the Republican senators if they came up with a proposal they could pass that includes funding for the president's wall, the White House would be open to more discussions. He did not say whether his father-in-law would endorse such a plan.

[04:35:04] ROMANS: The Democratic controlled House passing a financial services spending bill in an attempt to reopen parts of the government that are currently shut down. This measure would fund agencies like the Treasury Department, the IRS if passed by the Senate and signed by the president. That's a big if. The vote was 240-188. And it is significant to note eight Republicans joined Democrats voting in favor. That's up from seven Republicans who supported a similar measure last week.

BRIGGS: Each day this week, the House plans to votes on individual appropriations bills to reopen national parks, as well as the Housing, Transportation and Agricultural Departments. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell insists he will not take up any measure without President Trump's blessing. So the bills appear to be going nowhere.

ROMANS: All right. We're getting new details about the timeline for the upcoming departure of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. As CNN's Jessica Schneider reports the man who oversees the Russia probe may have to be flexible about the date of his final day in office.

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Dave and Christine, it turns out Rod Rosenstein has actually long been planning his departure. We know that the deputy attorney general has been signaling that he would leave the Justice Department when he was satisfied that Mueller's investigation was either complete or close enough to complete that it was protected.

So with Rosenstein's upcoming possible departure, this could be the clearest sign yet that the Mueller probe is wrap upping up in the next several weeks. And Rosenstein, he is also timing his departure in coordination with William Barr's likely confirmation. A source telling us that he will leave the Justice Department after the next attorney general is confirmed, which at this point is shaping up to be about mid-February at the earliest since the confirmation hearings don't start until Tuesday.

Now we did see the president's pick, William Barr, up on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, and he told Senator Lindsey Graham that he plans to be transparent when it comes to the Mueller probe and any release of Robert Mueller's report to Congress or to the public. So that is Barr's stance. But really, it's fair to say, Rod Rosenstein, he's been the big protector and proponent for the special counsel. He appointed Robert Mueller.

And he's given Mueller broad authority including interestingly including the special counsel to investigate allegations that Paul Manafort colluded with the Russians during the 2016 campaign. And that's a claim that we saw hinted at in court papers on Tuesday when Manafort's lawyers inadvertently revealed that Paul Manafort had handed over polling data to a Russian operative, Konstantin Kilimnik, with connections to Russian intelligence at the height of the campaign.

Now Paul Manafort's lawyers have since come back saying that that polling data was actually intended to go to two Ukrainian oligarchs through Konstantin Kilimnik. It is unclear though why Paul Manafort wanted to give this polling data to him, to those oligarchs, and whether or not it satisfies Mueller's questions about any possible collusion here.

So that's the Manafort piece of it. But, really, the question now when it comes to Rosenstein, is where will the Russia investigation go once Rosenstein leaves, if it hasn't already been wrapped up by that point? And how will the presumable next Attorney General William Barr handle it?

Either way, the Justice Department is set to see a lot of changes in the coming month or two -- Christine and Dave.

BRIGGS: All right, Jessica, thank you.

CNN has uncovered a new clue to the possible identity of that mystery company fighting a subpoena from Special Counsel Robert Mueller. We've learned one of the law firms involved in the case is Alston & Bird, which has previously represented Russian interests. Among them a Russian oligarch and a Russian government contractor.

We know from previous reporting the company is a government-owned financial institution. But the identity of the company and the government has been closely held secrets. We do not know whether Alston is representing the company, the government or some other interested party. After several courtroom setbacks, the company may be forced to give Mueller the information he wants or face a steep daily fine.

ROMANS: President Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani says the president is done answering questions from Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Giuliani telling Reuters, quote, "As far as we're concerned, everything is over. They could try to subpoena him if they want, but they know we could fight that like hell."

The president submitted written answers to the special counsel's questions back in November. Giuliani says Mueller raised the possibility of follow-up questions, but was told the president would not respond. Giuliani says Trump's lawyers have had no contact with the Mueller team since before Christmastime.

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren heads to neighboring New Hampshire this weekend. Her visit to the first in the nation primary state will be her first as a presidential contender. The senator launched an exploratory bid for the 2020 Democratic nomination on New Year's Eve. Warren was in Iowa last weekend.

BRIGGS: Her Senate colleague, California's Kamala Harris tells our Jake Tapper she'll decide soon on a 2020 run. Harris believes the country is ready for a woman of color as president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D), CALIFORNIA: The pundits can talk all day and all night, and there's a lot of chatter about which demographic will do this or that.

[04:40:06] It has been my life's experience that the American people are smart and they make decisions based on what's in the best interests of their household, their family and their community. And I have faith that in 2020 and in any other election, that will be their motivation when they vote.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Meantime, billionaire Tom Steyer says he will not run for president in 2020. The Democratic donor says he will instead focus his efforts to take on the president from outside, namely through Need to Impeach, a group he founded after the 2016 election. He says he's putting $16 million more into that group.

ROMANS: All right. Federal workers feeling the pain of the government shutdown. They are -- it's now on track to become the longest in U.S. history.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARC SCHNEIDER, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER: I have my savings account and then after that, I have no idea what we're going to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: How this air traffic controller says the shutdown could affect your safety.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:45:05] BRIGGS: 4:44 Eastern Time. As this partial government shutdown closes in on three weeks, among those about to feel the pinch, air traffic controllers. They are going without a paycheck starting tomorrow and they worry that the lack of pay could lead to a lack of focus on the job, meaning travelers are less safe when they fly.

CNN's Randi Kaye spoke to an air traffic controller who is scrambling to pay his bills.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCHNEIDER: OK, give me a kiss.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These days, family is the only thing Marc Schneider can count on. The 48-year-old air traffic controller from Indianapolis is working. He's considered an essential employee but he isn't getting paid because of the government shutdown.

SCHNEIDER: I'm being paid on an IOU.

KAYE: An IOU he hopes the government will make good on.

TRUMP: Many of those people, maybe even most of them --

KAYE: When President Trump says that many people who aren't getting paychecks, quote, "agree 100 percent with what he's doing" and are "fans of what he's doing," don't count Marc in.

SCHNEIDER: I don't know many of those people. It must -- I assume that he's getting his data from somewhere. I don't know many of those people that are big fans of not getting paid.

KAYE: And when asked if he considers a safe border his safety net, as the president has suggested for these unpaid workers --

SCHNEIDER: I can't spend border security if that's what you're asking me. Border security isn't going to pay my mortgage next month. It's not an immediate need for me right now. I would prefer to be able to pay my bills, to take care of my family.

KAYE: None of this is good for Marc's family and it could be downright dangerous for airline passengers.

(On camera): The system is already stressed. The number of air traffic controllers is at a 30-year low and many of them are working six days a week and 10-hour shifts. Also, about 2,000 of them are eligible for retirement. If they retire early because of this shutdown there could be massive delays nationwide.

(Voice-over): Delays and distractions. Marc is worried about passenger safety and how his fellow air traffic controllers will handle the stress of not getting paid.

SCHNEIDER: The last thing I want is my air traffic controller worrying about where his next check is coming from.

KAYE: At Marc's house the shutdown hit twice as hard as some others. Marc's wife isn't getting paid either.

(On camera): You and your wife are both air traffic controllers. How did it feel to just lose both your paychecks like that?

SCHNEIDER: You know, it's terrifying. I don't have a plan B. I have my savings account and then after that, I have no idea what we're going to do.

KAYE: Congress is still getting paid and you're not. Is that OK with you?

SCHNEIDER: Why am I different? What's less valuable about my job? What's less valuable about a TSA employee? What's less valuable about a park ranger? Where's the difference? Why are my bills less important than someone else's?

KAYE (voice-over): Marc was last paid two weeks ago. If he doesn't get a paycheck this Friday due to the shutdown, it will be the first check he's missed as a federal employee. He has some savings but can't hang on more than a month or so.

SCHNEIDER: Am I upset about it? Absolutely. Do I think it's right? It's not. It's not. Someone should be paid for the work that they do, period. That's what our country has always stood behind. A day's wages for a day's work.

KAYE: Randi Kaye, CNN, Indianapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Wow. Shutdowns are -- that's a technical term but shutdowns are really hard.

BRIGGS: We all agree on that.

ROMANS: All right. The Federal Reserve on Wednesday sent a clear signal that policymakers would be moving quickly to raise interest rates in 2019. Now despite earlier commitments to steadily lift rates above their historic lows, discussions among policymakers at the last meeting of last year showed growing wariness amid signs of a weakening global economy. However the U.S. economy is still healthy. The U.S. economy added a much better than expected 312,000 jobs in December.

The Central Bank is also wrestling with signs of weakening global growth in Europe and China. Fed officials repeated that the pack of interest rates are not a preset course, they added that neither the pace nor the ultimate end point of future rate increases was known.

The Fed has so far penciled in two rate hikes this year, but last week Fed chairman Jerome Powell said the Central Bank is ready to change course significantly if necessary.

BRIGGS: All right. Up next, terrifying moments for a woman driving on the freeway in Australia when that huge sign crashes down in front of her.

ROMANS: Wow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:53:51] ROMANS: The Cook County prosecutor in Chicago says her office is receiving numerous calls after she urged potential victims of singer R. Kelly to come forward earlier this week. And CNN has learned an arrest warrant was issued last summer for R. Kelly's former manager, James Mason.

Mason is accused of threatening to kill the father of Joycelyn Savage, one of the women featured in a Lifetime documentary series "Surviving R. Kelly." Timothy Savage claims his daughter is being held against her will by the singer.

BRIGGS: Dozens of protesters gathered outside of R. Kelly's Chicago studio last night. They are calling for a boycott of his music and for criminal charges.

Lady Gaga tweeting overnight vowing to take a 2013 song she recorded with R. Kelly, "Do What You Want With My Body" off of iTunes and other streaming platforms. At the time Gaga defended the collaboration by pointing to the bond they shared over "very untrue things written about us." She now says, "I stand behind these women 1,000 percent. I'm sorry both for my poor judgment when I was young and for not speaking out sooner."

[04:55:01] ROMANS: Ashley Judd's sexual harassment assault lawsuit against Harvey Weinstein has been dismissed. Federal Judge Philip Gutierrez ruling her legal team failed to establish a business relationship with the disgraced movie producer was covered by the law she sued under. But she made it clear she was not making a determination about whether the actress was actually sexually harassed.

BRIGGS: The judge did allow Judd's defamation claim against Weinstein to move forward. In that case Judd alleges Weinstein derailed her career after she rejected his sexual advances in the 1990s. Judd says she lost out on multiple film roles including one on the "Lord of the Rings" franchise and claims Weinstein told directors and producers not to work with her.

Judd was among the first women in Hollywood to accuse Weinstein of sexual misconduct. There are now more than 80 accusers. Weinstein denying all allegations of nonconsensual sexual activity.

ROMANS: Now today's incredible dashcam video. It shows a freeway sign falling on to a moving vehicle, crashing the roof of an SUV. This freak accident happened this week on a freeway in Melbourne, Australia. Remarkably the 53-year-old woman who was driving the SUV offered only minor neck injury. Transportation officials in Melbourne said the sign had just been inspected the day before and there were no signs it might collapse.

BRIGGS: We are six weeks from the Oscars and the Motion Picture Academy has decided to go without a host for the first time in decades. That is according to "Variety." Comedian Kevin Hart was the Academy's original choice to host this year but he backed out amid criticism over past homophobic remarks that resurfaced. Now the Oscar producers plan to use various celebrities to present different portions of the show. The 91st Academy Awards will air on Sunday, February 24th.

ROMANS: All right. While you were sleeping, late-night hosts poking fun at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer's address. Here is your late-night laughs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": Democrats sent out some exciting fresh young faces, congressional Democratic leaders and direct to DVD Adams Family, Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi. After Trump's low-energy performance, this was their chance to fire up the opposition. So juice it.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), HOUSE SPEAKER: Good evening. I appreciate the opportunity to speak directly to the American people tonight.

COLBERT: Looks like America is about to get the sex talk.

JAMES CORDEN, HOST, "THE LATE, LATE SHOW WITH JAMES CORDEN": A lot of people thought they looked uncomfortable together, but that's actually not true. This is how Pelosi and Schumer always look when they hang out. They are always that close. Here they are having breakfast at Denny's. Here they are last weekend. And this is them on vacation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: "SNL" better open with that.

ROMANS: Oh my.

BRIGGS: I know that.

ROMANS: All right. Let's get a check on CNN Business this morning. Global stocks mostly lower after lower than expected Chinese inflation data. Looking at Asia right now, Tokyo and Shanghai down, Hong Kong up just a bit at the close there. And European markets all opened slightly lower.

On Wall Street futures down this morning. The Dow closed 92 points higher Wednesday, it's up about 2100 points or 10 percent since Christmas Eve. That's why you don't sell at the peak depths of despair, right?

The S&P 500 posted modest gains, its first four-day win since September. The Nasdaq closed higher rallying for the ninth day in 10 days. And U.S. oil prices helped drive the market higher as well. Crude oil prices up 12 percent. They are now above $52 a barrel. However, gas prices are still falling. The current average, gas price averages, two cents lower than just a week ago.

John Lasseter, the former Disney animation chief, left after he was accused of inappropriate touching and hugging on the job and kissing on the job has found a new job. Lasseter will lead animation arm of Skydance Media. In a statement Lasseter said he spent the last year away from the industry, quote, "in deep reflection, learning how his actions unintentionally made colleagues uncomfortable, which I deeply regret and apologize for."

Time's Up condemned Lasseter's hiring saying, quote, "Skydance Media's decision to hire John Lasseter as head of animation endorses and perpetuates a broken system that allows powerful men to act without consequence." Skydance said Lasseter will set the overall strategy and creative direction of Skydance Animation.

The world's richest couple is calling it quits. Amazon boss Jeff Bezos and his wife McKenzie divorcing after 25 years of marriage. They issued a joint statement on Twitter saying they made the decision, quote, "after a long period of loving exploration and trial separation." The couple adding, "We feel incredibly lucky to have found each other. If we had known we would separate after 25 years, we would do it all again."

The divorce could end up being quite costly. Washington is a community property state meaning wealth acquired during marriage is split equally. Bezos is the world's richest person with an estimated net worth of $137 billion.

BRIGGS: Meaning if she gets half, she instantly becomes the richest woman in the world.

ROMANS: Yes. Yes.

BRIGGS: But then she would dilute his shares in Amazon.

ROMANS: And one of the richest people.