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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Smollett Meets With Cast of "Empire"; Cohen Prepares to Testify; Judge: Labor Secretary broke Law with 2008 Deal; New Election in North Carolina 9th; Zion Williamson's Injury Sparks Debate. Aired 5-5:30a ET
Aired February 22, 2019 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:00:02] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Tesla pointed to its overall customer satisfaction rating from Consumer Reports and says it had corrected many of the problems found in that survey. Tesla's stock closed down almost 4 percent after this report. Five other cars lost consumer reports recommendations including the Acura RDX and BMW 5 Series.
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: We still have an hour to go.
EARLY START continues right now.
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SUPERINTENDENT EDDIE JOHNSON, CHICAGO POLICE: Why would anyone, especially an African-American man use a symbolism of a noose to make false accusations?
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ROMANS: The police chief is angry, the judge calls it vile. Jussie Smollett is back on the set of "Empire." What he told the crew after being charged with faking a hate crime.
SANCHEZ: Plus, get ready for the split screen of a lifetime, Michael Cohen preparing to testify while the president sits down with North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un.
ROMANS: Another Trump cabinet member in hot water. Why a decade old plea deal could be trouble for Alex Acosta.
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MARK HARRIS (R-NC), CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: I believe the new election should be called.
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SANCHEZ: A remarkable about face in North Carolina. A congressional candidate who thought he won, who wanted to declare that he won, is now calling for a new election. We'll tell you why and why he is considering potentially not running.
Good morning and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Boris Sanchez, in for Dave Briggs.
ROMANS: And I'm Christine Romans. Nice to you have here. You've been through all week.
SANCHEZ: Great to be with you, Christine.
ROMANS: It is Friday. We'll miss you. But you'll come back again. Dave always needs some R&R. So, when Dave is gone --
SANCHEZ: I hope it is warmer when he takes time off.
ROMANS: I know. All right. Thanks so much for being here this week. One minute past the hour.
Jussie Smollett is apologizing but not for the crime he is charged with. Cameras swarmed the "Empire" star as he exited court accused of staging a supposed hate crime against himself. After posting $100,000 bond, Smollett's first order of business was a meeting with the "Empire" cast and crew.
Now, a person who attended tells CNN everyone there expected Smollett to come clean, bare his soul, ask for forgiveness.
SANCHEZ: Yes, the source says he did apologize for any embarrassment he caused them, but then to the shock and dismay of some people there, Smollett defiantly proclaimed his innocence and blamed the legal system and media. Chicago police are painting a very different and very unflattering picture.
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JOHNSON: Jussie Smollett took advantage of the pain and anger of racism to promote his career. I'm left hanging my head and asking why? Why would anyone especially an African-American man use a symbolism of a noose to make false accusations? This publicity stunt was a scar that Chicago didn't earn and certainly did not deserve. I only hope that the truth about what happened receives the same amount of attention that the hoax did.
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SANCHEZ: Prosecutors and even the judge struck the same outraged tone.
We go now to CNN's Nick Watt who has more from Chicago.
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NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Christine and Boris, this was just a bond hearing, but it was an extraordinary bond hearing. The state laid out in intricate detail their case against Jussie Smollett. The state says he orchestrated the entire thing, he hired the two brothers, he told them to attack him, he told them to buy a rope, to make a noose, to put it around his neck, he told them to buy red caps which in the end, they didn't wear those red caps that would have looked like the make America great again caps.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE : There was a change in the plan in that bleach was going to be used instead of gasoline during the simulated attack. Smollett then drove the brothers home and provided them with a $3,500 personal check.
WATT: He also took them to the scene of where the attack was going to take place. He pointed out a security camera, prosecutors tell us, told them that will capture this attack. And actually when he first spoke to police, Smollett drew their attention to that camera. Turns out the camera was actually facing the other way and did not capture the attack.
Now, the judge had some very, very harsh words for Jussie Smollett. He said, listen, of course there is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty, but if this is true, this case is, quote, utterly outrageous. And he spoke particularly about that noose that Smollett allegedly asked these brothers to put around his neck and he said that symbol conjures up such an evil in this country.
Now, Smollett's lawyers were in court, the legal team released a statement which reads in part that today, we witnessed an organized law enforcement spectacle. The police superintendent of Chicago was very angry. He said that police officers here are pissed off.
Now, motive? That police superintendent said that allegedly Jussie Smollett was upset that he wasn't getting paid enough for appearing on the show "Empire", that's why he sent a letter to himself, a threatening letter at the studio, that's why he orchestrated this attack.
[05:05:00] Christine and Boris, back to you.
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ROMANS: All right. Nick, thank you for that.
A federal judge says that Roger Stone crossed the line but that he can stay out of prison as long as he keeps his mouth shut. Judge Amy Berman Jackson dramatically tightening the gag order on the Trump confidante. She ruled that Stone may not speak, tweet, post or otherwise comment publicly about the investigation, the case or any of the participants, period.
Her order came in response to Stone posting her picture on Instagram with what looked like crosshairs next to her. Stone tried to explain why the crosshairs as a Celtic symbol. Judge Jackson not impressed.
SANCHEZ: Yes. She said, quote, Roger Stone fully understands the power of words and the power of symbols. There's nothing ambiguous about crosshairs.
Stone did apologize again saying, quote, this is just a stupid lack of judgment. I regret it. I do want to point out, he had some difficulty in explaining how he
even got that picture. He said a volunteer saved it on his phone. He really didn't clarify much. Jackson replied to Stone during a conversation. Quote: Thank you, but the apology rings quite hollow.
She later added, I want to be clear, today, I gave you a second chance, but this is not baseball. There will not be a third chance.
ROMANS: And she could have thrown him in jail, right?
SANCHEZ: Right.
ROMANS: But she didn't. She gave him that stern warning, really tightened that up. But he shouldn't put her picture out with or without that Celtic symbol or whatever, you know?
SANCHEZ: And he even denied that it was crosshairs. Then he put the picture up back. He still has a lot to explain about that picture.
ROMANS: All right. Michael Cohen will be doing some explaining. He is in Washington preparing for a high stakes week ahead. President Trump's former fixer spent several hours Thursday inside the Senate Intelligence Committee's secure spaces. That is unusual for a witness the panel has already interviewed as part of its Russia probe.
Next week, Cohen will be interviewed by the Senate Intel Committee behind closed doors on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, he testifies publicly before the House Oversight Committee and then Thursday back behind closed doors to talk to the House Intelligence Committee.
SANCHEZ: The big question hanging over Cohen's appearances is what he can say and what he will say. In public, he is not expected to testify about the ongoing Russia investigation. But questions could come up around the edges like the failed Trump Tower Moscow project, or the "BuzzFeed" article that claimed Trump told Cohen to lie to Congress, something the special counsel's office explicitly denied. The special counsel here weighing on a report. Usually, they don't weigh in on any sort of reporting.
ROMANS: That's right.
Whatever happens, it will make for a very interesting split screen. Some of Cohen's testimony overlaps with the president's summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. And on a related note, an IRS analyst has just been charged with leaking confidential reports about Michael Cohen's bank records, those records reveal that Cohen sought to profit from his close relationship with the president.
SANCHEZ: Another Trump cabinet secretary in trouble. This time, it's Labor Secretary Alex Acosta.
He was a federal prosecutor in Florida 11 years ago when the Justice Department reached a plea deal with Jeffrey Epstein. He is a Palm Beach billionaire accused of sexually abusing as many as 36 underage girls, running a sex ring. Thursday, a federal judge in South Florida ruled Acosta and the Justice Department broke the law by not discussing that plea arrangement with the victims as required.
ROMANS: In November, "The Miami Herald" reported Acosta gave Epstein the deal of a lifetime, no trial, just 13 months in prison. The plea agreement effectively shut down an ongoing FBI probe and granted immunity to any potential co-conspirators. He is very politically connected, this guy.
Earlier this month, Republican Senator Ben Sasse said the Justice Department told him it opened an investigation into how DOJ handled that case. Acosta says he welcomes the review.
SANCHEZ: The North Carolina board of elections voting to order new elections in the state's ninth congressional district. Republican candidate Mark Harris was under scrutiny for hiring a political operative that was accused of election fraud. The board investigated claims that Leslie McCrae Dowless ran an illegal scheme to collect, fill out and forge mail-in ballots.
Harris said his campaign was not aware of any of that. But just one day after his son John testified, that he had warned his father about Dowless, the candidate now says that he favors a revote.
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MARK HARRIS (D), NORTH CAROLINA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Knowing what I know now and hearing what I've heard, it is very concerning and I would have obviously never gotten into this. Through the testimony I have listened to over the past three days, I believe a new election should be called.
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SANCHEZ: This is a dramatic reversal for Harris. His earlier position was that the elections board should certify the results that had him winning. Harris did not commit to running in the new election. He says he is struggling with memory recall and confusion because of two recent strokes.
ROMANS: All right. Prosecutors say the Coast Guard lieutenant suspected of plot plotting mass murder drew attention when he used work computers in the alleged planning of a widespread domestic terror attack. Christopher Hasson is being detained pending trial. The judge ruled his legal team could fight the detention order after 14 days if the government does not charge him with criminal activity. He was arrested last week on drug and gun charges.
[05:10:02] Federal prosecutors say that's just the proverbial tip of the iceberg. The government alleges Hasson is a self described white supremacist who maintained a hit list that included prominent Democrats and journalists.
SANCHEZ: The White House says some 200 U.S. troops will remain in Syria after the plan withdrawal in the spring. Officials say the troops would help with logistics, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and calling in air strikes. They hope to encourage coalition countries like France and the U.K. to keep their troops in Syria.
In December, you'll remember, President Trump ordered staff to execute the full and rapid withdrawal of U.S. military from that country, declaring that ISIS had been defeated. That statement has since been contradicted by national security officials.
ROMANS: All right. There may have been a time when you were mad at your attorney, right? But you probably didn't do that this. A convict slugs his lawyer in open court and now could face even more trouble.
SANCHEZ: Yikes!
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SANCHEZ: Caught on video, a conservative activist attacked on the U.C. Berkeley campus.
[05:15:03] It's not clear exactly what happened before this encounter, according to bystander Tuesday. Watch that. The man who gets punched Aden Williams (ph). He is a field representative for the Leadership Institute. The group helps train conservative leaders.
Campus police say the suspect left before officers arrived. They are still investigation debating this. Williams tells CNN that he is OK but the campus conservative group that invited him, Turning Points USA, says the assault shows the hate and anger that student activists encounter on a daily basis.
ROMANS: All right. Day two of a teacher strike in Oakland, California. Teachers want smaller class sizes, more support for students, a 12 percent pay raise. The union says teachers can't afford the soaring costs of living near Silicon Valley and the district lost nearly 20 percent of its teachers each year as a result.
The problem is teachers are demanding more money from a school district that is already broke. Officials say there is barely enough money to take care of its low income students.
Google is eliminating its controversial practice of forcing employees to settle disputes with the company in private arbitration. It expands on an earlier pledge by Google to do away with the forced arbitration in cases involving sexual harassment and sexual assault claims. That was one of the changes Google employees demanded back in November when some 20,000 employees staged that global walkout. Google says the new policy will take effect on March 21st for current and future employees.
SANCHEZ: Look, if you just found out you're spending the next half century in prison, you'd probably be pretty upset.
Ohio Attorney Aaron Brockler learned that the hard way, he took it on the nose. His client David Chislton attacked him after receiving a 47-year sentence. Brockler got punched in the fate and, get this, he got bitten when he was on the ground the scuffle. He tells "The Washington Post" they were hoping for fewer than 20
years. But when the judge said 47, Chislton snapped. Brockler suffered an injured hip, a broken nose, and a concussion. Chislton's sentence was for assaulting his girlfriend and setting fire to an apartment building. He is likely going to see charges attacked on to that. Brockler says that Chislton is now a former client.
ROMANS: We've learned that the resignation of Times Up CEO Lisa Borders came after sexual misconduct allegations were made against her son. Borders resigned abruptly Monday after less than two months on the job, she cited family concerns.
Times Up now says Borders informed leadership last Friday about allegations against her son. They say Borders decided to resign and it was the right decision. The group says it remains committed to the mission of safe and dignified work for women.
SANCHEZ: A SpaceX Falcon IX rocket streaking into the night sky at Cape Canaveral, Florida. It carries an Indonesian communications satellite and also includes a small Israeli spacecraft that will affect the first privately funded moon landing by a non superpower. Right now, only the U.S., the Soviet Union/Russia and China have pulled off a powered landing on the moon.
ROMANS: All right. Firefighters in Florida heating things up for an elderly woman with a microwave. The High Springs crew responded to a life alert alarm at this woman's apartment, which went on accidentally.
But they noticed something when they were there in the apartment, the woman who gets some frozen food from the Meals on Wheels program, she didn't have a working microwave, so they made a quick trip to the store and bought her a new microwave. They also installed it and cooked her dinner.
SANCHEZ: Going above and beyond the call of duty.
ROMANS: Everybody do something nice today.
SANCHEZ: That sound you hear, that is duke fans breathing a sigh of relief. Andy Scholes has the latest on Zion Williamson in the "Bleacher Report", next.
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[05:23:03] SANCHEZ: Duke's star Zion Williamson's injury sparking controversy and a debate. Should he play when he's healthy or just rest up for the NBA draft?
ROMANS: Andy Scholes has more n this morning's "Bleacher Report".
Hey, Andy.
SANCHEZ: Good morning.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Good morning, guys. You know, Duke updating Zion's status saying yesterday, saying that he is day to day after suffering a grade one sprain to his right knee. He suffered that injury when he exploded through his shoe Wednesday night. Nike said they are investigating how this could have happened.
Now, no question, Zion is going to be the top pick in June's NBA draft even if he got injured. The 6-foot-7 285 pounder would still likely go number one. But many like Warriors star DeMarcus Cousins who played in Kentucky says Zion shouldn't risk further injury playing college basketball.
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DEMARCUS COUSINS, WARRIORS CENTER: College (EXPLETIVE DELETED). College basketball (EXPLETIVE DELETED).
You've proven you're the number one pick coming out. You've proven your talent. You know, get ready for the next level because it's happening. That's my opinion, knowing what I know now.
CHARLES BARKLEY, TNT BASKETBALL ANALYST: I don't want to see anybody get hurt. This kid looks like he's going to be a fantastic player. But I get so mad when people act like money is the only thing that matters in the world. Like oh, dude, you're going to go in the NBA, don't play.
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SCHOLES: No word on if Zion will play Saturday against Syracuse. Now, Zion, when he was younger, the 18 year old may have never set foot in college basketball. According to "USA Today", the NBA has submitted a formal propose to the players association to lower draft eligible age to 18 from 19. The plan is to put this in place for the 2022 draft. This would of course put an end to the one and done rule that has been in place since 2005.
Now, the second half of the NBA season getting under way last night and LeBron said he was activating playoff mode early and it looked like it. He led the Lakers on their largest comeback of the season. They rallied to beat the Rockets 111-106.
[05:25:04] James Harden, meanwhile, scored 30 points to extend his streak to 32 straight with at least that many, but Harden not happy after the loss, calling out official Scott Foster after fouling out. Harden said Foster has a personal issue with the Rockets, calling rude, arrogant. In the game, Foster called 12 fouls against Houston compared to just six against the Lakers.
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CHARACTER: Can I have your John Hancock?
MICHAEL JORDAN: What's going on here?
CHARACTER: We need your help.
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SCHOELS: All right. "Space Jam", one of the greatest movies of all- time, and we finally know when the sequel will hit theaters. Set your calendars for July 16th, 2021. LeBron going to be the leading man this time and I'm very interested to see what kind of storyline they could come up with because the Jordan playing baseball, needed a comeback to play basketball to rescue the planet, which was too perfect.
So, it's interesting to see what they come up with.
SANCHEZ: Yes, LeBron is probably used to playing with Looney Tunes, Stevenson and McGhee. He's going to need some of that special Jordan juice to help his Lakers make the playoffs. He played well last night, though.
Thank you so much, Andy Scholes.
ROMANS: Just introduced "Space Jam" to the kids recently. It is so good.
All right. Jussie Smollett is back on the set of "Empire," what he told the cast and crew after being accused of faking a hate crime.
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