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Ivanka Trump's Security Clearance Questioned; White House Pushes Back on Dems; North Korea Rebuilding Missile Facility; New Drug to Treat Severe Depression; Struggling Celtics Blow Out Warriors 128- 95. Aired 5-5:30a ET
Aired March 06, 2019 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: First, Jared, now, Ivanka. CNN has learned the president overruled officials to get his daughter a security clearance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Instead of doing so many things that they should be doing, they want to play games.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: The White House pushing back on investigations by House Democrats. The strategy could involve withholding documents.
[05:00:03] ROMANS: North Korea has begun rebuilding part of a long- range missile test facility. Work began right around the summit between the president and Kim Jong-un.
BRIGGS: And a new drug has been approved to treat severe depression. Major news for millions who haven't been helped by other anti- depressants.
Good morning, everyone. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Dave Briggs.
ROMANS: Good morning. I'm Christine Romans. It's Wednesday, March 6th, 5:00 a.m. in the East.
For the second time in two weeks, we are learning that the president overruled security officials on personal grounds. Three sources telling CNN President Trump pressured top aides to grant a security clearance to first daughter and senior aide Ivanka Trump. Now, the revelation contradicting Ivanka's denial to ABC News just three weeks ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IVANKA TRUMP, FIRST DAUGHTER & SENIOR ADVISER TO THE PRESIDENT: The president had no involvement pertaining to my clearance or my husband's clearance.
INTERVIEWER: So, no special treatment? TRUMP: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Not clear what red flags were holding up Ivanka's clearance. Several sources telling CNN it's possible she was unaware there were any concerns raised during her background check or her father's involvement. But it followed the president ordering a top secret clearance for Ivanka's husband Jared Kushner.
Senior White House correspondent Pamela Brown with more from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAMELA BROWN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christine and Dave.
We have learned that President Trump then pressured his then chief of staff John Kelly and White House counsel Don McGahn to grant his daughter and senior adviser Ivanka Trump a security clearance against their recommendations. Now, this is according to three people familiar with the matter speaking to me and my colleague Kaitlan Collins.
And while the president has the legal authority to grant clearances, most instances are left up to the White House Personnel Security Office which would determine whether a staffer should be granted one after the FBI conducts a background check. But after concerns were raised by the personnel office, Trump pushed Kelly and McGahn to make the decision so it didn't appear as if he was tainting the process and his family's favor.
Now, after both refused, Trump granted the security clearance. Now, this development comes on the hills of "The New York Times" reporting that Trump ordered Kelly to grand Ivanka's husband, Jared Kushner, a top secret security clearance, despite concerns raised by intelligence officials.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders the White House cannot comment on security clearance issues, nor can it respond to every anonymous source. Kelly could not be reached for comment and McGahn declined to comment for this story.
Back to you, Christine and Dave.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: CNN has learned that the concerns about granting the security clearance to Ivanka Trump were separate from those of her husband.
And CNN also being told the White House is rejecting the White House Oversight Committee demand for document and interviews about the interviews of some of Trump's closest advisers including Jared Kushner. That raises the likelihood of subpoenas from committee chairman Elijah Cummings. BRIGGS: President Trump signaling the White House will push back against the barrage of congressional investigations targeting his political and personal lives. West Wing officials say the strategy here is to limit the number of documents provided to House committees.
The president accusing Democrats of launching probes to hurt his re- election chances, making a curious reference to his predecessor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Essentially what they're saying is the campaign begins, instead of doing infrastructure, instead of doing health care, instead of doing so many things that they should be doing, they want to play games. President Obama, from what they tell me, was under a similar kind of a thing.
Didn't give one letter. They didn't do anything. They didn't give one letter of the request. Many requests were made. They didn't give a letter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: It's not clear what letter president Trump is talking about, but President Obama did hand over documents, lots of documents to the investigations launched by congressional Republicans. You can see all of them there.
Now, White House officials are bracing for congressional efforts to go after Mr. Trump's tax returns. There's only one Democrat on Capitol Hill to officially demand the tax forms, the Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal. He said he does not have a time line, that he will seek the forms only after his committee has built a case to do so.
BRIGGS: Michael Cohen back on Capitol Hill today. He'll be finishing his testimony to the House Intelligence Committee behind closed doors. His appearance comes one day after the New York State Finance Department slapped a subpoena on insurance broker Aon PLC, just a few days after Cohen dropped this potential bombshell.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D), NEW YORK: To your knowledge, did the president ever provide inflated assets to an insurance company?
MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER TRUMP ATTORNEY: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Aon says it intends to cooperate. The New York State Finance Department can impose heavy fines. And while it does not have the power to bring criminal charges, it can refer its findings to state prosecutors.
ROMANS: Breaking overnight, new satellite images appearing to show North Korea rebuilding part of a long-range missile testing facility. The work taking place around the same time Kim Jong-un was meeting with President Trump in Hanoi at a summit that ended abruptly with no deal.
[05:05:09] Paula Hancocks live from Seoul with the breaking details -- Paula.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Christine, this is Tongchang-ri, this is a missile engine test site. The North Koreans had been disassembling over the past recent months. Now, it's one that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had spoken to the South Korean President Moon Jae-in about, as being part of the declaration, saying they were pulling it apart, also talking about they would have independent inspectors to go and look at it and check it was out of action.
Now, of course, over recent days, potentially weeks, you see the satellite images showing that there is a door being put back. There's a roof being put back. And the intelligence agency here, in South Korea also saying that they are seeing indications that they are real assembling what they have already taken apart.
Now, the key here is the timing. When exactly was this happening 38 North, the think tank, says it's anytime between February 16th and March 2nd. So it could be before, during or after the summit between Kim Jong-un and the U.S. president.
Because that's not clear at this point, many experts are reticent to say definitively that this is a sign from the North Koreans to say that they are not happy that Hanoi summit ended without any kind of agreement. What we have to wait for now is if there will be any kind of comment from the Trump administration -- Christine.
ROMANS: All right. Paula, thank you for that, in Seoul this morning.
Six minutes past the hour.
House Democrats plan to update their resolution condemning anti- Semitism to also include a condemnation of anti-Muslim bias. The resolution now likely to come to the House floor for a vote tomorrow, instead of today. Democrats face pressure to condemn anti-Semitic comments by freshman Democrat Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and also defend her from anti-Muslim rhetoric.
BRIGGS: Omar, one of the first two Muslim women to serve in Congress, once again under fire for repeatedly suggesting support for Israel is tied to Jewish money. Her comments sparking calls from some Jewish groups to remove her from the house foreign affairs committee. The Chairman Eliot Engel says he's not close to doing that.
ROMANS: All right. The Trump administration says a surge of migrants and families along the U.S./Mexico border has Customs and Border Protection at a, quote, breaking point. Border officials say more than 76,000 people were apprehended crossing over illegal in February, 76,000, that's the highest number in any February over the past 12 years. Slightly fewer than 10 percent were unaccompanied children. More than half came with family members. The previous years, single adults have made up the majority of migrants. BRIGGS: This happening as congressional Republicans grapple with
Trump's national emergency declaration, in order to build this signature border wall, GOP aides say Senate Republican leaders are planning to hold a vote on a resolution blocking the declaration next we're. Four Senate Republicans have said publicly they will support the resolution which pushes it beyond the simple majority needed to pass but GOP aides still say they expect to fall well sort of the majority.
Experts calling it the biggest advancement in years to fight depression. The Food and Drug administration approving a new nasal spray. It will be sold as Spravato and should be used in conjunction with an oral antidepressant. The medication designed for adults who have not benefited from other antidepressant drugs. That's about a third of Americans battling depression.
Spravato, It's based on a powerful tranquilizer known as ketamine, also known as the party drug Special K. It will carry a black box warning, the most serious issued by the FDA with abuse with suicidal thoughts as potential side effects. So, people who take the nasal spray will have to be monitored for at least two hours to guard against that.
ROMANS: All right. Your leading indicator today in business, eye- popping deficit numbers from the Treasury Department. The U.S. government spending so much more than it takes in. The deficit grew 77 percent in the first four months of fiscal year 2019. The deficit, $310 billion up from $176 billion a year ago.
Now, the budget deficit ballooned as tax revenue plummeted and government spending rose. But interest rates are still relatively low, right? So, you can finance all of this debt, longer term is it sustainable.
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said this on Fox News.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KUDLOW, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL DIRECTOR: We are making an investment in America's future. It's already beginning to pay off. If that means we incur additional debt in this short run, so be it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: In the short run, but these forecasts do not look good. The numbers come as the White House gets ready to release a new budget for the government sometime this month. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the deficit will reach roughly $900 billion this year.
And, Dave, the spending went up on military, Veterans Affairs and interest on debt. And the government took in a whole lot less because companies got a big tax break and so did individuals.
[05:00:03] And when you look further out -- I mean, you're talking about in a decade or less when we're spending more on interest on our debt, with that pile of debt. Interest on the debt is bigger than all discretionary spending. Think roads, bridges.
BRIGGS: Larry Kudlow said it's the short term problem.
ROMANS: I thought Republicans really hated deficits.
BRIGGS: No longer. Those concerns have left us.
Very scary moments on a Norwegian cruise.
Oh, the ship tilts severely at sea after being hit by hurricane-force winds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:15:40] ROMANS: Incredible images and fear among these cruise passengers when their Norwegian ship started tilting to one side after being slammed by a sudden hurricane-force wind. With no word, furniture sliding across the dance floor, glass breaking. People holding on to stay upright.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was at the bar, I was sliding down. Chairs were flying.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My son got up and he looked out the window, and he could see water at that port window.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I had to grab a table. I couldn't hold my balance. And whatever -- all of the items were not attached properly, keep them from falling down, glass breaking.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People falling down, crying. Yes, it was a pretty traumatic experience.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Several passengers and crew members were injured. There was no serious damage to the Norwegian "Escape". The ship arrived at Port Canaveral yesterday morning.
BRIGGS: Today's search efforts will transition into recovery efforts in Alabama after an outbreak of catastrophic tornados in Lee County killed 23 people Sunday, the victims range in age from 6 to 89 years old. Authorities say the death toll could rise. Six to eight people are still unaccounted for. One woman who lost five family members is volunteering at a supply and command center to help get her mind off of it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAKITHA GRIFFIN, LOST FAMILY MEMBERS IN TORNADO: I'm here volunteering, to help my community off. It keeps my mind off of stuff because this is the thing, real life. We see this somewhere else, not like here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Two large corporations who wish to remain anonymous have announced they will pay for the funerals for all 23 tornado victims.
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb is leaving the administration next month. Administration officials say the move have been in the works for several months. Gottlieb is using his time to spend time with his family in Connecticut. He used his position to help fight opioid addiction and teen vaping.
Health Secretary Alex Azar says that public health of our country is better off for the work of Scott and the entire FDA team have done.
ROMANS: President Trump signing an executive order aimed at preventing veterans suicide. The administration's prevents initiative, created a cabinet-level task force to address the disturbingly high number of military veterans who take their own lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Veteran suicide is a tragedy of staggering proportions. Hard to believe an average of 20 veterans and service members take their lives every single day. Who would believe that's possible?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Those numbers are just devastating.
According to the latest V.A. figures, the veteran suicide rate in the U.S. increased nearly 26 percent between 2005 and 2016.
BRIGGS: Good move by the White House.
ROMANS: Yes.
BRIGGS: Ahead, the Golden State Warriors blown out by the Boston Celtics. The defending champs suffering their worst home loss in a decade. It got even uglier at the end.
Andy Scholes has the latest in the "Bleacher Report."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:23:05] BRIGGS: The struggling Boston Celtics handed their worst loss to the Warriors in nearly a decade.
Andy Scholes has the story on "Bleacher Report."
Good morning, my friend.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Dave.
You know, the Celtics really needed a win like this. They had lost five of their last six games. Questions were starting to mount as the talented team could turn things around in time for the playoffs. Well, last night was certainly a good start. Boston was on fire in
the first half, led by Gordon Hayward. He had a game high 30 points off the bench. Celtics had a 25-point lead at halftime. Biggest deficit the warriors have faced all season after two quarters.
Then in the fourth quarter, DeMarcus Cousins getting frustrated after he gets called for an offensive foul. The Warriors looking uninterested, losing their fifth home game of the season by 20 or more. The final on this one, 128-95, worst loss to the Warriors ever under Steve Kerr.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE KERR, WARRIORS HEAD COACH: Looked to me like he were jogging up the floor. Can't play basketball jogging. You got to sprint. Your cuts have to be hard. You got to be, you know, be going all out. We did not go all out. It was embarrassing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: And Duke once again playing without superstar Zion Williamson. Coach K. said he started basketball activities again and should be back in the ACC tournament. Did not rule him out playing Saturday against North Carolina.
And Wake Forest coming out of the final seconds, Demon Deacons miss. And Chaundee Brown with an easy chance to win, but somehow that ball doesn't go in. Duke escaped with the 71-70 win. After the game, Coach K. credited the crowd for the victory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE KRZYZEWSKI, DUKE HEAD COACH: I really believe that we won because you made so much noise, that the noise reverberated off of that wall and knocked that damn thing out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[05:25:05] SCHOLES: Auburn and Alabama, meanwhile, taking to the court just days after a deadly tornado tore through the state. The school's holding a moment of silence before the game to honor the 23 who lost their lives in the storm. And on Monday, Auburn's head football Coach Gus Malzahn and some of the players were on the ground helping out. Auburn athletics will host two drives this weekend for supplies to assist in recovery and efforts for tornado victims in Lee County.
And Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl said, Dave, this tragedy close to him. Literally, his house eight miles away from where that tornado hit.
BRIGGS: Check out CNN.com/impact for how you can help those people.
Andy Scholes, thank you, my friend.
Romans, what's coming up? ROMANS: All right. Well, thanks, guys.
Well, blood is thicker than protocol. For the second time in two weeks, we learned the president demanded security clearance for a family member over objections from career officials.
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