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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

FAA Declines To Ground Boeing MAX 8; State Department Pulling Personnel From Venezuela; Speaker Nancy Pelosi Against Impeachment; More Damaging Audio Of Tucker Carlson; U.S. Warns Germany Against Using Chinese Tech Giant Huawei. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired March 12, 2019 - 05:30   ET

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


[05:30:00] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TUCKER CARLSON, HOST, FOX NEWS, "TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT": Iraq is a crappy place filled with a bunch of, you know, semi-literate primitive monkeys.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: And more disgusting audio of Tucker Carlson resurfacing. Will Fox News continue to stand behind him?

Welcome back to EARLY START, everybody, on a Tuesday. I'm Dave Briggs.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, I'm Jessica Dean. It is 30 minutes past the hour.

The Boeing 737 MAX 8 can stay in the air despite growing calls to keep it on the ground. The Federal Aviation Administration declining to ground the Boeing model following two recent crashes. Investigators have not determined whether the same problem caused Sunday's crash of an Ethiopian Airlines plane and a Lion Air jet of the same type last October.

BRIGGS: Boeing confirmed last night it will deploy a software upgrade for the MAX 8 that's been in the works since the Lion Air crash. The announcement came a few hours after the FAA said it is mandating design changes to the aircraft's flight control systems.

After the Lion Air crash last year, Boeing's CEO stood by the MAX 8.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENNIS MUILENBURG, PRESIDENT, CHAIRMAN, AND CEO, THE BOEING COMPANY: What's very important is that the 737 MAX is safe. We're very confident in that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Overnight, several airlines and entire countries temporarily suspended operation of the MAX 8. Australia now joining the list that includes Singapore, Aeromexico, and Aerolineas Argentinas, on top of Indonesia and all of China. Reports say South Korea has also grounded the plane.

BRIGGS: U.S.-based carriers sticking with the Boeing model. American Airlines flies 24; Southwest, 34, and they will continue to do so. Neither is changing cancellation or refund policies.

Experts' opinion on whether to fly the 737 MAX 8 are mixed. Former NTSB chief Jim Hall says Boeing should ground the plane until a cause is determined if any problems are addressed.

CNN's Farai Sevenzo is live in Nairobi, Kenya this morning at the airport where that doomed flight was supposed to land. Farai, good morning.

FARAI SEVENZO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Dave.

Yes, absolutely, it was supposed to get here with all its 157 passengers but, of course, they didn't make it. And now, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 is big news in this region.

Now, what do Americans think about it? What have they heard or what have they read? Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STANLEY WILLIS, PASSENGER: People were nervous. Reading -- a lot of reading on the paper and also on the Internet. I don't think we have the option to change our mind.

JULIE BROUE, PASSENGER: I heard about the crash in Ethiopia but I had no clue that there was another crash within four months or so. I would prefer that they take a caution approach.

MORTY PLOTKIN, PASSENGER: I read it in the newspaper yesterday so we're fully aware. And we have flown on that plane prior and never had a problem. When your time is up, your time is up. There's nothing you can do about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SEVENZO: And, of course, Dave, you've got to remember that this impacted 35 nations, including Americans.

And we're now starting to hear first names -- the first of these American victims of that tragic flight 302. There is, of course, two brothers Mel and Bennett Riffel, as well as a doctor -- a second-year medical resident at East Tennessee State University's College of Medicine.

Another fascinating story that's coming out of this tragedy is that one man posted on Facebook the words "my lucky day." He is a Greek national, Antonis Mavropoulus, who shared the story of how he came to miss the flight.

By sheer accident of his punctuality or lack of punctuality, he didn't make it into that plane and it's because he tried to run into the tunnel to get them to put him on the plane. But, of course, it was too late for him. And that is why he's still on this earth, Dave.

And one more thing to tell you. Here where I am, at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, is that relatives of the dead and deceased have now started to arrive to take a flight to Addis Ababa to identify their dead -- Dave.

BRIGGS: Farai Sevenzo live for us in Nairobi -- thank you.

Breaking overnight, the State Department pulling all remaining diplomatic personnel out of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says that decision reflects the deteriorating situation in Venezuela and adds, "The presence of U.S. diplomatic staff at the embassy has become a constraint on U.S. policy."

In January, the State Department ordered all non-emergency employees to leave.

DEAN: Venezuela's National Assembly has now officially approved a state of emergency at the request of self-declared interim president Juan Guaido. Much of the country has been without power since last week.

The state of emergency allows the Assembly to seek foreign intervention and that could include U.S. military intervention. The White House says all options are on the table.

BRIGGS: Nancy Pelosi in no hurry to impeach President Trump. The House Speaker believes he is unfit for office. But in an interview with "The Washington Post" magazine, Pelosi says, "Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there's something too compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don't think we should go down that path because it divides the country. And he's just not worth it."

[05:35:04] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: They wanted me to impeach President Bush for the Iraq War. I didn't believe in it then and I don't believe in it now. It divides the country. Unless there's some conclusive evidence that takes us that place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: But a number of Pelosi's Democratic colleagues don't see it that way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN YARMUTH (D), KENTUCKY: Impeachment means nothing if you don't use the power and begin the process. So, to me, it's not a question of whether, it's a question of when.

REP. BRAD SHERMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: You don't impeach Trump for him. You impeach Trump for the Constitution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Pelosi clearly faces a challenge getting everyone in her party on the same page. But, House Intelligence Committee Adam Schiff has her back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: Well, I'm going to wait to see what Bob Mueller produces. But I think the speaker is absolutely right that if the evidence isn't sufficient to win bipartisan support for this, putting the country through a failed impeachment is not a good idea.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: The House Judiciary Committee has launched a sweeping investigation, sending letters to 81 people and entities in the president's public and private life. Democrats looking for evidence of possible corruption, obstruction, and abuses of power.

Let's bring in Nathan Gonzales. He's the editor and publisher of "Inside Elections," a CNN political analyst. Good to see you, sir.

NATHAN GONZALES, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER, "INSIDE ELECTIONS": Good morning.

DEAN: Hi.

BRIGGS: It is front-page news --

DEAN: Yes.

BRIGGS: -- that Nancy Pelosi said she's not for impeachment? Why?

GONZALES: Well, I guess for people who haven't been really paying attention to what Speaker Pelosi has been saying for months, I mean, I think this has been her position all along. This is sort of the most explicit she's been or the highest profile platform that she revealed this in the interview. But I think this is where she is.

I mean, Speaker Pelosi is part of some Democrats here in Washington who lived through the Bill Clinton impeachment and they realize that they don't want to be on the other end of where Republicans were -- the political backlash that Republicans experienced. And I don't think Speaker Pelosi wants to endanger the new House majority by doing something like that.

And I think fundamentally, if she doesn't believe that impeachment is the right thing, she controls the floor. This is not going to go forward if she's not convinced it's a good idea.

BRIGGS: She also recognizes the reality that nothing this president has done or could do will get him impeached in the Senate. We know Republicans will not go near that vote. They have proven it over the last two years. GONZALES: Exactly. I mean, the president is the most popular person within the Republican Party and even though maybe some individual senators are uncomfortable with him, their constituents --

BRIGGS: Yes.

GONZALES: -- like the president. And so they're not going to go near it.

DEAN: And, Nathan, I want to take a look at 2020 and Kirsten Gillibrand. And we learned yesterday that a former staffer in her office accused a senior aide of sexual harassment. That staffer then left the Senate office over the handling of that accusation. The aide was fired recently but for an unrelated matter.

You know, we see Kirsten Gillibrand taking the lane of the #MeToo candidate.

BRIGGS: Yes.

DEAN: I want to -- here's what she had to say about the whole incident yesterday. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D-NY), 2020 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will always look to improve my processes with my new chief of staff. With her experience, we will look to see how we can improve. But this investigation was thorough and professional, and the allegations were taken seriously from the very first day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: But if that is your issue -- and it really has been her singular issue she's really grabbed onto -- Nathan, how does this affect her candidacy moving forward and her authority on that issue?

GONZALES: Yes, I think it's difficult for her. I try to -- if we take a step back and look at the longer view, I mean, right now, Sen. Gillibrand is in the middle to the back of a large pack of Democratic presidential contenders and she simply can't afford to have too many mistakes.

Now, maybe she handled everything properly internally with the investigation within her office, but she can't afford too many distractions. She needs to have people focused on her, her biography, her message -- you know, the things that she's putting forward -- and not these other -- these other stories. Because that's not going to help her -- vault her into that top tier.

DEAN: Right.

BRIGGS: Yes, she hopes to be the last one standing.

In Milwaukee -- Democrats announced that the DNC will be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Interesting for a lot of reasons. Of course, Hillary Clinton did not set foot in Wisconsin, changing history. But also, it's the one major American city, Nathan, that's had three socialist mayors.

What do you make of that selection?

GONZALES: I think we're going to hear about that from Republicans --

BRIGGS: Yes.

GONZALES: -- maybe one or 1,000 at times.

BRIGGS: And T.V. as well.

DEAN: Yes, right.

GONZALES: You know, as someone who's going to be there, I think the reporters -- we're happy that the humidity is going to be better than what it would be in Houston.

But, you know, I think more than Milwaukee, I think this is a lot about the state of Wisconsin. We know now Democrats are going to have a presence in Wisconsin in 2020.

According to a new metric that we've developed at "Inside Elections," Wisconsin is the most competitive state in the country, particularly when it comes to the presidential race. So I think it's about the party planting its flag.

[05:40:00] You know, no site is without some complications but I think Democrats want to avoid making some of the mistakes in 2016 about not going to certain regions of the country.

DEAN: Yes.

Nathan, thanks so much for being with us.

GONZALES: Thank you.

BRIGGS: Good to see you.

All right. The New York State Attorney General's Office issuing subpoenas to Deutsche Bank and Investors Bank.

According to "The New York Times," they're looking for records related to the financing of four major Trump Organization projects. They include a failed attempt to buy the NFL's Buffalo Bills in 2014. Deutsche Bank, one of the few lenders willing to do business with Donald Trump in recent years.

It was prompted by this -- Michael Cohen congressional testimony last month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ELIJAH CUMMINGS (D-MD), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE: Did the president ever provide inflated assets to a bank in order to help him obtain a loan?

MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER ATTORNEY FOR PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: These documents and others were provided to Deutsche Bank.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Deutsche Bank and Investors Bank are refusing to comment. The Trump Organization did not respond to CNN's request for comment.

DEAN: Facebook is reversing course and restoring ads placed by Elizabeth Warren's presidential campaign. Those ads called for the breakup of Facebook, Amazon, and Google, claiming the three tech giants have quote "bulldozed competition, used our private information for profit, and tilted the playing field in their favor."

A Facebook spokesperson says the ads were originally removed because of a policy against using the company's logo.

Now, Sen. Warren responded with a tweet Monday night saying, quote, "Thanks for restoring my posts. But I want a social media marketplace that isn't dominated by a single censor."

BRIGGS: For the second time in two days, clips resurfacing of Fox News host Tucker Carlson making offensive remarks. Media Matters for America published clips of the Fox News host using racist and homophobic language on a radio program between 2006 and 2011.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLSON: Iraq is a crappy place filled with a bunch of, you know --

TODD CLEM, HOST, "BUBBA THE LOVE SPONGE SHOW": Yes.

CARLSON: -- semi-literate primitive monkeys. But I just have zero sympathy for them or their culture. A culture where people just don't use toilet paper or forks.

CLEM: Obama would kick your ass playing basketball.

CARLSON: Yes, of course he would. Basketball? Come on.

CLEM: He's black -- say it. He's a real brother. Hey, do you think -- do you think the --

CARLSON: I don't know how black he is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Carlson has not commented on the latest round of clips but they were released a day after audio surfaced of him expressing disturbing views on child rape and more. After that, he said this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLSON: The great American outrage machine is a remarkable thing. It's a bewildering moment, especially when the quotes in question are more than a decade old. There's really not that much you can do to respond. It's pointless to try to explain how the words were spoken in jest or taken out of context or in any case bear no resemblance to what you actually think.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Fox News has not commented publicly on the Carlson controversy but the host, himself, says Fox News is behind him.

BRIGGS: Ahead, the U.S. warns a critical ally could lose access to U.S. intelligence if it partners with a Chinese tech giant accused of stealing trade secrets.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:47:17] DEAN: The Trump administration is warning Germany against doing business with the Chinese tech giant Huawei. Administration officials claim Huawei stole trade secrets and violated Iran sanctions. And now, the U.S. is threatening to limit intelligence sharing with countries that use Huawei.

CNN's Sherisse Pham, who visited Huawei headquarters last week, is now live in Hong Kong with more on this -- Sherisse.

SHERISSE PHAM, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Jessica, a U.S. government official telling CNN that a U.S. ambassador to Germany sent a letter to the German government saying look, you have to choose. It is the U.S. or it is Huawei, and if you choose Huawei, we will limit your access to U.S. intelligence. And as far as we can tell, this is the first time that the United States has sent such an explicit warning to a U.S. ally.

All of this happening against the broader backdrop of a standoff between China and the United States over who controls the technologies of the future, and 5G is one of those technologies. Your smartphones, and virtual reality, and self-driving cars -- all of those things will be powered by 5G and Huawei is a leader when it comes to 5G equipment.

And the Trump administration has been pressuring allies to limit or ban or restrict the use of Huawei in the buildup of their 5G network.

So even U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo saying last week any country that considers using Huawei needs to consider the national security risks. So, not naming countries there but certainly, a broader warning to the allies of the United States, like Germany and the U.K. and Canada, all of whom are considering using the Chinese company in the buildout of their 5G networks.

DEAN: Yes, a lot there to unpack. All right, Sherisse, thank you.

BRIGGS: All right, a check on "CNN Business" at 5:48.

Global markets positive this morning. Asian markets closed higher. European markets opening higher.

On Wall Street, futures are higher with all three major averages snapping 5-day losing streaks. The Dow climbed 201 points Monday, recovering from an early slide as much as 242 points. The S&P 500 advanced 1 1/2 percent. The Nasdaq climbed two percent, the best day since January 30.

The rally represented a rebound from the two percent slide for the Dow and S&P 500 last week. That's the worst of 2019.

Tesla raising prices after backtracking on store closures. The electric carmaker said prices for most models would go up by about three percent after it decided to keep more stores open.

Less than two weeks ago, Tesla announced it would shut down most of its stores to help reduce the price of its bestselling Model 3 to as low as $35,000. Tesla said it will now only close about half as many stores as previously planned.

[05:50:00] The three percent increase will apply to more expensive editions of the Model 3, as well as the Model S Sedan and Model X Crossover. The higher prices will take effect March 18th.

Some good news for shoppers. Sellers on Amazon just got a little more freedom.

Amazon will no longer prohibit its third-party sellers from listing their products on other sites for less than they do on Amazon. The change comes amid concern that price parity could be in violation of U.S. antitrust law.

Senator Richard Blumenthal had previously asked the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate antitrust violations and how they could affect the prices that consumers pay for goods.

Amazon would not comment any further about the policy change, which went into effect yesterday.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:55:10] BRIGGS: Seventy million dollars' worth of cocaine seized in a drug bust at the Port of Newark, New Jersey. That's 3,200 pounds -- the largest cocaine seizure at the Newark port in 25 years and the second-largest ever.

The cocaine was found in a shipping container that entered the U.S. from Buenaventura, Colombia last month. Authorities are not sure whether the drugs were supposed to stay in the U.S. or continue on to Europe.

DEAN: Twenty nineteen is on track to be the worst year for measles in the U.S. in nearly three decades. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 228 individual cases of measles in 12 states since January first. That's 22 more cases than reported last week. And now, New Hampshire joins the list of affected states. The disease had been eliminated in the U.S. 19 years ago but is an epidemic in many other countries. That's what's triggered the current outbreaks.

BRIGGS: Smoking during pregnancy -- even just one cigarette a day -- doubles the risk of sudden death for a baby. That dramatic finding from a new study published in the journal "Pediatrics" that analyzed data on 20 million births.

The study found that by the time you smoke a pack a day your baby's risk of unexpected death was nearly three times that of non-smokers' babies. Women who reduced or quit smoking by the third trimester cut the risk to their babies.

DEAN: It appears Drake has dropped a song featuring Michael Jackson, from his tour in the U.K. which kicked off in Manchester Sunday. The song, "Don't Matter to Me," features Drake singing alongside Jackson vocals from a 1983 recording session. The song from the rapper's new album was a staple of his U.S. tour.

It follows the controversy over the explosive documentary "LEAVING NEVERLAND" that detailed Jackson's alleged repeated sexual abuse of two boys.

BRIGGS: It was fight night in the NBA, on and off the court.

In this corner, the Raptors Serge Ibaka versus Cavaliers Marquese Chriss. Ibaka goes to the ground fighting for position, then got up, shoved Chriss from behind, and they threw blows. Both players were ejected.

Meantime, Oklahoma City star Russell Westbrook mixing it up with a fan during a game in Utah.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUSSELL WESTBROOK, POINT GUARD, OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER: You think I'm playing? I swear to God. I swear to God. I'll (bleep) you up -- you and your wife. I'll (bleep) you up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Westbrook later said it started when the fans told him to get down on your knees like you're used to. He says that was disrespectful and racist. Westbrook also had issues with the Utah fans when the Thunder and Jazz met in the playoffs last season.

DEAN: Well, this next story could have been funny. Now, it's just downright bizarre. Remember this moment from last week?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: And you really have. I mean, you've really put a big investment in our country and we appreciate it very much, Tim Apple.

(END VIDEO CLIP) DEAN: President Trump now trying to explain that innocent mistake. And now, late-night is weighing in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TREVOR NOAH, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW WITH TREVOR NOAH": And this should have been just a fun slip of the tongue. We laugh, we move on.

But because Donald "compulsive liar" can't let anything go, this morning he tweeted this. "I referred to Tim and Apple as Tim/Apple as an easy way to save time and words."

Really, Donald -- really? That's what you were doing? Well, allow me to save time and words. Get the (bleep) out here.

JAMES CORDEN, HOST, CBS "THE LATE LATE SHOW WITH JAMES CORDEN": That's how serious Trump is about saving words. He just used 55 of them to explain why he didn't say Cook.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: A man who wants to save time and words doesn't speak for two- plus hours at CPAC as if he's getting paid per word. It was a bizarre lie of the more than 9,000 of them in two years.

DEAN: Thanks for joining us. I'm Jessica Dean.

BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs. "NEW DAY" starts right now. We'll see you tomorrow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to err on the side of safety. And would I put my whole family on the airplane? I don't think so.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wouldn't stay home. Until the federal government says there is something unsafe, the flying public should have confidence in it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really heartbreaking to know that he won't be able to fulfill the legacy that he had set up for himself.

PELOSI: It divides the country. I didn't believe in it then and I don't believe in it now.

SHERMAN: You don't impeach Trump for him. You impeach Trump for the Constitution.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She understands the ramifications. She said look, he's just not worth it.

(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 Tuesday, March 12th, 6:00 here in New York.

And we do have new information this morning. A growing number of airlines are grounding Boeing 737 MAX 8 after the deadly crash that killed all 157 people on board. At this point, the FAA is not telling U.S. carriers not to fly it but they will.

END