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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Beto O'Rourke: "I'm Running"; Bomb Cyclone Hits Rockies, Moving East; Data Similarities in Boeing Max 8 Crashes; Senate GOP Poised to Rebuke Trump; Raiders Introduce Antonio Brown. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired March 14, 2019 - 05:00   ET

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


DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: -- falls apart.

[05:00:02] We'll also have the latest on Operation Varsity Blues, that crazy college admissions scandal.

Good morning, everyone. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Dave Briggs.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean. It is Thursday, March 14th. And it's 5:00 a.m. in the East.

Beto O'Rourke is ready to run. The former Texas congressman is in Iowa for three days of events and he already confirmed he is entering the race for president.

In a text message to CNN affiliate KTSM in El Paso, O'Rourke telling the station, quote, I'm really proud of what El Paso did and what El Paso represents. It's a big part of why I'm running.

Before that, O'Rourke told "Vanity Fair," quote: You can probably tell that I want to run. I do. I think I'll be good at it. This is the fight of our lives, not the fight of my political life kind of crap. I want to be in it, man. I'm just born to be in it.

BRIGGS: That is a gem of a quote. O'Rourke is a red state Democrat who lost a tight race to Senator Ted Cruz back in November. But that election launched him into the national spotlight. He raised a whopping $80 million, shattering previous Senate records. Forty-four percent of that money came from out of state.

Beto joins a primary field of more than a dozen Democratic candidates. He says there's an overrepresentation of white men in government and he will have a campaign and an eventual administration that reflects the nation's diversity.

DEAN: A ferocious so-called bomb cyclone leaving behind a major mess in the Rockies and Plains this morning. About 1,100 motorists stranded in Colorado. One official said the heavy snow driven by hurricane force winds and had emergency personnel in full saving lives mode. The conditions so severe, officers were forced to abandon their vehicles and take shelter instead of responding to many accidents.

BRIGGS: In Weld County, north of Denver, State Patrol Corporal Daniel Groves was hit and killed by a car while assisting a driver whose car had slid off the interstate. Near Wellington, in Northern Colorado, the blizzard triggered this huge 100-car pileup on I-25 and it killed electric power to at least 184,000 Colorado customers.

Denver National Airport providing blankets to hundreds of passengers were stranded when all the runways were closed by low visibility.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm trying to get to the hotel downtown and I can't get an Uber. So, it's pretty difficult.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a hotel, but we can't get there because of the blizzard, so we're camped out here.

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: We ended up waiting three hours and now we finally came back but the baggage, but it's still on the plane. So we can't really get it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Overnight, four of the six runways were reopened. And weather this tough, the question is, who rescues the rescuers?

Well, the answer in Parker, Colorado, was firefighters who freed this police vehicle that got stuck. In New Mexico, high winds helped derail a 26 car freight train near the town of Logan. Amazingly, no injuries reported there.

The storm is headed east, so you can expect a messy rest of the week.

Here is meteorologist Derek Van Dam.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Jessica and Dave.

This bomb cyclone has it all, from a full on blizzard across the northern and central plains, with a flood threat across the Great Lakes and windy conditions throughout the Ohio and Mississippi River Valley, this storm system has covered all the potential weather hazards one can imagine. Now, you can see just how expansive it is on our satellite imagery. It looks like someone placed a hurricane right in the middle of the central U.S.

Now, look at these winds. They totaled over 100 miles per hour in parts of Texas with gusts in the 90 mile an hour range across northeast Colorado. The storm system continues to move eastern. We get a lot of warm air drifting in from the south and that will fire off a few severe thunderstorms later today, some of which could produce isolated tornadoes, Indianapolis, Nashville, all the way to Huntsville, keep an eye to the sky.

Fifty-five in the Big Apple today, 72 for the nation's capital, 62 for Chicago. Seven day forecast shows a cool down for the Big Apple next week.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Derek, thanks.

A sudden reversal by the Trump administration on Boeing 737 MAX planes. They're now grounded, while more information is gathered about the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We didn't have to make this decision today. We could have delayed it. We maybe didn't have to make it at all but I felt -- I felt it was important, both psychologically and in a lot of other ways.

Boeing is an incredible company. They are working very, very hard right now and hopefully, they'll very quickly come up with the answer. But until they do, the planes are grounded.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: The decision affecting thousands of travelers across the U.S. Long lines at airports Wednesday as people scrambled to find new flights. The president says new information about the Ethiopian crash led to the grounding of the Boeing jets.

[05:05:03] That includes disturbing similarities between two deadly crashes in the last five months.

CNN's Martin Savidge is in Atlanta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Dave. Good morning, Jessica.

The FAA had been under increasing pressure, especially after nation after nation had begun grounding the MAX 8 aircraft. And it was increasingly clear that the United States was finding itself more and more isolated in its decision to allow the aircraft to continue to fly.

Now, we've been getting clarification from the FAA as to what exactly went into this abrupt about-face and now they are saying the agency made this decision as a result of the data gathering process and new evidence collected at the site and analyzed. And they also say that this evidence, together with newly-refined satellite data available to the FAA, led to the decision.

We don't know what the new evidence was that was gathered at the crash site in Ethiopia, but we do know that new satellite data -- because the Canadians referred to it as well when they grounded the aircraft. And it's essentially, they took the trajectory of the Ethiopian Airline that crashed on the weekend and matched it up against the trajectory of the Lion Air flight that crashed in October, and they found a disturbing number of similarities.

The FAA says that combined with some other information they received was what led to them saying, finally, that the aircraft should be grounded while the investigation continues -- Dave and Jessica.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRIGGS: Martin Savidge, thank you.

Boeing's MAX 8 issue is having an affect on Wall Street as well. The crisis has wiped out more than $25 billion off of Boeing's market value. The company's stock immediately fell after President Trump announced the U.S. was grounding the MAX 8 and 9 planes.

But shares ended up, just under half a percent. But the stock is still down 10 percent since Sunday's crash. Estimates show grounding the planes for three months could cost Boeing between $1 billion and $5 billion.

Shares of airlines using the planes, American, Southwest and United, briefly dipped but then quickly rebounded. It is possible Boeing will compensate the three carriers for lost revenue. The company has a history of paying airlines of planes they own are grounded because of safety orders. It did so after grounding the 787 Dreamliner jet in 2013.

Soon travel website Kayak will allow flyers to filter by plane model, that includes this 737 jet. The website already allows travelers to sort by plane type, but it hasn't been possible to search and filter by a specific model before now.

DEAN: Former Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker accused of changing his story on his contact with President Trump about the Michael Cohen case. Cohen has implicated the president in two federal crimes. Whitaker met privately with members of House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to clear up issues with this public testimony from last month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATT WHITAKER, FORMER ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL: At no time has the White House asked for nor have I provided any promises or commitments concerning the special counsel's investigation or any other investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: After meeting with Whitaker though, House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler called him out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JERRY NADLER (D-NY), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: Unlike in the hearing room, Mr. Whitaker did not deny that the president called him to discuss Michael Cohen -- the Michael Cohen case and personnel decisions in the Southern District. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: These new accusations raise questions about whether Whitaker was given the job as acting attorney general because the president wanted to install an ally who could rein in the federal investigations.

The top Republican on the committee, Congressman Doug Collins of Georgia, pushing back against Nadler. He claims there is no evidence that Whitaker discussed the Cohen case with the president.

DEAN: The Senate is poised to rebuke President Trump over his national emergency declaration on the southern border. Utah Senator Mike Lee was leading a compromise attempt among Senate Republicans. But he announced that effort was dead after hearing directly from the president that that compromise was not acceptable. The deal would have curtailed presidential emergency powers going forward.

BRIGGS: Lee, one of five Republicans to publicly say he'll vote against the national emergency declaration. The number though could end up higher, but the Senate would still need two-thirds to overturn Trump's promised veto. It would be the second rebuke in as many days from the Republican-led Senate which voted Wednesday to curtail U.S. military support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen.

DEAN: The measure now goes to the House. The vote marks a disapproval of Trump's Mideast policies, including his support for Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, who has been implicated in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

BRIGGS: All right. Ahead, the college admissions scandal renewing claims rich students get elite spots over more deserving students. Overnight, a college saying it is ready to turn away students that are linked to the cheating.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:14:08] BRIGGS: New fallout from the college admissions scandal. The University of Southern California announcing all applicants linked to the cheating scheme will be denied admission. And a case by case review will be conducted for students who are already enrolled.

DEAN: One of those students is the daughter of Lori Loughlin. The actress and her husband, designer Massimo Giannulli, are charged with felony conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Loughlin appearing in federal court in Los Angeles after turning herself in. Judge Steve Kim setting bond at $1 million.

Federal prosecutors describe a corrupt exchange of wealth, fame, and influence for student admissions to the nation's most elite universities.

BRIGGS: The man who allegedly took admission tests for students or replaced their answers with his own to boost their scores says he's profoundly sorry. Mark Riddell is charged with conspiracy. He says he understands how his actions contributed to a loss of trust in the college admissions process.

[05:15:04] DEAN: New this morning, New York City police investigating the fatal shooting of a high-ranking member of the Gambino crime family, Frank Cali. Police say officers responded to a 911 call Wednesday night at Cali's home on Staten Island. They found the 53- year-old with multiple gunshot wounds.

Law enforcement officials say Cali was believed to be the acting boss of the Gambino family. Police have made no arrests so far.

BRIGGS: A body found on the side of the road in North Carolina has been identified as a missing mom. It's not the first time her husband has been widowed. Authorities say all signs now point to foul play in Diana Alejandra Keel's death. A homicide investigation has now been launched.

Keel's husband, Lynn, was questioned and released this week. According to CNN affiliate WRAL, Lynn Keel's previous wife, Elizabeth, also died at the same home in January 2006. At the time, her death was ruled an accident but expect that case to get a second look.

DEAN: Nineteen employees are suing UPS claiming racial discrimination on the job and the company did nothing to stop it.

Workers at the distribution center in Maumee, Ohio, say nooses were hung above the workstation of an African-American employee, a monkey doll dressed as a UPS worker was publicly displayed, and the "N" word was frequently used in the workplace. UPS says it promptly investigated and took swift action.

The workers also accuse the company of denying black employees opportunities for advancement.

BRIGGS: The Food and Drug Administration is cracking down on e- cigarettes. The agency releasing a policy draft that could take some flavored products off the market. The measure would take action against stores selling flavored e-cigarette products that are accessible to minors, as well as websites selling them without verifying a buyer's age.

The draft policy requires 30 days of comment before it can be finalized.

That is an epidemic in this country. Good to see it's getting the attention it deserved.

Ahead, the Oakland Raiders introducing their newest weapon, A.B. Antonio Brown got a big goal in mind with the Raiders. Andy Scholes tells us what that goal is in the "Bleacher Report."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:21:38] DEAN: No end in sight to the global outages plaguing Facebook. Analysts believe it could be the biggest interruption ever experienced by the social network and its apps, including Instagram. Partial outages affect users in the U.S., Central and South America, Europe, and Asia.

Facebook forced to turn to its rival, Twitter, to explain that its collection of wildly-popular apps are all having issues.

And also breaking overnight, "The New York Times" reporting Facebook is under criminal investigation over its data-sharing deals. The company had data-sharing arrangements with more than 150 companies and its partners were able to access user data without getting consent from them.

A Facebook spokesperson tells "CNN Business" the company is cooperating with investigators.

BRIGGS: All right. The Oakland Raiders introducing their new star wide receiver Antonio Brown yesterday. And A.B. had some lofty goals for his time with the Raiders.

Andy Scholes has the story in the "Bleacher Report." Good morning, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Dave.

After that messy exit from Pittsburgh, Brown says he is ready for a fresh start with the Raiders. And Brown already trying to create some chemistry with his new quarterback Derek Carr. He went over to his house and rang his doorbell and gave him a big hug.

The Raiders introducing Brown after the trade when the deal became official. The 30-year-old says when it is all said and done, he wants to be the best receiver of all-time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONIO BROWN, RAIDERS WIDE RECEIVER: It is a tremendous challenge, a challenge every year to prove my love for the game, and I'm just taking it one year at a time. Obviously, my goal in the back of my mind is to catch Jerry Rice.

JON GRUDEN, RAIDERS HEAD COACH: He can play split end, flanker, in the slot. He can return punts and sell popcorn at halftime. We're excited about this guy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Heisman trophy winner Kyler Murray taking his turn at impressing coaches and scouts yesterday at Oklahoma's pro day. The only real concern with Murray is his height. He measured 5'10" at the combine, so he'd be the shortest quarterback in the NFL. Still many have him projected to be the number one overall pick in the draft next month. Murray looking to become the first player ever to be drafted in the first round in both the NFL and Major League Baseball draft.

For the first time in 23 years, the Colgate Raiders is going dancing. Colgate beating Bucknell Once 94-80 to punch their ticket to the tournament. Once the final horn sounded, all the fans rushed the court. Last time the Raiders made the tournament, back in 1996. Only one player on their team was even alive then and he was just two months old.

Twelve teams have now clinched a spot in the big dance. Twenty more automatic bids are available over the weekend. This is always one of the most exciting few weeks in sports.

And I spoke with our guys at Turner Sports who are going to be calling the tournament. One thing everyone agrees on, NCAA tournament never disappoints.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES BARKLEY, BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME: Every year you see something, you're like, wow, I can't believe that just happened.

STEVE SMITH, BASKETBALL ANALYST: Let's be honest, everybody wants to see the upset, everybody wants to see the 16th seed knock off number one.

ERNIE JOHNSON, "INSIDE THE NBA" HOST: It treats the world a little bit, brings everybody together for four weeks. And I love that.

KENNY SMITH, BASKETBALL ANALYST: I'm always excited to learn about the kids who will never play in the pros, who I'll never talk about again, but for two weeks, they will be on my tongue every day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:25:01] SCHOLES: And, Dave, we'll have to wait and see who will be this year's Sister Jean in Chicago Loyola And, you know, if you are filling out your brackets Sunday night into next week, this is your weekend to do your research because there are so many teams in action in those conference tournaments. You can really get some knowledge.

BRIGGS: Yes, those first couple of days of the tournament, Andy, no better days especially for us morning folks. We can just sit there and watch all those games and be unproductive. Can't wait.

Andy Scholes, thank you, my friend.

SCHOLES: All right.

BRIGGS: Jessica, what's coming up.

DEAN: Guys, thanks so much.

Beto O'Rourke ready to run for president. Can he recapture the energy from the midterms? And what does all this mean for the Democratic field?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRIGGS: Ready to run. Beto O'Rourke is about to join the 2020 race.

DEAN: A bomb cyclone makes a big mess of the Rockies. That system is moving to the East. A messy rest of the week in store.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Hopefully, they will very quickly come up with the answer. But until they do, the planes are grounded.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Concerning similarities found in data on two separate planes.

END