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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Trump Says GOP Will be Party of Healthcare; Twitter to Label Tweets that Violate Rules, Including Trump's; United Kingdom Deadlocked Over Brexit; Aired 4-4:30a ET
Aired March 28, 2019 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:19] DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: The White House is scrambling to get a healthcare plan ready for Congress. Republicans bewildered after the president re-launched a battle that cost them the House.
JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: Twitter with a major policy shift. Offensive tweets from officials including the president will be annotated by the tech giant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our new Attorney General Bill Barr -- had he been there initially this all would have not have happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: The president all but admitting he wanted control of the Russia investigation from the start. Democratic calls are growing for Robert Mueller to testify.
DEAN: And another bizarre turn for Jussie Smollett. The files in his case are released before then being resealed.
Good morning, everyone, and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Jessica Dean.
BRIGGS: Good to see you, my friend.
DEAN: Hi.
BRIGGS: Good to have you back.
DEAN. Thanks.
BRIGGS: Romans will be back next week. A lot of questions on that Jussie Smollett story.
DEAN: Yes.
BRIGGS: We're still confused. I'm Dave Briggs. Thursday, March 28th, 4:00 a.m. in the East. Somebody is three quarters of a billion dollars richer after the Powerball jackpot -- neither of us.
DEAN: It's pretty good news. It's not us. BRIGGS: All right. We start in the nation's capital where even
Republicans appear bewildered by President Trump's promise to make the GOP, quote, "the party of healthcare." Deep divisions over the Affordable Care Act that bogged down the party two years ago remain. And according to Axios, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told the president the decision to renew efforts to kill Obamacare made no sense, especially after Democrats routed the Republicans in the midterms in part over that issue of preexisting conditions.
DEAN: Right now the White House has no plan for replacing the Affordable Care Act if a decision by a Texas judge to strike down that law is upheld. But the administration insists there will be one.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARC SHORT, CHIEF OF STAFF TO VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE: The president will be putting forward plans this year that we hope to introduce into Congress, Wolf. But the reality is that the court decision is likely not until the summer of 2020 by the time it would reach the Supreme Court.
We don't know how they would rule. The president has said repeatedly he would not sign any law unless it protected preexisting conditions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: And President Trump has repeatedly promised protections for preexisting conditions but keeps backing plans that would eliminate them.
Overnight the president's tweets with Twitter's input a major shift for the social media. Twitter will start labeling tweets from officials that violate its rules. Twitter's head of legal policy appeared at a "Washington Post" sponsored event in San Francisco. The social media giant is still refusing to remove President Trump's more questionable tweets if you will saying they are in the public interests. But next time the president sends an offensive tweet, it might be accompanied by a note providing more information.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VIJAYA GADDE, TWITTER'S HEAD OF LEGAL POLICY: There are other types of content that we believe have -- are newsworthy or in the public interest that people may want to have a conversation around. But today when we leave that content on a platform, there's no context around that, and it just lives on Twitter and people can see it, and they just assume that that's the type of content or behavior that's allowed by our rules.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even though your rules say no bullying.
GADDE: Exactly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: Twitter will still remove tweets from anyone with violent or threatening content. The president regularly uses the platform to attack political enemies, even sharing images of his foes behind bars. The president has also gone after big tech itself, claiming it favors Democrats.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I'm able to get the word out through my social media because I have great social media. But I'll tell you, it's much tougher than it should be. I deal with Twitter. It's not right the way they do it. And it seems to be if they're conservative, if they're Republicans, if they're in a certain group there's discrimination, a big discrimination.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: And there are growing concerns the president's Twitter behavior has influenced politicians on the local and state levels as well as abroad.
BRIGGS: President Trump heading to Grand Rapids, Michigan, tonight for his first campaign rally since the Mueller probe wrapped up. The president has already given his first TV interview since Attorney General Bill Barr delivered his four-page summary. Barr effectively clearing the president of collusion but not on obstruction.
In the interview on FOX News naturally the president railed against the Mueller probe calling it an attempted takeover of our government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Our new Attorney General Bill Barr is a great gentleman. And I've heard about him for years. He's a great -- he's a great man. Had he been there initially, this all would not have happened because what's gone on there is just a disgrace to our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[04:05:01] DEAN: The president says if he'd made Barr his first attorney general instead of Jeff Sessions, there would be no Mueller report. As much as admitting he wanted to control the Russia investigation. In fact, the Mueller probe started partly because Mr. Trump fired the first person investigating Russia collusion James Comey. The former FBI director yesterday weighed in on Robert Mueller's decision to punt on the obstruction question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES COMEY, FORMER DIRECTOR, FBI: The obstruction piece confuses me. The purpose of a special counsel is to make sure that the politicals, in this case the attorney general, doesn't make the ultimate call on whether the subject of the investigation, the president of the United States, should be held criminally liable for activities that were under investigation. And so the idea that the special counsel wouldn't reach the question and hand it to the political leadership doesn't make sense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff sticking to his claim there is evidence of collusion even if Mueller could not prove the crime of conspiracy.
Schiff is not backing off his investigation, but he says he is in a holding pattern until more is learned about what the special counsel uncovered. Schiff wants to hear from Bob Mueller himself.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D), CHAIRMAN, INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: He is going to have to come in and testify. At what point that takes place, whether that's before or after we get the report or the underlying evidence may depend on how much Bill Barr stalls in providing that report to the public.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: On that point House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler says Barr will not commit to releasing the full Mueller report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JERRY NADLER (D), CHAIRMAN, JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: I'm most concerned that when I asked whether he could commit that the American people and the Congress would see the entire unredacted report and the underlying evidence, he would not make a commitment on that. And that is not acceptable.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: House Democrats have set an April 2nd deadline for Attorney General Barr to release the report and Mueller's underlying evidence.
BRIGGS: Senator Cory Booker trying to sell voters on the idea he is the candidate that can beat President Trump. During a CNN town hall event last night, Booker criticized the president's policies and personal attacks. He also challenged fellow Democrats on the issue of reparations or compensation in some form for the descendants of slaves.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CORY BOOKER (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Can I tell you why I'm frustrated and disappointed by this reparation conversation? It's because it's being reduced to just a box to check on a presidential list. When this is so much more of a serious conversation. I've got the only legislation I think in the entire Congress that Columbia University says would virtually eliminate the racial wealth gap in our country. Something called baby bonds, which means that every child born in America would get a bond when they're birthed, $2,000 placed in it, and during the time every year of their life, depending on their family's income, they would have more money placed in it.
(END VIDEO CLIP) DEAN: The 2020 presidential hopeful pumped the breaks on impeachment talk and said -- Booker says President Trump will be sent packing from the White House through the electoral process.
And a 2020 note for you, a new candidate will enter the race today. Who is it? Find out this morning live on "NEW DAY."
BRIGGS: You have me intrigued, Jessica Dean. OK. The case of "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett going from surprising to flat-out bizarre. The Illinois attorney general has been asked to review the handling of the case. Illinois House Republican leader Jim Durkin tells the "Chicago Sun-Times" as a former Cook County assistant state's attorney he's concerned about the integrity of the investigation.
DEAN: Prosecutors this week abruptly dropped charges that Smollett allegedly plotted a bogus attack on himself. He was let off despite video evidence showing his attackers buying materials that Smollett gave them cash for. On Wednesday the Chicago Police Department released a portion of Smollett's investigation reports before being advised a court order actually prohibited that release.
BRIGGS: Cook County state's attorney Kim Foxx claims clerks made a mistake sealing the case even though the prosecutor in court did not object when Smollett's lawyers asked for the record to be sealed. Foxx had recused herself from the case and says she believes her office could have obtained a conviction against Smollett. Still she defends her office's decision to drop the charges.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIM FOXX, COOK COUNTY STATE'S ATTORNEY: The likelihood that someone would get a precedent sentence for a class four felony is slim. I don't want people to believe that there are two measures of justice for the privileged and those without. Once the rhetoric and the emotions stop, we will stand by our record.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has called the decision a whitewash of justice.
DEAN: Breaking overnight a shooting rampage in Seattle leaving two people dead and two others critically wounded. Seattle Police describe the killings as a random senseless act.
[04:10:01] The incident unfolded when a gunman tried to carjack a woman. She was shot and is now in critical condition. The gunman then set his sights on a crowded bus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARC GARTH GREEN, SEATTLE DEPUTY POLICE CHIEF: The suspect then opened fire on the metro bus striking the driver. The driver was able to back the bus up and turn it around and get it out of the area where it is currently where you see it right now, to a safe area, where we're able to get aid to him and the passengers on the bus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Police say the gunman then carjacked another car, shooting and killing the 50-year-old driver. A high speed police chase then ensued. The suspect colliding with another car killing the 70-year- old driver. After a brief standoff, officers took the suspect into custody.
DEAN: A South Carolina fifth grader is dead after being injured in a school fight. Paramedics found Raniya Wright unconscious in the nurse's station at Forest Hills Elementary in Walterboro. She was airlifted to a medical center in Charleston where she died two days later. A special ed teacher at the school says bullying has been an issue.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My child personally went through it on two different occasions to one point where she had to switch schools. Being an educator, I think our students should be put first in all situations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: A student has been suspended while an investigation is under way. It's unclear whether that student was involved in the fight.
BRIGGS: Somebody in Wisconsin has a lot of extra cheddar this morning. The one jackpot winning ticket in Wednesday's $768 million Powerball drawing was sold in Wisconsin. The jackpot is the third largest in U.S. history and Powerball's second biggest ever. Those winning numbers 16, 20, 37, 44, 62, and the Powerball 12.
If you are the winner, please call us.
(LAUGHTER)
DEAN: Yes.
BRIGGS: For everyone else who missed the Powerball there is Mega Millions tomorrow night. The jackpot a paltry $75 million.
DEAN: Just 75.
BRIGGS: Enough to get by, though. Enough to make ends meet.
DEAN: Yes, I feel like we could all do fine with that.
BRIGGS: Ahead, no deal times eight. British lawmakers cannot agree on a Brexit plan even as the prime minister says she will quit just to get the job done. We're live in London.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) [04:16:14] JOHN BERCOW, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS: Order. Order. I said order. I'm finishing. Order.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIGGS: Anything but order. The United Kingdom hopelessly deadlocked over Brexit. Lawmakers failing to agree at an alternative to the plan being pitched by Theresa May. The prime minister even offering to resign in a desperate attempt to save her deal.
So what in the world happens now? Let's go to 10 Downing Street live in London.
Nic Robertson, you certainly have the answer, right, sir? And how does Theresa May quitting help reach a deal?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Of course I have the answer. I've been sitting on it for a while and I've just been waiting for parliament to figure it out. I mean you heard it there.
(LAUGHTER)
BRIGGS: Yes.
ROBERTSON: It sounds like they're having a hilarious time. They're not. I mean, this is a country in a terrible, terrible state of crisis. You know, eight votes there they had last night that we could try to give an idea of which was the best way forward, which way would MPs most agree on and the bottom line was every single one of those eight options was all voted town.
The prime minister has offered to resign. She's offered to let a new leader of the Conservative Party a new prime minister lead the country in the next phase of the Brexit negotiations. But we're not even at that point yet. Today we just don't know what is coming next. The MPs who had those votes yesterday think that they might get a second shot at it to get some more clarity on Monday and we're waiting to find out today if the prime minister is going to try to have another what they call meaningful vote on the withdrawal agreement that she has carved up with the European Union.
Those already lost horrendously badly twice already. She still doesn't have the support to get it through. The most important political ally she needs, the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland, are refusing to come on board and some of her own hard line party members are saying that they won't do it, too.
It just isn't clear and that's the reality of where we are now.
DEAN: Wow.
BRIGGS: What a mess. It's just hard to imagine resigning and then letting disorder be your legacy. But there is a lot of questions ahead.
Nic Robertson, thank you, sir. We'll check back with you next half hour.
DEAN: Five confirmed cholera cases have been reported in Beira, Mozambique two weeks after cyclone Idai ravaged the South African country. 1900 malaria cases are also being reported there. The death toll from Idai now stands at 468 in Mozambique with more than 1500 injured. In Zimbabwe, 172 people are dead and 56 fatalities are being reported in Malawi. Hundreds of thousands of people have been affected and the death toll is expected to rise as recovery crews do their work.
BRIGGS: There's some gruesome details as you read more about the story.
DEAN: Just awful. Yes.
BRIGGS: It's going to get worse.
Ahead two college students and their parents now suing. They say top colleges passed on them to accept bribes from others.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:23:39] DEAN: More fallout from the college admissions scandal. Two students and their parents filing a class action complaint because they did not get into -- get accepted into the schools of their choice. The lawsuit targets the alleged mastermind of the scene, Rick Singer and several universities including USC, Stanford, Yale and Georgetown.
BRIGGS: The complaint alleges unqualified students found their way into the admissions rolls of highly selective universities while those students who played by the rules and did not have college bribing parents were denied admission. It goes on to say had the families known this is the system was rigged, they would not have spent the money to apply.
DEAN: For the first time in more than two decades, the FDA is proposing new guidelines to modernize breast cancer screenings. All women in the U.S. getting mammograms would receive information about breast density. Dense tissue can obscure signs of breast cancer. The FDA has also proposed expanding the categories used to classify mammography findings. This should help screen facilities to more precisely classified those findings, and we'll help patients and care providers make more informed decisions after receiving mammogram results?
BRIGGS: McDonald's will no longer pay lobbyist to fight minimum wage hikes. In a letter to the National Restaurant Association the company says it believes pay increases should be phased in.
[04:25:03] The average starting salary for employees at corporate owned stores is above $10 an hour. And workers are hard to find for low-paying jobs in a labor market with an unemployment rate below 4 percent. McDonald's has been a target for groups fighting to raise the minimum wage nationwide. A California woman has been rewarded $150,000 in child support nearly
50 years after her divorce. Toni Anderson married Don Lenhart in 1966 but they split two years later. A judge ordered him to pay child support for their then 3-year-old daughter but he never did. The 74- year-old Anderson says last year she had a life changing realization that there is no statute of limitations for child support in California, so she Googled her ex-husband, found him living in Oregon with a big house and a boat. Anderson filed a motion for the unpaid child support and a judge granted her request.
DEAN: It is a stunningly beautiful home in the south of France and a court says it must be destroyed. The owner custom built the chateau worth $64 million transforming it into a Tuscan style property with a pool, gardens and two helipads. The court says it was built without permission, though on a protected site, and must be demolished in the next 18 months.
The owner was also cited for having loud parties and events. He now has until March 30th to appeal the court's decision.
BRIGGS: Did you miss the ostrich there? The pool sized --
DEAN: I'm sad that I miss the ostrich.
BRIGGS: -- stuffed ostrich?
DEAN: You think that's got to go, too.
BRIGGS: I think there's nothing exorbitant about that. They must save the ostrich. They can destroy the place.
DEAN: The two helipads?
BRIGGS: Keep the ostrich.
DEAN: OK.
BRIGGS: OK. That's all I'm saying.
All right, ahead, the president's Twitter account, his megaphone, will start coming with notes from the tech giant Twitter. They will weigh in offensive tweets from our officials.
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