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Denver Mayor Responds to Trump's Sanctuary Cities Plan; Trump Tweets Advice for Boeing; Getaway Driver in Deadly Robbery Could be Granted Parole; Georgetown Students Approve Fee for Slavery Reparations. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired April 15, 2019 - 08:30   ET

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


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[08:32:43] JOHN AVLON, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump says he has a new plan for the border crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We'll bring them to sanctuary city areas and let that particular area take care of it, whether it's a state or whatever it might be. They say we have open arms. They always say they have open arms. Let's see if they have open arms.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AVLON: Joining us now to discuss that is Michael Hancock, mayor of Denver, a sanctuary city itself.

Mayor Hancock, thanks for joining us on NEW DAY.

What's your response to Donald Trump's plan?

MAYOR MICHAEL HANCOCK (D), DENVER: Glad to be with you.

Well, you know, we listened to it. We saw it. And I've got to tell you, just as all of the rhetoric around our migrants at the border and immigrants in this country, it's very disappointing. Once again the president has shown his hand, that he uses this issue as a political issue as opposed to an issue of humanity. One in which we've all approached it as an issue of humanity and compassion. And it's unfortunate that he decides to use our migrants or the migrants of this world, particularly at our southern border, as political pawns.

AVLON: But just to be clear, are you saying that you would accept any migrants who were bused to Denver as mayors of Chicago and Philadelphia have said?

HANCOCK: We've always said we will be a welcoming city for folks who are seeking asylum in our -- in our city. We recognize that many of these people, of course, are fleeing violence in their own countries. You know, we -- we have -- I've had my city attorney down at the border to look at the crises, to have conversations, to better understand what's happening at the border. And she returned back and she shared with me the story of a man who, with his wife and five children, fled Honduras after paying rent (ph) for many years. They left their home, their two cars, their pets, their clothes because they feared for their safety. And they recognized that it was either doing this amazing act to try to save his family or quite simply die there in Honduras.

And I've got to tell you, folks, this is a -- this is a question of humanity. It's a crisis in terms of what's going on in those countries. And people are seeking freedom and, quite frankly, safety. And we, as a country, this is written into who we are as a nation. And we've got to find a way to more logistically and more intelligently and with more compassion address this issue.

AVLON: So there's that -- there's that word "logistics." As a practical matter, do you have the capacity to handle the surge of migrants if they were bused by the administration up from the border into Denver?

[08:35:06] HANCOCK: Obviously there's a scale. We've got to know what this really means. And that's the one thing the president hasn't done. He's used this as a political threat, as a way to undermine really the words that we as mayors have used very sincerely and genuinely as we try to execute a city that is compassionate. And so we need to better understand what the president's talking about.

But as a city, we've always said our values is to be open, inclusive and welcoming folks who are seeking asylum in our city and to do everything we can to help them begin the process of assimilating to the United States of America.

AVLON: OK.

HANCOCK: And so we would have to understand that.

But, logistically, this doesn't seem like a very tenable strategy to be had by the White House.

AVLON: Well, there's logistics and there's legality. President Trump says he has the legal right to do this.

HANCOCK: Yes.

AVLON: Now apparently the council, the Department of Homeland Security, has disagreed with the White House. Where do you come down and what do you intend to do about it?

HANCOCK: Well, you know, here's the reality. I'm grateful for those leaders in Homeland Security who actually stood up and said, Mr. President, not only is this logistically impossible, it is -- we question the legality of this. And, you know, our city attorneys as well question the legality of this maneuver by the president.

And, in reality, is what we encourage the president to do, is to work with Congress to come up with a more sensible strategy in dealing with the migrants at the border, as well as immigrants in our country, stop this rhetoric, we're losing time, and these individuals, quite frankly, find their lives hanging in the balance. This doesn't make any sense. It defies leadership is the real reality here.

And as mayors, we can't get away with this gamesmanship that the president decides he wants to play with people's lives. We need the president, we need Congress to act a little more responsibly on this issue so that people don't have their lives hanging in the balance and cities aren't sitting there questioning what's really going to happen.

AVLON: All right, Mayor Hancock of Denver, thank you very much for joining us on NEW DAY.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: All right, so ahead, she was the getaway driver in a brazen crime that killed three people, including two police officers. And now, decades later, she's getting a chance at freedom. Will she be freed? That is next.

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[08:41:17] AVLON: It's time for "CNN Business Now."

Boeing continues to face a safety crisis as its 737 Max fleet remains grounded after two deadly crashes. Now, the president's tweeting advice to the company this morning.

CNN's chief business correspondent Christine Romans joins us now with more.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Just what every company wants to do, waking up with a tweet from the president, right? The president offering some unsolicited business advice to Boeing this morning, bright and early, tweeting, what do I know about branding, maybe nothing, but I did become president. But if I were Boeing, I would fix the Boeing 737 Max, add some additional great features and rebrand the plane with a new name. No product has suffered like this one. But, again, what the hell do I know?

Well, Boeing's crisis pushing the airlines to cancel flights into the summer -- the busy summer travel season. American Airlines extending its flight cancelations now through August 19th. About 115 flights a day will be canceled. Last week, Southwest extended its flight cancellations until August.

Boeing announced earlier this month it was cutting back production on all 737s from 52 a month to just 42.

Meanwhile, testing continues on the plane's software update. Since the Ethiopian Air crash, Boeing's stock is down 12 percent. The company's lost $24 billion from its market cap, guys.

HARLOW: Wow. Geez.

This is a herculean turnaround if they can do it, Romans.

ROMANS: Yes.

HARLOW: I know you'll stay on it.

OK, so this story now.

Judith Clark was convicted of murder in the death of -- deaths of three people, including two police officers in an armored truck robbery in 1981. Nearly 40 years later, she could be granted parole.

My friend and colleague, Jason Carroll, here with us for more.

This is quite a story.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, getting a lot of national attention. A lot of folks wondering what is going to be happening here. Whatever decision is made, it could come as early as today. Advocates for Clark says she is the model example of what rehabilitation can do for a person while in prison. But there are a number of people who say releasing her would set the wrong example.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (voice over): More than three decades, but in all that time, few here in Rockland County, located about an hour north of New York City, will ever forget what happened that violent day on October 20, 1981.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It seems like it was yesterday.

CARROLL: Back then, Michael Page was a 16-year-old teenager. His father, Peter, a Brinks security guard. His father and two Nyack police officers were killed during a robbery. The heist carried out by members of a radical anti-war group called the Weather Underground, and the Black Liberation Army. Those connected to the crime have served or are continuing to serve severe sentences, including Judith Clark, who at the time was a young mother and also a getaway driver for the robbery. Clark called herself a freedom fighter during her trial and demanded to represent herself, then refused to show up for court. A judge sentenced her to 75 years to life on felony murder charges.

But that was not the end of her story. Early in her incarceration, she was put in solitary confinement after prison authorities found letters detailing her escape plan. Now, after nearly 40 years behind bars, Clark and her supporters say she is not the woman she once was.

JUDITH CLARK, SERVING 75 YEARS TO LIFE: There have been generations of youngsters who have come in here and said, oh, well you were down with the real thing. And I'm like, nope, I was a knucklehead just like you were. I just had a different rhetoric, you know. And beware when we think that we're so right that we don't have to think about who's at the other end of our anger.

CARROLL: Clark has trained service dogs used by law enforcement, taught prenatal care and created an AIDS counseling problem while becoming a chaplain behind bars. A webpage set up by her family on her behalf lists a number of supporters, including state and local leaders who say she has been rehabilitated and should be paroled. [08:45:03] For her part, Clark says she is remorseful for the role she

played that led to the deaths of three people.

CLARK: I could use that time to begin to ask myself, who am I and what do I really feel and how in the world did I leave my 11-month-old baby in her crib and tell her I'd be back and go off and rob a Brinks truck? How did I do that?

CARROLL: In 2016, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo commuted Clark's 75 year sentence, allowing her to be eligible for parole 39 years ahead of schedule.

GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D), NEW YORK: It allows her to go before the board and make her case. And then the board, which are experts in making these determinations, will hear the case and they will decide whether or not they believe she should be released.

CARROLL: In 2017, the parole board rejected her first bid. Victims' family members say Clark should stay right where she is, behind bars. Each year since the crime, they hold a memorial service in Nyack, New York, to honor those no longer here.

MICHAEL PAIGE, SON OF SLAIN OFFICER: This is the worst day of my life. Dad, we miss you and we love you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: Well, Clark's attorneys have submitted statements from some 2,000 people who support her release, that includes religious leaders, politicians, like Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez. Her fate now rests in the hands of three people who are part of a parole panel. I spoke to a representative from corrections who has been there for many, many years. He says given this case, given its history, it's very difficult for them to predict what's going to happen next.

HARLOW: Wow, it's fascinating and important -- and important to also hear from the family members of those -- those victims.

CARROLL: They are outraged.

HARLOW: Yes. Jason, great reporting. Thank you so much.

CARROLL: Thank you.

HARLOW: Ahead, this is really fascinating, so Georgetown students are voting to create a reparations fund for the descendants of slaves sold by the school to basically pay off Georgetown's debt. Now it's up to the university if they're actually going to enforce it. That's ahead.

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[08:51:23] HARLOW: All right, welcome back to NEW DAY.

Georgetown University students are trying to institute a reparations fund for the descendants of 272 slaves that were sold by the school more than 180 years ago. They were sold in order to pay off Georgetown's debt.

With me now the women behind this, the Georgetown students who spearheaded it, Hannah Michael and Maya Moretta.

Thank you both for being here.

Look, it's remarkable what you've -- what you've done here. You had, I believe, 60 percent of those voting in favor of this, 58 percent of the student body participated in this vote.

Maya, let me begin with you.

And just tell us where the idea came from.

MAYA MORETTA, GEORGETOWN STUDENT WHO HELPED SPEARHEAD REPARATIONS EFFORTS: So the idea just came from seeing that we have abilities to (INAUDIBLE) students and we have the abilities to create change really throughout the student body with our own choices. And we realize that like if this is a priority for the student body, we should be able to implement this. And the student body really showed out and showed that this is something that they really care about.

HARLOW: So, Hannah, this is a student government bill. The payment from each student would be $27.20. Obviously a very symbolic number for those 272 slaves that were sold.

The university, though, has to sign off and has to enact this. What are the chances that happens?

HANNAH MICHAEL, GEORGETOWN STUDENT WHO HELPED SPEARHEAD REPARATIONS EFFORTS: We as student activists and all the students that voted on this referendum trust that the board of directors and the university administration will respect our commitment to the work that we're doing. We, as students, have, by voting yes, have committed to pursuing reconciliation with the senate (ph) communities and we've financially committed to this cause. And so I think that it's really up to the university to honor that commitment.

HARLOW: The university put out a statement and they said any student referendum provides a sense of the student body's views on an issue. Those referendums help express important student perspectives but do not create university policy and are not binding on the University.

What do you do, Maya, if Georgetown says no?

MORETTA: I think this is just -- it will be extremely upsetting if Georgetown said no because the student body showed what they want to spend their own money on and what they really truly care about.

And, to be honest, I think that the board of directors is going to listen to us. I think that they -- there's no ability for them to ignore such a historic vote and such a large number of turnout. And if this -- and if the board of directors decides not to go along with this, then I think there's going to be a large upset on campus. I think students are really engaged with this topic. HARLOW: Well, let me read you, Hannah, some of the pushback here.

Here's one person who talked to CNN. This is Hunter Estes (ph) writes, morally I'm opposed to mandating an entire student population to pay a compulsory fee. You can't attach a financial number to the problem of slavery. You can't say that this will account for it.

Do you think he has a point?

MICHAEL: I think -- I think that he definitely does have a point that our work is not intending to put a numerical value on the lives or legacies of slavery or of enslavement. What we're seeking to do is create a resource. And that resource needs to be funded. And that funding is coming from student fees. So the referendum creates a resource available for descendants to utilize just to start off and create the foundation for work in the future.

HARLOW: And just build on that. How would this money -- if all gets approved by the university, you have every student from now going forward, I suppose, this would start, I assume, perhaps in the fall, paying this amount. What would you do with the money?

MICHAEL: Yes. So the board, which delegates the money, is -- consists of five students and five descendants that would be democratically elected. And those ten people together would come together and determine how to create a project and a proposal process that is accessible and useful to descendant communities and then would work with communities to determine what projects or initiatives communities felt were most relevant to them.

[08:55:17] HARLOW: Maya, one thing I find really interesting is sort of the parallel here to the national conversation on reparations. We just had Senator Cory Booker on from New Jersey who, of course, is a 2020 contender, whose has put forth legislation for discussion on the national level about reparations for all descendants of slaves in America.

Is your hope here not only to deal with your university's history, but America's history?

MORETTA: I think that honestly we -- when we were coming up with this idea, we really just wanted to focus on our own -- or the descendants that were -- that we could aid and that like we could really pay back. But I also do think this is an amazing opportunity for other university to get involved, for other universities to take responsibility for their own history and for other students to really take responsibility for the privilege that they gain because of the oppression of other people. But if this does become a national conversation, it would be amazing for this to be the first step.

HARLOW: We appreciate you both being with us. Please, let us know what happens. Come back on the program. We'll see what the university decides. Appreciate it very much. Maya and Hannah, thanks.

MORETTA: Thank you so much for having us.

MICHAEL: Thank you. HARLOW: All right, it's really interesting, right?

AVLON: Fascinating.

HARLOW: We'll see what Georgetown does.

AVLON: It's such a key conversation to have.

HARLOW: Yes.

AVLON: So many implications as we deal with (INAUDIBLE).

HARLOW: All right, good to be with you, Avlon.

AVLON: So much fun.

HARLOW: We'll see you back here.

"NEWSROOM" with Ana Cabrera picks up after this.

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