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New Day
Mother Warned Before Colorado Attack; More Rain for Texas; Pennsylvania Voters on 2020 Candidates; Presidential Candidates Take on Gun Control; Sixers and Blazers Fight Back from the Brink. Aired 6:30-7a ET
Aired May 10, 2019 - 06:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:31:45] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: OK, now to this important update.
Months before the deadly shooting at the STEM school in Colorado this week, the school board asked for an investigation after a complaint from an anonymous parent who said she was afraid, quote, another Columbine would happen.
Now, for the first time, that parent speaks out exclusively with CNN.
Scott McLean is live at the courthouse where the suspects will appear today with this exclusive.
Scott?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Alisyn.
The suspects were just 16 and 18 years old. They will be in court later this afternoon for their second appearance.
The woman you're about to hear from, though, says she is the parent who complained about what she calls pressure-cooker conditions inside that school. Now, she wants to remain anonymous because she's fearful of retaliation, but CNN has confirmed she does have a student inside the school. And she also knew details about the allegation. She speaks of kids who had rigorous academic programs, little sleep and started acting out in aggressiveness. She also talks about attempted suicide, having to -- or teachers having to intervene in fights and she says that she feared that it would all end with someone getting seriously hurt or even killed.
Listen.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It looks like, to me, that there were a potential for having another Arapahoe or Columbine shooting. And I was seriously concerned about it. When -- when you mix not reaching out, when you mix a pressure cooker environment where students are stressed out and overworked and they don't get enough sleep and they feel suicidal or they feel aggressive towards one another and they're not being disciplined for it, when you don't listen to parent's concerns, when you don't support teacher's concerns, when you don't give teachers the kind of training that they need or the support that they need, those are the elements that we need for the perfect storm for something like a Columbine or, you know, some kind of imminent threat to our children's safety in the school, whether it be a bomb or an active shooter or a suicide.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLEAN: Now, this Jane Doe says that teachers were well intentioned. But there was this pervasive culture of polarization where school administrators weren't listening to teachers or parents, Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: That's a problem, Scott. So what does the school have to say about this?
MCLEAN: Yes, so the executive director of this school got in touch with CNN, or responded to CNN through a PR firm, and said that the school found no evidence to support the allegations being made by this parent, writing in a statement, like any school with more than 1,800 students, we receive complaints, all of which we take seriously and investigate promptly.
I should also mention, though, that in response to this woman's complaint, the school actually filed a defamation lawsuit against her back in January.
Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: OK. That's good -- that's an interesting part to know about this.
So, please, keep us posted when you find out more about that investigation,
Scott McLean, thank you very much.
John.
BERMAN: All right, schools are closed today in the Houston metro area as severe flooding grips that region. More rain is expected this weekend.
[06:35:03] Our meteorologist Chad Myers has the forecast.
Chad.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: And that rain, John, happened overnight, when it's difficult to see flooding and you're driving around and there were stranded motorists. Over 100,000 people, still without power down there.
Heavy rainfall all along the Gulf Coast, zooming you right in here, right through Houston, the same place that had all of that rain just a couple of days ago. This weather is brought to you by the Shark self-cleaning brush roll,
the vacuum that deep cleans, now cleans itself.
Back to the maps we go. Here comes the rainfall for the rest of the day, moving out toward Lake Charles and Baton Rouge. You had a lot in rain in Baton Rouge overnight. More flooding still possible today. Another one to two inches of rain today. Not the six inches that they picked up overnight. But, still, the rain coming down. For tomorrow, a little bit farther to the east and the northeast.
Here goes the rain for today. Finally, off toward Florida, but more showers popping up in the flooded areas. That is simply the problem.
And here comes the rainfall for the rest of the week.
For your Mother's Day, Alisyn, over 52 with a little bit of sunshine for you. A pleasant day, though, today. No so nice even on Monday. So enjoy your Mother's Day and happy to you.
CAMEROTA: Thank you very much. I will do so.
All right, there are 21 Democrats running for president. Do voters find that overwhelming?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAMEROTA: Do any of you, show of hands, feel that there are so many candidates that it sort of muddles the field?
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CAMEROTA: Their response, next.
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[06:40:53] CAMEROTA: OK, now for part two of our Pennsylvania voter panel. I sat down with five politically active Democrats and one independent, some of whom volunteered on previous campaigns, to find out how they're feeling about the current Democratic field. And we started with an exercise to see how many of the 21 candidates they can name.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAMEROTA: There are so many Democratic candidates, let's go around and see how far we can get with you naming a candidate.
Alex, name a candidate
ALEX LUDY, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Elizabeth Warren.
SHEILA THOMAS, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Obviously, Bernie Sanders.
PAT FLANNIGAN, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Harris.
BEN MEDINA, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Beto O'Rourke. JESSICA WOLFE, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Joe Biden.
NASYA JENKINS, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: I feel ashamed because I don't know this man's name, but I know -- like, I see his face in my head.
CAMEROTA: Describe him.
JENKINS: He's running. He's Jamaican. He is --
FLANNIGAN: Booker?
WOLF: Meran (ph)?
JENKINS: Yes.
Sorry.
CAMEROTA: Wayne Messam?
JENKINS: Yes.
CAMEROTA: You mean Wayne Messam?
JENKINS: Yes.
CAMEROTA: OK. That's all right. We can do charades, then come up with the name. You could do charades. OK, good, so we're at six.
Go ahead.
LUDY: Hickenlooper.
THOMAS: Julian Castro, right?
FLANNIGAN: Booker.
THOMAS: We've got a lot more, guys.
MEDINA: There's a, Amy.
CAMEROTA: Amy. You're just going with Amy?
FLANNIGAN: Amy Klobuchar.
CAMEROTA: Amy Klobuchar.
MEDINA: Yes.
CAMEROTA: That was good.
I see some -- I see some sharing of notes up here, but I like it. That's fine. We'll allow that.
OK, Amy Klobuchar. Go ahead.
WOLFE: Tulsi from Hawaii CAMEROTA: Tulsi Gabbard. OK.
Congressman Eric Swalwell. Anybody know about him?
FLANNIGAN: Jay Inslee.
THOMAS: And then there's also Tim Ryan, too.
CAMEROTA: Right. Well played
FLANNIGAN: Did you say Mayor Pete?
CAMEROTA: So what took you guys so long to say Mayor Pete Buttigieg? He's such a -- considered such a rising star.
LUDY: I think he's a great personality. I think he's a great person to connect with voters all over. But I just don't know if a lot of people really think he's necessarily ready to be president.
WOLFE: Someone online said that Mayor Pete didn't have any plans. And I thought, well, you're just being lazy. Like, go on the man's website if you want to know what his plans are. And so I went to his website and he literally does not have any policies listed on his website.
CAMEROTA: He has said that it's early days and that what he first wanted to do is introduce himself to the country and then he will come up with policies. But you're ready, you're saying, for policies now?
WOLFE: Yes, I think that because there are so many people to -- you know what I mean, to distinguish yourself, you have -- you have to at least have some like basic construct.
CAMEROTA: Do any of you, show of hands, feel that there are so many candidates that it sort of muddles the field?
JENKINS: I don't find it as a liability. I feel like it's a really good thing to have a lot of candidates to choose from.
THOMAS: We've got one of the best fields out there --
CAMEROTA: Yes.
THOMAS: Because we represent the people of the country.
CAMEROTA: How many of you feel confident today that a Democrat will win in 2020? Hmm. Why are you so confident?
MEDINA: After seeing what he has done in the United States and how divided is the country, I know a Democrat is going to win. We have to -- we have to win. I don't know how, but we have to win
WOLFE: 2016 has really ignited an activist base within the party that I have not seen before. And I've had people say, you know, I don't like Biden, but I'll vote for a ham sandwich over Donald Trump. So I'm voting for the Democratic nominee, whoever it is. Blue no matter who.
CAMEROTA: Pat, why weren't you confident?
FLANNIGAN: I think you have to look at whatever Trump does, his core base digs in and gets stronger. He can say some really questionable things, take some really questionable actions and his core base says, OK, we're still with him. It hasn't seemed to waiver at all.
THOMAS: And that's why it's really important who we pick to be the top of the ticket. I still don't know if the country's ready for a woman. We want to think they are, but I'm not convinced that -- that --
MEDINA: (INAUDIBLE) is going to be ready. Now we have to make it ready (ph).
JENKINS: And who's to say a woman doesn't have the capability to change -- change all these things?
MEDINA: We need something different. It's time for a woman to run this country.
JENKINS: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
MEDINA: Why not? I mean, I'm a man, but I support women 100 percent.
WOLFE: I want a woman president more than anything else in this world. When I was a little girl, I wanted to be the first woman president. And so, you know, when people were like, you know, asked me, they said, well, why aren't you, you know, like going all in for a woman president this time? And I'm like, because like I cannot afford four more years of Donald Trump. So, do I want a woman president? Yes. Do I feel that the country is going to be able to push through all of the misogyny and the racism and all of the craziness that we've been dealing with, all of this, in the next 18 months to elect a woman? No. I need -- I need somebody that can get out there that can beat Donald Trump. It's just that important to me that I am willing to sacrifice four more years of what I want more than anything else to get it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[06:45:33] BERMAN: That is so fascinating to hear that articulated so clearly.
And when I talk to strategists doing focus groups out in the country, this is not deeply underneath the surface. It's right up on the top. Women voters, Democratic women voters expressing this anxiety. It's a really fertile ground for discussion.
CAMEROTA: I agree. And it's not that they don't believe in women. They do believe in women. And as you heard, they want it more than anything. It's that they feel they've been burned. They've been burned and they don't want to be burned again and they're willing to postpone what they want most in the world for four more years to make sure they're not burned.
BERMAN: I hope we get a chance to talk about this issue much more in the coming week. I think it's fascinating. Number two, if you had Wayne Messam being mentioned in the list of Democratic candidates before Amy Klobuchar, Pete Buttigieg, Kirsten Gillibrand, wow.
CAMEROTA: It was just interesting. It was interesting -- it's always interesting to take the pulse of the people because it's always surprising.
BERMAN: All right, speaking of the Democratic field. One subject that is now front and center in the race in the wake of more and more school shootings -- guns. We have some new moves by the leading contenders overnight. That's next.
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[06:50:19] BERMAN: In the wake of so many school shootings, gun control is a major issue in the 2020 race. Democratic candidate Cory Booker just unveiled his plan to fight the violence. But he's not the only candidate talking about guns.
CNN's Rebecca Buck has the very latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm afraid that one day I'll go to school and I'll never come out. I'm sorry.
REBECCA BUCK, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER (voice over): A student and a mother.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's devastating that my six-year-old had to be taught how to hide and stay quiet in case someone came to her school to shoot people.
BUCK: Both brought to tears by gun violence in America and looking to 2020 Democratic candidates for answers.
SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am tired of going to funerals where parents are burying their children.
We are going to bring a fight like the NRA has never seen if they're going to defend corporate gun manufacturers more than represent the people.
BUCK: Senator Cory Booker this week laying out a sweeping gun reform plan, a 14-point approach that would expand background checks, close loopholes and ban assault weapons. As just as drivers need a license, Booker thinks gun owners should, too, a process that would require fingerprints, an interview and completion of a gun safety course.
BOOKER: Enough is enough. I will not only lead this fight, but we will win this fight.
BUCK: Not long ago, candidates would have shied away from this fight, lest they risk alienating rural voters, or incurring the wrath of the NRA. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She'd leave you defenseless.
BUCK: But that's been changing. Now Democrats aren't just talking about gun control --
SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We need reasonable gun safety laws in this country.
BUCK: But putting it front and center.
REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will be the first campaign to make ending gun violence the top priority in my campaign.
BUCK: It's a welcome change for Kris Brown, president of the gun reform advocacy group Brady.
KRIS BROWN, PRESIDENT, BRADY: The new normal absolutely is the presidential candidates on the Democratic side in this particular race actually really thinking thoughtfully about what the right solutions are and laying claim to those solutions.
BUCK: In a recent CNN poll, 65 percent of Democratic voters said it's very important that the Democratic nominee supports executive action for stricter gun laws, ranking the issue third behind climate change and Medicare for all.
Activists say the mass shooting last year at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, marked a turning point in the national debate.
BROWN: That ignited something in this country. Not just in Parkland, not just in Florida, it sparked a nationwide movement of youth who were active on this issue, who voted on this issue, and they still care passionately about this issue. And so do their families.
BUCK: Those voters helped sweep Democrats to victory in 2018, like Lucy McBath, who ran on gun reform in suburban Atlanta and won. A blueprint Democrats believe for doing the same at the presidential level.
BOOKER: I'm running for president for many reasons. This is one. And we will get it done. We will get it done.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BUCK: Now, there still isn't consensus among the Democratic primary field on the issue of gun reform. Last night, Beto O'Rourke, in New Hampshire, said he believes Booker's plan to license gun owners may go too far.
Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: Rebecca Buck, thank you very much for all of that reporting.
So, President Trump hikes tariffs on Chinese imports again. China is now threatening to retaliate against this. So we have the latest on the escalating trade war, next.
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[06:58:16] BERMAN: NBA teams live to play another game -- day, I should say, setting up two game sevens in the playoffs.
Coy Wire has more in the "Bleacher Report."
Hey, Coy.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, John.
Whether it's the Super Bowl 51 champs or Rocky Balboa, Philly loves an underdog. And the Sixers embraced that role in a do or die game six hosting Toronto. Chris Long and Lane Johnson, members of that Eagles Super Bowl team breaking out the underdog masks they made them famous -- they made famous, ringing that ceremonial Liberty Bell before the game. And the Sixers, they answered that bell.
Jimmy Butler, Ben Simmons both stepping up big time after struggling in Philly's back-to-back losses to the Raptors. They combined for 46 points in a 112-101 win, forcing a winner take all game seven on Sunday in Toronto.
Portland's four-time all-star Damian Lillard is being called low go lizard on "Bleacher Report." Why? Shots like this from way downtown nearly touching the half court logo. Lillard drops three at a game high, 32 on Denver. Blazers on the break of elimination. Fourth quarter. Denver's Will Barton puts a finger in Seth Curry's face. Mosh pit in Portland. They were -- weren't going to let the Nuggets come into their house and shove them around. Blazers win 119-108 to force a juicy game seven back in Denver on Sunday.
Alisyn, John, back to you.
BERMAN: All right, Coy, thanks very much.
CAMEROTA: Thank you very much, Coy.
BERMAN: I will note, you omitted the Bruins victory in game one of the hockey playoffs last night.
CAMEROTA: Didn't we talk enough about that yesterday?
BERMAN: Barely. It's -- there's a blackout. There's a Bruins blackout for some reason on this network.
CAMEROTA: Thank you very much to our international viewers for watching despite the Bruins blackout.
BERMAN: You'll get no news on the Bruins.
CAMEROTA: Well, for you, CNN "TALK" is next. And for our U.S. viewers, America's escalating trade war with China. NEW DAY continues right now.
[07:00:02] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: U.S. tariffs have kicked in. China will retaliate.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: China has a high degree of national resolve.
END
