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New Day
Opening Statements Begin Today in Derek Chauvin Murder Trial; White House Expected To Announce First Infrastructure Proposal This Week; 114 Killed In Myanmar On Bloodiest Day Of Military Coup. Aired 7:30-8a ET
Aired March 29, 2021 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[07:30:00]
LT. GOV. GEOFF DUNCAN (R-GA): The interesting thing at the state level -- and I think not only Georgia but other states are like this -- we get along in a bipartisan format a lot better than Washington, D.C. does, and I want to get back to that.
We have two important days, we've got a strong economy. We've got a budget that's expanding because we have folks working here in Georgia. These are the real issues that I think an overwhelming majority of Americans want us to tackle and I'm anxious to get through this and get back to work.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, we always appreciate you tackling all of this with us. Thanks so much for being on.
DUNCAN: Thanks, Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: Minneapolis is on edge this morning as the Derek Chauvin murder trial gets underway just hours from now. So what should we expect on day one? We have a live report from the scene, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAMEROTA: The trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin begins this morning. Chauvin is charged with the murder of George Floyd.
CNN's Omar Jimenez is live in Minneapolis with more. So what are we expecting, Omar?
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alisyn, despite all the pressures on this trial leading up to this point, the only thing that matters at this point is what happens within the walls of that courtroom.
[07:35:04]
Now, based on previous court filings, the defense will likely argue that Chauvin's actions were within police policy and that he did not intend to harm George Floyd, while prosecutors are going to have to prove behind a reasonable doubt that Chauvin's actions caused Floyd's death. Now, as a reminder, Chauvin has pleaded not guilty to the charges he faces. That's second-degree unintentional murder, second-degree manslaughter, and third-degree murder.
As the trial moves forward, witnesses will be called by prosecutors and the defense. And among what we know will be talked about at some point is a portion of the 2019 George Floyd arrest where we're expecting to hear from a paramedic about why they chose to send him to the hospital that day instead of jail after what the judge, in this case, deemed as a similar police interaction to May of 2020.
And throughout all of this, outside of the courtroom we have seen protests, all of them peaceful up until this point, including over the course of Sunday, including a vigil with the family of George Floyd. And later this morning we're going to add to that. We're going to see a silent protest -- a silent kneeling protest, I should say, representing the amount of time Chauvin's knee was on George Floyd's neck.
Court gets into session at 10:00 a.m. eastern time with opening statements shortly after that. The trial is expected to last up to four weeks. All the while, a city, a family, a movement watches anxiously to see what criminal accountability looks like in the death of George Floyd -- Alisyn.
JOHN AVLON, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you, Omar. The country is watching anxiously, to be sure.
Joining me now, Cedric Alexander. He's the former president of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. Also with us, CNN political commentator, Bakari Sellers. He's the author of "My Vanishing Country."
Bakari, I want to begin with you -- you are a lawyer. And I want to play for you something that Ben Crump just said on the "TODAY" show about what's he's expecting to hear from the defense in this trial.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN CRUMP, GEORGE FLOYD FAMILY ATTORNEY: Just the same old playbook, Craig. They're going to try to assassinate his character. To say that they found a trace amount of drugs in his system is just a distraction because George Floyd was breathing, walking, talking just fine until Derek Chauvin put his face down with his knee on his neck. The thing that killed George Floyd was an overdose of excessive force.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AVLON: Is that the kind of ugly attack you're expecting to hear from the defense?
BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, AUTHOR, "MY VANISHING COUNTRY": Yes. I mean, I think that the defense is going to throw everything they possibly can. And one of the things that we're going to watch this week is the defense is going to try to make this the trial of George Floyd, not the trial of Derek Chauvin. So there are two things.
One, I think they're going to put the record -- I think they're going to put the drug use or whatever they may find on the record. They're going to try to put that on trial first.
But second, they are also going to try -- and Omar brought this up -- they're going to try to hammer intent. I mean, that's the biggest thing that they're going to have in this trial. They're going to say that he acted within the bounds -- Derek Chauvin acted within the bounds of police, but he also didn't have any intent. My pushback against that is that may have been the case for the first 30 seconds or the first minute, but minute two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight shows that you did have some intent to kill this man.
And so, that's going to be the tug that you see all week. And at the end of the week or at the end of this trial we'll see how justice plays out.
AVLON: Mr. Alexander, you know, the whole country -- the world watched that video and it's one of the things that raises the stakes and makes it so indelible -- what we've all seen with our own eyes.
From your experience, how quickly do you expect the prosecution to play that video, given the opening arguments are today?
CEDRIC ALEXANDER, FORMER PRESIDENT, NATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF BLACK LAW ENFORCEMENT EXECUTIVES, FORMER PUBLIC SAFETY DIRECTOR, DEKALB COUNTY, GEORGIA: Well, first of all, let me indicate I'm not an attorney so I really don't know when they may introduce that.
But at any point, whether it's in the beginning, in the middle, or in the end, here is what's important. People will see what's in front of them. And it's very, very hard to deny what people are witnessing and we have been witnessing for a very, very long time.
So I think, in many ways, the video speaks for itself. It is shameful. Of course, it is embarrassing to the law enforcement profession, having been a 40-year veteran myself, and one that is very clearly something is seriously, seriously wrong here and there has to be justice and accountability for it.
And now, this trial is just not going to take place in this country. People around the world are going to be watching.
SELLERS: Right.
AVLON: The world is watching.
And Bakari, one of the questions I've got is this jury, it is a notably young jury. It is more diverse than Hennepin County as a percentage basis and we'll see what kind of impact that has.
But I don't know if the folks appreciate that this needs to be a unanimous verdict. And what danger does that lay out for you in terms of the stakes and the possibility of a hung jury and what that would do to the city, and state, and country watching so closely?
[07:40:15]
SELLERS: Well, first of all, anything less than a murder conviction -- and I know that I'm setting the bar extremely high, but anything less than a murder conviction for this prosecution, in my eyes and the eyes of the world I believe, will be found as less than justice.
George Floyd's family, George Floyd deserves to have justice in this matter and that's a conviction for murder because we've all seen this with our own eyes. And so, that's first.
But as a defense attorney myself and knowing what they're going to attempt to do going in -- I mean, they're going to raise this in their opening statement that beyond a reasonable doubt is the highest standard in the land.
You can't have a feeling in your stomach that he may be guilty. You can't go out there and say that it's probable that he's guilty. You can't go out there and say that he may be guilty. You have to have a belief beyond a reasonable doubt that he is guilty. That's an extremely high standard and it has to be unanimous.
And so, you go back, John -- and you brought up one of the most fundamental tenets of our democracy -- something that's not talked about a lot, which is jury duty. So to all the Black folk that are watching this show this morning, not only go out and register to vote but go out and participate in your juries. I mean, that is the -- that is a part of your duty, just as important as voting is and this is a reason why we're going to see the importance of that on display in Minneapolis this week.
AVLON: Decisions are made by those who show up.
Mr. Alexander, before we go I want to get your take on the statistic that I think really frames the stakes of this trial. It was put together by academics at Bowling Green University showing officers charged versus convicted, 2005 to 2019. One hundred four sworn non- federal officers were charged with murder or manslaughter in that period; only 35 convicted.
And as a member of law enforcement yourself and a Black man, how do understand that statistic and the dynamics that lead to it where so many people feel that so often justice is both delayed and denied?
ALEXANDER: Well, it's -- you know, it's very difficult not see it any other way, particularly if you're a person of color -- and actually, if you're just a person of any conscience regardless of what group you may happen to belong to because the reality of it is here those are some very disturbing numbers. And it certainly does make you question the judicial system and its fairness across the board.
Everybody understands policing is a very difficult and challenging job. We all support that fact. But I think what the American people want to see is a justice that is transparent and one where there is accurate accountability. So I think this trial -- this trial that is going to begin today is
really going to be our criminal justice system on trial as well --
SELLERS: Amen.
ALEXANDER: -- to make sure that whatever determination is made, it is made fairly, it is made justly, and it's made constitutionally. And that's where we are.
AVLON: Cedric Alexander, Bakari Sellers, I want to thank you for joining us on NEW DAY and in the days ahead as we watch this trial unfold. Thank you.
ALEXANDER: Thank you.
AVLON: Now, President Biden is set to lay out the next phase of his massive economic agenda, but it could face another tough road getting it through Congress.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:47:46]
AVLON: A big week for President Biden's economic agenda. CNN's chief business correspondent Christine Romans joins us now with more on Biden's major infrastructure proposal -- Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT, ANCHOR, "EARLY START": Good morning, John.
You know, fresh off the victory of his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, President Biden on to the next priority, building stuff -- lots of stuff. Roads, bridges, rail, with investments in 5G, cybersecurity, domestic manufacturing to create jobs and catch up with the rest of the world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: What the American people will hear from this week is part of his plan -- the first step of his plan toward recovery, which will include an investment in infrastructure.
We shouldn't be 13th in the world. I don't think anyone believes that -- the wealthiest, most innovative country in the world. And he's going to have more to say later in April about the second part of his recovery plan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: What you're hearing there is the White House breaking a $3 trillion to $4 trillion rebuilding effort into two parts. Infrastructure first, and second, the Caring Economy, which the president will reveal next month. That's investments in working families, universal pre-K, free community college, making that critical child tax credit permanent, and paid family leave. That's investing in the workers. Now, the infrastructure piece -- investing in the stuff -- will be
unveiled Wednesday in Pittsburgh and the GOP messaging against it has already begun.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): We're hearing the next few months might bring a so-called infrastructure proposal that may actually be a Trojan horse for massive tax hikes and other job-killing, left-wing policies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: A Trojan horse.
Infrastructure generally garners bipartisan support. Tax hikes to pay for it doesn't.
But congressional Republicans are warning the White House to keep the focus on roads and bridges, not on climate change and social justice. The question now is whether Democratic leadership pursues the reconciliation procedure to squeeze through the Biden agenda with a simple majority -- Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: You know, building a Trojan horse -- job creator.
ROMANS: How many jobs does that create? Let's get the CBO on that right away.
CAMEROTA: Not a lot.
Christine, thank you very, very much.
OK. So thousands of protesters are back on the streets in Myanmar after the deadliest day in the country's military coup. At least 114 people, including several children, reportedly killed in 44 cities across that nation on Saturday.
[07:50:06]
CNN's Will Ripley is live in Hong Kong with more. What's happening, Will?
WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: UNICEF is saying, Alisyn, that 35 children have been killed since this coup, which has yet to even reach the two-month mark. Four hundred fifty-nine people, so far, at least, are killed.
And despite the fact that soldiers are out there with machine guns, with grenades, shooting into residential buildings, using fighter jets to attack villages, forcing thousands of people to flee either over the border into Thailand or into the jungles -- despite all of that danger, people are still turning out in droves, protesting and demanding that the military that stole the results of their election from that and took control for itself is not who they want to lead them anymore. Myanmar had 50 years of a military dictatorship. A lot of these protesters are younger. They didn't grow up during those years to see the brutality, but they do have social media to share the brutality now. So people are sharing these videos. The world is seeing what's happening and the outrage is growing.
And then at the very same time that you have the deadliest day since the coup, you have the senior general who is leading the coup throwing himself a lavish dinner, walking down a red carpet with a white jacket and his medals, and all of his gazetted officers in the room applauding him. Earlier, he had a parade where he talked about protecting democracy while his soldiers were out on the streets shooting and killing young children.
International condemnation continues to grow. Various United Nations officials have called this everything from mass murder, to a massacre, to shameful. President Biden weighed in over the weekend saying that this is terrible and outrageous and the United States is working on its response.
But response is what the world is calling for, Alisyn. People just don't want these hollow words of condemnation. They want the military to have their funding cut off, like oil and gas revenues, and even cut off their access to weapons -- stuff that, so far, the world has yet to take as more people in Myanmar die every day.
CAMEROTA: Oh my gosh, Will. Thank you very much for reporting on the real story, regardless of what the military and leaders want us to see. Thank you.
OK, on a much lighter note, listen up all you boomers. "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" had a field day with your vaccines. Late-Night Laughs, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:56:27]
CAMEROTA: A state of emergency declared in Nashville after flash flooding kills four people. The city recorded seven inches of rain in the last 48 hours, the second-highest two-day total in Nashville's history. Flooding over the weekend left some people clinging to trees and taking refuge in attics.
AVLON: An elected official in Ohio taking a powerful stand on anti- Asian racism in a recent town hall meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEE WONG, CHAIRMAN, WEST CHESTER, OHIO TOWNSHIP BOARD OF TRUSTEES: People question my patriotism, that I don't look American enough. They could not get over this face.
I want to show you something. I want to tell you because I'm not afraid. I'm 69 years old and I'm going to show you what patriotism -- the questions about patriotism looks like.
Here is my proof, OK? This is sustained from my service in the U.S. military. Now is this patriot enough?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AVLON: That is as real as it gets.
Lee Wong is a 69-year-old veteran and president of the West Chester Township Board of Trustees. And he opened up about the discrimination he's experienced from people questioning his loyalty, revealing the scars he got while serving the U.S. Army for 20 years.
Wong is ethnically Chinese but was born in what is now part of Malaysia.
He said the speech was not planned but he felt the timing was right in light of what's happening around the country.
CAMEROTA: Wow.
AVLON: What an unbelievable statement and stand.
CAMEROTA: That is very intense. At first, you don't know where he's going. You're sort of holding your breath. And then when he does that reveal it's even more breathtaking of what he's been carrying around.
AVLON: And those are the stakes. That's what people may not see when they engage in bigotry. But those scars are evidence of patriotism far beyond what many folks who profess to be patriots have done for our country. Thank you to Wong.
CAMEROTA: What a story.
OK, how about some Late-Night Laughs.
AVLON: Please.
CAMEROTA: "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" is giving baby boomers the ultimate mic drop in their race to get vaccinated. Here are your Late-Night Laughs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
"SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" raps that 'Boomers Got the Vax."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AVLON: Oh --
CAMEROTA: Brilliant.
AVLON: Keenan Thompson, I'll tell you -- OK, boomer. It's still weird to see "SNL" go after the boomers that hard, but very funny.
CAMEROTA: Is it weird? I mean, they -- I don't --
AVLON: I mean, the senior citizen jab is, you know.
CAMEROTA: Yes, but I feel that they don't have sacred cows. I feel that they are --
AVLON: Oh, no.
CAMEROTA: -- equal opportunity --
AVLON: Offenders.
CAMEROTA: -- offenders, yes. It was hilarious.
AVLON: As they should be. Great sound.
CAMEROTA: All right, NEW DAY continues right now.
