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Don Lemon Tonight

Manhunt for Belgian Terror Ring Leader; "American Sniper" Earns $105 Million; "American Sniper" Controversy; Bill Cosby Performs Despite Accusations; Remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; Previewing the State of the Union Address

Aired January 19, 2015 - 22:00   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news, a manhunt is on for the suspected ringleader of the ISIS terror plot in Belgium.

This is CNN TONIGHT, I'm Don Lemon.

From Belgium to France to Greece, Europeans mobilizing to stop the terrorists behind the Paris attack. In Belgium, five suspects are charged, two others captured trying to cross from France into Italy, while Greek Police arrest one suspect and hunt for more.

But how many are still at large? What are they plotting? And are we prepared on the home front?

We're going to talk with one of New York City's top cops who was one of the last people to interview Osama bin Laden.

Plus, "American Sniper" hits the bullseye. It's the country's most popular movie. But is it rewriting history? Is it propaganda?

And 50 years after Selma. What would Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. think of the State of the Union?

We're going to get into all of that but I want to begin with the very latest on the terror manhunt in Europe.

CNN's Phil Black live for us in Brussels tonight.

So, Phil, there is breaking news of a new suspect in the Belgian plot. What can you tell us?

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So, Don, a senior Belgian counterterrorism official has told CNN some key details and one of them is that the authorities here are acting on the belief that the terror plot which they disrupted last Thursday with raids across the country, raids that -- a plot that was supposedly targeting police officers here.

They believed that was being directed by a man based in Greece and that man has direct ties to ISIS in Syria and Iraq. The man they suspect, the man they are looking for and have not yet

found is Abdul Hamid Abaaoud. A Belgian Moroccan ISIS fighter who used to live here in Brussels.

They believe that he was in direct phone contact with a number of men in this direct cell, including two men who were killed by police during a raid last Thursday in a firefight there. And they think those two men also had fought for ISIS in Syria.

Now all of this is significant because it is a theory which suggests ISIS has tried to strike out from its territory in Syria, in Iraq, into the heart of western Europe. Up until now, ISIS has been very much concerned with expanding the territory it controls, to build its so-called Islamic State.

It has not been concerned with striking out against the West, but this, under this scenario, would be an example of ISIS trying to strike back at one of the European countries responsible for the bombing campaign against ISIS targets in Iraq -- Don.

LEMON: All right. Phil Black, thank you very much for your reporting.

I want to bring in now John Miller, he's NYPD's deputy commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism.

Good evening. Thank you for joining us. You heard Phil's report there. The Belgians are hunting for the alleged mastermind of the foiled attack there. Abdul Hamid Abaaoud. They say that he -- they know who he is.

If they get him, what can they learn from him?

JOHN MILLER, DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF INTELLIGENCE AND COUNTERTERRORISM, NYPD: Well, I think they're looking for two things. On the ground floor of this, what you're looking to understand is understand plots. What plot did they interrupt? What other plots might be out there?

But I think when you -- when you get upstairs in the structure of this, what you're really looking for is to understand the network more than the plot, which is, was he part of a sophisticated ISIL external operations plot as your correspondent, Mr. Black, discussed, the possibility of a minute ago, or, are these returning fighters coming from Syria who've taken it upon themselves to act under the ISIL flag? And that's important to understand on a couple of levels.

LEMON: Let's talk about the sheer numbers that you're working with here. Anti-terrorism experts think around 3,000 Europeans, John, have traveled to Iraq and Syria to wage jihad. Five hundred of them they believe returned to Europe, including 70 to Belgium.

What is it about Europe that has made it the focal point of terrorists?

MILLER: I think you've got a large community there. I think you have a little bit less of a cultural melting pot in some way in terms of assimilation in the (INAUDIBLE). And then a lot of people with family members they're going to see. Excuse me.

LEMON: We're all dealing with it. I'm dealing with it as well.

Is it -- is this growing terror threat in Europe, is this a wake-up call to the United States?

MILLER: I don't think we need a wake-up call. We're the country that lived through September 11th. We're the country that has disrupted dozens of plots against U.S. soil and American interests overseas. So I think we live on some level of the low end of high alert on a regular day, and then a higher alert on days when you have this kind of activity.

LEMON: So watching what's happening in Europe, especially in Paris, this doesn't -- I mean, didn't you raise the terror, raise the threat level here in New York City? It's not surprising to you as the head of counterintelligence --

MILLER: I wouldn't say it's surprising, Don. I think whatever the opposite of surprising is, we expected this to happen. When we saw it happen in Sydney with an individual claiming ISIS connections, when he took over a chocolate store, we expected that. Not at that hour, at that day, at that address, but we knew something like that was coming.

If you look at the ISIS call that went out on September 22nd, saying those who can come fight with us, come fight with us here in Syria. And those who cannot, strike out for us where you are. Within literally a month of that, we saw the attack by an individual named Hadir against the Australian police station using knives after it appeared to him they were going to prevent his trip to Syria.

We saw the same thing with Martin Rouleau who ran over Canadian soldiers on or about September 20th with his truck. In Canada, we saw two days later the strike against the parliament with the 30-30 rifle wielded by Michael Bibeau. The next day in New York City, we saw the hatchet attack against four police officers by a guy name Zale Thompson.

So we know that a person -- like Thompson, who visited 270 of these Web sites in the days leading up to that, we know that this message is having impact.

LEMON: You said it's the opposite of surprising to you, but there were intelligence failures in Paris. There were intelligence failures because the brothers were being watched, then all of a sudden they weren't. They also failed to look at the phones and the computers of their girlfriends. And it would seem -- it was believed that the Kouachi brothers were using their computers, their cell phones, their girlfriends' and their wives.

And so we weren't checking or at least the Paris authorities weren't checking those. There were intelligence failures.

MILLER: Well, it's easy for you to say there were intelligence failures because, you know, you, like myself and my former profession, or in the news business, we can be quite certain that the French authorities are going to peel back through this.

I look at intelligence failures in a very nuanced way in this job than I might have in my last job. And that is, what are the limits of what we're allowed to collect? And how have those limits tightened in the post-Snowden era where people want a lot less intrusive tools and a lot less surveillance, where they're reining in authorities.

And then there's that last piece, which is in a constitutional democracy, whether it's the United States or France, what are the limits of what you can do even if you suspect something if that person isn't violating the law right now? So I don't mean to suggest there weren't intelligence failures or that there were.

I would suggest it's a very complicated environment to operate in day to day, given the pressures that my people are under every day, and it's also a very easy one to criticize after something happens.

LEMON: Well, you talk -- you said this, you said the Snowden era, right? Is that what you said? Are you -- are you saying that, you know, in light of what was revealed about the NSA and wire tapping and all of that stuff? Do you think that that intelligence officials should be given more leeway, is that what you're suggesting?

MILLER: I'm not saying more and I'm not saying less. I'm saying that people, from country to country, society to society, have to decide where they want -- how they want the tensions set in a Democratic society. After the Snowden revelations, many of which were factually misreported, some of which were accurate, and some of which were just plainly misunderstood.

There was a great drawing back on that, on the idea that, you know, big brother should not be looking over people's shoulders. Once you have a series of terrorist attacks, people start to talk about intelligence failures because authorities had trouble seeing through the very windows that people demanded be closed.

So again, it's complicated, it's nuanced, and I think we need to have a general discussion. And it's not -- before we jump to this, it's not about how much freedom are you willing to trade for security. It's about in a society where they demand security and they expect freedom, how do you want to set the tensions between the two as a democratic society since it's the people who get to decide?

LEMON: I want to ask you about Yemen because I think it's important, a breeding ground for terrorists. The government there is in danger of falling now. The U.S. is standing by to evacuate its embassy. How much of a security threat do you think that is to the U.S.?

MILLER: It's interesting because Yemen is a country that's long been embattled. It's gone through long civil wars. It's been in the throes of this fight for some time. Today of course you have the presidential palace surrounded, you have mortar fire and a machine gunfire. Think of a battle raging around the White House. That's a tenuous position for a country to be in.

But what does Yemen mean? Yemen is the headquarters of AQAP, or Al Qaeda of the Arabian Peninsula. That is Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of al Qaeda's main go-to guys when it comes to external plotting against the West and the United States in particular. So the best way for a terrorist group to function is in ungoverned spaces. When the government falls, that becomes an ungoverned space.

So that's one risk. The complicating factor is that the Houthi tribes that are trying to take over are not necessarily friends with AQAP. In fact, the intelligence suggests they're getting cosier with the Iranians, which is a whole different problem. But what it is, it's instability.

LEMON: And it is still then a threat to the U.S. and a threat to --

MILLER: Exactly.

LEMON: OK.

MILLER: In one form or another.

LEMON: John Miller, thank you. Appreciate you --

MILLER: Don, thanks for having me. Appreciate it.

LEMON: Yes. Appreciate it.

We've got a lot more to come here on CNN on the terror threat across Europe and what we have to do to keep it from spreading here.

Plus, why some people are so angry about America's favorite movie. Does "American Sniper" tell the real story?

And Martin Luther King's "Dream" 50 years after Selma. How far have we come and how far do we still have to go?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Our breaking news, a manhunt is on for a terror suspect. A source says that the suspected ISIS ringleader of the Belgian terror plot has been identified and is at large tonight.

I'm joined now by Colonel James Reese. He's a retired Delta Force commander and a CNN military analyst. Also Juliette Kayyem is a CNN national security analyst and a former Homeland Security assistant secretary. Paul Cruickshank, CNN terrorism analyst who co-authored the book "Agent Storm."

Paul, the suspected ISIS plot ringleader has been identified. What are you hearing about him and his associates?

PAUL CRUICKSHANK, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Well, that's right, Don. Abdul Hamid Abaaoud was identified to us by a senior Belgian official as the suspected ring leader of this -- of this plot in Brussels. This is a Belgian Moroccan ISIS operative who was in Syria, but traveled to Greece so that he could direct this plot in Belgium. He was in phone contact with the plotters in Brussels. He is suspected of being connected back as well to the top leadership

of ISIS. The Belgians think that this is an ISIS directed plot, a kind of game-changer with ISIS pivoting towards launching attacks against Europe -- specifically the European countries that have been launching airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq. Countries like the UK and France and Holland and Denmark and of course also Belgium.

LEMON: Juliette, Fareed Zakaria spoke exclusively to a former CIA director and former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta. And he said this is a much more aggressive and dangerous chapter in the war on terror and that he thinks it's just a matter of time before terrorists direct an act of violence here in the U.S.

You heard what John Miller just said. He said surprising, but not really surprising, you know, the attacks and what's going on in Europe. What are your sources telling you?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, that there's been no moment since September 11th or maybe even before when we've been perfectly safe or invulnerable to the kind of attacks that we've seen. Obviously given what happened in France and Belgium, this is a more organized, more sophisticated and therefore more lethal type of terrorist attack, but to believe that before, you know, the beginning of 2015 we were invulnerable, and now we're vulnerable is just not true.

There's just too much going on, whether it's the lone wolves or whether it's the -- you know, or whether it's any of a number of incidents that we've seen since September 11th. I take -- you know, Panetta as just making a point that we can't let our guard down, and that's why we have a series of layered defenses, both offense and then defense here in the homeland, to minimize the risks, but always knowing it's never going to be perfectly safe.

LEMON: Colonel Reese?

COL. JAMES REESE (RET.), FORMER U.S. DELTA FORCE OFFICE: You know, Don, since 9/11, the one thing we learned very quickly was, the world has changed. So, you know, all these people saying these things, this is nothing new. Unfortunately what happens to us is, we kind of get in a lull. Nothing's happened. You saw what happened here with ISIS just last year. Boom, it became this big surprise.

For the people that are watching these things, this is not a big surprise. It's just, again, it's a way to get everyone involved, especially here in the U.S. and make sure everyone's aware.

LEMON: Yes. You know, the U.S., Paul, has raised the alert level in Yemen and the embassy is prepared to evacuate immediately. Should that be necessary? What are you hearing about the violence there?

CRUICKSHANK: Well, there's a lot of instability in Yemen right now and that's because of the Houthi takeover of the capital back last autumn. These are basically a Shia rebel group which -- that strongholds are in the north. And they surprised everybody in the Middle East by taking control of the capital Sana'a in September, October of last year. And there's been a contest between them and the central government since then.

And we've seen skirmishes today between the Hadi government and these Houthi rebels. But the Houthi rebels really have the upper hand in Yemen. Everybody is worried about this because it's very destabilizing in Yemen. The government there has sort of taken its eye off combating al Qaeda, and Al Qaeda in Yemen have taken advantage of this sectarian issue, these Shia rebels, pouring down southwards from the north to recruit from the Sunni tribes.

And they've been able to expand their presence in Yemen and develop more resources and more territory under their control. And of course that's worrying for the United States because this is the group which has John Miller was saying, is the most active in terms of targeting the United States.

In recent weeks, the group has said that it's their priority number one to hit America with some kind of plot. We've seen them try and bomb U.S. aviation in the past with the underwear plot, also a printer bomb plot in 2010, and some other plots as well. So a lot of concern about events in Yemen, especially given the fact that this group claimed responsibility for the attacks in Paris.

LEMON: Yes.

CRUICKSHANK: Just a couple of weeks ago.

LEMON: I want to get Juliette and the colonel in, so if you both can just -- brevity is the key here. But I want to ask --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: I want to ask you about this. And I asked John Miller. 3,000 Europeans traveled to Iraq and Syria to wage jihad, 500 returned to Europe including 70 to Belgium.

My question is, Juliette, are some parts of Europe aggressive enough in monitoring potential terrorists returning from countries like Iraq, like Syria, like Yemen?

First Juliette and then Colonel Reese.

KAYYEM: Probably not as we've seen. I mean, part of it -- it's not just the laws. It's the resources and the capability to link what foreign intelligence agencies know and what the domestic agencies are seeing. It was the same gap we saw here in the U.S. in 9/11. And what we're seeing is them now trying to merger, at least connect the dot and it's never going to be perfect given travel and globalization throughout the world now.

LEMON: Colonel?

REESE: Bottom line, everyone is very aggressive and they want it. It would be nice to know that once these folks are coming out of Syria, and they're crossing into Turkey to know that right now and not when they get back in the country and they're having to play catch-up.

LEMON: Yes. Juliette Kayyem, Paul Cruickshank, thank you very much.

Colonel, please stay with me.

Up next, sniper scores a bullseye. "American Sniper" breaks box office records, garners Oscar nominations, and creates Hollywood-style drama. A noted filmmaker tweets that snipers are cowards. But after all that, is the movie any good?

We're going to get into that straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The new Bradley Cooper movie "American Sniper" is box office gold. It tells the story of a real-life military sharpshooter Chris Kyle, who did four tours in Iraq and was legendary for taking down his targets. But the movie has set off an angry debate.

Filmmaker Michael Moore tweeting, that snipers aren't heroes. They're cowards.

Here's CNN's George Howell.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Americans are packing in the theaters to see "American Sniper," the real-life story of the man known as America's deadliest sniper, Navy SEAL Chris Kyle played by actor Bradley Cooper.

The film is breaking box office records this debut weekend. Earning 105 million in weekend ticket sales and six Academy Award nominations.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I loved it. I loved it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a very emotionally stressful movie, I thought.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pretty good. Very compelling.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very good, excellent.

AIMEE: Not so excellent however in the minds of some in Hollywood. Actor Seth Rogen tweeting, quote, "'American Sniper" kind of reminds me of the movie that's showing in the third act of "Inglorious Bastards." And film maker Michael Moore igniting a firestorm on Titter, quote, "My uncle killed by sniper in World War II. We were taught snipers were cowards, will shoot you in the back. Snipers aren't heroes. And invaders are worse."

Then five hours later, quote, "But if you're on the roof of your home defending it from invaders who've come 7,000 miles, you are not a sniper, you are brave, you are a neighbor."

Moore's comments about cowards definitely getting some pushback.

CADE COURTNEY, FRIEND OF CHRIS KYLE: For somebody who has spent their entire career on freedom of speech and freedom of expression to be criticizing an individual like Chris Kyle who exemplifies the very best, well, it's really biting the hand that feeds you.

HOWELL: And moviegoers we spoke to also took issue with the perceived criticism.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he was fighting for this country. He was doing what he thought was right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: None of us who don't serve or can't serve have no idea what our soldiers are going through.

HOWELL: Whether more was actually talking about the film "American Sniper" is now sort of a gray area. Tweeting, quote, "Hmm, I never tweeted one word about 'American sniper'," Chris Kyle. I said , "My uncle killed by sniper in World War II, only cowards would do that to him and others."

He goes on to say, so people want me to tweet something about "American Sniper"? Great acting, powerful message, sad ending. There. Then sending people to his Facebook page for further clarification.

Regardless, one thing seems crystal clear on the street among the masses who saw "American sniper."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's not a coward. It's a matter of doing what he was told to do and what he was trained to do.

HOWELL: George Howell, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right. Let's discuss this now. Back with me, Colonel James Reese. We're also joined now by Kate Courtly, a former Navy SEAL who we saw in George Howell's report and also film critic Jeffrey Lions.

So thanks to both of you gentlemen for your service.

Lieutenant, let me -- I want to get back to you and ask you about this. What's your reaction to the -- I'm sorry, Colonel. What's your reaction to the -- I'm sorry Colonel. What's your reaction to the criticism of 'American Sniper'?

REESE: Well, Don, first, I've got to say is I think it's a lot of -- it's a lot of something about a little nothing. But what I will say is, after the whole "Charlie Hebdo," you know, attacks last week, and the whole discussion about freedom of speech, when you look at a guy like Michael Moore, who has 1.4 million tweet followers, you really have to ask yourself, is this really where you want to go?

And if you want to make a comment, that's great. He's allowed to do that because he's an American. But what I'd like to see, at least he comes out and says, but by the way, I want to thank the men and women of our armed services for giving me that ability to speak freely. LEMON: You said a lot of something about nothing. Is that what you

said, Colonel?

REESE: That's how I feel. It's a lot of something about nothing.

LEMON: Yes. About nothing.

Jeffery, $105 million at the box office this weekend. "American Sniper" was the largest debut for a Clint Eastwood movie. Why do you think it did so well?

JEFFREY LYONS, FILM CRITIC: Couple of reasons. First of all, it was nominated for Best Picture and Bradley Cooper for the third year in a row. Second movie he's been nominated with the word "American" in it. And also it's a bit of a catharsis, too, because after the horrific attacks in Paris, we wanted to see a movie in which the bad people or people who are helping the bad people are in the scope of a sniper. And it's a true story and it's an excellent film of the genre. The political aside it's very well done.

Bradley Cooper, who had spoken to the real Chris Kyle, bulked up, be put on 40 pounds, and he -- he got all muscled up, and he doesn't even look like a Bradley Cooper we know, and he gives a terrific performance. So, as speaking as a movie critic alone, it's an excellent job and that's what got audiences. But again, it's a question of timing. It's a true story that happened after this most horrific event. All those things came together to make this a box office sensation.

LEMON: So Cade, you were SEAL, a sniper, and also friends with Chris. What do you think of how he was portrayed?

CADE COURTLEY, FOUNDER OF NAVY SEAL SURVIVAL: Look, any time Hollywood takes on something of this nature, I always sort of cringe because I don't know what the outcome is gonna be. So I went and saw this movie last Thursday with a couple of vets. And we all came out of there just quiet. We really didn't say a word. And then once we finally got to the parking lot, we were all like, yeah, they did it right, thank God they did it right. And I -- I was really glad to see that in -- you know, if I could thank Clint Eastwood and Bradley Cooper, for taking something that's an incredible responsibility and, and doing it right. You know, this was a great individual. This was a hero. And they took that responsibility seriously and I'm very proud of the movie they made.

LEMON: What would you say to comments like Michael Moore?

COURTLEY: Pretty much the last thing I want to say about this individual because he's already gotten too much air time. Is -- it's just feels like somebody who's desperate to try to be relevant again because he's staring at a dead career. As far as I'm concerned, his -- his career is a really good confirmed kill.

LEMON: OK. As if --

(LAUGHTER) LYONS: One think guy, if I may -- if may say, Don --

LEMON: That caught everybody off guard, even the guys here in the studio. Go ahead.

LYONS: I found the movie is very involved, and there've been other movies about snipers. Enemy of the Gates comes to mind, a sniper -- a movie about a sniper has made a few years ago and -- it's those are not as involving as this movie is. So speaking only as a film critic, this movie puts you right there in with him. And if you see the TV commercial and the scene where he has to make the choice, where, where the guy and the other end say, it's your call. You can see that he's not just there shooting blindly at everything, and other snipers get killed in this movie and American snipers have been killed too. So, it really is a very emotional and absorbing movie.

LEMON: Alright. So we've been talking about celebrities, and not only celebrities have been -- have taken to Twitter and other forms of social media with have you to talk about American Sniper. Two additional tweets, American Sniper the movie is about one of our hero warriors. But it also exposes the sick culture of Muslims and their way of living. Someone else write, American Sniper is a big hit for Americans who fantasize about shooting Arabs, but are afraid to go where Arabs shoot back. So, Colonel Reese, America wants to kill the terrorists but, you know, they only want to do it through movies?

LT.COL. JAMES REESE, RET. DELTA FORCE COMMANDER: You know, Don, I think -- again, at today's time and age and where we are. I mean, that's a difficult -- you know I'm not even sure what people are trying to say there. I mean, war is tough. These men and women who have to go there and they come back, like in the movie. You know you're seeing the different elements of -- you know the stress that they have to come back to, the families, the souls they give up in these pieces. But you're right, and your Michael Moore and Seth Rogen. If they'd like to come see what these men and women have been through, the people who do this type of things that have to fight the terrorists, and the terrorists would fight them back. They have an open invitation with, "May I'll take them to Iraq any day."

LEMON: During this time when, when there are anti-Muslim sentiments, there -- it's extremely high right now. Are you afraid, Colonel that, American Sniper will create even more Islamophobia?

REESE: You know Don, I think it's -- first thing we all have to keep in mind is, this is entertainment, first and foremost. You know, I have 250 Iraqi employees. And we talk about this all the time. And I'll tell you, several of them can't wait to see this movie, because it's entertainment, number one. But, yes, there's the left and the right and people will argue in the middle. But what I'd always like to keep trying to tell people, I remember what my mother told me in sixth grade. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.

LEMON: The movie did not deal with -- with his death. Cade, which movie had talked about that, maybe talked about PTSD more what soldiers face when they get home? COURTLEY: No. I'm glad that -- I'm glad the way they dealt with it. I

was kind of cringing when that was going to come on because, obviously, you knew where the ending was going with that. The thing I love most about how they dealt with this movie -- look, in America we have the opportunity to share of opinions, and I love that, that's great. As long as the people that are making those opinions understand, that when you're going to war, you might look at your wife and kids and that's the last time you say goodbye to them. And on the other side of that, they're waiting for that husband or wife to come home that might not come home, and the stress of that. Because that's all, basically, so we can have that freedom and the right to share whatever opinion that is. I just -- you know, I love the fact that people are able to -- especially, with social media. You can say whatever you want to, that's just the way it is in America. But, when you hit send, it's just for a second you could remind yourself, wait a minute, somebody fought for my right to push send on that, just -- even just once a week.

LEMON: Jeffery, you know, we've been talking a lot about Oscars here. Do you think American Sniper will take home an Oscar best picture, Bradley Cooper best actor you think?

LYONS: Yeah, those who love the movie will want to think that way. I think it's gonna belong to Boyhood and Michael Keaton. This is not to disparage the movie in any way. And I agree with the idea that I didn't want to see how he died. But don't think that he died at the hands of someone who was suffering the post traumatic experience of going to war. He died helping other guys who have come home and weren't as fortunate as he was. But it shows the effects of war on anybody on -- on anybody who was had to kill other human beings, even though they were giving bombs to terrorists. And I was glad the film did it that way. I too was cringing and hoping we wouldn't have to see that. And it's a very well made film of this type. You're free to criticize it. There are things about it that -- may not make it a perfect film. But overall, I was so absorbed by it and I was so moved by it. So, I have no complaints with the film, but I don't think it's gonna win the Oscar.

LEMON: Jeffrey, Cade and James, thank you very much. Appreciate all of you for joining us tonight.

When we come right back, despite all the allegations, the show goes on. Bill Cosby in Denver over the weekend and what his fans are saying about the legendary comic may surprise you. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Despite all the accusations against Bill Cosby, the comedian is still performing around the country and his fans are coming out to support him, in more ways than one. CNN's Ana Cabrera has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANA CABRERA, CNN'S CORRESPONDENT: As the Cosby show rolls into Denver with back-to-back performances --

CROWD: No means no.

CABRERA: No love from protesters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We means no show (ph)

BETH LEYBA, ACTIVIST: I myself am a survivor of sexual assault. And I did find it sickening that Bill Cosby has been able to get away with it for so many years.

CABRERA: So you believe the accusations?

LEYBA: Absolutely. I believe the women.

CABRERA: Bill Cosby fans show up in force as well.

TONY CONTRERAS: I honestly believe it's all -- you know, scandal, it all fake.

GINA HERNANDEZ: He's phenomenal. He's an amazing man.

CABRERA: Excited to support a man they grew up watching on TV. A man they still admire and love.

CABRERA: Any reservations about coming tonight, given the accusations to Mr. Cosby's facing?

JENNIFER BRISCOE: No, none whatsoever. I think he should be tried in a court of public -- you know, a true court, not the court of public opinion.

CABRERA: Cosby has never been charged with a crime. He and his lawyers have denied accusations, ranging from drugging to sexual misconduct made by at least two dozen women, including Beth Ferrier.

BETH FERRIER, COSBY'S ACCUSER: He's a criminal.

CABRERA: Ferrier believes Cosby assaulted her in Denver in 1986, after giving her a drugged cappuccino.

FERRIER: Next thing I remember, it was pitch black, three in the morning, I'm all alone in the back of my car, practically naked.

BARERA: What do you believe happened during that time when that you don't really remember?

FERRIER: All I know is my body was sore.

CABRERA: While Cosby hasn't commented on those specific allegations, his lawyers have issued several statements. Saying in part, "Over the last several weeks, decade-old, discredited allegations against Mr. Cosby have resurfaced. The fact that they are being repeated does not make them true."

CROWD: What do we want?

CROWD: Justice. CABRERA: Attorney Gloria Allred represents eight of Cosby's accusers.

GLORIA ALLRED, COSBY'S ACCUSER: And they're not going to live in fear of fame and money and power and Bill Cosby. And we're not gonna let this go away.

CABRERA: Cosby's fans aren't going away either.

(APPLAUSE)

CABRERA: Cheers and a standing ovation by many who think he is innocent. There are a lot of people who clearly didn't want Bill Cosby to come and perform in Denver. What do you say to them?

CONTRERAS: I can honestly say, give the guy a break.

CABRERA: He's Bill Cosby. He's not God. You still love him?

UNIDENTIIFED FEMALE: I still love him.

CABRERA: Up next, Cosby goes to Sandusky, Ohio, and then back-to-back shows in Boston. More shows and undoubtedly more protests. Ana Cabrera, CNN, Denver.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: Alright Ana, thanks very much. Bill Cosby's lawyer is denying

the latest sexual assault allegation against the comedian. Chloe going to accuses Cosby of assaulting her in August of 2008 at the Playboy mansion. Attorney Martin Singer says, Cosby was in California on the day of the party.

Coming up, why one Super Bowl bound team is under fire for quoting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., did the Seahawks cross the line?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Look at that, isn't that a beautiful picture? Just fantastic, and 50 years after Selma -- we've been talking so much about Selma, what would Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. think of the State of our Union? How far have we come and how far do we still have to go?

Joining me now is Democratic Strategist Van Jones, Republican strategist Kevin Madden and Tara Setmayer and New York Times Op-Ed Columnist Charles Blow. And look at this picture, one, two, three, four African-Americans, one white guy...

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: In the middle. Segment over. No, just kidding.

VAN JONES, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: We have overcome.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Look at that, I made Charles Blow smile. Thank gosh, I was good. OK, so Tara, I want to start with you. So -- let's talk and take a look at this tweet. This tweet is from Seattle Seahawks, as we know they're headed to the Super Bowl and may tweet this. We shall overcome #MLKday with a photo that included in the MLK quote, "Take the first step in faith, you don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." May later tweet an apology saying they didn't intend to compare football to the civil rights legacy of Dr. King. Do they need to apologize?

TARA SETMAYER, CONTIRBUTOR, THE BLAZE TV: No.

LEMON: Were they was just paying tribute? What? Why do you say that they don't need to apologize?

SETMAYER: Because, I think that they were being clever. It's was a clearly a double entendre. They took advantage of what happened yesterday, which was a fantastic NFC championship game. Where -- for most people they thought the Seattle Seahawks had no chance. They came back, overtime win in dramatic fashion and Russell Wilson, an African- American quarterback wept with joy in the middle of the field, because they overcame such a huge obstacle in football. I don't really think that Martin Luther King would be insulted, that his idea of being able to overcome the odds for success and they having stepped in faith, would be used in so many different ways. I don't think he'd be offended by that.

JONES: I agree with that.

LEMON: I have with it. (ph)

SETMAYER: People need to stop...

LEMON: Van?

SETMAYER: That a grievance industry that's completely out of control.

JONES: Well, first of all, I need to say -- for once, we actually agree on something. I -- think that Dr. King is bigger than just he's protest figure. This is so serious, everything -- he's also become an inspirational figure. He inspires millions of people. People turn to him and his quotes in times -- when they are trying to overcome things. I thought it was perfectly fine. I think they made a mistake by taking it down. They made more news taking it down than they did putting it up.

LEMON: Well, that was like you when we came to the segment, you said, we shall overcome. I kind of thought of it as a joke like, that like, hallelujah. But anyway, you know --

SETMAYER: It's pc gone amuck. It's ridiculous.

LEMON: Yeah. You know, Charles, you know, many of us today are thinking about the -- the legacy of Dr. King, about the holiday in context. Many people are with Michael Brown, Eric Garner with the protests that have been going on across the country. What does the legacy of MLK Jr. look like today?

CHARLES BLOW, NEW YORK TIMES Op-ED COLUMNIST: Well, it's a really broad question -- yeah, I'll try to condense it as much as I can. I mean, there are some things that Martin Luther King fought for, that are obvious successes. You know, the -- the codes written into the law that discriminate -- specifically discriminated in writing against people of color. That is one of the things he fought for. And that has obviously been overcome. However, there are other things that Martin Luther King fought for, stood for, that we are still addressing to this day. The kind of structural bias that we encounter today is the -- is the second -- the step in this fight for equality, I think we are still wrestling with that. Martin Luther King also -- I think, you know, one of the things that we don't think about Martin Luther King as, as this really radical figure. If you look at his '67 speech on -- the anti-Vietnam speech, you know, he's clearly a very anti-war figure and he is putting his anti-war stance in the context of the war taking away resources from the poor. And I think this idea of him being a tremendous advocate for -- you know, anti-poverty advocate is often overlooked. If you look at the --

(CROSSTALK)

BLOW: Washington -- march on Washington. That was a march on Washington for jobs and freedom and people don't even think about it that way. They really just think about it as the, "I have a dream" speech. They think about it as racial conciliation speech, and they overlook his absolute passion for dealing with issues of poverty in this country.

LEMON: OK. I want to -- let's bring Kevin in it.

KEVIN MADDEN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Yeah.

LEMON: Because Kevin, the president is expecting tomorrow uses speech to talk about tax credits, talk about income equality or inequality. He wants the wealthy to pay more taxes, he wants to even the playing field, Republicans are opposed to this, what do you make of that?

MADDEN: Well, I think it's -- obviously it's a very different world views that Republicans and Democrats have. I think Republicans of course, care about inner city communities. They care about giving those that are going through poverty a better life, greater opportunity. They just want to do it somewhat differently. The Democrats of course, they -- I think they also care about these communities and they also care about raising income levels, but they believe that the government is the best vehicle to do that. And I think the big question for folks watching the speech is going to be whether or not the president is looking for political leverage. Does he want to seek out a position and ultimately find some broader tax deal with Republicans? Or does the president want to play politics? Does he want to sort of reframe the Democrats -- reframe the Republicans against the middle class? And it will be interesting to see whether or not Republicans offer up some counterproposals to fight that perception.

LEMON: It is interesting to hear Republicans now talk about income equality.

SETMAYER: Well, I don't think that's something Republicans have never talked about. It's something that's been, you know, thrown in the face of Republicans because they don't propose bigger government solutions. So that makes them anti-poverty. That's absolutely not the case. From the conservative perspective, it's about empowering the individual and getting -- and providing opportunities, not guaranteeing outcomes. I mean the war on poverty, 50 years later, we spent $21 trillion and it's been a catastrophic failure.

BLOW: That's not true.

SETMAYER: I think that Martin Luther King was looking on what's going on --

BLOW: That's not true Tara.

SETMAYER: Yes it --

BLOW: That's not true Tara.

STEMAYER: Yes it is.

BLOW: That's not true Tara.

SETMAYER: It's a catastrophic failure.

BLOW: That's not true, Tara.

SETMAYER: You have 20 --

BLOW: That's not true, Tara.

SETMAYER: You have 27 -- you know --

BLOW: That's not true.

SETMAYER: 27 percent.

BLOW: That's not true.

SETMAYER: How is it not true?

BLOW: That is not --

SETMAYER: You paid in means excessive (ph) federal welfare programs...

BLOW: You should pay that.

SETMAYER: You have 27 percent of the foreign poverty in 1967...

BLOW: What do you have?

SETAMYER: 29 percent are in poverty now.

LEMON: Tara, let him, let him --

SETMAYER: It is a failure.

LEMON: Let him, let him finish.

SETMAYER: We can agree that he's untrue and then now I'll be finish...

LEMON: Quickly, Charles. Quickly Charles and we have to get a break.

SETMAYER: Go for it.

BLOW: No. No, but if you look at the statistics of the number of people who are elderly, who are impoverished before -- particularly before new deal, but even after that, as well as other kind of self safety -- social safety net programs came into effect, it's significantly lower. If you look at the effects of malnutrition, there were incredible --

(CROSSTALK)

SETMAYER: $21 trillion later, you think that --

BLOW: Well, I think -- if you think, if you think, if you think the people should be malnourished then it maybe it's a failure.

SETMAYER: No, I think there's --

(CORSSTALK)

SETMAYER: No, that's not a permanent way of life.

BLOW: Then maybe it's a failure.

(CROSSTALK)

SETMAYER: No, don't put words in my mouth.

BLOW: You do not take those who take than it is not Tara --

MADDEN: We started off so nice, Don.

LEMON: I know. We'll be right back. We'll be right back. You guys don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: When I was growing up, we were taught about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in history class. We had to learn parts of his speeches. We had to put on plays, where each of us were characters from the civil rights movement. I was Dr. King one year, my friend Tina was Rosenpark, my friend Monique was Coretta Scott King and on and on and on. So recently, after seeing the film Selma, I was surprised of the students attending told4 me, they were not caught about -- a lot of what was in that movie. I was stunned really, it maybe thinks about my two little great nephews who spent this day off from school just roaming freely around an indoor amusement park. There they are. Who thanks to Dr. King they don't have to worry about whether little black kids are allowed inside, or which fountain to drink from or which rest room to use. That's what I think about on King Day. Although, I wish their schools would teach them more about the legacy of Dr. King, the civil rights movements. It was called black history in my day, but it's really American history. I was happy that my little nephews could just be -- be children, be happy, be free. Remember when Dr. King said, he wanted his children to be judge by the content of their character not the color of their skin. Glad that's happening in large part today. That's the greatest gift. Thank you, Dr. King.

That's it for us tonight. I'm Don Lemon. Thanks for watching. "AC360" starts right now.