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New Day
Twenty Sleeper Cells Discovered in Europe; Obama Tells Dems He's On the Offense; The Republican 2016 Field; National Average for A Gallon of Gas Now at $2.08; ISIS Preying on Children
Aired January 16, 2015 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Good to have you back with us on NEW DAY, 7:30 on the nose in the East here.
Looking at your headlines, starting with breaking news, 20 sleeper cells have been discovered with as many as 180 jihadists ready to strike France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. This comes as chilling video emerges of suspected ISIS militants calling for more attacks on Europe. All of it uncovered following a terror raid in Belgium that left two suspects dead.
A development also in France this morning, right now a hostage crisis unfolding at a post office north of Paris. Now this is not believed to be terror-related. Police say a man thought to be mentally unstable entered the post office with a gun. Five hostages could be inside. We'll keep an eye on that situation.
An update for you on a story that we've been following very closely here on CNN. The parents of Kendrick Johnson, the Georgia teenager found dead inside a rolled-up gym mat some two years ago, they have filed a $100 million wrongful death suit. That suit accuses the 17- year-old's classmates of killing him and claims that sheriffs' investigators and school officials covered that killing up. Johnson's death was ruled an accident and no one has been charged.
OK, guys, pay attention to this -- wow, look at this. A guy driving on a Toronto highway, speeding tire, crashes into the car. Wait for it, here it comes. The tire takes out the windshield, the sunroof, also his dash cam. Incredibly, though, he was not injured.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: How is that possible?
PEREIRA: OK, wait. Oh, apparently the tire came loose from a car traveling in the opposite direction, bounced across the median, nailed his car. The driver says that it all happened so quickly, he barely had any time to think, just duck.
CAMEROTA: I'm never driving again.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Stop. How about him having a dash camera? PEREIRA: He said he had one because he wanted to just kind of capture
small fender-bender things, just in case they happened. He never anticipated something like that happen.
CUOMO: I actually had that happen to me on a car. I had a wheel fly off my car.
CAMEROTA: Fly off your car?
CUOMO: Yes. I didn't hit anybody though, thank god.
CAMEROTA: And then what happened?
CUOMO: It went flying through this guy's hedge. And then I had to tell him sorry, but my wheel went through your hedge. And he's like what? And then he went out and I had to pay him for his hedge.
CAMEROTA: We're happy you're OK.
CUOMO: I won't say what kind of car it was.
All right, let's go to Inside Politics on NEW DAY with Mr. John King. Hello, my friend, and I hope you have a good weekend.
JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR, "INSIDE POLITICS": If there's any video of the hedge moment, I want that aired on Monday morning. I insist on it.
CUOMO: That cost much more than expected.
KING: Good morning and happy Friday to everybody. A very busy day to go Inside Politics, so let's go. With me this morning to share their reporting and their insight, Margaret Talev of Bloomberg News, Ed O'Keefe of "The Washington Post".
So let's start with more evidence that if we had any hope of compromise and cooperation in Washington, we should probably set it aside even though we're early in the new year. Both parties are having their retreats. They come back, Congress starts, they go off on these retreats. Here's the president speaking to Democrats yesterday. According to two attendees, this is quoted in "Politico" this morning: "I'm not going to spend the next two years on defense, I'm going to play offense."
Margaret, you've covered the White House. OK, so the president is going to give the state of the union next week. He has these new initiatives for working-class Americans and middle-class Americans; he's fighting Republicans on Keystone. He's fighting the Republicans on immigration. Hard for him to get his proposals through a Republican Congress. So is this it for the next two years? We're just going to argue about things? Or is there any opening to get anything done?
MARGARET TALEV, BLOOMBERG NEWS: The openings to get things done are things many of the Democrats don't want to get done. You saw the president meeting earlier this morning with Rich Trumka and the head of the UAW at the White House just before he left for Iowa. And part of that is about sort of stuff they have in common, you know, pay leave or whatever. But a lot of that is trying to negotiate with Democrats so that he can try to push through some trade compromises with Republicans.
But after what John Boehner did the other day, and just the Republican attitude from both chambers, there's no reason for the president to play defense. And it only helps him to tell his own party he's going to be tough and play offense.
KING: So he's going to be tough and play offense. Ed, with little prospects of getting his big-ticket items through a Republican Congress, he wants to draw the contrast and essentially make the fight -- I'm on the side of middle class, they're not.
Republicans say, hey, we just won a big election. We're going to do what the voters asked us to do. The House has passed a proposal to essentially defund and reverse what the president did on immigration, including the president says he wants a to allow a lot of undocumented to stay. Republicans say no. In their policy, they would have to go. The question now is what happens in the Senate where you need 60 votes? And at the retreat yesterday, the Senate leadership came out and said our first priority is to try to gate vote on the House bill. Do they really mean that? Because some of their members don't want to vote on that.
ED O'KEEFE, "WASHINGTON POST": Yes, we'll see. I mean, remember, Republicans have control, but they don't. Because in the Senate you really do need 60 votes, or at least a coalition of 60 senators willing to work together. On immigration, there are not 60 votes to be had, because every Democrat that would be in play has said I'm against that proposal out of the House.
So Senate Republicans probably going to have to spend the next two weeks, while a debate is ongoing about Keystone, because remember that's still going on, coming up with some kind of bill that can get 54 Republicans, plus six Democrats. And in reality there may be three or four Republicans who don't like the compromise that comes up so really you're going to need even more Democrats to get across that 60- vote threshold.
On the president real quick, one of the people I talked to yesterday about that meeting said not only was he sort of being aggressive in laying out his potentially offensive strategy here, yes, offense strategy. Not offensive, but -- Republicans will find it so.
(CROSSTALK)
O'KEEFE: But that he's thinking much more now about his legacy. And that part of this being bold and taking executive action is cementing the last few bits of his legacy that he can deal with in the next two years.
TALEVE: And I think, as we look forward to that state of the union address, we'll see both his legacy bids and how he wants to set up that 2016 race in terms of Democrats in terms of the initiatives he proposes and how he frames them in that fight for the middle class, Wall Street versus the middle class.
KING: You say set up the 2016 race for the Democrats. Well, the Republican race, forget about setting it up, it's active and under way. The Republican National Committee is meeting out in San Diego. Mitt Romney will speak to them tonight. Mitt Romney, remember, a week ago today told a group of donors, hey, actually go tell your friends, I'm thinking about doing this again. So we'll watch for what Governor Romney says.
But another younger governor, Scott Walker, he told the committee last night the party needs a fresh face and a new outlook, no secret there who he's taking a shot at. But Scott Walker, the governor of Wisconsin, just reelected, also delivered a very clear blow at Hillary Clinton. He says Washington is a mess and she's part of the problem.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. SCOTT WALKER (R), WISCONSIN: The reason Hillary Clinton was the big loser is because she embodies Washington. She lives in Washington, she worked in Washington. We need a fresh new perspective that says the answers to the ailments of our nation do not come out of our nation's capital.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: There's an ideological split among the Republican prospects, but there's also a generational split I'm kind of fascinated by. You've got these younger governors like Scott Walker saying it's our turn. He's very clear there, he's in. At least for now. And you've got the Romneys and the Jeb Bush and we'll get to Chris Christie in a minute.
Scott Walker?
TALEV: I mean, this is his best card to play and I think we're going to see all of the Republican candidates compete against Hillary because they want to position themselves as a potential general election prospect and because it's sort of an easy fight to pick. There are many splits in the Republican Party but no one in the Republican Party is for Hillary Clinton. So Walker's strengths are domestic issues; they're certainly, not foreign policy issues. And his age and his position against unions, and he's trying to play to all of the strengths.
O'KEEFE: And it's a consistent message that he can take from the primaries to the general election -- new, I'm new, I'm young, I'm the next generation and I'm from outside Washington and outside the political class that's been running the country for the last few years. That works against Jeb Bush, Mitt Romney, Hillary Clinton.
KING: And to a degree, maybe even Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, because he's not from Washington, right? Even though they say they're the next generation, but now they work here in Washington.
This is interesting one for me, Chris Christie, you either love him or you don't love him. He does - we were joking about him beforehand because Ed knows New Jersey well -- he does a radio program all the time, "Ask the Governor". And good for any politician who does that every week, go out there and take some questions. But you've got Mitt Romney actively getting -- exploring the race. Jeb Bush actively in the race. Scott Walker, another governor, you just heard him right there. Chris Christie says, what's the rush? Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: What I've told everybody -- supporters of mine, potential donors of mine, staff -- is relax. You know, no one's voting for another 12-1/2 months, so everybody just calm down, you know? Be relaxed. Look at me, look how relaxed I look.
9END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: OK. Look how relaxed he looks.
O'KEEFE: Relax, Margaret, relax.
TALEV: It's awesome. And the beauty of this is he sandwiches this announcement in between a trip to South Carolina just to make sure everything is cool with Nikki Haley, right? A trip to Iowa just to make sure everybody remembers he helped a guy who didn't need help getting reelected, get re-elected.
KING: That's not - you mean that's not relaxed? Iowa, South Carolina, that's not for relaxing?
TALEVE: Everything else should relax. He's talking to donors behind the scenes, working on setting up a PAC. This guy is freaking out to make sure that he still has space by the time Mitt and Jeb are done. But the message publicly is just relax.
O'KEEFE: And he makes a point, we are early 2015 talking about something that really won't start to develop for another year. And what is the rush? Because -- Publicly. Right. Because right now is the most critical time for the guys. They got have to hire staff. They've got to convince donors to give them money. They've got to start thinking about the message and the policy position. But the rest of the public's like -
TALEV: Hurry up and relax.
KING: I get the public relax and it's smart public presentation. But you're right, because you have to build two infrastructures now. The new campaign finance world -- you have your own campaign plus a Super- PAC campaign. It's a lot of infrastructure, a lot of money, a lot of time, a lot of people. We'll see how long Governor Christie is so publicly so relaxed.
And as we close, Alisyn, remember a couple years ago, the president gives the state of the union Tuesday night. We're interested in what he has to say, how he frames the debate. Remember, a couple of years ago, Marco Rubio, one of those new fresh faces, was chosen to respond. And he had an embarrassing moment where he started taking his sip of water during the speech. It was very, very awkward. I'll leave it there. Well, Joni Ernst, the new Republican senator from Iowa, chose to deliver the Republican response. And here's Marco Rubio, good for him, a good sense of humor here. "Congrats to @joniernst, chosen to give GOP response to State of the Union. You'll be great. Only advice is have plenty of water before, not during." So Marco Rubio using Instagram there to have a little fun. Not bad. Humors good.
CAMEROTA: Water beforehand, shows you are moderate on all of this stuff.
CUOMO: All right. We're going to make sure to watch John King and his "INSIDE POLITICS" panel breaking down the best political news of the week every Sunday at 8:30 a.m. Did you hear that? Every Sunday you're going to get John doing his "INSIDE POLITICS". very good for him.
We also have news on the latest assault by Boko Haram terrorists in Nigeria. This may be the most devastating one yet. The questions though remain -- what is being done to stop them? What can be done that isn't? we're going to go live to Nigeria, we're going to get a report, and then we're going to test the United States on this issue, talking to the ambassador. Stay with us.
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PEREIRA: It is time for CNN Money now. Chief business correspondent Christine Romans is here. Yesterday good news about jobs; today good news for drivers.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, more money in your pocket, Michaela. After falling for 113 straight days, the national average for a gallon of regular gas -- $2.08. Most of the country is paying less than $2 a gallon now. That's down more than $1.20 from this time last year.
But cheap oil isn't good for everyone. 9,000 workers have now lost their jobs at Schlumberger; that's a company that provides tools and services for oil and gas companies. Schlumberger blames the crash in oil prices and it will cut spending on future exploration and production.
Great sign for housing, folks. Americans are shopping for mortgages; mortgage applications jumped 50 percent during the first week of the year, the biggest jump since the housing market collapse Rates are rock-bottom -- mortgage rates, rock-bottom. The average 30-year fixed, 3.66 percent. A 15-year mortgage is now below 3 percent. That's a popular refinancing tool and we're hoping folks at the banks are going to loosen their standards just a little bit. So good first time home buyers with good jobs and savings will be able to buy a house this year.
CAMEROTA: That is good news, Christine. Thanks so much.
Well, we've seen how ISIS preys on children. We'll bring you the latest on all the developments.
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CUOMO: A Chicago teenager has been charged with terrorism, accused of trying to join ISIS. His parents send a powerful message to ISIS, telling the terrorists to leave children alone. Those parents spoke with Anderson Cooper. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC360": Zarine, you've spoken very forcefully against ISIS, against Muslim extremists who try to recruit young people through social media, through the Internet. Is it -- do you feel that without that influence, your son would not be in the trouble that he is in right now?
ZARINE KHAN, 19-YEAR OLD SON CHARGED WITH TRYINGTO JOIN ISIS:: Yes, I fully think that would not have happened if it wasn't for social media. If it wasn't for the Internet, no, he would never be in the situation he is in today.
COOPER: Shafi, did you notice any changes in your son? Do you have a general sense of what happened?
SHAFI KHAN, 19-YEAR OLD SON CHARGED WITH TRYINGTO JOIN ISIS: Yes. Lately for the past few months, he was very quiet and more -- he wanted isolation because he was watching or doing something on the social media. And that's why he was like brainwashed for the past few months.
COOPER: Zarine, what is your message to those who would try to recruit kids to extremists, to ISIS? What is your message?
ZARINE KHAN: To leave our children alone. Please. That's my only message. To stop recruiting these children. They're too young. They don't know what's going on. They're, you know, they are small. They don't understand what they're getting into. What they're getting, you know. Just leave the children alone. You know? They're too young, not to misuse these children. Their lives and their innocence. You know, people are there misusing the children's innocence. The children are gullible. They're vulnerable, you know, their thinking skills have not completely developed and these people are preying on that. And they're -- they're misusing them. Their innocence and their youth, which I want them to stop, to leave children alone.
COOPER: But Tom, isn't it naive to believe that anybody who has watched ISIS videos with all the horrors that they show and according to prosecutors, there's evidence that this young man and at least his sister have certainly seen those videos and reacted to them in some social media form. Isn't it naive to believe that they would think they could just go live in a caliphate and not, which is essentially a war zone and not be combatants, in fact, prosecutors have said he made a comment about possibly being a combatant?
THOMAS DURKIN, ATTORNEY FOR U.S. TEEN CHANGED WITH TRYING TO JOIN ISIS: Well, I think it's naive to think that you could go live anywhere in a utopia. I think the whole thing is naive. Of course, it's absurd. But I think that's part of Zarine's point. This is a young immature person. The other children are even younger. This is nothing but immaturity. You know, it's obvious to anybody that is well educated and has a lot of exposure to life that this would be absurd to think you could even go to a war zone. But they're not unique. I mean this is -- there are thousands of kids doing this. And I think that's part of the point. What's causing them to do it? I don't believe in my client's case it's because he's a violent person and wants to go kill people. I think he was a misguided young man who got manipulated by social media.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PEREIRA: And misguided by an ideology, right?
CAMEROTA: Right. The mother's plea is so effecting. She says they're vulnerable, they're gullible. Just like all kids. Stop preying on them.
PERERIA: Especially at that age, when you're trying to figure out who you are and what you believe and what you stand for in life, to be manipulated by this kind of ideology is terribly frightening.
CUOMO: Right, but it makes the most sense for ISIS because they aren't just about fighters; they're about a culture shift, literally a dynamism shift where these kids are perfect for them because they want them to believe different things than they do right now.
It's also just another warning for parents. I mean, I know we're all always trying to be vigilant. And not everybody's kid is going to be as vulnerable to this, but as we saw with the kid in Ohio, you know, as they get older, doesn't change your responsibility to know what your kids are doing.
CAMEROTA: Yes.
PEREIRA: Always have to be aware.
CAMEROTA: Absolutely.
All right, we will have more on our breaking news coverage of the terror threat that is gripping Europe this morning. Investigators say they've found 20 jihadist sleeper cells scattered across Europe and some are plotting as what is described as, quote, "imminent threats". So we will break down all the latest developments for you.
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