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New Day

ISIS Threatens to Kill Jordanian Pilot at Sunset; Near-Brawl Inside St. Louis City Hall Meeting; More Snow to Hit New England

Aired January 29, 2015 - 07:00   ET

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

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But as you rightly point out, ISIS is unpredictable. They've set many deadlines. They've broken many deadlines. We've seen these things come and go with nothing happen or in the case over the weekend, a beheading of another Japanese citizen, Haruna Yukawa.

But the time is of the essence here, with the deadline approaching. And in Tokyo, many feel that this could be the time, if there is going to be a deal, it could happen very soon. We'll be watching, Chris.

CUOMO: It's also teeing up a very obvious damned if they do, damned if they don't situation. Will, we'll check back with you in a little bit.

So now we have two big stories breaking overseas. We have what's going on with this ISIS negotiation, and we have what's going on with Arab/Israeli peace. We have a perfect guest for both. We have a former adviser to Arab/Israeli peace negotiations, Aaron David Miller. He's currently the vice president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center.

Aaron, thank you for helping us out this morning. Let's deal with this hostage situation, all right? The obvious dilemma is, if you talk to these guys about what they've done and you negotiate, you empower both their tactic and their existence. But what is the better solution?

AARON DAVID MILLER, VICE PRESIDENT, WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER: Well, it's all true. I mean, there's no question that you're going to incentivize.

But the reality is the Americans and the Israelis know this. During the '80s, the Reagan administration negotiated, partially unsuccessfully, partially successfully for the return of American hostages. The Israelis engage in asymmetrical trades, literally hundreds. The last exchange was well over 1,000, to redeem a Gilad Shalit, a soldier that Hamas had captured.

Look, this is a long war. And there's no way it's going to come to an end. There are battles; you've got to pick your fights. If there literally are exchanges where you can benefit and profit, either on a moral, humanitarian or, in the sense that Jordanians are dealing with, a terrible political problem. Rising domestic opposition to the King's policies for participating in the coalition. They want this guy back; he's the member of a prominent Jordanian family and tribe, critical to the support of the King.

So the reality is, people do negotiate. If in fact, it's in their self-interest, we did it with Bowe Bergdahl, despite the administration's efforts to deny these are similar exchanges.

CUOMO: That's right. And it sets up a perceived hypocrisy that has the U.S. in trouble right now, and not just against those who would be its enemy, but also those who were its allies. It seems like it's double-speak.

Do you draw any conclusions from the fact that this terrorist group has changed its perspective? Usually, it just, you know, wantonly kills people and then puts out ugly videos about it. This time they keep changing demands and timelines. Does that mean anything useful?

MILLER: Chris, I think we're being played, frankly, like a finely tuned violin. I mean, think about -- this is an absolutely no-lose situation for ISIS.

No. 1, they're negotiating in, as high a profile, a global format as possible. It's theater, really.

CUOMO: Right.

MILLER: Tragic, terrible theater.

Secondly they're transacting with the government of Jordan, with the government of Japan. They've got the entire international community, the media on the edge of their seats. You've got three missed deadlines, no proof of life, terrible confusion over what the nature of this deal would possibly -- will possibly be.

And all along, ISIS uses -- uses this as a tool of propaganda and recruitment. It really is a no-lose situation for them. And tragically so for us.

CUOMO: All right. So now let's switch to the other situation we have to monitor over there. I had on a spokesman for the IDF, Lieutenant Colonel Lerner. And I said to him, "Hey, you know, Hezbollah says that you guys hit them last week, and you killed a Revolutionary Guard officer," and that's why they did that.

As you might expect, that question didn't get a response. All did he was define how Hezbollah is a horrible terrorist organization. All which they obviously believe to be true. But does that question matter, and does it deserve an answer?

MILLER: Well, I think it does matter. But this is what one, one scene in a very long and terrible movie between Israel and Hezbollah. Both are seeking to establish a measure of deterrence. And Hezbollah clearly, as a resistance organization, is looking for new opportunities to strike the Israelis in order to legitimize their own role.

And one of those new opportunities, Chris, is the unsettled, ungoverned territory that now exists on the Syrian side of the border, very close to the Golan Heights. I suspect the Israelis struck January 18, killing a high-level Iranian, maybe two, Revolutionary Guard commanders and a handful of high-level Hezbollah commanders, in part to deny Hezbollah, at least to send them a message that, in effect, they would not allow a new front to be opened, a new normal, so to speak, to be created.

And as a consequence, predictably, absolutely no surprise, Hezbollah responded yesterday. The question is, can we keep this from escalating?

CUOMO: Right.

MILLER: I expect the answer is probably yes.

CUOMO: Well, and there's a lot of confidence given to that position, because we expect that Hezbollah actually reached out to Israel and said, "We don't want any more of this for now." Which is, you know, one of the unusual dynamics in that situation. But that does hold some promise.

Another take-away from it, though, Aaron, is do you see Iran as playing Putin in situations recently? They're helping shore up the Iraqi -- you know, fighting off the Sunnis there on the Sharia side. Then on -- on the Shiite side. And then now they're helping Hezbollah. Are they playing that Putin game of going around and seeding dissent in places that furthers their own cause?

MILLER: Well, whether it's seeding dissent, Chris, or simply maximizing their influence, the reality is they're -- they are expanding their influence with Hezbollah, even with Hamas, renewing that relationship. Negotiating with the Americans to see if they can get sanctions removed for a punitive deal on the nuclear weapons issue, and supporting Bashar al-Assad.

So the reality is, as the Arab world melts down, you have three significant non-Arab countries that are emerging to play a more preeminent role. One is Israel. One is Turkey. And one is Iran.

And this file is hardly closed. The Iranians are going to continue to be probably one of the most preeminent powers in the region. And we can expect more of this.

CUOMO: Aaron David Miller, thank you as always for helping us understand what is certainly a complex situation. We'll call on you again, my friend, thank you.

MILLER: Thanks, Chris. Take care.

CUOMO: So it's always good after talking to Aaron, Mick, you always feel a little bit smarter.

PEREIRA: Don't you. I feel that way, absolutely.

Thanks, Chris.

All right. Back here stateside, tensions between the public and police flaring once again, this time inside St. Louis City Hall. It was all caught on video. Violence erupting during a debate about creating civilian oversight boards to monitor police.

Sara Sidner joins us live with the latest developments. And as you mentioned, it's so interesting to see that all of this happened when they were trying to find solutions.

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, and that goes to the question, how can this community move forward if they can't even talk? I want to give you some idea of just what the tensions are in and around St. Louis, nearly six months since the shooting death of Michael Brown. Look at what happened at city hall last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) two-way street. The law is a two-way street.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) (EXPLETIVE DELETED), man!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: A full-on tussle there between police, who most of them there in the beginning of the meeting were not uniformed. And citizens who had come to this meeting, talking about the possibility of putting in place a civilian review board for police. And all heck broke loose.

Basically, what the protesters claim is that the police union representative, whose last name is Roorda, Jeff Roorda, got up; and he started talking. And then he showed the protesters his arm band, his wrist band. And the wrist band said, "I am Darren Wilson."

And as you know, Darren Wilson is the officer who was responsible for killing unarmed teenager, Michael Brown. But he was never indicted for doing any wrongdoing. Protesters took issue with that. But it didn't really go nuts until there was some sort of scuffle between Mr. Roorda and one of the citizens at this meeting. There is a he said/she said. She says he pushed her. He says, you know, something else happened.

But the bottom line is they're simply trying to talk out whether or not to put this civilian review board in place, and they can't even get through it without having this tussle. By the way, they had to basically just stop the meeting, and they never got much further than that.

CAMEROTA: Oh, my gosh. Such still heated feelings about that. Sara, thanks so much for that update.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issuing a warning to Hezbollah. He says the militants will, quote, "pay full price" for a missile attack that killed two Israeli soldiers, the latest incident prompting fears of an escalation. A similar Hezbollah strike eight years ago led to a month-long Israeli invasion of Lebanon that left hundreds of people dead.

CUOMO: Hopefully, we do not see a repeat of that.

We also have some encouraging news for you out of West Africa. Listen to this. The number of Ebola cases there has hit its lowest level since the epidemic began.

Now, for the first time since June, there have been fewer than 100 confirmed cases reported in the three hardest hit nations: Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. I know that sounds like a lot, but to him it is -- officials says they can now focus on trying to end the epidemic instead of just slowing it down.

PEREIRA: If you live in a winter wonderland, you've probably had your moment where you slip on the ice and take a spill. This cutie takes the cake. Check out Quinn.

This is Quinn, can't quite seem to get her bearings. She's a beautiful Burmese mountain dog, one of my favorites. Tries to get a grip on the slippery surface in New Hampshire. Fortunately, Quinn was not hurt. Her owner posted the slow-mo video on Instagram. It became an instant hit.

I mean, can I tell you something funny? You know, we got a ride for my live shot. We got stranded in New London, couldn't get to our live shot, so we got a ride with a plow driver.

When we arrived, Rosa Flores, our colleague, was there doing some live hits. She was in between doing her live hits. And we got out of the plow, and I was showing off, and I was like, "This was how we roll." And just as I said that, I fell on my butt. And God laughed. It was hilarious. Luckily, I got some padding back there.

CAMEROTA: I wish we had some video of that.

PEREIRA: There is none.

CUOMO: I'm sorry you fell, Mick. I'm glad I didn't have to see that.

PEREIRA: What a liar.

CUOMO: If I'm not the one knocking you down, I don't want you to fall.

All right. So look, obviously, falling is the least of the concerns that people have. So many are going to have to deal with what already has happened, and there's now going to be more. In New England, three feet of snow, as you know, in some places, and the trouble will still be coming.

Let's get details from CNN meteorologist Jennifer Gray, still out in the cold, live in Boston. What is the next?

JENNIFER GRAY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, we do have more storms on the way. And could you imagine, Chris, waking up to all of this behind me and being told, "You have two more snowstorms right on the way"?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're sure there's a car.

GRAY: This morning, millions of New England residents buried by an historic blizzard...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is -- this is brutal.

GRAY: ... picked up a shovel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This blizzard is one of the largest we've ever seen. That's going to take some time to remove that snow.

GRAY: From Long Island to Maine, residents up to their waist, some up to their neck in snow. Some parts of Massachusetts receiving a record-breaking three feet of snowfall.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The bedding has icicles on it.

GRAY: In Marshfield, south of Boston, residents returned to their coastline homes, destroyed during the violent winds and high tide.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's surreal. I can't believe this. We had Christmas in here.

GRAY: A 50-foot section of the seawall washed away. Officials fear it could happen again.

KARYN POLITO, LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: The storm came in, you know, very powerful one. The next one could be even stronger. So we've got to figure out what the right solution is.

GRAY: Meanwhile, the disastrous clean-up effort continues to band the community together.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're very capable young men if you need our help.

GRAY: In New Hampshire firefighters and Cub Scouts go door to door...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I tried to shovel, but I have a walker.

GRAY: ...clearing driveways for the elderly.

CHRISTIAN WALKER, NEW HAMPSHIRE CUB SCOUT: We were just helping the community and the elders, since they couldn't shovel their driveways.

GRAY: And in Boston, where snow surpassed two feet...

CHRIS LAUDANI (PH), LOCAL BOSTON BARTENDER: There was still snow in the streets. And you couldn't see the lines in the road.

GRAY: One local bartender trekked several blocks during the snowstorm to clear the permanent finish line for the annual Boston Marathon, a symbolic act proving Bostonians will once again persevere.

LAUDANI: It's very special to me and the city. I didn't think it deserved to be covered under, you know, all that snow. (END VIDEOTAPE)

GRAY: Yes, they do have two more snowstorms on the way, like we mentioned. Of course, the timing of this could not be worse. We are looking at a lot of snow still on the ground. It's definitely not going to melt before then.

Let's take a look at the graphics. I want to time this out for you, because it looks like we are going to see the possibility of a couple of inches of snow sometime late tonight into Friday. It could linger into Saturday morning, though, and then we are going to expect windy conditions, as well.

Snowfall totals definitely not as impressive as the ones we just saw by any stretch. We're only going to see about an inch or two of snow. Worst-case scenario, we could see about four inches. However, that would make it a plowable event. So we are hoping for about an inch or two, and that's most likely what Boston is going to see for this next system.

Cold temperatures, though. Temperatures are going to stay right around freezing today and tomorrow. They do drop dramatically by the time we get to the weekend. High temperatures only in the teens and 20s for the weekend.

So there's the system pulling out of the Midwest, heading this way. And then we have another system that's going to be here Sunday into Monday. A lot of uncertainty with that track. Some models are taking it offshore and missing the northeast completely. Other models are dumping a couple more inches on Boston, so still a little bit of time to watch that one, guys.

But in the meantime, we are looking for more snow before the start of the weekend. And temperatures are going to stay very, very cold -- Guys.

PEREIRA: Did you just extend your reservations at the hotel where you're staying at? Cause you're done for a while. Let's be honest.

CUOMO: It's so cold that hat is stuck on her head.

GRAY: Oh, yes, I am. I'm coming home! I'm coming home.

PEREIRA: We hope so.

CAMEROTA: Great job, Jennifer. That snow will not melt until June. When you have that much snow involved and the temperature doesn't get warm enough, till about June.

PEREIRA: The high of 19, our producer told us on Monday here in New York. Nineteen.

CAMEROTA: Yikes. Well, Monday's blizzard left the entire island of Nantucket in the dark and without heat, some parts of it even underwater. How is Nantucket doing today? We're going to talk to a couple of islanders, one of whom was trapped, next. CUOMO: And the president goes down to Philadelphia. He's trying to

rally the Democratic troops, get them ready for the next big set of elections that are coming up. But what is the rallying cry? Why are they going to have any chance of optimism? What did the president say and what will the GOP have to say about what he said? John King will tell you what they all said on "Inside Politics."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: The northeast continues to dig out from the blizzard, but the tiny island of Nantucket has the biggest clean-up ahead. At one point during the storm, the entire island lost power, and parts of it flooded.

The chief of the Nantucket Police Department, William Pittman, joins us. He's also the director of emergency management there. We are also joined again by Clinton Terry. He's a Nantucket resident. We spoke with him yesterday when he was stranded in a motel room on Cape Cod. But now he's home, we're happy to say.

So gentlemen, thanks so much for joining us.

Chief, I want to start with you, because when we talked with you at the height of the storm, your 13,000 residents, virtually all of them, were without electricity and heat. How is Nantucket doing this morning?

WILLIAM PITTMAN, CHIEF, NANTUCKET POLICE DEPARTMENT: Well, we're happy to say that virtually everybody has got heat and electricity back. I think we got a couple hundred residents still out, particularly Brant Point area and some out in Nantucket (ph).

CAMEROTA: Are those folks in shelters?

PITTMAN: No. The shelter closed at midnight last night. The areas that are impacted right now are mostly unoccupied homes that are mainly summer residents.

CAMEROTA: OK. Chief, also the highest winds of the storm were clocked in Nantucket. There were 78-mile-per-hour gusts. Those are hurricane strength. So what's the damage in Nantucket?

PITTMAN: Well, the most visible damage is the town pier was totally obliterated. It looks like a bomb went off on it. That was totally obliterated. We've got a lot of tree limbs down. We have drifting snow. We actually still have some areas of the island we haven't even been able to get to yet, although for the most part, we've made contact with somebody back in those areas to -- so we relatively know that things are good back there.

CAMEROTA: Clinton, when we checked in with you yesterday, you were basically trapped in a hotel room on Cape Cod. You couldn't get home to Nantucket. But now you're home. You had to take a ferry, we understand. What was your trip back like? And what did you find when you got back home?

CLINTON TERRY, NANTUCKET RESIDENT: Well, lots of snow. The trip was great. It was a little bit choppy. But nice to be able to get home.

CAMEROTA: You own a restaurant on Nantucket. What's the status of your restaurant?

TERRY: We should be open for lunch today at 11:30. Some minor technical Internet issues, things like that. And we just hope that all the food is able to come.

CAMEROTA: That is incredible that you've been able to open. We're looking at your pictures, by the way, right now, the pictures that you took during the snow. I mean, they're beautiful, but we get the point of just how snow-soaked the island was. So how are you going to open the restaurant if there's been no food deliveries?

TERRY: We'll do a limited menu. We do have some proteins, and we can go to the supermarket for whatever is left. But it's going to be pretty limited.

CAMEROTA: What's going to be your lunch special today?

TERRY: I think my chef partner made chili. So...

CAMEROTA: Perfect.

TERRY: Soups. Miso soup. Chicken bento box.

CAMEROTA: Perfect.

TERRY: Maybe (UNINTELLIGIBLE)

CAMEROTA: What more could you ask for? And I know -- I know, Clinton, that you were saying that the silver lining of all this -- and chief, I feel the same way, is that the island has really had to pull together. Chief, how is the community doing?

PITTMAN: Very resilient. Actually, we got the school back in operation today. We're running -- you know, everything is on time. Things are opening up. I think it was just another bad storm for most people here.

CAMEROTA: Clinton, you think you're going to have a big lunch crowd today?

TERRY: I think so. We're a pretty tough bunch.

PITTMAN: I'll go.

CAMEROTA: Chief, you're going to go?

PITTMAN: I'm going.

TERRY: We'll see you at 11:30.

CAMEROTA: That's great. All right. Well, we hope to be able to visit your restaurant at some point, too, hopefully this summer.

Clinton Terry and Chief William Pittman, thanks so much for joining us on NEW DAY. Best of luck.

PEREIRA: This kind of thing really does bring a community together, doesn't it?

CAMEROTA: It does, it does. Certainly, a tight-knit community like that.

PEREIRA: And soup for everybody.

All right. A spike in online threats targeting U.S. airlines. What is going on here? Ahead, we're going to take a look at how this could impact your air travel.

CUOMO: So, are you getting ready to vote for Sarah Palin for president again? No? That's what her former conservative base is saying. Why? Why have they lost the love? John King will tell you. Why some say the bloom is off the Palin.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEREIRA: Welcome back. We're now two hours from a new ISIS deadline, demanding that Jordan release an imprisoned female terrorist. ISIS says if she is not freed, they will kill a Jordanian pilot captured last month. This threat purportedly came in an audio message from Japanese hostage, Kenji Goto. Jordanian officials say they're willing to make a swap for the pilot, but they want proof of life before making any deal.

CAMEROTA: House Democrats hunker down for a big strategy session in Philadelphia today. President Obama will be there, and he's expected to take on Republicans over those forced spending cuts. Joe Johns is live for us from Washington. What do we know, Joe?

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alisyn, President Obama expected to appear at the Democratic Issues Conference in Philadelphia today. And expected to call for an end to those automatic across-the-board budget cuts that have been causing so much trouble here in Washington, D.C., over the past couple of years.

This will be one last opportunity for the president to preview parts of his budget, scheduled to be released next week.

Now, the president is also expected to hit Republicans for holding up funding for the Department of Homeland Security in a disagreement over immigration. The budget cuts, of course, are the central thing here. And those budget cuts have been a very big deal, as I said, in Washington, D.C.

Both Democrats and Republicans have said they caused huge problems here in Washington. Nonetheless, it's not clear that the government is going to be able to get any agreement.

So what's the reality check? Well, the fact of the matter is, Republicans now firmly in control of Capitol Hill, and they're the ones who control the purse strings, Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: Joe Johns, thanks so much.

CUOMO: All right. So the historic thaw between Cuba and the U.S. may be freezing up again. Cuban President Raul Castro is demanding the U.S. give back the base at Guantanamo Bay, lifting the half-century trade embargo on Cuba and compensating his country for damages, and removing it from a terror list. All of that before the two nations even think about reestablishing ties.