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Attorney General Voted Stalled for 160 Days; Ohio Man Indicted in Terror Plot; Extremists on Rampage in Iraq, Yemen; Will Jeb Bush Run in 2016?; Tulsa Officials Dispute Claim of Falsified Records. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired April 17, 2015 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They believe that they can tweak some of the language to make the anti- abortion -- the abortion language there more amenable to Democrats.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying that he plans to move on that vote, likely early next week and then continue onto Lynch. But the controversy over this hold-up has really been brewing, the White House calling it shameful.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: So she's waited now more than twice as long as the previous seven attorneys general nominees combined to get a vote on the floor of the United States Senate. That is an unconscionable delay, and there's no excuse or explanation for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: And by CNN's count, Lynch does have enough Republican votes to move forward to confirmation if it moves forward to a vote next week, Chris. But that's a lot of "ifs," that's a lot of "maybes" -- Chris.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: That's a lot of Washington right there. Sunlen, thank you very much.

In other news, an alleged terror plot by a home-grown terrorist stopped. According to federal authorities, a 23-year-old Ohio man traveled to Syria to train with extremists last year, then returned to America to kill U.S. soldiers. This ties into the danger that seems ever present in the Middle East where two key U.S. allies are struggling to keep terrorist forces at bay. We have every angle of the story covered.

Let's start with CNN's Atika Shubert -- Atika.

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And we know that there are about 150 American citizens who have traveled to Syria to fight, but this is the first time an American citizen has actually been charged, not only with going to Syria but returning to -- with a plan to attack U.S. citizens. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHUBERT (voice-over): Back from Syria radicalized. And, according to authorities, with intent to kill. This man, a 23-year- old American, is in custody this morning. The FBI says he was hoping to do something big in the U.S.

Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud left his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, in April of last year, according to an indictment, on a one-way ticket to Athens, Greece. But Mohamud never boarded his connecting flight after stopping in Istanbul, Turkey. Instead, authorities say, an accomplice picked him up and drove him to Reyhanli, a border town where he crossed over into Syria.

Mohamud allegedly trained with terrorists in shooting weapons, breaking into houses, using explosives, and hand-to-hand combat. Officials did not say which group he trained with.

Two months into the military-type camp, a cleric told Mohamud to, quote, "return to the United States and carry out an act of terrorism," according to the indictment.

In June, now back at Ohio, the 23-year-old allegedly told others that he wanted to "kill American soldiers execution-style" at a military base in Texas. And his backup plan was to attack a prison, specifically wanting to target armed forces, including police officers. It's not clear just how far along any such plans were.

Mohamud expressing support for ISIS on social media a full year prior to leaving for Syria, officials say, uploading images of the terrorist group to his Facebook page.

SEN. RON JOHNSON (R-WI), HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: As long as ISIS remains, as long as they are not defeated, they're going to continue to inspire individuals like that to go join the jihad, get trained, come back and pose a threat to west and to America.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SHUBERT: Now, he faces three counts. One of aiding terrorist individuals, also a terrorist organization, and for giving false information to the FBI, all of which could get him a maximum of 38 years in prison. I did speak to his defense lawyer, however, and he says today his client will plead not guilty to all three charges, Poppy.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Atika Shubert, thanks for the reporting this morning. We'll continue to follow this story.

Also right now ISIS fighters in Iraq are threatening to overrun the city of Ramadi. These are new images just into us this morning. What you see is families in droves trying to flee that city, hoping to find some sort of safe haven in Baghdad.

And in Yemen, al Qaeda forces have just seized control of a key airport there. America's new defense secretary conceding the options that the U.S. has to stop these terrorists may be limited.

Let's bring in CNN chief national security correspondent Jim Sciutto. It's troubling to hear that from Ash Carter.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: No question. I mean, this was a stark, a sobering assessment from the defense secretary, Carter, and the chairman of the joint chiefs, Martin Dempsey, on Iraq.

You heard General Dempsey basically granting that ISIS is going to take the largest city in western Iraq, Anbar province, 60 miles from Baghdad.

Then in Yemen you have AQAP advancing there, taking territory. They took over an airport yesterday. And this is not just something happening thousands of miles away, because AQAP, direct threat to Americans and the U.S. homeland, deep implications for Americans here at home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO (voice-over): Fighters from the most dangerous al Qaeda affiliate, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, overrunning an airport in southeastern Yemen. Chaos engulfing the lawless country with deep implications for safety on the U.S. homeland.

[07:05:13] The new American defense secretary conceded that the fall of the U.S. allied government, the withdrawal of U.S. Special Forces, and the closing of the U.S. embassy in Yemen have all reduced America's ability to fight the terror threat.

(on camera): It's just hard to imagine -- for people at home to imagine there's the same control and response.

ASHTON CARTER, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: It's easier if there's a government with which we can cooperate in existence in that country. We're not going to find that all the time in all places in the world. And that's why we have counterterrorism capabilities that don't depend upon that.

SCIUTTO (voice-over): In Iraq it is the terror group ISIS that is on the advance, with a punishing assault on Ramadi. Iraqi officials inside western Iraq's largest city tell CNN it is on the brink of falling to the terror group.

Today, Joint Chiefs Chairman General Martin Dempsey conceded that Iraqi forces may very well lose Ramadi to ISIS.

GENERAL MARTIN DEMPSEY, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: I would much rather that Ramadi not fall, but it won't be the end of the campaign should it fall. We've got to get it back.

SCIUTTO: Coalition airstrikes on Thursday appear to have cut some resupply routes used by ISIS. But residents have given up on rescue, tens of thousands having fled the city in just two days. Ramadi is in Iraq's Sunni heartland. Today, the new Defense

Secretary, Ashton Carter, expressed concern that the Iraqi government is still relying too much on Shiite-dominated militias.

CARTER: A lasting victory over ISIL requires inclusive governance in Baghdad and respect for local populations in all areas liberated from ISIL control.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO: Another thing on the defense secretary's agenda, Iran. We pressed him on Russia's sale of advanced missiles to Iran, this in the midst of these sensitive nuclear negotiations. He said there's still military options on the table for the U.S. with regards to Iran's nuclear program. And they say that those plans are, in the words of General Dempsey, intact, even with this Russian missile sale.

So, Chris, it appears that they've factored in these missiles to any possibility of a U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear facilities if the negotiations fail, if that becomes a possibility. But of course, it's a very busy agenda now for the U.S. defense secretary, with hot spots in so many parts of the world, Chris.

CUOMO: Seems more unsafe than safe spots right now, Jim. Thank you very much. Appreciate the reporting.

Let's discuss. Mike Rogers, CNN national security commentator, former chair of the House Intelligence Committee. It is good to have you. Where do we start, Chairman? Let's start with the arrest that we just had. Do you see this new approach by the FBI, which Juliette Kayyem called "don't go there," you know, lowering the bar, that if you're traveling abroad, we're going to bring cases more aggressively in the United States. Do you like that move and why?

MIKE ROGERS, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY COMMENTATOR: Well, I think it's an important step. It is by mean no means the best tool we have in our toolkit, but it an important tool.

Remember, he was not going to get dropped off in Istanbul. He was going to go onto Greece. It would have been very hard to determine that he would have left his original flight plan in the middle of it in order to get to Syria.

So they're already, they being those who are going to be committed to go and get, trained those people in the pipeline, have already decided they're going to be surreptitious in how they enter Syria. That's problem No. 1.

So I think the FBI has to do it. I still think it puts them a little bit behind the power curve here, where we're trying to stop the recruiting that's happening in the United States and really western Europe, Australia, Canada. All of those countries are now serious targets for recruits just like this. That makes their job pretty -- pretty difficult.

CUOMO: All right. So we're going from the demands side, right, these kinds of guys, lone wolves, men and women, to the supply. When you look at that entire region of the world -- Syria, Iraq, Iran ostensibly, Yemen -- it seems like whatever the U.S. strategy is or was is not working anywhere. Can you tell me that that's not a cynical assessment?

ROGERS: Well, I don't think it is. But if we recall, a lot of people, including me at the time, saying you have to intervene a little bit, not with big U.S. troops but early on to stop the rising tide. None of that happened. If you recall, the policy at the time was "We're not going to do anything. We'll just let it take care of itself." Well, it's taking care of itself in the wrong direction.

And so now you have Shia fighters directing fighting in Iraq, which is -- this is creating this problem, with the Sunnis just abandoning their posts in a place like Iraq. We've seen the same thing in Yemen.

There's some talk that some of the Sunni tribal leaders voluntarily let the port in Mukalla, in the south go, because they were worried about the Houthis, who are Shia. So this is a very sectarian battle that's creeping up on us here, and we are going to have to regain control, or you're going to have all of it in flames for some period of time. And that does impact the United States.

[07:10:06] And with al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula having safe haven and access now to, if reports are true, access to oil sales...

CUOMO: Right.

ROGERS: ... even black market oil sales in the south, that means they have cash to do operations. And al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is the one affiliate of al Qaeda that wants to strike the United States. So it's very serious.

CUOMO: Creeping up like a tornado maybe, right? I mean, there's nothing subtle about this situation. You're fighting Shias in one place with a group of allies. You're fighting Sunnis in another with a different group of allies. And then there's some overlap.

And you know what all this begs? Where the heck is Congress on the vote for the AUMF? How do you look at this situation? You're not there anymore, lucky for you, because I'd be all over you this morning. How are they not holding hearings on this? What matters more right now?

ROGERS: I could not agree with you more. As a matter of fact, I called for this last year. There was many members who were saying, "We better do this back last year when this problem started to brew."

Now, I don't believe it stops the administration from making certain decisions, but I do think that you need -- you absolutely need congressional approval to continue a fight that's not going to be as perfect as people would like it to be.

CUOMO: Perfect as people would like it to be.

ROGERS: If you're going to send those soldiers -- yes, exactly, Chris.

CUOMO: You have the advisers there. It's not working. This Congress loves to check the president and says he's going by himself too much on things. They sue him for it civilly, right? But they're not meeting and debating this? Is that not a breach of the responsibility of the representatives and senators in Congress?

ROGERS: Well, again, I know they've got a lot on their plate. I will say this.

CUOMO: What do they have on their plate that's bigger than this?

ROGERS: It is very clear in the Constitution...

CUOMO: What's bigger than this?

ROGERS: ... that this is one of the things they're supposed to do.

CUOMO: Honestly.

ROGERS: I completely agree that they should be doing this. This should never have been a squabble about what the AUMF looks like. This is a very clear issue that should be bipartisan, and it should be done yesterday.

And we need -- and it helps the Pentagon. It helps the president in his decisions. And it certainly helps congressional oversight of these things, which should happen, as well. They absolutely should do this. I would argue it should be a priority.

It is falling apart around us. And with what you saw happen in Ohio, that was our biggest fear, that these people with western passports are going to get trained and come home to conduct acts of terror. This is just one individual out of thousands we believe have western passports. That is a huge problem. We have to do something about it. They should -- Congress should act, absolutely.

CUOMO: Right. Well, Chair -- former Chairman Rogers, wish you were still there, because you'd be pushing for action on this. But it's great to have you with us to help us understand it better. Have a good weekend, sir.

ROGERS: Thanks, Chris.

CUOMO: So the strategy, part of it, is what we're doing with the U.N., right? What we're doing with our allies. So we're going to get some accountability going. Later this hour we're going to discuss all with U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power -- John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Chris.

Happening now, the big political push in New Hampshire. Jeb Bush has not declared his intention to run for president yet, but you know the saying: if it walks like a duck and campaigns like a duck. Today, Bush will be at the First in the Nation Republican

Leadership Summit with other big-name contenders, those who've announced and otherwise. CNN's Athena Jones live in Manchester, New Hampshire, with the latest.

Good morning, Athena.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.

Well, before the former governor heads to that big summit, he'll be speaking here next hour at a politics and eggs breakfast. Just last night up the road in Concord, he spoke at a politics and pies event. So apparently, folks around here like their politics with food.

Bush spoke about something we've all been talking about, which is how to counter this idea of a political dynasty, especially since, if he wins the nomination, he could be up against Hillary Clinton, another political dynasty. Here's what we had to say last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH, FORMER GOVERNOR OF FLORIDA: I'd have to show that I have the leadership skills, not just to yap about it but to do it. And if I do that, then the Bush dynasty thing and the Clinton-Bush deal, all that stuff subsides. That's my -- that's my plan. You got a better one, let me know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JONES: So there he was, speaking frankly about that challenge. And frankly speaking, this is a state that's important to Republicans and, of course, important to Jeb Bush. It hasn't always been kind to his family. You'll remember that George W., his brother, lost to Senator John McCain here in 2000, and his father had a tough fight to win here back in 1988.

But this is also a state where the Republican voters are more moderate than in a place like, say, Iowa. They're more like general election voters. And Bush is someone who has made that -- who has argued that he wants to make a general election campaign from the start. So he has to do well here eating pies, eating eggs and connecting with voters -- Poppy.

HARLOW: I wish I had your assignment. I wish I was eating pies and eggs with them. Sounds pretty good to me this Friday morning. Athena Jones, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

Switching gears here this morning, the Tulsa Sheriff's Office pushing back against a new report that Deputy Robert Bates' training records were falsified. Officials say they suspect the claims were made by a former disgruntled employee who's now in jail, this man, accused of murder.

[07:15:12] But the reporters who wrote the story tell us here at NEW DAY they had five sources on that story. And they are sticking with their reporting.

Bates is charged with second-degree manslaughter after this happened on April 2, gunning down a black man in a sting operation. He said he mistook his gun for a Taser.

CUOMO: Major world powers will try to shore up a nuclear deal with Iran starting next week. That's when the next round happens in this meeting between the European Union senior negotiator and Iran's deputy foreign minister. That will be happening in Vienna on Wednesday. A final agreement, remember, is due by the end of June.

BERMAN: The parents of the youngest victim killed in the Boston Marathon bombing is asking prosecutors to take the death penalty off the table.

Bill and Denise Richard writing an op-ed in "The Boston Globe" in honor of their 8-year-old son, Martin. They are asking the U.S. attorney to offer convicted bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev life in prison without parole in exchange for waiving any appeals. Look at what they write.

"We hope our two remaining children do not have to grow up with the lingering painful reminder of what the defendant took from them, which years of appeals would undoubtedly bring."

You know, it's interesting. This is a very emotional op-ed they have written this morning. They do not mention Dzhokhar Tsarnaev by name. They refer to him as the defendant.

HARLOW: Just like after. Just like after the bombing, when it was people didn't want to say the names.

BERMAN: Right.

HARLOW: Just focus on the victims and healing for the city of Boston.

CUOMO: I think he shouldn't. I think that it publicizes what they did.

HARLOW: Sure.

CUOMO: Gives them some kind of a perverse glory. And, you know, they make a point. Given that you -- the death penalty is going to take a very long time. And it will make this man relevant in a way that their kids will be aware of.

BERMAN: Counselor, can that come up in sentencing?

HARLOW: Yes.

BERMAN: Can the desires of the parents of the victim be raised in sentencing by the defense?

CUOMO: Oh, sure. Sure. Because you have victim impact statements. HARLOW: So they could come to the court.

BERMAN: That could sway the jury.

CUOMO: Absolutely. Absolutely it could. And remember where this jury is, your home state of Massachusetts, even though it's a federal case so you have the death penalty option. They don't have it as a state law, and there are pretty strong feelings against it.

HARLOW: Yes.

CUOMO: This is also a pretty horrible case.

HARLOW: Absolutely.

Also coming up, we're going to talk more about the Tulsa reserve deputy who fatally shot a suspect instead of using his Taser. Did Robert Bates even have the training that he needed to have a gun, to be on the street to carry out this operation? What do the records show, and what does the victim's family think? Their attorney joins us next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[07:21:15] MAJOR SHANNON CLARK, TULSA COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER: First of all, you know that that is not any type of court-generated document. That is a made-up document that was generated by somebody's computer, signed off on a notary.

They're telling us we did something. Why can't you tell us who is the person on the affidavit, so we can go back to try to confirm that information?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: Fallout this morning from the reports suggesting training records were falsified for Robert Bates, the reserve deputy who shot and killed Eric Harris during a sting operation in Tulsa.

Bates' attorney and the sheriff's office are pushing back hard accusing those reporters of using an accused murder with a grudge as their source. But those reporters say they have five sources and they are standing by their story.

So what does the victim's family think in all of this? Because it is about the victim, Eric Harris. Donald Smolen, an attorney for the Harris family, joins me now.

Thank you for being with me sir. I appreciate it. I want to begin with news just in to us here at CNN. Robert Bates was just on "The Today Show," and he told Matt Lauer, "Let me apologize to Eric Harris's family," swearing this was a mistake. Your reaction to that?

DONALD SMOLEN, ATTORNEY FOR HARRIS FAMILY: Well, I think that's -- that's a long time coming. It's unfortunate that it didn't come before now.

HARLOW: So just to be clear here, the Harris family, you, anyone representing them, have heard nothing at all from Bates or in terms of any sort of apology?

SMOLEN: Absolutely nothing.

HARLOW: Also, on the show, on "The Today Show," he was asked to point out where his Taser is and where his gun is held when he's patrolling. And it was very clear that they are held in very different locations. And he showed that on his body. Any reaction to that?

SMOLEN: Well, I think that's consistent with our belief that this whole slip and capture phenomenon is just a red herring.

HARLOW: How's the family doing? How's the family, your clients, how are they doing after this loss?

SMOLEN: They're exhausted. I think they're emotionally drained, understandably. But they're a tight family. They're a tight unit. And they're just looking for some good to come out of this.

HARLOW: When you look at what we're hearing from Bates' attorney and also the sheriff's office, they're saying that these reports that have been coming out in the "Tulsa World" newspaper that say, look, Robert Bates did not have the necessary training he needed; records saying he did were actually falsified.

They are saying look at the sourcing of this. This is all coming from an accused murderer who's sitting in jail, who's a disgruntled employee who wants to make the office, the sheriff's office, look bad.

hose reporters told me this morning they have five different sources on this. What's your reaction to what we're hearing from the sheriff's office and from Bates' own attorney?

SMOLEN: Well, we have -- we our own sources, both former and current employees of the Tulsa County Sheriff's Department, that have confirmed the falsification of these records. Falsification of records is kind of the M.O. of the Tulsa County Sheriff's Department. There's other federal litigation going on right now in front of the federal judge John Gateau (ph), where falsifications of medical records has come up as part of an NCCH...

HARLOW: Let's stay focused on this case, sir. Because I don't have the sheriff's office with me here to defend themselves on that one. Let's stay focused on this case.

SMOLEN: OK. Sure.

HARLOW: So I do want you to listen to Robert Bates' attorney and what he said in terms of attacking the reports here that his client did not have the proper -- the proper training for all this. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CLARK BREWSTER, BATES'S ATTORNEY: Well, I've seen the affidavit

that was submitted. It's a redacted blacked-out affidavit signed by a guy charged with first-degree murder in an adjoining county who hasn't worked at the sheriff's office in five years. I don't put a lot of stock in that report or the credibility of who would further that report.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:25:18] HARLOW: You said you have your own sources. It sounds like separate, even, from the "Tulsa World" newspaper. Can you share with us any of their names, their positions, what they've said to you?

SMOLEN: No, because of concerns over their safety and the fact that they're still employed with the Tulsa County Sheriff's Department they've asked us to keep their names out of this.

HARLOW: Any former employees? You mentioned former.

SMOLEN: Again, for safety purposes, we're not disclosing any of that at this time.

HARLOW: Let me ask you this: We know that at this point Robert Bates is charged with second-degree manslaughter. His attorney says he's not guilty. He says this is excusable homicide.

In your eyes, and this is still early going -- we even heard there may be videotape that we haven't seen yet -- is there any way that this is excusable homicide and a horrific -- a horrific accident?

SMOLEN: Absolutely not. I think, when you look at the lack of training that's been able to be substantiated in this case, coupled with this gentleman's age and his capacity as a reserve officer, there's no way this is excusable in any way.

HARLOW: You bring up age, of course, because reflexes change with age. You're talking about a 73-year-old here.

Thank you, sir, for joining us here on NEW DAY. I appreciate it.

SMOLEN: Thank you.

HARLOW: John.

BERMAN: Thanks, Poppy.

Jeb Bush, all but announced as a Republican candidate for president, weighing in now on the long-delayed confirmation of Loretta Lynch to be attorney general. So what did he say? This might surprise you. We have the details ahead when we go "Inside Politics."

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