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New Day

Manhunt for Killers of Illinois Officer; Baltimore Prepares for Potential Unrest; President Obama Wrapping Up Alaska Trip; Trump Responds to Bush Attacks. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired September 02, 2015 - 07:00   ET

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

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It appears the officer's gun missing now, as well.

[07:00:05] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All the county units are responding to officer down, Fox Lake. Subjects are to be considered armed and dangerous. Air One has been advised.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now, that unleashed a massive manhunt involving state, local and federal authorities. Dozens of K-9 units were also issued. Air support was also dispatched. And today, schools are closed. This community is on edge and, of course, mourning the loss of this lieutenant who, from what we hear, dedicated a lot of time to this community. Dedicated 30 years of his life to the police force and he is a husband and also a father of four -- Michaela.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN: Keep us posted on any developments on that story as that manhunt continues. Rosa, thank you so much.

Meanwhile, in Baltimore, police there bracing for potential protesting as a hearing gets under way this morning for the six officers charged in connection with the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray. Jean Casarez is live in Baltimore with the latest for us now -- Jean.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

You know, this is a very important hearing today, pretrial hearing for these six officers. And we do expect increased law enforcement presence around the courthouse. In fact, the Baltimore Police Department is telling their entire force they can't take leave today. So if they have the day off, they have to come in, because they want to be ready for anything.

And community activists are encouraging peaceful demonstrations and protests surrounding this hearing. They are also asking, we understand, to go to the higher socioeconomic areas for these protests.

Now meanwhile, it is because of the hearing. And this is a critical hearing, because the defense is asking for some or all of these charges to be dismissed outright. They are also saying that the state attorney, Marilyn Mosby, that she has so many conflicts of interest that she should recuse herself or be recused by the judge from this case, that a special prosecutor should be brought in.

Really, there are so many bases for all of this. But I think one just that stands out is they say that, when the police department finished its investigation on May 1, and they went before the district court commissioner, that 13 minutes later, the first arrest warrant went out. And actually, those conclusions are supposed to be given to the prosecutor. And they look at it, and there is some time involved in all of this. So they say, that's what began all of this.

But they're also asking for the defendants to either be severed and have separate trials or be tried in groups. I was in that courtroom yesterday for the hearing. It's pretty large. And I couldn't help but notice on the defense side, there are 11 chairs for the defense attorneys today in court. We do not expect the six police officers, the defendants themselves, to be present. They have waived their appearance in this extremely important hearing -- John.

BERMAN: Jean Casarez for us in Baltimore.

I want to bring in Baltimore City Councilman Nick Mosby. His wife is Baltimore's state's attorney, Marilyn Mosby, who will be prosecuting this case. Thank you so much, Councilman, for being with us. We just heard...

NICK MOSBY, BALTIMORE CITY COUNCILMAN: Thanks for having me on, John.

BERMAN: We just heard from Jean Casarez talking about how Baltimore City Police canceled leave for today. They're obviously concerned about the at least possibility of tension. What are your expectations heading into today?

MOSBY: Well, it's always important to be prepared. I think we saw back in April how the city of Baltimore was not prepared. And I think, you know, the police department has taken all precautions to ensure that, no matter what takes place, that they're prepared for it.

But I'll be honest with you, John. I do not expect to see, you know, what the hype is around, if there's going to be any major tension. I do think that there will be some protests. But I expect it to be peaceful and very productive.

BERMAN: So yes, the police are prepared. I wonder if you think the city is prepared? Because all over the country, we have seen protests, the Black Lives Matter movement. A lot of times calling for due process. Right? They want these cases to go to trial. They want them to get before a judge. Well, here, it has gone before a judge. But is the city prepared for the possibility that the judge doesn't rule the way they want them to?

MOSBY: I think the main line of -- of defense associated with any unrest is the police. And yes, I have full confidence in the interim police commissioner. I think he's had the advantage of kind of seeing what took place back in April, which we clearly were not prepared for. You know, it's my expectation that the police will be prepared. Again, I don't expect to see any unproductive or any issues that we saw back in April, today. BERMAN: Now, the defense has filed a claim. They want the judge to

dismiss the case based on what they claim to be prosecutorial misconduct by your wife, the state's attorney. Are you confident the charges will stand?

MOSBY: I can't speak to that. I'm not a lawyer. I have not looked at the case in-depth. You know, I don't have the ability to speak to that at all.

[07:05:09] BERMAN: You do serve a sort of dual role here. You are a city councilman, so you obviously have views about what goes on in the city. And you are married to the state's attorney. And I do understand there is a wall, and you have to keep things separate. But how is she doing heading into this day? Because this is a day that a lot of people have their eyes on.

MOSBY: I think she's doing fine. I had a long night last night. You guys got me up early today. So didn't have much time to speak with her. But I think she's doing OK.

BERMAN: So again, some of the issues being discussed here by the defense, they're saying misconduct. They're also saying conflict of interest. She has recused herself from other cases. There's a case right now where a police commander's son is being charged, I believe, for murder. And she's recused herself from that case, because she knows the police commander. There are people saying she should recuse herself here. Any thoughts on that?

MOSBY: Again, that's probably something you should take up with her. I think that, you know, in terms of time, in the near future, we'll hear the ruling from the judge. But no, I don't have any specific opinions associated with that.

BERMAN: Let me ask you what's going on in Baltimore right now. Because, what, we have 33 homicides in the last 30 days. Do you have any explanation for why this is happening?

MOSBY: I mean, unfortunately, in urban areas, crime is cyclical. I mean, we like to pat ourselves on the back when we see the numbers go down, and we like to be disappointed and try to chase after new plans once we see crime go up. But if you don't change the structural issues in these poor, urban environments, you know, where -- that are filled with illegal guns, that are filled with illicit drugs, the byproduct of that is crime.

And we can continue to act as if this is a new phenomenon in America. But unfortunately, most of the cameras don't come until you have, like, these spikes in crime. And they don't come to really try to expose the structural issues that have been in place in these communities for decades. And I think that's the discussion that we need to start having.

BERMAN: Hopefully, we will continue to have that discussion.

Councilman, let me ask you this. You're an elected official. Your wife an elected official, as well. With everything that's happening right now, there is some criticism because she's having a fundraiser in a couple of weeks. Do you think it's appropriate to be raising money while this case is at the forefront, while this case is being tried?

MOSBY: Again, John, I don't know if I'm not making myself clear enough, but you know, I'm not the appropriate person to answer that. Maybe her campaign, maybe her office, maybe even herself. But that has absolutely nothing to do with me.

I think what we need to focus on is, you know, the issues that are kind of putting us in this position. You know, I represent an area of West Baltimore that, unfortunately, for decades has seen complete disinvestment. Unfortunately, when you look at the jobless rate; unfortunately, when you look at the lack of growth and the lack of opportunity, I think that, as all Americans, these young men that we continue to put across all these camera screens, at the end of the day are America's children. And that's what we really need to focus on. How do we develop another generation that has a better trajectory than the past generations from decades?

BERMAN: Well, Councilman, you have made yourself clear. Thank you for getting up with us this morning. Really appreciate it. Nick Mosby, thank you so much -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: All right. President Obama finishing up his trip to Alaska. During a hike to see a receding glacier Tuesday, he pushed urgency on climate change. CNN senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta is traveling with the president. He joins us live from Anchorage.

Good morning, Jim.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn.

President Obama is racking up a lot of miles on the ground and on the water here in Alaska, delivering an urgent message on climate change. Later today, he'll become the first sitting U.S. president to visit the Alaskan Arctic.

But last night, we witnessed what his aides hope will be go down as one of the lasting images of the Obama presidency. Take a look at this. I got a chance to follow President Obama as he was out on a boat tour off the southern Alaska coast, taking a look at the glaciers that are melting rapidly as a result of climate change.

We also saw some of that stunning wildlife that you see inhabiting this majestic corner of the world, including some endangered sea lions. And as we pauses in front of a glacier that has lost two miles of ice in the last 15 years, I asked the president for his impressions of the tour. He remarked on the giant chunks of ice that have broken loose from the glacier. Here's what the president had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The chunks there from an iceberg are sitting in a lake right there. Periodically, the icebergs will break off the glacier. And each of those icebergs are about the size of a Costco.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:10:05] ACOSTA: Now we did double check with a nearby park ranger, who said, yes, sometimes they are about the size of a Costco.

Now earlier in the day, the president hiked up a melting glacier called Exit Glacier. It has that name for a reason, guys, as it's melted 1,000 feet in just the last ten years.

He also taped a reality TV special with survivalist Bear Grylls. No word on whether they got up close and personal with any wildlife. But as for that trip to the Arctic later on this afternoon, he will hear from fishermen who say their livelihoods are being threatened by climate change, and he will also get updated on some nearby communities in that region that are actually relocating because of the rapid melting in the Arctic. Michaela, he is hoping to drive home that message that global warming is happening, not only here in Alaska but across the world -- Michaela.

PEREIRA: It's been an eventful week for the president and an eventful visit there to Alaska. Jim, thanks so much for traveling with him and bringing that to us.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration reportedly is launching a secret drone operation to hunt down and kill ISIS operatives in Syria. According to "The Washington Post," the CIA and joint operations commander participating in a clandestine targeted killing program. They've already conducted several deadly strikes. The secret operation marks a significant escalation of the CIA's involvement in Syria's civil war.

BERMAN: Wrestling legend Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka now facing murder charges in the death of his girlfriend, Nancy Argentino, some 32 years ago. Pennsylvania prosecutors say evidence in that cold case reveals she had been abused and died of a skull fracture and brain injuries. The now 72-year-old Snuka, who is battling stomach cancer, has long denied any wrongdoing.

CAMEROTA: All right. Well, the Jeb Bush/Donald Trump feud escalating this morning. Bush blasting Trump again for his lack of conservative credentials. Donald firing back. Who's winning? Our panel weighs in, next.

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[07:15:38] BERMAN: Donald Trump now counterpunching after Jeb Bush attacks his record as a conservative. Trump was speaking to CNN's Don Lemon last night. He hit on a number of hot-button issues and even registered a Donald Trump first: he called himself a politician.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: You put out an Instagram video attacking Jeb Bush on immigration on Monday. He has now hit back with a new video of his own, calling you out as a liberal.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (via phone): When Jeb is paying for these ads by the lobbyists, by the special interests and by his donors, and they want him to do something like this.

But I would get along with Hillary. I'd get along with Bill Clinton. I'd get along with everybody.

Now, I'm in a different world. I'm in the world of politics. I'm sort of a politician, I guess you would say. And as you can see from the polls, we're doing well, because people are tired of politics.

One other thing I'll say, because he mentions the fact that I was, at one point, a Democrat. Well, in New York City, everybody was a Democrat, practically. If you run for city council or if you run for political office, there was almost no election, because the Republicans hardly exist in New York City.

So I think, me, more than anybody else, I'll cross -- I'll go across lines. I think I will have a lot of Democrats voting for me, far more than any Republican for the last long period of time.

LEMON: Ben Carson is running neck in neck in one poll, 23 percent in the latest Iowa poll. Are you surprised by this poll and his popularity?

TRUMP: Well, I was a little bit surprised to see it. I've been leading in Iowa by a lot. I had a bigger surge than anybody, even Ben, too. I like Ben. I think Ben's a nice person. I've -- you know, I've met him numerous times, and I like him.

LEMON: Are you going to go after him like you've been going after Jeb and Hillary, now that he is doing better?

TRUMP: You know, Ben and I have gotten to know each other over the years. I like him. And I don't know. I can't tell you what's going to happen, because I really don't know. You know, politics is a very -- it's a very strange thing and a very strange place that you end up in.

LEMON: You said that you're going to do something about immigration. You said that you would -- 11 million undocumented immigrants, that you would like to somehow deport them. One group -- that's one group where your poll numbers have not been so favorable, among Hispanics. And I know that you met privately with the head of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce today.

TRUMP: We had a very nice meeting. And it worked out. I think we had a very good understanding. All my life, I've had great relationships with Hispanics. And I've employed tens of thousands over my career. And this has nothing to do with Hispanic. This has to do with stopping illegal immigration.

I think I'm going to win with Hispanics. And a lot of people sort of smile when they say that, but actually, the people that live here, Hispanics that are legal, that came in through the long, hard process, they absolutely have a great feeling about me; and I have a great feeling about them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: All right. Joining us now to talk all about this is CNN political commentator and Jeb Bush supporter, Ana Navarro; and Geoffrey Lord. He's a CNN political commentator and former Reagan White House political director.

Great to have both of you here. Ana, great to have you here in studio.

OK, let me quote Donald Trump. You just heard him: "I think I'm going to win with Hispanics," he just said. He also met, interestingly, yesterday with the CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. So it does sound like he's on a bit of a charm offensive, and maybe he will turn around the Hispanic vote.

ANA NAVARRO, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: He's got a long, long, long way to go. I mean, it's over a year before the elections. And he needs to use every single day if he's going to turn around the Hispanic vote.

The polls have shown that he's got 75 percent disapproval with Hispanics. I think, you know, there's been a lot of contentious things, controversial things that Hispanics, I don't think -- you know, there are some Hispanics who like him. Let me say, there are some Hispanics who find that he's a businessman. He's not politics as usual. I know some of them. Some of them are my friends. I think they're crazy, but they do like him.

But the vast majority of Hispanics realize that he has been quite offensive to Hispanics. And no, we don't usually like people who offend us.

BERMAN: You know, the CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, who came out of the meeting and said they had a long, fruitful conversation. They may even do a public event together coming up.

NAVARRO: Javier Palomarez is no idiot. And he realizes that if he can get Trump to his event, which is coming up this month, it's going to be huge press, huge attention and maybe even a donation for his -- for his organization.

So, I think, you know, I think it's a smart thing for him to do in terms of marketing for his organization.

[07:20:07] But I can also tell you that, in south Florida, the largest Hispanic builders' organization, the Latin Builders, just pulled their event from Trump Doral, even though it meant losing a deposit, even though it means that they may risk a lawsuit, because they just felt so strongly that they didn't want to be at this man's resort.

CAMEROTA: Geoffrey, let's talk about Jeb Bush. Because in the past 48 hours, we have seen a more aggressive Jeb Bush going after Donald Trump. There are these ads that he's put out about how Donald Trump used to be liberal, and he used to be a Democrat. But you're laughing. What's the -- shouldn't Jeb Bush, you know, put up his dukes?

GEOFFREY LORD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think, at this point, this is all he's got left. I mean, this is -- this is desperation time here. He's riding along in these polls at 5 percent or 6 percent in these last two polls that we saw. I mean, what else is he to do? I'm sure he's going to fight back and continue to fight back. I mean, if I were Jeb Bush, I'd do the same thing. I think Donald Trump understands that perfectly. So I expect that we will see more of this as we go along.

BERMAN: Ana, we've been talking to people here. You know, Maggie Haberman was here; Errol Louis was here. And they're saying they're not so convinced this attack from Jeb Bush is going to land. So let me ask you, as a friend, is this the best he can do?

NAVARRO: I think it's going to be a consistent strategy. But I do think somebody has to go through the trouble and through the effort of unmasking and revealing Donald Trump for what he is.

BERMAN: But is angry...

NAVARRO: A guy who has been a liberal, you know, a lot of his life, who just recently became the limo conservative before being the limo liberal in New York.

BERMAN: But is this what an angry Jeb Bush looks like right now? Calling Donald Trump a liberal?

NAVARRO: You know, I don't think you're going to ever see Jeb Bush breathe fire. That's not his type of thing. But I think you are going to see him fight back, and frankly, I think he needs to embrace it. If -- you know, he can't be the punching bag. Right? For a while, people were like, "OK, is this for real? Is this going to go away? Do we really take Donald Trump seriously?"

Donald Trump has earned the right to be taken seriously. Absolutely. He's got the numbers. He filed the financial disclosure. OK. He wants to pick a fight? Embrace the fight.

And you know what? As s a Jeb donor and supporter, hell yes. Embrace this fight. Fight hard, hit back hard and hit back often. If that's what they want, OK, when they we get to a point where there's going to be a mano-a-mano. There's not going to be 17 candidates. It's going to whittle down to four or five. Hopefully, Jeb is one of them, and we can give voters a choice.

CAMEROTA: Go ahead, Geoffrey.

LORD: Bring it on, as they say.

CAMEROTA: Yes, but I mean, Geoffrey, what you were saying is that you think it shows desperation, but also you would do it if you were Jeb. What's the alternative?

NAVARRO: You know, just a little desperate out there. In Pennsylvania. LORD: Nothing. Just sort of cruise along. And you know, he can't afford to do this at this point. Remember, this was supposed to be the, you know, the great hope of the moderate Republicans, the so- called RINOs, as it were. He was supposed to be the guy that was scooping up all these endorsements. He vacuumed up all this money from all these lobbyists in Washington, D.C. He's a Bush. Everything was supposed to be in his favor. And it hasn't turned out that way.

So I mean, I frankly never bought into the hype. I didn't -- I didn't get it here. I thought that there were a lot of negatives that he was going to have. His dad's tax cut. I mean, a lot of these things from his dad, from his brother and from himself, Common Core. His position in June of 2012 saying that, well, he'd consider a tax deal and all this, you know, like his dad did.

You know, these kind of things add up. And I just never thought that this was a sell in today's Republican Party. Sort of Reaganized Republican Party.

BERMAN: Geoffrey, you know, Donald Trump seems to have an answer for everything. Sometimes that answer shifts. But over the last day, the one thing I have not heard an answer for is Ben Carson. What does he do about Dr. Ben Carson, now tied in Iowa?

Because, you know, it's not like Ben Carson is lighting anyone on fire. He's not out there on the stump going crazy. Is Trump going to start talking about Ben Carson the way he's talking about Jeb Bush?

LORD: Well, we'll see. I'm not sure that he knows himself here, at this point.

You know, one of the things about politics is that, inevitably, when you get down to a two-person race, and we're a ways from that. But if it came down to a Trump versus Carson race or Trump versus anyone race, I think that, you know, you would eventually start to see some sparks.

You look through American history, and it is just chockfull of these examples. I mean, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson and Nelson Rockefeller and Barry Goldwater, and on and on and on and on it goes. Bill Clinton and others. And then, of course, at the end, they -- most of the time, they make up and they move on. And a lot of times they win.

So I expect that there may well be some of this. But this is a good thing, not a bad thing. I mean, this kind of friction generates positions on issues. It clarifies for voters where people stand. It's a very good thing. It's part of the democratic process, and I say, you know, have at it.

CAMEROTA: Ana, ten seconds, what do you think of Ben Carson's rise?

[07:25:10] NAVARRO: Frankly, I find it surprising, because he hasn't been in Iowa that much. He hasn't been a, you know, like Donald Trump is like the Holy Spirit. Right? He's everywhere at the same time. He's on every media network; he's giving interviews to everybody. Ben Carson has not had the same kind of profile, the same kind of

aggressive media strategy, and his numbers are rise zing. He hasn't spent all that much money. So it's like, it's just -- it's just the nature of Ben Carson.

CAMEROTA: Donald Trump, like the Holy Spirit. I am quite sure that analogy has never been made.

NAVARRO: Even though he can't quote the Bible; even though he mocked the communion. Even though he doesn't ask God for forgiveness. But, you know, other than that, yes. A hell of a stretch.

BERMAN: All right, all right.

CAMEROTA: We have to leave it there. More for tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, we on NEW DAY, we'll speak with Carly Fiorina about her recent surge and her potentially qualifying for CNN's main debate. Tune in for that.

PEREIRA: And we know, obviously, there is a shake-up brewing -- we've been discussing it here -- about this CNN debate on the stage, how is this all going to change the dynamic in this next GOP face-off? John King is taking a look at this, "Inside Politics."

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