Return to Transcripts main page

New Day

Trump Trying to Build Support Among Jittery GOP; Conservatives search for Third-Party Candidate; Clinton & Sanders Battle in Kentucky & Oregon. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired May 17, 2016 - 07:00   ET

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

MARK CUBAN, ENTREPRENEUR: No, I'm not going to do that.

It's impossible for it to work. It was a ridiculous effort, so I passed.

[07:00:06] DR. BEN CARSON (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have no intention of running for office.

GOV. JOHN KASICH (R), OHIO: I don't think it's appropriate. I just don't think it was the right thing to do.

REINCE PRIEBUS, GOP CHAIR: This is a suicide mission.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have too much divisiveness in America.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are doing something very radical in contemporary American politics. We're telling the truth.

CLINTON: I think we need much more talking and listening instead of finger pointing and scapegoating.

CUOMO: President Obama awarding hero cops the Medal of Valor.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm proud to be with the heroes all rising above and beyond the call of duty.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo and Alisyn Camerota.

CUOMO: Good morning. Welcome to your NEW DAY.

Donald Trump may be the last Republican standing, but he's still facing a big challenge from competing factions within his own party. He's trying to get conservatives in his corner, even as some push for a third party to run against Trump. So far, though, no takers, and doesn't look that practical.

Trump, meantime, is threatening a lawsuit against the "New York Times" over its story on his behavior toward women, which Trump calls a hit piece. Trump's attorney is going to weigh in on NEW DAY in the next hour. CAMEROTA: On the Democratic side, key primaries today in Kentucky and

Oregon. Hillary Clinton trying to blunt Bernie Sanders's political momentum. We have the primary and all of politics covered the way only CNN can. So let's begin with our Phil Mattingly. Good morning, Phil.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn. Primary day is a little bit different for the Trump campaign now that they are the presumptive nominee, but no shortage of urgency inside his team. Urgency to try and unify the Republican Party, urgency to build a campaign that can win in a general election. The urgency, as we've seen over the last 48 hours, to fight back against negative stories.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Donald Trump changing his tone from bombastic...

TRUMP: I went to the Wharton School of Finance. I was a great student. I built a fortune.

MATTINGLY: ... to everyday American.

TRUMP: I view myself as a person that, like everybody else, is fighting for survival. That's all I view myself as, and I really view myself now as somewhat of a messenger.

MATTINGLY: As the anti-Trump movement is struggling to find a figurehead, unable to entice a candidate to join the fray with a third-party run.

KASICH: A third-party candidacy would be viewed as kind of a silly thing, and I don't think it's appropriate.

MATTINGLY: John Kasich, the Ohio governor and former presidential candidate, telling CNN he won't take the plunge.

KASICH: I gave it my best where I am, and I just think running third party doesn't feel right. I think it's -- it's not constructive.

MATTINGLY: Billionaire Mark Cuban also contacted about a possible run, also in the "no" column.

CUBAN: It's impossible for it to work. There's not enough time to get on ballots. The hurdles are just too great. It was a ridiculous effort, so I passed.

MATTINGLY: For conservatives like Erick Erickson and Bill Kristol, a very real effort with a very small window to get it off the ground. They need a candidate, donor commitments and a legal pathway. One that includes tens of thousands of signatures just to qualify for ballot access. All as deadlines loom, or in the case of Texas, have already passed.

Meanwhile, Trump is battling with the "New York Times" via Twitter over their front-page article about his inappropriate behavior with women. Trump's attorney leaving the door open to filing suit.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that is a distinct possibility.

MATTINGLY: The "Times" standing by their story.

MICHAEL BARBARO, REPORTER, "NEW YORK TIMES": Our goal was to pull back and say, how does he interact in the office with someone who he's dating or trying to date? And that was the purpose of our story.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA: And Donald Trump obviously not backing off his attacks of that story and not exactly what you would see a traditional politician do. They typically want those stories off the front pages as quickly as possible.

But one note on this story and pretty much everything we've seen the last couple of days with Donald Trump, Alisyn, is every single time one of these issues pops up, those lawmakers on Capitol Hill that Donald Trump is trying to get behind his party to coalesce behind his nomination.

They are now forced to answer questions about those issues. That can be problematic, and you haven't seen a lot rush to his defense. At least not up to this point -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Phil, thanks so much for all of that reporting.

Here with us this morning is Bill Kristol. He is the man spearheading the Republican effort to find a third-party candidate to take on Donald Trump. He's also the editor of "The Weekly Standard."

Good morning, Bill.

BILL KRISTOL, EDITOR, "THE WEEKLY STANDARD": Hi, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: How is your effort to find a third-party candidate going?

KRISTOL: It's going fine. I mean, it's a tough thing to do. If it were easy, people would do it every four years. But there are a lot of serious people who think the country deserves a better choice than Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, and they're considering it. And I think we'll know in a couple of weeks whether someone serious steps up. The mechanical, logistical, legal obstacles are matters, more honestly. The money will be there.

CAMEROTA: Are they? I mean, but what about the Texas -- not being able to be on the Texas ballot? The deadline having passed. Other deadlines coming up?

[07:05:06] KRISTOL: I think a legal challenge against the Texas early deadline would succeed. A similar challenge succeeded in the '80s. You'd have to do a couple lawsuits, Texas, North Carolina. All the other ballots, you can get on.

People have some kind of weird interest in telling us how hard this is to do. Let us try to do it.

I mean, look, this isn't finding a figurehead, as someone said earlier. This is about getting a serious person who wants to do the right thing for the country. And there are several people, Ben Sasse, Tom Coburn, Mitt Romney, who have all said they don't think they could support either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. Asking these people to run, that's a huge hurdle. That's a big obligation for them and they're pondering it and winning it. But if they're serious people and I think one of them will do it.

CAMEROTA: So who's on your short list?

KRISTOL: Well, I mentioned Ben Sasse, the senator for Nebraska.

CAMEROTA: He said no.

KRISTOL: He said no so far. Let's see what he says this week, next week. Tom Coburn, the recently retired senator from Oklahoma. Real man of integrity. Bipartisan respect in Congress. Early advocate for cutting government.

CAMEROTA: Because he said that there might be health concerns that he wasn't able to do it.

KRISTOL: Yes, well, look, if you're going to just say that it's tough to do and then no one stepped forward. Yes, no one has stepped forward. Yes. Do I think someone could step forward? Yes. Have I been in touch with Sasse and Coburn and Mitt Romney? Yes.

Do these people seriously think the country deserves better? Yes. And if you guys want to say, "Oh, well, I'm sorry. People so far have said, "No, it can't happen." Great, let's have a Trump -- you guys, you'd love a Trump/Clinton race. Fantastic news every day. Right? Two really unattractive candidates fighting stupidly about their personal lives, fighting with the "New York Times." I'd like to have someone to run who could really do better for the country.

CAMEROTA: Yes. I mean, my job is to be a reality check.

KRISTOL: That's fine.

CAMEROTA: My job is not to be a cheerleader for, you know, your effort. I'm interested in your effort, and I'm certainly interested in hearing who you're talking to.

KRISTOL: I'm not...

CAMEROTA: A reality check is...

KRISTOL: What is the reality, Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: In public people have said, "Thanks, but no thanks." I mean, we've heard John Kasich, Mark Cuban.

KRISTOL: Well, Donald Trump clinched the -- look, Alisyn, Donald Trump clinched the nomination one week ago, right? One week ago or two weeks ago, I don't know exactly. I've lost track of time. It's been such a wonderful, elevating, edifying experience to see Donald Trump here as the likely Republican nominee.

I think people are really processing this. They're trying to see how doable it is. They're obviously doing due diligence. I don't want anyone to jump into this and decide a month or two from now that it's not the right thing to do.

I think the country -- I hope the country gets a better choice than Clinton or Trump. If it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen. I'm just working on it. People are entitled to say, "Gee, it's difficult." It is difficult.

CAMEROTA: How about Mitt Romney? How about Mitt Romney, since he feels so strongly about this. Why doesn't he step up?

KRISTOL: Well, you should ask him, but, again...

CAMEROTA: What has he told you?

KRISTOL: He's told me that he feels strongly about it. I think he's trying to recruit other people. But I think he thinks correctly that a fresh face, someone who hasn't run before probably would be great. Someone like Ben Sasse is terrific. He's a generational contrast with Clinton and Trump.

And here's the thing to think about. This person would start off, I think, with 15, 20 percent support. That's what the polls suggest is there for an independent candidate

But what if that person makes it onto the debate stage, which you would with 15 percent, in October against Trump and Hillary, two deeply flawed candidates, neither on whom should be president of the United States.

I think you really do have an outside path to victory, and the people I'm talking to really want to do this. If they do it they want to have a chance to win. Obviously, it's a long shot. No one's kidding themselves here. But these aren't people who want to cause trouble, do a symbolic race or want to cause trouble. These are people who think the country deserves better than Clinton or Trump.

CAMEROTA: Have you talked to Condoleezza Rice?

KRISTOL: I think others have talked to her a couple months ago. She doesn't think running for office is the best use of her abilities, but I think an awful lot of people like her. I have not spoken to her, so I don't want to speak to her. But I think people would welcome a candidate who is not Donald Trump, whose character and judgment are so fundamentally flawed or Hillary Clinton, who isn't the right person to be president either.

CAMEROTA: I want to show you the cover of Breitbart. I don't know if you've seen this, Bill. They published this about two days ago. They say, Bill Kristol, Republican spoiler, renegade Jew. What does this mean? KRISTOL: I don't know. You should ask them. I haven't read it, and

I don't intend to read such a thing. I mean, it's really, well -- you should ask them. It's pretty -- there are always people like that. It's a big country and a lot of people, and people can build their websites and engage in that kind of rhetoric or -- and put on headlines on pieces like that, I suppose.

But I think I'm, I'm a proud Jew. I'm a proud Jew, a strong supporter of Israel. I don't think I've ever been called a renegade Jew before. That's something new. I've been called a lot of things, Alisyn, over 30, 40 years, but never renegade Jew.

And Republican spoiler? I worked for the Reagan and Bush administrations. I've always wanted a Republican for president. This will be the first election after 11 times voting for a Republican presidential candidate that I can't vote for the Republican nominee. I'm not happy about that. I like the Republican Party, basically. I think what they stand for has been correct over the years. Anti- communism, tough on crime. Limited government. Constitutionalism. We've made -- obviously, the Republicans have made mistakes, as well.

[07:10:10] So I'm not happy to say I can't vote for the Republican nominee, but I just think I can't this year.

CAMEROTA: Bill Kristol, thank you for coming on and giving us some insight into what you're working on. We appreciate it.

KRISTOL: Thanks, Alisyn. Thanks, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Let's get to Chris.

CUOMO: Bill Kristol, frustrated and with good reason.

So on the other side of the ball, Hillary Clinton trying to shake Bernie Sanders once and for all. Primaries being held in Oregon and Kentucky today. The former secretary of state is already focused on the general election in a way. Her super PAC kicking off a $6 million ad by tomorrow. The target is not Bernie Sanders. It's Donald Trump.

Let's get to the latest from CNN senior Washington correspondent Joe Johns.

What are we going to see, Joe?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's the point, isn't it, Chris? Hillary Clinton is still slugging away in the primaries, and Donald Trump is focusing on the general.

She is the front-runner for the race for the Democratic nomination, but a string of primary wins by Bernie Sanders leaves her with an appearance of vulnerability with Democratic voters. To try to break that, Sanders's string of victories, the Clinton campaign has zeroed in with almost a dozen stops in the state of Kentucky, which votes today.

Ad she's been using her husband, the former president, who's won elections there in Kentucky before, as a big selling point, suggesting he'll have a role steering the economy if she's elected.

At the same time, she continues to hammer away at Donald Trump. And overnight, she got a little help from the Priorities USA super PAC, which just rolled out new advertising focusing on Trump's treatment of women. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL O'REILLY, FOX NEWS HOST: Would you cut off funding to Planned Parenthood?

TRUMP: Yes, I would.

You know, you could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her -- wherever.

CHRIS MATTHEWS, MSNBC ANCHOR: Do you believe in punishment for abortion? Yes or no, as a principle?

TRUMP: The answer is that -- there has to be some form of punishment.

MATTHEWS: For the woman?

TRUMP: Yes. There has to be some form.

GRAPHIC: Donald Trump is wrong for us.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHNS: Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders is hoping the Oregon primary, with a strong tradition of voting for progressive candidates, will give him another big victory today.

But Sanders continues to set his sights on the state of California and its primary, which comes on June 7. In fact, the Sanders election night rally this evening is scheduled to occur in Los Angeles County -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Joe, thanks so much for all of that.

Voters in Kentucky are getting their say this morning with primary voting across the state. Now up and running.

CNN's Brynn Gingras is live at a polling station in Louisville. How's it looking there, Brynn?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Alisyn, yes, polls have been open for about an hour now. Just looking outside it is absolutely pouring out. And I've got to say, the weather really not influencing voters as of yet.

As you look over my right shoulder you can see there's a decent line forming, and we've been seeing that, actually, throughout the morning.

But we checked in with the secretary of state's office, who predicts about 20 percent turnout in the state today. And that's because it's only the Democrats voting today for the presidential election, at least. The Republican caucus held earlier this year.

Fifty-five delegates at stake, and as you heard Joe talk about, this is a state that Hillary Clinton wants to win. She put it a lot of money here. She's put in a lot of time, making 11 campaign stops within the last two weeks or so.

And I had a chance to talk to some of the voters as he left this polling location, and I asked one person who was a Hillary Clinton supporter, I said, "Did all that attention reinforce your decision today?"

And he said, no. He was going to vote for Clinton anyway, but he would like to see her more in the state of Kentucky. So we'll see how her attention has actually influenced voters later tonight -- Chris.

CUOMO: All right. We'll be watching the polls, Brynn. Thank you very much.

Also, breaking this morning, at least 14 people lost their lives after several explosions in Baghdad. Eleven were killed, 37 hurt, in twin explosions in a Shiite neighborhood.

Now, officials say one of those attackers was believed to be a female suicide bomber. That is a growing trend in that part of the world.

Three others were killed in a blast at a popular outdoor market. This is the latest in a series of recent explosions that have killed dozens of people and clearly destabilized Iraq's capital.

CAMEROTA: The NTSB is set to release its findings today on that deadly Amtrak derailment near Philadelphia last year. Investigators say engineer Brandon Bostian was distracted by radio traffic, they say, when he took a 50-mile-per-hour curve at more than 100 miles per hour, the speed causing the train to come off the tracks. Eight people were killed and more than 200 injured.

CUOMO: A shocker at Oracle Arena. The big series, the Thunder versus Warriors, is under way. The Thunder taking game one in the Western Conference finals. Wow, 108-102, in Oakland, too. This is how it happened, though. Not only is this big; this is the first postseason loss for the Warriors, but they had the Thunder. They were down 14, the Thunder. Westbrook brought it back, 24 points in the second half.

[07:15:13] Warriors get a chance to bounce back tomorrow night. Game two in Oakland. This is going to be a series that is worth the bags under my heavily made up eyes.

CAMEROTA: Thank you for that.

Well, Hillary Clinton campaigning across Kentucky, looking to halt any momentum for Bernie Sanders today. What will it take for Clinton to put him away? We'll explore.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: Democrats in Kentucky and Oregon heading to the polls in closed primaries today. That means only Democrats vote. That is going to be an important metric in measuring what will happen between Clinton and Sanders.

There's no question that the Democrats are in a grind. Are they also in a bind?

Let's bring in Michael Smerconish, CNN political commentator, host of CNN's "SMERCONISH" and a Sirius XM radio host.

Good to see you. You heard the question there. When you look at these primaries what are your expectations today and what do they mean in terms of Clinton to close this out or face these inevitable questions about how strong her mandate is even within her own party?

[06:20:14] MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Despite the fact that Oregon is a closed primary, it seems like it's teed up for Bernie Sanders, given the liberal tradition and history of that state. A unique voting system, as well, where everything is done by mail-in ballots that have to be received by tonight.

I would give him the edge in Oregon. I would give her the edge in Kentucky, but it will all come down to working-class whites down south, and that's a demographic that is of critical importance to her. She needs to assure working-class whites that she's best equipped to handle the economy. Not only against Bernie Sanders, but more importantly against Donald

Trump because that's going to be turf that he'll fight for.

CUOMO: You've also had a shift in the state of play between Sanders saying, "This matters, this matters, this matters" and his saying, "She can't do it. I can. It won't happen if she's there." That change in the state of change is making it much more difficult for her, even if she is able to get the nomination.

SMERCONISH: Chris, it's delaying her full pivot toward Donald Trump. You've been referencing the super PAC. Of course, theoretically, she's independent of what the super PAC does. She'd like to get out on the campaign trail and not have to pay any mind to Bernie Sanders. She's starting to do that, but she can't make the full turn until she dispenses with him.

And candidly, it's a bit of an embarrassment. Right? That Donald Trump has been able to vanquish 20 or so opponents, and she's still out there tussling with Bernie Sanders. So there's a momentum issue. And she certainly doesn't want to come out of California on June 7 sort of licking her wounds and, at the same time, claiming that she won the nomination.

CUOMO: Is it an embarrassment or is it a true extension of the dynamic here? Bernie Sanders is a momentum candidate, as well. He and Trump have captured the zeitgeist in America's soul right now of who are we? We don't like how this is. We hate this system. You know, they're just arguing it from different points of view and, arguably, with different points of competency, but it's the same vibe?

SMERCONISH: Right, but I don't want to take anything away from him. But for Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders would be the story of this campaign. But go back in time a year. You know, she's the former first lady, the former senator from New York, the former secretary of state.

He had no national profile until he got into it. He's a self- described democratic socialist. I don't think that can sell in a general election. And she's still fighting with him and hasn't been able to lock it up. Yes. I mean, it's a bit embarrassing.

CUOMO: I remember having Senator Sanders on NEW DAY where he was talking about these issues, and we were joking, saying, you know, if it matters so much to you, why don't you run? He was like, "Who wants to have this conversation, let alone with me as the face of it?"

Now he's got his own hash tag.

You talk about turning towards the general for Hillary Clinton. One of the super PACs, the Priorities USA, around he we know it as the Begala PAC, because he works at it, has an ad out. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You know, you could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her -- wherever.

Does she have a good body? No. Does she have a fat ass? Absolutely.

You like girls that are 5'1," they come up to you know where.

If Ivanka weren't my daughter, perhaps I'd be dating her.

I view a person who is flat-chested as very hard to be a 10.

And you can tell them to go (EXPLETIVE DELETED) themselves.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: All right. Now, you know, the implication here is obvious. However, Donald Trump is not running for godfather of your daughter. He's running for president. And his supporters either don't care about this or see it as plain talk that is refreshing in an age of artifice. Your take?

SMERCONISH: My take is that nothing is going to shake the core support that he enjoys.

You'll remember, Chris, when he said that he could shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue, and they'd stand with him. I think that's been proven. This whole "Times" flap that you've been discussing this morning is a further indication of that. It hardens the base.

I think there are a very small number of independents who are in play in the general election. How many among us are truly undecided when you have personalities so well-known as Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton? And so I think that everything that transpires for the next several months is with an eye towards that sliver of society. Does this PAC play with them? I don't know. We'll have to see.

CUOMO: What do you think the better chance is? There's no question that, even though it seems that Donald Trump is under the attack and he's certainly playing the victim, that this is fertile ground for him. He likes the personal.

Do you think that Hillary Clinton gets baited into this "Who's worse" contest? Or do you think that there is a chance for her to say, "Look, this is about what's better for you. Not which one of us is worst, compared to the other personally." Do you think that she can take it towards policy, or is this just too enticing?

SMERCONISH: I think that's a great question. He is a tabloid candidate. I don't think that the John Miller, John Barron fiasco hurt him at all. I think that, instead, it just showcases the background he comes from.

[06:25:08] Did you notice yesterday on the stump when she began to adapt some of his tonality in addressing him? I think that's a mistake for her.

May I remind you of Marco Rubio and what happened when Rubio tried to play at Trump's level? She needs to play an elevated game and talk substance, leave the rest to him.

And here's the key part. Make sure that she selects a vice- presidential candidate who can go toe-to-toe with this guy, because somebody is going to have to.

CUOMO: It is interesting. I mean, even if you want to look at it strategically, the place he lines up best competitively with Clinton is on how both of them are disliked. You know, so if you play into what makes each of you unfavorable, you seem to be playing right into his hands.

Michael Smerconish, thank you for the analysis, as always. Let's see how the debate, how the primaries turn out, and we'll take it from there.

So what do you think about this? The state of play, what should happen, what shouldn't happen? Tweet us, @NewDay, or post your comment on Facebook.com/NewDay.

CAMEROTA: All right. Aides for Donald Trump and Paul Ryan meeting this week in an effort to bridge policy differences. Is a united front on the way? Or are the gaps just too wide? We'll speak with one of the senators helping to shape this. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)