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Woman Found Pressure Cooker Bomb in NYC; Prosecutors: Gov. Christie Knew of Lane Closures; How Will Trump & Clinton Fight Terror? Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired September 20, 2016 - 06:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:30:30] CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for the five things to know for your NEW DAY.

Number one, the man suspected of bombings in New York City and New Jersey captured after a shootout with police. The man now is facing five counts of attempted murder. Authorities are trying to determine if he acted alone.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Police identified a tenth victim in connection with the stabbing spree at that mall in St. Cloud, Minnesota. An off-duty officer shot and killed the 22-year-old suspect who told friends he was planning to buy a phone. ISIS is calling home, quote, "a soldier of the Islamic State."

CUOMO: Terrorism is a big topic on the campaign trail. Donald Trump complaining the New York bombing suspect will be, quote, "taken care of by some of the best doctors in the world, after being shot." Hillary Clinton slamming Trump, saying his rhetoric against Muslims helps ISIS recruit more fighters.

CAMEROTA: President Obama will address the U.N. General Assembly for the last time this morning. He's expected to tout major achievements, including the Paris climate accord and the Iran nuclear deal, as well as lay out a plan for the future.

CUOMO: And Tulsa police releasing video showing a white police officer shooting and killing Terence Crutcher, an unarmed black man, whose car had broken down. Police say Crutcher was tased before another officer opened fire. That officer is on paid administrative leave. The victim's family outraged that police could be heard calling Crutcher a bad dude in radio traffic.

CAMEROTA: Oh, my gosh. That is terrible. We're going to need to know a lot more about this story.

CUOMO: And the analysis begins in the right place. You have video. You're able to see what happened here. It helps transparency, will help the investigation.

All right. So, up next, she saw something and she said something. We're going to meet the woman who alerted police to that unexploded pressure cooker bomb at a second New York City location. It is the one that led authorities to the bad guy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: A major piece of evidence that led authorities to the bombing suspect now captured for that express of explosions in New York and New Jersey. It was this undetonated pressure cooker bomb. It was found four blocks north of the blast on Saturday in New York, and it led investigators to getting the suspect's fingerprints, DNA, and cell phone.

Joining us now is Jane Schreibman. She's the woman who found that pressure cooker just steps away from her front door.

Good morning, Jane.

JANE SCHREIBMAN, FOUND SECOND DEVICE ON NYC SIDEWALK: Hello.

CAMEROTA: Great to have you here.

SCHREIBMAN: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Let's take everybody back to Saturday night. It was 10:00 p.m. You were in your apartment. You get a phone call.

SCHREIBMAN: From my friend, telling me about the explosion on 23rd Street. I wasn't aware of it. So I went running out of my apartment to see what had happened. I didn't get very far, maybe 15 yards, and there was a pot on the sidewalk with wires coming out of it.

CAMEROTA: And what was your first impression of that pot?

SCHREIBMAN: Like, this is weird. Someone must have thrown out their old garbage. This must have been something a kid was making.

CAMEROTA: Like a kid's science project.

SCHREIBMAN: Or an artist's kinetic sculpture.

CAMEROTA: Because you live in Manhattan, let's face it and you see some weird trash on the street. So what was it after you thought, OK, this is a kid's science project that then turned your mind?

SCHREIBMAN: Well, I went on to explore what had happened on 23rd Street. I was milling around with the crowd. But there was a lagging suspicion in the back of my mind that this was a little weird. So I went home again to take a second look.

CAMEROTA: And there it was still.

SCHREIBMAN: It was still there. I thought it had been thrown o with a bunch of garbage, but when I looked again, I saw that it was debris that was surrounding it, not garbage that someone had thrown out after cleaning up their apartment.

CAMEROTA: So you did the right thing. You called 911. SCHREIBMAN: I went upstairs and called 911, especially because there

had just been a bomb a few blocks away. It made me think this was even more suspicious.

CAMEROTA: But when you first saw it -- because look at it there. It does look like it could be a kid's science project, particularly to the untrained eye. Who knows -- who would immediately think, pressure cooker bomb. But when you looked at it and thought about it, did it look sinister somehow to you?

SCHREIBMAN: Not sinister. It was funny looking.

CAMEROTA: OK. So you call 911. What do they say?

SCHREIBMAN: This is high priority, we're on our way.

CAMEROTA: OK. Detectives show up. Tell me about that moment.

SCHREIBMAN: I went downstairs to meet with the detectives to show them where it was. They had gotten there and found it. They saw me coming towards them and said, run, get off the block.

CAMEROTA: That's scary.

SCHREIBMAN: Yes, that was scary. That's when I thought they were taking it seriously. Up until that point, I thought better safe than sorry, but I didn't really think -- who would think there's a pressure cooker bomb on 27th Street, the most nondescript street in the city.

CAMEROTA: So when police saw you and said run --

SCHREIBMAN: I ran.

CAMEROTA: You ran. Where did you go?

SCHREIBMAN: I ran around the corner to my friend Cynthia's house, and we played scrabble until 3:00 a.m.

(LAUGHTER)

CAMEROTA: Good relaxation exercise.

SCHREIBMAN: Concentration.

CAMEROTA: So at that point, it became real to you.

SCHREIBMAN: Yes, and I had been going down every hour to see if they would let me back in my house, and they wouldn't.

[06:40:02] And at 3:00, I'd either have to sleep at her house or get home, and I wanted to get home, so I found a detective, told him I had called in. So, he said OK, and he interviewed me and then he escorted me home.

CAMEROTA: So, Jane, what is it like now for you to know that you were the person -- SCHREIBMAN: It hasn't sunk in yet. I'll start feeling different

during the week, I'm sure.

CAMEROTA: I mean, it was because you did the right thing that they were able to find fingerprints and DNA, and that was the clue.

SCHREIBMAN: I think anyone who saw it would have called in. It was sort of in a dark area, and there weren't many people walking by.

CAMEROTA: Are you surprised by how quickly the investigators were able to wrap this up?

SCHREIBMAN: Yes, I'm so happy. So relieved.

CAMEROTA: I mean, really impressive. Also, just so impressive that they took what you -- I mean, you didn't know when you were calling in. When you called 911, what was your description?

SCHREIBMAN: There's a strange-looking pot on the sidewalk.

CAMEROTA: And that was enough to get their attention. They said high priority.

SCHREIBMAN: Yes.

CAMEROTA: I mean, Jane, you personify if you see something, say something.

(LAUGHTER)

SCHREIBMAN: Yes. Be a responsible citizen.

You know, they say that in the subway all the time. If you see something suspicious, call. There's a recorded announcement. So, it was sort of in my mind. If you see something, call. I said, yeah, this is certainly something.

CAMEROTA: It worked. That public, you know, service campaign worked.

SCHREIBMAN: It did. It was great.

CAMEROTA: And you did the right thing.

Now -- I know you say it hasn't sunk in, but when you see now the guy and you saw that there was that shootout with police and you see him in the stretcher -- and I don't know if you can see this surveillance video right there, but that's him lugging what they believe is the pressure cooker to the location. That's him in your neighborhood with the duffel bag. What does that make you think?

SCHREIBMAN: Scary. Scary. Like everyone that walks by you, you don't know what they're really up to.

CAMEROTA: Well, Jane, New York thanks you.

SCHREIBMAN: Thank you. CAMEROTA: It's great that you did all the right things. You saw something and you said something. Thanks so much for sharing your story with us on NEW DAY. Great to meet you.

Let's get over to Chris.

CUOMO: All right. Now, when I say Bridgegate, you say, all right, I know all about that. It happened in New Jersey. Christie was cleared.

Wait until you hear what is coming out in court in the first Bridgegate trial. Prosecutors are now saying something about New Jersey Governor Chris Christie that you have not heard before, next.

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[06:46:40] CUOMO: A blockbuster opening at the so-called Bridgegate trial. CNN's Phil Mattingly joins now with more.

Something we never expected to hear from prosecutors.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, exactly right. Chris Christie knew and Chris Christie knew while it was happening. That's the contention of prosecutors on the first day of the trial about two top Christie advisers.

Now, the issue has always been, can you tie what happened on the George Washington Bridge back in 2013 directly to Chris Christie? Now, a couple of partisan panels have not been able to do it. A couple of investigations have not been able to do it.

But the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey is now saying they can. That's what they said in the opening statement at this trial. Now, it's worth noting, Chris Christie has always maintained he did not know about this. It's something he reiterated to Jake Tapper this weekend. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I've been investigated by three different entities, two of them led by partisan Democrats who, you know, have all found that I had no knowledge of this incident and no involvement in it. So I would have problem if called to testify by either side. But the fact is that I won't because I really don't have any knowledge of this incident at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, Chris, we always knew the defense was going to try and tie this to Chris Christie. But again, the surprise is the prosecutors were going to do this. And that's exactly what they did. The big question now becomes, why wasn't he indicted? Why isn't he a co-conspirator?

Prosecutors trying to kind of sidestep that yesterday, saying the focus should be on the two former Christie advisers that are on trial, that were indicted.

CUOMO: In fairness to the governor, an opening statement by a prosecutor is a provocative thing. It's not the same thing as what they'll be able to prove at trial. You know, the theory is always you only know what they show. Not during the opening. He deserves the benefit of the doubt legally.

However, politically, two points for you. One, what he just said about all those investigations, he never said that about Hillary Clinton. So, the question becomes, how does this reflect on the Trump campaign?

MATTINGLY: Well, Chris Christie is running the transition operation for the Trump campaign. And Chris Christie is not only a top surrogate but also a top adviser. You would think in a normal campaign, this would disqualify him for those roles.

Now, I reached out to Trump advisers. Their kind of universal response is, nope, not at all. Donald Trump respects loyalty. He will keep Chris Christie on the transition operations is very well respected from people I've talked to that I've met with him. And so, don't expect anything happening now with Chris Christie. The question becomes future prospects should Trump win.

CUOMO: Phil Mattingly, thank you very much.

Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: Well, national security again, of course, again on the front burner. How do Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton want to fight terror at home and overseas? We break down their proposals, next.

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[06:52:51] CUOMO: All right. So, we've just seen the city, New York and New Jersey, go through these bombings. Very scary. And then you had the stabbing spree in Minnesota.

So, you're going to see all of this reflected in the election. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump both say they have the answer to preventing more attacks at home and abroad.

So, what are those answers?

Jim Sciutto, CNN's chief national security correspondent, he's here at the magic wall to break it down.

Thank you very much for being here, brother. What do we know?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: So, let's see how they reacted. Both of them reacting in very distinct, different ways, but also familiar ways that are consistent with their larger message in the campaign.

So, let's have a listen to what Donald Trump just in the hours after this attack. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE (via telephone): I think maybe we're going to be seeing a big change over the last couple days. I think this is something that maybe will get -- you know, will happen perhaps more and more all over the country. We're trying to be so politically correct in our country, and this is only going to get worse. This isn't going to get better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: This is only going to get worse, a consistent message from him. There's fear in that. That's something we've heard after many of these attacks before.

Hillary Clinton's message: calm, trying to project calm and experience. Let's have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: We're going after the bad guys, and we're going to get them, but we're not going to go after an entire religion and give ISIS exactly what it's wanting in order for them to enhance their positions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: That's a key Clinton message there right because you've heard Donald Trump double down on this profiling Muslims. We go back to the Muslim ban. Her message is, listen, it's not the religion that's the problem. I'm going to be tough on this, but we're not going to paint the whole faith with one brush.

CUOMO: So, quick fact check. Is what she just said true, that you don't go after the whole faith, that's what ISIS wants? Is there proof of that?

SCIUTTO: Listen, I spent a lot of time in the region. You've been there as well. There's no question that sense of division, us against them, clash of civilizations serves not just ISIS but al Qaeda message. They want that. They want it to be us against them.

That's part of their recruiting tool, is that America has it in for you. They're going to bomb you there. You're never going to be welcome in America or Europe. So there is some truth to that argument.

CUOMO: All right. Now, on his side, the idea that this is going to get worse, we're going to see a lot more of this -- I don't hear that from intelligence officials, do you?

[06:55:05] SCIUTTO: No, listen, intelligence officials take this very seriously, no question. They know they have a problem. They're particularly concerned about lone wolves because they're hard to find, right? But when they rank their threats, they're talking about Russia, China,

other things as primary threats to the U.S. Terrorism is a big deal, but listen, your chances -- statistically, your chances of being killed in a terror attack rank way below. I mean, we've done studying on this. It's right up there with getting struck by lightning, in practical sense.

CUOMO: Both of them see the urgency. What are their plans?

SCIUTTO: OK. So, let's go. Let's start abroad. This is of course a key part.

Hillary Clinton, a lot of this is familiar. Intensify the current fight against ISIS, Iraq, and Syria. No big deployment of troops on the ground, et cetera. But let's intensify it. Dismantle the network's funding, arms. I mean, a lot of this is happening right now.

Combat online propaganda. This is another key thing. People say, well, it's just online. But, listen, that's the way they recruit these guys. That's a big deal, but it's consistent with what's happening now.

So, some Americans might say, you know, I want to try something different. So what does Donald Trump say? This is a big deal for him. Call it radical Islamic terror. This is something you'll hear not just from Donald Trump, but many on the right saying Obama will not say those words.

CUOMO: Clinton will.

SCIUTTO: Well, and Clinton has said, listen, I got no problem saying it. When you say that, there's also something more where Donald Trump says Barack Obama founded ISIS. You have ridiculous statements as well when you go in that.

He said he has a secret plan to fight ISIS. More recently, he said, well, I may not have a secret plan, but I'm going to talk to the generals afterwards. So, there's been some contradiction there from Donald Trump as to whether he has something in his back pocket to fight this.

Now, he says he will ask generals to provide a plan within the first 30 days, which seems to indicate, maybe he doesn't have some secret plans. So, let's talk about what's going on at home, let's start with Donald Trump.

Profile like they do in Israel. He talks about political correctness. We're not identifying the problem, calling it radical Islamic terror. We're not -- we're too politically correct not to say that, listen, Muslims are a problem and we have to look at them more directly. I mean, he said that with his international Muslim ban but also here domestically at home.

Extreme vetting part of this as well because he says it's about immigration. We got to stop these guys at the border, keep out the refugees, the immigrants from compromised countries.

Now, the problem with this, he's talked about this Muslim ban. First, it was from Muslim countries. Then, it's like countries that have a terrorism problem.

The trouble is, a lot of countries that have terrorism problem are European countries. France, Belgium, et cetera. He hasn't been clear on what countries he's talking about exactly. This is a big one. We talked about this earlier today, treat American terrorists like enemy combatants so that they don't have the same legal protections that we have as well.

So, then you look at Hillary Clinton, intelligence surge. Now, I talked to intelligence a lot. They're working hard on this right now. She hasn't given a lot of clarity as to what a surge is exactly. Is it just more people, more money, how does that change things fundamentally? Work with the Muslim community.

This is a big deal, right? You know this from working in New York. You can't have Muslim communities on the other side because they're going to be the people who are going to see some of these early signs here. If you're antagonizing those communities, talking about profiling, you may be turning some of the people you need most away.

Finally, she talks about giving first responders, law enforcement the tools they need at home. A little bit of money, little bit of training. Also about going after the online tools that the terrorists use to recruit and to plan attacks.

CUOMO: This was very helpful. Jim Sciutto, thanks for laying it out for us.

We hear a lot of talk, it's good to put some meat on the bones.

What do you think? Tweet us @NewDay or post your comment on Facebook.com/NewDay. There's a lot of news in the terror investigation to tell you about. Let's get right to it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK: We have every reason to believe this was an act of terror.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the freaking guy you guys are looking for.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hear people yell out "active shooter", and then I heard three shots.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have directly linked Rahami to devices from New York and New Jersey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a very friendly guy. You never suspect this.

GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D), NEW YORK: Was he acting alone? Did he have co-conspirators? Was there a foreign connection?

TRUMP: These attacks were made possible because of our extremely open immigration system.

CLINTON: We have to stand up to this hate. America is better than this.

TRUMP: Immigration security is national security.

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

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: Good morning. Welcome to your NEW DAY.

Up first, new details about the captured bombing suspect. A massive trail of clues and a New Jersey bar owner who saw the terror suspect's picture on CNN. All that led police to their man. We're going to talk to that bar owner in just a few minutes.

CAMEROTA: The bombing suspect is charged with five counts of attempted murder after injuring several police officers in a gun battle. Investigators still trying to determine what motivated the attacks and whether he acted alone.

We have this covered from every angle for you. So, let's begin with CNN justice correspondent Evan Perez.

What's the latest, Evan?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE REPORTER: Alisyn and Chris, the man that the FBI believes was behind at least 10 bombs at four locations in New York and New Jersey was uncooperative in the first few hours.