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Obama's Biggest Most Important Step; Battle Over Planned Parenthood Funding; 14 GOP Candidates On One Stage Tonight; Beau Biden Adviser Joins Draft Biden Group; Clinton Camp Not Worrying About Biden; Donald Trump Widens Lead In New Polls; Race for the White House; Guns in America. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired August 03, 2015 - 13:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, I'm Brianna Keilar in for Wolf Blitzer. It's 1:00 p.m. here in Washington, 6:00 p.m. in London and 8:00 p.m. in Jerusalem. Wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks so much for joining us.

We are watching three major political stories today. President Obama getting ready to unveil his climate change plan in just about an hour. He calls it the biggest most important step the country has ever taken on that issue.

And then, also, the U.S. Senate set to vote on cutting off federal funding for Planned Parenthood. This afternoon's action just the beginning of what's expected to be a fierce political battle.

Plus, we will see 14 of the 17 Republican presidential candidates together on the same stage tonight. Find out who's expected to make headlines and which of the leading candidates is skipping the event.

Up first, though, will he or won't he? The Joe Biden guessing game is in full swing once again. And joining us now to talk more about that and the other topics here, CNN's Senior Washington Correspondent Jeff Zeleny, Senior Political Correspondent Nia-Malika Henderson and Political Director David Chalian.

Thanks, guys, for chatting about this. And there have been a number of stories, I think, about Biden's chances of jumping in the race which you started, Jeff, with your great reporting.

And we also recently know that a close confidante to Joe Biden, the vice president's son, who recently passed away, that this confidante has joined a super PAC, the Draft Biden Movement. How big of a deal is that? How do we read that?

JEFFREY ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly, a sign that there are people very close to the vice president and the family, Hunter Biden, who are very supportive of him running for president. His name is Josh Elkhorn (ph). He is a Democratic strategist in Wilmington, Delaware. He's very close to the vice president and the Biden apparatus, Biden world as we call it. And it's a sign that this is coming from, you know, inside this circle that there is a contingent of people very close to the vice president who want him to seriously, seriously consider this. Now, it's important to note that you talk to anyone who's close to the vice president. No one says that they know what he's thinking but they say he has not yet made up his mind. He's keeping an open mind, at least for the next month or so.

KEILAR: But if the president wanted to shut this down, he could, right?

ZELENY: He absolutely could. I mean, he, you know, could shut it off in a variety of ways. He's the vice president. He could have the White House stop this immediately. But it's what he's always said. He said he's going to give it a look. He's going to, you know, consider it by the summer. But now that we're almost on that, this is taking on a bit of a -- you know, a more importance because he is still seriously looking at it. And this is a major development, the fact that he's even still seriously looking at it.

KEILAR: He's not ruling it out, David. But would he have enough time? Because let's say he were to get in in, say, September or maybe even later, who knows, at this point. Would that give him enough time to really build that ground game that he needs in these early states?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Right, it's a good question because as we think about this, because it would be sort of -- it would rock the world of the -- of Democrats. And, like, it would rock the campaign if he got in.

But we should also note that doesn't change the fact that Hillary Clinton is the most formidable non-incumbent candidate for the Democratic Party nomination in decades. And nothing about Joe Biden getting in or getting out changes that fact right now. She has all the money. She's done all that ground game organization already, in the process of building that.

This would certainly shake things up. It would show a potential threat to her. But I think we shouldn't overstate that there's some sort of walls caving in around Hillary Clinton right now. She is, you know, way ahead in the polls, way ahead in money, way ahead in organization and that counts for something.

KEILAR: It's really good context. She was just in Iowa recently talking about her organization. And it's there, Nia. She's got the support there on the ground, in terms of the organization, the work that the campaign has put in. But there's some weaknesses, I guess, right? You can smell, at this point in time, a little blood in the water that maybe you didn't smell a couple months ago, right?

NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER: That's right. I mean, you can look at those poll numbers, her honesty numbers. I think that voters feel like she's necessarily on their side and can connect with her. Those are the things that are happening and trickling out of polls in the Clinton camp. And Democrats who are a little nervous, I mean Democrats are always nervous, but they're nervous about Hillary Clinton. And so, that's where Joe Biden comes in. I think, again, though, the problem is they pretty much are in the same lane, in terms of their policy -- CHALIAN: Right.

HENDERSON: -- and politics. They're centrists. They're moderates. So, it's not like she's going to be able to tap into that far left progressive very energized base that's, so far, not quite sold on Hillary Clinton.

KEILAR: So, it's not like Biden would step in and just garner all that support --

HENDERSON: Right.

KEILAR: -- that Bernie Sanders is exciting, right?

ZELENY: Sure. I mean, he's not from the liberal wing of the party. He never has been. You know, they'd be much more concerned in Brooklyn where the Clinton headquarters is if Elizabeth Warren was suddenly on the -- on the cusp of getting in which she's not.

[13:05:03] So, I think it's a -- Nia makes a perfect point. They are in the same lane. But it's important to remember that the establishment lane, even though it seems like it may be entirely for Hillary Clinton now. You know, this is very, very early. Super delegates which pick the Democratic nominee usually follow the will and voters of the constituents.

So, it's -- you know, if he would decide to get in, it would be a formidable. Some of her people say, oh, it would make her a stronger candidate. It would make her better. Perhaps. But I think she's fine with not being there.

KEILAR: Is -- let's see. Is she worried? Let's see what her -- what Hillary Clinton's communications director said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNIFER PALMIEN, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, HILLARY FOR AMERICA: -- that we will let him make his decision. However hard it is to secure the Democratic nomination is however hard it is. And we have no illusions. We never thought that this was going to be easy. There is a -- there's a lot of views in the Democratic Party and, you know, we'll be prepared to handle whatever comes our way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Nia, what do you think?

HENDERSON: Yes, I mean, this is what they sort of have been saying. Oh, we really expect this to be competitive. I think it's still unlikely that he -- that he jumps in there. I think you are going to see some spin out of the Clinton campaign about him getting in. And it is true that it seems like early on at least Biden was saying he wouldn't get in if Hillary Clinton ran but also that he would kind of be up on the shelf just in case something happened.

CHALIAN: Even before Hillary Clinton, early on, Joe Biden had almost ruled out a run for the presidency in 2016 and then very quickly realize he didn't want to give up any of the stock that comes with being a sitting vice president and already being a lame duck. So, he quickly unwound that early on in the administration.

ZELENY: Jennifer is right in saying that, you know, the campaign never thought it would be easy. I think they thought it would be a little bit easier than this. It's been more difficult for them primary be -- primarily because of that e-mail server, the private e- mail server that set up in the house. They did not anticipate what an issue that would be and it's still continuing.

KEILAR: And it's still -- yes, it's percolating through the polls as we see. Jeff, Nia, David, thanks so much to all of you.

And still ahead, it is the biggest gathering yet of the Republican presidential candidates. We will talk about what's at stake at tonight's Republican forum and we'll speak to one candidate who won't be there, Jim Gilmore, former governor of Virginia. He'll join me live.

And then, later on, that piece of a Boeing 777 found last week, it's now sitting in a French lab and two other island nations are launching debris searches of their own. We'll have the latest on the mystery of Malaysia Air Flight 370.

[13:07:35]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: We are just three days away now from the first Republican presidential primary debate and there are new numbers, right now, on where the candidates stand in the race. A Monmouth University poll released today has Donald Trump with a more than two to one lead over the other GOP hopefuls. He's at 26 percent. Jeb Bush is at 12 percent. You have Wisconsin governor, Scott Walker, at 11 percent.

And then, here's our new poll of polls, this averages the five latest national polls. The top three again -- Trump, Bush and Walker. And then, there's a five-way tie for forty place. Joining me now to talk about all of this ahead of this debate, from New York, we have Ari Fleisher, a Republican consultant and the former White House press secretary under George W. Bush. And then, from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, we have Jeffrey Lord, former aide to President Ronald Reagan. He's now a contributing editor for "American Spectator."

So, Ari, to you first. You have Donald Trump. You're looking at these polls. Is that going to have an effect? How much of an effect? What way is it going to affect this field as they head into this key debate?

ARI FLESCHER, REPUBLICAN CONSULTANT: Well, sure, it's had a dramatic affect already. What it's doing is crowding out a lot of the lesser known candidates who were trying to land themselves, launch their candidacies, get noticed, and that's what this early phase of a campaign is all about. And Donald Trump has definitely carved into Ted Cruz's campaign, into Ben Carson's campaign and into many campaigns. He's got the anti-establishment vote secure but he's got a pretty high ceiling on how far he -- a low ceiling on how far he can go.

KEILAR: Do you think, Jeffrey, that the way that he is performing is affecting the debate prep for some of these candidates?

JEFFREY LORD, FORMER WHITE HOUSE POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes, I do. I mean, I think, you know, behind the scenes, they're all trying to figure out how to handle him. How -- you know, what to say, what to do. And I am guessing here -- I don't know but I am guessing, you know, that he thinks of himself -- you know, he keeps talking about how these other guys are all debaters and I'm thinking that he will present himself as the doer versus the debaters. And I don't know whether he'll stick to form, the sort of traditional form that people expect in a debate or whether he'll do something that's quite different and quite Donald Trump. And I'm sure they're all trying to figure out how to handle it if it comes.

KEILAR: No doubt they are, Ari. And you've heard from a lot of consultants. They say if they were advising these candidates, they would basically say, don't go taking Donald Trump head on. But at the same time, there has to be some way, certainly, to respond to him or to take him on in a way that isn't so direct. But how does -- how would you advise a candidate to do that?

FLESCHER: Well, I think if you're Jeb Bush or if you're Scott Walker, you're in a strong position. You're going to be there in February and March and this race is going to come down to one of those people, probably. Their job is to be to be the look presidential, to rise above Donald Trump, to really be the person that the Republican Party, when the field whittles down, wants to coalesce behind. That day is coming and that's what they're saying they should keep their eyes on.

For the other candidates, a John Kasich, for a Ted Cruz, they need a punch-out moment. They need to have a chance where everybody says, wow, did you see what they did? That's the way they can get up and beyond Donald Trump. So, you have two tiers, different tiers have different needs.

KEILAR: They need their moment but I wonder, Jeffrey, if you think that it's possible for some of these candidates who maybe are -- they were sort of ascendant and then you saw Donald Trump cutting into their poll numbers.

LORD: Right.

[13:15: 06]

KEILAR: Is there really a way for them to have their moment when you almost -- you could -- you'd have a safe bet to say Donald Trump will have a moment, right? Is there a way for these candidates to really challenge that?

LORD: Sure. I'm sure there is. I mean you'll have to sort of go minute by minute as this goes to see what the opening is. You know, you remember that famous debate in New Hampshire in 1980. No one would have predicted that President Reagan, then former Governor Reagan, would have been presented with the opportunity to grab the microphone and say, "I paid for this microphone, Mr. Green," and sort of half rise from his seat. These moments come in a very unscripted fashion. And it all depends on how fast you are on your feet for you to be able to take advantage of it. So I'm sure they're thinking about it, but there's not something there that they can necessarily predict.

KEILAR: That's right. I was going through moments and I saw that one as well where what he had paid to bring some of the lesser known candidates on in a way because it -- their -- I think a paper wasn't able to actually pay for the debate. There was some ruling. And so he took that moment and grabbed the microphone. Actually seemed a little irritated as he said that. I mean --

LORD: Yes, he did.

KEILAR: Ari, though, do you think that that attitude is something that could help some of these other candidates or are they going to get in trouble if they do that around Donald Trump?

ARI FLEISCHER, REPUBLICAN CONSULTANT: No, look, this is why debates are good TV because you have to be fast on your feet. You have to be nimble. You have to be able. And we'll see what they have to say.

But, for instance, let's say Donald Trump's opening speech when he announced his candidacy took place on debate night and he referred to Mexicans as rapists. That's a prime spot, prime opportunity for a Republican to stand forward and make the case for immigrants coming to America for opportunities and to make it and become citizens and follow the rule of law, et cetera. So there's a yin and a yang to these things and that's the moment you look for.

LORD: (INAUDIBLE) Ari. He didn't --

KEILAR: And -- and --

ORD: He didn't refer to Mexican immigrants as rapist. He was talking about illegal immigrants and there is a difference.

KEILAR: He was talking --

FLEISCHER: And that's something that he could say on the campaign -- on the debate stage.

KEILAR: As he said some -- he was talking about some illegal Mexican immigrants as rapists and criminals.

And we'll see if that does, I imagine it will come up on Thursday. We'll see. And we'll be watching with you gentlemen.

Ari and Jeffrey, thanks so much to both of you.

FLEISCHER: Thank you.

LORD: Thanks. Bye. KEILAR: And speaking of Republicans, later this hour we'll have the latest candidate to enter the race, Jim Gilmore. He's the former Virginia governor. He's going to join me in the studio.

And in less than an hour, the Senate will take up a bill aimed at defunding Planned Parenthood. We have some live pictures to show you -- well, we'll show you after the break -- of the Senate floor as lawmakers there are going to start gathering for the debate. This is legislation that stems from a series of sting videos, you may have seen, they were shot by an anti-abortion group that appears to reveal Planned Parenthood negotiating prices for fetal tissue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUYER: If we were doing like, you know, 50 to 75 per specimen, that would be like $200 - $300, but then we'd be comfortable with that. But like I said, like stuff like this, like, we don't want to be just like a flat fee of like 200 and then it's like --

DR. GINDE (ph): No, and, you know, the -- I think the -- I think the per item thing works a little better just because you can see how much we can get out of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order against the release of any more of these kinds of recordings. And the Senate is expected to vote on the bill that would strip federal funding from Planned Parenthood. They're expected to vote on that in just a few hours. That's an effort that's expected to fail under opposition from Democrats and the White House has issued a veto threat against the measure.

Still ahead, comedian Amy Schumer speaks out for the first time since the fatal shooting at a Lafayette movie theater during a showing of her new movie "Train Wreck." We have that next.

Plus, police chiefs from major cities gathering today here in Washington and they're talking about what they can do to fight the recent spike in violent crime. We'll be speaking to two of those police chiefs next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:23:03] KEILAR: Comedian Amy Schumer tackles a very serious subject -- gun control. Today, Schumer joined her cousin, Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer, in unveiling new gun control legislation. This would reward states that submit information to the background check system and penalize those that do not. For Amy Schumer, this is a personal issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMY SCHUMER, ACTRESS & COMEDIAN: For me, the pain I share with so many other Americans on the issue of gun violence was made extremely personal to me on Thursday, July 23rd when -- I'm not even going to say his name. When this -- when he sat down for my movie "Train Wreck" at the Grand Theater in Lafayette, Louisiana. Two lives were tragically lost and others injured.

And I have thought about these victims each day since the tragedy. Jillian Johnson, who was an artistic force in Louisiana. She was 33. She was a mother, a daughter, a sister, and a wonderful wife. She was an artist. I think we would have been friends. And Mayci Breaux, who was just 21. She planned on marrying her high school sweetheart. She was an honor student at Louisiana Student University in Eunice, where she was studying to become a radiology technician. She was kind and she loved her family very much and she always made time for them.

When I heard about this news, I was completely devastated and I just -- I wanted to just go down to Louisiana. And then I was angry. My heart goes out to Jillian and Mayci, to the survivors, to the families and everyone who was tied to this tragic, senseless and horrifying actions of this man who shouldn't have been able to put his hands on a gun in the first place. I'm not sure why this man chose my movie to end these two beautiful lives and injure nine others, but it was very personal for me.

Anyone who knows me, loves -- knows that I love Louisiana. It's my favorite state. Wherever I have a couple days off, I go -- I go down there and I -- because I love the people there. They're the coolest, strongest people I've ever met. And the thought of this community being -- being turned around and upside down by this just sickens me.

[13:25:21] Excuse me.

Unless something is done and done soon, dangerous people will continue to get their hands on guns. We know what can happen when they do. I was heartbroken when I heard about Columbine and Sandy Hook and Aurora and -- and so many other names of places that are seared into our memories. And I was heartbroken again when I heard about Lafayette and I still am.

And what Chuck said here today, it deserves unanimous support. We'll never know why people choose to do these painful things, but sadly we always find out how. How the shooter got their gun. And it's -- it's often something that shouldn't have happened in the first place. And today's push makes so much sense because it seeks to address the how. We need a background check system with holes -- without holes and fatal flaws. We need one with accurate information that protects us like a firewall. The critics scoff and say, well, there's no way to stop crazy people from doing crazy things, but they're wrong. There is a way to stop them.

Preventing dangerous people from getting guns is very possible. We have common-sense solutions. We can toughen background checks and stop the sale of firearms to folks who have a violent history or history of mental illness. We can invest more in treating mental illness instead of slashing funding. These are not extreme ideas. And what Chuck is describing, they're sensible measures and restrictions and no one wants to live in a country where a felon, the mentally ill or other dangerous people can get their hands on a gun with such ease. The time is now for American people to rally for these changes. These

are my first public comments on the issue of gun violence, but I can promise you, they will not be my last.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Gun violence is the focus of a summit in Washington today. Police chiefs from major cities around the country are meeting together to discuss increases in violent crime. They're especially concerned about the rise in homicides and we have now a D.C. Metropolitan Police report that shows 87 homicides so far this year. That is up from 69 at this time last year. Then police in Baltimore, they report 179 homicides compared to 115 a year ago. And in Chicago, police say there have been 252 homicides, up from 209 at this point last year.

We have Garry McCarthy, he is the Chicago Police superintendent. We have Cathy Lanier, the police chief of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

And, superintendent, you see these numbers, you're seeing them in your city, you're seeing them in Chief Lanier's city, we see them in Baltimore. Why is there this uptick in violent crime?

GARRY MCCARTHY, CHICAGO POLICE SUPERINTENDENT: You know, there's always going to be a number of reasons for it, and that's really why we convened this particular event. Actually it was Cathy's idea when she saw my comments over the Fourth of July weekend.

You know, the thing that I'm hearing a very common threat throughout this conference is the fact that criminals are not being held accountable. In the city of Chicago, we seize more guns than any city in the country every single year, three to one in comparison to Los Angeles and seven to one in comparison to New York City. This year we've got a 22 percent increase in our gun arrests. So what's happening when we put those individuals into the system that stops them from coming out and being involved in gun violence again before it becomes a murder or a shooting? And that's one of the key elements certainly in the city of Chicago.

KEILAR: OK. So then, Cathy Lanier, Chief Lanier, you heard in the report just before you this proposal from Senator Chuck Schumer and it's about getting better reporting, people who should not be able to have access to guns under the law, getting information about them reported to the national system. Do you think that that's an essential part of this?

CHIEF CATHY LANIER, METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPT. OF D.C.: You know, I think that what is very clear to all of us, especially since we got here today, we all had a gut feeling that there was something more than some local tipping point that has occur that has caused this dramatic spike in so many cities across the United States. And what has dawned on us in this discussion so far today is that the solutions are not local solutions, there are some things going on that are affecting every city across the United States. Not every city has been hit with this spike yet, but with more than 30 cities represented here today, we see it's coming. It's coming in a wave and that means that there is some broader issues at the federal level that has to be addressed nationally. And so that's why this is so important today.

[13:29:58] So things like gun control laws are just a small part of all of the things that are coming up here today in terms of accountability for violent offenders and those repeat violent offenders I think is a key part of this.