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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Trump on Video Making Sexually Aggressive Comments About Women; Trump Campaign Advisers Huddling on How to React to Tape; Clinton Condemns "Horrific" Lewd Comments by Trump; RNC Chairman Says "No Women Should Ever be Described in these Terms; Speaker Ryan Cancels Trump Event Saturday; Hurricane Matthew Threatens Georgia, Carolinas; Pence Will Attend Event Tomorrow, Not Trump. Aired 9-10p ET
Aired October 07, 2016 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:00:18] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening again tonight. Donald Trump and what he says he can get away with women, up to and including actions that to many add up to sexual assault. Grabbing a woman by her genitals and getting away with it, he says, because he's a star.
Right now, the Trump campaign in full damage control mode, huddling at Trump Tower as we speak, dealing with the leaking of a video that has him saying exactly that, an open microphone picked it up on a bus during a conversation between Trump and Billy Bush, who was then with "Access Hollywood." They were pulling up to a soap opera set. This was back in 2005. Donald Trump was 59 years old. They were talking first about a married woman that Trump had tried to seduce, but he does not use that word, then they talk about the soap star they were about to meet.
"The Washington Post" obtained the tape. We're going to play it in full with the exception of one f-word, but we need to warn you that much of what is left is extremely graphic and obscene.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She used to be great. She's still very beautiful.
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I moved on her actually. You know she was down on Palm Beach. I moved on her and I failed. I'll admit it. I did try and [muted] her. She was married.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's huge news.
TRUMP: No, no, Nancy. No, this was-- and I moved on her very heavily. In fact, I took her out furniture shopping. She wanted to get some furniture. I said, "I'll show you where they have some nice furniture." I took her out furniture.
I moved on her like a bitch, but I couldn't get there, and she was married. Then all of a sudden I see her. She's now get the big phony tits and everything. She's totally changed her look.
BILLY BUSH, RADIO AND TELEVISION HOST: Sheesh, your girl's hot as shit. In the purple.
Whoa. Yes, the Donald has scored. Whoa, my man.
TRUMP: Look at you. You are a pussy. Maybe it's a different one.
BUSH: It's better not be the publicist. No, it's her ...
TRUMP: Yeah, that's her, with the gold. I better use some Tic Tacs, just in cae I start kissing her.
You know, I'm automatically attracted to beautiful. I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait.
And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.
BUSH: Whatever you want.
TRUMP: Grab them by their pussy. You can do anything.
BUSH: Yeah, those legs, all I can see is the legs.
TRUMP: Oh, it looks good.
BUSH: Come on, shorty.
TRUMP: Oh, nice legs, huh?
BUSH: Get out of the way, honey. Oh, that's good legs. Go ahead.
TRUMP: It's always good if you don't fall out f the bus. Like Ford, Gerald Ford, remember?
BUSH: Down below. Pull the handle.
TRUMP: Hello. How are you? Hi.
ARIANNE ZUCKER: Hi, Mr. Trump. How are you?
TRUMP: Nice seeing you. Terrific. Terrific. You know Billy Bush?
BUSH: Hello, nice to see you. How are you doing, Arianne?
ZUCKER: I'm doing very well, thank you. Are you ready to be a soap star?
TRUMP: We're ready. Let's go. Make me a soap star.
BUSH: How about a little hug for the Donald? He just got off the bus.
ZUCKER: Would you like a little hug, darling?
TRUMP: Absolutely. Melania said this was OK.
BUSH: How about a little hug for the Bushy? I just got off the bus. Here we go. Excellent. Well, you've got a nice co-star here. Trump: Good. After you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Nearly immediately, the Trump campaign put out a statement, which used the word "apologize," though you can judge for yourself whether it is an apology or not. It reads, "This was locker room banter, a private conversation that took place many years ago. Bill Clinton has said far worse to me on the golf course, not even close. I apologize if anyone was offended."
For her part, Hillary Clinton tweeted, "This is horrific. We cannot allow this man to become president."
Late this evening, Republican Party Chair Reince Priebus had this to say. He said, "No woman should ever be described in these terms or talked about in this manner. Ever." This really just the beginning of the reactions.
CNN's senior White House correspondent, Jim Acosta, who's covering the Trump campaign, joins us now with more. And Jim, this statement from Trump which says, you know, I apologize if someone was offended is short of a full-throated apology. Are people saying this is enough?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It's not an apology, John. And going after Bill Clinton in the middle of that statement, I think, amplifies that. It's not going far enough for a lot of Republicans right now. You can just look at social media tonight. The previous GOP nominee, Mitt Romney, just ripped to shreds what Donald Trump was caught on tape saying. People like John Kasich, you know, the list goes on and on, Republican senators who were up for re-election, the RNC chairman, Reince Priebus. There are some Republicans like Mark Kirk, the embattled and endangered senator from Illinois, Republican is saying that Donald Trump should be replaced as the nominee. Jon Huntsman, who ran for president four years ago, is also saying Donald Trump should be replaced as the nominee, but with Mike Pence at the top of the ticket.
So it is very clear, at this hour, that Donald Trump's apology or whatever you want to call it, that statement, doesn't go near where he needs to go at this point.
[21:05:08] And John, keep in mind, this is a critical point in the campaign. This is two days, roughly to the minute, from this debate rematch with Hillary Clinton. This was supposed to be a moment for Donald Trump to redeem himself and right his campaign. And instead, the campaign is -- it may not be imploding at this point, but certainly, we are reaching critical mass.
BERMAN: Mike Pence on the campaign trail. He has been asked about this already. How has he responded?
ACOSTA: Mike Pence has not responded. And there are some top Republicans out there who have not responded. Mike Pence has not responded. Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House, has not said anything yet. Mitch McConnell, the Senate Majority leader, has not said anything yet.
You know, there are reporters who are trying to reach out to Mike Pence at one of these campaign stops where just a small pool of reporters goes in. His staffers prevented those reporters from asking a question. That video you just showed of Mike Pence on a rope line at a campaign event, he was asked the question there. He did not respond. And at one point during a speech this afternoon, John, Mike Pence was continuing to praise Donald Trump as somebody who tells it like it is, but was apparently unaware or just not ready to talk about what Donald Trump was caught saying in that video. John?
BERMAN: All right, Jim Acosta for us. Thanks so much.
I want to get to CNN's Joe Johns with more on the reaction from Capitol Hill. Joe, what are you hearing from Republican sources on this?
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, from hearing from sources across the board, in fact, first, let's start with the Clinton camp. They've often struggled over how much to weigh in on firestorms created by Trump, but sources have told CNN's Jeff Zeleny they're debating it. Hillary Clinton is planning to deal with it this weekend, of course, in the debate, perhaps calling on top Republicans to denounce their nominee. Her reaction on Twitter was very direct, but also minimalist. About an hour ago, she tweeted, "Women have the power to stop Trump." And she also included in that tweet a link for voter registration. She tweeted earlier, "This is horrific. We cannot allow this man to become president."
Clinton's running mate, Tim Kaine, tweeted, "This kind of behavior makes me sick to my stomach." And also said at a campaign stop in Las Vegas, "I don't like to say the words that he's used in the past when he calls women pigs, dogs, and slobs, but this behavior is just outrageous."
Now, Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the chair of the House of the GOP conference, talking about Republicans now, said in a statement obtained by CNN, "It's never appropriate to condon unwanted sexual advances or violence against women. Mr. Trump must realize it has no place in public or private conversation today or in the past."
And Jeb Bush, who ran for president, of course, "As the grandfather of two precious girls, I find no apology that can excuse away Donald Trump's reprehensible comments degrading women."
Just a short while ago, Mitt Romney joined the conversation by tweeting, "Hitting on married women? Condoning assault? Such vile degradations demean our wives and daughters and corrupt America's face to the world."
Now, these campaigns have been careful not to say too much after Donald Trump has gotten consumed in controversy, but the responses from a couple of high-profile Republicans, I think, really speak volumes. And you've already referred to RNC Chair Reince Priebus's comments, tweeting ...
BERMAN: Joe?
JOHNS: ... "No woman should ever be described in terms -- or talked about in this matter."
BERMAN: Joe, stand by because I think we just got a response from House Speaker Paul Ryan. We have been waiting for this, of course, because Donald Trump was due to appear with Paul Ryan tomorrow in Wisconsin. This statement just in. "I am sickened by what I heard today. Women are to be championed and revered, not objectified. I hope Mr. Trump treats this situation with the seriousness it deserves and works to demonstrate to the country that he has greater respect for women than this clip suggests. In the meantime, he is no longer attending tomorrow's event in Wisconsin."
Wow. OK. That's big news right there. Paul Ryan there condemning the comments from Donald Trump, saying he will not appear with Donald Trump tomorrow in Wisconsin, an event that has been scheduled in that key swing state for some time.
Let's talk about this. Joining us now, Clinton supporter and Democratic strategist, Jonathan Tasini, Clinton supporter and MoveOn.org national spokeswoman, Karine Jean-Pierre, Trump supporters, Kayleigh McEnany, Andre Bauer. Andre's a former lieutenant governor in South Carolina. And with us also, CNN chief political analyst, Gloria Borger.
Gloria, I'm going to start with you with this news we just got in about Paul Ryan to which I just responded, wow.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Yeah.
BERMAN: Donald Trump not appearing with Paul Ryan now tomorrow in Wisconsin. This tells you a lot.
BORGER: It does. It seems to me like Donald Trump was disinvited to this event. It's very clear that Paul Ryan is following the lead set by his friend and colleague, Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, who also condemned the video. And so did Paul Ryan in the strongest terms.
[21:10:22] I think what this does is it gives every Republican, and don't forget, these are the two ranking Republicans in the Congress, gives every Republican permission to distance, separate, draw, divide, criticize Donald Trump. What they did not do is take that further step, and there are lots -- there's lots of Republican chatter about this, and I've been e-mailing with a bunch of Republican sources, because the Democrats are going to push on this, which is, OK, it's one thing to condemn Donald Trump and to disinvite him from your rally, et cetera, but, it's another thing to say, OK, I no longer believe he should be president of the United States. And this is what you're going to hear Democrats -- I'm sure you'll hear Hillary Clinton talk about it, but I think what you're really going to hear it from is these Democratic Senate candidates and Democratic House candidates telling people that they ought to put their money where their mouth is. And if you condemn him so strongly, do you still support him for president of the United States? BERMAN: Well, Andre Bauer, Donald Trump supporter, we have yet to
hear from you this evening. This is a big deal. When the House Speaker, you know, the senior elected official in your own party, whom you're supposed to appear with tomorrow in Wisconsin, all of a sudden, you are no longer appearing with them, that's a big deal. That's the sound of Republicans putting distance between themselves and Donald Trump. How much trouble is he in right now?
ANDRE BAUER, TRUMP SUPPORTER: It clearly creates a divide, it creates an uncomfortable situation. And it's not a healthy thing to happen 34 days out before an election, and two days away from a debate. I think he will move forward from this. It's definitely an obstacle. And all of us have said things that we wish we could take back. This was many years ago. I'm not excusing it in any way and it was guy talk. And quite frankly, it should have never -- a T.V. station should have never been recording. And furthermore, shouldn't have released it. But where we are is now that it has been released, he has apologized. Hopefully, he'll be able to move forward and get into debate mode. It will come up during the debate ...
JONATHAN TASINI, CLINTON SUPPORTER: That assault against women is not guy talk.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, MOVEON.ORG NATIONAL SPOKESPERSON: Right.
TASINI: Saying "I'm going to grab your pussy" and assaulting women is not guy talk. That is a crime. And so for you to sort of say, well, it's an obstacle, and not stand here and say that Donald Trump, as Ana Navarro bravely said, must step down and cannot be president because he's a deranged individual is astonishing to me.
And by the way, this isn't something new. Let's go back and remember that Donald Trump not just -- didn't just use the words that Jim Johns recited that Tim Kaine talked about, fat, bimbo, pig, Donald Trump objectified his own daughter. And I want every man, every father of a daughter to think about this. Donald Trump talked about his daughter, talked about her being hot, talked about her in sexual terms. This man is deranged.
BAUER: Look, I understand ...
TASINI: He cannot be president of United States. Not only has he not talked about women, he's willing to be abusive to women, let's talk about his racism, let's talk about his serial lying. We can -- forget about -- forget about -- forget about ...
BERMAN: Let Andre respond. Andre?
BAUER: Look, I respect that you're passionate and I respect you.
TASINI: It's not about passion, it's about ...
BAUER: Are you going to let me respond?
BERMAN: Go ahead, Andre. BAUER: I can't have a conversation. What I would tell you is Donald Trump has said some offensive things. There's nobody argues that. Hillary Clinton has done things that have jeopardized American lives. There is a big difference between offending someone and doing things that cost lives and put security of this country at risk. There is a vast different ...
BERMAN: Let me get Karine here.
TASINI: I'm just going to say, we're happy to talk about Hillary Clinton, but let's stick with Donald Trump right now.
BAUER: I know you want to ...
(CROSSTALK)
BERMAN: This l happening tonight. Let Karine talk about this.
JEAN-PIERRE: Look, let's stick to what's going on right now.
BAUER: Well, of course we ...
JEAN-PIERRE: What we saw -- of course we have to do that. What we saw today was that Donald Trump is indeed a sexist, misogynistic pig, period. When you look at the definition of "deplorable," you're going to see a picture of Donald Trump. It is unbelievable -- it is unbelievable what we have to listen to and hear for the last several hours. I mean, I wouldn't want our sons or our daughters to see that. He is not fit to be president of the United States. He should not get anyone near the Oval Office.
And to be quite honest, this is beyond partisan politics. The Republicans really have to seriously think about this right now. It's not just saying, hey, he shouldn't have said this, it's really thinking about, hey, this guy cannot be president. They need to unendorse him. He is not fit.
[21:15:02] BERMAN: All right. Hang on one second, Kayleigh. We're going to let you respond to this as well. We're going to take a quick break. Obviously, we have a lot more to discuss.
Also, we're going to update you on Hurricane Matthew, which is still a threat to a very big part of the southeast. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: Reaction keeps coming in tonight to the Donald Trump tape. House Speaker Paul Ryan just moments ago said that Trump will not attend an event with him in Wisconsin tomorrow.
And during the break, Senator John McCain weighed in with this. He said, "There are no excuses for Donald Trump's offensive and demeaning comments. No woman should ever be victimized by this kind of inappropriate behavior. He alone bears the burden of his conduct and alone should suffer the consequences." Dana Bash has been breaking news on this story all evening long. She joins us once again. Dana, you got the Paul Ryan statement among others things. What's the latest you're hearing right now?
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, you talked about the Paul Ryan statement being very, very direct, and first and foremost, disinviting Donald Trump from a big Wisconsin Republican unity event that Trump was scheduled to be attending tomorrow afternoon. That's no longer happening. But he also -- Paul Ryan, said that he hopes that Mr. Trump treats the situation with seriousness it deserves and works to demonstrates that he has great respect for women. What it doesn't say in there is whether or not he is still going to support Donald Trump as his nominee for president.
[21:20:00] And I'm just going back and forth with some Republicans who are strategists for Republican candidates, saying that they understand that the very next question is going to be, OK, Mr. Speaker, does that mean that you do or you don't support Donald Trump? And that is going to be a question that is asked down the line of Republicans, obviously, in the House, everybody's running for re-election, but the people who are going to have the toughest questions to them are those in the Senate and elsewhere, who are in tough re-election campaigns. So that's the next question.
I have to say that I texted somebody with Speaker Ryan, asking that question, Will (ph), does this mean he will still support Donald Trump or not? And the response was, we have no further comment for tonight.
BERMAN: That's not a "yes", that's not a "no", that's a "no further comment for tonight", which is interesting. But, you know, he didn't say anything in that statement. John McCain also did not say he would no longer support Donald Trump in his statement.
So far, no one is officially broken with Donald Trump over this.
Paul Ryan did say that Donald Trump needs to come out and say more on this.
BASH: Yup.
BERMAN: What are you hearing about that?
BASH: They clearly understand that inside Trump Tower, as we've been reporting. They are huddled there in crisis mode, trying to figure out what to say. My sense is that it's a question at this point of what he's going to say, not whether he's going to say something.
This statement from Paul Ryan, as you said, puts pressure on Donald Trump to say something, but it's probably likely that he knows that Donald Trump is expected to do. So, we don't have firm confirmation that he will, but every indication is that he is not going to go to bed tonight without trying to assuage the voters, first and foremost, but also Republicans, who are -- as I'm talking to tonight really at the -- just to quote one -- breaking point when it comes to Donald Trump with all of this.
BERMAN: All right, Dana Bash, great reporting. Thanks so much.
Back now with our panel. Kayleigh McEnany, if we can, if we can put that picture up of a Trump Tower we just saw one second ago, because reporters are now gathered outside Trump Tower. I saw CNN dazzling (ph) young Phil Mattingly right there in the left-hand side of your screen, right there. He's waiting, because I think we all think that Donald Trump needs to say something and needs to say it soon. I mean, what, you know, it's 09:25, do you know where your candidate is? If he doesn't speak tonight, there may not be a tomorrow.
KAYLEIGH MCENANY, TRUMP'S SUPPORTER: Look, he said something wrong. It was more than a decade ago, but it was wrong, plain and simple. And I think when your feet are held to the fire, we learn a lot about people. And if he comes out and is humble and apologizes and says he's sorry and is heartfelt about it, I think that's a big moment for him. I think Hillary Clinton's feet were held to the fire over her e- mails. She was pushed to say it was a mistake. Then she proceed to blame it on Powell, we know with the FBI, she blamed it on her aides.
This is Donald Trump's e-mail moment. This is the moment where he does what Hillary Clinton does, in that statement. He basically did what she did. This was a mistake if you were offended by it. He sticks with that, the Hillary Clinton apology, or he's a bigger person than Hillary Clinton, and he comes out and says I was wrong and I'm sorry for it. There's nothing to excuse that.
BERMAN: Karine, good politics tonight would be to come out and humble himself, as Kayleigh's saying. Good politics would be to come out and say you're sorry, really sorry, and say it for an hour to the press associated there.
JEAN-PIERRE: Here's the thing, John, he's not capable. This is not the first time that he has said something that has been so, you know, apprehensible before.
He's called women pigs he's called women fat. He body shamed Miss Universe just last week and doubled down, tripled down on that. He called Mexicans rapists and criminals. So this is who Donald Trump is.
And he is just not capable. I would -- I can't imagine that he's going to do that at all, because every time he tries to apologize or makes an attempt to apologize, it's not an apology like we saw just a couple of hours ago.
TASINI: Let me add one more thing, which is, the question to the Republican Party is, we all know this about Donald Trump. This is no secret. So the question to the Republican Party, and to the voters is, why has the Republican Party sat by quietly, even though on the record Donald Trump said the things that she mentioned, in addition, to I want to go back to what I said before which to me is astonishing and deranged, he looked at his daughter, talked about how she's hot, objectified her.
Now, I want to, again, ask, any man out there who has a daughter or a sister or some relative, think about that for a second. Does it ever cross your mind to think about your daughter or a woman you know as a sexual object?
MCENANY: Jonathan, that's so unfair.
TASINI: No, it is absolutely ...
MCENANY: Ivanka Trump ...
TASINI: No, no, I'm sorry. It exactly is, because that is ...
MCENANY: Jonathan that's low. That's -- that's ...
TASINI: No, it's not ...
BERMAN: Let Kayleigh talk.
MCENANY: That's going really low.
TASINI: No.
MCENANY: Ivanka Trump loves her father. She stood on that stage, she vouched for him. She gave the address right before he came on the stage to have the biggest moment of her -- his life, excuse me. And to put ...
[21:25:03] TASINI: The fact that he. I'm sorry.
MCENANY: ... to have doubt and aspersions on his relationship ...
TASINI: I'm sorry.
MCENANY: ... with his daughter, that's a bridge too far. I'm sorry, but it is.
TASINI: The fact that you justify that is shocking to me. That is something -- I'll just leave it to any man looking at this who has a daughter. Would you think of your daughter in those terms?
BERMAN: Let's keep it on tonight if we can, Andre. You know, I know you've got a lot of friends all over the country, in South Carolina, the Republican Party in South Carolina right now, I've got to believe there are a lot of people, you know, tweeting you or texting you or calling you and say, you know, hey, you know, Lieutenant Governor, why should we stick by our candidate right now? How do you explain this tape that came to light? How do you say, you know what, look past it?
BAUER: I don't explain it, I don't justify it, and I hope that Donald Trump will take this as a moment to shine and show people what he really has. And I hope he digs down deep and explains it in a way that people go, you know, we all do dumb things, we all say thing we regret. And I hope you will move forward and do that. It gives him an opportunity to really shine.
But, again, we have an opportunity to make a decision between two candidates in this race. And we've got one that has a business background, that has proven himself in the business world and can turn Washington upside-down. And the reason why I supported Donald Trump in a primary with so many qualified individuals was I was fed up with the status quo in Washington. And that is what we will get with the other person in this race.
BERMAN: Gloria, I want to -- hang on, Jonathan. I want to go to Gloria Borger now, our chief analyst. I'm just -- the debate is 48 hours from now, 48 hours from now, Gloria, you know, you're going to be in St. Louis, you know, watching this debate. They're going to be onstage, the candidates are. This is going to be part of that night. Donald Trump, between now and then, is going to have to come up with some kind of explanation.
BORGER: Well, and you bet he will. And I just want to point out that the Trump campaign just released a statement about the Paul Ryan event tomorrow which we've reported, he was disinvited from.
He said, Governor Mike Pence will be representing me tomorrow in Wisconsin. And then he said, I will be spending the day in New York, in debate prep, with RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, Governor Chris Christie, and Senator Jeff Sessions, and then flying to St. Louis on Sunday for the second presidential debate.
So, now, Donald Trump is preparing for this town hall, because he understands the stakes, because they've just grown exponentially this evening.
And one thing I want to add to the conversation you were having before is that the difference in the conversation we're having tonight about this video and the other conversations we had about Alicia Machado and Judge Curiel, et cetera, et cetera, is that this seems to be a tipping point, because Republicans are asking other Republicans about how they can condemn Donald Trump so ardently for this while still endorsing him.
And John Weaver, who ran Governor Kasich's campaign, if you recall, tweeted this evening, that condemning Trump's comments while still endorsing and supporting him is outrageous.
And so, this will continue to be a fault line in the Republican Party, and you're going to feel this push from the Democrats, who want people to declare or un-declare for Donald Trump.
And within the Republican Party, there's just an awful lot of consternation about, about what they do. Not only for this election, but I just had somebody who was e-mailing me about this and said, let's get beyond this election. What does this mean for the Republican Party and the coalition, which includes women, of course, in the future, post Donald Trump, should he lose?
BERMAN: But they did get him to do debate prep, which is a big ...
BORGER: Yes.
BERMAN: ... thing for a lot of Republicans.
BORGER: Well ...
BERMAN: So there is ...
BORGER: It's a heck of a way to get him to do debate prep.
BERMAN: All right, Gloria, stand by. Everyone, stand by. More with the panel ahead.
Again, the Trump campaign facing a full-blown crisis tonight just 48 hours from the second presidential debate in St. Louis. Anderson Cooper will be moderating that town hall along with Martha Raddatz of ABC News.
CNN's debate coverage gets underway Sunday from St. Louis. I'll be there in the afternoon from 2:00 to 4:00, and then, you know, there'll be some people on after.
All right, coming up next for us, the latest on Hurricane Matthew, where it's heading and flooding and the power outages it has left in his path.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:33:29] BERMAN: Hurricane Matthew has lost some of its wind speed, but there are parts of the Southeast coast right now that are nowhere near out of the woods yet. The storm is now blamed for four deaths in Florida, more than a million people have been left without power, and forecasters are now predicting storm surges, big storm surges in Georgia and South Carolina. We're talking as high as 9 feet. Then there is the rain up to 15 inches in some areas. The word from officials throughout the Southeast, be careful.
I want to check in now with CNN's Brian Todd in Charleston, South Carolina, where this storm is headed. Brian, officials are expecting life-threatening conditions there as soon as tonight. What's the situation now?
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, we've been getting pummeled with rain for a few hours now, but right now, the wind is starting to become an issue, because as the storm gets closer and the eyewall gets closer to here, that's what we're looking at. This is Warren Street here in Charleston, a typical street in Charleston, South Carolina, a lot of low-hanging trees.
When the wind gets higher in the coming hours, this is going to be an issue, there's going to be a lot of debris. Look at the wind just whipping around those there. A lot of the debris flying off trees and rooftops in the coming hours. You mentioned the tides and the life- threatening tides. We were told by the National Weather Service a short time ago that the tide around Charleston ...
BERMAN: All right, we're losing Brian Todd there. Obviously, the water and the wind wreaking havoc with our equipment, but what Brian was getting to is that the storm surge there is a real problem, that is the low country, South Carolina, Charleston. There are counties that are flat-out below sea level and there is concern they could be inundated with water. [21:35:05] Stephanie Elam is in another vulnerable peace of ground. She joins us now from Savannah, Georgia. Stephanie, how are conditions where you are right now and also some of the outer islands near Savannah?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, John. Well, where we are right now, we are right on historic River Street here in Savannah, Georgia. And right now, I just checked back at the Savannah River right now, and I can see that it's still below the river walk. It has not come up over that area as of this point. But as you were mentioning out on Tybee Island, they were very concerned about that area. In fact, they told people that they had to get out earlier today and if they didn't, they were going to be left on their own. There are no first responders out there on those areas that are closer to the ocean.
But out here on the river, you're definitely starting to feel the effects, the bands coming in much stronger now, the wind and rain picking up. Here they're expecting that the storm surge could be well over 6 feet in this area. And so, that is a cause for concern.
I spoke to one man who owns a restaurant right here just down River Street, and he and his wife, they're battening down the hatches inside the restaurant. They say the building was built in 1790 and that it has weathered many of storm and they feel it's the safest place to be, safer than their own home. And they don't expect that even though they're right across the street from the river walk, from the water, basically, they don't expect it to come up and actually touch their building. So, they feel like this is the safest place for them to be right now.
But definitely in the last hour or so, the winds and rain really picking up. We could see that they've gone out of their way to tell people to get out of this area. They shut down the bridge here at noon. And this is why you can see these winds picking up. They don't want people out here. So, at this point, just stay inside. John?
BERMAN: Stephanie Elam in Savannah, Georgia, stay safe. Stephanie, thanks so much.
Let's get the latest now on where Hurricane Matthew is and where's its heading. Meteorologist Tom Sater joins us from the CNN Weather Center. Tom, what's the latest?
TOM SATER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, it is a Category 2 storm, John, but I wouldn't pay any attention to that at all. For days and days it was a Category 4, so all of that energy and water that upwelling underneath the center is still with it. And all that water has to go somewhere and it's plowing northward.
The forward momentum could still give us a landfall. As expected yesterday, tornado watch now in effect, as we've already had a few. The worst is over for Jacksonville. Now that the winds are coming from in the west, we'll see all that water, which was pushed up into St. Johns River start to get pushed back out toward the shoreline, which is good news. But it's been really bad now for parts of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, where it will get worse as probably the closest point to South Carolina will be this evening, maybe Charleston by 8:00 in the morning.
But the storm has been all about water, John, it's going to squeeze out much more rainfall, easily widespread, 10 to 13 inches of rain. And the storm surge, I think, is going to get even worse than it was in St. Augustine and Jacksonville. Already we're seeing numbers in Savannah that are over 5 1/2 feet.
BERMAN: Tom, you know, early on, we've all been looking at these models and there are many models that had this storm actually circling around and maybe hitting Florida a second time. Does it still show that?
SATER: Well, believe it or not, this model here, John, has been spot- on from its first landfall in Haiti and western Cuba, and it still wants to hug the coast, getting pretty close to Charleston. But, again, these computer models we've talked about, all in pretty good agreement along the coast.
Now, there's still a good eight out of maybe 14 that want to bring it back around. However, there's a big change in the last 24 hours. It's undergoing sheer, which means upper level winds are trying to break it apart right now. By the time it gets off the coast, and this is only a two-day event now. Tomorrow, maybe by Sunday afternoon, it's off the outer banks, not really affecting them. But I think by that time, John, it is not going to have enough energy to really gather anymore strength, but it is going to be something that it will be worth watching.
BERMAN: All right, Tom Sater, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
Up next, we're going to hear from the "Washington Post" reporter who obtained the video of Donald Trump talking about women in a way that has sent the campaign, the Republican Party, the entire election right now into a tailspin.
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[21:42:57] BERMAN: The breaking news tonight, the Trump campaign in full crisis mode after the release of a tape of Donald Trump boasting that he could grope women's genitals and get away with it because he's a star. Just moments ago, Trump acknowledged that he will not campaign tomorrow with House Speaker Paul Ryan, a source told CNN that he wasn't invited anymore.
This is the statement from the Trump campaign, "Governor Mike Pence will be respecting -- representing me tomorrow in Wisconsin. I will be spending the day in New York in debate prep with RNC Chair Reince Priebus, Governor Chris Christie, and Senator Jeff Sessions and then flying to St. Louis on Sunday for the second presidential debate."
In the meantime, Clinton's Democratic running mate, Tim Kaine, is also weighing in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. TIM KAINE, (D) VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Now we got the news out about these sick to your stomach kind of things that he said about women, which is just more wood on that bonfire, because this thing about women is just a very persistent theme with him. He's clearly got a problem in that way, that he can't look at a woman and see a woman as an equal. That's just -- that's just not in his DNA.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: This all began earlier today when the "Washington Post" David Fahrenthold published the tale, the tale of the tape. We spoke this evening.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: So, David, I know you're not going to disclose your source on this, but whoever gave this to you or alerted you to it obviously knew they had something big on their hands. Can you give us anymore details on this?
DAVID FAHRENTHOLD, THE WASHINGTON POST: I really can't. I can't say much of anything about how we got a hold of this.
BERMAN: But when you heard it the first time, what was your first reaction?
FAHRENTHOLD: Well, just that it was shocking. I mean, this is a voice of Donald Trump that you've heard now for a couple of years solid, a voice you've got and used to hearing in a political context, and here he was discussing this stuff in a pretty lewd and pretty outrageous manner. I was really surprised.
BERMAN: He calls this locker room banter. But the thing is, you know, he's 56 years old and it's not just crass language, it's predatory. He says, you know, when you're a star, they let you do it, you can do anything, you can grab them by the -- and then he goes on.
FAHRENTHOLD: That's right. I mean, it's not just, hey, look at that woman, isn't she hot? It's sort of -- it goes beyond that to talk about sort of his -- what he does. And he's describing not what he'd like to do, but what he has done, apparently, to women. And describing sort of how because he's a star, he can kiss them if he wants to and he can grope them.
[21:45:12] That's what makes this more interesting and more shocking. It's not just that he's saying, like, look at this woman she's a 10, he's saying that this is what I have done to women in the past and will do again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: David Fahrenthold, a busy day and night for him. And also for CNN Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter, who's been working his sources. He joins me now. You know, Brian, this is not new material. This is from "Access Hollywood" back in 2005. Why did the tape leak today and how did the "Post" end up with it? BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: The "Access Hollywood" producers realized they had this tape in the archives back on Monday. And that was because of an Associated Press story on Monday morning, interviews with 20 ex-employees of "The Apprentice," Trump's old reality T.V. show. Those employees talked about Trump's sexist and lewd remarks over the years.
The big difference, John, is these were not audio tapes, these were not video tapes. These were accounts from former employees talking about Trump's behavior. The big difference today was the tape. So, on Monday, "Access Hollywood" found the tape. But earlier this week, they talked about putting a story together. By this morning, they were ready to broadcast, but not before the debate. So the question now is, who leaked this tape to David at the "Washington Post?" And that we don't know.
BERMAN: They sat on it for four days, on their own, right?
STELTER: That's right.
BERMAN: At least. And by the way ...
STELTER: They say they were ready to broadcast it ...
BERMAN: And "Access Hollywood" is, you know, owned by NBC or associated with NBC also?
STELTER: That's right, it's owned by NBC. This is really an NBC story. "The Apprentice" is on NBC with Trump. Billy Bush is working for NBC. And now Billy Bush, who was the host for "Access Hollywood," is one of the hosts on the "Today" show.
BERMAN: So has "Access Hollywood" or anyone identified the woman that Donald Trump is speaking about on the tape?
STELTER: One of the women he was speaking about was Nancy O'Dell. People publicly know that name at home. She was a co-host of "Access Hollywood," back in the mid 2000s when this tape was made. She's now a co-host of "Entertainment Tonight" on CBS.
Now O'Dell has not commented tonight on this story, but you can imagine her producers are. One of her producers chiming on Twitter saying, to the lovely family-friendly or family-focused person that's horrified by this kind of comments.
BERMAN: All right. The other person on the tape with Donald Trump is Billy Bush, the cousin of George W. Bush and Jeb Bush, who put out an apology, "Obviously, I'm embarrassed and ashamed, it's no excuse, but this happened 11 years ago. I was younger, less mature and acted foolishly in playing along. I'm very sorry," he says. What's the future for Billy Bush?
STELTER: That is a more thorough apology don't refer from Trump so far. I'm told at the moment, Billy Bush would remain a co-host for the "Today" show, but I would find it very unlikely and I haven't seeing him there Monday morning after this debate talking about his role. It's going to be very curious.
John, the first thing we learned on television -- I leaned this when I join CNN three years ago, was that if you're wearing a mike, the mike is always hot. Donald Trump knew that back in 2005. So did Billy Bush. There were people around them, when they were having this ridiculous sexual banter. It is amazing to me that these two men were willing to be caught on camera, on tape, talking about this way. It's also amazing it didn't surface.
BERMAN: It's also amazing the last 16 months of this campaign it didn't come out. Brian Stelter ...
STELTER: Yeah.
BERMAN: ... thanks so much.
STELTER: Thanks,
BERMAN: Back with the panel right after this.
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[21:51:45] BERMAN: As you've been hearing, reaction keeps rolling into what Donald Trump was caught on tape saying about women. Will we hear from the candidate tonight, tomorrow morning? Unknown. Will there be more reaction? Almost certainly.
Back now with the panel. Guys, if we can take off our partisan hats just for a second, we put on our political professional hats for a moment, because I don't understand why Donald Trump hasn't come out, walked out of Trump Tower and said anything out loud to the collective press core.
Jonathan, you first, doesn't he need do this tonight?
TASINI: Well, whether he does it or not I don't think he changes ...
BERMAN: I said, put on your political professional hat, take off your partisan hat.
TASINI: From -- I'm talking about politically, most women out there and most young people and most voters have made the decision that Donald Trump is not fit to be president of the United States and this is a core reason.
I do want to go back to what Gloria Borger said so we don't forget that point. She's absolutely right that to this, it's not really about Donald Trump at this moment. It is about -- it's an existential question for Republican Party moving forward, whether they can actually reach out to women and certainly women in elections going forward, because Donald Trump can destroy this party and may destroy this party for 10, 20 years if he continues to lead the party and continue do these kinds of stuff.
BERMAN: Gloria, by the rules of this debate, if your name gets mentioned you get a 30-second rebuttal. Go ahead. BORGER: I don't have to rebut that. I agree with myself, right? I think this is a larger point for the Republican Party, but also it's kind of a teachable moment for America here because what some people see is just some crude, locker room talk and chatter, is really something so much more to a lot of women out there who hear these words and think of it as, you know, predatory.
And I think that that's beyond the presidential election. This is a conversation about how you hear this tape, and what you takeaway from it as a person when you listen to this kind of language. Is it banter? Or is it something much more to somebody talking about sexual assault? You know, groping somebody.
BERMAN: Andre?
BAUER: Well, I would say this, where was the outrage when Bill Clinton was a predator on a very young, naive -- you didn't see the outrage on these talk shows.
(CROSSTALK)
TASINI: People stood on the Senate floor-- Joe Lieberman, who is not one of my favorite people, they stood on the Senate floor and said I'm disgusted by this Bill Clinton went through impeachment because of -- but we're not talking about Bill Clinton.
(CROSSTALK)
BERMAN: We got a minute left. I want to get 30 seconds -- and Kayliegh, you know, Kayliegh, first to you here, again, can Donald Trump let this linger until Sunday night? 30 seconds.
MCENANY: No. I think he needs to respond to it. He needs to apologize for it. But to Andre's point, we weren't talking about whether this was the end of the Democratic Party, when Bill Clinton committed horrific actions with a young girl, whose life was forever ruined, not as a private citizen in the Oval Office of the White House. So, I agree that there is a double standard here. He needs to apologize. It doesn't excuse what he said, and he needs to come out before Sunday.
BERMAN: You're the last word, Karine.
[21:55:04] JEAN-PIERRE: John, there's only one Clinton on the ballot in November. And, you know, her name is not Bill Clinton, right?
And so, here's the thing. In the last 24 hours -- here's the reality. In the last 24 hours, there's only been one presidential candidate that has been asking or advocating that we saw on tape for women to be sexually assaulted.
There's only been one presidential candidate in the last 24 hours that has made racist comments about Central Park Five, and that's the reality of where we are today. He has no moral ground to stand on. What he has done in the last 24 hours is indeed disgusting and deplorable. BERMAN: All right guys, thanks so much. With one eye on that, with one eye on Trump Tower, we'll be right back.
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BERMAN: Quick reminder, everything that has happened tonight is happening less than two days before the next presidential debate.
[22:00:00] Anderson moderates along with Martha Raddatz of ABC News, this Sunday night in St. Louis. Our CNN coverage begins all afternoon. "CNN Tonight with Don Lemon" starts now.
