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Christie Announces Run for Presidency; Dozen Clinton CI Workers Put on Leave; Interview with Rep. Michael McCaul. Aired 11:30a-12:00p ET.

Aired June 30, 2015 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00] GOVERNOR CHRIS CHRISTIE, NEW JERSEY: We must tell each other the truth about the problems we have and about the difficulty of the solutions, but if we tell each other the truth everybody, if we recognize the truth and hard decisions today will lead to growth and opportunity tomorrow for every American in this country.

What are those truths? What are those truths? Those truths, we have to acknowledge that our government isn't working anymore for us. We have to acknowledge that and say it out loud and we have to acknowledge that it's the fault of our bickering leaders in Washington D.C. who no longer listen to us and no longer know that they're supposed to be serving us. We need to acknowledge that all of that anxiety and those failures are not the end, they're the beginning. The beginning of what we can do together. What we need to decide is that we can make a difference. That we can stand up and make a difference in this country.

You see, that's why I love, that's why I love the job I have. That's why I love my job as governor because kids ask me all the time. The fourth graders that come to statehouse every week, they ask me -- the two questions that are always asked. One -- what's your favorite color? Always. Second, they always ask me what's your best part of your job? And I always tell them it's that I wake up every morning knowing that I have an opportunity to do something great. I don't do something great every day, I'm human. But every morning I wake up with an opportunity to do something great. That's why this job is a great job and that's why President of the United States is an even greater job for a greater number of people.

I have spent the last 13 years of my life as US Attorney and governor of this state fighting for fairness and justice and opportunity for the people of the state of New Jersey. That fight has not made me more weary, it has made me stronger and I am now ready to fight for the people of the United States of America.

America is tired of handwringing and indecisiveness and weakness in the oval office. We need to have strength and decision-making and authority back in the oval office and that is why today I am proud to announce my candidacy for the Republican nomination for President of the United States of America.

And now, and now, as Livingston, New Jersey turns it's gaze to the rest of America today, what do we see and what do we have to confront? We need a campaign of big ideas and hard truths and real opportunity for the American people. We need to fix a broken entitlement system that is bankrupting our country. We have candidates who have said, we cannot confront this, because if we do we'll be lying and stealing from the American people. Let me fill everyone else in, the lying and stealing has already happened. The horse is already out of the barn. We've got to get it back in and you can only do it by force.

We need to get our economy growing again at 4 percent or greater and the reason we do is because we have to make this once again the country my mother and father told me it was. That as hard as you work, that's as hard and high as you'll rise. That's not the case anymore, we can't honestly look at our children and say that to them. Because we have an economy that is weak and doesn't present them with the same opportunities that Mary Pat and I were presented with in the mid-1980s when we graduated from college. When we graduated from college, we didn't worry about finding a job, we were worried about picking which job was the best for us. We didn't worry about whether we were going to be successful, we knew if we worked hard we were going to be successful. This country and its leadership owes the same thing to my children and yours I'm ready to give it to you.

[11:35:00] We need a tax system. We need a tax system that's simplified and won't put CPA's like my dad out of business. We need to get the government off the back of our people and our businesses with regulations and we need to encourage businesses to invest in America again, not overseas. Invest in our country and our people.

And in a world that is as dangerous. As dangerous as frightening as anytime I've seen it in my lifetime, there is only one indispensable force for good in the world. And it is a strong, unequivocal, America, that will lead the world and not be afraid to tell our friends we'll be with you no matter what. And to tell our adversaries that there are limits to your conduct and America will enforce the limits to that conduct.

Well, here it comes. After seven years. After seven years, I heard the President of the United States say the other day that the world respects America more because of his leadership. This, this convinces me, this convinces me. It is a final confirmation that President Obama lives in his own world, not in our world. And the fact is this. After seven years of a weak and feckless foreign policy, run by Barack Obama, we'd better not turn it over to his second mate Hilary Clinton.

In the end, in the end, everybody, leadership matters. It matters for our country, and American leadership matters for the world. But if we're going to lead, we have to stop worrying about being loved and start caring about being respected again both at home and around the world.

I am not running for president of the United States as a surrogate for being elected prom king of America. I am not looking to be the most popular guy who looks in your eyes every day and tries to figure out what you want to hear, say it and then turn around and do something else. When I stand up on a stage like this in front of all of you there is one thing you will know for sure, I mean what I say and I say what I mean and that's what America needs right now.

And unlike, and unlike some people who offer themselves for the presidency in 2016, you're not going to have to wonder whether I can do it or not. In New Jersey as governor, I've stood up against economic calamity and unprecedented natural disaster. We have brought ourselves together, we have pushed back that economic calamity and we are recovering from that natural disaster and that's because we've lead and we've worked together to do it.

As governor, I've proven that you can stand up and fight the most powerful special interest this state has to have and stand up and stop them, but at the same time reach across the aisle to our friends in the democratic party and say if you have a good idea I'm willing to work with you because that's what our country needs.

And as governor, I've never wavered for telling you the truth as I see it and then acting to make sure that you know that is the truth as I believe it in my heart. You know, as a candidate for president, I want to promise you just a few things. First, a campaign without spin, or without pandering or focus group tested answers. You're going to get what I think whether you like it or not or whether it makes you cringe every once and a while or not. A campaign when I'm asked a question, I'm going to give the answer to the question that's asked, not the answer that my political consultants told me to give back stage.

[11:40:00] A campaign that every day will not worry about what is popular, but what is right. Because what is right is what will fix America, not what's popular. A campaign that believes. That believes in America that is great as the hopes and dreams that we want every one of our children to have. Not a campaign that tears people down, but a campaign that rebuilds America to the place where you and I grew up and where we want our children to grow up in again and where we want free people around the world to grow up in, in their countries as well, that's what America's always stood for and that's what this campaign will stand for.

And all the signs, all the signs, "Telling it like it is," but there's a reason for that. We are going to tell it like it is today so that we can create greater opportunities for every American tomorrow. The truth will set us free, everybody.

All the years, all 52 years that I've spent in this state with our people have prepared me for this moment. We have no idea where and how this journey will end. But we know that it's only in this country, only in America, where someone like me could have the opportunity to seek the highest office the world has to offer. Only in America, could all of you believe that your voices and your efforts can make a difference to change a country as big and vast and powerful as this one. Only in America, only in America have we seen time after time after time, the truth of the words that one person can make a difference.

You see, the reason that's true is because it's the only thing that's ever made a difference in the history of the world. One person, reaching out to another to change their circumstance and to improve the lot of their children and grandchildren. I don't seek the presidency, for any other reason than because I believe in my heart that I am ready to work with you to restore America to its rightful place in the world and to restore the American dream to each one of our children whether they live in Livingston, or in Mendham, Newark or Camden. Paterson or Jersey City. No matter where they live across this country, we need to make sure that every one of those children believes that their president who not only speaks to them, but who hears them, who hears them and understands that their voices, that there is what makes any American president great.

If you give me the privilege to be your president, I will wake up every day, not only with my heart strong and my mind sharp, but with my ears open and my arms open. To welcome the American people no matter what party, no matter what race or creed or color to make sure that you know that this is your country too. We are going to go and win this election and I love each and every one of you. Thank you very much.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Chris Christie, the Republican governor of New Jersey, is in. Running for president. You know, 18 months ago

he was on top of the polls in the possible Republican field. Now he has slipped become because of troubles in his home state and scandals as well. But today, with an impressive announcement speaking for nearly 30 minutes with no teleprompter, no prepared speech, wandering around the stage and the message he was sending to the voters in that room and around the country is one of strength. He says, he is a strong leader. The kind of leader he says that the nation needs.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Stop worrying about being loved around the world and start worry about being respected once again is one of his lines. With us now to discuss CNN's Chief National Correspondent and host of "Inside Politics" John King, CNN's Political Chief Analyst Gloria Borger and former Republican Presidential Candidate and former Governor of Minnesota, Tim Pawlenty. Great to have the team here.

[11:45:00] So John and I were discussing of all of us, Governor, you're the only one who actually run for president. So first question to you, when you see, when you heard this speech from Chris Christie and you know his, and you know his record, what's the path forward for him do you see as he runs?

TIM PAWLENTY, FORMER GOVERNOR OF MINNESOTA: Well, first of all, I think he's positioning himself as the blunt talker or the brash talker. I think there's an appetite for that. There's a market for that. And people want strong, clear leadership and I think the speech was a great example of his ability, his capability, his charisma, his communication skills. One problem he's going to have is there's somebody else in the race now who is trying to be more brash and that's Donald Trump. And so he's been trumped so to speak. I don't think Donald is going to be the nominee but Christie is going to have to -- Christie is going to have to outlast Donald if he wants to have sole claim to being the brash, blunt talker. BERMAN: And, and, and that's just one of his problems. He can't

out brash Donald Trump. He can't out -- you know, I'm a successful governor of a blue state John Kasich. You know, he has this prompt. He's blocked every which way he turns, John.

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONENT: He is, and yet he has to turn that problem into an opportunity, and as Governor Pawlenty just said, he does have a skill set. Now, he will -- he's got a very steep hill in front of him, he has got the New Jersey economy, he still has a federal investigation of what we call Bridgegate, some other issues in his home state that people will hit him with in polls is going to shrink. That being said, there's no front-runner in the race. Zero, zero.

BOLDUAN: Exactly.

KING: And so, if he does the John McCain strategy, camp out of New Hampshire, straight talk, just like McCain did in 2000, did it again in 2008, if he can come back in New Hampshire and win that state or you know, come in to quote -- remember, we're going to have 16 candidates probably. He's the 14th in. If he can compete in New Hampshire and come out at some point 16 will become eight will become six, will become four but he needs a win early. So don't count him out because of the field. To the governor's point about Donald Trump too, that's an opportunity for Christie as well. Somebody in this field is going to try to break out of the pack by taking on Donald Trump in the debate and we'll watch this play out.

BOLDUAN: And to John's -- one of John's important point that you're making John. Gloria Borger, is look at what has been going on in the State of New Jersey. John mentioned his approval rating. The Fairleigh Dickinson poll is in at 30 percent in his home state. His home state is facing major economic issues with that at home how does he run nationally if he's got this dragging him down?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, he doesn't talk about it -- he's not going to talk about that. You know, Bobby Jindal has some of the same problems, Scott Walker has some of the same problems, unpopular at home, running for the presidency. I think he's in a crowded part of the Republican field right now. Not only, you know, not only because he's sort of a more moderate Republican, talks about compromise, Jeb Bush and John Kasich may be, may be with him there, and I think he's, he's facing for the first time in his political life, he's the insurgent, and that's how he's going to play it. Not only the truth teller, but the insurgent candidate who is going to come back, who is going to woo you with the skills that Tim Pawlenty was just talking about.

I mean, what he just did right now is pretty impressive, right? Half hour speech, off the cup. I'm the straight talker. I'm going to say what I mean, I'm going to telling you the truth. We got to talk about our problems. That's going to go over pretty well in a state like New Hampshire. The question is whether he can carry that on in a very, very conservative state like, like South Carolina or even do halfway decently in a, in a, in a state like Iowa. You know, he's got to be the comeback kid right now, and he's not used to being in that position.

BERMAN: No, but I will say you know, his campaign team, they like this. They like the idea of Chris Christie being out there and being a fighter, and what we just saw wasn't subtle.

BORGER: Sure.

BERMAN: I mean, he was saying he's going to fix entitlements even if he has to do it by force. He said he's ready to fight. I mean, these are the words he's using whenever he can. You know, Governor Pawlenty, you have been out there, you know, on the stump interacting with the Republican voters before. What do you think, and I'm not talking about just New Hampshire here because you spent a lot of time in Iowa, what do you think that traditional Republican voters, the, the right of the party, the conservative social voters, what are they going to make of Chris Christie when he gets out there?

PAWLENTY: Well, I think the conservative voters, the base voters are still going to have a little bit of question about is he sufficiently conservative? There's room for an establishment candidate. There's room for conservative candidates. I think the winner of the nomination will be somebody who can appeal to conservatives but not scare the establishment. So Scott Walker is that kind of hybrid candidate. Marco Rubio is that kind of hybrid candidate. One of Chris' opportunities and challenges to re-establish himself not just as a blunt talker and the -- a favorite of the establishment, but can he re-establish some connectivity with conservatives that he's going to need to win some of these states and be the nominee.

BOLDUAN: Governor, are you going to be endorsing anyone?

PAWLENTY: I might, but I haven't yet.

BOLDUAN: Just checking. Just wanted to make sure before we moved along, John.

KING: It's so fascinating race in a sense that Christie has what I called, the Romney problem. He's a northeast Republican in a Republican party that says Romney lost and we don't want you again. Number one, the strength of the Republican party is in the Midwest where Governor Pawlenty is from and Governor Walker is from and in the south. But this is -- look, we have eight current or former Republican governors in this field.

[11:50:00] BERMAN: A big...

KING: That's fascinating.

BERMAN: Big economy.

KING: Yes. Then five senators or former senators. And then, the thing that's interesting to me and this is what Chris Christie is going to go. His title is Governor if you look at the national polls, Jeb Bush is first in the low team, then you have Donald Trump and Ben Carson. People are fed up with politicians. So that where's this whole truth teller authenticity, I'll tell it like it is and not a traditional politics.

BOLDUAN: Not just promising.

KING: And the idea that send a bull to Washington, Washington's the China shop, I'm the bull, let me go. That will have appeal to voters.

BOLDUAN: Want to go ahead, Gloria?

BORGER: And you know, these debates, I think, to add on to John's point, are going to be really important for Chris Christie if he gets into the first debate.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

BORGER: I was talking to New Jersey Governor Tom Kean, former New Jersey Governor has sort of a mentor of Chris Christie's but has sort of ups and downs in his relationship with Christie but one thing he said to me is he's a brawler. He said "I wouldn't want to be staring him down at a debate because Chris Christie is great debater and will take you on." And somebody whose low in the poll something we remember from the last time around with large Republican field these debates were really important, and this is one way people on Christie's staff and someone like Tom Kean believe he can distinguish himself because he's really good at, that at being in your face and you can, you can be sure he's going to do that.

BERMAN: Gloria Borger, John King, Governor Tim Pawlenty, thank you so much for being with us. To cover this announcement.

BOLDUAN: Thanks guys.

BERMAN: We do have some breaking news we want to get to right now. There's been a new bombshell in the investigation of the Clinton Correction Facility. The prison where two inmates escaped. We're now hearing that a dozen prison workers, a dozen, have been placed on leave as investigators try to figure out how these inmates pulled off the escape. Our Sara Ganim is standing by with the details. Sara?

SARA GANIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, John, good morning. Yes. We're just learning moments ago that 12 staff members of the Clinton Correctional Facility were put on administrative leave in light of this investigation that involves possible drug trafficking in this prison.

Now, I want to go to exactly who's been put on administrative leave. We know that the superintendent, Steven Racette, and the deputy superintendent, Stephen Brown are among two of three executive team members who were put on leave and then nine more corrections officers, securities staff, also placed on leave.

Now, this is an investigation that sources are telling CNN came from this escape but is not directly related to this escape. Authorities began looking into the prison after Richard Matt and David Sweat escaped from this facility and they found that there were inmates inside who were getting access to and doing heroin and that there was some indication of inappropriate conduct on the part of the staff members.

And so now they're looking into whether or not there was some sort of drug trafficking between the inmates and the staff members going on inside this prison and whether or not these two inmates who escaped may have had been involved or have had special privileges that allow them access to certain to parts of the facility because of the corruption that's going on inside. John and Kate.

BERMAN: The intrigue, the intrigue and the questions surrounding Clinton Correctional continues. Sara Ganim, thanks so much.

BOLDUAN: No kidding. We're also looking at more breaking news overseas. Tunisia's interior minister has now named two additional suspects in Friday's massacre at a beach resort in Tunisia that claimed at least 38 lives, most of them British tourists. Take a look at this.

Also new video showing unarmed hotel workers racing toward the sound of gunfire, but it was already far too late for many of the guests, shot and killed on that beach.

A Tunisian official told CNN that the 24-year-old gunman had some sort of ties to terrorists in neighboring Libya but it's not yet clear if it was ISIS which has taken credit already for the bloodshed. Let's get more from CNN's Phil Black covering the story in for us in Tunisia.

Phil, what more are you picking up?

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kate, what also isn't clear is whether or not the Tunisian authorities here hold this theory about Libyan connection because of solid information or because it's simply a logical line of inquiry. Remember, there was a massacre here targeting western tourists less than four months ago in the capital Tunis. Around two dozen people were killed then. Two gunmen in a similar sort of attack were found to have had links and training across the border in Libya. That increasingly failing state where you make the point ISIS has got a foothold and other groups are building their control there as well.

They're also looking for accomplices here in Tunis. They've arrested some of them. The investigation is focusing on three of the gunmen's roommates but they say they're also looking for two more and today the interior ministry has released two photos of those, Kate.

[11:55:00] BOLDUAN: Phil Black in Tunisia for us. Phil, thanks so much. It's such a horrific tragedy made only more horrific as you see these videos popping up.

We're also looking at new concerns this morning about the threat of terrorism here in the United States coming up around the July 4 holiday. Intelligence officials they are warning local law enforcement agencies across the country of possible domestic attacks around the holiday. BERMAN: They are very concerned. As concerned as they have been

in some time and this all comes on the heels of the terror attacks in Tunisia we just saw, France and also Kuwait. We spoke about this threat with Congressman Michael McCaul, the chairman of the house committee on Homeland Security.

Mr. Chairman, there's a great deal of concern over the fourth of July holiday. I'm wondering if you can give us the latest on the situation and what this concern is based on.

REP. MICHAEL MCCAUL, TEXAS: Well, we just arrested an ISIS follower yesterday that was planning to build an explosive device to hit a landmark. We had another individual last week to blow up the Gorge Washington bridge. It seems like the number of arrests recently have increased and so has the chatter over the Internet. And so we have a threat stream coming in based on several factors.

You as the three attacks on three continents overseas by ISIS. The ISIS spokesman has called for Jihad over Ramadan which we're right in the middle of. We have the anniversary of the Caliphate yesterday and now we have the fourth of July holiday coming up. The convergence of these events I think have the FBI and Homeland Security officials very concerned right now, particularly when you look at the Twitter accounts, the Internet chatter coming out of Syria into followers in the United States. They are attempting to activate to carry out these terrorist plots in the United States.

BOLDUAN: Mr. Chairman, we do find that these bulletins from the FBI and DHS, they're often issued around holidays. But the former deputy director of the CIA, he said -- he's, he's -- he just said that there's nothing routine about this one for him. Is there something different this time around for you?

MCCAUL: Well, I think, you know, you look at the joint intelligence bulletin, it talks about possible targets on fourth of July events and parades and that is a very significant -- I would not -- look, people need to be vigilant, enjoy the fourth of

July, celebrate the -- America's birthday, but at the same time just be aware there's a higher threat out there with respect to that. It is concerning to intelligence officials and counterterrorism people like myself to remain on guard.

I anticipate you're going to see more and more arrests as we lead up to the fourth of July holiday and that's to get these people off the streets so they can't conduct a terrorist attack.

BERMAN: You discussed Friday, bloody Friday, three attacks -- Kuwait, Tunisia, in France as well. A lot of people are wondering where these attacks were coordinated. But does it even matter?

MCCAUL: It really doesn't matter. And they say was it inspired, or operational or driven? The lines are blur now, the fact is, you know, ISIS taking credit. They are ISIS motivated, they are ISIS inspired and they are carried out in furtherance of the ISIS mission. So you had a very bloody attack in Tunisia that could happen in the United States. You had the Kuwait attack and another attack in Paris.

That shows that they're not just limited regionally to Iraq and Syria now but rather can conduct external operations outside the region in three different continents. They want to do that very much the United States.

BOLDUAN: The question remains, especially in light of this bulletin, how big is the threat directly to the homeland. There are new numbers out from a research group in Washington that says that nearly twice as many people since 9/11 in the U.S. have been killed by White supremacists or anti-government

fanatics over Radical Muslims. Is led directly from ISIS here on the homeland, is it overblown at all?

MCCAUL: I don't think so. We've released some numbers in the last year alone. 50 terror plots against the west in the last year, since May we've had 12 terror plots that we've stopped in the United States alone. We've never seen these kind of numbers before and that's what raises our antenna and our concern.

BERMAN: What will we be talking about on Monday. Do you think we're going to get through this weekend. Do you think law is going to be smooth? Do you think law enforcement is prepared?

MCCAUL: We're prepared. We are stopping any potential suspect we can but I pray we get through the weekend and the fourth of July with no incident. I think that's what serve hoping for but we have to be vigilant.

BOLDUAN: At the very least. Thanks so much.

BERMAN: Thanks so much.

MCCAUL: Thanks, John, thanks, Kate.

BOLDUAN: It's great to see you. We hope and pray we get through this fourth of July weekend. He seems very concerned at this time around about the threat here at home.

BERMAN: Very concerned.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. All right. Thank you so much for joining us At This Hour, folks.

BERMAN: All right. Special coverage of a presidential news conference along with the leader of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff begins with Wolf Blitzer, starting right next.