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NTSB Joins Investigation into Russian Plane Crash; GOP Candidates on Foreign Policy; Two White Supremacists Trying to Start Race War Arrested in VA; Mizzou Communications Professor Apologizes. Aired 9:30-10a ET
Aired November 11, 2015 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[09:31:58] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Officials confirmed that U.S. investigators could soon look at physical evidence from the Russian jet crash. The NTSB has received word that Egypt accepted its offer to assist in the probe. In the meantime, Egyptian authorities are revealing that they investigate everyone -- they investigated everyone involved with the aircraft and took control of all cameras and sensors at the airport before announcing the plane had crashed. All of this as U.S. officials say that jihadists most likely planted a bomb with a timer on board that plane. CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more on this angle.
Good morning.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Even the British foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, now saying that he's not sure there's anybody left around who doesn't believe this plane was likely brought down by a bomb. Now, what we do know is while the U.S. doesn't have access yet to that physical evidence, they hope the National Transportation Safety Board investigators will be able to see some of it. Still, they have what you might call a working theory based on what they do know and what they have made some assumptions about. A working theory about what happened to the plane.
The working theory goes something like this, according to officials we've talked to. A timer possibly with more -- preset for an hour or more put on board the plane by someone on the ground. The most likely scenario, they believe at this point, some type of explosive similar, if not exactly C-4 military great plastic explosive. It can be used in very small amounts. Very powerful. It can be molded. Be relatively unnoticed perhaps. Timer stuck in the device. Some kind of detonator and placed on board by perhaps -- perhaps someone with the ground crew.
They are also telling us, U.S. officials, based on intercepts based -- that they got after the event, they don't, at this point, think it was ordered by ISIS leadership back in Syria. They do think it was self- contained to the Sinai most likely. And then those who carried it out bragged back to that ISIS leadership. But it doesn't look to them right now like this was an attack ordered directly by ISIS leaders.
Carol.
COSTELLO: Barbara Starr reporting live from the Pentagon. Thank you.
The focus --
STARR: Sure.
COSTELLO: You're welcome.
The focus may have been on the economy at last night's Fox Business debate, but it was foreign policy that appeared to take center stage at times. And while many candidates touted their credentials, the answer by Dr. Ben Carson left many people scratching their heads.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA BARTIROMO, DEBATE MODERATOR: Do you support the president's decision to now put 50 special ops forces in Syria and leave 10,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan?
BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, putting the special ops people in there is better than not having them there because they -- that's why they're called special ops. They're actually able to guide some of the other things that we're doing there. And what we have to recognize is that Putin is trying to really spread his influence throughout the Middle East. This is going to be his base and we have to oppose him there in an effective way. We also most recognize that it's a very complex place. You know, the Chinese are there, as well as the Russians, and you have all kinds of factions there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[09:35:24] COSTELLO: OK, so let's talk about that answer. I'm joined by CNN political analyst and editor in chief of "The Daily Beast," John Avlon, along with "Hill" contributor and Ben Carson supporter Gianno Caldwell.
Welcome to both of you.
GIANNO CALDWELL, BEN CARSON SUPPORTER: Thank you for having me.
JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good to see you, Carol. Good morning.
COSTELLO: OK. Good morning.
So, Gianno, do you wish your candidate had explained that a little better?
CALDWELL: Well, what we see in this debate yesterday, which I think was the best performance that Dr. Ben Carson has ever given in any of the four debates is, he does have a grasp on issues when it comes to foreign policy. What I believe he gave was a --
COSTELLO: You think that answer -- you think that answer showed he had a grasp on foreign policy? CALDWELL: He agreed with the president's idea or rather solution to
send 50 special ops into Syria. And I know a number of people also agree with that. I know that there were some things that he didn't address within his answer, like Afghanistan. But, overall, he is not a foreign policy wonk, as we've seen with a number of candidates on the stage that have been working in this field. Furthermore, this was an economy-based debate. So, for what he did provide us, showed us that he's grown from a number of the gaffes in which we've seen him give in terms of foreign policy previously.
COSTELLO: OK.
So, John, I was just confused when he mentioned the Chinese were there, but I don't know what he meant by there, in Syria, because they're not there?
AVLON: Yes. So they're not there military. He may have been thinking about some reports of -- of a -- of business deals involving China. But it was a convoluted answer. I'm helpful (ph) -- you know, I -- I appreciate the clarification that he was, in fact, supporting the president's decision on special ops from his -- his supporter, but there was also the implication of him getting much more involved in taking out the caliphate, which he said could be quite easy from a base in Iraq. That sounds like a lot more ground troops and possibly an escalation of air strikes, but it was not a coherent answer. I don't think a supporter could spin that.
COSTELLO: So -- so, Gianno -- so I'd like you to address that, Gianno, because it's just hanging out there. So, go ahead and defend your candidate.
CALDWELL: Well, so, the -- there are reports, unconfirmed though, that the Chinese are in that area. So, yes, that wasn't probably the best response he could have given in terms of that. But as I said, you know, you have a number of different candidates on this stage that actually are senators, U.S. senators. They work in this area. They are involved in foreign policy issues regularly. He has absolutely grown from his previous positions on foreign policy. And I know that he has a military advisor that's advising him on these issues.
We're not going to see a perfect response every time from Dr. Ben Carson when it comes to foreign policy issues. He's still growing in that particular area. And I think, for what he did give, he gave something that was substantive that we can take and he can grow a bit more in terms of his response and knowledge on foreign policy issues.
COSTELLO: OK. So, John -- John, you were --
AVLON: Yes.
COSTELLO: I could hear you in the background.
AVLON: Well, I appreciate -- I appreciate the lowering the bar for his candidate. And I appreciate the fact that -- his supporters saying that Dr. Carson doesn't have a lot of experience in foreign affairs. The problem is, of course, that foreign affairs ends up being primarily what a president does and I think grading on a curve isn't the way the world works.
CALDWELL: And that may be a fair statement, but as you know, when it comes to folks that are actually in these environments, you are a U.S. senator or you're a president, you get a whole lot more information and more people advising you on a regular basis when it comes to these foreign policy issues. He does not have that, but he is growing in his base of knowledge so he can put out these foreign policy plans that would be beneficial to the country as a whole. So it's not lowering the bar, as you suggested. There's other folks with more resources that can speak on these issues than he has currently.
AVLON: (INAUDIBLE) what you're doing is lowering the bar for your candidate based on a lack of experience. That's OK. I think it's very honest, but that's explicitly what you're doing.
CALDWELL: I disagree with you.
COSTELLO: OK. So let's --
AVLON: OK.
COSTELLO: Let's move on. Let's move on to another topic, gentlemen.
Donald Trump and Carly Fiorina brought up President Putin. Let's listen to that exchange.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As far as the Ukraine is concerned, and you could say Syria. As far as Syria, I like -- if Putin wants to go in -- and I got to know him very well because we were both on "60 Minutes." We were stable mates and we did very well that night.
CARLY FIORINA (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: One of the reasons I've said that I would not be talking to Vladimir Putin right now, although I have met him as well, not in a green room for a show, but in a private meeting.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[09:40:02] COSTELLO: OK. So, John, that was a good comeback by Carly Fiorina.
AVLON: Yes, there -- yes, there are two problems with that. First of all, Carly Fiorina did meet Vladimir Putin in a green room at an APEC conference. It was not a green room for a show. But she, in fact, did meet him in -- in -- very briefly in a green room. The second problem is that, you know, "60 Minutes" isn't exactly a live -- it's not a live show where people hang out and have drinks before they all go on stage together. You know, Trump and Putin were on different continents at the time they were filmed. But, you know, it's -- it's -- we can judge the sound bites absent the substances. That's obviously the game the candidates love to play anyway.
COSTELLO: OK, so, Gianno, I just want -- last question, I promise. Who do you think won the debate? I'm just curious.
CALDWELL: Who do I think won the debate?
COSTELLO: Uh-huh.
CALDWELL: I mean there were several winners. I thought that it was Dr. Ben Carson's strongest debate by far. I think Marco Rubio did very, very well. I think Ted Cruz did really well when he came to talking about immigration and woving (ph) in his personal story into that. I thought that one of the losers of the debate was John Kasich. I think there's no way that he can win a Republican primary. I think that he had the better shot of beating Hillary Clinton if he goes and gets his nomination petitions and runs as a Democrat. And I think that's what it comes down to at the end of the day.
COSTELLO: All right.
AVLON: Yes, man (ph). I mean --
COSTELLO: I have to leave -- I have to leave it there.
AVLON: The rhino hunting -- the rhino hunting just doesn't stop. But, look, Rand Paul had a strong debate. Rubio had a strong debate and Christie crushed the undercard.
COSTELLO: All right.
CALDWELL: No question about that. I think Christie is running for --
COSTELLO: I'd have to agree with that. I got to leave it there, guys. I do. I'm sorry.
CALDWELL: All right. All right.
COSTELLO: But thank you for being here.
AVLON: Thanks, Carol.
CALDWELL: Thank you for having me.
COSTELLO: John Avlon, Gianno Caldwell.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, did the FBI just stop a potential race war? What investigators say these men were plotting.
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[09:46:16] COSTELLO: In Richmond, Virginia, two alleged white supremacists will be in federal court tomorrow on charges they plotted to attack synagogues and black churches in the hopes of starting a race war. The men were arrested last weekend after allegedly buying guns, silencers, and explosives from an undercover FBI agent. A third man was also arrested as part of a separate plot to rob either a jewelry store or a gun store.
Our Pamela Brown is covering this for us. She joins us now live from Washington. Good morning, Pamela.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDNET: Good morning to you, Carol. That's right, the FBI arrested these two alleged white supremacists in Virginia who the FBI says plotted to kill businessmen and then use the money to prepare for a race war. The criminal complaint says they planned on, quote, "shooting or bombing the occupants of black churches and Jewish synagogues, conducting acts of violence against persons of the Jewish faith and doing harm to a gun store owner in the state of Oklahoma".
Now these two men, Ronald Cheney and Robert Doyle, allegedly met with an undercover agent, as you pointed out, who was acting as an illegal arms dealer and placed orders for automatic weapons, explosives, and a pistol with a silencer. When these men allegedly attempted to buy those weapons, that's when the FBI made the arrest earlier in the week.
And here's a what a neighbor says about the raid.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICK MURPHY, NEIGHBOR: They were just completely going in heavy duty, like military style. It was nuts. I saw seven people in all were handcuffed from what I saw. But I read reports there was only two. But I guess they had to detain everybody to make sure the whole situation was clear. One of them had some scary-looking tattoos and you could tell something was a little -- a little odd.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: And the FBI says through confidential sources, wiretaps, and surveillance that these men we are concocting to kill a jeweler as well to, quote, "purchase land, stockpile weapons, and train for the coming race war."
Another man arrest for conspiracy to commit robbery. The details in this criminal complaint are especially alarming, Carol, in the wake of the killings of nine black church members in Charleston, South Carolina, by the white supremacist Dylann Roof who also shared this race war ideology. I spoke to one official about this case who says that type of chatter is common among white supremacist groups the FBI keeps tabs on. And in this particular case, I'm told, these men were a long way away from actually targeting religious facilities, but of course they didn't want to take any chances here. Carol?
COSTELLO: All right, Pamela Brown reporting live from Washington. Thank you.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, an arrest is made over threats to the University o Missouri campus. And a journalism professor is in trouble for trying to stop student reporters. That's next.
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[09:53:18] COSTELLO: Police at the University of Missouri say one person is in custody for allegedly making multiple threats to the school and students. Security is back to normal this morning, but the campus is still on edge following a rash of threats and rumors on social media. One anonymous person writing, quote, "I'm going to stand my ground tomorrow and shoot every black person I see."
In the meantime, a communications professor, a journalism professor, has apologized for her actions during a campus protest that brought down the school's president and chancellor. She is still on her job, but she did resign from an honorary post in the journalism department.
CNN's Kyung Lah has more on who she is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Back off! Back off! Go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't push me.
KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A confrontation between students and a student photographer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The same person that is protecting you is standing here.
LAH: Till the photographer shooting the video walks up to this woman.
MELISSA CLICK, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI: You need to get out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I actually don't.
CLICK: All right. Hey, who wants to help me get this reporter out of here! I need some muscle over here!
LAH: That woman calling for muscle is assistant professor Melissa Click at the university's communications school. She pushes the student photographer, covers his lens, and mocks him.
CLICK: You need to get out. You need to get it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is public property.
CLICK: I know, that's a really good one. I'm a communication faculty and I really get that argument, but you need to go.
LAH: Directing students to form a human chain to block the journalist from doing their job.
CLICK: Don't let those reporters in. If you've got a -- he's a good one. Good one. Good job.
[09:55:01] LAH: We went to Professor Click's office to ask why would a mass media communications instructor want to stop the media? She wasn't there. But this flyer expresses her opinion about traditional media.
The communications school says it can't comment about personnel, but says, "Intimidation is never an acceptable form of communication."
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COSTELLO: Kyung Lah reporting, thanks so much. Melissa Click, by the way, did release a written apology saying, quote, "I regret the language and strategies I used and sincerely apologize to the MU campus and journalists at large for my behavior." End quote.
The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM after a break.
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COSTELLO: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.
[10:00:00] Today is Veterans Day and one hour from now, President Obama will visit the Tomb of the Unknowns, taking part in the traditional wreath-laying ceremony there to honor those who have served our country.
