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Fed Like Won't End Market Rally; Trump at Wisconsin Rally; Ryan Booed At Wisconsin Rally; Energy Dept. Defies Trump's Request; Prosecution Could Wrap in Roof Case. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired December 14, 2016 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Trump. All these are reasons why many expect the Fed this afternoon, 2:00 we'll know for sure, to raise interest rates.

You're seeing the opening bell there again very close to 20,000. It will not take much for the Dow to hit 20,000. I expect you will have markets on tenterhooks today awaiting the Fed and what the Fed chief Janet Yellen says about the future path of interest rates. So you could see some caution in markets until we finally get that rate hike.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: But you don't know -- can you guess how much she's going to raise it?

ROMANS: I'm going to guess a half a point. I'm going to say that they're in a very low range and they're going to nudge up that range a quarter of a point, I would say. I would say a quarter of a point is what they end up doing there.

The really interesting thing for me will be, does Janet Yellen signal more rate hikes ahead. Here's the big political story for 2017, I'm going to foreshadow. Donald Trump criticized Janet Yellen for keeping interest rates low. He said to protect Barack Obama's legacy. President Barack Obama's legacy. Now the economy is showing enough signs of life, the Fed can start raising interest rates. So Donald Trump will be ushering pro-growth policies that will heat up the economy. Janet Yellen and the Fed, their job is to make sure the economy doesn't overheat. They'll be raising interest rates.

COSTELLO: Because if it overheats, that's inflation, right?

ROMANS: That's inflation and that's not good.

COSTELLO: And that's bad.

ROMANS: So there's this balance that they'll be trying to -- trying to get here.

I mean Janet Yellen and the Fed have been begging for almost years now for Washington to do something. Do some tax reform. Do some pro-growth spending, right? Now maybe you're going to get that, and so the Fed can start raising interest rates.

COSTELLO: All right, Christine Romans, many thanks. ROMANS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Over the last year and a half, Donald Trump has written his own political playbook and his cabinet picks are no different. As Trump announces more of his choices to help him lead the country, there is a familiar theme emerging. If confirmed, four of the top departments will be run solely by white men for the first time in 27 years. Of his 18 picks so far, not including Mike Pence and White House staff, 14 are white. Of those, 12 are men, three are women of color, no one is Latino.

And at Trump's rally in Wisconsin, Mr. Trump made it very clear his supporters have won the culture war by voting him into office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT-ELECT: So when I started 18 months ago, I told my first crowd, in Wisconsin, that we're going to come back here some day and we are going to say, "merry Christmas" again. Merry Christmas. So, merry Christmas, everyone. And it's because of you that we, all of us, were just honored with the "Time" magazine Person of the Year. See, in the old days, it was called the Man of the Year, right? Would you rather see "Person of the Year," "Man of the Year"? These guys are so politically correct.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right. So let's talk about that and more. Errol Louis is here. He's the political anchor for Spectrum News. David Swerdlick joins me. He's the assistant editor for "The Washington Post." And Vicki McKenna is here. She's the host of "Up Front" on WIBA in Wisconsin.

Welcome to all of you.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Good morning.

So, Vicki, you first, because you were at last night's rally. How were Trump's comments received?

VICKI MCKENNA, CO-HOST, WIBA AM'S "UP FRONT": Well, they were received very well. a very enthusiastic crowd at the rally last night.

Look, he comes off -- he comes off gregarious, light, warm, welcoming, and he came to Wisconsin to say thank you for a job well done to an awful lot of volunteers who put in countless hours. And so, yes, I think -- I think it was very much appreciated what he did in Wisconsin last night.

But more than that, it was -- it was, you know, reminding everyone in that room that we made history in Wisconsin, again, because Donald Trump is the first Republican who has been elected from the state of Wisconsin as president since 1984. So we have an awful lot of historical milestones we've managed to collect here since 2010 in our state.

COSTELLO: Well, Vicki, also Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin native son, he was booed by the crowd.

MCKENNA: He was booed by the crowd, but this is -- Wisconsin's a little bit complicated. Wisconsin has got one foot in the Tea Party and one foot in the establishment. And Paul Ryan, depending on who you are talking with, is on the wrong side of one of those things. And so Paul Ryan is a complicated figure in Wisconsin. But by and large Paul Ryan is quite popular in Wisconsin, as evidenced by his overwhelming victory in his last congressional race.

But -- but I think Paul Ryan also understands that he has a role to play, and if his role is occasionally to take a shot here or there from people who are upset with the establish Republican sort of same- old routine, I think he's willing to do that. I think he's actually happy to do that.

COSTELLO: All right. Another interesting point, Errol you heard what Donald Trump was saying about saying "merry Christmas" and he doesn't like "Person of the Year," it should be "Man of the Year." It seems that he has a foot on each side in the culture wars as well because yesterday at Trump Tower, Trump met with quite an array of people. And it was part of this diversity council, right? It included football legends Jim Brown and Ray Lewis. He met with Kanye West, who tweeted that he wanted to talk to Trump about what he called "multicultural issues, including bullying and Chicago violence."

[09:35:21] Ray Lewis, the football great, the Baltimore Ravens, touted Trump's economic plans for inner cities. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAY LEWIS, FORMER NFL PLAYER: What we believe with the Trump administration is, if we can combine these two powers of coming together, forget black or white. Black or white is irrelevant. The bottom line is job creation, economic development in these urban neighborhoods to change the whole scheme of what -- of what our kids see for our next future (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, Errol, is Donald Trump really saying there's room for -- for everyone, including those who are not offended by saying "merry Christmas" or --

LOUIS: In my opinion, I would say no. I don't know that Donald Trump, at age 70, understands how deeply insulting it is to talk with ex- football players and entertainers about things like urban policy when there are hundreds, if not thousands, of trained, competent, professionals who happen to be African-American who would love to contribute and love to help make the country great again. He does -- he simply doesn't see it. And it goes all the way back to his campaign when he took a reality show star, Omarosa Manigault, and made her the person in charge of his outreach to black communities, which is why far more than eight out of ten black voters did not vote for Donald Trump.

This is not the way back. Again, it's deeply insulting. I don't know that he cares or even recognizes it and it goes all the way through his cabinet picks. Like taking somebody who has never served in any government, not even at the city council level, who's never done anything with urban development, and take Dr. Ben Carson, who's a very nice man, and put him in charge of a $50 billion budget with 8,000 employees and responsibility for some really, really important issues. You know, where this all ends up, I'm not sure. But this is not the way for Donald Trump, I think, to do what he said he's going to do, which is be -- you know, get 90 percent of the black vote when he runs for re-election. I don't see that happening.

COSTELLO: So, David -- David, was it lip service in New York and then sincerity in Wisconsin?

DAVID SWERDLICK, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, let me echo what Errol just said. Right, instead of meeting with an array of people who would provide a different view on what communities of color are looking for, instead of meeting with DeRay Mckesson, instead of meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus, instead of meeting with Cornell Brooks from the NAACP, Trump's outreach to washed-up ball players and entertainers is really not the way to go if he really wants to build a bridge to African-Americans and people of color.

That doesn't mean he can't change this. That doesn't -- he's still in his transition. He hasn't even taken office yet. So maybe he'll move toward that as he goes on. But I don't see that as a good start. And I would just like to go on record as saying that the war on Christmas, the Bill O'Reilly war on Christmas has always been a phony issue and it continues to be a phony issue.

MCKENNA: If I may -- if I may --

COSTELLO: OK, so, Vicki -- Vicki, I'm dying -- oh, Vicki, I'm dying to get your reaction.

MCKENNA: Yes, I mean, honestly, we have a -- we have a zip code in the city of Milwaukee, 53206, and it has been struggling with all of the diverse attention from all of the layers of the various people who claim that the only thing that matters is the color of somebody's skin in a cabinet position, that has left that zip code in the city of Milwaukee dying on the vine.

And with all due respect, DeRay Mckesson has never come into the city of Milwaukee and said anything about a wiped out neighborhood, about urban poverty that has been going on for the past 20 years, that has been sucking the life blood out of the city of Milwaukee, has said nothing about a lack of economic development. And with all due respect, what do cabinet positions have to do with solving the urban problems in cities like Milwaukee, Wisconsin, or Racine, Wisconsin? They have absolutely nothing to do with it.

And, quite frankly, with the Black Lives Matter movement, all they have done in the city of Milwaukee is come and stirred things up, said don't trust the police, allowed crime to explode, allowed the murder rate to explode and essentially condemn the city of Milwaukee to machine politicians keeping people miserable and fearful for their lives.

LOUIS: Well, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute.

SWERDLICK: Carol, can I -- can I respond to that, please -- please.

(CROSS TALK)

COSTELLO: Errol -- Errol is dying, too. So, Errol, first.

LOUIS: Vicki, you must know --

SWERDLICK: OK.

LOUIS: You must know that year after year Milwaukee comes up as the most racially segregated city in the country. You probably --

MCKENNA: It's been run by Democrats for 102 years.

LOUIS: You probably should know, if you don't know, that the Department of Housing and Urban Development has very serious responsibility for dealing with patterns of housing segregation.

MCKENNA: And what is it the Department of Housing and Urban Development done for the people of Milwaukee over the last eight years under President Obama.

LOUIS: It has -- it has -- it -- please don't interrupt me. I didn't interrupt you. Vicki, please don't --

COSTELLO: No, no, let -- let -- please let Errol talk.

LOUIS: Vicki -- Vicki, you're not going to talk over me.

In this case, we have an administration that has tried to do something about it. We have an incoming secretary that maybe you have a lot of confidence in, but if you think a retired neurosurgeon is going to address the long-standing racial segregation of Milwaukee, well, good luck to you. I happen to disagree.

MCKENNA: Well, I would like to answer Errol --

COSTELLO: OK, David? Wait, wait, I want David --

SWERDLICK: Yes, Carol -- yes, Vicki, everybody -- yes.

I want David to get in here, Vicki. Wait, wait. David, your take, and then I'll go back to you, Vicki.

[09:40:04] SWERDLICK: Yes, two quick points. One, with regard to DeRay Mckesson. I just want to clarify, Vicki. One thing is that I -- there are -- on a host of issues, I don't agree with DeRay Mckesson. But it's undeniable that he has his finger on the pulse of what many younger people of color are thinking and feeling right now. Wait. Second point, is that I happen to agree with Vicki that

diversity in the cabinet is not as important as what those cabinet members do. The Trump administration has signaled that they want to get rid of the Affordable Care Act. That's something that is favored by 75 percent of African-Americans. They've signaled that they want to roll back some of President Obama's initiatives on the dreamers. That -- the majority of voters of color favor allowing the dreamers to stay in this country legally. So those are the things that I would agree with her are more important than whether white men or someone else are in those top cabinet positions.

COSTELLO: And, Vicki, couldn't you -- couldn't you argue, Vicki, that Donald Trump is meeting with diverse people who probably won't push back too hard against him?

MCKENNA: I'll tell you -- let me just first say something about -- since everybody seems to be claiming to know anything about what's going on in my state. I happen to live in this state. I happen to know what is going on in this state. DeRay Mckesson is --

SWERDLICK: Literally, no one claimed to know what was going on in Wisconsin.

MCKENNA: DeRay Mckesson has nothing to say about what is going on in the city of Milwaukee or the city of Racine or some of the other urban neighborhoods throughout the city and the state of Wisconsin. I'll tell you who does though and who does get it and it was routinely dismissed for his ideas on what to do to solve the problems, of the decay of the family, the decline of schools, and that is Sheriff David Clark, who I might point out kicked off last night's rally in the state of Wisconsin, received the most enthusiastic cheers and embrace, and, in fact, could be easily -- could easily have been running himself in statewide positions in our state, or even as, you know, number two on the ticket with Donald Trump. He is a black man. He is a conservative black man. He consistently gets elected in blue Milwaukee. He consistently gets embraced by white people, black people, Hispanic people, Jewish people, gay people, women and men. And so, you know, if you want to actually talk about real diversity, then start talking about real diversity of solutions for problems that have been growing for the last 50 years in this country. They're acute and damaging and painful in my state.

COSTELLO: All right, I'm going to have to leave it there, but it was certainly an interesting conversation.

Thanks so much, Errol Louis, David Swerdlick, Vicki McKenna. I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:51] COSTELLO: He wanted to eliminate. Now, if confirmed by the Senate, he's going to lead it. President-elect Trump officially tapped former Texas Governor Rick Perry for energy secretary. This as a brewing battle shakes out over climate change. Energy officials now refusing to comply with a request by the Trump team to name Energy Department employees who have attended workshops on climate change issues. In case you forgot where Trump stands when it comes to climate change, here's what he said in the past.

First, he said, "the concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive." And then he said, "is our country still spending money on the global warming hoax?" He has since said he is open-minded on the issue. So, kind of cloudy where Donald Trump stands on climate change.

With me now is Tony Reardon, he's the national president of the National Treasury Employees Union. He represents the union for the workers at the Energy Department's Washington, D.C., headquarters.

Welcome, sir.

TONY REARDON, NATIONAL PRESIDENT, NATL. TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION: Thank you, Carol. I'm honored to be with you.

COSTELLO: Thank you for being with me this morning. I do appreciate it.

So, specifically we're talking about civil servants who work at the energy Department, who are not appointed by anyone, who are just federal employees who serve like any other worker, they just happen to work at a federal agency.

REARDON: That's correct.

COSTELLO: And -- and so what did the Trump team send to the Department of Energy that has employees worried so much?

REARDON: There was a questionnaire with my recollection is 74 questions on it. And some of the questions have concerned employees, my members. And, you know, Carol, primarily what they're concerned about is they're concerned, you know, why these questions were asked. And they're concerned about their future employment. They're concerned about the release of this information from the perspective of the privacy of their personal information, and they're also concerned about what this means for the integrity of the work that they do going forward.

You know, these really hard-working, outstanding federal employees, they're scientists, they're engineers, they're economists, they do work that is incredibly important for our country, and it is important that they are able to pursue that work with independence and with integrity. And to pursue that work outside of the political process.

COSTELLO: So do they fear retribution once Donald Trump becomes president?

REARDON: Well, you know, I -- they certainly have not indicated that this is in any way related to the president-elect. But what they are concerned about is, you know, what impact this could have an their -- on their future employment. They are concerned about their ability to pursue the science. Their ability to do it with integrity. Their ability to do it with independence. These are very important issues for them.

COSTELLO: Is this unusual? Because, you've been around Washington a long time, so you've seen presidents come and go. Is this unusual?

REARDON: I think it -- I think it is unusual, yes.

COSTELLO: So no other transition team has asked for such information or sent a 74-question questionnaire to employees at any federal department?

REARDON: Well, I certainly can't say with certainly that nothing like this has ever occurred before. But in the nearly 27 years that I've been at the National Treasury Employees Union, I'm not familiar with it having occurred previously.

COSTELLO: Do you know where President-elect Trump stands on climate change?

REARDON: You know, you played a clip at the outset that I think suggested that he is open-minded about where he goes from here. And, you know, I -- I'm going to be personally reaching out to the administration in hopes that I can educate them about the really outstanding work that these hard-working federal employees do and why it is so incredibly important that they are able to do that work by following the science and to do it outside of the political wrangling that often go on in Washington, so that they can do the work that the American people really expect of them and that they can do it independently and they can do it with integrity. I think that's really an important concept.

[09:50:40] COSTELLO: All right, Tony Reardon, thanks so much for joining me this morning.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, retracing the steps of a racist killer, including testimony suggesting he scouted a Charleston church months before a deadly shooting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Prosecutors could wrap their case up as early as today in the trial of Dylann Roof. Roof is the man who confessed to gunning down nine people inside a Charleston, South Carolina church. Testimony from a dozen witnesses Tuesday helped paint a picture of Roof's actions in the months leading up to the massacre, including six visits to or near the Emanuel AME Church. In the meantime, this chilling new video shows Roof taking target practice ahead of the shooting.

Nick Valencia is following the case. He's live in Atlanta.

Good morning.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

This trial is more than a year in the making. Thanks for reminding viewers that Roof had confessed to these killings. He actually tried to bring -- to plead guilty in this case, but he wanted the death penalty removed. That was not something the prosecutors were willing to do, so this case went forward. [09:55:06] Over the course of the last week, prosecutors had painted

Dylann Roof as a cold-blooded, calculated killer. Somebody who meticulously planned the killings of nine people in the historic black church. Parts of discovery that had been shown in court include his website, the last rodesian (ph), which shows adoration towards white supremacy, hatred towards blacks. They also read his manifesto, parts of it anyway, in court. They also talked about this white sheet that was found in his room that was cut into a triangle fashion. Investigators believe to imitate a Ku Klux Klan hood.

It goes without saying that inside that courtroom, I was there last week, incredibly emotional. One of the first witnesses brought to the stand was Felicia Sanders. She was one of the survivors of that shooting. She actually had to take a break from her testimony because it was just so emotional.

Also during opening statements, Dylann Roof's own mother suffered a heart attack. She had to be removed from the courtroom, transferred to a local hospital by ambulance.

There's also been a lot of drama around the defense for Dylann Roof. Initially he said that he wanted to represent himself in the guilt phase, as well as the penalty phase. Two Sundays ago, however, he changed his mind, asking only to represent himself during the penalty phase. The attorney that he has now is a famed death penalty lawyer, somebody who says that he wasn't planning on calling many character witnesses for Roof. However, that may change after alluding to -- he alluded to that, that we could see today some character witnesses brought forward by the defense.

What we know that's going to happen today is the medical examiner will testify, as well as Polly Shepherd. She's the woman that Roof allegedly left alive to tell the horrors of what happened inside that church last July. We should also mention, Carol, that Roof is not only facing this federal death penalty case, but also a state death penalty case that's expected to happen sometime early next year.

Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Nick Valencia, reporting live for us, thanks so much.

The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM after a break

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