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Giuliani Continues Bid to Dig Dirt on Trump Rivals in Ukraine; Bloomberg Says on His Democratic Rivals, Trump Would Eat Them Up; Growth Soars as Employers Add 266,000 Jobs in November; Trump Warns Trade War Could Go Beyond 2020 Election; Warren Releases Medical Exam and Doctor Says She's Very Healthy. Aired 3:30-4p ET
Aired December 06, 2019 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: There are even more photos of Rudy Giuliani in Ukraine. More online postings show the President's personal attorney with more Ukrainian officials in Kiev, all of this adding to the case that Giuliani is doing exactly the kind of thing that led to this whole impeachment inquiry of his most famous client.
Let me show you another photo it's posted Thursday shows Giuliani with a former junior Ukrainian diplomat by the name of Andrii Telizhenko. And so this guy has pushed the debunked theory that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered with the 2016 Presidential elections. Telizhenko is also named in the House Republican report on the impeachment inquiry and he tweets, quote, with American Mayor Rudy Giuliani prepping for tomorrow another hard-working day in meeting with Mr. Shokin and Mr. Lutsenko.
Viktor Shokin and Yuriy Lutsenko are former Ukrainian prosecutors who have helped supply team Giuliani with really a laundry list of allegations against the former Vice President and his son.
So let's turn to Gloria Borger, there in Washington, our CNN chief political analyst. And again, let's just remind everyone Rudy Giuliani is also under federal investigation for his business dealings in Ukraine. So what do you think President Trump is thinking about Giuliani's field trip to Ukraine this week?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: You're asking me to channel Donald Trump?
BALDWIN: I sure am.
BORGER: It's a little difficult. I can tell you that I bet the President's attorneys and lots of his supporters in the House and the Senate are scratching their heads saying, what the heck is Rudy Giuliani doing? Now, this -- the people he's meeting with are like, a rogue's gallery here. And people who understand that it's a conspiracy theory that Ukraine meddled in the 2016 election and not Russia are saying, why is he doing this? And clearly what he's trying to do is clear his name or maybe even
clear his client's name, as he would say.
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But he's digging a rabbit hole and continuing to go down it. And he may be making this documentary. He may want to show people who watch right-wing television that perhaps he's right and continue to promulgate these conspiracy theories but I don't think it's going to help the President and it certainly isn't going to help Rudy Giuliani.
BALDWIN: If Giuliani had evidence of anything he'd go to the Department of Justice. Right?
BORGER: Right.
BALDWIN: He knows this.
BORGER: Sure. Go to the Department of Justice say I have this. Which is, of course, what he could have done all along. He could have gone to, you know, he could have said to the FBI, here's a tip. You need to investigate this. Instead, he's his own investigator. He's his own team. He's his own lawyer, it seems. And it's hard to figure out what he's doing.
BALDWIN: OK. Let's talk politics in 2020. And so Michael Bloomberg, former three-term New York City Mayor now returning. He seems to think very highly -- he doesn't seem to think very highly of the Democratic presidential candidates. Watch this.
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MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I watched all the candidates, and I just thought to myself, Donald Trump would eat them up.
GAYLE KING, CBS HOST: You think all the candidates who are running today, he would eat them up?
BLOOMBERG: Let me rephrase it. I think that I would do the best job of competing with him and beating him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Why do you think the Mayor is so confident?
BORGER: I think he has a certain ego. You'd have to say. And he's a fellow New Yorker who believes he understands Donald Trump and knows how to get at him and knows how to beat him. Remember, that Bloomberg was at one point very close to Biden. Thought that Biden would do the best job of beating Donald Trump, and now clearly no longer thinks that.
And I think Gayle King actually asked about that. And she said, well, did you give Biden a heads up that you were getting in? And he said, no. She said, do you still consider Biden a friend? And he said, well, sure. Why not. So this is clearly a knock at Joe Biden the front-runner right now. Saying, you know, you just can't -- nobody else understands how to take on this guy. Only I can do it.
And I think that that requires a certain amount of ego, as I was saying before, and the other candidates are kind of saying, OK. You should have gotten in -- you should have gotten in --
BALDWIN: Months ago.
BORGER: Yes.
BALDWIN: Gloria Borger, good to see you. Thank you very much.
BORGER: Good to see you.
BALDWIN: As always.
BORGER: Have a good weekend, Brooke.
BALDWIN: You, too.
Speaking of 2020, Elizabeth Warren releasing the results of her medical exam. We'll tell you what they revealed.
Plus, great news on the economy. Jobs numbers continue to soar. What this means for the President's real election chances.
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BALDWIN: U.S. stocks getting a big boost today with a surprisingly good jobs report for November. U.S. employers added 266,000 jobs last month. The numbers are strong. Up from 156,000 jobs added in October. The boost is partly due to GM workers returning to work after a six-week strike. The unemployment rate remains at a 50-year low at 3.5 percent. William Foster is a Vice President with Moody's Investors Service. And so William nice to have you on. Put the numbers in context for me.
WILLIAM FOSTER, VICE PRESIDENT, MOODY'S INVESTORS SERVICE: This is a huge surprise on the upside. Everyone's really encouraged by these numbers. There was concerns that the job market was slowing. We've seen the last few quarters. Some of the strength really did have to do with the GM strikes having been resolved. 40,000 new jobbed were added that had been subtracted from last month. But even apart from that 70,000 new jobs are added and that really is --
BALDWIN: It's huge.
FOSTER: That's big.
BALDWIN: It's huge. Earlier this week though the stocks did take a hit when the President said this in London. Roll it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think in some ways it's better to way until after the election with China, but I'm not going to say that. I just think that. I just tell you. In some ways I like the idea of waiting until after the election. For the China deal. But they want to make a deal now, and we'll see whether or not the deal's going to be right. It's got to be right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: Do you think that's just bluster or is that reality?
FOSTER: Well, you never know. There's a lot of talk around these negotiations, but the President clearly and the administration wants to have an upper hand and this could certainly be a negotiating tactic. But I think everybody wants a deal. China and the U.S. benefit from a deal. Certainly, a phase one deal. Which you know they've set out these three phases. The first phase is easiest. And so that should be pretty much low-hanging fruit.
The timing of that, whether it's December 15th, this month or sometime next month I think we'll see a deal. It's going to be much more difficult though for the subsequent deal. The subsequent phases of it.
BALDWIN: What about just looking at the U.S. economy post-2020, in a recent interview the former Vice President Joe Biden said whoever wins is inheriting a recession. Do you think that's the case?
FOSTER: It's a lot harder to argue that today after these jobs number came out. The context of the U.S. recession could happen but really be the China trade situation worsening global manufacturing continue to slow down and that eventually hitting the U.S. consumer. Because about 70 percent of U.S. GDP comes from consumption. And what feeds consumption? Jobs.
BALDWIN: (INAUDIBLE) of them today.
FOSTER: Yes, exactly and it makes it much more difficult to sell. Now that said, the business cycle, this is one of the longest expansion in the history of the U.S.
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So at some point it has to end but doesn't look it's going to end necessarily anytime soon.
BALDWIN: OK, William Foster good to have you on.
FOSTER: Thanks for having me.
BALDWIN: Thank you very much.
A lot to talk about. Age and health care on the campaign trail, currently, Senator Elizabeth Warren just released results of her medical exam. We'll tell you what her doctor had to say.
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BALDWIN: Senator Elizabeth Warren's campaign has now released results of the Presidential candidate's most recent annual physical exam. Bottom line, her doctor said she is he very healthy 70-year-old woman. So with me now, CNN political correspondent MJ Lee and always good to hear you're healthy. What else do we know?
MJ LEE, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, according to her doctor, Senator Warren is in excellent health. There are no medical issues according the doctor that would prevent Senator Warren from performing the duties of the presidency. This is according to a physical exam she had back in January, all of the tests were normal, blood pressure, heart rate, blood tests. Her cholesterol is excellent. She also had a mammogram to test for breast cancer. She also got a flu shot back in October.
We did learn though that Senator Warren has a condition called hypothyroidism. This is a condition where the thyroid doesn't produce enough of certain hormones so she's on daily medication to make sure that those hormone levels are normal. And I just want to read a part of the letter that Senator Warren's doctor put out, Dr. Beverly Woo in Boston.
She says, Senator Warren has never smoked, used drugs or had any problem with alcohol use. She exercises regularly and follows a healthy diet despite her very busy schedule. In summary, Senator Warren is a very healthy 70-year-old woman, so a clean bill of health for Senator Warren -- Brooke.
BALDWIN: Good. Good for her. And you know she is 70. There has been much-ado, of some candidates being a little bit older. Right?
LEE: That's right. I mean what's so fascinating is that three top Democratic presidential candidates are in their 70s and actually two of them are closer to 80 than 70. If you take a look there. Joe Biden is 77 and Bernie Sanders is 78. And Sanders obviously suffered a recent heart attack. He has obviously gotten back on the trail and says that he is feeling great. Joe Biden, we saw have a very tense exchange with a voter just yesterday, a voter who raised questions about his age.
So clearly some of these candidates who are in their 70s are sort of trying to show that they are healthy, they have energy and that they are up for the task of being President.
BALDWIN: It was incredible when Bernie Sanders, I mean he has this heart attack and it was like blip and then he's bang, he's back. MJ thanks for the update on Senator Warren.
Our breaking news coverage continues. Three people killed in that shooting at a Florida Naval base. The shooter, as we've just learned in the last bit, is a member of the Saudi military.
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BALDWIN: For a lot of people this time of the year is about giving back but the 13th annual CNN Heroes tribute saluted ten people who put others first all year long. The star-studded gala event airs live this Sunday night 8:00 Eastern. Take a look.
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FREWEINI MEBRAHTU, CNN HERO: There is a saying in Ethiopia. People are medicine for people.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What we do here is provide food, clothing and shelter and a whole lot of love.
MARY ROBINSON, CNN HERO: To give children a place to mourn their loss and tell their story.
ANNOUNCER: They're the best the world has to offer.
RICHARD MILES, CNN HERO: We're going to start a program and we're going to help people.
MARK MEYERS, CNN HERO: I'm feeling the love.
ANNOUNCER: They're heroes today and every day.
AFROZ SHAH, CNN HERO: I think we must talk less and do action more.
ZACH WIGAL, CNN HERO: Video games are relief during difficult time.
WOODY FAIRCLOTH, CNN HERO: We purchase RVs and give it to ah family who lost their home in the fire.
ROGER MONTOYA, CNN HERO: Many of our kids come to us traumatized. I just want to see them happy.
STACI ALONSO, CNN HERO: It impacts lives that don't feel they have a voice.
ANNOUNCER: Join Anderson Cooper and Kelly Ripa live as we name the 2019 CNN Hero of the Year.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: Our heroes are incredible people.
KELLY RIPA, CNN HOST: Their work and their stories will inspire you tonight.
ANNOUNCER: CNN Heroes, an all-star tribute December 8th at 8:00 p.m. on CNN.
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BALDWIN: We will all be there Sunday. Please tune in. And let's end the week with a super sweet story from Michigan. This boy, you'll see him in a second, bouncing around in his chair. This is 5-year-old Michael. So when he showed up at the courthouse in Grand Rapids on Thursday for an adoption hearing with his foster parents, look at these kids, he had this unusual crowd of supporters, his entire kindergarten class. His adoptive parents and the judge were thrilled.
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ANDREA, MICHAEL'S ADOPTIVE MOM: He brings us joy. He's so full of energy and so full of love. And it's just been great for everybody.
JUDGE PATRICIA GARDNER, KENT COUNTY, MICHIGAN: And I'm so pleased to make this official and sign this as the order of the court.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And now its official.
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BALDWIN: I mean, how precious is that. Congratulations and best wishes to Michael and his new family.
I'm Brooke Baldwin, thanks for being with me. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts right now.
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