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U.S. Adds 223,000 Jobs in December; Chaos in Congress; Two Years Since Capitol Attack; Court Documents Revealed in Idaho Case. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired January 06, 2023 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:49]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: A very good Friday morning to you. No break from the news in sight yet. I'm Jim Sciutto.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, it is quite a Friday, isn't it. It's been quite a week.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: I'm Erica Hill.

At this hour on Capitol Hill, the standoff continues over who will be the next House speaker. We are now entering the fourth day here and, let's be honest, there is no clear end in sight.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Kevin McCarthy once again failing to get the votes he needed, failing for the 11th time on Thursday. That hasn't happened in 164 years. Afterwards, though, McCarthy telling reporters he's -- you know, he's going to be here. Buckle up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): No, no, I'm not putting any timeline on it. I just think we've got some progress going on. We've got members talking. I think we've got a little movement. So, we'll see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: So, we'll see. McCarthy allies and hardliner holdouts negotiating once again late into the night on Thursday. Talks continuing this morning. And soon House Republicans set to hold a conference call as they continue to try to figure out a deal.

SCIUTTO: Yes. Break out the boxing analogies, we're going 12 rounds at least.

Plus, stunning new revelations in the brutal murders of four Idaho college students. The suspect located around the house where the murders took place at least 12 times leading up to the attacks. A detailed timeline of the minutes surrounding the killings and how one surviving roommate came face-to-face with the killer who was masked after hearing cries from another room. I spoke with the father of one of the victims, Kaylee Goncalves. Listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE GONCALVES, FATHER OF KAYLEE GONCALVES: I feel like he's scared to look at me in the eyes and start to understand what's about to happen to him. You know, he picked the wrong family and I'm not scared of a conflict and we're not scared, we're not running. We are coming at him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Yes, a grieving father, but I'll tell you, he's defiant. We're going to have that full interview just ahead.

First, we do have this news just into CNN. Some good economic news. The U.S. economy added 223,000 jobs in December. That number a bit better than expected.

HILL: CNN chief business correspondent Christine Romans is here to tell us what it really means.

So, as Jim always reminds us, and rightfully so, you tell us to look at the trend. So, the trend here is an economy that's showing resilience in the face of these jumping interest rates -

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

HILL: But is that the full story?

ROMANS: The full story here is it's robust, it's resilient, it's strong, but it's cooling a little bit. And that's what everybody wants to see. The goldilocks scenario, not too hot, not too cool, showing signs that the Fed's medicine is starting to work.

Let me show you that trend, 223,000 net new jobs added. Look, guys, that is very clear here. This is the smallest number of new jobs created since December 2020. In any other time 223,000 jobs would be enough to be screaming from the rooftops that this was a strong economy. So, please, keep that in mind.

The unemployment rate, a new 50-year low here, a 50-year low at 3.5 percent, matching a number we have hit in the past.

And then here's where the sectors are, pretty broad based except for places like professional business services saw some losses there, tech obviously is where you're seeing some of the layoffs. But in hospitality, in health care, in construction and manufacturing, still seeing some broad-based gains outside of those headline areas where you've been hearing some trouble.

Guys, bottom line, 4.5 million jobs created in the year. That is a whole boat load of jobs. The second most robust year in American history for job creation. So, a very strong 2022 showing signs of cooling a bit at the end. Wages up 4.6 percent. Sounds great. That's down a little bit. Wage growth starting to show, again, signs that the Fed's medicine is working. That's what Wall Street wanted to see. That's why Wall Street, at least for now, is up, thinking this is a goldilocks report, guys.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: All right, Christine Romans, appreciate it. Thank you.

SCIUTTO: All right, now back to Capitol Hill, where the news keeps coming. The battle for the House speaker headed to that 12th round in the ring, a 12th vote.

CNN's Lauren Fox joins us now.

So, Lauren, McCarthy has arrived for another day of negotiations. What did he have to say?

[09:05:00]

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, day four, vote 12 coming up. We expect around noon today. And the expectation is we will learn a lot more after this 10:15 Republican conference call. Kevin McCarthy arriving on The Hill just a few moments ago, telling my colleague Nicki Robertson (ph), quote, we're going to make progress. We're going to shock you.

The question, what is he going to tell members at this 10:15 call? Is there some kind of deal that has been brokered with those remaining holdouts, the 20 or so members? Is that any agreement just going to pull all of them along? Is it just going to pull a handful of them along?

Remember, one of the question marks here has been, even with these concessions, can he get some of these hardliners who have vowed to be never Kevin, never voting for Kevin McCarthy. One of them, Bob Good, telling me yesterday, I never needed to ask him again if he supported Kevin McCarthy because he never was going to. So, a lot riding on this 10:15 call today, and we'll know a lot more after that.

Jim and Erica.

HILL: We will be watching and waiting for any of those details. We know you'll bring them to us.

Lauren, appreciate it.

And joining us now to discuss, Margaret Talev, senior contributor for "Axios," and Paul Kane, senior congressional correspondent and columnist for "The Washington Post."

Good to see you both this morning.

You know, Paul, I was struck by your piece overnight where you point out -- and I think we -- this is a really important discussion we've been having. There's been so much given away by Kevin McCarthy. You know, what's left here? French Hill told Jim yesterday, oh, there's been a lot of give and take. Paul, do you see any take for Kevin McCarthy?

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: It seems like nothing but give.

PAUL KANE, SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT AND COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON POST": Yes, that's the troubling factor for McCarthy is he has given away a lot of concessions already to these sort of -- the radical right. And he has yet to show anything -- show any gains in terms of those 20 to 21 who are opposing him right now. So, he's giving away a lot.

There are obscure rules changes that most of your viewers probably don't want to hear me go into, but they are really important in terms of the functioning of Congress. He could end up getting there. He still might get the votes to become speaker. But he might be just completely disembodying the power of the office in order to get there so that he might not really be able to do much, and either he or whoever becomes the next speaker

SCIUTTO: Margaret Talev, Don Bacon, Republican -- moderate Republican congressman, said yesterday that the deal will move some, but not all of the holdouts. Then you have this other pressure point, which is that moderates like Don Bacon aren't happy with all the concessions being made.

MARGARET TALEV, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes.

SCIUTTO: I mean, is there a time limit here? I mean if this latest deal doesn't put McCarthy over the top, is that the last round of this or do they just try again?

TALEV: They can play this out as long as the core group that's around him, the majority of the Republican Party, is willing to stick with him, though the problem and the question for the entire Republican Party becomes, if it - if it - if they hit the wall with Kevin McCarthy and they have to go to a plan b, Steve Scalise or whatever it is, do all these concessions still carry over and apply? Is the next guy just as weakened? And that's why the longer this goes on, you start to hear people like David Valadao earlier on our air this morning saying essentially that this is becoming a proxy battle. It's not just about McCarthy. It's a proxy for whether somewhere between five and 20 Republicans can be the tail that wags the dog and brings everything to a standstill.

I think, you know, in talking with historians over the last couple days, these two other moments in time that we have looked back to, 1923, the last time there was a real protracted battle, and 1855, when it stretched into a new year, look at what came after those periods of time. The Civil War. An extended period of American isolation.

Kevin McCarthy has said that it doesn't matter how it begins, it matters how it ends. But I think the way this ends is not the end, it is just the beginning of what the next two years are going to look like. And that's the real issue.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

TALEV: It's not whether Kevin McCarthy is speaker, it's whether anyone can be House speaker in this new Republican majority effectively.

HILL: And especially if this rules package is agreed to.

But, Paul, correct me if I'm wrong, there is a -- I mean, look, there's a chance here that Kevin McCarthy could get those votes he needs and become speaker, but potentially the rules package does not get enough support.

KANE: Yes, that is -- that is a possibility. You could -- because you first have to vote for speaker and then the speaker swears in the whole rest of the House of Representatives and then you vote on the rules package.

Yes, you could have moderate Republicans take down that rule package, but then, because of one of - like, they would probably try to vacate the speaker position at that point.

TALEV: Yes.

KANE: And, you know, you would be dealing in bad faith and it would further undermine McCarthy in a way that would just be really dissettling.

HILL: OK.

[09:10:00]

SCIUTTO: Margaret Talev, I know the idea of Republicans working with Democrats on some sort of consensus candidate, a more moderate Republican, perhaps even McCarthy, with some concessions is something of an outlier, but I did, last night, spoke with another Republican lawmaker after Don Bacon said on the air earlier this week that that's a possibility who said, hey, we could be open to that. I mean is that - is that a -- does that remain an outlier if this deal doesn't come through or might that be a surprise?

TALEV: I mean it is kind of right there for the taking, right? The idea that McCarthy and other Republicans have no other options but to negotiate with the rebels isn't true. They have the option to make a power sharing arrangement of some kind with Democrats. Not clear whether McCarthy can do that or whether Democrats would demand someone else.

The problem for Kevin McCarthy, the problem for Republicans is that even in this moment's context, the Democrats are seen so much more as the enemy politically than this core band that it could blow everything up. The whole thing could unravel. They could end up with a much further right speaker if they can't hold together enough Republicans to make a deal like that.

SCIUTTO: Right. TALEV: And so I think that's why we haven't seen that really take off yet.

SCIUTTO: Interesting.

HILL: Paul -

SCIUTTO: Has happened in some state houses, though. You look at Pennsylvania. They had a deal just like that.

HILL: Yes, Pennsylvania.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Paul, quickly, Kevin McCarthy said we're going to make progress. It's going to shock you. What do you think that progress could be? I mean, are they really going to peel off enough votes?

KANE: He needs to get -- first of all he needs to just show enough momentum that he gets more votes than Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic minority leader, who keeps getting 212 votes. They voted so many times now that Hakeem Jeffries has now received more votes in history for speaker than Nancy Pelosi did because they've gone 11 rounds.

SCIUTTO: Right.

KANE: You know, I'm old enough to remember when heavyweight fights were -- went 15 rounds. So, maybe we'll get there today.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

KANE: But he has to show progress and get ahead of Hakeem Jeffries and isolate the last four or five votes and then pick them off one by one.

SCIUTTO: See, I said the boxing analogies were coming.

HILL: You did.

SCIUTTO: And there they are right there. Thank you, Paul Kane.

Paul Kane, "The Washington Post," Margaret Talev, thanks so much to both of you.

TALEV: Thanks.

KANE: Thank you.

HILL: Pulling no punches there, Jim. I like it.

SCIUTTO: Ah!

HILL: Ah-ha. It is Friday.

This morning, lawmakers also preparing, on a much more somber note, to mark two years since the January 6th attack on the Capitol.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Next hour they're holding a ceremony. We are going to bring that ceremony to you live.

SCIUTTO: It's remarkable to think that was two years ago. Several protests are also expected. U.S. Capitol Police are increasing security both on Capitol Hill, also at the Supreme Court, we should note, as a result.

CNN senior legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid joins us now.

So, Paula, you know, this has been an issue since January 6th, beefing up security there. What new security is in place today to prevent something like this from happening again?

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Jim, it's all hands on deck. They have learned so much from what happened two years ago and everything that's been uncovered in the various investigations and they really have a new way to approach activity that is protected by the First Amendment that could potentially turn violent. And we know today they are ramping up their protocols. They are monitoring online chatter. They have additional units on standby in case they're needed. And that includes also coordinating with nearby counties for additional resources if they're needed.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

REID: And we also have new reporting from our colleague Whitney Wild. She's actually reviewed a Capitol Police memo that shows that they are going to be monitoring several protests on Capitol Hill today. And it's interesting because these protests are by people from various parts of the political spectrum. There are some people who believe that the attack on the Capitol was justified and there was fraud in the election. There are other people who are arguing and marking that that was an attack on democracy. So, it's real interesting to see how this is playing out.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

REID: It's showing how they're operating in an abundance of caution.

SCIUTTO: And they're trying to correct a lot of the issues that were looked at right after January 6th. Just quickly, because the Supreme Court, as we mentioned, also considered under threat. What are they doing there?

REID: It's a great example of this over -- almost overreacting. There's a long shot petition today arguing that the 2020 election was fraudulent. It's not even likely to be heard, Jim. It was dismissed at the lower level.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

REID: The solicitor general didn't even respond. But they're also monitoring that because of what could potentially happen.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

REID: So, a new day, a new approach.

SCIUTTO: Goodness.

Paula Reid, thanks so much.

Please do stay with us. Next hour we have a lot of news here. Coming up next, my interview with the father of one of those four Idaho college students murdered in their home. Kaylee Goncalves. Steve Goncalves, her dad, had his first chance to try to look their alleged killer in the eye yesterday. What he said about that experience. Also, new revelations, lots of them, in the court documents.

HILL: Also ahead here this morning, encouraging news about the recovery of Buffalo Bills star Damar Hamlin, who reportedly asked -- one of the first questions he asked was whether his team won the game on Monday night. You'll hear more about his recovery and doctors' response to that question.

[09:15:01]

Plus, Ukrainian soldiers attending orthodox Christmas services in Kyiv as Russia claims it is observing a ceasefire, but CNN teams on the front lines have already seen artillery fire this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: We have yet more new details this morning in the brutal murders of four University of Idaho students. A law enforcement source tells CNN that Bryan Kohberger, the man now charged with four counts of first-degree murder, meticulously cleaned his car inside and out, was seen wearing surgical gloves outside his parents' home, and then placed bags of garbage in the neighbors' trash bins.

HILL: All of these details coming from that unsealed affidavit. New court documents with this detail, including why officials linked Kohberger to the murders. Why, of course, this was their rang for their arrest warrant.

CNN correspondent Veronica Miracle is live in Moscow, Idaho, this morning.

[09:20:02]

So, walk us through that evidence and how they see this connection, Veronica.

VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim and Erica, there is just so many details to get through, so many, but I'm going to highlight some key points here. And one of the most startling revelations, I think, that came out of that affidavit is that one of the surviving roommates, police say, actually saw the suspect in the house. So, all of this activity happening around 4:00 in the morning. And that surviving roommate says she was woken up because she had heard activity, somebody playing with a dog, she had heard some noises, and according to police they were actually able to see that Xana Kernodle was awake around 4:00 in the morning because they saw activity on her TikTok.

And it was around this time when the surviving roommate was awoken, that she had heard -- she had opened the door a couple of times just to kind of see what was going on, didn't see anything, but then she heard crying coming from Xana Kernodle's room, police say, and she also heard a voice apparently that said something to the effect of, it's OK, I'm going to help you. When she heard that crying, she opened the door and that's when police say she saw a figure in dark clothing and a mask walk past her and then kept on walking, just walked out the sliding glass door. And it was at that time that she was in a frozen shock phase.

There's a big question as to why no one called 911 until eight hours later, at noon. That question remains unanswered.

In the documents it also says that Kohberger's DNA, obtained from trash at the family home, was similar to DNA left on a tan leather knife sheath that was left on one of the victim's beds. And also phone records suggest that Kohberger's phone was in the area of the crime scene at least 12 times between June and present day. And they also suggest that phone was in the area of the crime scene hours after they believe those murders were committed.

Now, full page was redacted from that affidavit, so it's unclear still about a motive and any connection between Bryan Kohberger and these victims.

Jim. Erica.

SCIUTTO: Veronica Miracle, thanks so much.

Well, after the release of that affidavit, I sat down and spoke with Steve Goncalves. He's the father of one of the victims, Kaylee Goncalves. He was defiant, still grieving. Here's what he said it was like to see the suspect in court face-to-face.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: All right, so, Steve, you know, there's so much of what has to be just upsetting information seeing this arrest affidavit now. My first question is, as always, just how are you and your family doing?

STEVE GONCALVES, FATHER OF KAYLEE GONCALVES: Well, it's a bit of a narrative change. You go from hunting, hunting, looking, poking, like you always see these shows where it's somebody that you know, somebody close, somebody you trust. And I had a hard time with that because Kaylee was so kind to people. She was ornery to us and he was ornery to her brothers, you know, and her sisters, but for all outwards appearances she was a very, very nice person. So, you - you know, we were totally (ph) puzzled by, you know -- we just wouldn't -- weren't ready for a bully story or something along those lines.

So, you read the affidavit and you just find out that nobody understands exactly why, but he was stalking them. He was hunting them. He was just a person looking for an opportunity. And it just happened to be in that house. And that's hard to take. It's very hard to take.

You know, I've said this before, I thought maybe I should have put her in some gun safety courses, have done something, but she had her phone right next to her and she couldn't call 911. So, these were just girls that went to sleep that night and a coward, you know, a hunter that went out and he picked his little opponent that was girls and that's probably why the house was targeted was because there was just girls there and it ended up being a little bit more of a different challenge, different instance, he wasn't prepared for, but I think that's what the affidavit shows is somebody who was stalking the house.

SCIUTTO: Goodness. Yes, that -- that's one thing that stood out to me, the idea that his cellphone information showed he had been in the area of the house at least 12 times before.

Do you believe Kohberger was stalking your daughter in particular or just the house itself and all the folks living there?

GONCALVES: No, I don't think it was Kaylee in particular. There's other details that will come out later on.

[09:25:04]

But I've always said this to Maddie's mother and her father, that, does it really matter?

SCIUTTO: Yes.

GONCALVES: I don't know. Maybe - maybe in the case it does. But to us, none of these girls deserved this.

SCIUTTO: No.

GONCALVES: And I don't want a parent to think that -- you know, to feel even worse than -- when - when you go through this to think that, you know, oh, my girl said something that caught him off guard and then these other people are just a part of that. That's a cancer inside you and I'm not going to let that happen. I'm going to try to keep my family from thinking anything like that.

The real problem we have is we have an individual that thought it was OK to, you know, attack other human beings. That's what I'm going to focus on.

SCIUTTO: Of course. And then that's got to be just a brutal thought to live with.

Was there any sense -- have you been told if there was any contact between Kohberger and them prior to this, or was he just surveilling them from afar?

GONCALVES: I don't have any pinpoint information that I can share that would say that they were directly in contact. There's definitely rumor mills out there that say that there's going to be more information. We can almost guarantee that there's going to be more details that are going to be brought in.

I'd be a little bit surprised if there wasn't a clear touch point that would suggest that he was interested in one or two of the people more than he was the others, but at this point in time we have -- we have enough in that affidavit to believe that this defendant has a lot to explain.

SCIUTTO: Yes. No question. He's, of course, innocent until proven guilty, nature of our justice system.

GONCALVES: I agree.

SCIUTTO: Have investigators shared with you any indication as to a possible motive?

GONCALVES: No, we haven't got down that. I know that I'm supposed to be doing an interview with them. Shannon's putting that together and coordinating that. So, that may be something that comes up, but they're very careful. And I've told them, don't tell me something that puts me in a situation where I might disclose something that could hurt the case.

SCIUTTO: Also in the affidavit, it says that the roommate, surviving roommate, identified just by the initials D.M., says she heard crying coming from one of the rooms, saw a man dressed in black with a mask on walk past here. Do we know why police were not called until several hours after that?

GONCALVES: I do - we don't have those details. I do know that she was petrified. And I think people respond a little bit different.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

GONCALVES: It -- I don't want to make her a victim and I don't -- people are mean. They'll go after people. And I say don't do it. My name, not my family name. I think she was just scared. Very scared. And, you know, it's not like Hollywood where everyone behaves like people think they would. And, eventually, we'll get all the details and we'll understand a little bit more.

SCIUTTO: I get it, you -

GONCALVES: It's probably going to be like a (INAUDIBLE).

SCIUTTO: Petrified is the right word, I can understand. I do want to ask you, before we go, you were in court. You had the chance to see Kohberger, perhaps to look him in the eyes.

GONCALVES: Yes.

SCIUTTO: What were you feeling at that moment?

GONCALVES: Well, I was pretty angry. I was pretty heated. I wanted him to look me in the eye. He knows I want him to look me in the eye. So he's -- he didn't. He didn't give me that opportunity when he was back in his home state of Pennsylvania, he did turn around and look for his parents and not me. He didn't give me that.

So, I think he's -- understands that I'm not going to see something in his eyes that I want to see, you know. I want to see an innocent man. But I feel like he's scared to look at me in the eyes and start to understand what's about to happen to him.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

GONCALVES: You know, he picked the wrong family and I'm not scared of a conflict and we're not scared -- we're not running. We are coming at him and the defendant has his hands full.

SCIUTTO: Did you sense anything from him, any emotion in that moment, in that courtroom?

GONCALVES: I did. I sensed somebody shocked and scared and not prepared. Like, almost like a sense of like, this is nothing like I thought it was going to be.

[09:30:00]

So, his mannerisms, his body language -- I'm pretty in tune with what - with certain guys. I played sports.