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CNN This Morning

Former President Trump Arraigned in New York City Following Manhattan Grand Jury Indictment; Former President Trump Gives Speech at Mar-a-Lago after Returning from Arraignment in New York City; Brandon Johnson Elected Mayor of Chicago; Clashes Erupt Between Police, Palestinians At Jerusalem Holy Site; Speaker Kevin McCarthy Meets Taiwan's President In L.A. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired April 05, 2023 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

STATE REP. JUSTIN JONES (D-TN): And so they're saying that our actions of First Amendment activity of standing with our constituents and demanding common-sense gun control is equal and equivalent to those crimes and unethical behavior. That's what they're saying. And it sets a very dangerous precedent that any voice of opposition or dissent can be ousted from a democratic body, democratically elected body.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: I'm sorry, I didn't mean to step on you there. A little bit of a delay. But look, the youngest Democratic lawmaker in the state House right now, I know you ran largely because of gun violence. We appreciate your time, and, of course, we'll be watching very closely tomorrow to see what happens in that expulsion vote. Tennessee Representative Jones, thank you.

JONES: Thank you.

HARLOW: CNN THIS MORNING continues right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRANDON JOHNSON, (D) CHICAGO MAYOR-ELECT: Chicago tonight is just the beginning. With our voices and our votes we have ushered in a new chapter in the history of our city.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. You heard Brandon Johnson there. We are following major election results overnight in two important places. Chicago has picked a new progressive mayor. We're going to speak to Brandon Johnson live in a moment as he is preparing to take on the city's crime problem.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And a monumental power shift in Wisconsin. CNN is projecting that liberals will take control of the State Supreme Court. That could have huge implications for abortion rights and future elections. HARLOW: Plus, China threatening to retaliate as House Speaker Kevin

McCarthy gets ready to meet with Taiwan's president today, right here in the United States.

COLLINS: But we're going to start with the former president after he is lashing out after he became the first ex-president ever in U.S. history to be charged with a crime. The former president gave a primetime speech at Mar-a-Lago last night, just several hours after he was in a courtroom before a judge here in New York City. Last night, he blasted the district attorney, the judge, and even the judge's family. Trump insisting the entire case is politically motivated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: This fake case was brought only to interfere with the upcoming 2024 election, and it should be dropped immediately, immediately.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: I have a Trump hating judge with a Trump hating wife and family.

They can't beat us at the ballot box, so they try and beat us through the law.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: We should note what Trump says there about the judge being a Trump hating judge is not substantiated. It's baseless. The former president spoke fewer than a dozen words when he was actually in court yesterday, but the judge did warn not only Trump but also the other counsel to not make inflammatory comments that could potentially endanger people. Trump did say not guilty while he was in court yesterday. He pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors say that he orchestrated a hush money scheme to cover up alleged affairs with the adult film actress Stormy Daniels and a Playboy model.

Our CNN senior legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid is here tracking all of this. Paula, for people who missed what day it was yesterday, what were the main takeaways now that we've actually got our hands on the indictment?

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: In addition to the indictment we also got that statement of facts, and it lays out in great detail this scheme to suppress negative stories ahead of the 2016 election. But in order to charge falsifying business records as a felony, you need to prove that it was done in furtherance of another crime. And it's not clear what that other crime was.

You don't have to put that in the indictment. You don't have to put in the statement of facts. But the district attorney, he also had a press conference where he could not clearly articulate. He raised a couple of options, it could be a federal crime, could be a state crime. It's not clear. And look, there's a lot of people this morning saying this is great. This is strong. Sure, it's strong on facts. There are a lot of details there. But on the law, it's hard to assess because it's not clear what the larger crime is. And if you cannot concisely articulate why you are charging the former president with a felony, that's a problem.

LEMON: How can they respond, his team respond?

REID: Well, they could put out a statement maybe.

COLLINS: And Trump spent a lot of last night not really talking about the merits of the case, attacking the judge, though, which I thought was notable after the judge said yesterday, asked them to refrain from making comments or engaging in conduct that could create civil unrest, potential to incite violence, or jeopardize the safety or well-being of any individuals. Six hours later, he attacks the judge. That raises the question of whether or not we'll see a gag order here. What's your sense?

REID: So the judge is in such a tough spot here because to put a gag order on a candidate for the presidency raises some serious constitutional concerns. The former president knows that. It's almost like by doing that he's daring, daring the judge to put a gag order on him. But his attorney, Joe Tacopina, did respond a short time ago. Let's take a listen to what Joe said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did you tell your client, did you do what the judge asked you to do and advise him to knock it off?

JOE TACOPINA, ATTORNEY FOR FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP: President Trump heard the judge. He's not that anything to try to incite violence.

[08:05:00]

Clearly yesterday was, it was an insane scene outside, but there was no violence. He didn't call for violence. He didn't call for anything.

But an attack on the judge, or certainly his family, no one is suggesting that anything should happen to the judge or his family. President Trump's comments did not in any way, shape, or form incite violence against the judge or anyone else. He stated a fact.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: Clearly the former president doesn't always listen to his lawyers. We know that. But to even mention a judge when you're a criminal defendant is highly unusual, ill-advised. But then to go beyond that, he mentioned that judge's wife, that judge's family, it really does go beyond the norm. But of course, we're so far outside the norm of anything here, and it'll be really interesting to see how the judge handles this.

COLLINS: But how can you say it's not an attack on the judge's family when he literally says that he has a Trump hating wife? That's what Trump said about the judge.

REID: Exactly. We know how Trump supporters potentially could respond to that. If you were a member of that judge's family, you would absolutely feel under threat. So this judge is in a really impossible position.

HARLOW: I would also note in a moment when we've seen so many attacks on the judiciary, threats, remember the gun taken outside of Brett Kavanaugh's home? We know this moment and this environment.

REID: He knows what he's doing, and it does appear based on years and years of covering the former president, you have as well, it does appear that he knows that if there's a gag order too, not only can he say he is the victim of a political prosecution, he's also being prevented from talking about it. So the political there would be to his advantage.

LEMON: Not only ill-advised but dangerous.

REID: Very dangerous.

COLLINS: Paula Reid, thank you.

HARLOW: So take a look at this split screen for a moment. Trump first appearing before the public as a criminal defendant, right, and then later as the leading Republican presidential candidate for 2024. On the right, that's his safe space. That's Mar-a-Lago, where he railed against the charges, as we said, attacked the judge, the judge's family, attacked the district attorney who is prosecuting him.

So let's bring in CNN political analyst and "New York Times" senior political correspondent Maggie Haberman. It was. It was great to follow your tweets in real time last night as the former president was speaking. I thought it was so interesting that you said this is the most united we've seen Republicans around Trump since prior to January 6th and the insurrection.

MAGGIE HABERMAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, I'll give you an example. "The New York Post" front page this morning, "The New York Post" has been attacking Donald Trump since the midterms, and today they chose they choose Donald Trump over Alvin Bragg, right. And so I think you're going to see a lot of that because so much of our politics now is about who you are against versus what you are for now.

Now, is this sustainable if Trump gets indicted elsewhere, which he might? He's facing an investigation in Georgia. He is facing two Justice Department investigations. We expect some resolution on all three of those in the coming months. I don't know that that much freight is sustainable, but for right now, Trump's folks are assuming that they can point to this first indictment and say, see, this means all of the rest of these are all political. And you saw Trump do that in his speech last night.

HARLOW: Yes, we did. You did as well. The question about the gag order, I think is fascinating. You and Kaitlan know Trump better than anyone else in this room, certainly. Does he keep challenging the judge here, saying try to silence me, try to silence, you try to silence me?

HABERMAN: Yes, yes, but I don't think that's the only thing that he's doing. I think he is trying to get the judge to recuse himself. I think that is part of what Trump's game here is because he --

HARLOW: Attack the judge into recusing himself?

HABERMAN: -- saying the judge has too many conflicts and therefore there's going to be -- that is what this is about in part. Now it's also in part about the Trump doesn't believe systems ought to apply to him and he's going to push them as far as he can, but just based on conversations I had with a bunch of people last night after we saw that speech, and after we finished our last together experience, Kaitlan and me last night --

COLLINS: Our last together experience.

HABERMAN: Our last together experience, the people that I spoke to made very clear that this is where this is headed, that basically, remember, this judge oversaw the Trump Organization trial, is overseeing Steve Bannon trial, related to Allen Weisselberg's sentencing, so Trump is trying to change the judge, which is one of the things we've seen Trump do in other cases over time.

COLLINS: And guess what. The Trump Organization trial had business falsification charges in it, so you can't ignore that.

We did learn some new information, though, in this indictment and statement of facts about David Pecker who was -- ran the company that publishes the "National Enquirer" being invited to the White House to be thanked for his help to Trump during the campaign.

HABERMAN: That was news to me, and that in everything that I read, there were a couple of things as you're reading the statement of fact that goes along with this indictment, and Paula is absolutely right in making the point that it's not clear exactly what the underlying crime that this relates to is. But when you read that statement of fact, there were so many things that happened that we had forgotten about. I had forgotten that AMI, the "National Enquirer," paid a doorman who had made what turned out to be a false allegation against Trump. But buried in there is this fact that David Pecker went to the White House, and Trump thanked him for his help during the campaign.

It was a reminder that this case, there's been a lot of focus on Michael Cohen, who is clearly the key witness and brought the bulk of, I suspect, documents, texts testimony.

[08:10:04]

But there are other pieces that support what Michael Cohen is saying. And I think that David Pecker's testimony -- remember, he was the first witness this grand jury heard from. He was one of the last witnesses they heard from. They brought him back. I think he will be really key as well.

HARLOW: Fascinating. Thank you very much, Maggie. We appreciate it. LEMON: All right, thank you very much, guys.

I want to talk about what's happening in Chicago because Chicago voters are making their choice. They made their choice overnight. CNN projects Brandan Johnson, a progressive Cook County commissioner, will be the next mayor of the city of Chicago, edging out Paul Vallas, a moderate former city school superintendent who ran on a pro police message. In his victory speech, Johnson says that he will be mayor for everyone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRANDON JOHNSON, (D) CHICAGO MAYOR-ELECT: To the Chicagoans who did not vote for me, here's what I want you to know. Here's what I want you to know. That I care about you. I value you, and I want to hear from you.

(APPLAUSE)

JOHNSON: I want to work with you. And I'll be the mayor for you, too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson joins me now. Mayor, thank you so much. We appreciate it. We have been describing this as a split screen moment. You saw what was happening here in New York. We were also paying attention what was happening in Chicago. Did you have one eye on New York as well? Do you have any thoughts on what happened here to the former president?

JOHNSON: Well, it's certainly evidence that you know that the politics of all that have failed not just the city of Chicago but the country, that people are prepared and ready to reckon, and to reconcile, right, to bring people together around a set of values that speak to the interests of everyone. And I'm certainly focused here in the city of Chicago, and I'm looking forward to being the mayor for the entire city.

LEMON: Let's talk about the crime, right? It was a major factor in this race, and we talked about it last time that you were here just a few days ago. You said in your victory speech that you want to invest in what actually works to prevent crime. What are those? Day one, what are those investments?

JOHNSON: Well, I mean, again, it's a testament to us as Democrats that we do not have to be afraid of leaning into what works. And what we do know if we want to prevent crime, we have to hire young people and invest in them. There's a direct correlation between youth employment and violence reduction. There's a direct correlation between investing in mental health care related services, mental health professionals, and violence reduction. There is a direct correlation between affordable housing and good paying jobs. These are the dynamics that ultimately prevent crime.

And if you are a mother or a father or a sibling, you would much rather have had the opportunity to prevent violence from happening than having provided the closure to solving the violence, right? So that's what this is really about. It's a real testament to what is possible just from the city of Chicago. But quite frankly, those of us who believe in a more holistic approach around the country.

LEMON: But you're going to need resources to do that. And some folks believe that you're going to need more than what you promised, 200 new detectives. Is that enough? Will other officers be hired here?

JOHNSON: Well, again, it's a comprehensive approach. If we are just simply looking at putting more money into policing, that has demonstrated to be a strategy that is certainly shortsighted. The unique opportunity that we have in this moment is to pay attention to the results that just happened here in Chicago. I was very clear about what's necessary. I've said this the last time we were on together. I am arguably the first mayor to wake up in the city of Chicago who lives in one of the most violent neighborhoods in the entire city. And so what I want for my family, which is a better, stronger, safer community, I want that for every single family across the city of Chicago.

And what Chicagoans said overwhelmingly is that we have to get at the root causes of crime. Certainly 200 more detectives that are properly trained to help solve crime, but we also have to make sure that we're investing in what works, which is making sure that we are actually adhering and enforcing the laws that are already on the books, like the red flag laws. These are situations where individuals who have guns should not have them. We don't manufacture guns in the city of Chicago, but yet they flow through our streets, and they've caused incredible havoc.

And so the comprehensive approach that we have put forth is something that the city of Chicago overwhelmingly embraced. And again, it's a testament to what can happen around the country. We don't have to be afraid of our values. We don't have to worry about the personal attacks or the attacks from the Republican Party claiming that we're going to defund the police. We can lean into our values and actually not just have this tough response to how we approach a public safety.

LEMON: Just a couple.

JOHNSON: You have to be smart about it.

LEMON: Yes, a couple more questions. So, please, short if you can, I would love concise answers, because I have a lot to ask you, you know, the defund the police, you made a reference to that and 2020. That slogan walked it back a little are explained the nuance on this program and others I'm not going to play but quickly, if you will. Do you think that hurt you in any way? I know that you won, but you think you would have won over more folks, if you had not said that?

JOHNSON: I mean, I think it's clear, you know, that people are smarter than, you know, in many cases the pundits give the constituents credit for. I mean, I'm confident that people are fully aware, that when we talk about investments that we have to be strategic and smart about it. When you spend more per capita on policing, here in Chicago than you do anywhere else in the world and we're still not as safe. You know, people start to call that into question. And so, this is about the allocation of our resources --

LEMON: OK.

JOHNSON: -- in strategic smart way. Like that's what people voted for.

LEMON: Your opponent Paul Vallas, conceded last night, but he says that the city is deeply divided. Do you recognize the division and where do you think the city needs to come together? Because Chicago, as you know, is an important city economically in this country.

JOHNSON: Well, absolutely, you know, I recognize the need for the city of Chicago to come together and that process has already begun. Look, I've served as a teacher and organizer in Cook County Commissioner happened to run a tough race, four or five years ago. And I was able to effectively unite not just my county district, which of course encompasses one of the largest bodies of government in the entire world.

We brought together the entire county, around the same values, implementing more affordable housing, making sure we're providing health care. And we did that without raising property taxes. It's a very straightforward message that we invest in people without placing the burden on working families. And that's what I'm looking forward to doing. Once I'm sworn in this in another 30 days.

LEMON: So, the emphasis before I let you go, hear the last question is. Is that in 2022 violent crime was down? Other crimes like car theft robbery were up. The concern, of course, crime, crime, crime. That was a big focus in Chicago, will play this back in a year. But where do you see those stats, you see those stats down, if we have you back here in one year?

JOHNSON: Well, what you're going to see is you're going to see investments. And I'm confident with that, with those investments, you know, we're going to reap the benefits of that. And that's the part that I'm encouraged about the most that people from all over the city of Chicago. It's been a multicultural, intergenerational movement around a set of values that speak very plainly to working people. So, I'm confident that those investments will be fully implemented. And as a result of that, I'm certainly looking forward to making sure that we are demonstrating that our values and our investments will certainly play a role in a better stronger, safer Chicago.

LEMON: Mayor-elect Johnson. Thank you very much, Congratulations to you.

COLLINS: Also, overnight --

JOHNSON: Thank you.

COLLINS: -- on the international front. We are tracking an Israeli police storming a mosque in Jerusalem's old city, arresting ultimately more than 350 people after they claimed that young Palestinians barricaded themselves inside. Were live on the ground with new details next. HARLOW: Also, happening today, Taiwan's President meeting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, they will meet in California something China calls a quote, serious violation. The potential international fallout ahead.

[08:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: President Biden is now speaking out against antisemitism today, as we approach Passover starting this evening. In a new CNN op- ed, the President called on Americans nationwide to confront discrimination and quote, not give it room to grow. The more President or the current President, as you know, said that he decided to run for president, after he saw what happened in Charlottesville. He's often talked about how the images of the Neo-Nazi riot that day have stayed with him in 2017.

He writes for CNN.com, "These acts are unconscionable and despicable. They carry in them terrifying echoes of the worst chapters in human history. They're not only a strike against Jews, they're also a threat to other minority communities. I stand with you. America stands with you. Silence is complicity. And we will not be silent." The President added that his administration plans to release the first ever national strategy to counter antisemitism outlining actions his government plans to take.

LEMON: Well, overnight, violent clashes erupting an Israeli forces stormed the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's old city. More than 350 people have been arrested and at least 12 people suffered injuries. Israeli police say that they moved in after young Palestinians barricaded themselves inside armed with stones and firecrackers among hundreds of worshippers. The mosque compound is the third holiest site in Islam and is also home to the holiest site in Judaism, known as the Temple Mount. Fear of more violence is a big concern as the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish Passover overlap.

HARLOW: Meantime, happening today, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will sit down in Los Angeles with the president of Taiwan. And a meeting that is already escalating tensions between the U.S. and China. Our Lauren Fox is live on Capitol Hill this morning. I mean, we remember sort of the outrage from China when Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan. Now, given the balloon, TikTok, so much more. It seems like this comes at an even more heightened time of tension. And China's saying it will quote, fight back if this meeting happens?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, it comes at an incredibly critical moment, Poppy. But I'm told from a source familiar that Kevin McCarthy is not going to be deterred from who he meets with or where he goes by the Chinese government. Instead, this meeting is expected to happen today between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Taiwan's President Tsai. The expectation today is that this meeting is going to be heavy in symbolism as Kevin McCarthy has made his speakership, really about the U.S.-China relationship. He's really prioritized this on Capitol Hill creating that Select Committee on China. And I'm told from the same source that Kevin McCarthy wanted to ensure that this was a bipartisan meeting. So, what you're going to see today in California at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is a group of House Republicans and House Democrats at this forum today. And one of those Democrats is Pete Aguilar, who's a member of the Democratic leadership. So, this shows it's not just Kevin McCarthy going out on a limb here. This is a bipartisan forum, a discussion expected to happen today.

[08:25:09]

And we should note that this isn't the only meeting with U.S. officials that President Tsai has had last week. I'm told that three U.S. Senators met with the president of Taiwan, including Senator Joni Ernst, Dan Sullivan, as well as Mark Kelly. So, another bipartisan group of lawmakers who met last week. Now, we should note that when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi went to Taiwan last August, the aggression from China afterward was substantial. And we don't know what the response is going to be. But China warned against this meeting happening today with Kevin McCarthy.

HARLOW: Yes, fascinating reporting. We'll see what the response is from China because McCarthy's making clear this meeting is happening more and thank you.

COLLINS: Also, this morning, voters in Wisconsin have flipped the ideological control of the state Supreme Court in a big moment. This could be one of the most consequential elections of the year. We're not exaggerating, we'll tell you which issues are at stake.

LEMON: Plus, a victory for the progressive candidate in Chicago's mayor race the Windy City's own. David Axelrod is here, he's going to weigh in.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)