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Erin Burnett Outfront

U.S. Intel: MH370 Deliberately Steered Off Course; Source: Boeing Confident Debris Comes From Boeing 777; U.S. Intel: MH370's Movements Were Deliberate Act; Trump Surges in New Poll, Doubles Lead Over Bush. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired July 30, 2015 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:10] KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news. U.S. intelligence shows it's likely that someone in the cockpit of missing flight MH370 deliberately steers the plane off course before it disappeared.

Plus, more debris washes up off the coast of Africa. Is it also from 370? OUTFRONT tonight, the man leading the search for the missing plane.

And Donald Trump, still surging in the polls and now taking time off, headed to Scotland for a golf trip. Let's go OUTFRONT.

Good evening, everyone. I'm Kate Bolduan in for Erin Burnett. OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news, CNN has learned that U.S. intelligence now believes Malaysia Airlines flight 370's final moments were deliberately caused by someone in the cockpit. This breaking development puts renewed focus on these two men, the captain and the co-pilot of the plane. Investigators did extensive psychological profiles of the captain and co-pilot seen here going through airport security. This is before boarding the doomed flight. No evidence of any psychological, drug or alcohol problems were ever discovered. All of these late developments coming as sources close to the investigation are increasingly confident that the debris discovered off the coast of Africa is indeed a Boeing 777. The same type of aircraft as MH370.

Now, justice correspondent Evan Perez, he broke all this news today. Evan, a huge development tonight. What more are you hearing?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, an assessment by a U.S. Intelligence Agency says, someone in the cockpit of Malaysian Airlines flight 370 deliberately directed the aircraft's movements before it disappeared. Now, this was based on satellite and other available evidence. And analysts looked at the multiple course changes that the aircraft made after it deviated from its scheduled course from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Now, analysts determined that it is most likely someone in the cockpit deliberately moved the aircraft to specific way points, crossing the Indonesian territory and eventually towards the South Indian Ocean. Now, this is an assessment that was done for internal U.S. government purposes. And it's separate from the investigation that's being led by Malaysian authorities, which the FBI and the NTSB have been assisting -- Kate. BOLDUAN: Yes. You say very specifically, someone in the cockpit.

But does the intelligence specifically point to the captain or the co- pilot, or are officials leaving open the possibility that a crew member or somebody else on the plane could have done it?

PEREZ: Right. The U.S. assessment doesn't go that far. The only evidence they have are the movement of the aircraft. And they believe that someone had to deliberately pilot this aircraft toward the South Indian Ocean. And I should mention that a Malaysian government report that was done in March, the anniversary of the crash, said that there's no proof of wrongdoing by the airplane's crew. We have it, quote, a portion of this says, quote, "There were no behavioral signs of social isolation, change in habits or interests, self-neglect, drug or alcohol abuse of the captain, first officer and the cabin crew." The hope right now Kate is that finding these debris in the last couple of days brings them closer to providing these answers.

BOLDUAN: Yes. Closer, but still it seems so far away at this moment. Evan, thank you so much. Big news coming this evening.

Also, tonight, sources are telling CNN that Boeing investigators are confident that the debris found on Reunion Island does, in fact, come from a 777 aircraft. And we know there are -- have been no other 777 aircraft that have crashed or are missing, especially, in this part of the world. And officials have now added this to their investigation. It appears to be remnants of a suitcase of some sort. And it washed up yesterday on that very same island.

Nima Elbagir is OUTFRONT tonight on Reunion Island near where the debris was first discovered. So, Nima, how certain are investigators right now?

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you definitely get a sense, Kate, that they are privately growing in confidence. But publically, nobody wants to be responsible for giving these families any false hope given how much they have already suffered. But the focal point here has to be on this latest debris that washed up this morning here on Reunion. It gives credence to this theory that's getting traction that there are currents that have been moving -- that would have been strong enough to pull this debris across that some 2,300 kilometers between what was originally thought to be the crash site and now this new focal point.

So, officials here are now looking very closely at these shorelines. Police helicopters patrolling up and down that beach, hoping to catch sight of any more debris that would build a broader picture of how much has been moving and how strong those currents are. The hope is now that this investigation and this evidence can be moved as quickly as possible, officials tell us, to lose in the south of France. But the balancing act is going to have to be, how much will they gain from coming here versus how quickly they can get the investigation going by getting all of this new material to them there. Because although of course there isn't a sense that the clock is ticking. Because there are lives that they are hoping to save, there is still this sense that the clock is taking to try and finally provide answers to these families -- Kate. [19:05:30] BOLDUAN: All of these just little critical pieces to such

a big puzzle they're still trying to piece together. Nima, thank you so much.

OUTFRONT with us now, CNN safety analyst and former FAA accident investigator David Soucie. Our Richard Quest is here and CNN aviation analyst Miles O'Brien. So, Richard, a lot of news coming in late today. What do you make of this? A U.S. preliminary intelligence assessment, someone in the cockpit deliberately steered this plane off course.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: I just hope they didn't spend too long and waste too much time doing it. Frankly, from day one, the facts have always been known and have pointed towards that general direction. The Malaysian prime minister himself, when he announced the turn back said it was by a deliberate act. And there's nothing startling here that for somebody like myself who happens to think that you have to have the mechanical issues still on the table, there's nothing startling here that makes me change my mind one jolt.

BOLDUAN: And this is carefully worded, David. I mean, it is one step from saying that someone in the cockpit also then crashed the plane. But is it time to just go there, do you think?

DAVID SOUCIE, CNN SAFETY ANALYST: Yes. You know the deliberate movement -- I'm going to say a word that we haven't said for over a year now. It seems like nefarious or conclude that in my mind at all. I think as Richard said that doesn't rule out anything and specially doesn't rule out any kind of mechanical failure.

BOLDUAN: So, Miles, it sounds like from these two guys we're back still at square zero, if you will. I mean, you have examined this entire disappearance extensively. Malaysia, they found no red flags between the pilots. But obviously, this puts them squarely back in the spotlight.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Well, let's not forget about the big Achilles heel on this aircraft. The open door to the bay, the electronics and equipment bay, which is a room you can walk in right beside the first class galley which has the entire server farm which runs this aircraft. It was open on that plane. It's a huge breach of security on that particular type of aircraft. So, I don't think we can say for certain -- I believe it was a deliberate act. But I do not think you can rule out that there was somebody who either stowed away in that compartment or in some way commandeered the aircraft using that capability, that access.

BOLDUAN: Well, then, why do you think U.S. intelligence is pushing out this assessment now?

QUEST: Right. I don't know.

BOLDUAN: Speculate my friend. Speculate.

QUEST: Why are they leaking it now?

BOLDUAN: There you go.

QUEST: Why are they leaking some facts now? One can only imagine for their own political purposes.

BOLDUAN: Mechanical -- you still think that mechanical is a possibility?

QUEST: I think that there's a mechanical option that cannot be ignored. Miles disagreed with me on this point. And others do as well. But I think that having -- look, let's take the pilot's suicide. I certainly don't think it was pilot suicide.

BOLDUAN: How can you be certain about anything then?

QUEST: Because if you look at the examples of pilot suicide, they don't go and fly the plane for seven hours afterwards. They turn -- they take control of the aircraft and they put the nose down straight into the water.

BOLDUAN: Miles?

O'BRIEN: You know, understanding the human mind is completely out of my realm. You know, what could motivate a person to do that? You know, I have no idea. But here is what I would like to ask Richard. Here we are 15, 16 months, if there really was a mechanical flaw that caused this, why hasn't it happened again?

QUEST: Oh, Miles, that's a ridiculous question as well you are aware.

O'BRIEN: Why is that a ridiculous question?

QUEST: It would have --

O'BRIEN: Wouldn't this pop up?

QUEST: Because I can throw that question straight back to you and --

BOLDUAN: Get your hands out of my face because I can't breathe.

QUEST: I can say, why haven't it happened before MH370? I mean, you can say it with -- you can say it with -- you can say it with all of them.

O'BRIEN: I defy you to give me the scenario that would cause the catastrophic, what appears to be a catastrophic loss of communication and equipment and in short order followed by this strange -- flight path for several hours. It doesn't add up.

SOUCIE: You clearly haven't read a book that I know Richard has.

QUEST: Yes. I was just about to say, David Soucie, plug your book.

BOLDUAN: "Why Planes Crash," David, go.

SOUCIE: Thank you. That's it. "Why Planes Crash." But no, the book is MH370, why it disappeared and why it will happen again. And it will happen again. How much time do you want to give this, Miles, before it happens again? We have been 17 months. How much time is there between major airline catastrophes? You're saying that in 17 months because it hasn't happen again. That that rules out. The fact that it was a mechanical failure. I don't think so, nor does my analysis of this think so.

O'BRIEN: Well, gentlemen, gentlemen, both of you -- I submit to you, I have not heard your plausible explanation for how a mechanical failure would lead to what we see there.

BOLDUAN: Pause.

SOUCIE: Well, it's an extensive analysis and it is there.

BOLDUAN: Pause for one second. And David, answer me this. With all of these theories and we have seen them all. We have discussed them all. We're discussing them here. Is there anything we're going to see wash up in the ocean, like we have seen this piece of debris that's going to get us these answers or does it all still come back to needing that flight data recorder?

SOUCIE: Yes, there's a very important piece and that's the ray dome of the aircraft, the front of the aircraft, which is also honey comb structure, very similar in texture and size and thickness to this particular piece that did float up there. So, if the aircraft crashed in the way that we think it did, that ray dome in front of the aircraft would have come off. And if there was a failure -- a mechanical failure in the electric code, and e-compartment which is where I suspect it was, there will be evidence of a burned debris floating in the ocean right now that just needs to be found. And I believe that it will be found. I think it's circling out there in the gyres and eventually it will be found.

BOLDUAN: And we're seeing some of the pieces they think that with some degree of confidence that seems to be growing at the moment that some of those things are starting to wash up. Richard, David, Miles, thank you.

Coming up next, we will going to talk about the debris, the debris that was found thousands of miles from where the main search area was. Were investigators looking in the wrong place the whole time? The guest tonight, the man leading the hunt for MH370. And who exactly are the captain and the co-pilot? What investigators think happened inside the cockpit just before it disappeared from radar.

And Donald Trump doubling his lead over Jeb Bush in the latest poll. So, why then is the frontrunner spending the day on a Scottish golf course instead of on the campaign trail?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:16:12] BOLDUAN: Breaking news on Malaysia Airlines flight 370. A preliminary U.S. intelligence assessment suggests it's likely that someone inside the cockpit deliberately caused the plane to go off course. We will going to have much more on that breaking news coming up. But right now, the only potential link to that plane is the debris

discovered off the coast of Africa. Sources tell CNN that Boeing investigators are confident it is from a 777 like MH370, and it appears to be part of the wing called a flaperon.

Nick Valencia is OUTFRONT with rare access to a plane just like MH370. He is joined by Michael Kenny, a Boeing 777 expert. So, Nick, show us exactly where this piece of debris came from on this plane.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Certainly, we are joined by the senior vice president of Universal Asset Management. The guy who has been following planes since he was eight-years-old knows about Boeing 777s, we're interested in the flaperon. What is it? Where is it on the plane? And what exactly does it do, Michael?

MICHAEL KENNEDY, BOEING 777 EXPERT: If you look over here, you can see the flaperon between the two bigger pieces.

VALENCIA: That's a smaller, about six-and-a-half foot --

KENNEDY: That's exactly -- the smaller piece right there. The flaperon is a combination of an ailerons and a flap. Ailerons on the outside of the wing controlling roll and flaps extending out from the wing controlling lifts at slur --

VALENCIA: How important is it to an airplane? We one have right here in front of us. We can take a look at this. But how important is it?

KENNEDY: It's very important. Because it affects the aircraft at the most critical phases of flight especially take-off and landing.

VALENCIA: And this is a flaperon from a Boeing 777. And this right here, this plate, tell us what that is?

KENNEDY: Yes. So, this is from a 777. This is the data plate on the component. Every single part would have a data plate identifying part number and serial number that tells you, this type of component and -- of an aircraft.

VALENCIA: But in this, as we're seeing in the debris that washed up on Reunion Island, we have some photos here, as well, there's nothing here. So, what are investigators having to go off now to tie this back to MH370.

KENNEDY: Absolutely. So, investigators are using footage like this and tying it to drawings, components schematics. In this case the actual part itself, to see is it the same component that we think we have found over there in Reunion?

VALENCIA: You have been following this from the very beginning since last year. There's a lot of interest in your field about this. You've noticed something specific about the damage to this flaperon that you found particularly specific about what happened.

KENNEDY: Absolutely. I mean, this component has two major attach points to the aircraft. If you look at those photos again, you can see that the actuation has been removed, you know, in a pretty powerful way.

VALENCIA: There's a significant force that pulled that off.

KENNEDY: Something forcibly removed that from the aircraft. Not only up there but also in the back section of the component as well. Normally it has this smooth curd off edge. If you look at the pictures, the component they found, that was forcibly removed as well.

VALENCIA: And is it strange or odd to you at all that the area that it was found or that this specific item off the plane was found? The buoyancy of this. I mean, this has to be especially buoyant.

KENNEDY: Yes, this component is made of mostly composite material. Previously, this would have been a metal or an aluminum. It's now composite. It's hollow. It's got a lot of ribbing structure with some sealed off compartments. It would float or at least wouldn't sink all the way to the bottom of a surface.

VALENCIA: Michael Kennedy, thank you so much for taking the time. No doubt in his mind like many experts that the debris found there just off the coast of Madagascar is from a Boeing 777. It's going to give investigators something to work with -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: Just the beginning of something to work for us for sure. Nick, thank you very much for that great look.

But now we will going to bring in Tom Foreman. Tom, you have been taking a closer look at this as well. I mean, since one piece of debris was found, do investigators now -- are they now expecting more to start washing up in this area?

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they have reason to consider it. Think about what an airplane is made about. Or guess, we're just talking about it right then. It is tough. It is durable. And it is lightweight, which means there are many parts of the plane that can float. The wings and the tail all have components in them that are made of that composite material. They are lightweight, even if they are torn apart, those parts may float for a very long time. You can have things down in the baggage hold for instance that may come out and float if you ripped it open the bottom. There are other components as well. If you move into the cabin of a plane, you have many things that can float.

You all heard the talk about floatable seat cushions in many planes. And there are things that passengers bring on board. They may have bottled water. They may have toiletries kits, they may have all sorts of things that could have air sealed into a plastic container or a bag. That could pop to the surface and float for a very long time. As disagreeable as your panel was being allowed here, Kate, I'm sure they will agree, every single piece you can get from this missing plane will help solve the mystery of what happened, or at least it might.

[19:21:02] BOLDUAN: Exactly right. Tom, great look at that. Thanks so much. OUTFRONT with us now, the man who has been leading the search for

MH370 for more than a year now. Martin Dolan is the head of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau. Commissioner, it's great to see you. Thank you so much for your time. I do want to get your take. I know you lead the search. But a question on the breaking news tonight of this preliminary assessment coming from U.S. intelligence that suggesting that it is likely that someone in the cockpit deliberately steered the aircraft off-course before it disappeared. What do you make of it?

MARTIN DOLAN, AUSTRALIAN TRANSPORT SAFETY BUREAU: As you point out, Kate, the investigation itself is a matter for the Malaysian authorities and our focus is on the search for the missing aircraft. In determining our search area, we belied muchly on satellite data. But we had regard to the range of scenarios about what might have led to the observed behavior of the aircraft. And we affected that into our search. But comments on those sorts of speculative reports are for the Malaysian authorities who are leading the investigation.

BOLDUAN: I'm sure they are getting those questions tonight. You said earlier today Commissioner that you hope to know in the next 24 or 48 hours whether this piece of debris that we have been looking at is in fact from MH370. Are you any closer to confirming this is from MH370?

DOLAN: We have been getting closer. At this stage, we are highly confident. But there still needs confirmation that it is it a part from a 777 aircraft. And the only 777 aircraft that we're aware of in the Indian Ocean and that could have led to this sort of floating is MH370. But as I say, we still need to confirm that through closer study of what appears to be a flaperon or identification of part numbers and so on.

BOLDUAN: Is it more of just getting your hands on it, getting eyes on it directly? Or is that not something that can be just established through purely photographs at this point?

DOLAN: We are certainly working with our French and Malaysian colleagues off the photographs. And obviously, working closely with our colleagues in Boeing. But we want to be certain on this. We want to do this thoroughly rather than saying possibilities and so on. And so that will take some little time. And then there will be further work of actually analyzing this component to see what we can understand about what might have happened to the aircraft at the end of its flight.

BOLDUAN: Now, if this is a piece of MH370, is something -- what you find on that piece of debris, will that impact or adjust the search that you guys have laid out so far?

DOLAN: Not at this stage. Obviously, we will review our assumptions about the search. But our search area has always been defined primarily by the satellite data and our analysis of that data. But we also have done drift modelling of where debris would have come from our search area. And it's entirely possible that debris could have floated to reunion around this time. So it's certainly consistent with our current search area. Drift modelling is a pretty uncertain science. And so we don't think we will get much more precision out of the location for this particular component in terms of our search area. We are still confident the satellite data gives us enough information to determine the search area and to search it thoroughly.

BOLDUAN: It's important to reiterate from you tonight that you are highly confident that this debris is possibly from MH370? Definitely a piece from a 777. Needing that further confirmation though. And that will come in a couple days. Commissioner, thanks so much.

OUTFRONT for us, next, there is renewed interest tonight on the men at the controls of MH370. Ahead, our special report on that plane's captain and co-pilot.

And the University of Cincinnati police officer charged with shooting and killing an unarmed black motorist, tonight that officer says, new video proves he is not guilty.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAY TENSING, UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI POLICE OFFICER: He was dragging me.

UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Yes. I saw that.

TENSING: I thought I was going to get run over. I tried to stop him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:29:29] BOLDUAN: Continuing to follow a breaking news tonight. CNN learning that a U.S. intelligence assessment shows it's likely that MH370 was deliberately steered off course. The assessment suggests it's likely someone in the cockpit caused the aircraft's movement before the 777 airliner disappeared. It is of course, renewing focus tonight on the captain and the co-pilot of MH370.

Kyung Lah is OUTFRONT with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah and co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid, the two men in charge of MH370 when it vanished.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good night. Malaysian Three Seven Zero.

LAH: The last transmission spoken by Captain Zaharie, age 53, a veteran who joined Malaysia Airlines in 1981. Logging 18,000 hours of flying experience. Father of three, passionate about aviation. So much so that he built a flight simulator in his Kuala Lumpur home in this gated community. Zaharie wanted to share what he knew, posting aviation tutorial videos on his own YouTube channel.

SHAH: You need to call the technician. LAH: After the plane's disappearance, questions swirled around his

marital status, but an international independent investigation committee found no indications that cast suspicion him or his co- pilot.

This is co-pilot Fariq. He was in the cockpit as CNN recorded a feature story on the airline shortly before MH370 disappeared. Age 27, Fariq joined the airline in 2007. Much less experience than his captain, this picture cast doubt on Fariq's conduct in the cockpit. Two South African women say Fariq invited them into the cockpit during a 2011 flight, a breach of safety rules.

As the search stretched into months, a former FAA investigator Thomas Anthony kept returning to this question, why the systematic shutdown of tracking devices aboard the plane?

THOMAS ANTHONY, FAA INVESTIGATOR: Is that a coincidence? It's an incredible coincidence.

LAH: Anthony spent 25 years with the FAA and the TSA investigating crimes against civil aviation. He agrees with the initial U.S. assessment that there was a deliberate act from MH370's cockpit, in part because MH370's disappearance feels so familiar.

Anthony investigated the crash of Egypt Air Flight 990, many concluded it was caused by pilot suicide. Silk Air Flight 185, American authorities determined it crashed because of actions taken by the pilot.

(on camera): What is your theory right now regarding MH370?

ANTHONY: In view of the context of all the evidence of everything that is on the ground and what's been found, it looks like that the most likely theory would be intentional interference by the pilot. I think that this investigation can only be solved on the ground. It may have clues at the bottom of the ocean. It may have clues on the beaches of Reunion Island.

But I think the answers -- the final answers of why this happened can only be determined on the ground.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAH: And when he talks about on the ground, he's talking about investigators in Malaysia looking into the background of the pilot and the co-pilot. He says there may be more answers there, Kate, about the how and why, even more than if they find the black boxes -- Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Reopen that look right into their backgrounds as they concluded it already once. Kyung, thank you so much.

Joining us now from Kuala Lumpur is Ismail Nasaruddin, and he's the president of a union representing flight attendants for all airlines in Malaysia. For 25 years, he was a flight attendant for Malaysia Airlines. Ismail, thank you so much for your time. Big news out tonight, the

U.S. intelligence assessment suggesting that it was someone in the cockpit that deliberately steered the plane off course before it disappeared. What's your reaction to that news tonight?

ISMAIL NASARUDDIN, FORMER MALAYSIA AIRLINES FLIGHT ATTENDANT: We took it as what we have seen before. Basically, I think we still are waiting for more evidence on what's been discovered yesterday. The families are told exactly how it is. Previously, there's news about the discovery of the airplane parts. So, we are not very certain about what's coming. We are hoping for more evidence to appear.

BOLDUAN: Now, with this assessment coming out from the U.S. intelligence community that it had to be someone in the cockpit that deliberately steered this plane off course before it disappeared, you know the captain. You worked with him.

Do you think he's capable of doing something like this deliberately?

NASARUDDIN: I still believe that our pilots or perhaps Captain Zaharie himself wouldn't have come to the extent of doing something like that. I mean, this is what we have known of Captain Zaharie. The people that have worked with him, me personally have worked with him. We have doubt that there are things like this that could appear to be more evidence in showing that the pilot have done something wrong.

So, we do not know exactly how far this would be, unless there's some real good theory to show us real strong evidence to point out that the pilots really did something to the plane.

[19:35:00] BOLDUAN: Yes. Looks like still pieces of very large puzzle.

Ismail, thank you very much for your time.

I want to get back to Miles O'Brien, who's joining me once again.

Miles, I want to get your take on what Ismail said right there. I mean, with this intelligence assessment, you get a lot of disbelief from the families and from him. He knew the captain. And they don't believe it that the captain could be capable of something like this.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: You know, it's important I think that we all separate two things here. That it was a deliberate act and who might have done it.

There's all kinds of possibilities here, including the fact -- and Ismail is aware of this -- that at the time of the incident, the electronics and equipments bay, which is a hatch near the first class gallery, was wide open. Anybody who had a modicum of capability of knowledge about that aircraft could have seized control of that aircraft by gaining access to it or stowing away in that compartment.

That's just one notion of one way this aircraft could have been deliberately taken off course. BOLDUAN: How vulnerable -- you talk about that hatch. But how

vulnerable is that hatch?

O'BRIEN: It's wide open. It's a very simple thing to open. You know --

BOLDUAN: With it -- explain again, how much you can control of the plane from getting -- from gaining access there.

O'BRIEN: You have the keys to the kingdom there. You can control the plane completely. The plane is a flying computer. That's the server farm.

That's the central -- that's the brain of the airplane, all communication, all the computers. Everything funnels into that room. And that room -- the door to that room was open. So, I think when we say deliberate act, we should be careful about pointing the finger at any individual.

BOLDUAN: Still, Malaysia looked in the backgrounds and the manifest of the crew and all of the passengers. Nothing specifically turned up. You wonder if it's time to go back through once again.

Miles, thank you.

O'BRIEN: Maybe so.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

OUTFRONT next, Republican candidates are cramming for next week's debate, while Donald Trump is in Scotland for golf. Is that his debate prep strategy?

And a white police officer pleads not guilty in the shooting death of an unarmed black man. He says new video supports his side of the story.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:41:13] BOLDUAN: Donald Trump surging in the polls, leading the pack of Republican presidential contenders, now has a double digit lead over Jeb Bush.

But today, Trump is not on the campaign trail. He is not even hunkered down, cramming for next week's first GOP debate. He is in Scotland, on a golf course, of course.

Dana Bash is OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kate, virtually nothing about Donald Trump's presidential campaign is conventional. I thought interviewing him at a winery he owns just a few weeks ago was surreal, but his trip abroad today may have topped that. (voice-over): One week before the first Republican presidential

debate, the GOP frontrunner landed his helicopter at his golf course in Scotland.

This is not your father's primary season.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You can have an amazing day and a half at Turnberry.

BASH: He is in Europe for the Weapon's British Open taking place at his Turnberry Trump golf course.

TRUMP: The world has asked me to be here. So, and I have a big stake in this land.

BASH: Trump's newest investment in his own campaign is paying dividends. Another new national poll shows him with a significant lead in the Republican presidential race: 20 percent with Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker trailing at 13 percent and Jeb Bush at just 10 percent, half of Trump's support.

One GOP candidate called the reason for Trump's rise simple, outsized attention.

SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've offered a tax code that you could fill out your tax return on one page, 14 1/2 percent. So, if I had a billion dollars worth of advertising and every network going gaga over that, you know what? I think we could get ours to rise, also. I think this is a temporary sort of loss of sanity.

BASH: It isn't all good news for Trump. He also has the worst favorability rating of any candidate.

And the bombastic billionaire tops the list of candidates GOP voters say they would never vote for.

TRUMP: We're diplomatic in our country and everybody hates us all over the world.

BASH: Trump is still making waves on some of the issues he discussed with us before going abroad, like immigration and what to do with undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S.

TRUMP: I would get people out and I would have an expedited way of getting them back into the country so they can be legal.

BASH (voice-over): Hold on. When you say get people out, are you talking about a mass deportation?

TRUMP: We don't even know who these people are.

BASH: But how do you find them?

TRUMP: We've got to find them. We've got to find them.

BASH: How do you do that? I mean, you -- you know, you're a business guy --

TRUMP: Excuse me, we have to find them.

BASH: But how?

TRUMP: Politicians aren't going to find them because they have no clue. We will find them. We will get them out.

BASH: When you say still get them out, the process of that -- there are a lot of the smart people who have been focused on this say it's not feasible.

TRUMP: It's feasible if you know how to manage. Politicians don't know how to manage.

BASH (voice-over): And on abortion. Trump was for abortion rights and now he is against them, with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of mother.

(on camera): Would you make sure that that exception or those exceptions would be in the Republican party platform?

TRUMP: Well, I think it would be something I would discuss very seriously with the people in the Republican Party.

BASH: There are a lot of people in the GOP who would fight very hard against the idea of adding those abortion exceptions to the party platform. That, immigration, healthcare, they're all many topics that Trump and other candidates, nine of them, will be asked to expand on when they stand on the stage one week from tonight at the first GOP presidential debate -- Kate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BOLDUAN: That is one of the few things you can be sure of.

Dana, thank you so much.

Joining me now to discuss, ordained minister, Russell Moore. He's with the Southern Baptist Convention, one of the most influential religious organizations in the United States. His new book "Onward: Engaging the Culture Without Losing the Gospel" is out this weekend.

Dr. Moore, thank you so much for your time.

RUSSELL MOORE, ORDAINED MINISTER: Thanks very much.

[19:45:00] BOLDUAN: You heard that part of that interview that Dana had with Donald Trump is getting a lot of attention. The fact that he says he would discuss with Republican Party the three exemptions that he supports, rape, incest and life of the mother in terms of abortion.

Is he -- with that kind of a stance, is he going to have a problem with evangelicals?

MOORE: Well, I think there's a bigger problem, which is the fact that he was pro-choice on abortion. Now, he says he's pro-life on abortion. He hasn't explained where the change happened.

I'm all for conversions, of course, as a preacher, but I'd like for him to explain how that happened and how he would -- he would fight for a culture of life. And that's especially the case when we have right now one of the greatest human rights atrocities and scandals with the Planned Parenthood videos. We need to have a positive statement from all the candidates as to how they would protect human life.

BOLDUAN: Do you not believe him on his change in stance?

MOORE: I don't know. I think that every candidate has to talk about here is specifically how I would fight for human dignity, for unborn children, also in terms of addressing racial tensions that we have in the country, how do we work for justice there, and how do we make sure that the human persons are treated with dignity and respect?

BOLDUAN: With that in mind, Dr. Moore, he was also asked if he's asked God for forgiveness. He was asked this. He said, I don't think so. I think if I've done something wrong, I just make it right. He went on to talk about, I do go to church, I drink the wine and I take the crackers. But I think that's about it.

With that in mind, why then is he leading the pack of Republican candidates when it comes to evangelical Republicans? He is topping -- you see that right there -- evangelical Republicans. He is at 20 percent. What do evangelicals see in him?

MOORE: Well, I think there are some people who will listen to a television evangelist that they wouldn't want to be pastor in their local church and doing their wedding or their funeral.

BOLDUAN: That's an interesting parallel.

MOORE: And I think that right now, what's happening in this country is there's frustration with Washington, with what's happening. And I think that right now, it's not so much a question of who is going to be president, it's what kind of message can we send? I think time will tell who is going to be chosen to govern.

BOLDUAN: It would be interesting, he's going to have -- as Dana said, he will need to expand on those positions in the debate. And I know you'll be watching that very closely.

Dr. Moore, it's great to see you. Thanks for your time.

MOORE: Thanks for having me.

BOLDUAN: Of course.

OUTFRONT next: does new body cam video prove that a white police officer charged with shooting and killing an unarmed black man is not guilty? That's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [19:51:00] BOLDUAN: Tonight, new video in the case of an unarmed black man shot and killed by a white officer. The prosecutor involved say Ray Tensing purposely killed Samuel Dubose during a routine traffic stop. The university officer pleaded not guilty, though, today to murder.

But this shocking video appears to tell a different story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAY TENSING, FORMER UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI POLICE OFFICER: Take your seat belt off. Stop! Stop!

(GUNFIRE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Jason Carroll is OUTFRONT with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New video showing a third angle of what happened moments after University of Cincinnati Police Officer Ray Tensing shot and killed Sam DuBose.

TENSING: I though he was going to run me over.

KIDD: Are you OK?

TENSING: Yes.

CARROLL: The video captured by the body camera of another University of Cincinnati police officer who responded to the scene. On it, Tensing is heard explaining what happened.

TENSING: I just got tangled in the care. I thought he was going to run over me.

CARROLL: Tensing, himself, in handcuffs, while pleading not guilty to charges of murder and voluntary manslaughter.

MEGAN E. SHANAHAN, JUDGE: The bond will be $1 million anyway.

(APPLAUSE)

SHANAHAN: Ladies and gentlemen, this is a courtroom. You will conduct yourselves at all times.

CARROLL: Among those applauding, members of DuBose' family, including his sister, who fought to have Tensing's body camera video released to the public.

TENSING: I'm going to ask you again. Do you have your license on you?

SAMUEL DUBOSE: I have a license. You can run my name. CARROLL: It's this video that shows Tensing pulling DuBose over for not having a front license plate after failing to provide his driver's license, which had been suspended, the fatal confrontation began.

TENSING: Go and take your seatbelt off.

Stop, stop!

(GUNSHOT)

CARROLL: Tensing says he reached into the car to stop DuBose from leaving and feared he would be run over.

TENSING: He was dragging me.

KIDD: Yes, I saw that.

TENSING: I thought I was going to get run over.

CARROLL: None of the video released shows tensing being dragged by DuBose's car.

Tensing attorney says body cam video shows Tensing on the ground, at least 20 to 25 feet from where he stopped DuBose.

STEWART MATTHEWS, ATTORNEY FOR RAY TENSING: He's getting up in the street. And that tends to corroborate what he said happened. He was getting dragged.

CARROLL: DuBose's family says in their eyes what happened is very clear.

AUBREY DUBOSE, BROTHER OF VICTIM: He was trying to cover up his tracks from the second it happened, he was covering up.

CARROLL: The DuBose family says the university feeds to do a better job of training officers like Tensing.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Do you believe your officer acted appropriately?

SANTA ONO, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT: The prosecutor has analyzed all evidence. He has more data than I have personally. So, I respect his decision.

TERINA DUBOSE ALLEN, SISTER OF VICTIM: He doesn't have an Uncle Sam anymore. Hey, officer, just run my name. Just run my name. Why didn't he just run his name?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: The family is just heartbroken. The DuBose's family also says that any officer who corroborated Tensing's story of being dragged by DuBose's car should also be held accountable. And, Kate, we can tell you that tonight, two officers, University of Cincinnati police officers, are now on administrative leave, pending the outcome of an investigation -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: Jason Carroll, thanks so much.

On a much lighter note for us tonight, why did this player break the cardinal rule of there's no crying in baseball? Jeanne Moos is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:58:15] BOLDUAN: There is no crying in baseball. Or, is there?

Here's Jeanne Moos.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You almost can't believe your eyes when you see a ballplayer with tears in his eyes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, boy, what a shock. SNY just took a shot at Wilmer Flores in the field crying. And it is very poignant.

MOOS: But is this 23-year-old met infielder cry can go because he made a big error? Doesn't he know?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's no crying in baseball!

MOOS: Unless you think you're being traded.

That's what Flores says he heard from fans, as he went to bat the previous inning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's got to be wondering, perhaps, why he's getting a loud partial standing ovation. I mean, hopefully, maybe somebody's read Twitter and told him, hey, dude, you're about to be a brewer.

MOOS: The media were reporting a deal that would send Flores to Milwaukee. The news spread through the crowd, thanks to social media.

TERRY COLLINS, MANAGER, NEW YORK METS: Everybody in the ballpark think he's traded but him. You guys think this game's easy to play? Play it with (EXPLETIVE DELETED) like that going on.

MOOS: Flores grounded out, then took his position, wiping away tears, which were replayed in slow motion. Flores signed with the Mets organization almost eight years ago on his 16th birthday.

WILMER FLORES, SHORTSTOP, NEW YORK METS: I was -- I was -- I was sad, you know, being a Mets forever.

MOOS: But when the inning of tears ended, Mets' manager Terry Collins took Flores aside to tell him --

COLLINS: There's no deal.

MOOS: There had almost been one, but it fell through, leaving one sports producer to compare the Flores and Wheeler for Gomez trade to the time a Chicago paper blew it by reporting Dewey defeats Truman.

These days, false news travels faster.

COLLINS: Everybody's got a telephone. Everybody's on it. I don't even know why anybody comes anymore.

MOOS: Instead of being jeered for his tears, Flores was praised. That kind of passion can't be bought. A player who wears his heart and his tears on his sleeve.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BOLDUAN: "AC360" starts now.