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Erin Burnett Outfront
ISIS Suspected of Firing Mustard Agent on U.S. Troops; FBI Looking For Two Men Who Came in Contact With NYC Bomb; Protests Growing After Fatal Police Shooting; New National Poll: Clinton Has 6- Point Lead Versus Trump; Egypt's President Responds to Trump's Muslim Ban. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired September 21, 2016 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:10] ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: OUTFRONT next, breaking news. ISIS suspected of launching a chemical attack on American troops. That story just breaking. Along with new major developments in the New York City bombing investigation. Police now looking for these two men.
Plus, more breaking news. Protests going this hour in Charlotte after police shoot and kill a black man. Was he carrying a book or a gun?
And my interview with the first Muslim President to meet with Donald Trump. What does he think of Trump's Muslim ban? Let's go OUTFRONT.
Good evening, I'm Erin Burnett. OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news in the New York terror investigation. FBI tonight looking for two men seen on surveillance video on a New York City streets the night of the bombings. Police say they took a bomb out of the duffel bag. They left the bomb but took the bag. A big that may contain crucial clues. Also the main suspect behind the New York bombings, Ahmad Khan Rahami praising Osama Bin Laden in a journal you are now seeing tonight for the first time found on him the day he was captured.
You can see his blood from that shootout on that journal. Police tonight releasing those stunning images. And much to get to on that story but first our Barbara Starr with the breaking news coming out right now that ISIS possibly used chemical weapons on American troops. And Barbara, this is an extremely significant and of course terrifying development.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: It is indeed. Good evening. This happened in Northern Iraq at an air base called Qayyarah where U.S. and Iraqi forces are located. The belief now is that ISIS is responsible for a shell fired into the base when U.S. troops went to go looked at it, they noticed something suspicious. They tested it. It tested positive the first time for mustard agent. This is a chemical agent that ISIS has used in the past against civilians and Kurds but the first time they believed that ISIS has used it against a location where U.S. troops are.
It is not a very effective chemical weapon but nonetheless a chemical weapon. So, it is causing a good deal of concern. The U.S. has been using over time air strikes against ISIS. Chemical weapons facilities. They will be looking for where this one may have come from and their ability to strike back at it. If there is good news in all of this, Erin, it is that no U.S. troops were injured. But the belief is that the shell, the shrapnel landed within several hundred yards on the base of where U.S. troops were located.
U.S. troops already have chemical protective gear in Iraq. They may have to be using it in the days ahead. This is an area where they are helping the Iraqis fight to retake Mosul. That is a place that ISIS does not want to give up. It is their caliphate center. In Iraq, they are going to hold on to it with all desperation and there is a lot of concern that this is the latest desperate move by ISIS -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Pretty scary. That base. Of course, it feels to me they're really in the middle of nowhere.
Thank you very much, Barbara Starr. Breaking news, a pressure cooker has just been found under a New York City overpass.
Deborah Feyerick is OUTFRONT with this breaking development. And Deb, obviously alarming development considering the bombings that happened in this area just days ago.
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. There is no question about it, Erin. And the NYPD bomb squad on scene responding to that report that there was a pressure cooker in that area. It was beneath a major New York highway at 134th street. They investigated. It appears it doesn't have any wires but the NYPD has been forced to respond to more than a hundred tips of suspicious packages, suspicious devices. And the police commissioner says, just keep them coming because they are nervous. They want to make sure that they don't miss anything. Especially because of what happened on Saturday.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK (voice-over): The FBI is eager to talk to these two men described as potential witnesses. Surveillance video shows the two men walking along West 27th Street in Chelsea when they see a carry-on bag which they take. After first removing its contents. A doctored pressure cooker that was in fact a terrorist bomb.
JAMES WATERS, NYPD COUNTERTERRORISM BUREAU CHIEF: We have no reason to believe that they are connected. That is why as I've said, you know, I can't stress enough, they are witnesses at this time.
FEYERICK: Two minutes after the first bomb detonates on West 23rd Street. Surveillance video shows Ahmad Khan Rahami four blacks away. First carrying the bag and then leaving without it. The bomb is placed across the street from a hotel with a busy outdoor cafe. The device is covered with Rahami's DNA.
PREET BHARARA, U.S. ATTORNEY, NEW YORK: That evidence includes 12 fingerprints recovered from the undetonated bomb from the 27th Street location in Chelsea. Including on the pressure cooker, duct tape and the triggering cellphone.
FEYERICK: Writings allegedly from the terror suspect show he wanted to die a martyr. REP. MIKE MCCAUL (R), HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: This is a
copy of Mr. Rahami's journal.
[19:05:03] FEYERICK: Multiple pages from Rahami's blood-soaked journal with a bullet hole were recovered following a shootout with Linden, New Jersey police. He writes, Inshallah, God willing, in Arabic, the sounds of bombs will be heard in the streets. Gunshots to your police. Rahami talks about U.S. oppression. And the slaughter against the Mujahedeen so called holy warriors in Afghanistan, Iraq, Sham, Syria and Palestinian. And he praises al Qaeda terrorists, Osama bin Laden and Sheikh Anwar al-Awlaki.
Prosecutors say this summer, Rahami purchased several bomb components on eBay, shipping them to a New Jersey business where he worked. Rahami may have tested the explosives two days before the attack. The family's backyard shows what appears to be scorched earth. A prosecutor says video from a relative's phone shows Rahami with a cylindrical container filled with incendiary material, partially buried in a backyard. Then, there's the lighting of the fuse allowed noise and flames followed by billowing smoke and laughter.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK: Now, Rahami's wife is on her way back to the United States. She is expected to meet with FBI agents on her return. Authorities have said that she is cooperating. In the meantime Rahami, he remains unconscious on a breathing tube. That is after having undergone surgery following a shootout in which he was taken into custody. The situation still fluid. And the only thing Erin investigators have to go on right now is to why he did this, are really the writings in the journal. But there are still a lot of questions as to why he picked the locations he did and did he have any help carrying this out -- Erin.
BURNETT: Obviously the crucial question tonight. Deb, thank you. And of course, they are now looking for two men. And we are going to talk about that now.
OUTFRONT now, James Gagliano, former FBI special agent. Paul Cruickshank, our terrorism analyst. And Bob Baer, former CIA operative. Bob, let me just start with you when Deb says. They're talking about who knew. You think the family know.
ROBERT BAER, FORMER CIA OPERATIVE: Oh I think the family knew. And I'd go beyond that. Now that more evidence is coming out, I think there are probably other people on the ground. New York City, you just don't steal a suitcase, empty the content. That is not the way it happens. The other thing is, you look at this explosive aluminum powder. HMTD. Someone went to a lot of effort to do this. If you go that much effort, that much planning, all the other bombs. You don't simply throw out with the first device in a dumpster and hope for the best.
I mean, something else happened there. Rahami got cold feet. There were some wires disconnected. He wanted to dump it. He wanted to dump the second bomb. And by the way this bag is a key piece of evidence. I mean, was there manifesto in there? Was there a command detonator that you could set this off by phone? We're missing a lot of pieces. And the fact that he was found in a doorway in a bar, are they may have abandoned him. And you talk about the claims, there was no claims. So, who wants to claim an operation that failed to this degree? And certainly the Islamic State wouldn't or al Qaeda and when someone like that does mess up, they just let him go.
BURNETT: So, Paul, let me ask you about this. And we now know. Let's just show the picture again. We have a picture of these two men that they are looking for. Look, it is a very strange thing. They are walking down the street. They take the bag. They take out the pressure cooker bomb and then they walk out with the bag. And if they were up to no harm, why haven't they contacted police?
PAUL CRUIKSHANK, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Well, and the longer they don't come forward the more questions are going to be asked, crucial forensics on the bag. But -- in New York and we know that if you leave anything in value in the street, it can be gone very, very quickly by the time you count to ten. It happens all the time, you leave something out and someone picks it up.
BURNETT: Right.
CRUIKSHANK: So that may actually not --
BURNETT: But a pressure cooker with wires coming out of it, full of ball bearings --
CRUIKSHANK: They liked the look of the bag and they thought, well, you know, fancy of bag and they were opportunists and that happens all the time in New York City I've got say.
BURNETT: Bob?
BAER: If I could just add something. I've had a suitcase stolen there long time as a duffle bag. And they just take the whole duffel bag. They don't go through it. They don't take the time. And especially if something is heavy like that and shiny, that it is something you want to steal as well. That makes no sense to me that somebody would empty a duffel bag and just take the bag.
BURNETT: So James, let me ask you about what else we know here. The video. Video of the family's backyard. OK.
JAMES GAGLIANO, FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT: Sure.
BURNETT: We have video of this. It is small and it's enclosed. And we know that there it is. Right? That is a small yard. You can see all the houses right next to it. OK? There is where an explosion happened they believe. OK? And we have Rahami's brother's cellphone. We know that cellphone was used to film an explosion in what they believe was that enclosed space. And you heard Deb describe it. You know, billowing smoke and laughter. Did the family know or help?
GAGLIANO: Well, I think Erin, part of that is going to be it is speculation. I've seen a number of instances over the years where people were involved in criminal acts in their own basement or in a room in the house and literally no one else in the house was aware of it. And they've also seen cases where the family was complicit either they were involved in it. Where they knew what was going on and they just weren't going to say anything about it. So the hope is that someone that did see that test bomb in the backyard would have called somebody in law enforcement and said, hey, I saw this. This didn't look like right.
[19:10:34] BURNETT: Yes. Well, all right, so Paul, let me ask you about that. I mean, this is, you know, this keeps coming back. It defies common sense that someone would have been testing explosives in such a small space and we know there were at least ten bombs. That is what they found. Right? So ten bombs that they believe were at some point in that home.
CRUIKSHANK: And apparently there was laughter on the recording.
BURNETT: On that cellphone. Yes.
CRUIKSHANK: Was not just one person laughing.
BURNETT: Right.
CRUIKSHANK: Generally, there tends to be perhaps two people when laughter is exchanged.
BURNETT: Right.
CRUIKSHANK: So they will be looking into that. Did he just film this himself and then go around and do this? Or was there someone else there? But Erin, this was a powerful bomb, high explosive. Tricky detonator. All of that could be points towards the international terrorism, a link up --
BURNETT: As you said, it had gone off successfully, you would see perhaps dozens of people who lost their lives.
CRUIKSHANK: Absolutely. And to make a device like this generally you need to get some kind of training. Not impossible he could have done this.
BURNETT: Yes.
CRUIKSHANK: But I think that is a point to people I speak to in the kind of counterterrorism community towards possible terrorist training overseas.
BURNETT: And what do you make of the fact that the journal, the blood-stained journal looks like a bullet hole in it. Found on his body. He had his journal on him.
GAGLIANO: Sure. I mean, it's -- when you find the evidence on a subject's body, it doesn't get any more close to the subject. I think this is also going to be a very important piece of this that the FBI's got 63 different legal attaches scattered around the country. And 56 field divisions, all of them in the country that had joint terrorism task force. Those pictures of those two men that we're trying to locate, that is out everywhere now. It's in every different country, we're talking to sources overseas. And I think that is going to help either those men realize, hey, we're in the wrong place at the wrong time and come in or somebody in New York, in the country or around the world --
BURNETT: I mean, there is a pretty full frontal pictures if someone know whose they are.
Thank you, all. And OUTFRONT next. Anger in the streets after police shooting kill a black man. Does it matter if the shooting officer is black too?
We're live in Charlotte as you see protesters gathering at this moment.
Plus, boxing promoter Don King's controversial introduction of Donald Trump today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON KING, BOXING PROMOTER: If you are intelligent, intellectual, you are intellectual negro. If you are dancing and sliding and gliding nigre, I mean negro --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Plus, my interview with the president of Egypt. He just met with Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, you'll hear what he had to say about Trump's Muslim band.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:16:33] BURNETT: Breaking news. Protesters gathering in Charlotte, North Carolina right now sparked by the shooting death of Keith Lamont Scott at the hands of a police officer. Police say, Scott had a gun. His family says, he was reading a book. Last night, dozens of protesters and police were injured tonight, police are trying to keep the calm, these just days after the police shooting of an unarmed black man in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Terrence Crutcher was walking with his hands in the air when he got shot. Boris Sanchez is OUTFRONT in Charlotte.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): -- began gathering last night outside of this apartment complex after police shot and killed Keith Lamont Scott. A 43-year-old black man. Within hours it was a scene spiraling out of control. As protesters thrashed a police vehicle, targeted officers with rocks, blocked the highway and set a tractor-trailer on fire. It all started 4:00 Tuesday afternoon when police arrived at the apartment complex to serve a warrant unrelated to Scott.
That is when officers say they saw him get out of his car with a firearm and then jump back in. When they approached, they say he came out again still holding the handgun. Witnesses say they heard police loudly order Scott to put it down. That is when two year veteran Bentley Vincent also an African-American opened fire killing Scott. Charlotte's police chief admits, it is unclear if Scott aimed his gun at officers but family members deny Scott even had a gun. Instead saying he was holding a book.
LYRIC SCOTT, DAUGHTER OF KEITH LAMONT SCOTT: He came out here every day to read him a book because he can't do nothing.
SANCHEZ: Lyric Scott began broadcasting on Facebook live moments after learning her father was shot.
SCOTT: The police just shot my daddy four times for being black. (BLEEP)
The police shot my daddy and my daddy is dead.
SANCHEZ: Police say no book was recovered but they did find a handgun.
SCOTT: My daddy ain't got no (bleep) gun. Look --
SANCHEZ: Today, Chief Kerr Putney lamented what he calls the misinformation being spread on social media.
CHIEF KERR PUTNEY, CHARLOTTE MECKLENBURG POLICE DEPARTMENT: But it is time for the voiceless majority to stand up and be heard. It is time to change the narrative. Because I can tell you from the facts, that the story's a little bit different as to how it's been portrayed so far especially through social media.
SANCHEZ: Police hope the right information will prevent violent protests tonight.
PUTNEY: We're hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: And here, Erin, we are here in downtown Charlotte where we followed this group of about 150 to 200 protesters. Right now they were chanting. So far they remain peaceful but there were some tense moments with police at police headquarters just a few blocks away. I should also tell you, Erin, Rakeyia Scott, the wife of Keith Lamont Scott put out a statement just a few moments ago saying that she's glad that people are exercising their First Amendment rights and protesting this, but she says, she wants people to remain peaceful and keep cool heads in this very tense time. She also said one final note, that though she heard from the chief of police today in Charlotte, she said she still has more questions than answers -- Erin.
BURNETT: Boris, thank you very much. We see protesters gathering there tonight.
OUTFRONT now, Van Jones who served as an advisor to President Obama. Former NYPD Officer Bill Stanton. Retired NYPD Lieutenant Darrin Porcher and Marc Lamont Hill, host of BET News and a professor at Morehouse College.
Marc, let me just start with you here on this. People were injured last night. Quite a few people. Sixteen officers were actually injured. We now know that the victim was shot by a black police officer. Not a white police officer. Police say he had a gun. Obviously, his daughter says not but the police say he had a gun. Did the protesters made a mistake by going out with all the facts?
MARC LAMONT HILL, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, I think, yes, the general sense and frustration and outrage around the nation not just about Charlotte but about Tulsa but about everything that has happened to the last few years. People are going to go out and be outraged. Because even if a person has a gun it doesn't necessarily mean they should be killed. It doesn't necessarily mean that they were pointing a gun, it doesn't necessarily mean that they were an imminent threat. It doesn't mean they weren't.
I mean, we always want to get all the evidence, we always want to get all of the facts. But there is a sense over the last few years, there is no reason to trust the police. There is no reason to give the police the benefit of the doubt. It doesn't mean we don't get the facts. But we don't operate from the assumption that police are necessarily telling the truth that their narrative is the accurate one and then finally whether he's black or not isn't really the point. Right? We didn't march and struggle and fight to get shot by black police officers either.
[19:21:10] BURNETT: So, OK, so you think the race of the officer is not relevant. Bill, let me ask you. The family says, Scott was not armed. They say he had a book. You know, his daughter is saying that officers placed the gun there. Police are saying absolutely not. There was no book. He had a gun.
BILL STANTON, FORMER NYPD OFFICER: Well, let's never let facts get in the way of a good protest. I agree with what a lot of what Marc was saying but I disagree with the benefit of the doubt. If you do not give police officers across this country, the benefit of the doubt, the whole social contract breaks down. Because then what will compel a cop to go out and fight crime like they did in New Jersey with the bombs, like they did in New York? We need to trust the cops. And what we're seeing here. You know, let the facts play out.
But in Ferguson, what happened there. In Baltimore, what happened there? It started out as one narrative and when the facts came to be no one wants to hear it then. So, what I'm for is let these facts come out and then let's go where the facts take us. If they are bad cops, they are not cops, they are criminals.
BURNETT: So Darren, let me ask you. I want to play again some more of what Scott's daughter said in that Facebook live video. Let me just play her. Here she is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT: Look, the police just shot my daddy four times for being black. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: So do you think that that is what might have happened? Again, keeping in mind I know Marc says it is not relevant. But I think it's relevant just to state it that the officer, the shooting officer also was black.
DARRIN PORCHER, FORMER NYPD LIEUTENANT: I think it is really difficult to make that assessment at this stage. But one of the problems that I have is a feel the Police Department could have gotten in front of this as quick as possible by providing an element of transparency. This is a public place. Therefore, I'm sure that there were videos in this particular area. Oftentimes, when I look at police incidents, one of the first things we do is release the name of the victim. Release the name of the perpetrator, backgrounds, et cetera.
But the police are very limited in getting that information out there. One of the things that came out was this was an African-American officer. I agree with what he stated earlier. It shouldn't matter what the race is. But the real issue here is transparency. And I believe, the Police Department had a strong disconnect with those communities. Had this been an aberration we wouldn't have had this riotous behavior. However the Police Department failed to connect with these communities and that is why we have this combustible situation.
BURNETT: Van, does the race matter for the officer?
VAN JONES, HILLARY CLINTON SUPPORTER: You know, not necessarily. It certainly is much more alarming when you have a white officer doing it. It kind of fits a certain narrative. But, you know, for a very long time people have been complaining about law enforcement in general. I think the thing that we have to remember is that trust is always earned and trust can be lost in a relationship. You can't just say trust me, trust me, trust me when the behaviors don't match the expectation. One thing that I think if you are watching these things over and over again. So often you are right.
Often that the community narrative changes. But also the police narrative changes. The police will put one thing in the report and then the video comes out, it turns out there is a big gap between the police report said and everybody signed off on and what the video shows. So we are in a big trust deficit. I think, you know, when there is a white officer, there is a heightened sense of alarm. But as Marc Lamont Hill said, when there is a black officer, there is still a sense of disconnect and distrust.
BURNETT: And Marc, there are a lot of people obviously, protesters who will want to believe that that gun was planted there, as the daughter said.
HILL: Right.
BURNETT: And not just her saying that, I mean, there is obviously no proof that is the case. The police are being dishonest in that case. But there are a lot of people who are ready to believe that.
HILL: Right. They are ready to believe that. There is a history of that.
BURNETT: Right.
HILL: There is a history of that. I mean, look at the Walter Scott case.
BURNETT: Right.
HILL: This is one example of many where you see an officer shoot someone in the back running away and then the weapon is planted later there. And many instances of this.
STANTON: Caught on video. Right.
HILL: And that's the only reason we believe --
STANTON: I mean, where is the proof this is a racial shooting? I mean, just like you have malpractice with doctors. You know, it may go to training. There may have been movement. So to say that cops just throw guns down --
(CROSSTALK)
PORCHER: But listen to this. Hear me out. Regardless if the gun was pointed or not. The issue is, we have a shooting and some life was lost. We need a competent investigation to play out. Police have put themselves in this position based on past experiences. When we look at issues as you mentioned in different places, police have put themselves in a place where Van mentioned the community needs to gain the police -- the trust from the police and the police have effectively failed at that.
HILL: You said, why should we jump to the racial -- I didn't say race. I said this is an issue around mistrust of police. Not mistrust of white police. Mistrust of police. Now, are black people are off on the business end --
BURNETT: -- protesters out there was because a black man who was shot.
HILL: There is no doubt about that. What I am saying is, that doesn't mean that I'm assuming that the police officer did it because the person is black. I think it is much more complicated issue that than. And second, I am not assuming that the police officer planted a weapon there. I am saying this is possible. The question is why would anyone even think it is plausible? And the reason is because it has happened before. Doesn't mean it happened today, it means it is possible. And we need to investigate to find out.
STANTON: Yes.
PORCHER: But think -- what is the solution --
[19:26:12] BURNETT: OK. All right. We're going hit pause there. Because we're coming back with more on this topic.
Next, Donald Trump's surprising response to the police shooting of an unarmed black man. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: This young officer, I don't know what she was thinking. Did she get scared? Was she choking? What happened?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: And the breaking news. A new poll just out on the presidential race just five days until the first debate.
And Jeanne Moos on how everything, well everyone has exploded talking about Brangelina.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:30:40] BURNETT: Breaking news -- you are looking at live pictures right now. Charlotte, North Carolina, protests growing over a deadly police involved shooting of a black man. The story front and center today in the race for the White House.
Brianna Keilar is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the campaign trail, the police killings of black men in Oklahoma and North Carolina are dominating the conversation.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: There is still much we don't know about what happened in both incidents, but we do know that we have two more names to add to a list of African Americans killed by police officers in these encounters. It's unbearable. And it needs to become intolerable.
KEILAR: Donald Trump specifically addressing the killing of Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, questioning if the female officer who shot him may have in his words "choked".
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: People that choke, people that do that, maybe they can't be doing what they're doing, OK? They can't be doing what they're doing.
KEILAR: Trump made those comments before a largely black audience at a church in Cleveland where he invited controversial boxing promoter Don King to introduce him.
King using language unheard of in modern politics from the podium of the presidential nominee.
DON KING, BOXING PROMOTER & DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: If you are intelligent, intellectual, you are intellectual Negro. If you are dancing and sliding and gliding nigger -- I meant Negro.
KEILAR: Trump did not acknowledge Trump's word choice. In a FOX News town hall taped after the event, Trump stressed his law and order message when asked how he would handle violence in black communities.
TRUMP: I would do stop and frisk. I think you have to do. We did it in New York. It worked incredibly well. And you have to be proactive.
KEILAR: His trip to Ohio, part of his latest pitch to black voters with whom he has historically low support.
TRUMP: Our African American communities are absolutely in the worst shape that they have ever been in before -- ever, ever, ever.
KEILAR: A false claim that vastly defies all of the facts of American history.
Trump's comments spawn outrage including from Congressman John Lewis, a civil rights movement icon.
REP. JOHN LEWIS (D), GEORGIA: I don't know where this man is coming from. Is he saying the conditions are worse than slavery?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Now, Clinton is leading Donald Trump overwhelmingly among black voters, but, Erin, she is still struggling with younger African- Americans. Many of them supported Bernie Sanders in the primary and they are now considering a vote for a third party candidate.
BURNETT: All right. Brianna, thank you very much.
And OUTFRONT now, Pastor Dale Scott, a Donald Trump supporter, who hosted Trump earlier today at his church, Hillary Clinton supporter Basil Smikle, Donald Trump supporter Jeffrey Lord, and Van Jones, Hillary Clinton supporter, is back with me.
Pastor Scott, let me start with you and Don King. Obviously, the controversial legendary boxing promoter introduced Donald Trump at that church -- your church today.
And he used the N-word. Let me just play again so everyone can watch it. You can watch the reaction of the people behind him. Play it again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING: If you are poor, you are a poor Negro. I would use the n-word. But if you are rich, you are a rich Negro. If you are intelligent, intellectual, you are intellectual Negro. If you are dancing and sliding and gliding nigger -- I meant Negro you are dancing and sliding and gliding Negro.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Pastor Scott, what did you think when you heard this? Everyone obviously behind him were smiling before he used the N-word and continued doing so after he did.
PASTOR DARRELL SCOTT, DONALD TRUMP: Well, we caught everybody off guard. It was a slip of the tongue possibly. Or either he said it accidentally on purpose.
You know, Don King is flamboyant, over the top, boisterous. I mean, he is who he is. And he was recalling a private conversation he had with Michael Jackson years ago. And in that private conversation, he used that N-word term with Michael.
And as he was recounting -- you know, what Don King really can't tell -- I can't tell if he slipped and said it or if he said on purpose. But he's 85 years old, and sometimes at 85, people say things that they wouldn't have said at 45.
BURNETT: So, Basil, you see the reaction when he starts with his, you know, going on what type of Negro are you? You see everyone laughing and smiling and Donald Trump is sitting there with a smile on his face.
[19:35:04] Then when he says the N-word, purposely or a slip, everyone continues.
BASIL SMIKLE, HILLARY CLINTON SUPPORTER: Right. Listen, I don't -- Don King can say whatever he wants. He's now a caricature of himself.
What's upsetting to me is that the men on stage behind him, particularly Donald Trump and what seemed to be two or three other white men behind him, seem to be more comfortable with him saying those words than I am, and I would be. And that is what's disturbing.
And so, if I'm Donald Trump, if you are thinking about courting African-American vote, do you not get up and say immediately, you know what? This is inappropriate? But no, he didn't do that. Hi carried on like nothing was untoward here.
And that is disturbing to me and the fact of the matter is he pays lip service to African-American community. It is patronizing and I don't expect more from him and that is why he's at 6 percent in the polls.
BURNETT: So, you would have stood up, Jeff, and said cut?
JEFFREY LORD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think this was about don king being don king and nothing more than that. And let me say in terms of the word itself. And I think my friend Van will agree. We were both at the White House Correspondents Dinner a couple of months ago. And Larry Wilmore, the comedian, gave a monologue, and at the end of it, he called the president of the United States the n-word.
Nobody said anything at that point, I was offended.
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I did.
LORD: Well --
JONES: Go ahead.
LORD: Well, yes, I know you did the next day, on that night. But I just mean, nobody on stage said anything about this. I don't think to this moment --
BURNETT: So, you're saying, it's too much to ask --
(CROSSTALK)
LORD: And there's one other thing. When you look at people like Jay- Z who make huge amounts of money using this term, and they are giving fundraisers for President Obama. I think this is disgraceful. Absolutely disgraceful. And it goes to the use of this word in society.
So, here we have Don King using it. And we're saying, where was the reaction? I'm saying we've got a bigger problem with that.
BURNETT: So, Van, do you buy that? Or do you think he should have stood up as Basil said?
JONES: I don't know. When somebody says like something like that, a lot of times, people just kind of go in their freeze mode, nobody really -- they don't know what to do.
BURNETT: They don't know what to do.
JONES: So, I was appalled and said I was appalled when Larry said what he said.
LORD: Yes you did.
JONES: Thank you for that.
I think we're in danger of the word kind of slipping into a more mainstream stuff.
But I will say, you know, if you are a rapper, if you're an entertainer, that's different than if you are being introduced to be president of the United States. The real problem here is that some of the more reputable African Americans and no disrespect to present company, but you don't see a Colin Powell, you don't see a Condi Rice introducing a Donald Trump.
And so, he goes and gets some of these more colorful characters sometimes and you run a risk. Why don't you have a Colin Powell? Why don't you have some of the more reputable people in this own party? And that's really what's going on here.
I don't want to spend a bunch of time on that epithet, he shouldn't have said it. But, you know, you put yourself in real risk dealing with somebody like that in the first place.
BURNETT: All right. A quick final word to you, Pastor Scott. SCOTT: Can I speak to that? Well, first of all, he and Don King have been friends for over 30 years and Don King is a native Clevelander who owns the largest black -- historical black newspaper in the state. He's done a lot for the black community and he's a friend.
And he had him introduced him as the friend and native Clevelander.
But I agree with Van as far as that freeze moment. I don't think the whites on stage were comfortable. I thought they were uncomfortable. But didn't know how to reply, it's like you said, a freeze on, you caught, what do you say, how am I suppose to respond to this?
I really don't think they know what to do. They weren't comfortable. They were uncomfortable.
BURNETT: All right. Thanks to all.
Next, the new breaking news: a national poll, and the neck and neck race, just days before Clinton and Trump are meeting for that first debate. The world will be watching.
And the Egyptian President al-Sisi OUTFRONT tonight. Muslim leader of the most populous Arab country. He met with Donald Trump this week. What does he think of him?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:43:02] BURNETT: Breaking news: just five days until the first presidential debate and Hillary Clinton is leading Donald Trump in a new national poll, just released. The NBC News and "Wall Street Journal" poll shows Trump trailing by six points nationally. But he's ahead of it comes to who voters trust with the economy. Could that give him the edge in the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania?
Miguel Marquez is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm expecting a huge turnout in November and we're going to have Donald Trump and we're going to make America great again. Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pennsylvania Republicans counting on enthusiasm.
PETE BECKLEY, TRUMP VOLUNTEER: You want to knock on that door. I'll knock on 722.
MARQUEZ: In an uphill battle to turn this blue collar state red in November.
BECKLEY: It wasn't won by Republicans for the last few presidential elections. We think Trump's going to win this state.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you going to vote for Donald Trump?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Probably, it's the only choice.
MARQUEZ: The last time Pennsylvania went Republican, 1988. The latest poll shows Clinton ahead in the states. But with exceptionally tight races in Ohio and Florida, Republicans here sense momentum.
(on camera): If Donald Trump wins Pennsylvania?
TERRY MADONNA, DIR. FRANKLIN & MARSHALL COLLEGE POLL: He wins the presidency. Here's why: Pennsylvania is more Democratic than both Florida and Ohio.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Thank you. Whoa!
MARQUEZ (voice-over): If he wins here, he wins there. Trump running strong in rural Pennsylvania, but needs support in vote-rich Philadelphia and its suburbs where a third of the state's voters live.
MADONNA: You cannot lose the Philadelphia suburbs. Not only are we talking about a large number of votes, but we're talking about the largest pool of swing voters.
TRUMP: Child care is such a big problem.
MARQUEZ: Trump announced his child care initiative appealing to swing voters, women and moderates in those Philly suburbs.
TRUMP: We're going to solve that problem.
MARQUEZ: He and his running mate, Mike Pence, have already been to the state nine times.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Hello, Philly!
MARQUEZ: Democrats, too, have descended on the Keystone State, fighting to keep its 20 electoral votes in their column.
[19:45:02] HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: So, let's go out! Let's make our case!
MARQUEZ: Clinton and Tim Kaine have been here 11 times and that's not including the Democratic convention held here in July.
Her most powerful surrogate, President Obama, made his first solo campaign event on behalf of Clinton right here in Philly.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Thank you all so much for coming out to help out with our 2:00 p.m. shift.
MARQUEZ: Voter registration in July and August ahead of 2008, a banner year.
So far this year, Democrats have registered 418,000 new voters to Republicans 321,000.
For both candidates, turnout critical.
CLINTON: I need you. I need you as partners --
MARQUEZ: Clinton seeking support from younger voters. Many still burned out from a primary in which their guy didn't win.
Jordyn Tannenbaum was a Bernie Sanders delegate. Like many, she says fear of a Trump presidency is a bigger motivation than love for Clinton.
JORDYN TANNENBAUM, CLINTON VOLUNTEER: It's not an election that it's OK to sit out. You know, you can't -- protest votes aren't going to do much this election. It's too risky.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: So, the registration numbers, the poll, they show Clinton ahead. Why is it a battleground state in Pennsylvania?
MARQUEZ: For three reasons. Trump is making it a battleground state. He's spending big money there now. He spent $3 million on ads already. He hadn't spent anything, zero, up to August. And now, he's spending like mad.
Clinton has to win Pennsylvania because if she doesn't it opens lots of doors to Trump getting to the White House. And the biggest reason is that many voters are voting because they don't like the other candidate rather than they love their own.
So, she has to keep up the pressure.
BURNETT: Right. And it obviously raises the question. It's about turnout. Miguel, thank you so much.
And next my interview with Egyptian President Sisi. The Muslim leader met with Donald Trump and speaks out about Trump's Muslim ban.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:50:47] BURNETT: Breaking news on our top story. A pressure cooker found under a major highway in New York tonight. The NYPD bomb squad responding moments ago. Police giving the call clear as New York place say they have been flooded with reports of suspicious packages of the weekend terror bombings.
Tonight, Donald Trump meeting for the first time with a Muslim president, Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is in New York this week. I sat down with him for an extended conversation.
And what you're about to hear about Trump's plan to ban or extremely vet Muslims coming to America may surprise you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: This week, you have been speaking at the U.N., you have had several very significant meetings, including meetings with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. You are the first leader of the Muslim world that's met with Donald Trump, the leader of the most populous Arab country, such a crucial country.
What was your impression of Donald Trump? Do you think that he would make a strong leader?
ABDEL FATTAH EL-SISI, EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): No doubt.
BURNETT: So, one of the things, of course, that's so important about meeting with Donald Trump is being the first leader in the Muslim world to meet him is because he has said he will ban Muslims from entering the United States. This week, he talked specifically about extreme vetting and said that he won't allow Muslims to come to the United States, Muslims from countries that aren't capable of carrying out that vetting. Did you and Donald Trump talk about his Muslim plan?
EL-SISI: The United States in general conducts very strict security measures for everyone who wishes to visit it. And this has been in place for quite a few years. It's also important for us to know that during election campaigns, many statements are made and many things are said. However, afterwards, the actual governing of the country would be something different and it would be subject to many factors.
BURNETT: It sounds like you think Donald Trump is saying what he needs to say to be elected, but that he might not follow through with the plan.
EL-SISI: I don't want to be unfair to anyone here, frankly. During election campaigns (AUDIO GAP) perception on a certain vision or point of view. Then, that vision or point of view gets corrected and it develops as a result of governing experience, reports and advice from experts.
BURNETT: You also had a chance I know to meet with Hillary Clinton this week. You have known here. Obviously, you have met her before. Second time you have met her since you took over as president of Egypt. You saw her and Bill Clinton at the Clinton Global Initiative here in New York just two years ago.
Do you think Hillary Clinton would make a good president?
EL-SISI: Political parties in the United States would not allow candidates to reach that level unless they are qualified to lead a country the size of the United States of America.
BURNETT: Clinton has spoken about you. In fact in a debate earlier in the primary with Bernie Sanders, she had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: We saw what happened in Egypt. I cautioned about the quick overthrow of Mubarak, and we now are back basically an army dictatorship.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: What do you say to that?
EL-SISI: I'm going to answer this question in two ways. I believe that Mrs. Clinton didn't make that statement after our most recent meeting between the two of us. But also in Egypt, there would be no chance for any dictatorship, because in Egypt, there's a constitution, there's a law, and there is a will of the people which will not allow any leader to stay in his position past his term which is four years.
BURNETT: In the United States, there is debate over what to call the terrorism that we have all seen. And Donald Trump uses the word "radical Islam". That is something some leaders in Europe also use. President Barack Obama doesn't want to use those words. He says it's not helpful.
From where you sit, is it fair to call the broader issue that we're seeing "radical Islamic terror" or not?
EL-SISI: Yes, it is extremism. It's truly extremism, Islamic extremis, which is something that we must confront and we must correct the Islamic rhetoric. I'm a Muslim man and it is very, very hard on me to say what I'm saying, but this is the truth.
[19:55:07] It is really important that we state the truth so that we could correct it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: Loud and clear that he thinks Islamic extremism is the right words. President Sisi and I talked about the war on terror, human rights in Egypt, the crucial issue, Egypt's explosive population growth and whether he thinks terror brought down the Egypt airplane. Our extended interview will air on OUTFRONT this Saturday on CNN International.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: Thanks so much for joining us. Don't forget, you can watch OUTFRONT anytime anywhere on CNN Go.
"AC360" starts now.
